Prestel, the brand name for the British General Post Office's Viewdata technology, was an interactive videotex system developed during the late 1970s and commercially launched in 1979. It was developed under the leadership of Samuel Fedida at the then Post Office Research Station (now Adastral Park - though insiders still say "the Labs") in Martlesham, Suffolk. Image File history File links Prestelc. ... The term General Post Office is used by a number of postal administrations worldwide. ... In telecommunication, a viewdata is a Videotex implementation, a type of information-retrieval service in which a subscriber can (a) access a remote database via a common carrier channel, (b) request data, and (c) receive requested data on a video display over a separate channel. ... Videotex is a system for sending of pages of text to a user in computer form, typically to be displayed on a television. ... This page refers to the year 1979. ... The Post Office Research Station at Dollis Hill, London, was first established in 1921 and opened by the Prime Minister Ramsay MacDonald in 1933. ...

In common with the Ceefax and ORACLE teletext services provided by the BBC and ITV television companies, the system used a modified television to display information in a non-scrolling window of 40x24 text characters, with some simple graphics, conforming to the 1974 CEPT1 standard. Unlike the limited data available on Ceefax and Oracle, Prestel offered an extensive range of information that had been supplied both by a Prestel department at the GPO and by third-party Information Providers. This data was entered on a central Update Computer, "Duke", located in London, and then mirrored onto a number of satellites (mirrored computers) "Dryden", "Kipling", "Derwent", "Enterprise", "Dickens" and "Keats" (among others) that were located throughout the country. Access was open to all users except for a number of CUGs (Closed User Groups) membership of which was provided to a controlled userbase, usually on a paid subsciption basis. A BBC Ceefax page from 10 September 1999 Ceefax (phonetic for See Facts) is the BBCs teletext information service. ... ORACLE (Optimal Reception of Announcements by Coded Line Electronics) was a commercial teletext service first broadcast on ITV in 1974 and later on Channel 4 in the United Kingdom finally ending on both channels at the end of December 1992. ... A BBC Ceefax page from the 10th September 1999. ... Corporate logo of the British Broadcasting Corporation. ... Current ITV logo. ... 1974 (MCMLXXIV) was a common year starting on Tuesday (the link is to a full 1974 calendar). ... CEPT1 was a standard set in 1974 by the European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations (CEPT) for the display of Videotex. ... Mirror (computing) - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia /**/ @import /skins-1. ...

Whilst the teletext services were provided free of charge, and were encoded as part of the regular television transmissions, Prestel data was transmitted via telephone lines to a set-top box terminal, and while this enabled interactive services and a crude form of e-mail to be provided, it also involved purchasing a suitable terminal, and paying both a monthly subscription and the cost of local telephone calls. The original idea was to persuade consumers to buy a modified television set with an inbuilt modem and a keypad remote control in order to access the service, but no more than a handful of models were ever marketed and they were prohibitively expensive. This situation improved as home computers became more commonplace, and by the late 1980s it was possible to use a machine such as a BBC Micro or Atari computer, equippped with a 1200/75 baud modem and some simple software, to access the Prestel service. The telephone or phone (Greek: tele = far away and phone = voice) is a telecommunications device which is used to transmit and receive sound (most commonly voice and speech) across distance. ... The term set-top box describes a device that connects to a television and some external source of signal, and turns the signal into content then displayed on the screen. ... Wikipedia does not yet have an article with this exact name. ... The home computer is a consumer-friendly word for the second generation of microcomputers (the technical term that was previously used), entering the market in 1977 and becoming common during the 1980s. ... The BBC Micro, affectionately known as the Beeb, was an early home computer. ... For the concept Atari (当たり) in the board game of Go, see Atari (go term). ...

However, it was still an expensive proposition, and as a result, Prestel only ever gained a little market penetration among private consumers It did however meet with some limited success among businesses. Consequently the service was moved to British Telecom's commercial division and eventually came to specialise mostly in the provision of financial data. Market penetration is one of the four growth strategies as defined by Ansoff. ...

The 1984 hacker intrusion into the (very likely unused) Prestel mailbox of the Duke of Edinburgh garnered the network some unfavourable press, particularly when the simplicity of its security measures became apparent. The subsequent failure to successfully prosecute the intruders contributed to the introduction of the Computer Misuse Act 1990. 1984 (MCMLXXXIV) was a leap year starting on Sunday of the Gregorian calendar. ... A hacker is a person who creates and modifies computer software and computer hardware, including computer programming, administration, and security. ... The Duke of Edinburgh The Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh (Philip Mountbatten, formerly Prince Philip of Greece and Denmark) (born 10 June 1921) is the husband of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom. ... The Computer Misuse Act 1990 is an Act of the UK Parliament. ...

The Prestel name and equipment was eventually sold by British Telecom, the former telecom arm of the GPO, and purchased by the Financial Times, in 1994. BT Group plc (which trades as just BT, and is commonly known by its former name, British Telecom) is the privatised former British state telecommunications operator. ... The Financial Times (FT) is an international business newspaper printed on distinctive salmon pink broadsheet paper. ... 1994 (MCMXCIV) was a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International year of the Family. ...

Prestel Online, which was an Internet service provider spinoff, was sold to Scottish Telecom, and as of 5 June 2002, has since been merged into their other ISP activities. Thus plc is a United Kingdom telecommunications operator, one of the alternatives to the former state monopoly BT. History Thus plc began life in 1994 as Scottish Telecom, an offshoot of the privatised energy company Scottish Power. ... June 5 is the 156th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (157th in leap years), with 209 days remaining. ... For the Cusco album, see 2002 (album). ...

The dial-up viewdata service was run down as the Internet gained in popularity, and continues today in name only, as the FT's financial information service.

In contrast to the demise of the British system, the French version of Prestel, Teletel/Minitel, which used the same standard, received substantial public backing when millions of Minitel terminals were handed out free to telephone subscribers. As a consequence the Teletel network became very popular in France, and remains well used, with access now also possible over the Internet. Minitel 1. ...

A closed access Videotex system based on the Prestel model was developed by the travel industry, and continues to be almost universally used by travel agents throughout the country: see Viewdata. The Prestel technology was also sold abroad to several countries, and in 1984 Prestel won a UK Queen's Award for Industry both for its innovative techology and use of British products (it largely ran on equipment provided by GEC). A travel agency is a business that sells travel related products and services to end-user customers on behalf of third party travel suppliers, such as airlines, hotels and cruise lines. ... In telecommunication, a viewdata is a Videotex implementation, a type of information-retrieval service in which a subscriber can (a) access a remote database via a common carrier channel, (b) request data, and (c) receive requested data on a video display over a separate channel. ... The General Electric Company plc (GEC) is a British company that was renamed Marconi plc on November 30, 1999 after its defence unit Marconi Electronic Systems was divested and sold to British Aerospace. ...

References

• Fedida, S. and Malik, R. (1979). The Viewdata Revolution. London, UK, Associated Business Press, ISBN 0-85-227214-6

See also

• Compunet
• Micronet800
• World War II Colossus computer, also built by the Post Office Research Laboratories
• UK topics

Screenshot of Compunet shortly after the user has logged in. ... Some factual claims in this article or section need to be verified. ... Combatants Allies: • Soviet Union, • UK & Commonwealth, • USA, • France/Free France, • China, • Poland, • ...and others Axis: • Germany, • Japan, • Italy, • ...and others Casualties Military dead: 17 million Civilian dead: 33 million Total: 50 million Full list Military dead: 8 million Civilian dead: 4 million Total: 12 million Full list World War II... A Colossus Mark II computer. ... This is a list of topics related to the United Kingdom. ...

External links

• Review of Prestel from 1983
• Text and images from a booklet given out at A Fanfare for Prestel event at Wembley in March 1980.