AOL to be sold to Bending Spoons for $1.5B

Original Article ↗ Hacker News Discussion ↗

Reputation and Business Model of Bending Spoons

  • Many commenters see Bending Spoons as an “enshittification” specialist: buying mature products, cutting costs, adding dark‑pattern subscriptions and upsells, then milking existing users.
  • Others argue they’re essentially “digital private equity”: taking over already‑declining, VC‑bloated products and trying to turn them into sustainable, cash‑flowing businesses with leaner teams and realistic pricing.
  • There’s criticism of dark UX tactics (e.g., hiding “close” or “not now” options) and using user lock‑in to justify aggressive monetization.
  • Some note they follow formal Wikipedia conflict‑of‑interest procedures; others see this as reputation‑polishing.

Impact on Previous Acquisitions (Evernote, Meetup, Komoot, Vimeo, etc.)

  • Evernote:
    • One camp says it was in long‑term decline and Bending Spoons improved performance, integrated features better, and is shipping useful updates.
    • Another camp focuses on price hikes, full staff layoffs, and a perception of squeezing legacy users.
  • Meetup and Komoot: reports of heavy layoffs, more intrusive prompts to upgrade, confusing redesigns, and bugs — though some of these issues predate Bending Spoons.
  • Vimeo/Brightcove: concern that changes there could ripple through many niche streaming services that rely on their white‑label hosting.

Implications for AOL Users and Staff

  • Strong expectation of major layoffs and relocation of roles to cheaper European labor markets, based on prior deals.
  • Several commenters warn remaining AOL users to leave now, predicting more aggressive upsells and dark patterns.
  • Some think AOL is such a hollow shell that there may not be much left to cut beyond the email/portal core.

AOL’s Current Business and User Base

  • AOL still has millions of mostly older, non‑technical users and recently only just turned off dial‑up.
  • It continues to generate “hundreds of millions” in free cash flow via portal ads and legacy subscriptions, including people paying for services (like email) that are effectively free.
  • Commenters emphasize how common @aol.com, @verizon.net and similar legacy addresses still are, and how fear of losing them keeps subscriptions alive.

Deal Economics and Broader Reflections

  • The $1.5B price is seen as being driven by that stable cash flow and a highly “sticky” user base.
  • Some compare the AOL arc to current AI and tech bubbles: once‑dominant brands ending up as distressed assets in financial roll‑ups.
  • Several note the symbolic end of an era: a company once able to buy Time Warner now sold as a monetizable legacy brand.