Vivox, which provides voice services for online games, virtual worlds and the social web, today announced a third round of financing in the amount of $6.8 million. The round was led by IDG Ventures with further investment from Benchmark Capital, Canaan Partners and GrandBanks Capital. It was also announced that IDG Ventures Managing Director Phil Sanderson has joined Vivox's board.
“Vivox has proven the community building value and revenue potential of voice in online activities, enabling millions of people to connect with one another – whether in a multiplayer game, in a virtual world or on Facebook. With its strong team, pioneering technology and aggressive market stance, Vivox is a perfect addition to the IDG Ventures portfolio,” said Sanderson. “Through the IDG group of companies, we have an unparalleled combination of insight and analysis into the most important trends in the digital age. Voice is the key ingredient missing from a huge range of online experiences, and Vivox has proven itself able to provide mission-critical voice and exceptional service to leading companies around the world. I look forward to working closely with the team at Vivox to seize this tremendous opportunity.”
“By delivering billions of minutes of voice per month to millions of users, we have seen first-hand how voice improves online communities,” said Rob Seaver, Founder & CEO of Vivox. “The web is increasingly social, and talking to each other is how we, as humans, interact. Voice is an essential part of the explosive growth of the social web. This fundamental trend translates into an immense opportunity for Vivox. With the support of IDG Ventures and our other investors, we will continue to innovate for our customers and make voice part of more and more shared experiences online.”
Vivox currently has 20 million users and some of its partners include EA, CCP Games, Gaia Online, Hi-Rez Studios, IMVU, Linden Lab, NCsoft, Nexon, Realtime Worlds, Sony Online Entertainment, and Wizards of the Coast.
