UPDATED 12:00 EDT / FEBRUARY 26 2015

NEWS

Mobile stock photography startup Twenty20 raises $8 million Series A

twenty20Mobile stock photography startup Twenty20 Inc. has raised $8 million Series A in a round led by Canaan Partners that included First Round Capital, Bullpen Capital and VersionOne Ventures.

Along with the new round Twenty20 have announced that it’s officially launching out of beta.

Twenty20 offers what they claim is the world’s largest real-world stock image catalog. Their platform boasts over 45 million photos from over 250,000 photographers in 154 countries.

Their core business model sees the company connecting advertisers and content marketers with the work of mobile photographers who can help satisfy the demand for user-generated content from “real people.” Twenty20 claims that their offering of “fresh, genuine images” fills a creative vacuum left by “the staged, dated photos from large stock image companies.”

“Twenty20 is here to harness the power of a mobile photo and provide a bigger stage to showcase everyday talent,” CEO of Twenty20 Matt Munson said in a statement sent to SilicongANGLE. “Creative brands and agencies are looking for original image content from real people, creating a more impactful and sincere relationship with their customers. We are excited to use this funding round to grow Twenty20 and develop key partnerships to continue to provide the most authentic creative in the world.”

The Twenty20 offering includes an app where consumers can make money from their personal photos by uploading their images directly to their platform. The company also claims to have solved the legal process around purchasing and marketing user-generated photos—every image on the platform is vetted by an in-house legal team, matching the high requirements of global brands and agencies.

Founded in 2012 and based in Marina Del Rey, CA, Twenty20 has raised an estimated $1.7 million over two rounds prior to, and not including this new round (the amount of the pre-seed round was not disclosed) from investors including Velos Partners, Version One Ventures, Bullpen Capital. First Round, FF Angel LLC, Scott Banister, Mucker Capital and others.

Twenty20 said that it plans to use the round to scale and open up partnership opportunities with advertising agencies and media buyers.


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