Venrock and Oren Zeev lead round
NEW YORK/PRNewswire/ -- YouNow (www.younow.com), the live social network that connects audiences and broadcasters in real time, has secured $15 million in new financing in a round co-led by current backers Venrock and Oren Zeev. Joining this round is new investor, Comcast Ventures.
With more than 100 million user sessions a month and over 50,000 hours of new live-video content created every day, YouNow has created an entertainment network fueled by user self-expression and social distribution. YouNow users turn their mobile devices and laptops into an interactive entertainment experience in which one-to-many interaction feels like one-to-one. In YouNow's highly gamified ecosystem, live broadcasters interact with audiences who reward them directly through in-app virtual good purchases. The broadcasters then receive a portion of the dollar value of those goods.
Venrock Partner, David Pakman says,"YouNow, like Snapchat, Instagram and many of the most successful social products, has captured the imagination of millions of teens worldwide. We are proud to lead this round with Oren Zeev and to work with Adi to help him continue to build YouNow into a thriving global community platform for self-expression and communication. As younger audiences flock to mobile/social products, it is exciting to be involved with such a vibrant and successful one."
Adi Sideman, YouNow's founder and CEO says, "The addition of Comcast Ventures to our family of backers underscores our success in building a real-time social network that fulfills the needs of a younger, digitally savvy generation that is eager to participate in media and not just consume it. We are proud that many of our creators make their livings live-broadcasting on YouNow. We urge creative people to broadcast on YouNow and find their audience."
"YouNow has struck a chord with young audiences who crave and are increasingly willing to pay for real-time video-based interactivity. YouNow's virtual goods economy is enabling the most dedicated creators to build rewarding careers on the social network, based entirely on their talents. We're excited to support the team and their vision," says Sam Landman, Managing Director at Comcast Ventures.
On average, a daily user of YouNow spends 51 minutes per day on the platform. According to independent research, US internet users in 2014 spent more time on YouNow per day than on Facebook, Tumblr, Instagram, Pinterest, Twitter, Snapchat, Tinder or LinkedIn.
About YouNow
YouNow is a live social network that enables audiences and performers to connect in real time and is devoted to the unlimited potential of human creativity. The interactive entertainment platform has over 100 million user sessions a month and live-streams 50,000 hours of new video content every day. YouNow is committed to creating a community that is a safe place where people can meet, get together and connect. YouNow is backed by Oren Zeev and VCs Venrock, Union Square Ventures and Comcast Ventures. Follow YouNow on Twitter and Instagram @younow.
About Venrock
Originally established as the venture capital arm of the Rockefeller family in 1969, Venrock partners with entrepreneurs to build some of the world's most disruptive, successful companies. With a primary focus on technology and healthcare, portfolio companies have included Apple Computer, Athenahealth, Centocor, Check Point Software, DoubleClick, Endeca, Gilead Sciences, Idec Pharma, Imperva, Illumina, Intel, Millennium Pharma, Nest, SlideShare and Tudou. For more information, please visit Venrock's website at www.venrock.com and follow the firm on Twitter at @venrock
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