Aylus Networks has brought in $16 million in equity financing for its technology that seeks to make video communication on the mobile as seamless and innate as voice communication. The deal, being announced today, was led by London-based m8 Capital, and included previous backers Matrix Partners and North Bridge Venture Partners.
“We believe that video is becoming the new voice,” CEO Mark Edwards told me on a phone call yesterday.
Aylus’ software is designed to allow mobile users to easily add video to a call, leave video messages, and roam while on video calls—all with recipients who aren’t necessarily using the same device or mobile carrier. The idea is that someone using Apple’s FaceTime on the mobile could video call someone else using Google Video or Skype.
The Aylus technology runs on a mobile network or cloud, and is designed to enable mobile phones that run video communications to more efficiently use the finite mobile spectrum, Edwards says. The company sells the software to mobile carriers and other service providers.
Edwards didn’t reveal how many customers or partners Aylus works with, but the plan is to put the new funding toward meeting overseas demand from partners, adding new customers and partners, and expanding operations at the roughly 100-person company. Aylus raised $5.7 million in 2009 and nabbed $4 million in debt-based financing last September.
Aylus isn’t the first Boston-area company working on the intersection of video and mobile technology to raise some cash this spring. In April, Littleton, MA-based Movik Networks (also backed by North Bridge) raised $25 million to put toward its hardware focused on enabling mobile phones to better stream media-rich content like Internet video.
