British computer scientist Tim Berners-Lee proposed the World Wide Web while working at CERN in Geneva, Switzerland, creating a system for sharing information through hypertext links. His invention combined existing technologies—internet protocols, hypertext, and domain naming—into an accessible interface using browsers to navigate interconnected documents. Initially designed for scientific collaboration, the Web rapidly expanded beyond academia, transforming information access, commerce, and social interaction globally.

The World Wide Web's hypertext structure profoundly influenced experimental poetry's non-linear narratives and interactive forms. Poets created web-based works exploiting linking capabilities to offer multiple reading paths, challenging traditional sequential consumption. The Web's democratization of publishing also enabled diverse voices previously excluded from traditional literary institutions, while raising questions about information overload, attention economy, and the transformation of reading practices in digital environments.