AOL will be opening it's closed domain to the public for a limited set of data.

...[T]he struggling Time Warner unit plans to publish a growing portion of its news, sports, music and other content on the open Internet, making it available to any online user, AOL executives say.

The strategy, which has started to a limited degree, is a nod to continuing defections of millions of AOL's dial-up subscribers to high-speed Internet providers and discount dial-up services. Fewer pay an extra $15 for AOL content in addition to a phone or cable broadband subscription.

...AOL officials say they have not determined what content to move outside its walls. And they stressed that AOL will always save its best stuff for subscribers. For example, AOL has become the top music site by offering exclusive concerts and unreleased songs by major artists. The company, with 24.3 million members, also shows video highlights of major sports.

As one of those millions who has left AOL over time (one to many disconnects for my own tastes, not to mention the trolls and general garbage that was part and parcel of the AOL experience), I don't recall the content that was there to be particularly superior to what's freely available on the general web, but perhaps I can be shown otherwise.

Thanks to Kurt for the tip.