Friday, August 29, 2008Internet Brands Hires CFOEl Segundo-based Internet Brands has hired a new CFO, saying Friday that it has appointed Scott Friedman to the position, succeeding current CFO Alex Hansen. Friendman joins the firm from WPT Enterprises, where he also served as CFO. Friedman has also served at Sony Pictures Digital The Walt Disney Company, and Arthur Andersen. Hansen, has served as CFO of Internet Brands since November of 2006, returns to his role as a partner at consulting firm Tatum LLC, a position which he also held concurre (More info...)
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Epicor Opens Thailand OfficeIrvine-based enterprise software firm Epicor said Friday that the firm has expanded its operations in the Asia Pacific region, and has opened up an office in Thailand. According to Epicor, the new Bankok office will serve its clients and resellers in the region. Epicor said it has over 30 clients in the area, including Energizer and the Grand Hyatt Hotel. Epicor develops manufacturing, planning, scheduling, and other ERP and related tools for enterprises.
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Greenfield Online Acquired By Microsoft, Local Impact UnclearGreenfield Online, an online survey and comparison shopping firm based in Wilton Connecticut--with operations in Encino--has been acquired by Microsoft, as part of a Microsoft push into Europe. Microsoft said it acquired Greenfield Online Friday for $486M, and will sell Greenfield's online surveying business (ISS) to an unnamed, third party. Greenfield's online surveying business includes Encino-based GoZing, which was acquired for $30M by Greenfield in 2005. A spokesperson for Greenfield Online (More info...)
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Napster Hires Investment Bank UBS, In Proxy BattleLos Angeles-based Napster, a provider of digital music services, disclosed that the firm has hired investment banker UBS Investments and is open to sale of the firm, as part of a proxy battle with what the firm calls "dissident board candidates." In a letter to its stockholders, Napster urged that its shareholders re-elect its current directors and ignore three dissident board candidates who are attempting to score board seats at the firm. Napster said in its letter to stockholders that it conti (More info...)
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CinemaNow Partners For Set-Top Box TechnologyMarina Del Rey-based CinemaNow, which provides video-on-demand viewing of movies and TV shows, has inked a partnership with Winbox, a provider of technology for supporting Windows Embedded set top boxes. According to Winbox and CinemaNow, CinemaNow will use Winbox technology to allow CinemaNow content to be delivered to televisions via set-top boxes built on Winbox technology. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The firm said that set-top boxes including CinemaNow's content will be i (More info...)
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Ixia Rolls Lease Financing ProgramCalabasas-based network test equipment provider Ixia said Thursday that the company has rolled out a new, long-term leasing option for its customers, as it looks to enable its customers to finance purchase of its equipment. According to Ixia, the new lease program comes as part of a new partnership with a leasing provider, De Lange Landen (DLL), which is based in the Netherlands. Ixia said its program, which will be marketed under the IxFinancing name, will provide "competitive" leasing rates to (More info...)
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Overland Axes StaffSan Diego-based Overland Storage, a developer of data storage and backup hardware, announced this morning that the firm has cut 53 employees, or 13 percent of its staff. Overland said that the cuts were made to reduce operating costs at the firm, as it looks to return to profitability at the company. Overland said the cuts come in addition to a cut in its spending plan across all of its departments and geographic areas. Vern LoForti, President of Overland, blamed the move in part on a "substanti (More info...)
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DivX Signs PartnersSan Diego-based video technology firm DivX has signed a slew of new partnerships, and certified a number of products using its technology, the firm said Thursday afternoon. DivX said that it has certified products from Turkish firm Vestel A.S., Korean electronics firm LG Electronics, Japan's JVC, and German software provider MainConcept GmbH, all in separate deals. DivX, which develops coding and decoding technology used to playback compressed video, said that all of the firms have been certifie (More info...)
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