Monday, January 21, 2013

Circa: News Delivery for a Mobile Generation

Many people rely on their phones for almost everything, including keeping abreast of current affairs. The way we consume the news has changed with the rise of mobile, but the way the content is presented hasn't caught up yet. This is where Circa comes in. Three months ago, the San Francisco-based mobile news delivery startup launched their free app, which claims to be “the best way to read the news on your phone.”

As the first mobile-native news experience, Circa delivers the stuff matters and only that. The company's editors collect the day's top stories and break them down into small chunks, so you see just the essential facts and photos, in a format especially designed for the phone. With Circa, those who don't have a lot of time to read long stories can catch up quickly and easily with the rest of the world wherever they are, even while offline. In addition, the app updates a story you're following whenever there are new developments instead of making you read a new article.


Compatible with iPhone, iPod Touch, and iPad, Circa last week announced version 1.1, which introduced new features such as a cleaned up design, a featured story marquee that highlights multiple stories in each category, and sharing by email (the previous version only allowed sharing to Twitter and Facebook).

Co-founded by Matt Galligan, Arsenio Santos, and Ben Huh, Circa recently raised $750,000 in funding. Participating in the round were Lerer Ventures, Menlo Talent Fund, Advancit Capital, Eamon Leonard, and Alex Bard, who join existing investors David Karp, Gary Vaynerchuk, Josh Spear, Eric Norlin, Soraya Darabi, and more. Currently covering news in the top stories, US, world, and politics categories, Circa will soon deliver technology news as well. The app has been downloaded hundreds of thousands of times since launch.

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