IndiaMART's Biztradeshows acquires Rajesh Sawhney-backed PlayCez

Biztradeshows.com, a subsidiary of online B2B marketplace IndiaMART, has acquired Delhi-based local events discovery engine for an undisclosed amount. The development was first reported by .

PlayCez, built on a proprietary, patent-pending technology, mines social media data in real time to provide location-specific suggestions, based on "who" is recommending "what" in terms of nearby events and activities. It makes suggestions regarding eating out, leisure activities and even shopping, by leveraging user"s smartphones. By identifying locations (bars, restaurants, night clubs and even dentists) where consumer traffic is highest, PlayCez recommends events and activities which are most popular in one's city. Users can search events and activities by distance and time.

It was founded in 2011 by IIT Kanpur alumnus Ashwani Gaur and was part of the GSF Accelerator's inaugural batch. It later raised a follow-on seed round of capital from Rajesh Sawhney of GSF Accelerator, Mukul Singhal of SAIF Partners and ixigo.com founder Aloke Bajpai.

The PlayCez app is currently available on the iOS platform and when we spoke to Gaur last time, an Android app was also under development. At the time, Gaur also shared that the revenue model they were considering revolves around engaging users and getting more footfalls for businesses.

Biztradeshows.com in an online directory of business events, conferences, exhibitions, fair, trade shows and more across various countries. It lists these events by date, venue and industry.  We will update the post as soon as we get more information.

(Edited by Joby Puthuparampil Johnson)