Ad-inserter VoodooVox nets $8.1 million

VoodooVox, a North Adams, Mass., firm that inserts audio ads into phone calls, nailed down $8.1 million dollars in a second round of funding. Much of the company's work now involves ad insertion for calls coming into radio stations, but the service is said to work with VoIP, Voice 2.0, mobile calls and via calling cards.

The company likens its audio ads to page views. The idea is to get people to press a number on the keypad the way they would click-through on a web ad. VoodooVox reports having a click-through rate of about 12 percent. Softbank Capital of Newton, Mass., and New York led the Series D $8.1 million round; Softbank partner Steve Murray joined the VoodooVox board. Established investors include Apax Partners, Disney's Steamboat Ventures, and Village Ventures.

The deal is one more harbinger of voice services to come--ad-supported free calls. For folks shelling out $125 or more for wireless, landline and broadband service, waiting through an ad to make a free call is small concession. Last week, Aliso Viejo, Calif.,-based AdCalls [1] partnered with Canadian enterprise VoIPer Beyond Phone to extend free ad-supported calls globally. Ad-supported free consumer calls are coming.

For More:
- VoodooVox's official news is here [2]
- Red Herring has more here [3]