Global Startups Invited to Apply for Series A Funding Pitch Contest: Deadline January 27, 2014

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TEL AVIV, Israel, Jan. 22, 2014 /PRN=KYODO JBN/ -

    - Marketing & Ad:Tech Israel Conference offering $30,000 in Services Plus

Funding to Winning Company Chosen by Panel of Corporate A-Listers

    With the number of tech accelerators globally now more than 1,500, there

has been similar growth in Seed and Angel investments. Ironically, the number

of venture firms making Series A and later stage investments in technology

startups is actually declining, with 61% of US early-stage companies unable to

raise follow-on funding of any kind. This phenomenon, studied by industry

analysts and documented by PriceWaterhouse and CB Insights among others, is

known as the "Series A Crunch."

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    "Early Stage companies need customers and they need funding," says Levi

Shapiro, a partner at JIMMI Fund, who is the founder of the Marketing & Ad:Tech

Israel conference. "We have created a funding pitch contest as a way to expose

worthy startups to both."

    Companies from anywhere in the world are eligible to apply to participate

in the Global Startup Pitch by Jan 27th. They must have a product in the market

and have raised less than $1.5 million USD. Details and a link to the

application can be found here: http://www.adtechsummit.com/contest

    The winner will be announced at the Marketing & Ad:Tech Israel Conference

(http://www.adtechsummit.com) on February 11, 2014 in Tel Aviv, Israel.

    Contest Judges include digital media notables such as David Roman (CMO of

Lenovo), Greg Stuart (Global CEO of the Mobile Marketing Association), Jane

Randel (SVP Communications & Brand Services, Kate Spade), Gavin Marshall (Head

of Digital Innovation, SAB Miller), Carl Fremont (Chief Digital Officer, MEC),

Stephanie Hospital (EVP, Orange), etc. In addition to the Funding Round

eligibility, the top two startups will each receive a suite of FREE legal,

accounting, software and other professional services worth more than $30,000.

    "The Marketing & Ad:Tech Israel conference brings together the world's top

brands, agencies and publishers to explore the future of marketing," says Jon

Medved, Founder and Managing Partner of OurCrowd, an equity crowd-funding

platform for accredited investors, who will award the prize. "What better way

to peer into the future of digital marketing than to invest in the most

innovative ideas?"

    The winning company will be eligible to begin negotiations for a Round of

Funding, courtesy of the equity crowd-funding platform, OurCrowd.

    Israel is a natural home for a digital media conference and Startup Pitch

Contest. The world's #2 startup ecosystem has seen acquisitions in the last few

months by Google, Apple and Facebook. In fact, VC-backed exits reached a record

high last year of $4.2 billion, with average exits rising to $83 million.  

    Application Details:

    Deadline: January 27, 2014

    Submissions Form: http://bit.ly/1eOFpEM

    Attention: cm@ourcrowd.com

    About Marketing & Ad:Tech Israel

    Marketing & Ad:Tech Israel (http://www.adtechsummit.com) is an annual

conference for the world's top brands, agencies and publishers to explore the

future of digital marketing. All presentations are TED-style lectures by

globally recognized thought-leaders.  The highlight of the conference is a

Business Contest with six startup companies. Winner and 1st Runner-Up receive a

suite of more than $30,000 worth of free services while the winning company is

eligible for beginning negotiations for their next round of funding, courtesy

of OurCrowd. For more information visit http://www.adtechsummit.com

    Press contacts:

    U.S.                                                            

    Judy Safern                                            

    LeadingThinkers                                       

    +1(718)766-5431                                       

    Email: judy@leadingthinkers.com       

    Israel:

    Nahum Donitza

    Donitza PR-DMC

    +972-3-516-7336

    Email: nahum@donitza.co.il

    SOURCE: MATI Israel