IDG Communications, the nearly 60-year-old publisher that's home to brands like PCWorld, Macworld and TechHive, is rebranding as Foundry, its president Kumaran Ramanathan exclusively told Axios.
Why it matters: The rebrand comes as the company prioritizes its growing marketing technology business over its traditional publishing roots.
Why it matters: The rebrand comes as the company prioritizes its growing marketing technology business over its traditional publishing roots.
- "Perceptions can start to change through our rebrand that we're not just a B2B media company. There's nothing wrong with that, and we're absolutely sticking with media. We see it as the heart and soul of our business, but it's not the only thing we do," Ramanathan said.
- In addition to its publishing business, Foundry makes money selling professional services such as lead generation tools, event planning, custom webcasts and influencer outreach.
- Foundry is one of two subsidiaries of IDG, Inc., which Blackstone bought for $1.3 billion last November. The second is IDC (International Data Corporation), a data-driven research and intelligence business. IDC is not changing its name.
- The name Foundry was chosen for its association with creation, and the literal connections to the tech and media industries since semiconductors and typefaces are made in foundries, chief strategy officer Jason Tenenbown told Axios.
- Tenenbown said the company's success lies in its ability to connect its own first-party data with martech.