Shari Redstone venture capital firm begins investments
Shari Redstone -- the daughter of Sumner Redstone who serves as vice chair of media giants Viacom Inc. and CBS Corp. and president of National Amusements Inc. -- has launched her own investment firm, according to regulatory filings.
Redstone is managing partner of the Massachusetts-based Advancit Capital, which is described in the CBS proxy as a "venture capital firm ... which focuses on early stage investments in media, entertainment and technology."
Redstone was unavailable for comment Friday. Her co-founder in the venture is Jason Ostheimer, formerly of Blackstone Group.
Their firm has raised $3.2 million, according to a July SEC filing. The news was first reported by the Wall Street Journal's technology blog, AllThingsD.
Advancit has invested in at least one firm, La Jolla-based technology startup Nettle Inc. Earlier this month, Nettle announced that it had raised $500,000 in seed money, primarily from Google Ventures but with help from Advancit Capital.
Nettle, which is expected to launch next month, is working on a mobile application that it describes as a "next-generation social/local/mobile application and website for the global entertainment market."
-- Meg James
Photo: Shari Redstone. Credit: Henry Leutwyler / Bloomberg News
