Webmergers' research tracks only shutdowns and bankruptcies of "substantial" internet companies that have received significant funding from venture capitalists, angel investors or other formal sources.
Other statistics from Webmergers show that at least 435 internet companies have folded since January 2000 and nearly half of all shutdowns in the past 16 months have taken place in the past four months.
Although e-commerce-related companies still account for nearly half of all shutdowns to date, the internet shakeout is beginning to infect new sectors such as internet consulting and internet access. April saw the demise of nine internet professional services firms and seven providers of dial-up access and other access-related services. April also saw, for the first time, a handful of shutdowns in the application service provider (ASP) sector.
Merger and acquisition activity has also declined. Buyers spent almost $2.6 billion to acquire 115 internet companies in April, compared with about 143 acquisitions for about $5 billion in March.