ZDNet
Encyclopedia
ZDNet is a business technology news website published by CBS Interactive, along with TechRepublic
and SmartPlanet
. The brand was founded on April 1, 1991 as a general interest technology portal from Ziff Davis
and evolved into an enterprise IT-focused online publication owned by CNET Networks.
Initially, ZiffNet was intended to serve as a common place to find content from all Ziff-Davis print publications. As such, ZiffNet was an expansion on an earlier online service called PCMagNet for readers of PC Magazine
. Launched in 1988, PCMagNet in turn was the evolution of Ziff Davis' first electronic publishing venture, a bulletin board, which launched in 1985.
On June 20, 1995, Ziff-Davis announced the consolidation of its online information services under a single name, "ZD Net." The service had grown its membership to 275,000 subscribers across six platforms: CompuServe, Prodigy, AT&T Interchange, the Microsoft Network, AppleLink and eWorld.
A few months prior to the name consolidation, Ziff-Davis expanded onto the World Wide Web under the name "ZD Net." Dan Farber, former editor-in-chief of PC Week and MacWeek
, was named editor-in-chief of the property. By June, the site was recording web traffic of 2.5 million pageviews per week.
In 1997, the website -- now the brand's flagship property -- underwent another redesign that featured topical "channels" of content. It also marked the change in name from "ZD Net" to "ZDNet."
executive editor Charlie Cooper, San Jose Mercury News
business editor Steve Hamm, PC Week Inside senior editor Bill Snyder, PC Week editor John Dodge
, Computerworld
editor Michael Fitzgerald and PC Week editorial director Jim Louderback
.
The appointment of digital publishing executive Dan Rosensweig
as ZDNet's first president capped a year of significant change for the brand.
In 1998, ZDNet launched "Inter@active Investor," or ZDII, a spin-off website for investors that offered financial news and information on technology companies.
By the end of 1998, ZDNet was the dominant technology brand online. It led its closest rival, CNET, by a 26 percent margin and was the 13th most popular site on the Web, reaching 8.4 million users, or 13.4 percent of all users on the Web. The site would reach an additional 600,000 users within a year.
") and basic users ("Internet Life" with Yahoo).
It also launched "Computer Stew," a web-based comedy show about technology that featured John Hargrave and Jay Stevens, as well as the first ZDNet Holiday Gift Guide.
On December 30, 1999, ZDNet launched a $25 million branding campaign in response to a $100 million advertising campaign launched by rival CNET.
ZDNet's lead over the competition narrowed by 2000. Despite a record 10.7 million unique users in January, it managed only a 13 percent lead over the next competitor. By mid-2000, ZDNet had expanded to 23 countries in 14 languages on six continents.
In 2001, Ziff Davis Media Inc. reached an agreement with CNET Networks Inc. and ZDNet to regain the URLs lost in the 2000 sale of Ziff Davis Inc, to Softbank Corp.
In 2002, CNET Networks launched ZDNet sister site Builder.com, a site intended for enterprise software developers. On July 7, 2002, CNET Networks acquired Newmediary for its database of more than 30,000 enterprise IT white papers. ZDNet had integrated its services into its "Business & Technology" channel as early as January 2001.
The entire site was realigned as part of a CNET Networks B2B portfolio that included CNET News.com, Builder.com and TechRepublic.
A "Tech Update" section was created to serve as a directory of proprietary IT research (dubbed "IT Priorities"), and a new "Power Center" was implemented to prominently feature webcasts, white papers and case studies from partners. ZDNet also offered eight enterprise-targeted newsletters, as well launched its first blogs.
In 2005, ZDNet Government was launched as the brand's first industry vertical, with a mission to cater to IT professionals in the public sector. Editorial features included writing by former Utah CIO Phil Windley, TechRepublic columnist Ramon Padilla and CNET News reporter Declan McCullagh. ZDNet also launched its first original podcasts in 2005.
On February 19, 2008, Larry Dignan was appointed editor-in-chief of ZDNet and editorial director of TechRepublic, replacing Dan Farber, who became editor-in-chief of CNET News.com.
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.
The site still offers product reviews and software downloads, which are mostly imported from CNET. It maintains an extensive database of enterprise-focused white papers.
– PCWorld
, InfoWorld
, NetworkWorld and CIO – and TechTarget are primary competitors to ZDNet. The site also competes with technology publications from its former corporate owner, Ziff-Davis.
Newer publications such as GigaOm
, TechCrunch
and ReadWriteWeb
also compete with ZDNet. Gadget-oriented consumer publications such as Engadget
and Gizmodo
are indirect competitors. Corporate sibling CNET -- specifically News.com -- remains an occasional rival from a coverage standpoint, though their respective audiences do not overlap significantly.
In 2007, the Association of Online Publishers awarded ZDNet UK under the Business Website category for its contribution to innovation in incorporating Web 2.0 and community features effectively on its site.
Other country editions include Australia, Asia, Belgium, China, Germany, Netherlands, UK and France, in their native languages.
TechRepublic
TechRepublic is an online trade publication and social community for IT professionals, with advice on best practices and tools for the day-to-day needs of IT decision-makers....
and SmartPlanet
SmartPlanet
SmartPlanet is an online magazine that covers clean technology and information technology as it relates to healthcare, science, transportation, corporate sustainability, architecture and design...
. The brand was founded on April 1, 1991 as a general interest technology portal from Ziff Davis
Ziff Davis
Ziff Davis Inc. is an American publisher and Internet company. It was founded in 1927 in Chicago by William B. Ziff, Sr. and Bernard G. Davis. Throughout most of its history, it was a publisher of hobbyist magazines, often ones devoted to expensive, advertiser-rich hobbies such as cars,...
and evolved into an enterprise IT-focused online publication owned by CNET Networks.
Beginnings: 1991 to 1995
ZDNet began as a subscription-based digital service called "ZiffNet" that offered computing information to users of CompuServe. It featured computer industry forums, events, features and searchable archives.Initially, ZiffNet was intended to serve as a common place to find content from all Ziff-Davis print publications. As such, ZiffNet was an expansion on an earlier online service called PCMagNet for readers of PC Magazine
PC Magazine
PC Magazine is a computer magazine published by Ziff Davis Publishing Holdings Inc. A print edition was published from 1982 to January 2009...
. Launched in 1988, PCMagNet in turn was the evolution of Ziff Davis' first electronic publishing venture, a bulletin board, which launched in 1985.
On June 20, 1995, Ziff-Davis announced the consolidation of its online information services under a single name, "ZD Net." The service had grown its membership to 275,000 subscribers across six platforms: CompuServe, Prodigy, AT&T Interchange, the Microsoft Network, AppleLink and eWorld.
A few months prior to the name consolidation, Ziff-Davis expanded onto the World Wide Web under the name "ZD Net." Dan Farber, former editor-in-chief of PC Week and MacWeek
MacWEEK
MacWEEK was a controlled-circulation weekly Apple Macintosh trade journal based in San Francisco founded by Michael Tchong, John Anderson , Glenn Patch, Dick Govatski and Michael F. Billings. It featured a back-page rumor column penned by the pseudonymous Mac the Knife.Founded in 1987, it was...
, was named editor-in-chief of the property. By June, the site was recording web traffic of 2.5 million pageviews per week.
Early history: 1995 to 2000
By its fifth-year 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. The site also expanded overseas: initially to France, Germany and the U.K.; later to China, Australia, Hong Kong, Italy, Korea, Malaysia, Russia, Spain, Taiwan and India.In 1997, the website -- now the brand's flagship property -- underwent another redesign that featured topical "channels" of content. It also marked the change in name from "ZD Net" to "ZDNet."
ZDNet News
Two months prior, the company launched ZDNet News, or "ZDNN," the site's first dedicated section to original reportage. Among the journalists hired to staff the department were former Computer ShopperComputer Shopper
Computer Shopper could refer to the following publications:* Computer Shopper - a home computer magazine published in the United Kingdom* Computer Shopper - a home computer magazine published in the United States...
executive editor Charlie Cooper, San Jose Mercury News
San Jose Mercury News
The San Jose Mercury News is a daily newspaper in San Jose, California. On its web site, however, it calls itself Silicon Valley Mercury News. The paper is owned by MediaNews Group...
business editor Steve Hamm, PC Week Inside senior editor Bill Snyder, PC Week editor John Dodge
John Dodge (editor)
A journalist for 33 years, John M. Dodge is a freelance writer and social media consultant. He is co-author of the Thinking Tech blog at SmartPlanet.com, writing netbook reviews for eWeek.com, consulting on social media, and contributing to his tech/personal blog The Dodge Retort.He spent nearly 20...
, Computerworld
Computerworld
Computerworld is an IT magazine that provides information for senior IT leaders. It is published in many countries around the world under the same or similar names. Its publisher is International Data Group. Computerworld serves the needs of IT management via print and online...
editor Michael Fitzgerald and PC Week editorial director Jim Louderback
Jim Louderback
James 'Jim' Louderback is the CEO of Revision3. He has had numerous jobs in media companies involved in technology, most notably with TechTV and editor-in-chief of PC Magazine...
.
The appointment of digital publishing executive Dan Rosensweig
Dan Rosensweig
Dan Rosensweig was the chief operating officer of Yahoo! Inc. from 2002 to 2007. He later became CEO at Guitar Hero and then at Chegg.He graduated from Hobart College, in Geneva, NY in 1983.-References:...
as ZDNet's first president capped a year of significant change for the brand.
In 1998, ZDNet launched "Inter@active Investor," or ZDII, a spin-off website for investors that offered financial news and information on technology companies.
ZDTV
On May 11, 1998, Ziff-Davis launched ZDTV as the first cable television channel and website to offer 24-hour programming about computing and the Internet. The venture, which was partly owned by Vulcan Enterprises, was supported with a staff of 170 and incorporated ZDNet content on its website, ZDTV.com. The channel would later become Tech TV.By the end of 1998, ZDNet was the dominant technology brand online. It led its closest rival, CNET, by a 26 percent margin and was the 13th most popular site on the Web, reaching 8.4 million users, or 13.4 percent of all users on the Web. The site would reach an additional 600,000 users within a year.
ZDNet the company
In 1999, Ziff-Davis spun ZDNet off as a separate company and offered it as a tracking stock, ZDZ, to accompany the parent stock, ZD. An initial public offering raised $190 million, but the tracking stock was eliminated in early 2000 and revived as common stock. The new company soon acquired Updates.com, a software upgrade service. It was incorporated into the site's "Help Channel."Consumer expansion
In 1999, ZDNet also launched "Tech Life," a network of six consumer-focused tech sites intended to attract parents ("FamilyPC"), music listeners ("ZDNet Music"), gadget enthusiasts ("ZDNet Equip"), gamers ("ZDNet GameSpotGameSpot
GameSpot is a video gaming website that provides news, reviews, previews, downloads, and other information. The site was launched in May 1, 1996 by Pete Deemer, Vince Broady and Jon Epstein. It was purchased by ZDNet, a brand which was later purchased by CNET Networks. CBS Interactive, which...
") and basic users ("Internet Life" with Yahoo).
It also launched "Computer Stew," a web-based comedy show about technology that featured John Hargrave and Jay Stevens, as well as the first ZDNet Holiday Gift Guide.
On December 30, 1999, ZDNet launched a $25 million branding campaign in response to a $100 million advertising campaign launched by rival CNET.
ZDNet's lead over the competition narrowed by 2000. Despite a record 10.7 million unique users in January, it managed only a 13 percent lead over the next competitor. By mid-2000, ZDNet had expanded to 23 countries in 14 languages on six continents.
The CNET years: 2000 to 2007
On July 19, 2000, CNET Networks -- parent company of CNET, ZDNet's largest rival -- announced that it would acquire ZDNet for about $1.6 billion. Some analysts thought that the merger of CNET and ZDNet would lead to redundancy in their product offerings, but research revealed that their target audiences had just 25 percent overlap.In 2001, Ziff Davis Media Inc. reached an agreement with CNET Networks Inc. and ZDNet to regain the URLs lost in the 2000 sale of Ziff Davis Inc, to Softbank Corp.
In 2002, CNET Networks launched ZDNet sister site Builder.com, a site intended for enterprise software developers. On July 7, 2002, CNET Networks acquired Newmediary for its database of more than 30,000 enterprise IT white papers. ZDNet had integrated its services into its "Business & Technology" channel as early as January 2001.
Realignment
In 2003, CNET Networks redesigned and relaunched ZDNet as an enterprise-focused publication intended to help business executives make better technology decisions.The entire site was realigned as part of a CNET Networks B2B portfolio that included CNET News.com, Builder.com and TechRepublic.
A "Tech Update" section was created to serve as a directory of proprietary IT research (dubbed "IT Priorities"), and a new "Power Center" was implemented to prominently feature webcasts, white papers and case studies from partners. ZDNet also offered eight enterprise-targeted newsletters, as well launched its first blogs.
In 2005, ZDNet Government was launched as the brand's first industry vertical, with a mission to cater to IT professionals in the public sector. Editorial features included writing by former Utah CIO Phil Windley, TechRepublic columnist Ramon Padilla and CNET News reporter Declan McCullagh. ZDNet also launched its first original podcasts in 2005.
ZDNet Blogs
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. The blogs covered topics such as enterprise IT, open source, Web 2.0, Google, Apple and Microsoft, and featured journalists David Berlind, Mary Jo Foley and Larry Dignan.On February 19, 2008, Larry Dignan was appointed editor-in-chief of ZDNet and editorial director of TechRepublic, replacing Dan Farber, who became editor-in-chief of CNET News.com.
The CBS years: 2008 to present
On May 17, 2008, CBS Corporation announced that it would acquire CNET Networks for approximately $1.8 billion. The entire company would be organized under its CBS Interactive division.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.
Content
ZDNet currently operates a network of about 50 blogs loosely aligned by its major verticals: companies, hardware, software, mobile, security and IT research. Within those general areas are blogs on gadgets, management strategy, social media, datacenters, technology law, SOA, healthcare, CRM, virtualization and sustainability.The site still offers product reviews and software downloads, which are mostly imported from CNET. It maintains an extensive database of enterprise-focused white papers.
Competitors
Publications from IDGIDG
International Data Group is a technology media, research, event management, and venture capital organization.IDG evolved from International Data Corporation which was formed in 1964 in Newtonville, Massachusetts, by Patrick Joseph McGovern and a friend, Fred Kirch...
– PCWorld
PC World (magazine)
PC World is a global computer magazine published monthly by IDG. It offers advice on various aspects of PCs and related items, the Internet, and other personal-technology products and services...
, InfoWorld
InfoWorld
InfoWorld is an information technology online media and events business operating under the umbrella of InfoWorld Media Group, a division of IDG...
, NetworkWorld and CIO – and TechTarget are primary competitors to ZDNet. The site also competes with technology publications from its former corporate owner, Ziff-Davis.
Newer publications such as GigaOm
GigaOM
GigaOM is a Web 2.0 blog started by Om Malik and published by Giga Omni Media, Inc. in San Francisco, California. According to the company website it has a monthly global audience of 500,000. It is among the top 50 blogs worldwide by Technorati Rank, and is listed on CNet's Blog 100 list...
, TechCrunch
TechCrunch
TechCrunch is a web publication that offers technology news and analysis, as well as profiling of startup companies, products, and websites. It was founded by Michael Arrington in 2005, and was first published on June 11, 2005....
and ReadWriteWeb
ReadWriteWeb
ReadWriteWeb is a Web technology blog launched in 2003. RWW covers Web 2.0 and Web technology in general, and provides industry news, reviews, and analysis. Founded by Richard MacManus, Technorati ranked ReadWriteWeb at number 12 in its list of top 100 blogs worldwide, as of October 9, 2010. RWW...
also compete with ZDNet. Gadget-oriented consumer publications such as Engadget
Engadget
Engadget is a multilingual technology blog network with daily coverage of gadgets and consumer electronics. Though on appearance Engadget functions much like a blog and may be defined as such, much of its editorial content takes the form of an online magazine...
and Gizmodo
Gizmodo
Gizmodo is a technology weblog about consumer electronics. It is part of the Gawker Media network run by Nick Denton and is known for its up-to-date coverage of the technology industry, along with topics as broad as design; architecture; space and science....
are indirect competitors. Corporate sibling CNET -- specifically News.com -- remains an occasional rival from a coverage standpoint, though their respective audiences do not overlap significantly.
Awards and recognition
At the 14th Annual Computer Press Awards in 1999, ZDNet was adjudged the Best Overall Online Site.In 2007, the Association of Online Publishers awarded ZDNet UK under the Business Website category for its contribution to innovation in incorporating Web 2.0 and community features effectively on its site.
ZDNet India
CNET Networks in India closed their operations in 2001, but they continue to have the jobs site of ZDNet operational.ZDNet Japan
A Japanese news publishing company called Asahi Interactive owns the ZDNet Japan website. According to alexa.com statistics, the japan.zdnet.com subdomain is the second most visited on ZDNet, after the blogs subdomain. Also, the ZDNet website has an overall traffic rank of 558 in Japan.ZDNet UK
The ZDNet UK Live feature displays real time news updates and comments on the website and on social media including Twitter.Other country editions include Australia, Asia, Belgium, China, Germany, Netherlands, UK and France, in their native languages.