What was the name of the 2000–2002 collapse in technology-company shares?

The 2000–2002 collapse in technology-company shares was the dot-com crash.

During the late 1990s, investors poured money into internet businesses, often valuing companies on expected future growth rather than profits or established revenue. The Nasdaq Composite reached a peak on March 10, 2000. As expectations changed, many internet companies failed, merged, or lost most of their market value.

The Nasdaq fell about 78% from its peak to its October 2002 low. The crash damaged technology shares and venture financing, but it did not produce the same economy-wide collapse as the Great Depression. Some companies with durable business models survived and later became major firms.

The dot-com bubble refers to the speculative rise; the dot-com crash refers to the subsequent collapse. A common mistake is to use the two expressions as exact synonyms. The crash also affected telecommunications companies, especially after heavy spending on network capacity.