Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=923de018-e8da-4f0b-a44f-b2398c1fafb3&Preview=1 Date 3/26/2012 Company Name Forrst Mailing Address Undisclosed Brooklyn, NY 11201 Company Description Forrst is a community of passionate developers and designers focused on helping themselves and others get better at their craft, providing thoughtful critiques, and sharing their knowledge to build better applications and websites. Website http://www.forrst.com Transaction Type M&A … Continue reading “COLOURlovers Acquires Forrst for Undisclosed Sum”
Category: New York
Computer Science Legend David Waltz, MIT and Columbia Vet, Dies at 68
David Waltz, a legend in computer science who made major contributions to artificial intelligence and information retrieval and has strong ties to the Boston and New York areas, has died at the age of 68 of brain cancer, according to the New York Times and other reports. Waltz was a veteran of the early Cambridge, … Continue reading “Computer Science Legend David Waltz, MIT and Columbia Vet, Dies at 68”
An Evangelist Makes the Case for Google+
Guy Kawasaki, the Silicon Valley entrepreneur and investor who first rose to notoriety as chief evangelist for Apple back in the early days of the Macintosh, has found something new to evangelize. He’s just published an e-book about Google+ called What the Plus: Google+ for the Rest of Us. At a trim 180 pages, including … Continue reading “An Evangelist Makes the Case for Google+”
Glaxo and J&J’s Shrewd Move Will Help the Biotech Ecosystem
Index Ventures made news recently when it announced a new €150 million fund to invest in early-stage, life science companies. With many venture firms scaling back or exiting the business entirely, any successful fundraising is good news. However, two aspects made the announcement from Index particularly noteworthy: first, the fund is focused on early-stage innovation, … Continue reading “Glaxo and J&J’s Shrewd Move Will Help the Biotech Ecosystem”
Amicus Secures $580,000 Seed Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=9bf429ed-5502-44a9-8c70-6410deee3086&Preview=1 Date 3/23/2012 Company Name Amicus Mailing Address Undisclosed New York, NY 10001 Company Description Amicus empowers cause-driven organizations to leverage the social networks of their supporters, raise more money, attract more members, and win more votes. Website http://www.amicushq.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $580,000 Transaction Round Seed Proceeds Purposes Amicus … Continue reading “Amicus Secures $580,000 Seed Funding”
The Supreme Court’s Bad Precedent for Innovation
The Supreme Court’s ruling this week in Prometheus vs Mayo that medical tests relying on correlations between drug dosages and treatment are non-patentable portends a dramatic and frightening reduction in patent protection for innovations in the life sciences and bio-technology industries – and beyond. The Court held that San Diego-based Prometheus Laboratories’ patent claim for … Continue reading “The Supreme Court’s Bad Precedent for Innovation”
Xconomist of the Week: Linda Rottenberg on Global Tech Boom
Tech blogs typically cover startups in North America and Europe that want to be the next Facebook-style success, but the innovation ecosystem is far more diverse and far-reaching. Linda Rottenberg, CEO and co-founder of New York nonprofit Endeavor Global, has spent the last 15 years or so championing an effort to connect mentors and investors … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Linda Rottenberg on Global Tech Boom”
OneTok Obtains $1,500,000 Seed Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=051eeeb5-ee31-4937-9a5d-5be6d1a5f9f2&Preview=1 Date 3/22/2012 Company Name OneTok Mailing Address 55 East 9Th Street New York, NY 10003 Company Description OneTok, a stealth mode platform created by the founders of Vapps, will allow app developers to integrate Apple’s Siri voice recognition software into their offerings. Website Undisclosed Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $1,500,000 … Continue reading “OneTok Obtains $1,500,000 Seed Financing Round”
Shoptiques Garners New Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=d460d741-229b-42de-a360-9013a68758f6&Preview=1 Date 3/22/2012 Company Name Shoptiques Mailing Address 36 East 12th Street 2nd Floor New York, NY 10003 Company Description Shoptiques.com brings boutique shopping online. On Shoptiques.com, you will experience personalized shopping with the most unique and fashion-forward inventory from the best local boutiques. This means no more searching through hundreds of … Continue reading “Shoptiques Garners New Funding”
Eos Energy Storage Garners $5,905,000 New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f9c7487a-a713-47c5-bf46-ae3a164bebdc&Preview=1 Date 3/22/2012 Company Name Eos Energy Storage Mailing Address 3 East 80th Street New York, NY 10075 Company Description Eos develops novel, low-cost energy storage solutions for the electric utility and transportation industries. Eos’ mission is to produce cost effective energy storage solutions that are not only less expensive than other … Continue reading “Eos Energy Storage Garners $5,905,000 New Financing Round”
Xconomy Launches Mobile Channel
Coming on the heels of a fantastic, jam-packed Mobile Madness 2012 event last Wednesday here in Cambridge, MA, Xconomy is pleased to announce the official debut of our new Mobile Channel. The mobile sector—from apps to iPads—has been a growing part of our daily coverage. Our Mobile Madness conference, meanwhile, has been a mainstay in … Continue reading “Xconomy Launches Mobile Channel”
Y Combo-Backed HBS Startup Shoptiques Launches E-Commerce Site
Olga Vidisheva started Shoptiques during her second year at Harvard Business School to give shoppers online access to the curated inventory from independent boutiques around the world. She’s since generated some pretty serious interest—12,000 people on the private beta site’s wait list, to be exact. The site has officially opened up to the public today, … Continue reading “Y Combo-Backed HBS Startup Shoptiques Launches E-Commerce Site”
Freshly Funded Integrate, steered by Skier and NFL Vet, Storms NYC
Ad technology startup Integrate, which offers a platform that helps advertisers manage campaigns across both on- and offline venues, announced today that it has raised $11 million in a Series B funding round. Comcast Ventures and Liberty Global led the round, with participation from Integrate’s original investor, Foundry Group. Integrate, which is headquartered in Denver, … Continue reading “Freshly Funded Integrate, steered by Skier and NFL Vet, Storms NYC”
Honest Buildings Obtains New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=87c612b8-d261-47dc-9fdf-153844212f01&Preview=1 Date 3/21/2012 Company Name Honest Buildings Mailing Address 160 Varick Street 12th Floor New York, NY 10013 Company Description See what’s happening inside buildings and connect with people who live, work and spend time there. Website http://www.honestbuildings.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes … Continue reading “Honest Buildings Obtains New Funding Round”
Zynga Game Network Acquires OMGPOP for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=4b7cf7b5-50ec-4e30-ba39-107996b7824a&Preview=1 Date 3/21/2012 Company Name OMGPOP Mailing Address 132 Crosby Street 8Th Floor New York, NY 10012 Company Description OMGPOP is a social gaming studio company. Website http://www.omgpop.com Transaction Type M&A Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Proceeds Purposes M&A Terms Financial terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
Ariad and Merck Face Tough FDA Review of Sarcoma Pill
[Updated 3/20/12, 4:30 p.m. See below.] On Friday, investigators at the FDA released a report raising a serious question about a sarcoma drug co-developed by Merck and Ariad Pharmaceuticals that’s now up for approval: Does its modest effect on tumors justify its potentially toxic side effects? This afternoon an advisory panel to the FDA will … Continue reading “Ariad and Merck Face Tough FDA Review of Sarcoma Pill”
Biotech Lagging Behind Go-Go Web Valuations, Survey Says
Developing the latest breakthrough drug just doesn’t pay these days as much as creating the hot new web app does. Private life sciences companies in Silicon Valley that got financing in the fourth quarter of 2011 had an average per-share value that was about 10 percent higher than their previous round of financing, which typically … Continue reading “Biotech Lagging Behind Go-Go Web Valuations, Survey Says”
Loosecubes Obtains New Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=a30345bb-baa0-48a1-8fba-a9c2c7f32ad2&Preview=1 Date 3/20/2012 Company Name Loosecubes Mailing Address 20 Jay Street Brooklyn, NY 11201 Company Description Loosecubes is a global office sharing community. We connect people who have great workspace with people who need it. Website http://www.loosecubes.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount Undisclosed Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were … Continue reading “Loosecubes Obtains New Financing Round”
Slated Lands $2,000,000 Series B Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3210ca09-caf9-482b-9377-ad79cf441890&Preview=1 Date 3/20/2012 Company Name Slated Mailing Address 36 East 20th Street Third Floor New York, NY 10003 Company Description Launched in 2012, Slated is the next-generation online marketplace for investing in film. Website http://www.slated.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $2,000,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes Proceeds purposes were not … Continue reading “Slated Lands $2,000,000 Series B Funding”
Zayo Bandwidth Acquires AboveNet for $2,200,000
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=14925a90-c3e5-401d-ad53-08fa52080122&Preview=1 Date 3/20/2012 Company Name AboveNet Mailing Address 360 Hamilton Avenue White Plains, NY 10601 Company Description AboveNet, Inc. provides high bandwidth connectivity solutions for business and carriers. Its private optical network delivers key network and IP services in and among top U.S. and European markets. AboveNet’s network is widely used in … Continue reading “Zayo Bandwidth Acquires AboveNet for $2,200,000”
Why WebMD Is History: The Next Generation of Web-Based Medicine
The healthcare industry has been waiting a long time for its “2.0” moment. As social networks like Facebook and LinkedIn exploded in the late 2000s, so did e-commerce, enterprise SaaS, and cloud services. Business models, features and strategies have all dramatically evolved in the past decade and the valuations of many IT companies have taken … Continue reading “Why WebMD Is History: The Next Generation of Web-Based Medicine”
Medivo Leverages Mobile Strategy to Get Ahead in Health Information
With the world awash in health IT startups, New York’s Medivo is battling to prove it is different from other startups in this sector. So on March 7, the company—which operates a Web and mobile platform that connects doctors to their patients—acquired NYC neighbor WellApps, which creates mobile apps for monitoring symptoms of serious intestinal … Continue reading “Medivo Leverages Mobile Strategy to Get Ahead in Health Information”
New York Biotechnology Association 21st Annual Meeting
“Emergence” is the theme of this two-day conference of the New York Biotechnology Association. The meeting will feature discussions about advances in hepatitis C, oncology immunotherapy, and rheumatoid arthritis, in a panel series called “Way Cool Bio-Sci-Tech.” Keynote speakers include Prabhu Pingali, deputy director of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, Marc Tessier-Lavigne, president of … Continue reading “New York Biotechnology Association 21st Annual Meeting”
Biotech’s New Frontier: Europe?
Plenty of places in the world are messed up, but Europe has been near the top of the list lately. If all the horrible scenarios play out, this will be the year the euro collapses, the European Union fractures, and some economically advanced countries could go bust. Yet while the world financial system holds its … Continue reading “Biotech’s New Frontier: Europe?”
DramaFever Lands $4,500,000 Series B Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=367406a1-8a73-4555-935d-acf64e869aca&Preview=1 Date 3/19/2012 Company Name DramaFever Mailing Address 252 W. 38Th Street New York, NY 10018 Company Description We created DramaFever to give you a better way to find and enjoy the best TV and movies from around the world, and create a community we hope you enjoy being a part of. … Continue reading “DramaFever Lands $4,500,000 Series B Round”
PartnerConnect 2012
This three-day Thomson Reuters conference will feature hundreds of speakers from the private equity and venture capital industries, and will include an entrepreneurship track hosted by Xconomy. The Xconomy program will feature entrepreneurs from Foursquare, Fab.com, and Heartland Robotics, who will discuss their strategies. Register here.
FinTech Leaders: Navigating Rough Seas and Uncharted Courses to Great Success
MIT Enterprise Forum of New York City presents this evening panel discussion on FinTech entrepreneurship. Larry Kramer, former CEO and Founder of MarketWatch, will moderate a panel featuring Philippe Buhannic, CEO of TradingScreen, Todd Harrison, founder and CEO of Minyanville Media, Peter Lehrman, CEO of AxialMarket, and Ryan Terpstra, founder & CEO of Selerity. Register here.
NYC Startup Job Fair
This third annual job fair is designed to match up recent college graduates with startups looking to hire. Last year’s event attracted 40 startups with 300 open positions. All hiring companies and applicants must register here.
Patents 101: Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Patents
Columbia Technology Ventures presents this workshop with Jeffrey M. Sears, associate general counsel for Columbia University. Sears will present a primer focusing on what entrepreneurs need to know to preserve patent protection on inventions. Register here.
TV and Video Going Online and Social: The Next Generation
MIT Enterprise Forum of New York City presents a panel discussion on the impact of social media on TV, with representatives from four companies that are working at that intersection. Panelists include Robert May of Ringz.TV, Sean Morgan of Critical Media, Kimber Myers of GetGlue, and Adi Sideman of YouNow. The panel will be moderated … Continue reading “TV and Video Going Online and Social: The Next Generation”
Bikes and Business: Can Cities Cycle Their Way To Prosperity?
I’ve been in Boston this week, attending Xconomy’s big Mobile Madness conference and hanging out with my colleagues in our Cambridge, MA, headquarters. For all the debate among startup entrepreneurs about whether Boston or Silicon Valley is a better place to start a company, I’ve been reminded during my visit that Boston has a huge … Continue reading “Bikes and Business: Can Cities Cycle Their Way To Prosperity?”
Peter Schultz on New Merck-Funded Institute: ‘We’re Getting Lots of Resumes’
Merck made big news in San Diego yesterday when it said it is committing $90 million over seven years to a new nonprofit drug discovery shop led by chemist Peter Schultz. I caught up with Schultz briefly yesterday by phone to gather more information about the institute, called the California Institute for Biomedical Research (Calibr). … Continue reading “Peter Schultz on New Merck-Funded Institute: ‘We’re Getting Lots of Resumes’”
Boxcar Garners $150,000 Seed Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=74c146eb-b96c-4815-900b-9626d5e75a64&Preview=1 Date 3/16/2012 Company Name Boxcar Mailing Address 27 W 24th Street New York, NY 10010 Company Description Real-time push notification service Boxcar, currently available on both iOS and Mac OS X. Website http://www.boxcar.io Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $150,000 Transaction Round Seed Proceeds Purposes The additional funding will be used … Continue reading “Boxcar Garners $150,000 Seed Financing Round”
Brandwatch Secures $6,000,000 New Funding Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=82b06ff1-ed75-45d7-9451-fd9365ace006&Preview=1 Date 3/16/2012 Company Name Brandwatch Mailing Address 275 Seventh Avenue 20th Floor New York, NY 10001 Company Description Brandwatch is one of the world’s leading tools for monitoring and analysing social media. Today, social networks and the rest of the web are massive indicators of consumer influence, market insights and brand … Continue reading “Brandwatch Secures $6,000,000 New Funding Round”
How the NY Times Got the JOBS Act Wrong
One of the great dilemmas in the modern economy is balancing risk and reward, cost and benefit. That is true for investors, corporate managers, citizens, and elected officials. The financial crisis was caused by excessive risk taking by almost every player in the system. Investors stretched for return but didn’t understand the risks to which … Continue reading “How the NY Times Got the JOBS Act Wrong”
Medidata Gains Raves on Wall Street for Drug Development Tools
A molecular biologist and a urologist were sitting at a lab bench at Columbia Presbyterian hospital in New York in the mid-1990s musing about a problem they saw in drug development. It sounds like the beginning of a joke, but in fact it was the genesis of what turned out to be a good business … Continue reading “Medidata Gains Raves on Wall Street for Drug Development Tools”
Merck Returns to SD, Pouring $90M Into New Schultz-Led Institute
The pharmaceutical giant Merck bet big once before that San Diego would be a source for innovative new drugs, and now it’s doing it again. Whitehouse Station, NJ-based Merck (NYSE: [[ticker:MRK]]) is announcing today that it is putting $90 million over the next seven years into a new nonprofit biomedical research institute in San Diego … Continue reading “Merck Returns to SD, Pouring $90M Into New Schultz-Led Institute”
Xconomist of the Week: Rapundalo on How the Affordable Care Act May Thwart Innovation
Stephen Rapundalo, head of the industry association MichBio, has been spending some time on Capitol Hill recently lobbying Michigan’s congressional delegation to repeal parts of the Affordable Care Act, which he says will have a chilling effect on innovation in Michigan’s nascent medical device sector. Along with representatives from 18 other states’ med-tech associations—including the … Continue reading “Xconomist of the Week: Rapundalo on How the Affordable Care Act May Thwart Innovation”
Whadayathink Receives $18,000 Seed Financing Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=f02062e0-1eda-491c-b61b-3f68450dc440&Preview=1 Date 3/15/2012 Company Name Whadayathink Mailing Address 37 East 28th Street New York, NY 10016 Company Description Whadayathink, founded by Emily Dimytosh and Harry Brundage, delivers multi-location retailers and hospitality real-time guest feedback so businesses can improve their guest experiences. Website http://www.whadyathinkmobile.com Transaction Type Accelerator Transaction Amount $18,000 Transaction Round Seed … Continue reading “Whadayathink Receives $18,000 Seed Financing Round”
Loudly Garners $18,000 Seed Funding
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=1cc7f945-53a3-4f73-b205-806e7734ec42&Preview=1 Date 3/15/2012 Company Name Loudly Mailing Address 37 East 28th Street New York, NY 10016 Company Description Opening up new worlds of gameplay with emotive speech synthesis for developers. Website http://www.loudly.com Transaction Type Accelerator Transaction Amount $18,000 Transaction Round Seed Proceeds Purposes The company will use the proceeds to accelerate its … Continue reading “Loudly Garners $18,000 Seed Funding”
Twain Receives $18,000 Seed Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=607b1d8d-e715-475d-aaf7-a4183e90b01f&Preview=1 Date 3/15/2012 Company Name Twain Mailing Address 37 East 28th Street New York, NY 10016 Company Description Twain empowers parents to use new mobile technology to teach reading skills to their young children. Our interactive storybook apps combine engaging content with elements designed to teach three to six year olds the … Continue reading “Twain Receives $18,000 Seed Round”
Q&A: RTP Ventures’ Jalak Jobanputra Weighs in on New $120M Fund
RTP Ventures, a $120 million fund in New York, which also has offices in Boston, brought in Jalak Jobanputra early this month as a managing director and a founding partner. RTP was founded last year by Moscow-based ru-Net, a $700 million technology and Internet investment company, to extend its investment activity to the United States. … Continue reading “Q&A: RTP Ventures’ Jalak Jobanputra Weighs in on New $120M Fund”
Turntable.fm Signs Pacts With Four Top Music Labels
New York-based Turntable.fm, an online music-sharing site, has signed deals with Universal Music Group, Warner Music Group, EMI Music Group, and Sony, the company announced yesterday at the South by Southwest conference in Austin, Texas. It was a quick coup for the company, which changed its entire business model just one year ago. Turntable.fm was … Continue reading “Turntable.fm Signs Pacts With Four Top Music Labels”
RegaloCard Receives $320,000 New Round
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=8b6e98c4-84aa-4e46-a6a3-a7d8b0eac6d3&Preview=1 Date 3/14/2012 Company Name RegaloCard Mailing Address 623 Fifth Avenue 32nd Floor New York, NY 10022 Company Description RegaloCard offers a gift card for users to send money from the US to Latin America without paying a fee. Website http://www.regalocard.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $320,000 Transaction Round Undisclosed Proceeds … Continue reading “RegaloCard Receives $320,000 New Round”
Hello Health Deploys $10M To Expanding Patient-Funded Health Records
When Westfield, NJ-based internist Peter Weigel began thinking about switching from paper charts to electronic medical records, all sorts of tech salesmen appeared in his office with pitches that seemed to good to be true. They told Weigel if he paid them to implement electronic records in his practice, he would be reimbursed under the … Continue reading “Hello Health Deploys $10M To Expanding Patient-Funded Health Records”
A Seussian Guide to BioPharma
Years ago, pharma’s rep was grand, Selling drugs throughout the land. Many different problems mended, Diseases treated, lives extended. Sulfa drugs, antibiotics, Pain-relieving strong narcotics. A high point before the age of genes, Were Salk and Sabin’s new vaccines. Profit margins super high, Income more than “getting by”. As a group, they were admired, Nowadays, … Continue reading “A Seussian Guide to BioPharma”
Major League Gaming Garners $11,305,585 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=680fd0f1-5f82-42f1-afae-6a68b7025690&Preview=1 Date 3/13/2012 Company Name Major League Gaming Mailing Address 420 Lexington Ave New York, NY 10170 Company Description Major League Gaming (MLG) is the largest organized league and international sanctioning body for the world’s fastest growing competitive sport: professional video gaming. Website http://www.mlgpro.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $11,305,585 Transaction … Continue reading “Major League Gaming Garners $11,305,585 New Financing”
eToro Lands $15,000,000 New Financing
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=c0bc5ce8-4ffa-459b-965f-a806d6aeca47&Preview=1 Date 3/13/2012 Company Name eToro Mailing Address 1375 Broadway 11th Floor New York, NY 10018 Company Description Prior to the establishment of eToro the Forex market was considered by many to be distant and over complex territory. Here at eToro, our belief in fair and equal opportunity has lead us to … Continue reading “eToro Lands $15,000,000 New Financing”
GroupMe, OnSwipe, Gilt Groupe, and Others Prep SummerQAmp Program
When notable members of New York’s innovation scene, a rocker from New Jersey, and a former White House insider get together it is no mere jam session. Just such a coalition—including executives from New York’s Gilt Groupe, GroupMe, and OnSwipe—has started a national initiative to train a new work force in high-tech skills. That program, … Continue reading “GroupMe, OnSwipe, Gilt Groupe, and Others Prep SummerQAmp Program”
AIDS Drugs Were the Start. Let’s See More FDA Accelerated Approvals
There’s been a lot of talk in biotech lately about the need for reforms at the FDA, to make it run faster and more predictably. One idea is taking shape in a bill starting to move through Congress. And at least at first glance, it looks like it’s based on good common sense. The idea … Continue reading “AIDS Drugs Were the Start. Let’s See More FDA Accelerated Approvals”