Essential.com Receives $17M in Venture Capital Funding

Essential.com, which calls itself the Web’s first energy and communications superstore, this week received $17 million in financing from Brand Equity Ventures, Bessemer Venture Partners, EnerTech Capital Partners and others.

The site provides one-stop shopping and value-added bundles for “essential services” such as energy, Internet access, and phone service from trusted
brand names.

“These resources will allow us to aggressively accelerate our pace and
maximize our first-mover advantage in delivering Essential Services to
Web-enabled households and small businesses,” said Akhil Garland, Essential’s president and chief executive officer.

The financial package also includes technology development support from Gas Research Institute to advance and demonstrate the capabilities of
Essential.com’s customer choice software for applications in the natural gas industry.

Essential.com users can compare providers, services, and pricing plans in a comprehensive chart, and make informed decisions. A single convenient, consolidated bill, which can be reviewed and paid online, offers usage analysis in a variety of formats.