Article Views:
66
Ezine ready page
Ezine ready page
Posted on October 8, 2008 by Caroline Telford | Posted under Broadband Internet
AOL Broadband - What Happened to the Once-Great AOL?
|
The company is actually now called AOL LLC - and they are a subsidiary of Time Warner. The now New York-based company was founded in 1983 as the Quantum Computer Services. The Rise of AOL to Worldwide Fame Before tackling exactly what happened to the one-great AOL, you should first learn what made the company rise to worldwide fame in the first place. Perhaps the best-known product that the company produced is the AOL online software suit - where millions of customers from around the world joined in an online community. At the peak of its popularity, more than 30 million members worldwide were using AOL's "walled garden". The company also created a buzz in the online community because they revolutionized and made popular the online chat or instant messaging that we know today. What made AOL earn its nickname of being a walled garden for online users is its being kid-friendly, especially for the younger generation who are using the Internet for research purposes. Acquiring Time Warner: Is it the Beginning of AOL's Fall? By the end of the 1990's, a lot of subscribers have left AOL because they soon discovered that they should not allow themselves to be restricted by the walls that AOL has set for its users. However, even if there were subscribers who were leaving - more are still joining because they were encouraged by the simplicity of the system. It was in January of the year 2000 that AOL announced that it will be acquiring Time Warner to "create the world's largest media company". The merger will result to the company being called AOL Time Warner. It seemed like a dream team combination. AOL now has access to Time Warner's media properties such as CNN, Sports Illustrated and Warner Brothers. Over the next couple of years, there were some problems that AOL Time Warner had to deal with - like charging their members for AOL screen names, e-mail account and client software - which subscribers can get from other Internet Service Providers for free. So What Happened to the Once-Great AOL? During its peak years, AOL has 34 million members and it was worth $200 billion. However, the unfortunate merger and a combination of a lot of things going wrong has dropped the company's performance to a level that became worth less than one-tenth of their peak value. Last February 2008, Jeff Bewkes, the CEO of Time Warner - announced that the company will split AOL's Internet access and advertising businesses in two. There is a possibility of selling the Internet access division at a later date - which means that the once-great AOL broadband services are practically doomed. Apparently, companies which deal with ever-developing technologies need to stay alert with the latest developments in terms of the mood of the subscribers and the technology itself. Otherwise, when you combine the changes in technology with other factors which will affect your business as a whole - your once-great company will suffer under duress. About The Author: About the Author: Why not use our broadband comparison to choose the best option for your home? We display deals from all UK providers including Sky, TalkTalk and AOL Broadband. |
Tags: AOL BROADBAND, BROADBAND INTERNET, ADSL, CARPHONE WAREHOUSE
