10% Stake Taken in FootFall Ltd

NewMedia SPARK PLC 17 April 2000 NewMedia SPARK invests £1,200,000 for a 10% stake in FootFall Ltd, as part of a £5m investment alongside Quester, Advent Venture Partners and Abbey National Treasury Services NewMedia SPARK plc ('SPARK') announces that it has invested £1,200,000 in FootFall Ltd as lead investor of a £5m funding. The other members of the investor syndicate are Quester VCT 2 plc, Quester VCT 3 plc, Advent Venture Partners and Abbey National Treasury Services and Enterprise VCT. Key Points: * FootFall is a leading global supplier of people counting technology and data to the shopping centre and retail industry and has numerous blue-chip clients. * FootFall was founded in 1991 by John Gallagher and Brian Barnes, who had spotted a gap in this market for the accurate reporting of consumer movement and related data services. * FootFall installs miniaturised video cameras in discreet locations within shopping centres and retail spaces and collates the data from these cameras via the Internet. Footfall uses this data to produce accurate reports and industry benchmarks. This information is valuable to landlords and retail managers and has many applications, including among others, income maximisation, strategic planning, cost management and rent setting * FootFall supplies over 50% of the computerised counting solutions in the UK Shopping Centre market, is the largest supplier of counting solutions in Europe and has installed the five largest counting systems in the world * FootFall has made installations throughout the UK and across Europe, Israel, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Dubai, Australia and New Zealand. * FootFall has never raised outside funding before and has been profitable every year since launch. Andrew Carruthers, COO of SPARK, will join the board as a Non- Executive director. Commenting on this investment, he said: 'We are particularly impressed with FootFall s management and their achievement in dominating the European market for counting solutions without any form of outside financing. We believe the market for counting data is still in its infancy and that FootFall is well positioned to provide defacto industry standard benchmarks.' Commenting on this investment, John Gallagher, Managing Director of FootFall, said: 'We are delighted to have attracted such a prestigious group of investors who we believe will add considerable value to our business. FootFall now has the firepower to create the first globally recognised industry benchmarks and we shall continue to expand our business both internationally and throughout the portfolios of our existing clients.' For further information, please contact: NewMedia SPARK Andrew Carruthers Tel No: 0207 851 7777 Buchanan Communications Lisa Baderoon Tel No: 0207 466 5000 On behalf of Advent Venture Partners Vanessa Anderson / Liz Ware / Tariq Haq Tel No: 020 7253 2252 NOTES TO EDITORS: NewMedia SPARK NewMedia SPARK plc, listed on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market, is one of Europe's leading listed technology and Internet investment companies. SPARK is building a portfolio of investments in early-stage companies in the UK, Scandinavia and elsewhere in Europe and the United States. Based principally in London and Stockholm, SPARK has one of the largest and most experienced teams in Europe, with skills ranging from investment banking to active involvement in the formation and running of new media companies. Our portfolio spans the following sectors: * Internet transaction platforms * Interactive entertainment * Wireless infrastructure and applications * Web infrastructure tools * Internet content and commerce Advent Venture Partners Advent Venture Partners (www.adventventures.com) is an independent technology venture capitalist specialising in investing in technology and healthcare companies in the UK and Continental Europe. It is headquartered in London. Advent Venture Partners and its associates currently have total funds under management of £180 million and it typically invests between £500,000 and £7 million in each of its investments. Since 1981, Advent Venture Partners has invested in over 140 unquoted companies in the UK, Europe and the US, with some 32 going public.
UK 100

Latest directors dealings