REDWOOD CITY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--YuMe, Inc., the operating system for TV 2.0, today announced that it has received a strategic investment of $12 Million from Samsung Ventures, the venture capital arm of the Samsung Group, and Translink Capital. The new round of funding will be used to aggressively expand YuMe's footprint in the nascent connected TV space and fuel global expansion.
Advertisers and publishers are bridging the digital media gap to reach audiences wherever they are viewing content, and viewing across the online, mobile, and connected TV markets is on the rise. The newest market, connected TV, is scaling rapidly: more than 35 million smart TVs will be in consumer households around the globe by the end of 2011, and an estimated 65 percent of TVs sold in 2012 will be connect-capable.1 As the only company with video advertising software integrations across online, mobile and connected TVs, YuMe provides both the technology infrastructure and the audience network for advertisers, publishers, and consumer electronics (CE) manufacturers to monetize their video networks.
“We invest in companies that are leaders in fast-growing markets, and YuMe is a clear leader in connected TV monetization,” said Stephen Lee, Principal at Samsung Ventures. “YuMe’s video advertising technology and three-screen expertise has the potential to accelerate the industry’s efforts to incorporate monetization strategies into all connected devices, including Samsung Smart TVs.”
“After evaluating various video and smart TV ad solutions in the market, we have determined YuMe to be a clear leader in connected TV and validated Samsung’s interest in the company,” said Jay Eum, Co-Founder and Managing Director at Translink Capital. “We are convinced that YuMe has built the best technology in the industry through its ACE Relevance Engine. This investment will help facilitate the development of new technology at YuMe and the company’s expansion into new markets.”
“Translink Capital and Samsung Ventures have achieved demonstrable success with strategic investments in leading companies,” said Jayant Kadambi, CEO, YuMe. “We are excited that these venture funds have chosen to invest in YuMe, enabling us to accelerate our growth in new global markets while continuing to scale and innovate in the connected TV arena.”
YuMe’s solution for Connected TVs, the Embedded SDK, includes the technology that any CE manufacturer needs to create a monetization platform in their devices. The Embedded SDK integrates with YuMe’s flagship technology, ACE for Publishers, and the YuMe Connected Audience Network. ACE for Publishers enables publishers to simplify video ad serving and management functions across all connected device channels—online, mobile, and connected TV—to drive higher revenue, streamline processes, and lower operating costs. ACE for Advertisers, the first end-to-end, buy-side video campaign management system, provides an enterprise-class solution and professional services package that mitigates the complexity of video ad campaign management. The Connected Audience Network, YuMe’s premium in-stream video ad network, gives publishers and advertisers unprecedented reach, brand safety, contextual relevance, controlled syndication, engaging YuMe Ads, and consistent delivery across all digital media platforms. YuMe serves over 1 billion ad impressions per month on its global video ad serving infrastructure.
About Samsung Venture Investment Corporation
Samsung Venture Investment Corporation manages investment and investment-related activities for Samsung affiliate companies. The investment mandate for Samsung Venture Investment Corporation tracks closely to the strategic priorities of Samsung affiliate companies' core operating divisions, and encompasses investments in semiconductors, displays, telecommunications, and consumer electronics.
About Translink Capital
Translink Capital is a U.S.-based venture capital firm focused on investments in expansion-stage start-up companies in the mobile, communications and digital media sectors and with strong connections in Japan, Korea and Greater China. Our investment strategy is to partner with top-tier VC firms on high-profile early-stage companies where we can demonstrate our value-added by successfully closing Asian strategic partnerships and investing the subsequent rounds. For more information about Translink Capital, please visit: http://translinkcapital.com.
About YuMe
YuMe is the software infrastructure provider powering digital video and the next generation of television with its operating system for TV 2.0. Its video advertising technology and services seamlessly connect advertisers, app developers, content distributors, consumer electronics manufacturers, and publishers across the globe. YuMe's patent-pending Relevance Engine powers its premium in-stream video ad network, the YuMe Connected Audience Network, and its industry-leading advertising management solutions, ACE for Publishers and ACE for Advertisers. The YuMe Relevance Engine matches the right ad to the right audience on whatever screen they are viewing—PC, mobile, or connected TV. YuMe is a privately held company headquartered in Redwood City, CA with its European headquarters in London. The company is backed by Accel Partners, BV Capital, DAG Ventures, Intel Capital, Khosla Ventures, Menlo Ventures, Samsung Ventures, and Translink Capital. For more information, visit www.YuMe.com, follow @YuMevideo on Twitter (www.twitter.com/YuMevideo), or like YuMe on Facebook at www.facebook.com/YuMevideo.
1 Sources include GFK Market Analysis, Piper Jaffray, and DeutscheBank.