In 2015, the International Telecommunication Union estimated about 3.2 billion people, or almost half of the world's population, would be online by the end of the year. Of them, about 2 billion would be from developing countries, including 89 million from least developed countries.<ref>"Internet used by 3.2 billion people in 2015". BBC News. 26 May 2015. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2018 – via bbc.com.</ref><ref>http://www.itu.int/en/ITU-D/Statistics/Documents/facts/ICTFactsFigures2015.pdfArchived 2015-08-12 at the Wayback Machine[bare URL PDF]</ref> According to Hootsuite, the number of Global Internet users has already reached almost 5 billion, or about 53% of the global population as of 2021.<ref name="digital2020OctStatshot">Kemp, Simon (20 October 2020). "Digital 2020: October Global Statshot". Datareportal. Hootsuite. Archived from the original on November 18, 2020. Retrieved November 30, 2020.</ref> The flat world of information has been created thanks to the Internet and globalization. This phenomenon allows individuals to have access to cultural and ideological beliefs without having to go to other countries, resulting in immobile acculturation.<ref>Vuong, Quan-Hoang; Napier, Nancy K. (27 November 2015). "Acculturation and global mindsponge: An emerging market perspective". International Journal of Intercultural Relations. 49: 354–367. doi:10.1016/j.ijintrel.2015.06.003.</ref>
World population<ref name="WWIU USCensus-WorldPop1950to2050-2014">"Total Midyear Population for the World: 1950-2050"". International Programs Center for Demographic and Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2017-04-17. Retrieved 2020-02-28.</ref>
World population<ref name="WWBS USCensus-WorldPop1950to2050-2014">"Total Midyear Population for the World: 1950-2050"". International Programs Center for Demographic and Economic Studies, U.S. Census Bureau. Archived from the original on 2017-04-17. Retrieved 2020-02-28.</ref>
The Internet Systems Consortium provides account for the number of the worldwide number of IPv4 hosts (see below). On 2019 this internet domain survey was discontinued as it does not account of IPv6 hosts, and therefore might be misleading.<ref>Reid, Brian (26 August 2019). "ISC terminates long-running IPv4 Domain Survey, looks towards IPv6". www.isc.org. Archived from the original on 29 June 2021. Retrieved 8 March 2021.</ref>
The Web index is a composite statistic designed and produced by the World Wide Web Foundation. It provides a multi-dimensional measure of the World Wide Web's contribution to development and human rights globally. It covers 86 countries as of 2014, the latest year for which the index has been compiled.<ref>"Web Index 2014 data". World Wide Web Foundation. Archived from the original on 16 May 2020. Retrieved 5 April 2017.</ref><ref>"Web Index – taking a break in 2015". World Wide Web Foundation. 24 November 2014. Archived from the original on 18 March 2017. Retrieved 5 April 2017.</ref> It incorporates indicators that assess the areas of universal access, freedom and openness, relevant content, and empowerment, which indicate economic, social, and political impacts of the Web.