Informa

History

1998 to 2013

Informa itself was created in 1998 by the merger of IBC Group plc (formerly International Business Communications) and LLP Group plc (publisher of Lloyd's List). Since then Informa has expanded considerably, including a 2003 purchase of PJB publisher PJB, 2004 merger with the publishing company Taylor & Francis and a 2005 acquisition of IIR Holdings, a human capital development company, for £768 million. In October 2006, the company was approached by Springer Science and Business Media in a takeover bid, but in early November the Informa board rejected the 630p per share offer as too low.

In early 2007, chairman Richard Hooper announced his retirement in May and, after consulting with major shareholders, the company moved chief executive Peter Rigby to chairman, and managing director David Gilbertson to Rigby's former post. Informa explained Rigby's move by the need to maintain management stability, although it generated some controversy because it did not follow the advice of the UK's Combined Code on Corporate Governance.

On 8 June 2008, The Sunday Telegraph revealed that United Business Media (UBM) had proposed a merger with Informa. The talks were confirmed by Informa in a press release that same day, but described as "preliminary". On 17 June talks with UBM ended.

In May 2009 the company announced that it would restructure its business to be incorporated in Jersey but tax resident in Switzerland. In 2014, Informa was redomiciled in the UK.

In July 2013, the company announced that Peter Rigby would retire at the end of 2013 to be replaced as CEO by Stephen Carter, who was first appointed a non-executive director in 2010. Informa has since acquired other conventions and placed them under the auspices of their Fan Expo HQ brand, including Dallas Comic Con and MegaCon.

In December 2013, Informa acquired the assets of Elsevier Business Intelligence (EBI) from Reed Elsevier.

2014 to present

In January 2014, Carter became CEO of Informa plc. In September 2017, Informa announced that it would be acquiring Dove Medical Press.

In January 2018, Informa announced its intent to acquire UBM plc as part of its strategy to expand in North America and Asia. The transaction was completed in June 2018.

In 2019, Informa sold the former UBM Life Sciences to MJH Associates. Later in 2019, Informa traded its Agriculture Intelligence unit to IHS Markit in exchange for most of IHS Markit's Technology, Media and Telecoms division. Also in 2019, Informa sold the former Penton design & engineering, manufacturing, energy, buildings, and commercial vehicle divisions, and the former UBM Automotive, to Endeavor Business Media.

In February 2020, Informa launched Omdia by consolidating its portfolio of market analyst companies, Ovum Ltd, Heavy Reading, Tractica, and the majority of IHS Markit's technology, media and telecommunications research business, into a unified brand. The combined research offering includes more than 400 analysts and consultants covering 150 technology markets. Collectively, Omdia issues over 3,000 research reports annually.

In February 2022, Informa sold its Informa Pharma Intelligence unit to investment fund, Warburg Pincus for $2.6 billion.

In March 2023, in a cash and shares deal, Informa acquired the Irish Tarsus Group from Charterhouse Capital Partners for a reported GBP 790m.

In January 2024, Informa announced that it would merge the digital business of Informa Tech with TechTarget. The resulting company would keep the TechTarget name with Informa holding 57% stake and the existing TechTarget shareholders holding 43% stake in the merged TechTarget. The merger was completed with the business became Informa TechTarget in December 2024.

In June 2024, Informa closed two UK-based titles: Digital TV Europe and Television Business International.

In July 2024, the company reached a deal to acquire media and events company Ascential for approximately £1.2 billion. The transaction was completed in October 2024.

Operations

Informa is organized into five operating divisions: Informa Connect, Informa Festivals, Informa Markets, Informa TechTarget, and Taylor & Francis. The company also has a Global Support division.

In June 2021, John Rishton was appointed as chairman, replacing Derek Mapp.

Brands

Informa owns numerous brands including:

Informa Connect

• The Bride Show
• Fan Expo
• Calgary Comic and Entertainment Expo
• Fan Expo Boston
• Fan Expo Canada
• Toronto Comicon
• Fan Expo Chicago
• Fan Expo Dallas
• Fan Expo Denver
• Fan Expo Vancouver
• MegaCon
• Middle East Film and Comic Con
• Nation's Restaurant News
• VidCon

Informa Festivals

• Black Hat Briefings
• Cannes Lions International Festival of Creativity
• Game Developers Conference

Informa Markets

• Arab Health
• Aviation Week Network
• Dubai Airshow
• Farm Progress
• Magic
• Monaco Yacht Show
• World of Concrete
• Routes World

Informa TechTarget

• Computer Weekly
• Game Developer
• Industry Dive
• InformationWeek
• Light Reading
• MicroScope
• Ward's

Taylor & Francis

• CRC Press
• Dove Medical Press
• Routledge

References

References

1. "Preliminary Results 2024". Informa.
2. "About us". Informa.
3. (1998-11-20). "LLP links with IBC in pounds 300m business group".
4. (14 March 2007). "ROUNDUP Informa names new chairman, CEO after FY profits soar". Forbes.
5. (1 June 2007). "T&F Informa buys conferences group Institute for International Research for 768 mln stg". Forbes.
6. Kundnani, Hans. (19 October 2006). "Springer Science & Business Media launches bid for Informa". The Guardian.
7. (3 November 2006). "Informa rejects Springer bid". AFX News Limited.
8. (14 March 2006). "Informa unveils new CEO, chairman as 2006 results top forecasts". Forbes.
9. Harrington, Ben. (8 June 2008). "Media giants United Business Media and Informa open talks on £3bn merger". The Sunday Telegraph.
10. (8 June 2008). "Statement Regarding Press Speculation". Informa.
11. (9 June 2008). "UBM and Informa confirm merger talks". The Guardian.
12. Arnott, Sarah. (18 June 2008). "Cash approach for Informa as merger talks end with UBM". The Independent.
13. Kollewe, Julia. (1 May 2009). "Publishing firm Informa blames budget for tax switch". The Guardian.
14. (10 December 2013). "Informa to shift tax base back to UK". Financial Times.
15. (10 July 2013). "Informa announces retirement of Peter Rigby and appointment of Stephen Carter".
16. (23 March 2019). "Informa chief: 'There aren't many large single points of weakness'". Daily Telegraph.
17. (18 February 2014). "Dallas Comic Con Gets a New Owner and Home".
18. (7 April 2015). "Orlando's MegaCon sold to Informa". Orlando Sentinel.
19. Mantei, Shelley. (9 April 2015). "Informa Exhibitions Expands Pop Culture Convention Portfolio With MegaCon Orlando". FAN EXPO HQ.
20. (9 December 2013). "Informa Acquires Elsevier Business Intelligence".
21. (31 December 2013). "Informa Confirms Stephen Carter To Be CEO, Effective Jan. 1 – Update". RTT News.
22. "Informa acquires Dove Medical Press, AA appoints Simon Breakwell as permanent chief executive". BOLSAMANIA.
23. (15 September 2016). "Informa acquires US events and publishing rival for £1.2bn". FT.
24. (16 January 2018). "Informa to buy exhibitions rival UBM for £4bn". Financial Times.
25. (7 March 2019). "Informa sales climb after £4bn UBM takeover". FT.
26. (15 June 2018). "Informa's takeover of peer UBM effective after court sanction". Alliance News.
27. (2019-02-01). "Informa Sells UBM Life Sciences Media Brands to MJH Associates for $100 Million". Folio.
28. (2019-05-24). "IHS Markit swaps group that researches optical communications for Informa's agribusiness unit". Lightwave.
29. (2019-11-11). "Endeavor Business Media Acquires More Than 20 B2B Titles from Informa Plc". Folio.
30. (10 Feb 2022). "Informa sells Informa Intelligence business unit". Reuters.
31. (5 August 2022). "Informa sells Lloyd's List for £385m as B2B giant sees revenue bounce back". Press Gazette.
32. (2023-03-09). "Charterhouse exits Tarsus to Informa for GBP 790m EV {{!}} Unquote".
33. "Informa Acquires Tarsus Group in $940 Million Mega Deal".
34. (9 March 2023). "Informa acquires Tarsus in $940m deal".
35. Knolle, Sharon. (2024-09-02). "Paramount Sells VidCon Creator Conference to UK Firm Informa".
36. . (January 10, 2024). ["TechTarget to Expand Scale and Leadership Position in B2B Data and Market Access through Strategic Combination with Informa Tech's Digital Businesses"](https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240110017625/en/TechTarget-to-Expand-Scale-and-Leadership-Position-in-B2B-Data-and-Market-Access-through-Strategic-Combination-with-Informa-Tech%E2%80%99s-Digital-Businesses). *TechTarget*.
37. . (December 3, 2024). ["Informa TechTarget…scale in B2B Digital Services"](https://www.informa.com/globalassets/documents/investor-relations/2024/20241202-informa-techtarget---scale-in-b2b-digital-services.pdf). *Informa*.
38. Tobitt, Charlotte. (2024-06-10). "Informa closes two B2B news brands covering TV business".
39. (24 July 2024). "Informa agrees to buy Cannes Lions owner Ascential for almost £1.2bn". Financial Times.
40. (9 October 2024). "Ascential is now part of the Informa Group {{!}} Ascential".
41. "Divisions".
42. "John Rishton".
43. "Informa Connect Finance". Informa.
44. "Informa Connect Life Sciences". Informa.
45. "Informa Connect Specialist Conferences". Informa.
46. "Informa Markets: Our events". Informa.
47. "Taylor and Francis". Informa.
48. "Everything you need to check out at FAN EXPO Vancouver 2022 {{!}} Listed".
49. "About".