Bothell, WA-based Oncogenex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ: [[ticker:OGXI]]) announced its second fiscal quarter results today. The company reported that it had $5.7 million in cash as of the end of June, down from $12.4 million at the beginning of 2009. As Xconomy reported yesterday, Oncogenex is developing a drug to help men with prostate cancer live longer. … Continue reading “Oncogenex Cash Ran Low in Q2”
Category: Seattle
Report: Publicis Bids on Razorfish
The Wall Street Journal reported today that Publicis, a French advertising company, is at the top of the list of potential buyers for Redmond, WA-based Microsoft’s digital advertising group Razorfish in Seattle. According to the Journal’s sources, Publicis has bid between $500 million and $600 million for Razorfish, which Microsoft acquired in 2007 as part … Continue reading “Report: Publicis Bids on Razorfish”
Stephen Friend, Leaving High-Powered Merck Gig, Lights Fire for Open Source Biology Movement
Stephen Friend had it all at Merck. The lucrative salary, the national media fame, the respect of peers, the power to snap his fingers and command a corporate army of some of the brightest minds in biomedicine. This year, he gave it all up for a startup dream. Friend, 54, is best known in Seattle … Continue reading “Stephen Friend, Leaving High-Powered Merck Gig, Lights Fire for Open Source Biology Movement”
Alnylam and Tekmira Seek New Ways to Deliver RNAi Drugs Deep in the Body
(Updated: 1:20 pm ET with new commentary from Alnylam’s CEO.) Alnylam Pharmaceuticals and Tekmira Pharmaceuticals announced today that they have teamed up to develop new particles to deliver RNA-interference drugs. Their joint effort aims to identify new ways to overcome the hurdles that the gene-modulating drugs must clear to reach diseased cells deep in the … Continue reading “Alnylam and Tekmira Seek New Ways to Deliver RNAi Drugs Deep in the Body”
AVI Bolts to Seattle, OncoGenex Escapes Dendreon’s Shadow, Buddhists Helping Biotech, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
Some of the lesser-known names in Seattle life sciences made some noise this week, just when we here at the Xconomy biotech desk thought things might slow down a tad in the dog days of summer. —AVI Biopharma (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AVII]]), the Portland, OR-based maker of RNA-based therapies, is now getting a new tagline as the … Continue reading “AVI Bolts to Seattle, OncoGenex Escapes Dendreon’s Shadow, Buddhists Helping Biotech, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”
Protecting America’s Leadership in Biotech Discovery
Health care reform took a turn for the better when members of key committees in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives recently recommended an approval pathway for biosimilars—products that attempt to be similar to an innovator biologic drug—while also preserving the hope for future medical treatments. Specifically, the committees agreed that to preserve … Continue reading “Protecting America’s Leadership in Biotech Discovery”
SplashCast to Shut Down
Portland, OR-based SplashCast, a digital media and social TV startup, is closing down in the next few weeks, according to a blog post from founder and CEO Michael Berkley. In June, we reported the company was looking for a buyer after struggling to raise a Series B funding round. SplashCast was founded in 2006 and … Continue reading “SplashCast to Shut Down”
EnerG2 Wins $21.3M in Stimulus Funding to Build Ultracapacitor Materials Plant in Oregon
Seattle-based EnerG2, an advanced materials startup focused on energy storage, has scored a $21.3 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy to build a new manufacturing plant in Albany, OR. The funds are part of a total of $2.4 billion in federal stimulus grants announced today to speed up the manufacturing and development of … Continue reading “EnerG2 Wins $21.3M in Stimulus Funding to Build Ultracapacitor Materials Plant in Oregon”
Microsoft to Pay Yahoo $150M, Hire 550—and Watch the Firms’ Combined Market Share
So that’s what all those late-night phone calls were about. In the weeks leading up to the Microsoft-Yahoo search deal announced last Wednesday, executives from both companies would gather (virtually) at 9:30 pm PT every night, including weekends, for a conference call to discuss the latest developments. Dinners, baseball games, and camping trips were interrupted. … Continue reading “Microsoft to Pay Yahoo $150M, Hire 550—and Watch the Firms’ Combined Market Share”
Solar Startup LivinGreen Looks to Power Even Rainy Cities
Rarely in Seattle is the power of the sun as remarked upon as in the past week, as temperatures soared into the triple digits. That’s some serious heat, especially for an area proverbial for its rainy, gray skies. Perhaps this makes it a good time to reflect on the fact that Seattle, despite what would … Continue reading “Solar Startup LivinGreen Looks to Power Even Rainy Cities”
Verdiem Reaches More Than a Million Desktops, Doubles Customers for Energy-Saving Software
When we last checked in with Verdiem back in June, the Seattle energy-IT firm was reporting encouraging results from its product trials in Seattle, Chicago, and Honolulu. Today, Verdiem is announcing that its personal computer power-management software has reached a new milestone, having been installed on more than one million desktops. What’s more, the company … Continue reading “Verdiem Reaches More Than a Million Desktops, Doubles Customers for Energy-Saving Software”
OncoGenex, Toiling in Dendreon’s Shadow, Scopes Out Partners For Prostate Cancer Drug
Name the Seattle biotech company with a drug shown to help men live longer with prostate cancer, which recently raised cash, is negotiating with potential partners, and has seen its stock boom from as low as $2 to $30 a share yesterday. Hint: It’s not Dendreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:DNDN]]), the developer of the first-of-a-kind treatment for … Continue reading “OncoGenex, Toiling in Dendreon’s Shadow, Scopes Out Partners For Prostate Cancer Drug”
Oncothyreon Raises $15M
Oncothyreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ONTY]]), the Seattle-based developer of cancer drugs, said today it has raised $15 million by securing commitments from investors to buy new shares and warrants. The financing came one day after demand surged for Oncothyreon sales when it said a small group of lung cancer patients had long-lasting responses after taking Stimuvax, the … Continue reading “Oncothyreon Raises $15M”
WatchGuard Acquires BorderWare
WatchGuard Technologies, a Seattle-based network security company has acquired Toronto-based e-mail and Web security developer BorderWare Technologies, according to a press release sent out today. Financial details were not disclosed. WatchGuard, which has hundreds of thousands of businesses in every part of the world as clients, plans on using the technology gained from BorderWare to … Continue reading “WatchGuard Acquires BorderWare”
Living in a Material World: The New Information Technology
[This post originally appeared on OVP Venture Partners’ blog—Eds.] Many observers, myself included, consider the 1990s the decade of the computer scientist. Work in digital bits and bytes not only generated significant wealth, it raised the standard of living for hundreds of millions of people around the world. However, as we close out the first … Continue reading “Living in a Material World: The New Information Technology”
Amazon Adapts App for Android
Amazon.com, the Seattle-based colossus of online retail, announced in a press release today that it has launched an application for Android, Google’s mobile operating system. The application allows users to shop on their Android smartphone, as well as take pictures or scan barcodes of products and search for them on Amazon’s website. Taking a photo … Continue reading “Amazon Adapts App for Android”
Cray Shares Rise on Unexpected Profit from New Supercomputing Contracts
Seattle-based supercomputing company Cray (NASDAQ: [[ticker:CRAY]]) surprised analysts this morning by turning a modest profit in the second quarter, and was rewarded with a 12 percent bump in its stock price today. Cray said today its revenues for the quarter ($62.7 million) increased by 34 percent compared with the same period last year ($46.7 million). … Continue reading “Cray Shares Rise on Unexpected Profit from New Supercomputing Contracts”
iLike App Uses Music to Find Concerts
Seattle-based iLike, a popular music service company that helps people find new music, create playlists, and plan for concerts, has launched a new iPhone and iPod Touch application today that will scan music on the device and send a personalized local concert listing based on what it finds, according to an announcement today. iLike also … Continue reading “iLike App Uses Music to Find Concerts”
Inside the Microsoft-Yahoo Deal, Covance Buys Merck’s Rosetta Lab, Delve Teams Up with Akamai, & More Seattle-Area Deals News
Last week’s heat wave did nothing to slow the deal announcements in the Northwest. We saw plenty of action in software, Internet, and biotech. —The big news was the Internet search deal finally announced between Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) and Yahoo (NASDAQ: [[ticker:YHOO]]), who have been hammering out the details for months. As Eric and I … Continue reading “Inside the Microsoft-Yahoo Deal, Covance Buys Merck’s Rosetta Lab, Delve Teams Up with Akamai, & More Seattle-Area Deals News”
PATH Scientists Discover Cheap, Easy Way to Protect Vaccines from Hot and Cold
Scientists at PATH, the Seattle-based nonprofit that works to improve health in poor countries, have found a cheap and simple way to tackle one of the vexing challenges of global health: how to keep vaccines from going bad when they get either too hot or too cold. PATH scientists, with help from collaborators at U.K-based … Continue reading “PATH Scientists Discover Cheap, Easy Way to Protect Vaccines from Hot and Cold”
WebTrends Acquires Widemile for Undisclosed Sum
Feed Type Link http://www.venturedeal.com/Search/SearchResultTransactionDetail.aspx?TransactionId=6b773de3-c06d-42e4-acc3-92458a771379&Preview=1 Date 8/4/2009 Company Name Widemile Mailing Address 1325 Fourth Avenue Seattle, WA 98101 Company Description Widemile has pioneered leading edge digital marketing solutions and served industry leaders in software, hardware, financial services, retail, Internet services and more. In 2005, we introduced our conversion marketing platform as the next generation solution for … Continue reading “WebTrends Acquires Widemile for Undisclosed Sum”
Governor’s Life Sciences Summit 2009
The annual Governor’s Life Sciences Summit will be held this year on Sept. 22 at McCaw Hall in Seattle. The Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association plans to report on legislation it initiated to take two or three strategic actions that it says are intended to make Washington a life sciences leader on a global scale. … Continue reading “Governor’s Life Sciences Summit 2009”
WBBA Event: H1N1–Swine Flu Pandemic
The Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association is organizing an event on pandemic preparedness, and what Washington state in particular is doing to get ready for H1N1 or swine flu. Speakers include Terry McIlwain of Washington State University, Anne Marie Kimball of UW Public Health, David Fleming of King County Public Health, and Tony Marfin of … Continue reading “WBBA Event: H1N1–Swine Flu Pandemic”
Science On Tap
The Queen Anne Science Cafe will host scientist Harmit Singh Malik who will speak on the topic “Mutation, Evolution & Infectious Disease: Looking Forward and Looking Back: The never ending battle between host and virus.” Malik’s talk will include viral memory and the competition between viruses and their hosts. For more details visit the event … Continue reading “Science On Tap”
Smith & Tinker Rolls Out Nanovor
Smith & Tinker, a Bellevue, WA-based game company launched a new, hybrid game combining online and offline play today, according to a press release by the company. Called Nanovor, the game has an online aspect where players can collect, modify, and train small Pokemon-esque monsters called nanovors. Later this year, the company will start selling handheld … Continue reading “Smith & Tinker Rolls Out Nanovor”
You Talkin’ To Me? Seattle Tech Scene Takes on All Comers
Beneath the friendly, laid-back veneer, the Seattle tech community is a rough-and-tumble lot ready to throw down at a moment’s notice. That’s what you might surmise after the past week, anyway. And this is not necessarily a bad thing. (Though the heat wave might have had something to do with it.) Here’s a quick update … Continue reading “You Talkin’ To Me? Seattle Tech Scene Takes on All Comers”
Zymo Gets $6M in Q2 Recothrom Sales
ZymoGenetics, the Seattle-based biotech company, said today that it generated $6 million in second-quarter sales of recombinant thrombin (Recothrom). That performance is an improvement on the $4.5 million the company reported in the first quarter, and puts ZymoGenetics (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ZGEN]]) on pace to reach its 2009 sales forecast of $25 million to $35 million. The … Continue reading “Zymo Gets $6M in Q2 Recothrom Sales”
Concur Buys Etap-On-Line
Redmond, WA-based Concur, a business software development company, announced in a press release today that it has acquired European business software maker Etap-On-Line. Financial details were not released. Concur’s software processes company expenses, including travel and expense accounts.
Oncothyreon Shows Long-Lasting Effect
Oncothyreon (NASDAQ: [[ticker:ONTY]]), the Seattle-based developer of cancer treatments, said today its Stimuvax therapy showed a long-lasting response and was well-tolerated in a long-term follow-up study. Ten of the 16 patients with non-small cell lung cancer, who were followed two to 8.2 years, were still alive as of April with no evidence of their disease … Continue reading “Oncothyreon Shows Long-Lasting Effect”
Top 10 Lessons in Starting Companies and Commercializing Technologies, from UW Panel
A group of about 40 Taiwanese businessmen and scientists, who were in the U.S. to learn about how best to commercialize technologies from the lab, were treated last Thursday to a University of Washington panel of three veterans of the process, who shared their experiences and the lessons they’ve learned. The panel consisted of serial … Continue reading “Top 10 Lessons in Starting Companies and Commercializing Technologies, from UW Panel”
Buddhists May Help Biotechies Solve Big Mental Health Woes, Says Merck Vet Ben Shapiro
One of the big opportunities in biotech over the coming decades may come from neuroscientists who team up with Buddhists. That might sound odd at first, but it’s no joke. This is one of the big ideas on the radar of Bennett Shapiro, the former executive vice president of worldwide basic research at Merck, who … Continue reading “Buddhists May Help Biotechies Solve Big Mental Health Woes, Says Merck Vet Ben Shapiro”
Webtrends Buys Widemile
Portland, OR-based Webtrends, a web analytics software developer, announced in a press release today that it has acquired Seattle-based multivariate testing and site optimization technology maker Widemile. Financial details of the deal were not released. Webtrends said that the deal is part of its plan to lead in enterprise customer intelligence by augmenting its analytics … Continue reading “Webtrends Buys Widemile”
Delve Partners With Akamai
Seattle-based video management and media platform company Delve Networks announced in a press release today that it is partnering with Cambridge, MA-based digital media content distributor Akamai to provide a new online video platform. Akamai, which also has an ofice in Bellevue, WA, will combine its media delivery service with Delve’s video platform, so customers … Continue reading “Delve Partners With Akamai”
Indigo Soul, Lions Ambition Take Top Prizes in Seattle Tech Band Battle; Thanks to WTIA and All Our Sponsors
The rock and roll moment of the night came when James Dixon broke a bass string during the first song from his hard-driving metal band Juda’s Wake. Let me tell you, it’s not that easy to break a bass string unless you really shred it. It’s also not easy to describe Juda’s Wake beyond killer … Continue reading “Indigo Soul, Lions Ambition Take Top Prizes in Seattle Tech Band Battle; Thanks to WTIA and All Our Sponsors”
Seattle’s Lifestyle Keeps Us Trailing the Bay Area, Says UW Startup Maven Janis Machala
Ed Lazowska, the University of Washington computer science professor, stirred the pot a couple months ago when he said Seattle is a “minor league” innovation town, far behind the big league of the San Francisco Bay Area, so people in the Northwest should quit being smug and start doing something to change that. This week, … Continue reading “Seattle’s Lifestyle Keeps Us Trailing the Bay Area, Says UW Startup Maven Janis Machala”
Shareaholic Becomes the Link-Sharing Tool of Choice—And Builds a Vast Database on Social Media Behavior
Blogging is about active sharing. I’ve known this on an intellectual level for years, but working for Xconomy has made the idea very real to me. My stories reach far more readers if I take a few extra minutes every day to share the items with my e-mail contacts and Twitter followers, and to submit … Continue reading “Shareaholic Becomes the Link-Sharing Tool of Choice—And Builds a Vast Database on Social Media Behavior”
See You Tonight at Battle of the Tech Bands
We’re all still running around covering the fine art of innovation this afternoon, but soon we’ll be heading over to the Pyramid Alehouse next to Safeco Field (see map here), where the stage is being put together for tonight’s big event, as we speak. Xconomy and the Washington Technology Industry Association (WTIA) are partners on … Continue reading “See You Tonight at Battle of the Tech Bands”
Amnis Nails Down Capital to Meet Rising Demand for Scientific Instruments
Seattle-based Amnis, the maker of a scientific instrument that provides detailed images on large numbers of cells, has raised the first $839,000 out of a venture round that’s expected to top out at $1.5 million within a couple of weeks, according to CEO David Basiji. Amnis secured the first batch of funds from its existing … Continue reading “Amnis Nails Down Capital to Meet Rising Demand for Scientific Instruments”
WBBA/Life Sciences Discovery Fund Open House
The Washington Biotechnology & Biomedical Association, along with its office neighbors at the Life Sciences Discovery Fund, are hosting an open house at their Seattle offices from 4 pm to 7 pm on Aug. 6. The event will include staff of both organizations, as well as members of the WBBA board, and trustees of the … Continue reading “WBBA/Life Sciences Discovery Fund Open House”
Mentor Graphics Acquires Embedded Alley
Mentor Graphics, a Wilsonville, OR-based electronic design automation developer, announced today it has purchased Embedded Alley Solutions, based in San Jose, CA. Financial details were not released. Embedded Alley creates programs to develop software for mobile devices and has made systems for Linux and the Google Android. Mentor (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MENT]]) said it plans to augment … Continue reading “Mentor Graphics Acquires Embedded Alley”
Cray’s Comeback: CEO Peter Ungaro on Clouds, Exaflops, and the Future of Supercomputing
Where I grew up in the Midwest in the 1970s and early 80s, Cray was synonymous with supercomputing. Back then, a supercomputer was a top-flight machine that could perform a few hundred million floating point operations per second (“flops”). That was good enough to help scientists do intensive calculations in areas like weather forecasting, climate … Continue reading “Cray’s Comeback: CEO Peter Ungaro on Clouds, Exaflops, and the Future of Supercomputing”
AVI Biopharma Bolts from Portland to Seattle to Tap Biotech Talent
AVI Biopharma, the developer of RNA-based drugs, is moving its headquarters and part of its scientific operations north a couple hundred miles from Portland, OR, to Bothell, WA, in an effort to mine the Seattle area’s bigger biotech talent pool. The company, which has about 85 total employees, plans to keep its biodefense research and … Continue reading “AVI Biopharma Bolts from Portland to Seattle to Tap Biotech Talent”
Dendreon’s Former Boss Predicts Takeover, Covance Buys Merck Lab, How NanoString Got $30M, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News
This was another busy week on the Seattle biotech scene, with some takeover speculation surrounding the latest success story (Dendreon), a big pharmaceutical industry player moving to town (Covance), and a behind-the-scenes tale of how NanoString Technologies scored one of the bigger venture investments of the year. —Christopher Henney, the former CEO of Dendreon (NASDAQ: … Continue reading “Dendreon’s Former Boss Predicts Takeover, Covance Buys Merck Lab, How NanoString Got $30M, & More Seattle-Area Life Sciences News”
Covance CEO Says It Will Be “A Shame” If He Can’t Double or Triple Rosetta Lab Growth
The world’s largest company that provides contract research services to drugmakers is coming to Seattle, and its CEO has some ambitious plans to grow here (and maybe do a few Cascade hikes while he’s out here too). That was the upshot from my follow-up conversation with Covance CEO Joe Herring, shortly after the Princeton, NJ-based … Continue reading “Covance CEO Says It Will Be “A Shame” If He Can’t Double or Triple Rosetta Lab Growth”
Covance Buys Key Piece of Merck’s Rosetta Operation in Seattle
Covance, the giant drug development services company based in Princeton, NJ, said today it has agreed to acquire a Seattle laboratory run by Merck’s Rosetta operation that performs genomic analysis tests for biologists around the world. Merck has been gradually winding down its Rosetta operations in Seattle since last October, when it said it would … Continue reading “Covance Buys Key Piece of Merck’s Rosetta Operation in Seattle”
Inside the Microsoft-Yahoo Deal, and the Future of the Search Competition with Google
Microsoft and Yahoo officially announced this morning that they had reached a search engine and advertising agreement. Amid intense speculation, and after more than a year of disagreements over minor and not-so-minor details, the two companies have signed a ten-year agreement that puts Redmond, WA-based Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) in control of both companies’ search engine … Continue reading “Inside the Microsoft-Yahoo Deal, and the Future of the Search Competition with Google”
Clarus Leans on Customer Reviews at the Broad Institute to Bet on NanoString
[Corrected July 29, 10 a.m. See below.] Warren Buffett says he became one of the world’s most successful investors partly because he only invests in businesses he understands. But where do you find investors if your niche is in something called direct multiplexed measurement of gene expression? Last month, Seattle-based NanoString Technologies, the developer of … Continue reading “Clarus Leans on Customer Reviews at the Broad Institute to Bet on NanoString”
Reports: Microsoft and Yahoo Close Search and Advertising Deal, Will Announce Today
It might all turn out to be anticlimactic. After a tumultuous year of on-again, off-again talks to strike an Internet search and advertising deal, Microsoft (NASDAQ: [[ticker:MSFT]]) and Yahoo (NASDAQ: [[ticker:YHOO]]) are about to tie the knot, according to several media outlets. The Wall Street Journal‘s All Things Digital blog, citing multiple sources close to … Continue reading “Reports: Microsoft and Yahoo Close Search and Advertising Deal, Will Announce Today”
Amazon Buys Zappos, General Fusion and Finsphere Get $9M Each, Big Fish Partners with People.com, & More Seattle-Area Deals News
From Amazon to Zappos, it was an exciting week for deals in the Northwest. A lot of the news was dominated by Amazon’s biggest acquisition to date ($920 million), but there was plenty of other action in energy, biotech, software, and gaming. —Xconomy broke the news that General Fusion, a Burnaby, BC-based clean energy company, … Continue reading “Amazon Buys Zappos, General Fusion and Finsphere Get $9M Each, Big Fish Partners with People.com, & More Seattle-Area Deals News”
AVI Gets Duchenne Funding
AVI Biopharma, the Portland, OR-based developer of RNA-based therapies, said today it has secured $1.2 million in funding over the next year from Action Duchenne, a U.K.-based charity that supports research into Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The agreement has an option to be extended for additional years, AVI said. The company (NASDAQ: [[ticker:AVII]]) is developing a … Continue reading “AVI Gets Duchenne Funding”