Editing Col Needham

{{short description|English entrepreneur}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2022}}
{{Infobox person
| name               = Col Needham
| image              = Col Needham.jpg
| image_size         = 
| caption            = Needham in January 2002
| birth_name         = Colin Needham
| birth_date         = {{Birth date and age|1967|1|26|df=yes}}
| birth_place        = [[Denton, Greater Manchester|Denton, Lancashire]], England
| death_date         = 
| death_place        = 
| occupation         = Computer scientist
| spouse             = {{marriage|Karen Gaskin|1989}}
| children           = 2
}}

'''Colin Needham''' (born 26 January 1967) is an English computer scientist who founded the [[IMDb|Internet Movie Database]] (IMDb). He was its [[chief executive officer]] from its creation in 1990 until 2025, when he stepped down and instead took a role as its executive chairman.

==Early life==
Needham was born on 26 January 1967 in [[Denton, Greater Manchester|Denton, Lancashire]].{{efn|Denton was in Lancashire until it was moved to the newly formed [[Greater Manchester]] in 1974.}}<ref name="nyt 1">{{cite web|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/28/business/yourmoney/28frenzy.html|title=From a Small Stream, a Gusher of Movie Facts|work=[[The New York Times]]|first=Richard|last=Siklos|date=28 May 2006|accessdate=19 October 2009}}</ref> He attended [[Audenshaw School]] and [[Clarendon Sixth Form College]] in [[Hyde, Greater Manchester|Hyde, Cheshire]],{{efn|Hyde was in Cheshire until it was moved to the newly formed [[Greater Manchester]] in 1974.}} and graduated from the [[University of Leeds]] with a [[Bachelor of Science|BSc (Hons)]] in [[computer science]] in 1988.<ref name="MM uk 1">{{cite web |last=Glendinning |first=Amy |date=11 January 2011 |title=I am IMDb: The millionaire film geek from Denton behind the world's top movie website |url=https://www.manchestereveningnews.co.uk/news/greater-manchester-news/i-am-imdb-the-millionaire-film-geek-851365 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121112170758/http://menmedia.co.uk/manchestereveningnews/news/s/1404888_i_am_imdb_the_millionaire_film_geek_from_denton_behind_the_worlds_top_movie_website |archive-date=12 November 2012 |accessdate=20 November 2024 |website=[[Manchester Evening News]]}}</ref>

==Career==
Needham started the [[IMDb|Internet Movie Database]] (IMDb) in 1990 while working as an engineer at [[Hewlett-Packard]] (HP) in [[Bristol]].<ref name="nyt 1"/><ref name="imdb bio 1">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/name/nm1000000/bio|title=Col Needham Biography|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database|IMDb]]|date=|accessdate=18 October 2012}}</ref><ref name="Variety">{{cite web|url=https://variety.com/2025/digital/news/imdb-col-needham-ceo-nikki-santoro-1236277656/|title=IMDb Founder Col Needham Steps Aside as CEO, COO Nikki Santoro Promoted to Chief Exec|first=Todd|last=Spangler|website=[[Variety (magazine)|Variety]]|date=21 January 2025|access-date=21 January 2025}}</ref> The site evolved from what was initially his personal film database which became an online bulletin board made from simple records, kept on a succession of early computers and contributed to by several people, all of whom Needham outlasted.<ref name="imdb name 1">{{IMDb name|1000000}}</ref>

By 1996, with the success of IMDb's first film-related [[advertising campaign]] (for ''[[Independence Day (1996 film)|Independence Day]]''), Needham had quit HP to work on IMDb fully as a paid employee.<ref name="LAW 1">{{cite web|url=http://www.laweekly.com/content/printVersion/38770|title=Do You IMDb?|work=[[L.A. Weekly]]|first=Nikki|last=Finke|date=5 August 2004|accessdate=19 October 2009}}</ref><ref name="imdb 2">{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/user/ur1000000|title=Col Needham's user profile – Internet Movie Database|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database|IMDb]]|date=|accessdate=26 October 2014}}</ref> In 1998, IMDb was acquired by [[Amazon (company)|Amazon]].<ref name="guardian 1">{{cite news|url=https://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/may/12/six-degrees-col-needham-imdb |title=Six degrees of IMDb founder Col Needham This man has seen 8,524 movies. How does he know? Because he invented the Internet Movie Database – the indispensable cinema encyclopaedia – and put Bristol on Hollywood's map |first=Catherine |last=Shoard |newspaper=[[The Guardian]] |date=12 May 2013 |archivedate=14 May 2013 |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130514020714/http://www.guardian.co.uk/film/2013/may/12/six-degrees-col-needham-imdb |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 1999, Needham won two [[Webby Awards]] for IMDb.<ref name="WA 1">{{cite web|url=http://www.webbyawards.com/webbys/current.php?season=3#webby_entry_movie|title=3rd Annual Webby Awards Nominees & Winners|publisher=[[Webby Awards]]|date=|accessdate=19 October 2009}}</ref>

In 2017, Needham removed message boards from IMDb, stating that they "are no longer providing a positive, useful experience for the vast majority of our more than 250 million monthly users worldwide".<ref>{{Cite news |last=Pulver |first=Andrew |date=2017-02-06 |title=IMDb shuts down its message boards |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2017/feb/06/imdb-shuts-down-message-boards |access-date=2024-11-20 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref> In 2025, he stepped down as the CEO of IMDb and handed over to Nikki Santoro, then shifted to the role of executive chairman.<ref name="Variety"/>

==Personal life==
Needham married Karen Gaskin in 1989. They live in [[Filton]] with their twin daughters.{{cn|date=January 2025}}

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==External links==
* {{IMDb name|1000000}}
* [https://www.thirteen.org/openmind/media/the-movie-database/4990 Col Needham] interview – The Open Mind, 21 February 2015
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Needham, Colin}}
[[Category:British Internet celebrities]]
[[Category:Businesspeople from Manchester]]
[[Category:Amazon (company) people]]
[[Category:1967 births]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Denton, Greater Manchester]]
[[Category:People from South Gloucestershire District]]
[[Category:Alumni of the University of Leeds]]