Jinni Media Ltd. continues to benefit from support from Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG), following the integration of its semantic video search engine was incorporated into Google TV. Jinni has raised $5 million in its second financing round from Belgian telecom operator Belgacom NV/SA (Euronext: BELG) and a leading television manufacturer, whose name it did not disclose, and current Israeli investor DFJ Tamir Fishman Ventures Ltd. (TASE: TFVC).
Current investor Start-Up Factory did not participate in the second financing round. Jinni has raised $9.5 million altogether, including the present round.
Jinni CEO Yosi Glick and Itzik Ben-Zaken founded the company in 2007. The company is nicknamed the "Pandora for movies". It developed an online video search and recommendation engine for finding movies, television shows, and video clips based on users' preferences. The technology is based on semantic capabilities to filter the rich content offered on the Internet and television. The movie search function is based on keywords describing the viewing experience.
Jinni will present its software at the CES electronics show in Las Vegas, which opens today. The company will demonstrate how its search engine can be integrated with content providers, such as Netflix Inc. (Nasdaq: NFLX), Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN), and Hulu. Jinni will also present an application that turns an iPhone or iPad into a smart television remote.
Jinni has been operating beneath investors' radar since it was founded, although it made news in May 2010 with its collaboration with Google. Jinni provides Google TV with semantic search capability, personalized recommendations, and social features.
Although Google TV's future is still in doubt, because of Google's difficulties in finding a content provider partner, the collaboration put Jinni on the radar scope, partly on assessments that if the collaboration succeeds, Google might acquire it.
Published by Globes [online], Israel business news - www.globes-online.com - on January 6, 2011
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