New flat rate

AOL Europe Thursday announced its AOL Germany property has exceeded 1 million subscribers. AOL Germany is the first of the AOL country-targeted properties to hit the 1 million mark outside of the U.S. It achieved the feat in four years -- twice as fast as AOL_s take-off in the states, according to AOL Europe. The company will respond by rolling out a localized version of AOL 5.0 throughout the fall. AOL Europe, a joint venture between AOL (AOL) and Germany_s Bertelsmann AG, said it expects the new flat rate of DM9.90 (US$5.45) to continue to stimulate the network_s growth rate. The company also credits the general release of AOL 5.0 and a new advertising campaign for the subscriber spike. Worldwide, AOL now has more than 18 million members. AOL Europe_s first service was launched in 1996 and the unit now boasts a 2.7 million household subscriber base. In August, AOL Europe made its first compromise move to the European telecom structure, rolling out free ISP service Netscape Online in the UK.