VERTICAL INTEGRATION - CORPORATE-STRATEGY IN THE INFORMATION INDUSTRY

Massification and consolidation are characteristics of mature industry; the electronic publishing sector has matured fast and its unusual precocity is due to a combination of internal and external factors. The external milieu of the past five years has brought about shifts in corporate identity and strategy which have been described as 'the re-structuring of corporate America'; facilitating legislation has encouraged corporate mobility and eased restrictions on monopoly. Three companies are looked at: Reed International, Pergamon (including BPCC) and Thyssen-Bornemisza (TBC). All three companies are involved in mixed media publishing, with the electronic sector the main area for investment and development, financed to varying extents by its conventional siblings.