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ZDNet history
ZDNet company history timeline
On June 20, 1995, Ziff-Davis announced the consolidation of its online information services under a single name, ZD Net.
By its fifth anniversary in 1996, the collective "ZD Net" brand—now on the Web, America Online, Microsoft Network and Prodigy—counted 300,000 subscribers and was named the second-highest grossing advertising site on the web.
In 1997, the website—now the brand's flagship property—underwent another redesign that featured topical "channels" of content.
By the end of 1998, ZDNet was the dominant technology brand online.
On December 30, 1999, ZDNet launched a $25 million branding campaign in response to a $100 million advertising campaign launched by rival CNET.
On July 19, 2000 CNET Networks (ZDNet's largest rival) announced that it would acquire ZDNet for about $1.6 billion.
ZDNet had integrated its services into its "Business & Technology" channel as early as January 2001.
On July 7, 2002, CNET Networks acquired Newmediary for its database of more than 30,000 enterprise IT white papers.
In 2003, CNET Networks redesigned and relaunched ZDNet as an enterprise-focused publication intended to help business executives make better technology decisions.
ZDNet also launched its first original podcasts in 2005.
In 2006, ZDNet experienced another redesign that reduced its editorial focus on traditional news articles and product reviews and emphasized a growing network of expert bloggers, now totaling more than 30.
On May 17, 2008, CBS Corporation announced that it would acquire CNET Networks for approximately $1.8 billion.
In May 2010, ZDNet redesigned its site to place emphasis on the topics its blog network covers—now "Companies," "Hardware," "Software," "Mobile," "Security" and "Research"—and de-emphasize the downloads and reviews it imported from CNET post-merger.
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ZDNet competitors
| Company name | Founded date | Revenue | Employee size | Job openings |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TechCrunch | 2005 | $37.0M | 892 | 1 |
| Crain's Cleveland Business | 1980 | $3.5M | 50 | - |
| Bottlenose dolphin | - | $4.9M | 4 | - |
| Microsoft | 1975 | $245.1B | 182,268 | 2,480 |
| IGN | 1996 | $95.0M | 250 | 15 |
| InvestorPlace | 1974 | $17.0M | 124 | - |
| HowStuffWorks | 1998 | $343.9M | 57 | 27 |
| Mediabistro | 1994 | $8.5M | 3 | - |
| Dotdash | 1996 | $680,000 | 50 | 22 |
| PopSugar | 2006 | $35.4M | 150 | - |
ZDNet history FAQs
Zippia gives an in-depth look into the details of ZDNet, including salaries, political affiliations, employee data, and more, in order to inform job seekers about ZDNet. The employee data is based on information from people who have self-reported their past or current employments at ZDNet. The data on this page is also based on data sources collected from public and open data sources on the Internet and other locations, as well as proprietary data we licensed from other companies. Sources of data may include, but are not limited to, the BLS, company filings, estimates based on those filings, H1B filings, and other public and private datasets. While we have made attempts to ensure that the information displayed are correct, Zippia is not responsible for any errors or omissions or for the results obtained from the use of this information. None of the information on this page has been provided or approved by ZDNet. The data presented on this page does not represent the view of ZDNet and its employees or that of Zippia.
ZDNet may also be known as or be related to ZDNet and Zdnet.