Brno’s spin-off, Videoflot, first came to public attention with the viral video "Rider on the Highway", released soon after their formation, in the spin-off accelerator, Starcube, in 2012. This was only the start of their success. They then won third place in the Vodafone competition – The Idea of the Year 2012 – which guaranteed them participation in the prestigious biannual spin-off accelerator in Chile, South America. In 2013, Videoflot built up a stable platform of customers. An investment of 30 million CZK from Y Soft Venture Capital, which systematically supports promising spin-offs, will help Videoflot to open up to new opportunities in other markets around the world.
"This investment isn’t just a substantial financial injection, but also a chance to gain know-how, development tools and company management experience, resulting in a really strategic partnership. After years of operation based just on the personal enthusiasm of a few people, we can significantly expand the team and focus on foreign markets," says David Spáčil, the founder and CEO of Videoflot, describing the new collaboration. "Simply said, thanks to Y Soft, Videoflot got a rocket engine. Now, it is necessary to maintain and manage the right direction," he adds.
"David represents an enormous energy, a clear vision, knowledge and years of professional work in the video production industry. Videoflot also meets all four key criteria by which we evaluate spin-offs: vision and an idea, a product that has been well accepted by the market with the potential for global expansion, and ultimately management that has a great chance of starting the project successfully. This last criteria leads to the rejection of up to 40% of the projects evaluated. Everyone has great ideas, but that is often not enough. You have to be able to bring these ideas to reality too," says Václav Muchna, Y Soft’s CEO and investor.
Videoflot is currently undergoing big changes. The team is expanding – new programmers, UX designers and marketing staff – both in the Czech Republic and abroad. "A professional video = an agency video = an expensive video: This is the generally-accepted rule that we want to change. Within two years, we would like to build a global video production "ecosystem" that will open the door for young talents to enter the market. Without an intermediary, efficiently and freely." concludes David Spáčil.