• by Ray Schultz , September 22, 2020

Infogroup, the data company founded in 1974 by Vinod Gupta, is being rebranded as Data Axle. The rollout occurs on Thursday. 

That name was chosen because the firm is focused on building "a data set in real-time for clients and end users,” says CEO Michael Iaccarino. 

Iaccarino adds that “it’s not a list business at all anymore — we’re building a subscription model.”

The company has business contacts on 15 million businesses in the U.S. and Canada, in addition to consumer data. 

As part of all that, it also has a large opt-in email file. “We’re probably one of largest buyers of email names in the marketplace,” Iaccarino says. However, it is not in the email service business, having shut down Yesmail. 

In response to COVID-19, employees are now validating data and performing other functions from their homes.  

The Omaha-based company had four people who tested positive in March, and it moved the entire operation to work from home in a matter of days. 

From his home in Plano, Texas, Iaccarino says that “50% of the team have no interest going back to an office.”

The company, which has annual revenue of $300 million, was taken private in 2010 by CCP Capital, and in 2017 it was sold to Court Square Capital.