<PAGE>
 
             As filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission
                             on February 11, 1999
                                                           Registration No. 333-

================================================================================

                      SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
                            Washington, D.C. 20549

                                   FORM S-8

                         REGISTRATION STATEMENT UNDER
                          THE SECURITIES ACT OF 1933

                      PRODIGY COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION
            (Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

               Delaware                               04-3323363
    (State or other jurisdiction of                (I.R.S. Employer
     incorporation or organization)             Identification Number)

           44 South Broadway
         White Plains, New York                          10601
(Address of Principal Executive Offices)               (Zip Code)

                            1996 Stock Option Plan
                           (Full title of the plan)

                               Samer F. Salameh
                           Chairman of the Board and
                            Chief Executive Officer
                      Prodigy Communications Corporation
                               44 South Broadway
                         White Plains, New York 10601
                    (Name and address of agent for service)

                                (914) 448-8000
         (Telephone number, including area code, of agent for service)

================================================================================

                        CALCULATION OF REGISTRATION FEE

================================================================================
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
                                                                    Proposed
     Title of                                  Proposed             maximum             Amount of
 securities to be    Amount to be          maximum offering         aggregate         registration
   registered         registered           price per share(1)   offering price(1)          fee
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
<S>                  <C>                   <C>                  <C>                   <C>
Common Stock,    
$0.01 par value       3,125,000 shares          $15.00              $46,875,000          $13,031.25
=====================================================================================================
</TABLE>

(1)  Computed in accordance with Rules 457(c) and (h) under the Securities Act
     of 1933 as based upon the Price to Public set forth in the Prospectus,
     dated February 10, 1999, relating to the registrant's initial public
     offering of Common Stock.

<PAGE>
 
PART I.  INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE SECTION 10(a) PROSPECTUS

     The information required by Part I is included in documents sent or given
to participants in the Registrant's 1996 Stock Option Plan pursuant to Rule
428(b)(1) of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the "Securities Act").


PART II.  INFORMATION REQUIRED IN THE REGISTRATION STATEMENT

Item 3.  Incorporation of Documents by Reference
         ---------------------------------------

     The following documents, which are filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the "Commission"), are incorporated in this Registration Statement
by reference:

          (1) The Registrant's latest annual report filed pursuant to Section
     13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the
     "Exchange Act"), or the latest prospectus filed pursuant to Rule 424(b)
     under the Securities Act that contains audited financial statements for the
     Registrant's latest fiscal year for which such statements have been filed.

          (2) All other reports filed by the Registrant pursuant to Section
     13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange Act since the end of the fiscal year covered
     by the annual report or the prospectus referred to in (1) above.

          (3) The description of the common stock of the Registrant, $0.01 par
     value per share (the "Common Stock"), contained in the Registrant's
     registration statement on Form 8-A filed with the Commission under Section
     12(g) of the Exchange Act, including any amendment or report filed for the
     purpose of updating such description.

     All documents subsequently filed by the Registrant pursuant to Sections
13(a), 13(c), 14 and 15(d) of the Exchange Act, prior to the filing of a post-
effective amendment which indicates that all shares of Common Stock offered
hereby have been sold or which deregisters all shares of Common Stock then
remaining unsold, shall be deemed to be incorporated by reference herein and to
be part hereof from the date of the filing of such documents.

                                       2
<PAGE>
 
Item 4.  Description of Securities
         -------------------------

         Not applicable.

Item 5.  Interests of Named Experts and Counsel
         --------------------------------------

     The validity of the shares of Common Stock offered hereby will be passed
upon for the Company by Hale and Dorr LLP, Boston, Massachusetts. A partner of
Hale and Dorr LLP owns 7,500 shares of the Company's Commo n Stock.

Item 6.  Indemnification of Directors and Officers
         -----------------------------------------

     Section 145 of the Delaware General Corporation Law ("DGCL"), empowers a
Delaware corporation to indemnify any persons who are or are threatened to be
made, parties to any threatened, pending or completed action, suit or
proceeding, whether civil, criminal, administrative or investigative (other than
an action by or in the right of the corporation) by reason of the fact that such
person is or was a director, officer, employee or agent of the corporation, or
is or was serving at the request of the corporation as a director, officer,
employee or agent of another corporation, partnership, joint venture, trust or
other enterprise. The indemnity may include expenses (including attorneys'
fees), judgments, fines and amounts paid in settlement actually and reasonably
incurred by such person in connection with such action, suit or proceeding if
such person acted in good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed
to be in or not opposed to the best interests of the corporation, and, with
respect to any criminal action or proceeding, had no reasonable cause to believe
his conduct was unlawful. A Delaware corporation may indemnify directors,
officers, employees or agents of the corporation, in an action by or in the
right of the corporation under the same conditions, except that no
indemnification is permitted without judicial approval if a director, officer,
employee or agent of the corporation is adjudged to be liable to the corporation
in the performance of such person's duty. Where a director, officer, employee or
agent of the corporation is successful on the merits or otherwise in the defense
of any action referred to above, the corporation must indemnify such person
against the expenses actually and reasonably incurred by such person.

     The Registrant's Certificate of Incorporation, as amended (the
"Certificate"), provides that no director of the Registrant shall be personally
liable to the Registrant or its stockholders for monetary damages for any breach
of fiduciary duty as a director, except to the extent the DGCL prohibits such
indemnification.  The Certificate also provides for indemnification of any
person who was or is a party or is threatened to be made a party to any
threatened, pending or completed action, suit or proceeding, whether civil,
criminal, administrative or investigative (including an action by or in the
right of the Registrant), by reason of such person's position, or by reason of
any action alleged to have been taken or omitted in such person's capacity, if
such person acted in good faith and in a manner he or she reasonably believed to

                                       3
<PAGE>
 
be in, or not opposed to, the best interests of the Registrant.  In addition,
the Registrant maintains insurance policies which provide coverage for its
officers and directors in certain situations where the Registrant cannot
directly indemnify such officers or directors.

Item 7.  Exemption from Registration Claimed
         -----------------------------------

         Not applicable.
 
Item 8.  Exhibits
         ---------------

     The following exhibits are filed as part of this Registration Statement:

<TABLE>
<C>   <S>
 4.1  Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant, as amended.
      Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant's
      Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-64233).
 4.2  By-Laws of the Registrant, as amended.  Incorporated by
      reference to Exhibit 3.2 to the Registrant's Registration
      Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-64233).
 5.1  Opinion of Hale and Dorr LLP.
23.1  Consent of Hale and Dorr LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).
23.2  Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
24    Power of Attorney (included in the signature page of this
      Registration Statement).
</TABLE>

Item 9.  Undertakings
         ------------

     1.  The Registrant hereby undertakes (a) to file, during any period in
which offers or sales are being made, a post-effective amendment to this
Registration Statement to include any material information with respect to the
plan of distribution not previously disclosed in this Registration Statement or
any material change to such information in this Registration Statement; (b)
that, for the purpose of determining any liability under the Securities Act,
each such post-effective amendment shall be deemed to be a new Registration
Statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such
securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering
thereof; (c) to remove from registration by means of a post-effective amendment
any of the securities being registered which remain unsold at the termination of
the offering.

                                       4
<PAGE>
 
     2.  The undersigned Registrant hereby undertakes that, for purposes of
determining any liability under the Securities Act, each filing of the
Registrant's annual report pursuant to Section 13(a) or 15(d) of the Exchange
Act (and, where applicable, each filing of an employee benefit plan's annual
report pursuant to Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act) that is incorporated by
reference in the Registration Statement shall be deemed to be a new Registration
Statement relating to the securities offered therein, and the offering of such
securities at that time shall be deemed to be the initial bona fide offering
thereof.

     3.  Insofar as indemnification for liabilities arising under the Securities
Act may be permitted to directors, officers and controlling persons of the
Registrant pursuant to the foregoing provisions, or otherwise, the Registrant
has been advised that in the opinion of the Commission such indemnification is
against public policy as expressed in the Securities Act and is, therefore,
unenforceable. In the event that a claim for indemnification against such
liabilities (other than the payment by the Registrant of expenses incurred or
paid by a director, officer or controlling person of the Registrant in the
successful defense of any action, suit or proceeding) is asserted by such
director, officer or controlling person in connection with the securities being
registered, the Registrant will, unless in the opinion of its counsel the matter
has been settled by controlling precedent, submit to a court of appropriate
jurisdiction the question whether such indemnification by it is against public
policy as expressed in the Securities Act and will be governed by the final
adjudication of such issue.

                                       5
<PAGE>
 
                                  SIGNATURES

     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act of 1933, the Registrant
certifies that it has reasonable grounds to believe that it meets all of the
requirements for filing on Form S-8 and has duly caused this Registration
Statement to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly
authorized, in the City of White Plains, New York, on the tenth day of February,
1999.

 
                              Prodigy Communications Corporation


                              By:   /s/ Samer F. Salameh
                                 -----------------------------
                                    Samer F. Salameh
                                    Chairman of the Board and
                                    Chief Executive Officer



                               POWER OF ATTORNEY

     We, the undersigned officers and directors of Prodigy Communications
Corporation hereby severally constitute Samer F. Salameh, David R. Henkel,
Andrea S. Hirsch and David A. Westenberg, and each of them singly, our true and
lawful attorneys with full power to them, and each of them singly, to sign for
us and in our names in the capacities indicated below, the Registration
Statement on Form S-8 filed herewith and any and all subsequent amendments to
said Registration Statement, and generally to do all such things in our names
and behalf in our capacities as officers and directors to enable Prodigy
Communications Corporation to comply with all requirements of the Securities and
Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming our signatures as they may
be signed by said attorneys, or any of them, to said Registration Statement and
any and all amendments thereto.

                                       6
<PAGE>
 
     Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Act, this Registration
Statement has been signed below by the following persons in the capacities and
on the date indicated.

<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
       Signature                     Title                      Date
<S>                      <C>                             <C>
 
/s/ Samer F. Salameh     Chairman of the Board and       February 10, 1999
--------------------     Chief Executive Officer
Samer F. Salameh         (principal executive officer)
 
 
/s/ Alfredo Sanchez      Vice Chairman of the Board      February 10, 1999
-------------------
Alfredo Sanchez


/s/ David R. Henkel      Executive Vice President,       February 10, 1999
-------------------      Finance, Chief Financial
David R. Henkel          Officer and Director
                         (principal financial and
                         accounting officer)


/s/ Arturo Elias         Director                        February 10, 1999
----------------
Arturo Elias
 

/s/ James M. Nakfoor     Director                        February 10, 1999
--------------------
James M. Nakfoor

 
/s/ Russell I. Pillar    Director                        February 10, 1999
---------------------
Russell I. Pillar
</TABLE>

                                       7
<PAGE>
 
                                 Exhibit Index
                                 -------------
<TABLE>
<CAPTION>
Exhibit
Number     Description
---------  -----------
<S>        <C>  
 4.1       Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant, as amended.  
           Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant's
           Registration Statement on Form S-1 (File No. 333-64233).
 4.2       By-Laws of the Registrant, as amended.  Incorporated by reference to
           Exhibit 3.2 to the Registrant's Registration Statement on Form S-1
           (File No. 333-64233).
 5.1       Opinion of Hale and Dorr LLP.
23.1       Consent of Hale and Dorr LLP (included in Exhibit 5.1).
23.2       Consent of PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.
24         Power of Attorney (included in the signature page of this 
           Registration Statement).
</TABLE>

                                       8