Time Warner's AOL seeks technology, traffic: CEO

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Time Warner's AOL division "needs to catch up" to its internet peers and is engaged in discussions to bolster its underlying search technology, the company's top executive said on Thursday.

Richard Parsons, chief executive officer of Time Warner, confirmed discussions with other companies on deals with AOL are centered on improving its search technology and how they can boost the number of visitors that come to its AOL.com free website.

"We've been talking to a whole range of people about how we can make more robust technology, get a principal position in (search technology), and get more traffic," Parsons told investors at the Credit Suisse First Boston media conference in New York.

Time Warner has been engaged in final round discussions with Microsoft and Google over how to strike a partnership related to online advertising and search technology, sources have said.

Google currently provides the underlying search technology for AOL.

AOL has restructured its business over the past year to offer more of its programming and service for free to tap into the burgeoning market for online advertising.

Although AOL could rival its peers someday, finding the right partner could "supercharge" its growth, Parsons said.

"We were late to the game," he added. "We have to catch up."