Virtualis Inc., a provider of proprietary
Web-based software tools and technical consulting, has received $8.75 million
in venture funding.
Investors include Knight Ridder Ventures, Adobe Ventures, H&Q Venture
Associates, AmBex Venture Group, Ignitio Partners, Group One and Garage.com.
Virtualis said it aims to help even the least Web-savvy small business owner
enter the world of e-commerce in a day, for about a dollar a day.
“The Internet is changing every business,” said Bob Ingle, president of
Knight Ridder Ventures. “Small businesses are trying to figure out what to
do, and Virtualis has an outstanding suite of tools to help businesses get on
the Web and sell products. And Knight Ridder has ways for those businesses
to advertise, both in print and on our 45 Web sites in the Real Cities network.”
“Virtualis has everything a small business needs to put its business online,”
said Chris Lyman, co-founder and CEO of Virtualis. “We are the first
real-world example of an application service provider (ASP) for small
business.”
Virtualis, which projects $5 million in 1999 revenues, said it will use the
funds in part for marketing and advertising aimed at spurring growth.
The company said it has 37,000 affiliates in more than 100 countries,
including Web designers, system integrators, computer consultants and Web
experts.
