Gone are the days when one general portal or social networking site addressed the needs of all consumers. Today's fragmented online environment requires programming that targets people's passion points at scale across a range of unique sites. In order to cater such a diverse audience AOL has created a new business unit, MediaGlow, which will centralize AOL's entire publishing efforts, with the goal of greatly expanding the unit's global reach in the coming year.

AOL wanted to rebuild itself into three core businesses -- publishing, advertising and social media. With the launch of MediaGlow, they have completed their goal in less than 18 months. Over the past 18 months AOL formed Platform-A, the largest domestic digital advertising platform, as well People Networks, the company's social media unit, which leverages on products such as Bebo, AIM and ICQ. MediaGlow and its publishing assets will now join Platform-A and People Networks as the third core business for AOL.

The creation of MediaGlow comes on the heels of a highly successful 2008 for AOL's publishing unit, which has been led by Bill Wilson, Executive Vice President of Programming for AOL. Wilson will now lead MediaGlow as President of the new business unit, directing not only the publishing unit, but a new infrastructure that will include global outreach and AOL's vast array of commerce-related sites.

MediaGlow will continue the development of the new AOL.com, and its vertical Web sites focused on passion points, with the goal of creating over 30 editorially curated sites in 2009. A sample of specific categories includes: expanding AOL News and AOL Sports into a variety of newly created niche-oriented news and sports sites; building on the success of its highly successful Asylum site with new, male-oriented, 18-34 year old targeted brands; creating new sites focused on areas such as Reality Television, Soap Operas, Horror Films, Jazz and Heavy Metal; and launching a new pop culture site aimed at kids.