Is Google the Next AOL?

Is Google the Next AOL?
by Peter Osnos

Consumers rebel against arrogant monopolies, which is how AT&T, IBM, and America Online all got cut down to size. Google is acting in a disturbingly familiar manner.
In the mid-1990s, magazines began to arrive with a shiny disc attached (silver, then gold, and then finally platinum) offering hundreds of hours of access to America Online that converted as many 30 million people into subscribers paying hourly and later monthly fees for the features on offer. AOL, as it came to be known, was so formidable that in 2000 it effectively swallowed Time Warner, one of the most glittering enterprises in global media and entertainment. The combined companies had a stock value of about $225 billion. AOL was a “suite” or “walled community” with content, services (“You’ve Got Mail!”), and advertising. The bigger it got, the more customers and vendors began to complain about its business tactics. Customers that wanted to leave AOL found out that canceling the monthly fee was a headache. Would-be partners had to grovel for deals and were only accepted on onerous terms, they said. In only a few years, America Online had gone from welcoming to obnoxious.

Read the rest of Mr. Osnos article here > http://www.thedailybeast.com/blogs-and-stories/2009-04-14/hey-google-yoursquore-next/full/