Marketing startup has raised $21 million in its series D funding round, which started in October.
BY JACOB PALMER | OB DIGITAL NEWS EDITOR
Portland-based startup Urban Airship continues to rake in investment money.
The company announced Friday that it has raised $9 million in addition to the $12 million it secured earlier in its series D funding round.
OregonLive.com reported on the specifics of the deal:
Participants in the new round include prior Urban Airship backers August Capital, Foundry Group, True Ventures and Verizon Ventures. New investors are Franklin Park Associates and QuestMark Partners.
Urban Airship also hired a new chief marketing officer, Erin Hintz, who had previously been a vice president of marketing and e-commerce at Citrix. Urban Airship chief executive Brett Caine was Citrix Online’s president before joining the Portland company in October.
The Portland Business Journal reported on what the company did next:
Brent Hieggelke, the company’s previous CMO, is moving into a new position called chief mobile evangelist. In this new role Hieggelke will work with customers, app developers, agency partners and other mobile platforms on innovation and new projects.
“With today’s executive appointments we’re expanding our leadership capacity to focus more deeply on our customers and the market as we scale our business globally,” said CEO Brett Caine in a written statement. “We’re bringing on executives with strong, proven leadership to drive mobile-first innovations that re-imagine customers’ mobile experiences and the business results they achieve for our customers.”
GlobeSherpa adds Los Angeles, Phoenix as clients
The mobile ticketing provider for TriMet in Portland is expanding its client list.
The app is now operational in Los Angeles and Phoenix, the Portland Business Journal reports:
In L.A., the GlobeSherpa project works for the LADOT’s bus systems and is similar to GlobeSherpa’s TriMet app in the Portland region. Riders create a profile that attaches a credit or debit card and then tickets can be purchased through the app.
“The LADOT project is important as a foothold in L.A.,” said Mac Brown, GlobeSherpa director of communications. “Getting it out and launched gives us exposure down there. We are seeing people download and start to use it.”
In Phoenix, GlobeSherpa is touting its RideKick app that aides public transit users in planning a trip, but the city’s transit agency has not yet allowed for mobile ticketing.
Chairman of Lee Enterprises, Inc. stresses continued digital growth
In the Willamette Valley, the chairman and president of Lee Enterprises, Inc. — Mary Junck — addressed stockholders Wednesday.
In that meeting, she stressed the importance of continued digital growth.
The Corvallis Gazette Times reports:
“Our audiences remain massive. We will continue to aggressively grow digital revenue, maintain our cash flow, and reduce our debt,” she told the crowd gathered at Lee’s downtown Davenport headquarters.
Junck said Lee’s strong cash flow is enabling it to aggressively reduce its debt. In the 12 months ended in December, Lee had reduced its debt by $80 million, including $32 million borrowed to pay 2014 refinancing costs. It has repaid another $12 million since the end of the fiscal quarter. Kevin Mowbray, Lee’s vice president and chief operating officer, said Lee continues to grow digital revenue at “an accelerated pace.” Lee saw 17 percent growth in total digital revenue in fiscal 2014 and 26 percent growth in digital revenues for first quarter of 2015. “We are keenly focused on driving digital advertising revenue and continuing to build on that expertise,” he told shareholders.
