Teliris Receives $40 Million Investment From Fidelity Ventures and Columbia Capital

Teliris Receives $40 Million Investment From Fidelity Ventures and Columbia Capital

February 06, 2007

Funding Will Help Drive Telepresence Market Leadership
Through Expanded Global Sales, Marketing, Operations


    NEW YORK, Feb. 6 /Xinhua-PRNewswire/ -- Teliris, the
leading provider of telepresence solutions, today announced
that it has received a $40 million majority equity
investment led by Fidelity Ventures and co-lead Columbia
Capital. 
 
    Additionally, Teliris announced that Fidelity Ventures
partner, Anne Mitchell, and Columbia Capital partner, John
Siegel, have joined Teliris co-founder and CEO, Marc
Trachtenberg, on the Teliris Board of Directors.

    Teliris' VirtuaLive(TM) telepresence solution provides
the most natural and intimate virtual meeting environment
available on the market. Its flexibility, reliability and
cost effectiveness meet the demanding needs of a large,
diverse customer base. Teliris will use the additional
funding to capitalize on its market leadership,
accelerating the company's visibility and business
opportunity via global expansion of its sales and marketing
capabilities and InfiNet(TM) network -- all while
maintaining its industry-leading managed service.

    "With six years of experience and a fourth
generation solution now in the marketplace, Teliris has
helped more businesses reduce costs, increase productivity
and address business continuity challenges than any other
telepresence provider," said Trachtenberg.

    "This investment by Fidelity Ventures and Columbia
Capital validates our unparalleled leadership at a time when
major vendors like Cisco, HP and Polycom are entering the
market," said Martyn Lewis, Teliris EU Chairman.

    "Teliris has done an excellent job of building a
pre-eminent position in the telepresence market," said
Mitchell. "With deployments in 18 countries, the
company has the largest installed base of global Fortune
500 companies and the deepest experience in serving
businesses in the pharmaceutical, financial, media,
exchange, product, consulting and manufacturing
industries."

    "We have seen tremendous interest in the
telepresence sector from both the enterprise market and
several potential distribution channels. We believe Teliris
has the unique mix of technology leadership and a
service-focused delivery model to drive widespread
adoption," said Siegel. "In our opinion, Teliris'
scalable and reliable managed service offering addresses a
large market need and positions the company for long-term
success."

    About Teliris:

    Founded in 2001, Teliris develops, implements and
manages the world's most widely deployed telepresence
systems, realistically replicating the human dynamics of a
live meeting. Teliris has deployments in 18 countries with
the largest installed base of Fortune 500 companies,
including Pearson plc, GlaxoSmithKline and Vodafone, among
others. Headquartered in New York and London, the company
combines a fully managed service with end-to-end
integration that offers businesses a 24/7 multipoint
capability with a 99%+ availability guarantee, ensuring
they can respond and collaborate as needed.  For further
information regarding Teliris, visit the company's web site
at http://www.teliris.com or email Teliris at
[e-mail] . 

    About Fidelity Ventures:

    Fidelity Ventures invests in technology companies at
the "Go-To-Market" stage. Its 40-year track
record includes hundreds of successful investments in the
consumer, communications, systems and software markets.
Fidelity Ventures is distinguished by the ability to
accelerate market adoption for its portfolio companies'
offerings, and by a global network of senior technology and
business executives. Fidelity Ventures actively manages over
$800 million from offices in Boston and London. Sister fund
Fidelity Asia Ventures manages over $220 million from
Shanghai and Hong Kong.  For more information, visit
http://www.fidelityventures.com .
 
    About Columbia Capital:

    Columbia Capital is a venture firm specializing in
communications, media and information technology
investments. The firm has experienced investment team with
diverse industry backgrounds in entrepreneurial ventures,
management, finance, regulation and engineering. The team
has managed investments in approximately 100 companies in
the communications, media and information technology
sectors, ranging from small, early-stage investments to
multibillion-dollar public companies. The most recent fund
of $560 million closed in 2006 and brings total dollars
under management to over $2.0 billion.


    For more information, please contact:

     Amy Rajendran                   
     Bell Pottinger           
     Tel:   [phone]                   
     Email: [e-mail]

     Fidelity Ventures
     Media Relations
     Tel:  [phone]


SOURCE  Teliris