An inside view of the WebTV revolution that didn’t happen

An inside view of the WebTV revolution that didn't happen

You might think it should have happened sooner. This week, Microsoft announced it would decommission its MSN TV (formerly WebTV) service. Even I didn’t think it would last this long, and I was WebTV’s greatest advocate back in the day. In fact, I was its official evangelist, hired by founder Steve Perlman and his company’s PR agency as WebTV’s national media spokesperson for a period leading up to and including the product launch.

In 1996, WebTV was tech’s hottest startup, considered a blazing harbinger of the future, all for pretty good reasons. WebTV was primarily an internet popularization play during an era of widespread uncertainty about computers in the home and the value of being online. If tablets and smartphones represent a Steve Jobs-ordained post-PC era, WebTV can be seen in retrospect as a pre-PC computing category. In my view, it isn’t modern web-connected TVs that finally killed WebTV (MSN TV) — it’s the mobile revolution that did it.

Filed under: Misc, Internet, HD, Microsoft

Comments

Related posts

Latest posts

I tried Opera’s new browser for mindfulness — here’s how it went

I tried Opera's new web browser that comes with features to help you relax and unwind. Here's how it turned out to be.

Galaxy AI helped Samsung reach a massive smartphone milestone

For the first time since 2018, Samsung managed to snag a spot in the global top-selling smartphone model ranks, thanks to AI push on the Galaxy S24 Ultra.

Exciting new software wants to be the Android of smartglasses

A new operating system, which wants to be the Android of smartglasses, has been announced. What's more, you can try it out today with the right hardware.

I’ve been dying for Steam Deck frame generation — so why is it so disappointing?

You can finally use frame generation in almost any game on the Steam Deck, but make sure to keep your expectations in check.

Adobe’s new AI assistant will finally demystify your phone contract

Adobe is offering a $5/month AI add-on that can scan, analyze, and summarize legal contracts with a single click.

We finally have good news about AMD’s RX 9070 XT

Details have been light about AMD's upcoming RX 9070 XT, but we finally have some good news to share about the GPU.

These fake RTX 5090 listings aren’t ‘anti-bot’ — they’re scams

Scalpers are selling fake Nvidia RTX 5090 GPUs on eBay while claiming they’re just trying to fool automated bots. In reality, they’re anti-consumer scams.

Plan special events easily with the new Apple Invites app

It's official! There's a new app available from the iPhone maker, Apple Invites.

Samsung Galaxy S25 vs. iPhone 15: worth jumping ship?

The iPhone 15 is a powerful phone, but how does it compare to the new Samsung Galaxy S25? Read on to find out.

Smartphones in 2025 are fun again — if you look beyond the carriers

Yes, phones you can get from AT&T or Verizon are getting stale. But there are a lot more great phones