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myYearbook raises $13 million to drive growth and new offerings

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Teen destination myYearbook.com has raised $13 million in Series B funding from Norwest Venture Partners (NVP) with existing investors, US Venture Partners and First Round Capital, participating. myYearbook will use the funds to develop new services for its members and continue to drive revenue.

“When looking at investment opportunities in the consumer internet sector, we found myYearbook offered the most attractive and engaging value proposition for both members and advertisers alike. The company has created a service that is highly valued by its members and a platform for marketers to reach and engage this audience in a friendly and effective way,” Sergio Monsalve of NVP said

Originally posted on July 30, 2008 @ 11:30 am

TicketLeap raises $2 million funding

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TicketLeap.com, the website which allows anyone, anywhere to easily sell tickets online, has raised $2 million in Series A funding led by MentorTech Ventures and Ben Franklin Technology Partners of Southeastern Pennsylvania. The additional funds will allow the company to implement several recently-signed business development deals, make important new hires, and continue investments in technology and marketing.

Originally posted on July 22, 2008 @ 3:22 pm

Become.com raises $8 million for expansion to European market

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Comparison shopping website Become.com announced that it has raised $8 million in Series D invesment from the European Founder’s Fund.

This brings the total investment in Become, Inc. to $37.2M, including a recent Series C investment from TPG for $17.5M. Become.com has been profitable since fourth quarter of last year and raised these rounds to facilitate aggressive growth.

Originally posted on July 17, 2008 @ 5:55 pm

OGPlanet receives funding from DFJ Athena

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Mulitiplayer online games provider OGPlanet has received funding from venture capital firm DFJ Athena. This funding supports its continued growth and the company is expected to reach profitability soon.

OGPlanet licenses online games from Korea and markets them in the US. Its growing portfolio of massively multiplayer online (MMO) games includes Cabal Online, Rumble Fighter, Albatross18 and the recently announced La Tale coming in the third quarter of 2008. OGPlanet operates all of its games under a free-to-play model while in-game item purchases are available through a micro-transaction system.

Originally posted on July 16, 2008 @ 10:16 am

Gaia Online gets $11 million funding

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gaia.jpgGaia Online announced an $11 million Series C round of venture funding from Institutional Venture Partners (IVP).

Since its inception in 2003, Gaia Online has grown to one of the largest and most active immersive online communities for teens and young adults. Each month more than 5 million unique users socialize, play games, watch movies in the virtual cinema and express their individuality and creativity through customizable avatars and profiles. It has the highest average visit time among social networking websites, according to Hitwise.

“Gaia Online is one of the most exciting companies that we have seen in the online social community space,” said Norm Fogelsong, a General Partner with Institutional Venture Partners (IVP), a premier later-stage investment firm. “The breadth of activity available on the site and the level of engagement of the users are truly extraordinary. It is a privilege to be involved with such a strong management team, one that is leading the way in virtual goods transactions. We feel that Gaia Online is poised for explosive growth.”

Originally posted on July 14, 2008 @ 9:10 am