Categories: OLD Media Moves

FT acquires San Francisco data company

The Financial Times announced Wednesday the acquisition of GIS Planning, a San Francisco-based internet technology company, for an undisclosed amount.

GIS Planning provides data and intelligence on foreign direct investment and economic development in North America.

“GIS Planning is a strong addition to the FT Group, with valuable specialist information, cutting-edge technological capabilities, a loyal client base and substantial growth potential,” said FT Group CEO John Ridding in a statement. “At a time when companies and investors are re-assessing optimal locations for business, GIS Planning brings significant expertise and opportunity. The FT’s international network and the global power of its brand will provide a healthy foundation for GIS Planning’s expansion.”

GIS Planning’s clients include economic development organizations in the United States and Canada. Its flagship product ZoomProspector provides quantitative analysis that helps companies identify the optimal location to start up, expand or relocate based on real estate, demographics, industry information and geographic advantages.

Its software engine currently serves more than 17,000 cities, including the majority of the 100 largest cities in the United States.

Chris Roush

Chris Roush was the dean of the School of Communications at Quinnipiac University in Hamden, Connecticut. He was previously Walter E. Hussman Sr. Distinguished Professor in business journalism at UNC-Chapel Hill. He is a former business journalist for Bloomberg News, Businessweek, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, The Tampa Tribune and the Sarasota Herald-Tribune. He is the author of the leading business reporting textbook "Show me the Money: Writing Business and Economics Stories for Mass Communication" and "Thinking Things Over," a biography of former Wall Street Journal editor Vermont Royster.