Verizon has approached AOL Inc. about a potential acquisition or a possible joint venture to expand its mobile-video offerings.
So far, Verizon hasn’t made any formal proposals to AOL and no agreement has been reached, according to Bloomberg.
If the two companies agree on a deal, the merger could help Verizon compete with AT&T Inc.
A joint venture would also enhance Verizon’s advertising technology as the company tries to boost its online content, mobile video and advertising.
Verizon has already held meetings with several AOL executives about how to bolster those ventures.
The takeover could also mean the telecommunications company would gain AOL’s 2.3 million paying members and Internet brands including the Huffington Post, TechCrunch and Engadget.
No word yet on whether Verizon is interested in those properties, which draw more than 200 million unique visitors a month.
AOL ended trading on Monday with a market value of about $3.5 billion, compared with Verizon’s value of about $193 billion.