Abstract

The article is devoted to the Internet as a unique culture­shaping and socio­determining phenomenon that activates the formation of new spheres of human activity and interaction of virtual reality. In this context the Internet appears as a modulator of new information technologies that in their own set stimulate transformation of social role­playing dispositions of modern society, creating unique new type of society that has global character and actively changes the principles of social interaction. In this respect the aim of article is analysis of social changes initiated by information technologies and further transformation prospects evaluation. The author claims that information technologies have the most important changes in the functioning of the economic, social, educational, spiritual spheres of society. The article focuses on the fact that the Internet can be seen not only as information but also as a management technology that determines the functioning and development of political, economic and cultural subsystems of society. In general, it is noted that the specificity of sociological research of the phenomenon of the Internet is to identify the most important conflicts that arise in the system of social relations in essentially irreversible exploration and development of Internet technologies.