- In full:
- Microsoft Encarta Multimedia Encyclopedia
Encarta
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What was Encarta?
Encarta was a multimedia digital encyclopedia produced by Microsoft from 1993 to 2009. It started as a CD-ROM product and later expanded to the Internet. Microsoft began discussing a digital encyclopedia in 1985 and signed a contract with Funk & Wagnalls in 1989 to use their New Encyclopedia to establish a database.
In March 1993, the initial CD product was released at a retail price of nearly $400. After slow sales, the CD was given away with the Windows software suite, and the stand-alone price was dropped to $99, which boosted sales. In 1998, Microsoft purchased the copyrights to Collier’s electronic encyclopedia and the New Merit Scholar’s Encyclopedia and incorporated that material into Encarta. Microsoft discontinued Encarta at the end of 2009, citing the advent of free online reference sources.
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Who created Encarta and when was it launched?
Encarta, a multimedia digital encyclopedia, was produced by Microsoft Corporation from 1993–2009. The possibility of a digital encyclopedia was first discussed at Microsoft in 1985, leading to a nonexclusive contract with Funk & Wagnalls to use their New Encyclopedia in establishing a database in 1989. Encarta was initially released as a CD-ROM product in March 1993 before later expanding to include an Internet-based version. Microsoft discontinued Encarta at the end of 2009, citing the advent of free online reference sources.
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How was Encarta different from traditional printed encyclopedias?
Encarta, a multimedia digital encyclopedia by Microsoft (1993–2009), differed significantly from traditional printed encyclopedias. Unlike printed versions, Encarta was distributed via CD-ROM and later online.
Electronic encyclopedias offer vast storage at low cost, expanding beyond print versions. Articles are more accessible through high-speed search software, and can retrieve files based on queries. Encarta also had multimedia capabilities, with graphics, sound, and video supplementing text and images. Interactive features allowed users to retrieve and manipulate information. Microsoft discontinued Encarta at the end of 2009, citing the advent of free online reference sources.
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What types of information and features did Encarta include?
Encarta was a multimedia digital encyclopedia by Microsoft from 1993–2009, initially on CD-ROM before expanding to the Internet. It contained approximately 25,000 articles, 40% of which were biographies, enhanced with sound files, maps, and images.
Additional features included a timeline of human history, a dictionary and thesaurus, and a quiz game called MindMaze. Encarta was available in standard and deluxe editions, with the latter offering twice the multimedia content and monthly updates. By 2009, it had expanded to over 60,000 articles before being discontinued due to the rise of free online reference sources.
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How did users access and use Encarta on their computers?
Encarta, a multimedia digital encyclopedia by Microsoft (1993–2009), started as a CD-ROM product and later included an Internet version and was bundled with other Microsoft products.
Initially priced at nearly $400, Encarta's sales were slow. Later, it was offered with Windows software and the price dropped to $99, boosting sales past competitors. Standard and deluxe CD editions were available, with deluxe users able to download monthly updates. A subscription website launched in 1998, and a free, abridged version appeared online in 2000, with full access for CD or DVD purchasers. Microsoft began charging for all content in 2001, except for the dictionary. Encarta was discontinued at the end of 2009.
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Why did Encarta eventually stop being produced, and what replaced it?
Microsoft discontinued Encarta, a multimedia digital encyclopedia, at the end of 2009, citing the rise of free online reference sources. Initially launched as a CD-ROM in 1993, Encarta expanded to include an Internet-based version and was often bundled with Microsoft products. Over time, Microsoft incorporated materials from Collier’s electronic encyclopedia and the New Merit Scholar’s Encyclopedia into Encarta. By 2006, maintenance of Encarta content was outsourced to Websters Multimedia Inc. After Encarta was discontinued, only the free Encarta dictionary remained online.
1 Britannica SourceCreated from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Encarta, multimedia digital encyclopaedia produced by Microsoft Corporation (1993–2009). Initially a CD-ROM product, the Encarta brand later expanded to include an Internet-based incarnation and was bundled with other Microsoft products.
The possibility of a digital encyclopaedia was first discussed at Microsoft in 1985. The company approached a range of reference publishers before signing a nonexclusive contract with Funk & Wagnalls to use their 29-volume New Encyclopedia in establishing a database in 1989. The project, however, was put on hold in 1990 due to concerns about the commercial viability of the product. After efforts resumed in 1991, the company proceeded to illustrate the approximately 25,000 articles using an array of sound files and maps as well as more than 5,000 public domain images and a small selection of videos. Approximately 40 percent of the articles were biographies. Additional features included a time line of human history, a dictionary and thesaurus, and a quiz game called MindMaze. The encyclopaedia was later offered in a range of foreign-language and regionally specific editions.
The initial CD product was released in March 1993 with a retail price of nearly $400, equivalent to such competitors as Compton’s MultiMedia Encyclopedia. Following slow sales, later that year the CD was given away with the Windows software suite that was included with the purchase of many computers, and the stand-alone price was dropped to $99. The price reduction effectively catalyzed sales that outstripped competitors. Prices continued to drop throughout the product’s life span.
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Abbreviated versions of some Encarta articles were available to subscribers to the Microsoft Network ISP, launched in 1995. Beginning in 1996, Encarta CDs were issued in standard and deluxe editions. Users of the deluxe edition, which had twice the multimedia content offered by the standard edition, could also download monthly updates from Microsoft; users of the standard edition could do so for a fee. Encarta was offered in a bundled reference suite edition, which included a reference library and an interactive atlas, beginning in 1997; it also remained available as a stand-alone product. In 1998 Microsoft purchased the copyrights to Collier’s electronic encyclopaedia and the New Merit Scholar’s Encyclopedia and incorporated that material into Encarta. In 1999 the company debuted the Encarta Africana, an encyclopaedia of Black history that was the result of a collaboration with scholars, including Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and published a print and digital dictionary, the Encarta World English Dictionary, called the Encarta Webster’s Dictionary of the English Language in subsequent editions.
A subscription Web site debuted in 1998, and an abridged version of Encarta was made available online for free in 2000, with full access available to purchasers of the CD or DVD products. Microsoft began charging for access to all encyclopaedia content the following year, though access to dictionary content remained free. In 2006 maintenance of Encarta content was turned over to Websters Multimedia Inc., a subsidiary of Websters International Publishers Ltd.
Citing the advent of free online reference sources, Microsoft discontinued Encarta, which then consisted of more than 60,000 articles, at the end of 2009. The free Encarta dictionary remained online until 2011.