Think Twice Before You Start Your Newcompany.Com

Folio: The Magazine for Magazine Management, June, 2000

Two years ago, International Data Group bought Internet Business Executives, which started as a Web site, was followed by a weekly print publication, and then a series of newsletters and conferences. "The growth is completely dependent on an integrated business model," Kelly Conlin, IDG president and CEO, told attendees at the M2 International Magazine Management Executive Forum.

"If you asked them to spin off the Web operation, they wouldn't know where to start because the Web is woven into everything they do--how they deliver content, how they register and serve conference goers, how they build partnerships, and how, ultimately, they drive the revenue. What's now obvious is that the power of this innovation lies in its transformative effects on every facet of our business life. The strength that print publishers have over their Web-only counterparts is their ability to sell integrated programs--a Web and print event." Conlin's view is shared by many companies across industries researched by IDG. Of the 666 companies (including small, medium and large businesses) surveyed in December on how they are going to approach the Web, only 6 percent said they would spin off new businesses; 16 percent were going to make the Web business independent, but internally; 78 percent, the majority, were building integrated models, assimilating the Web into the company's practices and business processes.