Netcom (United States)
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NETCOM On-Line Communication Services, Inc. was an Internet service provider headquartered in San Jose, California.[1][2]
Early history
Netcom was established in 1988 by
When first launched, Rieger was the only system administrator for the company. Users would call him early in the morning to fix Internet access issues until he hired night staff. In 1992, the company was incorporated.
As the World Wide Web became more popular, and users were looking for an easy way to surf the Web, Netcom released a Windows 3.1 based program called NetCruiser (originally it was to be called Internet Xpress, but there were legal issues with calling it by that name, so it was changed in the latter part of development - although the email addresses were still kept [email protected]). The NetCruiser service became very popular and made Netcom one of the leading Internet service providers by the mid-1990s. Netcom also had business T1, Frame Relay, UUCP, and dedicated dialup services.
In February 1995, Rieger turned the presidency of Netcom over to David W. Garrison, formerly of SkyTel. Under his direction, the company ventured into the business services market with web hosting and high-speed business connectivity products.[4]
On September 30, 2000, the shell account services were discontinued.[5]
International growth
In December 1995, Netcom Canada, a subsidiary of Netcom On-line, was launched in
In May 1996, Netcom Internet Limited, a subsidiary in the United Kingdom, was launched. In 1997, Internetcom do Brasil SA was founded as a joint project between Netcom On-line and Itanet, a Brazilian telephone company.
In 1996 the company called itself the world's largest ISP, with some 500,000 subscribers.
Acquisition and rebranding
On October 13 of 1997,
On January 12, 2004, Netcom Internet Ltd was rebranded to Viatel Internet Limited.[6]
Controversies and issues
Kevin Mitnick
In February 1995, computer security researcher Tsutomu Shimomura monitored Netcom's network to track down an unknown attacker who electronically broke into his computer. While monitoring their network, he discovered the person who compromised his computer was Kevin Mitnick.
Scientology
Netcom became headline news when the
See also
References
- ^ Helm, Leslie. "contact Netcom". Archived from the original on April 27, 1999. Retrieved 2010-09-07.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link) - ^ "Netcom to Set Time Limits on Internet Use; Technology: The rule will apply to customers with current services. The firm offers higher-priced plans with an access guarantee. Archived 2011-11-01 at the Wayback Machine" Los Angeles Times. March 25, 1997. Part D Financial Desk Start Page 1. Retrieved on September 7, 2010. "Charting a new direction for money-losing Internet service providers, San Jose- based Netcom On-Line Communications Services..."
- ^ "BOB RIEGER RESIGNS CTO AND BOARD MEMBER ROLE AT NETCOM." The Free Library. 1996 PR Newswire Association LLC
- ^ David Garrison, CEO of NETCOM, joins Traveling Software's board of directors; CEO of no. 1 Internet service provider brings Web expertise to leading remote and Internet communications software company., The Free Library. 1996 Business Wire 18 Jan. 2017
- ^ "The Last Days of Netcom" The Washington Post. October 6, 2000
- ^ "Form 20-F (Annual Report Pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934)". United States Securities and Exchange Commission Archives. United States Securities and Exchange Commission. Retrieved 27 March 2019.