Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Globespan adds to Korean social networking firm’s $10M VC fund

By Galen Moore

Globespan Capital Partners has participated with California-based New Enterprise Associates and two Chinese venture firms in a $10 million Series A-1 funding for Nurien Software Co. Ltd., a Seoul, South Korea-based provider of social networking and online gaming services.

The funding, led by Beijing-based Northern Light Venture Capital, adds to the initial $15 million Series A round announced in April 2008. The four original investors, Northern Light, Globespan, New Enterprise and QiMing Venture Partners, all returned to participate in the A-1 round.

Nurien will use the funds for product development, the company said. Nurien provides a 3-D virtual world that includes photo, video and message-sharing capabilities, as well as social applications like a music and dance game, a fashion show application and casual online games.

A beta version was released Sept. 30 in Korea. Full-scale launches are planned for international markets in 2009, the company said in a press release.

Eugene Yoo, a vice president in Globespan’s Palo Alto, Calif., office, represents the Boston-based firm on the Nurien board.