MediaBrowser
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MediaBrowser.com, Inc. was a company that designed Internet Explorer shells themed after various brands and media franchises. They partnered with Nintendo to produce a number of browsers inspired by video games such as Paper Mario and the Nintendo 64 version of Mario Tennis.
The company dissolved following a filing for bankruptcy on December 5, 2001,[1] and the their original line of custom browsers was discontinued on Nintendo's website.[2] MediaBrowser's successor company, Braun Communication, would be licensed by Nintendo to produce further browsers,[3][4] though none of these are related to the Super Mario franchise.
Overview of the browsers[edit]
These browsers have a sidebar with links to Nintendo's official websites, as well as a space for advertisements tailored to the browser's theme underneath the web page display. They use characters and iconography from a specific game to represent the buttons in the toolbar; among the general navigation buttons, there is also a "Microtron" button which opens a trailer for the game the browser is themed after.
The following sections cover the browsers that are relevant to the Super Mario franchise in some capacity.
Mario Tennis browser[edit]
The Mario Tennis browser contains bespoke links to several web pages of the mariotennis.com website, including the home page and the "Waluigi Tennis" page. The navigation buttons, listed below, feature playable characters from the game:
| Button | Visual |
|---|---|
| Back | Toad |
| Forward | Bowser |
| Home | Baby Mario |
| Refresh | Birdo |
| Search | Wario |
| Stop | Boo |
| Yoshi | |
| DKJr. | |
| Microtron | Paratroopa |
Paper Mario browser[edit]
This browser features links to Nintendo's main website, as well as the official microsites of Paper Mario, The Legend of Zelda: Majora's Mask, and Mario Tennis for the Game Boy Color. The buttons in this browser's toolbar feature the game's Star Spirits; each button is listed below with its corresponding character:
| Button | Visual |
|---|---|
| Back | Mamar |
| Forward | Muskular |
| Home | Kalmar |
| Refresh | Misstar |
| Search | Eldstar |
| Stop | Skolar |
| Klevar | |
| Mamar | |
| Microtron | Muskular |
Nintendo Power browser[edit]
This browser is themed after issue #139 of Nintendo Power magazine, having an overt emphasis on Banjo-Tooie. The only graphical element in this browser that is related to the Super Mario franchise is a "Donkey Kong Country" button which leads to the nintendopower.com website, now defunct.
External links[edit]
- Pokemon GS and Mario Tennis Web Browser. archive.org. Added May 1, 2021, 20:34:55 UTC. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
- Michael MJD (January 23, 2024). Nintendo's Bizarre Web Browsers for Windows. YouTube. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
References[edit]
- ^ Leavy, Pamela Griner (December 3, 2001). Bankrupt dot-com a high-profile story. Tampa Bay Business Journal. Retrieved January 24, 2024. (Archived October 25, 2012, 18:12:28 UTC via Wayback Machine.)
- ^ Browsers. nintendo.com. Archived August 2, 2001, 04:53:26 UTC via Wayback Machine. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
- ^ Portfolio. brauncommunication.com. Archived January 29, 2016, 17:46:00 UTC via Wayback Machine. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
- ^ Michael MJD (January 23, 2024). Nintendo's Bizarre Web Browsers for Windows. YouTube. Retrieved January 24, 2024.
