Update #2 @ 2.42 PM, Wednesday: We have received confirmation that the $25 million round is closed and Accel is indeed leading the round of financing. In addition, Bram emailed us and lets us know that he is still with the company. “I’m still happily here at BitTorrent, and there’s no plans for me to leave,” he wrote to us in an email.
Updated: BitTorrent has signed partnerships with major media companies like 20th Century Fox, Paramount, Starz Media and Comedy Central. These deals with the established media are perhaps a sign why the company is being able to raise more money. Of course, the digital download store is still not open.
Sources say BitTorrent, the company trying to monetize the peer-to-peer distribution software of the same name, is close to raising a substantial round of funding. The round is estimated to be at least $15 million and could be as high as $25 million.
Accel Partners and Doll Capital Management are likely investors in this round, one source tells us.We have not been able to confirm this from more than one source, so please take it with a big grain of salt. BitTorrent spokeswoman Lily Lin emailed us back and said no announcements on any funding.
There is talk about founder and CEO Bram Cohen being replaced by a more seasoned manager, and apparently have hired a head hunter, to lead the search. We have confirmed this information.
BitTorrent previously raised $8.75 million from Doll Capital Management, something we also heard rumored before it happened.
BitTorrent has not yet launched its long-awaited video store. Perhaps this latest funding will boost the company’s e-commerce rollout. BitTorrent spent some of the year announcing truces and partnerships with Hollywood, but it has been quiet lately. We don’t yet have information about the identity of the funders, but we will report back when we know more.
4 trackbacks so far
3:45 AM PT
BitTorrent raised $25m?…
Michael Arrington on TechCrunch and Om Malik on GigaOM reported that they had numerous sources telling BitTorrent raised a substantial round of funding which is in range of at least 15m to 25m. Although Om Malik told his readers that he could not confi…
11:44 AM PT
11.29.06: BitTorrent snags $25m, founder Cohen is out as CEO…
By Richard Koman for SiliconValleyWatcher Om Malik reports that BitTorrent has raised $15 to $25 million in venture funding. But that big investment comes at a cost: Founder Bram Cohen is on his way out as CEO. Following up on Om’s lead, Michael Arrin…
8:02 AM PT
[...] of one of BitTorrent’s co-foudners, and inventor of the technology. According to Giga OM, BitTorrent Inc is replacing Bram Cohen with a more experienced manager. The Silicon Valley-based blog is reporting that a head hunter has [...]
8:27 AM PT
[...] management changes had been a long time in the making, and we’d mentioned them previously, but the company denied them until now. In fact, when we visited BitTorrent [...]
10 comments so far
8:45 PM PT
Wow… $34M… think of all the CDs I can buy with that kind of cash!
1:09 AM PT
bitTorrent is dead. check out tamago.us they’re up and running with no funding, and making some bank. bit-torrent just wasted 8 million, doesn’t even have a product out, and no one uses it anymore; most people just use GrabIt to download movies from news groups. I know most of you guys can’t code, but bitTorrent’s technology ain’t special…its just the linux freaks who think everything should be free and love bram use it…like that Pirate Bay group in Sweden.
3:07 PM PT
“There is talk about founder and CEO Bram Cohen being replaced by a more seasoned manager, and apparently have hired a head hunter, to lead the search. We have confirmed this information.”
You should have asked Lily to confirm whether Bram was leaving BitTorrent. It seems like the consensus is shifting towards no…
3:46 PM PT
bob, we have seen documents which outline that the company is seeking a new CEO. However, as Bram suggests, he is staying with the company. Perhaps in another role. Or as a co-CEO. Frankly, at this point, lets wait and watch what is going to unfold.
6:15 PM PT
Bram should be the Bittorent CTO and Chairman\Founder .
7:58 AM PT
“bob, we have seen documents which outline that the company is seeking a new CEO.”
Really? Let’s see them. Bram is saying he’s staying aboard as CEO and is not leaving BitTorrent. Why should we take your word over his, and over all the other news sources that dispute your claim?
9:01 AM PT
Bob,
you don’t have to take my word for anything. entirely your call on this. however, when the future will unfold, and we will see what happens.
1:08 PM PT
Bram is a hacker of the first rank, like Steve Wozniak. Why should he waste his time managing people when he can be more valuable to the company doing technical work? It would clearly be irrational. When you found a company, you have to do a wide range of things, but you shouldn’t necessarily have to keep doing them permanently.
3:43 AM PT
Gee, I used to love BitTorrent, can’t believe it’s gone comercial.
8:11 AM PT
Damn thats a lot of loot, ill just keep it real and stick with (link)
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