Another Video Ad Network Plans To Go Public, As YuMe Files For $65 Million IPO

This was supposed to be the year that all the big video ad networks would begin going public, and it looks like it’s starting to come true. Less than a week after Tremor Video listed on the NYSE, competitor YuMe filed its S-1, announcing its intent to raise $65 million in an initial public offering.

YuMe’s numbers look decent for a company looking to go public: The company had revenue of $116.7 million in 2012, which grew by 70 percent over the prior year. It also increased its gross margin from 38 percent to 46 percent in that time. And YuMe is already profitable, posting net income of $6.3 million, compared to a net loss of $11.1 million the year before.

YuMe’s IPO filing comes despite a rough first week on the public markets for newly listed Tremor Video. While Tremor opened trading with shares priced between $10 and $11, the video ad network has seen its stock decline to below $8 today.

But while Tremor stumbled out of the gate, YuMe actually might be better positioned to please investors, at least from a numbers perspective. Its revenue, gross margin, and net income were all greater than what Tremor showed in its initial filing. YuMe is also growing a heck of a lot faster, perhaps due to the proliferation of connected devices serving up video ads.

YuMe is betting on more streaming video replacing TV watching, and on more ad dollars shifting to online viewers as a result. The company has an SDK that allows manufacturers to deliver ads from its network into devices like Roku streaming boxes and Samsung connected TVs. That’s probably a pretty solid bet over the long term. The question is how quickly that shift will actually start to happen.

YuMe has raised more than $70 million since being founded in 2004. Investors include SV Angel, Accel Partners, e.ventures, Khosla Ventures, DAG Ventures, Menlo Partners, Intel Capital, Samsung Ventures, Translink Capital and WestSummit Capital.