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US hedge fund seeks five seats on AOL board
by Staff Writers
New York (AFP) Feb 24, 2012


A US hedge fund with a large stake in AOL laid claim on Friday to five seats on the board of directors of the Internet company and criticized the strategy of the current management.

Starboard Value said in a letter to the AOL board it was "troubled that the company remains closed-minded to alternative value creation initiatives, and instead appears solely focused on pursuing the status quo."

Jeffrey Smith, chief executive of the New York-based Starboard Value, which claims to hold 5.2 percent of the outstanding shares of AOL, said the company's assets "are being undervalued in the marketplace."

Specifically, Starboard Value said AOL was not taking advantage of a portfolio of over 800 patents it holds for various Internet technologies.

"A significant number of large Internet-related technology companies may be infringing on these patents," Starboard Value said, and AOL's patent portfolio "could produce in excess of $1 billion of licensing income."

"The company's inaction is alarming given our understanding that many of the key patents have looming expiration dates over the next several years which could render them worthless if not immediately utilized," Smith said.

Starboard Value proposed five nominees for the AOL board at the next annual meeting.

Smith is one of the nominees along with a former director of licensing at computer chip giant Intel and a former president of the CBS television network.

"We do not currently intend to seek to replace a majority of the board," Smith said. "However, we do believe significant change to the composition of the board is warranted."

Responding to the Starboard letter, AOL said it is making "significant progress" in "executing our strategy to improve AOL's growth trajectory."

"We ended 2011 with our best performance as a company in the past five years, with substantial growth in advertising revenue, improvements in legacy revenue streams, and significant cost reductions," AOL said.

AOL said it has held several meetings with Starboard Value and offered "an opportunity to help shape the companys board of directors composition and size."

"Unfortunately, Starboard Value LP has a singularly focused agenda and rejected this productive path to address their stated concerns and drive increased shareholder value," AOL said.

AOL shares lost 1.08 percent on Wall Street on Friday to close at $18.24.

AOL's chief executive Tim Armstrong was hired away from Google three years ago to execute a turnaround at the company formerly known as America Online.

Under Armstrong, AOL has invested heavily in online content, purchasing The Huffington Post and TechCrunch websites and putting money in local news network Patch.

AOL fused with news and entertainment giant Time Warner in 2001 at the height of the dotcom boom in what is seen as one of the most disastrous mergers ever.

It was spun off by Time Warner in December 2009 into an independent company.

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Los Angeles Times to begin charging for online access
Los Angeles (AFP) Feb 24, 2012 - The Los Angeles Times said Friday that it will begin charging online readers next month, the latest major US newspaper to require a subscription to its website.

The announcement by the Times comes two days after Gannett, the largest US newspaper chain, said it will begin charging for full online access to its 80 US dailies later this year with the exception of flagship USA Today.

The Los Angeles Times, which is owned by the Tribune Co., which also owns the Chicago Tribune and Baltimore Sun, said that starting March 5, online readers will be asked to buy a digital subscription.

Digital-only access to the newspaper will cost $3.99 a week. The Times is also offering a package that includes the Sunday newspaper for $1.99 a week.

Print subscribers will not be charged extra for online access and visitors to LATimes.com who are not subscribers can read up to 15 stories for free in a 30-day period.

The Times said digital subscribers will also be eligible for retail discounts, deals and giveaways.

Kathy Thomson, president of Los Angeles Times Media Group, told the newspaper that readers who access the Times through a mobile phone or tablet application will not have to pay for now, although the company will charge in the future.

Like other US newspapers, the Los Angeles Times has been grappling with declining print advertising revenue and falling circulation and seeking new sources of revenue.

The Tribune Co., which owns 23 television stations in addition to newspapers in Chicago, Los Angeles, Baltimore, Orlando and other cities, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December 2008.

The Wall Street Journal, owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corp., has always charged online readers for full access to WSJ.com.

The New York Times began charging for full access to its website last March and the Times-owned Boston Globe followed suit in September. Another major newspaper, The Dallas Morning News, is also charging online readers.

The Los Angeles Times said its daily circulation had dropped to 575,000 for the six months that ended in September 2011, down from about 775,000 five years earlier.

The LATimes.com website was the third-most visited US newspaper site last year, according to Web tracking company comScore, trailing those of The New York Times and The Washington Post.



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White House unveils 'one click' online privacy plan
Washington (AFP) Feb 23, 2012
The White House unveiled an online privacy proposal Thursday intended to allow Web users to easily opt out of being tracked on the Internet. The "Consumer Privacy Bill of Rights" has received the backing of leading Internet companies and online advertising networks and would involve a simple "one click" setting on a Web browser, the White House said. "American consumers can't wait any lo ... read more


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