CommPro.biz Named Semifinalist in 43North Venture Capital Competition

Compiled By CommPro.biz Editorial StaffNew York, NY – CommPRO Global, Inc. (CommPro.biz) is pleased to announce it has been selected as a semifinalist in New York state's 43North competition for startups. The company will compete with other semifinalists for a total of $5 million in potential funding.43North attracts entrepreneurs from around the world to compete for prizes that turn startups with high growth potential into funded enterprises."We are thrilled to have been selected as a semifinalist from among the thousands of applicants," said CommPRO Global CEO Fay Shapiro. "Making it to this stage really validates the company we have built, and continue to grow, our market and our potential. Given the level of competition we faced, this is quite an accomplishment. " she said.The semifinalists were vetted during a formal, month-long review period conducted by judges from an array of professional sectors.The 2016 competition includes a revised prize structure that now features a grand prize of $1 million, a runner-up prize of $600,000, and six $500,000 awards. An additional $400,000 will be awarded to winners as incentivized follow-on funding. Part of Governor Andrew Cuomo’s Buffalo Billion initiative, the competition operates through $6 million in support from the New York Power Authority and $1 million from Empire State Development.“43North was born out of Governor Cuomo’s visionary Buffalo Billion initiative. This year, 43North doubled down on strategies designed to attract the highest quality startups to enter the competition and I’m very pleased with the caliber of our applicants,” said 43North Board Chairman William J. Maggio Jr. “I’m excited to see which companies make it through our semifinal round to join us at our finals in Buffalo in October.”43North has an inclusive semifinalists set, with 37 percent of semifinalists having founders who identified themselves as being of African-American/Black, Asian, Hispanic/Latino or other non-white ethnicity and 23 percent identifying as women, which is significant, given that the Center for Venture Research states that only 7 percent of annual U.S. venture capital funding is awarded to women (TechRepublic, July 2014).The 43North competition is broken down into three rounds:Round 1 (March 4 – May 31, 2016): Application period.Round 2 (July-August 2016): Live semifinals video pitches.Round 3 (October 26 & 27, 2016): Finalist teams will pitch their businesses in person to a panel of judges in Buffalo. The competition concludes with a celebration of 8 selected winners."This is a tremendous honor and opportunity for CommPro.biz," said Shapiro. "We look forward to continuing the process and, hopefully, to be standing on the stage in Buffalo in October."