ManiaTV, a Web-based interactive TV service which offers live streams and on-demand content targeted at the youth market, and which derives revenues from advertising (it anticipates that it will post revenues of around $7 million in the course of the coming year), has secured $12 million in second-round funding. The participants in the funding round were Centennial Ventures, Intel Capital, and previous investor, Benchmark Capital. The new round brings the total funds raised by the company to date, since its launch in September, 2004, to $17 million. The company plans to invest in developing new programming and building out its infrastructure. It also plans to expand its employee rolls.
ManiaTV currently offers a mix of music videos, short films, action sports coverage, video games, cartoons, and what it terms "news with a twist." Its linear channels are hosted by "cyberjockeys," with whom viewers can interact via Webcam, chat and other methods. Viewers can also submit their own video content for broadcast.
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