AOL continues to put a damper on Time Warner's financial results, and the company is finally discussing plans to spin off all or parts of the troubled unit, The Wall Street Journal (subscription required) reports.
Although the company made clear that its board hasn't made any final decisions, a securities filing indicates that Time Warner is gearing up for a spin-off that may come in a single or series of transactions. The company has also notified Google of its plans to purchase its 5 percent stake in AOL, according to the Journal.
Google paid $1 billion for the stake in AOL in 2006, primarily for a search deal, although the company has written down the value of its investment numerous times.
Time Warner made the filing just as it reported a 14 percent decline in first-quarter profits, due largely to problems at AOL, which is offsetting stronger results at the company's film and cable TV networks, the Journal reports.
AOL's ad revenue dropped 20 percent in the first quarter after suffering a similar decline in the previous period.
