Look back sixty years to the creation of the automotive industry in the United States and other countries, and you'll see they were built through the consolidation of a number of businesses. Look back fifty years to the creation of the broadcast networks in this country and other countries of the world, and you'll find the same kind of consolidation. Invariably, industries go through a period of creativity and diversification, and then, as they mature, they start to consolidate. If it is truly a transformational technology, then it is going to go through a rapid, transformational consolidation of companies. We're starting to see that in large numbers in the Internet industry now - hardly a day goes by without the announcement of some acquisition or merger.
Consolidation is simply the normal course of events.
By acquiring Netscape, AOL took advantage of the opportunity to create a company with great staying power, great products, great people, and, I think, an even greater future than either company would have had alone. I have no doubt that it is the transformational company, the winning company, in this category of products and services, for the 21st century. This is how great companies are built. In my four years at Netscape, we've seen the Internet become a commercial entity and explode onto the global scene. Right now, Internet-related stories occupy about a fourth of the content from news organizations.