The Israeli owned internet video sharing site Metacafe is rumored to be on the auction block. They’re not getting Youtube money, but 300 million ain’t half bad…

JERUSALEM, Dec 7 (Reuters) - Online video sharing site Metacafe, a rival to Google Inc.’s YouTube site, is close to being acquired by a foreign company for as much as $300 million, Israeli financial news site Globes said on Thursday.

Globes did not name the potential acquirer but said a deal could fetch $200 million to $300 million.

The report said that founder Eyal Herzog had failed to show up for a speaking appearance at a Globes event on Monday night and that he “suddenly left for the United States last night, apparently to close the sale.” The story appeared on Thursday.

Arik Czerniak, the chief executive of the Israeli start-up, issued a statement later on Thursday saying that the company was declining to comment on the report.
Our policy is not to comment on any rumors,” Czerniak said. “At this point, our focus remains on providing highly entertaining content to the our global audience of more than 16 million monthly visitors.”

Metacafe, an Israeli start-up, offers $5 for every thousandth hit on a video clip, and claims to be the largest video clip site following Google’s purchase of video-sharing site YouTube for $1.65 billion in November, Globes said.

Last month, the company said it had signed a deal with Steven Bochco, a top U.S. television producer, known for series such as Hill Street Blues, L.A. Law and NYPD Blue, to form a new video channel on the Metacafe site. Some 400 million videos are viewed on Metacafe each month, it says.

Sequoia Capital Israel said that the startup might be an acquisition target for any of the major Internet media companies, Globes said.

Metacafe has offices in Palo Alto and Tel-Aviv. The privately held company is backed by Accel Partners and Benchmark Capital. (Additional reporting by Eric Auchard in San Francisco)

From their website:

“About us

Metacafe is one of the world’s largest online video broadcasters with a global audience of 17 million unique visitors (comScore Media Metrix) watching over 400 million videos each month. We are a top 10 online entertainment destination for males ages 18 - 34 (Nielsen NetRatings) and one of the top 60 largest English language sites in the world (Alexa).

Using our VideoRank™ technology, Metacafe is the only site that mines the collective wisdom of its audience to filter and surface the most entertaining videos, making it the best place to both watch and distribute high quality video content. At Metacafe, we are completely committed to:

1. Helping viewers quickly discover the best short videos online

2. Empowering the creators of these videos to get exposure, earn money and receive acclaim

Metacafe has offices in Palo Alto, California and Tel-Aviv, Israel. The company is privately held with funding from Accel Partners and Benchmark Capital.”

Not for long.

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