1990 to 1999: Expansion of the World Wide Web and the Rise of Dot-Coms - The Technical and Social History of Software Engineering - page 261

Table 8.3 U.S. Software Applications from 1990 to 1999
Perhaps the most interesting and technically important change in application
patterns during this decade was the emergence of web applications, which were
just starting their own explosive growth path.
The arrival of web applications led to the start of the dot-com bubble, which
saw the creation of hundreds of venture-funded companies whose market plans
were based on web sales, such as Amazon. The bubble would burst early in the
next decade, and most of these companies are now gone.
Amazon was incorporated by Jeff Bezos in 1994 and went online in 1995. Its
original market plan was to rapidly expand its client base regardless of profits.
Indeed, Amazon ran at a loss for several years, and its stock declined sharply dur-
ing the dot-com bust. However, Amazon persevered and eventually became the
world's largest retail establishment.