AOL To Acquire WeblogsAOL To Acquire Weblogs

America Online Inc. on Thursday said it has agreed to acquire privately held Weblogs Inc., which operates a network of blogging sites covering a wide range of subjects.

AOL, a Dulles, Va., unit of Time Warner Inc., did not disclose financial terms, but said the deal is expected to close next week.

Weblogs, based in New York and Santa Monica, Calif., features more than 100 freelance bloggers covering a variety of topics ranging from technology and hobbies to gaming, movies and travel. The company claims to generate more than 30 million monthly Web page views and 25 million monthly page views through RSS newsreaders. Among its more popular blogs are Engadget, Autoblog, Cinematical and TVSquad.

AOL plans to operate Weblogs as a wholly owned subsidiary, giving it full editorial control and independence. The Web portal, however, plans to provide links to Weblog content in a number of areas on the AOL site.

The popularity of blogs has generated interest among advertisers, who see it as a channel for reaching people with specific interests. In the first quarter of the year, 50 million people in the United States visited blogs, which amounted to 30 percent of the total online population, according to Web metrics firm ComScore Networks. Fully 45 percent more people visited blogs in the first quarter than in the same period a year ago.

Weblogs is AOL Inc.'s third acquisition in this year. Others included Wildseed Ltd. and Xdrive Inc. in August.