Vantage Media, a big search advertising agency, has taken on some big money: $70 million in first round funding. The round in the Venice, CA-based firm was led by investment bank Montgomery & Co. Scale Venture Partners, Tudor Ventures and Integral Capital Partners also took part in the financing round. Also, the company named a new CEO and will use the funds to expand into Europe and new industry segments.
The new CEO is Steve Jillings, the former CEO of anti-SPAM company Frontbridge Technologies. Vantage Media founder Mark DiPaola will remain as president of the firm.
Vantage, which employs about 50 people, earns well over $1 million per employee a year, and the CEO vowed to double headcount this year and do “$100 million in revenue, or better”, the story says.
Vantage has built its business by reselling search terms from PPC ad providers Google and Yahoo to online education companies such as University of Phoenix Online, Corinthian Colleges, Career Education and Westwood College.
Details here in release.