Fanium
Sports technology company developing fantasy sports applications for mobile devices.
| Date | Investors | Amount | Round |
|---|---|---|---|
| - | investor | €0.0 | round |
| investor investor investor | €0.0 | round | |
| investor investor | €0.0 | round | |
| N/A | N/A | Seed | |
| Total Funding | 000k | ||
Fanium operated as a sports technology company with a focus on fantasy football. Founded in 2012 by Grant Gurtin, the company aimed to modernize the fantasy sports experience, which was seen as lagging behind in the mobile era. Gurtin, a Brown University alumnus and a fantasy sports enthusiast, identified a market opportunity while still a student, envisioning a more dynamic, mobile-centric platform. His journey began with a cold call to an investor, eventually securing pre-product funding from Social Leverage.
The company's core offering was a 100% mobile fantasy football game available for free on iOS and Android devices. Fanium's platform was designed to be intuitive for new players while remaining engaging for experienced users. Key features included up-to-the-second Twitter updates from sports writers and fantasy experts, a mobile draft system that utilized push notifications, and unlockable avatars for achieving certain milestones. This model provided users with curated, in-depth fantasy football content, distinguishing it from incumbents like Yahoo and ESPN. The business monetized through a freemium model, where the basic game was free, aiming to attract a large user base that could be converted to paid tiers or monetized through other means.
Fanium gained early traction, with its app being featured in TechCrunch's list of best fantasy football apps in 2013. Throughout its operation, the company raised approximately $1.9 million in funding over several rounds, including participation from investors like Techstars. The company was eventually sold to CBSSports. Following the acquisition, founder Grant Gurtin assisted in relaunching the SportsLine.com brand before moving on to other entrepreneurial ventures. PitchBook and Tracxn data indicate the company is now out of business or has been deadpooled.
Keywords: Fanium, Grant Gurtin, mobile fantasy football, fantasy sports app, sports technology, CBSSports acquisition, Social Leverage, Techstars, mobile sports gaming, fantasy football content, push notification draft, sports data, player updates, freemium game, iOS fantasy sports, Android fantasy football, Brown University entrepreneurship