CMP Acquires Mass Events Labs, Adding Unconference-Style and Custom Events, Strengthening Company's Leading Technology Enterprise Portfolio

MANHASSET, N.Y. and BOSTON, Jan. 3 /PRNewswire/ -- CMP, a media and marketing solutions company serving the technology industry, today announced the acquisition of Mass Events Labs, the producer of unconference-style and custom events. Mass Events Labs will join CMP's Business Technology Group (BTG), which includes within its leading integrated product offering, the industry's strongest business technology event portfolio with flagship events such as Interop, Web 2.0, Enterprise 2.0, BlackHat and VoiceCon. The BTG Event's division is led by Eric Faurot, Senior Vice President, CMP. David Berlind, Principal and Chief Content Officer of Mass Events Labs and former Executive Editor at CNET, has joined CMP as Interop's Executive Conference Director and as a TechWeb blogger.

Mass Events Labs produces unconference-style and custom events like Mashup Camp where next-generation developers decide which application program interfaces (APIs) to develop on, ultimately determining what platforms will be successful on the Web. The content of Mass Events Labs events is community-driven, created by the participants during the course of the event, generating collaboration and idea sharing in an efficient and rapid format. Since the first Mashup Camp, Mass Events Labs has run over eight different camps and has added a University component that allows vendors to present focused information about their APIs and specific products. Additionally, the company produces custom events, including one for Sun that offers innovative ways for entrepreneurs to network with one another as well as with solution providers.

As Interop's Executive Conference Director and TechWeb blogger, Berlind will meld journalism with events, blogs, video, and social networking. Berlind holds a BBA in Computer Information Systems. Prior to becoming a tech journalist, Berlind was an IT manager responsible for the design and deployment of custom developed software, local and wide area networks, PC-Mainframe connectivity, corporate technology standard-setting and end-user training programs.

"David is a proven innovator in delivering compelling content to audiences in whatever format they desire: online text, audio, video, or face-to-face," said Bob Evans, Senior Vice President and Editorial Director for the BTG. "He'll bring great new tech-savvy insights to TechWeb audiences, and his ability to scale from blogging to video to live events is a great model for how the BTG is delivering unmatched content capabilities and value to the business-technology marketplace."

Of the new partnership, David Berlind said, "I've long held the vision that the medium of blogging in all its forms (text, still images, audio, and video) can be very synergistically paired with community-driven events in a way that the whole is far greater than the sum of its parts for all stakeholders involved. CMP's reputation and unwavering commitment to building and fostering strong communities as demonstrated by their successful portfolio of events along with its willingness to support those events' communities with multimedia blog-based editorial was a natural fit for Mass Events Labs and me. Together we're poised to offer even greater opportunities and uniquely innovative solutions to all our audiences."

"The energy at Mass Events Labs is powerful and demonstrates that attendees are eagerly embracing media that allow them to actively participate. We are very excited to add this innovative conference model to our events portfolio which moves us forward in our transformation to a next-generation media company," said Faurot. "The synergies between Mass Events Labs and CMP's portfolio of events are undeniable and allow us to build on our existing relationships with industry leaders like Google, Yahoo, IBM and Sun. Furthermore, the acquisition supports our goal of fostering growth and innovation in the technology industry by connecting buyers and sellers in meaningful ways."

Faurot continued, "We are thrilled to welcome David Berlind to CMP. We are confident that his outstanding credentials and deep personal relationships will be a strong asset to our Interop Event and TechWeb Network teams."

About Mass Events Labs

Mass Events Labs is a leading producer of custom events and unconferences that are, in-part, based on the Open Space methodology. An unconference's agenda is determined by the participants, generally day-by-day during the course of the event, rather than by the event's organizers in advance. This format fosters a conversational flow and exchange of ideas between the various stakeholders in any given community (eg: between Web developers and the solution providers that serve them). Mass Events Labs' events has attracted sponsorship from and created custom events for leading solution providers.

About CMP

CMP (http://www.cmp.com/) is a media and marketing solutions company serving the technology industry. With the leading online, event and print brands in all technology market categories, and with services and tools that reach beyond traditional advertising, CMP shapes and influences the technology industry worldwide. CMP publishes highly respected media brands such as TechWeb, InformationWeek, ChannelWeb, CRN, EE Times and TechOnline; produces major industry events such as Interop, Web 2.0 Expo, XChange, Game Developers Conference and the Embedded Systems Conferences; and provides business information and marketing services such as the International Customer Management Institute, Semiconductor Insights and Second Life consulting for technology marketers. CMP is a subsidiary of United Business Media (http://www.unitedbusinessmedia.com/), a global provider of news distribution and specialist information services with a market capitalization of more than $3 billion. For more CMP news, go to cmp.com/news.

SOURCE: CMP

CONTACT: Alix Raine of CMP, +1-516-562-7827, araine@cmp.com

Web site: http://www.cmp.com/
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