AOL Vows to Become Top Producer of Digital Content

AOL plans to revive itself after Time Warner spins it off next month by becoming the top creator of digital content on the web.

The company’s chief executive, Tim Armstrong, says that content is the one area on the web that hasn’t seen its full potential, and he plans to significantly increase the amount of content AOL produces. The company currently employs 3,000 journalists, and that number is growing.

AOL will allow marketers to work with its content creation team to create custom content, according to the company, the Wall Street Journal writes. In a seeming contradiction, AOL also says advertisers will be able to be affiliated with the content but will not be able to control what is written or created.

A new content-management system is at the center of AOL’s plans. While Armstrong hasn’t been willing to share many details about the system, he said it is based on new technology that makes it easier to produce and publish web content across AOL’s sites.

The new system allows for the inclusion of content from freelance writers, and pays them based on the number of pageviews and ads appearing on the pages they write, reports Tech Crunch, which describes the system as a sort of “fancy blogging platform with all sorts of tracking and ad-monetization built in.”

Demand Media’s Demand Studios works in a similar way. The company pays out $17 million a year to writers, editors, and video producers who provide content not only to Demand Media’s sites but also to other sites. Content providers are assigned topics by an algorithm, which mines search data and keyword rates to determine what users want to know - and how much advertisers will be willing to pay to appear alongside the content, writes Wired.

All Things Digital points out that the system also sounds similar to Associated Content, a search-driven content creation company, of which Armstrong is an investor. The company is run by Armstrong’s former co-worker Patrick Keane.

At least one major media buyer likes the new approach by AOL. Nick Brien, CEO of Interpublic’s Media Brands, says AOL’s model is a fresh approach, and that “clients like that way of thinking.” He adds that it will be of utmost importance for AOL to point out when a marketer has paid for content, which AOL says it plans to do.

AOL currently has more than 75 high-end niche sites like Styleist, Engadget and TMZ.com.