This week, we’re tracking acquisitions involving well-known tech companies, startups gobbling up venture capital, and an accelerator program for crowdfunding campaigns. Read on for details.
—One of the most notable deals is Boston-based Gazelle’s acquisition by Outerwall (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OUTR]], the Bellevue, WA-based maker of Redbox and Coinstar kiosks. The purchase price was $18 million—which would be a very weak return on the more than $55 million poured into Gazelle by Venrock, Craton Equity Partners, Physic Ventures, RockPort Capital Partners, and angel investors. Outerwall quietly reported the transaction in a regulatory filing with the SEC, and Gazelle isn’t commenting on the news.
—QD Vision raised $14.7 million from investors, according to a new SEC filing. The Lexington, MA-based company has now raised more than $126 million since 2005. It makes a type of crystal semiconductor called quantum dots, which can be used in energy-efficient LCD displays for TVs and other consumer devices.
—Waltham, MA-based Tego said it raised $6 million from a group of undisclosed angel investors, bringing its total amount of outside capital to more than $18 million, spokeswoman Sarah Pariseau says. The company designs radio frequency-enabled chips, tags, and software for “Internet of Things” applications in aerospace, energy, life sciences, and more. It employs 13 people and is hiring four more, Pariseau says.
—Benu Networks, a Billerica, MA-based network infrastructure startup, raised $4.4 million from investors, a new SEC filing shows. The company has raised more than $44 million to date, according to SEC documents and past company announcements.
—Here’s your latest sign of the tech-crazed times we’re in: a new Boston accelerator program, Fortify Accelerator, aims to help consumer product companies run successful crowdfunding campaigns. The Boston Business Journal has more.
—Waltham-based Raytheon is reportedly buying Finland-based cybersecurity firm Stonesoft from Intel, according to a report by Fortune.
—Waltham-based Care.com said it intends to shut down Citrus Lane, an e-commerce startup it bought last year for $48.6 million, the Boston Business Journal reported. The decision is meant to cut costs and focus on sectors where the company sees more growth potential, like payments and workplace solutions, the newspaper reported.
—Cambridge, MA-based Akamai Technologies said it has acquired Bloxx, a 55-person company in Scotland that provides Web-based cybersecurity software for enterprises. The size of the cash transaction wasn’t disclosed, but Akamai said the acquisition is “not material” to its financials.
