Usually, stories about venture funding rounds go straight into the “News Xpress” section of Xconomy. But once in a while there’s a day with so many funding announcements that we decide to round them up in a quick list instead of publishing a bunch of separate items. Today was one of those days. —San Francisco-based … Continue reading “Cloudflare, Ignite, Zettaset, Karma: A Mid-Week Funding Roundup”
Category: National
EA Buys PopCap Games for up to $1.3B, Says Seattle Company Will Keep Doing its Thing
[Updated at 3:40 pm] Never mind about that IPO. Electronic Arts announced today that it’s buying Seattle casual gaming company PopCap Games in a deal that could be worth up to $1.3 billion. The initial price is $650 million in cash and $100 million in EA (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ERTS]]) stock, with later performance-based payouts that could … Continue reading “EA Buys PopCap Games for up to $1.3B, Says Seattle Company Will Keep Doing its Thing”
Intellectual Ventures Steps Up Legal Battle with Memory Manufacturers, Brings H-P, Best Buy & Others Along for the Fight
[Updated at 2:30 pm with details of ITC complaint] Now it’s really getting serious. Intellectual Ventures, the Bellevue, WA-based intellectual property and invention firm, is stepping up its fight against a pair of Asian memory manufacturers with a complaint to the International Trade Commission seeking to block the companies’ products from being imported to the … Continue reading “Intellectual Ventures Steps Up Legal Battle with Memory Manufacturers, Brings H-P, Best Buy & Others Along for the Fight”
Margarita Barry Leads Army Of Young Entrepreneurs To Detroit
[Corrected 7/12/11, 4:05 pm.See below.]Margarita Barry is throwing a party. Who: Entrepreneurial, creative people in their 20s or 30s Where: Detroit When: Now RSVP: www.iamyoungdetroit.com Barry, 26, is the founder of I am Young Detroit, a web site [An earlier version mistakenly described the website as a social networking site. We regret the error.]that offers … Continue reading “Margarita Barry Leads Army Of Young Entrepreneurs To Detroit”
When Complaining Customers Hit Twitter and Facebook, Assistly is There
Alex Bard likes to start off his description of Assistly, the San Francisco startup where he’s CEO, with an old quote from Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. It goes something like this: If you make a customer unhappy in the physical world, he might tell six friends. But if you make the same customer unhappy on … Continue reading “When Complaining Customers Hit Twitter and Facebook, Assistly is There”
Seattle Genetics’ New ‘Empowered Antibody’ Looks Clean in FDA Staff Documents
The FDA staff has been known to dish out some unhappy surprises in briefing documents ahead of FDA advisory committees, and to make withering comments about the inadequacy of new drugs, but there wasn’t really any of that in this morning’s analysis of a new drug application from Seattle Genetics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]). The FDA staff … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics’ New ‘Empowered Antibody’ Looks Clean in FDA Staff Documents”
San Diego’s Assay Depot Creates Private e-Commerce Sites for Pfizer, Other Big Pharmas
Entrepreneurs are often advised to stay nimble during the startup years of a new venture, so they can quickly change direction as new business opportunities present themselves. But San Diego’s Assay Depot could qualify as a case study in agility. The venture that began five years ago as a clinical research organization (CRO) dramatically changed … Continue reading “San Diego’s Assay Depot Creates Private e-Commerce Sites for Pfizer, Other Big Pharmas”
There is a New Clinical Trial of a Novel Drug for African Sleeping Sickness. Who Cares?
I do. Millions of Africans do. Two of the world’s wealthiest people do. And against all odds, two U.S. biotech companies do too. The story starts in Africa where about 7,000 new cases of sleeping sickness happen each year. If diseases could be classified as cruel and unusual, sleeping sickness would be at the top … Continue reading “There is a New Clinical Trial of a Novel Drug for African Sleeping Sickness. Who Cares?”
Amag Rebounds from FDA Handwringing, Looks To Stock Pipeline Through Acquisitions
Exactly two years ago, Lexington, MA-based Amag Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMAG]]) took a giant step forward in its effort to morph from a manufacturer of diagnostic-imaging products to a developer of cutting-edge drugs. The company introduced its first therapeutic product, ferumoxytol (Feraheme), an intravenous injection to treat iron deficiency in patients with chronic kidney disease. Investors … Continue reading “Amag Rebounds from FDA Handwringing, Looks To Stock Pipeline Through Acquisitions”
Wag.com, Facebook, Skype, Iota, Moai: The 1-Minute Week in Seattle Tech News
A short holiday week still left us with plenty of good tech news to chew over in the Puget Sound region. Here’s the quick version of the headlines and deep dives from the past seven days here at Xconomy Seattle, from big players and VCs to startups and researchers: —Cue the circa-2000 sock puppet jokes—Amazon.com … Continue reading “Wag.com, Facebook, Skype, Iota, Moai: The 1-Minute Week in Seattle Tech News”
Seattle Genetics’ FDA Panel Preview: What You Need to Know This Week
[Updated: 6:50 am PT] This is the week Seattle Genetics, a 14-year-old company, will have its biggest coming-of-age experience on its way to becoming a real grown-up. The company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]) is getting ready to make its best possible argument for FDA approval of its new “empowered antibody” drug aimed at a pair of rare … Continue reading “Seattle Genetics’ FDA Panel Preview: What You Need to Know This Week”
How’s That Stretchy, Bendy Stuff Working Out for Ya? MC10 Looks to Turn Flexible Sensors and Solar Cells Into a Growth Business
Marc Andreessen, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur-turned-venture-capitalist, said something interesting in last weekend’s New York Times magazine interview. It wasn’t his “there’s no tech bubble” spiel, or even his prediction that we’ll all be riding around in self-driving cars in 10 to 20 years, thanks to Google. No, it was that he singled out “wearable computing”—portable … Continue reading “How’s That Stretchy, Bendy Stuff Working Out for Ya? MC10 Looks to Turn Flexible Sensors and Solar Cells Into a Growth Business”
Northrop Grumman Leads $15M Round for Daylight Solutions
San Diego’s Daylight Solutions, a six-year-old startup that specializes in mid-infrared laser technology, says today it raised $15 million in a Series C round of equity financing led by Northrop Grumman (NYSE: [[ticker:NOC]]), the Los Angeles defense contractor. The funding comes less than a week after Daylight Solutions said its proprietary semiconductor laser had successfully … Continue reading “Northrop Grumman Leads $15M Round for Daylight Solutions”
Startups Making Do with Fewer Workers, Kauffman Study Shows
Has the air gone out of the American economy? That’s the troubling suggestion of a new study showing how, even before the current downturn, fewer new firms were being formed and those that did open for business were hiring fewer workers. Titled “Starting Smaller, Staying Smaller: America’s Slow Leak in Job Creation,” the report looks … Continue reading “Startups Making Do with Fewer Workers, Kauffman Study Shows”
Fewer Funds Raise More Capital as Venture Industry Contracts Around “Brand Name” VCs
The U.S. venture capital industry is raising more capital for fewer funds so far this year, continuing a contraction in the number of venture firms, according to a couple of rival surveys released today. While the $2.7 billion raised by VC firms during the second quarter marked a 28 percent increase over the $2.1 billion … Continue reading “Fewer Funds Raise More Capital as Venture Industry Contracts Around “Brand Name” VCs”
RentJuice, Facebook-Skype, and Lean Startups: The 1-Minute Version of Last Week’s Bay Area BizTech News
Time for a few highlights from Xconomy San Francisco’s infotech and energy coverage during the short post-holiday week: —If you’ve ever heard the phrase “Lean Startup,” you’ve probably also heard of Eric Ries, who invented much of the customer-focused rapid iteration model while he was IMVU’s chief technology officer. Last week I sat down with … Continue reading “RentJuice, Facebook-Skype, and Lean Startups: The 1-Minute Version of Last Week’s Bay Area BizTech News”
San Diego’s Economic Development Leadership Resumes CEO Search, NewBlue Launching Mobile Video Editing Technology, & More San Diego BizTech News
It was an abbreviated week for technology news following the July 4th holiday, so our roundup should be a quick read. —The president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, Barry Broome, had a change of heart less than two days after he was publicly introduced as the new leader of the San Diego … Continue reading “San Diego’s Economic Development Leadership Resumes CEO Search, NewBlue Launching Mobile Video Editing Technology, & More San Diego BizTech News”
Will Detroit Get Shut Out Of China’s Electric Vehicle Market?
China has been a Godsend to Detroit. Even as Ford Motor, General Motors, and Chrysler have stumbled in recent years, the country has provided a nice boost to sales of American cars equipped with traditional internal combustible engines. But when it comes to electric vehicles…well, China has its own plans. The country is spending billions … Continue reading “Will Detroit Get Shut Out Of China’s Electric Vehicle Market?”
Shopkick Uses the Sound of Rewards to Bring Smartphone Owners into Bricks-and-Mortar Stores
Shopkick is a startup on fire. Its CEO, Cyriac Roeding, is busier than the heads of companies a hundred times Shopkick’s size; it took me about eight months to get a 30-minute appointment with the German-born engineer and entrepreneur. The day I finally visited the company, which occupies a cramped office above a downtown Palo … Continue reading “Shopkick Uses the Sound of Rewards to Bring Smartphone Owners into Bricks-and-Mortar Stores”
Recyclebank Offers Rewards for Green Actions
As crafty parents know, turning chores into games can motivate hard work. New York’s Recyclebank uses a similar approach with its incentive program to encourage recycling. Working with community and school organizations, as well as with individual members, Recyclebank offers rewards points to those who recycle empty bottles, cereal boxes, pet food cans, sandwich bags, … Continue reading “Recyclebank Offers Rewards for Green Actions”
Whereto, China?
I recently had the pleasure of taking a two week academic trip to China with Babson’s MBA program, where several dozen of my classmates and I were led through Beijing, Dalian, and Shanghai by the inimitable Robert Eng. During the course of the journey, our group visited with government officials, leaders from state-owned enterprises, and … Continue reading “Whereto, China?”
I Was Infected At The WBBA!
In the spring of 2010 I was minding my own business, doing a bit of consulting, board work, lollygagging around, when I received a call from Chris Rivera, the president of the Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association. The WBBA had had a strong focus on capital appreciation and on helping its members grow and prosper, … Continue reading “I Was Infected At The WBBA!”
The Missing Ingredient in Today’s Biotech: Guts
People in the biotech business (most, anyway) aren’t delusional. They know the odds are stacked against anybody who dares to develop a new drug. But even during the darkest days of recent economic history, December 2008, I heard a seasoned executive explain why the U.S. was, and would remain, the leading place in the world … Continue reading “The Missing Ingredient in Today’s Biotech: Guts”
Phoenix Biz Leader Backs Out of San Diego Job
Less than two days after publicly accepting the top job at the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp. (EDC), Barry Broome changed his mind, saying Friday afternoon he had decided to remain in Phoenix, AZ, where he heads the Greater Phoenix Economic Council. EDC leaders introduced Broome to reporters Wednesday morning, saying he would take … Continue reading “Phoenix Biz Leader Backs Out of San Diego Job”
Medtronic to buy Salient for $500M+
Medical device giant Medtronic said it will acquire Salient Surgical Technologies in Portsmouth, NH for $525 million. Established in 1999 and formerly known as Tissuelink Medical, Salient makes devices that stop bleeding and seal wounds by allowing surgeons to apply focused radio-frequency energy and saline solution to collagen fibers in the body. Given Medtronic’s previous … Continue reading “Medtronic to buy Salient for $500M+”
Anatomy of a $256M Acquisition: The Story of DynaTrace, Compuware, and Bain Ventures
Benjamin Nye has an eye for the Benjamins. That’s not quite a palindrome, but it does sum up Nye’s track record as a tech investor. Nye, a managing director with Bain Capital Ventures, has had a string of strong exits—including Network Intelligence (bought by EMC in 2006), SolarWinds (IPO in 2009), and LinkedIn (IPO this … Continue reading “Anatomy of a $256M Acquisition: The Story of DynaTrace, Compuware, and Bain Ventures”
Will Apple’s iCloud Finally Kill Off iTunes and End the Scourge of Sync? My Week in Apple Hell
Xconomy has been around for four years now (our birthday was June 27) and I used the same white plastic MacBook that whole time. It was a great little machine—but despite a memory upgrade, two battery transplants, and a new keyboard (I’m pretty hard on keyboards), it just wasn’t pulling its weight anymore. The OS … Continue reading “Will Apple’s iCloud Finally Kill Off iTunes and End the Scourge of Sync? My Week in Apple Hell”
Amazon and Pfizer Fuel Ever-Growing Frenzy in the Market for Pet Supplies
As much as I hate clichés, I can’t resist using them to describe what’s been going on lately in the pet-products business. So here goes: It’s raining cats and dogs online, as Amazon’s Quidsi launches Wag.com and PetFlow.com brings in a round of funding. The fur is flying on Wall Street with news that Pfizer … Continue reading “Amazon and Pfizer Fuel Ever-Growing Frenzy in the Market for Pet Supplies”
Psssst…Are You Awake? I Have A Great Idea For A Company…
When most entrepreneurs wake up at night with their latest business or product idea, they would probably jot it down, go back to sleep and wait until the next morning to share it. But thanks to eRes, a new living-learning community at the University of Michigan, entrepreneurial-minded students can always find a sounding board for … Continue reading “Psssst…Are You Awake? I Have A Great Idea For A Company…”
Rib-X Inks Sanofi Deal, Zafgen Gets $33M Series C, Allegro Adds $5.4M, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
New England biotechs and devices firms have been active in nabbing partnerships, landing investments, and progressing with clinical programs this week. —Syndax Pharmaceuticals, an epigenetics startup out of Waltham, MA, revealed three sets of data on its lung cancer drug at the Study of Lung Cancer conference this week. The drug, entinostat, is in Phase … Continue reading “Rib-X Inks Sanofi Deal, Zafgen Gets $33M Series C, Allegro Adds $5.4M, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
Amylin, Alkermes Once-Weekly Diabetes Drug Passes Heart Trial Demanded by FDA
The diabetes drug that people are counting on at Amylin Pharmaceuticals, Eli Lilly, and Alkermes has passed a crucial test that the FDA demanded almost 10 months ago. San Diego-based Amylin (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMLN]]), along with its partners, said today that exenatide once-weekly (Bydureon) didn’t appear to cause an irregular heart rhythm, known as QT prolongation, … Continue reading “Amylin, Alkermes Once-Weekly Diabetes Drug Passes Heart Trial Demanded by FDA”
3D Biomatrix Hopes To Break Into Drug Discovery Market With 3D Testing Devices
High-octane action movies and sci-fi thrillers are not the only images best viewed in 3D. Just ask Laura Schrader, a onetime medical device consultant who recently joined 3D Biomatrix as its new CEO. The Ann Arbor, MI-based startup, which spun off last year from the University of Michigan, is developing ways for drug researchers to … Continue reading “3D Biomatrix Hopes To Break Into Drug Discovery Market With 3D Testing Devices”
Fate Therapeutics Trims Chemistry Staff, Bets on Biotech Drugs
Fate Therapeutics, the high-profile stem cell startup in San Diego, has made some limited job cuts in recent months and changed strategy to focus on biotech drugs—instead of conventional small molecules—to coax stem cells into becoming a useful therapies. The company, founded by leading scientists at Harvard University, Stanford University, and the University of Washington, … Continue reading “Fate Therapeutics Trims Chemistry Staff, Bets on Biotech Drugs”
RentJuice Seeks to Help Landlords and Brokers Get Serious About the Web, Like Consumers Already Are
David Vivero, the co-founder and CEO of San Francisco-based RentJuice, was raised in the real estate business. His family owns and manages several apartment buildings in Miami Beach. He grew up fixing air conditioners, traipsing up and down the stairs collecting rent checks, and negotiating with tenants over security deposits. Even after he went off … Continue reading “RentJuice Seeks to Help Landlords and Brokers Get Serious About the Web, Like Consumers Already Are”
San Diego’s Cadence Gets a Generic Headache, aTyr Pharma Seeks Structure for Diverse Funding, CareFusion Plans Global Expansion, & More San Diego Life Sciences News
Buying, Selling, Agreeing. San Diego’s life sciences companies conducted a lot of different transactions over the past week. We have a rundown for you. —San Diego’s ResMed, which specializes in medical devices used to treat sleep apnea and related breathing disorders, said it acquired BiancaMed, a private Irish maker of sensor technology used to monitor … Continue reading “San Diego’s Cadence Gets a Generic Headache, aTyr Pharma Seeks Structure for Diverse Funding, CareFusion Plans Global Expansion, & More San Diego Life Sciences News”
Cleantech-less in Seattle
Every entrepreneur or executive would like to “do well by doing good.” That is the dream of being socially responsible and financially successful at the same time. After working in venture capital and selling Internet advertising for eight years, I decided to focus on cleantech for my next career adventure. Though I live in Seattle, … Continue reading “Cleantech-less in Seattle”
Zafgen Pockets $33M To Take Obesity Drug Through Next Big Step in Clinical Trials
Obesity drug developer Zafgen is announcing today that it has closed a $33 million Series C financing led by its existing investors, including Third Rock Ventures and Atlas Venture. This doubles the total amount of cash raised by the Cambridge, MA-based startup to $66 million. Zafgen CEO Thomas Hughes says the company will use the … Continue reading “Zafgen Pockets $33M To Take Obesity Drug Through Next Big Step in Clinical Trials”
Efficiency 2.0 Offers Energy Diet Plan with Perks to Consumers
Dangling a carrot in front of a stubborn mule might get it to prance, but energy customers can be tougher to motivate. Armed with an incentive program to encourage conservation, Efficiency 2.0 in New York thinks it has the right kind of lure to curb energy waste. Our reliance on appliances, mobile gadgets, and computers … Continue reading “Efficiency 2.0 Offers Energy Diet Plan with Perks to Consumers”
Microsoft Research New England Turns 3: Jennifer Chayes Reveals Its First Product-and Collaborations With Bing, Facebook, and Twitter
Whether you’re part of the Boston-Cambridge technology community, or just an interested observer, you’ve probably been to the Microsoft New England Research and Development Center (known affectionately as NERD) at least a few times in the past year. But do you know what Microsoft is actually working on there? I didn’t. Until last week, that … Continue reading “Microsoft Research New England Turns 3: Jennifer Chayes Reveals Its First Product-and Collaborations With Bing, Facebook, and Twitter”
SeaGen Preserves Science Culture, Dendreon Sways Medicare, NanoString’s Financing, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
We Seattleites have to savor the incredible weather we’ve been having, so I’m keeping this week’s roundup short and sweet so as not to interfere with your outdoor time. —Seattle Genetics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SGEN]]) is one company that can’t really soak up too many rays right now, because it’s getting ready to transform from an R&D-only … Continue reading “SeaGen Preserves Science Culture, Dendreon Sways Medicare, NanoString’s Financing, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”
Arizona’s Broome Named to Head San Diego’s Regional Economic Development
Following a nationwide search that considered 300 candidates, the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp. (EDC) today named a new president and CEO, Barry Broome, who has spent the past six years heading the Greater Phoenix Economic Council. EDC board members who participated in the four-month search process said they paid particular heed to what … Continue reading “Arizona’s Broome Named to Head San Diego’s Regional Economic Development”
Skype on Facebook, Live from Seattle: a Partial Answer to Google+ and a Big Debut for Emerald City Engineers
On his way to work today, Mark Zuckerberg says he ran into a neighbor who’d heard reports that Facebook was about to unveil a new video-calling feature. Get on that, he told the youthful billionaire, so I can chat with my grandkids. That’s now possible, with Facebook’s announcement that its 750 million users will be able … Continue reading “Skype on Facebook, Live from Seattle: a Partial Answer to Google+ and a Big Debut for Emerald City Engineers”
The Answer Was Floating In The Wind; Danotek Finds Its Calling In Wind Power
During my brief time here in Michigan, I’ve heard a familiar prediction: The state is poised to become a cleantech powerhouse because of its expertise in manufacturing and automobile engineering. So far, that’s mostly been talk. Danotek Motion Technologies, however, is walking the walk. The Canton, MI-based startup has unique technology and Silicon Valley investors, … Continue reading “The Answer Was Floating In The Wind; Danotek Finds Its Calling In Wind Power”
Eric Ries, the Face of the Lean Startup Movement, on How a Once-Insane Idea Went Mainstream
Many Internet startups these days release new code several times a day, in the belief that the faster they can iterate the sooner they’ll discover a profitable business niche. The concept, of pushing out products that aren’t necessarily ready for prime time, gathering customer feedback, revising code, and starting again, would have been considered insane … Continue reading “Eric Ries, the Face of the Lean Startup Movement, on How a Once-Insane Idea Went Mainstream”
Eric Ries and the Origins of the Lean Startup Theory—The Full Xconomy Interview
I spoke with Eric Ries, founder of the Lean Startup movement, on July 5, 2011, at Peet’s Coffee & Tea in San Francisco’s startup-rich SoMa neighborhood. If you’re pressed for time, a much shorter summary of our conversation is available here. But at least a few readers—the types who attend Ries’s conferences or go to … Continue reading “Eric Ries and the Origins of the Lean Startup Theory—The Full Xconomy Interview”
FADE IN: NewBlue Founders Bring FX Catalog to Mobile Video Platform
Melissa Jordan Grey and Todor Fay trapped lightning in a bottle when they sold their Atlanta-based music software startup, Blue Ribbon SoundWorks, to Microsoft in 1995 (for an undisclosed amount). As part of the deal, they joined Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]), which merged their audio editor software with its DirectSound technology. As they tell the story, … Continue reading “FADE IN: NewBlue Founders Bring FX Catalog to Mobile Video Platform”
DynaTrace Acquired by Compuware for $256M to Make Business Software Run Better
Another Boston-area business software company exits the scene today via acquisition. Following in the footsteps of Gomez (and many others), Waltham, MA-based DynaTrace, which helps companies manage the performance of their software applications, has been bought by Detroit-based Compuware (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CPWR]]) for $256 million in cash. The deal closed on July 1. DynaTrace has 180 … Continue reading “DynaTrace Acquired by Compuware for $256M to Make Business Software Run Better”
Zipline’s Moai Powering “Crimson,” the First Mobile Game Release through Bungie Aerospace
The gaming industry’s ears recently perked up with news that Bungie, the studio behind the hit Xbox franchise Halo, wanted to give mobile game developers more thrust behind their products with its new Bungie Aerospace platform. It turns out that one Seattle startup was a little more interested than most. Zipline Games, based in South … Continue reading “Zipline’s Moai Powering “Crimson,” the First Mobile Game Release through Bungie Aerospace”
Amazon Unit Quidsi Expands From Diapers and Soap to Dogs and Cats, With New Site Wag.Com
Today Jersey City, NJ-based e-commerce provider Quidsi—which was bought by Amazon in November for $500 million—is launching Wag.com, an online warehouse that will offer more than 10,000 products for dogs, cats, fish, birds, and just about every other critter that families welcome into their homes. The site will operate independently of Amazon, similar to Quidsi’s … Continue reading “Amazon Unit Quidsi Expands From Diapers and Soap to Dogs and Cats, With New Site Wag.Com”
Alkermes Wins Over Investors With Plan To Become Trans-Atlantic “Big Biotech”
Richard Pops went on hiatus for a while as CEO of Alkermes, and when he returned in September 2009, he vowed to put the company back in “building mode.” It could have been dismissed as rah-rah rhetoric, but over the past couple of months, the investment community has started to rally behind Pops’ bold plan … Continue reading “Alkermes Wins Over Investors With Plan To Become Trans-Atlantic “Big Biotech””