landmarks

This page highlights landmarks in the history of the data trading industry, illustrating global spread and consolidation.

It covers -

• beginnings
• industrialisation
• expansion

Context is provided by the multi-page communications, business & media timeline and the consumer credit reporting and vetting services notes elsewhere on this site.

     beginnings

1906 precursor of US Consumer Data Industry Association founded

1913 Retail Credit Company becomes Equifax

1938 Opinion Research Corporation established

1947 first Cole Directory in US

1969 Acxiom established in US

1972 infoUSA founded

1982 VNU buys Warner Communications stake in Claritas, formerly General Analytics Corporation (est 1961)

1989 Associated Credit Bureaus (ACB) renamed Consumers Credit Associates (CCA)

1991 Dun & Bradstreet sells Donnelley Marketing (85-million household consumer information database)

1991 Insurance Reference Services established

1992 Database Technologies founded by Hank Asher

1993 New Zealand Privacy Act

1994 Associated Credit Bureaux New Zealand established

1996 DBT Online formed through merger of Database Technologies and Patlex

1996 TRW sells remaining interest in Experian

1997 CCA renamed Innovis Data Solutions

1997 ChoicePoint spun off from Equifax

1998 Baycorp establishes joint venture with identity certification service 128i

1998 Seisint founded by Hank Asher following departure from DBT

1997 ChoicePoint buys Medical Information Network LLC and Drug Free, Inc

1997 ChoicePoint accused of violating law by selling US voter registration lists to debt collectors

1998 ChoicePoint buys Attest National Drug Testing Inc

1998 ChoicePoint buys Application Profiles, Informus, Customer Development Corp., Tyler-McLennon, EquiSearch Services and DATEQ Information Network

1999 Acxiom opens Australia and New Zealand office

2000 infoUSA buys idEXEC from Thomson

2000 infoUSA buys American Church Lists Inc

2000 ChoicePoint pays US$444m for 'investigative database company' DBT Online

2000 infoUSA buys Getko Direct Response (est 1991 as Syntony Marketing) from Cendant

2001 Baycorp acquire Australian loan management services company Axcess Consulting

2001 infoUSA buys Polk City Directory from Equifax for US$6m

2001 ChoicePoint buys Pinkerton Services (est 1849)

     expansion

2001 PATRIOT Act in US

2001 Equifax buys stake in Seisint

2001 Baycorp merges with Data Advantage as Baycorp Advantage

2002 infoUSA buys Hill-Donnelly Directory Company and Calgary Business Directory

2002 infoUSA buys Email List Services Division of DoubleClick

2002 ChoicePoint buys BDM register specialist VitalChek Network Inc

2002 infoUSA buys ClickAction and City Directory Publishing Company

2003 US federal Fair & Accurate Credit Transactions Act

2003 ChoicePoint buys database of Mexico's 65 million registered voters

2003 infoUSA buys YesMail from CMGI

2003 ChoicePoint sells property inspection arm CP Commercial Specialists

2003 Acxiom reaches agreement to acquire Claritas Europe group from VNU for €33.5m

2004 Experian buys CheetahMail

2004 ChoicePoint buys Templar Corp and GIS specialist iMapData Inc

2004 Acxiom buys Consodata SA (Germany, UK, France and Spain) from directory group Seat Pagine Gialle for €30m

2004 infoUSA buys Edith Roman Inc

2004 Acxiom buys ChinaLOOP (est 2000)

2004 infoUSA buys OneSource Information Services for US$101m

2004 Reed Elsevier buys Seisint for US$745m

2005 Acxiom acquires Digital Impact for US$140m

2005 ChoicePoint buys i2 Ltd

2005 Experian buys LowerMyBills.com for US$380m

2005 ChoicePoint sells data on 145,000 customers to criminals

2005 Experian acquires ClassesUSA.com, Vente and Harvest Solutions

2005 infoUSA buys Millard Group

2005 Experian agrees to buy PriceGrabber.com for US$485m

2006 Experian buys marketing database company ClarityBlue for US$151m

2006 Baycorp Advantage sells its debt collection business (Baycorp Advantage Collections Services) and rights to Baycorp name, to Trans-Tasman Collections

2006 Baycorp Advantage rebadged as Veda Advantage

2006 infoUSA buys Opinion Research Corporation for US$134m

2006 infoUSA buys Rubin Response Services (est 1974), Mokrynskidirect and email marketer Digital Connexxions

2007 Experian pays US$240m for Hitwise

2007 Acxiom agrees to be acquired by ValueAct Capital and Silver Lake Partners for US$2.25bn

2007 Experian pays £600m for 70% of Brazilian rival Serasa


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