Written by Chris Albrecht
Posted Friday, August 1, 2008 at 12:21 PM PT

 

Sezmi Seeking $50 Million

TV set-top box startup Sezmi (formerly Building B) is looking to raise $50 million in new venture capital, and has retained Advanced Equities to place the deal. From PE Hub, which uncovered the news in a July 18th regulatory filing:

The document reports that just under $14 million has been “sold,” which means either (A) It’s still looking for fresh capital, or (B) It has $50 million in commitments, but has not yet called it all down – due to either preference or milestone requirements.

Previously, Sezmi had raised $18 million. But I think investors looking to pony up for this $50 million round may want to think twice.

Sezmi, which will go into private trials later this year, is hoping to upend the existing TV distribution by using a combination of over-the-air digital broadcasts and broadband connectivity (see our previous coverage). In its current state, I think Sezmi is too confusing for the average Joe to capture mainstream acceptance. The battle over your TV will be won by the likes of Apple, Netflix or Amazon.

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Comments (3)

  • looks like another roadkill like akimbo…

    james pierce — 3:21 PM on August 1, 2008 Reply

  • “The battle over your TV will be won by the likes of Apple, Netflix or Amazon”

    or Zipityzap

    icarus — 5:16 PM on August 1, 2008 Reply

  • or an open standards box like what has happened to the DVD player.
    How many branded DVD players get purchased compaired to the play anything $50 version.

    I have never purchased a brand name DVD player. And in any case, the brand ones are just the cheap ones with a band on them these days.

    Look ahead, don’t believe the hype. Tho those brands mentioned will set up a platform for donwloadable media . Can we expect them to be relavant in a world where DRM is dead (Music and eventually Video).
    A world where it is generally easier to download a torrent/video then it it so purchase it.

    James Gardiner11:12 PM on August 2, 2008 Reply

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