Velocity Interactive Group
"What's really expensive are companies with very little revenue and no earnings, but lots of users." Could this apply to Wavexpress with the Olympic Deal?
Velocity Interactive Put $10 Million Into Broadband Enterprises.
Levinsohn, Miller Linking With SV VC ComVentures
December 18, 2007
Former Fox Interactive head Ross Levinsohn and former AOL CEO Jon Miller, who spent the fall trying to launch a digital media rollup with the backing of private equity group General Atlantic, have moved on. They're now joining up with Palo Alto-based VC firm ComVentures, or at least parts of it -- the two will link up with of three of ComVentures partners, and their $1 billion plus-portfolio. Levinsohn and Miller's new company gets their old company's name -- Velocity Interactive Group.
Confused? It doesn't get a lot clearer. Levinsohn and Miller say that technically, they're continuing with their jobs advising General Atlantic, but don't spell out why they tabled their plans to launch a rollup fund. We also can't shed much light on what's become of two ComVentures partners who are no longer with the company.
Levinsohn and Miller generated a lot of buzz over the past few months -- first when they looked to have launched a deep-pocketed M&A effort, and later, as they came close but never acquired anything with GA. Now the two say that they've made deals, after all -- but that they were done alongside ComVentures: Indian TV companies NDTV Networks and IndiaTV; Fabrik, a media storage company; Doppleganger, a Second Life-like "virtual world"; and Mixercast, which has something to do with "creation, publication and distribution of all types of rich-media expression."
Next up: Levinsohn says the new company will look to invest in more digital media deals, up to the $20 million to $30 million range; he says they're in the midst of 2 to 4 deals that could close by February.
"It's getting a little more irrational, and I think 2008 is going to be worse. There is a level of fear and desperation out there from buyers and it is easier to buy than to create." says Levinsohn, who's best known as the guy who helped Rupert Murdoch buy MySpace for a song in 2005. "What's really expensive are companies with very little revenue and no earnings, but lots of users. Somewhat affordable are companies with decent revenue, some earnings, but smaller user growth."
Levinsohn and Miller form Internet roll-up fund
August 31st, 2007 Ross Levinsohn (left), the former News Corp. exec who masterminded the early acquisition of popular social networking company MySpace, has formed a new firm that will invest in Internet businesses.
Levinsohn is reportedly being joined by Jonathan Miller (below), former chief executive of America Online.
It is called Velocity Investment Group, according to the WSJ, and sounds very much like the plan Levinsohn was rumored to be making last November. According to that rumor, he was caught raising an Internet “roll-up” fund while still employed at News Corp., and was forced to leave. Levinsohn has never commented on those reports
A roll-up fund is one that “rolls up” multiple properties in a single industry to make a more efficient behemoth. Velocity will purchase start-ups in related content areas and boost their online ad revenue by selling across multiple properties, according to the WSJ report. Velocity is also considering buying out companies that broker ads for other Web sites. It is being advised by the investment bank Allen & Co.
Both men have also become advisers to a large private equity firm, General Atlantic, and will work with that firm’s investments in media and consumer companies. GA issued a press release today about their role, but it’s expected that GA is backing Velocity in some way.
GA has invested $1.3 billion in more than 20 companies in the digital media and consumer sector since 1995, including AKQA, Dice, Network Solutions and NDTV.
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