AdWeek: AOL Ups Ad Spending, Calls Media Review

Grinding salt into Initiative Media's wounds, opened up when client AOL announced it will conduct a media review, the Internet service provider will double its media spending next year to $300 million. Then again, between alleged there-and-back sham transactions, odd accounting and an extremely heavy dose of intramural barter, $300 million can wind up feeling pretty light when spent by AOL and Time Warner.

Senior industry wags high enough to have experience with the legal implications of the various federal investigations active on AOL and Time Warner might find it surprising that the media giant is potentially firing its media partner at precisely the same time that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will find it useful to subpeona some of the agency's executives. That might be one relationship that AOL could later regret it did not keep closer.