Israel-based photo and video-sharing platform Mobli announced on Wednesday that it has received $60 million in funding from America Movil, the Latin American telecom company ran by Carlos Slim.
In providing funding to the Instagram competitor Mobli will introduce the product to America Movil customers.
“Mobli has developed a remarkable technology and this strategic alliance will allow America Movil to bring value added experiences for its users throughout the Americas,” Slim said in a press release. “The Mobli team has shown extraordinary skills in creating a powerful and innovative product for its users.”
Since launching in 2011 Mobli has raised $86 million in funding with the help of various investors, including a celebrity group led by Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Lance Armstrong, and Serena Williams.
Unlike Instagram which relies only on user uploads, Mobli scrapes Facebook, Twitter, and Google+ contacts to find photos. Giving access to the app on your Facebook account shows photos without updates from your friends accounts.
The biggest difference between Mobli and Instagram is that the former allows users to follow not only people, but also subjects and places.
Mobli also plans to offer branded filters. For example, Nike could add the Nike swoosh to every Mobli obtained photo from a certain event.
In July Carlos Slim invested $40 million in the music discovery service Shazam.
Mobli currently counts more than 12 million users among its ranks.
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