Mobile Entertainment Publisher

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Phonebites Raises $7 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 28, 2006 - 9:41am.

San Francisco - Phonebites, a San Francisco-based publisher of mobile entertainment, said on Tuesday that it has raised $7 million in its second round of funding, led by Mayfield Fund. Previous investors Cardinal Venture Capital, Garage Technology Ventures and Greenpark Capital also participated. Phonebites is the developer of a mobile audio distribution platform called the RAZZ, which allows users to interject sound clips directly into their phone conversations. The company raised $3 million in its first round in January 2005.

India-based Mobile Entertainment Publisher Mauj Raises $10 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on February 24, 2006 - 11:06am.

Mumbai, India - Mauj Telecom, an India-based mobile entertainment publisher, announced this week that it has raised $10 million in its first round of venture capital financing. Investors in the round included WestBridge Capital, Intel Capital and Sequoia Capital. Mauj develops and publishes mobile games for cell phones and PDAs, and also distributes ringtones, graphics and other mobile content. The company will use the funds to expand globally in the areas of mobile music and mobile gaming.

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Blue Frog Raises $16 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on September 14, 2005 - 3:40am.

Seattle -- Blue Frog Mobile, a publisher of mobile entertainment for cell phones, announced on Wednesday that it has raised $16 million in its first round of venture capital financing. Canaan Partners led the investment round; MK Capital also participated. Seattle-based Blue Frog creates, aggregates and distributes mobile content such as ringtones, images, games and messaging services through sites including Ringtopia, Edge Tones, Mack Tones and Lemon Kiss. The company will use the funds to expand its content offering, strengthen its marketing and advertising activities and for product development.

tags: VC | Mobile Entertainment Publisher | Blue Frog |

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Qmobile Raises $5 Million

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 18, 2005 - 9:33am.

Reston, Va. -- Qmobile, a provider of mobile digital media services, said on Monday that it has raised $5 million in its second round of funding, led by Grosvenor Funds. Previous investors Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Draper Atlantic also participated in the round, which the company pans to use, in part, to expand its staff. In the nine months since it launched its commercial ringtone and wallpaper download service, Qmobile has delivered content to nearly a million mobile phone users and now has more than 350,000 monthly subscribers. The company currently offers downloadable ringtones, wallpaper images and games. It also runs a SMS chat service, with other services under development. The company raised its first round in May 2004.

tags: VC | Mobile Entertainment Publisher | Qmobile |

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Kayak Acquires Chasma Interactive

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on April 21, 2005 - 7:50am.

Nashua, N.H. -- Mobile entertainment publisher Kayak Interactive announced that it has completed its acquisition of Chasma Interactive Publishing, a New Hampshire-based publisher of wireless entertainment content. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Kayak said that the acquisition expands its portfolio of offerings with several products already in the distribution channel as well as two key titles to be launched in the near future, "Slingo," based on a popular web game, and "Poker Superstars Invitational Tournament," based on the hit TV show. Two months ago, Kayak announced its merger with Swedish based mobile games publisher Synergenix Interactive.

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Jamdat Acquires Downtown Wireless

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on January 6, 2005 - 2:34am.

Los Angeles -- Mobile entertainment publisher Jamdat Mobile announced on Thursday that it has acquired Los Angeles-based mobile game developer Downtown Wireless. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Founded in 2003, Downtown Wireless has developed a number of casino titles, including "Downtown Texas Hold 'Em," "Downtown Video Slots" and "Downtown Roulette." "The acquisition of Downtown Wireless is consistent with Jamdat's strategy to build value from a slate of owned intellectual properties," said Jamdat chairman and CEO Mitch Lasky. Los Angeles-based Jamdat went public in September 2004 in an IPO that raised $61 million.

tags: Jamdat | Mobile Entertainment Publisher | Acquires | Downtown Wireless |

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Airborne Entertainment Acquires Cellus USA

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 8, 2004 - 3:55am.

Montreal -- Mobile entertainment publisher Airborne Entertainment announced on Wednesday that it has acquired Cellus USA, a publisher of wireless entertainment and provider of mobile storefronts and content delivery technology. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Denver-based Cellus offers a large library of polyphonic and master ringtones, ringback tones and phone graphics, and provides services to create mobile storefronts. "Airborne's strong brand relationships, product lines and carrier distribution, combined with Cellus' mobile storefront capabilities and comprehensive content catalog provides substantial incremental revenue generation possibilities for us, as well as for our carrier and brand partners," said Airborne CEO Garner Bornstein.

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Sorrent Acquires Developer Macrospace

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on December 1, 2004 - 5:06am.

San Mateo, Calif. -- Mobile entertainment publisher Sorrent announced on Wednesday that it has acquired London-based mobile game developer Macrospace. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, although San Mateo, Calif.-based Sorrent said Macrospace will maintain its management team and London offices. Macrospace has created more than 40 mobile games, including "Fatal Force: Earth Assault," for clients including Cartoon Network, Eidos, Square Enix and Celador International. It also offers a service called ProvisionX that provides managed mobile game distribution for wireless carriers and media companies. "Their exceptional management team, innovative portfolio of games, and extraordinary technology and distribution significantly enhances our position in Europe and will be a substantial asset to Sorrent," said Sorrent CEO Greg Ballard.

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Vindigo Acquires WayMobile.com

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on October 25, 2004 - 5:31am.

San Francisco -- Mobile entertainment publisher Vindigo announced on Monday that it has acquired San Diego-based WayMobile.com, a developer and publisher of mobile content and commerce products. Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed. New York-based Vindigo will retain WayMobile.com's San Diego offices. WayMobile.com has developed applications including AwayAuction, which provides updates on eBay online auctions for cell phone users.

tags: Mobile Entertainment Publisher | Acquires | Vindigo | WayMobile.com |

Mobile Entertainment Publisher Digital Chocolate Buys Developer Sumea

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on June 24, 2004 - 7:39am.

Helsinki -- Mobile entertainment publisher Digital Chocolate announced on Thursday that it acquired Sumea, a Finland-based publisher of games for mobile phones. Financial details for the deal were not disclosed. Digital Chocolate CEO Trip Hawkins, who previously founded games giant Electronic Arts, said the acquisition would give his company a foothold in Europe and provide it "with strong, established partnerships with major global carriers, broad geographic distribution and an entire catalogue of top-rated games".

tags: Mobile Entertainment Publisher | Acquires | Digital Chocolate | Developer Sumea |