Silicon Valley Wire

San Jose-Based BlockChalk Lands Seed Funding for Social Network

San Jose, Calif. -- BlockChalk, the San Jose-based developer of a neighborhood social networking service, said that it has raised a "significant" round of seed funding. Website PEHub.com pegged the amount at $1 million. Investors included Battery Ventures, Mitch Kapor, Harrison Metal, Founder Collective, Joshua Schachter, Josh Stylman, Tom McInerney and David Liu. BlockChalk, whose service is available for iPhone, Palm and Android handsets, said it will use the funds to accelerate development of its service, which is designed to help people connect with their neighbors and mobilize their local communities.
http://blockchalk.com/
http://blog.blockchalk.com/post/638010198/blockchalk-is-now-a-venture-backed-startup

South San Francisco-Based VaxGen to Acquire diaDexus

South San Francisco -- VaxGen, a South San Francisco-based biopharmaceutical firm, said on Friday that it will acquire diaDexus, a South San Francisco-based diagnostics firm focused on cardiovascular disease. Under the all-stock deal, expected to close after mid-year, VaxGen shareholders will own 62% of the combined firm. The combined company will assume the diaDexus name and occupy a single facility. "We believe that this transaction provides VaxGen stockholders a significant ownership position in a revenue generating company which we believe has the potential for significant revenue growth in 2011," said James Panek, the president of VaxGen.
http://www.vaxgen.com
http://www.diadexus.com
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/VaxGen-to-Acquire-diaDexus-in-prnews-3079645936.html?x=0&.v=1

Google Closes $750 Million Acquisition of San Mateo-Based AdMob

Mountain View, Calif. -- Six months after first announcing the deal, Mountain View-based Google said that it has completed its $750 million acquisition of San Mateo-based mobile advertising firm AdMob. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) last week approved the deal, saying that it was unlikely to harm competition in the fast-growing market for mobile advertising networks. "It's clear that mobile advertising is becoming a much larger part of our clients' and partners' strategies and with this acquisition, it's now a central part of our own business," Susan Wojcicki, Google's vice president of product management, wrote in a blog post.
http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2010/05/weve-officially-acquired-admob.html

S.F.-Based Mocana Closes Third Round of Funding, Led by Symantec

San Francisco -- Mocana, a San Francisco-based developer of security software for connected "smart" devices, said on Thursday that it has raised an undisclosed amount in its third round of funding, led by Mountain View-based Internet security giant Symantec. Previous backers Southern Cross Venture Partners and Shasta Ventures also participated. The company said that it will use the proceeds to expand its product lines, build out its international presence and increase marketing activities. Part of the deal also includes a technology partnership between Symantec and Mocana aimed at extending security services to several new classes of connected non-PC devices, such as smartphones. "We look forward to a deep and fruitful collaboration with Symantec to deliver a global platform for securing non-PC devices," said Mocana CEO Adrian Turner. Mocana's technology will become part of Symantec's new "Norton Everywhere" initiative, which combines mobile, DNS and smart device technologies to protect Internet-connected devices.
http://www.mocana.com/
http://www.symantec.com/about/news/release/article.jsp?prid=20100527_01   http://mocana.com/press2010-05-27.html

Omidyar Network Commits $10M to White House Social Innovation Fund

Redwood City, Calif. -- Omidyar Network, the Redwood City-based philanthropic investment firm established by eBay founder Pierre Omidyar and wife Pam, on Thursday committed $10 million over two years to the White House Social Innovation Fund. The Washington, DC-based fund, launched last year by the Corporation for National and Community Service, provides capital to expand innovative local programs that help solve critical national problems such as poverty, failing schools and childhood obesity. The fund, which is actively supported by the Obamas, expects to award up to $50 million to as many as 10 organizations this fiscal year.
http://www.omidyar.com/
http://www.nationalservice.gov/about/newsroom/releases_detail.asp?tbl_pr_id=1765

Santa Clara-Based Intel Capital Invests $10 Million in TRA

Santa Clara, Calif. --Intel Capital, the investment arm of Santa Clara-based chipmaker Intel, said on Wednesday that it has invested $10 million in New York-based TRA, a media planning, measurement and analytics software company. The investment is part of an $18.2 million round of funding, led by Intel Capital, which includes participation from previous backers Arbitron and WPP. TRA plans to use the funding for market expansion, continued technology development, data acquisition and hiring additional personnel. TRA is the developer of a web-based business intelligence platform, known as Media TRAnalytics. The platform matches 1.5 million households of TV data with 54 million households of purchase data, creating a database that helps cable networks, consumer packaged goods companies and media agencies identify target audiences.
http://www.intelcapital.com
http://www.traglobal.com/
http://www.intel.com/pressroom/archive/releases/2010/20100526corp.htm

Palo Alto-Based Facebook to Release Simpler Privacy Controls

Palo Alto, Calif. - Responding to outcry from users, privacy advocates and lawmakers, Palo Alto-based Facebook on Wednesday announced a redesign of its privacy settings that the company said will "make it simpler for people to control how public or private they want to be through Facebook." The settings include a single interface that lets users control who can see their content, as well as a reduction in the amount of basic information that must be visible to everyone and the ability to completely turn off all applications. The company also made it easier to turn off "instant personalization," a new feature that raised privacy concerns by automatically sharing information with third-party websites like Yelp and Pandora. "I am pleased to say that with these changes the overhaul of Facebook's privacy model is complete," CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a blog post. "If you find these changes helpful, then we plan to keep this privacy framework for a long time. That means you won't need to worry about changes. (Believe me, we're probably happier about this than you are.)" The company plans to roll out the new settings to all users over the next few weeks, while developers have until June 30 to make sure their applications and games fall in line with the new data permissions model.
http://blog.facebook.com/blog.php?post=391922327130
http://developers.facebook.com/blog/post/384
http://www.facebook.com/privacy

Livermore-Based Topcon Positioning Systems Acquires InlandGEO

Livermore, Calif. -- Topcon Positioning Systems (TPS), a Livermore-based maker of precise positioning devices used in fields like surveying, construction and civil engineering, said on Wednesday that it has acquire Spain-based distributor InlandGEO. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Topcon said that the acquisition will help it to rapidly grow its position in precision agricultural markets across Europe, the Middle East and Africa. Carlos Monreal, InlandGEO's president and CEO, will remain president of the company, in addition to his duties as vice president of global agriculture for Topcon Precision Agriculture (TPA).
http://www.topconpositioning.com/
http://www.topconpositioning.com/news-events/single/item/topcon-acquires-inlandgeo/

Good50 Adds New Features to User-Friendly Search Engine

Rockville, Md. -- Good50, a simplified search alternative to Google created by Sunmee Huh, a 16-year-old high school junior from Maryland, said on Wednesday that it has added several new features. The site launched in January with larger font in the search box, no text ads at the top of the results and a high-contrast option for those with low vision. Now, new features allow users to search not only the web, but also Wikipedia articles, university websites or federal government sites with one click. The site also has added an email link to the navigation menu, giving users easier access to Gmail, Yahoo Mail, Hotmail and AOL. And the company said that it now will donate $0.05 to charity per 50 visits. "Since Good50's launch in January, Google also changed their search input box to have a larger font size on May 15," said Huh. "That's great news for users but I think there's more that can be done."
http://www.good50.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/good50-a-user-friendly-search-engine-announces-new-features-94910594.html

Mountain View's GuardTime Raises $8 Million in First Round

Mountain View, Calif. -- GuardTime, the Singapore-based developer of a data integrity service with U.S. headquarters in Mountain View, said on Tuesday that it has raised $8 million I its first round of funding. Investors included Horizons Ventures, Ambient Sound Investments, Infocomm Investments, FITOne Capital, and Joi Ito, the CEO of Creative Commons. GuardTime's service architecture is designed to provide companies with independently verifiable proof of data integrity. "For internal control, regulatory transparency and legal admissibility, businesses need to be able to prove that their data is intact," said CEO Mike Gault, adding that with his company's service "proof depends solely on the data itself -- free from the choice of storage device, third party validation or well kept secrets or keys."
http://www.guardtime.com
http://www.guardtime.com/news/guardtime-closes-series-a-financing-round

S.F.-Based Vinfolio Lands Investment from Steve Case's Revolution

San Francisco -- Vinfolio, the San Francisco-based developer of an online marketplace for wine collectors and enthusiasts, said on Tuesday that it has landed a new investment from Revolution, the Washington, DC-based investment firm created by AOL co-founder Steve Case. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Revolution's David Golden and Philippe Bourguignon will join the company's board of directors. Bourguignon also has been a board member at eBay for the past decade. Vinfolio's marketplace allows visitors to buy and sell hard-to-find wines, as well as manage their wine collections and share ratings and opinions. "The Revolution team will help us build on the lessons from the world's most popular recommendation engines, auction marketplaces and social media platforms," said Vinfolio CEO Michael Jellison. Vinfolio was launched in March, after VF Wine acquired the assets of predecessor company Vinfolio Inc. Revolution owns stakes in companies such as Zipcar, Revolution Money, ClearSpring Technologies and LivingSocial.
http://revolution.com/  
http://www.vinfolio.com/  
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Steve-Case-Invests-In-prnews-3074109139.html?x=0&.v=1

McAfee to Acquire Trust Digital; Expand Mobile Presence

Santa Clara, Calif. -- McAfee, the Santa Clara-based provider of Internet security services, said on Tuesday that it will acquire Trust Digital, a Virginia-based developer of software designed to secure data that can be accessed by PDAs and smartphones. Financial terms of the deal, expected to close by June 30, were not disclosed. McAfee said that the acquisition will expand its presence in the mobile security market, addressing operating systems such as the iPhone, Android, Web OS, Windows Mobile and Symbian. "Through this acquisition, we believe McAfee can expand its reach into new markets, secure new platforms and strengthen its leadership position," said Dave DeWalt, the president and CEO of McAfee. The news comes six weeks after Trust Digital named Mark Shull, most recently the group president of enterprise security services at VeriSign, as its new CEO.
http://www.mcafee.com  
http://www.trustdigital.com
http://newsroom.mcafee.com/article_display.cfm?article_id=3653

Yahoo Acquires Mobile Social Network Service Korpol

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- One day after announcing an expanded mobile partnership with Nokia, Sunnyvale-based Yahoo said on Tuesday that it has acquired Korpol, an Indonesia-based mobile social network. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Korpol calls its technology is "a unique blend of location-based conversations, a social city guide and a cross platform mobile application." Yahoo plans to expand the Korpol service beyond Indonesia, and launch a BlackBerry application. "Users are increasingly relying on mobile devices to communicate and access the Internet and they are looking for seamless integration between those devices and PCs," said Rose Tsou, Yahoo's senior vice president for Asia. "This is especially true in many emerging markets where we are introducing the Yahoo brand to many new-to-Net users."
http://www.koprol.com
http://blog.koprol.com/2010/05/yahoo-2 

S.F.-Based Thoma Bravo Completes Acquisition of Plato Learning

San Francisco -- Thoma Bravo, the San Francisco-based private equity firm, said on Tuesday that it has completed its $143 million acquisition of Minnesota-based Plato Learning a provider of online instruction for the K-adult market. Plato's shareholders will receive $5.60 a share under the deal, which they approved earlier in the day. Scott Crabill, a managing partner at Thoma Bravo, said that his firm plans to partner with Plato's existing management to "strengthen the company's market position." Since the beginning of 2008, Thoma Bravo has completed 16 acquisitions in the software industry.
http://www.thomabravo.com/
http://www.plato.com
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Thoma-Bravo-Completes-bw-599423046.html?x=0&.v=1

Sunnyvale-Based Greenliant Acquires Products from Microchip Technology

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Greenliant Systems, a Sunnyvale-based developer of solid-state storage products founded last month by former SST head Bing Yeh, said on Monday that it has acquired the NANDrive, NAND Controller and specialty flash memory assets of Arizona-based Microchip Technology. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Greenliant said that the product lines will form the core of its solid-state storage product portfolio for the embedded system, data center and mobile Internet markets.
http://www.greenliant.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100524006764/en/Greenliant-Systems-Acquires-NANDrive-NAND-Controller-Specialty

Constant Contact Acquires Menlo Park-Based NutshellMail

Menlo Park, Calif. -- Constant Contact, a Massachusetts-based provider of email marketing services, said on Monday that it has acquired NutshellMail, a Menlo Park-based provider of social networking management tools. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Constant Contact said that the acquisition will allow it to provide small organizations a way to monitor and engage with social networks from their email inboxes. The company also announced that it plans to open a Bay Area office later this year.
http://www.nutshellmail.com
http://www.constantcontact.com 
http://investor.constantcontact.com/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=472667

San Francisco-Based Twitter Bans Third-Party Ad Networks

San Francisco -- Weeks after launching its first comprehensive ad platform in the form of Promoted Tweets, San Francisco-based microblogging service Twitter said that will no longer allow any third-party ad networks on the service. In a company blog post, COO Dick Costolo wrote that "third party ad networks are not necessarily looking to preserve the unique user experience Twitter has created. They may optimize for either market share or short-term revenue at the expense of the long-term health of the Twitter platform." Costolo added, "We believe it is our responsibility to encourage creative product development and to curb practices that compromise innovation." The move does not affect marketing deals between brands and celebrities.
http://blog.twitter.com/2010/05/twitter-platform.html

SVASE Names Presenting Companies for Launch: Silicon Valley Event

San Jose, Calif. -- The Silicon Valley Association of Startup Entrepreneurs (SVASE) on Monday announced 30 companies that have been selected to present at its Launch: Silicon Valley 2010 event, scheduled for June 8 at Microsoft's campus in Mountain View. Presenters were selected from almost 400 applicants in the areas of information technology, mobility, security, digital media, next generation Internet, technology and clean energy. The event will feature new companies that have a product or service available, but have not been in the marketplace for more than a few months. A complete list of presenting companies is available at the link below.
http://www.mediavideocenter.com/post/621243328/svase-unveils-30-emerging-tech-companies-to-debut-at

Sunnyvale-Based Yahoo Expands Mobile Partnership with Nokia

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Hoping to extend the reach of its brand to a wider worldwide audience, Sunnyvale-based Yahoo on Monday announced a major expansion of its five-year-old mobile partnership with cell phone maker Nokia. Under the deal, Nokia will become the exclusive provider of Yahoo's maps and navigation services, while Yahoo will power Nokia's mail and chat services. The companies plan to begin launching co-branded service offerings after midyear, with global availability expected in 2011. Maps on Yahoo will become "Ovi Maps," while Nokia's Ovi Mail and Ovi Chat services will become "powered by Yahoo." The companies also said that they plan to let Ovi users sign in to many of its properties using their current IDs. Carol Bartz, the CEO of Yahoo, said that the alliance will help expand the reach of its email and instant messaging services, "bringing personalized experiences to more people across the mobile web, particularly in emerging markets where we are seeding the next generation of Yahoo users." She also said that Nokia's strength in mapping and navigation will allow Yahoo to "focus on areas that are core to our business."
http://yhoo.client.shareholder.com/press/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=472765

Facebook Founder Promises to Simplify Privacy Controls

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Following weeks of criticism regarding its handling of user information, Palo Alto-based Facebook plans to upgrade its privacy controls to make them simpler to use, founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg wrote in a column in The Washington Post on Monday. "We have heard the feedback. There needs to be a simpler way to control your information. In the coming weeks, we will add privacy controls that are much simpler to use," Zuckerberg wrote. "We will also give you an easy way to turn off all third-party services. We are working hard to make these changes available as soon as possible."  The upgraded privacy settings come shortly after Facebook announced new features that offered more widespread sharing of personal information with third-party web services.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/05/23/AR2010052303828.html

FTC Clears Google's $750 Million Acquisition of AdMob

Washington, DC --The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) on Friday gave the go-ahead for Mountain View-based Google to complete its $750 million acquisition of San Mateo-based AdMob, saying that the deal is unlikely to harm competition in the fast-growing market for mobile advertising networks. The FTC said that although the acquisition raised "serious antitrust issues," those concerns were eased a bit by a recent move from Apple to launch its own competing ad network. "In addition, a number of firms appear to be developing or acquiring smartphone platforms to better compete against Apple's iPhone and Google's Android, and these firms would have a strong incentive to facilitate competition among mobile advertising networks," the FTC said. The commission voted 5-0 to clear the deal, which was first announced in November.
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2010/05/ggladmob.shtm

Report: Yahoo to Announce Deal With Nokia on Monday

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Yahoo on Monday is expected to announce a major partnership with Nokia, in which the Sunnyvale-based company will provide email, search and services on Nokia's mobile devices, All Things D reported, citing unnamed sources. The deal is not thought to include a "Yahoo phone," although the companies reportedly discussed such an option. While Nokia is working to compete with the new crop of smartphones, Yahoo is looking to expand its mobile reach without the benefit of a mobile operating system like Google's Android or Microsoft's various offerings.
http://kara.allthingsd.com/20100520/exclusive-yahoo-poised-to-unveil-project-nike-partnership-deal-with-nokia-at-monday-event/

San Jose-Based Cisco to Acquire CoreOptics for $99 Million

San Jose, Calif. -- Cisco, the San Jose-based maker of networking equipment, said on Thursday that it will pay $99 million to acquire San Jose-based CoreOptics, a designer of digital signal processing tools used in high-speed optical networking. The deal, expected to close after mid-year, includes cash and retention-based incentives. Cisco said that the acquisition will allow it to offer service provider customers 100 Gigabits per second (Gbps) transmission technology, helping them expand their networks. It also expands the company's optical presence in Europe, since CoreOptics bases the majority of its employees in Germany. CoreOptics' employees will become part of the Cisco Service Provider Technology Group, working with Cisco's existing optical engineering teams in Monza, Italy; Bangalore, India; and Richardson, Texas.
http://www.coreoptics.com/
http://newsroom.cisco.com/dlls/2010/corp_052010.html

Oakland-Based BrightSource Raises $150 Million for Solar Plants

Oakland -- Moving toward its goal of making solar energy a larger player in the world energy market, Oakland-based BrightSource Energy, a developer of utility-scale solar thermal power plants, said on Thursday that it has raised $150 million in its fourth round of funding, bringing its total backing to more than $300 million. The company will use the proceeds to build 14 solar power plants in the Southwest by 2016, supporting its contracts with Pacific Gas and Electric Company (PG&E) and Southern California Edison. Participants included new investors Alstom and the California State Teachers Retirement System (CalSTRS), as well as previous backers VantagePoint Venture Partners, Morgan Stanley and Draper Fisher Jurvetson. BrightSource's technology uses thousands of mirrors to reflect sunlight onto a central receiver atop a tower, producing high-temperature steam that is piped into a turbine and generator to make electricity.
http://www.brightsourceenergy.com
http://www.brightsourceenergy.com/images/uploads/press_releases/BSE_Series_D_Final_052010.pdf (PDF)

S.F.-Based Zynga Acquires Chinese Social Games Firm XPD Media

San Francisco -- Zynga, a San Francisco-based publisher of social games, said on Thursday that it has acquired Chinese social gaming company XPD Media. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Founded in 2008, XPD is backed by True Ventures and Pilot Group, and focuses on game development for Asian and international social networks. "As the largest Internet market in the world, China is at the vanguard for virtual goods based gaming innovation," said Robert Goldberg, Zynga's vice president of corporate development. "We expect our new office in Beijing and the incredible talent in the local market to play a strategic role in our mission." Zynga counts more than 230 million monthly active users playing its games, which include "FarmVille" and "Mafia Wars."
http://www.zynga.com
http://www.zynga.com/about/article.php?a=20100520

Lockheed Martin Realigns Commercial Space Systems Unit

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Lockheed Martin Space Systems, a Sunnyvale-based unit of the defense technology giant, said on Thursday that it has realigned the organizational structure of its Pennsylvania-based Commercial Space Systems unit, which builds satellite systems for telecom customers. Hoping to improve efficiency, the company said that the unit will now be aligned with its Global Communications Systems business, which develops military satellite communications programs. "This integrated business reflects the significant synergy between our commercial and government programs," said Kevin Bilger, Lockheed Martin's vice president and general manager of Global Communications Systems. The company also has named Joseph Rickers as its new president for Commercial Space Systems, succeeding the retiring Marshall Byrd.
http://www.lockheedmartin.com/ssc/CommercialSpace/
http://www.lockheedmartin.com/news/press_releases/2010/0520_ss_realignLMCSS.html

San Ramon-Based Breathe Technologies Lands $23 Million

San Ramon, Calif. -- Breathe Technologies, a San Ramon-based developer of technology designed to assist people with respiratory conditions, said that it has landed $23 million in its third round of funding. DAG Ventures led the round, which also included participation from Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers (KPCB), Delphi Ventures, Synergy Partners International and Johnson & Johnson Development. The company said that it will use the proceeds to commercialize its ultralight, mobile ventilation system for people with breathing challenges, such as COPD. It also plans to continue development of products for the sleep-disordered breathing market. In addition, Breathe Technologies named John Miclot as its chairman. Miclot is the former president and CEO of Respironics and CEO of Philips Home Healthcare Solutions, and is currently an executive-in-residence at Warburg Pincus.
http://www.breathetechnologies.com
http://www.breathetechnologies.com/pdfs/20100518a.pdf (PDF)

Mountain View-Based Playdom Acquires Social Games Publisher Acclaim

Mountain View, Calif. -- Playdom, a Mountain View-based publisher of social games, said on Wednesday that it has acquired Acclaim Games, a Los Angeles-based developer of social and downloadable casual games. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. The Acclaim brand has been publishing video games since the 1980s. The company declared bankruptcy in 2004 and was re-launched in 2006 as a publisher of social and casual games. Acclaim's current titles include "RockFree" on Facebook. Playdom, whose social games include "Social City," "Mobsters" and "Sorority Life, has acquired or invested in studios including Merscom, Trippert Labs, Offbeat Creations, Three Melons, Green Patch and MetroGames since raising $43 million last November.
http://www.playdom.com 
http://www.acclaim.com
http://www.playdom.com/uploads/news/pdfs/20100518160157_2010-05-18%20Playdom%20Acquires%20Acclaim.pdf (PDF)

San Francisco-Based Payvment Lands $1.5 Million in First Round

San Francisco -- Payvment, the San Francisco-based develop rof an e-commerce platform for Facebook, said on Wednesday that it has raised $1.5 million in its first round of funding, led by BlueRun Ventures. Angel Dave McClure also participated. Payvment provides a free Facebook application that allows sellers to set up virtual storefronts. Buyers then use the company's virtual shopping cart tool to make purchases without leaving Facebook.com. "Because buying on Facebook is relatively new, sellers just haven't had the tools they've needed to make the most of the Facebook network effect," said Christian Taylor, the CEO of Payvment. The company said that more than 500,000 users have used the serve since its launch in November.
http://www.payvment.com
http://www.facebook.com/payvment

Survey: Silicon Valley Tech Firms See Improved Valuations in Q1

Mountain View, Calif. -- For the third straight quarter, up rounds -- funding rounds in which a company's price per share increased from its prior financing -- outpaced down rounds among Silicon Valley tech companies, according to Fenwick & West's newly released First Quarter 2010 Silicon Valley Venture Capital Survey. All told, up rounds exceeded down rounds 49% to 32%, with 19% flat. Share prices of the 104 companies funded during the period rose 21% in the quarter, compared with 19% in the fourth quarter of 2009. "The best performing industries in the quarter from a valuation perspective were the Internet/digital media industry, and to a significantly lesser extent, the software industry," added Michael Patrick, a partner at the firm who co-authored the survey. "With the continued improvement in venture valuations in the first quarter, and reported improvements in the M&A and IPO sectors for venture backed companies in the quarter, there is reason to believe that venture valuations will continue to improve."
http://www.fenwick.com/vctrends.htm

San Francisco-Based Lookout Lands $11 Million in Second Round

San Francisco -- Lookout, a San Francisco-based developer of smartphone security technology, said on Tuesday that it has landed $11 million in its second round of funding, led by Accel Partners. Khosla Ventures and Trilogy Partnership also participated. The company also has named several new executives, including Vontu CEO and Symantec executive Joseph Ansanelli as its chairman. Other new executives include Eric Bothwell (vice president of engineering), Chris Jones (vice president of product management) and Julie Herendeen (vice president of marketing). Lookout has developed cross-platform, cloud-connected applications designed to identify and block threats before they compromise a mobile phone. The apps, available on more than 400 mobile networks, also back up and restore mobile content, find a lost or stolen phone and wipe data from a phone if necessary. "With this additional financing, we'll continue to invest in new technology and infrastructure so that we can provide the most comprehensive smartphone protection available," said CEO John Hering.
http://www.mylookout.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100518005622/en/Lookout-Closes-11-Million-Series-Funding-Led

Sunnyvale-Based Yahoo to Acquire Associated Content

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Looking to significantly boost its editorial content, Sunnyvale-based Yahoo said that it will pay an undisclosed sum to acquire Denver-based Associated Content. The deal is expected to close after midyear. Yahoo said that it plans to use Associated Content's approximately 380,000 contributors to contribute content to its existing media properties, as well as produce more content on topics important to advertisers and users. "Together, we'll create more content around what we know our users care about, and open up new and creative avenues for advertisers to engage with consumers across our network," said Carol Bartz, the CEO of Yahoo. Associated Content was founded by Luke Beatty in 2004, and its editors currently reviews more than 50,000 pieces of content per month, including articles, images, audio and video. Though most of the content is currently U.S.-centric, Yahoo said that it plans to expand the platform globally
http://www.associatedcontent.com/
http://yhoo.client.shareholder.com/press/releasedetail.cfm?ReleaseID=471175

Redwood City-Based Cloud9 Analytics Raises $8 Million

Redwood City, Calif. -- Cloud9 Analytics, a Redwood City-based developer of web-based performance management applications, said on Tuesday that it has raised $8 million in its third round of funding, led by Mayfield Fund. Previous backers InterWest Partners and Leapfrog Ventures also participated. Cloud9's business analytics tools are designed to help companies improve operational performance by automating day-to-day management processes for sales, marketing, service, support and others areas. The company currently counts more than 90 customers, including Covad Communications, Data Domain, Siemens, Thermo-Fisher Scientific and Thomson Reuters.
http://www.cloud9analytics.com
http://cloud9analytics.com/files/2010/05/Financing-Release-May-2010-Final.pdf (PDF)

Mountain View-Based Google to Acquire Norway's GIPS

Mountain View, Calif. -- Google announced on Tuesday that it will acquire Global IP Solutions (GIPS), a Norway-based developer of Internet telephone and video conference technology, in a deal valued at $68.2 million. The cash tender offer will pay GIPS stockholders $2.12 a share. "The web is evolving quickly as a development platform, and real-time video and audio communication over the Internet are becoming important new tools for users," said Rian Liebenberg, engineering director at Google. "GIPS's technology provides high quality, real-time audio and video over an IP network." GIPS's customers include Nortel, Oracle, Samsun, Yahoo and AOL.
http://gipscorp.com
http://www.google.com/intl/en/press/pressrel/ir_20100517.html 

Facebook, Social Games Firm Zynga Ink Five-Year Partnership

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Facebook announced on Tuesday that it has settled a running dispute with San Francisco-based social games publisher Zynga, signing a five-year deal that will see Zynga expand its use of Facebook's virtual currency platform, Credits. Zynga, whose popular games include "FarmVille" and "Mafia Wars," had reportedly been considering leaving Facebook over the use of its currency platform. "Facebook was a pioneer in opening their platform in 2007 and in just three years tens of millions of Facebook users play our games everyday, from FarmVille and Cafe World to Treasure Isle and Mafia Wars," said Zynga founder and CEO Mark Pincus. "We are excited about Facebook's long-term commitment to social gaming and Zynga." Zynga said that it is currently testing Facebook Credits in select games, and will expand to more titles over the coming months.  
http://www.zynga.com
http://www.facebook.com/press.php#!/press/releases.php?p=162172

Palo Alto-Based Booyah Lands $20 Million in New Funding

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Booyah, a Palo Alto-based developer of location-based mobile applications, said on Monday that it has raised $20 million in a new round of funding, led by Accel Partners. Previous backers Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and DAG Ventures also participated. Booyah launched its MyTown application in December, which now counts more than 2 million users and is adding over 100,000 new users each week. The service lets users check in at real-world locations using GPS features to unlock rewards, as well as purchase, upgrade and collect rent on virtual versions of their favorite real-world places.  Booyah, founded by games industry veterans Keith Lee, Brian Morrisroe and Sam Christiansen, also raised $4.5 million in April 2009.
http://www.booyah.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100517006403/en/Accel-Partners-Checks-Booyah-Leads-20-Million

CDC Software Acquires San Mateo-Based Tradebeam

San Mateo, Calif. -- CDC Software, a Chinese developer of back-office software with U.S. operations in Atlanta, said on Monday that it has acquired San Mateo-based TradeBeam, a developer of web-based software used to streamline global trading for clients and their partners. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. CDC, which already shares several common customers with TradeBeam, said that the move will expand its cloud-based offerings and increase its recurring revenue. The company plans to integrate TradeBeam's web-based applications into its CDC Supply Chain product line. TradeBeam currently has more than 1,000 clients, with users in more than 100 countries. "We believe the global trade management market will continue to see strong growth and offer us numerous revenue opportunities since companies are selling more and more of their products globally and increasingly moving their manufacturing and sourcing offshore," said Bruce Cameron, the president of CDC Software.
http://www.cdcsoftware.com/
http://www.tradebeam.com
http://www.cdcsoftware.com/en/Company/News-and-Events/Press-Releases.aspx?name=20100517

San Jose-Based VeriFone Acquires South Korea's Orange Logic

San Jose, Calif. -- VeriFone, a San Jose-based developer of electronic payment systems, said on Monday that it has acquired the assets of Orange Logic, a South Korean payment systems provider. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. With the acquisition, VeriFone said that it will gain the necessary infrastructure and employees to introduce products into South Korea. The company said that although the country is second only to the U.S. with more than 2.5 million deployed electronic payment systems, only 10%-15% of those meet government security requirements for compliance with the international EMV standard. "We see great potential in the growing South Korean market," said CEO Douglas Bergeron. Orange Logic will operate as VeriFone Korea.
http://www.verifone.com/
http://www.verifone.com/2010/verifone-expands-into-south-korea-with-orange-logic-acquisition.aspx

Five Years In, YouTube Serving 2 Billion Videos Daily

San Bruno, Calif. -- Google's YouTube announced on Monday that, after five years in operation, it is now serving over 2 billion video views daily, representing nearly double the prime-time audience of the three major U.S. broadcast networks combined. "What started as a site for bedroom vloggers and viral videos has evolved into a global platform that supports HD and 3D, broadcasts entire sports seasons live to 200+ countries," the San Bruno-based company said in a blog post. To celebrate its fifth birthday, YouTube is also launching the YouTube Five Year channel, which features videos of "people from all over describing how YouTube has changed or shaped their lives."
http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2010/05/at-five-years-two-billion-views-per-day.html
http://www.youtube.com/user/FiveYear

Facebook Calls All Hands Meeting to Discuss Privacy Issues

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Facebook on Thursday called an all hands meeting to discuss concerns over its privacy policies, All Facebook reported, citing sources inside the company. The blog speculated that Facebook will likely, at least temporarily, remove its new "Instant Personalization" service, which automatically shares users' data with third-party websites -- or at least switch to an opt-in model for the service. Meanwhile, the Palo Alto-based company announced a series of new security features designed to help thwart malicious attacks and phishing scams. Users can now opt to receive an email or text message when their account is accessed by a computer or phone they haven't used before to access Facebook. Users trying to access an account from an unusual device also will have to answer identity verification questions, like "Who was your first kiss?"
http://www.allfacebook.com/2010/05/facebook-calls-all-hands-meeting-on-privacy/ 
http://blog.facebook.com/blog.php?post=389991097130

Santa Clara-Based Agilent Completes $1.5B Acquisition of Varian

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Agilent Technologies, the Santa Clara-based developer of chemical analysis, life sciences, electronics and communications technologies, said on Friday that it has completed its $1.5 billion acquisition of Palo Alto-based scientific instrumentation company Varian. The all-cash deal was first announced last July. Bill Sullivan, the president and CEO of Agilent, said that the largest acquisition in his company's history "furthers our evolution toward becoming a global leader in bio-analytical measurement." The majority of Varian's product lines will fall under Agilent's Chemical Analysis Group (CAG), while others will be housed within Agilent's Life Sciences Group (LSG).
http://www.agilent.com
http://www.agilent.com/about/newsroom/presrel/2010/14may-gp10010.html

San Francisco-Based Grockit Raises $7 Million in Funding

San Francisco -- Grockit, the San Francisco-based developer of a social network for studying, said on Friday that it has raised $7 million in a new round of funding led by Atlas Venture. Previous investors Benchmark Capital and Integral Capital Partners also participated in the round, which the company will use to expand its executive team and grow its service. Grockit's learning platform combines social networking and online gaming technology to help students master academic skills and prepare for standardized tests. Founded in 2007 by Farb Nivi, a former Princeton Review Teacher of the Year and academic director at Kaplan, lets users form online study groups. "It is widely accepted that digital media is an important tool for the future of education, and we are committed to bringing this to students everywhere in a fun, accessible way," said Nivi, who serves as CEO. 
http://www.grockit.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100514005948/en/Grockit-Closes-7-Million-Series-Financing

TiVo Shares Plunge on Court Decision to Rehear EchoStar Case

Alviso, Calif. -- Shares of Alviso-based TiVo plummeted nearly 42% on Friday after the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit said that it would reconsider an earlier patent ruling that favored the company in its ongoing dispute with DISH Network owner EchoStar. The court decided to vacate its March 4 ruling, in which it upheld a lower court's finding that EchoStar was in contempt for infringing on TiVo's digital video recorder patent. The full U.S. Court of Appeals will now reconsider the appeal. EchoStar recently stated that it was preparing for the possibility of having to disable millions of its customers' set-top boxes because of the patent ruling, at an estimated cost running into the billions. "We are disappointed that we do not yet have finality in this case despite years of litigation but we remain confident that the Federal Circuit's ruling in our favor will be reaffirmed after all of the judges on the Federal Circuit have had the opportunity to review the merits of this case," TiVo said in a statement.
http://pr.tivo.com/easyir/customrel.do?easyirid=CA934452BA6418EF&version=live&prid=620556&releasejsp=custom_150

SAP to Acquire Dublin-Based Sybase for $5.8 Billion

Dublin, Calif. -- In one of the largest acquisitions of a Silicon Valley software firm in recent years, German business software giant SAP said that it will pay $5.8 million for Dublin-based database software maker Sybase. Under the deal, Sybase stockholders receive $65 a share though a cash tender offer, which has received the blessings of the company's board of directors. "With this transaction, SAP will dramatically expand its addressable market by making available its [software] to hundreds of millions of mobile users," said Bill McDermott, the co-CEO of SAP. The company hopes the technology will give it a leg up on longtime rival Oracle. Sybase will retain its name and continue to operate as a standalone company, led by current management. Calling the deal a "transformative event in the software industry," Sybase CEO John Chen said that the combined company  will provide software that "enables companies to transform their businesses in an increasingly data-, consumer- and mobile-centric world." News of the deal drove shares of Sybase up more than 14% in heavy trading on the New York Stock Exchange.
http://www.sybase.com/
http://www.sap.com
http://www.sap.com/about/investor/press.epx?pressid=13202

Sunnyvale-Based TeleNav Raises $56M in IPO, Stock Soars 23%

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Shares of Sunnyvale-based TeleNav rose nearly 23% on their first day of trading on Thursday, after the provider of location-based services on mobile phones raised $56 million in its initial public offering (IPO). The company priced 7 million shares at $8 each -- well below their original expected price range of $11-$13. TeleNav offers its services, such as voice-guided navigation, through wireless carriers like Sprint and AT&T. The company has an average of about 14.5 million paying end users a month. Shares, trading on the Nasdaq under the symbol "TNAV," closed at $9.80.
http://www.telenav.com/
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1474439/000119312510117975/ds1a.htm

San Jose-Based Veraz Networks to Merge with Dialogic

San Jose, Calif. -- Veraz Networks, a San Jose-based developer of bandwidth optimization and switching products, said that it will merge with Montreal-based Dialogic, a developer of interactive mobile video services and applications. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Once the deal closes after midyear, Dialogic shareholders will own approximately 70% and Veraz shareholders approximately 30% of the combined company, to be known as Dialogic and headquartered in San Jose. Nick Jensen, the current chairman and CEO of Dialogic, will continue in those roles with the combined company. Doug Sabella, the president and CEO of Veraz, will become president and COO. The new Dialogic will supply communications products and services to telecom service providers and other large clients. Revenue is expected to exceed $250 million a year.
http://www.veraznetworks.com
http://www.dialogic.com
http://www.dialogic.com/press/press_releases/pr-2010-05-12-veraz-networks-and-dialogic-announce-definitive-agreement-to-merge.htm

San Francisco-Based iRhythm Lands $10 Million in New Funding

San Francisco -- iRhythm Technologies, a San Francisco-based developer of diagnostic monitoring devices worn by patients, said on Thursday that it has raised $10 million in a new round of funding, led by St. Jude Medical. Previous backers Mohr Davidow Ventures and Synergy Life Science Partners also contributed to the round, which the company will use to support the launch of its Zio Patch product, a single-use continuous ambulatory cardiac rhythm monitor soon to be commercially distributed in the U.S. iRhythm also will partner with St. Jude, which plans to use the patches to more easily and cost-effectively identify patients experiencing arrhythmias.
http://www.irhythmtech.com
http://www.irhythmtech.com/company/news-and-events/

RedPrairie Acquires San Francisco-Based SmartTurn

San Francisco -- RedPrairie, a Wisconsin-based provider of productivity tools to manufacturers, distributors and retailers, said that it has acquired San Francisco-based SmartTurn, a developer of web-based warehouse management systems. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. SmartTurn's platform, currently running at more than 200 facilities, will be rebranded as RedPrairie's On-Demand WMS. Mike Mayoras, the CEO of RedPrairie, said that the companies' combined technology will allow clients to improve collaboration with supply partners, allowing "large and small companies have greater visibility into their supply chain networks."
http://www.smartturn.com
http://www.redprairie.com
http://redprairie.com/Content.aspx?id=2599

Sunnyvale-Based Silver Lake Invests in Reorganized Spansion

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Silver Lake Sumeru, the middle market investment group of Sunnyvale-based Silver Lake, said that it has invested an undisclosed sum in Spansion, the Sunnyvale-based Flash memory firm that earlier this week emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. Spansion, which filed for bankruptcy in March 2009 with more than $1.5 billion in debt, emerged with approximately $480 million in debt, $230 million of cash and a $65 million undrawn line of credit. "The embedded applications market is growing at a significant rate and we look forward to engaging with the Spansion management team as the re-organized company works to become the leader in supplying flash memory to this market," said Ajay Shah, managing director of Silver Lake Sumeru.
http://www.spansion.com/
http://www.silverlake.com/ 
http://www.silverlake.com/pdfs/sl-sumeru-spansion-release_final_0.pdf (PDF)

Emeryville-Based Lithium Technologies Acquires Scout Labs

Emeryville, Calif. -- Lithium Technologies, an Emeryville-based provider of social customer relationship management services, said that it has acquired Scout Labs, a San Francisco-based provider of social media monitoring services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Lithium said that the move will allow it to offer a platform designed to let companies listen to and act on their customers' conversations across social media sites. "This will give our clients the most detailed picture available of their customers' social behavior -- giving them a competitive advantage as they plan and execute social media marketing and support programs," said Lithium CEO Lyle Fong. Founded in 2006, Scout Labs counts more than 350 clients for its services, including Disney and Motorola.
http://www.scoutlabs.com
http://www.lithium.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100511005870/en/Lithium-Technologies-Acquires-Social-Media-Monitoring-Analytics