Overdog, Inc, today announced that it has closed a $1.8 million round of financing, which was co-led by Boston-based Atlas Venture and Chicago Ventures. The round also includes Zynga Founder, Mark Pincus, and Machinima Founder, Allen Debevoise, along with United Talent Agency, Mountain Group Capital and several existing angels. Chicago Ventures' Stuart Larkins has joined Overdog's Board of Directors.
'We couldn't be happier with the make up of our investor group,' Overdog CEO Steve Berneman said. 'Two venture firms with proven track records and a great group of strategic angels position Overdog well as we revolutionize online gaming.'
OverDog next month launches its first app into the highly-selective Xbox One Marketplace. The Overdog app matches gamers based on shared interests in sports, music, movies, gaming, celebs, and websites with the goal of finding better teammates and opponents for online gamers. Among the 50 native apps in the new-gen console, OverDog's will be the first from a start-up and the first to connect to other apps on the console.
Said Overdog CTO Brian Corrigan, 'Online matchmaking needs to catch up to online gaming. Who you play with should matter more than it currently does, and ability shouldn't be the only factor in selecting an online match. Overdog believes we can add that layer of context across all gaming, starting with the Xbox One.'
Team:
Overdog has continued to attract world-class talent to build its matchmaking technology. After a stint as a consultant, former Major League Gaming CTO Brian Corrigan recently joined OverDog as Chief Technologist. Another key recent addition is OverDog Director of User Acquisition, Eric Doty, formerly a lead strategist at Xbox focused on Xbox Live community and content. Thomas Bernstein, formerly of Amex and Accenture, remains the Company's Chief Product Officer.
About OverDog
Overdog was founded by Steve Berneman and Hunter Hillenmeyer. Prior to Overdog, Steve worked in sports for nearly a decade before going back to school for his JD/MBA and becoming an M&A attorney focused on high-tech growth. Hunter had an 8-year career as a linebacker for the Chicago Bears, retiring in 2010. During his playing days, Hunter served on the board of the NFL Players' Association and obtained his MBA from Kellogg. The two started the 8-person company in Nashville in 2012.