Technology company incubator YouWeb has spawned incredibly successful social and mobile game companies. Now the Burlingame, Calif.-based incubator has raised $2 million in funding for itself.
YouWeb is raising the money from existing investors to help fuel its expansion. The company has also hired ex-Walmart executive and tech veteran Michelle Yee Sangster (right) as senior vice president of business development. Peter Relan, chairman of YouWeb, said in an earlier interview that he was accelerating the pace of investment at YouWeb and was driving faster expansion for YouWeb’s portfolio companies, which include CrowdStar, Sibblingz and iSwifter.
YouWeb already had one exit from its social game portfolio when Japan’s Gree bought OpenFeint for $104 million. Sangster will help drive business development at YouWeb companies such as iSwifter, which streams games and other entertainment to iPads. YouWeb will also expand into non-game markets. Target markets include mobile, commerce and advertising.
Relan said YouWeb’s goal is to create disruptive startups. Sangster has 18 years of experience in consumer media, search, commerce and social media. At Walmart, she was responsible for the company’s @WalmartLabs’ partnerships in social media.
“Michelle has a long history of success in mobile, social media and e-commerce,” said Relan. “Michelle will be integral to YouWeb’s development as it continues to generate disruptive and creative incubations.”
Sangster is a seasoned tech executive with over 18 years of experience in consumer media, search, commerce and social media. Prior to working at YouWeb, Sangster was VP of business development at Walmart where she was responsible for @WalmartLabs’ partnerships in social media.