Online video advertising company Eyeview Digital Ltd. has raised $1 million from outgoing Google CEO Eric Schmidt through his Innovation Endeavors, Gemini Israel Funds, Lightspeed Ventures, and Gigi Levy.
This is Schmidt's second investment in Eyeview, and brings his investment to $1.5 million. The current round brings the amount raised by Eyeview to $6 million. The company will use the proceeds to market its product in the US and to hire more employees.
Eyeview CEO Oren Harnevo and CTO Tal Riesenfeld founded the company in 2007. The company's technology enables advertisers to create targeted video ads in real time, so Internet users will be exposed to different versions of the same video ad, based on geographic and demographic criteria, as well as each user's surfing history.
Eyeview already collaborates with AdapTV Ltd., AOL Inc. (NYSE: AOL), TidalTV Inc. and Collective Media Inc. Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: JNJ) and Bed, Bath and Beyond are two companies that have used Eyeview's solution. Eyeview is headquartered in New York and has an R&D center in Tel Aviv
Har-Nevo's brother, Ran Harnevo founded 5min Media Ltd., which was sold to AOL for $65 million a few months ago.
Innovation Endeavors has also invested $1 million in another Israeli start-up Any.Do, in a joint investment with Genesis Partners, Blomberg Capital, and Palantir Technologies founder Joe Lonsdale.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on May 1, 2011
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