Joe Panetta is spending more time on flights to Washington D.C. than ever before. Lobbying has always been part of his job in the decade he’s spent running Biocom, the trade association for San Diego’s life sciences industry. But now he’s under instructions from the Biocom board to make doubly sure industry interests are heard … Continue reading “Biocom or Biopol? San Diego’s Life Sciences Trade Group Aims to Build California Clout in D.C”
Category: National
Riding the Diabetes Wave, Novo Nordisk Sees Chance to Scoop Up Biotech Talent in Seattle
Diabetics can’t just quit taking insulin when the economy takes a nosedive. So if you’re the world’s largest producer of insulin for a chronic, and growing, medical condition, your outlook on life isn’t that bad right now. That’s the enviable position of Novo Nordisk, the Danish drugmaker, and part of the reason why it feels … Continue reading “Riding the Diabetes Wave, Novo Nordisk Sees Chance to Scoop Up Biotech Talent in Seattle”
Regulus Strikes Out On Its Own, J&J Seeks “Enlight”-enment, Synta Awaits Melanoma Data, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News
There were some interesting M&A developments this past week involving or potentially affecting Massachusetts life sciences firms. Those, and the rest of the week’s news, below. —Regulus Therapeutics, a joint venture of Cambridge, MA-based Alnylam (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ALNY]]) and Carlsbad, CA-based Isis Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ISISI]]), unveiled plans to raise “a very respectable amount” of capital from … Continue reading “Regulus Strikes Out On Its Own, J&J Seeks “Enlight”-enment, Synta Awaits Melanoma Data, & More Boston-Area Life Sciences News”
The Onyx Connection: Seattle-Area Software Firm Spawns 13 CEOs
The Seattle tech family tree spreads far and wide. This morning, my San Diego-based colleague Bruce Bigelow published a story about Covario, a search engine marketing firm backed in part by Seattle’s Voyager Capital. The other Seattle connection there is that Covario’s CEO, Russ Mann, worked for Bellevue, WA-based Onyx Software in the glory days … Continue reading “The Onyx Connection: Seattle-Area Software Firm Spawns 13 CEOs”
Amylin Fourth-Quarter Byetta Sales Drop, Falling Short of Wall Street Estimates
Amylin Pharmaceuticals saw some dark days last fall, and now we can see it in its fourth-quarter earnings report. The San Diego-based biotech company said today sales of its biggest product, exenatide (Byetta) for diabetes, fell almost 8 percent compared with the same period a year earlier. Amylin (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMLN]]) said after markets closed that … Continue reading “Amylin Fourth-Quarter Byetta Sales Drop, Falling Short of Wall Street Estimates”
Innovative Spinal Technologies Jilted, Now Bankrupt, Source Says
Last night we reported that Mansfield, MA-based Innovative Spinal Technologies, a maker of implants to correct degenerative spinal disorders, had gone dark—the company’s website was down and phone calls were going unanswered. A former employee who recently left the company now tells Xconomy that IST shut its doors on Friday, filed for bankruptcy protection, and … Continue reading “Innovative Spinal Technologies Jilted, Now Bankrupt, Source Says”
NitroMed Takes Buyout Offer from Deerfield, Dumps Archemix at the Altar
NitroMed (NASDAQ:[[ticker:NTMD]]), the Lexington, MA-based drug developer that struggled to market a heart failure drug for African-Americans, says it has agreed to be acquired for 80 cents per share in cash by investment firm Deerfield Management. This means NitroMed bailed out of previous agreements to sell BiDil to specialty drugmaker JHP Pharmaceuticals and to merge … Continue reading “NitroMed Takes Buyout Offer from Deerfield, Dumps Archemix at the Altar”
Viewers Hunt for Sirtris’ Anti-Aging Drugs After 60 Minutes Story
Apparently, there were still some people who hadn’t heard of Sirtris and its widely publicized anti-aging pills, because Sunday evening’s 60 Minutes story on the Cambridge, MA, biotech firm sparked a surge in Web searches on the company as well as requests for its experimental drugs. The 60 Minutes story on CBS was a recap … Continue reading “Viewers Hunt for Sirtris’ Anti-Aging Drugs After 60 Minutes Story”
Micronics to Roll Out Pocket-Sized Malaria, E. coli Tests This Year
Micronics has been around since 1996, so it hardly qualifies as a startup anymore. But the Redmond, WA-based biotech company has been moving in new directions over the last few years, and is now getting ready to bring its first diagnostic tests to the market. The 28-person company has been in the microfluidics business—the design … Continue reading “Micronics to Roll Out Pocket-Sized Malaria, E. coli Tests This Year”
Genzyme Shares Climb as Competing Kidney Drug Stumbles
Genzyme shares got an unexpected boost this morning. The Cambridge, MA-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:GENZ]]) climbed more than $1 a share to $69.20 this morning after a rival, Amgen, said it discontinued development of an experimental treatment that had been posing a threat to Genzyme’s kidney drug franchise. Amgen (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AMGN]]) made the announcement yesterday … Continue reading “Genzyme Shares Climb as Competing Kidney Drug Stumbles”
Pfizer Bid for Wyeth Will Stall Mass. Biotech Deals, CEO Says, State Official Still Sees Growth
A combination of drug giants Pfizer and Wyeth could have many implications for the greater Boston life sciences sector, where both companies employ thousands of workers and have ties to many local biotech firms. News of New York-based Pfizer’s $68 billion proposed acquisition of Wyeth drew mixed reviews from biotech executives and officials in the … Continue reading “Pfizer Bid for Wyeth Will Stall Mass. Biotech Deals, CEO Says, State Official Still Sees Growth”
Top Five Venture Deals From Last Quarter, PetraVM Pulls In $1.5M, Maveron Backs TheWrap, & More Seattle-Area Deals News
After a relatively slow week, the deals picked up a bit in the Northwest during the presidential inauguration week. There was modest activity in software, media, and vaccines. —Xconomy broke the news that PetraVM, a University of Washington software startup, raised $1.5 million in Series A funding from Seattle-based Madrona Venture Group and WRF Capital. … Continue reading “Top Five Venture Deals From Last Quarter, PetraVM Pulls In $1.5M, Maveron Backs TheWrap, & More Seattle-Area Deals News”
Synta, Developer of New Class of Cancer Drugs, Eagerly Awaits Results From Key Trial
Nothing really buys time for patients with terminal forms of melanoma, a type of skin cancer. Not chemotherapy, not targeted antibody drugs, not genetic-based antisense treatments. But Lexington, MA-based Synta Pharmaceuticals should find out within weeks whether or not it has made a breakthrough with a new approach. Synta (NASDAQ: [[ticker:SNTA]]) is on pins and … Continue reading “Synta, Developer of New Class of Cancer Drugs, Eagerly Awaits Results From Key Trial”
San Diego’s Covario Rides Wave of Search Engine Marketing
I didn’t really know what to expect when I sat down with Covario CEO Russ Mann recently over a lunch of fajitas and enchiladas. Many CEOs adopt a kind of taciturn presence to maintain their command authority, but words gush from Mann. Ask a question, and he responds at length. Yet the most-succinct explanation of … Continue reading “San Diego’s Covario Rides Wave of Search Engine Marketing”
Pfizer’s Bid For Wyeth Sends Ripples Through Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Seattle Biotechs
Pfizer rocked the business world yesterday with its $68 billion bid to acquire Madison, NJ-based Wyeth (NYSE: [[ticker:WYE]]), and the ripple effect was felt here in the Northwest. Nobody in town has a bigger stake in this deal than Seattle-based Trubion Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:TRBN]]). Trubion’s lead drug candidate for rheumatoid arthritis, TRU-015, has been part … Continue reading “Pfizer’s Bid For Wyeth Sends Ripples Through Trubion Pharmaceuticals, Seattle Biotechs”
Pfizer-Wyeth Combo’s Impact on San Diego Biotech: Bad for Dealmaking, Good for Shareholders
The big story in pharmaceutical-and-biotech land yesterday was New York-based Pfizer’s $68 billion bid to acquire Madison, NJ-based Wyeth (NYSE: [[ticker:WYE]]). Wyeth is known for having more biotech expertise than many of its Big Pharma brethren, generating billions in sales from biotech products like its pneumococcal conjugate vaccine (Prevnar) for infants, as well as its … Continue reading “Pfizer-Wyeth Combo’s Impact on San Diego Biotech: Bad for Dealmaking, Good for Shareholders”
Sloan School Students Survey Boston Startup Scene
In early January, students from MIT’s Sloan School of Management fanned out to companies in Boston, San Francisco, Silicon Valley, and Seattle on the school’s annual Tech Trek. The student-organized job-prospecting event puts budding business moguls soon to receive their MBAs into the same conference rooms with technology entrepreneurs for a download on each company’s … Continue reading “Sloan School Students Survey Boston Startup Scene”
High-Energy Startups: A Report from the Sloan School Tech Trek
“You should visit us more often!” said one of our hosts during the MIT Sloan School of Management’s Massachusetts Tech Trek two weeks ago. The host’s enthusiasm was understandable—the company had just received news of a fresh round of funding in the midst of our visit. But such enthusiasm and energy (pun intended) was clearly … Continue reading “High-Energy Startups: A Report from the Sloan School Tech Trek”
Yes, There Are MBA-Level Startup Jobs Out There: Impressions from the Sloan School Tech Trek
When I first moved from Detroit to Boston a year ago, I discovered a plethora of opportunities in technology companies that are not available anywhere else. Unfortunately, I’ve found that personal connections sometimes matter more than resume credentials in finding a job in the start-up technology space. As a second year MBA student at MIT … Continue reading “Yes, There Are MBA-Level Startup Jobs Out There: Impressions from the Sloan School Tech Trek”
What’s Up at Innovative Spinal Technologies? Everything Seems Down
When nobody answers a company’s phones and its website turns into a big fat 404 error, it can’t be a good sign. That seems to be the situation at Innovative Spinal Technologies, a Mansfield, MA, medical device company that, according to our calculations, had raised some $63 million in venture and private equity funding to … Continue reading “What’s Up at Innovative Spinal Technologies? Everything Seems Down”
Bill Gates’s First Annual Letter on Life at the Foundation: “I Love the Work”
Bill Gates says he loves his new job at his charitable foundation. The co-founder of Microsoft says so this morning in his first annual letter, posted online, sizing up his nonprofit work. Gates left his full-time job at Microsoft in June, to devote his full attention to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the world’s … Continue reading “Bill Gates’s First Annual Letter on Life at the Foundation: “I Love the Work””
Israel’s Modu Gets Venture Funding From Qualcomm
Israel’s daily business newspaper Calcalist is reporting that San Diego’s Qualcomm has invested $7 million in modu, a modular mobile phone maker headed by the inventor of the USB flash drive. Founder and CEO Dov Moran started modu in 2007 in Kfar-Saba, Israel, after selling his previous company, msystems, to SanDisk in 2006 for $1.6 … Continue reading “Israel’s Modu Gets Venture Funding From Qualcomm”
Top Three Trends in Angel Capital, from Seattle Investor Geoff Entress
Have angel investors become the new venture capitalists? Earlier this month, my colleague Wade Roush reported on a presentation by James Geshwiler of the Boston-area group CommonAngels about the changing nature of angel investing. Between Geshwiler’s comments and what I’ve been hearing around Seattle, it seems like the dynamic between angels and VCs has shifted … Continue reading “Top Three Trends in Angel Capital, from Seattle Investor Geoff Entress”
Apptio, LiquidPlanner, Ontela, Pet Holdings, Picnik, Wetpaint Among Finalists for WTIA Industry Achievement Awards
The first round of voting is done. This morning, the Washington Technology Industry Association (WTIA) announced the finalists for its 14th annual Industry Achievement Awards. Among the finalists are several Seattle-area companies we’ve reported on extensively at Xconomy, and a few others you’ll be hearing more about soon. Here are this year’s finalists, sorted by … Continue reading “Apptio, LiquidPlanner, Ontela, Pet Holdings, Picnik, Wetpaint Among Finalists for WTIA Industry Achievement Awards”
Forma Forms Antibiotic-Discovery Partnership with Cubist
Forma Therapeutics came out of stealth mode early this month to reveal its plans to discover drugs for difficult-to-treat cancers—and today the Cambridge, MA-based biotech startup is announcing a deal with antibiotics maker Cubist Pharmaceuticals aimed at applying the startup’s nascent technology to discover antibacterial compounds, according to a press release. Lexington, MA-based Cubist (NASDAQ:[[ticker:CBST]]) … Continue reading “Forma Forms Antibiotic-Discovery Partnership with Cubist”
Qualcomm Buys Multimedia Technology, SD Consortium Advances Biofuels Initiative, Biotech VCs Adapt, & More San Diego BizTech News
Before the economic downturn deepened last September, many venture capital firms maintained that their operations were unaffected by the overall economy. They’re not saying that anymore. VCs are reacting to hard times in different ways—and so are the startups and technology companies that make up the innovation economy. Some examples of how they are … Continue reading “Qualcomm Buys Multimedia Technology, SD Consortium Advances Biofuels Initiative, Biotech VCs Adapt, & More San Diego BizTech News”
GlassHouse Adds Security Consulting with Acquisition of Former Motorola Team
GlassHouse Technologies, the Framingham, MA, firm whose IT consulting services are used by almost half of the Fortune 100 companies, said today that it has acquired Chicago-based CSSG, a fledgling security consulting firm whose key members are recent emigrants from Schaumberg, IL-based Motorola. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. GlassHouse is mainly known for … Continue reading “GlassHouse Adds Security Consulting with Acquisition of Former Motorola Team”
Virtual Computer Secures $15 Million, Makes Real Friends with Citrix
Virtual Computer, a Westford, MA, PC virtualization startup that has been gradually decloaking since last fall, today announced that it’s raised a Series B funding round totaling $15 million. The surprisingly large round was led by Highland Capital Partners of Lexington, MA, and Flybridge Capital Partners of Boston, the same investors who put up the … Continue reading “Virtual Computer Secures $15 Million, Makes Real Friends with Citrix”
Rib-X Raises $25M in Debt Financing, Reveals Final Results of Antibiotic Trial
Rib-X Pharmaceuticals has raked in $25 million in a debt financing to develop its pipeline of antibiotics for drug-resistant infections. The New Haven, CT-based biotech firm is expected this morning to reveal details of the financing and final results of a mid-stage clinical trial of its antibiotic delafloxacin. Last time I spoke with Rib-X CEO … Continue reading “Rib-X Raises $25M in Debt Financing, Reveals Final Results of Antibiotic Trial”
Qualcomm Leads San Diego Patent Filings in Our Top 25 List
Which San Diego firms are the most inventive? When the 2008 year-end patent figures recently became available, we decided to find out. Xconomy is listing the top 25 patent winners in the San Diego region below, based on data provided by IFI Patent Intelligence of Wilmington, DE. Our compilation includes a few surprises. San Diego-based Qualcomm … Continue reading “Qualcomm Leads San Diego Patent Filings in Our Top 25 List”
Cardiac Dimensions, Fixer of Leaky Hearts, Edges Toward European Market and Pivotal U.S. Test
Cardiac Dimensions has a dream of developing the first method for tightening up loose heart valves without requiring a surgeon to touch a scalpel. This year, the Kirkland, WA-based medical device company will get a clearer sense of whether it has successfully created such a device, and whether it will become a practical way to … Continue reading “Cardiac Dimensions, Fixer of Leaky Hearts, Edges Toward European Market and Pivotal U.S. Test”
Anomopoly, Dirty Truckers Snatch Top Prizes in Band Battle; Thanks to All Our Sponsors
One of the big reasons we launched Xconomy in 2007 was to remind the incredibly talented, enthusiastic people who make up Boston’s innovation community that what they do is not just important and (hopefully) profitable, but fun. And from watching so many tech-biz folks happily getting down and chatting each other up at last night’s … Continue reading “Anomopoly, Dirty Truckers Snatch Top Prizes in Band Battle; Thanks to All Our Sponsors”
Microsoft Layoff Hits Gaming, Online Services, Real Estate
A day after the largest layoff in Microsoft history—1,400 jobs cut yesterday, with up to 5,000 in the next year and a half—the ripples are spreading far and wide throughout the technology and business communities. Here’s a snapshot of where the cuts are happening in the Seattle area. —Microsoft’s ACES studio, the Redmond, WA-based group … Continue reading “Microsoft Layoff Hits Gaming, Online Services, Real Estate”
CloudSwitch Floating on $7.4M Funding Round
Stealth cloud computing company CloudSwitch has taken in $7.4 million in Series A funding co-led by Atlas Venture and Matrix Partners. The news was first reported by Scott Kirsner on his blog, and confirmed by Atlas partner Axel Bichara. Little information is available about Waltham, MA-based CloudSwitch, whose placeholder website merely says it is in … Continue reading “CloudSwitch Floating on $7.4M Funding Round”
Biogen Idec Rival Succeeds in Trial of Oral Pill for Multiple Sclerosis
One of Biogen Idec’s competitors in the world of multiple sclerosis drugs reported some success today. Germany’s Merck KGaA says its experimental oral pill reached its goal of reducing the rate of MS flare-ups for patients in a two-year study. Merck KGaA said patients on a low dose of its drug, cladribine, had a 58 percent … Continue reading “Biogen Idec Rival Succeeds in Trial of Oral Pill for Multiple Sclerosis”
The Active Network Expands By Acquiring Campground Reservation Company
San Diego’s The Active Network, in another example of its growth-by-acquisition strategy, announced it is buying the online campground reservation provider ReserveAmerica from New York-based IAC. IAC, (NASDAQ: [[ticker:IACI]]) the conglomerate led by Barry Diller which operates more than 35 Internet businesses , agreed to sell its 100 percent ownership stake in ReserveAmerica to Active … Continue reading “The Active Network Expands By Acquiring Campground Reservation Company”
From the Valley of the Green Giant, Google Energy Czar Lowers the Heat
Bill Weihl, Google’s green energy czar, says the computer you’re likely using now is a bit like a toaster. It takes in energy and produces heat. A typical network server is more energy-efficient, but Weihl says it’s usually loaded with cheap parts and still wastes a third of the power it consumes, which emanates as … Continue reading “From the Valley of the Green Giant, Google Energy Czar Lowers the Heat”
EMC, MIT Led Bay State Patent Winners in 2008—Here’s the Top 25 List
The sum of a company’s patent awards is not by a longshot a perfect barometer for an organization’s ability to innovate, but it can be one important measure of its investment in itself and its intellectual property—and its future competitiveness. In that regard, IT infrastructure company EMC (NYSE:[[ticker:EMC]]) seems like it’s doing all right. The … Continue reading “EMC, MIT Led Bay State Patent Winners in 2008—Here’s the Top 25 List”
Theo Chocolate Teams Up with UW to Sniff Out the Perfect Bean
Theo Chocolate, Inc. wants to unlock the cocoa bean’s secrets. Together with chemists at the University of Washington, Theo’s chief operating officer and food scientist Andy McShea is using “electronic nose” lab techniques to identify the best organic bean he can find. I met with McShea in the Seattle chocolate company’s office, which overlooks the … Continue reading “Theo Chocolate Teams Up with UW to Sniff Out the Perfect Bean”
E-Book Readers on the iPhone? They’re Not Quite Kindle Slayers Yet
Well, this is the first time I’ve written my weekly column while wearing a tuxedo. No, I’m not on my way home from an inauguration ball, or campaigning for higher style standards among reporters. As I write this, I’m getting ready to emcee Xconomy’s Battle of the Tech Bands 2. Our preparations for the event … Continue reading “E-Book Readers on the iPhone? They’re Not Quite Kindle Slayers Yet”
Optimer’s Second Drug, for Traveler’s Diarrhea, Follows Fast Behind Lead “C. Diff” Antibiotic
San Diego’s Optimer Pharmaceuticals had its breakout moment in November, when it showed its experimental drug could wipe out the dreaded C. Diff bacteria, a horrific, sometimes fatal form of diarrhea that people sometimes pick up in the hospital. What fewer people realize is Optimer (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OPTR]]) has another anti-diarrhea drug in the works that’s … Continue reading “Optimer’s Second Drug, for Traveler’s Diarrhea, Follows Fast Behind Lead “C. Diff” Antibiotic”
J&J Teams With Enlight, eIQnetworks Secures $10M, Riverbed Makes Off With Mazu for $25M, & More Boston-Area Deals News
Many of New England’s IT firms were heard from this past week. Those, and the rest of the week’s tech and life sciences deals, below. —The Scuderi Group of West Springfield, MA, raised $20 million in private funding from undisclosed investors. The firm is developing a fuel-efficient internal combustion engine. —The year-end data on U.S. … Continue reading “J&J Teams With Enlight, eIQnetworks Secures $10M, Riverbed Makes Off With Mazu for $25M, & More Boston-Area Deals News”
MDRNA Cuts Executive Pay, Freezes Salaries as Cash Runs Out
MDRNA is running out of cash, and is drastically cutting down payroll expenses, according to a source close to the situation. The Bothell, WA-based biotech company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MRNA]]) has asked executives to work for no pay, and has frozen employee salaries at $1,250 for the final two weeks of January, according to the source. Matt … Continue reading “MDRNA Cuts Executive Pay, Freezes Salaries as Cash Runs Out”
See You At The Show!
Folks in Xconomy’s Boston office are gathering our business cards and dancing shoes for tonight’s second annual Battle of the Tech Bands. Tickets are dwindling fast, but you can still get yours before 4:00 pm online here, or at the door at the Middle East Restaurant & Nightclub. Doors open at 7:00 pm—hope to see … Continue reading “See You At The Show!”
Paul Graham and Y Combinator to Leave Cambridge, Stay in Silicon Valley Year Round
Viaweb founder Paul Graham and his legendary startup incubator Y Combinator, which is arguably the most vibrant, innovative technology startup school in the country, are no longer going to be part of the summer scene in the Boston area. In a message posted on the Y Combinator website (I think last night sometime), Graham has … Continue reading “Paul Graham and Y Combinator to Leave Cambridge, Stay in Silicon Valley Year Round”
Tracing the Ancestry of Puget Sound’s Technology Cluster
When people try to get a sense of the vibrancy in a regional high-tech cluster, they usually look up reams of data on technology licenses, patents, jobs, and number of startups. This morning, I got to look at a fresh (and important) perspective that traces out where the founding people cut their teeth and got … Continue reading “Tracing the Ancestry of Puget Sound’s Technology Cluster”
Largest Layoff in Microsoft History Raises Questions
Here are a few thoughts after listening to the Microsoft earnings conference call. The software giant announced 1,400 layoffs today, with up to 5,000 positions being eliminated over the next 18 months, mostly at its Redmond, WA headquarters. (The company’s New England operations will not be directly affected, according to a Microsoft spokesperson we contacted; … Continue reading “Largest Layoff in Microsoft History Raises Questions”
Axikin Raises $3M After Spinning Out From Actimis
San Diego-based Axikin Pharmaceuticals has reeled in $3 million in a first round of venture financing to advance its young pipeline of drugs to treat respiratory and inflammatory diseases. The investors are Sanderling Ventures, which has offices in San Diego and San Mateo, CA, and Mitsui & Co. Venture Partners in New York, according to … Continue reading “Axikin Raises $3M After Spinning Out From Actimis”
Microsoft Cuts 5,000 Jobs, Almost 6 Percent of Workforce
Microsoft’s long-rumored job cuts are now official: 5,000 employees will be losing their jobs. The Redmond, WA-based software giant (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) said today in its quarterly earnings report that it is eliminating those positions over the next 18 months, which amounts to almost six percent of its workforce of 90,000 employees. About 1,400 people are … Continue reading “Microsoft Cuts 5,000 Jobs, Almost 6 Percent of Workforce”
FriendlyFavor Rolls Out Request Tool for Social Networks
Want to ask your network of friends and colleagues for advice on where to stay when you’re traveling? Or maybe you want to offer recommendations for a local electrician, dentist, or specialty food shop. You could do it all by e-mail, or through existing social networks like Facebook. But dealing with such requests and recommendations … Continue reading “FriendlyFavor Rolls Out Request Tool for Social Networks”