Venture Capital Firms Love China Video Sites
Tags: 56.com, China, Pomoho, PPStream, TuDou, UUSee, venture capital, Youku
I have came up a list which showed the vibrant venture capital (VC) market in China, especially the funds that these video sites received. In matter of fact, a number of prominent American VCs that raised funds and investing in China sites have thus helped the growth of this market.

Youku.com: They have completed $25 million in a round C financing on November 21 from Brookside Capital Partners, a subsidiary of Bain Capital, alongside with existing investors Sutter Hill Ventures, Farallon Capital and Chengwei Ventures, as reported in their press release (Mandarin). Youku has previously raised $3 million and $12 million in Series A and B financing.

56.com: 56.com raised a $20 million in a Series B financing from Sequoia Capital China recently, however no official announcement has been made on their home page. In June this year, 56.com has also raised $10 million in a round A financing.

UUSee: UUSee has raised $23.5 million in a round led by Draper Fisher Jurvetson Growth Fund and Highland Capital Partners, with Steamboat Ventures joining as a new investor and additional participation from existing investors Sequoia Capital China and Susquehanna International Group, as reported in my March 2007 post.

Pomoho: Stands for “pop, movie & hot.” From a recent buzz in China, Pomoho has raised $10 million in seed funding, however there is no official announcement of this.

PPStream: PPStream has also raised $10 million in a round B financing, venture capitalists include Ceyuan Ventures and Qiming Venture Partners. I did covered this news in my March 2007 post.

Tudou.com: Tudou has recently completed $19 million of its round C financing from Capital Today and General Catalyst Partners. This is on top of $18 million, the company has already raised in round B from JAFCO. Previously, TuDou has raised $800K from IDG Technology Venture Investment in seed funding and $8.5M in a Series A financing.
Although the rapid growth of this VC market and high profile investments from the US venture capitalists, this did not lead to the IPO of these video startups as well as generate huge returns to the investors.


December 2nd, 2007 at 5:12 pm
[...] Chinese video sites are an affair of the heart to many a venture capitalist, especially those from America. Here’s a quick look through at the numbers from Kenny Lee’s TagEdge: [...]
December 11th, 2007 at 7:35 pm
I would like to talk up http://www.jujunation.com. Most African sites never seem to make most list. http://www.jujunation.com a great site for African music videos and video sharing. It is also a social network site. Check it out to watch great African music videos and other stuff. Everything from pop to the new hottest African craze; Mapouka. Any VC interested?
May 1st, 2008 at 4:10 am
I found more information about the tudou funding here. Great resource for China news.