Content remains king, but Verizon views AOL's video advertising future and programmatic ad tech savvy reasons for for spending $4.4B to acquire the digital pioneer.

verizon-aolThe $127B telcom's press release about the merger crows about the combination of a "scaled, mobile-first platform offering directly targeted" at the $600B global ad business.

Verizon is excited about how AOL's advertising model aligns with its digital media services sector to develop future revenue streams.

Verizon says the deal compliments its over-the-top video strategy and supports its Internet of Things platform.

AOL CEO Tim Armstrong has done a fine job in streamlining content operations. It owns a collection of powerful brands such as The Huffington Post, TechCrunch and Engadget.

My hunch is a back-to-the-future outcome for AOL's brands via an eventual spin-off from Verizon.

AOL was spun off from Time-Warner ten years after the massive $164B merger of the two companies, a deal that signaled the excesses of the dot.com era and generated an apology from former T-W CEO Gerry Levin.

What a long strange trip it's been for AOL.