Vivox, Inc. Secures $7.8 Million in Series B Financing

Vivox, the leading provider of integrated voice services for online games and virtual worlds, today announced that it has secured $7.8 million in a second round of equity financing. Benchmark Capital led the round. Strong support was also received from the Company’s existing investors, Canaan Partners and GrandBanks Capital. “The proliferation of virtual worlds and online games has created a tremendous opportunity for the Vivox communications platform,” said Mitch Lasky, general partner of Benchmark Capital and newly appointed Vivox board member. “Voice is a transformative feature in games, creating an entirely new level of engagement and social connection among players. Vivox is uniquely positioned to deliver scalable, carrier-grade voice services through its industry-leading technologies and expertise.” “We are incredibly excited to have Benchmark Capital and Mitch Lasky involved with Vivox,” said Rob Seaver, founder and CEO of Vivox. “Benchmark’s clear visions and track record in the sector, and Mitch’s successful background in senior roles with Disney, Activision, JAMDAT and Electronic Arts are tremendous assets to Vivox.” “Vivox’s technology and operational expertise have established them as a unique service in the market,” said Ryan Moore, general partner and member of the Vivox Board from GrandBanks Capital. “We see first-hand the positive impact Vivox has on online games and virtual worlds with operational excellence and innovative functionality and have no doubt they will continue to play a major role in shaping online communities.” Proceeds from the round will fund product development, sales support and marketing as the Company extends its technology and market lead. Vivox offers the only integrated platform and managed service available today to enable online games and virtual worlds to connect their communities with cutting edge features and functionality on a massive scale. “We continue to invest in digital media companies that are changing the way people work and live,” said Warren Lee, Vivox board member and principal at Canaan Partners. “We’re thrilled to invest again in Vivox and believe the company is poised for tremendous growth in the rapidly expanding gaming and virtual world market.” Vivox customers and partners include online game and virtual world leaders 1GPN, Inc., Alpha Innovation, BigWorld Technology, CCP Games, The Electric Sheep Company, FWD International, IBM, Icarus Studios, Illusion Factory, K2 Network, LanguageLab.com, Linden Lab, Monumental Games, Pixel Mine and Wizards of the Coast. About Vivox
Vivox provides online games, virtual worlds, and online communities with managed voice communication services that are simple to integrate and enhance game play and community. Vivox’s carrier-grade, customizable solutions help online games and communities create improved offerings and extend their user base. Today, Vivox is bringing voice to customers with millions of subscribers in more than 180 countries. For more information visit: www.vivox.com. About Benchmark Capital
Benchmark Capital, a leading international venture capital firm, was founded in 1995 to help talented entrepreneurs with original ideas build successful technology companies. Benchmark’s general partners take a team-oriented, labor-intensive approach to venture investing to deliver a superior level of service to the firm’s portfolio companies. Benchmark’s portfolio includes high-profile start-ups like Infinera, MySQL, OpenTable, Second Life, Tellme, Yelp, and Zillow, and franchise companies such as eBay, Juniper Networks and Red Hat. The firm manages more than USD 2.4 billion in committed venture capital. For more information on Benchmark Capital, visit its website at www.benchmark.com. About Canaan Partners
Canaan Partners invests in visionary entrepreneurs and provides them the networks, insights and operational guidance required to build high-performance technology and healthcare companies. For 20 years, they have taken an active and committed role in the companies in which they invest, and have completed more than 67 mergers and acquisitions and 51 IPOs. With $2.3 billion under management and a worldwide footprint, the firm’s technology team is committed to catalyzing the growth of innovative companies in the digital media, communications & mobility, enterprise and clean tech industries. Among its successes are DoubleClick, the leading online advertising solution, Match.com, the most popular online dating site in the world, CommerceOne, the company that pioneered and brought B2B ecommerce to the masses; Capstone Turbine, first to market and world’s leading producer of commercially viable microturbine energy products; and VOIP equipment supplier Acme Packet, which was one of the top ten performing IPOs of 2006. Other Canaan technology investments include SuccessFactors, Active Networks, Blurb, Dexterra, Tremor Media and GroundWorks. Canaan has offices in California, Connecticut, India and Israel. For more information visit: www.canaan.com. About GrandBanks Capital
GrandBanks Capital invests in early stage companies located primarily in the eastern part of the United States. With headquarters outside of Boston, the firm was established in partnership with SOFTBANK Corp and has proven investment expertise in information technology, software, Internet and communications, media and financial services, and wireless technologies. The GrandBanks Capital portfolio currently includes; Colubris Networks, Coradiant, Ember Corporation, Enpocket, First Coverage, GlassHouse Technologies, Incipient, OutStart, uLocate Communications, Vella Systems, Vivox and xKoto. For more information on GrandBanks Capital, visit: www.grandbankscapital.com.