|
The
Carnegie Fund is supported by the Australian
Government through the Innovation
Investment Fund (IIF) program, an initiative
that provides venture capital to innovative
companies at seed, start-up or early expansion
stage. This is the first investment
by the Carnegie Fund in the technology
sector.
Winged
Media's offerings include a number of internet
products and services focused on digital media,
online advertising, domain assets and online
publishing, but the company has recently become
especially well known for the innovative new Protrada
platform that I
wrote about in July.
|
|
In fact the
new money the Carnegie Fund invested
will be used primarily in the further
development of the Protrada platform
that is currently operating in beta
mode. Protrada
says it is the world’s first
aggregator of major domain auction
houses - one
|
|
that
provides members with the data and
tools to buy, build and sell
domains automatically from within
the platform. Protrada currently
manages more than 150,000
domains. |
|
|
Troy
Rushton
Winged Media Founder
& CEO |
Winged
Media CEO and Founder Troy Rushton
said, "Winged
Media has developed the IP and tools to
make domaining easy for both the expert
and the first time investor. We understand
the strategies it takes to secure a
domain, how to create traffic and monetize
that site in the shortest possible time
frame.”
Rushton
added, “We are delighted with the
investment from the Carnegie Fund and how
this will further help us roll out the
Protrada platform. Together we believe we
can push the boundaries of the technology
and entrepreneurial capabilities of the
team, showcasing Winged Media’s IP in an
easy-to-use domain trading service."
M.H.
Carnegie & Co. Principal Mark
Carnegie noted, “Domaining has increased
its momentum throughout 2011, with
activity levels outperforming the NASDAQ
during key periods. With the
introduction of the Winged Media IP into the
domain trading experience, |
|
we
believe that the sector will continue to
develop and be acknowledged as an emerging
asset class. We are excited about our
investment with Winged Media." |
The Winged Media/Protrada team's visibility has
increased dramatically over the past year. They
had a strong presence at the 2011
T.R.A.F.F.I.C.
conference that concluded at Fort
Lauderdale Beach, Florida two weeks ago with
both Rushton and Business Development Manager Louise
Munck there to fill fellow attendees in on
the company's offerings.
Winged
Media
Business Development Manager Louise Munck
chatting with Name Media's
Marketplace General Manager & Senior VP Jason
Miner at the 2011 T.R.A.F.F.I.C.
conference.
Louise
told me that she and her Winged Media/Protrada
colleagues will also be at the DOMAINfest
Global conference that will kick off
the 2012 show season in late January in Santa
Monica, California, a city that also happens
to be home to Winged Media's U.S. office.
|
