Cleeng, the Dutch startup focused on allowing publishers to charge for parts of their content as an alternative to a complete paywall, has announced a €400,000 ($511,600) funding round led by former Apple VP and General Manager for Europe, Middle East, India and Africa, Pascal Cagni.
The round, which also involves a number of private angel investors, will be used to fuel the company’s expansion into the US.
Launched in 2011 (and winner of Best B2B startup at the TNW Conference Startup Rally the same year!), Cleeng lets publishers place partial ‘paywalls’ on pieces of content. So, a reader could perhaps read the first half of an article for free, before optionally paying for the rest, or a written article could be free with a charge to watch an accompanying video, for example.
Why has Cagni got involved? Since leaving Apple in May this year, he has shifted his attention to venture capital. Of Cleeng, he says in a quote in today’s press release: “The opportunity to offer a simple, straightforward, robust solution to monetize content, being TV programs, videos, or live events is simply huge and this is exactly what Cleeng is doing, very well… Their success so far is remarkable and knowing the Cleeng team inside and out, I believe they are uniquely positioned to further harness this transfer value and to fully benefit from this opportunity.”
Cleeng has already built up a client base in Europe and the US that takes in the likes of Dailymotion, Condé Nast, VentureBeat, La Tribune and GDS International. The new money will allow it expand its reach further into the United States while bolstering company infrastructure and customer support.
Image credit: AFP / Getty Images
Get the TNW newsletter
Get the most important tech news in your inbox each week.