It was disclosed yesterday morning. Jilion, the company behind the amazing, customizable HTML5 video-player SublimeVideo, has been bought by video platform giant DailyMotion. The amount of the transaction has not yet been disclosed and seems to be both an acquisition of technology and talents. You can find more about the announcement here.
The core team behind Lausanne-based startup Jilion started to work together long ago, in 2007. The initial project was something extremely different (and in another industry). The company pivoted in 2009, after spending some spare-time (understand: between 22:00 and 01:00) to build a video-player in the nascent HTML5 technology. They’ve quickly understood they had something valuable in their hands… and a single tweet to announce their release made a lot of buzz on the global innovation/startup scene. SublimeVideo started “as an accident”… amazing, no?
I know the founders (Mehdi and Zeno) and the core team for a so long time. I’m really happy to see them rewarded for both their talent and their drive to build such a great technology and company. I’ve been following their progress quite closely, and I was waiting for such a news for a long time. Now it has finally happened! And probably to the best buyer there is (well, Maker Studios, Youtube or Vimeo could also have been a good fit)!
In one single word: C-O-N-G-R-A-T-U-L-A-T-I-O-N-S
It’s great to see Swiss startups bought by international leaders. It shows that the ecosystem is lively, even if often forgotten on a world-wide basis. And moreover, it brings liquidity for the early investors. I guess the exit hasn’t been in the 100’ of millions (otherwise it would have been disclosed… or not? I hope I’m wrong!), but anyway. It’s a great move and a great sign for Switzerland: internet startups can bring a real return on investment for its backers. I expect many more exits to come. Because there are awesome startups out there. Coming years will confirm my “prophecy”… hopefully!
What do you think?