AOL began in 1985, originally founded as Quantum Computer Services. It officially became America Online in 1989. Four years later, in 1993, AOL had only 500,000 members. It provided access to the Internet, and, in addition, offered access to its own online information and services, which were specifically tailored to the needs and interests of the average American consumer. Just four years after that, in 1997, AOL had grown to 9 million members.
Now, AOL has more than 34 million members worldwide and is widely acknowledged as the best consumer online service. AOL’s history and success is based on its intention to connect more than just computers; AOL connects people, and the AOL community has become one of the largest ‘cities’ in the world.
In 2001, AOL bought Time Warner and became AOL Time Warner.