AOL-Time Warner — the strategy behind it | Stratrix

Company profile

Founded: 2001
Headquarters: New York City, United States
Ownership: Renamed Time Warner in 2003

Profiles are auto-generated and infrequently updated.

In depth

AOL-Time Warner Merger (2000)

When AOL's Steve Case and Time Warner's Gerald Levin shook hands on a $164 billion merger in January 2000, they promised a revolutionary convergence of old and new media. Instead, the dot-com bubble burst, cultures clashed violently, and the combined entity wrote off nearly $100 billion — making it the worst merger in corporate history.

The analyses

The Fall · Decision Forks

AOL Used Bubble Stock to Buy Hard Media Assets; by 2002 the New Company Lost $98.7 Billion in a Year

The $350 billion deal is called the worst merger in history. The real story is colder: AOL knew dial-up was dying and used overvalued bubble stock to buy hard media assets. Time Warner's board took the paper. By 2002 the new company lost $98.7 billion in a year.