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I wish that MSNBC TV would change their name too. There was a time years ago when Microsoft thought that set-top TV boxes were the Next Big Thing - that they w
by SlipperySlope 14y ago
I wish that MSNBC TV would change their name too.
There was a time years ago when Microsoft thought that set-top TV boxes were the Next Big Thing - that they were falling behind in. Microsoft made huge investments in associated media that they thought would result in demand for Microsoft TV boxes ...
1. 221 million dollar investment with NBC to form MSNBC.
2. 425 million dollar investment in WebTV.
3. 30 million dollar investment in RealNetworks.
4. 1 billion dollar investment in Comcast, the cable TV operator.
5. 5 billion dollar investment in AT&T
6. Another 5 billion dollar invested in miscelaneous TV and Telco businesses.
Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-investments-2012-5 http://www.businessinsider.com/microsoft-investments-2012-5
- isani 14y agoI would add the following: * A short-lived redesign of MSN around the concept of "channels" and "shows" with a focus on animation and video (1996!) * Partnering with broadcasters to deliver interactive content over a TV broadcast signal (circa 1996-1998) * Including WebTV software and TV receiver support in Windows 98 Basically, I think that Microsoft followed a strategy focused around the early 90s "Information Superhighway" vision way into the late 90s. A key piece of that vision was that the superhighway would enter people's homes trough television, not computers. When the Internet started to gain popularity, many people still felt that it was a "baby superhighway" or a step along the way to the real superhighway.
- currywurst 14y agoI think it was just a little ahead of its time and of course without the polish of the current Internet TV executions like : Apple TV and Google TV