500 Startups-Backed LaunchBit Runs Tech-Focused Email Newsletter Ad Network

WHAT: Ad network for email newsletters. LaunchBit [ @launchbit ] pairs advertisers with publishers to target specific audiences, mainly tech entrepreneurs and developers right now.

LAUNCHERS: Elizabeth Yin, CEO [ @launchbit, LinkedIn ]. Jennifer Chin, COO.  

INSPIRATION: Email marketing through the right channels can be great for direct marketers, but "doing one-off business development deals with independent email newsletters and email publications simply isn't scalable. So, we decided to build a marketplace to address this," CEO Elizabeth Yin told LAUNCH via email.

BUSINESS MODEL: Transaction fee of 25%.

CUSTOMERS/GROWTH: 14 newsletters in the marketplace including BetaLi.st and Lean Startup.

COMPETITION: For Email: ividence, FeedBlitz. More generally: AdMob, Jumptap, Mojiva, Google Adsense, ValueClick.

INVESTORS: 500 Startups

AMOUNT RAISING: Not disclosed.