Shopping and merchant rating guide service BizRate.com secured another $50 million in
venture capital funding in its third round of financing.
Total funding comes to about $77 million since the company’s first round of
financing in May 1998.
The majority of third-round funding was secured from previous BizRate.com
investors, including crossover investment firm Attractor, which provided an
additional $15 million. Other previous investors increasing their support
include Access Technology Partners LP, an affiliate of Chase H&Q Capital
Partners, Media Technology Ventures, Mission Ventures and Vignette.
New financial backers invested a combined total of $20 million include
HarbourVest Partners, Ocean Avenue Investors LLC and Westway Capital LLC.
The funding generated in this round will be used to capitalize on
BizRate.com’s first-mover advantage, the company said, by developing new
products and services, expanding staff and expanding national marketing
efforts.
“BizRate.com is one of the most promising infomediaries we have seen in the
e-commerce space,” said Harvey Allison of Attractor. “BizRate.com’s business
model continues to accelerate and this round will allow the company to
maximize its huge, near-term opportunities.”
Founded in 1996, BizRate.com is an independent rating guide built on the
experience of millions of actual online buyers. The site offers consumer
information along with
a set of shopping tools that helps people find the store or product they want
and recommendations based on user-specified criteria.