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Aggregator Television
Attracts £9 Million From 3i, Amadeuc And Intel Capital
Other Article: IPTV Client
Browser, MPEG-4 HDTV IPTV, IPTV Reference
Design, Single Play
3i, Amadeus Capital Partners and Intel Capital
July 20th, 2006
London, UK -- 3i, Amadeus Capital Partners and Intel Capital are
co-leading a £9 million Series A financing round for London-based
digital TV operator Aggregator Limited. The funding will be used to
roll out a series of products over the next two years. |
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Aggregator, founded
in 2005, with seed investment from Amadeus Capital Partners, has
since its inception developed some innovative TV propositions and
secured a substantial content portfolio. The company now plans to
launch a range of TV-over-broadband (TVoBB) services to the PC,
which will target specific, underserved audiences in Autumn 2006.
Aggregator will deploy an extended service planned for launch in
early 2007, when it will integrate its programming with Freeview,
the UK’s fastest growing TV platform, and make its services
available on TV.
Aggregator’s TVoBB services will create a new UK pay-TV platform,
serving multiple devices including PCs and hybrid set-top boxes.
Aggregator’s on-demand broadband services allow the delivery of
niche content to ethnic and special interest communities that are
currently underserved by the television market and are willing to
pay for specialist TV services.
“In a rapidly changing media world, Aggregator has designed a smart,
TV-over-broadband platform that drives new routes to the consumer
and opens up new revenue streams for content owners,” said
Aggregator’s co-founder and Director of Programming Chris Griffin.
“Our service ensures a high quality viewing experience that is
targeted at specific communities and available to anyone with a
broadband connection. When combined with Freeview, we can offer a
compelling range of TV services that will be a highly attractive
alternative for UK audiences.”
“We’re delighted to have brought together a very strong funding
consortium comprising leading venture capitalists 3i, Amadeus
Capital Partners and Intel Capital,” said Aggregator’s co-founder
and CEO Martin Goswami. “Their support validates our vision of what
future content services will look like and makes it possible for us
to launch and rapidly grow a truly unique television service.”
Krishna Visvanathan, 3i director and board member of Aggregator
added: “We, at 3i, are excited to lend our full support to
Aggregator’s exceptional management team. With Web TV and IPTV
gaining broad consumer acceptance across the world and on the back
of increased broadband penetration, the timing is right for
Aggregator’s proposition. Aggregator fits well with 3i’s strategy of
backing talented individuals with disruptive business models in the
digital convergence arena.”
Amadeus Partner, Simon Cornwell, said: “'We believe that broadband
delivery will transform the television landscape in the next five
years, creating a fast growing opportunity for new companies with a
disruptive approach to the market. Since we backed Chris and Martin
a year ago, they have made excellent progress in securing an
excellent roster of quality content and built the core of a strong,
highly differentiated consumer proposition. We are delighted to be
co-leading with Intel and 3i, a substantial Series A funding round
that will enable the company to begin its commercial rollout this
year, and enable Aggregator to take its place at the forefront of
the IPTV revolution.”
“Helping to propagate rich media over the Internet and IP networks
is a critical element for driving Intel’s vision of the Digital
Home,” said Alain-Gabriel Courtines, Investment Director, Intel
Capital. “The Aggregator service is facilitating this vision of
convergence between the Internet and traditional broadcast TV by
offering a hybrid model between the TV and PC with niche content
that is not available over traditional free-to-air and pay TV
platforms.”
Legal advisers on the financing were: Osborne Clarke (Justine Jones)
for the investors and Taylor Wessing (Michelle Rodrigues) for the
company.
Press Contacts:
Aggregator 3i
Gay Bell / David Bramley Rachel Richards
Matthew Walker Tel: +44 (0) 20 7975 3573
Platform PR Rachel.Richards@3i.com
Tel: +44 20 8964 9149
aggregator@platformpr.com
Amadeus Capital Partners Intel Capital
Chantal Ligertwood Feroz Sanaulla
Tel: +44 (0)1235 834091 Tel: +44 (0) 20 7292 8788
Chantal@Ligertwood.net Feroz.Sanaulla@intel.com
About Aggregator
Aggregator sources, packages and delivers television programming
over broadband platforms internationally, delivering enhanced TV
services to targeted audiences/communities via a range of digital
devices.
Aggregator is building discrete, individually branded niche TV
communities via the PC, which will be aggregated under a
consolidated brand when its Freeview/TV over broadband (TVoBB)
set-top box is launched in the UK in early 2007. www.aggregator.tv
About 3i
3i is a world leader in private equity and venture capital. We focus
on Buyouts, Growth Capital and Venture Capital and invest across
Europe, in the United States and in Asia. Our competitive advantage
comes from our international network and the strength and breadth of
our relationships in business. These underpin the value that we
deliver to our portfolio and to our shareholders.
3i’s Venture Capital business focuses on investing in scaleable
start-up and early-stage businesses. The business currently manages
over 200 investments across Europe, US, Asia and Israel, valued in
excess of €1bn. 3i’s VC investments fall into four main industry
sectors, including healthcare, telecommunications, software and
electronics/semiconductors.
3i’s recent investments include TransMedics (organ transplant
system), Sulake (gaming community), The Cloud (wifi), TransTech
(airfield monitoring) and DiBcom (mobile TV) with successful
realisations for Interhyp, KuDOS Pharmaceuticals, Arakis, dtms,
RedDot, UbiNetics, CSR, Element5, Bookham and many others.
www.3i.com
About Amadeus Capital Partners
Amadeus is one of Europe’s leading technology investors. Since its
inception in 1997, the firm has backed over 50 companies covering
computer hardware and software, mobile and fixed communications
technologies and medical technologies. Investments include Cambridge
Silicon Radio, producing single chip bluetooth radios for short
range connections and floated on the London Stock Exchange in 2004,
Optos, a manufacturer of laser retinal scanners which this year had
a successful IPO on the London Stock Exchange, Cambridge Broadband,
developing technologies for wireless broadband networks in countries
with poor infrastructure and Valista, an electronic payments
company. For more information, go to: www.amadeuscapital.com
About Intel Capital
Intel Capital, Intel's venture capital organization, makes equity
investments in innovative technology start-ups and companies
worldwide. Intel Capital invests in a broad range of companies
offering hardware, software and services targeting enterprise, home,
mobility, health, consumer Internet and semiconductor manufacturing.
Since 1991, Intel Capital has invested more than US$4 billion in
more than 1,000 companies spanning more than 30 countries. During
this time, about 160 portfolio companies have been acquired and
another 150 have gone public on exchanges around the world. In 2005,
Intel Capital invested about US$265 million in about 140 deals with
approximately 60 percent of funds invested outside the United
States. For more information on Intel Capital and its differentiated
advantages, visit www.intelcapital.com |
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