AOL Logo PNG
Multinational mass media corporation AOL has surprised the world with their new brand identity. The history of the company started in the middle of the 1990s, and since then they have become one of the most recognizable web brands in the USA. The logo of the corporation has been changing through years. And today we see a new page in its history.
Meaning and history
The history of the AOL visual identity is strongly connected with numerous name changes of the company, as it was established in 1983 under the name “Control Video Corporation”, which was changed to “Quantum Computer Services”, and finally became “America Online” in 1991, which got shortened to AOL in the middle of the 2000s.
1983 – 1985
The original logo was designed for Control Video Corporation in 1983, and it was a simple blue rectangular badge with a white capitalized inscription along its bottom line and the enlarged stylized “CVC” lettering in the middle of the composition. The abbreviation was executed in a bold sans-serif typeface with the letters drawn in a striped white and blue pattern, which makes the wordmark slightly blurred.
1985 – 1991
The redesign of 1985 was done when the company changed its name to Quantum. It was a bright and futuristic multi-color badge, where the wordmark in the title-case was written in a custom pixel-like typeface, where the letters, each in its color, were italicized and underlined.
1991 – 2004
Another name change and another logo redesigned happened in 1991, and now the America Online badge was executed in a blue and white palette, with a sharp geometric emblem and elegant lettering. The solid blue triangle, placed above the nameplate, had a white stylized swirl on it, reflecting motion and dynamics.
The wordmark was set in two levels, with the “America” in all capitals of a lightweight sans-serif typeface, and the “Online” enlarged and written in an underlined title-case of a sharp and stylish cursive with bold lines.
1996 – 2004
The AOL wordmark appeared in the logo in 1996, keeping a blue and white triangle as the main theme of the visual identity, the company replaced the two-leveled lettering with the enlarged extra-bold abbreviation, executed in a strict geometric sans-serif typeface with thick lines and straight cuts.
2004 – 2006
The triangle was turned and now pointed to the right, and the lettering was placed on its left in 1996. The color palette was slightly elevated, by changing a bright blue to a calmer and more confident shade. The swirl on the triangle was replaced with a white circular contour, which made the emblem look like a “Play” button. As for the inscription, it was still set in two levels, but now both parts featured the same typeface — a smooth rounded sans-serif.
2006 – 2009
The logo version of 1996, with the “Play” triangle, was redesigned in 2006, replacing the “America Online” inscription with the “AOL” in all capitals of the same rounded sans-serif typeface, but with its letters enlarged and thickened.
2009
For a few months during this year, AOL used a previous logo version in a refreshed color palette. The shade of blue on this emblem became darker, which made the whole image stricter and more serious. Though the badge was completely redesigned at the end of 2009.
2009 – Today
The current AOL visual identity boasts a monochrome logotype with a black solid dot after the letter “L”, replacing the emblem. The title-case inscription in a clean geometric sans-serif has massive shapes and thick lines, which point to the company’s professionalism, confidence, and determination.
Symbol
Today’s design is represented by the yellow guy (who once was a part of AOL logo) and a lowercase “aim”. That yellow figure used to appear on the screen, during the time while loading of America Online. And it is back in the new design today. The word is an abbreviation of the earlier logo phrase – AOL Instant Messenger. The contemporary emblem is simple and symbolic. They used old ideas to create something fresh and new.
Icon
The AOL Icon is simple and modest. It is just the brand name in the title case, written over a solid background and followed by a solid thick dot. The official version of the icon is monochrome, with the white AOL lettering set on a plain black circle, which is usually placed on a white square with rounded angles, for the mobile and web versions.
Though there is also a blue and white version of the icon, where the white lettering is placed directly on a calm blue square background with its angles softened.
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