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Web 2.0 - Monday, November 3, 2008

NYC's Pingg Raises $2.75M As Evite Rival

We have seen more than a few startups launched to take on Evite (MyPunchbowl, Socializr, and Renkoo) and yet whenever we get invitations they invariably come from Evite.

Another entrant, Pingg, is an NYC-based online event invitation that wants to out-do Evite. The site has signed an agreement with Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia that includes a $2.75M investment (the startup had raised about $1.3M from seed investors including the Globe founder Stephan Paternot's investment vehicle). Martha Stewart says they will extend Pingg to its readership.

We count ourselves are Martha Stewart haters, at least the part of the business that is online and in print. The site's traffic barely registers. Moreover the company's finances continue to suffer. It recently posted a loss of $3.7M, or 7 cents a share, compared with a prior-year loss of $4.4M, or 8 cents a share. Revenue fell 4% to $66.5M. In the publishing business, earnings dropped 67% and revenue fell 25%. Ouch.

Pingg certainly has some nice features and the partnership with Martha Stewart might help get some marketing points but Martha is not the answer.

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