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Digital Media
Practically Green, whose business model revolves around the idea that sustainability can be fun as well as financially and ethically rewarding, announced today the close of a $1M seed round of funding. The funding was led by CommonAngels, which is the largest and leading angel group in Boston focused on funding information technology start-ups. The new financing will be used to pursue continued growth in the company's core digital and mobile employee engagement line of business. Funders include Jeffrey Hollender, co-founder of Seventh Generation, the Clean Energy Venture Group and the clean-tech family office Pan Asia Solar.
3BL Media (http://3blmedia.com), the leading distributor of corporate social responsibility (CSR) and sustainability news and content, has announced the acquisition of SocialEarth (http://socialearth.org), the leading web-based community for social innovation, social entrepreneurship and social enterprise content and thought leadership. This acquisition further expands 3BL Media’s news and content distribution network, and gives additional reach to more than 160 contributing writers and bloggers from 25 countries around the globe who already contribute to SocialEarth.
Brightcove in Cambridge, MA started trading as a public company on the Nasdaq under the symbol BCOV. The company's initial public offering of five million shares prices at $11 a share.
Brightcove Inc, the cloud content services company, provides a family of
products used to publish and distribute the world's professional
digital media. The company's products include Brightcove Video Cloud,
the market-leading online video platform, and Brightcove App Cloud, the
pioneering content app platform. Together, more than 3,000 customers in
50 countries rely on Brightcove's cloud content services to build and
operate exceptional media experiences across PCs, smartphones, tablets
and connected TVs.
Brightcove had revenues of $63.6M in 2011 with a net loss of $17.8M. The stock closed at $14.30 on the first day of trading, up 30%.
Aereo (formerly Bamboom Labs), a new Internet based television solution for consumers, announced $20.5 million in Series A financing led by IAC (Nasdaq: IACI). Previous investors, including FirstMark Capital, First Round Capital, High Line Venture Partners, Highland Capital Partners and select individuals, participated in the round, bringing Aereo’s total funding to approximately $25 million. IAC Chairman & Senior Executive, Barry Diller, has joined Aereo’s Board of Directors.
Today, Aereo provides an easy to use, proprietary remote antenna and DVR that consumers can use to access network television on web-enabled devices such as smartphones and tablets, and through internet TV solutions such as AppleTV and Roku. Aereo’s members will have access to all of the major networks including CBS, NBC, FOX, ABC, CW and PBS, as well as other local channels and will have the ability to store up to 40 hours of programming through their Remote DVR. No cords or cable required.
Aereo has offices in NYC & Boston.
Zylo Media™, the digital marketing firm that has developed the innovative promotional marketing tool BoodleUP™, today announced that it has raised an additional $400,000 in seed financing. This funding round was led by members of the Maine Angels, and also included individual investors from Silicon Valley and Florida. Terms of the financing have not been disclosed.
"BoodleUP offers a totally new
Massachusetts Technology Development Corp. (MTDC) today announced financial backing of two MassChallenge 2011 Alumni, Libboo and Vsnap. The two were selected from a "fast track" program that guaranteed funding for two startups and helped ensure the companies stay here in the Commonwealth.
Libboo is a platform dedicated to entirely transforming the process and economics of the publishing industry through empowering a social community of content creators. The creators believe that by helping authors, editors, illustrators, critics and marketers find one another within a well-organized environment, they will create better and more salable content while reducing the cost of its creation tenfold.
Massachusetts Technology Development Corp. (MTDC) today announced financial backing of two MassChallenge 2011 Alumni, Libboo and Vsnap. The two were selected from a "fast track" program that guaranteed funding for two startups and helped ensure the companies stay here in the Commonwealth.
Vsnap is the most personal way to communicate with your customers and prospects. The company offers a set of simple applications that make it easy to send short video messages. The benefit is deeper engagement and as much as a 41% increase in action on the part of recipients as compared to email interactions.
As per SEC filings, Azuki Systems in Acton, MA has raised $5.1M in funding. Azuki Systems is leading the video delivery revolution to any screen over any network. Azuki’s solutions deliver rich, protected content to any device over any network, allowing content owners, enterprises and service providers to capitalize on the explosive growth of smartphones, tablets and multiple screens.
Social TV analytics company Bluefin Labs today announced it has raised $12 million in a Series B round led by Time Warner Investments with participation from new investor SoftBank Capital and return investors Redpoint Ventures and Lerer Ventures.
Bluefin Labs first introduced its analytics service through a private pilot program in May 2011, and followed quickly in July 2011 with the launch of its flagship product, Bluefin Signals. Bluefin Signals is an analytics platform that analyzes and organizes social media conversations about US national television. Clients of Bluefin Signals leverage social data about TV shows and commercials to inform the buying and selling of TV media. Clients are a mix of television networks, marketers and agencies including CBS, Fox, Discovery Communications, MediaCom, MTV Networks, Starcom MediaVest Group and many more.
Skyword, the leading content production platform, today announced it has closed a $6 million round of financing with Cox Media Group, an integrated broadcasting, publishing, direct marketing and digital media company, as the sole investor. The funds will be invested to expand the Skyword platform to address new markets, and grow Skyword’s sales, marketing and client services functions. Progress Partners advised Skyword on this transaction.
In addition to this investment from Cox Media Group, a representative from Cox will soon join the Skyword Board of Directors. Skyword’s Board of Directors is composed of Jim Manzi, former CEO of Lotus Development Corporation and current chairman of Thermo Fisher, Former Senator Bill Bradley, currently of Allen & Company, Bill Kling, founder and President Emeritus of American Public Media Group, and Tom Gerace, founder and CEO of Skyword.
Shareaholic, a startup in Cambridge, has raised $2M in funding. Shareaholic makes content sharing on the web faster and easier, while also making it simple for web publishers, advertisers and mainstream businesses to measure the effectiveness of their content.
With more than 2 million browser plugin installations and hundreds of thousands of publishers using Shareaholic’s content sharing tools, Shareholic reaches more than 250 million unique monthly visitors and has permission to an unparalleled amount of aggregate social data and reach to create targetable audiences for advertisers. This data drives even more quality visibility, traffic, leads and views to websites and content through real-time bidding platforms.
Investors include General Catalyst Partners, Nextview Ventures, Boston Seed/Nicole Stata, Dave McClure (500 Startups), Dharmesh Shah (HubSpot), Stephano Kim (X+1), David Cancel (Compete, Performable), Brian Shin (Visible Measures), Prof. Ed Roberts (MIT Sloan, Sohu), Roy Rodenstein (HackerAngels), Jonathan Kraft (The Kraft Group), and more.
Cisco today announced its intent to acquire privately-held BNI Video. BNI Video provides service providers video back office and content delivery network (CDN) analytic capabilities. Together, Cisco and BNI Video will enable service providers to deliver next generation IP-based video experiences to consumers.
The company raised $16M in funding a year ago. Bakers included Cisco, Comcast Interactive Capital, and Time Warner Cable.
Upon the close of the acquisition, BNI Video employees will be integrated into Cisco’s Service Provider Video Technology Group. Under the terms of the agreement, Cisco will pay approximately $99 million in cash and retention-based incentives in exchange for all shares of BNI Video.
As per SEC filings, Skyword in Boston, MA has raised $1.35M of a planned $2.75M round of funding. The Skyword platform automates the process of creating content designed for a search and social driven world. The platform is designed to decrease the cost of quality content creation and maximize its audience reach.
The Huffington Post Media Group (“HPMG”), a leading source of news, opinion, entertainment, community and digital information, today announced that HPMG is acquiring Localocracy, a groundbreaking online engagement platform enabling citizens to solve problems in their communities, and its founders, Conor White-Sullivan and Aaron Soules, and technology lead, Jay Boice, are joining the Huffington Post Media Group to work on the intersection of editorial and technology, and deepen the sites’ engagement with users.
Bridgeline Digital, Inc. (NASDAQ: BLIN) announced today that it has acquired Magnetic Corp., expanding Bridgeline Digital’s presence and iAPPS distribution into the Florida marketplace.
Founded in 1997, Magnetic is an award-wining interactive technology Company that provides web application development, web design, mobile application development, usability, web content management system implementations, and eCommerce implementations for its customers.
September 22, 2011: Visible Measures, the analytics and advertising platform for social video, announced today that it has secured a Series D round of financing of $13 million, led by DAG Ventures with participation from new strategic partner Advance Publications, Inc., owners of Condé Nast, along with participation from existing investors General Catalyst Partners, Mohr Davidow Ventures, and Northgate Capital. Visible Measures has raised over $45 million in total financing to date. The new round of financing will help accelerate the growth of the company’s industry-leading platform for social video analytics and advertising. This round of funding includes a previously documented round of funding back in April 2011 for $7.7M.
September 22, 2011: As per SEC filings, DisruptiveApps in Beverly, MA has raised $1.2M in funding. DisruptiveApps is an Angel Funded startup based in Boston, Massachusetts, currently preparing to launch it's initial SaaS, the iJukebox music service for retailers throughout the US and Canada.
September 21, 2011: Innerscope Research, Inc., the leader in using neuroscience informed biometrics to deliver unique audience and consumer insights, today announced that it has closed the final $2 million tranche in a $9.4 million Series A financing round. Innerscope, which was founded in 2006, has more than doubled revenue in the last two years and its core business is self-sustaining.
September 6, 2011: According to SEC filings, Awareness in Burlington, MA has raised $3M in funding. Awareness is a provider of enterprise-class, on-demand social marketing management software (SMMS) for marketers to publish and manage social content, engage with their audience and measure the effectiveness their social media activities across multiple social media channels.
August 24, 2011: Brightcove Inc. today announced that it has filed a registration statement on Form S-1 with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in connection with a proposed initial public offering of its common stock. Brightcove Inc, the cloud content services company, provides a family of products used to publish and distribute the world's professional digital media. The company's products include Brightcove Video Cloud, the market-leading online video platform, and Brightcove App Cloud, the pioneering content app platform. Together, more than 3,000 customers in 50 countries rely on Brightcove's cloud content services to build and operate exceptional media experiences across PCs, smartphones, tablets and connected TVs.
June 23, 2011: As per their blog post, Streetwise Media - the company that owns and operates BostInnovation has raised $1.3M in seed financing.
May 5, 2011: According to SEC filings, Helium in Andover, MA has raised $10M in debt and options financing. Helium is home to the world's largest writer community with thousands of writers who share their expert knowledge, insight and point of view on virtually any topic.
May 3, 2011: As originally reported by BostInnovation, Boundless Learning has raised $1.7M in funding from NextView Ventures, Founder Collective, SV Angles, and Kepha Partners. Boundless Learning is a stealth mode, online / educational startup founded by Ariel Diaz, Brian Balfour, and Aaron White.
April 27, 2011: According to SEC filings, Visible Measures has raised $7.7M in funding. Visible Measures benchmarks the world of online video, providing industry standard performance metrics across video content, video ads, and online audiences.
April 15, 2011: According to SEC filings, ReDigi in Cambridge, MA has raised $535K in funding. Redigi is a website that allows users to buy and sell "used" digital music.
April 13, 2011: According to SEC filings, Fullbridge in Cambridge, MA has raised $2M in funding. Fullbridge is a The Fullbridge Program is an accelerated, rigorous business education program that delivers real-world business skills and insider insights to high-achieving graduates, giving them the tools to thrive in their first jobs.
April 11, 2011: Zixi, the leading enabler of broadcast-quality HDTV globally over the cloud, today announced it has secured $4 million via an investment led by Boston-based private investment firm Schooner Capital . Industry veterans Sidney Topol, former chairman and CEO of Scientific Atlanta, and Maurice "Reese" Schonfeld, co-founder and first chief executive of CNN and the founder and former president of Food Network, invested alongside Schooner Capital.
March 4, 2011: According to SEC filings, Skyword in Boston has raised $406,000 in funding. The Skyword platform automates the process of creating content designed for a search and social driven world.
February 18, 2011: Pixability, a business video marketing company, announced a $1 million round of financing led by Launchpad with Barry Coffman joining Pixability's Board. The round included members of the following groups: Launchpad, Racepoint, Maine Angels, eCoast, Angel Investor Forum CT, Beacon Angels, Walnut Venture Associates, North Country Angels, Boston Harbor, and CommonAngels. The largest investor is Goeran Grosskopf, Chairman of IKEA.
February 16, 2011: SkillSoft, a leading SaaS provider of e-learning and performance support solutions for global enterprises, government, education and small to medium-sized businesses, today announced the acquisition of the assets of 50 Lessons Limited, a provider of leadership video content that helps organizations around the world develop their employees by leveraging the power of story-based lessons. SkillSoft intends to market this video content under the 50 Lessons brand name as a distinct SkillSoft content collection that can be licensed standalone or fully integrated with SkillSoft's Leadership Development Channel. The terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.