Internet inventor in web warning

The man who invented the World Wide Web, Sir Tim Berners-Lee, has warned that the increasing concentration of online power among the major tech companies risks turning the system into a weapon rather than something of public benefit.

He also called for a stronger regulatory framework to ensure a balance can be struck between social objectives and profit-making.

In an annual open letter published on his World Wide Web Foundation to mark the start the system on March 12, 1989, the 62-year-old, who was knighted by the Queen in 2004 for services to the global development of the internet, said the priority should be everyone having access to the web and ensuring that it worked for all - not just those in positions of power.