If you're seeing this message, it means we're having trouble loading external resources on our website.

If you're behind a web filter, please make sure that the domains *.kastatic.org and *.kasandbox.org are unblocked.

Main content

Open protocol development

Problem

The following passage describes the Internet but contains a missing adjective:
The Internet is powered by <???> protocols. As a consequence, any computing device can join the Internet as long as they have the ability to connect to another Internet-connected device. There is no need to pay a fee to implement the protocols or to learn how they work.
What is the most appropriate adjective to replace <???>?
Choose 1 answer: