Silicon Valley Wire

Redwood City-Based Informatica Pays $130M to Acquire Siperian

Redwood City, Calif. -- Informatica, a Redwood City-based maker of data integration software, said that it has paid $130 million in cash to acquire Foster City-based Siperian, a developer of infrastructure tools designed to give companies holistic views of data from entities such as customers, employees and products. Informatica said that the deal will expand its addressable market with an adjacent technology category, known as master data management (MDM) infrastructure. Founded in 2001, Siperian currently has more than 60 customers, including Pfizer, Shire, Bank of America, State Street Bank and Lexis Nexis.
http://www.informatica.com
http://www.informatica.com/news_events/press_releases/Pages/01282010_siperian.aspx

Emeryville-Based Upek Proposes Merger with AuthenTec

Emeryville, Calif. -- Upek, an Emeryville-based maker of biometric fingerprint hardware and software, on Friday proposed a stock-for-stock merger with AuthenTec, a Florida-based maker of fingerprint sensors. Under the deal, AuthenTec stockholders would receive 50% of the combined company, which would be publicly traded on the Nasdaq, as well as a cash dividend of $40 million. "We believe our proposal presents a unique opportunity to reward the AuthenTec stockholders through an immediate cash dividend, while also providing them equity upside in a stronger company that has more significant growth opportunities," said Ronald Black, Upek's chairman and CEO. Privately held Upek is backed by Diamondhead Ventures, Earlybird Venture Capital, EDB, Morgan Keegan, Partners Group, Sofinnova Partners and Sofinnova Ventures.
http://www.upek.com
http://www.authentec.com/
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100129005877/en/UPEK-Proposes-Stock-for-Stock-Merger-AuthenTec

Apple Lifts Restrictions on Internet Phone Calls for iPhone, iPod touch

Cupertino, Calif. -- Apple has lifted restrictions that previously prevented developers from creating applications for the iPhone and iPod touch allowing users of the devices to make Internet-based phone calls over a 3G network. The Cupertino-based company is now including the necessary tools in its iPhone software development kit. The move follows AT&T's announcement in October that it would allow third-party VoIP software to be used on its 3G network to make Internet phone calls. Among the first to offer a VoIP application for the iPhone 3G are iCall and Fring.
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/apple-lifts-3g-voip-restrictions-icall-with-3g-support-available-immediately-82842957.html
http://icall.com 
http://www.fring.com

Southwest Airlines to Begin Installing Wi-Fi on All Planes

Dallas, Texas -- In a major boon to area business travelers, Southwest Airlines announced on Friday that it is set to begin rolling out its new onboard wireless Internet (Wi-Fi) service this spring, with the carrier's full fleet of 540 plans expected to be outfitted by early 2012. "We ended the equipment 'testing' phase and signed an equipment purchase contract with our wi-fi provider, Row 44. That means we now begin the process of getting equipment ordered and aircraft scheduling in place to begin our full fleet installation," Southwest said in a blog post. The company, which counts Oakland International Airport as one of its major hubs, plans to install equipment on 15 planes a month initially, with the goal of increasing that number to around 25. No price for the access has been announced, with Southwest saying that it is testing a variety of price points. Wi-Fi is now being offered by several carriers, including Air Canada, AirTran, American, Continental, Delta, United, US Airways and Virgin America.
http://blogsouthwest.com/blog/it-is-official-wi-fi-is-on-the-way

Nearly 1.3 Million Watch Online Feed of Obama's State of the Union

Washington, DC -- Nearly 1.3 million people watched the live Internet video feed of President Obama's State of the Union address Wednesday night, the White House announced. The video was available on WhiteHouse.gov, as well as through a link available on numerous other web sites and blogs. Some sites that embedded the feed included YouTube, the Huffington Post and Blogher.com. The White House has so far been unable to confirm the number of people who viewed the speech on its newly released iPhone app, but added "we are able to see that nearly a terabyte of data was served to iPhones with the application during the event." After the speech, more than 50,000 people also watched and took part in a live chat on Facebook with administration officials. And so far more than 9,900 questions have been submitted for a live online interview with President Obama on YouTube's CitizenTube channel.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/2010/01/28/your-response-state-union
http://www.youtube.com/citizentube

Study: Mobile Shopping Sites Lag Well Behind Wired Web

San Mateo, Calif. -- The performance of mobile e-commerce web sites in most cases lags well behind that of their wired counterparts, according to a new study by San Mateo-based Keynote Systems. The firm measured the performance of 10 retail mobile sites during the holiday season, using various wireless carriers from both the New York and San Francisco markets. The average time to load a home page ranged from 8.3 seconds in the best case (Best Buy) to 34.4 seconds in the worst. Searching for a product on a site ranged from 4.5 seconds (Wal-Mart) to 37.9 seconds, and getting information on a specific product ranged from 5.7 seconds (Foot Locker) to 26.8 seconds. "Shopping on mobile web sites still has a lot of catching up to do in both download performance and uptime when compared to the performance of connected web sites,” said Ben Rushlo, the senior manager of Internet technologies at Keynote. "Consumers on the wired web are used to much, much faster times, and often expect pages to load in two seconds or less. Even the best mobile Web sites take two to three times as long as that."
http://investor.keynote.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=78522&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1380368&highlight=

California Lands $2.3 Billion in Stimulus Funds for High-Speed Rail

San Francisco -- California will receive $2.3 billion in federal stimulus dollars to develop a high-speed rail service throughout much of the state, the Department of Transportation announced on Thursday. The bulk of the funding, $2.25 billion, will go to purchase right-of-ways, complete environmental studies and build track and stations for anelectrically powered high-speed rail system of 800 miles serving major population centers from San Francisco and Sacramento to Los Angeles and San Diego with over 300 trains per day. the first phase calls for a 520-mile system connecting Anaheim and Los Angeles through the Central Valley to San Francisco by 2020. Phase II would extend the system north to Sacramento and south to San Diego by 2026. Trains would reach speeds of 220mph, providing a travel time between Los Angeles and San Francisco of under 2 hours 40 minutes, compared to 6 hours by car.
http://www.dot.gov/affairs/2010/dot1810a.htm
http://www.whitehouse.gov/sites/default/files/rail_california.pdf (PDF)

S.F.-Based Martini Media Acquires Decision Maker Media

San Francisco -- Martini Media, a San Francisco-based online ad network targeting affluent consumers, announced on Thursday that it has acquired Decision Maker Media (DMM), a San Francisco-based vertical media platform that courts business decision-makers. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Martini said that the acquisition will give it an audience of over 40 million unique monthly users with annual household incomes exceeding $100,000. Martini's network includes web sites focused on sailing and yachting, travel, wine, philanthropy, golf and the arts.
http://www.martinimedianetwork.com
http://www.decisionmakermedia.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/martini-media-acquires-decision-maker-media-82884857.html

San Francisco-Based Twitter Launches "Local Trends" Feature

San Francisco -- Twitter, the San Francisco-based microblogging services, has launched a new feature called Local Trends, which allows users to see which topics that are popular in their geographic area. At launch, Local Trends is available in 15 U.S. cities, as well as five countries besides the U.S. "We'll be improving this feature over time to provide more locations, languages, and data through our API," the company said.
http://blog.twitter.com/2010/01/now-trending-local-trends.html

San Francisco-Based Yelp Lands Major Investment from Elevation Partners

San Francisco -- Yelp, a San Francisco-based user-generated reviews service, said on Wednesday that it has received an investment of up to $100 million from Elevation Partners. The news comes weeks after reports surfaced that Google was in advanced talks to acquire Yelp for at least $500 million. Under the terms of the financing, Elevation initially will purchase $25 million in shares, and seek to increase its investment to $100 million by purchasing shares from vested employees and other shareholders. Founded in 2004, Yelp counted 26 million unique visitors in December, and said that users have written more than 9 million local reviews on its site. In 2009, the company launched in eight new U.S. markets, as well as in the U.K. and Ireland, and also released mobile applications for the iPhone, BlackBerry, Palm Pre and Android. The company plans to use the investment to expand in the U.S., Canada and Western Europe, as well as to continue its development of mobile apps.
http://www.yelp.com
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/yelp-receives-investment-from-elevation-partners-82815482.html

Redwood City-Based Good Technology Acquires CloudSync

Redwood City, Calif. -- Good Technology, a Redwood City-based developer of tools that provide mobile access to data, applications and services on mobile devices, said on Wednesday that it has acquired Denver-based mobile device management firm CloudSync. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Good said that the acquisition will allow it to offer enhanced device management for a broad range of devices, including laptops, tablets, ruggedized handhelds and smartphone platforms, all through a cloud-based service. CloudSync enables customers to manage and control a range of mobile devices through a web-based system.
http://www.good.com
http://www.good.com/news/press-releases/100127

Report: Roku Raising $30M; Sees Potential IPO in 2011

Saratoga, Calif. -- Roku, a Saratoga-based maker broadband-connected set-top boxes designed to bring web video and other online content to the television, plans to raise $30 million in private funding this quarter and may go public next year, CEO Anthony Wood told Bloomberg. Previous backer Menlo Ventures already has signed on to the current funding round. The company said that it has not yet chosen an investment bank or IPO date. "Obviously our goal is to go public," Wood told Bloomberg. "If things continue on this trajectory, I think it would be viable to go public next year." Wood added that the company has not sold more than 500,000 of its Roku Digital Video Player set-top boxes, which help users stream content from services like Netflix and Amazon to a television. The company plans to continue to cut prices on the devices, which currently range from $79 to $129.
http://www.roku.com
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601204&sid=aK2._zQizDac

Apple Unveils Highly Anticipated iPad Tablet Computer

San Francisco -- In one of the most highly anticipated announcements ever in the tech community, Apple on Wednesday officially unveiled its new tablet computer, a device somewhere between a smartphone and laptop to be known as the iPad. "We want to kick off 2010 by introducing a truly magical and revolutionary product today," said Apple CEO Steve Jobs. The device, which will sell for $499-$829 and ship in 60 days, resembles a larger version of the iPod touch, featuring a 9.7-inch touch screen and an iPhone operating system that allows users to browse the web on Wi-Fi, download apps, watch video and, in a step up from Amazon's Kindle, download and view print publications in full color. The half-inch thick device, which weighs 1.5 pounds, also boasts a 10-hour battery and up to 64 GB of storage.  Owners of iPhone and iPod touch devices will be able to download their current applications from Apple's App Store. Notably absent, however, are camera and phone features.
http://www.apple.com/ipad/
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/apple-launches-ipad-82812432.html

President Obama to Conduct Live Online Interview on YouTube

San Bruno, Calif. -- In an Internet first, San Bruno-based video sharing site YouTube said that it will broadcast a live online interview with President Obama next week, posing questions submitted by users. The site, which is carrying Obama's State of the Union address live Wednesday night on its Citizentube channel, plans to elicit questions in video and text format during the speech, as well as in the days after. YouTube visitors then will be able to vote for their favorite questions. "We'll bring some of your top-voted questions to the president in a YouTube interview from the White House, which we'll also broadcast live on Citizentube," Steve Grove, YouTube's head of news and politics, wrote in a blog post. The site called the interview the latest example of Presidents using new technology to share their message with the American people.
http://www.youtube.com/citizentube#p/c/5D6163EE3E51CB06
http://youtube-global.blogspot.com/2010/01/your-state-of-union.html

San Jose-Based eBay to Lower Up-Front Costs for Sellers

San Jose, Calif. -- eBay, the San Jose-based online auction giant, on Tuesday unveiled a new pricing structure designed to significantly lower upfront costs to sellers. Beginning March 30, auction-style listings with a start price of $0.99 or less will be free to most occasional sellers. When an item sells, the seller will pay a flat fee of 9% of the sale price (up to $50). The company won't charge for items that don't sell. For more frequent sellers, the company will ofer new "eBay Stores" subscription rates starting at $0.03 a listing for 30 days. With the new pricing structure, eBay said that a seller with 250 listings a month would save $80. The company said that it saw strong growth in listing in markets such as the U.K. and Germany after implementing a similar pricing structure in Europe.
http://announcements.ebay.com/
http://pages.ebay.com/sellerinformation/news/FeeIllustrator2010.html

Sunnyvale-Based Blue Coat Acquires Majority Stake in S7 Software

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Blue Coat Systems, a Sunnyvale-based developer of application delivery network infrastructure said on Tuesday that it has acquired a majority stake in S7 Software Solutions, an India-based IT research and development firm. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Blue Coat first announced a deal to acquire the stock in November. Now, the company plans to turn the Bangalore entity into one of its four major product development centers. "Moving forward with our plans to establish our new development center in Bangalore will facilitate the expansion of our application delivery network solution portfolio while balancing investment for innovation with higher profitability," said Brian NeSmith, the president and CEO of Blue Coat. The company plans to acquire the remaining shares of S7 upon regulatory approval by the Indian government.
http://www.bluecoat.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100126005633/en/Blue-Coat-Obtains-Majority-Interest-S7-Software

San Jose-Based Adobe to Raise $1.5 Billion in Notes Offering

San Jose, Calif. -- Adobe Systems, the San Jose-based maker of web and desktop publishing software, said that it plans to raise $1.5 billion through an offering of senior unsecured notes. The offering consists of $600 million in notes due in 2015 and $900 million in notes due in 2020. Adobe said that it will use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes, including repaying $1 billion under its current credit facility. The offering is expected to close on Feb. 1.
http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/pressroom/pressreleases/201001/012510AdobeDebtOfferingPricing.html

San Jose-Based Quest Discovery Services Lands $3.75M Investment

San Jose, Calif. -- Quest Discovery Services, a San Jose-based provider of document technology services to law firms and insurance companies, said on Tuesday that it has landed a $3.75 million mezzanine investment from the Central Valley Fund. The company used a portion of the proceeds to refinance its debt, and plans to use the remainder for possible acquisitions. Quest provides document acquisition, duplication, and distribution services to clients primarily in California.
http://www.questds.com
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/The-Central-Valley-Fund-prnews-1064548730.html?x=0&.v=1

Palo Alto-Based Better Place Raises $350M for Electric Car Recharging

Palo Alto, Calif. -- In one of the largest clean-tech investments in history, Palo Alto-based Better Place, developer of a network for charging electric cars powered by renewable energy, said on Monday that it has raised $350 million in its second round of equity funding, which values the company at $1.25 billion. HSBC led the round, which comes nearly two years to the day after the company announced its first car partnership. New investors Morgan Stanley Investment Management and Lazard Asset Management and previous backers Israel Corp., VantagePoint Venture Partners, Ofer Hi-Tech Holdings, Morgan Stanley Principal Investments and Maniv Energy Capital also were among the participants. The financing allows Better Place to expand its geographic footprint into markets such as Europe and Asia. The company said that its automated switch process, which takes about a minute, is faster than filling a tank with gasoline. The technology removes a depleted battery and transfers a fully charged battery into the vehicle, while the driver remains in the vehicle. The first stations are expected to launch in Israel and Denmark by the end of 2011, in conjunction with the release of the first Renault switchable battery electric cars.
http://www.betterplace.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20100124005058/en/Place-Secures-%24350-Million-Series-Led-HSBC

Redwood City-Based Coraid Raises $10 Million, Names New Leaders

Redwood City, Calif. -- Coraid, the Redwood City-based developer of an Ethernet storage platform, said on Monday that it has raised $10 million in its first round of funding from Allegis Capital and Azure Capital Partners. Along with the new backing, the company also has announced a new leadership team, including Kevin Brown (CEO), Audrey MacLean (chairman), Carl Wright (executive vice president of worldwide sales) and Josh Leslie (vice president of channels and business development). Coraid has amassed more than 1,100 clients for its EtherDrive storage platform since launching it into the Linux market in 2005. Brown previously served as the CEO virtualization software vendor Kidaro, which was acquired by Microsoft in 2008, as well as a vice president at NetApp. MacLean was the founder of Network Equipment Technologies (NET), as well as the co-founder and CEO of Adaptive.
http://www.coraid.com
http://www.coraid.com/COMPANY/News/News-CORAID-Secures-Series-A-Investment-of-10-Million-Names-Executive-Team-

AOL Loses CTO, Adds StudioNow and New York Technology Center

New York -- On a day when AOL confirmed rumors that its CTO will be departing, the company on Monday announced the opening of its New York Technology Center and the acquisition of Tennessee-based StudioNow, developer of an online video platform. The company said that it has launched a search to replace Ted Cahall, who becomes the latest in a series of high-profile executives to depart. Cahall, the former CIO of CNET, joined AOL in early 2007. Helping to ease the transition will be the addition of Google veteran Jeff Reynar, was named AOL's head of technology for engineering and products in New York. Reynar, the co-founder of social search developer DBT Labs, previously spent more than four years at Google, first as a product manager, then as an engineering manager. He was responsible for co-founding and leading an internal startup team focused on new approaches to search. He will lead the new New York Technology Center, which AOL said it is launching to build increase engineering talent in its content business. One new technology asset the company will now have is StudioNow, paying $36.5 million in cash and stock for the three-year-old firm. The company said that the acquisition will allow it to incorporate a video creation platform into its newly launched content management system, called Seed.com. StudioNow also will continue to provide online video services that commercial clients to the company's more than 3,000 freelance filmmakers, editors, animators, voice talent and writers/producers.
http://corp.aol.com/press-releases/2010/01/aol-names-jeff-reynar-lead-new-technology-center-new-york
http://corp.aol.com/press-releases/2010/01/aol-acquires-premier-online-video-platform-studionow-inc

Justice Department Approves Merger of Ticketmaster, Live Nation

Los Angeles -- The U.S. Justice Department on Monday approved the proposed merger between Ticketmaster and concert promotion giant Live Nation. Under the terms, the company -- which will be called Live Nation Entertainment -- will divest Ticketmaster's self-ticketing subsidiary, Paciolan, to Comcast-Spectator, and license its Ticketmaster Host technology to rival concert promoter AEG. The deal also includes other undisclosed "terms that protect competitive conditions in ticketing and promotions." The merger has drawn criticism from consumer advocates, musicians and others who foresee a reduction in competition in the live music industry, and the potential for higher ticket prices for consumers. The deal, originally announced in February 2009, is valued at around $798 million.
http://www.ticketmaster.com
http://www.livenation.com
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSN2513450520100125
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/Live-Nation-and-Ticketmaster-prnews-1887871439.html?x=0&.v=1

Survey: 39% of Facebook Users Have Donated to Haitian Relief

New York -- Thirty-nine percent of Facebook users in the U.S., U.K. and Australia have already donated money or goods to the relief efforts following the Jan. 12 earthquake in Haiti, including 13% through text-messaging, according to a new survey by Facebook and The Nielsen Company. Another 21% of users said that they have not yet given to the cause, but plan to do so. Facebook users ages 50 and older are nearly twice as likely to have donated goods or money than teenagers (61% to 36%). When it comes to corporate support of the relief efforts, 29% of users believe corporations are doing their part, while 42% say they are not.  The vast majority of respondents called the earthquake a wake-up call, with three-quarters saying that they are either "not very" or "not at all" prepared for a natural disaster, themselves. The survey involved more than 50,000 Facebook users ages 13 and over.
http://blog.nielsen.com/nielsenwire/online_mobile/survey-global-facebook-users-generous-texters-for-haiti-but-unprepared-themselves/