Secure instant messaging service provider, Presence Networks, has attracted a GBP 250,000 funding from The Capital Fund, a GBP50 million venture capital fund that invests in fast growth companies in Greater London. The money will be used to develop sales and marketing capabilities.
Instant messaging allows users to send and receive real time messages and texts to other users online. The market analyst firm Gartner, estimates that there are 42 million users of secure instant messaging worldwide, which should rise to 63m users by 2008, as companies adopt voice over internet protocol (VoIP) applications.
However, currently, the vast majority of messaging is sent using insecure services. Presence Networks says its service has suitable levels of security, authentication and control for corporate use.
The key attraction of instant messaging is the ability to let anyone logged into the network know when other users are available, a feature that email does not provide. Presence says that by combining this with secure voice services over the network, allowing phone calls online rather than using traditional mobiles or landlines, it can offer a complete communications package.
Symon Blomfield, CEO says, “Our services can be used by anyone, from a single home-based consultant to major international corporations.” The service makes it possible to extend the security features of corporate networks to home and remote workers.
“Because our systems have a presence facility, users can keep track of the online status of users anywhere, whether it’s at the next desk, at home or on site,” says Blomfield.
Stuart Nicol, Investment Manager at The Capital Fund, said, “We are delighted to be able to invest at such an exciting time for Presence Networks. Their products are well placed to take advantage of the huge, and growing, online instant communications market.
The Capital Fund is a GBP50 million venture capital fund which backs fast-growing, small and medium-sized enterprises in Greater London. Since its formation in 2002, the fund has made over 45 investments.
Initial investments can be up to GBP250,000, with a possible further GBP250,000 after six months or more. In some circumstances, alongside other new investors, the fund can follow on its investments, putting up to GBP 5m in total in a single company.
The Capital Fund, the largest of nine Regional Venture Capital Funds in the UK, is backed by a mixture of public and private sector investors.
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