Silicon Valley Wire

Online Social Network Cyworld U.S.A. Launches in San Francisco.

San Francisco -- Cyworld, a Korean social networking site launched in 1999 by SK Telecom, said that it has officially launched in the U.S. The company said 92% of Koreans aged 24-29 are Cyworld members, while its Chinese site has signed 1.8 million members in six months. San Francisco-based Cyworld USA said that it hopes to appeal to 16-to-24-year-olds. "We consider our localization efforts to be on-going, and putting the Cyworld service into the hands of U.S. consumers is key to our bottom-up product development philosophy," said Yoo Hyun-oh, the president of parent SK Communications.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060815/sftu109.html?.v=62   
http://www.cyworld.com

Study: Satellite TV Gaining on Cable; Analog Subscribers Going Digital

Westlake Village, Calif. -- While satellite TV grows in popularity over its cable counterpart, cable TV subscribers are increasingly upgrading from analog to digital signals, according to a new study from J.D. Power and Associates. Overall, 88% of U.S. households now subscribe to cable or satellite TV services. Of those, 58% subscribe to cable, down 2% from a year ago, and 29% subscribe to satellite, up 2%. Among those with cable, a growing number are switching from analog to digital. "With analog cable subscribers increasingly converting to digital, this becomes a major advantage for cable companies in the race against satellite providers to maintain market share," said Steve Kirkeby, the executive director of telecommunications and technology research at J.D. Power and Associates. The report also found that digital video recorder usage has increased significantly over the past year.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-16-2006/0004417086&EDATE=

AOL Acquires GameDaily from San Francisco-Based Gigex

San Francisco -- Looking to bolster its content in the video game arena, AOL said on Wednesday that it has paid an undisclosed amount for GameDaily, a popular online video game publication from San Francisco-based Gigex. Founded in 1995, Gigex serves the mainstream gaming audience with its GameDaily.com web site, and also targets industry insiders with its GameDaily Biz trade newsletter. AOL will acquire both the web site and newsletter. AOL said that GameDaily will become the flagship video games brand within its AOL Games network, and will be united with other current content and community features on the site. "Video game sites have become a valuable resource for advertisers wishing to reach the young male audience, and GameDaily is a brand that resonates with these highly sought after consumers," said Ralph Rivera, the vice president and general manager of AOL Games.  The deal is AOL's second acquisition announced this week, following its purchase of Userplane.
http://press.aol.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=1035&section_id=14

Palo Alto-Based CV Therapeutics to Raise $85.5 Million in Offering

Palo Alto, Calif. -- CV Therapeutics, a Palo Alto-based biopharmaceutical firm, plans to raise $85.5 million in a public stock offering, the company said on Wednesday. The company said that it will sell 9 million shares for $9.50 each, with Lehman Brothers and Merrill Lynch acting as joint lead managers and bookrunners. CV, which currently has 46.3 million shares outstanding, said that it plans to use the proceeds for general corporate purposes such as marketing, product development ands clinical trials. The  company is developing small molecule drugs for the treatment of cardiovascular diseases.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060816/sfw053.html?.v=71

Santa Clara-Based Tvia to Raise $11.9 Million in Private Placement

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Tvia, a Santa Clara-based maker of digital display processors used in flat-panel TVs, broadcast digital DVRs and consumer display and monitor products, said on Wednesday that it plans to raise $11.9 million through a private placement. The company said that it well sell nearly 4.8 million shares for $2.50 each to selected institutional investors. The deal is expected to close on Friday. Tvia said that it will use the proceeds to fund the company's growth.
http://www.tvia.com/index.cfm?page=body&crid=17&contentid=226

San Jose-Based Cisco Completes Acquisition of Meetinghouse Data Communications

San Jose, Calif. -- Cisco Systems, the San Jose-based network equipment maker, said that it has completed its $43.7 million. acquisition of Meetinghouse Data Communications, a New Hampshire-based provider of information security software. Meetinghouse's products allow customers to restrict network access to only authorized users and host devices attempting to gain access to networked resources. The company's employees and products have been integrated into Cisco's Wireless Networking unit.
http://www.mtghouse.com/index_home.asp

Apple Seeks Trademark Relief from Makers of "Pod" Products

Cupertino, Calif. -- Seeking to crack down on copycats utilizing its trademarks, Cupertino-based Apple has sent cease-and-desist letters to a number of companies it says make unfair use of the word "pod" in their product names, CNET News.com reported. One target of the letters was TightPod, a maker of laptop covers. Another is a vending machine accessory from Mach5products.com called Profit Pod. Both companies have been asked to rename their products. The maker of TightPod devices is considering going to court, but also offered to remove any reference to MP3 players, while asking that Apple pay half the cost of rebranding its product. The text of the cease-and-desist letter sent by Apple's attorneys to Mach5products.com reads in part: "We believe there is confusing similarity between Apple's iPod mark and the Profit Pod mark…it has not gone unnoticed that, like Apple's iPod device, the Profit Pod product is a small, flat, round-cornered rectangular device with a display screen."
http://news.com.com/Apple+iPod+means+our+pod/2100-1030_3-6105789.html?tag=nefd.top
http://blogs.zdnet.com/BTL/?page_id=3481

Study: Fewer Women-Managed Companies Landing Venture Capital

San Francisco -- The percentage of venture-backed companies with at least one woman in top management sunk to its lowest level in a decade during the first half of 2006, according to figures released on Wednesday by Dow Jones VentureOne. The firm said that just 29.7% of VC-backed companies had women in management -- down from nearly 33% last year and nearly 36% in 2004. Among those companies, only 3.75% featured a woman as CEO, also a low since statistics became available in 1997. In addition, companies founded by women landed only 5% of the total output of venture capital through June, compared with nearly 10% five years ago.
http://www.ventureone.com/

Redwood City-Based Questra Lands $12.5 Million in New Funding

Redwood City, Calif. -- Questra, a Redwood City-based developer of software designed to monitor and manage remote intelligent devices, said on Tuesday that it has raised $12.5 million in a new round of venture capital funding. Participants included Trident Capital, Menlo Ventures and SAP. Questra's software allows device manufacturers to proactively monitor, diagnose and repair equipment located at customer sites through an Internet connection. Clients include General Electric, Kodak, Scientific Applications International Corporation (SAIC) and Waters. The company last raised $9 million in its third round of funding two years ago.
http://www.questra.com/newsroom/release.asp?release_id=69

S.F.-Based EFF Pushing for Investigation into Privacy Practices of AOL

San Francisco -- The San Francisco-based Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) said that it has asked the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) to investigate AOL after the company recently released three months worth of search queries by 650,000 of its users. The EFF said that it wants the FTC to require AOL to notify affected customers, as well as to stop logging search data except where absolutely necessary. "Though AOL has removed the data from its site and rightly apologized, the grave damage is already done," the EFF said on its web site. "AOL's actions demonstrate a shocking disregard for user privacy. Search terms can expose the most intimate details of a person's life." Though the data was linked only to random ID numbers, the EFF said that the information could still be connected back to individual users "given enough clues."
http://www.eff.org/Privacy/AOL/

New Report Predicts Grim Times Ahead for Newspaper Industry

Burlingame, Calif. -- The newspaper industry will experience a $20 billion revenue shortfall by 2010, according to a new report by Burlingame-based Outsell, a provider of research and advisory services to the information industry. "The estimated shortfall is even larger than newspaper executives have acknowledged," says Ken Doctor, the firm's lead analyst. "The perfect storm of print circulation decline, accompanying pressures on print advertising and the rapid growth of lower-revenue-producing online news media is eroding the industry." The firm said that the decline of paid circulation revenues will speed up as 18-39-year-olds continue to look online for news, with total daily circulation dropping to as low as 43.9 million by 2010, nearly 20% less than 2004. Outsell also said that online revenues aren't replacing lost print revenues fast enough, and that workforce cuts, already underway, are insufficient to meet the accelerating financial challenges.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060815/20060815005534.html?.v=1

Google Maps Adds Printable Online Coupons from Valpak

Mountain View, Calif. -- Google, the Mountain View-based Internet giant, on Tuesday launched a new feature that will allow users of its Google Maps service to print online coupons for local businesses. The company said that it has partnered with direct marketing company Valpak, which will provide coupons for its current clients. New coupons will be added on a nightly basis. The service will be free for Valpak advertisers, as well as those printing the coupons.
http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/annc/maps_coupons.html 

Former Sun Executive John Marselle Named CEO of Robbins-Gioia

Santa Clara, Calif. -- John Marselle, a former executive at Santa Clara-based Sun Microsystems, has been named the new CEO of Virginia-based Robbins-Gioia, the provider of program management services said on Monday. A member of the company's board of directors, Marselle most recently led Sun's government division, and previously served as vice president of the Americas, Sun’s largest operating unit. He also serves as the chairman of the United Services Organization (USO) of Metropolitan Washington. Robbins-Gioia said that it's hoping Marselle can help give it an even stronger foothold in commercial markets, including the financial services, manufacturing and technology industries. 
http://www.robbinsgioia.com/   
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060814/20060814005596.html?.v=1

Report: Global HDTV Households to Reach 55 Million by 2009

Scottsdale, Ariz. -- The number of worldwide households with a high-definition TV receiving HD programming is expected to grow from the current 15 million to more than 55 million by 2009, according to a new report from market research firm In-Stat. The firm said that the U.S. and Japan currently account for 91% of all worldwide HDTV households, though growth this year has been spurred largely by the emergence of HDTV service in in new countries like China, Singapore and Mexico.
http://www.instat.com/catalog/Ccatalogue.asp?id=288

Santa Clara-Based Amimon Raises $14 Million in Second Round

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Amimon, a Santa Clara-based start-up developing wireless video modem chipsets, said on Monday that it has raised $14 million in its second round of funding, led by Stata Venture Partners of Boston. Argonaut Private Equity and previous investors Cedar Fund, Walden Israel and Evergreen Partners also participated in the round, whbich increased the company's total funding to more than $21 million. Amimon is developing technology to distribute uncompressed wireless HD video streams with the same quality as its wired counterparts. The company is planning to bring its technology to market early next year.
http://www.amimon.com/News5.html

San Jose-Based VeriFone to Acquire Trintech's Payment Systems Business

San Jose, Calif. -- VeriFone Holdings, a San Jose-based developer of electronic payment technologies, said on Monday that it has agreed to acquire the payment systems business of Ireland's Trintech Group for $12.1 million in cash, VeriFone said that Trintech's unattended and outdoor payment systems will enhance its offerings in the growing markets for self-service payment, vending and pay-at-the-pump applications. VeriFone will take over distribution of the acquired products and will provide existing customers with service and support. The deal is expected to close by the end of August.
http://www.verifone.com/news/releases/release.cfm?contentType=newsReleases&contentId=135721

Caliper Life Sciences Acquires Alameda-Based Xenogen for $80 Million

Alameda, Calif. -- Caliper Life Sciences, a Massachusetts-based provider of products and services for drug discovery research, said that it has acquired Xenogen, an Alameda-based maker of advanced imaging systems and software designed to accelerate drug discovery and development. Caliper paid about $80 million in stock. Caliper said that the combination of its microfluidic technology and automation expertise with Xenogen's imaging technology addresses key research needs.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060809/sfw053.html?.v=70

Fremont-Based Pegasus Wirelsss Acquires Product Line from maccontrol

Fremont, Calif. -- Pegasus Wireless, a Fremont-based developer of hardware and software for broadband wireless networking and Internet access, said on Monday that it has acquired a product line and intellectual property from Miami-based maccontrol, a maker of home entertainment control products, for about $4.8 million in stock. Pegasus said that the acquired product line features a remote and a connector that will complement its recently introduced wirelesscables product by controlling all components of the home entertainment system with one remote. The company also named Douglas Hirsch, a managing director at maccontrol, as its vice president of marketing.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060814/20060814005589.html?.v=1 
http://www.pegasuswirelesscorp.com/

Studios Approve Burn-to-DVD Movie Downloads With Encryption Upgrade

Morgan Hill, Calif. -- Hollywood movie studios will soon allow downloaded movies to be burned to DVD, following changes made to the encryption technology used to protect DVD movies from piracy. The Morgan Hill-based DVD Copy Control Association (DVD CCA), an industry group that devised the Content Scramble System (CSS) encryption that protects DVDs from unauthorized copying, said that movies will be able to be burned to special blank DVD discs that utilize an upgraded version of CSS. "Allowing the creation of high performance, protected DVDs in the business or at home that, until now, could only be mass-produced in factories is another major step forward," said Chris Cookson, chairman of the DVD CCA. In addition to burn-to-DVD movie downloads, the association said an early commercial application of the new technology would enable kiosks in retail stores, where consumers make a selection of some form of video entertainment, and wait while the disc is burned for them in the store.

http://www.dvdcca.org/data/css/DVDCCArecordrlsFINAL.pdf
http://www.dvdcca.org/

Microsoft is Most Visited Web Property in June, Yahoo and Google Follow

Reston, Va. -- Microsoft topped the list of the most visited global web properties in June, according to new figures from Internet research firm comScore Networks. Microsoft-owned sites drew approximately 500 million visitors, followed by Sunnyvale-based Yahoo (481 million) and Mountain View-based Google (454 million). Each company drew about 200 million more visitors than the next closest web property. While the established Internet players grabbed the top spots in the worldwide rankings, however, comScore said that several upstarts have quickly found their way into the top 15 properties. Wikipedia ranked eighth on a worldwide basis, while MySpace ranked 15th.
http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=976

Report: Strong Summer Video Game Sales Continue; Up 29% in July

New York -- Video game sales surged 29% in July, adding to a stronger-than-expected summer for an industry that had been experiencing a sales slump, according to sales data compiled market research firm NPD Group. Game hardware sales grew 46% to $214.7 million, while sales of game software were up 22% to $386.4 million. "The premium pricing of the Xbox 360 contributed significantly to the dollar sales increase in console hardware," said NPD video game analyst Anita Frazier. The overall top-selling hardware in terms of units during July was the Nintendo DS handheld, while "NCAA Football '07" for PlayStation 2 from Electronic Arts was the best selling game.
http://www.npd.com

CEA to Explore Possible Spring 2007 Gaming Expo

Arlington, Va. -- Less than two weeks after the Entertainment Software Association announced plans to radically downsize its annual E3 video game expo, the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said that it is forming an advisory committee to explore its own gaming event next spring. The event, focused on the gaming and entertainment marketplace, would likely take place in either Las Vegas or Los Angeles. CEA said that a majority of the 2,700 exhibitors at its annual International Consumer Electronics Show (CES) are active in both the entertainment and gaming categories. "Since ESA decided to eliminate the E3 event in its known format, we have been deluged with inquiries on whether we could fill the tradeshow needs of smaller video entertainment companies," said Gary Shapiro, the president and CEO of the CEA. "Our executive board met [Thursday] and unanimously asked staff to explore ways that we can help the gaming community."
http://www.ce.org/Press/CurrentNews/press_release_detail.asp?id=11108

Cupertino-Based Apple Receives Nasdaq Delisting Notice

Cupertino, Calif. -- In the midst of its internal investigation into accounting irregularities related to stock option grants, Cupertino-based Apple said on Friday that it has received a delisting notice from the Nasdaq for failing to file its quarterly report on time. The company said that it will request a hearing to keep its listing. Apple announced in late June that it discovered accounting errors related to the issuance of stock option grants between 1997-2001. The company said that it plans to file its quarterly report following the completion of an investigation by a special committee of its outside directors.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2006/aug/11stock.html

Cupertino-Based EA Faces Shareholder Suit Over Stock Option Grants

Redwood City, Calif. -- Electronic Arts, the Redwood City-based develpper and publisher of video games, said that it has been sued by a group of shareholders over its past granting of stock options. The lawsuit comes as fellow game publishers Take-Two, Activision and THQ all announced having received inquiries from the SEC regarding their stock options grants. The SEC said that it is investigating more than 80 companies over the practice of "backdating," or changing the date on which past stock options were granted in order to increase their value. The suit against Electronic Arts was filed in San Mateo Superior Court by a pension fund that also previously sued Cupertino-based Apple over stock options grants.
http://biz.yahoo.com/e/060810/erts8-k.html
http://www.ea.com

S.F.-Based Vista Sells Majority Stake in Applied Systems for $675 Million

San Francisco -- Private equity firm Bain Capital said that it has acquired a majority interest in Applied Systems, an Illinois-based provider of insurance agency and broker management software, from San Francisco-based Vista Equity Partners. According to The New York Times, the purchase price was $675 million. Vista, a private equity firm, had partnered with Kellner in September 2004 to buy the company from founder Robert Eustace. Applied Systems provides insurance-agency automation technology for functions such as accounting, and customer, policy and claims management. Its products have about 120,000 users in 10,000 insurance agencies.
http://www.appliedsystems.com/news/News_Releases/08112006.aspx

Survey: Millions of Minors Illegally Buying Alcohol Online

Washington, DC -- Millions of minors either buy alcohol online with ease or know an underage friend who does, according to a survey released on Friday by the Wine and Spirits Wholesalers of America (WSWA). The organization said that 12% of minors ages 14-20 (3.1 million) report having a friend who has ordered alcohol online, while another 2% (551,000) say they personally have bought it over the Internet.  "This is a dangerous situation," said Stan Hastings, chairman of the WSWA. "For the first time, we have hard evidence that millions of kids are buying alcohol online and that the Internet is fast becoming a high-tech, low-risk way for kids to get beer, wine and liquor delivered to their home with no ID check."
http://www.wswa.org/public/media/tru-research/research.html

Sunnyvale-Based Juniper Networks May need to Restate Results Since 2003

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Joining a seemingly ever-growing list of companies, Sunnyvale-based Juniper Networks said on Thursday that it may need to restate all of its financial statements since 2003 as a result of accounting errors related to the granting of stock options. The company said that its audit committee has preliminarily concluded that the actual measurement dates of some stock option grants differ from the recorded grant dates of those awards. As a result, Juniper said that it will need to record additional non-cash charges for stock-based compensation expenses. The company also said that it has missed the deadline to file its quarterly report for the period ending June 30, and expects to receive a Nasdaq delisting notice.  Juniper said that it plans to file the report "as soon as practicable" following the investigation.
http://www.juniper.net/company/presscenter/pr/2006/pr-060810.html 

MTV Networks to Acquire S.F.-Based Atom Entertainment for $200 Million

San Francisco -- MTV Networks has agreed to acquire Atom Entertainment, a San Francisco-based operator of four online destinations for games, short films and video, for $200 million. Atom was formed in 2001 by the merger of Shockwave.com and AtomFilms. In 2005, Atom acquired the online games portal AddictingGames. Shortly after, the company launched the online video directory AddictingClips, which was developed to offer consumers a source for "the best clips across the web." Viacom said that acquiring Atom advances its "multiplatform strategy of building an engaging universe of music, gaming, entertainment, news and interactivity for targeted audiences."
http://www.atomentertainment.com/asw_pressrelease_080906.html

Blackmagic Design Moves from Nevada to Milpitas, Hires President

Milpitas, Calif. -- Blackmagic Design, a maker of video cards and converters for the post-production and television broadcast industries, said on Thursday that it has begun its relocation from Las Vegas to Milpitas, and named Dan May as its president. "Our move to the Silicon Valley from Nevada is an extremely exciting opportunity for us and will enable us to have stronger ties with our alliance partners," said Grant Petty, the CEO of Blackmagic Design. May most recently served as the West Coast sales manager at Inlet Technology and previously was responsible for sales and distribution channels at Canopus.
http://www.blackmagic-design.com
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060810/20060810005090.html?.v=1

Report: Viacom Pondering Bid for Social Networking Site Bebo

San Francisco -- Media conglomerate Viacom is looking into the possibility of buying San Francisco-based social networking service Bebo.com, according to a report in the Financial Times. Viacom lost out in its bid for MySpace to rival News Corporation, which paid $580 million for the social network. Bebo.com currently claims 25 million users (compared with 90 million for MySpace), and is the top social network in Ireland and second most-popular in the U.K. The Financial Times reported that Viacom has instructed its mergers and acquisitions team to look into Bebo, while Bebo CEO Michael Birch told the paper that the company is in no hurry to sell. Birch added that Bebo is approached at least once every two weeks by potential bidders, many of them traditional media firms like Viacom -- which owns Paramount Pictures, MTV, Nickelodeon, Comedy Central and other cable networks.
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/492e898c-264c-11db-afa1-0000779e2340.html
http://www.bebo.com

Google to Digitize Books from Libraries at the University of California

Mountain View, Calif. -- Google, the Mountain View-based Internet search giant, said that the University of California has joined its Google Book Search project, which will digitize books from libraries at UC and fellow partners including the University of Michigan, the New York Public Library and Stanford, Harvard and Oxford universities. "The digitization project furthers UC's mission," said Robert Dynes, the president of UC. "It greatly expands our ability to give scholars and the public access to the kinds of information and ideas that drive scholarly innovation and public knowledge and discourse." Google Book Search will provide free browsing and online reading of public domain books held by partner libraries. For copyrighted works, users will get information such as title and author's name, along with a short sample of text and information on where to borrow or purchase the book. Publishers and authors can also opt out of the index.
http://www.universityofcalifornia.edu/news/2006/aug09.html
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2006/08/welcome-to-university-of-california.html

Inventors of Plasma Display Among Nine Picked for CE Hall of Fame

San Francisco -- Inventors of the plasma display, the precursor to today's high definition plasma TVs, are among nine people that have been selected by the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) for induction into the Consumer Electronics Industry Hall of Fame this October in San Francisco. Inductees include Donald Bitzer, Robert Willson and the late Gene Slottow, colleagues from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign who invented the plasma display in 1960. The 2006 class also includes Nick Holonyak, inventor of light-emitting diodes (LED); George Heilmeier, inventor of the liquid crystal display (LCD); and retailer A.J. Richard. Other inductees will be industry executives Jack Doyle of Pioneer America; Howard Ladd of Sanyo; John Roach of Tandy/RadioShack; Robert Galvin of Motorola and Andrew Grove and Gordon Moore, two of the three co-founders of Intel. The third co-founder, Robert Noyce, was inducted in 2000. They will join 97 other industry luminaries in the Hall.
http://www.ce.org/Events/Awards/348.asp
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060810/20060810005489.html?.v=1

Santa Clara-Based Intel to Sell Media and Signaling Business to Eicon

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Intel, the Santa Clara-based chip-making giant, said on Wednesday that it will sell its media and signaling business to Texas-based Eicon Networks. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The business includes about 600 employees involved in a variety of functions, including engineering, product testing and validation, operations and marketing. Eicon said that it plans to hire a "significant number" of the employees. Eicon said that the deal will make it a major player in the media processing and signaling market, while Intel said that the move will allow it to focus its investments on its core communications and embedded businesses.
http://www.eicon.com/us/press/view_press.htm?sid=13026

Santa Clara-Based OnVantage Merges with Philadelphia-Based StarCite

Santa Clara, Calif. -- OnVantage, a Santa Clara-based provider of technology for the professional meetings and events industry, said on Wednesday that it has merged with Philadelphia-based counterpart StarCite. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The new company, which will operate under the StarCite name and maintain headquarters in Philadelphia, will have a customer list that includes AIG, Caterpillar, Cisco, Motorola, Nestle, PricewaterhouseCoopers and Shell. Michael Boult, the president and CEO of StarCite, said that the combined company will have plenty of revenue opportunities, with only 3% of corporate meetings spending currently under management. The deal is expected to close by year's end.
http://www.starcite.com/html/english/merger_announcement.html

Alviso-Based TiVo Names Steve Sordello as New CFO

Alviso, Calif. -- TiVo, the Alviso-based provider of digital video recorders and subscription services, on Wednesday named Steve Sordello as its senior vice president and CFO. Sordello most recently served as the executive vice president and CFO of Ask Jeeves. He also previously held senior positions at Adobe Systems and Syntex. TiVo said that Stuart West, who served as its acting CFO for the past four months, is leaving the Company to pursue another opportunity.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060809/sfw017.html?.v=67
http://www.tivo.com

Santa Clara-Based Atheros Communications Completes Acquisition of ZyDAS

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Atheros Communications, a Santa Clara-based developer of semiconductor systems for wireless communications products, said on Wednesday that it has completed its acquisition of Taiwan-based ZyDAS Technology. Financial terms were not disclosed. ZyDAS specializes in making wireless local area network (WLAN) semiconductor and software products. Atheros, which first announced the deal in April, said that the acquisition will expand its WLAN product portfolio, as well as add a new research and development center to support the company's expansion into new wireless markets. 
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/060809/sfw072.html?.v=68
http://www.atheros.com/

Fremont-Based Optichron Names Perry Constantine New CEO

Fremont, Calif. -- Optichron, a Fremont-based developer of advanced signal processing products, on Wednesday named semiconductor industry veteran Perry Constantine as its new CEO. He replaces company founder Roy Batruni, who will become the company's CTO and vice president of engineering, in addition to his role as chairman. Constantine most recently served as the president and CEO of IP Infusion, and previously served as the president and CEO of Silicon Access Networks, a company he founded.
http://www.optichron.com/news.html

Castro Valley Residents Recycle 65,000 Pounds of E-Waste at Event

Castro Valley, Calif. -- The Castro Valley Sanitary District (CVSD) said on Wednesday that area residents hauled more than 65,000 pounds of unwanted electronics to its fourth annual E-Waste Collection Day last month. The CVSD, partnering with Fresno-based Electronic Recyclers, collected the unwanted computers, monitors, televisions, laptops, computer peripherals and cell phones at a school parking lot. The accumulation of e-waste is a growing problem that has gained national attention. The waste contains materials that can be hazardous if not disposed of properly.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060809/20060809005688.html?.v=1

San Jose-Based Brocade to Acquire McDATA for $713 Million in Stock

San Jose, Calif. -- Brocade, a San Jose-based developer of storage area network (SAN) platforms, said on Tuesday that it will acquire Colorado-based storage networking firm McDATA for approximately $713 million in stock. Michael Klayko, the CEO of Brocade, said that the acquisition will ultimately help his company to compete more effectively "in a dynamic and changing market." Brocade said that it expects to save around $100 million a year as a result of operational synergies. Under the deal, McDATA stockholders will receive three-quarters of a share of Brocade stock for each share of their stock. If the deal closes as planned by the end of January, McDATA will become a unit of Brocade, with McDATA stockholders owing approximately 30% of Brocade. McDATA CEO John Kelley will serve as an advisor.
http://www.brocade.com/news/2006/8_8_McDATA.jsp

Menlo Park-Based Xtent Files to Raise Up to $103.5 Million in IPO

Menlo Park, Calif. -- Xtent, a Menlo Park-based medical device company developing stent systems for the treatment of coronary and peripheral artery disease, has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise up to $103.5 million in an upcoming initial public offering (IPO). The company hasn't revealed details such as the number of shares or price range. It has applied to list its stock on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbol "XTNT."
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/060807/0151582.html
http://ipoportal.edgar-online.com/ipo/displayFundamentals.asp?cikid=389665&fnid=51078&IPO=1&coname=XTENT+INC

Santa Clara-Based Intel to Help Build $3 Billion WiMAX Network

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Intel, the Santa Clara-based chipmaker, said on Tuesday that it will be part of wireless giant Sprint Nextel's $3 billion project to build a new nationwide broadband mobile network, based on the WiMAX (Worldwide Interoperability for Microwave Access) standard. Working with Intel, Motorola and Samsung, Sprint Nextel will develop both the network infrastructure and mobile WiMAX-enabled chipsets that will support advanced wireless broadband services on the company's 2.5GHz spectrum holdings, which cover 85% of households in the top 100 U.S. markets. The company, which plans to spend $1 billion on the project next year and another $1.5-$2 billion in 2008, said that the network will offer consumers faster wireless speeds at a lower cost than current technologies. Sprint Nextel expects to launch the network in trial markets by the end of 2007, with coverage of 100 million people expected by 2008.
http://www2.sprint.com/mr/news_dtl.do?id=12960

Citrix to Acquire San Mateo-Based Orbital Data for $50 Million

San Mateo, Calif. -- Citrix Systems, a Florida-based provider of remote computer access technologies, said on Tuesday that it will pay $50 million in cash to acquire Orbital Data, a San Mateo-based maker of products designed to optimize the delivery of applications over wide area networks. Founded in 2002, Orbital Data has about 75 customers and 60 employees. Citrix expects the deal, scheduled to close in the third quarter, to add $10-$12 million to Citrix's revenue in 2007.
http://www.citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=31991

Report: Master Recording Ringtones Now 76% of Market

San Francisco -- Ringtones featuring actual clips of master recordings -- known as "realtones" -- now account for 76% of the overall music ringtone market, according to a new report from San Francisco-based market research firm Telephia. Monophonic and polyphonic ringtones now represent just 12% of the market, down from nearly 30% in the third quarter of 2005. "It's no surprise that mono and polyphonic ringtones have fallen out of favor with mobile consumers as realtones are a far superior format, much like how CDs replaced cassette tapes," said Kanishka Agarwal, the vice president of new products at Telephia. "This is all part of the broader shift toward consumers expecting their mobile devices to deliver a high-quality portable music experience." Telephia said that more than 24.6 million mobile consumers purchased a ringtone during the most recent quarter.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/060807/20060807005538.html?.v=1
http://www.telephia.com

Mountain View-Based Google Signs Landmark Ad Deal with Fox Interactive

Mountain View, Calif. -- Delivering a blow to rival Yahoo, Mountain View-based Google on Monday unveiled a deal to exclusively deliver search and keyword ad sales to Fox Interactive Media's growing network of web properties, including MySpace.com. Under the agreement, Google will pay a minimum of $900 million to Fox in the form of revenue share payments from early 2007 through mid-2010. Google will power web, vertical and site specific search for MySpace.com and the majority of Fox Interactive Media properties, which also include ign.com, gamespy.com and scout.com, among others. "This deal is the next step in our evolution as a significant interactive player," said Ross Levinsohn, the president of Fox Interactive Media.
http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/pressrel/ir_20060807.html

Sunnyvale-Based EverNote Raises $6 Million, Names CEO

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- EverNote, a Sunnyvale-based developer of note management, digital ink and handwriting recognition software, said on Monday that it has raised $6 million in its first round of funding, and named Tom Garland as its CEO. J.F. Mackie & Company, an independent equity investment firm based in Calgary, served as the exclusive agent for the financing. EverNote said that it will use the proceeds to support the development, sales and marketing of its new products. Garland most recently spent six years at Acuitive, a venture services firm in specializing in assisting early-stage technology companies. He also previously spent four years as the vice president of network programming, syndication and business development for Mpath/HearMe.
http://www.evernote.com/en/news/releases.php?id=22&action=view

Santa Clara-Based BridgeWave Lands Debt Financing from Ritchie

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Ritchie Technology & Life Science Finance, a Chicago-based venture capital firm with local operations in Menlo Park, said on Monday that it has provided $2.25 million in debt financing to BridgeWave Communications, a Santa Clara-based supplier of gigabit wireless products. BridgeWave makes high-speed wireless communications links that provide an alternative to installing fiber cabling to interconnect local area networks (LANs) between buildings, as well as to connect buildings to network backbones. Launched in 1999, the company current has 50 employees.
http://www.bridgewave.com/

San Jose-Based Infineon Technologies N.A. Names New President, CEO

San Jose, Calif. -- Infineon Technologies North America, the San Jose-based unit of German semiconductor giant Infineon Technologies, on Monday named Gerry Duggan as its president and CEO, effective Sept. 25. Duggan most recently served as the president and COO of Future Electronics. All told, he spent over 20 years at Future, where he held several executive leadership positions. "I am confident that his strong semiconductor network will help strengthen Infineon's presence in the North American market," said Wolfgang Ziebart, the president and CEO of parent Infineon.
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/060807/0150074.html
http://www.infineon.com

Santa Clara-Based Intel Launches Software R&D Program at Schools

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Intel, the Santa Clara-based computer chip giant, on Monday announced a major new program to prepare university students for software development, as Intel transitions its processors "from single-processor engines to ones that will have multiple cores and threads." The company said that it is providing 45 universities around the world with expertise, funding, development tools, educational materials, on-site training and sustained collaboration with the company to incorporate new concepts into their computer science curricula. Some schools involved in the program include Carnegie Mellon, Cornell, Michigan and University of Washington, as well as academic institutions in Brazil, China, India, Mexico, Russia, Taiwan and several European countries.
http://www.intel.com/pressroom/archive/releases/20060807corp.htm

More Than Half of U.S. Internet Users Visit News Site in June

Reston, Va. -- More than half (54%) of all U.S. Internet users visited news sites during June, led by Yahoo News, MSNBC and AOL News, according to new figures released by Internet research firm comScore Media Metrix. With the exception of Yahoo, each of the sites among the top 10 have ties to traditional media outlets, the firm said. "Interestingly, five of the top 10 general news sites worldwide are operated by U.S.-based companies," said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix.  "Yahoo News is the category leader, both domestically and worldwide, while MSNBC and CNN rank among the top five news sites in the U.S. and among the worldwide Internet population."
http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=971

Cupertino-Based Apple Likely to Restate Financial Results Since 2002

Cupertino, Calif. -- Shares of Cupertino-based Apple dropped nearly 2% on Friday after the computer and portable music giant said that it will likely need to restate its financial results since late 2002 as a result of irregularities in its stock option grants. Apple had previously said that an internal investigation had revealed irregularities related to the issuance of some stock option grants made between 1997-2001. Now,. however, the company said that it has discovered more problems that will force it to restate financial statements and record non-cash charges for compensation expenses. As a result of the investigation, Apple is delaying its quarterly report for the period ended July 1.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2006/aug/03update.html