Lot of 6 mixed new sealed America Online (AOL) trial CDs in six different versions, distributed as free-trial mailers and giveaways in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The CDs have not been used or tested.

Lot info:

• AOL 3.0: "Try America Online, the nation's #1 online service," 15 free hours, "$40 value," "Just released! New v. 3.0 inside," sealed in plastic, with a back panel touting free software, e-mail, games, internet, and online magazines and a bulk-rate mailing label
• AOL Titanium 5.0: "Up to 700 hours free in a month," "Better than ever," "Free bonus software on this CD," sealed in plastic, with a "Now! No credit card required" sticker, disc dated 1999
• AOL 6.0: "All-new version 6.0," "up to 700 hours free for a month," "No credit card required," in a black case with colorful fish artwork; some cases show a "1000 Hours Free for 45 days" sticker and a mailing label
• AOL 7.0 (three different packages): a black case with toucan artwork and "Try it now for 1000 hours free for 45 days, All-new AOL 7.0"; a gold-and-blue card mount with a gold "1000 Hours Free!" disc, copyright 2001; and a sealed tin-style case reading "Try it today! All-new AOL 7.0, 1000 hours free for 45 days, now no credit card required," with a "Fast Lane Internet" sticker

America Online's mass-mailed trial CDs became a defining piece of late-1990s and early-2000s tech culture, arriving in mailboxes, magazines, and store checkout lines in staggering numbers as AOL competed to sign up dial-up subscribers; the escalating free-hour offers across these versions, from 15 hours with version 3.0 to up to 700 and then 1000 hours with versions 6.0 and 7.0, show how aggressively the offer grew. Unopened examples in original packaging, especially the tin-style 7.0 cases and card-mount discs, are popular with collectors of dot-com era memorabilia.

CDs are all sealed in original cases or plastic. CDs have not been used or tested. Signs of wear and handling to the plastic and cases. Please see photos.

Will ship securely with tracking.

Topics relevant to this item: AOL, America Online, AOL trial CD, AOL 7.0, AOL 6.0, AOL Titanium, AOL 3.0, 1000 hours free, dial-up internet, 1990s tech, early 2000s technology, sealed AOL disc, vintage software, internet history, dot-com era, free trial CD, retro computing, Y2K era collectible, AOL tin case, You've Got Mail