Dial-up is still the main revenue source for AOL (opens in new tab)

(cir.ca)

20 pointsindiekid13y ago16 comments

16 comments

15 comments · 7 top-level

OGinparadise13y ago· 4 in thread

They had a 10 year or so golden opportunity to pivot and try different models backed by dial-up revenue.

I'd say that they failed

DavidBradbury13y ago

Oddly enough, they're still a company worth roughly $2.17 billion. I'd certainly be happy with that failure.

OGinparadise13y ago

Me too--even with 170K at this point in my life, but let's look at where AOL was and the chances they had.

bjoernw13y ago

How do you define failure?

OGinparadise13y ago

What do they have going for the next 1-5-10 years? A few blogs?

jiggy201113y ago· 3 in thread

Wow, outside of a very small handful of sites is the web still usable on dial up?

chc13y ago

If you have an iPhone, switch to EDGE for something roughly approximating the dialup experience. (I think it's a bit faster, but they're in the same ballpark.)

plorkyeran13y ago

EDGE tops out at over four times the speed of dialup, amazingly enough.

1 more reply

Shivetya13y ago

until my grandparents passed away their entire use for "the internet" was AOL and that only to receive pictures of their grandchildren. I think I may have some other older relatives who use the net and/or AOL simply for email.

n7213y ago· 1 in thread

I wondering how much of this is comprised of auto-renewed subscriptions that people don't even realize they're paying for.

bunderbunder13y ago

Or people who have broadband, but keep paying for AOL's dialup service because they don't realize they think they need to in order to keep their AOL email and instant messaging accounts.

That said, I'd like to have a closer look at the numbers before jumping to any conclusions. Nowadays the situation might be complicated a bit by the fact that AOL bundles "backup dial-up" service in with their packages of paid services that are primarily intended for broadband users.

jlogsdon13y ago

Headline, and article, is sensationalist.

The article states "that its Membership Group — the division that includes its dial-up Internet business — still generates most of the company's revenue".

According to the Yahoo! report[1] it includes every membership service (such as Mail):

"The Membership Group, which consists of offerings that serve AOL’s registered account holders, both free and paid, and are focused on delivering world-class experiences to AOL’s loyal users who rely on these AOL products and properties every day. The results for this segment include AOL’s subscription offerings and advertising offerings on Membership Group properties, such as AOL Mail, as well as from performance compensation for marketing third party products and services."

[1] http://finance.yahoo.com/news/aol-reports-revenue-growth-fir...

enuncajon13y ago

I do not find this surprising at all. I realize it is not dial-up, but my in-laws who pay >$70/month for high-speed broadband are still convinced that AOL is the only route to the "Internet". I cannot convince them otherwise.

yuhong13y ago

https://www.quora.com/AOL/Did-AOL-make-it-hard-to-cancel-in-...

nullvoyd13y ago

This website messes with my back button. Nobody messes with my back button. Also, terrible design.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse

16 comments

15 comments · 7 top-level

OGinparadise13y ago· 4 in thread

They had a 10 year or so golden opportunity to pivot and try different models backed by dial-up revenue.

I'd say that they failed

DavidBradbury13y ago

Oddly enough, they're still a company worth roughly $2.17 billion. I'd certainly be happy with that failure.

OGinparadise13y ago

Me too--even with 170K at this point in my life, but let's look at where AOL was and the chances they had.

bjoernw13y ago

How do you define failure?

OGinparadise13y ago

What do they have going for the next 1-5-10 years? A few blogs?

jiggy201113y ago· 3 in thread

Wow, outside of a very small handful of sites is the web still usable on dial up?

chc13y ago

If you have an iPhone, switch to EDGE for something roughly approximating the dialup experience. (I think it's a bit faster, but they're in the same ballpark.)

plorkyeran13y ago

EDGE tops out at over four times the speed of dialup, amazingly enough.

1 more reply

Shivetya13y ago

n7213y ago· 1 in thread

I wondering how much of this is comprised of auto-renewed subscriptions that people don't even realize they're paying for.

bunderbunder13y ago

Or people who have broadband, but keep paying for AOL's dialup service because they don't realize they think they need to in order to keep their AOL email and instant messaging accounts.

jlogsdon13y ago

Headline, and article, is sensationalist.

The article states "that its Membership Group — the division that includes its dial-up Internet business — still generates most of the company's revenue".

According to the Yahoo! report[1] it includes every membership service (such as Mail):

[1] http://finance.yahoo.com/news/aol-reports-revenue-growth-fir...

enuncajon13y ago

yuhong13y ago

https://www.quora.com/AOL/Did-AOL-make-it-hard-to-cancel-in-...

nullvoyd13y ago

This website messes with my back button. Nobody messes with my back button. Also, terrible design.

j / k navigate · click thread line to collapse