Ahead of the weekend, MMW learned that GawkBox — a company that provides monetization for live streamers and other content creators — has wrapped up a Series A financing round of $3.7 million.
According to an emailed statement, Madrona Venture Group led the funding, which includes follow-on participation from London Venture Partners as well as funding from Erlend Christofferson (ex-CMO Supercell) and others.
These investors are joining other strategic angel investors from an earlier round including Jon Zweig, the founding CEO of AdColony and AppOnboard.
In 2016, cash tipping from fans emerged as a quickly growing income source for live streamers on Twitch and YouTube. GawkBox opens up a new level of fan engagement and support by offering a new way to tip streamers called “sponsored tipping.” Fans can tip streamers by downloading an app and reaching milestones, such as leveling up a character or completing an in-app challenge. After achieving these goals, app developers will tip streamers on the fans’ behalf, allowing fans to show their loyalty for the streamer without paying a penny. GawkBox’s “sponsored tipping” enables app developers to reach and engage with a receptive audience and enables streamers to develop a new meaningful source of income.
“Fans spend hours every day watching eSports and other live streams, but only a limited number will tip via a direct credit card purchase. GawkBox offers fans and streamers another option to support content creators,” said Chris Brownridge, co-founder and CEO. “We have seen incredible interest from fans, streamers and app developers alike.”
To learn more, check out GawkBox here.
