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PR-inside are reporting that Gaia Online, the online community for teens, has secured $11m Series C funding from Institutional Venture Partners (IVP). At a time when eMarketer is predicting the number of teen internet users visiting virtual worlds will jump from the reported 8.2 million users in 2007 to 20 million in 2011.

In January, Time Warner made a strategic investment in the Gaia economy which sees 100,000 transactions each day and Gaia’s forums have already exceeded a billion postings. Other investors in Gaia include: Benchmark Capital, RedPoint Ventures, DAG Ventures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Time Warner.

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Tags: Benchmark Capital, DAG Ventures, Gaia Online, Institutional Venture Partners, Redpoint Ventures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Time Warner

In a move that could reshape debate about net neutrality, Time Warner will start charging some broadband users access fees based on how much they download each month, rather than assessing a fixed fee unlimited service.

The company Thursday said it planned to start testing the new pricing system this year as part of an effort to manage traffic. “We want the network to maximize returns for all of our customers,” said spokesman Alex Dudley, adding that a small number of users currently consume a disproportionate share of bandwidth. “Ninety-five percent of our users would not be the extreme users who are driving this.”

Once the test starts, new customers will be offered a choice of four plans that allow them to download set amounts each month–5, 10, 20 or 40 Gigabytes. As with cell phone service packages, those who go over their allotment will be charged extra. Time Warner hasn’t yet determined the price of each tier. The test will start later this year with new subscribers in Beaumont, Tex.

Some advocates for net neutrality–or the principle that Internet service providers should treat traffic equally–said Time Warner’s plan sounds like a better approach to traffic management than some other alternatives.

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Tags: Time Warner

Gaia Online, the leading online hangout for teens, announced today that Time Warner Inc. has made a strategic investment in the company in a Series B funding round. Gaia Online is a social environment where teens come to hangout, have fun and express their individuality through customizable avatars, homes and cars; casual games; arenas for creative writing and artwork; discussion forums on thousands of topics; and virtual spaces such as movie theaters, drag races and towns.

“This investment is further validation for the original vision of the Gaia Online founders, who simply setout to create a fun and engaging place for teens to express themselves online,” said Craig Sherman, CEO, Gaia Online. [Read more]

Tags: Benchmark Capital, DAG Ventures, Gaia Online, Redpoint Ventures, Sony Pictures Entertainment, Time Warner