Monday, April 13, 2009

AOL, ELN, and Dial-Up

CNN Money has an article about AOL. What's the future of the former giant ISP? Is Dial-up coming back?

According to dial-up aggregation companies, there has been an uptick in dial-up in the last months. In fact, there have been some price changes.

"AOL raised its lowest monthly price from $9.99 to $11.99 last year for unlimited service and 24/7 tech support. Those who just want the unlimited service, but with limited tech support, can still get the $9.99 plan.... EarthLink recently lowered its least expensive monthly plan by $2 to $7.95, and United Online charges $9.95 a month for its cheapest service.

Who uses dial-up?

"In a study last year, the Pew Internet & American Life Project found that about 10 percent of Americans use dial-up connections at home. Of that number, 19 percent said there’s nothing that will convince them to switch to broadband — not better availability or lower prices."

In the end what happens to AOL? "AOL may live on if Time Warner decides to keep it, or as part of another ISP." ErathLink was thinking about buying it but so was NetZero.

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