Coinstar Founder Joins ecoATM as Board Member
SAN DIEGO, ecoATM, the only company to provide automated systems for recycling consumer electronics, announced today that Coinstar founder Jens Molbak has joined the company as a board member and investor. The company also announced that San Diego-based TAO Venture Partners led this first institutional round of funding in ecoATM.
Mr. Molbak founded Coinstar, Inc. in 1989 and, as CEO, took them public in 1995. Coinstar recently acquired DVD kiosk company Redbox and today is the leading provider of automated retail solutions offering convenient products and services that make life easier for consumers and drive incremental traffic and revenue for its retailers.
"ecoATM is a compelling business opportunity," said Mr. Molbak. "I am delighted to be both an investor and board member. Similar to Coinstar, ecoATM''s unique, self-service approach unlocks a substantial market, delivering tangible benefits to retailers, consumers and society as a whole. ecoATM has a clear vision and an exceptional management team. I believe we have an exciting future ahead."
"Jens has been a key advisor to ecoATM over the past year, and we are really looking forward to his closer involvement on our board through the next growth phase," said Tom Tullie, ecoATM CEO, president and chairman.
Tao Venture Partners, a San Diego-based early stage investment fund, led the first round of investment. (Financial details are confidential.) Tom Clancy, managing director of TAO Venture Partners and former program manager for ATM and kiosk development for Citibank NA, joins the board as well. "Heretofore, eWaste recycling has been inconvenient and costly as evidenced by the hundreds of millions of old devices still sitting in consumer''s drawers at homes," said Mr. Clancy. "The overwhelming response to initial market tests convinced us that ecoATM''s approach will enable a 10-fold increase in recycling. We are very pleased to be involved in this exciting and worthwhile enterprise."
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