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Startup – Big Stage $2.7MM raised for Avatar Software

Startup News – Los Angeles – Big Stage Entertainment, is the worlds leading developer of 3D facial creation technology, otherwise known as an Avatar, announced on Tuesday that it had secured an additional $2.7 million in second round funding, from Mission Ventures, Selby Ventures and TechCoast Angels.

Big Stage Entertainment is a So. Cal Startup, founded by Jonathan Strietzel, Jon Kraft and Jon Snoddy, that has raised a total of $10.6 million through their Angel and Series A rounds of financing.The company said its Series B round will remain open for an additional $3.3 million.

Big Stage allows a user to insert their avatar onto a fully animated, 3D avatar, this avatar can be used in video games, virtual worlds, mobile games, learning and training simulations and much more.

Some of Big Stage’s Clients include Lionsgate, Funcom, Sony BMG, GGL Global Gaming, Cannel Group and Intel Corporation.

The company will use the new funds to accelerate research and development, and sales and marketing efforts.

Big Stage Partners with Splash News and GGL Global Gaming

Virtual Worlds News/December 11, 2008

Yesterday Big Stage announced  the launch of Portable You, its program to integrate its 3D facial models with third parties or games, virtual worlds, and more as well as an initial partnership with Icarus Studios and The Venue Network. Today it announced two more partnerships, with Splash News, a celebrity photo site, and GGL Global Gaming, a gaming community. With Splash News, users will be able to put their own faces on the latest paparazzi shots, and GGL will promote games and content with still images and movies on Big Stage. The latter partnership will also bring promotional opportunities with one “major video game publisher” launching a partnership in early 2009.

“The popularity of GGL demonstrates how playing videogames online with a community of friends has transformed gaming into a highly social activity,” said Phil Ressler, Big Stage Entertainment CEO. “With the promotional experiences offered on BigStage.com through this partnership, gamers will be able to take their affinity for games one giant step forward by turning themselves into the characters they love to play, with the ability to share these unique experiences with friends, whether they are on MySpace, Facebook or GGL. Until BigStage.com, seeing yourself appear in 3-D animation alongside your favorite game characters would have required the help of an army of developers. BigStage.com is breaking down that barrier for gamers.”

Startup – Big Stage | GGL Partnership

Strietzel – Posted by Kevin Jenkins in Tech News on 12 11th, 2008

BigStage.com Users Will Be Able to Insert Their 3-D @ctors Into Free Video Game Content, Then Share with Friends and GGL Community Members

LOS ANGELES, Dec 11, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) — Big Stage Entertainment, Inc., a media technology company founded by Jonathan Strietzel, Jon Kraft and Jon Snoddy, that lets consumers project themselves photo-realistically into the digital realm, is partnering with videogame social networking company GGL Global Gaming (GGL) to promote free game content on BigStage.com. The first promotion rollout with a major video game publisher is scheduled for early 2009. Members of the BigStage.com and GGL communities will soon be able to insert their 3-D @ctor, a realistically animated digital clone quickly created for free from a few photos, into game cinematics, still images and animatics. Users can then share this content with friends and post to GGL community pages and other social networks, such as Facebook and MySpace.

“GGL members love great video games as well as new technology that enhances their gaming experience,” said Ted Owen, Owner/Chairman of GGL. “The @ctor creation technology offered on BigStage.com is a great benefit to our members who are constantly seeking creative new ways to express themselves and their love of videogames to the community. Unlike anything gamers have seen before, putting your own realistically animated face onto videogame characters is an innovation that players will be eager to embrace.”

With 26 million unique visitors per month, the GGL Network serves as a hub for videogame fans worldwide. The vast network of GGL gamers visit the site to find news, information and communities, in addition to competing in online gaming competitions and tournaments.

“The popularity of GGL demonstrates how playing videogames online with a community of friends has transformed gaming into a highly social activity,” said Phil Ressler, Big Stage Entertainment CEO. “With the promotional experiences offered on BigStage.com through this partnership, gamers will be able to take their affinity for games one giant step forward by turning themselves into the characters they love to play, with the ability to share these unique experiences with friends, whether they are on MySpace, Facebook or GGL. Until BigStage.com, seeing yourself appear in 3-D animation alongside your favorite game characters would have required the help of an army of developers. BigStage.com is breaking down that barrier for gamers.”

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