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U.S. Web 2.0 investment jumps 88% in 2007 to $1.34 billion

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The Web 2.0 investment boom may be peaking according to data released by Dow Jones VentureSource that shows venture capitalists pumped a record $1.34 billion into 178 Web 2.0 deals in the U.S. in 2007, up nearly 88% over amounts invested in 2006. However, one company-social network Facebook, which raised at least $300 million – accounted for 22% of all funding that went into this sector in 2007.

The data also reveals slowing deal growth. From 2002 to 2006, Web 2.0 deal flow doubled every year, but 2007 only saw deals increase 25% to 178 from 143 deals in 2006. Nearly all of this growth happened outside the San Francisco Bay area, the longtime home of web-related innovation and investment.

Facebook raised $240 million from Microsoft in a highly publicized corporate round as well as at least $60 million more from individual investors last year. The next-largest Web 2.0 deal was the $44 million first round for Ning, also of Palo Alto, which lets users create their own niche social networks.

Despite these larger deals, Web 2.0 companies still remained a relatively inexpensive investment for venture capitalists. According to the data, the median deal size for these companies reached a record $5 million in 2007, up from $4.1 million in 2006. This is still far behind the overall $7.6 million industry median for a venture capital deal in the U.S. in 2007.

Even so, investors are placing a higher value on Web 2.0 companies. The data shows that in 2007, the median pre-money valuation for a Web 2.0 company reached a new high of $10 million, up from $6 million in 2006. Still, that’s well below the overall $16 million median pre-money valuation seen for venture-backed companies in 2007.

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Originally posted on March 18, 2008 @ 8:33 am

Songkick launches new concert recommendation site

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songkick.pngSongkick, a startup focused on providing resources and recommendations for live music performances, unveiled the industry’s first comprehensive live music recommendation site targeted at the live music events market. Songkick scans the web, blogosphere and a user’s music library, and alerts users whenever a band that they like or may like is playing in their area. For every concert listed, Songkick provides one-click access to ticket vendors, providing convenient price comparison for music fans.

Founded by three young entrepreneurs that love music but found a surprising lack of online tools for discovering live shows, Songkick aims to become the default destination for music enthusiasts interested in discovering and attending live shows.

Initially funded in 2007 by a seed round from technology accelerator Y Combinator, Songkick today also announced it has received investment from a select group of angels in the US and UK, co-lead by Saul Klein, founding partner at The Accelerator Group (TAG) and Jeff Clavier, founder and managing partner of Softech VC, with participation from Dan Porter (SVP Virgin, co-founder of Ticketweb), Peter Read (Music Nation), Betaworks (Andrew Weissman and John Borthwick), and other undisclosed investors.

Originally posted on March 19, 2008 @ 7:59 am

Thumbplay secures $18 million new funding

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thumbplay.pngThumbplay has raised $18 million in new capital through a Series E round that was led by Brookside Capital Partners, the public equity affiliate of Bain Capital, and Cross Creek Capital, a private equity affiliate of Wasatch Advisors.

Thumbplay plans to use the new capital to expand its direct-to-consumer product offerings, in addition to further developing the tools it provides content owners, creators, publishers and brand marketers. The company also plans to accelerate its strategic growth plans and to expand internationally in 2008 to meet the growing demand for mobile entertainment content around the world, including the possibility of identifying potential acquisitions that will help advance its leadership position in the worldwide mobile content industry.

Originally posted on March 17, 2008 @ 8:17 am

Invoke Solutions secures $7 million in funding

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invoke.pngInvoke Solutions, provider of real-time online and mobile research technology and services, has received $7 million in funding led by Portland, ME based North Atlantic Capital and its existing investors Bain Capital and BEV Capital.

The financing comes as Invoke launches its Engage Family of Research Solutions, enabling them to deliver a broader array of quali-quant online and mobile research services to the market research industry. Invoke will use this funding to continue developing its unique enterprise feedback management platform and increase its delivery capabilities across all parts of the company as they expand their customer relationships on a global basis.

The company’s existing investors include Bain Capital Ventures, BEV Capital, and the BRM Group.

Originally posted on March 11, 2008 @ 5:16 pm

Jivox launches first online video advertising service for local businesses

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Jivox, a self-service online video advertising platform for local businesses, has introduced a service that gives smaller and local advertisers access to online video advertising by making it easy to create, target and deliver online video ads. The Jivox platform combines a video ad creation tool, proprietary targeting technology, sophisticated reporting capabilities and a growing network of publishers to offer advertisers a complete, do-it-yourself service for online video advertising.

Jivox also announced that it has raised a $2.7 million seed round of financing led by Opus Capital, an early-stage venture capital firm. The funds will be used to continue development of the Jivox online video advertising platform, as well as to expand the company’s sales and marketing efforts.

The Jivox service provides tools that enable advertisers to create and place ads on their own, including an interactive and easy-to-use ad creation tool that allows advertisers to leverage templates provided by the service or use their own creative content to develop compelling video ad content. After creating their ads with Jivox, advertisers tap into the service’s micro-targeting algorithms and established network of online video publishers to deliver their advertising to audiences based on geographic, demographic or contextual parameters.

Originally posted on March 10, 2008 @ 7:17 pm