News
Smartphone ownership is virtually universal and the average internet user is spending 3 hours a day online on these devices. This is especially true for the youngest consumers (16-24s). As well as spending the longest time online more generally, half of this online time is now taking place on a mobile. to read more on this, click here.
ECI have announced its investment in Make It Cheaper, the UK's leading SME switching provider for essential bills, including energy, telecoms, and insurance. Make It Cheaper has appeared three times Sunday Times Fast Track 100 and the Company is rated as the number one SME energy intermediary by industry analysts. To read more on this deal, click here.
GMG Ventures, as the fund will be known, will seek to support early-stage businesses working on developing the next generation of media technology.
The fund will consider investments in a wide range of areas including artificial intelligence and machine learning tools for journalism; advertising technology, including new formats and fraud detection; technology used to enrich reader and customer experiences; payment technologies; and new forms of content distribution using VR, AR, audio and voice platforms.
To read more on GMG ventures, click here.
The Home Office is looking at a scheme to prevent card details being swiped by criminals and used without the knowledge of the account holder - a crime which affects a million people every year. to read more on how to stop credit card fraud, click here.
EdTech startup BridgeU has closed a £4m Series A led by Octopus Ventures. The London and Hong Kong-based company also drew support from existing backer Fresco Capital and new investor Downing Ventures. Founded in the UK in 2014, BridgeU has created a university preparation and careers guidance software, which leverages big data. To read more click here.
Digital consumers in LatAm and MEA are most likely to be smartphone owners, but arguably the most important fact is that figure reaches at least 9 in 10 across all regions. What’s more, unlike computers and tablets whose user bases skew more affluent than average, smartphone ownership is consistent across all income brackets. To read more on the smartphone demographic, click here.
Laundryheap has raised £2m in Angel funding in a round led by Simon Smith and QVentures. Founded three years ago, Laundryheap is now valued at £17m and is generating £2m in revenue this year, it will also be seeking to raise additional funds via a crowdfunding campaign later this year. To read more click here.
Ometria has raised a £4.5m ($6m) Series A led by US-based investment firm Summit Action. Ometria claims to combine customer insight with its retail-focused marketing automation platform, allowing each user to send bespoke marketing messages to its customers. The AI-powered platform has raised £8.3m ($11m) to date and claims to serve a wide range of clients including Feelunique, LoveCrafts, Wonderbly and Graze.com. To read more on this click here.
Asos Instant will initially be available to customers in any of London’s 122 postcodes on orders placed before 10am Sunday to Friday. It will cost £12.95 and parcels will be delivered between 6pm and 10pm on the same day. Availability in other major cities around the UK will follow in the coming months. To read more, click here.