Israeli online travel startup Fornova has raised $17 million, bringing the total raised since it was founded seven years ago to $20 million. In recent years, the company, which was founded in order to provide a competitive information and analysis ecommerce tool, has concentrated on travel and hospitality. Fornova enables hotels, price comparison websites, and online reservation sites to obtain a full picture of their products in real time.
The financing round was led by Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners (DTCP) with the participation of previous investors with the participation of Waypoint Capital and JAL Ventures.
According to the company, it has developed big data technologies that make it possible to scan, gather, and analyze billions of records from online travel and hotel websites, such as Expedia, and Booking.com.
Fornova's customers include over 13,000 hotels, among them brands such as Hilton and Marriott, as well as leading online reservation companies, such as Booking.com and Expedia.
Fornova CEO Dori Stein said, "The hotel industry is at an inflection point in its struggle to optimize online revenue and drive sales. In spite of the proliferation of new technologies and revenue solutions, hoteliers continue to overlook the fundamentally dynamic nature of the online marketplace."
He added, "As a result, they are missing out on critical insights that can substantially boost their revenue. The tools we have developed enable hoteliers to use advanced technology based on big data in order to change the picture in their favor in real time with an unprecedented degree of accuracy."
Guy Horowitz, a partner in Deutsche Telekom Capital Partners (DTCP) said, "The world of online travel has been undergoing unprecedented changes in recent years, and huge concerns, including the world's biggest hotel chains and leading tourist websites, are being threatened by new players based on technology and ample resources. Fornova provides all players with access to information and insights they currently have no means of obtaining, and the result is a substantial improvement in business results and competitiveness across the entire breadth of the tourism market.
"We're glad to invest in a company that has made diversity in employment its motto. In its offices in Yokne'am and around the world, Jews, Druze, and Muslims; new immigrants and native-born Israelis; women and men; and workers in their 50s and 60s and students all work together. We're proud to be partners in this vision and this journey."
DTCP, a venture capital fund with €500 million raised from communications companies Deutsche Telekom, invests in software companies in marketing, infrastructure, enterprise solutions, and cyber. To date, the fund has invested in Replay Technologies (sold to Intel), Morphisec, SafeBreach, AppsFlyer, FireGlass, and others.
The company's workforce has grown from 70 to 115 over the past year and as well as Israel it has offices in London, Amsterdam, New York and Vinnytsia (Ukraine). The company was founded by CTO Michael Rubanovich and Chief Scientist Dmitry Babitsky.
Published by Globes [online], Israel Business News - www.globes-online.com - on May 2, 2017
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