As it struggles to reinvent itself, AOL has the savvy, technology and assets to succeed, but may not have the time, according to a former executive of the company. "AOL has quite a number of hidden gems and Internet properties that many users don't even know are part of the brand," says Jules Polonetsky, who was AOL's chief privacy officer and a senior vice president from 2002 to 2008. "That includes dozens of the most highly visited blogs, like the leading technology blog Engadget, that draw substantial advertising revenue."
He also cited the popular AIM messaging service  , AOL Music, and the celebrity news site TMZ, which has its own TV show.
Another property that many users may not connect to AOL is the social-networking site Bebo, which it bought last year for $850 million. Though more popular outside the U.S., Bebo (which stands for Blog Early, Blog Often) has an estimated 40 million users, making it third in worldwide membership behind Facebook and MySpace.
Race Against Time
The challenge, Polonetsky said, is time as the company struggles with plummeting revenues.
"The challenge for AOL has been developing a big enough audience and ad revenue to replace the declining ISP business," says Polonetsky, who is now co-Chairman and director of the Future of Privacy Forum, a think tank supported by AOL. "The technology and editorial savvy is there. The challenge for [AOL CEO] Tim Armstrong will be growing it quick enough."
AOL announced Monday that it will split from parent company Time Warner on Dec. 10, shifting its name slightly to Aol, and offering shares on the New York Stock Exchange.
America Online, as it was formerly known, was once the primary portal to the Internet for up to 30 million users worldwide, offering chat rooms, clubs, and games in a "walled" environment. But over time, AOL saw the growth of DSL connections and direct Internet access knock the wind right out of its business.
Its mammoth 2000 merger with Time Warner, one of the biggest media deals in history, was widely considered a failure. AOL's stock price never returned to the $184 from which it fell the day after the merger was announced.
While AOL once charged around $20 for basic monthly membership, or lower fees based on hourly usage, in April 2006 the company began offering most of its services, including its popular e-mail and chat rooms, for free, relying more heavily on advertising revenues. Today, Internet analysts joke that you can tell someone is over 40 by his or her AOL e-mail address.
New Brand, New Blood
The company hired Armstrong, the former president of Google, in March to try to rebuild the brand. More than 700 people have been laid off, and buyouts for another 2,500 are expected.
On Sunday, the company unveiled several new logos and animations designed by the consulting firm Wolf Ollins.
In commenting on the changes, Armstrong said the company has a clear strategy and will be standing behind the AOL brand as it moves into the next decade.
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