Deca.tv Scores $5M For Online Studio

By Ty McMahan, VentureWire - September 28, 2007

Santa Monica, Calif. - Since Thomas Edison built the first movie studio near his New Jersey laboratories and invited circus performers to pose for his camera, the studio concept has evolved into today's powerful film and television business. Now Deca.tv has raised a $5 million Series A round to take Edison's concept to the digital age.

"The studio model has been around for years," Chief Executive Michael Wayne said. "Now in the online space there are companies trying to make video, but no companies are set up to make actual brands that include video, social media and community."

Mayfield Fund led the round with participation from General Catalyst Partners and Atomico Investments. Allen Morgan, Managing Director at Mayfield; Neil Sequeira, partner at General Catalyst; and Mattias Ljungman, partner at Atomico, have joined the board of directors.

Wayne said the Santa Monica, Calif.-based company, founded this year, is still keeping its full concept under wraps, but stressed that Deca is not a production company. He said the company will provide funding and infrastructure and will have its own studio space with cameras, but will not be consumer facing.

He said some projects will include video and some will not. Content will likely be short and unscripted.

"We tend to focus on formats that are non-scripted, reality or community-driven," Wayne said.

The revenue model will include licensing and advertising, he said. The company plans to make an announcement next week about its first project.

"Many online video companies are trying to create destinations," Wayne said. "Some are creating niche networks. We are not creating networks or destinations. Each one of our properties is its own business."