NEW YORK (Reuters) - Privately held Oz Communications Inc., that provides technology to make it easier to get e-mail on mobile phones, said on Monday it raised $34 million in a second round of financing aimed at expanding sales and marketing of its technology.
The Montreal-based company, which has raised $61 million in funding in total, said Canadian fund manager Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec, led the latest round and VantagePoint Venture Partners, a Silicon Valley-based venture capital firm that led its first round participated again.
Oz, which includes two of the top three U.S. wireless providers among its customers, provides technology that lets consumers send and receive popular Internet e-mail and instant message services on their mobile phones.
As wireless phone operators around the world look more and more to data services like messaging to boost revenues, a host of software developers are aiming to support these efforts to encourage consumers to use their phones for more than talking.
Other developers in this space include Comverse Technology
Inc.
Oz, which says it has tens of millions of users, does not
count Canada's Research In Motion Ltd
Oz cited estimates from California-based research firm Radicati for a global market for 1.4 billion Web e-mail users and 944 million users of instant messaging services, suggesting a potentially huge demand for wireless e-mail.
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