Category: Boston

Enterprise Mobile, with Microsoft’s Blessing, Moves Beyond Windows Phones

I’m going to start this article in a way that’s pretty unfair to Mort Rosenthal—the founding CEO of Enterprise Mobile in Watertown, MA—by referring to some things Rosenthal told me back in early 2008 about the leading smartphone platforms. At the time, Enterprise Mobile was just setting out on its mission to help big companies … Continue reading “Enterprise Mobile, with Microsoft’s Blessing, Moves Beyond Windows Phones”

Clinical Data Seeks to Challenge Lilly, Pfizer in Antidepressant Market

Big competitors don’t scare Drew Fromkin. The CEO of Clinical Data says that the small Newton, MA-based drug developer (NASDAQ:[[ticker:CLDA]]) is willing to take on industry giants in the multibillion-dollar U.S. market for antidepressants. The company sent in its application for approval of its experimental antidepressant, vilazodone, to the FDA in late March. It’s too … Continue reading “Clinical Data Seeks to Challenge Lilly, Pfizer in Antidepressant Market”

Sorenson Targets Brightcove in Updated Release of Online Video Platform Technology

Sorenson Media CEO Peter Csathy tells me it was always part of the company’s plan to introduce its digital media technology in the enterprise market, where big media and Internet companies enable Internet users to watch streaming video and TV broadcasts. Today the company with offices in Salt Lake City, UT, and Carlsbad, CA, is … Continue reading “Sorenson Targets Brightcove in Updated Release of Online Video Platform Technology”

Swipely Garners $7,500,000 Series A Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=37195997-d267-476f-98c6-2bf0b7995c22&Preview=1 Date 5/11/2010 Company Name Swipely Mailing Address 150 Chestnut Street Providence, RI 02903 Company Description Swipely is a Tech & Digital Media Community. Website http://www.swipely.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $7,500,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes Swipely also announced its social purchase-tracking service will launch in invitation-only beta this … Continue reading “Swipely Garners $7,500,000 Series A Funding”

Mintera Corporation Obtains $1,650,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=88280ceb-a8ac-42d2-b20a-3a130e59a223&Preview=1 Date 5/11/2010 Company Name Mintera Corporation Mailing Address 35 Nagog Park Acton, MA 01720 Company Description Mintera was founded in 2000 to be the technology leader enabling next generation 40 Gbps optical transport in metro-core, regional, long- haul and ultra long-haul optical networks. Website http://www.mintera.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount … Continue reading “Mintera Corporation Obtains $1,650,000 New Funding Round”

Wiggio Garners $1,950,000 New Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6085233b-bbaf-417d-88a7-5f8e939bbbfe&Preview=1 Date 5/11/2010 Company Name Wiggio Mailing Address Undisclosed Cambridge, MA 02140 Company Description On Wiggio, you can share and edit files, manage a group calendar, poll your group, post links, set up conference calls, chat online and send mass text, voice and email messages to your group members. Each group member … Continue reading “Wiggio Garners $1,950,000 New Round”

New CEO for PTC

Parametric Technology (NASDAQ: [[ticker:PMTC]]), a Needham, MA-based maker of engineering and product development software that goes by PTC for short, announced that its president and chief operating officer James Heppelmann will replace C. Richard Harrison as CEO, effective October 1, 2010. Harrison will take on the role of executive chairman of PTC. Heppelmann joined the … Continue reading “New CEO for PTC”

Born in Silicon Valley, Founder Institute Expands to Boston

Attention first-time CEOs: the Founder Institute has found its way to Boston. The training and mentorship program for entrepreneurs, initially launched last year in Silicon Valley, is recruiting startup entrepreneurs for its first Boston session starting June 30, according to the program’s website. The four-month program aims to give beginner tech CEOs what they need … Continue reading “Born in Silicon Valley, Founder Institute Expands to Boston”

Redline Brings in $7.45M

Woburn, MA-based Redline Trading Solutions, a maker of software that delivers financial market data to trading applications at high speed, has raised a $7.45 million round of equity-based funding from five investors, according to an SEC filing. The document reveals that $730,249 of the round will go to repurchasing 55,280 shares of common stock held … Continue reading “Redline Brings in $7.45M”

How Emerald BioStructures Escaped deCode’s Bankruptcy With Help From Boston VCs

Lance Stewart woke up many times over the past two years, and asked himself, “How did I get here?” He had reason to be confused. Stewart had spent more than a decade building one of the world’s best structural biology research teams inside a light manufacturing facility on Bainbridge Island, WA. Revenues had climbed every … Continue reading “How Emerald BioStructures Escaped deCode’s Bankruptcy With Help From Boston VCs”

MIT’s $100K Business Plan Prize, $200K Energy Prize Up for Grabs on Wednesday; A Look at the Finalists

[Corrected, 1:40 p.m. May 10, 2010] For teams of student entrepreneurs in Boston, early May means one thing: the culmination of the year-long MIT $100K Entrepreneurship Competition, the country’s oldest and most prestigious business plan contest for young startups, and of its even more lucrative spinoff, the $200,000 MIT Clean Energy Prize. Last week, judges … Continue reading “MIT’s $100K Business Plan Prize, $200K Energy Prize Up for Grabs on Wednesday; A Look at the Finalists”

Localytics Garners Series A Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=fa26baff-9150-43e6-8799-aad0e02675e1&Preview=1 Date 5/10/2010 Company Name Localytics Mailing Address 222 3rd St. Cambridge, MA 02141 Company Description Top app publishers and brands use our powerful analytics to build more successful and profitable mobile applications. Website http://www.localytics.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes The company will use … Continue reading “Localytics Garners Series A Financing Round”

OzVision Global Receives $4,900,000 New Financing Round Teradata Acquires xkoto for Undisclosed Sum

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=93a775d9-e8c3-4e30-91dd-821f06a0ff82&Preview=1 http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9cd5376d-7c73-4f6b-b5c8-b289f8da1c6b&Preview=1 Date 5/26/2010 5/26/2010 Company Name OzVision Global xkoto Mailing Address 400 West Cummings Park Woburn, MA 01801 275 Wyman Street Waltham, MA 02451 Company Description Drawing on emerging ideas from utility, grid, and commodity computing, xkoto’s concept of database load balancing arose out of efforts to help customers manage their … Continue reading “OzVision Global Receives $4,900,000 New Financing Round Teradata Acquires xkoto for Undisclosed Sum”

Redline Trading Solutions Lands $7,450,000 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=903b63da-d681-4fc9-b165-c3e6b5bbbdbe&Preview=1 Date 5/9/2010 Company Name Redline Trading Solutions Mailing Address 444 Washington Street Woburn, MA 01801 Company Description For more than 20 years, the team at Redline Trading Solutions has successfully designed and deployed leading-edge accelerated computing solutions that leverage the latest technology to solve the most challenging latency and throughput problems. … Continue reading “Redline Trading Solutions Lands $7,450,000 New Funding”

Dassault Enters Electronic Medical Records Space

ENOVIA, the Lowell, MA-based brand of product lifecycle management software maker Dassault Systèmes, is entering the electronic medical records space. The company announced a partnership with app developer echoBase, who will combine Dassault’s ENOVIA online collaboration and data management software with echoBase’s Resonate iPhone application, to enable sharing patient data between doctors, pharmacies, hospitals, and … Continue reading “Dassault Enters Electronic Medical Records Space”

InstallFree Grabs $3M

Stamford, CT-based InstallFree, an application virtualization software company, has raised $3 million of a planned $3.76 million equity offering, according to an SEC filing. The filings lists Richard Fade of Ignition Partners, Peter van Oppen of Trilogy Partnership, and Microsoft veteran Yuval Neeman as InstallFree directors. In 2008, the company raised an $8.5 million Series … Continue reading “InstallFree Grabs $3M”

$500K Series A for DormNoise

DormNoise.com, a Cranston, RI-based maker of online interactive calendar systems for college students, announced that it has raised $500,000 in Series A funding. The financing, which was led by DN Ventures (an investing venture group formed by DormNoise director Alan Jacober) and online medical education and social networking company PRESENT e-Learning Systems, will go to … Continue reading “$500K Series A for DormNoise”

Microsoft’s Kin Phones Resurrect the Lifelogging Debate

This week gadget reviewers got their first hands-on look at Microsoft’s much-discussed Kin One and Kin Two phones, which are designed from the ground up to support young hipsters’ social media and content sharing habits. So far, the pundits are raving about the phones’ novel operating system and the cloud-based “Studio” feature, a flashy private … Continue reading “Microsoft’s Kin Phones Resurrect the Lifelogging Debate”

Icahn Blasts Genzyme Manufacturing, Glaxo Halts “Red Wine” Drug Trial, Ariad Gets $69M from Merck, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News

News surrounding Genzyme’s ongoing battle with billionaire investor Carl Icahn cropped up this week, alongside headlines from other big biotechs and in-depth profiles on newer life sciences names in the New England area. —Luke caught up with the chief scientist and the co-founder of Cambridge, MA-based Proteostasis Therapeutics, which was built around research from the … Continue reading “Icahn Blasts Genzyme Manufacturing, Glaxo Halts “Red Wine” Drug Trial, Ariad Gets $69M from Merck, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”

InstallFree Secures $3,000,000 Series C Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4ac635ca-1670-4431-82d5-fae94f53163d&Preview=1 Date 5/7/2010 Company Name InstallFree Mailing Address 60 Long Ridge Road Stamford, CT 06902 Company Description Centrally distribute and manage clientless true virtual applications that work on locked-down computers with no limitations while maintaining complete intercommunication capabilities with virtual and non virtual resources. Website http://www.installfree.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount … Continue reading “InstallFree Secures $3,000,000 Series C Financing Round”

Polybiotics Receives $175,000 New Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=827f2dfa-5679-4796-a381-8c1920ed7768&Preview=1 Date 5/7/2010 Company Name Polybiotics Mailing Address 3040 Whitney Avenue Hamden, CT 06518 Company Description PolyBiotics has invented a device that deposits medicine into a periodontal pocket (space between the tooth and gum) using a twelve-shot multidose system, negating the need for dentists to change application tips, as is now done. … Continue reading “Polybiotics Receives $175,000 New Funding Round”

WordStream Inc. Lands $6,000,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=daa68b47-18c9-4c2c-9094-e0f7607eee4f&Preview=1 Date 5/7/2010 Company Name WordStream Inc. Mailing Address 133 Federal St 5th Floor Boston, MA 02110 Company Description The company is provider of search engine marketing and optimization solutions. Website http://www.netgraviton.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $6,000,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes The company will use the funding for … Continue reading “WordStream Inc. Lands $6,000,000 Series B Funding Round”

ImmunoGen Raises $67M in Stock Deal

Waltham, MA-based ImmunoGen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IMGN]]) said today it has netted about $67.4 million through a stock offering. The company sold 9 million shares to investors at $8 apiece, for a gross of $72 million, then subtracted underwriting discounts and expenses. Underwriters of the deal have a 30-day option to buy another 1.35 million shares. JP … Continue reading “ImmunoGen Raises $67M in Stock Deal”

Founder Dating

Here’s an event for entrepreneurs who just haven’t found that special someone (a co-founder) yet. This MassChallenge-sponsored event attempts to match you with the right candidates, based on the information you provide. Register on this Eventbrite site.

2010: A Stem Cell Odyssey

Now that much of the political buzz surrounding stem cells has quieted, scientists are left to prove whether or not the technology is successful. At this event, speakers will explore recent advances in the field, intellectual property rights in regenerative medicine, getting the technology from research to market, and the stake big pharma companies have … Continue reading “2010: A Stem Cell Odyssey”

Doug Fambrough Reduces Role at Oxford Bioscience Partners, Becomes CEO of Portfolio Company Dicerna Pharma

Oxford Bioscience Partners is losing one of its top general partners, Doug Fambrough, who has left his full-time role at the Boston venture firm to become CEO of Dicerna Pharmaceuticals. Oxford is not currently investing in new companies, Fambrough says, and he told his partners in recent weeks that he could better serve the firm … Continue reading “Doug Fambrough Reduces Role at Oxford Bioscience Partners, Becomes CEO of Portfolio Company Dicerna Pharma”

Camiant Acquired for $130 Million

Camiant, a Marlborough, MA-based developer of technology that manages applications on mobile and broadband networks, will be acquired by Morrisville, NC-based mobile data management company Tekelec for $130 million, the companies announced today. The deal with Camiant, whose website lists its investors as North Bridge Venture Partners, Matrix Partners, and Pilot House Ventures, is expected … Continue reading “Camiant Acquired for $130 Million”

Athenahealth Paying Dearly to Take on Larger Rivals

Athenahealth is a high-flier in the Boston business community, led by the outspoken and forceful Jonathan Bush. Bush, however, openly admits that his Watertown, MA-based company (NASDAQ:[[ticker:ATHN]]) is relatively unknown outside of local business and technology circles—including among most U.S. physicians. Athena has been ramping up efforts to raise its profile among doctors, the target … Continue reading “Athenahealth Paying Dearly to Take on Larger Rivals”

Dympol Uses Targeted Advertising to Cut Online Music Costs

Consumer brands have long employed celebrities to build their brands, but this may not be the most effective way of targeting consumers, says Jay Ziskrout, founder and CEO of Dympol, a Vermont and Cambridge, MA-based startup. “Is just being co-located with the entertainment enough for the magic to rub off on the brand?” asks Ziskrout, … Continue reading “Dympol Uses Targeted Advertising to Cut Online Music Costs”

Tekelec Acquires Camiant for $130,000,000

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=2faa0d6a-819c-4659-b899-abc841974765&Preview=1 Date 5/6/2010 Company Name Camiant Mailing Address 200 Nickerson Road 2nd Floor Marlborough, MA 01752-4603 Company Description Camiant is about harnessing the possibilities of the modern broadband IP network so that broadband network operators can deliver superior performance across the entire spectrum of applications and possibilities. Website http://www.camiant.com Transaction Type M&A … Continue reading “Tekelec Acquires Camiant for $130,000,000”

DormNoise Obtains $500,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=52650daa-02a8-40c2-a77a-cdfc0936763a&Preview=1 Date 5/6/2010 Company Name DormNoise Mailing Address 75 Crest Drive Cranston, RI 02921 Company Description DormNoise is an interactive collegiate calendar system that gives students a series of interconnected personal, student group, and campus wide calendars to organize all of their student events, and let’s them sync everything to the most … Continue reading “DormNoise Obtains $500,000 New Financing”

RCR Local Boston Cocktail Reception and Panel Discussion

RCR Local, a series of networking events designed to bring people in the wireless industry together, is making its way to the Boston area. Panelists from Sprint, Red Bend Software, Sonus Networks, and Cisco Networks will discuss strategies for deploying 4G networks. Registration is free.

Tough Challenges for Clinical Trials

For those of you who, like me, wonder why the cost of getting a drug to market continues to grow each year, here’s what may be a piece of the puzzle: It’s getting harder to do clinical studies. A report released this morning by the Tufts Center for the Study of Drug Development describes how … Continue reading “Tough Challenges for Clinical Trials”

Sanofi-Aventis to Aid Startups in Massachusetts

Sanofi-Aventis, the French drug powerhouse that has one of its research sites in Cambridge, MA, has agreed to contribute $500,000 over the next two years to a state program that provides financing to life sciences startups in Massachusetts, according to the Massachusetts Life Sciences Center, which administers the program. The program is one of several … Continue reading “Sanofi-Aventis to Aid Startups in Massachusetts”

Glaxo Stops Study of Sirtris “Red Wine” Drug in Cancer Patients

There’s bad news this week about one of the much-hyped drug candidates based on the red wine chemical called resveratrol. Several news outlets are reporting that safety concerns have prompted GlaxoSmithKline to halt a mid-stage clinical trial of the drug, called SRT501, which the London-based drug giant gained in its $720 million buyout of Sirtris … Continue reading “Glaxo Stops Study of Sirtris “Red Wine” Drug in Cancer Patients”

Ariad Gets $69M in Revised Merck Deal

Cambridge, MA-based Ariad Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:[[ticker:ARIA]]) reports this morning that it has amended its July 2007 agreement with a unit of the drug giant Merck & Co. for the development of Ariad’s experimental cancer drug, ridaforolimus, which is in late-stage clinical development for treating certain soft tissue and bone sarcomas. The revised pact gives Merck (NYSE:[[ticker:MRK]]) … Continue reading “Ariad Gets $69M in Revised Merck Deal”

Eliza Speech Recognition Technology Out to Make Healthcare Communication Sexier

It’s no surprise that many aspects of the healthcare system are deemed broken. But Beverly, MA-based Eliza is targeting a segment of the healthcare business that draws far less attention than the usual big ticket subjects like health insurance coverage or Medicare reimbursement codes. Eliza uses a software-as-a-service model to deliver interactive communications for insurance … Continue reading “Eliza Speech Recognition Technology Out to Make Healthcare Communication Sexier”

Idenix Prices Stock Offering, Google Ventures Reveals Investments, Sophos Sells Stake to Apax, & More Boston-Area Deals News

Google pulled off the veil this week to reveal the portfolio companies in its two-year-old venture fund. Add that to a flurry of startup funding rounds, a stock sale, and an acquisition transaction, and it’s made for a busy deals news week for us in New England. —Management Health Solutions, a Fairfield, CT, maker of … Continue reading “Idenix Prices Stock Offering, Google Ventures Reveals Investments, Sophos Sells Stake to Apax, & More Boston-Area Deals News”

Welcome to the New World Order, Where Our Gadgets Rule Us

I refuse to live in a world where my computer appliances are now smarter and more powerful than I am. Last week, my Kindle wouldn’t download new books because I was too far away from the cell tower—I had to drive ten miles from my Vermont house to the nearest town, go around the green, … Continue reading “Welcome to the New World Order, Where Our Gadgets Rule Us”

Icahn Calls Genzyme’s Manufacturing “Broken,” Advises Against Termeer’s Re-Election to Board

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn ratcheted up his campaign to get himself and three of his associates elected to Genzyme’s board of directors next month, telling shareholders that the Cambridge, MA-based biotechnology company’s manufacturing system is “broken,” according to a proxy statement filed with the SEC today. Icahn, who controls 4.9 percent of Genzyme’s (NASDAQ:[[ticker:GENZ]]) common … Continue reading “Icahn Calls Genzyme’s Manufacturing “Broken,” Advises Against Termeer’s Re-Election to Board”

Nimbit Drums Up $377K

Nimbit, a Framingham, MA-based provider of online music marketing services, has raised $376,950 to cap off a $1.75 million round of Series A-1 funding, says CEO Bob Cramer. The new funding included backing from the CommonAngels group, in addition to LaunchCapital and Mike Dreese, co-founder and CEO of the Boston-area music and entertainment retailer Newbury … Continue reading “Nimbit Drums Up $377K”

Sophos Sells Majority Stake to Apax to Fuel Growth

Sophos, a Burlington, MA-based maker of IT security software and hardware, announced its plans to sell a majority stake to private equity firm Apax Partners. The transaction values Sophos at $830 million, and will leave the company founders remaining as significant minority stakeholders in the company. Sophos had been exploring different avenues for entering a … Continue reading “Sophos Sells Majority Stake to Apax to Fuel Growth”

Fool Gets Its Xconomy On—Motley Fool to Carry Xconomy Stories

I am extremely pleased to announce that Xconomy and The Motley Fool have reached an agreement that will put one Xconomy feature story a day on Fool.com, the flagship website of the Alexandria, VA-based organization. The first story, by our Seattle editor Greg Huang about how startups might learn from Clay Christensen’s “disruptive innovation” model … Continue reading “Fool Gets Its Xconomy On—Motley Fool to Carry Xconomy Stories”

Link Medicine Ups Third Round to $45M, Taking Aim at Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s

Link Medicine has wrapped up its Series C round at $45 million, $5 million more than the $40 million the developer of drugs for neurodegenerative diseases said it would raise in the financing in September 2008, says Michael Fitzgerald, the company’s financial chief. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech company finished the venture round with a third … Continue reading “Link Medicine Ups Third Round to $45M, Taking Aim at Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s”

Behind the Scenes at Google Ventures: The Full Q&A with Bill Maris

Last week Google Ventures unveiled a new website that includes the first public information about its portfolio and its staff. Yesterday, as part of the fund’s first real media outreach campaign, managing partner Bill Maris and partner David Krane spent about 45 minutes speaking with reporters in Boston via teleconference. I summed up the conversation … Continue reading “Behind the Scenes at Google Ventures: The Full Q&A with Bill Maris”

Using MIT-Harvard Technology, Ligon Discovery Speeds Up Search for New Drugs

Ligon Discovery has been discovered, and I could argue that I was there the moment it happened. Patrick Kleyn, co-founder and CEO of Ligon, was sitting in the back of a crowded conference for drug industry dealmakers in Harvard Square last month when a senior pharmaceutical executive on an industry panel noted Kleyn’s fledgling firm … Continue reading “Using MIT-Harvard Technology, Ligon Discovery Speeds Up Search for New Drugs”