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Firefox-branding start-up gets funding

Angel investors are putting money into Brand Thunder, which re-skins Firefox and gets shared ad revenue from Yahoo.

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Brand Thunder, a company that lets people customize Firefox with brands, has received an undisclosed amount of funding from Ohio TechAngels and other angel investors, the company said Tuesday.

The company revamps the open-source Web browser with various brands such as Nascar, hockey teams, country singer Julianne Hough, and various other partners.

To fund its business, Brand Thunder also changes the default search engine to Yahoo, which shares resulting advertising revenue with the company.

Brand Thunder also said it's signed a new partnership with Major League Soccer for a branded browser.

Update 9:45 a.m. PST: The company followed up with details of the funding: $350,000 from TechColumbus, $200,000 from the Ohio TechAngels Fund, and $200,000 from other angel investors.

In addition, the company said it expects to break even by the end of the quarter. It had hoped to do so in February, but a slowdown in Yahoo search delayed it slightly. The company also receives revenue from maintenance, upfront fees, and other sources.

Brand Thunder lets people customize Firefox with assorted brands.
Brand Thunder lets people customize Firefox with assorted brands. Brand Thunder