A day after the news leaked that mobile marketing startup Mozes Inc. had raised $11.5 million in a second round of funding, I was able to catch up with chief executive Dorrian Porter by phone Wednesday morning. Porter confirmed the funding news, and he said an official announcement is imminent.
Porter cited several reasons for working with Seattle-based Maveron LLC on the new round. The firm, known for its close connections to Starbucks Coffee Co., is especially consumer-focused and has enjoyed several notable consumer technology IPOs including eBay Inc. and Shutterfly Inc., although Porter said its investments in yogurt and sandwich companies were also influential in Mozes' choice.
Like many companies, ranging from household names such as MySpace Inc. to startups including Sprout, Mozes found its initial audience by exploiting the connections between social networking and music, especially the way music is connected to people's identities. Although it has functioned as a mobile-messaging-based fan club for bands in the past, Porter said Mozes is looking beyond that, and hopes to extend its platform to all areas of mobile marketing. To that end, it has begun signing up sports and retail customers.
Its largest customer base is still music-related, however. Mozes provides free services to independent bands, but it charges fees to labels and management companies, beginning in the "thousands of dollars and up" range, Poerter said. The new round is designed to enable Mozes to reach profitability if it so desires, although Porter said international opportunities may be large enough that it will consider a third round.
The new funding follows a $5.8 million Series A round, which was announced in February 2007 and included a rollup of angel funding, including an early installment from media analyst Paul Kagan. - Paul Bonanos
See May 13 post on Mozes funding from Tech Confidential
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