Early years
On 28 April 1996, UOL went online. In July 1996, it put online an operation with a 2 megabit per second base connection. In August, UOL launched a web provider in the cities of Greater São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro coupled with email accounts and the setup of browser Netscape version 2.2 in Portuguese.
In 1997, UOL created a series of forums, focus groups, and surveys, as well as the online version of the encyclopedia Nova Enciclopédia Ilustrada Folha. UOL also launched TV UOL (their video sharing platform), with content based on music videos, interviews, and movie trailers, and AcessoNet, a company that provides larger Internet access in Brazil's major cities. UOL also expanded its connection capability to 20 megabits and received the award of best web provider and Internet users favorite's website of Informática Exame magazine in 1997.[9]
UOL absorbed the subscribers of Internet provider Compuserve in Brazil in a move that increased its connection capability to 74 megabits. UOL launched UOL Discador, a feature that eliminated lack of Internet access in case the network get busy in 1998.[10]
In the following year UOL reached more than 350,000 subscribers and released UOL Educação portal (UOL Education) and also Placar UOL Esporte, which presents scores of soccer, tennis, volley, basketball, and F1 events all over Brazil and the world. In the same period UOL launched an unlimited web access platform, a Bible online version and started to offer free e-mail hosting via Brasil Online (BOL), a new firm of UOL group. The company also expanded its online operations with portals in Argentina, Mexico, Venezuela, Chile and United States of America.
2000s
In 2000, UOL launched its portal in Spain, established a partnership with Embratel to expand its internet connection to 1.2 Gigabyte per second and released Rádio UOL (UOL Radio), which initially offered a series of music shows, new releases of music and playlists creation. In the same year, UOL launched a partnership with financial website Patagon in a move that secured US$8 million in funding to disclose financial information on UOL portals.[11][12]
In 2002, Mercado Livre became UOL INC's exclusive partner for auctions in branches UOL Brazil, UOL Colombia, UOL Sinectis and Brasil Online (BOL). In the same year, UOL reached the mark of 5 million visitors per month, 1.5 million subscribers and started a live broadcast of reality show Casa de Artistas 2.[13]
UOL went on to supply more than 560 Brazilian cities with Internet access. Afterwards it released the UOL Business channel providing information to corporations and executives and also channels for Brazilian celebrities such as Leonardo, Raul Gil and Sandy & Junior in 2003.
In 2005, UOL made its IPO on Bolsa de Valores de São Paulo (BOVESPA). However, the firm went back private in 2012. UOL created the social network UOLK in 2005, which was online until 2008.
2010s
In December 2010, via its subsidiaries UOL Host Date and DHC Outsourcing, UOL bought Diveo Broadband Network, an American technology outsourcing company.[15][16]
In the following year, UOL launched mobile apps for news to devices iPhone and iPad, GigaMail and UOL Cursos Online, a portal that offers free courses from distance for languages, formal education, extensions and post-graduation degrees.[17]
To extend UOL's position outside of Brazil, UOL acquired[18] BoaCompra in 2011, Brazil's largest digital goods payments company[19] specializing in monetizing online games in emerging markets. The business unit, now called UOL BoaCompra, works with more than 400 video game companies including Electronic Arts, Valve, Smilegate and Ubisoft; providing localized payment coverage for more than 5,000 online games across Latin America, Spain, Portugal and Turkey.
2020s
In December 2020, UOL launched the Splash Awards, celebrating the best works and celebrities of the year on the internet, music, television and pop culture in general.[26] The first edition included more than 20 categories and winners were chosen based on a public-voted process.[26]
