Sep 3, 2008 : European Fund Backs Highwinds

📅 September 3, 2008 - IP services and content distribution provider Highwinds Network Group (highwinds.com -> stackpath.com) has negotiated equity financing backing from venture capital firm European Founders Fund (europeanfounders.com) for expansion into Europe.


"Highwinds has impressed us with their technological leadership, forward-thinking ideas and ambitious plans for rapidly expanding global market share," European Founders Fund partner Oliver Samwer said in a statement. "Because we invest in entrepreneurs, not just ideas or companies, we are always looking for people in the market who are capable of doing great things. Highwinds' executive team certainly fits the bill, and we are pleased to add Highwinds to our investment portfolio and support the Highwinds team with our network and experience."

The Highlands content delivery network currently spans 23 data centers throughout North America and Europe including Brussels, Frankfurt, London, Paris and Amsterdam locations. The Highlands CDN supports its high-performance, RollingThunder network, and StrikeTracker media manager and reporting dashboard to deliver content, videos and live events globally for many European customers including multimedia company Technicolor by Thomson (technicolor.com).

Germany-based European Founders Fund is focused on investment in young technology companies, having invested in LinkedIn, Jamba! and Facebook in the past.

"Since Highwinds is already a highly profitable and well-capitalized business, the investment is purely strategic as we position Highwinds to establish a greater foothold in Europe," Highwinds president and chief executive officer Steve Miller said in a statement. "We are pleased to be working with European Founders Fund and excited about their support through their local expertise and broad network."

In March 2008, Winter Park, Florida-based Highwinds closed a $55 million round of equity financing led by venture capital firm, General Catalyst Partners (generalcatalyst.com), and private equity firm Alta Communications (altacomm.com) to support its "network infrastructure build-out" of its RollingThunder network over the next five years.