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Sunday, November 8, 
2:54 pm

Bain backs Web radio ad network TargetSpot, BI firm Invoke

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Bain Capital Ventures, the venture arm of Bain Consulting's private equity group, was busy Tuesday, announcing investments in TargetSpot Inc. and Invoke Solutions.

The deals boost Bain's growing media holdings. The firm led an $8.6 million B round for TargetSpot, joining existing investors Union Square Ventures, CBS Corp. and Milestone Venture Partners in backing the startup's streaming radio advertising technology. TargetSpot wants to be a leading ad network targeting online radio listeners, a base it claims has grown 27% a year since 2000. The service launched last year with a mission of working with radio stations across the country to monetize online listeners with ad campaigns distinct from broadcast spots. TargetSpot provides a platform for advertisers to design audio, video, banner and text ads featuring clip jingles, sound effects and visuals provided by the company. It also allows users to transport their own ads directly into a TargetSpot account for targeting to specific stations, locations or types of listeners.

The company is aiming big with partnerships with Entercom Communications Corp. [ETM], Beasley Broadcast Group Inc. [BBGI] and investor CBS Radio. But TargetSpot is also building from the ground up by allowing users to begin using the platform with accounts starting with as little as $50. TargetSpot CEO Doug Perlson cited Bain's experience in marketing and radio as important strategic aspects of the round.

Bain led a $6.5 million investment round in Invoke in March 2005. The company develops technology that helps businesses process customer data. Invoke's new round adds $7 million in funding, led by North Atlantic Capital and including Bain and fellow early investor BEV Capital, which specializes in consumer-oriented businesses. The funding will allow Invoke to broaden its technology for mobile research services, taking advantage of new wireless network capabilities.

Bain Ventures' focus on new media may come in handy if regulatory scrutiny into its private equity activities go anywhere, as a House Energy and Commerce subcommittee convened Tuesday to look at the effect of recent private buyouts of telecommunications and media companies on the public interest, specifically looking at the pending buyout of Clear Channel Communications Inc. by Bain and Thomas H. Lee Partners, which was approved last month by the Justice Department and is expected to close by March 31. - Clifford Carlsen

See March 11 press release from TargetSpot
See March 11 press release from Invoke Solutions
See March 11 story from BusinessWeek
For more see A VC, Xconomy and Silicon Alley Insider

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