Wednesday, January 25, 2012THQ To Exit Kids Games, Focus On Core GamersAgoura Hills-based videogame developer THQ said Wednesday that it is exiting the kids' games business, and will instead focus on its "core" video game franchises. According to THQ, it is exiting its relationship with kids' licensed entertainment companies, although it will continue to sell certain previously released titles it the category. THQ did not say how the move will affect its employment. THQ explained that it will focus its resources on games for existing consoles and "new and emerging" (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
Honest, Founded by Jessica Alba, Takes On Baby ProductsThe love affair between Los Angeles startups combining e-commerce and celebrity continues unbated today, as a new, Santa Monica-based startup headed by actress Jessica Alba--and backed by Brian Lee, the founder of LegalZoom and ShoeDazzle--unveiled itself to the world. The Honest Company says that it will provide eco-friendly products such as diapers, bath and skin products, and household cleaning products to subscribers via a monthly subscription, following the popular model pioneered by ShoeDa (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
BeachMint Gets $35M MoreSanta Monica-based BeachMint, the e-commerce firm founded by Josh Berman and Diego Berdakin, has raised $35M in another round of funding, the firm said Wednesday, led by Accel Partners, and also including Goldman Sachs, New World Ventures, Millennium Technology Value Partners, and NALA, along with its existing investors. BeachMint runs celebrity focused, e-commerce sites such as JewelMint (with Kate Bosworth and stylist Cher Coulter), BeautyMint.com (Jessica Simpson and Nerida Joy), StyleMint (M (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012 (More)(Full story)
KidZui Becomes Zui.comSan Diego-based KidZui, the developer of kids-friendly Internet browsers and online portal for kids, said today that it has officially renaming the company's name to Zui.com. The shift comes as the company has focused on creating a search engine and portal specifically aimed at kids, rather than its earlier browser efforts. Zui.com says it now is seeing around 2.2 million monthly uniques. The company launched Zui.com in August, directing kids to parent-and-teacher reviewed games, videos, and oth (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
Green Dot Buys eCommLinkMonrovia-based Green Dot, the provider of prepaid debit cards headed by Steve Streit, said Tuesday that it has acquired prepaid processing firm eCommLink, for $2.5M. Greent Dot said the asset deal included certain processing and hardware assets of eCommLink, which handles transaction processing for prepaid cards. The company explained the deal will allow it to bring in key elements of transaction processing in-house, as part of a strategy for vertical integration. Green Dot said that approximate (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
StockTwits Powers S&P Capital IQSan Diego-based StockTwits, the finance and stock-focused micro-messaging service headed by Howard Lindzon, reported that S&P Capital IQ, a provider of market research and financial information, is using its StockTwits Pro service. The StockTwits Pro service allows analysts at the firm to provide a profile and links to their messages, and also handles disclosure requirements. StockTwits said that S&P Capital IQ has been using the new service as part of a beta. S&P Capital IQ's various analysts a (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
Ceres Sets IPO Pricing RangeThousand Oaks-based Ceres, the developer of seeds to supply the bioenergy and biofuels feedstock business, has set its initial pricing range for its IPO, according to a filing from the company this morning. Ceres said it now expects its IPO to price at between $21.00 and $23.00 per share, raising up to $132.25M for the company. Ceres has applied to list on the NASDAQ Global Market as CERE. The firm's IPO is being underwritten by Goldman, Sachs & Co., Barclays Capital, Piper Jaffray, Raymond Jame (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
Interview with Braden Richter, LuxeYardHow do you leverage your years of experience manufacturing and designing furniture for stores like Ikea and Crate & Barrel into the online world, and harness the interest of consumers to purchase their furniture online? That's what Braden Richter, the CEO of Los Angeles-based LuxeYard (www.luxeyard.com) is looking to do with the new startup, which combines the world of home furnishings with the concept of flash sales.
How did you end up at LuxeYard?
Braden Richter: I've been on the manufa (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
Factual Releases PHP DriverLos Angeles-based Factual, the developer of application programming interfaces to a giant, database of places and other data used for location based applications, said this week that it has launched an official PHP driver for its API. The firm said the API wraps its Read, Crosswalk, Resolve, and Schema APIs, simplifying access ot its database of 55 million global places. Factual's collection of data is being used, among other things, for pulling up information about businesses and nearby locatio (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
Illumina Gets $5.7B Hostile Bid From RocheSan Diego-based Illumina, the maker of genetic analyis equipment and tools for the life sciences industry, said late Tuesday evening that it has received an unsolicited, acquisition proposal from Roche. Roche offered to acquire Illumina for $44.50 per share in cash, or roughly $5.7 billion. Illumina said it has retailed Goldman, Sachs & Co. and Bank of America Merrill Lynch as financial advisors, and Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP as legal advisor to review the proposal.
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)
KFx Medical Gets PatentCarlsbad-based KFx Medical said Tuesday that it has scored a U.S. Patent, covering its knotless double row rotator cuff repair technology, which is used in its line of implant products. U.S. Patent No. 8,100,942 was granted by the US Patent and Trademark Office yesterday, to inventors Michael L. Green, Joseph C. Tauro, and Bart Bojanowski. The patent is a continuation of a series of patents originally filed by KFx Medical back in 2004. KFx Medical was represented in the patent filing by Knobbe, (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, January 25, 2012(Full story)