AOL's branding problems (viz. the "Platform A" mess; you _do_ remember Platform A, right?) are emblematic of the larger problems they face as a company. They s

AOL's branding problems (viz. the "Platform A" mess; you _do_ remember Platform A, right?) are emblematic of the larger problems they face as a company. They sit atop a great pile of technologies on the advertising side, and a great set of sites on the media side, but imagine trying to get anything innovative done at a place that is steered like this by its marketeers. The good programmers leave because of the inertia, the good marketers leave because of the branding they have to work with, etc...