Verizon finalizes ownership of AOL

Verizon on Tuesday announced it officially owns AOL after finishing an acquisition that was announced last month. 

The telecom giant announced it had completed its purchase of outstanding AOL shares and that regulators with the Justice Department and the Federal Trade Commission had signed off on the deal. 

{mosads}Unlike larger proposed mergers between telecom companies AT&T and DirecTV, or between Charter Communications and Time Warner Cable, Verizon’s acquisition did not need approval from the Federal Communications Commission. 

The difference was AOL did not have any licenses before the FCC that would trigger agency approval of the deal.  

AOL chief executive Tim Armstrong will continue to lead AOL’s operations and Verizon’s head of digital media content will also report to Armstrong. 

AOL’s ad tech was the primary selling point for Verizon, as the company attempts to beef up its production of digital content and online video. The acquisition also gives Verizon ownership of AOL’s news brands like The Huffington Post and TechCrunch.