AOL facts for kids
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Formerly
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| Subsidiary | |
| Traded as | NYSE: AOL |
| Founded |
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| Headquarters | 770 Broadway,
New York City
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United States
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Area served
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Worldwide |
| Services | Web portal and online services |
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Number of employees
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5,600 |
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AOL (which stands for America Online) is an American company that provides online services. It is based in New York City and is now part of Yahoo! Inc.. AOL started as one of the first big internet companies in the 1990s.
AOL's story began with an online service called PlayNET. This service licensed its software to Quantum Link (Q-Link), which started in November 1985. A new computer program for IBM PCs was launched in 1988. It was later renamed America Online in 1989. AOL grew to become the biggest online service, even bigger than older ones like CompuServe. By 1995, AOL had about three million active users.
AOL was a pioneer of the internet in the 1990s. For a while, it was the most famous internet brand in the United States. AOL offered dial-up internet to millions of people. It also created early instant messaging and chat rooms with AOL Instant Messenger (AIM). In 1998, AOL bought Netscape. By 2000, AOL provided internet service to over 20 million customers. In 2001, at its peak, AOL bought the media company Time Warner. This was the biggest merger in US history at the time.
After this, AOL quickly became smaller. This was partly because dial-up internet became less popular as broadband internet grew. AOL separated from Time Warner in 2009. Tim Armstrong became the new CEO. Under his leadership, the company focused on media brands and advertising.
On June 23, 2015, Verizon Communications bought AOL for $4.4 billion. Later, on May 3, 2021, Verizon announced it would sell AOL and Yahoo to a company called Apollo Global Management. On September 1, 2021, AOL became part of the new Yahoo! Inc..
History
Early Years (1983–1991)
AOL started in 1983 as a company called Control Video Corporation (CVC). It was founded by William von Meister. Their first product was an online service called GameLine for the Atari 2600 video game console. Users bought a modem and paid a fee to download games.
In 1983, Steve Case joined Control Video as a marketing consultant. In 1985, Jim Kimsey helped the company, which was almost out of money. William von Meister left the company that year.
On May 24, 1985, Kimsey started a new company called Quantum Computer Services from what was left of Control Video. Kimsey became the CEO, and Marc Seriff was the chief technology officer. In 1987, Steve Case became an executive vice-president. Kimsey prepared Case to take over as CEO, which he did in 1991.
Kimsey changed the company's plan. In 1985, they launched an online service for Commodore 64 and 128 computers. It was called Quantum Link (or "Q-Link"). This service used software from PlayNet, Inc. It was different because it used the computer's power, not just a simple terminal. It offered a fixed price for home users.
In May 1988, Quantum and Apple launched AppleLink Personal Edition for Apple II and Macintosh computers. In August 1988, Quantum launched PC Link for IBM-compatible PCs. This was a joint project with Tandy Corporation. After they stopped working with Apple in October 1989, Quantum changed the service's name to America Online. Steve Case promoted AOL as an easy-to-use online service for people who were new to computers.
AOL included online games from the start. Many classic games were part of the original PlayNet system. The company also created new interactive games like:
- Graphical chat environments like Habitat (1986–1988).
- The first online story series called QuantumLink Serial (1988).
- Quantum Space, an early online game (1989–1991).
Growth and the Time Warner Merger (1991–2006)
In February 1991, AOL for DOS was launched. A year later, AOL for Windows came out. This was a time when paid online services like Prodigy and CompuServe were growing. In 1991, a Dungeons & Dragons game called Neverwinter Nights was released. It was one of the first online role-playing games with graphics.
In the early 1990s, people stayed with AOL for about 25 months. Advertisements offered free software and trial memberships. AOL stopped Q-Link and PC Link in late 1994. In September 1993, AOL added Usenet access. This led to a huge increase in new users. AOL also started a big marketing campaign to give out free trial CDs. At one point, half of all CDs made worldwide had an AOL logo.
AOL quickly became bigger than GEnie, Prodigy, and CompuServe. In November 1994, AOL bought Booklink for its web browser. In 1996, AOL replaced Booklink with a browser based on Internet Explorer.
AOL worked with many education providers. They offered the first real-time homework help service in 1990. They also created the first online service for children (Kids Only Online, 1991) and parents (Parents Information Network, 1991). AOL also had the first online courses (1988) and the first online exhibit with the Library of Congress in 1991.
AOL bought the search engine WebCrawler in 1995. They sold it to Excite the next year. After this, AOL launched its own search engine called NetFind in 1997, which was based on Excite. It was renamed AOL Search in 1999.
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Until December 1996, AOL charged users by the hour. Then, they changed to a flat monthly rate of $19.95. Many users tried to connect at once, leading to busy signals. This caused some people to cancel their accounts. Within three years, AOL had 10 million users.
In October 1996, AOL moved its headquarters to Dulles, Virginia, to make room for growth. AOL was also included with Windows software. In 1997, about half of all US homes with internet access used AOL. In November 1998, AOL announced it would buy Netscape for $4.2 billion. Another big purchase was MapQuest in December 1999 for $1.1 billion.
In January 2000, AOL and Time Warner announced plans to merge. They formed AOL Time Warner, Inc. This deal closed on January 11, 2001. It was the largest merger in history at the time. The new company was led by people from both AOL and Time Warner. In 2003, AOL Time Warner removed "AOL" from its name.
In 2004, AOL 9.0 Optimized was launched. It allowed users to have personalized greetings. In 2005, AOL streamed the Live 8 concert live online. Later that year, AOL released AOL Safety & Security Center, which included antivirus and anti-spyware software. In December 2005, Google bought a 5% share of AOL for $1 billion.
Rebranding and Decline (2006–2009)
On April 3, 2006, AOL announced it would no longer use the full name America Online. The service officially became "AOL." On June 8, 2006, AOL offered a new program called AOL Active Security Monitor. Two months later, AOL released AOL Active Virus Shield, a free product.
In August 2006, AOL started offering free email accounts and software. Before, these were only for paying customers. This change was meant to reduce costs and keep users who were switching to free email services like Microsoft Hotmail or Yahoo!. The free services included:
- AIM (AOL Instant Messenger)
- AOL Video, which had professional content and allowed users to upload videos.
- AOL Local, for finding local information like restaurants.
- AOL News
- AOL My eAddress, for custom email addresses.
- Xdrive, for backing up files online.
Also in August, AOL increased the price of its dial-up access to $25.90. This was to encourage users to switch to broadband. However, AOL later offered unlimited dial-up for $9.95 a month.
On November 16, 2006, Randy Falco became CEO. In December 2006, AOL closed its last call center in the United States. Service centers in India and the Philippines continued to help customers.
On September 17, 2007, AOL announced it was moving one of its main offices from Dulles, Virginia, to New York City. This showed the company's new focus on advertising. AOL still kept "significant operations" in Dulles. As part of this move, Falco announced plans to lay off 2,000 employees worldwide by the end of 2007. This was about 40% of AOL's employees.
By November 2007, AOL had 10.1 million subscribers. On January 3, 2008, AOL closed its Reston, Virginia data center. On March 13, 2008, AOL bought the social networking site Bebo for $850 million. On July 25, AOL closed Xdrive, AOL Pictures, and BlueString to save money. On October 31, AOL Hometown (a web-hosting service) and AOL Journal (a blog service) were also closed.
As a Digital Media Company (2009–2015)
On March 12, 2009, Tim Armstrong became chairman and CEO of AOL. On May 28, Time Warner announced that AOL would become an independent company. On November 23, AOL revealed a new logo with the word "Aol." The new logo was used with all AOL services on December 10, when AOL became an independent company again on the New York Stock Exchange.
On April 6, 2010, AOL announced plans to close or sell Bebo. On June 16, Bebo was sold for about $10 million. In December, AIM stopped access to AOL chat rooms because fewer people were using them.
Under Armstrong, AOL bought many new companies. It bought Patch Media, which was a network of local news websites. On September 28, 2010, AOL bought TechCrunch, a technology news website. On December 12, 2010, AOL bought about.me, a personal profile platform.
On January 31, 2011, AOL bought goviral, a European video network. In March 2011, AOL bought HuffPost for $315 million. After this, Huffington Post co-founder Arianna Huffington became president and editor-in-chief of the AOL Huffington Post Media Group. On March 10, AOL announced it would cut about 900 jobs after the HuffPost purchase.
On September 14, 2011, AOL worked with Yahoo and Microsoft to sell ads together. This was to help them compete with Google and other advertising networks.
On February 28, 2012, AOL partnered with PBS to launch MAKERS. This was a digital series about successful women in fields like war, comedy, and business. Famous women like Oprah Winfrey and Hillary Clinton were featured.
On March 15, 2012, AOL bought Hipster, a mobile photo-sharing app. On April 9, 2012, AOL sold 800 patents to Microsoft for over $1 billion. AOL still had a license to use these patents.
AOL also worked to make more money from online video ads. On April 24, the company launched the AOL On network, a single website for its video content.
In February 2013, AOL reported its first increase in quarterly revenue in eight years.
In August 2013, Armstrong announced that Patch Media would reduce its size or sell many of its local news sites. Layoffs began, affecting up to 500 employees. On January 15, 2014, Patch Media became a separate company. By the end of 2014, AOL had a small share of the global advertising market.
On January 23, 2014, AOL bought Gravity, a software company that tracked user behavior to show personalized ads. This deal was worth $83 million. Later that year, AOL bought Vidible, a company that helped websites show video content.
On July 16, 2014, AOL received an Emmy nomination for its series The Future Starts Here. This series focused on how humans interact with technology.
Part of Verizon (2015–2021)
On May 12, 2015, Verizon announced plans to buy AOL for $4.4 billion. The deal was completed on June 23. Armstrong continued to lead AOL. He said the deal was important for AOL's future growth. Analysts thought the deal made sense for Verizon to expand its advertising and video production. At the time, AOL still had about two million dial-up subscribers.
Shortly before the Verizon purchase, AOL launched ONE by AOL. This was a platform to manage and optimize digital marketing campaigns across different screens.
On May 8, 2015, AOL reported its first-quarter revenue of $625.1 million. Most of this came from advertising.
On June 29, 2015, AOL made a deal with Microsoft to take over most of its digital advertising business. About 1,200 Microsoft employees moved to AOL. AOL also took over selling ads on Microsoft platforms in several countries. Also, Google Search on AOL websites was replaced with Bing.
On July 22, 2015, AOL received two Emmy nominations for its series MAKERS and True Trans With Laura Jane Grace.
On September 3, 2015, AOL agreed to buy Millennial Media for $238 million. This purchase was completed on October 23, 2015.
On October 1, 2015, Go90 was launched. This was a free mobile video service for young adults and teens. It included content from Comedy Central, HuffPost, and ESPN.
On April 20, 2016, AOL bought RYOT, a virtual reality studio. This was to bring 360-degree video and VR content to HuffPost.
In July 2016, Verizon Communications announced it would buy Yahoo!'s main internet business. Verizon then combined AOL and Yahoo into a new company called "Oath Inc." In January 2019, Oath Inc. changed its name to Verizon Media.
In November 2020, the Huffington Post was sold to BuzzFeed.
Apollo Global Management (2021–Present)
On May 3, 2021, Verizon announced it would sell 90 percent of its Verizon Media division to Apollo Global Management for $5 billion. This division then became the second version of Yahoo! Inc..
Products and Services
Content
As of September 1, 2021, the following media brands are part of AOL's parent company, Yahoo Inc.:
- Engadget
- Autoblog
- TechCrunch
- Built by Girls
AOL's content comes from over 20,000 bloggers. These include politicians, celebrities, and experts who write about many news topics.
AOL also makes mobile apps for its brands like Autoblog, Engadget, The Huffington Post, and TechCrunch.
Advertising
AOL has many media brands and advertising services for mobile, desktop, and TV. These services include brand partnerships and sponsorships. They also offer data and advertising technology through their system called ONE by AOL.
AOL bought several businesses to create ONE by AOL. These included AdapTV in 2013, and Convertro, Precision Demand, and Vidible in 2014. ONE by AOL is divided into parts for publishers and advertisers.
On September 10, 2018, AOL's parent company, Oath, combined its advertising services. They launched a single advertising platform called Oath Ad Platforms, now known as Yahoo! Ad Tech.
Membership
AOL offers various products and services, including communication tools, mobile apps, and subscription packages.
Before AIM was stopped in 2017, billions of messages were sent daily on AOL's chat services.
- Dial-up Internet access – In 2015, 2.1 million people still used AOL's dial-up service. By 2021, only a few thousand were still subscribed.
- AOL Mail – This is AOL's own email service. It was connected with AIM and showed news headlines from AOL websites.
- AOL Instant Messenger (AIM) – AIM was AOL's instant-messaging tool, released in 1997. It also had video chat. AOL stopped AIM on December 15, 2017.
- AOL Plans – AOL Plans offers tools for online safety and help. These include ID protection, data security, and general technical support.
AOL Desktop
| Developer(s) | AOL |
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| Initial release | December 8, 2007 |
| Stable release |
9.8(Windows)
1.7 (macOS) / August 10, 2015 |
| Preview release |
11.0.3418 / November 11, 2021.
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| Written in | C++ |
| Operating system | Microsoft Windows XP or later, Mac OS X 10.4.8 or later |
| Type | Internet Suite |
| License | Proprietary |
AOL Desktop is a software program made by AOL since 2007. It combines a web browser, a media player, and an instant messenger. Version 10.X was an upgrade from AOL OpenRide. The macOS version used WebKit.
AOL Desktop version 10.X was different from older AOL browsers. It focused on web browsing and email. You did not have to sign into AOL to use it as a regular browser. You could also access other email accounts through it. It had buttons for "MAIL," "IM," and shortcuts to web pages.
Version 9.8 replaced the Internet Explorer parts of the browser with CEF (Chromium Embedded Framework). This gave users a better web browsing experience, similar to Chrome.
Version 11 of AOL Desktop was completely rewritten but looked similar to the 9.8.X versions.
In 2017, a new paid version called AOL Desktop Gold was released for $4.99 per month. It replaced the older free version. After AIM shut down in 2017, AOL's original chat rooms were still available through AOL Desktop Gold. However, that chat system was shut down on December 15, 2020.
AOL also offered a browser toolbar called AOL Toolbar. This was a plug-in for web browsers that gave quick access to AOL services. The toolbar was available from 2007 until 2018.
Images for kids
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The current AOL logo.
See Also
In Spanish: AOL para niños
- Adrian Lamo – Inside-AOL.com
- AOHell
- Comparison of webmail providers
- David Shing
- Dot-com bubble
- List of acquisitions by AOL
- List of S&P 400 companies
- Live365
- Truveo
