PARIS -- Innovacom, France Telecom's venture capital subsidiary, has raised a new 200 million euro investment fund, Innovacom 4. France Telecom has subscribed 15 percent of the fund and international investors have taken 85 percent. Innovacom 4 is five times the size of Innovacom 3, which was raised in September 1998.

Innovacom's investments in start-ups launched by France Telecom researchers since 1998 have led to a number of success stories, including Highwave Optical Technologies, Algety/Corvis, Netcentrex and others. Innovacom 4 will build on this momentum by making spin-offs from telecom R&D labs a major component in its investment portfolio.

Another investment priority will be start-ups in wireless Internet products and services from outside the France Telecom group. WiVa ¾ the Wireless Internet Venture Association, formed at the beginning of this year to drive the activities of venture capital firms in wireless Internet initiatives across Europe ¾ will serve as an anchor for Innovacom's the European investment strategy in this area.

The Innovacom 4 venture capital fund is managed by Innovacom-Gestion, a newly created entity that has been approved by the COB, the French stock market watchdog. Innovacom-Gestion brings together Innovacom's management team.

http://www.francetelecom.fr/vanglais/i/i1.html