The Industry Standard

The Industry Standard was a U.S. technology-business news brand associated with IDG. It focused on the commercial relationship between technology and the Internet, covering companies, investment, advertising, entrepreneurship, digital markets, and the broader business consequences of the emerging online economy. The brand first appeared as a weekly print magazine in San Francisco in 1998, during the rapid expansion of Internet-focused media and the dot-com economy. The publication was closely associated with journalist and entrepreneur John Battelle, who was described as the magazine's guiding force, while Jonathan Weber served as editor-in-chief. Its editorial proposition was narrower and more business-oriented than general technology publications: it aimed to report on the companies and economic structures developing around the Internet. Alongside Wired, Red Herring, Business 2.0, and Inside.com, it belonged to a late-1990s generation of specialist publications that addressed the gap between mainstream business journalism and fast-moving technology markets. The magazine also operated an associated website at thestandard.com. From 1999 onward, it expanded its advertising inventory substantially and became widely identified with the commercial exuberance of the Internet economy. In 2000, it reportedly carried more advertising pages than any other U.S. magazine and launched a European edition. This growth reflected both strong advertiser demand and the high valuations attached to Internet businesses at the time. The brand's first incarnation was highly dependent on the dot-com boom. As the technology market deteriorated, advertising and sales weakened, and the magazine entered bankruptcy in August 2001. The rise and collapse of the publication later became the subject of James Ledbetter's 2003 book, Starving to Death on $200 Million: The Short, Absurd Life of The Industry Standard. IDG revived The Industry Standard as an online-only publication in 2008. The second incarnation returned to technology-industry reporting and added an interactive feature through which visitors could make predictions about the future of the technology sector. In 2010, the site became a channel within IDG's InfoWorld publication, linking the brand to a broader technology-news platform. The Industry Standard presence within InfoWorld ended around September 13, 2014. The brand is therefore best understood as a defunct technology-media publication with two distinct phases: an influential but short-lived print magazine during the Internet boom, followed by a smaller digital revival integrated into InfoWorld.

The Industry Standard emerged in San Francisco in 1998 as a weekly print magazine devoted to the business of the Internet. Its launch occurred during a period when online companies, venture capital, digital advertising, and electronic commerce were developing faster than many general-interest publications could cover them. The magazine positioned itself as a specialist news publication for the Internet economy rather than as a consumer technology title. The brand was associated with IDG, a major technology-publishing company, and was substantially shaped by journalist John Battelle. Jonathan Weber served as editor-in-chief. The publication covered the companies and business models forming around the Internet, including the relationship between technology firms and advertisers, investors, entrepreneurs, and established industries. Its editorial niche placed it alongside other influential late-1990s technology-business titles such as Wired, Red Herring, Business 2.0, and Inside.com. The magazine's commercial growth accelerated in 1999. As the dot-com boom drove demand for technology advertising, The Industry Standard increased the number of advertising pages it carried. Its visibility became closely connected to the speculative enthusiasm surrounding Internet businesses, and it acquired a reputation as an important publication for understanding the sector's commercial momentum. The operation also maintained a website, thestandard.com, extending the brand beyond its print edition. In 2000, The Industry Standard reportedly sold more advertising pages than any other magazine in the United States and introduced a European edition. These developments reflected the scale of advertiser interest in Internet-related audiences, but they also exposed the publication to the risks of a business model tied to a rapidly expanding market. When the dot-com boom failed, technology advertising and magazine sales contracted. The print publication entered bankruptcy in August 2001. The magazine's short life later received retrospective treatment in James Ledbetter's 2003 book, Starving to Death on $200 Million: The Short, Absurd Life of The Industry Standard. The book examined the publication's rise and collapse and helped preserve its place in accounts of the Internet-media bubble. IDG revived The Industry Standard in 2008 as an online-only publication. The digital version continued the focus on technology-industry news and introduced an interactive feature that invited readers to make predictions about the future of the technology sector. In 2010, the brand became a channel within InfoWorld, another IDG-owned technology publication. This arrangement placed The Industry Standard within a larger digital editorial structure rather than restoring it as a standalone weekly magazine. The channel ended around September 13, 2014, leaving the brand inactive.

• 2014

  Online channel ends

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  The Industry Standard channel ends around September 13, leaving the brand defunct.

• 2010

  Integration with InfoWorld

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  The Industry Standard becomes a channel within InfoWorld.

• 2008

  Online revival

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  IDG relaunches The Industry Standard as an online-only technology-business publication.

• 2003

  Rise and fall documented in a book

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  James Ledbetter publishes a book examining the publication's brief history and collapse.

• 2001

  Bankruptcy of the print operation

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  The magazine enters bankruptcy in August after the technology-market downturn reduces sales and advertising demand.

• 2000

  European edition launches

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  The publication adds a European edition during the peak of the dot-com boom.

• 1999

  Advertising expansion

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  The magazine expands its advertising volume substantially as Internet-sector demand accelerates.

• 1998

  Print magazine launches

  [1]The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org

  The Industry Standard begins publication as a San Francisco-based weekly magazine covering technology business and the Internet economy.

Business-focused technology journalism centered on the companies, markets, advertising models, and investment activity of the Internet economy.

• Print technology-business publication · 1998

  The Industry Standard magazine

  The original weekly print magazine, published from 1998 to 2001, reported on companies, markets, advertising, investment, and business models at the intersection of technology and the Internet. It was aimed at readers following the commercial development of the Internet economy and became particularly prominent during the dot-com boom.

• News website · 1998

  thestandard.com

  The associated website extended The Industry Standard's technology-business coverage beyond the weekly print cycle. It formed part of the brand's original media operation before the print magazine entered bankruptcy.

• Digital technology-business publication · 2008

  The Industry Standard online publication

  The 2008 revival was an online-only version of the brand focused on news about the technology industry. It also offered an interactive prediction section in which visitors could express views about the future direction of the technology sector.

• Digital publication channel · 2010

  The Industry Standard on InfoWorld

  From 2010, The Industry Standard operated as a channel within InfoWorld, another IDG technology publication. This arrangement maintained the brand's subject focus while integrating it into a broader technology-news website.

• 2010

  Integration into InfoWorldStrategy

  Background

  IDG maintained The Industry Standard as an online technology-business brand after its 2008 revival.

  Action taken

  The Industry Standard was reorganized as a channel within InfoWorld.

  Aftermath

  The channel was discontinued around September 13, 2014.

  Source

• 2008

  Revival as an online-only publicationStrategy

  Background

  The original print magazine had entered bankruptcy in 2001 after the collapse of the dot-com boom and the resulting decline in advertising and sales.

  Action taken

  IDG relaunched The Industry Standard in digital form and added an interactive technology-industry prediction feature.

  Aftermath

  The revived brand later became an InfoWorld channel in 2010 and ended around September 2014.

  Source

1. 1The Industry Standarden.wikipedia.org
2. 2The Industry Standard website archived by InfoWorldinfoworld.com