in consumer electronics devices.
—Amylin Pharmaceuticals said it will be able to file an application to market a new once-a-week formulation of its diabetes drug in the first half of 2009 after all. In November, the life sciences company warned that it might take longer to get approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
—Qualcomm’s top three executives told a San Diego audience that their customers have pushed out chip orders for the wireless giant’s third-generation technologies because of the economic downturn. They’re looking for a business rebound in the second half of 2009.
—Encinitas CA-based Verve Wireless, which distributes news and information to wireless devices in more than 200 U.S. markets, says it signed deals to get content from six new media partners, including The San Diego Union-Tribune. Verve’s technology optimizes news stories based on the type of device, so that a basic cell phone gets a simple text version while a smart phone displays a multimedia menu that links to stories, photos and video.
—The parent company that operates Carlsbad, CA-based Alphatec Spine says it secured $30 million in debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank and Oxford Finance. Alphatec, which makes products used in surgical treatments of spine disorders, says the deal significantly increases its ability to borrow.
—The Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency awarded a $19.5 million biofuels contract to a consortium headed by San Diego’s General Atomics. The Pentagon’s R&D agency wants to develop new ways of making jet fuel from algae and other biomass feedstock.
