• TechCrunch, Wednesday, June 20, 2012 11:28 AM

Finnish start-up Kiosked just secured $5.75 million in seed funding from a group of investors led by Finnish serial entrepreneur (and Chairman of Angry Birds creator Rovio) Kaj Hed. Kiosked, if you’re not familiar, helps publishers turn featured content into a storefront, or “kiosk.” Put another way, Kiosked lets advertisers link their products to relevant images and multimedia within publishers’ online content so that consumers can buy those items directly.

While the model may sound “gimmicky,” TechCrunch expects it to get a boost from publishers, which “have become ravenous for better ways to monetize their audience without plastering banners all over their sites.” Per the investment, Hed will be joining the start-up as the chairman of its board of directors, where he will help lead the company through its planned expansion beyond into the United States, as well as into Asia and Africa.

According to Kiosked founder and CEO Lars-Michael Paqvalén, the company is already connecting with more than 10,000 brands worldwide, with over 10 million products now being offered for sale through its platform. A recent partnership with popular Finnish fashion brand, OnePiece, has seen an average of over 9% CTRs, TechCrunch notes.

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