CNET

CNET Networks Inc. was a global media company; the brand name is continued CNET by CBS Interactive, a subsidiary of the media conglomerate CBS Corporation.

The company's headquarters was located in San Francisco. CNET was founded in 1992 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie. The corporation was listed until the takeover by CBS Corporation under the symbol CNET on NASDAQ. CNET Networks derived revenue from two main sources. Most important were the marketing services, ie, sales of advertisements, downloads and price comparisons. In addition, licenses for product data from CNET Content Solutions and other paid editorial content were awarded. A secondary role was played by the traditional print publishing business magazines in China.

On 15 May 2008 CNET Networks was acquired for 1.8 billion U.S. dollars from the CBS Corporation.

CNET Networks in 2007 achieved sales of 405 million U.S. dollars and a profit before depreciation and amortization in the amount of 176 million U.S. dollars. 148 million users generated about 83 million page views a day. End of 2007, CNET Networks employs 2,700 people worldwide.

Emergence of the company

In 1992, CNET, Halsey Minor after (Russell Reynolds ) and Shelby Bonnie (Tiger Management) jointly developed the idea independent online content with an all-day cable channel to connect around computers and technology. 1993 rose Shelby Bonnie relocated to the newly founded by Halsey Minor and companies CNET invested in the business. The company moved to New York to San Francisco, so that a greater proximity to Silicon Valley and the expanding technology scene was.

Mid-nineties, CNET produced several television shows about computers, technology and the emerging Internet. The programs called themselves CNET Central, The Web, The New Edge and later TV.com and News.com, the 1999 CNBC went live and was discontinued again in 2001.

IPO and growth

In 1996, the IPO took place. With the new capital, the services Search.com, News.com, Download.com and Gamecenter.com were started. The Internet domains Kids.com, Events.com, Chat.com, Radio.com and TV.com were reserved. 1997 started with SNAP! an internet beginner service, which evolved into the competition for AOL and was acquired by NBC in 1998. In 1997, buying advice and price comparison were Computers.com for the first time on the Internet integrated in a service. 1998 Computers.com been added to the portal Shopper.com, which provided daily price comparisons for over 100,000 technology products. In 1999, CNET laid the foundation for the product data business with the acquisition of the Swiss company GDT, later called CNET Channel, now known as CNET Content Solutions.

In early 2000 took over CNET Networks price comparison service mySimon the end of 2000, the company ZDNet, which no longer has anything to do with the original namesake of Ziff Davis, the direct and Internet Professionally sold its European magazine business with a PC Professional, PC 2001, VNU Business Publications has. VNU has in turn sold the online rights to NetMediaEurope. Shelby Bonnie moved to the post of CEO, founder Halsey Minor was devoted to new investments.

As Chairman of the Internet Advertising Bureau ( IAB) sat Shelby Bonnie world's new interactive forms of advertising that could replace the traditional banner and today are considered to be industry standard. CNET gave the beginning of 2001 to the traditional broadcasting (television and radio) and put full on broadband media (radio, podcasting, streaming video). In mid-2001 took over the CNET TechRepublic Gartner and built this community for IT professionals to more than four million members from. MP3.com and TV.com were repositioned since early 2005 and formed together with Gamespot.com and GameFAQs.com and Metacritic the CNET Games, Entertainment, Lifestyle Group.

In October 2006, Neil Ashe took over the CEO post of Bonnie, which focused on his roles as a board member and investor and finally left the company to start Whiskey Media.

With the acquisition of CNET Networks with CBS Corporation the company's history ends in 2008. The brand name is continued by CBS Interactive, a subsidiary of the Group CBS Corporation.

International presence

CNET Networks had known Internet domains such as download.com, upload.com, news.com, tv.com, mp3.com, computers.com, search.com and com.com.

Local deals existed in Southeast Asia, Australia, Japan, Taiwan, England, France, Germany and North America.