2007 Is a Record-Breaking Year for M&A
min's b2b, January 14, 2008
What to Look for in 2008
min's b2b, December 17, 2007
Who's Who in Business Publishing
Crain's BtoB Online, November 8, 2007
VSS Ready to Flex Muscle
min's b2b, September 24, 2007
American Business Media
Jim Casella is the Guest Columnist in the current issue of "American Business Media E-News," September 17, 2007
The Big Question
Crain's BtoB Online, September 10, 2007
July 23, 2007
Jigsaw Welcomes Jim Casella to Board of Directors
Case Interactive founder and CEO brings extensive B2B marketing, publishing and information services expertise to board
SAN MATEO, Calif., July 23, 2007 Jigsaw, the online directory of business contact and company information built by and for its global membership, announced that Jim Casella, founder and CEO of Case Interactive Media has joined its board of directors.
"Jim has a strong history guiding companies, most notably Reed Business Information-US, to successful long-term growth and profitability. We look forward to gaining the benefit of his insight and knowledge of the data industry on the board of directors for Jigsaw," said Jim Fowler, CEO and co-founder of Jigsaw.
Casella, formerly COO of IDG and CEO of Reed Business Information-US, a division of Reed Elsevier (NYSE: ENL), one of the "big five" of worldwide information services, currently works with Austin Ventures to identify opportunities to "buy and build" in the high growth business-to-business media and publishing industries. In February 2007, with Austin Ventures, he launched Case Interactive Media where he currently serves as CEO.
"Jigsaw has made a dramatic impact on the data industry by challenging the ways of the traditional information providers with its Web 2.0 approach, With the help of its community of more than 300,000 members, Jigsaw has developed the world’s largest online directory of business contacts and company information" said Jim Casella. "I look forward to contributing to the future successes of Jigsaw as it continues to grow."
In addition to his leadership roles at IDG and Reed Business Information-US, Casella contributed significantly as president and CEO of PennNet (now PennEnergy), president of ABC Consumer Magazines, a division of Capital Cities/ABC, and vice president of sales and marketing for HBJ Media Systems at Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
Casella has served on the boards of two formerly listed NASDQ companies - IDG Books and Ask Jeeves, prior to its sale to Interactive Corp. Currently, he sits on Jigsaw's board of directors and on the board of Infomedia India LTD, which is listed on the Bombay Stock Exchange.
Honored in 2005 at the American Business Media’s Spring meeting, Casella received the prestigious McAllister Fellowship, recognizing his unique contributions to the industry. In 2003, he was recognized as one of the 21 Most Intriguing People in Publishing by min magazine. Casella received his BA cum laude from Boston College in 1970.
About Jigsaw
Jigsaw Data Corporation (www.jigsaw.com) is an online directory for business contact and company information built by and for its global membership. Jigsaw provides low-cost and easy access to high-value business information that can be used to identify key decision makers and people for purposes such as sales, marketing, recruiting and customer service. Jigsaw members, who have contributed more than six million business contacts from over 500,000 companies since the database's launch in 2004, use Jigsaw to increase efficiency when searching for the business contact and company information they need to grow their business. Jigsaw Data Corporation is located in San Mateo, Calif., and is funded by Austin Ventures, El Dorado Ventures and Norwest Venture Partners.
Company Contact:
Susan Chenoweth
Jigsaw Data Corporation
650.235.8331
susan@jigsaw.com
Press Contact:
Paula Cavagnaro
Antenna Group
415.977.1915
paula@antennagroup.com
Monday, May 7, 2007
Volume 10 No. 17
Jim Casella: Is There Life After Reed?
"There is, although it's a different life," says Jim Casella, ex-vice chairman of Reed Business Information, who has since signed on as a sort of CEO-in-residence with Austin Ventures, a venture capital/PE firm based in Texas, to form Case Interactive Media (min's b2b of 2/26). "It's focused on looking at potential properties to acquire. The vast majority of what I did at Reed was operating." It's been about two months since Casella made the move. Aside from moving from the position of operating to looking for a company to buy, Casella is moving from a situation where he has to deal with thousands of employees to one where he works basically in seclusion. "I think basically, you do really need to be self-directed in this type of environment, and I like that. I've been enjoying it. I'm working closely with a small team at AV. It's a change of pace when you go from thousands of people to a handful," says Casella. "Having said that, I am looking forward to the day when we find a company or companies that we're going to focus in on and actually run on a day-to-day basis." What kinds of companies? "Somebody asked me the other day if I would be interested in a property that was 10% online, and I said no, because, from an investment standpoint, that's too long for development for our timeline. I'm particularly interested in companies that have some lead generation aspect."
February 26, 2007
By Shasha Dai
Austin Ventures has launched a business-to-business publishing platform, Case Interactive Media, believing that the Internet is changing the media and advertising industries in big ways.
As with its other growth equity investments, Austin Ventures is backing an experienced industry executive - this time James Casella, formerly with B2B company Reed Business. Casella spearheaded Reed Business' global expansion, and was instrumental in directing its print and electronic titles. Prior to Reed Business, Casella had been with International Data Group, ABC Consumer Magazines, and HBJ Media Systems.
Austin Ventures has committed an undisclosed amount of equity capital to the new platform, and will own majority stakes in the assets the company acquires. A "prudent amount" of debt will also be used to finance tacquisitions, according to Partner Phil Siegel.
Casella, 58, fielded calls from an executive search firm about two years ago that was acting on behalf of Austin Ventures. The firm was looking for a leader of a new B2B publishing business, and whittled the list of potential leaders of the new business down to a handful of finalists, including Casella.
Austin Ventures was impressed with Casella's experience and "stellar reputation," Siegel said. Casella has a "strong understanding of where the industry is headed ... and knowledge about what assets are in the market," said Partner Craig Milius. Casella and Austin Ventures also see eye to eye on the impact of the Internet on the media industry.
Case Interactive Media will look to acquire electronic media companies or print publishers that have moved operations substantially online, Casella said. It will target businesses with Ebitda, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, of between $15 million and $20 million, with revenue from online venues growing at least 25% annually.
While it won't go after specific industries, Case Interactive Media will initially focus on publishers that service the energy, health care, and information technology sectors, said Casella.
The company could be a potential buyer of online media assets from private equity or venture capital firms, said Casella. Those firms include Audax Group, Nautic Partners, Wind Point Partners, Spire Capital Partners, Veronis Suhler Stevenson, and Leader Ventures. Case Interactive Media will also look to buy corporate carve-outs or stand-alone businesses, Casella said.
Growth equity is one of two prongs of Austin Ventures' investment focus, the other being venture deals in Texas. The firm is currently deploying the $525 million Austin Ventures IX LP, a diversified fund raised last year for early- and late-stage venture, as well as growth equity investments.
Business-to-Business Veteran forms Case Interactive Media
February 26, 2007
AUSTIN, Texas. Austin Ventures (AV) today announced that it has entered into a partnership with James Casella to form Case Interactive Media (CIM). The new company, headquartered in New York, will focus on acquiring and operating businesses in high-growth sectors of business-to-business media and publishing markets. AV has committed a significant amount of equity capital to support management's strategy to build a leading media company through both organic growth and acquisition. Mr. Casella will serve as Chief Executive Officer of CIM. Prior to forming CIM, Mr. Casella served as vice chairman of Reed Business, the world's largest B2B company, where he focused on the global expansion of Reed's major brands, concentrating primarily on China, India and Russia. Prior to this assignment, Mr. Casella served at CEO of Reed Business Information (formerly Cahners) for four years where he provided North American leadership to the print and electronic properties, including Variety, Publishers Weekly, Broadcasting & Cable, and EDN, at a time of significant change. Among his accomplishments, Mr. Casella led the successful rebranding of Cahners to Reed Business Information (RBI), led the significant expansion of RBI's Web offerings, and substantially boosted RBI's profitability through operational improvements.
Over the course of Mr. Casella's career, he has held numerous other senior leadership roles, including Chief Operating Officer at International Data Group (IDG), President and CEO of PennNet (now PennEnergy), President of ABC Consumer Magazines, a division of Capital Cities/ABC, and Vice President of Sales and Marketing for HBJ Media Systems at Harcourt Brace Jovanovich.
"We are thrilled to be working side by side with Jim to launch and build CIM. He's a skilled operator, passionate leader, and flexible thinker who's driven growth and created tremendous value in both small and large companies, emerging and established markets, throughout periods of recession and prosperity over a 30+ year career", said Craig Milius, AV Partner. "It's an exciting time in the media markets as many traditional publishing businesses continue their search for strategies to jump start their movement to online platforms. Jim's past success with both formats will undoubtedly appeal to a wide range of business owners that are contemplating such a transition" added Phil Siegel, AV Partner.
"The Internet will continue to impact the way publishing businesses bring buyers and sellers together, to generate leads. During this transition process, there will continue to be disruptions. Owners of unique brands will be presented with great opportunity to reach new audiences. It's truly an ideal time to be building a leading media business, and I look forward to meeting and sharing my experiences with the entrepreneurs and executives behind these businesses in the coming months," said Mr. Casella. I spent considerable effort evaluating potential equity sponsors to help me launch and build CIM - AV's resource-intensive approach and track record of success in partnering with other proven CEOs to form and build leading growth companies was the deciding factor for me to finalize my decision to partner with them."
AV's relationship with Mr. Casella is part of our stated strategy to partner with talented executives with proven track records to build growth companies in attractive markets. AV has a dedicated in-house talent function that identifies executives that want a hands-on partner in building their next business.
About Austin Ventures Austin Ventures has been working with talented entrepreneurs to build valuable companies since 1979. With $3 billion under management, AV is the most active venture and growth equity firm in Texas, and one of the most established in the nation. With a focus on business services, information services, integrated media, computer and communications hardware, and enterprise software, Austin Ventures invests at all stages of company development, from $100,000 "planned experiments" to $50+ million investments in management buyouts. Visit www.austinventures.com for more information.
Casella Quick To Move On
min's b2b, February 26, 2007
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