IAC (company)

IAC/InterActiveCorp (also known as IAC) is an American media and Internet company, with over 150 brands across 100 countries, headquartered in New York City. Joey Levin, who previously led the company's Search & Applications segment, has been the company's Chief Executive Officer since June 2015.

History

1980s and 1990s

IAC was established in 1986 as Silver King Broadcasting Company, as part of a plan to increase viewership of the Home Shopping Network (HSN) by purchasing local television stations. By 1988, Silver King had bought 11 stations for about $220 million. The company was later renamed as HSN Communications, Inc., and then Silver King Communications, Inc. In 1992, Silver King was spun off to HSN shareholders as a separately traded public company. In August 1995, Barry Diller acquired control of Silver King, in a deal backed by the company's largest shareholder, Liberty Media. Diller, who had led the creation of the Fox network, reportedly hoped to use Silver King's stations as the foundation for a new broadcast network.