AOL Will Offer Its Software and E-mail for Free to Broadband Users

WebKnowHow
Friday, August 4, 2006; 02:19 AM

AOL’s software and e-mail as well as various other products will be made available for free to broadband users in a move to enhance the growth of AOL's online advertising business.

AOL Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Jonathan Miller said: “We’ll now be able to maintain and deepen our relationship with many more members who are likely to migrate to broadband. Providing them with their familiar AOL software and e-mail for free, over any broadband connection, will be critical to our future success. For members who’ve left us over the past two years, we’ve kept your e-mail address. When this effort is fully operational in early September, you’ll be able to come home again – for free. For those who have never tried the AOL software, e-mail or our other products, we invite you to do so at no charge. The AOL Network has over 100 million unique visitors per month, and we’ll work hard to engage Internet users with new products that will be available for free on the Web.”

Among the AOL products that will be available for free to anyone with an Internet connection are: AOL’s integrated software; communications features, including AOL e-mail, instant messaging, a local phone number with unlimited incoming calls, and social networking applications; and safety and security features, such as parental controls. To encourage former members to return to using the AOL software, e-mail, instant messaging and other AOL products, they will be able to reactivate their screen names, if given up within the last two years.

In the weeks ahead, AOL said it will announce a number of free new products in such areas as safety and security, storage, personalized e-mail domains, video and search, as well as an update of its AOL software. Those will be combined with AOL’s video search, video assets, compelling content, blogging and other existing free applications.

The AOL Network has the second-largest U.S. online audience and is now the third-largest online national advertising network. In the second quarter, AOL’s advertising revenue grew 40% year over year.

AOL will continue to offer its dial-up access subscription service, but will no longer aggressively market it. Members may continue to subscribe to AOL’s unlimited premium dial-up plan with a monthly price of $25.90 (including such additional features as 50 gigabytes of storage and unlimited premium customer care) or choose from two lower-cost access plans.