Gigle Raises $20M for "Any Wire" Multimedia Home Networking

Gigle Semiconductor, the developer of “any wire” multimedia home networking solutions, today announced that it has
received $20 million in Series B funding.

The round was led by a new investor, SEP. Existing investors, Accel Partners and Pond Venture Partners, also participated. The new funding will be used to support the development and launch of the company’s next-generation multimedia home networking solutions.

“The level of investment and the quality of our investors is a huge vote of confidence in the company, its technology, and its people“, said Juan Carlos Riveiro, president and CEO of Gigle. “The investment will enable us to deliver on our promise of a home networking solution that provides vastly more reliable wholehome network coverage than the best solutions available today, an essential requirement for consumer acceptance”

This important funding milestone may be viewed against the backdrop of an industry which is rapidly gaining momentum. In recent months the market for multimedia home networking has taken significant steps towards the formation of a true standards-driven mass market. This is evidenced by the recent announcement that the joint proposal submitted by HomePlug® Powerline Alliance member companies and Panasonic®, is the sole MAC/PHY proposal remaining in the IEEE P1901 work group process for creating an international standard for in-home and access powerline communication technologies. Gigle is a strong advocate and leading participant in developments towards the IEEE powerline communications standard and the ITU any wire home multimedia communications standard, both of which are set to be confirmed in 2008.

Consumers will benefit through widespread adoption of compatible network devices for applications such as high-definition and standard-definition internet protocol television (IPTV), cable and satellite installations, multi-room digital video recorder (DVR) networking, and on-line and networked console and PC video game connections.

Stuart Paterson, a partner in SEP’s information technology group joins the board of directors. Stuart brings a wealth of experience in rapid-growth semiconductor companies, having previously served on the board of Cambridge Silicon Radio (LSE: CSR). SEP was a founder investor in Wolfson Microelectronics (LSE: WLF). Stuart said “We are very impressed with the team at Gigle and the progress they have made in bringing their world-beating technology to market. SEP has a strong track record of investment in successful semiconductor companies, and we are confident that Gigle will follow the same model of success."

Kent Godfrey, senior partner at Pond Venture Partners said “We had no hesitation in following our initial investment in Gigle. In our opinion, Gigle is the only company that has assembled all the ingredients necessary to deliver a truly global solution for communicating high definition video around the home. The potential is enormous”.


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