AOL gears up in Mexico

Time Warner Inc. (NYSE: TWX) has launched its new AOL dedicated Web destination in Mexico at http://www.aol.com.mx for review.

The new site combines free e-mail, instant messaging and localized content in Spanish. AOL has partnered with Alestra to provide distribution and Grupo Editorial Expansión for content. This also noted that AOL will leverage its distribution with Hewlett-Packard (NYSE: HPQ) to deliver a co-branded local language portal and search solution for Mexico, although the enhanced search looks to still be powered by Google (NASDAQ: GOOG).

The CIA World Factbook counts Mexico's population at 108.7 million as of a July 2007 estimate. It also estimated some 18.6 million Internet users in Mexico. The population throughout Latin America lends to only higher and higher populations throughout the region.

This isn't the first foray in Mexico for AOL, and this probably won't be the end of its Latin American efforts. This may be more of a ground-laying effort for the future, but if the new launch is successful then you can imagine this will be more and more of a gateway to enhance its current efforts throughout Latin America.