Thaindian News

Bangalore, Nov 2 (IANS) Global interactive online video advertising firm Jivox Wednesday secured $8.2 million funding from Fortisure Ventures LLC headed by an Indian chief executive and three institutional investors.

The US-based privately-held Jivox, which has a development office in Bangalore, will use the fund in financing rapid adoption of its video advertising technology platform.

Opus Capital, Helion Advisors and Akademos are the three institutional investors in the company.

“The industry is at a tipping point as advertisers understand the need for more engaging and creative interactive ads that reach viewers on multiple screens and across social channels,” Jivox chief executive Diaz Nesamoney said in a statement here.

A new eMarketer forecast estimates mobile ad spending in the US will reach $1.23 billion in 2011, a 65 percent increase over 2010.

“Mobile is becoming a part of the overall ad buy, and ensuring video ads run on multiple screens without complexities is no longer an option but a must,” Nesamoney said.

Jivox, which delivers about 1,000 interactive video ad campaigns a month, is well positioned to address the market need as it is the only platform that enables interactive video ads to run on multiple screens with an ad serving infrastructure.

“We see huge potential for Jivox to alter the way interactive digital video ads are created, delivered and measured. As an investment firm that prides in innovations in the ad market, we believe Jivox technology will attract more brands to spend on digital media,” Fortisure Ventures chief executive Mani Subramanian said.

The Asia-Pacific region, including India represents a potential market for Jivox, with a proliferation of video enabled smart devices that are handheld, in car, and at home.

As a serial entrepreneur with four decades association with the global IT industry, Subramanian founded IT Solutions, which was re-branded as Caritor in 2003.