DoubleRecall, Inc., the YCombinator (YC) backed startup that replaces paywalls with simple, Captcha-like messages, today announced it had received $1.6 million in funding from investors in Silicon Valley.
The company launched its fundraising efforts at YCombinator Demo Day in August, and closed the year with revenue of $300,000.
Investors include YCombinator, Start Fund, SV Angel, Digital Garage, Itochu Ventures, Mentor Equity and TEEC Angel.
Campaigns ran over Q4 of 2011 using DoubleRecall’s technology showed: An 82% engagement rate vs. 1-3% on paywalls; An average Click Through Rate of of 3.6% vs. 0.01% on banners; and An average 11x higher brand awareness vs. banners.
“We are excited to get this vote of confidence from a group of excellent, knowledgeable investors,” said Robert Farazin, CEO of DoubleRecall. “Our preliminary campaigns prove that DoubleRecall offers a simple, innovative way to turn your content into a revenue generator, making the whole content ecosystem happier. Advertisers know what they are paying for, publishers monetize better and readers don’t have to fight a paywall to access their favorite content.’
DoubleRecall opened its headquarters in New York City in February and is currently hiring. DoubleRecall already has an established presence in Japan and Europe.
About DoubleRecall
DoubleRecall is a new brand advertising platform for the web. It helps publishers provide great content without a paywall, while making even more revenue. DoubleRecall also simply and unobtrusively allows advertisers to increase brand recall. The cool bonus is the social piece that allows the user to engage or tweet directly with the brand advertisers. No more annoying banner ads or paywalls for consumers to muck up the digital experience. Founded in January 2011, Double Recall is headquartered in New York City with offices in Japan and Europe.
