Nivio to raise $6 mln private equity

New Delhi, June 15 (UNI) Switzerland-based Internet service provider Nivio today said it aims to raise six million dollars through private equity.

It estimates the market potential at 23 million users, of which it plans to capture atleast five per cent by 2010.

''We want to catch more than one million users by 2010. This will generate a revenue of Rs 821 crore,'' company Chief Executive Officer Sachin Duggal told reporters while launching a new service here.

Speaking at the launch of its online desktop, the first of its kind in the world, he said the company has already raised 3.5 million dollars through private equity from Investment bankers from Deutsche Bank, Unicredit and Goldman Sachs.

''We are not looking at Venture capital but are more focussed at equity,'' he said.

The company is in talks with various ISPs, educational institutes and internet cafe owners for collaborating to provide Nivio systems.

The company will be able to clock a net profit of 50 million dollars by 2010, he said.

Nivio would later make the service free of charge. It would only charge for the softwares dowloaded. It is also talking to corporates like Coca Cola, PepsiCo, etc for advertising and sponsoring the homepage.

The company will work on a 25 per cent profit margin, which would be increased to 45 per cent.

''Initially, the push is on individual users and we would look at corporates later. We want to have a mass appeal,'' he added.

UNI