Timing is everything.
AOL was able to grasp the concept of a virtual community a long before the Internet took off. The idea of being connected and share any kind of information over the net attracted many people and kept them loyal to this company despite many pitfalls it has had through more than a decade. During the climb to 27 million, AOL broke its single-day records for membership growth. That is by itself are very impressive numbers. AOL is one of the few internet companies that has actually figured out how to make money on the web by charging individuals monthly subscriptions to sign up to their internet services, and by charging companies to advertise their services.