Jun 18, 2025
David Bowie BowieNet member's mousepad BowieNet was David Bowie's own ISP that offered Internet for $19.95 a month as well as access to his exclusive paywalled webpage 1998 (x)
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David Bowie BowieNet member's mousepad BowieNet was David Bowie's own ISP that offered Internet for $19.95 a month as well as access to his exclusive paywalled webpage 1998 (x)
: BowieWorld II :
Hi!! A few days ago i said i have something cool about bowienet sooo here it is!
A few months ago i bought a used 2004 CD set and it came with these
I SOMEHOW never thought about actually trying to access it as im not in North America, it might be used already by a previous owner etc,etc, but i did today and heres what i can show you(i have no idea if its interesting for anyone i wasnt really interested in bowienet this much so i have no idea)
I did sign up but i have to wait to get verified, its still super cool imo
Desktop wallpaper for David Bowie's album Heathen, originally shared via BowieNet
The 25th anniversary of BowieNet
On Sept. 1, 1998, long-time internet aficionado David Bowie and the network services companies UltraStar and Concentric Network Corp launched BowieNet in the US. It was effectively the first internet service provider run or branded by a rock star and a social media platform for Bowieheads — one that the Duke himself would frequent over the years. For a monthly fee, fans received dial-up internet access, unreleased music, artwork, live chats, first-in-line tickets, backstage access, tickets to private, fan club-only concerts, and BTS gems... until it faded away in 2006.
Today, it's easy to understate how forward-thinking and Very Online this move by Bowie actually was. BowieNet was a little before my time but I always marvel at its existence. I'd kill to go back in time and chat to Sailor online.
Who remembers BowieNet? | https://bi.org/en/famous/david-bowie #BiFacts
Artists like Duchamp were so prescient here – the idea that the piece of work is not finished until the audience comes to it and adds their own interpretation, and what the piece of art is about is the grey space in the middle. That grey space in the middle is what the 21st century is going to be all about.
David Bowie, BowieNet: how David Bowie's ISP foresaw the future of the internet, The Guardian, Keith Stuart, 11 Jan 2016