Bill Gates appeared on a TV evening show in 1995 to promote a book. In this context, the tech visionary explained what the internet is and what opportunities it offers.
The internet as we know it today is indispensable. Without this technology, access to information would be severely limited.
Almost 29 years ago, the omnipresence of the internet today was unthinkable. The World Wide Web was not yet widespread, and very few people knew what it was all about. This was one reason for Bill Gates to explain what the internet is and what it can do during a TV appearance in 1995.
Bill Gates explained the internet to us on TV in 1995
What a performance by Bill Gates! Almost 29 years ago, Bill Gates was a guest on the Late Show with US host David Letterman. He used the appearance to present his book “The Road Ahead,” in which Gates dealt with the then-emerging internet age.
The internet as we know it today was still in its infancy in the early 1990s. Accordingly, the World Wide Web (WWW) was little known to the public and until then was more of a niche product used by only a few people.
Since Letterman was, like many others, unaware regarding this topic, he asked the Microsoft founder in his show, “What is this internet thing – do you know anything about it?”.
Bill Gates called it “The Big New Thing” and then launched into his explanatory mission.
What explanation did Gates provide in response? Bill Gates managed to answer the question in a simple and understandable way for as many viewers as possible, who only knew the internet as the “information highway.” In Germany, this new technology was referred to as the “data freeway.”
[The internet is] a place where people can publish information. They can have their own homepage. Corporate appearances and the latest news can also be found there. You can send emails to people.
Bill Gates in 1995 on the Late Show with David Letterman
How did Microsoft respond to the new technology? Bill Gates recognized the potential of the internet. Therefore, in 1995, the operating system Windows 95 was released along with Internet Explorer 1.0. To ensure this, Gates sometimes created a stressful working environment.
This resulted in the first browser war in history. Microsoft’s Internet Explorer and its strongest competitor, Netscape Navigator, fought for market leadership. By tying it to its own operating system, Microsoft was able to win this battle.
Microsoft maintained its market power in internet browsers for many years. Even the successor to Windows 95 was shipped with a version of Internet Explorer embedded in the operating system. While Microsoft’s browser was able to continue its victorious path unhindered, Windows 98 itself had to undergo a special testing process for USB devices: Microsoft had a vehicle with over 60 USB devices, torturing Windows 98 and its own developers.
