Saving AOL

from the what-have-they-come-up-with-now dept

As AOL is struggling to boost its reputation on Wall Street, and desperately hoping that their latest version release can help the company, Salon takes a look at the various issues facing AOL. The main argument against AOL's continued growth is that they're a stepping stone to a better internet experience. It may be useful for newbies trying to find their way online, but after some time, those folks should realize how limiting AOL is, and move on. However, as the article points out, that isn't really happening. Once people get used to AOL, many of them stick with it. They know where everything is, and how everything works, so why should they switch? AOL's big problem right now is how to deal with broadband. They know that high speed connections are the future, but they make a smaller profit on broadband customers - making them want to keep people on dialup. However, that could cause customers to go somewhere else entirely for broadband access, leaving AOL with nothing.