Category: Boston

Sure, You Can Watch Video on Your Phone—If You Can Find It; Andover-based Veveo Wants to Help

Some of the time we spend viewing video on the Internet is time stolen from older types of media consumption, such as watching network television. But thanks to broadband-connected mobile devices, Internet video is also filling up those interstitial moments when we weren’t previously jacked into the mediasphere—on the bus, for example, or at the … Continue reading “Sure, You Can Watch Video on Your Phone—If You Can Find It; Andover-based Veveo Wants to Help”

What Do Crisis Negotiation, Endoscopy, and Ice Cream Have in Common? MooBella’s Steve Moysey

Lordy, do I love MooBella. First off, the Taunton, MA-based company is developing serve-yourself ice-cream vending machines* that mix and freeze each scoop to order. Then there’s the fact that the whole shebang runs on Linux—don’t know why, but that really cracks me up. And now the company has gone and hired its first chief … Continue reading “What Do Crisis Negotiation, Endoscopy, and Ice Cream Have in Common? MooBella’s Steve Moysey”

Six EMC Executives Exercise Options Worth $25 Million

In what appears to be a routine exercise of stock options, six EMC executives, including five executive vice presidents, sold shares of company stock worth more than $25 million on Friday, SEC documents registered yesterday reveal. In addition, EMC chief executive officer Joe Tucci entered into a pre-arranged trading plan to exercise a small amount … Continue reading “Six EMC Executives Exercise Options Worth $25 Million”

Wharton Professor Tapped as New Sloan School Dean; First Outsider in 40 Years—the Inside Reaction

For the first time in more than 40 years, MIT’s Sloan School of Management has reached outside its own ranks to pick a dean, tapping the deputy dean of the University of Pennsylvania’s prestigious Wharton School to help expand its reach. The new Sloan leader will be 52-year-old David C. Schmittlein, a longtime professor of … Continue reading “Wharton Professor Tapped as New Sloan School Dean; First Outsider in 40 Years—the Inside Reaction”

Accord Could Re-Ignite MIT’s Clean Energy Business Plan Competition

Imagine if the Oscars, the Tonys, the Nobels, and the Pulitzers were all announced on the same day. The individual prize winners, no matter how stellar, might get a bit lost in the glare. Followers of New England’s renewable-energy sector feared something like that might happen this spring, when local groups conducted not one but … Continue reading “Accord Could Re-Ignite MIT’s Clean Energy Business Plan Competition”

Carl Icahn: Biogen Idec Marriage Broker?

It’s no secret that major pharmaceutical makers are desperate to fill their thinning drug pipelines. Biotech companies like Biogen Idec, though not without their own pipeline concerns, have products to offer. So it might be reasonable to conclude that Big Pharma would pay a premium for biotech firms—and that major investors like Carl Icahn are … Continue reading “Carl Icahn: Biogen Idec Marriage Broker?”

Entrepreneurs are Not Hors D’oeuvres and Other Random Thoughts

As a venture capitalist, I thought it might be interesting to explore our lack of social graces when it comes to deal-flow interactions, particularly since so many of us like to say to limited partners, to CEOs, in panel discussions, and on our websites how our mission is to be Good Partners to Entrepreneurs. If … Continue reading “Entrepreneurs are Not Hors D’oeuvres and Other Random Thoughts”

Merger Brewing Between New England Energy Innovation Collaborative, Clean Energy Council

The “green” energy business is growing so quickly in Massachusetts that it will soon leapfrog textiles to become Massachusetts’ 10th-largest industry, according to a survey released earlier this month. In the latest sign of the ferment, the leader of the New England Energy Innovation Collaborative (NEEIC)—a non-profit group launched by the venture-capital community last year … Continue reading “Merger Brewing Between New England Energy Innovation Collaborative, Clean Energy Council”

Mocospace Lands $3,000,000 Series A Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=e5d167e2-ad1a-4dc9-80f1-f7933fcc0631&Preview=1 Date 8/27/2007 Company Name Mocospace Mailing Address 186 South St Boston, MA 02111 Company Description JNJ Mobile develops and publishes innovative mobile entertainment applications, including the premier mobile social networking service under the MocoSpace™ brand. Website http://www.jnjmobile.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $3,000,000 Transaction Round Series A Proceeds Purposes The … Continue reading “Mocospace Lands $3,000,000 Series A Funding”

Icahn Gets Okay to Purchase Biogen Idec Shares

Biogen Idec shares (NASDAQ: BIIB) hit a one-year high yesterday after billionaire investor and occasional corporate raider Carl Icahn was cleared by U.S. antitrust authorities to buy shares in the corporation. The stock closed Friday at $62.89, up $2.92 (nearly 5 percent) for the day. The news came barely a week after Icahn revealed he … Continue reading “Icahn Gets Okay to Purchase Biogen Idec Shares”

Clarus Ventures’ Very Big Deal, Color Kinetics’ Acquisition, VMware’s Upward Trek, and More

It’s been a crazy week here at Xconomy. We’ve suffered a few technical and other difficulties, but (inside joke alert) we’re keeping our chins up. So, it seems, are many local tech firms. —Boston Scientific (NYSE: BSX) amended a $2 billion line of credit and a $5 billion term loan—in part by prepaying $1 billion—in … Continue reading “Clarus Ventures’ Very Big Deal, Color Kinetics’ Acquisition, VMware’s Upward Trek, and More”

USS Grunion Found: Boston Scientific Founder and Brothers Locate Father’s Lost WWII Sub in Aleutians

The blogosphere and newswires are alive this morning with news that a team led by brothers John, Bruce, and Brad Abele have located their father’s submarine, the USS Grunion, which had been lost in the Aleutians during World War II. The following notice appears on the Grunion blog: “Just got the first set of 8 … Continue reading “USS Grunion Found: Boston Scientific Founder and Brothers Locate Father’s Lost WWII Sub in Aleutians”

Online Marketing for Dummies—and for People with Better Things to Do

I know plenty of people who have all of the ingredients for business success today, save one. They have a keen talent. They can turn out cool products or services. They know how to line up financial backing and keep account books. They’re “people people,” meaning they actually like to interact with others all day … Continue reading “Online Marketing for Dummies—and for People with Better Things to Do”

Conduit Labs: “Bored of the Same Old Social Networks, Virtual Worlds, and Massively Multiplayer Online Environments”

Here at Xconomy we’re keeping a long list of recently funded, stealth-mode technology startups that have potentially interesting stories to tell but aren’t quite ready for real publicity. It’s certainly encouraging to see so many new ventures springing up in the neighborhood. But it can also be frustrating to realize that it might be weeks … Continue reading “Conduit Labs: “Bored of the Same Old Social Networks, Virtual Worlds, and Massively Multiplayer Online Environments””

Former Bioenvision Exec Sues for $108 Million; Genzyme Biding Its Time on Takeover

For anyone who’s been following Genzyme’s attempted merger with New York-based biotech firm Bioenvision (NASDAQ: BIVN), one phrase likely comes to mind: What a mess. Here’s a quick summary of what we’ve covered so far (the related posts list at right pretty much has everything): Individual shareholder protest. Merger rejected. CEO and other execs cash … Continue reading “Former Bioenvision Exec Sues for $108 Million; Genzyme Biding Its Time on Takeover”

Entrepreneur Segways Toward Medical Revolution Directing Genomics X Prize

The Segway Personal Transporter was perched just inside the Starbucks door at the Kendall Square Marriott. Truth be told, I didn’t notice it going in, but I pretty much had to going out, because the person I’d just spent the last hour with unlocked the transporter, wheeled it outside, then tooled down the street beside … Continue reading “Entrepreneur Segways Toward Medical Revolution Directing Genomics X Prize”

Reminiscing on the Roomba

iRobot, Boston’s (well, Burlington’s) very own robotics company, announced its newest line of Roomba robot vacuum cleaners today. The company’s intrepid saucer-shaped gadgets, which zoom across carpets and hardwood floors bouncing off walls and other obstacles until they’ve sucked up every last crumb and cat hair, have already won fame as history’s most successful consumer … Continue reading “Reminiscing on the Roomba”

EMC Stock Shows Upward Movement as VMware Rockets into $60s (Wed. Update—Make that $70s)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Update of Wednesday, August 22: We can’t help but watch with some astonishment this morning as VMware continues to climb ever higher. By noon, the stock was up another nearly $7 a share (10.5 percent for the day), to $72.80. EMC had inched up another 45 cents, to $19.73. Below is our original … Continue reading “EMC Stock Shows Upward Movement as VMware Rockets into $60s (Wed. Update—Make that $70s)”

Internet Media Sharing That’s As Simple as Turning on a TV

If you fancy yourself an amateur TV network exec, the Web now has any number of tools to help you create and broadcast your own personal multimedia channel. I’ve tested several, including SplashCast, Vizrea, Veodia, and Bubbleshare, and have several more on my list to try, such as MixerCast, Flektor, Stickam, Ustream, blip.tv, Vpod.tv, Kyte.tv, … Continue reading “Internet Media Sharing That’s As Simple as Turning on a TV”

When It Comes to Women-Owned Startups, Jean Hammond Says Boston Investors Are Nervous Nellies

Here’s a theory: Businesses founded by women tend to produce consumer-oriented products. Here’s another one: Consumer-focused companies make Boston-area investors—both angels and venture capitalists—uncomfortable. Conclusion: If you’re a woman entrepreneur in Boston looking for funding, you might have a problem. The idea, courtesy of Jean Hammond, is a provocative one, to be sure. But Hammond … Continue reading “When It Comes to Women-Owned Startups, Jean Hammond Says Boston Investors Are Nervous Nellies”

Metacafe Scores $30 million in Round Led by Highland—Online Video Top 10

Unless you’ve been in retreat the last few years, you’re probably well aware of the meteoric rise of YouTube. And indeed, the pioneering online video site easily ranks as the dominant player in the field, with more than three times the market share of No. 2, the Avis of online video, MySpaceTV. But what a … Continue reading “Metacafe Scores $30 million in Round Led by Highland—Online Video Top 10”

The President’s Would-Be Pen Pal: Nobel Laureate Craig Mello

A packed ballroom full of conference goers is avidly waiting for UMass Medical School professor Craig Mello to tell them about RNA interference, or RNAi—the discovery of which earned Mello and his collaborator, Stanford’s Andrew Fire, last year’s Nobel Prize. Mello is not about to disappoint, but the first slides in his PowerPoint are not … Continue reading “The President’s Would-Be Pen Pal: Nobel Laureate Craig Mello”

Craig Mello’s Letter to President Bush

Editor’s note: The following is a letter written by Nobel Laureate Craig Mello to President George W. Bush on November 26, 2006. For more on the letter and its outcome see this post. Dear Mr. President: I wanted to take this opportunity to make you aware of an exciting advance in medical research. This discovery, … Continue reading “Craig Mello’s Letter to President Bush”

Craig Mello’s Letter to Governor Patrick

Editor’s note: The following is a letter written by Nobel Laureate Craig Mello to President George W. Bush on February 21, 2007. For more on the letter and its fate see this post. Dear Governor Patrick: It is a pleasure to write in response to your recent note. In a year in which I have … Continue reading “Craig Mello’s Letter to Governor Patrick”

Vlingo’s Adaptive Speech Recognition Promises an End to Typing on your Phone Keyboard

It’s the technology journalist’s downfall: The hot technology that you suspect isn’t quite ripe but you can’t help writing about anyway. In 2003, when I was a senior editor at MIT’s Technology Review (and, in the interest of full disclosure, Bob was editor in chief), speech recognition and natural-language processing were firmly in that category, … Continue reading “Vlingo’s Adaptive Speech Recognition Promises an End to Typing on your Phone Keyboard”

Quincy Company to Launch Year’s Second-Coolest Xbox Game

Don’t bother trying to call or e-mail me Tuesday morning. I’ll be in line at Best Buy waiting for my copy of Bioshock. The video game industry’s hype machine long ago anointed Halo 3, due in the United States on September 25, as the favored blockbuster for Microsoft’s Xbox 360 console this year. But if … Continue reading “Quincy Company to Launch Year’s Second-Coolest Xbox Game”

No Headache for NeurAxon: Company Closes $32 Million Financing Round

Sheesh—so many stories are breaking today I’m getting a headache. I guess it’s good news for me that Waltham, MA-based drugmaker NeurAxon—whose leading product candidate is aimed at migraines—just secured $32 million in a Series B financing. The round was led by New York-based OrbiMed Advisors and Delphi Ventures of Menlo Park, CA. All the … Continue reading “No Headache for NeurAxon: Company Closes $32 Million Financing Round”

Former MIT Scientist’s Company Puts 64 Processors on a Chip

For two years, chipmaking biggies AMD and Intel have been locked in the Battle of the Multi-core Chips. First Intel pitted its Xeon and Core 2 chips against AMD’s dual-processor Athlon 64, and now both companies are doubling the stakes, with Intel releasing the Quad-Core Xeon and AMD about to bring out a four-processor chip … Continue reading “Former MIT Scientist’s Company Puts 64 Processors on a Chip”

iRobot Files Lawsuits Charging Infringement on Combat Robot Patents

Commercial and military robot maker iRobot (NASDAQ: IRBT) announced today that it has filed a pair of lawsuits against a former employee and his company, claiming infringement on patents for iRobot’s PackBot military robot and misappropriation and misuse of confidential information related to the machine. iRobot, based in Burlington, MA, filed the patent-infringement suit against … Continue reading “iRobot Files Lawsuits Charging Infringement on Combat Robot Patents”

Special Vote Called for on Genzyme’s Takeover Bid for Bioenvision: Is a Deal in the Works?

Things seem to be moving again with Genzyme’s so-far-stymied attempts to take over New York-based Bioenvision (NASDAQ: BIVN). A little after four in the afternoon on Friday, Bioenvision’s lawyers made an SEC filing calling for a meeting to vote on the proposed merger. The document, which did not specify a date for the special session, … Continue reading “Special Vote Called for on Genzyme’s Takeover Bid for Bioenvision: Is a Deal in the Works?”

What Makes a Good Technical Advisor? A Check List

Editor’s note: Three weeks ago, John Abele, a co-founder of Boston Scientific, wrote Getting Disruptive Ideas to Market, one of our most popular posts so far. One point he made was that: “marketing and funding folk will be pushing hard for you to get some big name scientific and other advisors on the masthead for … Continue reading “What Makes a Good Technical Advisor? A Check List”

New England Colleges Riding High in U.S. News Rankings—A Few Observations

The U.S. News & World Report list of the best American colleges came out this weekend, with the print edition hitting newsstands this morning. This year, New England’s top schools are once again atop the list (not quite at the top, because Princeton holds the number one spot, a position it has held outright or … Continue reading “New England Colleges Riding High in U.S. News Rankings—A Few Observations”

Color Kinetics Sale on Track, Boston Scientific and Amgen Retrench, & More

I’m off for the weekend (for the first time in a year or so—did we mention we finally closed our financing?), but there’s a lot of interesting stuff going on in the local tech scene for those of you who’d still like to think about it over the next couple of days. —The $791 million … Continue reading “Color Kinetics Sale on Track, Boston Scientific and Amgen Retrench, & More”

MIT Enterprise Forum Energy Special Interest Group

From the sponsors’ website: “Do you want to start a clean energy company, but don’t know where the market opportunity lies? Do you have an interesting clean energy technology but are looking for new markets where it might be used? Do you want to enter your exciting new technology in the 2008 Ignite Clean Energy … Continue reading “MIT Enterprise Forum Energy Special Interest Group”

Keeping Biogen Idec Innovative: Jim Mullen Interview (Part 2)

Jim Mullen is being a little reflective. A CEO’s job goes through a couple of phases as a company grows, he says. “The first bridge you walk over is the day that you don’t know the name of everybody in the company. Once that day happens, suddenly all the very informal interactions, they just have … Continue reading “Keeping Biogen Idec Innovative: Jim Mullen Interview (Part 2)”

Local Virtualization Firm Hoping to Ride the Wave of VMware’s Success

“Virtualization” and “sky high prices” seem to be going hand-in-hand this week. First came EMC (NYSE: EMC) subsidiary VMware’s mind-boggling IPO on Tuesday, the hottest stock debut since Google. Then, yesterday, came word that Citrix, a business software company that makes applications running on backend servers appear as if they are running on customers’ desktops, … Continue reading “Local Virtualization Firm Hoping to Ride the Wave of VMware’s Success”

Icahn’s New Stake in Biogen Idec—Doing the Math

I feel bad even mentioning it, because it’s exactly the sort of mistake I’d make but, for any of you who read the New York Post‘s business briefs yesterday, a little clarification: Billionaire Carl Icahn did not just take a “more than 9 percent” stake in Biogen Idec. The real scoop, revealed in SEC filings … Continue reading “Icahn’s New Stake in Biogen Idec—Doing the Math”

Civilizing the Rental Market with Web 2.0 Tools

There are few things in life more stressful than finding a decent apartment—or, if you’re a property owner, finding a decent tenant. It’s often one of those frustrating situations where each party has to make a decision without sufficient information. Is this landlord charging a reasonable rent for the neighborhood? Will this guy pay up … Continue reading “Civilizing the Rental Market with Web 2.0 Tools”

The State of Biotechnology, According to Biogen Idec CEO Jim Mullen

It was a sunny, steamy morning last week when I elevatored upstairs at Biogen Idec’s Kendall Square headquarters to interview CEO James Mullen—and I sat right down in the hot seat. Literally. Mullen awaited in a big-windowed conference room; I perched with my back to the sun and instantly started baking. Mullen smiled. Did the … Continue reading “The State of Biotechnology, According to Biogen Idec CEO Jim Mullen”

Flagship Principal Named Tech Review Innovator of the Year

Our old friends at Technology Review announced their innovator of the year today: Flagship Ventures’ David Berry. Steve Hall has a nice profile of Berry, a Harvard-and-MIT-trained MD/PhD who has been a principal at Flagship for the last couple of years. Hall focuses particularly on Berry’s work with San Carlos, CA-based LS9, a synthetic-biology firm … Continue reading “Flagship Principal Named Tech Review Innovator of the Year”

Big Blue to Gather Software Brains in Littleton

IBM’s eight Massachusetts offices—most, the legacies of the local software companies the company has acquired over the years—are scattered around Boston like chips on a poker table. And now the company is about to rake them in. Big Blue (NYSE: IBM) said Tuesday that it will shift 3,400 jobs to a split campus paralleling Interstate … Continue reading “Big Blue to Gather Software Brains in Littleton”

Eons Founder Stirs the Crowd at CEO Breakfast

I spent three hours this morning chatting with some 30-odd other entrepreneurs at a fascinating CEO breakfast get-together put on by local networking guru Trudy Kightley. I counted folks from at least seven countries, working in biotechnology, medical devices, web video, speech, robotics, and a lot more—just the kind of hodgepodge of backgrounds and expertise … Continue reading “Eons Founder Stirs the Crowd at CEO Breakfast”

Investors Light Fire Under VMware; Will it Spread to Other Virtualization Companies?

Shares of enterprise software maker VMware (NYSE:VMW) opened today at a stunning $50, a 72 percent increase over the level at which parent company EMC (NYSE: EMC) priced the subsidiary’s initial public offering yesterday. The stock fluctuated as the morning progressed but remained high, trading between $48 and $55 during the first hour of business … Continue reading “Investors Light Fire Under VMware; Will it Spread to Other Virtualization Companies?”

A Second Life for Windward Mark as Linden Lab’s New Cambridge Outpost Looks to the Sky

If you’ve spent any time in Second Life—or any other virtual world, for that matter—you know that the serious attractions are on the ground, not in the sky. The sky simply isn’t a priority for most virtual world-builders, who usually have their hands full just simulating players’ avatars and their interactions with virtual objects such … Continue reading “A Second Life for Windward Mark as Linden Lab’s New Cambridge Outpost Looks to the Sky”

Mass Biotech Council Poaches Patrick Administration Insider to Fill Top Post

The Massachusetts Biotechnology Council (MBC) announced today that it has filled its top post. Robert Coughlin, currently Governor Deval Patrick’s undersecretary for business development, will take over the reins as MBC president by October. Coughlin fills a slot left open since January, when MBC’s then-president, Thomas M. Finneran, resigned shortly after pleading guilty to felony … Continue reading “Mass Biotech Council Poaches Patrick Administration Insider to Fill Top Post”

Renewable Energy Clambake & Forum with Rep. William Delahunt

The Southern New England Enterprise Forum, a new organization based at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, will host a clambake and networking event focused on renewable energy at the Advanced Technology Manufacturing Center in Fall River. Rep. Bill Delahunt of the 10th District of Massachusetts will keynote the event, legislative calendar permitting. Tickets $20 via … Continue reading “Renewable Energy Clambake & Forum with Rep. William Delahunt”