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August 28, 2008
Stockholm's NYX Raises €5M For Wagering Tech
We haven't seen much action in the wagering field for some time. But here's one from Scandinavia. NYX Interactive has raised €5M from Nordic Venture Partners. The firm makes software for all the fun stuff: bingo, lottery, keno, casino, poker and other betting games. NYC has done deals with the government-owned lottery company in Sweden.
Bingo!
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Posted at 08:19 AM | Posted to Games (PC and other) | TrackBack | Permalink
August 27, 2008
Euro Venture Investing Declines
Venture capital firms in Europe invested in 167 young companies in the second quarter, 42% fewer than in the period last year. Venture dollars invested declined 35%, to $1.3B. The quarter was the worst since at least 2000, when VentureSource started tracking European data.
But yes there are optimists. Mark Tluszcz, co-founder of Mangrove Capital Partners, told the New York Times "The slowdown was a short-term phenomenon. “As I look for deals and talk to people, I have never seen a time in Europe when there are so many good, young companies being started,” he said. “I’m not overly worried.”
Read - Europeans Retreat on Venture Investing
Posted at 07:14 AM | Posted to Venture Capital | TrackBack | Permalink
Helskinki's Supponor Gets EUR6M For Sports Advertising Platform
Supponor out of Helsinki, Finland has raised EUR6M in Series A led by Northzone Ventures with return backer Conor Venture Partners.
The product is simple. You use video technology to digitally swap out a billboards at an athletic center for say Pepsi and replace it with one for Schwab. So just as you get variety on TV program so you get it at sports venues. The sales pitch here is to sport team owners, leagues, venues, etc. that they can increase ad revenue in live sports broadcasts with over 50% growth potential.
They plan to bring the product not only to the rest of Europe but also to The US. The company acknowledges that there are other comparable offerings out there - and we have seen some - but the startup says that it alone can fit new ads perfectly within the boundaries of a physical billboard.
The startup is led by CEO Juha Ruohonen who was a Partner at Conor Venture Partners and has had startup operational experience. BTW - he was educated at Turun kauppakorkeakoulu (Finnish is impossible for the non-Scandinavian).
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Posted at 05:46 AM | Posted to Advertising | TrackBack | Permalink
August 05, 2008
UK's Pub Supplier Barbox Bought By Amphire Solutions
Redwood City-based software-as-a-service startup Amphire Solutions is buying Barbox, a joint venture between Coors Brewers and Scottish & Newcastle. Amphire did not disclose financial terms of the deal.
U.K.-based Barbox is an online ordering service for the beer, wines and spirits trade while Amphire has focused on food service and hospitality.
Barbox says it sees over £8M in orders placed online every week with about 15K pubs placing orders. The combined business says it will have an annual order book worth in excess of £1B.
It sounds like an impressive business, even if the margins are not tremendous.
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Posted at 07:15 AM | Posted to eCommerce | TrackBack | Permalink
August 04, 2008
Madrid's Solar Energy Firm SolarWatio Raises Euros225M From GE/Others
Spanish solar power project developer Fotowatio has raised $350M from GE Energy Financial Services and Grupo Corporativo Landon.
Fotowatio is developing 960 megawatts of solar projects in Spain, Italy and the US. It currently has 4 operational facilities.
GE Energy Financial Services will invest Euros150M in equity and convertible debt to acquire 32% while Grupo Corporativo Landon, a family-owned Spanish holding company, will invest Euros75M in equity to acquire 17.5% of a new holding company, Fotowatio SL. The existing Spanish investors will own the remaining 50.5%: Qualitas Venture Capital own 33.5%, and Fotowatio's management will own 17%.
At a time when wind seems to be getting a lot of attention and solar companies are facing a tough go, its nice to see SolarWatio grab some mojo.
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Posted at 07:13 AM | Posted to Alternative Energy | TrackBack | Permalink
