Ex-USA exec candidate for AOL top spot

America Online is close to bringing on former USA Interactive executive Jonathan Miller as its CEO, according to sources familiar with the situation.

Miller will "more than likely" be announced as CEO of the troubled AOL Time Warner unit within the next couple of weeks, one source said, although it was unclear whether he has yet signed a formal agreement to join the company.

Miller did not immediately respond to an e-mail request seeking comment.

Should Miller take the post, his appointment would mark the end of a search for a permanent CEO to oversee AOL. In April, former CEO Barry Schuler and was replaced by former AOL Time Warner Chief Operating Officer Bob Pittman to fix the division's hemorrhaging online ad revenue.

Earlier this month, Pittman left AOL Time Warner and his position as AOL's interim CEO. Pittman had taken much of the blame internally for AOL Time Warner's plummeting stock price, which was exacerbated by the losses in ad revenue and overall subscriber slowdown in the AOL unit. Former Time Inc. CEO Don Logan and former Home Box Office CEO Jeffrey Bewkes were promoted to take over Pittman's responsibilities.

Miller will inherit a demoralized AOL unit that has been battered by a sharp decline in advertising revenue and slowing subscriber growth.

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Miller formerly served as CEO of USA Interactive's Information and Services Group, which oversaw the company's e-commerce properties including Ticketmaster, CitySearch, Expedia and Match.com, to name a few.

In June, Miller left USA Interactive to head an e-commerce start-up funded by Boston-based venture capital firm General Catalyst Partners. Before working at USA Interactive, Miller held positions at Viacom, the National Basketball Association, and PBS station WGBH in Boston.

An AOL Time Warner representative declined to comment.