June 13, 2007 – Eye-Fi has secured $5.5 million in Series A funding to support its development of a wireless Secure Digital memory card. The company plans to develop wireless-enabled products to make it easier for consumers to upload images to computers.
Opus Capital and Shasta Ventures have invested in the company, placing their general partner and managing director to Eye-Fi’s Board of Directors, respectively.
"Digital cameras have made it very easy to take pictures, but it's a chore to get photos off the camera to a place where you can print or share them," said Robert Coneybeer, managing director for Shasta Ventures, in a press release. "This is a very real problem affecting both consumers who own digital cameras, and companies in the digital photography industry looking to boost profits. We see a huge market opportunity for Eye-Fi because anyone with a Wi-Fi network and a digital camera is a potential customer."
Opus Capital and Shasta ventures, both venture capital firms, invest in technology companies in order to promote their growth and development.
"Remember that sense of anticipation you felt when you picked up your prints from the local store? We want to bring that excitement back to photography," said Yuval Koren, president and CEO of Eye-Fi, in a press release. "Our services will use wireless technology to automatically upload photographs from a digital camera, making it easy for people to experience the real magic of digital photography.
Eye-Fi, which was founded in August 2005, will use its funding for operations, support, marketing, production, and product development. Eye-Fi is currently in the beta stage, but plans to release its first product in the fall. Information about pricing and the card's storage capacity was not immediately available.
