[From the industry] Genvid Holdings Raises $113 Million in Series C Funding to Create New Publishing Subsidiary for Massive Interactive Live Events (MILEs)

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Genvid Holdings Inc., parent company of Genvid Technologies LLC, the leader in interactive livestreaming technologies and services, announced that it has closed a Series C funding round of $113 million. Combined with previous financing, the company has raised a total of $166 million since its founding in 2016. Existing investors Valor Equity Partners and Atreides Management co-led the round. New investors Third Point Ventures, Cobalt Capital, LightShed Ventures, XN, and Lux Capital participated in the latest round alongside Genvid’s existing investors Galaxy Interactive, Horizons Ventures, OCA Ventures (via OCA’s new growth equity fund), and Makers Fund. Strategic investment partners Huya, NTT DOCOMO Ventures, and Samsung Ventures are also participating. 

The new funding will be used in large part to establish Genvid Entertainment LLC, a new publishing subsidiary dedicated to producing Massive Interactive Live Events, or MILEs, following the success of the Genvid-enabled Facebook exclusive Rival Peak, widely regarded as the first true MILE. Genvid Entertainment will produce and publish MILEs via licensing of major IP beginning later this year. Genvid today also unveiled a concept trailer hinting at what next-generation MILEs could look like, titled Project Raven. 

In addition, Cindy Holland, former Netflix VP Original Content, an 18-year veteran of the company who founded and ran the original series and documentary initiatives for eight years, has joined Genvid in an advisory role, assisting with content strategy and acquisition.

“The success of Rival Peak has accelerated our plans and growth dramatically, with dozens of major IP holders, streaming and social media platforms, and other global brands seeking to create MILEs around their properties,” said Jacob Navok, CEO and co-founder of Genvid. “They recognize the opportunity to build new entertainment experiences that merge lean-back entertainment (TV and livestreaming) with interactive entertainment (games) to both grow fan bases substantially and further monetize existing fans. We’re excited to announce partners and IP licenses in the coming months.”

“Genvid has pioneered a groundbreaking media format with massive potential, combining premium streaming entertainment and multiplayer online gaming in an unprecedented way,” said Valor Equity Partners founder and CIO Antonio Gracias. “We are excited to partner again with Genvid at this critical stage in the company’s growth as it forges new frontiers in the metaverse.”

“Interactive media as we know it is evolving beyond video games, and becoming a critical part of all entertainment content,” said Brandon Ross, General Partner at Lightshed Ventures. “Genvid is a category-defining company pioneering this new kind of storytelling that all major IP holders and distributors will come to embrace.”