Inventions & Breakthroughs of October 1999
Gadgets, lab surprises, odd bets, and future-shocks from this slice of the calendar.
1 
Smartphone Platform
2 
Wi-Fi Standard Expansion (802.11b)
3 
Online Payment Platform
4 
Search Engine Advertising Model
5 
MP3 Player Ecosystem
6 
Peer-to-Peer File Sharing
7 
Digital Video Recorder (DVR)
8 
Voice over IP Services
9 
Location-Based Services
10 
Online Gaming Platforms
The Sounds of
Popular recordings and roots/country selections associated with the year
HEADLINES ON October 8, 1999
Full News Archive
- Headline: House Passes Landmark Medical Care Rights Bill. Impact: This bill's passage led to a massive uptick in patients deciding to actually read the fine print of their insurance policies, inadvertently giving birth to a new genre of horror literature centered around health insurance nightmares.. Fact: Surprisingly, the insurance companies have not yet hired a psychic to predict how many people will actually benefit from this bill. Shocking, right?.
- Headline: Nike Identifies Plants Abroad Making Goods For Universities. Impact: Nike's transparency led to a global wave of ethical fashion movements, eventually resulting in hipster communes where everyone only wears clothes made from organic, ethically-sourced kale. Truly a fashion revolution!. Fact: Nike's factories were previously so secretive that even the employees thought they worked at a fast-food joint. Surprise! You're making sneakers, not burgers..
- Headline: Road Work May Never Make Up for Lost Time. Impact: The study's findings led to a nationwide epidemic of existential crises among commuters, who now ponder if road work is just a metaphor for life's endless delays. Spoiler alert: it is.. Fact: People still wait for the day when roadwork actually finishes on time. That day is as real as unicorns and honest politicians..
Wall Street Time Machine
The Right Call: If you'd invested $1,000 in any one of these companies in 1999, here's what the stored 2025 dataset estimates.
Rank #2
AAPL
Apple
Price in 1999
$0.31
2025 dataset value
$880,068
Apple - If you invested $1,000 in 1999, it would be worth $880,068 today (880.1x return)
🦸 Top 5 Comics
Batman: Harley Quinn #1
$35.00
The Authority #1
$75
Planetary #1
$1,200
Star Wars: Episode I - The Phantom Menace #1
$200
Bluntman and Chronic #1
$15
🧸 Top 5 Toys
LEGO Star Wars Sets
$150.00
Pokemon Trading Card Game
$150.00
Furby
$30.00
Razor Scooter
$150.00
Beyblade
$700.00
🎮 Top 5 Video Games
Super Smash Bros.
$500.00
Silent Hill
$147.48
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings
$750.00
Final Fantasy VIII
$200.00
Tony Hawk's Pro Skater
$200.00
⚾ Top 5 Trading Cards
1999 Pokémon Base Set 1st Edition Charizard Holo #4
$1,655
1999 Bandai Dragon Ball Z Japanese Prism Card #PP-06 (Son Goku Super Saiyan)
Unknown
1999 Sports Illustrated for Kids Tiger Woods #536
$20,400
1999 Wizards of the Coast Magic: The Gathering 'Urza's Legacy' Foil Grim Monolith
$250
1999 Pokémon Japanese Promo Tropical Mega Battle Tropical Wind
$65,100