UK IROs cool on RSS

Sep 28, 2007

News feed criticized at think tank

LONDON -- RSS is bad for investor relations, claimed an attendee at IR magazine’s UK Think Tank this week.

RSS (really simple syndication) is one way for IROs to get news and other updates out to interested parties. But the process is a hindrance to communication, said one attendee.

'We are developing a new website and have decided not to use RSS,' she stated, arguing that a news feed could discourage investors from getting in direct contact, costing IROs the chance of building up two-way communication.  

Several other attendees admitted they knew very little about RSS.

RSS lets investors and analysts subscribe to things like press releases, investor presentations and podcasts, which then automatically appear in an RSS reader as soon as they're available. Some see it as a useful tool, providing information in a neat and timely fashion without clogging up their email inbox or requiring constant web searching.

The event was held at the Bloomberg building in London, where leading IR professionals gathered to discuss the issues affecting their work.   
 
By Tim Human