Thursday, August 4, 2011TakeLessons Raises $6MSan Diego-based TakeLessons, a business which helps users connect with music and voice lesson teachers across the country, said this week that it has raised $6M in a funding round. The round was led by Crosslink Capital, and also included SoftTech VC and other angels. Eric Chin of Crosslink Capital joins the company's board as part of the funding. TakeLessons is headed by Steven Cox, who previously founded Mobile Asset Group, and served at such firms as CollegeClub.com and Reddito LLC. TakeLess (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
Vessix Vascular Takes $23MLaguna Hills-based Vessix Vascular, a developer of catheter technology, said this week that it has raised $23M in a Series B financing round. The round was led by Edmond de Rothschild Investment Partners (EdRIP), and also included Orbimed Advisors, CDF Dinova Venture Partners, NeoMed Management, and Christopher Weil & Company. Raphael Wisniewski of EdRip and Vince Burgess of OrbiMed join the company's board as part of the funding. Vessix develops novel percutaneous radiofrequency (RF) balloon ca (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011 (More)(Full story)
GotCast Powers Sony's The Tester Casting CallSanta Monica-based GotCast is again powering the online casting call for Season 3 of Sony Computer Entertainment's "The Tester" reality series. The series--geared around video game testing--has contestants competing for a production job in Sony's Santa Monica Studio and an un-announced title for the PlayStation 3. Financial impact of the deal was not announced. Sony's casting call is powered by GotCast's Mediablastr contest platform. Sony said it is looking for submissions of photos, videos, and (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
MySpace's Anderson Among Worst-Dressed Tech Moguls, Says GQA new article published today in GQ magazine identifies Tom Anderson, the Los Angeles resident and former co-founder of MySpace, as among the 15 worst dressed men of Silicon Valley. The article--which also ragged on such tech notables as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg--said that Anderson is a "a victim of over-layering", particularly for his penchant for wearing a "T-shirt, hoodie and blazer all at once."
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
FamilyFinds Anniversary Deal Sells Out In HoursA $15 for $30 worth of deals offer from Los Angeles-based FamilyFinds.com sold out within hours, after the firm offered up the bargain on its deals site as part of a one year anniversary promotion. FamilyFinds.com, which is headed by former LowerMyBills founder Matt Coffin, had offered up $30 worth of deals--which themselves, are usually discounted by half from regular prices--for just $15 to its users. It's unclear how many offers the firm provided to users, however, an email with the deal was (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
SkinIt Rounds Out Exec Team After Private Equity DealSan Diego-based SkinIt, the maker of protective "skins" for electronic devices, said today that it has expanded its leadership team. The firm--which is backed by ABS Capital Partners, said that Laura Christine is its EVP Consumer Group; Jennifer Jordan its VP of Finance; John P. O'Loughlin is VP Human Resources; Lewis Chang VP of E-Commerce and Marketing; Billy Crotty as SVP Global Operations; and Rick Foukes is VP Coatings Engineering. The firm's CEO is Bob King, who took charge of the firm in (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
Interview with Jeff Zwelling, ConvertroEvery so often--particularly in Southern California--you run into a serial entrepreneur, with multiple successes and great track record-- yet, who very few people are aware of. Jeff Zwelling is one of those. Jeff Zwelling is the co-founder of Convertro (www.convertro.com), a Los Angeles company focused on helping companies track how their marketing efforts are leading to sales conversions. However, his story is much more than Convertro; he founded EchoSign (just acquired by Adobe earlier this mo (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
SolarReserve In Jobs Agreement With Nevada CountySanta Monica-based SolarReserve, the developer of utility scale solar power projects, said Wednesday that it has amended an agreement with Nevada's Nye County and its Tonopah Solar Energy affiliate, to require 90 percent of the construction workforce on that project will come from Nevada residents. SolarReserve is developing a 110 megawatt solar energy project in that county, which the firm says it expects will create more than 600 on-site jobs during peak construction. SolarReserve's solar powe (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
Local.com Gets Credit FacilityIrvine-based Local.com, the operator of a network of local business search sites, said this morning that it has landed a $12M credit facility. The facility comes from Square 1 Bank, and will be used for expansion, including potential acquisitions and for strategic growth initiatives, the firm said.
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
Hulu, WD Connect Hulu PlusLos Angeles-based Hulu and Irvine-based Western Digital said this week that the two have connected Hulu's premium service, Hulu Plus, to WD's WD TV Live Plus and WD TV Live Hub media players. According to the two, the move will make it possible for WD TV customers to stream TV shows and movies to their television through WD's hardware. WD's hardware already supported Netflix, Blockbuster, CinemaNow, Pandora, YouTube, and Facebook. The access to Hulu content requires a $7.99 a month subscription (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)
KFx Medical Files Patent Suit Against CompetitorSan Diego-based KFx Medical, the venture-backed developer of medical devices used for orthopedic surgery, said this week that it has launched a patent infringement suit against a competitor, Arthrex. KFx medical alleges that Arthrex is infringing on a patent (U.S. Patent No. 7,585,311) covering knotless double row rotator cuff repair. Rotator cuff injuries are common in baseball players and other athletes. KFx Medical said the patent lawsuit was a result of a re-examination of it patent--request (More info...)
posted on Thursday, August 4, 2011(Full story)