America Online Inc, the giant on-line content provider from Dulles, Virginia, has updated its anti-takeover defenses, its so called poison pill, in the form of a new shareholder rights plan, but the move is not in response to any specific take-over threat, the company said. Although its shares eased back on Friday, AOL’s stock has more than doubled since the beginning of the year, and currently stands at $85, prompting the directors to update a shareholder right plan originally adopted in 1993, and now unrepresentative of its elevated share price. For its third quarter to March this year (CI No 3,406), AOL outperformed all expectations by adding 1.1 million new members to its 12 million subscriber base, and by doubling its advertising income. The board obviously feels that so much success will attract unwanted attention.
รก
