“No return to walled gardens,” AOL CEO Jonathan Miller said in Bizweek today. Huzzah! I say. The company yesterday announced free email, and more is coming.
So, here’s my open letter to Time Warner, especially given my last post on the value of Google. It’s very short:
Dear Time Warner:
You opened up AOL. Good move. Now, set it free.
Love,
Searchblog.
John,
Fascinating site! I work here in San Anselmo a lot with Guerilla Pr which does a lot of Internet marketing. That got me interested in blogging (I am running like 7 sites currently) and experiemtning with it and interviewing other bloggers.
As a former journalist and editor I am interested in how to create Blogging “magazines”. My hunch is you will have a lot to say on that subject.
Obviously, I am interested in your insights and will probabloy spend much of this morning just reading your stuff.
I’d like to learn more about your emerging company. Expect more in a bit. Have a good trip to SF today.
I think AOL’s strategy should be to turn into a true entertainment portal. Exclusive HBO On Demand over the internet, full coordination with the Time Warner Cable subs (remote DVR functionality for instance), half hour sneak previews of Warner Brother Films, etc. I know there are rights issues to be worked out and these divisions usually negotiate as if they are seperate firms but there needs to be an extra effort to save what could potentially be a very valuable asset.
Their new AIM free email is not impressive and is worse than a me-too product. They are unlikely to beat Google, MSN or Yahoo on a technological level so they need to differentiate themselves in a different way.
Yes, AOL is finally doing something it should have done at least three years ago if not more. Let’s hope it’s not too late. You can almost hear all the little content monsters wailing, “set me freeeeee!”
Thanks for the enlightening talk at MediaPost’s OMMA-West Conference in S.F. Your thoughts on the future of publishing are of particular interest–FM sounds like an intriguing idea.
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