DOHA, Qatar and JAKARTA, Indonesia, Feb. 9, 2015 /PRNewswire/ -- Dealoka, a mobile
e-commerce app, received its first round of Series A funding in
January from SB ISAT, a US $50
million venture fund jointly established by Indosat, member
of Ooredoo Group and Japan's
Softbank to target Indonesian growth-stage startups.
Dealoka is one of the first graduates of Ideabox, Indosat and
Ooredoo's start-up incubator programme. It is a mobile app
which gives users eVouchers based on interest and location allowing
merchants to push promotions to drive offline traffic to their
physical stores. It currently promotes global brands including,
among others, Wendy's, Bakerzin, and Baskin
Robbins as well as popular Indonesian merchants such as
Dinar Seafood, Cup-Bon, Boba Bits, Honey
Bean, Twisto Potato and Shabu
Tei.
"Working closely with Ooredoo, our parent company, we are
committed to building a strong digital ecosystem in Indonesia," said Alexander Rusli, President Director & CEO
Indosat.
He continued: "In addition to running one of Indonesia's most prominent and oldest tech
competitions and hackathons, IWIC, we also run Ideabox, an
incubator for early stage digital companies, now in its third year
of operation, and jointly operate the SB ISAT Fund to help startups
progress through growth stage to mature stage development. Through
these vehicles, we not only provide funding but also commercial and
strategic support to promising Indonesian entrepreneurs, including
priority engagement with Indosat's own dedicated Digital Services
Unit. Softbank is one of the leading telecom VCs in the world
and through our partnership on the SB-ISAT fund we will bring
strong stimulus to Indonesian technology companies at the right
stage of development."
Dr Nasser Marafih, Group CEO Ooredoo, commented: "Across our
footprint we are passionate about powering innovation in all stages
of growth and development. Indonesia's tech scene is developing at a
rapid pace and shows no sign of slowing down. Through a
variety of initiatives we are excited to play a role in supporting
the continuous development of innovative and relevant digital
services across Indonesia which
enhance the lives of consumers and better facilitate enterprise.
Continuing to stimulate such innovative thinking is a key priority
for 2015."
Sidnei Budiman, co-founder of
Dealoka added: "We're really encouraged to work with the SB ISAT
team and have the opportunity to benefit from their extensive
experience in mobile and digital marketing. Our aim is to empower
brick-and-mortar Indonesian merchants to reach the right consumers
at the right time with the right message and Indosat's support to
date has been invaluable in helping us achieve this. We are
excited to continue our partnership with Indosat and Ooredoo and to
have them on-board for the journey ahead."
The Ideabox accelerator offers an intensive 4 month acceleration
program which provides 24-7 mentoring, seed funding, facilities, a
structured curriculum and access to an extensive network of local
and international startup founders and advisors. Following
graduation the startups continue to receive strong support from
Indosat and Ooredoo. This support includes commercial partnerships,
co-location, payment integration and mobile advertising support to
help them achieve success and access millions of Indonesian mobile
customers.
About Ooredoo Group
Ooredoo is a leading international communications company
delivering mobile, fixed, broadband internet and corporate managed
services tailored to the needs of consumers and businesses across
markets in South East Asia, the
Middle East, and North
Africa. As a community-focused company, Ooredoo is guided by
its vision of enriching people's lives and its belief that it can
stimulate human growth by leveraging communications to help people
achieve their full potential. The company was named "Best Mobile
Operator of the Year" at the World Communication Awards 2013.
The company reported revenues of US $9.3
billion in 2013 and had a consolidated global customer base
of more than 95 million people as of 31
December 2013.
Twitter: @Ooredoo
Facebook: www.facebook.com/ooredoogroup
LinkedIn: www.linkedin.com/company/ooredoo
YouTube: www.youtube.com/ooredoogroup
About SoftBank Group
SoftBank Group consists of Softbank Corp. (TYO: 9984) and its
subsidiaries and affiliates that offer a complete selection of
advanced mobile communication services, fixed line communications
and Internet services worldwide. By joining Sprint in July 2013, Softbank Group into a leading global
operator and currently has 100 million consumers. Maximizing
synergies across its business globally SoftBank Group aspires to
realize a new living standard through Information Technology.
Softbank Group also encourages the application of clean and safe
energy throughout its business activities. For more info, visit
http://www.softbank.jp/en/corp/
About Dealoka
Dealoka is a local marketing platform that enables merchants to
deliver attractive offers to consumers. Dealoka help merchants
understand how their products are found by consumers, when and
where consumers show interest in a particular product, until the
stage that the consumer makes a purchase. Dealoka's goal is to
provide attractive location-based offers to online purchases of up
directly at the store.
- See more at:
http://indosat.com/id/about-indosat/corporate-profile/press-release/dealoka-besutan-indosat-ideabox-raih-dana-sb-isat#sthash.Ja7h7Bts.dpuf
About Indosat
Indosat is the leading telecommunication and information
operator in Indonesia that
provides cellular services, fixed line, data communications and
internet (MIDI). In the third quarter of 2014, the company has 54.2
million mobile subscribers through a variety of brands, among
others; IM3, Mentari and Matrix. Indosat operates international
direct dialing (IDD) through the access codes 001, 008 and Flatcall
01016. The company also offers corporate and SME solutions namely
Indosat Business that supported by integrated telecommunications
network throughout Indonesia as
well as satellite services via satellite Palapa-D. Indosat also has
a very broad digital services program including a dedicated digital
services unit (www.indosat.com/digital), Indonesia's first innovation competition IWIC
(Indosat Wireless Innovation Contest) and Indonesia's leading startup incubator Ideabox
(www.ideabox.co.id). Indosat is a subsidiary of the Ooredoo Group.
Indosat's shares are listed on the Indonesia Stock Exchange (IDX:
ISAT).
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/indosat-member-of-ooredoo-group-and-softbank-invest-in-indonesias-maturing-start-up-ecosystem-300032689.html
SOURCE Ooredoo