Broadbus

Broadbus Technologies Inc. was founded in 2000 by entrepreneur and leading technologist Jeffrey Binder, who is currently a General Partner at venture capital firm Genovation Capital along with Dave Fellows and Vin Bisceglia. The company was co-founded by Robert Scheffler, who is considered a leader in memory systems design and the Chief Architect of the company. Scheffler is currently a top technical executive at Motorola. As President and CEO, Binder and his team set out raise capital in one of the toughest markets since the Great Depression, the tech bust of 2001. After some 18 months the company raised $13 million from Battery Ventures and Charles River Ventures of Waltham Massachusetts. Binder and his team raised another $25 million in late 2003, and ultimately raised approximately $54 million in venture capital.

Broadbus was a pioneer of memory based systems for delivering both movies and television on demand. The company's flagship B-1 system was capable of supporting more than 15,000 subscribers simultaneously watching movies and television, all with fast-forward, rewind and pause controls. In 2003 the company received the trademark TOD, for "television on demand" services. By late 2004 the company had completed successful tests with many of the largest cable MSO's including Time Warner, Comcast and Cablevision, and they employed more than 125 people throughout the US, Europe and Asia. At that time Vin Bisceglia, who had past experience taking two prior start-up companies public, was brought in by Binder to help him take Broadbus public in what was then still a very challenging IPO market. Bisceglia took on the role of Chairman and CEO and Binder that of President/COO. The partnership they formed was considered to be highly unusual and extraordinarily successful, and continues to be an example of how very young companies can use what was essentially a co-ceo partnership as a leadership structure.

By the end of 2005, Broadbus was the market leader in VOD in Europe winning the whole of UPC, the continent's largest MSO, with over 16 million subscribers. In addition, Broadbus was fast becoming number one for new VOD streams sold worldwide, approaching Seachange and Concurrent, the prior market leaders. In what is considered to be prescient foresight, and recognizing a still weak IPO market, Binder and Bisceglia decide to explore strategic alternatives, ultimately leading to an acquisition by Motorola in September 2006 for $181 million.

Broadbus continues to be considered one of New England's top venture capital stories of the past decade and is rare example of a start-up successfully navigating the treacherous waters of the cable television industry.

External links

• Broadbus website