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DoubleVerify Closes $33M

2011-08-30
Financing led by JMI Equity and Institutional Venture Partners (IVP). Other participants in the round included previous investors Blumberg Capital and First Round Capital.
NEW YORK, DoubleVerify, the pioneer and worldwide leader in online media verification and compliance, today announced that it received $33 million in financing led by JMI Equity and Institutional Venture Partners (IVP), two of the premier later stage venture capital and private equity firms in the United States focused on investing in rapidly-growing software, Internet and business services companies.

Other participants in the round included previous investors Blumberg Capital and First Round Capital. In conjunction with the financing, Bob Nye of JMI Equity and Dennis Phelps of Institutional Venture Partners have joined the company's board of directors. This investment brings the company's cumulative financing to $47 million.

Since the company's launch in 2008, DoubleVerify has developed the standard for online media verification for advertisers, agencies, ad networks, DSPs, exchanges and publishers. Using its proprietary, patent-pending technology, DoubleVerify has driven accountability and transparency for the online advertising ecosystem by tracking actual delivery of campaigns to verify that they are in compliance with the advertisers' insertion order terms, conditions and buying guidelines. DoubleVerify is utilized by more than 200 of the leading Fortune 500 marketers, all six of the major agency holding companies, and is accepted and integrated with all major publishers and sell-side platforms.

"Despite the growing complexity of online advertising, DoubleVerify has bridged the gap between what advertisers expect and what ad selling channels deliver, raising the accountability, trust and ROI in the industry," said Oren Netzer, CEO of DoubleVerify. "We are excited about the new addition of JMI Equity to our core group of investors. Their pedigree and track record for growing digital media will be an asset in further establishing our leadership in online media verification and will help us drive more innovation in online measurement, advertising accountability and planning to ensure the trust and viability of this segment."

DoubleVerify's growth is exemplified by multiple accomplishments this year:
- DoubleVerify verifies an average of more than 40 billion impressions per month
- The bi-yearly Trust Index highlighted the most compliant ad networks, DSPs and agency trading desks to partner with for buys
- Within the past 12 months, the company has jumped from 30 employees to 160 today, with 50 more being added to offices in New York, Israel, and London by the end of the year

- BrandShield 2.0 for ad blocking and Navigator for ad networks and exchanges represent continued innovation of tools and technology for the variety of companies in the segment

"DoubleVerify created the online media verification category, and has successfully grown to become the leader in that category," said Bob Nye, Vice President at JMI Equity. "The company has been extremely successful in developing and utilizing new solutions to build trust and transparency for companies in the online advertising ecosystem. It has the potential to expand into all aspects of media measurement, accountability and compliance across the globe."

"We have watched DoubleVerify rapidly become a pivotal part of the online advertising ecosystem, creating real accountability and trust among brand marketers, agencies, networks and publishers," said Dennis Phelps, General Partner at Institutional Venture Partners. "We are proud to be part of DoubleVerify's rapid ascent as it brings forth more innovation that benefits all parties in this space."

Verification is now an integral part of many media buys, which is largely driven by DoubleVerify. Advertisers who work with DoubleVerify use its technology to verify virtually every impression in their online advertising campaigns. The company's solutions have become ubiquitous both in the United States and Europe, with more potential expansion into other global regions. The new funding will help fuel DoubleVerify's global growth and allow it to make strategic acquisitions that will help enhance its product set and strengthen its market leadership.

"The online advertising industry is innovating at a much faster rate than most technology segments," said David Bell, former CEO and Chairman of The Interpublic Group and current member of DoubleVerify's Board of Directors. "This is why DoubleVerify's technology and solutions are essential in driving the growth of online advertising, helping it become more efficient and effective through online media verification and compliance."

About DoubleVerify
DoubleVerify (www.doubleverify.com) is the worldwide leader in online media verification and compliance, and the top choice of marketers, agencies, ad networks and publishers looking to ensure brand safety, campaign transparency and regulatory compliance. DoubleVerify verifies over 35 billion advertising impressions per month for hundreds of leading Fortune 500 marketers. DoubleVerify is headquartered in New York City, with sales offices in London and engineering offices in Tel Aviv, Israel. Investors in DoubleVerify include JMI Equity, Institutional Venture Partners, Blumberg Capital, First Round Capital and Genacast Ventures.

About JMI Equity
JMI Equity is a growth equity firm focused on investing in leading software, internet and business services companies. Founded in 1992, JMI Equity has invested in more than 100 businesses in its target markets and has over $2.1 billion of committed capital under management. JMI Equity provides capital for growth, recapitalizations, acquisitions and buyouts. Representative investments include DoubleClick, iContact, Eloqua, Internet Brands, Undertone and ServiceNow. For more information on JMI Equity, visit www.jmiequity.com.

About Institutional Venture Partners (IVP)
With $3 billion of committed capital, Institutional Venture Partners (IVP) is one of the premier later-stage venture capital and growth equity firms in the United States. The partnership is currently investing IVP XIII, a $750 million later-stage fund focused on investments in rapidly growing media and technology companies. Founded in 1980, IVP has invested in over 300 companies, 88 of which have gone public. IVP has a 30 year IRR of 43.2% and is one of the top performing firms in the industry. IVP specializes in venture growth investments, industry rollups, founder liquidity transactions and select public market investments. Since its inception, IVP investments include such notable companies as ArcSight (HPQ), Aspect Communications, ComScore (SCOR), Concur Technologies (CNQR), Danger (MSFT), Digital River (DRIV), HomeAway (AWAY), Juniper Networks (JNPR), Kayak, LegalZoom, LivingSocial, MySQL (ORCL), Netflix (NFLX), Polycom (PLCM), Seagate (STX), Synchronoss (SNCR), Tivo (TIVO), Twitter and Zynga.



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