TV advertising of popular sites of the early 90s and the fate of old players. Part 1

Now there are so many large and small Internet companies that it is simply impossible to remember them all. Of course, we know 5-10 modern giants of the industry, but the list ends here. And let's remember how the development of Internet companies occurred in the early 90s? Yes, there were almost no domestic major players at that time, especially since there was no advertising of Internet companies on domestic TV. But there, in the West, such companies already existed, worked, and very successfully, and promoted on TV. In the continuation - several TV commercials of old players on the Internet market, and a brief description of the fate of each of the mentioned company / site. Even if you have not heard of such companies, watch videos - very entertaining.

Prodigy (1990)
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This company has positioned itself and its products as “what the personal computer was invented for”. Prodigy promised to connect hundreds of thousands of users, providing "hundreds of applications" for comfortable user experience.



Where is this company now?

Over the past decades, Prodigy has been selling and buying, changing owners and losing some units. In the US, this company is now a division of AT & T, but it is, if I may say so, a “dead” company that practically does not work. But in Mexico, Prodigy received an unexpected development under the wing of the telecommunications giant Telmex. Now Telmex owns about 92% of the Mexican telecom market; it is the local leader of broadband access to the Network (WiFi and DSL).

In general, Prodigy still lives and works, albeit as part of another brand.

CompuServe (1991)

CompuServe is the first major commercial online service in the United States. At one time, the company's website was the most popular resource on the web. It was a place where users connected to the Network could receive the necessary information.



Where is this company now?

Like Prodigy, CompuServe has undergone a number of transformations, sales, purchases and rebranding. This is currently an abandoned AOL division that is no longer developing. In 2007, all CompuServe offices in the United States were closed, and a little later, all offices in Europe.

AOL (1995)

America Online has long been a leader among US Internet companies. It was a company offering many services to its customers. Services, of course, were unique, AOL is the founder or ideological inspirer of many services and products.



Where is this company now?

Over time, AOL’s popularity has fallen, largely due to management’s unsuccessful decisions. Now AOL from the main Internet company of the world has become a mediocre "ballast", which the previous owner, the company Time Warner, has refused.

True, AOL is trying to change, and recently the company has positioned itself as a content provider. For example, companies own such resources as TechCrunch and MapQuest.

Comedy Central (1996)

This resource in the 90s positioned itself as "the only humorous site on the Web." In fact, it was the only major site of its kind. In any case, for the United States.



Where is this company now?

The resource continues to work, perhaps becoming more popular in the West than before. Of course, this is not the only such site, but still popular.

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