- Bending Spoons announces deal to buy AOL for $1.5bn
- Iconic Internet provider had been part of Yahoo
- Latest entry to the Bending Spoons stable – but what will it do with AOL?
For many of us, AOL is a relic of the golden age of the Internet, but it turns out the company is still alive and thriving – and is still an attractive proposition for investment.
Italian software company Bending Spoons has revealed AOL will be the next big addition to its portfolio, at the cost of around $1.5 billion.
AOL does still offer a web portal and an email service for users, and recently hit the headlines for shutting down its dial-up internet offering in August 2025.
AOL + Bending Spoons
Bending Spoons has snapped up a series of well-known software names in recent years, including the likes of WeTransfer, Evernote and Vimeo, and says it has no plans to shut down AOL or spin off its tools.
The company claims AOL is still one of the top ten most-used email providers in the world today, with “a highly retained customer base counting around 8 million daily and 30 million monthly active users”.
“AOL is an iconic, beloved business that’s in good health, has stood the test of time, and we believe has unexpressed potential,” said Bending Spoons CEO and co-founder, Luca Ferrari.
“We intend to invest significantly to help the product and the business flourish. Bending Spoons has never sold an acquired business—we’re confident we’re the right long-term steward for AOL, and look forward to serving its large, loyal customer base for many years to come.”
Bending Spoons also announced the successful completion of a $2.8 billion debt financing package to fund the acquisition, as well as possible future deals.
One of the most iconic names of the early Internet, AOL spread across millions of US homes, merging with Time Warner in 2001 before later being spun off and sold to Verizon for $4.4 billion in 2015.
From there, Verizon merged AOL and Yahoo into a new company, called Oath, which was then sold to private equity firm Apollo Global Management for around $5 billion in 2021.
“AOL and Yahoo share a great deal of history, and our new team has enjoyed the opportunity to return AOL to growth,” said Jim Lanzone, CEO of Yahoo, Inc. “This transaction will allow us to focus more deeply on the aggressive roadmaps we have planned for Yahoo’s core products moving forward, while ensuring AOL continues to thrive under new ownership.”
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