Funambol, Inc., the leading provider of Mobile 2.0 messaging software powered by open source, today announced that it has secured $12.5 million in Series B funding, led by mobile-focused venture capital firm Nexit Ventures. Castile Ventures participated as a new investor and was joined by existing investors, Walden International and HIG Ventures.
The new financing brings Funambol's total funding to $25 million. The company will use the proceeds for continued growth in the push email market, to advance product R&D and to accelerate global expansion, particularly in Europe and Asia. Nexit partner, Michel Wendell, joins Funambol's board of directors and Castile general partner, Carl Stjernfeldt, joins the board as an observer.
"This substantial investment validates our technology, business model and market direction," said Fabrizio Capobianco, Funambol CEO. "With this funding, we have strengthened our financial resources to enable us to add geographic support in global markets where we see significant demand for mass market open source push email."
There are 3.3 billion mobile phones and two billion email accounts in the world but less than two percent of people access email on their mobile phone. This represents a large untapped revenue opportunity for service providers, portals and mobile operators. Until now, mobile email has required high-end smartphones, costly fees and complex setup. Funambol's basis on open source and ad-funded push email and PIM sync capabilities helps companies in the mobile ecosystem deliver new wireless services and monetize mass market users.
"Global mobile email usage is expected to explode, with growth transitioning from enterprise to mass market users," said Michel Wendell, Nexit Ventures. "We have been impressed with Funambol's open source technology, vision and management team. They have a great opportunity to serve the growth segments of the mobile market."
Funambol provides open source push email and PIM sync solutions for more than 1.5 billion mobile devices, including phones from Apple, Nokia, Motorola, Samsung, Sony Ericsson, LG and others. Mobile operators and service providers around the globe, including Earthlink in the U.S. and 1&1 in Europe, have adopted the commercial version of the company's software. In addition, Funambol was recently selected by AOL to help with synchronization for AOL's online and mobile mail services using Funambol's open source software and its scalable synchronization platform. Recent mobile advertising partnerships include Amobee Media Systems and Smaato, with others expected in the coming months.
"Funambol recently signed a Web services company, two top device manufacturers and a large U.S. carrier," said Carl Stjernfeldt, general partner of Castile Ventures. "With its blue chip customer base and market momentum, Funambol is the leading provider of open source mobile email solutions for the mass market. Castile is excited to work with the company's leadership to leverage this position."
About Funambol
Funambol provides mobile 2.0 messaging software powered by open source. The company is the leading provider of ad-funded open source push email and PIM sync solutions for the mass market. Funambol open source has been downloaded more than two million times by 50,000 developers in 200 countries. The commercial version of Funambol has been deployed at service providers, mobile operators, portals, device manufacturers and ISVs including customers such as 1&1, Earthlink and CA, Inc. Funambol is headquartered in Redwood City, CA with an R&D center in Italy. See www.funambol.com.