Ziff Davis
Ziff Davis is a U.S.-based digital media and technology company whose portfolio spans technology, gaming, health, shopping, connectivity, cybersecurity, and marketing services.
Last updated August 31, 2026
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Overview
Ziff Davis is an American digital media and Internet company that evolved from a specialist magazine publisher into a diversified portfolio business built around online audiences, digital commerce, subscription services, and technology-enabled marketing. Its corporate history is generally dated to 1927, when Bernard George Davis joined William Bernard Ziff's publishing operation and the company began publishing Popular Aviation. The business had earlier roots in William B. Ziff's Chicago advertising and publishing activities, and it formally adopted the Ziff-Davis Publishing Company name in 1936. During its publishing era, Ziff Davis built a reputation for serving enthusiast and professional audiences rather than relying primarily on broad general-interest circulation. Its portfolio included aviation, photography, high-fidelity audio, boating, automotive, bridal, science-fiction, electronics, and computing titles. The company acquired Radio News and Amazing Stories in 1938, entered comics publishing in the early 1950s, and expanded its specialist-magazine strategy under William B. Ziff Jr. after the death of William B. Ziff Sr. in 1953. Titles such as Car and Driver, Popular Electronics, PC Magazine, and Computer Shopper helped make the company a major technology and hobbyist publisher. Ziff Davis became increasingly focused on computing and the Internet in the 1980s and 1990s. It acquired PC Magazine, developed the ZiffNet subscription service for CompuServe users, launched ZDNet, and experimented with television and cable programming through ZDTV. The company also operated television stations for a period beginning in 1979. These initiatives reflected an effort to extend specialist editorial brands across print, online, broadcast, events, and interactive media. Ownership and corporate structure changed repeatedly in the 1990s and 2000s. The publishing group was sold to Forstmann Little in 1994 and then to SoftBank in 1995. Ziff Davis later separated or sold several assets, including its television, magazine, trade-show, and enterprise-media operations. Parts of the legacy publishing portfolio moved through transactions involving Willis Stein & Partners, CNET Networks, and other owners. DigitalLife, a public-facing technology and entertainment event, was held in New York beginning in 2004. The modern Ziff Davis portfolio is associated with digital brands and services rather than a single flagship publication. Its activities include technology and consumer media, gaming and entertainment, health and wellness information, shopping and product-comparison services, Internet connectivity, cybersecurity, and martech tools. The company operates as a portfolio of specialized brands, using editorial content, audience data, advertising, affiliate commerce, subscriptions, lead generation, and software or service offerings. In 2021, J2 Global separated its cloud-services operations and changed its corporate name to Ziff Davis, reinforcing the Ziff Davis identity as the name of the remaining digital-media and technology portfolio. The business remains active and publicly traded through its parent structure.
History
Ziff Davis traces its roots to William B. Ziff's advertising and publishing activities in Chicago. The company acquired the E. C. Auld Company in 1923 and experimented with literary and humor publications before Bernard George Davis joined the operation in 1927. That year, William Ziff's interest in aviation led to the launch of Popular Aviation, the publication most commonly used to date the founding of Ziff Davis. The company name became Ziff-Davis Publishing Company in 1936. The early portfolio mixed aviation, photography, radio, science fiction, and other specialist subjects. Ziff Davis acquired Radio News and Amazing Stories in 1938 and revived them through stronger editorial and production resources. It later published Fantastic Adventures and Fantastic, along with a range of pulp and digest titles. The company also entered comics publishing in the early 1950s, although it largely withdrew from that field after selling several titles to St. John Publications in 1953. After William B. Ziff Sr. died in 1953, his son William B. Ziff Jr. led the company. Bernard Davis sold his interest in 1958 and subsequently founded Davis Publications, while Ziff Davis retained the Davis name. Under Ziff Jr., the company concentrated on enthusiast publications and advertising categories in which readers influenced equipment and purchasing decisions. It expanded into automotive, photography, boating, bridal, audio, electronics, and computing. This specialization helped the business remain attractive to advertisers as general-interest print media faced increasing competition. The technology portfolio became especially important from the 1970s onward. Ziff Davis published or acquired influential computing titles, including PC Magazine and Computer Shopper, and developed services for computer users. The company also diversified into broadcasting, acquiring television stations in 1979 and selling them during the 1980s. In 1984, it sold most consumer magazines to CBS and its trade publications to News Corporation while retaining its computer-magazine interests. Ziff Davis entered online media through ZiffNet, a subscription information service distributed through CompuServe, and launched ZDNet in 1994. It also created ZD Internet Life, later associated with Yahoo! Internet Life, and experimented with television programming. ZDTV was formed as a technology-oriented television and Internet unit, launched as a cable network in 1998, and sold to Vulcan Ventures in 2000 after difficulties securing broad carriage and achieving profitability. The 1990s and 2000s were marked by repeated ownership changes and asset sales. The publishing group was sold to Forstmann Little in 1994 and SoftBank in 1995. Parts of the business were later divided among Ziff Davis Media, CNET Networks, Willis Stein & Partners, and other owners. The company continued to develop digital publishing and technology events, including DigitalLife in New York from 2004. Several print titles were discontinued as online distribution and changing media economics weakened demand for physical magazines. In the modern period, the Ziff Davis name became associated with a broader digital portfolio. Through acquisitions and portfolio development, the business expanded beyond technology publishing into gaming, health, shopping, connectivity, cybersecurity, and marketing technology. Brands such as PCMag, IGN, Mashable, RetailMeNot, Ookla, and Everyday Health represent different audience and revenue models, including editorial advertising, product testing, affiliate commerce, subscriptions, software, and data-driven marketing services. In 2021, J2 Global separated its cloud-services activities and adopted Ziff Davis as the corporate name for the remaining digital-media and technology company. Ziff Davis is active as a public-company portfolio under the ZD ticker.
- 2021
Corporate identity returns to Ziff Davis
[3]J2 Global separated its cloud-services business and used the Ziff Davis name for the remaining digital-media and technology operations.
- 2004
DigitalLife begins
[1]Ziff Davis began hosting DigitalLife, a public technology, gaming, and entertainment event in New York City.
- 1998
ZDTV launches
[1]Ziff Davis introduced a cable network devoted to computers, the Internet, and technology culture.
- 1994
ZDNet launches
[1]The company launched ZDNet as an online technology-information service.
- 1991
ZiffNet is introduced
[1]ZiffNet provided computing information to users through CompuServe and anticipated the company's later online publishing strategy.
- 1982
PC Magazine acquired
[1]The acquisition made PC Magazine a central part of Ziff Davis's growing computer-publication portfolio.
- 1979
Broadcasting expansion begins
[1]Ziff Davis entered television ownership through the acquisition of stations originally associated with Rust Craft.
- 1955
Popular Electronics begins publication
[1]The electronics title strengthened the company's relationship with technically minded hobbyists and helped establish a path toward computing media.
- 1938
Radio News and Amazing Stories acquired
[1]The acquisitions expanded Ziff Davis's presence in electronics and science-fiction publishing.
- 1936
Ziff-Davis Publishing Company name adopted
[1]The formal Ziff-Davis Publishing Company name appeared in the company's magazine publishing operations.
Products and positioning
A portfolio operator focused on specialist digital audiences, trusted editorial and testing content, online commerce, subscriptions, connectivity, cybersecurity, and marketing technology.
Technology media · 1982
PCMag
PCMag is a technology media and product-testing brand descended from Ziff Davis's computer-magazine publishing tradition. It publishes reviews, comparisons, buying guidance, how-to material, and technology news across consumer and business categories. Its role in the portfolio combines editorial authority with product discovery and commerce opportunities.
Gaming and entertainment media
IGN
IGN is a gaming and entertainment publication providing news, reviews, video, guides, features, and community-oriented coverage. It serves audiences interested in video games, films, television, comics, and related entertainment. The brand extends Ziff Davis's specialist-audience model into a large-scale digital entertainment category.
Connectivity information and services
Ookla and Speedtest
Ookla operates Internet-performance measurement and connectivity-information products, most visibly Speedtest. These services allow users to assess network performance and provide data that can support consumer decisions, network analysis, and industry benchmarking. They broaden Ziff Davis from publishing into software-like digital utilities and data services.
Shopping and commerce
RetailMeNot
RetailMeNot is an online shopping and savings platform centered on coupons, offers, and purchase discovery. It represents the commerce side of Ziff Davis's portfolio, where consumer intent can be monetized through affiliate relationships, merchant promotions, and shopping-related advertising.
Health information
Everyday Health
Everyday Health is a digital health-information brand offering educational content and condition- or lifestyle-oriented resources. It extends the company's specialist publishing approach into health, where audiences seek practical information and services. Health properties can support advertising, consumer engagement, and lead-generation models subject to medical-content and regulatory requirements.
Cybersecurity and privacy services
StrongVPN and IPVanish
StrongVPN and IPVanish are connectivity and privacy-oriented subscription services associated with Ziff Davis. They provide virtual private network functionality and related tools for users seeking encrypted connections, location flexibility, or improved online privacy. These brands illustrate the company's move from media audiences into recurring digital services.
Marketing campaigns
- 2004DigitalLife
United States
Ziff Davis created DigitalLife as a consumer-facing technology, gaming, and entertainment exhibition in New York City. Unlike industry-only events, it was designed to be open to the public and gave the company a physical-events extension of its technology-media brands.
Outcome. The event became an annual New York technology show during the period documented in the company's history.
Brand decisions
2021
Adopt Ziff Davis as the post-separation corporate identityStrategyBackground
J2 Global separated its cloud-services activities from its digital-media and technology portfolio.
Action taken
The remaining public company adopted the Ziff Davis name and continued under the ZD ticker.
Aftermath
The historic publishing name became the umbrella identity for a broader collection of digital media, commerce, connectivity, cybersecurity, and marketing businesses.
1998
Launch ZDTV as a technology cable networkProduct launchBackground
Ziff Davis sought to extend its computing and Internet expertise into television and create a dedicated technology-media channel.
Action taken
The company launched ZDTV on cable systems with programming focused on computers, the Internet, software, hardware, and technology culture.
Aftermath
The network struggled to secure broad carriage and was sold to Vulcan Ventures in a transaction completed in 2000.
1984
Concentrate on computer magazines after major publishing disposalsStrategyBackground
Ziff Davis was restructuring its traditional publishing portfolio while specialist technology publishing was becoming strategically important.
Action taken
The company sold most consumer magazines to CBS and its trade magazines to News Corporation while retaining its computer-magazine interests.
Aftermath
The retained technology assets became the foundation for Ziff Davis's later online and digital-media expansion.
Recent events
Campaigner launches platform in the United Kingdom[4]
Reported:
Campaigner announced the launch of its multichannel marketing platform in the United Kingdom, making its automated email and SMS features available to UK businesses.
Sources4 sources
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