AOL can (potentially) buy out Amazon.

July 24, 2001 7:41 PM

AOL can (potentially) buy out Amazon. Now the question is, what would the new company be called? I vote for "AOL Times Amazon."
posted by precipice (17 comments total)

I don't think Amazon is any bigger than Netscape was when AOL bought it. So I doubt there would be any renaming happening.
posted by riffola at 8:06 PM on July 24, 2001

I decree this a double post.
posted by ParisParamus at 8:23 PM on July 24, 2001

Paris, AOL's contractual option to buy out Amazon is new news...before it was just an investment.
posted by precipice at 8:33 PM on July 24, 2001

OK. Decree withdrawn : 0

Actually, that was exactly the thrust of my post.
posted by ParisParamus at 8:39 PM on July 24, 2001

And what's even more annoying is that Yahoo News article contains several links at the end, but doesn't include a link to my precient Metafilter post. How dare they!
posted by ParisParamus at 8:42 PM on July 24, 2001

You're right, I didn't read that thread carefully enough. Apologies.
posted by precipice at 8:54 PM on July 24, 2001

Precipice: I'm just being silly : )
posted by ParisParamus at 9:01 PM on July 24, 2001

How about "AmericAmazOnline"? "Amazonlinericamazonline"? Catchy, huh? (They should hire me as in their marketing department.)
posted by waxpancake at 10:14 PM on July 24, 2001

I'm still waiting for the coming of Yahoomazoogle.

I guess it could be changed to Yahoomazoog-O-L.
posted by s.e.b. at 10:30 PM on July 24, 2001

You forgot a few

AmazOLoNullTimeNetWarnerScapeSoft

Geez, it's like the Jumble...
posted by fooljay at 10:39 PM on July 24, 2001

Damn alledged double posts! Put my comment to the wrong thread.

According to my calculations, AOL times (x) Amazon = Hbie0th. Drop the zero, the 'h' is silent. The new name is pronounced buyeth.
posted by Dick Paris at 3:08 AM on July 25, 2001

Evil, Inc?

Or do they have to wait on the Microsoft merger for that?
posted by fidelity at 3:48 AM on July 25, 2001

> Now the question is, what would the new company
> be called?

People type "amazon.com" to find books. No one will change Amazon's name, no matter whose subsidiary it becomes.

[It probably would be called something like "those fucking bastards" frequently. All else is turd-polishing.]
posted by pracowity at 3:51 AM on July 25, 2001

The Corporation.
posted by holgate at 5:16 AM on July 25, 2001

Actually, it would likely remain Amazon.com. One thing I credit AOL with is sacrificing the corporate brand for the brand of its acquirees.

Witness its subsidiaries: Nullsoft, Netscape, ICQ, Moviefone, MapQuest, DigitalCity, Compuserve. They all retained their branding and look & feel.

That makes me feel more warm and fuzzy than assimilation to a corporate monster, notably Yahoo's modus operandi.
posted by fooljay at 1:46 PM on July 25, 2001

All the better to lull you into a false sense that nothing really has changed, fooljay.....
posted by briank at 1:56 PM on July 25, 2001

Yeah, I know, but say I use Winamp. I don't give two shits who owns Winamp (to a point of course). I use the product. Now if Winamp's creator gets bought by AOL, don't change the whole damn user interface and costomer experience just to satisfy some need for corporate weenie measuring.

AOL's principle seems to be that they own businesses, not products... To date, anyway...
posted by fooljay at 7:24 PM on July 25, 2001