"They used to be Muggle phones," George said. "But they were put under a Protean charm in the workshop. Dad called this artifact a Magiphone. We have some of those too."
Richard picked up one of the tape recorders and twirled it around in his hands. Immediately, he noticed the extra keys-not the usual ones from one to nine and zero, but from one to fifteen. Beyond these were two more buttons: green and red. On the back of each receiver, a number from one to five was painted in white.
George began to explain:
"With these artifacts, you can talk to the owner of one of the fifteen Magiphones at any distance. We all have one. You press the owner's number and then the green button. To end the conversation, press the red button. Dad is number six, Mum is number seven, Bill is number eight, Charlie is number nine. Percy is number ten, Fred is number eleven, I am number twelve, Ron is number thirteen, and Ginny is number fourteen. The fifteenth receiver is in the workshop."
"Hmm," Richard drawled. "So I have numbers one through five. But did I hear you right-you said I can reach anywhere on the planet?"
"Exactly!" Fred said proudly.
Richie pressed "6" and dialed. When he lifted the receiver to his ear, he heard nothing but silence. There was no familiar dial tone, like on a telephone. But soon Arthur Weasley's voice came through the speaker.
- Hello. Lord Rich, is that you?
"Good afternoon, Mr. Weasley. Thank you for the prototypes, that's an interesting idea. Do you have any way of identifying the subscriber's number?"
"Hello, Lord," Arthur replied. "Yes, we've enchanted the recorder so that the number incoming calls appears on the screen."
"Mr. Weasley, your boys said these artifacts work anywhere in the world. Is that true?"
"Yes, sir," said Arthur. "It's Protean magic!"
- Mr. Weasley, tell me, is it possible to transmit other information besides the voice?
"Of course!" Arthur said affirmatively. "We can make combined mirrors that can transmit both image and sound. Or just sound, or text, by combining several parchments."
"But can you transmit information simply as a stream of light?" Richard asked excitedly. "Ones and zeros. So, a microscopic beam of light, and the absence of it. Surely you can transmit an image somehow?"
"Um..." Arthur Weasley said thoughtfully, then added, "I suppose something like that could be done. I'm just not quite sure what you mean."
"Mr. Weasley, I need a variety of miniature devices that can receive and transmit information in the form of directed beams of light or lasers. This artifact will need to be made compatible with Muggle computer boards. I'll ask my friends to send you engineers who can write a more detailed technical specification and explain the concept."
"Very well, Lord Rich," Arthur replied. "I'll tell the boys at the workshop to be ready to receive the next batch of Muggles."
"Thank you, Mr. Weasley. You delight and surprise me, as always. All the best."
The Weasley twins and Hermione looked at Richard with curiosity.
"Richie, what are you up to?" Hermione asked.
"Oh, yes, most great Lord," Fred said in a joking tone, "share your wisdom with your foolish subjects."
"Gentlemen, ladies," Richie bowed slightly to each of those present in the compartment. "You see before you a future magnate, whose invisible tentacles will envelop the entire world in internet. In less than ten years, my satellites in orbit around the planet will provide free internet to every inhabitant of Earth."
"Free?" Hermione asked.
"The Internet?" Fred asked, puzzled.
"The Internet!" Richard replied. "A treasure trove of knowledge. All the information known to mankind, accessible to anyone: books, movies, music, photographs, newspapers, magazines, games. But, of course, most people will just be looking at pictures of cats, arguing about stupid things, and watching other people try to reproduce."
Hermione's cheeks flushed. She said:
"Richie, I know what the internet is, although I'm not sure it's exactly like this. But why is it free? Is it profitable?"
"Oh, yes, Hermione!" Richard drawled, pleased. "It's incredibly profitable. Insanely profitable. A narrow data channel will be provided for free-five hundred and twelve kilobits per second. That should attract many users. But as they get better, they'll want more. And then they'll be able to pay a subscription fee to upgrade to a wider channel."
"Five hundred and twelve kilobits?!" Hermione said in amazement. "That's a lot!"
- Ha-ha-ha!
Richard, a child of another world where a gigabit connection was considered too small, couldn't help but laugh. When he calmed down, he explained:
"It seems like a lot now. In ten years it'll be alright, but in thirty years it'll seem too slow. In half a century, it'll turn out that this speed is only good for pinging."
Hermione couldn't help but ask:
"But how could such a thing be accomplished? Wouldn't that violate the Statute of Secrecy?"
"No," Rich shook his head. "I'll simply create a factory to produce secret 'chips' that I won't patent. Everyone will think my company produces unique technical products for high-speed data transfer. But in reality, I'll sell modems with enchanted chips. I'll just have to devise a security system so that if someone tries to remove the miniature artifact, it self-destructs. This won't compromise the statute of secrecy, so the wizards shouldn't care. The only problem will be monopoly. Antitrust sanctions will surely be a real pain, but there will always be ways around them."
"Yes? How?" Hermione asked.
Fred and George listened to Richard's speech with rapt expressions on their faces. They looked at him as if he were the earthly incarnation of a god.
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