In June 1995, GNN was sold to AOL, which continued its editorial functions while converting it to a dial-up Internet Service Provider.
The company then created an online version using ViolaWWW, a web browser that introduced enhanced HTML features such as formatting, graphics, scripting, and embedded applets,[2] and demonstrated a kiosk version that was deployed briefly at the Computer Literacy Bookshop in late 1992.
In February 1993, the company's CEO, Tim O'Reilly, authorized a four-person "skunkworks" team, led by Dale Dougherty and Lisa Gansky, and began planning for what would become GNN.
[4] According to Tim O'Reilly, the first advertiser was Heller, Ehrman, White and McAuliffe, a now defunct law firm with a Silicon Valley office.
The website was hosted at NEARNET, a project of Bolt Beranek and Newman (BBN) of Cambridge, Massachusetts.
- was described in the August 1993 press release that introduced GNN as a place where "... subscribers can not only read about [Internet websites], they can actually connect to them with the click of a button.
"[2] The catalog was organized into ten sections: The GNN marketplace included the following sellers: In addition to selling products, GNNDirect provided, in January 1995, an online way for individuals to make donations to the victims of the Kobe earthquake in Japan, via the American Red Cross.
[23] Lisa Gansky became vice president and general manager of GNN programming after the sale was completed.
Lydia Dobyns, who had not been with O'Reilly, was hired as vice president of product marketing and service operations for GNN.
[25] The service cost $14.95 per month for 20 hours of Internet access, and the GNN website featured original content in six categories: personal finance, sports, education, travel, Story Cafe, and Web Review.
[27] In mid-1996 it introduced a three-minute daily audio clip called "Spanq", hosted by "Trip Anchor" and "Uncle Dutch".