What is the difference between an Internet Service Provider (ISP) such as AOL, and an Internet-based company like Yahoo!?
Internet Service Providers, like AOL, Prodigy, Earthlink, and Mindspring, are companies who, for a fee, provide dial-up access to the Internet for its customers. So, for example, if someone wanted to gain access to the Internet, they could purchase an AOL account for an hourly or monthly fee, and AOL would then provide them with a list of phone numbers on which they could access the Internet via computer modem. Most ISPs, like AOL and Earthlink, provide various other on-line services for their customers-e-mail, news, entertainment, etc.-but the main service that a customer is purchasing from an ISP is access to the Internet. Once someone purchases an AOL account, they can then hook-up to the Internet through AOL’s network and additionally access the World Wide Web. In contrast, an Internet-based, or Web-based, company such as Yahoo! Inc. is a company who maintains a website on the Internet which is generally accessible to the public at no charge. Companies such as Yahoo! generate the m
