AOL has officially announced it will discontinue its dial-up Internet service, along with related software (AOL Dialer and AOL Shield), effective September 30, 2025.
This marks the end of one of the most iconic names from the early days of consumer internet.
AOL stated that its decision follows routine product evaluations, reflecting how dial-up has become obsolete due to widespread high-speed alternatives.
While the shutdown will not affect other AOL services such as free email, users who still depend on dial-up—often in rural areas—will have to seek alternatives like satellite or wireless internet.
At its peak in the 1990s, AOL introduced millions to the internet and maintained millions of dial-up subscribers into the 2000s.
By 2021, the number of AOL dial-up users had dwindled to the low thousands.
Despite its legacy, modern web traffic and services are largely incompatible with the slow speeds of dial-up, making this move expected in the industry.
The announcement generated nostalgia across communities who recall the dial-up era’s distinctive modem sounds and “You’ve got mail” alerts.
Technological Obsolescence
Like AOL dial-up, legacy 2G and 3G mobile networks, older data transmission standards (SONET/SDH), and copper line services (AT&T, Verizon) are being retired because modern alternatives (fiber, 4G/5G, broadband) offer vastly superior speed, reliability, and compatibility.
Dwindling Users
Most shutdowns occur after customer numbers drop to near zero — AOL’s dial-up users fell from millions to the low thousands, similar to what happened with other legacy services before they were discontinued.
Across telecom and internet services, shutdowns are often accompanied by weeks or months of notices, efforts to migrate remaining users, and recommendations for alternatives (broadband, wireless, cloud).
In both AOL’s case and others, there remain pockets of users (especially rural and low-income) who rely on outdated platforms for lack of alternatives. Shutdowns can expose gaps in infrastructure and digital equity.
Ongoing Sunsets
The pace of legacy sunsets is quickening in 2025: major network shutdowns for 2G, 3G, DS0, older digital TV, and even hosting platforms are all taking place globally this year and next.
sources —
https://help.aol.com/articles/dial-up-internet-to-be-discontinued
