Purple Labs revenue up sharply in 2008 H2 following relaunch of browser business
PURPLE LABS REVENUE UP SHARPLY IN 2008 H2 FOLLOWING RELAUNCH OF BROWSER BUSINESS
Mobile Software Vendor Also Announces Closing of 22 Million Euro Series ‘B’ Funding Round
Chamb̩ry, France РPurple Labs, the leading software provider for mass-market mobile phones, reported that its revenue in the second half of 2008 reached 11 million euros, more than four times its revenue in the first half of the year. The company also reported that order intake in the period exceeded 70 million euros, putting it on course to record 50 million euros of revenue in 2009.
Purple Labs revenue growth in the second half of 2008 primarily resulted from the relaunch of its mobile browser and messaging business, after acquiring it in June from Openwave Systems.
“Our revitalisation of the former Openwave business was achieved much faster than we expected,” commented Simon Wilkinson, Purple Labs CEO. “Revenue growth was well ahead of plan. And more importantly, our strong H2 bookings confirmed that mobile phone manufacturers now value Purple Labs as a key supplier.
Included in these bookings were new contracts with two more tier-one mobile phone brands, greatly extending the customer footprint we acquired from Openwave.
As a group, our customers now produce more than 85% of the world’s mobile phones. We aim to deepen these relationships, and we are investing heavily in new product innovation to drive further growth.”
2008 H2 Key Figures (preliminary and unaudited)
•Euro 11 million of revenue in H2, up 350% over H1
•More than Euro 70 million of new orders in H2.
•Ended year with Euro 18 million in cash.
•Cumulative shipments of the Purple Labs browser and messaging applications surpassed 1.8 billion units.
•Total staff grew to 425, up from 80 at end of 2007.
2008 Company Highlights
•In June, acquired industry-leading mobile browser business of Openwave Systems for Euro 19.3 million.
•In July, opened new offices in California, Japan and Taiwan, and expanded office in South Korea.
•Also in July, agreed to acquire mobile applications portfolio and software engineering team of Sagem Wireless, in exchange for Purple Labs shares.
•In September, completed Euro 22 million Series ‘B’ round of funding.
•In December, closed Euro 52.5 million contract to provide software and services to Sagem over 3 years
Purple Labs Transformation Secures 22 Million Euro B-Round
Less than five weeks after closing the Openwave transaction, Purple Labs announced that it had agreed to acquire the mobile applications suite and software engineering team of Sagem Wireless, a French manufacturer that develops phones branded by Sony Ericsson, Orange, Vodafone and other customers. In parallel, the companies entered into a multi-product license and development agreement, under which Purple Labs is providing software and engineering services to Sagem, starting in January.
On the basis of the Openwave and Sagem opportunities, Purple Labs raised 22 million euros in a Series ‘B’ funding round that closed in September. Three European venture capital firms have now participated in both the company’s 2007 ‘A’ round and the 2008 ‘B’ round: Sofinnova Partners, Earlybird Venture Capital and Partners Group.
“The Purple Labs team made remarkable progress in 2008,” said Jean Schmitt, managing partner at Sofinnova. “Given its greatly expanded software portfolio, significant revenue backlog and strong balance sheet, Purple Labs is now ideally positioned for the continued consolidation of the mobile software sector.”
“Over and above their substantial growth, 2008 was a year of dramatic transformation for Purple Labs,” said Roland Manger, managing partner at Earlybird. “Less than twelve months ago the company was a relatively small start-up developing mobile Linux. Today, Purple Labs is clearly one of the world’s leading vendors of mobile software, with a global team serving all of the top five phone manufacturers, and a broad portfolio of applications that is highly valued by KDDI, Vodafone, Orange, KTF and other network operators.”
Purple Labs at Mobile World Congress 2009
Purple Labs will be exhibiting on The Avenue (Stand AV97) at the Mobile World Congress, a premier industry event to be held 16-19 February in Barcelona, Spain. The company will also sponsor the GSMA “Best mobile phone / device” award, the most coveted of the prestigious awards to be announced during the event. Purple Labs invites customers, analysts and journalists to request a meeting at the Mobile World Congress by sending an email to
MWC@purplelabs.com
About Purple Labs
Purple Labs is a world leader in mobile software, including industry-leading browser and messaging applications that have powered more than 1.8 billion phones for the top 5 phone manufacturers and other global customers. The company is the only vendor able to provide complete software solutions for both RTOS and Linux-based mobile devices, including specific applications required by KDDI, Vodafone, Orange, KTF and other network operators.
Purple Labs is a global organisation employing 425 people with offices in France, UK, USA, China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. It is funded by three European venture capital firms: Sofinnova Partners, Earlybird Venture Capital and Partners Group.
For more information, visit
www.purplelabs.com.
Mobile Software Vendor Also Announces Closing of 22 Million Euro Series ‘B’ Funding Round
Chamb̩ry, France РPurple Labs, the leading software provider for mass-market mobile phones, reported that its revenue in the second half of 2008 reached 11 million euros, more than four times its revenue in the first half of the year. The company also reported that order intake in the period exceeded 70 million euros, putting it on course to record 50 million euros of revenue in 2009.
Purple Labs revenue growth in the second half of 2008 primarily resulted from the relaunch of its mobile browser and messaging business, after acquiring it in June from Openwave Systems.
“Our revitalisation of the former Openwave business was achieved much faster than we expected,” commented Simon Wilkinson, Purple Labs CEO. “Revenue growth was well ahead of plan. And more importantly, our strong H2 bookings confirmed that mobile phone manufacturers now value Purple Labs as a key supplier.
Included in these bookings were new contracts with two more tier-one mobile phone brands, greatly extending the customer footprint we acquired from Openwave.
As a group, our customers now produce more than 85% of the world’s mobile phones. We aim to deepen these relationships, and we are investing heavily in new product innovation to drive further growth.”
2008 H2 Key Figures (preliminary and unaudited)
•Euro 11 million of revenue in H2, up 350% over H1
•More than Euro 70 million of new orders in H2.
•Ended year with Euro 18 million in cash.
•Cumulative shipments of the Purple Labs browser and messaging applications surpassed 1.8 billion units.
•Total staff grew to 425, up from 80 at end of 2007.
2008 Company Highlights
•In June, acquired industry-leading mobile browser business of Openwave Systems for Euro 19.3 million.
•In July, opened new offices in California, Japan and Taiwan, and expanded office in South Korea.
•Also in July, agreed to acquire mobile applications portfolio and software engineering team of Sagem Wireless, in exchange for Purple Labs shares.
•In September, completed Euro 22 million Series ‘B’ round of funding.
•In December, closed Euro 52.5 million contract to provide software and services to Sagem over 3 years
Purple Labs Transformation Secures 22 Million Euro B-Round
Less than five weeks after closing the Openwave transaction, Purple Labs announced that it had agreed to acquire the mobile applications suite and software engineering team of Sagem Wireless, a French manufacturer that develops phones branded by Sony Ericsson, Orange, Vodafone and other customers. In parallel, the companies entered into a multi-product license and development agreement, under which Purple Labs is providing software and engineering services to Sagem, starting in January.
On the basis of the Openwave and Sagem opportunities, Purple Labs raised 22 million euros in a Series ‘B’ funding round that closed in September. Three European venture capital firms have now participated in both the company’s 2007 ‘A’ round and the 2008 ‘B’ round: Sofinnova Partners, Earlybird Venture Capital and Partners Group.
“The Purple Labs team made remarkable progress in 2008,” said Jean Schmitt, managing partner at Sofinnova. “Given its greatly expanded software portfolio, significant revenue backlog and strong balance sheet, Purple Labs is now ideally positioned for the continued consolidation of the mobile software sector.”
“Over and above their substantial growth, 2008 was a year of dramatic transformation for Purple Labs,” said Roland Manger, managing partner at Earlybird. “Less than twelve months ago the company was a relatively small start-up developing mobile Linux. Today, Purple Labs is clearly one of the world’s leading vendors of mobile software, with a global team serving all of the top five phone manufacturers, and a broad portfolio of applications that is highly valued by KDDI, Vodafone, Orange, KTF and other network operators.”
Purple Labs at Mobile World Congress 2009
Purple Labs will be exhibiting on The Avenue (Stand AV97) at the Mobile World Congress, a premier industry event to be held 16-19 February in Barcelona, Spain. The company will also sponsor the GSMA “Best mobile phone / device” award, the most coveted of the prestigious awards to be announced during the event. Purple Labs invites customers, analysts and journalists to request a meeting at the Mobile World Congress by sending an email to
MWC@purplelabs.com
About Purple Labs
Purple Labs is a world leader in mobile software, including industry-leading browser and messaging applications that have powered more than 1.8 billion phones for the top 5 phone manufacturers and other global customers. The company is the only vendor able to provide complete software solutions for both RTOS and Linux-based mobile devices, including specific applications required by KDDI, Vodafone, Orange, KTF and other network operators.
Purple Labs is a global organisation employing 425 people with offices in France, UK, USA, China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and Hong Kong. It is funded by three European venture capital firms: Sofinnova Partners, Earlybird Venture Capital and Partners Group.
For more information, visit
www.purplelabs.com.
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