Business
Investment up to $6m in China
Investment up to $6m in China.
About this update from Velocity Composites Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n Velti PLC\n30 April 2008\n\n\n\n\n\nFor Immediate Release WEDNESDAY, 30 April 2008\n\n\n Velti plc\n\n Entry into China's rapidly growing mobile market;\n Continues global expansion with up to US$6 million investment in CASEE\n\nLONDON and BEIJING - Velti plc ('Velti' or 'the Company'), a leading provider of\nsoftware platforms, applications, and services for advertising agencies, mobile\noperators and media groups, announces that, as part of its plans for\ninternational expansion, it is entering the Chinese market. Velti is investing\nUS$3 million in CASEE, China's largest mobile advertising exchange, in return\nfor 33 per cent of the company. The Company also has warrants for a further 17\nper cent to take its holding to up to 50 per cent for an additional investment\nof US$3 million.\n\nCASEE was founded in 2006 by a team with extensive experience in the Chinese\nmarket and is headquartered in Beijing (an office is shortly being established\nin Shanghai). It currently employs 25 people and is projected to grow to 40\npeople by the end of the year. CASEE provides state-of-the-art tools and\nservices that create a marketplace between content publishers such as Yahoo,\nSohu, Baidu and advertisers ranging from multinational companies such as Kodak\nand General Motors to local, small and medium-sized enterprises. Using\nproprietary technology, it matches bids and offers with controlled targeting to\nmaximise the price received by over 2000 content publishers from their WAP sites\nfrom advertisers. Its founders and board have extensive experience in the local\nmarket, having held senior executive positions at US-listed Chinese companies\nlike Sohu, Baidu and Linktone. CASEE serves more than 500 million ads every\nmonth to mobile phones in China and receives its revenues from advertisers.\n\nAlex Moukas, Velti's Chief Executive Officer, said: 'Our investment in CASEE is\nin line with our strategy of supporting the global needs of our clients and\nbeing a leader in developing the mobile marketing channel. Partnering with CASEE\ngives Velti an early foothold in China's rapidly growing mobile market, ahead of\nthe Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, as well as the capability to execute mobile\nmarketing campaigns for global brands in this key territory. While the effect of\nthis investment is expected to be earnings per share neutral in 200...