Wednesday, March 20, 2013


Report: Fisker Automotive's Future Uncertain As Buyers Pull Back
The future of Anaheim-based electric vehicle maker Fisker Automotive looks more and more uncertain, on reports today that the Chinese auto makers who were considering buying the company have pulled back. the report, from the Wall Street Journal, says that neither Chinese auto maker Geely nor Dongfeng Motor Corp. will be making a bid for Fisker, which has said it needs to make a deal by the end of the month to remain in business.
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JetBlue Looks To ViaSat's Wi-Fi To Attract Business Travelers
JetBlue is getting set to launch in-flight, wireless service on its planes--powered by the new, high speed satellite internet from Carlsbad-based satellite service operator ViaSat--in a bid to attract more business travelers. According to reports, JetBlue has been "underperforming" on transcontinental flights, because of its lack of Wi-Fi on those long haul trips, particularly between such locations as San Francisco, Boston, and Los Angeles. JetBlue said in September that it would use ViaSat's n (More info...)
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Demand Media Expands In Ireland
Demand Media, the online publishing business led by Richard Rosenblatt, has made a major expansion into Ireland, as part of its domain name business, the firm said Wednesday. According to Demand Media, it has opened up what will be its largest, international office in Dublin, Ireland, which will serve as the international headquarters for its domain services business. Demand Media said the move is part of setting up the firm for the thousands of new top level domains (TLDs) come to market later (More info...)
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Greycroft Bolsters Los Angeles Team
In what can only be good news for local startups, venture capital investment firm Greycroft Partners said this morning that it has named Mark Terbeek as a new Partner in its Los Angeles office. Terbeek will help current LA partner Dana Settle in vetting deals for the firm. According to Greycroft, Terbeek will focus on the digital media sector with an emphasis on online video. Terbeek was previously a Partner at venture capital firm MK Capital; he also co-founded Jamcracker and worked at McKinsey (More info...)
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Tech Coast Angels, Rady Venture Fund Back Savara Pharmaceuticals
Two, Southern California investment groups have backed a developer of treatments for infections in cystic fibrosis patients, Savara Pharmaceuticals, they announced today. Both the Tech Coast Angels, Southern California's largest organized angel investment group, as well as San Diego's Rady Venture Fund are part of a $16M funding round for Savara. According to the Tech Coast Angels, it contributed $3M to the funding, the largest single funding ever raised by the group. Rady Venture Fund, the stud (More info...)
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Apriso Wins Aerospace Manufacturer
Long Beach-based manufacturing software developer Apriso reported a win today, with aerospace manufacturer Spirit AeroSystems. Apriso said that the manufacturer and designer of aerospace structures is using the firm's software to improve its manufacturing operations. Financial impact of the win was not disclosed. Apriso developers manufacturing software, used by such customers as GM, Volvo, Lockheed Martin, Honeywell, and many others.
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Valeant Pharmaceuticals Buys Obagi Medical For $360M
Long Beach-based Obagi Medical Products, the developer of aesthetic medicine products, is being acquired by Valeant Pharmaceuticals, in a deal worth approximately $360M, Obagi said this morning. Obagi said that Valeant has agreed to acquire all of its outstanding common stock for $19.75 per share in cash, a 42 percent premium to Obagi's closing share price on Thursday, March 14th. The firms said the deal is expected to be complete in the second quarter of 2013.
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Bluebeam Adds Offline Mode With New Release
Bluebeam Software, the developer of PDF-based software for the architecture, engineering, and construction industry, said Tuesday that it has launched a new version of its software, adding a new "offline mode" which synchronizes changes made to documents even when they're edited offline. The firm's software--used for large, multi-page, highly interlinked things like blueprints--now lets users edit files on a desktop, tablet PC, or iPad, and later synchronize those changes back into a project. Bl (More info...)
posted on Wednesday, March 20, 2013(Full story)