Survey: Venture capitalists to show mobile some love

Venture capitalists expect to pour money into mobile and online entertainment over the next two years, according to new figures from KPMG.
The auditing giant said the poll of 300 venture capitalists, corporate executives and bankers found that 52% of respondents predicted investment in digital content creation will increase in the near future, with one-fourth of those polled expecting investment to climb by more than 20%. Nearly 60% said they expect increased activity on the merger-and-acquisition front.
Interestingly, mobile is expected to be the top recipient of investment dollars, with 31% saying wireless apps will bring in the most investment. Twenty-six percent said technology enablers will see the most funding, while 20% predicted social media services will receive the most capital.
“Activity in the market clearly indicates that the mobile space has become a significant area of opportunity for venture capitalists,” said Brian Hughes, a Philadelphia-based KPMG partner and co-leader of its VC practice. “The population of consumers who prefer to receive content via their mobile devices is a rapidly growing segment of the market, and VCs have shown keen interest. We’ve seen new funds created specifically for the mobile sector, and social media also continues to gain traction.”
Indeed, the flow of money to mobile application developers has continued in recent days. Funambol, an open-source mobile e-mail company, today announced a $12.5 million injection, while Yap Inc., a player in the speech-recognition space, reported a $6.5 million Series A haul a few days ago.