Helping good ideas to pay

Oct 16 2007 By The Journal

TWO early stage technology funds are driving the development of one of the region’s fastest growing sectors.

The £10m Proof of Concept Fund and the £23m North-East Co-Investment Fund, both managed by NorthStar Equity Investors, are helping IT and communications companies turn ideas into commercial success stories.

Designed to promote early stage propositions, the POC provides up to £90,000 and has invested in more than 120 regional enterprises to date. The POC was set up in 2004 with money from One NorthEast and the European Regional Development Fund.

With 20 deals completed, the COIF, also funded by the ERDF, can provide up to £1m for North-East companies that want to pursue high-growth, innovative ideas.

NorthStar Equity’s investments have been a catalyst for many young companies to progress exciting new devices.

NSEI chief executive Marion Bernard explained: "ICT continues to be an exciting sector in the North-East. There’s strong commercial activity and we’re delighted that our investments are promoting the growth of new companies and a wealth of original technologies."

Broadband Computer Company – £750,000 North-East Co-Investment Fund

A new system that will transform the way homes and offices use PCs has been produced by Newcastle’s Broadband Computer Company.

The company has developed its own purpose-built hardware and software aimed at making computing as simple as possible. All users will have to do is switch on the machine and identify themselves.

Setting up and maintaining the system, installing the latest software, and even saving work is all taken care of. There are no problems with licences or viruses and the user interface is designed to be intuitive and fun to use.

The Broadband Computer Company – which brings together IT, media and marketing specialists – has spent the past three years developing the equipment to make the system work. Their product should hit the UK market in January 2008 and a business version will also be launched.

Alasdair Greig, investment manager at NSEI, said: "This is an exciting development in computing that has huge potential and is another example of cutting edge technology that is being developed here in the North-East."

Palringo – £210,000 from North-East Co-Investment Fund

Northumberland-based Palringo has developed software that can transform an ordinary mobile phone into a walkie-talkie at the touch of a button.

Vocal Instant Messaging works like ordinary instant messaging, but allows users to send voice as well as text and pictures to one or more contacts. VIM is easy, inexpensive and has been carefully designed to minimise both its footprint and its bandwidth requirements.

Palringo was founded in 2006 by 21-year-old Martin Rosinski and his father Jarek. NSEI’s Co-Investment Fund contributed to a funding round worth £650,000, allowing the company to build a core development team, conduct consumer trails and move into new premises on Nelson Industrial Estate in Cramlington.

Palringo’s chief executive officer Tim Rea said: "This technology enables interactive group chat sessions among people across the globe, on any network or via any internet-connected device.

"We have had excellent feedback from our consumer trials to help us shape our final product. Throughout our development phase, NSEI’s support and advice have been crucial."

Veriphy – £60,000 Proof of Concept Fund

Thanks to a £60,000 investment from the Proof of Concept Fund, a Newcastle company has devised an ingenious process that is helping to save companies money and protect against lending fraud in property and financial transactions.

Veriphy is an online system that works by carrying out money laundering, identity, credit and electronic property valuation checks – as well as supplying a copy of the title deeds – in one simple to use interface.

Before Veriphy, a broker or lender had to key these details into several separate systems to perform these checks.

Veriphy’s new platform is increasingly popular with solicitors, accountants, IFAs and lenders, thanks to its ease of use and clear and transparent audit trails.

Managing director George Stark said: "The lending process has been prone to fraud, keying errors and a lot of data entry. Veriphy is more efficient, more secure and will have a real impact on a company’s bottom line."

• For further information about funding opportunities and NorthStar Equity Investors, visit www.northstarei.com or contact on (0191) 211-2300.