AOL has announced it is finally putting an end to dial-up internet, ending an era that was once synonymous with browsing the web. The service, which has been available since 1991, requires users to plug an ethernet cable directly into their phone line to surf the web, forcing them to listen to the now-infamous burst of beeps, screeches and static as it connects to the web and leaving people unable to use their landline phone while online. Around 163,000 people still use dial-up internet, according to the 2023 census, representing around 1 percent of internet users in the U.S. “AOL routinely evaluates its products and services and has decided to discontinue Dial-up Internet,” the company said in a statement. “As a result, on September 30, 2025 this service and the associated software, the AOL Dialer software and AOL Shield browser, which are optimized for older operating systems and dial-up internet connections, will be discontinued.” The move comes as more and more tentpoles of the old internet continue to fade away, following Microsoft’s decision to shut down Skype in May and discontinue the Internet Explorer browser in 2022. AOL’s own instant messaging service, the once-ubiquitous AIM, was also shut down in 2017.
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