Wednesday, October 1, 2008Wireless Info Tech Acquired By Chinese FirmSan Diego-based Wireless Info Tech Ltd., a provider of mobile testing and application development services for the wireless industry, has been acquired by a Chinese firm. According to VanceInfo Technologies, it has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Wireless Info Tech, in a deal worth $1.08M in cash plus stock. VanceInfo is an IT services provider providing offshore software development in China. VanceInfo said that Wireless Info Tech had sales of approximately $3M for the eight mont (More info...)
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Buzznet Hires Two, Snags NYTimes EditorHollywood-based Buzznet, an online social media and networking site focused on music, said Wednesday that it has hired two editors to bolster its music editorial team. According to Buzznet, it has hired former New York Times music reporter Jeff Leeds as its Editor-in-Chief, and former Alternative Press magazine editor Leslie Simon as its Senior Editor. Leeds will head up expansion of Buzznet's editorial efforts, providing original news, commentary, and photos; Simon will work on day-to-day edito (More info...)
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Smarter.com Launches Facebook AppWestlake Village-based ValueClick said today that its Smarter.com comparison shopping engine is launching a new social shopping application on Facebook this week. According to ValueClick, its "What would you buy?" application allows users to poll their Facebook friends for suggestions on products to buy. For example, ValueClick said the application allows a users to ask for votes and comments on the best laptop to buy from friends. The new Facebook app comes out of ValueClick's MeziMedia unit, w (More info...)
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iRise Targets Ecommerce SitesEl Segundo-based iRise, a maker of software for prototyping web applications and software, is targeting ecommerce retailers with a new set of templates, the firm said Wednesday. According to iRise, it has made pre-configured, business software visualization templates for the firm's products available to ecommerce retailers. The templates help online retailers work through visualization and testing of their sites, before actual coding of their web sites. According to iRise, the new templates are (More info...)
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Epicor Gets Buyout OfferIrvine-based Epicor Software has been sent an unsolicited buyout offer from a major shareholder of the firm, Elliott Associates, L.P. According to Elliott Associates, it collectively owns 10.2% of the common stock and $28.7M of convertible notes of Epicor Software, and is offering this morning to pay $9.50 per share for Epicor. The move comes after Epicor's board rejected Elloitt's request that the company explore strategic alternatives. Elliott Associate said its bid represents a 20% premium on (More info...)
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CalAmp Licenses PatentsOxnard-based CalAmp, a developer of wireless products and hardware, said Wednesday that it has entered into a patent license agreement with Trackn, a supplier of location-based services, for two of its patents. According to CalAmp, Trackn, which runs a service called Enfotrace, will license its patents covering vehicle location systems for locating and repossessing vehicles. The patent licensing deal follows a patent infringement suit filed by CalAmp against Trackn. Financial details of the pate (More info...)
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TAG, SCCS MergeSan Diego-based TAG, a provider of outsourced accounting and IT services, said Tuesday that it is in a merger agreement with Southern California Computer Services (SCCS), a business application and IT consulting company. According to TAG, it will pay up to $1.5M for SCCS, which is a software reseller and IT provider in San Diego, focused on Sage. According to TAG, the deal adds 113 San Diego-based companies to its customer base.
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Venture Totals Drop In Southern California For QuarterA study of the venture capital deal flow in Southern California conducted by socalTECH shows that venture capital deals dropped for Q3, to around $720M in deals, in a market dominated by clean technology firms. The numbers, which were drawn from venture deals tracked and reported in socalTECH's proprietary venture capital database, found that there was $719.7M in venture capital deals in the third quarter, down dramatically from $1.2B invested in Q3 of 2007, and down slightly from venture number (More info...)
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