1900-1909 | 1910-1919 | 1920-1929 | 1930-1939 | 1940-1949 | 1950-1959 | 1960-1969 | 1970-1979 | 1980-1989 | 1990-1999
20th Century
Eighth Decade

1970: Postal Reform Bill makes U.S. Postal Service a government corporation.
1970: In Germany, a videodisc is demonstrated.
1970: U.S. Post Office and Western Union offer Mailgrams.
1970: The computer floppy disc is an instant success.
1971: Intel builds the microprocessor, "a computer on a chip."
1971: Wang 1200 is the first word processor.
1972: HBO starts pay TV service for cable.
1972: Sony introduces 3/4 inch "U-Matic" cassette VCR.
1972: New FCC rules leads to community access channels.
1972: Polaroid camera can focus by itself
1972: Digital television comes out of the lab.
1972: The BBC offers "Ceefax," two-way cable information system.
1972: "Open Skies": any U.S. firm can have communication satellites.
1972: Landsat 1, "eye-in-the-sky" satellite, is launched.
1972: Sony's Port-a-Pak, a portable video recorder.
1972: "Pong" starts the video game craze.
1973: The microcomputer is born in France.
1973: IBMs Selectric typewriter is now "self-correcting."
1974: hi England, the BBC transmits Teletext data to TV sets.
1974: Electronic News Gathering, or ENG.
1974: "Teacher-in-the-Sky" satellite begins educational mission.
1975: The microcomputer, in kit form, reaches the U.S. home market.
1975: Sony's Betamax and JVC's VHS battle for public acceptance.
1975: "Thrilla' from Manila" substantial original cable programming.
1976: Apple 1.
1976: Ted Turner delivers programming nationwide by satellite.
1976: Still cameras are controlled by microprocessors.
1976: British TV networks begin first teletext system.
1977: Columbus, Ohio, residents try 2-way cable experiment, QUBE.
1978: From Konica, the point-and-shoot camera.
1978: PBS goes to satellite for delivery, abandoning telephone lines.
1978: Electronic typewriters go on sale.
1979: Speech recognition machine has a vocabulary of 1,000 words.
1979: Videotext provides data by television on command.
1979: From Holland comes the digital videodisc read by laser.
1979: In Japan, first cellular phone networks.
1979: Computerized laser printing is a boon to Chinese printers.

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