AOL Buys Huffington Post
When demonstrations began in Egypt, maybe you were among the many who checked out The Huffington Post to see what was happening. When you are looking for a good book to read, maybe you check out the reviews available on The Huffington Post. Or maybe you visit it to see the blog entry of George Clooney. The online source has become a well-trod place for people trying to get the news from diverse sources.
On February 7, 2011, AOL Inc. announced that it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire The Huffington Post.
In a press release AOL and The Huffington Post speculate that the new group will have a combined base of 117 million unique visitors a month in the United States and 270 million around the world. Following the close of this transaction, AOL will accelerate its strategy to deliver a scaled and differentiated array of premium news, analysis, and entertainment produced by thousands of writers, editors, reporters, and videographers around the globe.
“This is truly a merger of visions and a perfect fit for us,” said Huffington. “The Huffington Post will continue on the same path we have been on for the last six years – though now at light speed – by combining with AOL. Our readers will still be able to come to the Huffington Post at the same URL, and find all the same content they’ve grown to love, plus a lot more – more local, more tech, more entertainment, more finance, and lots more video. We are fusing a legendary and powerful new media brand with a vibrant, innovative news organization, known for its distinctive voice, a highly engaged audience, an expertise in community-building, and a track record for demystifying the news and putting flesh and blood on the data while drawing our audience into the conversation.”
It’s difficult to know how one merger will change things for a recruiter, but it may be worth considering whether there are any blooming partnerships between the companies that you represent. Or perhaps there are companies that you think are natural allies, and you can help them communicate with one another.