Press Releases
Aug 18, 2009CrimeReports.com Raises $7.2 Million from Austin Ventures, vSpring
Premier Crime-Mapping Web Service Poised to Expand Offerings
CrimeReports.com, the leader in online crime-mapping, today announced it has raised $7.2 million in a Series B financing led by Austin Ventures, one of the nation’s leading venture and growth equity firms, with participation from existing investor vSpring Capital. This investment will enable CrimeReports to further expand its position as a leader in the rapidly growing public safety software market, introducing innovative web 2.0 tools to increase communication and collaboration between law enforcement agencies and their constituents.
CrimeReports.com has defined itself as the leader in adapting emerging web 2.0 technologies to the needs of law enforcement agencies and has experienced significant growth in recent months, expanding its client base by almost 20% over the last two months. This growth is fueled by an unprecedented enthusiasm by law enforcement agencies across the country to adopt these new tools to engage their communities through online crime-mapping, targeted analysis and social media. This rapid adoption also relies on CrimeReports’ innovative SaaS business model and pricing structure, which make it the most affordable suite of crime-mapping, communication and analytics solutions available.
“We are pleased to announce this investment led by Austin Ventures,” said Greg Whisenant, founder and CEO of CrimeReports. “This will allow us to expand our products and services in the coming months, offering law enforcement agencies of all sizes and budgets the additional tools they need to effectively engage citizens and reduce crime using social media and web 2.0 technology.”
“This commitment indicates our confidence in the vision and relevance of CrimeReports. The company has developed innovative web solutions that fill a real need in today’s law enforcement community,” said Mike Dodd, Venture Partner at Austin Ventures and CrimeReports board member.
“CrimeReports’ continued strong growth is evidence that the market is ready for new ways to approach crime data and citizen involvement.”
The CrimeReports network now publishes crime data for more than 500 law enforcement agencies across North America and, earlier this year, released Command Central, a powerful yet affordable crime analytics and visualization tool for law enforcement agencies. The additional funding will allow CrimeReports to expand the functionality of its current products and expand its offerings to address the growing demand within the law enforcement community to adopt cutting-edge web-based social networking tools.
About CrimeReports
Working with more than 500 agencies across North America, CrimeReports is the largest online resource for accurate, up-to-date crime information. The CrimeReports network offers a family of affordable, easy-to-use software tools for law enforcement agencies to understand crime trends and share current neighborhood crime data with the public. Community members can access the integrated crime map and receive email crime alerts for free at www.CrimeReports.com, empowering them to make informed decisions to help improve the safety of their neighborhood and community. For more information, visit www.CrimeReports.com.
About Austin Ventures
Austin Ventures (AV) has worked with talented entrepreneurs to build valuable companies for nearly twenty-five years. With $3.9 billion under management, AV is the most active venture capital and growth equity firm in Texas and one of the most established in the nation. With an investment focus on business services and supply chain, financial services, media and information services, software and Internet, and Texas special situations, AV invests at all stages of company development, from $100,000 in “planned experiments” in early stage ideas to $100+ million investments in expansion rounds, minority recapitalizations, and buyouts of lower middle market growth companies. AV’s strategy is to partner with talented executives and entrepreneurs through its CEO-in-Residence and Entrepreneur-in-Residence programs. Visit austinventures.com for more information.
About vSpring Capital
vSpring Capital (www.vspring.com) is an early-stage venture capital firm with over $400 million under management. With offices in Utah and New Mexico it is the most active venture fund in the Rocky Mountain region. vSpring invests in information technology and life science companies that have the potential to transform their markets and create lasting value. For additional information please visit www.vspring.com.
Contact:
Coltrin & Associates, Jennifer Webb, Director, 801-400-4615 jennifer_webb@coltrin.com
Austin Ventures, Kim Hughes, Director of Communications, 512-485-1955 khughes@austinventures.com
vSpring Capital, David Anderson, Administrative Partner, 801-942-8999 david@vspring.com
CrimeReports, Ryan Lufkin, Director of Marketing, 801-828-2721 rlufkin@crimereports.com