Founders Buy Back LeWeb Paris, 08 April 2015

Founders Buy Back LeWeb
Paris, 08 April 2015 - LeWeb founders Loic and Geraldine Le Meur have
purchased Reed Elsevier France’s majority equity stake in LeWeb. Reed MIDEM,
a subsidiary of Reed Elsevier France, will no longer operate LeWeb, which is now
100% controlled by the Le Meurs.
Starting in December 2012, the Reed MIDEM partnership with the Le Meurs
aimed to grow the LeWeb brand by launching new events outside France. Since
that date, the proliferation and expansion of other internet and startup-focused
events has crowded the international market, making the launch and growth of
new LeWeb events less appealing to Reed MIDEM. This influenced Reed Elsevier
France’s decision to sell back its stake to the Le Meurs.
The yearly LeWeb conference in Paris is a recognized industry leader, bringing
together Silicon Valley with international startups, entrepreneurs, venture
capitalists, business angels and forward-thinkers operating in the digital
ecosystem. The quality of its conference programme is internationally renowned
and its Startup Competition has fast-tracked numerous companies to fullfinancing, helped by the number and quality of the international investors
present at LeWeb.
Reed MIDEM’s portfolio strategy has evolved since the LeWeb acquisition in
2012. The company will concentrate on expanding its core existing brands in
international markets. In 2014 Reed MIDEM launched MIPIM UK in London and
MIPCancun in Mexico. In 2015 the company will debut MIPIM Japan in Tokyo and
the Retail Real Estate Market, powered by MAPIC, in Shanghai.
Reed MIDEM will be increasingly focused on the startup/tech/digital ecosystem.
The company will intensify its efforts to involve startups, entrepreneurs,
investors and digital thought leaders and to focus on digital innovation in all of its
events.

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