Phone operators have reaped a quick paper reward from backing online gaming service OnLive, which is reported to have a value of $1.1bn after the June launch of its product.
News provider TechRadar.com said OnLive’s recent filing in Delaware gave it the valuation three months after UK phone operator BT and Belgium-based peer Belgacom invested $30m each for both to own 2.6% of OnLive.
BT said its stake came with exclusive rights to bundle the OnLive Game Service with broadband in the UK as its first move into online gaming, with Belgacom gaining the rights for Belgium and Luxembourg.
Gavin Patterson, chief executive of BT Retail, said: "Entertainment is going to be at the heart of what we offer customers in the future. The partnership with OnLive complements our existing BT Vision service. It will enhance our premium broadband position and we’ll be entering into a market that’s worth more than £2bn [$3.2bn]."
US phone group AT&T, family office Lauder Partners, media company Warner Brothers, software engineering group Autodesk and venture capital firm Maverick Capital closed its series C round at an undisclosed size in September, two years after its $16.5m series B round.