USA Today reports that America Online plans to roll out major new services over the next few months to help it compete in key Internet battlegrounds � taking on teen-networking site MySpace, voice powerhouse Skype and others, CEO Jonathan Miller said in an exclusive interview.
Some of the plans, such as building a MySpace-style network onto AOL's market-leading instant messaging service, have not previously been made public. AOL is trying to keep pace with chief rivals Google, Yahoo and Microsoft as it shifts from a subscriber model to an advertising strategy, Miller says: "Job One is to make sure we're part of that group."
"It makes perfect sense," says Charlene Li, analyst at Forrester Research. "The key is making a strong link with AOL Music. Part of the reason MySpace works so well is it has music." AOL has long talked about using AIM as a hub, says David Card, analyst at Jupiter Research. But as AOL struggles to win respect and ad dollars, he says, executives "just need to do it."
Some of the plans, such as building a MySpace-style network onto AOL's market-leading instant messaging service, have not previously been made public. AOL is trying to keep pace with chief rivals Google, Yahoo and Microsoft as it shifts from a subscriber model to an advertising strategy, Miller says: "Job One is to make sure we're part of that group."
"It makes perfect sense," says Charlene Li, analyst at Forrester Research. "The key is making a strong link with AOL Music. Part of the reason MySpace works so well is it has music." AOL has long talked about using AIM as a hub, says David Card, analyst at Jupiter Research. But as AOL struggles to win respect and ad dollars, he says, executives "just need to do it."