Net Perceptions gets boost

Net Perceptions Inc., developer of technology used by the likes of Amazon.com to deliver personalized data to users, hopes that a $7 million venture capital infusion announced Tuesday will help it become profitable within a year.

The funding comes from Hummer Winblad Venture Partners, St. Paul Venture Capital, Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures, London Pacific Life & Annuity, and JAFCO America Ventures Inc., and it will help the company develop other applications for its technology both within and outside the Internet space, said Steve Larsen, VP of marketing and business development.

But the company's "No. 1 goal" is to reach profitability within 12 months, he added. Company officials hope the interest Net Perceptions has generated among such industry heavyweights as Microsoft Corp.'s Paul Allen and Hummer Winblad's Ann Winblad will prove contagious to other potential customers, Larsen said.

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Winblad, who sits on the company's board of directors, called Net Perceptions "the clear industry leader," saying the company has nearly three times as many customers as its next largest competitor. The company ended 1997 with some 30 customers, including book-selling giant Amazon, E! Online and music retailers CDNow and N2K.

Other potential applications for Net Perception's GroupLens collaborative filtering tools include call center products and tools for participants in online communities, Larsen said. Amazon.com uses the technology to allow its users to recommend books to other users.

The company has applied for a U.S. patent on its collaborative filtering technology.