Softline Venture Partners, the corporate venturing unit of the Softline Group, launches e-commerce focused spin-off, Videobaker.

Ward Howell sets up its Talent Equity Venture Fund to invest in start-ups valued at up to $5m, working on geographically scalable professional training and HR projects.

Google Ventures has led a $1m round of funding into US-based digital fitness company FitStar.

The digital unit of India-based media company The Times of India Group joins a syndicate which also includes The Washington Post Company, Docomo, VTB Capital and RTP Ventures.

Tencent and Google Ventures were joined in the seed round of the US-based mobile gameplay recording company by venture firms including Andreessen Horowitz, Merus Capital and XG Ventures.

The Germany-based comparision website reportedly secures an investment from 500 Startups' Dave McClure, taking it to nearly $1m raised, according to TechCrunch.

Post-production film company Park Road Post Production joins Peter Thiel-backed Valar Ventures investing in a $2m Series B round for New Zealand-based Booktrack, software which adds music and audio to e-books and is now backed by Warehouse founder Sir Stephen Tindall.

The investment arm of Investitionsbank Berlin, the ProFIT finance programme, invests $1.3m into Adspert, an automated software programme by Bidmanagement, which is backed by Bertelsmann Digital Media Investments.

China-based HuaXiang Group makes its first investment in Israel, by investing $2.5m into Israel Electric Corporation backed 3GSolar Photovoltaics, a solar panel manufacturer.