Starlight Networks

Starlight Networks was founded in 1991 by Charlie Bass (engineer), Jim Long[1] and Mark Gang with backing from investors Accel Partners and Interwest Partners. The company created some of the first commercial Video-on-demand and Video Streaming products.[2][3] The first Starlight Networks product was named StarWorks[4][4] and enabled on demand MPEG1 full motion videos to be randomly accessed on corporate networks.

Originally the press referred to networked video as 'store & forward video' but that changed after Starlight Networks began describing it as 'Streaming Video'.[5]

In 1995 Starlight introduced Streaming Video over satellites with Hughes Network Systems.[6] In February 1998 Starlight introduced one of the first full motion video Web Conferencing products, StarLive! (the exclamation point was part of the product name).[7] Technology Analyst Om Malik wrote in May 1998 how Starlight software helped power Bloomberg Television and Starlight partnered with RealNetworks to enable Web Conferencing at Smith Barney.[8] General Electric also tapped Starlight Products for Corporate Communications and Training.[9]

Other investors included Sequoia Capital, and Merrill, Pickard, Anderson, & Eyre Ventures. Starlight was acquired by PictureTel in 1998.[10]

References