You.i TV Closes $15M Funding Round to Power the Appification of TV

You.i TV Closes $15M Funding Round to Power the Appification of TV

OTTAWA, Sept. 14, 2015 /PRNewswire/ - You.i TV, a software company that is reinventing how TV operators and programmers build multiscreen applications, today closed a $15 million round of growth capital. The funding was led by Los Angeles-based Kayne Partners, the growth private equity group of Kayne Anderson Capital Advisors, L.P., an alternative investment firm managing over USD $27 billion in assets.

"This is a unique moment in the evolution of television," said Jason Flick, co-founder and CEO of You.i TV. "Even Apple agrees, saying during its tvOS event last week that 'the future of TV is apps.' Everyone in the industry is racing to build direct-to-consumer relationships via applications, but the technical environment is so fragmented that traditional approaches just don't scale. Our You.i Engine is the missing ingredient broadcasters need to launch truly immersive applications on every screen."

You.i TV's product, You.i Engine, is a cross-platform app engine that simplifies and accelerates multi-platform app development. TV companies use it to build a custom app codebase that ties together all their backend technologies, while giving them unprecedented freedom from traditional front-end constraints.

You.i Engine powers beautiful applications across iOS, tvOS, Android, Amazon Fire, Xbox, PlayStation, Roku, Smart TVs and RDK set-top boxes, all with performance well beyond what's possible with HTML5 or native OS approaches. You.i Engine redefines what's possible in TV app design, thanks to a plugin that allows designers to export visual and motion interface designs directly from leading design tools into production code. This is the technology behind game-changing TV applications for clients including Sony Crackle, Rogers, Corus Entertainment, shomi and more.

"The old way of developing TV applications is broken," said Flick. "We've created a new way that allows you to build interfaces that go beyond the traditional design constraints inherent in OS-specific tools. Our growth and successful multi-platform launches for major TV and media brands validate that this technology delivers on its promises."

Less than a year after the launch of You.i TV's first customer-facing app, the company has launched video applications built on You.i Engine for five major brands, including Corus Entertainment and Sony Crackle, with other newsworthy projects underway that are not yet public.

"You.i TV's numerous national awards for profit and growth, as well as our growing roster of clients, clearly demonstrate that our technology is solving a big pain point for the TV industry," he said.

Some of You.i TV's notable projects include:


-- Crackle's Roku app, live on millions of Roku devices
-- The TreehouseGO app on iOS and Android, which hit #1 in the kid's App
Store two weeks after launch
-- shomi's tablet and handset apps featuring equally rich motion
interactions on both iOS and Android, from a single You.i Engine
codebase
This funding will help You.i TV create a channel of partner agencies to build multiscreen applications on You.i Engine SDK. You.i TV's goal is to put the technology into as many hands as possible, because it is truly a revolutionary way to build and maintain multiscreen applications.

About You.i TV

You.i TV is the company behind You.i Engine, a UI framework built on the principles of video-game engines: artist-driven, cross-platform code with GPU-driven performance. Designers work in the tools they love and export directly into You.i Engine, where developers use the You.i Engine SDK to bring the app together with pre-built bridges to popular video backend technologies and common video views. The result is breathtakingly immersive, custom TV apps that run fluidly on every screen - Android, iOS, tvOS, Amazon, Xbox, PlayStation, Roku, Smart TVs, RDK set-top boxes, and many more.



SOURCE inmedia

inmedia

CONTACT: Media contacts: Desirae Odjick, You.i TV, Ph: (613) 228-9107, ext. 342, Email: desirae.odjick@youi.tv; Leo Valiquette, (613) 769-9479, lvaliquette@inmedia.ca

Web Site: www.inmedia.ca


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