AOL Jilts Dow Jones

February 26, 1998 / 4:48 PM EST / AP

Bloomberg LP replaces Dow Jones & Co. as the primary provider of business news and information to America Online. Bloomberg signed a three-year deal with the world's largest Internet service, announced Thursday.

Dow Jones & Co., publisher of The Wall Street Journal, had served as AOL's main business information provider for 15 months until the beginning of this year. Bloomberg information may begin appearing on AOL within a week.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. AOL had been paying Dow Jones for its information, but The New York Times reported today that Bloomberg would be paying AOL an undisclosed sum.

An AOL spokesman declined to discuss terms. Bloomberg officials did not immediately return a call seeking comment.

Bloomberg gains most of its $1.3 billion in annual revenue from 88,000 computer terminals that provide stock quotes and other business information and analysis to financial professionals. Its growing news operation employs 700 reporters in 80 bureaus worldwide.

The company has been expanding its online news presence in recent months, signing deals with the CNet, Women's Wire and AtHome services.

The deal with AOL comes as more of that service's 11 million subscribers are showing interest in business and personal finance news. AOL said traffic in its personal finance section has risen more than 70 percent in the last year and more than 630,000 people use AOL to check stock quotes every day.

Bloomberg will join a long list of business news and information providers on AOL, including Business Week magazine and Investors Business Daily. The online service also features news from The Associated Press and Reuters.