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NEW YORK : AOL will cuts some 2,500 jobs, or one-third or its workforce, under the plan to spin off the Internet firm from media giant Time Warner, company officials said Thursday.
The cuts are part of a plan to save 300 million dollars at AOL, which is to regain its independence on December 9, executives said.
AOL spokeswoman Tricia Primrose said a voluntary departure programme will begin December 4, seeking to reach the target of 2,500.
"We will need to do an involuntary layoff if we do not reach the target numbers through the voluntary option," she said.
"We believe the voluntary programme gives people more choice and decision-making ability instead of waiting for the final cost recommendations and involuntary layoffs."
As of December 10, AOL will become a separate traded company, bringing to a close a controversial merger at the height of the tech boom.
An independent AOL would be free to focus on growing its Web brands and services and its advertising business, according to Time Warner.
AOL, formerly known as America Online, saw its heyday as a provider of dial-up service in the early days of the Internet but has been losing ground as consumers switch to high-speed or broadband services.
Time Warner merged with America Online in 2001 at the height of the dot-com boom, with AOL using its inflated stock as a currency for the transaction.
But the marriage of old and new media behemoths baptized as AOL Time Warner quickly went sour as benefits promised to shareholders failed to materialize.
AOL was valued at more than 150 billion dollars when the ill-fated merger was announced but its worth collapsed dramatically as the dot-com bubble burst.
Time Warner was forced in 2002 to massively write down the value of the Internet unit and the AOL name was removed from the group's corporate title in 2003.
- AFP /ls
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