Cision has evolved from a press-clipping business into a global company operating in the reputation management and media intelligence environment, with operations in 12 countries.
Cision was founded in 1892, when Svenska Telegrambyrån formed an advertising department. Later the company became known as Pressurklipp and provided a press clipping service for Swedish businesses and individuals. In 1995 Cision consisted of one company in Sweden and a subsidiary in Denmark. Annual revenue totaled roughly SEK 75 million and the company had 165 employees. Its services comprised mainly print media clippings and broadcast media transcripts.
In the mid-1990s Cision began to offer simplified media analyses. Since then the service has been broadened to include a range of options, including customization. When Cision’s concept became successful in Sweden and Denmark, where operations saw good growth and operating margins, the company expanded into the rest of the Nordic region, followed by Germany and the Baltic Rim. The company further expanded into other parts of Europe through the acquisition of UK-based Romeike Group in 1999 and acquisitions in Portugal and Ireland. The acquisition of Romeike made Cision the world’s largest company in media monitoring and business intelligence and clearly established it as the market leader in Europe. By acquiring Bacon’s in the US in 2001, followed by acquisitions in Canada, Cision has also built a position of strength in North America. In 2003, 2004 and 2005, Cision further strengthened its position in North America by acquiring MediaMap, Delahaye and Multivision.
Today Cision is the global market leader in reputation management and media intelligence, with operations in 12 countries. In 2007 Cision had worldwide around 2,600 employees and a turnover of SEK 1.9 billion.