AOL, once a goliath among Internet service providers, is continuing to lose subscribers at a rapid pace. According to Time Warner’s Q3 results filed earlier today, the company now has 10.1 million subscribers, which is down 851,000 from Q2 and down 5.1 million or 33% year over year. Before the merger with Time Warner in 2001, the company said that it had more than 30 million subscribers.

According to Time Warner the firm’s revised strategy to refocus its business from subscribers to advertising is to blame for the subscriber loss. The company also sold off several of its overseas businesses over the past year, including AOL France, Germany and UK, and noted that its subscription service became less attractive as the company decided to offer its email service free of charge.   

Time Warner said that AOL revenues declined 38% or $745 million from $1.96 billion to $1.22 billion year over year. Subscription revenues declined by 56% during this time. Operating income declined by 24% or $95 million from $390 to $295 million in the same period. 

Serves them right

Nov 07, 2007 11:09     

This just goes to show that when large companies ignore their customers, they get hammered. For years AOL made it almost impossible to cancel your subscription, and still billed your CC after you cancelled the account. People are turning around and dumping their ignorant butts now that there are viable alternatives. It never fails to amaze me how the management teams of large corporations can just ignore the lessons of the past. Thankfully, they are doomed to re-live those mistakes.

jcwbnimble report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Yay !!!

Nov 07, 2007 11:17     

Woohoo...Death by Ungie Bungie. Best news I've heard in years, aol might be going away.
KidKool report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Some funky math there...

Nov 07, 2007 11:17     

"Operating income declined by 24% or $95 billion from $390 to $295 million in the same period." $390,000,000 - $95,000,000,000 =/= $295,000,000
MtYermom report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Re: Serves them right.

Nov 07, 2007 12:01     

I totally agree.
T report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

You're kidding, right?

Nov 07, 2007 12:20     

Um...That math is correct. I hope you were joking.
FodderMan report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

good about time cant wait to here that about dell

Nov 07, 2007 12:31     

it is about time aol is just no good along with dell
Marty report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

good god people still use AOL?

Nov 07, 2007 12:51     

see title
ZZZ report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

What's wrong with the math?

Nov 07, 2007 12:54     

Looks fine to me...
SECguy report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Funky Math

Nov 07, 2007 13:00     

The Numbers 'look right' but the Billion to Million conversion isn't it is hard to take 95 Billion from 390 Million!!! My Guess is that it was a typo (A Common accurance on Toms btw) and should have read. "Operating income declined by 24% or $95 million from $390 to $295 million in the same period."
Waikano report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

none

Nov 07, 2007 13:05     

Hahah, he's right. That is funky math! Someone got carried away with the 0's!
dude report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

AOL Sucks...

Nov 07, 2007 13:32     

No one wants dial-up these days and they STILL suck...
cabose369 report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

I'm sure crappy service...

Nov 07, 2007 15:13     

and not unsubscribing people coupled with censorship and slow transfer speeds had nothing to do with it.
Brian report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Fodderman

Nov 07, 2007 15:15     

390 million minus 95 billion is not 295 million it is -94,610,000,000 I don't know what planet you live on but MtYermom was right the math is incorrect. [Fodderman was right. We exchanged the "b" with an "m" -ed]
Brian report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

reinvesting

Nov 07, 2007 15:53     

I wonder if not reinvesting AOL's income, and using it to build fancy NY Time/Warner office towers had anything to do with the decline. Of course the deal with Microsoft to always use IE as part of the AOL client didn't help...
Bob report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Awesome, Fewer Software Issues

Nov 07, 2007 16:09     

As a PC technician at a national retailer, I am thrilled. AOL has some of the most problematic software out there. About 15-20% of the computers I see for diagnostics can't connect to AOL, evenn though the hardware is fine and the computer has no viruses.
PC Technician report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

AOL

Nov 07, 2007 16:14     

Pretty much goes to show that any product or service with the word America in it is terrible.
gm0n3y report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Yes Indeed

Nov 07, 2007 16:26     

AOL is darn near history. Looks like someone just put grease on the downhill slope. :) Dell will be next. That dinosaur has never treated it's customers correctly and M Dell's vision of no IT in business is a damn joke.
Penchum report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Dell is alright

Nov 07, 2007 16:31     

I haven't had any problems with Dell. Dell has been great to me, but AOL I have hated dealing with IT issues realting to their AOL clients. They are buggy.. I would think by now they would get it right.
hoser report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

I met my wife on AOL

Nov 07, 2007 17:36     

So no need to go on there anymore :)
Paul report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Yes Indeed

Nov 07, 2007 17:51     

Yes Indeed - sounds like you are afraid of losing your job... When everything is built to just "work" you better be ready to update your skillset.
Man your man report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Great!!

Nov 08, 2007 06:16     

i hated when i had AOL back in the 90's.. They would send an unbelievable amount of BS cd's of there software with keys to use it. It would be like every week i'd get 2 or more cd's of AOL 5.0 or AOL 7.0 7.2 its like damn wtf i just got 7.0 a week ago what was wrong with that one. hated it. i think a company came out and was collecting the cd's so they could dump all of them right in front of the building where AOL is located. I wonder if they ever did that, anyone know? Well i hope AOL dies, as for dell it has yet to give me a bad product be it a monitor or TV. Though i am scared that they don't sell there DELL tv's anymore which has me worried now if my TV will even last that long. Anyone know?

vanni report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

JB

Nov 08, 2007 10:59     

Started 4 yrs ago. Just took them this long to unsubscribe!
JEFF report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

Not at all surprised

Nov 08, 2007 18:54     

Not surprised, after all their client software is considered badware.
Herm report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0

YES! AOL tech never help me. EAT KARMA!

Nov 10, 2007 08:25     

Back in my AOL 56k days, so many times it become so slow even to 56k. 15mins to log on. 20 mins to open google and etc. I wasn't the only one. After 2hrs of being on hold (EACH TIME!) with AOL tech. They would give me some BS tech advice. "Change your monitor's resolution" Less resolution will help it run faster? WTH?!!!! Many times they told me to defrag my computer -_-. You can have a 99% fragmented computer and it wouldn't affect your internet speed significantly. DOWN WITH AOL! They get what they deserve.

Adam report abuse vote down vote up Votes: +0