Time Warner to Spin Off AOL

In a regulatory filing this morning, Time Warner signaled its intention to spin off its struggling AOL unit.

The New York company told investors that it anticipates "that it would initiate a process to spin off one or more parts of the businesses of AOL to Time Warner’s stockholders, in one or a series of transactions."

AOL has undergone a series of wrenching changes, most recently with a change of leadership. Time Warner brought in ex-Google ad executive Tim Armstrong to be CEO.

Time Warner made the spin-off disclosure on the same day it reported that its first quarter profit fell 14 percent. Ad revenue at AOL fell 20 percent, Time Warner said.

-- Michael Rosenwald