AOL officials said the spectacular result, which beat Wall Street expectations, was a result of a growth in subscriptions, electronic commerce and advertising revenue.

AOL earned $108.4m, compared from a profit of $31.7m last year.

Revenue grew 65% to $858m, buoyed by a 64% increase in advertising and other commercial revenues and higher subscription fees.

Some 951,000 new subscribers were registered in the quarter, boosting its membership dramatically.

"We are very pleased with this quarter's results, which convincingly demonstrate the continuing momentum in our operations and the success of our business strategies," said Chief Executive Steve Case after the announcement.

Mr Case added that one of the reasons for the success was the introduction of the new software package 4.0 for its flagship AOL service.