September 1, 2010

Two FirstMark Capital Portfolio Companies Named to Prestigious Technology Pioneers List by the World Economic Forum

New York City-Based SecondMarket and Knewton Recognized for Innovative and Industry-Disrupting Technologies

NEW YORK – Sept. 1, 2010 – FirstMark Capital, an early stage venture capital firm investing in innovative technology and technology-enabled businesses, today announced that two of its portfolio companies, SecondMarket and Knewton, have been named to the World Economic Forum’s 2011 list of Technology Pioneers. This marks the first year since the inception of the Technology Pioneers program that more than one New York City headquartered company has been featured on the global list.  FirstMark Capital-backed SecondMarket and Knewton are joined by foursquare to round out the New York-based companies representing three distinct industries: financial services, education and social media.

The World Economic Forum selection committee reviews hundreds of nominations from around the world, selecting approximately 30 companies to be named as Technology Pioneers in three categories: biotechnology and health; energy and environmental technologies; and information technologies and new media. Criteria for being named a Technology Pioneer includes undertaking work with the promise of disrupting the way business and society operate; demonstration of visionary leadership; proven technology; and the signs of being a long-standing market leader. The selection committee consists of technology experts, top academicians, venture capital firms, technology incubators, entrepreneurs, innovators and World Economic Forum members and partners.

An integral figure in the New York City investment and entrepreneurial community, FirstMark Capital leverages its home-field advantage to tap the city’s world-class resources for its companies and investors.  Revolutionary technologies created by SecondMarket, the largest marketplace for illiquid assets, and Knewton, the industry’s first adaptive learning engine and platform, exemplify the leadership, innovation and game-changing technologies FirstMark Capital seeks in identifying promising portfolio companies.

“FirstMark Capital is a vigorous supporter of the entrepreneurial community of New York.  We believe there’s no better city in the world in which to build and operate a business from,” said Lawrence D. Lenihan, CEO and Managing Director of FirstMark Capital. “We are delighted to see both SecondMarket and Knewton on this prestigious list. Together with foursquare, these companies represent the booming New York tech scene comprised of high-growth businesses in diverse industries.”

SecondMarket and Knewton join a distinguished community of past winners including such celebrated companies as Twitter, Mozilla, Pay Pal and Google. Recognition as a Technology Pioneer allows selected companies to be integrated in the World Economic Forum’s network of members and constituents. Technology Pioneers are invited to the Annual Meeting in Davos-Klosters, Switzerland and other highly coveted regional events.

This honor comes on the heels of the AlwaysOn Global 250 list, where SecondMarket and Knewton, along with fellow FirstMark portfolio company Riot Games were named top private companies on the annual list. SecondMarket was named the overall winner, with Knewton and Riot Games category winners for Consumer Internet and Digital Media, respectively.

About FirstMark Capital
Based in New York City, FirstMark Capital invests in ground-breaking companies that are creating new markets with innovative technology solutions or fundamentally changing existing markets by applying a fresh approach and new business model. A venture leader with nearly $2 billion in capital commitments, FirstMark's team of investment and operations professionals have decades of real-world experience and leadership in core technology markets, making the firm uniquely qualified to offer industry insight, relationships and the operational expertise to build lasting businesses. Select historical investments include: Netgear, Inc. (NASDAQ: NTGR); First Advantage Corp. (Acquired by First American Corporation; NASDAQ: FAF); StubHub, Inc (Acquired by eBay, Inc.; NASDAQ:EBAY); Netegrity, Inc. (Acquired by CA Inc; NASDAQ: CA); Flarion, Inc. (Acquired by Qualcomm, Inc; NASDAQ: QCOM); OutlookSoft Inc. (Acquired by SAP AG; NASDAQ: SAP); Vallent (Acquired by IBM; NASDAQ: IBM) and Navic (Acquired by Microsoft; NASDAQ: MSFT).  Current investments include: SecondMarket, Riot Games, Dovetail, Knewton, Conductor, Clickable, SPADAC and Lumos Labs.  For more information, please visit http://www.firstmarkcap.com.