Believe it or not, as far back as 1961, US carrier AT&T had already started offering modems (with a staggering bit-rate of 110 bits per second) and “Data-Phones” to its customers. It even announced a $US250 billion initiative to improve its data network through satellite communications.
And presumably in an attempt to help consumers and investors understand what futuristic technologies the company was paving the way for, they created this promotional video which manages to be remarkably forward-thinking and incredibly dated at the same time. The technologies demonstrated, like video conferencing, automatic diallers, and even being able to order groceries through your phone were ground-breaking concepts. And were the company not so remarkably accurate with its predictions, the classic ’60s design, animations and soundtrack in this clip would have made it far too cheesy to endure. [YouTube]