The Direct Marketing
Association (The DMA) today announced the acquisition of the Association for Interactive Media
(AIM), creating the largest trade association for businesses on the Internet.
The acquisition,
announced during The DMA 81st Annual Conference & Exhibition, combines the
largest trade association representing the $1.2-trillion direct marketing
industry and the largest trade association representing the $100-billion
Internet marketing industry.
The DMA’s members include more than 4,100 businesses in interactive and
database marketing from the United States and 53 other nations, including
such companies as IBM, Dell Computer, LL Bean, J Crew, AT&T, MCI, Time Inc.,
Microsoft, The McGraw-Hill Company, Rodale Press, AOL, and Lucent
Technologies.
AIM’s members include nearly 250 of the most prominent
companies that use the Net for business purposes such as MindSpring,
Yoyodyne, Hotmail, Bloomberg LP, Citicorp, Nielsen Media Research,
SportsLine USA, Universal Studios, and MTV Interactive.
The DMA was founded in 1917. Members include direct marketers from
every business segment as well as nonprofit and electronic marketing
sectors. Included are catalogers, Internet retailers and service providers,
financial services providers, book and magazine publishers, book and music
clubs, retail stores, industrial manufacturers and a host of other vertical
segments including the service industries that support them.
In 1997,
approximately $705 billion in direct marketing purchases were made by
consumers and $554 billion were made by businesses.
Founded in 1993, AIM is a not-for-profit association representing nearly 250
member organizations that conduct business on the Internet. Leading
companies in a variety of industries are supported by AIM for their
Internet ventures.