Nokia Venture Partners, a premiere global venture capital firm focused on early stage mobile Internet investments, today announced that John Zeisler, 48, has joined as general partner. Zeisler brings more than 25 years of management and investing experience to Nokia Venture Partners. As a Silicon Valley industry veteran, John has played key consulting, management and operational roles at leading technology companies including Apple Computer, Claris Corporation, InfoSeek, Netcom Online Communications, Pensoft, and Placeware. Zeisler becomes Nokia Venture Partners’ sixth partner and will be based at the firm’s headquarters in Menlo Park, California.
"John’s proven leadership is invaluable, and his passion for working with entrepreneurs will help us rapidly expand and add value to our investments in the mobile Internet space,” said John Malloy, managing partner, Nokia Venture Partners. "John’s extensive network of contacts in the business, technical and venture capital community are unmatched and we’re thrilled to have him on board to support entrepreneurs in building successful mobile companies, both on a local and global scale.”
Launched in 1998, Nokia Venture Partners is an independent venture capital partnership, which currently has USD$650 million under management. In addition to Nokia, the fund includes third party investors: Goldman Sachs, BMC Software, CDBWebTech and others. Nokia Venture Partners offers its limited partners venture capital rates of return and real time market feedback about new technologies, business models and markets.
“This decade will see an enormous market transformation due to the explosion of the mobile Internet, just as the personal computer industry witnessed in the1980’s, and the networking and Internet markets experienced in the 1990’s,” said John Zeisler, general partner, Nokia Venture Partners. “I’m excited about the opportunity to partner with this seasoned team and support the best and brightest entrepreneurs as they become industry leaders in the wireless space.”
Most recently, Zeisler was an independent investor, board member and consultant to leading technology companies including Infoseek and Placeware. Between 1996 and 1998, John was a general partner with InterWest Partners, where he led investments in Internet, software and services. In 1995, Zeisler joined Netcom Online Communications Services, Inc., as senior vice president of marketing, and served as chairman and CEO of Pensoft Corporation from 1991 to 1994. In 1987, he co-founded Claris Corporation, a leading software company that spun out of Apple Computer, where he served as vice president of marketing. Prior to co-founding Claris, Zeisler spent seven years at Apple Computer, ultimately as director of marketing where he was responsible for guiding Macintosh’s success in business markets, including the desktop publishing initiatives. Zeisler has a B.S in Communications from Boston University, and a degree from Stanford University’s Executive Program on High Technology Management.
About Nokia Venture Partners
Nokia Venture Partners is a leading global venture capital firm based in Menlo Park, California. Launched in 1998, Nokia Venture Partners has USD$650 million under management and leads investments in early stage mobile technology companies around the world. The fund is backed by a number of limited partners including BMC Software, CDBWebTech, Goldman Sachs, Nokia, and others, and has a strong track record of leveraging its combined resources, experience and contacts to help build successful mobile businesses. The firm also has offices in Washington DC, London and Helsinki. For more information, visit www.nokiaventurepartners.com.
About Nokia
Nokia is the world leader in mobile communications. Backed by its experience, innovation, user-friendliness and secure solutions, the company has become the leading supplier of mobile phones and a leading supplier of mobile, fixed and IP networks. By adding mobility to the Internet, Nokia creates new opportunities for companies and further enriches the daily lives of people. Nokia is a broadly held company with listings on six major exchanges.
Further information:
United States:
Gina Bauman
Nokia Venture Partners
Tel. +1 650 462 7255
gina.bauman@nokia.com
Elizabeth Robinson
Sparkpr
Tel. +1 415 962 8200 230
elizabeth@sparkpr.com
Europe:
Jyrki Rosenberg
Nokia Venture Partners
Tel. +358 40 5571 074
jyrki.rosenberg@nokia.com