NATIONAL INFORMATION INFRASTRUCTURE (NII)

A proposed, advanced, seamless web of public and private communications networks, interactive services, interoperable hardware and software , computers, databases, and consumer electronics to put vast amounts of information at users' fingertips. Note: NII includes more than just the physical facilities (more than the cameras, scanners, keyboards, telephones, fax machines, computers, switches, compact disks, video and audio tape, cable , wire, satellites, optical fiber transmission lines, microwave nets, switches, televisions, monitors, and printers) used to transmit, store, process, and display voice, data , and images; it encompasses a wide range of interactive functions, user -tailored services, and multimedia databases that are interconnected in a technology-neutral manner that will favor no one industry over any other. Synonym information superhighway.