Digital Advertising Startup Infolinks Acquired for Less than Equity Raised

New York-based Thrive Plus LLC (Thrive+) has acquired Infolinks Development Ltd., a struggling Tel-Aviv based digital advertising startup, two people familiar with the matter who spoke on conditions of anonymity told Calcalist Sunday.

For daily updates, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here.

The startup sold for “several million”, an amount short of the funding raised from investors, the sources said.

Thrive+ is planning to expand Infolinks’ research and development center in Tel Aviv, and turn it into its local office, according to the sources.

Thrive+ was approached for comment and has yet to respond.

Infolinks was founded in 2007 by Yariv Davidovich and Israeli entrepreneur and investor Oren Dobronsky, also known for founding online media company Hotbar.com (Israel) Ltd., one of the first companies to develop a browser toolbar.

Infolinks developed technologies allowing small websites to set up advertising systems. The company still has an active user base but has failed to compete with Google and Facebook’s ad services.

According to Crunchbase, Infolinks raised $10.5 million from investors including its co-founder Mr. Dobronsky, as well as Israeli-born Silicon Valley investor Oren Zeev and Jerusalem-based investment firm Goldrock Capital Ltd. Israel-based research firm IVC Research Center lists Goldrock as having invested $8 million out of the total. At its peak, Infolinks had 60 employees at its Tel Aviv and Silicon Valley offices. The company now employs around 15 workers, most of whom are expected to remain with Thrive+, according to the sources.

Thrive+ is a media company focused on digital video advertising for publishers and brands.