Wednesday, November 6, 2013Lawsuit Targets Snapchat Founders, Venture InvestorsA new lawsuit, targeting Venice, California-based Snapchat--the hottest company to emerge out of the area's high tech startup cluster in recent years--says that the company's founders stole the idea for the company from him after forcing him out of the company early on in its history. According to the legal filing--which has now been widely published--Reggie Brown, who says he was the third co-founder of SnapChat--was forced out of the company only a month after it was created, but says he shoul (More info...)
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EdgeCast, SoftLayer Extend PartnershipSanta Monica-based content delivery network provider EdgeCast said Wednesday that it has extended its multi-year partnership with hosting provider SoftLayer, and will continue to offer a CDN which is built on EdgeCast's network. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. SoftLayer--which was recently acquired by IBM--sells EdgeCast's CDN services under a white label relationship with the company. EdgeCast says its CDN services are being used by such customers as Hulu, Twitter, and Pintere (More info...)
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Surf Air Expands To Hawthorne, Palm Springs
Los Angeles-based Surf Air, the membership-based, all-you-can fly airline headed by Wade Eyerly, has extended out its footprint today, saying that it has added another aircraft and expanded service to Hawthorne and Palm Springs. The startup airline said the move adds nearly 50 percent more capacity for the company, and also makes it easier for people on the Westside of Los Angeles to access the company's services. Surf Air is catering to Southern California's high tech, startup community with (More info...)
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Boingo Wireless Wins Internet Service Deals With U.S. MilitaryLos Angeles-based Wi-Fi access point and wireless infrastructure provider Boingo has won both the U.S. Army and the Marines as customer, to provide IPTV and broadband Internet services at the two military branches' bases worldwide. According to Boingo, it will provide internet protocol TV and broadband Internet at all of the United States Marine Corps bases worldwide, via a deal with Marine Corps Community Services (MCCS), starting with bases in the United States and two bases in Japan; separate (More info...)
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Sonos Raises $25M To Buy Out Early EmployeesA report today says that Santa Barbara-based Sonos, the developer of the user-friendly wireless home audio systems, has raised $25M in a secondary funding, which will go towards buying out fully vested employees. The report came from Fortune's The Term Sheet. No details on the funding have been announced or released by the company.
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METRIX Capital Gets $5M For Funding EffortsOrange County-based investor METRIX Capital Group has announced a $5M funding round, which it says will go towards its alternative funding for small and medium sized businesses. The firm--which is led by Jeff Brannon--said that the funds will go towards its Revenue/Royalty Based Funding, an alternative loan program aimed at companies with at least six months of revenue and a growth plan. The firm says it provides funding from $50,000 to $500,000. METRIX recently made an investment in Newlight, a (More info...)
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ValueClick Looks To Sell Investopedia, PriceRunnerWestlake Village-based online advertising and marketing firm ValueClick said late Tuesday that it is planning to divest its "Owned & Operated" websites segment, the company's division which runs such sites as Investopedia, PriceRunner, Smarter.com, SymptomFind, and CouponMountain.com. According to ValueClick, it has retained Wells Fargo Securities as part of the move. ValueClick said it has determined that those businesses do not align with its strategy. ValueClick's Owned & Operated segment is (More info...)
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ReachLocal Swizzles Execs, Loses Co-FounderThe executive turmoil over at Woodland Hills-based ReachLocal continues, as the company said yesterday that President and co-founder Nathan Hanks has resigned as an officer and director of the company. Reasons for the resignation was not given, however, the move follows the abrupt resignation of CEO and founder Zorik Gordon in September. ReachLocal said that Josh Claman, previously the Chief Revenue Officer at ReachLocal, has been appointed President in Hanks' place. Reason for Hanks' resignatio (More info...)
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Horizon Communications Gets Investment From Solis Capital PartnersIrvine-based Horizon Communications, a provider of telecommunications and electrical infrastructure installation and support services, has received an investment from Newport Beach-based private equity firm Solis Capital Partners. Size of the deal was not announced. Horizon installs Wi-Fi, DAS, and other telecommunications and wireless infrastructure for data center owners and operators, telecommunications carriers, and real estate owners. According to Solis Capital Partners, the investment is t (More info...)
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TakeLessons Launches On Google HelpoutsSan Diego-based online lesson marketplace TakeLessons said yesterday that it will offer up its tutors, music teachers, and performing art instructors via the new service, Google Helpouts, which launched Tuesday. According to TakeLessons, it will provide access to experts from its site via Helpouts by Google, which is Google's new service for finding experts that users can consult with via live video. Google's new service--much like TakeLessons--lets users book on-demand video sessions or set up (More info...)
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Activision Racks Up More Than $1 Billion On Day One For New Call Of Duty TitleSanta Monica-based Activision Publishing, the game publishing subsidiary of Activision Blizzard, said today that it sold more than $1 billion of its latest Call of Duty title in retail stores on day one. The company said that it released of Call of Duty: Ghosts yesterday in more than 15,000 retail midnight openings around the world. It looks like Activision has surpassed its prior revenue records for the Call of Duty titles: last year's release took fifteen days to hit $1 billion in retail sales (More info...)
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Local Corporation Launches Pre-Roll Video Ad NetworkIrvine-based Local Corporation said this morning that it has launched a new, pre=roll video network aimed at advertisers and publishers. The company said the new, pre-roll video network will offer advertisers access to over 350 websites, including its own Local.com site. The company did not give details on the other 349 sites in its network. Local is the operator of a network of local business directory and information sites.
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