Tuesday, July 19, 2011SoCal Gets $739M In Venture Capital In Q2
Southern California companies raised $739M in venture capital in Q2 of 2011, according to the latest numbers from PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) based on data from Thomson Reuters. According to the MoneyTree report, released last night, Orange County led fundraising, with $319.3M raised for the quarter. Los Angeles had $222.5M in funding, and San Diego $198.18M in investments. Quarter to quarter, investments were up from Q1, when $585M was invested i (More info...)
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Angry Birds Maker Eyes HollywoodThe latest, videogame firm looking to get into Hollywood looks to be Rovio, the maker of the popular videogame Angry Birds, according to a report today. According to publication Eurogamer, which tracks the video game industry in Europe, Rovio is hoping its game can become "multiple movies." Angry Birds is among the most popular smartphone games for both the Apple iPhone and the Android smartphone platform, and is known for its quirky, animated birds who players shoot at structures, to destroy an (More info...)
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Invested.in Powers Fitness Fundraiser SiteLos Angeles-based Invested.in, the online social fundraising site run by Alon Goren, said Tuesday that it is powering a new site focused on fitness fundraising for charity. The firm said it is launching FitFunder.com, an online site focused on creating personal fitness fundraisers for charity. The firm said it is linking with fitness site RunKeeper on the site, to provide automatic monitoring of user's fitness goals by followers and donors. The new site is one of the sites spawned out of Investe (More info...)
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JMI Equity Backs BrightLineSan Diego-based private equity firm JMI Equity has backed a provider of marketing services for the interactive TV market. According to New York-based BrightLine, it has scored a strategic growth investment from JMI Equity, with JMI Equity's General Partner Brad Woloson joining the company's board of directors. Size and financial details of the investment were not disclosed. BrightLine's customers include Unilever, GlaxoSmithKline, Intuit, Cisco and Kellogg's. BrightLine helps those companies pro (More info...)
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Oblong Raises $5.0MLos Angeles-based Oblong Industries, the firm whose gesture and spatial-recognition technology was used in the "Minority Report", has raised $5.0M, in what looks like the first close of a $25.0M funding round, according to a regulatory filing from the firm this week. The firm's technology--originally developed at the MIT Media Lab--allows users to gesture with their hands to control software. Source of the new funding was not disclosed by the company. Oblong has previously raised funding from T (More info...)
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RPost Sues Adobe, EchoSignLos Angeles-based RPost, a developer of electronic signature services, has filed a suit against Adobe and EchoSign for patent infringement, the firm said this morning. The firm--which already has a number of electronic signature patent lawsuits in motion--said it has brought an infringement suit, claiming that EchoSign is infringing on five of uts United States patents. The firm is seeking an injunction against Adobe to prevent further damages. RPost sued Santa Barbara-based RightSignature and f (More info...)
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Fulcrum Micro Acquired By IntelCalabasas-babsed Fulcrum Microsystems, the developer of switching semiconductors, has been acquired by chip giant Intel. Intel announced the acquisition this morning, but did not disclose financial terms of the acquisition. Intel said that Fulcrum's switch silicon will complement its processors and Ethernet controllers. Fulcrum Microsystems was venture backed by Granite Ventures, Infinity Capital, New Enterprise Associates, Palomar Ventures, and others; the firm had raised somewhere over $114M i (More info...)
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Allergan Buys Vicept TherapeuticsIrvine-based Allergan said this morning that it has acquired Vicept Therapeutics, a developer of a compound for treating the erythema of rosacea. According to Allergan, it will pay $75M in cash up front, plus up to $200M in earnout dependent on future development and regulatory milestones for Vicept Therapeutics. Vicent is currently in Phase II studies for its lead compound. Vicent Therapeutics is venture backed by Vivo Ventures, Fidelity Biosciences and Sofinnova Ventures.
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ShareVis Acquired By WinshuttleCarslbad-based ShareVis, a developer of SharePoint workflow and web form automation software, has been acquired by SAP business process improvement software firm Winshuttle. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Winshuttle said it would incorporate ShareVis technology into its software. Winshuttle also said it will continue to maintain offices in Carlsbad, with all ShareVis employees joining the company. ShareVis was headed by Nail Sudin.
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THQ Revives 80's Cartoon VoltronAgoura Hills-based videogame maker THQ has announced today that it is reviving 1980's cartoon hero Voltron, in a new video game called Voltron: Defender of the Universe. The firm said it is releasing the game in October on Xbox LIVE Arcade and PlayStation Network. The new game comes as a result of a deal with World Events Productions, Ltd., which owns the Voltron brand and distributes and produces children's animation.
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Mobilitie Gets $415M Credit Line For Wireless InfrastructureNewport Beach-based Mobilitie, a private owner and operator of wireless infrastructure, reported today that it has scored $415M in a credit facility, from TD Securities. The firm said the credit facility will go towards deployment and acquisition of wireless towers and distributed antenna systems. The firm helps carriers to build out their network infrastructure. The company is headed by Gary Jabara.
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Paragon Software Wins ToshibaIrvine-based Paragon Software, the developer of backup and disaster recovery software, said today that it has been selected by Toshiba. The firm said that Toshiba is using its Paragon Alignment Tool (PAT) for supporting its Advanced Format (AF) hard disk drives. Financial details of the win were not announced. Paragon is headed by Tom Fedro.
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Columbia Pictures Taps Into Foursquare For Film PromoCulver City-based Sony Pictures Entertainment said today that its Columbia Pictures unit it tying the release of its new film, 30 Minutes or Less, into a foursquare promotion. According to Sony, it is using foursquare to create a badge-based program for the motion picture, which is being release on August 12th. The effort will award badges for checking into pizza parlors, banks, food trucks, screenings, and movie theater openings. Financial details of the arrangement were not announced. Foursqu (More info...)
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Clean Diesel Technologies Wins Fisker AutomotiveVentura-based Clean Diesel Technologies, a provider of automotive catalysts for reducing emissions, says this morning that it has been chosen as the catalyst supplier for Fisker Automotive. Clean Diesel Technologies said it will be supplying catalysts for Fisker's new Karma sedan. Financial impact of the win was not announced by Clean Diesel. The firm said it has been supplying its catalysts to Fisker since the the first quarter of the year.
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The Search Agency Names Asia-Pacific CEOSanta Moncia-based The Search Agency, the search engine marketing firm headed by David Hughes, said this morning that it has named a CEO of its Asia=Pacific operations. The company said it has named Matt Kain as head of its Asia-Pacific operations, based out of a new office in Sydney, Australia. Kain was most recently The Search Agency's Chief Revenue Officer. The company now says it has over 180 employees worldwide. The Search Agency is backed by JMI Equity.
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