In-text ads might be widely considered to be annoying—but they’re increasingly being adopted and lots of money continues to flow into them. In-text ad network Kontera has raised $15.5 million in a third round of funding led by Sequoia Capital and other existing investors, including Tenaya Capital and Carmel Ventures. With the new funds, the company will have now raised more than $32 million since 2006.

Kontera’s technology analyzes the text of a webpage and then adds targeted ads, which usually appear when someone hovers over a phrase (See screenshot to the left, if you’re in need of a reminder). Kontera said the company had “consistently attained double-digit quarter-on-quarter growth” despite the economic slowdown. It claims to be profitable and says it has increased the size of its ad network’s audience by 40 percent over the last year, making it the fifth fastest-growing ad network in the U.S., according to comScore.

Kontera will use the additional funds to further increase the size of its network—which already includes sites like USNews.com, TMZ, and SmartMoney—and also to improve its technology. AdWeek offers some more details including that the company plans to build a “Google-like self-service system for small advertisers.” Release.

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