SANTA MONICA, CA--(Marketwire - Sep 28, 2011) - Parking In Motion, Inc. today announced the closing of its Series A financing round, co-led by IDG Ventures and Fontinalis Partners, which will allow the company to deliver the world's largest real-time parking database to automobile navigation systems, mobile phones, tablet devices, and other data aggregators.
Parking in Motion's mission is to help drivers park quickly and cheaply in a world where parking demand is growing much faster than the supply of spaces. More than two billion vehicles are projected to be on the road by 2050, and current studies indicate that approximately 30% of urban congestion currently results from motorists searching for parking. Going forward, it will become increasingly important for drivers to quickly locate available parking in order to ease carbon emissions and traffic congestion, and real-time parking availability information will be instrumental in accomplishing that goal.
"We are pleased that two of the world's leading technology and transportation investors have joined us to take Parking In Motion to the next level, and we view the investment as further validation of the growing importance of real-time transportation data," says Sam Friedman, President and CEO of Parking In Motion. "We are all excited to make the search for a parking space a thing of the past, and this partnership will accelerate our progress towards that goal."
Parking In Motion has built the world's leading parking database, covering more than 25,000 parking locations in 500+ cities, 19 countries and 3 continents, including both on-street and off-street parking locations. Parking In Motion works with both cities and private garage operators to direct drivers to available parking spaces. By "tapping" into already existing infrastructure such as smart parking meters, sensors, and parking gates, the company can inform drivers of real-time occupancy and pricing information.
William Clay Ford, Jr. ("Bill Ford"), a Founding Partner of Fontinalis Partners and Executive Chairman of Ford Motor Company, stated, "Our partnership with the Parking In Motion team reflects our commitment to supporting companies that seek to improve personal mobility across the globe. Real-time parking data can have a meaningful impact on alleviating the world's most pressing congestion and environmental problems."
Fontinalis Partners is not affiliated with Ford Motor Company.
"Saving time, money and the planet at the same time is appealing, and we were impressed by the robustness of Parking In Motion's parking data and the scalability of its platform," says Pat Kenealy, Managing Director of IDG Ventures. "The Parking In Motion team has done a great job of aggregating data across thousands of disparate parking providers and presenting it in consumer-friendly ways in nav systems and on cell phones, tablets, and other mobile devices. As the world 'goes mobile,' real-time parking information is poised for widespread distribution."
Parking In Motion currently delivers its information to users through its branded mobile apps and partnerships with leading navigation providers, mobile developers, and other commercial partners. Parking In Motion's smartphone app allows drivers to find and compare parking across the US, Canada, and Europe. Users can compare parking garages, lots, and spaces by cost, availability, hours of operation, and distance, and then receive in-app directions to the exact entry points.
Parking In Motion is constantly adding coverage to its parking database, working with both cities and private garage operators and vendors. The company is also constantly adding distribution partners to increase its user base, forming partnerships with map and navigation vendors, traffic data providers, cell phone carriers and app publishers, according to Friedman.
"Parking In Motion's extremely scalable method for processing and distributing real-time parking information will soon make it commonplace for drivers to locate parking by using their mobile phones and other platforms," says Friedman.
About Parking In Motion
Parking In Motion (PIM), founded by Sam Friedman and Alex Israel and headquartered in Santa Monica, California, is a provider of dynamic and real-time parking data. PIM offers comprehensive coverage in 500+ cities in the US, Canada, and Europe by providing rates, hours, entrance points, and occupancy information. Additionally, the database includes on-street meter and sign restrictions in the top 26 US markets. In addition to its direct-to-consumer smartphone app, the company has entered into partnerships with leading GPS navigation companies and app developers to reach a large audience of users. Building on its resources and relationships with operators and municipalities, Parking In Motion serves as an industry leader in providing accurate and instantaneous real-time parking info to the world. By empowering drivers with intelligent information and an ever-expanding database, PIM's innovative approach makes it easier than ever for motorists to find available parking.
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About IDG Ventures
IDG Ventures USA invests in New Media and IT companies in the US. The IDG global network of technology venture funds has approximately $3.7 billion under management in Asia and North America, and works closely with International Data Group (IDG), the world's largest IT media company. By combining the IDG platform -- an unparalleled combination of global publishing, market research, and conference and exhibition resources -- with years of hands-on experience in early-stage company building, IDG Ventures helps its portfolio companies understand their markets better and penetrate them faster than their competition. Leading technology companies that IDG has invested in include Netscape, Excite, Infoseek, Epiphany, F5 Networks, BabyCenter, Service Metrics, and Spinner.com in North America and Baidu, Ctrip, Focus Media, Memsic, SouFun, Tencent, and Vinagames in Asia.
About Fontinalis Partners
Fontinalis Partners, with offices in Detroit and Boston, is a leading transportation technology strategic investment firm founded by Bill Ford, Ralph Booth, Mark Schulz, Chris Cheever and Chris Thomas. Fontinalis' mission is to leverage the firm's considerable management experience, market access, strategic relationships, international expertise, and background in transportation innovation to scale companies providing the transportation technology solutions of tomorrow. Fontinalis Partners, LLC, invests as a strategic partner across all facets of the world's transportation infrastructure on a stage, structure and size agnostic basis. Fontinalis Partners is not affiliated with Ford Motor Company. For further information about Fontinalis Partners, please visit www.fontinalispartners.com or call (313) 432-0321.
Contact Information:
Kevin Blomberg
(310) 451-9109
Dan Chmielewski
(949) 231-2965