Behind every successful business, there's a battle to get to the top, and sometimes that battle ends in disaster.

Back in 2000, AOL was at the height of its power.

Then it made a move that stunned Wall Street.

It made a bid to buy Time Warner, one of the most powerful media companies in the world.

It was supposed to be the merger of the

century, but instead, it turned into one of the messiest corporate disasters on record. This season

of business wars takes you into that moment, when ambition, ego, and emerging tech collided.

You'll hear how a deal meant to secure dominance in the digital age

collapsed under its own weight. But before any of that could happen, AOL had to overcome the

odds to get America online. I'm about to play a clip from the latest season of business wars,

the AOL Time Warner disaster. While you're listening, follow Business Wars on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts.

In the mid-80s, online services seem like a business full of promise.

Fewer than one in 10 owns a computer in 1985,

but that number is creeping up.

So while there are established rivals like CompuServe,

there's plenty of room for growth.

CBC decides it will build an online service

for the market-leading personal computer of the day,

the Commodore 64.

And in May 1985, they mark this new direction by adopting a new name,

Quantum Computer Services.

Huh, oh, you thought they were about to become AOL, huh? Well, not yet. But that moment's coming.

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