gNumber Inc. secured $1.5 million in venture funding. Accent Texas Fund I, L.P. led the round with participation from Aegis Texas Venture Fund, DFJ Mercury, and Gefinor Ventures. Funding will be used to expand marketing and product development for UnWired Buyer, a real-time mobile bidding solution for eBay users in the U.S.

UnWired Buyer is a free, eBay-compatible application that allows users to bid on eBay listings using any mobile or landline phone. Three minutes before the end of a selected auction-style listing, UnWired Buyer places a call to the user. The user is provided with dynamically updated status on an item, including real- time changes in price status. UnWired Buyer users can place new bids or increase previous bids instantly using simple touch-tone commands.

UnWired Buyer was the grand prize winner in the recently held eBay Developer Challenge 2006 contest. The company said it has several thousand users.

C Eric Smith, CTO and co-founder of gNumber, said, "We are freeing the user from always having to be tethered to a computer and allowing them to use a trusted, familiar interface to participate in the online economy."

http://www.unwiredbuyer.com