Sina launches $30 mln micro-blogging fund with five VCs
Shanghai. November 17. INTERFAX-CHINA - Leading Chinese Web portal Sina Corp. announced on Nov. 16 that it will collaborate with five venture capital (VC) firms to launch a new RMB 200 million ($30 million) fund focused on micro-blogging.
Sina will invest RMB 100 million ($15 million) while the five VC firms - Sequoia Capital, IDG Capital, Innovation Works, Yunfeng Fund and Draper Fisher Jurvetson - will contribute RMB 20 million ($3 million) each.
The fund will invest in businesses and individual software developers involved in micro-blogging services, including mobile-based apps, location-based services and social networking games, the announcement said.
As of October 2010, Sina's own micro-blogging platform has amassed 50 million users since launching in August last year. An average of 25 million micro-blog posts were made every day with 38 percent sent from mobile devices, according to a separate Nov. 16 announcement by Sina.
Major foreign-owned mico-blogs, such as Twitter and Tumblr, are blocked in China.
-YXY