Carmel Ventures

Beijing, China and San Jose, California, October 1^st, 2009 – C2 Microsystems Inca leading developer of media processors designed to deliver rich media content from online sources to the living room, announced today that it raised $10 million in a follow-on investment round. Carmel Ventures led this round with participation from existing investors, China Israel Venture Capital (CIVC), Shenzhen Venture Capital Group and Mover Enterpriser. .,

C2 Microsystems is based in China with offices in Beijing, San Jose and Taipei. Founded in 2004, the Company has developed a low cost, highly integrated system-on-chip (SoC) that enables delivery of high definition video content from the internet to consumers’ televisions at a lower price than any other solution. 

As the internet continues to revolutionize the creation and consumption of video, consumer-driven programming is replacing the tradition of broadcasters deciding what programming should be aired when. Today, the challenge is to deliver any content, any time, any place, and on any device, and C2 Microsystems has developed a solution to help meet that challenge.  Its technology allows users to experience virtually infinite content from the web, with high definition quality and the ease of use and social experience of television. 

President and CEO of C2 Microsystems Jinxiang (Gene) Liu, Ph.D. commented, “We are very pleased to have Carmel, a top-tier VC fund with extensive experience and ecosystem in the On-line Video industry, lead this round of investment. The new funds provide the Company the resource to solidify its leading position in the fast ramping up Internet TV market. We plan to use this fund on new technology and product development, customer support, and operations."

"The On-line Video is a key area of investment for Carmel Ventures. The convergence of video content from the internet and traditional TV sources is an emerging worldwide trend,” added Mr. Ori Bendori, General Partner of Carmel Ventures. "China, with the fastest growing economy in the world and rapidly growing video consumption, presents a huge market opportunity for C2 Microsystems’ solution. This investment follows our strategy to invest outside of Israel, jointly with a trusted partner, when we recognize an outstanding team and huge potential in an area that falls within our fields of expertise. That’s exactly the case of C2 Microsystems.”

With over $600 million currently under management, several successful exits, and a growing portfolio of promising start-ups, Carmel is among Israel’s top-tier venture capital funds. Carmel’s investments are focused primarily on early stage companies in the fields of Software, Communications, Internet, Media, Semiconductors, and Consumer Electronics.  Founded in 2000 by pioneers and leaders of the Israeli high tech industry, Carmel provides significant capital and active, hands-on support through the growth cycle of its portfolio companies and is recognized as a true company building fund in Israel. Carmel, headquartered in Herzliya, Israel enjoys a worldwide network of industry, strategic and investment resources.

Carmel is an affiliate of the Viola Partners Group, a leading innovative private equity investment group with close to $2B under management focused on technology-based investment opportunities in Israel.  For more information, visit www.carmelventures.com.