Tuesday, July 29, 2014


Amgen To Cut Nearly 3,000
Thousand Oaks-based biotechnology giant Amgen said Tuesday that it plans to cut 2,400 to 2,900 staff, including at its headquarters location, and will also close facilities in both Washington and Colorado. According to Amgen, the move is part of a restructuring plan to improve its cost structure. As part of the move, Amgen said it will also consolidate staff into less buildings in the Thousand Oaks area. Amgen said the moves would result in an approximately 23 percent reduction in its facilities (More info...)
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Fisker Automotive Bankruptcy Plan Okayed
The Costa Mesa-based company once known as Fisker Automotive--now known as FA Liquidating Corp. and FAH Liquidating Corp.--has received court approval of its Chapter 11 plan. According to the companies, the company received approval from the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware on Monday to sell itself to Chinese company Wanxiang Group Corp., for $149.2M. Fisker had filed for bankruptcy protection back in November of 2013. Fisker had raised more than $1.4 billion in the pr (More info...)
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Kixer Raises $1M In Seed Funding To Connect App Makers, Publishers
Los Angeles-based Kixer, which was founded by Keith Bonnici, Jake Moilanen, and Omar Nicola, has raised $1M in a seed funding, for the company's native advertising platform. Kixer develops a native advertising platform which helps mobile app developers reach users via online publishers. B The funding came from TenOne Ten Ventures, Lowercase Capital, as well as angels, including Clark Landry and other local investors. Bonnici was previously SVP Operations at Scopely. According to Boonici, the com (More info...)
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PaxVax Finds $62M For Vaccine Efforts
PaxVax, a biopharmaceuticals company developing vaccines for infectious disease, has raised $62M in a funding round. The funding included $50M in secured debt from Pharmakon Advisors, and $12M in a Series B extension round. The company is backed by Ignition Ventures, Ignition Growth Capital and the Blue Haven Initiative. According to PaxVax, the new equity funding brings its total to $80M in equity raised by the company. The new funding goes towards the acquisition of an FDA-approved oral typhoi (More info...)
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SolarReserve Wins Deal In El Salvador
Santa Monica-based utility-scale, solar power project developer SolarReserve has scored a win in the country of El Salvador, saying recently that it has signed a contract to supply 20 MW of power there. The deal is part of a competitive supply contract tender from Distribuidora de Electricidad del Sur, a local electricity distribution company in El Salvador. SolarReserve said the plant will be the first, utility-scale solar power installation in El Salvador. Financial details of the win were not (More info...)
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Pogoseat Gets $2.3M
Santa Monica-based Pogoseat, which develops mobile apps to allow people to get upgraded seats at events on the same day--or even during the event--has raised $2.3M in a funding round. The funding came from Structure Capital, SK Ventures, Zelkova Ventures, KDDI, Golden Brain Open Innovation Fund, Tylt Lab, Universal Music Group, Kima Ventures, XG Ventures, Joshua Schacter, plus the owners of both the Sacramento Kings and Golden State Warriors. PogoSeat is led by Evan Owens.
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Sapphire Energy Names New CEO
San Diego-based algae energy technology developer Sapphire Energy has named a new CEO, saying that it has appointed James Levine as President, CEO, and member of the company's board of directors. Levine is the former President and CEO of Verenium, and also served at Goldman Sachs & Co. Levine replaces Cynthia 'CJ' Warner, who remains chairman of the company's board. Sapphire Energy is developing algae-based fuel technology, which uses algae and feedstock to create biofuels.
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VIZIO Dangles TV, Some Money To College Students In Contest
Irvine-based television and electronics manufacturer VIZIO said this morning that it is offering up a 40 inch television, sound gear, and $1,000 toward tuition, a $1000 for books, and more to college students, as part of a promotion. Vizio explained that its contest involves uploading a video or photo essay about a "story of determination" on how students went to college, to compete for those prizes. VIZIO said the contest runs through August 19th.
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TakePart.com Names Editor-in-Chief
Los Angeles-based socially conscious lifestyle magazine and website TakePart--which is owned by Participant Media--said it has named Eric Noe as its Editor-In-Chief. The socially responsible website said that Noe was most recently at ABC News Digital, where he had spent 10 years. TakePart said Noe will be responsible for day-to-day content operations, editorial strategy, and other efforts.
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Zadara Upgrades Storage Options
Irvine-based cloud storage technology developer Zadara Storage, which is led by Nelson Nahum, said today that it has begun offering 5 TB hard disk drives as part of its enterprise-focused, storage-as-a-service offerings. The company said the support of the higher capacity disk drives will allow for better cost efficiency for its customers. Zadara both offers its service in the cloud, as well as installed on premise.
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