Tech Journal

Tags: CNET, CBS, blogs, acquisitions

[image from Mashable]

CNET Networks, the company behind CNET, ZDNet, GameSpot.com, TV.com, CNET News, UrbanBaby, BNET, CHOW and Search.com, have been acquired by media giant and oldie, CBS fir $1.8 billion.

At first this would have sounded like a great big buy out that would rival Time Warner's acquisition of AOL or the possible merger of Yahoo and  Microsoft, or the Google acquisition of YouTube.  However, this comes as a diappointment to many people keeping tabs on the business side of CNET.

Leslie Moonves, President and Chief Executive Officer at CBS Corporation, said this about the acquisition:

“There are very few opportunities to acquire a profitable, growing, well-managed Internet company like CNET Networks. CBS stands for premium content and unparalleled reach, and CNET Networks will add a tremendous platform to extend our complementary entertainment, news, sports, music and information content to a whole new global audience.”

Actually CNET is not at the top of its game and actually if anybody wanted to acquire them and made more money off of it, 1999 would have been the time.

-1999: CNET is a $12 billion company

-January 2000: CNET Aquires MySimon for $700 million

-October 2000: CNET Acquires Ziff Davis (ZDNet) for $1.6 billion (after the March 2000 stock crash)

-July 2004: CNET Acquires Webshots for $70 million

-October 2007: CNET Sells Webshots for $40 million

-May 2008: CBS Acquires CNET For $1.8 billion

Sure, buying CNET back in 1999 would have been a lot more expensive but back then they were a lot more profitable too.  And if CNEt did get bought for $12 billion today, they'd be in the history books.  Apparently $1.8 billion doesn't cut it. 

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