New Online Video Service Secures Funding

BELMONT, August 20: The digital media company Building B,
which is setting up a new online video platform, has attracted $17.5 million in
funding from Morgenthaler Ventures, Omni Capital, Index Ventures and private
investors, and has named Sony BMG Music Entertainment chairman Andy Lack to its
board of directors.

The new firm’s senior team includes former executives from
CBS, NBC, MTV Networks, Nickelodeon, Paramount, Showtime and Viacom.
Individuals on the management team have also led technology and market
innovations while at Sony, Numerical Technologies, Liquid Audio, Clearwire and
Bell Labs.

Phil Wiser, Building B co-founder, president and
chairman—and former Sony CTO and founder of digital music pioneer Liquid
Audio—said the new platform “gives consumers a complete, modern video
experience that is elegant and instantly accessible, rather than require the
consumer to learn how to put all of the pieces together and then pay an
exorbitant price."

The service consists of a turnkey home video entertainment
solution that seamlessly integrates traditional television content in HDTV and
extends it with on-demand premium content and Internet video, all delivered to
the living room television without the need for a PC. It is being offered up as
a cost-effective video companion to existing high-speed Internet and VOIP
offerings. Building B is working with broadcasters, content providers,
advertisers, broadband service providers and consumer electronics companies to
roll out the service.

In addition to Lack, joining Building B's board of directors
are Dr. Arun Netravali, the managing director of Omni Capital, and Bob Pavey, a
partner at Morgenthaler Ventures. "By aligning with experts from the
entertainment and technology industries who understand the complexities of
creating a new video entertainment platform, we have a formidable team that is
collaborating with partners across multiple segments within the industry,"
said Buno Pati, Building B’s co-founder and CEO.