Now network traffic does use up resources. Basically, the Internet works like a potluck supper. Everyone with a direct connection allows some of their system resources to be used by messages that are just "passing through". They allow this because other systems allow them the same privilege. Thus, it is in everyone's interest to allow some of their resources to be consumed by other persons' messages, because everyone comes out ahead.
So, sites with direct connections pay real costs in terms of lost computing cycles, extra cabling, fancier equipment, and lost disk space. These costs are passed on to their customers or shouldered by government subsidy. But there are no direct charges associated with using the system.
In the early days of the Internet, Government subsidy of the backbone networks was crucial. The backbone was built with government funds and it was government funds that paid for the extra equipment needed by the universities and laboratories that carried more traffic than they generated. With the development of commercial nets alternatives to the Government-sponsored backbone arose. The Government subsidy is still important, but becomming less so every year.
So, the short answer is that you pay for the network. You either pay your provider a flat fee or you pay as a taxpayer for Government subsidized network resources. Most of the cost you actually see will be in your own equipment, the cost of placing a phone call, and whatever your provider charges you.
<Chapter 5> Internet Basics
We've talked a lot about the Internet, but how do you actually use it?
There are three basic skills on which all Internet use is based:
Electronic Mail (E-mail)
File Transfer Protocol (FTP)
Telnet
All three commands rely on the Internet addressing scheme. An Internet "telephone number" of another computer is its Internet Protocol (IP) address, a number that looks like this: