The company behind an innovative device that allows you to Skype chat from your television has raised $13 Million in new funding from Comcast Ventures and DCM. The news came by way of an SEC filing. Telly Labs flagship product is the aptly named TelyHD. The camera plugs into your television’s HDMI port and allows photo sharing and video mail if both parties are using the unique device.
The raised funding represents the majority of the company’s planned $15 million Round A. According to the good people at VentureBeat, Comcast Ventures and DCM have been identified due to the names of high profile executives of both funds appearing on the SEC paperwork.
The product was created to provide the full Skype experience on televisions that would not usually allow it. Although Skype is readily available as an app on mobile devices, the uptake and use of the technology in televisions is reserved for forward thinking Asian television manufacturers like Panasonic, Sony and Samsung. All of the aforementioned are capable of running the popular video chat platform using their webcam features. Skype is also available through Windows Live Messenger as well as fellow Microsoft devices the Xbox 360 and Kinect.
CEO Sreekanth Ravi and his brother Sudhakar founded the company in 2010 and began offering the actual hardware and system at the beginning of this year. The brothers have created a device that works out of the box and is adaptable to the majority of Wi-Fi networks. The device, which resembles an Xbox Kinect feature s an indicator light to capture attention effectively and is priced at $249.
SOURCE: VentureBeat
PHOTO: The Verge