Om Malik’s GigaOm has raised another round of financing – $4.5 million – bringing the total amount the blog network has raised to $5.3 million. This round was led by Alloy Ventures. Previous investor True Ventures joined the round as well.
GigaOm, one of the first blog networks to raise money, has joined b5Media, Silicon Alley Insider, VentureBeat and Paid Content (acquired), among others, in raising capital. Holdout ReadWriteWeb is said to be testing the waters and looking for a round of funding as well. This is something I’ve recommended against, and we are one of the last large blog networks to remain independent.
Still, I can’t blame Om’s reasons for raising the round – aggressive expansion, software development and a nest egg for troubled financial times ahead. Congrats to him and his team, particularly newly promoted CEO Paul Walborsky.
Why do people congratulate funding rounds? Only in the valley I guess…
congratulations are always in order. you now have fuel in the tank of your rocket – you get a swing at making your dream come true. how cool is that?
and it is a wonderful thing to not have to worry about how to meet payroll in a few weeks or months. and believe me, it comes to that all to often – although I’m not implying that was remotely the case at GigaOm.
also, it often means you can now do nice things for staff who have been working darn hard for low pay
finally, these deals are never ever done until the money is in the bank.
“congratulations” is usually an understatement….
you’re just upset because he wouldn’t partner with you
Om will be able to hire all sorts of talent as the established media companies shrink their payrolls. It can develop video content and build out its events.
I don’t think you accepting money from sponsors is any different from Om taking a round of financing. Either way, you’re still getting money from other sources, whether you disclose them or not.
the difference is you don’t give up stock for advertisers.
“the difference is you don’t give up stock for advertisers.” – well, this logic stands if there is enough advertisers to cover the expenses…..
You also lose control, editorial voice, and ownership.
Why should he listen to your advice Mike, I am sure Om is up for something, huge expansion or a doom…
he should only listen to my advice if he chooses to do so.
I’d like to request that our humorless european readers go on with their day now, and let the U.S. readers, who understand my quirky sense of humor, take over the comments for a while.
I can’t go on with my day in Torino without ya Michael
re: humorless Europeans
I actually burst out laughing. Which is good because I was crying a few minutes before watching CNBC.
ace
don’t tar us all with the same brush, you lived in the uk so you should know the brits invented a sense of humour :p
I’m American and I don’t see any humour here.
US guys taking over comments will be much worse, don’t forget the financial crisis.
Mike, you and Sarah Palin should team up for a Saturday night show, you’re both so funny it makes me cry. This and the state of your socialist-to-be financial markets…
if you’re American, why did you spell humor incorrectly? Sneaky Brits.
Wow. Congrats to Om and the GigaOm crew. But also congrats to Mike and the TC crew for still staying independent.
-Andrew
Smart hedge by GigaOM. For TC’s sake, I hope such a move proves unnecessary.
I just never had a reason why a blog should receive any financing round. I guess Om is doing OK with the sponsors to take care of the payrolls.
Just like Saagar said, he might be up for something ot total doom. Either way, I wish him good luck!
putting “ignores my advice” as leadin for the title is insulting and disrespectful, consider editing that….it smacks of arrogance and considering that startups you’ve been personally involved with are shitting the bed left and right, i conside your advice on funding and development relatively useless
People shoud chill out a bit. Mike and Om are good friends and it was meant as a friendly humorous dig. Headlines like this are what make blogs more fun than plain press releases.
yep.
lol @ investment advice.
Sure it’s easy to say against taking in VC cash when you’ve ‘made it’ already…
but if you were in their shoes, and they’re kind of smaller than you, then yes – you’d decide to take VC cash for a faster, bigger growth attempt
I am going to side with Om here, this is probably the last chance to grab cash for the next year or so. If he was going to raise capital in the next 18 months, now was the only shot.
And besides, it was not a giant round, I expect they received favorable terms/kept control. Om is a smart guy, he’ll use the cash wisely.
I think this is a wise move, with all the uncertainty its good to hedge your bet. Sure you suffer dilution but the other option is to potential go to zero if things get real bad. Strong balance sheet is important now especially since the credit market is at the root of all our problems.
Congrats to Om, well deserved
Is it true you offered Om $50 to blog for the first 3 months?
lolz… rofl….
Private Ownership FTW!
The entanglements of corporate agendas can often pollute the goals, intentions, values, etc… of a company or entity… sacrificing the things that matter.
A private owner can do whatever they want, whenever they want, without having to answer to anybody (read: stockholders).
I’m with you, Mike. Private funding is an amazing immediate return and accelerates growth incredibly, but at what cost? I would much rather prefer the private freedoms.
And when funding is 4.5 Million… you can bet GigaOM now has a laundry list of people they need to “answer to” when making whatever decisions they have up and coming.
I see both sides of raising or not raising cash. a) valuation may be less next month forcing him to give up more. b) some additional cash may assist in the industry consolidation we’re about to experience c) hold tight, cut overhead, weather the storm and come out a industry leader without giving up ownership. Mike, where would you put 4.5? I assume, leave alot liquid?
I’d put in in my pocket, and then buy a big boat.
wow, congrats
http://gatesand...s.blogspot.com/
As anyone who follows our company knows, I’m a *huge* fan of staying independent, so kudos to Mike and the team.
I gotta warn you, though, Mike – for some reason most of the press ignores Valley businesses that haven’t done any rounds, regardless of results. I suppose if you *are* the press it may be different…
Pleeeeeeeaaaasssssee!!
Don’t talk about being independent!
Instead, let’s talk about one of your biggest sponsor at TC50 and his connections with the winner?
^^^
this.
Merge of blogs is hot trend in last years. Content sites try to survive against service sites. I wonder when will blogs stop to become a rising star in industry.
Good looking offices don’t come cheap I suppose:
http://www.offi...ategory/gigaom/
We just have style, and that doesn’t always have to come at a huge pricetag.
Cash in the bank now means you don’t have to sell for pennies on the dollar in next year’s economy.
Congrats to GigaOm indeed; they fully deserve it. They’ve been on the market for seven years now. Or better, substitute the word “market” with a “playground” bcs GigaOm has been fooling around for seven years now, and there are VCs who still want to pump money into it! Wow! Have the guys at Alloy Venture ever read a spreadsheet? Does GigaOm have any?