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Panopto Grabs $42.8M

2016-08-24
SEATTLE, WA, Panopto, a leading provider of enterprise and education video solutions, announced today that it has secured $42.8 million.
The funding will be used to continue its business expansion and technology leadership in video content management, recording, and live streaming. The minority growth round was led by Sterling Partners, in conjunction with existing investors, management and a senior credit facility underwritten by Square 1 Bank. Signal Hill served as exclusive financial advisor to Panopto for this transaction.

Founded in 2007, Panopto pioneered the categories of lecture capture and enterprise video content management. Today, the company offers a comprehensive video platform that enables a diverse set of organizations to capture and manage all of their video assets. The platform includes:

-A secure YouTube-like portal for publishing and sharing videos
-A unique search engine that finds any word spoken or shown on-screen in videos
-Cloud transcoders that convert videos for optimal playback on any device
-Video recording, screencasting, and live streaming tools
-A remote recording service for securely controlling video events from any location
-An online video editor
-Video viewing reports and analytics
-An enterprise content delivery network (ECDN) for efficiently streaming videos
-Mobile apps for enhanced online and offline playback

Since its founding, the company has amassed more than two million videos in its cloud-based video platform, making it the largest repository of expert learning videos in the world. Each month, customers stream more than 100 years of video from Panopto Cloud, which has experienced 20% compound quarterly growth since 2012. For two years running, the company has been recognized by Gartner as a 'Leader' in enterprise video content management and has been ranked as one of the fastest growing companies on Deloitte's Fast 500 list. Current clients include New York Life, GE Healthcare Digital, Yale University, Brown University, and the Wharton School of Business.

Panopto's dramatic growth reflects surging demand for video in the workplace and higher education. This demand has also been demonstrated by a flurry of market activity in the last 12 months. During this period, the video content management market has seen the acquisitions of UStream and ClearLeap by IBM, Microsoft's entry into the space with Microsoft Stream, and an influx of funding with a recent eight-figure investment round announced by Kaltura.

'Over the past nine years, we've had the privilege of helping millions of students and employees improve themselves and their organizations through video-based learning,' said Eric Burns, co-founder and CEO of Panopto. 'With Sterling Partners, we've found the ideal investor to help us bring this enabling technology to more businesses and universities around the world. Sterling's portfolio breadth, unique experience across enterprise and education technologies, and deep networks will propel us to the next level of growth and market presence.'

Sterling Partners' Managing Director Jason Rosenberg commented that 'within five years, video will be the dominant form of online communication. As demand for this technology continues to accelerate, Panopto is leading the industry in product innovation and organizational capability. With its explosive growth in the enterprise, its dominant position in higher education, and its significant technological advantages over its competitors, Panopto is set to emerge as the leader in this multibillion-dollar market. We're thrilled to partner with Eric and his team as they continue to scale.'

About Panopto
Panopto helps businesses and universities create searchable video libraries of their institutional knowledge. Since 2007, the company has been a pioneer in video capture software, video content management systems, and inside-video search technology. Today, Panopto's video platform is the largest repository of expert learning videos in the world. Headquartered in Seattle with offices in Pittsburgh, London, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Sydney, Panopto has received industry recognition for its innovation, rapid growth, and company culture. For more information, visit www.panopto.com.

About Sterling Partners
Sterling Partners is a private equity firm with a distinct point of view on how to build great companies. Its eighth investment fund, the Education Opportunity Fund, was launched in partnership with USA Funds in April 2015. The Fund's objective is to invest in purpose-driven companies and partner with high-performing leaders that are taking an innovative approach to transforming businesses that have a connection to the education industry. The Education Opportunity Fund will target investments primarily to growth-stage, technology-relevant businesses. The principals of the Education Opportunity Fund believe in ideas and ideals, in people and in partnerships that drive long-term success. For more information, please visit www.sterlingpartners.com.
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