The Microsoft Network The concept for MSN was created by the Advanced Technology Group at Microsoft, headed by
Nathan Myhrvold. MSN was originally conceived as a subscription-based
dial-up online service and proprietary content provider like
America Online or
CompuServe. Then officially known as
The Microsoft Network, version 1.0 of the service launched to the public (after an initial
beta test period) along with
Windows 95 on August 24, 1995. MSN was included with Windows 95 installations and promoted through Windows and other Microsoft software released at the time. Product support and discussion was offered through the MSN service, as well as information such as news and weather, basic
email capabilities,
chat rooms, and
message boards similar to
newsgroups. It also offered
access to the Internet and the
World Wide Web via
Internet Explorer. There was debate in the media as to whether MSN might be an "Internet killer" or "web killer", and some companies hedged their bets for the first year, creating content both on MSN and the web. However, MSN launched too late to be a real threat to the web. Following
Bill Gates' internal
"Internet Tidal Wave" memo, which refocused Microsoft to be Internet-centric, MSN began to move its content to the web and promote itself more actively as an
Internet service provider. Following the release of the web-based MSN 2.0 in 1996, Microsoft renamed its original proprietary online service "MSN Classic". Microsoft eventually shut down any remaining access to the MSN Classic service in 1998. The service was promoted to existing MSN subscribers beginning October 10, 1996; the general release followed on December 10, 1996. Microsoft promoted MSN 2.0 with a series of advertisements and promotional materials describing the service with the phrase, "Every new universe begins with a big bang." The company offered the initial release of the new MSN 2.0 service on a
CD-ROM that it sent to MSN subscribers in the fall of 1996. When inserted, the CD-ROM opened to the ambitious and flashy
MSN Preview, an interactive video-based experience that introduced current and prospective subscribers to the new version of MSN and described the features of the MSN 2.0 software. The MSN Preview was filmed at the
Paramount Theatre in
Seattle and was formatted as a guided tour of a
mock Hollywood-style
premiere event for the new MSN. It was hosted by a witty and sarcastic character named "Michael", played by actor
Michael Shapiro, who represented "Channel 5", which the software described as "
media,
zines,
attitude"; it was a "hip and edgy" content hub targeted at the young adults of
Generation X and
college-age members. The preview also included its own
jazz and
pop music loop that played during the installation process. Once installed, members accessed MSN content through the MSN Program Viewer, which was essentially an animated, stylized and streamlined
Internet Explorer shell interface on top of an
Internet Explorer 3.0
web browser. When members signed in, they would be presented with the several different "Channels", which were categories for the various types of content available on MSN. These channels included new services that launched in 1996 such as
msnbc.com, a news website now known as
NBCNews.com that began as a partnership between Microsoft and
NBC; and
Slate, an online magazine focused on politics and current events. Both websites were available to all Internet users, and they have continued to exist decades later, although they are no longer owned by Microsoft. These new destinations supplemented other Microsoft web-based services such as CarPoint and
Expedia, which were branded within MSN as "Essentials". An additional "Communicate" section was based around
email,
chat rooms (which were branded
MSN Chat and moved to the standard
IRC protocol), and
newsgroups (which were moved to
Usenet from a proprietary architecture), while a "Find" section was dedicated to searching MSN content and the rest of the Internet; it also provided a calendar of upcoming events and new shows on MSN. While the MSN shows approach was unique and innovative, the content was not easily accessible by members with low-end computers and slower dial-up connections.
High-speed Internet access was not widely available at the time, and some users subscribed to monthly dial-up plans that limited the number of hours during which they were allowed to access the service. The MSN 2.0 software was also unstable and would often quit unexpectedly. Their concerns were confirmed when Microsoft announced plans to close the entire MSN Classic service. As a result of all these issues, a website called "The Official msNOT Hate Site" originated as a negative response to the new MSN 2.0 software. The website claimed Microsoft patently ignored feedback from concerned members and censored anyone who spoke out against the upgrade; it further charged the company's handling of the transition to MSN 2.0 was "insensitive and ethically questionable." The website also mocked the music loop that played during the MSN 2.0 installation process because it repeated the phrase "too stupid to stop."
MSN 2.5 In 1997, after abandoning the interactive multimedia format, the MSN service was again refocused, this time as a more traditional
Internet access service. With the release of MSN 2.5 (which was
code named "Metro" and sometimes referred to in marketing materials as "MSN Premier") in late 1997, some exclusive MSN branded content was still offered through the MSN Program Viewer, but the service primarily directed members to traditional text-based websites that anyone on the Internet could access, instead of interactive shows. Beginning with MSN 2.5,
email service for MSN members was moved from a proprietary
Microsoft Exchange environment that powered email for both MSN Classic and MSN 2.0, to standard
POP3 and
SMTP protocols that could be accessed via any Internet email program, including Microsoft's own
Internet Mail and News, which became
Outlook Express with the introduction of
Internet Explorer 4.0. MSN also launched "Friends Online", a predecessor to the
MSN Messenger Service that allowed members to add each other as friends, see each other's
online presence and send
instant messages to one another. Accompanying the MSN Program Viewer in MSN 2.5 was "MSN Quick Launch", an
icon inside the Windows
notification area. Like the MSN Program Viewer in MSN 2.0, the menu in MSN Quick Launch could be dynamically updated to guide members to updated MSN content and services.
MSN 2.6 and 5.0 With the release of MSN 2.6 in 1998, Microsoft renamed the service
MSN Internet Access, and the MSN Program Viewer was abandoned entirely in favor of the more familiar Internet Explorer. Another new version of the service, MSN Internet Access 5.0, was released along with
Internet Explorer 5.0 in 1999. MSN 5.0 was largely identical to MSN 2.6, aside from offering the newer version of the browser. Also in 1998, Microsoft relaunched its
Microsoft Internet Start web portal as
MSN.com and began to focus on offering services under the "MSN" brand name to users of other Internet service providers. Building on the success of MSN's
web-based email service,
Hotmail (which was acquired by Microsoft in December 1997), the
MSN Messenger Service for
instant messaging was launched in 1999. Unlike the "Friends Online" service bundled with MSN 2.5 that required an MSN membership, anyone with a free
Microsoft Passport or Hotmail account could use MSN Messenger. == MSN Explorer ==