legal regulation of the Internet

Introduction. Internet technologies at the turn of the XX–XXI centuries radically affected all spheres of public life, led to a revolutionary leap in the development of Russian civilization. Post-industrial society has moved to a qualitatively new state – the information society, which is characterized by an increase in the share of intellectual labor, an increase in the volume of scientific knowledge and information used in production; the transition of economic and social functions of capital to information, which becomes a multifunctional value, becoming a product of production, a strategic resource, an object of communication, etc. Theoretical analysis. Simultaneously with the development of the information society, its spiritual core is being formed – a specific information and communication culture that incorporates the experience, norms and practices, ideologies, and values of network users. The state, as a participant in the Internet space, as a central subject of information exchange, cannot fail to engage in ongoing processes and the formulation of strategic guidelines for the development of the information society. Emperical analysis. The legal basis for the formation and development of the information society was prepared in the Strategy for its development adopted in 2008, as well as in the strategy for the development of the information society in Russia from 2017 to 2030. However, the 2017–2030 Strategy has a significant potential for long-term development, involving the transition from the information society to the knowledge society, in which the primary importance will not be technical equipment (a high level of IT technologies should already be achieved by this time), but the creation of technologies for the transfer, exchange, and use of reliable information between network users – citizens, organizations and government agencies. Results. As a result of the research, the author comes to the conclusion that it is necessary to manage the information society on the basis of strategic planning documents.