Silicon Valley Wire

Hayward-Based Primus Power Raises $11 Million in Funding

Hayward, Calif. -- Primus Power, a Hayward-based developer of grid-scale energy storage technology, said on Tuesday it has raised $11 million in a new round of funding. DBL Investors and I2BF Global Ventures joined previous backers Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital and Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers in the round, which the company will use to continue developing and commercializing its flow battery technology for utilities. "This new round of financing will allow us to develop our first full scale system and quickly move toward commercialization," said CEO Tom Stepien. The company also recently landed grants from the Department of Energy, the Advanced Research Projects Agency - Energy and the California Energy Commission.
http://www.primuspower.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110531005544/en/Primus-Power-Completes-11M-Financing

Palo Alto-Based HP Cracks Top 10 List of Federal Tech Contractors

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Hewlett-Packard (HP), the Palo Alto-based technology giant, is now among the nation's 10 largest government tech contractors, according to new rankings released by Washington Technology magazine. HP checks in at No. 7 in the 2011 Washington Technology Top 100, up four spots from a year ago. The rankings are based on the value of IT-related prime contracts won by each company during the fiscal year ended Sept. 30. Lockheed Martin ($17.3 billion), Northrop Grumman ($10.8 billion), Boeing ($8.4 billion) and Raytheon ($6.2 billion) topped the list for the second straight year. HP's contracts totaled $3.8 billion for the fiscal year. The complete rankings are at the link below.
http://washingtontechnology.com/toplists/top-100-lists/2011.aspx?s=wtdaily_310511

Apple Confirms it Will Introduce "iCloud" Service Next Month

Cupertino, Calif. -- Apple confirmed on Tuesday that it will indeed introduce a cloud-based music service, to be called "iCloud," at the Cupertino-based company's upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) next month. The company reportedly has signed licensing deals with three of the four major record labels, which would allow it to offer a cloud-based music storage and streaming service. The deals are expected to enable Apple to offer more advanced features than what's currently offered by on rival cloud music services recently launched by Google and Amazon.
http://www.apple.com/pr/library/2011/05/31wwdc.html
http://developer.apple.com/wwdc

Los Altos-Based WIMM Labs Raises Second Round of Funding

Los Altos, Calif. -- WIMM Labs, the Los Altos-based developer of an open platform for wearable technology and other connected devices, said on Tuesday it has raised an unspecified amount in its second round of funding from Hon Hai Precision Industries. The news comes a year after the company landed its initial round of funding as part of a larger technology collaboration deal with Foxconn. "Our platform, combined with our licensing model, and our strong relationship with Foxconn, enables a whole new class of personal applications and smart devices designed to give consumers worldwide an elegant way to synthesize, elevate and display personal data," said Dave Mooring, the company's chairman and CEO. WIMM's platform includes embeddable, touch-screen hardware, an open application environment and tightly integrated web services.
http://www.wimm.com/
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110531005613/en/WIMM-Labs-Announces-Global-Technology-Partnership-Funding

Skyworks to Acquire Santa Clara-Based Advanced Analogic Technologies

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Skyworks Solutions, a Massachusetts-based developer of analog and mixed signal semiconductors, said it will pay approximately $262.5 million to acquire Santa Clara-based Advanced Analogic Technologies, a developer of analog chips used to make consumer electronics devices more energy efficient. Under the deal, Skyworks will pay $6.13 a share, including $3.68 in cash and the remainder in stock. The company said the acquisition will expand its portfolio of analog semiconductor products such as battery chargers, DC/DC converters, voltage regulators and LED drivers. "[The acquisition] will enable us to further capitalize on our strong smart phone, tablet, set-top box and infrastructure positions… while accelerating our entry into new vertical markets," said David Aldrich, the president and CEO of Skyworks.
http://www.analogictech.com
http://www.skyworksinc.com/
http://phx.corporate-ir.net/phoenix.zhtml?c=131895&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1568436&highlight=

South San Francisco-Based Solazyme Prices IPO, Shares Surge

South San Francisco -- Shares of a South San Francisco-based Solazyme rose 15% by late Friday in their market debut after the developer of technology that allows algae to produce oil raised $197.6 million in its initial public offering (IPO). The company and its shareholders sold nearly 11 million shares for $18 each, higher than the company's estimated price range of $15-$17. Solazyme uses microbial fermentation to produce renewable oil that can be used for fuels, chemicals, nutritional food ingredients and health and wellness products. The company last year raised $52 million in a round led by Braemar Energy Ventures. The stock is trading on the Nasdaq Global Select Market under the symbol "SZYM."
http://www.solazyme.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110526007022/en/Solazyme-Announces-Pricing-Initial-Public-Offering

Redwood City-Based Kabam Raises $85 Million for "Hardcore" Social Games

Redwood City, Calif. -- In one of the largest-ever funding rounds for a gaming company, Redwood City-based Kabam, a publisher of massively multiplayer social games, said on Thursday it has raised $85 million in its fourth round, co-led by Google Ventures and Pinnacle Ventures. Performance Equity and SK Telecom Ventures, as well as previous backers Canaan Partners, Redpoint Ventures and Intel Capital also participated in the round, which increases the five-year-old company's total funding to $125 million. Only Zynga has raised a larger round, among U.S. gaming companies. "This round of funding enables us to build long term franchises and invest in amazing gaming experiences for our customers," said CEO Kevin Chou. "We have a full pipeline of games." Kabam focuses on creating social games for traditional "hardcore" console and PC gamers, combining the immersive gameplay of massively multiplayer online games with the social connectivity and interaction of social games. The company, which has grown from 25 to over 400 employees in the past 16 months, is the publisher of such Facebook games as Kingdoms of Camelot, Dragons of Atlantis, Glory of Rome and Global Warfare, and plans to release at least five new titles by the end of this year.
http://www.kabam.com
http://www.kabam.com/corporate/news/press/kabam-raises-85m-as-leader-of-hardcore-social-gaming/

San Francisco-Based zozi Raises $7 Million in Second Round

San Francisco -- zozi, the San Francisco-based developer of a service that offers deals on local activities and travel experiences, said on Thursday it has raised $7 million in its second round of funding, led by inside investors. LaunchCapital, the Pritzker/Vlock Family Office, 500Startups, ZIG Capital, Thomas & Peter Lehrman, David Tisch and others also participated in the round, which increases the company's total backing to $10 million. "The funding will enable us to expand zozi into dozens of new cities in the U.S. and abroad, accelerate our already rapid pace of customer acquisition and allow us to continue to attract top talent," said founder and CEO TJ Sassani. Launched in 2009, zozi allows users to discover and book activities such as cooking classes, rafting trips, wine tastings and weekend getaways at up to 70% off regular rates.
http://www.zozi.com
http://www.prweb.com/releases/2011/5/prweb8492664.htm

SIIA Names Winners of CODiE Awards for Business Software

San Francisco -- The Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA), a trade association for the software and digital content industries, has named the winners of its annual CODiE Awards for business software products and services. The awards, chosen in 31 categories by SIIA members, were announced Wednesday during a conference in San Francisco. A complete list of winners is available at the link below.
http://www.siia.net/codies/2011/winners.asp#Business  

Sunnyvale-Based Kontiki Names Dan Vetras as President and CEO

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Kontiki, a Sunnyvale-based developer of an enterprise video communications platform, on Thursday named Dan Vetras as its new president and CEO. He succeeds Eric Armstrong, who left the company in March. Vetras most recently served as the president and CEO of Visible Technologies, and previously was the president and CEO of Talisma and Captura Software. The news comes seven months after Kontiki raised $10.7 million in its second round of funding, led by MK Capital.
http://www.kontiki.com/ 
http://www.kontiki.com/component/content/article/138

San Francisco-Based BuzzLogic Raises $7.8 Million in Third Round

San Francisco -- BuzzLogic, the San Francisco-based developer of media index and analytics platform designed to improve brand metrics, said on Wednesday it has raised $7.8 million in its third round of funding, led by Bridgescale Partners. Previous backer Adams Capital Management and investment banking veteran Bob Colman also participated, and Bridge Bank provided additional debt financing. The company said it will use the funds to bolster its technology platform, introduce new advertising products for the social web and double the size of its sales and account management team. Dave Hills, the CEO of BuzzLogic, said the company has transformed over the past two years after launching as a social media monitoring service. "Before we were helping brands understand what consumers were saying, now we're helping brands engage with the consumers by activating media for them," said Hills. The company has now raised $28 million to date, and boasts a client list that includes Proctor & Gamble, Toyota, Best Buy, PlayStation, Microsoft and Starbucks.
http://www.buzzlogic.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110525005295/en/BuzzLogic-Closes-7.8-Million-Equity-Funding-Led

S.F.-Based TinyCo Launches $5M Fund for Mobile Game Developers

San Francisco -- TinyCo, a San Francisco-based developer of iOS and Android games, said on Wednesday it has launched a new $5 million fund to help mobile game developers launch their titles. The company said it will consider games at all stages of development to receive up to $500,000 each from its TinyFund. In addition, TinyCo -- which recently closed an $18 million funding round led by Andreessen Horowitz -- said it will offer marketing, development and business assistance as needed. "There are some amazing mobile games being developed right now, but due to lack of funds or industry experience, many of these outstanding titles will never be played by the public," said Suli Ali, the co-founder and CEO of TinyCo. Developers can submit their proposals at the link below. The company plans to announce initial recipients in the third quarter.
http://www.tinyco.com/tinyfund

Milpitas-Based SanDisk Completes $327 Million Deal for Pliant Technology

Milpitas, Calif. -- SanDisk, the Milpitas-based maker of flash memory cards, digital media players and USB flash drives, said on Wednesday it has completed its $327 million acquisition of Pliant Technology, a Milpitas-based maker of solid state drives. The deal was first announced in mid-May. Pliant, which primarily sells ultra-high performance solid state drives for enterprise storage customers, is now SanDisk's Enterprise Storage Solutions business. "Our advanced flash technology roadmap and flash management capability will complement Pliant's strengths," said Sanjay Mehrotra, SanDisk's president and CEO.
http://www.plianttechnology.com/  
http://www.sandisk.com/   
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110525005567/en/SanDisk-Completes-Acquisition-Pliant-Technology

Peter Thiel Announces Inaugural Class of "20 Under 20" Fellows

San Francisco -- Peter Thiel, the co-founder of PayPal who currently serves as president of Clarium Capital and managing partner of The Founders Fund, on Wednesday announced the first 24 members of the "20 Under 20 Thiel Fellowship." Each fellow will receive $100,000 over two years from the San Francisco-based Thiel Foundation to pursue their scientific and technical projects and begin to build tech companies. "We had planned to award 20 fellowships, but the number of outstanding candidates far exceeded our expectations," said James O'Neill, the head of the Thiel Foundation. "It was challenging to select only 24, and impossible to pick only 20." A full list of recipients is available at the link below.
http://thielfoundation.org/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=15&Itemid=19

CEA Names 11 to Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame

San Diego -- The Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) said it will induct 11 new members into its Consumer Electronics Hall of Fame, which honors industry leaders such as inventors, executives, engineers, retailers and journalists. All will be inducted during a ceremony in San Diego in October. This year's class includes Fujio Masuoka, who invented flash memory while at Toshiba; Robert Metcalf, who co-invented the Ethernet while at Xerox PARC; Claude Elwood Shannon, who in 1937 founded both digital computer and digital circuit design theory; Eli Harari, the co-founder and former CEO of SanDisk; and Sandy Bloomberg, the founder of specialty consumer electronics retail chain Tweeter. The complete list of inductees is available at the link below.
http://www.ce.org/Press/CurrentNews/press_release_detail.asp?id=12103

Pleasanton-Based Pacsgear Names Eli Rapaich as CEO

Pleasanton, Calif. -- Pacsgear, a Pleasanton-based developer of imaging connectivity tools for electronic health records, on Tuesday named Eli Rapaich as its new CEO. Rapaich succeeds company co-founder Brian Cavanaugh, who will assume the role of COO. Rapaich had served as the vice president of sales at Philips Healthcare since 2005, and previously led sales at Stentor, which was acquired by Philips in 2005. Pacsgear's software medical professionals to view and share images and test results.
http://www.pacsgear.com 
http://www.pacsgear.com/media-room/66-eli-rapaich-joins-pacsgear-as-new-ceo.html

Report: S.F.-Based Twitter Acquires TweetDeck for $40 Million

San Francisco -- Twitter has acquired TweetDeck, the developer of a third-party Twitter client, in a deal valued at more than $40 million, CNN Money reported, citing sources close to the deal. San Francisco-based Twitter previously acquired mobile Twitter client Tweetie. Since its founding in 2008, London-based TweetDeck has raised nearly $4 million in venture capital funding from backers including Betaworks, The Accelerator Group and individual investors including Ron Conway and Howard Lindzon.
http://www.tweetdeck.com
http://money.cnn.com/2011/05/23/technology/twitter_acquires_tweetdeck/index.htm

San Francisco-Based Revel Systems Raises $3.7 Million in First Round

San Francisco -- Revel Systems, a San Francisco-based developer of iPad and cloud-based point-of-sale systems for the restaurant and retail industries, said on Tuesday it has raised $3.7 million in its first round of funding, led by Menlo Park-based DCM. Jason Krikorian, a general partner at DCM, has joined the company's board of directors. The company said it will use the funds to expand sales and marketing, as well as roll out new products and grow its tech sales and support network. Revel's products serve restaurants and stores with multiple locations, giving staff and management a central place to view and retrieve transaction and billing information.
http://www.revelsystems.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110524005716/en/DCM-Leads-3.7-Million-Series-Revel-Systems

Burlingame-Based CrowdStar Raises $23 Million in First Round

Burlingame, Calif. -- CrowdStar, a Burlingame-based publisher of social games, has raised $23 million in its first round of funding, led co-by Intel Capital and Time Warner. The9 and NVInvestments also participated in the round, which the company plans to use to double its employee headcount by year's end, as well as expand to mobile and other social networks aside from Facebook. Founded in 2008, CrowdStar counts 29 million monthly players of its games, which include Happy Aquarium, Mighty Pirates, It Girl and Happy Pets.
http://www.crowdstar.com

Software AG to Acquire San Francisco-Based Terracotta

San Francisco -- Software AG, the German maker of back-office software with U.S. headquarters in Virginia, said on Monday is will acquire San Francisco-based Terracotta, a developer of open source software designed to improve the scalability and performance of applications. Financial terms of the deal, expected to close next month, were not disclosed. Software AG said it plans to use Terracotta's in-memory processing technology -- which vastly increases the size of caches to help computers run faster -- as the foundation for its own cloud offerings. The company also will add a large open-source community.
http://www.terracotta.org
http://www.softwareag.com
http://www.softwareag.com/corporate/company/terracotta.asp

San Francisco-Based Eightfold Logic Lands $2 Million in Third Round

San Francisco -- Eightfold Logic, the San Francisco-based developer of a cloud-based, social writing application, said on Monday that it has raised $2 million in its third round of funding, Previous backers including Rho Canada Ventures, Castile Ventures, Formative Ventures and Entrepreneurs' Fund III participated in the round, which increases the company's total backing to nearly $20 million. Eightfold also on Monday announced the launch of InboundWriter, a social writing app the company said will make it easier for writers and online producers to create more relevant online content. The app indexes the social web in real-time, and provides recommendations about the best words and phrases to use. Eightfold said it will use the new funds to market its InboundWriter app.
http://www.eightfoldlogic.com
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/eightfold-logic-launches-inboundwriter-first-social-writing-application-online-content-1517764.htm

E&Y Names Finalist for Northern Calif. Entrepreneur of the Year

San Jose, Calif. -- Accounting and advisory firm Ernst & Young on Friday revealed the 30 finalists for its Entrepreneur of the Year award for Northern California. Finalists were selected by an independent panel comprised of previous winners of the award, private investors and other regional business leaders. Winners will be announced at a gala event June 25 in San Jose. The complete list of this year's finalists is available at the link below.
http://www.ey.com/US/en/About-us/Entrepreneur-Of-The-Year/PNW_NCAL_Article_Overview_Page_Main  

San Mateo-Based Canduit Acquires Israel-Based Wibiya

San Mateo, Calif. -- Conduit, the San Mateo-based developer of a network designed to let web and mobile application publishers create and distribute their apps, said on Monday it has acquired web publishing and app platform Wibiya. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Founded in 2008, Israel-based Wibiya provides web apps for more than 120,000 publishers, including TheStreet.com, TheOnion.com and Philly.com. "We look forward to amplifying Wibiya’s already impressive reach by pairing it with the power of the Conduit Network," said Ronen Shilo, the founder and CEO of Conduit.
http://www.conduit.com
http://www.wibiya.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110523006219/en/Conduit-Acquires-Web-Application-Solutions-Provider-Wibiya

Unsocial Lands Seed Funding, Aims for First Institutional Round

San Francisco -- Unsocial, the San Francisco-based developer of a location-based business networking tool, said on Monday it has closed its first round of seed funding from several individual investors. The company, which plans to begin raising its first institutional round, said it will use the proceeds to expand its functionality. Unsocial's tool, available for iPhone, Android and BlackBerry devices, uses a location-based platform and smart-tagging technology to help users create spontaneous "flash" communities. The app is geared toward conference, event and tradeshow attendees, who can use it to make contacts, view updated schedules, access Facebook and Twitter streams and receive real-time notifications.
http://www.unsocial.mobi
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110523005659/en/Unsocial-Closes-Seed-Funding-Plans-Increase-Functionality

Google to Buy Modu Mobile Patent Portfolio for $4.9M

Mountain View, Calif. -- Google will pay $4.9 million to acquire a mobile patent portfolio from Modu, the defunct maker of a line of modular mobile phones, according to Boy Genius Report, which cited a local newspaper in Israel. Launched in 2008, Modu offered a small basic cell phone that could be combined with other modules to perform different functions. The company was at one point preparing for an IPO, but eventually ran out of cash and ceased operations. Modu plans to use proceeds from the sale to pay off debt and employees back pay.
http://www.bgr.com/2011/05/19/google-to-acquire-modu-patents-for-4-9-million/

HotPads.com to Move Headquarters from DC to San Francisco

San Francisco -- HotPads.com, developer of a map-based housing search engine, said on Friday it plans to relocate its headquarters from Washington, DC to San Francisco by mid-summer. The company said the move will allow it to tap the Bay Area's vast developer talent, as well as more easily collaborate with potential partners and clients. "We're pleased with the growth over the last year and we believe the move will help us reach new milestones even faster," said Matt Corgan, the company's co-founder and CEO. HotPads said it will set up shop in a newly renovated, 5,000-square-foot space in San Francisco's Mission District. Founded in 2005, the company currently attracts about 5 million monthly visits to its site and has 20 full-time employees. "We're incredibly thankful for the opportunities presented in Washington, DC over the last several years," said co-founder and COO Douglas Pope. "It's been an excellent place to launch and grow HotPads."
http://hotpads.com/
http://hotpads.com/pages/pressReleases/san-francisco.htm

LinkedIn Prices IPO at High End of Range; Stock Soars More Than 100%

Mountain View, Calif. -- Shares of LinkedIn soared more than 100% on their first day of trading Thursday on the New York Stock Exchange, after the Silicon Valley-based online professional network priced its initial public offering (IPO) at $45 -- the top end of its already expanded range. The IPO, which raised $352.8 million, was the largest in the Internet sector since Google's in 2004, valuing the company at $4.25 billion. The staggering jump in share price, however, then more than doubled that valuation to $9.1 million by close. LinkedIn, which has more than 100 million registered members, last year generated net income of $3.4 million on revenue that doubled to $243.1 million. Shares are currently trading under the symbol "LNKD."
http://www.linkedin.com
http://press.linkedin.com/press_center/?id=222   

San Francisco-Based ngmoco Acquires Rough Cookie

San Francisco -- ngmoco, a San Francisco-based developer of mobile social games, said on Thursday it has acquired Netherlands-based game studio Rough Cookie. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. ngmoco said that Rough Cookie, which has developed titles including "Star Defense" and "We Farm" since its founding in 2008, will give it a presence in Europe as it prepares to launch its social network for mobile games, called Mobage. The studio is current developing an unannounced title for Mobage.
http://www.ngmoco.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110518007249/en

San Francisco-Based Zynga Acquires DNA Games

San Francisco -- Zynga, the San Francisco-based social games publisher behind titles such as "CityVille," "FarmVille" and "Mafia Wars," said on Thursday it has acquired DNA Games, a small, Bay Area developer of casual games. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Founded in 2009 by Jon Lee and Shaun Haase, DNA had raised venture capital firm backers including Battery Ventures and Bain Capital Ventures. The company will now form the core of a new Zynga studio, with Lee serving as general manager. DNA Games. The deal marks Zynga's 14th acquisition in the past year, with other recent buys including XPD, Challenge Games, Unoh Games and Conduit Labs.
http://www.zynga.com
http://www.dnagamesinc.com
http://www.zynga.com/about/blog.php

LinkedIn IPO Could Be Largest for Internet Firm Since Google

Mountain View, Calif. -- Marking one of the tech sector's most highly anticipated public debuts in recent years, Mountain View-based online professional network LinkedIn on Wednesday night is expected to price its initial public offering (IPO), which could generate as much as $405.7 million and give the company a market value above $4 billion. It would mark the largest Internet IPO since Google in 2004. Fueled by intense demand, the company's underwriters have raised the size of the offering by 30% in recent days, with shares now expected to price between $42-$45 each -- up from previous estimates of $32-$35. Shares could begin trading Thursday morning on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol "LNKD." LinkedIn, which has more than 100 million registered members, last year generated net income of $3.4 million on revenue that doubled to $243.1 million.
http://www.linkedin.com   
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1271024/000119312511142213/ds1a.htm

San Francisco-Based Eventbrite Raises $50 Million in Funding

San Francisco -- Eventbrite, a San Francisco-based online event ticketing firm, has raised $50 million in its fifth round of venture capital financing, led by Tiger Global. The latest news comes just eight months after the startup, which is looking to provide serious competition to market leader Ticketmaster, closed its fourth round at $20 million. It now has raised $79.5 million since its inception. "We started with a simple mission of making it easy for anyone to create, promote and sell out their event," said Kevin Hartz, the company's co-founder and CEO. "This expansion capital will accelerate our transformation of the ticketing industry." Founded in 2006, Eventbrite has to date provided online ticketing services to more than half a million events, and last year was responsible for $207 million in gross sales. The company will use the new funding for additional product development, as well as expansion into new markets.
http://www.eventbrite.com

Redwood City-Based GreenRoad Raises $13 Million, Hires New CEO

Redwood City, Calif. -- GreenRoad, a Redwood City-based developer of technology designed to improve driving behavior, said on Wednesday it has raised $13 million in a new round of funding, and named Silicon Valley-veteran Jim Heeger as its new president and CEO. Previous backers contributed to the round, which comes 15 months after the company landed a $10 million investment from Al Gore's Generation Investment Management. Other existing investors include DAG Ventures and Richard Branson's Virgin Green Fund. Heeger most recently served as the CEO of PayCycle, and previously was the senior vice president of Adobe's Creative Professional business unit. GreenRoad also has named Tanya Roberts as its senior vice president of marketing. The company's GreenRoad 360 service, which provides instant feedback and analysis of drivers' abilities, maneuvers and patterns, is used primarily by fleets. Clients include First Group, Ryder, Iron Mountain, Securitas Mobile, Mastec, Arctic Glacier, DuPre Logistics and Quickway Carriers.
http://www.greenroad.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110518005602/en/GreenRoad%E2%84%A2-Fuels-Growth-Hires-Silicon-Valley-Veteran

San Francisco-Based Loyalize Acquires Game Studio Savage Entertainment

San Francisco -- Loyalize, a San Francisco-based developer of social TV applications such as real-time games, polls and virtual rewards, said on Tuesday it has acquired Los Angeles-based video game developer Savage Entertainment. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Savage has created games based on entertainment franchises including "Star Wars" and "Transformers." "As the line blurs between social software, traditional game technologies and mainstream media activation, the decade-deep game development expertise at Savage brings us a huge advantage in pioneering the next generation of real-time social online experiences," said Todd Greene, the CEO of Loyalize.
http://www.loyalize.com
http://www.savageentertainment.com
http://www.loyalize.com/common/video/Loyalize_Acquires_Savage_Entertainment.pdf (PDF)

Palo Alto-Based PubMatic Acquires ReviNet

Palo Alto, Calif. -- PubMatic, the Palo Alto-based developer of an ad sales platform for online publishers, said on Tuesday it has acquired Massachusetts-based ReviNet, a provider of services that help online publishers maximize revenue from unsold ad inventory. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. PubMatic said the acquisition will add 57 premium publishers to its network. It will also give the company its fourth U.S. office, as well as 15 new employees.
http://www.pubmatic.com/
http://www.revinet.com
http://www.pubmatic.com/press-release-05-17-2011

San Jose-Based BlackArrow Lands $7 Million from Time Warner Cable

San Jose, Calif. -- BlackArrow, the San Jose-based developer of an ad platform for video-on-demand systems, said on Tuesday it has landed a new $7 million investment from Time Warner Cable, the second largest cable TV provider in the U.S. The company has now closed its third round of funding at $27 million, after initially announcing investments from Cisco Systems, Comcast Interactive Capital, Intel Capital, Mayfield Fund, Motorola Mobility, NDS and Polaris Venture Partners in April 2010. BlackArrow, which has now raised a total of $67 million, said it will use the new funds to bolster product development and deployment.
http://www.blackarrow.tv
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/time-warner-cable-joins-series-c-investors-with-strategic-investment-in-blackarrow-121992303.html

Sunnyvale-Based Trimble Acquires Dynamic Survey Solutions

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Trimble, a Sunnyvale-based developer of wireless and location tracking technology, said on Monday it has acquired Vermont-based Dynamic Survey Solutions, a maker of seismic survey software. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Trimble said the acquisition will expand its presence in the seismic survey industry. Dynamic Survey's GPSeismic software is designed specifically to help the seismic survey industry process and manage data. The business will become part of Trimble's Engineering and Construction segment.
http://www.gpseismic.com
http://www.trimble.com
http://www.trimble.com/news/release.aspx?id=051611a

Milpitas-Based SanDisk to Acquire Pliant Technology for $327 Million

Milpitas, Calif. -- SanDisk, the Milpitas-based maker of flash memory cards, digital media players and USB flash drives, said on Monday it will pay $327 million in cash to acquire Pliant Technology, a Milpitas-based maker of solid state drives. The deal is expected to close by early July. Pliant primarily sells ultra-high performance solid state drives for enterprise storage customers. "Flash memory is making significant inroads into the enterprise by dramatically increasing application performance and reducing power consumption," said Sanjay Mehrotra, SanDisk's president and CEO. "Our advanced flash technology roadmap and flash management capability will complement Pliant's strengths and allow us to lead the way in reliability and performance in the Enterprise SSD market."
http://www.plianttechnology.com/
http://www.sandisk.com/
http://www.sandisk.com/about-sandisk/press-room/press-releases/2011/2011-05-16-sandisk-announces-agreement-to-acquire-pliant-technology

S.F.-Based StackMob Lands $7.5 Million for Mobile App Cloud Platform

San Francisco -- StackMob, the San Francisco-based creator of a platform for developing and managing mobile applications in the cloud, said on Monday it has raised $7.5 million in a new round of funding, led by Trinity Ventures. Previous backers Harrison Metal and Baseline Ventures also participated in the funding, which the company will use for product development and to hire additional staff. StackMob says its platform, currently in private beta, decreases time to market for mobile application developers. "Today's funding validates the market opportunity for a simple, powerful and complete solution that can help developers avoid the frustrations that come with developing mobile applications," said Ty Amell, the company's co-founder and CEO.
http://www.stackmob.com
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/stackmob-secures-75m-in-series-a-round-of-funding-1514633.htm

WSJ: Google, Justice Dept. Near Settlement Over Pharmacy Ads

Mountain View, Calif. -- Google is nearing a settlement with the Justice Department over allegations the company illegally accepted ads from foreign online pharmacies, and is expected to pay up to $500 million in penalties, The Wall Street Journal reported. Mountain View-based Google disclosed it had set aside the sum for a potential settlement with the department over an advertising issue in its earnings report earlier this week. Citing people familiar with the matter, The Journal said the U.S. Attorney's Office in Rhode Island and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) participated in the probe. The FDA has been going after websites that sell expired drugs or drugs without a prescription since 2003. Early last year, Google announced it would only accept ads from officially accredited pharmacies in the U.S. and Canada. The Journal noted that the $500 million would be among the highest penalties ever paid by a company to the government.
http://www.google.com
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703730804576319572448399628.html

Los Gatos-Based Netflix Gets Limited Launch on Android Devices

Los Gatos, Calif. -- Netflix, the Los Gatos-based online DVD rental service, has released a streaming video app for the Android mobile platform, but noted that fragmentation of the platform means it will initially only be offered on a limited number of devices. At launch, Netflix subscribers with an HTC Incredible, EVO 4G, G2 or Nexus One, or the Samsung Nexus S will be able to stream to their phones. Netflix said it is "work[ing] with ecosystem partners to expand playback support," and "aggressively qualifying phones and look forward to expanding the list of phones on which the Netflix app will be supported."
http://blog.netflix.com/2011/05/netflix-launch-on-android.html

SCEA Details Compensation for PlayStation Network Outage

Foster City, Calif. -- Sony Computer Entertainment America (SCEA), the Foster City-based unit of Sony responsible for PlayStation in the U.S. Canada and Latin America,  said it will provide PlayStation Network account holders, whose personal data and possibly credit card information was exposed in a recent hacker attack, with free identify theft protection services from Debix. Subscribers also will receive a free month of service, plus one free day for every day past a month the network is still offline. Sony said on its blog that it "will likely be at least a few more days" before PlayStation Network services -- which have been down over three weeks now -- are restored.
https://www.soe.com/securityupdate/recentupdates.vm 
http://blog.us.playstation.com/2011/05/10/psn-restoration-timeline-update/

Playdom to Pay FTC $3 Million for Disclosing Children's Data

Mountain View, Calif. -- Playdom, a Mountain View-based publisher of online social games, has agreed to pay $3 million to settle charges from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) that it illegally collected and disclosed personal information from hundreds of thousands of children under 13, a violation of the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act (COPPA). The FTC charged that Playdom operated 20 virtual worlds with online games, including 2 Moons, 9 Dragons, My Diva Doll and Pony Stars, which attracted scores of children. Playdom violated the law when it allowed these children to register on the sites before obtaining parental consent, and also when it allowed children to disclose personal information through the sites' profile pages and community forums. Playdom acquired the sites in question when it bought Acclaim Games in May 2010. Disney then acquired Playdom in August 2010.
http://www.playdom.com  
http://ftc.gov/opa/2011/05/playdom.shtm 

San Francisco-Based Demandbase Lands $10 Million in Funding

San Francisco -- Demandbase, a San Francisco-based developer of technology designed to aid business-to-business marketers and convert web traffic into sales, said on Thursday it has landed $10 million in a new round of funding, led by Sutter Hill Ventures. Previous backers Sigma Partners, Altos Ventures and Adobe Systems a;so participated in the round, which the company will use to accelerate growth of its business identification technology. Demandbase's Real Time ID service is used by more than 1,000 clients to learn the identities of companies visiting their websites. "Businesses are engaging online more than ever before and the vast majority of B2B sales start with, end, or continue due to some type of online interaction," said CEO Chris Golec. "Customers are relying on us to transform their static web sites to real time engagement and conversion platforms."
http://www.demandbase.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110512005441/en/Demandbase-Secures-10-Million-Venture-Funding

Mountain View-Based Claritics Raises $1.5 Million for Social Media Analytics

Mountain View, Calif. -- Claritics, a Mountain View-based developer of social media analytics, said on Thursday that it has  raised $1.5 million in its first round of funding, co-led by Cervin Ventures and TiE Angels. The company said it will use the proceeds to bolster product development, as well as to expand sales and operations activities. Claritics offers social media analytics tools aimed at social game developers and social commerce firms. The tools are designed to help clients improve their reach, retention and revenue campaigns.
http://www.claritics.com 
http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/claritics-raises-series-a-funding-to-continue-pioneering-next-generation-of-social-analytics-121699643.html

Intel to Sell Up to 10 Million Shares of Clearwire; Shares Plunge

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Shares of Clearwire, the high-speed wireless firm majority owned by Sprint Nextel, fell more than 12% by midday Thursday after Santa Clara-based chip-maker Intel announced plans to sell up to 10 million shares in the company. Intel, which owns about a 10% stake in Clearwire, said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) that it "periodically rebalances its equity portfolio based on Intel's goals, the performance of stocks in its portfolio and its evaluation of market conditions. These sales will also allow Intel to realize certain tax benefits." The shares will be sold on the open market beginning Friday. Intel noted that the company's WiMax high-speed wireless network "continues to be strategically important to Intel."
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/50863/000005086311000088/sc13da.htm

Australia's Uma Raises $1.1 Million, Opening Office in Sunnyvale

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- uma, an Austria-based developer of semantic web technology that plans to open U.S., offices in Sunnyvale next month, said on Thursday it has raised $1.1 million to move more aggressively into the digital signage and display market. Participants included TheMerger.com and several private European investors. The funding comes on the heels of the release of uma's latest product, known as SKIN (Semantic Knowledge Information Network). The technology combines large-scale multitouch LCD displays with the company's semantic web content curation engine. Founded in 1994, uma's clients include the OTTO Group, Siemens, Intel, IBM, Intersport, Deutsche Telekom, Red Bull and L'Oreal. The company plans to employ about 50 workers in Sunnyvale, and is also scouting office space in San Francisco.
http://www.uma.at

Mountain View-Based WSO2 Raises $6.5 Million in New Funding

Mountain View, Calif. -- WSO2, the Mountain View-based developer of an open-source middleware platform, said on Thursday it has raised $6.5 million in a new round of funding, led by Quest Software. Previous backer Intel Capital also participated in the round, which the company will use to expand its global operations; grow its Silicon Valley-based marketing, sales and support teams; and extend its platform-as-a-service offerings. In related news, WSO2 it is moving to new office space in Palo Alt later this month to accommodate the growth of its Silicon Valley team. "With the investment… we can now strategically accelerate the expansion of our global operations to address this growing demand," said Sanjiva Weerawarana, the founder and CEO of WSO2.
http://wso2.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20110512006532/en/WSO2-Closes-6.5-Million-Funding-Accelerate-Global

Sunnyvale-Based Rambus to Acquire CRI for $342.5 Million

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Rambus, a Sunnyvale-based developer and licensor of electronic systems architectures, said on Thursday it will pay $342.5 million to acquire San Francisco-based Cryptography Research Inc. (CRI), a developer of semiconductor security technology. The deal, expected to close this summer, includes $167.5 million in cash, approximately 6.4 million shares of Rambus stock and $50 million payable to CRI employees in cash or stock over three years. Rambus said the acquisition will add technology in the areas of content protection, network security, anti-counterfeiting and financial services. "Combined with our complementary semiconductor, and lighting and display technologies, we will create an unrivaled set of innovations and solutions critical for a broad range of electronics, with particular focus on the fast growing mobile market," said Harold Hughes, the president and CEO of Rambus.
http://www.rambus.com
http://www.cryptography.com/
http://www.rambus.com/us/news/press_releases/2011/110512.html

Facebook Admits to Secret PR Campaign Targeting Google on Privacy

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Facebook has acknowledged that it hired public relations firm Burson-Marsteller to run a public relations campaign against Mountain View-based Google, encouraging media outlets to run stories and op-eds criticizing the company's protection of consumer privacy, CNET and others reported. The campaign targeted Google Social Circle, a Gmail feature that helps users make social connections via Google contacts. USA Today first reported on the "whisper campaign" after its reporters were targeted by Burson-Marsteller to write a negative article about Google, but found that the claims "proved largely untrue." Palo Alto-based Facebook has since responded, saying it never authorized a smear campaign. "Instead, we wanted third parties to verify that people did not approve of the collection and use of information from their accounts on Facebook and other services for inclusion in Google Social Circles -- just as Facebook did not approve of use or collection for this purpose," Facebook said in a statement. "We engaged Burson-Marsteller to focus attention on this issue, using publicly available information that could be independently verified by any media organization or analyst. The issues are serious and we should have presented them in a serious and transparent way."
http://www.usatoday.com/money/media/2011-05-06-google_n.htm http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-20062192-17.html

Palo Alto-Based Pageonce Raises $15 Million for Mobile Finance Service

Palo Alto, Calif. -- Pageonce, the Palo Alto-based developer of a daily finance service for mobile devices, said on Wednesday it has raised $15 million in a new round of funding, led by Morgenthaler Ventures. Previous backers Pitango Ventures and board chairman Liron Petrushka also participated in the round, which increased the company's total backing to $25 million since its incpeption in 2008. "We're working to transform the smartphone into the wallet of the future, and the funding is helping to fuel our vision," said CEO Guy Goldstein. Pageonce's Money & Bills service provides 4.5 million users with control over financial accounts and bills through their mobile devices. The company said it currently tracks $556 billion in transactions, $55 billion in assets and $30 billion worth of bills each year.
http://www.pageonce.com 
http://www.pageonce.com/press/pr051111_pageonce_raises_15_million_financing_round_led_by_morgenthaler_ventures