Internal communications should be kept internal. This seems obvious, but so often when internal documents leak out they look silly -- or worse -- when taken out of their proper context.

Valleywag recently posted on an internal AOL slide presentation for a new service the online company launched.

If anyone still needs proof that the resurgence in Internet advertising is for real, here it is: AOL's apparent decision to make its online service free!

The Wall Street Journal reports that the online service company is making a big, big bet on Internet advertising with this likely move:

The new proposal would cut roughly in half profit from AOL's sale of Internet subscriptions in the U.S. in the next three years, the forecasts show, from $1.6 billion this year to about $800 million in 2009. According to the forecasts, AOL, which has 18.6 million U.S. subscribers now, would end up with just over six million by the end of 2009.

The news for AOL hasn't been good for a while.  Recently, the AP reported -- I saw it on MSNBC's Web site -- that AOL is laying off 1,300 employees, about 7 percent of its workforce, and closing a call center. 

This comes as broadband Internet access has become so inexpensive -- cable, DSL, etc. -- that it makes little sense not to have it.

While AOL tried to spin this as customers getting more sophisticated with less need for phone support, it's hard not to believe that this has more to do with the impending death of dial-up.  This is important for communicators as it suggests more and more people will adopt broadband-driven media formats like podcasting -- both audio and video.