Battery News
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Battery Ventures Expands Silicon Valley Investment Team
VeriSign’s Matt Niehaus Joins as Partner; Google’s Satya Patel Joins as Senior Associate
WALTHAM, MA and MENLO PARK, CA; May 2, 2007 – Battery Ventures, a venture capital and private equity firm focused on investing in technology and innovation worldwide, today announced two additions to the investment team in its Silicon Valley office. Matt Niehaus, most recently Director, Strategic Development at VeriSign (NASDAQ: VRSN) has joined as a Partner. He will concentrate on investing in communications services and infrastructure technologies. Satya Patel joins Battery from Google (NASDAQ: GOOG), and in the position of Senior Associate he will focus on the software, consumer Internet and digital media markets. In keeping with Battery’s multistage strategy, both Niehaus and Patel will look to invest in companies at any stage of development, from seed through buyout. These two hires bring the total number of investment professionals in Battery’s Silicon Valley office to 12.
“We continue to attract exceptional talent in a very competitive market, and these most recent additions complement our investment team very well,” said Ken Lawler, General Partner at Battery Ventures. “Both Matt and Satya have a combination of relevant operating experience as well as VC and private equity experience. Being on both sides of the house is critical to doing this job well. There is a lot of opportunity in their respective specialty areas, and we now have the complete value chain covered from digital media and content right through communications services and infrastructure technologies.”
“I’m pleased that communication services and infrastructure remain compelling areas for Battery, particularly as I’ve seen other firms move away from these sectors,” said Niehaus. “It is going to take considerable innovation and investment to keep pace with accelerating bandwidth consumption, the explosion of data, ubiquitous mobility, and infrastructure-intensive business models such as SaaS. Battery has consistently demonstrated the compelling investment opportunity in these sectors, most recently with the IPOs of MetroPCS and Cbeyond. This is a great time to join.”
“It’s an exciting time in the online media and content markets and there’s no doubt that we are only at the earliest stages of development,” said Patel. “My years at Google and DoubleClick gave me unbelievable exposure to the challenges associated with traffic acquisition, monetization and the user experience. I’m eager to use the insight and relationships I’ve developed over the years to help talented entrepreneurs grow their companies. I’m looking forward to continuing Battery’s impressive track record of working closely with driven teams to develop breakthrough businesses.”
Battery’s investments in the Communications Services and Infrastructure Technologies sectors currently include: Agito Networks, CedarPoint Communications, Netezza and MetroPCS (NYSE: PCS). The firm’s Internet and Digital Media investments include: Omniture (NASDAQ: OMTR), Spot Runner, TravelGuru and World Golf Tour.
About Matt Niehaus
Matt focuses on investments in communication services and infrastructure technologies. His previous work experience combines both private equity and entrepreneurial roles. Prior to Battery, Matt was Director of Strategic Development at VeriSign, a digital infrastructure service company. He joined VeriSign in 2005 when it acquired R4 Global Solutions, Inc, a leading RFID (radio frequency identification) technology firm that Matt co-founded. Previously, Matt was an investor at Telegraph Hill Communications Partners, a firm he co-founded, as well as at J.P. Morgan Capital. At both firms, he concentrated on the communications and technology sectors, investing a total of $233 million in nine companies. These investments produced $583 million in gross proceeds and an internal rate of return of 71%. Matt’s investments included Columbia River Cellular, Triton Cellular, Triton PCS, Lightship Communications, New South Communications, NeoWorld and CallVision. Matt began his career as an Associate at J.P. Morgan & Co., handling investment banking transactions for the Mergers and Acquisitions group. He graduated cum laude from Dartmouth College with a B.A. in History.
About Satya Patel
Satya focuses on investing in the software, consumer Internet and digital media markets. Before Battery, he spent several years at Google, most recently as Senior Product Manager. There he helped to build the AdSense business through various partner development and product management activities. Before Google, Satya was a Senior Product Manager at DoubleClick, leading its efforts in the search marketing business. He also worked on various initiatives for the DART adserving platform. Earlier, Satya was a Senior Associate at Impact Venture Partners, an early stage firm in New York, where he focused on investments in the Internet software, services and media markets. Satya began his venture career at Geocapital Partners, a trans-Atlantic technology VC firm. He also worked for Monitor Company as a strategy consultant in their New York office. Satya is the co-inventor of thirteen pending patents related to online advertising. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania with a BS in Finance from the Wharton School and a BA in Psychology from the College of Arts & Sciences.
About Battery Ventures
Since 1983, Battery has been investing
in technology and innovation worldwide. The firm partners with entrepreneurs
and management teams across technology sectors, geographies and stages of
a company’s life, from start-up and
expansion financing, to growth equity and buyouts.
Battery has supported many breakthrough companies around the world, including:
Airespace (acquired by Cisco), Akamai Technologies (NASDAQ: AKAM), Cbeyond
(NASDAQ: CBEY), LIFFE (acquired by Euronext), and Neoteris (acquired by Netscreen).
Its current portfolio includes emerging firms such as Advent Solar, BladeLogic,
Lion Cells, Netezza, Spot Runner, and Tejas Networks, as well as more established
companies such as ITA Software, Consona Corporation, MetroPCS (NYSE: PCS),
and Nova Analytics.
From offices in Boston, Silicon Valley and Israel, Battery manages more than $2B in committed capital. For more information, visit www.battery.com.
Contact:
Karen Bommart
Battery Ventures
781-478-6672
kbommart@battery.com