Dopplr, a travel-focused social network based in Helsinki, has raised an undisclosed amount of money from an investor group led by well-known technology industry insider, Esther Dyson. It was an all-angel round of funding, something we’ve discussed on our FoundRead channel. Apart from Dyson, other investors in the company include Xing founder Lars Hinrichs and de.lici.ous founder Joshua Schachter. Saul Klein, formerly of Skype and currently with Index Partners and Seedcamp, invested again; as did he was joined by Martin Varsavsky, Reid Hoffman and Joichi Ito.
Dopplr, which was started by CEO Lisa Sounio, allows folks to share their travel plans and experiences with others. The company has so far been focused on growing its base in Europe, but the new round of funding is going to help it expand globally. Dopplr claims it can make advertising more effective on its network.
For instance, when travelers tell Dopplr about their travel plans, two-thirds of them have not yet booked a hotel and half have not yet made any travel arrangements, which is a good place for hotels to put up their marketing messages. Dopplr has a long way to go before it becomes mainstream, however, especially if travel search engines decide to introduce their own, Dopplr-type products for their respective user bases. Mobissimo, for example, recently launched MobiFriends, a service that nudges into the Dopplr territory.
“when travelers tell Dopplr about their travel plans, two-thirds of them have not yet booked a hotel and half have not yet made any travel arrangements”
And how exactly do they know that?
Congrats to Dopplr for adding more blue bloods to their list of angels. Dopplr’s UI / design and focus on a higher end audience segment gives it a much needed point of differentiation in a crowded category (love the referral deal with Mr & Mrs Smith, by the way.) Although I’d recommend they maintain their focus rather than use their new cash to try and expand quickly and risk diluting what they presently do well.