It was the world's first and most successful mass-market online service prior to the World Wide Web. The service was initially launched on an experimental basis on 15 July in Saint-Malo and extended to other regions in autumn Videotex was a crucial element in the telecommunications sector of many industrialized countries, with numerous national post, telephone, and telegraph companies and commercial ventures launching pilot projects.
It was viewed as a major force in advancing towards an information society. The telephone company prioritized ease of use. The French government's decision to provide free Minitel terminals to every household was a key factor in the widespread adoption and success of Minitel. Additionally, an average of million francs was saved annually by printing fewer phone books.
Beginning in May , 4, experimental terminals with a different design were distributed in Ille-et-Vilaine , and commercial service using Minitel terminals was launched in By the end of , there were , Minitel terminals in France. It became highly successful in when the French government distributed free Minitel terminals to households. Minitel became a financial success for the PTT, as using the service cost the equivalent of 30 euro cent per minute. By , games and electronic messaging accounted for 42 percent of Minitel traffic, [ 14 ] with messaging alone representing 17 percent of traffic by The platform became particularly popular among young people, who would engage in late-night sessions playing text-based online video games.
By early , 1. This expansion faced opposition from newspapers concerned about competition from an electronic network. In , Ouest-France expressed the concern that Minitel would "separate people from each other and endanger social relationships. By , three million terminals were installed, with , new units being added monthly. The telephone directory received 23 million calls per month, with 40, updates daily.
Approximately six thousand other services were available, with around new ones being added each month. The emergence of Minitel led to the proliferation of numerous start-up ventures , similar to the later dot-com bubble of World Wide Web-related companies. Many of these small enterprises encountered challenges due to an oversaturated market or poor business practices, such as inadequate infrastructure for online retailers. By the late s, the Minitel system had become widespread in France, with numerous products displaying their Minitel numbers as a direct marketing tool.
