'Media Titan' Moves in Small (Even Empty) Websites

Little-known Internet player hitting the big time with simple idea
By Harry Kimball,  Newser Staff
Posted Jul 16, 2008 1:29 PM CDT
'Media Titan' Moves in Small (Even Empty) Websites
Rosenblatt at an event.   (Getty Images)

Richard Rosenblatt doesn’t work in Silicon Valley and few people, even there, know his name. But in just 2 years his Demand Media has become a huge player, backed by $355 million in private investment, and pulling in nearly $200 million in revenue this year, the Los Angeles Times reports. His big idea is, well, a small one: eat up thousands of niche social-networking websites, the so-called Long Tail of the Internet, and create tailored content that draws the faithful, and by extension, the advertisers.

Demand Media is valued at $1 billion by its investors, and Yahoo has recently expressed interest in purchasing the loose conglomeration of websites and content. Rosenblatt, who has had a storied, if occasionally shady, trip through the Internet era, put his business plan simply. “Google finds the Long Tail,” he said, “and we fill it.” An analyst is ebullient. “Is this a potential out-of-nowhere media titan? This would seem to be, yeah.” (More internet stories.)

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