https://web.archive.org/web/20180220085832/https://www.nomoreaolcds.com
In a previous post, we shared an image of original AOL 3.0 CDs from 1996. As part of becoming the massive internet giant that AOL was, it sent CDs anywhere and everywhere. You’d go to a train station, and people would be handing them out. As you sorted through your junk mail, you’d very often find multiple AOL CDs offering 50 hours of free internet. And if you went to a magazine store to pick up a new PC Gamer issue, you’d often have an AOL CD stuck to the cover.
The distribution of AOL CDs was so immense that it caused quite a backlash from environmental groups. It’s estimated that at one point in the late 90s, around 50% of global CD production was attributed to AOL. AOL spent hundreds of millions of dollars to distribute these CDs, and it worked. Their subscription base skyrocketed.
But the CDs were so prevalent that they started being used as coasters, door stops, props for art projects etc. In 2001, NoMoreAOLCDs.com was born. Their mission was to “stop the needless pollution of the environment” and “end the unrequested distribution of their [AOL] CDs.” The idea was to collect 1 million unwanted AOL CDs and then give them back to AOL.Â
A section on their site known at the ‘Creativity Corner’ showcased artwork made by AOL CDs. Another section listed the campaign’s top contributors. In 2004, for example, someone by the name of Otterman had sent in over 10,000 CDs.Â
The project finally ended on 10th August 2007, when AOL stopped sending out CDs – this is when broadband internet was taking off and there wasn’t a need to install software via a CD. By the end of their project, NoMoreAOLCDs.com had collected a total of 410,176 AOL CDs.
