Weird IDC AsiaPac Survey Interview

About early last week, I got a phone call from a lady identifying herself as a researcher from IDC Asia-Pacific. She spoke in English but with a heavy Chinese accent so I instantly believed her. But the IDC, why? According to their website, IDC is…

… the premier global provider of market intelligence, advisory services, and events for the information technology, telecommunications, and consumer technology markets. IDC helps IT professionals, business executives, and the investment community make fact-based decisions on technology purchases and business strategy. More than 900 IDC analysts provide global, regional, and local expertise on technology and industry opportunities and trends in over 90 countries worldwide. For more than 43 years, IDC has provided strategic insights to help our clients achieve their key business objectives. IDC is a subsidiary of IDG, the world’s leading technology media, research, and events company.

The lady asked if I could answer some of her survey questions about Web 2.0 companies in Asia-Pacific, found out about PTB and thought we were a Web 2.0 start-up. So ok, I played along thinking we were just off-tangent at first but the questions already delved into the number of employees, the technology used, capitalization and annual revenue. That’s when I realized they got our group blog totally wrong and have mistaken us as a corporate entity.

I told her that she could just email me any additional questions so I can give her a more accurate answer. I didn’t receive any so I thought she must have misspelled my email address altogether.

Still, I can’t shake off the idea that such a reputable research organization could not spot the difference between a Web 2.0 product/service/website from a simple blog. I guess out Web2.0-ish design over at PTB gave them that impression.