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overview
holdings
landmarks
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landmarks
This chronology is indicative only. It covers -
Context is provided by the broader communications and
media timeline on this site.
antecedents
1923
Arthur Charles Nielsen Sr establishes AC Nielsen Company
1954 Ludwig Frohlich and David Dubow found Intercontinental
Marketing Services (IMS)
VNU established
1964 VNU established through merger of Dutch publishing
companies De Spaarnestad and Cebema
1965 VNU Expositions established
1969 IMS buys Davee, Koehnlein & Keating (DKK) of
Chicago
1972 IMS becomes public company
1972 IMS acquires Lea, Associates, Inc
1973 VNU buys crossword and puzzle publisher British European
Associated Publishers (BEAP)
1974 IMS buys Armbruster, Moore and MacKerell
1974 IMS buys Pharmatech
1974 IMS buys Cambridge Computer
1980 IMS establishes Consumer Market Research Division
(market research services to fashion, apparel, and household
appliance industries), later spun off
1982 VNU buys Personal Computer World from Dennis
for £3m
1982 VNU buys Warner Communications
stake in Claritas, formerly General Analytics Corporation
(est 1961)
1984 IMS buys Pipeline
1984 ACNielsen acquired by Dun &
Bradstreet
1985 IMS buys Fisher Stevens and Luning Prak Associates
1986 IMS buys Clark-O’Neill and Healthcare Information
Programs
1986 VNU Marketing Information Services buys remainder
of Claritas
1986 Jupiter Communications founded
1988 ACNielsen acquires Logistics Data Systems
1988 Dun & Bradstreet buys IMS
for around US$1.8bn
1993 Claritas and VNU's subsidiary National Planning Data
Corporation merge
1993 VNU buys Spectra Marketing
1993 sells VNU Grafische Industrie (printing business)
1994 buys BPI Communications in US
1994 buys Bill Communications in US
1994 buys Competitive Media Reporting (CMR) in US
1994 buys Calyx Group in UK
1994 buys Business Age in UK for £3.2m
1994 ACNielsen buys Survey Research Group (SRG) and forms
joint venture with AMER World Research
1995 VNU buys Nederlandse Dagbladunie consumer magazines,
Brabants Nieuwsblad, Bonaventura special interest magazines
and Cahners Consumer Magazines from Elsevier
1995 buys SRDS in US
1995 Business Age closed
1996 buys Strategic Mapping Inc
1996 buys 30% stake in Indian Org-Marg market research
group
1996 Media Metrix founded
1996 ACNielsen spun off by Dun & Bradstreet
1996 Dun & Bradstreet spins off IMS as Cognizant
1997 VNU buys ITT Directories
1997 buys Healthcare Communications in US
1997 takes 33% stake in Russia's Independent Media group
1997 buys National Research Group from Cordiant
1997 buys Kwety Ceske in Czech Republic and Axis Conseil
in France
1997 buys Czech publisher Ring AS
1997 buys Excelsior Informatique in France
1997 sells 51% stake in Automated Catalogue Services
1997 ACNielsen buys Entertainment Data Inc to form ACNielsen
EDI
1998 buys The BASES Group to form ACNielsen BASES
1998 merges ACNielsen.McNair, ACNielsen.MRL and ACNielsen.Spectrum
under the ACNielsen New Zealand banner
1998 acquires full ownership of AIM Data
1998 Dun & Bradstreet spin-off Cognizant becomes Nielsen
Media Research and IMS
moves out of broadcasting and newspapers
1998 VNU sells stakes in Netherlands and Belgian broadcasters
Vlaamse Televisie Maatschappij (VTM) and Holland Media
Group (HMG)
1998 buys Progressive Grocer business publications in
US
1998 buys Shore-Varrone in US
1998 buys Medtrade Management Group in US
1998 buys 65% of the Sunshine Group
1998 buys 75% of Home Interior Exhibitions
1999 buys Whitaker & Sons
1999 sells Dutch regional newspapers NB/DE Stem,
Brabants Dagblad, Eindhovens Dagblad, De
Gelderlander and Uitgeversmaatschappij De Limburger
to Wegener for 1.8bn N Guilders
1999 buys European businesses of CMP Media
1999 buys MacFadden and Beverage
group magazines for US$80m
1999 ACNielsen acquires full ownership of MSK in Korea
and Market Decisions in US
1999 ACNielsen buys Media Monitoring Services in UK
1999 VNU buys Nielsen Media Research for US$2.7bn
1999 sells stake in Scoot internet portals
1999 buys RTA in Spain and ADDE in France
1999 buys 90% of Geodan Polska
1999 buys Global Media Representatives
1999 buys controlling stake in Org-Marg for US$22m
1999 Media Metrix buys AdRelevance
1999 IMS spins off Gartner Group
2000 IMS sells Erisco Managed Care Technologies
2000 IMS spins off Strategic Technologies unit as Synavant.
2000 Jupiter Communications buys Internet Research Group
and Net Market Makers for US$50m
2000 Media Metrix and Jupiter Communications merge
2000 BEAP buys Keesing UK
2000 VNU buys Miller Freeman USA from United
News & Media for US$650m
2000 sells Competitive Media Reporting (CMR)
2000 sells VNU Newspapers to Wegener
2000 buys Startpagina dot com (www.startpagina.nl)
2000 takes 58.7% stake in Ilse Media Groep
2001 buys Nielsen//NetRatings
2001 sells Consumer Information Group (CIG) to the Finnish
paper & media group Sanoma
WSOY for €1.25bn
2001 sells film distributor RCV
2001 agrees to buy Jupiter Media Metrix
2001 buys Entertainment Marketing Information Services
in US
2001 buys Pubblicità Italia group
2001 buys European trade shows of Imark Communications
2001 sells Educational Information group to 3i group
2001 spins off FactPoint (former Internet Research Group)
2001 IMS buys Cambridge Pharma Consultancy
2002 VNU acquisition of Jupiter Media Metrix forbidden
by FTC
2002 buys AdRelevance, Jupiter's ad measurement division,
for US$8.5m
2002 buys remaining 65% of Golden Pages directories business
in Eire for €185m
2002 buys remainder of ACNielsen eRatings.com for $9.6m
2002 buys 28% of Romanian directory publisher Pagini Aurii
for €6.5m
2003 sells Claritas Europe (direct marketing) to Acxiom
for €33.5m
2003 buys Emerce in Netherlands
2003 increases stake in Pagini Aurii in Romania to 85%
2003 sells VNU's 35% stake in Independent Media (IM)
to Vladimir Potanin
2004 buys remaining stake in Music Control and Aircheck
radio airplay-monitoring businesses
2004 sells VNU World Directories arm for €2.1bn to
Apax Partners and Cinven
inestment groups
2005 IMS buys PharMetrics
2005 VNU abandons US$6.9bn takeover of IMS Health
2006 VNU agrees to US$8.9bn cash takeover offer by Blackstone
Group, Kohlberg
Kravis Roberts, Thomas H Lee
& Partners, AlpInvest Partners, Carlyle Group and
Hellman & Friedman consortium
2006 Blackstone consortium bid stymied by other shareholders
2006 Valcon Acquisition consortium
announces success with US$9.7bn bid
2006 VNU sells European business magazines in the UK,
Germany, Italy, Spain, the Netherlands and Belgium to
3i for €320m
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