Go.com

Infobox Website
name = Go.com



caption = Screenshot of Go.com used since January 1, 2006
url = [http://www.go.com www.go.com]
commercial = yes
type = web portal
language = English
registration =
owner = Walt Disney Internet Group
author = Walt Disney Internet Group
launch date = launch date|1998|1|9
current status =
revenue =
slogan =
alexa = <100

Go.com (also known as The Go Network) is a web portal first launched by Jeff Gold, and now operated by the Walt Disney Internet Group, which is a part of The Walt Disney Company. The portal includes content from ABC News, ESPN, and FamilyFun.com, all of which are associated with Disney and are hosted under a .go.com name. Along with TimeWarner's Pathfinder.com, Go.com proved to be an expensive failure for its parent company, as web users preferred to use search engines to access content directly, rather than start at a top-level corporate portal.

Go.com was launched in 1995 by entrepeneur Jeff Gold (now president and chairman of the nonprofit World Environmental Organization), as an entertainment portal featuring one of the Internet's first web-based chat room networks. The site was affiliated with nearly 3,000 radio stations worldwide, and nearly 1 million people became members of the network, making it the second largest web-based chat network at the time. Go.com was acquired from Gold by the Walt Disney Company and redeveloped after Infoseek, created by Steve Kirsch, was merged into the Go.com network in 1998. The site originally started off as a search engine, using a distinctive green stoplight logo. However, in early 2000 Go.com was forced to abandon its logo because of a complaint of similar-looking logos filed by Goto.com ref|com.com (A court later ruled that Go.com had to pay $21.5 million in damages to Goto.com). ref|SEW2

In 1998, Disney expanded Go.com beyond the entertainment portal concept launched by Gold. In addition to its own content, the company used the site as a hub for other Disney-related sites, including ABC.com and Disney.com. Go.com also hosted personal web pages. In early 2000, with visits to the site dropping, Disney announced that the general portal would now focus more on entertainment. ref|SearchEngineWatch

Almost all Disney/ABC sites migrated to the Go.com domain, and the site was mentioned at the end of programs on ABC/Disney networks often (for example at the end of a program on ESPN, the end line was "For more visit ESPN.com, part of the Go Network", while the logo was displayed on-screen, or at the end of an ABC News program, the bumper would freeze frame at the end while the logo animates, accompanied by "ABCNews.com is now a part of the Go Network.").

However, in January 2001, Disney announced that it would be closing Go.com and its search engine, laying off approximately 400 employees and retiring the go.com tracking stock. ref|internet.comDespite its announcement, go.com never ceased operations. Instead, in March 2001, the site ended its search engine and switched to a search engine provided by goto.com. ref|SEW2 Go.com currently uses a search engine powered by Yahoo! and features content and news from its family of sites.

ABC's broadcast, cable, and owned and operated television station sites (excepting sites for the Disney Channel networks and ABC Family) continue to be hosted on the go.com domain, although a base address is used for branding and simplicity purposes; the ESPN site address redirects from [http://www.espn.com espn.com] to [http://espn.go.com espn.go.com] , for instance, while the site for WABC-TV redirects from [http://www.7online.com 7online.com] to [http://abclocal.go.com/wabc/ abclocal.go.com/wabc/] .

Notes

# January 28 2000 - [http://news.com.com/2100-1023-236221.html Judge bars Disney from using Go.com logo]
# February 3 2000 - [http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/article.php/2162291 Go Going Elsewhere, Loses Logo]

# January 29 2001 - [http://siliconvalley.internet.com/news/article.php/5321_573361 Disney to Discontinue Go.com Portal]
# March 15 2001 - [http://searchenginewatch.com/sereport/article.php/2163501 Go.com Becomes GoTo]

External links

* [http://www.go.com Go.com]