Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) Enables the Internet, 1974

In May 1974, the IEEE Transactions on Communications scientific journal published “A Protocol for Packet Network Intercommunication.” Authored by Vinton Cerf and Robert Kahn, this paper described the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) that supported the interconnection of multiple packet-switched networks into a network of networks. Split later into TCP and an Internet Protocol (IP), TCP and IP became core components of the Internet that DARPA launched operationally in 1983.

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Background

Discussions about packet-switched networks had been going on for a decade; however, “inter-networking” of distinct networks really started in late 1972 with Robert Kahn’s ideas for interoperation that were elaborated more concretely with Vinton Cerf in 1973.

In late 1973, Cerf and Kahn submitted their paper “A Protocol for Packet Network Intercommunication” for publication in the IEEE Transactions on Communications scientific journal. Appearing in May 1974, the paper described the Transmission Control Protocol (TCP) that supported the interconnection of multiple packet-switched networks to form an internet. Split later into TCP and the Internet Protocol (IP), TCP and IP became core components of the global Internet of today. Launched operationally in 1983, the 2023 Internet now links about 5.3 billion people and many billions more devices, many of which enable access to millions of applications of the World Wide Web (WWW) that rides atop the Internet.

The Internet’s development inspired or grew new businesses that made hardware and software products for implementing and using the Internet such as routers, optical fiber networks, Wi-Fi, cloud computing services, and many other WWW-enabled products such as search engines and social media applications. Since 1973, many innovators have created the protocols, networks, devices, and businesses that now make up the global Internet.

TCP and IP were contemporary with two other internetworking proposals: X.25/X.75 from the ITU-T (then the CCITT), and the Open Systems Interconnection (OSI) protocols from the Organization for International Standardization (ISO). Over time, the competition among these choices settled largely in favor of the Internet’s TCP/IP.