Billionaire technology publisher Patrick McGovern died Wednesday at Stanford Hospital in Palo Alto, Calif. at age 76. McGovern was founder and chairman of International Data Group Inc. (IDG) which is responsible for the For Dummies book series.
In 2013, IDG had impressive revenues of $3.55 billion and employed 13,450 people all over the world. McGovern was also the Boston-based publisher of Computerworld and Macworld, and countless other magazines released internationally.
According to the Wall Street Journal, Steven Brill, the founder of American Lawyer Media, said, “He was a pioneer in proving that you could make what might otherwise be pedestrian trade publications into exciting, important—and profitable—journalism.”
McGovern attended MIT and had a passion for the school. According to Computerworld, on Feb. 28, 2000, McGovern donated $350 million to MIT to start the Institute for Brain Research. This gift is one of the largest philanthropic donations ever made to a university.
McGovern is survived by his wife, Lore, two children, two stepchildren and nine grandchildren.