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CNET Networks
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| CNET Networks, Inc. | |
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| Type | Public (NASDAQ: CNET) |
| Founded | 1993 |
| Headquarters | 235 Second Street, San Francisco, California, USA 28 E 28th St, New York, New York, USA |
| Key people | Neil Ashe, CEO Shelby Bonnie, co-founder |
| Industry | Internet information provider |
| Revenue |  $387.69 million (2006) |
| Net income | $7.87 million (2006) |
| Employees | 2,080 (2006) |
| Website | cnetnetworks.com |
CNET Networks, Inc. (NASDAQ: CNET) is a publicly-held media company based in San Francisco, California, United States and co-founded in 1993 by Halsey Minor and Shelby Bonnie.
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This section may contain an inappropriate mixture of prose and timeline. |
In 1994, with the help from Fox co-founder Kevin Windle,[1] CNET produced four pilot television programs about computers, technology, and the Internet. CNET TV was composed of CNET Central, The Web, and The New Edge.[citation needed] CNET Central was created first and aired in syndication in the United States on the USA Network.[1] Later, it began airing on USA's sister network Sci Fi Channel along with The Web and The New Edge.[citation needed] These were later followed by TV.com in 1996. Current American Idol host Ryan Seacrest first came to national prominence at CNET, as the host of The New Edge and doing various voice-over work for CNET.[citation needed]
In addition, CNET produced another television technology news program called News.com that aired on CNBC beginning in 1999.[1]
CNET acquired the Swiss-based company GDT in 1999. GDT was later renamed to CNET Channel.[1]
In 1999, CNET granted the right to Asiacontent to set up CNET Asia, operation was brought back in December 2000.[citation needed]
In early 2000, the same time CNET became CNET Networks, they acquired comparison shopping site mySimon for US$700 million.[citation needed]
In October 2000, CNET Networks acquired ZDNet for approximately $1.6 billion.[2][3] In 2001, Ziff Davis Media, Inc. reached an agreement with CNET Networks, Inc. to regain the URLs lost in the 2000 sale of Ziff Davis, Inc. to SoftBank Corp. a publicly traded Japanese media and technology company.[citation needed] In 2001, CNET acquired TechRepublic Inc., which provides content for IT professionals from Gartner, Inc., for $23 million in cash and stock.[citation needed] On July 14, 2004, CNET announced that it would acquire Webshots, the leading photography website for $70 million ($60 million in cash, $10 million in deferred consideration).[citation needed]
From 2001 to 2003, CNET operated CNET Radio on the Clear Channel-owned KNEW 910 AM in the San Francisco Bay Area, WBPS 890 AM in Boston and on XM Satellite Radio. CNET Radio offered technology-themed programing. After failing to attract a sufficient audience, CNET Radio ceased operating in January 2003 due to financial losses.[4]
In 2005, CNET launched CNET.co.uk.[citation needed] This UK arm of CNET Networks covers similar areas to CNET.com, but specifically for UK consumers. The site is mainly focused on reviews, news, a gadget blog ('Crave', a name which CNET.com eventually adopted for their own blog) and editorial content from a team of editors. CNET.co.uk is managed and overseen by site editor Jason Jenkins (formerly of T3 Magazine). The small CNET.co.uk editorial team consists of Rory Reid, Ian Morris, Nate Lanxon and Richard Trenholm. CNET.co.uk produced the popular tech show 'Space Bubble', which ran weekly on CNET.co.uk's Crave TV[citation needed], from April 2007.[citation needed] CNET.co.uk also has a weekly podcast called the 'Crave Podcast'.
On October 11, 2006, Shelby Bonnie resigned as chairman and CEO as a result of stock options backdating scandal that occurred between 1996 and 2003. Neil Ashe was named as the new CEO.[5]
In December 2006, James Kim, an editor at CNET, died in the Oregon wilderness. CNET hosted a memorial show and podcasts dedicated to him.
On March 1, 2007, CNET announced the public launch of BNET. BNET, a website targeted towards business managers, was launched in 2005 in beta form.[6]
CNET.com is CNET's online portal, providing access to CNET's reviews, news, downloads, price comparisons and CNET TV as well as web search powered by search.com.
CNET.com is divided into seven major sections, all of which can be accessed from the home or "Today on CNET" page. These sections are:
Product and service reviews by CNET. This section can also include extras such as Internet connection speed tests, opinion articles and buying guides.
News.com is a news website dedicated to technology. Content is created by both CNET and external media agencies. A daily podcast is available which covers main stories.
This section is also available through the download.com and provides a comprehensive library of downloadable software that CNET says is free of spyware.
Tips & Tricks is the learning area of CNET, offering a range of tutorials, guides and tips for technology users.
CNET TV is CNET's Internet video channel offering a selection of on-demand video content including video reviews, first looks and special features.
CNET Shopper.com is an online tool that aims to find the lowest prices on items from online retailers. While generally reliable, there have been notable errors in pricing information on occasion including a camera worth over a thousand dollars being advertised for only a few dollars.
Also available at blogs.cnet.com, this is a round up of all the blogs from CNET personalities and official blogs for CNET and CNET programs.
In addition to CNET.com, which is aimed at North American audiences, there are also regional CNET sites including cnet.com.au (for Australia), cnet.co.uk (for the United Kingdom) and asia.cnet.com (for Asia). Content on regional sites is a mix of locally produced content from regional offices of CNET and content from the US CNET.com site. In addition, content is sometimes sourced from ZDNet.
Download.com is a website which allows its users to download utilities and patches from other software vendors, such as WinZip.
CNET TV plays various videos, including CNET video reviews. CNET editors such as Brian Cooley, Molly Wood, and Tom Merritt host shows like Car Tech, The Queue, Buzz Report, Crave, Quick Tips, CNET Top 5, and others, as well as special reports and reviews.
On April 12, 2007, CNET TV aired its first episode of CNET LIVE, hosted by Brian Cooley and Tom Merritt. The first episode featured Justin Kan of justin.tv.[citation needed]
On November 19, 2007, CNET UK launched the UK version of CNET TV. Although the site's design is very different in design to CNET.com's version, it differs by using true 16:9-resolution video, streaming in Adobe Flash at high bit rates. CNET TV UK produces all original content in the form of a weekly music show, Encoded, hosted by Nate Lanxon; and Reel Weekend, a weekly film digest hosted by Ben Howard. The site also features a car tech show, product video reviews, music videos and most of the video content produced by CNET Networks UK's various consumer and business sites.
Other CNET websites include GameSpot, GameFAQs, Metacritic, MP3.com, TV.com, and FilmSpot, which operate under the "CNET Networks Entertainment" brand name; Chow, Chowhound, Webshots, UrbanBaby and Consumating, which operate under the "CNET Networks Community" brand; Webware, a blog launched in November 2006 dedicated to web applications.[7]
CNET owns many domain names, including download.com, upload.com, news.com, search.com, tv.com, mp3.com, chat.com, computers.com, help.com, shopper.com, radio.com, and com.com.
The network produces several audio and video podcasts. They are related to the core areas of technology: General news, DAPs, Cars, Security, and the ongoing wars between the politicos and the industry. The network has several different brandings on their podcasts. CNET.com, the Network's most viewed site, has more than eight to date.[8] The other sites in the CNET Network that have podcasts are GameSpot, TV.com, and MP3.com.
| Name | Brand | Hosts | Type | Frequency |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buzz Out Loud | CNET.com | Molly Wood, Tom Merritt, (formerly Veronica Belmont) | Audio | Daily |
| Crave | CNET.com's Crave Blog | Caroline McCarthy (formerly Veronica Belmont and James Kim) | Video | Weekly |
| Daily Tech News | News.com | Typically Charles Cooper | Audio | Daily |
| The Buzz Report | CNET.com | Molly Wood (interim host Brian Cooley) | Video | Weekly |
| Gadgettes | CNET.com | Molly Wood and Kelly Morrison | Audio | Weekly |
| MP3 Insider | CNET.com | Jasmine France and Donald Bell (formerly Veronica Belmont and James Kim) | Audio | Weekly |
| The Real Deal | CNET.com | Tom Merritt and Rafe Needleman | Audio | Weekly |
| Security Bites | CNET.com and News.com | Robert Vamosi | Audio and video (on CNET TV) | Weekly |
| Car Tech | CNET.com | Brian Cooley, Kevin Massy, and Wayne Cunningham | Audio and video (on CNET TV) | Weekly |
| The Queue | CNET.com | Rich DeMuro | Video (CNET TV) | Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays |
| Tech and Politics Rundown | CNET.com and News.com | Charles Cooper and Declan McCullagh | Audio | Weekly |
| CNET Live | CNET.com | Tom Merritt and Brian Cooley | Video (CNET TV) | Thursdays |
| Dialed In | CNET.com | Kent German, Bonnie Cha, and Nicole Lee | Audio | Wednesdays |
| Crossfade TV | Download.com, MP3.com | Kurt Wolff, Mike Tao, Peter Gavin, and Anngie Dehoyos | Video (CNET TV) | Every other week |
| Studio C | CNET.com, Download.com, and MP3.com | Kurt Wolff, Ariel Nunez, Mike Tao, and Peter Gavin | Audio | Weekly |
| The Hotspot | Gamespot.com | Vinny Caravella hosts with various other editors | Audio | Tuesdays |
| Gamespot UK Podcast | Gamespot.co.uk | Guy Cocker, Laura Jenner and Emma | Audio | Every other week |
- ^ a b c d CNET Networks - About Us - History. CNET Networks. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ Cnet To Buy Ziff Davis. InformationWeek (July 19, 2000). Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ Interview With CNETnews.com's Sydnie Kohara. JournalismJobs.com (January 2001). Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ CNet pulls plug on radio program. Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal (January 16, 2003). Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ "CNET CEO quits after options review; outlook cut", Reuters, 2006-10-11. Retrieved on 2006-10-24.
- ^ "CNET Networks rolls out BNET, Web site targeting business managers", BtoB Magazine, March 1, 2007. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
- ^ Needleman, Rafe (2006-11-29). Webware.com is live!. Rafe's Blog. Retrieved on 2007-09-21.
- ^ CNET Podcast Central. Retrieved on 2007-11-25.
- CNET Networks corporate site
- CNET Networks UK corporate site
- CNET Networks Australia corporate site
- CNET.com
- CNET.co.uk
- CNET.com.au
- News.com
- CNET TV
- CNET TV UK
- Transcripts of CNET Network's quarterly conference calls
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| Websites | Consumating · Download.com · GameFAQs · Game Rankings · GameSpot · Metacritic · Movie Tome · MP3.com · mySimon · TechRepublic · TV.com · Webshots · ZDNet |
| People | Veronica Belmont · Ina Fried · Jeff Gerstmann · James Kim · Declan McCullagh · Tom Merritt · Halsey Minor · Rafe Needleman · Daniel Terdiman · Molly Wood |
| Other | Buzz Out Loud · CNET TV · CNET podcasts |