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Telecommunications Investors warm to hotspot access provider Boingo
Telecommunications Investors warm to hotspot access provider Boingo | Investors warm to hotspot access provider Boingo |
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| Written by Stuart Corner | |
| Thursday, 17 August 2006 | |
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Boingo Wireless, which provides access via tens of thousands of hotspots around the world has raised $US65 million in a series C funding round and says it will use the funds for working capital and to finance the recent acquisition of Concourse Communications. Boingo's last capital raising was in 2003 and the company says it expects this to be its final private equity funding, $US95 million in total. David Hagan, president and CEO of Boingo Wireless, said: "The funding we've raised will allow us to strengthen our position as a global brand leader in Wi-Fi, and take advantage of new opportunities that we believe will surface in this dynamic market sector." Boingo claims "the largest aggregated Wi-Fi network in the world, coupled with best-in-class software solutions for both laptops and portable devices." Boingo claims to have invented "the world's most powerful software for discovering and connecting to hot spots and 3G wireless networks." In Australia it offers access through 376 hotspots, many of them those operated by Azure Wireless. Rival iPass last month negotiated access to 1000 hotspots operated by Telstra. Many of these are in McDonalds restaurants, providing coverage in many otherwise unserved regional centres. In addition to providing a roaming service to end users, Boingo's technology is used by carriers and ISPs to support roaming services with a carrier-branded software interface. The series C funding was led by Mitsui & Co – with new investors Mitsui Corporate Development Funds of Mitsui & Co and Mitsui & Co (USA) participating. Other new investors include Steelpoint Capital Partners and Red Rock Ventures. Roy Thiele-Sardiña, managing director of Steelpoint, will join the Boingo board. Mitsui described Boingo as "one of the strongest investments in our venture portfolio, and it continues to be an attractive investment opportunity as it enters the growth-capital stage."
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