Back in 2007, Bismarck and Belsasar Lepe and Sean Knapp left Google with aspirations to revolutionize in-video advertising. Ooyala didn’t quite revolutionize advertising, but it has found more than a little success in what has become a very crowded market. The company’s video player now delivers cross-device content to over 6,000 domains, reaching nearly 200 million viewers, and the company claims that one in four Americans watch Ooyala-powered video each month.
With its footprint in the states gaining traction, the company is announcing today that it is taking on a big new chunk of capital to expand its reach overseas. Ooyala’s new $35 million round — its fifth to date — is led by Telstra Applications and Ventures Group, the investment arm of Australia’s telecom giant, Telstra. Previous investors Sierra Ventures, Rembrandt Venture Partners, and CID Group also participated, along with several other strategic investors.
According to a statement released today, along with its investment, Telstra is also working on a commercial agreement with Ooyala that would make the telecom company “a major reseller,” deploying Ooyala’s software, analytics, and service offerings throughout Australia in attempt to transition content owners users to IP-based video delivery.
Ooyala has already begun building a network of resellers abroad, with current partners including Telefonica and Yahoo Japan, to name a few. At home, big brands and publishers like ESPN, Victoria’s Secret, Rolling Stone, Dell and North Face are using Ooyala’s technology to power video distribution and management. While ESPN was a big win at home for Ooyala, making it the video provider for a network that serves some billion-odd streams per month, for the overseas market, Telstra represents a big win.
The telecom company has presence in 15 countries, including China, and owns Australia’s biggest integrated IP and broadband networks. It’s also one of the 20 largest companies in Australia in terms of market cap. In terms of its funding, Ooyala will use its new capital to help Telstra integrate its technology, as well as to fuel further expansion outside of the U.S. with multiple service operators and TV programmers, specifically in Europe, Asia, and Latin America.
Currently, over half of Ooyala’s business comes from overseas, and have helped “quadruple” revenues since its last funding round in 2010. The new round of capital brings the startup’s total funding to just under $80 million, and sees Gary Traver, director of Telstra Media, join the company’s board of directors.
