Mashery Raises $11 Million to Meet Growing Demand in API Market

Mashery, the leading provider of API (Application Programming Interface) management tools and services, announced today that it has raised $11 million in funding led by OpenView Venture Partners. Existing investors Cisco, Formative Ventures, First Round Capital and .406 Ventures also participated in this funding round. The company will use the financing to broaden its current offering to meet the needs of increasingly more sophisticated and business critical API programs as well as to expand sales and marketing activities in key vertical markets.

“The industry leadership Mashery has achieved was echoed by a succession of enthusiastic customers, trusted partners and industry experts,” said Scott Maxwell, Senior Managing Director & Founder, OpenView Venture Partners. “We recognize the growing market opportunity and we’re thrilled to be investing in the clear category leader. We believe in Mashery’s team and its vision for the future.”

Mashery provides on-demand API infrastructure enablement and management for over 100 leading brands in key verticals like media, retail, travel, business services, geo-local services and finance. The Mashery network of developers has more than doubled to over 100,000 since Q1 of 2010 and the number of live applications built on Mashery-powered APIs has grown 150% to 25,000 in the past six months alone.

“We have entered the post-website era, where companies are increasingly less likely to reach their customers through a browser-based website. In a world of apps, mobile devices and new online distribution channels, it is essential that APIs — the building blocks of all apps — are offered in a secure, scalable and measurable way,” said Oren Michels, CEO and Co-founder of Mashery. “This investment and our partnership with OpenView will allow us to extend our leadership in API management and meet the increasingly complex challenges of high-volume, secure and high-availability APIs that power business critical applications.”

2011 introduced an entirely new array of connected devices, from millions of connected tablets to 52% penetration of internet-enabled gaming devices. By allowing secure, managed access to data and services, APIs allow for accelerated development of mobile and social applications by internal, partner and external developers. Companies like Netflix, Best Buy, The New York Times, Expedia, The Guardian and Hoover’s have successful API programs that have enabled competitive differentiation in their respective industries.

Mashery’s API management tools and strategic services help companies connect with customers and partners in a changing digital world by extending reach across devices, markets and the Web. Mashery leads the industry with a holistic approach for API initiatives — from defining platform strategy and measuring business objectives to the heavy lifting of providing and managing infrastructure to facilitating relationships with our 100,000 strong network of Web and mobile application developers. Mashery provides knowledge, experience and proven strategies to enable over 100 leading brands to focus on their core business while driving sales, building new revenue channels and realizing faster time-to-market for innovative applications. Mashery was founded in 2006 and has built an impressive list of clients that include Best Buy, Netflix, and The New York Times. For more information, visit www.mashery.com.

To learn more about Mashery, visit www.mashery.com