I’ve been thinking about canceling my AOL account which I’ve had since back in the days when they charged by the minute — particularly since I use a local broadband provider to connect to the Internet. But I’ve begrudging continued to pay so that I wouldn’t have to give my email address or IM handle. But it looks like I’ll soon no longer have to pay for that privilege. Particularly since come this fall, AOL will stop charging folks to use their service.

Dear AOL Member,
I want to let you know about some exciting changes happening at AOL. Our service has always been an all-in-one solution for our members, consisting of:
Connectivity – a way of connecting to the Internet (through a dial-up or high-speed connection), and
Content and Services – bringing you useful tools and features like email, security and an entertaining online experience once you’re connected.
Today we are announcing that AOL’s software, email, and other compelling AOL features will be free to everyone who has an Internet connection — including your Address Book, Screen Name, the Buddy List® feature and more. AOL will continue to provide a dial-up connection for you, and we will continue to offer several reliable and affordable options for getting online.