Microsoft to Buy Stake in AOL 333
NetDanzr writes "According to various sources (Bloomberg, Reuters, CNet), Microsoft is in talks with Time Warner to buy a stake in AOL. While the size of the stake or its prize has not been disclosed yet, Bloomberg speculates that this deal would profit both companies. Microsoft would profit from merging the AOL portal with MSN, as a strategy to catch up with his rivals in this space Yahoo and Google, while Time Warner would gain some ammunition in its fight with a renegade shareholder, Carl Icahn. According to CNBC, AOL is just about to turn the corner and is currently the most undervalued division of Time Warner."
Bye bye Netscape (Score:4, Insightful)
Let's see... (Score:3, Insightful)
And AOL has been steadily losing members.
Sounds like a match made in heaven.
IE lock-in (Score:5, Insightful)
This is worrying (Score:3, Insightful)
i don't get it (Score:4, Insightful)
I don't use AOL, I don't use MSN ... I hardly even use instant messaging ... I just browse with Firefox and use email.
I hear about how AOL is a major corporation and I wonder ... how? why? I hear that MSN and AOL are apparently merging, and I wonder ... how does that affect me? Why do people care?
Really ... just ... don't ... get it. What am I missing?
Sam
The end of what ? Anybody remember when... (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:holy shit! (Score:5, Insightful)
this is no joke.
hotmail was good, and it was popular.
MS took it over and turned it into the most worst email (the low storage, the spam, the restrictions, etc) service ever. nevertheless, people keep using it because it's what they always used or what their friends use.
now take AOL, something already crappy. i can't possibly imagine what microsoft can do it. maybe this time around people will actually shy away to something else.
AOL != Mozilla Foundation (Score:4, Insightful)
They are self-sufficient, independent and have been since at least the start of FireFox.
I think there are more programmers working in google then in AOL.
Think about it - this is not about AOL per se.. (Score:5, Insightful)
AOL is presently owned by Time Warner
Heavenly Delight (Score:2, Insightful)
Re:i don't get it (Score:2, Insightful)
maybe it doens't affect you if you don't have relatives or friends or co-workers who in turn know other people from the states. The infiltration of MS and AOL is really deep in the "real" world, y'know.
Just because you don't happen to use something everyone's heard of doesn't mean it isn't important. Don't you remember the days of your youth when everything other people care about, you care about as well?
Re:holy shit! (Score:0, Insightful)
Do you think its possible they might be able to tweak a windows install to be able to run for 41 days?!
--SD
Re:Heavenly Delight (Score:4, Insightful)
Re:i don't get it (Score:5, Insightful)
For those folks, the Internet is either the little blue "e" or it's AOL. They don't have broadband, but they want it because the marketing geniuses at AOL have been telling them that AOL for broadband is better.
There is another set of users, mostly teenagers, who use either AIM or MSN Messenger to send messages back and forth to their friends' cell phones all day long. It's like passing notes in class, but they do it before breakfast, during breakfast, in the car, between or in classes, and so on. They do homework over it.
The teenagers don't know or care, for the most part, that there are dozens of IM clients and that they all pretty much work. They have MSN or AIM and that's all they need.
A portion of both groups discover eventually that the world is bigger than their little corner of it, but, like programmers using vi to edit CSS, they stick with their original chat and web clients even knowing that there are better alternatives.
I suspect that Microsoft and AOL has some synergy in that environment.
Re:This is worrying (Score:2, Insightful)
That aside, AOL still controls ICQ, AIM, and Winamp. All of which compete directly with MS products.
Ms controling netscape is bad enough, but MS lording over Winamp?? *cringe*
Antitrust anyone? (Score:4, Insightful)
Digital content distribution (Time-Warner)
VoIP (Time-Warner networks)
Combined IM markets (AIM/MSN)
DRM on all that content
I hope that those anti-trust government types see this as evil the way that I do. I can't remember what cable companies are tied up in this mess, should it happen, but this is a move by MS to take over communications, digital and voice, as well as a large share of content and content distribution. EVIL EVIL EVIL... that's all I can see in it.
I'm betting that the government will not be able to see the all digital, all-IP future that the FCC and others are trying to create being brought to a corporate congolmeration through moves like this one... Science fiction horror stories happening in real life.
The jokes about MSN and AOL securing MS position with worst portal and search abound, but it proves that most computer users don't care or are clueless. That means that if MS manages this, the world of digital content and communications may become a very bad thing... imagine using an MS phone service? or MSN cable? You'll soon be able to get a BSOD on all your entertainment and communication devices!
EVIL EVIL EVIL!
AOL vs AOLTW (Score:3, Insightful)
Of course, this still brings up an interesting thought. This means that if/once this all goes through, America will have basically three noteworthy television news sources; CNN, which has business entanglements with Microsoft; MSNBC, which has business entanglements with Microsoft; and Fox News, which is frequently brushing against antitrust law and, hm, how shall I put this, some people feel tends to give special deference to Republican ideology.
The reason I bring this up is this. Eventually, Microsoft is going to get into another antitrust lawsuit. Given the above, how do you think TV news is going to portray this...?
Re:i don't get it (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:i don't get it (Score:3, Insightful)
Re:i don't get it (Score:3, Insightful)