In a piece in TelevisionWeek, Time Warner is reported to have "lost about 600,000 subscribers between September 2002 and September 2003."

Analysts believe that AOL is possibly for sale, no matter what Time Warner execs are saying:

"The real question becomes whether or not AOL is for sale. For the record, the company denies AOL is on the block. However, many analysts remain skeptical. "Sure, they would sell at the right price. But I don't believe the cash flow at the online unit is headed downward," commented Jordan Rohan, an influential analyst at Soundview Technologies. "2004 could be a good year for them."

What seems obvious is that the AOL service and many of its divisional components fit perfectly into the category of "nonstrategic assets," which Time Warner says it wants to unload. But the complications may outweigh the benefits, and at least for the moment, the AOL unit is still throwing off significant cash flow.

There are persistent reports that interested parties have been circling AOL, especially Barry Diller and his InterActiveCorp. and Microsoft and its MSN Internet service provider. Mr. Diller's IAC is said to be interested in the e-commerce applications, and MSN is eyeing AOL's 25 million U.S. online subscribers."