Category: New York

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”

Pfizer Explores Options for Animal Health and Nutrition

The long-speculated breakup of New York-based pharmaceutical giant Pfizer (NYSE: [[ticker:PFE]]) seems to be taking a giant step forward today. The company is “exploring strategic alternatives” for its animal health and nutrition units, so it can better focus on its drug-development and consumer-health pursuits, according to a press release. Pfizer Animal Health is one of the … Continue reading “Pfizer Explores Options for Animal Health and Nutrition”

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”

J&J Joins Pharmasset for Hepatitis Study

Princeton, NJ-based Pharmasset (NASDAQ: [[ticker:VRUS]]) is teaming up with Johnson & Johnson (NYSE: [[ticker:JNJ]]) unit Tibotec to study a drug cocktail for the treatment of hepatitis C virus (HCV), according to a press release. The program will investigate the potential of combining PSI-7977, Pharmasset’s investigational nucleotide polymerase inhibitor, and TMC435, Tibotec’s investigational protease inhibitor. The financial details … Continue reading “J&J Joins Pharmasset for Hepatitis Study”

Coronado Biosciences Pulls in $25.8 Million

New York City-based Coronado Biosciences has raised $25.8 million, according to a regulatory filing. The company is developing immunotherapy approaches to treating acute myeloid leukemia, inflammatory bowel disease, multiple sclerosis, and other autoimmune diseases. It previously raised $21.6 million in November 2010.

New Energy Symposium

This full-day conference will feature keynote addresses and presentations from several emerging cleantech start-ups. Speakers include Lawrence Murphy, manager of enterprise development programs for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Warner Babcock, chairman and CEO of Advanced Materials Partners, and John Cococcia, partner and founder of FA Technology Ventures. Register here.

Green Executive Workshop

This panel event will explore the economic benefits of energy conservation, covering topics such as the energy industry in relation to property owners’ and building managers’ facilities, local laws affecting owners, and critical strategies for developing energy conservation programs. Experts from Urban Green Council, Eneractive Solutions, NYSERDA, and the BCxA will appear. Register here.

The Energy Question: Crises, Costs—and Alternatives

This panel event will feature experts from across the energy sectors—finance, renewables, oil—discussing such issues as the sustainability of alternative energies, innovating new technologies, financing renewable energy, and educating consumers. Speakers from First Solar, Credit Suisse, Hess, and Evolution Markets will participate. Register here.

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”

I Love Entrepreneurs, But Not as My Science Teacher

“If you think education is expensive, try ignorance.” It may be just a bumper sticker aphorism, but lately it’s got me thinking. Peter Thiel, early Facebook investor and Paypal cofounder, announced recently that he’s offering $100,000 to 24 young people to drop out of school and pursue an entrepreneurial idea in Silicon Valley. Thiel says … Continue reading “I Love Entrepreneurs, But Not as My Science Teacher”

Coronado Biosciences Receives $25,784,568 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=b58b9d56-ca69-4c03-80d6-8975d49c2e9c&Preview=1 Date 7/6/2011 Company Name Coronado Biosciences Mailing Address 45 Rockefeller Plaza New York, NY 10111 Company Description Coronado Biosciences is a clinical stage biopharmaceutical company focused on making cancer care better. How do we define better? We hope to make cancer care safer and more easily tolerated with improved outcomes. Website … Continue reading “Coronado Biosciences Receives $25,784,568 New Funding”

Petflow Secures $10,000,000 Series B Funding Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=22032372-2a4e-41d6-9b81-157884add15b&Preview=1 Date 7/6/2011 Company Name Petflow Mailing Address 1140 Broadway New York, NY 10001 Company Description The company operates an online service that allows users to purchase pet products. Website http://www.petflow.com Transaction Type Venture Equity Transaction Amount $10,000,000 Transaction Round Series B Proceeds Purposes The new round of funding will be used … Continue reading “Petflow Secures $10,000,000 Series B Funding Round”

Glowpoint Gets Nearly $1.6M from Avaya

Glowpoint (OTCBB: [[ticker:GLOW]]) in Murray Hill, NJ, has raised nearly $1.6 million in equity financing, according to regulatory filings with the SEC. The company is a provider of telepresence and video conferencing management services. Glowpoint generated $32,000 in profits on $7 million in revenue for the quarter ending on March 31. Glowpoint issued a total of … Continue reading “Glowpoint Gets Nearly $1.6M from Avaya”

Green Breakfast Club

Join fellow green entrepreneurs for this breakfast and structured networking designed to foster intergenerational mentoring, as well as bartering of resources, service,s and ideas. Douglas Cohen, co-author of the Sustainable Enterprise Fieldbook, will be the keynote speaker. Register here.

Selling to Middle America

Want to learn how to reach audiences beyond the cool tech crowd? Come to this session to pick up tips on how to use sweepstakes and contests, identifying the right customer, and choosing compelling copy and design strategies. Speakers include Jump Ramp Games co-founders Alex Betancur and Tony Vartanian. Register here.

Brand in a Box: Branding for Entrepreneurs

This full-day educational event is designed to teach entrepreneurs everything they need to know to create a valuable brand. Instructors include Julie Cottineau, V.P. of Brand at Virgin, and Alessandra Lariu, a co-founder of SheSays. Register here.

DevCon5

This HTML5 conference will unite developers, designers, architects, technology leaders, and business strategists. Attendees will learn about user experience design and security, building new business models for the mobile Web, browser compatibility, and more. Register here.

NY Tech Networking Roundtable

This first-time networking event will be designed to facilitate introductions between entrepreneurs, startups, engineers, developers, investors, and job-seekers. The evening will include short demos and will feature guest experts Heather Gilchrist of RAK Tech Fund, and John Quinn, V.P. of engineering at Gilt Groupe. Register here.

Comixology Builds One-Stop Shop for Comics Publishers, Retailers, and Fans

Comixology’s small staff of 24 comic-book freaks are working around the clock these days, preparing for one of the biggest changes their industry has ever seen: On Aug. 31, mega-publisher DC Comics will begin releasing its titles digitally and in paper form on the same day. Until now, there’s been a lag of at least … Continue reading “Comixology Builds One-Stop Shop for Comics Publishers, Retailers, and Fans”

Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame Looking Real-September 16 Launch Targeted

It’s an idea people love the instant they hear it: movies stars have their Walk of Fame out in Hollywood, so entrepreneurs should have one, too—and what better place than right here in Kendall Square, the most fertile, concentrated ground for entrepreneurship in the world? Last August, Xconomy was first to report on the idea … Continue reading “Entrepreneurial Walk of Fame Looking Real-September 16 Launch Targeted”

Nestio Secures $768,002 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=596e4c68-aaff-48cc-b7d3-d8629f176bee&Preview=1 Date 7/5/2011 Company Name Nestio Mailing Address 312 Bowery New York, NY 10012 Company Description Nestio is the easiest way to organize your apartment hunt. Looking for a new place to live is stressful and time-consuming. Resources are scattered across numerous sites, false advertisements are frustrating, and dead-ends are common. We’re … Continue reading “Nestio Secures $768,002 New Financing”

Three E-Books That Are Making the iPad Sing, Just in Time for Summer Reading Season

Technology changes quickly, and sometimes, so does my own mind. In January, I wrote a dismissive column about two e-book titles tailored for the Apple iPad, Alice for the iPad and Why the Net Matters. My main beef was that the apps, which had been lauded by the New York Times as “superbooks,” contained more … Continue reading “Three E-Books That Are Making the iPad Sing, Just in Time for Summer Reading Season”

Acorda Acquires Medtronic Drug, Fills Out Mid-Stage Neurology Pipeline

Today Hawthorne, NY-based Acorda Therapeutics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ACOR]]) announced that it licensed an experimental compound to treat spinal cord injury from medical-device giant Medtronic (NYSE: [[ticker:MDT]]). Acorda paid $3 million up front for worldwide rights to the compound, and pledged up to $32 million in regulatory and development milestone payments to Medtronic, which is based in Minneapolis. … Continue reading “Acorda Acquires Medtronic Drug, Fills Out Mid-Stage Neurology Pipeline”

New York Startup Social Amp Turns Facebook Friends into E-commerce Commentators

The next time you shop online for gifts and your Facebook friends’ interests appear on the webpage, Social Amp’s technology may be running under the digital hood. Matt Sunbulli, cofounder of the two-year-old New York startup, is on a mission to make e-commerce a more social experience. With a dose of crowdsourcing for shopping suggestions, … Continue reading “New York Startup Social Amp Turns Facebook Friends into E-commerce Commentators”

IBM Is Looking to Buy-Is EMC in Its Crosshairs?

Big Blue celebrated 100 years of success in the tech industry earlier this month. It’s a rare feat in an industry where companies are often rendered obsolete in a decade, oftentimes sooner. In fact, IBM has managed to stay relevant while literally thousands of tech companies have come and gone. So, what’s its secret recipe? … Continue reading “IBM Is Looking to Buy-Is EMC in Its Crosshairs?”

Health Guru Media Gets $6M Funding Bump

New York’s Health Guru Media raised $6 million in a funding round that includes new investor Western Technology Investment, according to a press release. Other investors in the round included Castile Ventures and Village Ventures. Health Guru hosts health and diet video content online after pivoting in 2006 away from its initial incarnation as the William Shatner … Continue reading “Health Guru Media Gets $6M Funding Bump”

This Drug Didn’t Work for Me. May I Have My $88,000 Back, Please?

If you bought a new toaster, carried it home, plugged it in, and it didn’t work, what would you do? Suppose you purchased a pineapple at the grocery store, sliced it open, and found it was inedible. In both cases you’d seek the same remedy: you’d return the item and ask for your money back. … Continue reading “This Drug Didn’t Work for Me. May I Have My $88,000 Back, Please?”

New York Angels Play Fast but Tough in the City’s Startup Scene

The New York Angels is a group of 61 individual investors who have invested more than $40 million in more than 70 startups ever since the group launched in 1997. The organization’s vice chairman is Brian Cohen, who himself has a long history of entrepreneurship—the lessons from which he tries to pass along to the … Continue reading “New York Angels Play Fast but Tough in the City’s Startup Scene”

PTC Teams With AstraZeneca

South Plainfield, NJ-based PTC Therapeutics entered into an exclusive licensing agreement with AstraZeneca (NYSE: [[ticker:AZN]]) for PTC’s technology, called GEMS (gene expression modulation by small molecules), according to a press release. The GEMS technology is designed to identify compounds that target particular regions of messenger RNA molecules. The collaboration is geared towards discovering new remedies for cancer … Continue reading “PTC Teams With AstraZeneca”

Animoto Pockets $25 Million

New York-based Animoto, which lets anyone create professional-looking videos on the fly, raised a $25 million Series C, according to VentureWire. Animoto’s Cinematic Artificial Intelligence technology analyzes and combines images, video clips and music—allowing the average Joe to achieve the same sophisticated post-production skills and techniques that professional TV and film producers can. The funding … Continue reading “Animoto Pockets $25 Million”

IBM SmartCamp Makes Its Debut in New York, Attracts Startups From Across the Atlantic

[Updated 6/30/11. See below] Eager entrepreneurs armed with ideas they believe can improve our way of life gathered on Tuesday for the first ever New York edition of the IBM Global Entrepreneur SmartCamp. The competition, which came to Boston last June, brings select groups of startups together with mentors from the investor community. Deborah Magid, … Continue reading “IBM SmartCamp Makes Its Debut in New York, Attracts Startups From Across the Atlantic”

Animoto Obtains $25,000,000 Series C Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=97534728-44f9-4da2-9cb5-7f5e7ae267b8&Preview=1 Date 6/29/2011 Company Name Animoto Mailing Address 214 Sullivan St New York, NY 10012 Company Description Animoto Productions is a bunch of techies and film/tv producers who decided to lock themselves in a room together and nerd out.Their first release is Animoto, a web application that automatically generates professionally produced videos … Continue reading “Animoto Obtains $25,000,000 Series C Financing Round”

HealthGuru Media Receives $6,000,000 New Financing Round

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=af726857-5ad7-46a1-ba29-e87b61bf590a&Preview=1 Date 6/29/2011 Company Name HealthGuru Media Mailing Address 494 Broadway 4th Floor New York, NY 10012 Company Description HealthGuru.com is the web’s leading destination site for health information among 18 to 40 year olds. HealthGuru.com covers the health topics that matter to our demographic: sexual health, STDs, pregnancy, sports health, drugs … Continue reading “HealthGuru Media Receives $6,000,000 New Financing Round”

International Workshop on Climate Informatics

This full-day workshop will focus on emerging collaborations between climate scientists and specialists in machine learning. There will be a strong emphasis on brainstorming and break-out sessions, as well as a panel discussion. Speakers include Arindam Banerjee of the University of Minnesota and Timothy DelSole of George Mason University. Register here.

A Founder’s Guide to Fundraising

This full-day summit of keynotes, panels, and networking will unite founders and investors for an intelligent dialogue about the state of venture capital and fundraising strategies for early-stage startups. Speakers include Charlie O’Donnell, principal at First Round Capital, Adam Neary, founder and CEO of Profitably, and Ashley Granata, co-Founder and CMO of Fashism. Register here.

Social Commerce Roundtable

This panel discussion will cover the use of social technologies to personalize and energize the shopping experience. Speakers include Ron J. Williams, CEO and co-founder of SnapGoods, Matt Sunbilli, CEO of SocialAmp, and Scott Stone, founder of Plum Willow. Register here.

Xconomy’s New York Team Doubles in Size, Plots East Coast (Biotech) Takeover

It’s easy to forget that Arlene Weintraub, Xconomy New York’s editor, has been running a one-woman show since joining us in April. Sure she’s had loads of help from her colleagues across the Xconomy network. But still, the whole of New York tech and life sciences is a big monster of a beat for one … Continue reading “Xconomy’s New York Team Doubles in Size, Plots East Coast (Biotech) Takeover”

Coursekit Draws $1 Million Seed Round

New York education-software startup Coursekit has raised $1 million in seed funding from Founder Collective, IA Ventures, Shasta Ventures, and a number of individuals, according to the company blog. Coursekit plans to roll out a set of tools for educators this fall that are designed to help them manage gradebooks, calendaring, videos, files, and interactive … Continue reading “Coursekit Draws $1 Million Seed Round”

Nimbus, Seeded by Bill Gates, Raises $24 Million For Computer-Aided Drug Discovery

Nimbus Discovery burst out of stealth mode in March with seed funding from none other than Microsoft chairman Bill Gates. Now Nimbus, a Cambridge, MA-based company that specializes in computer-aided drug discovery, is chalking up a second impressive milestone: It has raised a Series A funding round of $24 million, with money from Gates and … Continue reading “Nimbus, Seeded by Bill Gates, Raises $24 Million For Computer-Aided Drug Discovery”

Live Gamer Lands $587,449 New Funding

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=3c96107d-13ef-484e-8918-3dba61f92b03&Preview=1 Date 6/28/2011 Company Name Live Gamer Mailing Address 678 Broadway Fifth Floor New York, NY 10012 Company Description Live Gamer enables a complete marketplace solution for the player-to-player trading of virtual items. Through our partnerships with leading publishers and developers worldwide, players now have a convenient, secure, and reliable outlet to … Continue reading “Live Gamer Lands $587,449 New Funding”

RealDirect Receives $2,000,000 Series A Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=ce5fef5e-cc39-4131-b268-61d4c20f2a16&Preview=1 Date 6/28/2011 Company Name RealDirect Mailing Address 22 W. 21st St. 10th Floor New York, NY 10010 Company Description At RealDirect, our mission is to help sellers more efficiently price, advertise and ultimately sell their homes. Whether sellers want to sell themselves or get help from an agent, we provide the … Continue reading “RealDirect Receives $2,000,000 Series A Financing”

Coursekit Lands $1,000,000 New Financing

Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6a9c4c95-e134-4d51-bfb1-6f16f2bd98f2&Preview=1 Date 6/28/2011 Company Name Coursekit Mailing Address 40 Wall Street 32nd Floor New York, NY 10005 Company Description We’ve re-imagined what a class should look like online. We give instructors and students amazingly designed tools to manage their courses – gradebook, calendaring, file management – and we make it unbelievably easy … Continue reading “Coursekit Lands $1,000,000 New Financing”

Moda Operandi Raises $10 Million

Moda Operandi, a New York-based online luxury apparel retailer, said Monday it raised $10 million in series B financing in a round led by venture capital firm New Enterprise Associates. Previous investor New Atlantic Ventures also invested in the round. Moda Operandi users can pre-order apparel from designers such as Marc Jacobs, Vera Wang, and Missoni … Continue reading “Moda Operandi Raises $10 Million”

Fighting the Froth and Fluff: New York Tech Investors See Strengths in Digital Media Startups, Challenges in “Me-Tooism”

Venture capitalists and early-stage investors in New York may occasionally pull on their Wellington boots to wade through the muck of startups flooding the market, but they are not grumbling about it. The trick is sifting through the me-too entrepreneurs that develop ideas along the lines of Foursquare, which raised $50 million last Friday, and … Continue reading “Fighting the Froth and Fluff: New York Tech Investors See Strengths in Digital Media Startups, Challenges in “Me-Tooism””

The New York Venture Summit

More than 25 leading venture capitalists will speak at this two-day event, which also features pitches by technology, life sciences, and cleantech startups. Featured speakers and judges include Jon Edelson of Ascent Biomedical Ventures, Brad McManus of Panasonic Venture Group, and Jim Sledzik of Energy Ventures US. Register here.

A Talk With Ziff Davis’ Steve Horowitz

Ziff Davis chief operating officer Steve Horowitz will be speaking and presenting data on trends in tablet, mobile, and cloud computing, and how those trends will alter product considerations and planning. Free drinks and snacks will be served. Register here.

Bristol Churns Out Diabetes Data

New York-based Bristol-Myers Squibb (NYSE: [[ticker:BMY]]) and development partner AstraZeneca (NYSE: [[ticker:AZN]]) released data from several studies at the 71st American Diabetes Association Scientific Sessions in San Diego. In a Phase 3 extension study, the investigational compound dapagliflozin plus metformin produced sustained gylcemic control and weight reduction in patients with Type 2 diabetes. In a longer-term, … Continue reading “Bristol Churns Out Diabetes Data”

Betting That Biotech Will Bring the FDA to Heel? Don’t Count On It

When Minnesota Democrat Al Franken and Massachusetts Republican Scott Brown line up on the same side of an issue, my first guess would usually be that it’s to vote on some meaningless resolution in favor of apple pie. Or, like now, it could be a sign that a controversial, potentially transformative piece of legislation is … Continue reading “Betting That Biotech Will Bring the FDA to Heel? Don’t Count On It”