Journal 1, May 31

http://tech.yahoo.com/news/ap/20090528/ap_on_hi_te/us_time_warner_aol_spinoff

In 2001 AOL bought Time Warner Inc. and has ever since been on a up and down path of corporate success; primarily the latter of the two. After eight years of partnership it was recently announced that the two will split and become independent once again. During this 8 year span it is often said that this combination is one of the worst in the corporate world. Many quarters of profit loss have been experienced by the corporate duet yet both have stayed afloat. So why is such a large separation necessary? According to the article, the two may experience more success in the future if they concentrate on there individual services. With the separation, Time Warner will focus more on its media in the form of television, movies, and magazine publications. "For AOL, becoming a standalone company will give it more focus and strategic flexibility," as recently stated by Time Warner's chief executive, Jeff Bewkes. AOL will focus on its regrowth as an internet superpower. This regrowth for AOL may be an uphill climb. With the overwhelming take over of broadband internet service one of the cornerstones of the partnership, dial up internet, has been washed out; thus another cause of the corporate divorce. Timer Warner originally used this wide spread internet service, provided by AOL's dial-up, to promote and expand its media services. An article on Time.com, a Time Warner asset, says that the split will be very beneficial to AOL. With all of the different reasons for the split and speculations about the futures of the two, I still wonder about one thing; can AOL survive on its own in the demanding online world? The article speaks of many different reasons for AOL's recent struggles, but can such a struggling company independently compete with thriving webstars such as Google and Yahoo!? The article is very informative on some of the reasoning behind the split and gives great detail on historical profits. It was also mentioned that talks of AOL merging with Yahoo! have floated about. In my personal opinion, with the decline in need for dial-up internet service, AOL merging with Yahoo! or something similar is its only hope of survival. As for Time Warner, peoples want for movies, television and magazine publication will keep them above water in the near future.

http://www.time.com/time/business/article/0,8599,1901508,00.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2005/12/12/technology/12time.html