Investment holding company Safeguard Scientifics led a $10m series B funding round for US-based advertising technology company Spongecell on Tuesday. Safeguard counts a number of corporate venturing funds among its syndication partners, while Spongecell was backed by advertising company Interpublic Group in 2007.
The round follows an undisclosed amount of series A capital attracted from investors including executive chairman of Google, Eric Schmidt, hedge fund manager Jim Pallotta and private equity firm SilverHaze Partner last year. Other previous backers include venture firms Halo Venture Partners and the Pilot Group.
The service provided by Spongecell involves enhancing internet banner advertising by inserting features such as video, social media, interactive maps, and downloadable text message-based coupons, while also providing detailed analytics to advertisers.
As part of the investment, Erik B. Rasmussen, managing director of Safeguard’s Technology Group, will join Spongecell’s board of directors.
Rasmussen said: "We surveyed the market landscape and discovered that Spongecell was already driving amazing results through its leading-edge platform, and had put together a solid roster of clients such as HP, Dell, Procter & Gamble, Volvo, Dodge, Comcast, Kraft, IBM. In addition, Spongecell is led by an experienced team that cares about its clients and delivering superior results. We are pleased to welcome Spongecell to the Safeguard family of innovative companies."