If you were a business archeologist and you dug into the history of AOL, I think you would find five events over the past 20+ years that transformed the company and drove our greatest growth. All five of them were controversial and dramatic changes that were done mostly on instinct, an understanding of the business, and sheer courage. More important, after each event, the company launched into a period of significantly increased usage and revenue growth
Ted's Take
Ted:AOL is probably a good case study for MBA-types for years to come (Clayton Christensen and the “Innovator’s Dilemma comes to mind). The days of safe bets are off. Today’s tech success is in tomorrow’s dustbin if the formula isn’t changed to keep pace. Only companies like AOL that constantly push the envelope and are ready to redefine themselves will continue to prosper.
Ted, nice thoughts — thanks for sharing. The History major in me though forces me to make a couple of corrections: 1. Look out — Jan Brandt’s gonna come after you! AOL didn’t start the free software campaign with CDs — they started with floppy disks! Take a look at http://www.kurpis.com/PICT0607.JPG for a bunch of samples.2. You say Actually, the early versions of AOL were MACINTOSH-based. I honestly don’t recall whether we had a DOS version, but we certainly had a Mac version well before Windows.Ok, enough quibbling from me. Keep up the great work.Peter Steinberg, Greenhouse Alum
I remember using AOL shortly after jumping ship from the early Prodigy days. I had just moved to Nashville to go to film school, and kept getting busy signals (the modem growth period?). Within a year, that didn’t happen any more.Now if you can bring back modem service at $10 for 10 hours a month, just so I can be portable, I’m hooked for life.Better yet, make IN2TV compatible with my Mac. Because I am into TV, but I happen to use that “other” OS (not DOS, not Windows).
* All Star Blogger Contest– Blogging was just a fad before America fell in collective love with the charismatic Monponsett Stacey. Not long after her reports from Houston, blogging became a truly world-wide phenomena. She makes Jesus or Lincoln look like a speed bump on the Highway of Importance.In a little-known addendum, Stacey becomes the first amateur blogger to be paid for her efforts.
Ted…As always – To the bold & risk takers, there are the rewards! One interesting observation is how the online experience has profoundly changed the way people interact with their computers – once primarily a tool of production to create content – documents, spreadsheets, etc, the PC (now much more heavily centered around the online world as the ‘operating system’)has become a device for the COLLECTION of content – of the user’s choice. As always, AOL’s strength in aggregating it in a way to maximize the user experience in this regard will keep paying off!