AOL revenue rises for first time in eight years
The company saw its fourth-quarter sales nearly reach $600 million, up from $576 million a year ago.
AOL eked out just a 4 percent gain in sales last quarter, but it was the first sign of revenue growth in the past eight years.
For the final quarter of 2012, the company took in revenue of $599 million, rising from $576 million in the year-ago quarter and beating analyst estimates of $573 million, according to Reuters.
AOL attributed the gain to a boost in sales from its global advertising, which grew by 13 percent from a year ago. Ad revenue from third-party networks jumped by 31 percent, while search revenue increased by 17 percent.
On the downside, subscription sales dropped by 10 percent, while the average monthly churn rate was 1.8 percent. But those numbers proved better than the 18 percent decline and 2.2 percent churn rate seen in the fourth quarter of 2011.
Revenue dipped slightly for 2012, falling to $2.19 billion from $2.2 billion last year. But CEO Tim Armstrong touted the company's annual performance. AOL also expects to see its revenue grow for 2013 as a whole.
"AOL returned to growth and generated significant value for shareholders in 2012," Armstrong said in a statement. "AOL has strong momentum entering 2013 and is positioned to continue on our growth path by executing our strategy to build the next generation media and technology company."