Sashi Reddi, former founder Chief Executive of AppLabs, has invested about ₹16 crore ($2.5 million) in the Internet television content provider YuppTV. The funding puts the valuation of the company at ₹160 crore.
“I have taken 10 per cent equity in the Atlanta-based company,” Sashi Reddi told reporters here on Friday.
A serial entrepreneur, Sashi Reddi set up SRI Capital with a corpus of ₹100 crore to invest in start-up firms. But the latest investment is not made from this fund. He sold AppLabs to the US firm CSC for about ₹1,200 crore.
“The Internet TV firm gets over an average 50 lakh visitors a month. We compete with satellite and cable TV operators offering Indian content. Its primary target markets are Indians living in North America, Europe, and Australia,” said Uday Reddy, founder and CEO of YuppTV. YuppTV registered revenues of ₹66 crore ($11 million) in 2013. It grew over 100 per cent year-on-year for the last two years.
The company is planning to launch its services in India this year. “Sashi Reddi will join the board and work closely with Uday Reddy in building the company to $100 million revenue in the next 3 years,” he said.
YuppTV, which employs 140 people, said its application can be accessed through PCs, gadgets with iOS and Android platforms and smart TVs.