X*Press X*Change - All About All

X*Press X*Change

X*Press X*Change is an obsolete computer-based newsticker-style newsfeed service that existed during the late 1980s and much of the 1990s. The X*Change service debuted in 1988 as a low cost, publicly available newswire service that used personal computers to read and process the real-time data. X*PRESS Information Services, Ltd. was a partnership between McGraw Hill and former cable television giant Tele-Communications, Inc. (purchased by AT&T and later spun off). Data included delayed stock ticker quotes and news headlines from the Associated Press, UPI, and Reuters.

X*Press X*Change data was transmitted by way of satellite. Specifically, the system's data was carried on C-Band satellite onboard CNN's (later WGN's) transponder using General Instrument (now part of Motorola) InfoCipher 1500P satmodem technology. The InfoCipher modem was an add-on to VideoCipher II+/RS TVRO receivers and received the data at 9600 bits per second.

Participating cable companies could also send the data signal over their distribution systems to cable subscribers with an InfoCipher modem and home computer. X*Press X*Change supported the Apple Macintosh, Atari ST, and IBM PC platforms, although the Macintosh version was considered superior to the PC version. X*Change faded into obscurity with the rise of the modern Internet as well as improved cable television on-screen graphics technology. The X*Change service was discontinued in 1997.