The earliest form of digital distribution in video games was the Atari 2600's GameLine service, which allowed users to download games using a telephone line. A similar service, Sega Channel, allowed for the downloading of games to the Sega Genesis over a cable line.

While the GameLine and Sega Channel services allowed for the distribution of entire titles, they did not offer Downloadable Content for existing titles. Perhaps the closest the services came to offering true DLC was Shiny Entertainment's special edition of Earthworm Jim offered over the Sega Channel, though it too was still a stand-alone download