Myth check
Was Excite@Home too early for broadband?
Not a timing failure since 2026-10-25 · ledger #35
The cable operators owned the pipes and took the market.
Short answer
@Home sold broadband internet over cable lines from 1996, acquired Excite in 1999 and filed for bankruptcy in 2001. The missing pieces, the cable lines, belonged to its distribution partners, who took broadband service in-house once it was proven. Broadband boomed; the middleman did not. That is enabler-owner capture.
- Killing constraint
- Nothing was missing
E6 Behavioural norm - Who is in now
- Comcast (cable broadband)
founded 1963 - Why it is not timing
- Enabler-owner capture: a partner owned the missing piece and took the market
The enablers it needed already existed; something else killed it.
Graveyard
Companies that died proving people wanted this. Capital shown where it was disclosed.
| Company | Years | Capital | How it died | Source |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Excite@Home | 1996–2001 | — | Chapter 11, 2001 | source M |
Who succeeded at the same time
- Comcast (cable broadband) (founded 1963) — ran broadband itself source
Related
- TiVoNot a timing failureCable and satellite operators bundled DVRs and controlled distribution.Killed by: Nothing was missing
- Third-party clients on someone else's platformNo-goThe platform owner controls the enabler and has used that control; nothing has changed it.Killed by: Platform owner controls API access