Silicon Valley Wire

San Jose-Based Cisco to Pay $215 Million for Mountain View's PostPath

San Jose, Calif. -- Cisco, the San Jose-based network equipment giant, said that it will pay $215 million to acquire Mountain View-based PostPath, a developer of email and calendaring software. Cisco said that the deal, expected to close by the end of October, will enhance the existing email and calendaring capabilities of its WebEx Connect collaboration platform. PostPath's employees will become part of the Cisco Collaboration Software Group (CSG). "The acquisition of PostPath complements our strategy to develop an integrated collaboration platform," said Doug Dennerline, the group's senior vice president.
http://www.cisco.com
http://www.postpath.com/
http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2008/corp_082708.html?POSITION=LINK&COUNTRY_SITE=us&CAMPAIGN=NewsAtCiscoLatestNewsfromCDCHP&CREATIVE=LINK1&REFERRING_SITE=CISCO.COMHOMEPAGE

Redwood City-Based Replay Solutions Raises $11M in Second Round

Redwood City, Calif. -- Replay Solutions, a Redwood City-based developer of tools designed to help software developers more easily find and fix bugs, said that it has secured $11 million in its second round of funding. Sigma Partners, Hummer Winblad and Partech International participated in the round, which Replay will use to grow its sales, marketing and engineering departments, as well as to expand its product lines. The company's technology allows users to record their software applications and servers at any stage of development, then -- much like a DVR -- fast-forward directly to any errors. Hummer Winblad and Partech International also invested a total of $4.2 million in the four-year-old company in late 2006.
http://www.replaysolutions.com
http://www.replaysolutions.com/news/news.php?id=35

S.F.-Based Webcarzz Raises $4 Million in First Round

San Francisco -- Webcarzz, a San Francisco-based developer and publisher of multiplayer online games, said on Thursday that it has landed $4 million in its first round of funding, led by Meakem Becker Venture Capital. The company said that it will use the proceeds to develop, launch and market its upcoming casual multiplayer online game. Webcarzz said that the game, being developed in partnership with MCS Games, will offer a social space in which users can engage in play with others, but doesn't require fixed play patterns or skill levels for success. "With over 300 million online gamers today, the time is ripe for virtual worlds and multiplayer online games," said Chris Bergstresser, the CEO of Webcarzz. "Together with MCS Games, we are creating a very unique and highly engaging online destination aimed at a very specific and underserved market segment."
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20080828005720/en

TechWeb's Light Reading Acquires Pyramid Research

San Francisco -- Light Reading Communications Network, a publishing, events and research company for the communications marketplace owned by San Francisco-based TechWeb, said that it has acquired Pyramid Research, a Massachusetts-based provider of communications industry market data. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Pyramid analyzes and forecasts demand for communications and media services, applications, networks and devices in more than 100 countries, with a focus on developing markets. Tony Uphoff, the CEO of TechWeb said that the addition of Pyramid "more than doubles the size of our research portfolio and positions TechWeb for increased global growth."
http://www.techweb.com
http://www.pyr.com/pr_prlist/pr_082708TechWeb.htm 

Sprint Nextel Signs Bay Area Partners for Xohm WiMax Service

San Francisco -- Wireless giant Sprint Nextel said on Thursday that it has signed nine new partners -- including gseveral from the Bay Area -- to power location-based services on its Xohm WiMax mobile broadband service. The high-speed service is scheduled to debut in Baltimore next month, with other cities expected to follow by year's end. The company said that the services will allow subscribers with laptops or mobile devices to search for interests, see results plotted on a map, acquire detailed information, get directions and assemble friends, among other functions. Partners will include San Francisco-based Yelp, Palo Alto-based Topix, Mountain View-based Google, Redwood City-based Openwave Systems and San Rafael-based Autodesk, in addition to Boston-based uLocate Communications, San Diego-based Eventful, Chicago-based NAVTEQ and Pennsylvania-based AccuWeather,
http://www.xohm.com/
http://newsreleases.sprint.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=127149&p=irol-newsArticle_newsroom&ID=1191622

Report: MySpace Overtakes Yahoo in Online Display Ad Views

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Popular social network MySpace has surpassed Sunnyvale-based Yahoo to become the top publisher of online display advertising in the U.S., according to new data released by comScore. Fox Interactive Media, the owner of MySpace, accounted for 15.9% of all display ads viewed in June, with Yahoo accounting for 10.5%. Yahoo, however, disputes the numbers. "We believe there could be issues with the measurement that could be misrepresenting Yahoo and we are reviewing comScore's methodology and working with them to resolve these issues," company spokesman Adam Grossberg said in a statement published by Reuters. AOL ranked third (5.8%), followed by Microsoft, Mountain View-based Google, Palo Alto-based Facebook and San Jose-based eBay.
http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=2415
http://www.reuters.com/article/marketsNews/idINN2747715820080828?rpc=44

Lifetime Acquires San Francisco-Based ParentsClick Network

San Francisco -- Lifetime Networks, the women's TV network jointly owned by Hearst and Disney, on Wednesday announced its first-ever digital acquisition with the purchase of ParentsClick Network, a San Francisco-based provider of social network creation tools. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. ParentsClick Network offers tools for parents to create their own social networks and blogs, aggregating and promoting content in a Digg-like style. Its sites include MothersClick.com, FathersClick.com and MomBlogNetwork.com. Lifetime said that the acquired technology will help accelerate the development of vertical communities on its MyLifetime.com, LMN.tv and DressUpChallenge.com sites.
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-27-2008/0004874309&EDATE=
http://www.parentsclick.com 
http://www.mothersclick.com 
http://www.mylifetime.com 

S.F.-Based Technorati Acquires Blogcritics Blog Network

San Francisco -- Technorati, a San Francisco-based blog search and advertising network that tracks over 100 million blogs, said that it has acquired Blogcritics, a six-year-old blog aggregation network. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Blogcritics network counts thousands of bloggers with a combined audience of more than 1 million.
"Blogcritics brings us closer to an open community of bloggers and the audience that follows them," Technorati CEO Richard Jalichandra wrote in his blog. "It also gives us a lot more advertising inventory." Jalichandra said that Technorati will help expose Blogcritics' bloggers to a wider audience, as well as help authors monetize their content. Blogcritics has been part of the company's Technorati Media section since June.
http://technorati.com/weblog/2008/08/444.html 
http://www.blogcritics.org 

San Jose-Based Immersion to Pay Microsoft $20.75M in Settlement

San Jose, Calif. -- Immersion, the San Jose-based developer of touch feedback technology used in many video games, said that it will pay Microsoft $20.75 million to settle pending litigation between the two companies. Microsoft originally had sued Immersion under a sublicense deal signed in 2003, and Immersion then countersued last year, claiming breach of a confidentiality agreement. Litigation between the companies, which focused on the technology behind Microsoft's Xbox controller, had been pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington since June 2007. In addition to the payment, Immersion will become an official partner of Microsoft. "We are pleased to resolve our outstanding dispute with Microsoft and to put this litigation behind us," said Clent Richardson, the president and CEO of Immersion.
http://www.immersion.com
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080826/20080826006382.html?.v=1

Regent Completes Deal for PlanetOut's Publishing Properties

San Francisco -- Regent Media, the Los Angeles-based owner of gay-focused cable network here! Networks, said that it has completed its acquisition of the publishing properties of San Francisco-based gay media firm PlanetOut, including Out and The Advocate magazines. Financial terms of the deal, which also included The Out Traveler, HIV Plus, Gaywired Media and Alyson Books, were not disclosed. Regent said that it is relaunching advocate.com, starting with video news broadcasts from the Democratic National Convention. The site's new team includes veteran broadcast journalist James Hattori, best known for his work as a senior correspondent with CBS, NBC and CNN.
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080825/20080825005889.html?.v=1 
http://www.regentmedia.com
http://www.planetout.com 

Nielsen: 2.9 Million Received Obama's VP Text Message

San Francisco -- An estimated 2.9 million U.S. mobile subscribers received Sen. Barack Obama's text message announcing Sen. Joe Biden as his vice presidential running mate, according to San Francisco-based Nielsen Mobile. Nielsen said that despite being scooped on his choice by news outlets, Obama's text message "still ranks as one of the most important text messages ever sent," and "further established a list of supporters' most coveted form of contact: their cell phone numbers." The firm estimates that 116 million U.S. mobile subscribers actively use text messaging.
http://www.nielsenmobile.com/html/press%20releases/ObamaSMSVPMessage.html

Head of Va. Firm Teams with Craigslist founder on Blog

San Francisco -- Mike Smith, the CEO of Virginia-based public affairs firm MSBD, said that he now is working with Craig Newmark, the founder of San Francisco-based Craigslist, on his blog. Newmark's blog -- called cnewmark -- is increasingly examining public policy and political issue of interest to Newmark, including participatory democracy, public policy issues and money in politics. The two are currently working on the blog from the Democratic National Convention in Denver. "Yes, I realize that I'm in over my head, so I'm getting help from a public affairs guy Michael Smith," wrote Newmark. "Yes, I realize that I should keep my day job." Smith also is blogging for the Huffington Post and Reuters.com. MSBD, originally launched in 2000 under the name Upstart Vision, specializes in small to medium-sized technology and telecom companies.
http://www.cnewmark.com
http://www.michaelsmithbizdev.com

Palo Alto-Based HP Completes $13.9 Billion Acquisition of EDS

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Wrapping up one of the largest-ever deals in the technology sector, Palo Alto-based Hewlett-Packard (HP) said on Tuesday that it has completed its $13.9 billion acquisition of Electronic Data Systems (EDS), the Texas-based provider of technology services. The deal is the largest for HP since acquiring Compaq in 2002, and is expected to more than double the company's technology services revenue, helping it to close the gap on market leader IBM. HP said that it has established a new business group, branded EDS, an HP company. It will be headquartered at EDS's existing facility in Plano, Texas and led by Ronald Rittenmeyer, its current chairman, president and CEO. HP's Technology Solutions Group will shift its outsourcing services operations to the new group, as well as portions of its consulting and integration activities. "Today marks the beginning of an exciting new era," said Rittenmeyer. "We have an opportunity to truly redefine the technology services market."
http://www.eds.com/
http://www.hp.com/
http://www.hp.com/hpinfo/newsroom/press/2008/080826xa.html

San Mateo-Based Brand.net Raises $10 million in Second Round

San Mateo, Calif. -- Brand.net, the San Mateo-based developer of an online advertising network focused exclusively on brand advertising, said on Tuesday that it ahs raised $10 million in its second round of funding, led by Norwest Venture Partners. Previous investor InterWest Partners also participated in the round, which the year-old company will use to further develop its technology. Brand.net is led by CEO Elizabeth Blair, the former senior vice president of business operations for Yahoo's global operating group, and COO Andy Atherton, Yahoo's former vice president of global pricing and yield management.
http://brand.net/
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080826/20080826005369.html?.v=1

Palo Alto-Based Hercules Secures $300 Million Credit Facility

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Hercules Technology Growth Capital, a Palo Alto-based specialty finance firm providing venture debt and equity to technology and life science companies, said on Tuesday that it has secured a new credit facility worth up to $300 million, including $50 million from Wells Fargo Foothill Lender Finance. Hercules will use the new facility to provide growth capital to technology and life sciences companies. Through the end of June, the firm had committed $1.3 billion to 120 companies.
http://www.htgc.com/
http://pdfs.herculestech.com/PDFs/HTGCFINAL82608.pdf (PDF)

San Mateo-Based Conviva Secures $20 Million in Second Round

San Mateo, Calif. -- Conviva, the San Mateo-based developer of a media platform that allows companies to broadcast secure live video, announced on Monday that it has raised $20 million in its second round of funding, led by UV Partners. Previous backers New Enterprise Associates and Foundation Capital also participated in the round. The company said that it will use the proceeds to expand its platform, accelerate product development and invest in business development with key customers. Conviva has now raised a total of $29 million, including $9 million in its first round a year ago. "This funding bolsters Conviva's staying power and will propel us into the future," said Carlos Ramon, the company's president and CEO.
http://www.conviva.com/
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080825/nem035.html?.v=62

San Francisco-Based Demandbase Raises $8 Million in Funding

San Francisco -- Demandbase, a San Francisco-based developer of web-based software used by companies to identify, reach and convert new customers, said on Monday that it has raised $8 million in a new round of funding, led by Sigma partners. Previous investors Altos Ventures and Adobe Systems also participated in the round, which the two-year-old company will use to expand its technology platform. The company also on Monday released its web-based platform, known as Demandbase Direct. The platform is comprised of a search, scoring and transaction engine designed to find and qualify B2B sales prospects and deliver them to a customer's email, desktop or CRM system. Another new application, known as Demandbase Stream, allows sales and marketing professionals to discover business prospects visiting their web site, view their respective interests and act upon those opportunities in real time.
http://www.demandbase.com/
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080825/20080825005212.html?.v=1
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080825/20080825005213.html?.v=1

Broadcom Buys AMD's Digital TV Business for $192.8 Million

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Broadcom said on Monday that it will acquire the digital TV business of Sunnyvale-based chipmaker AMD for about $192.8 million in cash. Irvine-based Broadcom said the deal will expand its customer base, and allow it to offer a product line that covers all segments of the digital TV market. The company said that it will seek to retain over 530 AMD employees across six of the company's design centers. Dirk Meyer, the president and CEO of AMD, said that the sale is part of a plan to make his company "leaner and more focused" while steering it toward a business model of "sustainable profitability." "The sale of our DTV business is a key step in AMD's transformation, helping to strengthen our balance sheet, lower our breakeven point, and hone our focus," said Meyer. 
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20080825005415/en
http://www.amd.com 
http://www.broadcom.com

C-SPAN Launches Online Democratic, Republican Convention Hubs

Washington, DC -- C-SPAN, the non-profit cable network dedicated to Capitol Hill politics and public policy, has launched a pair of new web sites designed to track coverage of the political blogosphere and social media during the Democratic and Republican National Conventions. The sites, available at the links below, incorporate user-generated content from sources such as YouTube, Twitter and blogs, and also feature C-SPAN convention video that users can embed onto their own sites. The Democratic Convention is taking place this week in Denver, while the Republican Convention will kick off next week in Minneapolis.
http://dnc08.c-span.org/
http://rnc08.c-span.org/

Rocket Paper Scissors Lands $1 Million for Kids' Virtual World

San Francisco -- Rocket Paper Scissors, a San Francisco-based developer of entertainment web sites aimed at kids, has raised $1 million in new financing, PEHub.com reported, citing a regulatory filing. The European Founders Fund is the company's only listed shareholder. Rocket Paper Scissors' main project is Dizzywood, a 3D virtual world for kids that features a range of games and other interactive features.
http://www.pehub.com/article/articledetail.php?articlepostid=14202 
http://blog.rocketps.com
http://www.dizzywood.com 

China Edges U.S. in Visits to Official Olympics Web Site

Reston, Va. -- While the U.S. may have edged China for the most medals at the recently completely Summer Olympics in Beijing, those roles were reversed when it came to visits to the official Olympics web site, according to comScore. The firm said that Beijing2008.cn, which is published in five languages, attracted 16.5 million visitors during the first 10 days of the games, with 25.7% coming from China and 24.8% from the U.S. Canada ranked third (5.7%), followed by the U.K. (5.2%) and Australia (2.8%). English-speaking countries represented four out of the top five countries and approximately 40% of total visitors to the site. "It's exciting to see that the official Chinese Olympics site was built in a variety of languages so as to attract visitors from across the globe," said Gian Fulgoni, the chairman of comScore. 
http://en.beijing2008.cn/
http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=2410

Redwood City-Based Turn Inc. Lands $15 Million in Third Round

Redwood City, Calif. -- Turn Inc., a Redwood City-based developer of technology designed to better target online ads, said on Thursday that it has raised $15 million in its third round of funding, led by Palo Alto based Focus Ventures. Norwest Venture Partners, Trident Capital and Shasta Ventures also participated in the round, which increase the company's total backing to $37 million. The company said that it will use the new capital to develop new technology, as well as expand its sales and client services teams. Turn said that its "Smart Market" technology blends and automates multiple ad targeting approaches, then more accurately measures consumers' responses to online ads than most current methods. The company was founded in 2005 by Jim Barnett, the former president of Overture Search and CEO of AltaVista, and John Ellis.
http://www.turn.com
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080821/aqth033.html?.v=67

Intel CTO Says Gap Between Humans, Machines Will Close by 2050

San Francisco -- Speaking on Thursday at a forum in San Francisco, the CTO of Santa Clara-based chipmaker Intel made the bold prediction that the gap between humans and machines will close by 2050. "The industry has taken much greater strides than anyone ever imagined 40 years ago," said Justin Rattner. "There is speculation that we may be approaching an inflection point where the rate of technology advancements is accelerating at an exponential rate, and machines could even overtake humans in their ability to reason, in the not so distant future." Rattner said that Intel's research labs already are looking at human-machine interfaces and examining future implications to computing. On the not-too-distant horizon are technologies that could wirelessly recharge a laptop battery and change the physical shape of a computing device to suit the specific needs of its user, as well as autonomous robots capable of recognizing faces and interpreting and executing commands.
http://www.intel.com/pressroom/archive/releases/20080821comp.htm

California Again Leads Nation with Most Firms on Inc. 500 List

Redwood City, Calif. -- Agistix, a Redwood City-based developer of web-based software designed to help companies manage logistics, is the highest-ranked local company on the newly released 2008 Inc. 500 list of the fastest growing companies in America. The five-year-old company, which has just 35 employees, saw three-year revenue growth of 5,215%, ranking it 22nd on the list overall, as well as No. 2 among software companies. Once again, California tops the list with the most companies of any state, 78, down three from last year. Other local tech firms high on the list include Palo Alto-based SolutionSet (No. 23, 5,169% growth) and Los Gatos-based StrataLight Communications (No. 24, 5,126%). The complete list, available at the link below, will be published in the September issue of Inc.
http://www.inc.com/inc5000/2008/the-full-list.html

Yahoo, Intel Partner on TV Widget Platform

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Bay Area tech giants Yahoo and Intel have announced a partnership to jointly develop web widgets designed to bring interactive features to TV viewing. Under the deal, Santa Clara-based Intel will market a new computer chip to makers of televisions and set-top boxes. The chip will enable users to access widgets from Sunnyvale-based Yahoo that provide access to email, news, weather and sports scores. The companies will create a Widget Channel, accessible directly through TVs and set-tops, where users will be able to select and activate the widgets. Partners that have signed on to so far include Blockbuster, CBS, Disney-ABC, eBay, GE, Joost, MTV, Samsung, Toshiba and Twitter.
http://yhoo.client.shareholder.com/press/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=328918

Hillcrest Labs Sues Nintendo Over Wii Controller

Rockville, Md. -- Hillcrest Labs, a Maryland-based developer of motion-sensing technology, said that it has filed suit against video game giant Nintendo, claiming that the controller for the company's mega-popular Wii system infringes on three of its patents. The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for Maryland, seeks an unspecified amount of monetary damages. Hillcrest also has filed a separate complaint with the U.S. International Trade Commission (ITC). Hillcrest said that it has licensed its technology -- which allows users to interact with digital media on television using motion-control and pointing techniques -- with several consumer electronics companies, but that Nintendo is not among them. "While Hillcrest Labs has a great deal of respect for Nintendo and the Wii, Hillcrest Labs believes that Nintendo is in clear violation of its patents and has taken this action to protect its intellectual property rights," the company said in a statement.
http://www.hillcrestlabs.com 
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/080820/aqw072.html?.v=64

Momentum Building for Aug. 27 "Power IT Down Day"

Two of the Bay Area's largest technology companies, Palo Alto-based HP and Santa Clara-based Intel, are teaming with Citrix Systems as part of an effort to have government workers reduce unnecessary power usage. The initiative, called "Power IT Down Day," aims to have employees power down their computers, monitors and printers as they leave work on Wednesday, Aug. 27, instead of allowing them to sit idle. So far, individuals from more than 100 unique federal, state and local government agencies have signed on. "The savings from avoiding unnecessary power to idle monitors, processors and peripherals is compelling," said Tom Simmons, area vice president of Citrix Federal. The companies estimate that if PC users were to incorporate power management techniques, such as turning off their computers for the evening, energy cost savings could reach more than $80 billion.
http://www.citrix.com/PowerITDown
http://www.citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=1680247

FTC Approves Potential Merger of Electronic Arts, Take-Two

Redwood City, Calif. -- Two days after Redwood City-based Electronic Arts allowed its $2 billion takeover bid for rival game publisher Take-Two Interactive to expire, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Wednesday indicated that it would not challenge a combination of the two companies, Reuters reported. "Upon further review of this matter, it now appears that no additional action by the commission is warranted at this time. Accordingly, the investigation has been closed," reads a note on the FTC's web site. Separately, each company received a letter from the FTC, indicating that an investigation into their possible merger had been performed and completed. EA initially made its $25.74-a-share offer for Take-Two, the publisher of "Grand Theft Auto," in February. Though that offer has expired, the two companies have indicated that they will continue talks about a possible deal.
http://biz.yahoo.com/e/080820/erts8-k.html
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080820/tc_nm/taketwo_ea_dc_3 

Sausalito-Based AltaRock Energy Raises $26.25 Million

Sausalito, Calif. -- AltaRock Energy, a Sausalito-based renewable energy company focused on the research and development of engineered geothermal systems (EGS), said that it has raised $26.25 million in its second round of funding. Previous investors Khosla Ventures and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, were joined in the round by new investors Google.org, Advanced Technology Ventures and Vulcan Capital. Geothermal energy is clean, renewable energy that offsets CO2 emissions of electricity generated from fossil fuels such as coal and natural gas. EGS projects produce electricity using heat extracted with engineered fluid flow paths in hot rock. AltaRock said that it will use the funding to develop and demonstrate technology designed to lower the cost of EGS electricity generation.
http://www.altarockenergy.com/
http://www.altarockenergy.com/AltaRockEnergy.2008-08-19.pdf (PDF)

Cupertino-Based Apple Confirms iPhone Update Seeks to Improve 3G

Cupertino, Calif. -- After weeks of relative silence on the matter, Cupertino-based Apple has for the first time confirmed the existence of issues with reception on its new iPhone 3G, telling the Associated Press that its new 2.0.2 software update for the device "improved communication with 3G networks." Apple spokeswoman Jennifer Bowcock would not tell AP whether any problem was related to the antenna, amplifier, radio frequency receiver, baseband or other component. The company also did not specify what sort of improvements iPhone 3G users might expect after installing the update. CNET, which has been soliciting iPhone 3G users' comments on the matter, said that after updating their phones, some users did notice dramatically improved reception. Others, however, indicated that they are still having problems holding a 3G connection in places AT&T claims to provide excellent coverage.
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5hja6TyixqXMRLs2FLfEI_kAQ0ZZwD92LLK080 http://news.cnet.com/8301-13579_3-10021065-37.html

San Jose-Based DeviceVM Lands $15 Million in Third Round

San Jose, Calif. -- DeviceVM, a San Jose-based developer of an "instant-on" personal computing platform known as Splashtop, said that it has raised $15 million in its third round of funding, led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA). Previous investors Storm Ventures, DFJ Dragon, Tim Draper and Larry Augustin also participated. "As several additional large PC manufacturers are scheduled to begin shipping soon, our partnership with NEA will enable us to scale up DeviceVM to meet the worldwide demand for our product," said Mark Lee, the company's co-founder and CEO. Splashtop enables users to read email, chat on instant messengers and surf the web just seconds after turning on their PC. Two companies, ASUS and HP, currently embed the software on some of their products, including motherboards, desktops and notebooks.
http://www.splashtop.com/
http://www.splashtop.com/press_releases_detail.php?Id=28

Voxeo Acquires San Jose-Based Micromethod Technologies

San Jose, Calif. -- Voxeo, a Florida-based developer of interactive voice recognition and Internet phone platforms, said that has acquired Micromethod Technologies, a developer of communication and collaboration software with dual headquarters in San Jose and China. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Voxeo said that the acquisition not only will bolster its portfolio of  products and services, but also serve as the foundation for its expansion into the Asia Pacific region. Micromethod's customers include large voice platform and online collaboration service providers, such as Tellme and GMarket, as well as video and wireless communication vendors.
http://www.voxeo.com
http://www.micromethod.com
http://www.voxeo.com/about/press_reader.jsp?date=081908_micromethod.jsp

Chip Equipment Orders Fall to Lowest Level Since 2003

San Jose, Calif. -- North America-based manufacturers of semiconductor equipment posted $905 million in orders during July, down 3% from the previous month and 36% from the previous year, according to new figures from San Jose-based industry association SEMI. They also recorded a book-to-bill ratio of 0.83, meaning that just $83 worth of new orders were received for every $100 of product billed for the month. "Orders for semiconductor equipment continue reflect the pronounced cutback in capital expenditures this year and are at the lowest levels since November of 2003," said Daniel Tracy, the senior director of industry research and statistics at SEMI. "Factory utilization levels, unit demand growth and planned fab projects suggest that new investment activity will resume in 2009."
http://wps2a.semi.org/wps/portal/_pagr/103/_pa.103/248?dFormat=application/msword&docName=P044439

Cupertino-Based BioImagene Raises $26 Million in Fourth Round

Cupertino, Calif. -- BioImagene, a developer of digital pathology technology for cancer diagnosis and preclinical research, said on Tuesday that it has raised $26 million in its fourth round of funding, led by Burrill & Company. Ascension Health Ventures, National Healthcare Services and previous investors Artiman Ventures and ICCP Ventures also participated. "Our goal is to become the dominant player in this space by 2010. We are within range of our target and this funding will help us scale operations," said CEO Mohan Uttarwar. Digital pathology is the process of converting microscope slides into high-resolution digital images that can be viewed, managed and analyzed with a computer instead of a microscope. Digital pathology management systems then help interpret the information.
http://www.bioimagene.com
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080819/20080819005936.html?.v=1

S.F.-Based Canopy Financial Lands $8M from Foundation Capital

San Francisco -- Canopy Financial, a San Francisco-based developer of banking technology designed to connect healthcare and financial services, said that it has secured $8 million in a new round of funding from Foundation Capital. Canopy, which also announced a $15 million funding round in January from GGV Capital, said that it will use the new capital to expand its flagship HealthDirect product, an electronic payment, account management and investment technology platform that supports the healthcare banking programs of some of the largest banks and health plans. "This injection of funds from Foundation Capital allows us to meet accelerating market demand," said Vik Kashyap, the CEO of Canopy.
http://canopyfi.com
http://canopyfi.com/companypress.htm

Palo Alto-Based HourTown Raises $1 Million in Funding

Palo Alto, Calif. -- HourTown, the Palo Alto-based developer of an online scheduling service for personal businesses, said on Tuesday that it has secured $1 million in new funding to help support growth. The company, which is backed by Baseline Ventures, Hatch Ventures and NBC Universal, in addition to several Silicon Valley angel investors, said that it will use the new capital to accelerate hiring and further develop its product. "We're encouraged that some of the early investors in Google and PayPal are recognizing the value of our service, which is targeted at the estimated 15 million small business owners who provide services for a living," said Ryan Donahue, the founder of HourTown. The company's technology allows personal businesses as varied as accountants, massage therapists, music teachers, personal trainers and real estate agents to accept appointments online.
http://www.hourtown.com
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080819/20080819005484.html?.v=1

Swimmer Michael Phelps Surpasses 1 Million Facebook Fans

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Fresh off his record-breaking performance at the Beijing Olympics, U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps also continues to make giant waves online. As of Tuesday morning, the 23-year-old's Facebook fan page had just over 1 million members. As the Baltimore Sun pointed out, that's second only to presidential candidate Barack Obama, who had 1.35 million Facebook fans. "So many comments poured in [Monday], part of his fan profile site temporarily crashed," The Sun reported, citing officials from Palo Alto-based Facebook. By comparison, Phelps -- who on Sunday broke Mark Spitz's Olympic record with eight gold medals in a single games -- had more fans than the two most popular bands on Facebook, Coldplay and Linkin Park, combined. 
http://www.facebook.com/michaelphelps?ref=pdb
http://www.baltimoresun.com/entertainment/custom/today/bal-te.to.facebook19aug19,0,5946897.story

S.F.-Based Slide to Base East Coast Internet Operations in Virginia

San Francisco -- Slide, a San Francisco-based developer of online photo slideshow widgets that claims more than 150 million users through social networks like Facebook and MySpace, has expanded its Internet operations to the East Coast through a major data center in Northern Virginia. The facility, operated by Foster City-based Equinix, also houses several of Slide's partners, allowing the companies to directly connect to one another, eliminating network bottlenecks and reducing transit costs. Ken Brownfield, Slide's director of operations, called Equinix's DC5 center "one of the most well connected data centers on the East Coast." Founded in 2005 by PayPal co-founder Max Levchin, Slide offers web-based tools that let users create photo and video slideshows from their photo collections, then embed them on web pages and social networks. The company in January raised $50 million in a new financing round that valued it at more than $500 million.
http://www.slide.com/
http://biz.yahoo.com/bw/080818/20080818005146.html?.v=1

SEC to Soon Require Companies to File Interactive Reports

Washington, DC -- The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will soon require all publicly held corporations and mutual funds to file their financial reports using a new interactive online system, The Washington Post reported. The first filings, using a technology called XBRL (extensible business reporting language) will begin in December, and coincide with the SEC's plan to replace its document-based system, known as EDGAR, with a web-based platform known as IDEA (Interactive Data Electronic Applications). All firms will be required to file using the technology within two years. While EDGAR lists data only in blocks of text, the XBRL system, being developed by a nonprofit consortium, will allow users to more easily find data and download it into spreadsheets, The Post said.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/18/AR2008081802110.html?nav=rss_business

Sunnyvale-Based Palo Alto Networks Raises $27M in Third Round

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Palo Alto Networks, a Sunnyvale-based developer of network firewall technology that lets companies set and enforce application usage policies, said on Monday that it has raised $27 million in its third round of funding, led by Lehman Brothers Venture Partners. Previous investors Globespan Capital Partners, Greylock Partners and Sequoia Capital also participated in the round, which the company will use to expand its sales, marketing and customer service activities. "With this new financing we look forward to scaling the company’s operations," said Lane Bess, the CEO of Palo Alto Networks. The company also raises $18 million in June 2007, and has raised $55 million overall.
http://www.paloaltonetworks.com
http://www.paloaltonetworks.com/press_releases/2008-0818_seriesC.html

EA Lets Offer to Buy Take-Two Expire; Companies Remain in Talks

Redwood City, Calif. -- Electronic Arts (EA), the Redwood City-based developer and publisher of video games, said on Monday that it will let its tender offer for New York-based rival Take-Two Interactive expire at midnight. EA initially made its $2 billion bid for Take-Two, the publisher of "Grand Theft Auto," in February, and has since extended the expiration date on that $25.74-a-share offer several times. "Given the passage of time, we have to validate the assumptions used in the model to support our offer price of $25.74 per share in cash. In addition, we no longer believe we can integrate Take-Two ahead of the important holiday season," John Riccitiello, the CEO of EA, wrote in an open letter to Take-Two Chairman Strauss Zelnick. The two companies, however, remain in negotiations. Take-Two previously had said EA's offer undervalued the company, and aimed to take advantage of the impending release of its "Grand Theft Auto IV." "We have been willing to have EA participate in this process following the successful launch of GTA IV, and we are happy to include EA now," Zelnick wrote in response to Riccitiello's letter.
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20080818005383/en 
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20080818005662/en
http://www.ea.com

Oakland-Based Pandora Mulls Shutdown After Royalty Rate Hike

Oakland, Calif. -- Pandora, an Oakland-based streaming Internet radio service that claims about 1 million daily users, said that it may be forced to shut down following the recent doubling of royalty payments that it must pay copyright holders, The Washington Post reported. "We're approaching a pull-the-plug kind of decision," company co-founder Tim Westergren told the paper. "This is like a last stand for webcasting... We're losing money as it is. The moment we think this problem in Washington is not going to get solved, we have to pull the plug because all we're doing is wasting money." On the policy side, Rep. Howard Berman (D-Calif.) is attempting to broker a deal between webcasters and SoundExchange, the entity created by the labels to collect digital royalties, to lower the fees. But, as Berman told The Post, "Most of the rate issues have not been resolved." Pandora is expected to shell out 70% of its projected revenue of $25 million this year on fees it must pay each time someone listens to a song on its service.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/08/15/AR2008081503367.html
http://www.pandora.com

Former Viacom and Nextel Execs to Join Yahoo Board

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Yahoo will add Frank Biondi Jr., the former CEO of Viacom, and John Chapple, the former CEO of Nextel Partners, to its board of directors, choosing the pair from a list of nine possible new members submitted by billionaire investor Carl Icahn. The moves are part of an agreement that Sunnyvale-based Yahoo made with Icahn -- who owns a 5% stake in the company -- to ward off a potential proxy fight. To make room, Robert Kotick, the CEO of video game maker Activision Blizzard has stepped down from the board after five years. Icahn's list of possible board members also included Mark Cuban, who sold Broadcast.com to Yahoo in 1999; venture capitalist Adam Dell; Harvard Law professor Lucian Bebchuk; and Robert Shaye, the co-CEO of New Line Cinema, according to the Associated Press.
http://yhoo.client.shareholder.com/press/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=328217   
http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20080814/ap_on_hi_te/yahoo_board_12 
http://www.yahoo.com/ 

Mountain View-Based Google Continues Web Dominance in July

Mountain View, Calif. -- Google drew more than 141 million unique visitors to its sites in July, beating out rivals Yahoo and Microsoft as the most visited web property for the month, according to new figures from comScore Media Metrix. AOL landed in fourth place while Fox Interactive Media, owner of MySpace, was fifth. While Facebook is the fastest growing social-networking site, overall it landed at No. 16 with 39 million visitors. "Ground travel and cruise sites gained once again, as many Americans sought more budget-friendly ways to enjoy their summer vacations amid economic and fuel price concerns. Summer blockbusters and big celebrity news also provided a boost to the entertainment categories," said Jack Flanagan, executive vice president of comScore Media Metrix.
http://www.comscore.com/press/release.asp?press=2399
http://www.google.com

Best Buy to Become First Outside Retailer to Carry Apple's iPhone

Cupertino, Calif. -- Consumer electronics retailer Best Buy said that it will become the first U.S. chain to sell Cupertino-based Apple's iPhone 3G, which until now has been sold only at Apple and AT&T company stores, as well as online. The eight- and 16-gigabyte models of the devices will go on sale at nearly 1,000 locations beginning Sept. 7, selling for $199 and $299, respectively. Best Buy has been attempting to boost its share of the wireless market in recent months, upgrading the cell phone departments in its stores. "We had a lot of work to do, obviously, to get in a position where Apple and AT&T would feel good about Best Buy Mobile carrying it, and that's what we've done in the last 18 months," Shawn Score, the president of Best Buy Mobile, told the Associated Press.
http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?id=pcmcat159300050006&type=category
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/080812/tec_best_buy_iphone.html?.v=2

San Francisco-Based ScanCafe Raises $4 Million in Second Round

San Francisco -- ScanCafe, a San Francisco-based photo scanning and restoration service, said that it has raised $4 million in its second round of funding, led by Sigma Partners. The company, which also secured another $1.5 million in debt funding, plans to use a portion of the proceeds to invest in new technology and expand its global reach. Founded in 2006, ScanCafe offers photo, negative and slide scanning and restoration services, and recently scanned its 10 millionth image. Customers mail in their boxes of photos, slides and negatives, and the company scans, restores and organizes the images, providing clients with access to an online library to view and select the images they'd like to keep. Selected images are then burned to a DVD or CD and shipped back to the customer along with all of the originals.
http://www.scancafe.com/
http://www.scancafe.com/imgs/press/PR20080812_4M.pdf (PDF)

San Mateo-Based Anthera Pharmaceuticals Raises $19 Million

San Mateo, Calif. -- Anthera Pharmaceuticals, a San Mateo-based biopharmaceutical company developing anti-inflammatory drugs, said on Wednesday that it has raised $19 million in a new round of funding, co-led by new investors Caxton Advantage Life Sciences Fund and HBM BioCapital. Previous investors VantagePoint Venture Partners, Sofinnova Ventures, Pappas Ventures and Mitsubishi International also participated. The company also has named Christopher Henney, an independent director since 2006, as its new chairman. Henney is a co-founder of three major biotechnology companies -- Immunex‚ ICOS and Dendreon.
http://www.anthera.com/
http://www.anthera.com/august132008.html

San Francisco-Based PlanetOut Faces Delisting from Nasdaq

San Francisco - PlanetOut, the San Francisco-based media and entertainment firm focused on the gay and lesbian market, said that it has received a delistment warning from the Nasdaq, stating that the company has failed to maintain the market's minimum market value of $5 million for the past 30 days. The struggling company now has until Oct. 30 to regain compliance or its shares will be delisted from the exchange. PlanetOut, which owns web sites including Gay.com and PlanetOut.com, said last month that its accumulated deficit had grown to nearly $100 million.The company sold off its RSVP cruise ship line for an undisclosed sum last year, and in April sold off its OUT and Advocate magazines to here Networks for $6 million.
http://www.planetoutinc.com 
http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=104&STORY=/www/story/08-11-2008/0004865674&EDATE=

San Francisco-Based CNET, CEA Launch Consumer Technology Indexes

San Francisco -- The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said that it has teamed with San Francisco-based technology media firm CNET to launch new indexes measuring consumers' confidence about the economy and expectations about consumer electronics and technology. The organizations said that their CEA-CNET Index of Consumer Expectations (ICE) and Index of Consumer Technology Expectations (ICTE) will be updated on a monthly basis through consumer surveys. "For the first time, we have a tool that allows economists and business leaders to track a sector that is expected to exceed $173 billion in U.S. factory sales this year," said Claudia Haase, the director of research at CNET.
http://www.ce.org/Press/CurrentNews/press_release_detail.asp?id=11552
http://www.ce.org/Research/ceacnetindexes.asp

Fans Flock to Internet to Discuss Olympic Swimmer Michael Phelps

New York -- As U.S. swimmer Michael Phelps continues to rack up gold medals at the Summer Olympics in Beijing, fans increasingly have taken to the Internet to discuss his accomplishments on blogs and message boards. According to an analysis of online discussion from Nielsen Online, Phelps was the most "buzzed-about" athlete competing in the Olympics between Aug. 4-10, topping basketball players Yao Ming, Kobe Bryant and LeBron James. Phelps, who currently has five gold medals, is attempting to break Mark Spitz' Olympic record of seven. Another Baltimore-area swimmer, Katie Hoff, ranked ninth. Overall, the subject of Olympic swimming captured a greater percentage of the online discussion (46%) than basketball (38%), with gymnastics lagging well behind. "It appears that swimming is benefiting from a number of interesting stories this year, including Michael Phelps' race for gold, Dara Torres' return to the games and Park Tae-Hwan's win to bring home South Korea's first-ever gold medal in swimming,” said Jon Gibs, the vice president of media analytics at Nielsen Online.
http://biz.yahoo.com/iw/080812/0424486.html
http://www.michaelphelps.com/