Italian mobile entertainment group Neomobile, BlueGem private equity fund and closed-end Fund MPS Venture have closed a transaction that makes Blue Gem a key shareholder of Neomobile.

MPS Venture, an Italian fund who initially became a shareholder in 2008, recently decided to increase its investment in Neomobile, proving its commitment as a key shareholder and confidence in the management team. The new shareholders base will act as a foundation for Neomobile in its launch of an ambitious growth plan in the emerging mobile marketing industry.

"Both shareholders believe in the growth potential of the mobile sector and in Neomobile?s management capability of addressing new opportunities and achieving ambitious goals," said Gianluca D?Agostino, CEO of Neomobile, Rome, Italy.

"Neomobile has a track record of continuous growth and achievements, such as a compound yearly revenue growth of over 50 percent in the last three years and becoming the top player in the Italian direct-to-consumer sector in less than four years and among the top players in Spain, Turkey and Brazil," he said.

Neomobile is a global player in the mobile marketing industry, specializing in the direct-to-consumer sector of the mobile entertainment industry.

BlueGem was formed by ex-Merrill Lynch professionals with the purpose of making private equity investments in mid-market companies, with a focus on Great Britain and Italy.

MPS Venture is a management company under the control of the Montepaschi Group, which manages six private equity funds.

The transaction came in a timely fashion as well, as the mobile marketing industry reached a market-worth of approximately $73 billion in 2009 and expected to grow to $95 billion by 2011, according to Neomobile.

"Neomobile intends to continue its growth process with regards to international expansion and business development," Mr. D?Agostino said.

"Mobile Marketing represents a key area of our strategy for the future," he said. "In fact, Neomobile believes this market will see a tremendous growth and offer considerable opportunities to a company with the marketing and technology know how of Neomobile."

Neomobile already has offices in 15 countries throughout the Mediterranean region, Asia and Latin America and claims to be among the most recognized and competitive players in the fast-growing direct-to-consumer segment of the market.

Recently, Neomobile took the Spanish group Arena Mobile under its wing to expand its geographic reach and business footprint.

The company works with major wireless carriers such as Vodafone, Telefonica, Telecom Italia, America Movil and Turkcell.

In 2008 alone, Neomobile was able to generate more than $117 million gross revenue in partnerships with carriers.

"We believe the mobile scenario is going to continue to evolve strongly in entertainment, with a strong evolution of the offer available to users," Mr. D?Agostino said.

"Users will have access to a wide range of mobile products which will be socially connected, rich-media oriented, quality-content focused and in general, provide higher value for money," he said.

"In this evolution, media companies and Web companies will play an important role, using mobile to increase target reach and user experience and to monetize content assets."