Newspapers online in 1981
"Imagine, if you will, sitting down to your morning coffee, [and] turning on your home computer to read the day's newspaper. Well, it's not as far-fetched as it may seem."
TV report on reading news online, as broadcast on Bay Area TV station KRON in 1981. Quite entertaining.
At least, I assume it's real; if not, it's an awfully convincing fake.
Makes me wonder what in today's tech news will seem quaintly entertaining (and somewhat ironic) in thirty years.
Some lines of note (mostly from reporter Steve Newman):
Newman: These editors are programming today's copy of the paper into that same [home] computer.
[...]
David Cole, SF Examiner: And we're not in it to make money--we're probably not going to lose a lot, but we aren't gonna make much either.
[...]
Newman: Of the estimated two to three thousand home computer owners in the Bay Area, the Chronicle reports over 500 have [signed up for the service] by sending back coupons.
[...]
Richard Halloran ("Owns Home Computer," says the caption): With this system, we have the option not only of seeing the newspaper on the screen, but also optionally we can copy it [...] onto paper and save it.
[...]
Newman: Engineers now predict the day will come when we get all our newspapers and magazines by home computer, but that's a few years off.
[...]
Anchor: It takes over two hours to receive the entire text of the newspaper over the phone, and with an hourly use charge of five dollars, the new telepaper won't be much competition for the twenty-cent street edition.
(Thanks for the link, Joe!)
