Wednesday, February 17, 2016Fandango Acquires Flixster, Rotten TomatoesLos Angeles-based movie and movie ticketing service Fandango said late Wednesday afternoon that it is acquiring both Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Both Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes were part of Warner Bros. Entertainment, which says it is taking an equity position in Fandango. Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes both offer up online film reviews and ratings from consumers. Fandango explained that Flixster and Rotten Tomatoes have a combined 20 mill (More info...)
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Hulu Acquires VhotoLos Angeles-based video streaming site Hulu has acquired Vhoto, a developer of computer vision and machine learning software, according to reports. Financial details of the deal were not announced. Vhoto CEO and founder Noah Heller has joined Hulu as Vice President of Audience Development, according to Heller's LinkedIn profile. The deal apparently occurred sometime in late 2015. News of the acquisition first came from GeekWire, a Seattle area news publication.
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Cross Campus Set To Launch In Downtown Location In AprilCross Campus, the coworking space operator which is home to many of LA's startups, told its customers today that it is planning to open up a new location in Downtown LA starting in April. The coworking operator already has locations in Old Pasadena and Santa Monica. The company expanded into Old Pasadena a year ago. Cross Campus offers up shared coworking space, dedicated desks, 2-person offices, and even dedicated 3 to 15 people offices at its locations. The coworking operator is also regular h (More info...)
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Dollar Shave Club Countersues GilletteSanta Monica-based Dollar Shave Club has filed a lawsuit against razor giant Gillette, in the U.S. District Court in Delaware, to counter an earlier lawsuit filed by Gillette against the company on December 17th. Gillette claims Dollar Shave Club has infringed on one of its patents for self cleaning razors. Dollar Shave said "we are not intimidated" by the attempt to "thwart competition with litigation." Dollar Shave Club operates an online, subscription service which delivers razors and other p (More info...)
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ZeaKal Raises $5.3M, Acquires AlgenetixSan Diego-based ZeaKal, a biotechnology startup which is looking to increase yields of plants by improving their ability to photosynthesize, has raised $5.3M in a Series B financing, the company said this morning. As part of the funding, ZeaKal said it has acquired industrial biotechnology developer Algenetix. The funding round was led by Finistere Ventures, and also included Middleland Capital and un-named family offices. Financial details of the Algenetix buy were not announced. ZeaKal said it (More info...)
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OpenHouse Rolls Out Personalized Real Estate RecommendationsSanta Monica-based OpenHouse has launched a new site which helps home buyers get personalized, real estate recommendations and information on neighborhoods, the company said today. The startup, led by Mazen Fawaz, said that it uses social media and demographic data to recommend the best homes, neighborhoods, and real estate agents based on a users' needs. The company's service--available through an iOS app, desktop, and mobile site--learns about a users' preferences in residences, based on their (More info...)
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Key Information Systems Gets HIPAA CertAgoura Hills-based cloud infrastructure and service provider Key Information Systems said today that it has completed an independent examination of its data center and services for HIPAA and HITECH compliance. The company said the examination was conducted by BrightLine CPAs and Associates. The company said the exam indciates that it meets the requirements for both the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act Security Rule of 2003 (HIPAA) and the Health Information Technology for Econ (More info...)
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San Bernardino Shootings Set Up Major Clash Between Government, AppleThe terror attack in San Bernardino in December has set up a major clash between the U.S. Government and Apple Computer--and potentially the entire tech industry--after a judge signed an order yesterday in Riverside ordering Apple to disable the data wiping features on the Apple iPhone used by the shooters in the attack. The order has asked Apple to disable the feature on its phones which completely wipes the data on a phone after 10 incorrect tries at entering a password, in order for the FBI t (More info...)
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Ceres Gets Favorable Determination On GMO Regulation Of Corn CropsThousand Oaks-based agricultural biotechnologyd eveloper Ceres said today that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has given it a favorable determination on a petition, which essentially says that its corn crops are not subject to genetically engineered crop regulation mandates. Ceres said that it had petitioned to have a number of its traits for corn deemed "non-regulated", and that those efforts were successful. Those traits relate to improved digestibility, drought tolerance and insect resista (More info...)
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Procore Rolls Out New Tools, App MarketplaceCarpinteria-based Procore Technologies, the developer of cloud-based construction project management software, led by Tooey Courtemanche, has rolled out a major upgrade to its software, and launched a new cloud-based app marketplace. According to Procore, it has added new tools to help manage quality & safety, specification management, manage and track change orders and financial approvals, and more. Separately, the company launched a new App Marketplace and partner program, which it says will b (More info...)
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Esri Extends Tiered Pricing Structure For Small GovernmentRedland-based geographical information systems (GIS) software developer Esri has extended its tiered pricing structure for access to its software, specifically aimed to help smaller municipal and county governments to access its products. According to Esri, it has rolled out a new pricing structure to help governments serving populations between 100,000 and 250,000, which allows them to access its technology. Esri said its new pricing tier now covers governments serving beween 150,001 to 250,000 (More info...)
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Company Launches Combo Baby Monitor, MP3 PlayerBaby Stars - rock2sleep, a German company which creates lullaby-style melodies based on popular rock and pop songs, said Tuesday that it has launched an effort--based in Los Angeles--to deliver a combo baby monitor, music box, and MP3 player to the U.S. market. The company said its snu:mee device will ship in April, and already has been available in Europe, and includes streaming music support, Wi-Fi connectivity, and is pre-loaded with those rock lullabies (lullaby-style Coldplay or Pink, anyon (More info...)
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