PlaySpan Raises $18M For European, Asian Expansion

In-game commerce network PlaySpan secured $18 million in a new round of funding, which it will put toward its expansion into Europe and Asia, and growing its global publisher network and userbase. This Series C investment round was led by Vodafone Ventures and Softbank Bodhi Fund -- the latter is a subsidiary of Japanese telecommunications/media corporation Softbank, which has invested heavily (more than $200 million) in social gaming firms like RockYou and Zynga in the past year. Several previous backers also participated in this new financing round, including Menlo Ventures, Novel TMT Ventures, STIC, and other undisclosed investors. To date, PlaySpan has secured a total of some $42 million in funding since the Silicon Valley-headquartered company opened in 2006. The company's monetization solutions have been implemented in more than 1,000 online games, social networks, and online videos. Its in-game digital goods commerce and micropayment platform is designed to help publishers and developers "generate new revenues, acquire new users, and extend the loyalty of existing users". Its UltimatePay platform currently offers 85 global payment methods in 180 countries, and its prepaid Ultimate Game Card is available in over 48,000 retail locations across North American and other territories. PlaySpan has offices in Ohio, Virginia, and Mumbai. "Over the last few years, PlaySpan has emerged as the undisputed global market leader in the monetization platform category, and we continue to drive new innovations in the payments and ecommerce space that has spurred new high-growth business models," says PlaySpan CEO and founder Karl Mehta. He adds, "It is a testament to our market-leading position, demonstrated growth, and the fast-growing digital goods micro-transactions space, that we have raised another significant round from top investors."