Israeli startup WebyClip, which is developing technology to match video clips with products, raised $4.2 million from existing investors Magma Venture Partners, Vertex, Yaron Carni's Maverick Ventures, and angel investor Amit Gilon, bringing the company’s total funds raised to $5 million. The company said that the funds will be used to expand the company’s development and sales departments. Company founder and CEO Ariel Shemesh said on the completion of the fundraising round, “The automatic integration of videos that help buyers make the best purchase decisions for their needs will become standard in the e-commerce industry in the coming years. We are happy that such a respected group of investors believes in us, and is convinced that together we will continue to be the leading company in the world in this field.”
WebyClip was founded in 2013 by Verint alumni Ariel Shemesh, Alex Koltun, and Evyatar Ben Shitrit. The company’s technology identifies relevant videos that are likely to cause a user to take an action in a specific situation. Currently, the technology is focused on e-commerce. In an interview with “Globes” six months ago, Shemesh said, “Our technology knows how to search for relevant videos, that are not copyright protected, across the internet - YouTube, Dailymotion, Instagram, and more - and to match them to a product on the e-commerce site.”
Shemesh explained, “We don’t just look at the title and description of the video. We also have analysis and algorithms that identify the relationship between the video and the product, and can also check that it is not the same video with a different name.” Shemesh went on to say, “Vendors don’t care if there is negative feedback for a product, because it enhances the authenticity of the review.”
In addition to matching the video to the product, the company can also determine which of the videos available online will have the greatest conversion rate, and will lead to the most sales among the site’s users. “We know how to offer a few videos to different audiences about the same product, and to identify which of the videos leads to the most purchases of the item,” explains Shemesh.
Last year, the company brought in former Olympian judoka and businesswoman Yael Arad as VP marketing and business development. Last year, the company also signed a collaboration agreement with e-commerce giant eBay.
Shemesh said, “eBay integrated the technology and offers it to its sellers, so instead of seeing just a photo of the product, there will be also videos that encourage purchases.” The company is also currently conducting a pilot with five leading global retailers.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 5, 2015
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