SWOT Analysis of AOL Time Warner
Uploaded by dylanb98 on Oct 31, 2011
An examination of the strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats of AOL Time Warner, with rapid growth and brand recognition being discussed as two of the company’s greatest strengths.
Introduction
AOL Time Warner is a media conglomerate made up of the Internet service provider America Online and veteran film, television and publishing giant Time Warner. Since the two companies’ merger in 2001, the new organization has morphed into a “behemoth…[that is] blasting into the 21st century like no other” (Hoovers, PG).
AOL Time Warner owns a number of subsidiaries, each covering a different media, and including America Online, Inc., AOL Time Warner Interactive Video, Columbia House Company, Time Inc., Time Warner Entertainment Company L.P., Time Warner Telecom Inc., Turner Broadcasting System Inc., and Warner Music Group.
Strengths
AOL Time Warner’s very existence is a testament to its executives’ penchant for risk and opportunity. Surely, two major strengths must be persistence and ambition. It appears as though AOL Time Warner is attempting to control the media in the same way Microsoft Corporation has controlled the software industry for years.
Today the company’s contributions include electronic mail, conferencing, software, interactive magazines and newspapers, print magazines and newspapers, online classes, web hosting services, movies, music and a number of other types of media and media services.
AOL actually acquired Time Warner; AOL’s rapid growth over the last 10 years have made it a powerful contender in the market for Internet-related services. One of the company’s strengths is customer care, as AOL offers customers a complete package including online features, privacy and security, parental controls, and unrivaled customer service.
Certainly, the AOL brand name recognition is quite high; AOL is a household word, which means a lot in terms of customer acceptance and retention for any product or service with the AOL name on it.
Finally, another strength must be the combined business savvy of the company’s executives. With years of success and rapid growth already under their belts, AOL Time Warner’s leadership team already has an advantage over many of its competitors.
Weaknesses
According to marketing expert and consultant Jack Trout, the merger between AOL and Time Warner is based on the mistaken belief held by many corporate leaders today that business categories are combining, not dividing. The current buzzwords in corporate America, says Trout, are “synergy” and “alliance;” but the convergence of different forms of media (computer, television and print) created...