Home

Invest

Google and Skype Invest $21.7 Million in Spain's Fon

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 6, 2006 - 6:21am.
Madrid - Fon, a Spain-based company dedicated to creating an international network of shared Wi-Fi connections, announced that it has raised more than $21.7 million in its first round of venture capital financing. Index Ventures led the round, with Google, Sequoia Capital and Skype also participating. Fon's goal is to create a grass-roots network of shared Wi-Fi links by turning individual users into an army of so-called "foneros," or people sharing wireless access.
tags: Google | Skype | Invest | Fon | Spain |

Hollywood Studios Invest $30 Million in Anti-Piracy Joint Venture

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 19, 2005 - 9:46am.
New York -- The six major Hollywood movie studios have formed a joint venture to develop new anti-piracy technologies, The New York Times reported on Monday. Motion Picture Laboratories (MovieLabs) will receive $30 million in financing over its first two years from the studios to develop various anti-piracy technologies not being addressed in the marketplace. Initiatives include developing a means of jamming camcorders smuggled into movie theaters; network management software to block movie-trading on campus and corporate computer networks; tools to detect illegal file-sharing on public networks; security for home networks; and technological methods of maintaining regional release windows worldwide. "Our highest priority is protecting the integrity of our product," Dan Glickman, chairman of the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA), told The Times. The MPAA said it modeled its MovieLabs venture on the cable TV industry's CableLabs, which develops technologies cable TV providers needed and that consumer electronics firms were not addressing in the market.
tags: Anti-Piracy | Invest | Joint Venture | Hollywood Studios |

Yahoo to Invest $1 Billion in China's Alibaba.com

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on August 11, 2005 - 10:16am.
Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Attempting to tap the enormous potential of the burgeoning Chinese market, Yahoo on Thursday said that it will pay $1 billion to acquire a 40% stake in Alibaba.com, the country's largest e-commerce company. Under the terms of the agreement, Yahoo will add its Yahoo China brands to Alibaba.com , and the two companies will work together to grow the Yahoo brand in China. "Yahoo's investment underscores our long-term commitment to the Chinese market," said Terry Semel, the chairman and chief executive officer of Yahoo. "We believe the combination of Yahoo and Alibaba is the best approach for Yahoo to win in this region." The deal comes just days after the wildly successful IPO of Chinese search firm Baidu.com.
tags: Yahoo | Invest | Alibaba.com |

Cisco, Macromedia Invest $4 Million in Mobile Game Publisher Indiagames

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 29, 2005 - 5:26am.
Hong Kong -- Chinese wireless Internet firm TOM Online announced on Friday that Cisco and Macromedia have made a combined $4 million strategic investment in its mobile game publishing subsidiary, Indiagames. Following the transaction, Cisco and Macromedia will own 18% of Indiagames, while TOM Online's stake in the company will drop from 76% to 62%. Founded in 1999, the India-based company has distribution agreements for its games with over 100 wireless carriers, including Orange, Verizon, Sprint, Singtel, Airtel and Vodafone. As part of the deal, Indiagames will now also publish all of its titles on Macromedia's Flash Lite platform. "We now have Chinese, Indian and American investors, all leaders in their respective verticals," said Indiagames CEO Vishal Gondal. "This combination is really very unique and will surely help accelerate our global growth plans, keeping us on the cutting edge of mobile, broadband and Internet technology."
tags: Macromedia | Cisco | Invest | Mobile Game Publisher | Indiagames |