// Home / News

Time Warner completes AOL spin off

By Stuart Turton

Posted on 11 Dec 2009 at 13:40

AOL has completed its spin off from Time Warner, bringing to an end one of history's most unsuccessful corporate mergers.

When AOL's plan to merge with Time Warner was announced in January 2000, the internet company was valued at $163 billion. The combination was meant to herald the future of content distribution via the internet, but the promised benefits were never achieved.

AOL still derives 43% of its revenue from dial-up customers. However, this business is swiftly falling through the floor. In 2002 the company had 26 million dial-up customers, now it has 5.4 million.

As a result, AOL is now valued at around $3 billion.

The company will resume trading as a separate entity on Thursday under the market ticker symbol it had before the merger

Subscribe to PC Pro magazine. We'll give you 3 issues for £1 plus a free gift - click here

From around the web

User comments

Who owns AOL?

This article makes it sound like AOL in the UK is going to start trading as an independent company on Thursday...I thought AOL was part of Carphone Warehouse and I wouldn't have thought it would be worth $3 billion - maybe the $ means Stuart is rehashing a press release from AOL/Tine Warner in the US?

By Minou on 11 Dec 2009

Leave a comment

You need to Login or Register to comment.