LiveOps, which outsources call centers to people at home, raises $28M
Updated
LiveOps, which lets companies outsource their call centers to people at home, said it has raised $28 million in a third round of financing.
Leading the round is venture capital firm Benchmark Capital, which joins existing investors CMEA Ventures and Menlo Ventures.
LiveOps cites IDC, a research group that predicts the number of home agents will increase from 112,000 in 2006 to 320,000 by 2010.
LiveOps started raising the round last year, and in the process met Benchmark Capital, which helped the company recruit chief executive Maynard Webb, former chief operating officer eBay. Bill Gurley, partner at Benchmark, said that led to Benchmark’s investment. He said he was also impressed with LiveOps’ ability to create a vibrant community among the “home agents,” who cooperate with each other to get assignments done, but who also compete with each other. LiveOps’ system uses several ways to measure how agents perform, and routes incoming assignments to the top performers, Gurley said.
The company is now making enough revenue to consider going public, but Webb said the company wanted to raise money now, while it could, so that it could make any decision about an IPO on its own terms.
Next Story: Pontis, a marketing software developer, raises $15M
Previous Story: Radar, the real-time photo sharing company, gets boost
