Passenger: Social network software for companies to get customer feedback
Passenger, a Los Angeles company that provides social networking software to companies so that they can privately solicit customer input on products and ideas, has raised another $8.3 million in financing.
Walt Disney-backed Steamboat Ventures has joined Shelter Capital Partners and StarVest Partners in the financing. Passenger has previously raised $5.2 million.
The company launched in February, and joins a bunch of other companies offering software allowing people to consult in groups.
Passenger includes a message board, a way to create a user profile and view other user profiles, and other generic social-networking features. The startup hopes its software will trigger a feedback loop of useful information to help its client companies make better customer-facing decisions.
Passenger has been working with Coca-Cola and ABC Television, according to Webware — the article notes the “vision of a company-consumer feedback network is probably a bit utopian, as many corporations are likely going to prefer that their social networks consist of loyal followers rather than constructive critics.”
Next Story: Is Accoona made of straw?
Previous Story: Nancy Pelosi’s biotech earmarks
About the Author, Eric Eldon
Eric currently covers digital media technology and business news, especially what's happening on social networks and their platforms. He also writes and edits stories about venture capital, and lots of other stuff, too. He started at VentureBeat in the spring of 2007, half a year or so after Matt Marshall left his reporting job at the San Jose Mercury News to found the site. Eric previously cofounded a startup called Writewith, that was building editorial software for newspapers and other groups of writers. The startup didn't work out, but he learned a lot.