AOL for free, it will happen

Posted July 14, 2006 at 11:21 AM by Adam Berger

Section: Tech News, Communications, Web, Websites, Software / Applications

AOL is still stuck with their failing subscription business model but maybe not for long. After trying to keep the company afloat by redoing AOL.com and turning it into a Yahoo media portal, everyone’s first ISP is still in shambles. CEO Jonathan Miller will present a new plan to the board in two weeks where I believe he should propose giving AOL away for free. Miller has offered various strategies before to revamp operations, including online shopping, premium subscriptions with unique content, high-speed broadband and the free AOL.com site.

Here’s my math for this final try: AOL is loosing thousands of customers and their attached revenue each day (I actually just cancelled my account after 8 years and 3 more inactive years of paying way to much for nothing). If the company were to keep the services and portal free people wouldn’t leave. The software portal that used to garner so much attention when it upgraded software and look is still essential for those who do not have broadband and for those who don’t understand you can go to AOL.com and check your mail. Now the zinger, if they sell ads on these sites with the number of current subscribers the company can make a decent amount of money. If they let the customers slip away they will not bring in enough revenue to keep the business. Additionally, if AOL waits much longer they will loose the customer and loose the chance for ad revenue.

So go ahead and call Jon, tell him Adam said to make it free. It will work, I promise, because if it doesn’t AOL is doomed anyway.