In 1999, several technology companies joined forces to form the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA). On September 30, 1999, the 802.11b wireless LAN standard became available in commercial applications. This moment is considered the beginning of the existence of a wireless network, known today commonly as Wi-Fi.
1971: Early Wi-Fi: At the University of Hawaii, the ALOHAnet network system is created, which forms the basis for the further development of wireless communication, as well as the subsequent establishment of Wi-Fi.
1997: The 802.11 standard appears: The first version of the 802.11 standard is introduced, allowing for throughput up to 2MB / s.
1999: WECA is created: Half a dozen technology companies, including Aironet, which was later acquired by Cisco, formed the Wireless Ethernet Compatibility Alliance (WECA). In 2002, WECA changed its name to the Wi-Fi Alliance.
1999: 802.11b – the first “Wi-Fi” standard : Announcement of the 802.11b standard – the first to appear under the name “Wi-Fi”. It was characterized by higher speed and usability compared to the 802.11 standard. This moment is considered by many to be the real beginning of the revolution introduced by the development of the wireless network.
1999/2000: The first commercial devices based on 802.11b appear : “Wi-Fi” begins to appear in commercial devices, including popular laptops. From this moment the computer becomes truly mobile. Wi-Fi is beginning to gain in importance among consumers.
2002: Cisco helps the industry take a step forward: the free Cisco Compatible eXtensions licensing program launches that enables third-party Wi-Fi solutions to work with Cisco wireless networks.
2004: Wi-Fi reaches the sky: The first commercial flight takes place offering passengers access to a Wi-Fi network.
2005: Wi-Fi officially appears in dictionaries: The expression is added to the Merriam-Webster dictionary of the American English language.
2009: 802.11n revolutionizes the industry: Introduction of the new 802.11n (Wi-Fi 4) standard. Thanks to the use of MIMO technology, the 802.11n standard has enabled an increase in transmission speed, which has allowed the multiplication of the number of data streams and the number of antennas. The maximum transmission speed has increased almost ninefold (54 Mbps vs. 450 Mbps).
2010: A new wave of Cisco innovations: Cisco CleanAir technology has been introduced in the Aironet 3500 series of access points, allowing for automatic identification of interference and directing users to other, less loaded channels.
2011: Hot spots trend: The number of Wi-Fi hot spots worldwide exceeds one million.
2012: Domestic Wi-Fi: A quarter of all households in the world are connected to a Wi-Fi network.
2013: 802.11ac provides even faster speed: The 802.11ac standard is introduced, reaching speeds over 1 GB / s.
2015: Wi-Fi is becoming an inseparable part of life: According to IDC, Wi-Fi is the second most important thing without which people can not live. 18% of respondents even put it first. Above was only food – 30%. For example, sex (10%), television (8%) and alcohol (4%) were behind Wi-Fi.
2018: Wi-Fi as the main economic factor: The global economic value of Wi-Fi technology reaches $ 2 trillion.
2018: 13 billion devices connected to Wi-Fi: there are almost two Wi-Fi devices per person in the world.
2019: Time for Wi-Fi 6: Wi-Fi 6 appears, which reaches speeds of up to 5 GB / s and is based on the same principles as the 5G network. Both technologies are considered complementary. Wi-Fi 6 uses less battery for devices connected to it and provides a more predictable user experience. Cisco announces the Cisco OpenRoaming project, which aims to facilitate seamless and secure switching between Wi-Fi and LTE networks and public wireless networks.
2021: Further development of hot spots: According to Cisco estimates, the number of hot spots will exceed 500 million globally. It will be 500 times more than ten years earlier.
2022: Average speeds continue to rise: The average global Wi-Fi connection speed is expected to be 54.2 MB / s by this year, compared to 24.4 MB / s in 2017.
2022: Wi-Fi will be the driving force of the Internet of the future: Wi-Fi will become the dominant source of Internet access.
