Washington – LivingSocial, the local deals and social
shopping network, has raised $400 million in its latest funding round,
according to The New York Times and Wall Street Journal. The New York Times
reports the latest round values LivingSocial at over $3 billion. Participating
in the round were existing investors Amazon and Lightspeed Venture Partners,
and new investors T. Rowe Price and Institutional Venture Partners, according
to the publications.
The latest funding round comes just months after Amazon
invested $150 million in LivingSocial, which is engaged in a major battle for
market share with rival Groupon.
Both companies offer discounted daily deals
from retailers such as restaurants, spas, museums and gyms.
LivingSocial is
rapidly expanding beyond its traditional daily deals service by offering
discounted travel packages and instant mobile offerings.
Early investors in
LivingSocial include Grotech Ventures, U.S. Venture Partners, Steve Case’s
Revolution, LLC, and Lightspeed Venture Partners.
The company was founded in
2007 by Tim O’Shaughnessy (CEO), Eddie Frederick (President), Aaron Batalion
(CTO) and Val Alekenko (CIO).
The New York Times said LivingSocial now has over
26 million subscribers and is expected to reach 400 markets this year.
Related Links:
http://tinyurl.com/44wjxzl
(NYT)
