Just when we all thought it was safe to go outside without hearing about company losses AOL have released sobering news to their employees. After media giant TimeWarner Inc. merged with AOL the once widespread internet service began to steadily lose its online presence and diminish. This looks set to continue as on Thursday AOL announced that they would be letting around 2,500 workers go; almost one-third of their workforce. The decision precedes the company’s indented move to disband from TimeWarner and become a public, independently traded company.

AOL announced that the redundancies will save the company $300 million a year, money that can be well spent on their new venture. However, the New York Times reports that over $200 million must first be spend on severance costs; “the company said it would ask for volunteers first, and then resort to layoffs if it didn’t get roughly 2,500 people to accept a buyout package.” In a bid to show solidarity in this disordered time, AOL chairman and Chief Executive Tim Armstrong sent an email to AOL employees stating that he would not be accepting a bonus this week. The Times writes: “Mr. Armstrong, 38, was guaranteed a bonus of at least $1.5 million this year, according to a regulatory filing. His minimum base salary, according to his employment contract, is $1 million.”

In five years AOL has diminished from 20,000 employees to 6,900. This recent round of lay off will reduce the size further to 4,400; a fifth of the size it once was. AOL’s initial service as an internet server reached a peak in 2002, when it counted 26.7 million users. The figures have been in rapid decline, with the company losing almost 1.9 million subscribers, or more than 200,000 a month. Mr. Armstrong has plans to move into premium content, online mapping and local services, communications like instant messaging, and online advertising to increase profit.

The merger with TimeWarner proved inauspicious for both companies, the New York Times reports: “In the most recent quarter, AOL’s revenue was down 23 percent, or $235 million, to $777 million. Of this decline, $138 million was ascribed to a decline in subscriptions, while $92 million resulted from a drop in advertising.”

Since TimeWarner overtook AOL the company, which used to be the lesser known, has become more prominent. The split seems to be the logical decision as both companies move in separate directions and focus on different goals.