Hot topics

news

Comment

TokBox Shutters Consumer-Facing Live Video Chat Platform To Focus On Building Out API

Leena Rao

View Staff Page

Leena Rao is currently a Senior Editor for TechCrunch. She recently finished graduate school at the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, where she studied business journalism and videography. From 2004 to 2007, she helped lead Congresswoman Carloyn Maloney’s community outreach and relations efforts in New York City. She graduated from Columbia University in 2003, where she was... → Learn More

Tuesday, February 8th, 2011
Comments

Video chat startup TokBox is announcing a significant transition in its business today. The company is announcing that it will be shuttering its consumer-facing web-based video chat application, and focusing on building out its recently launched API has a business.

TokBox’s multi-user video chat from the browser has close to 2 million registered users. However, TokBox has been on a bit of a roller coaster rise with the video chat technology as its main product. In 2009, forced to fire 30% of the company’s total staff and shuffled the executive lineup. In the search for more revenue, TokBox unveiled paid features on its platform in early 2010.

In November of last year, TokBox raised $12 million in new funding from Sequoia and others and opened up its API, called OpenTok. The platform allows businesses and developers to weave live video chat throughout content on a web page or site. Developers can place up to 20 video participants on a given page with the technology.

Since November, OpenTok has been adopted by 28 partners and the company has decided to shift from the consumer-facing video chat/conferencing space to focus on OpenTok as a business model. TokBox’s current video chat services will close down on April 5, 2011.

For now, OpenTok is free but the company plans to add premium services in the API (which apparently there is a demand for from current customers). Another revenue stream, says the company is advertising within video streams. And TokBox says that a number of well-known brands will be using the API in the near future.

So what do you think—can TokBox pivot?

Crunchbase

Company: TokBox
Website: tokbox.com
Launch Date: May 2007
Funding: $26M

OpenTok from TokBox is a leading online video communications platform, enabling the addition of live group video communications into any web or mobile property. Incorporating solutions for enterprises, entrepreneurs and developers, anyone with a web presence can harness the power of live video to drive user engagement within their site or service. The scalable, customizable platform incorporates proprietary quality-enhancing technology and enables high quality video sessions with up to 20 live participants and unlimited viewers. TokBox is a privately held company...

→ Learn more

Tags:
blog comments powered by Disqus