Silicon Valley Wire

Menlo Park-Based Facebook Acquires San Francisco-Based Tagtile

San Francisco -- Facebook, the Menlo Park-based social networking giant, has acquired Tagtile, a developer of customer loyalty and direct marketing technology, the San Francisco-based company said. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. "Today, we are happy to announce that we are joining Facebook, and that they are acquiring substantially all of our assets," Tagtile announced on its website. "It's a huge opportunity for us to take our goal -- helping businesses grow -- and do it on a much, much bigger scale than we could have on our own." Tagtile supplies businesses with powered cubes. Customers who download the company's free app can then tap their phones against the cubes to earn rewards, as well as share their activities through Facebook and Twitter. Tagtile said it has stopped accepting new clients, but will continue to operate its service as usual for the time being. "We'll be reaching out to customers directly once future plans are set, but Tagtile as it exists today won't be part of what we do at Facebook," the company wrote.
http://www.tagtile.com
http://www.facebook.com
http://www.tagtile.com/aboutus.php

South San Francisco-Based Hyperion Therapeutics Files for $57.5M IPO

South San Francisco -- Hyperion Therapeutics, a South San Francisco-based biopharmaceutical firm, on Friday filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to raise up to $57.5 million in its initial public offering (IPO). The company, which plans to trade on the Nasdaq Global Market under the symbol "HPTX," has yet to disclose details of the offering, such as the number of shares to be sold or their expected price range. Hyperion is focused on the development and commercialization of drugs to treat disorders in the areas of orphan diseases and hepatology.
http://www.hyperiontx.com/
http://www.hyperiontx.com/press/release/pr_1334339267
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1386858/000119312512161453/d178027ds1.htm

San Jose-Based Adobe to Repurchase Up to $2 Billion in Stock

San Jose, Calif. -- Adobe Systems, the San Jose-based developer of design and publishing tools, said it plans to repurchase up to $2 billion in company stock through the end of fiscal 2015. The company said it will buy back shares on the open market, as well as enter into structured repurchase agreements with third parties, in an effort to return value to stockholders and minimize dilution from stock issuances. The new plan replaces a previous plan that authorized the repurchase of up to $1.6 billion in stock through fiscal 2012.
http://www.adobe.com/aboutadobe/pressroom/pressreleases/201204/041212AdobeStockRepurchase.html

Rankings: Silicon Valley Has the World's Top Startup Ecosystem

San Francisco -- Silicon Valley has the world's top startup ecosystem, according to new rankings compiled by Startup Compass. The top-25 list is based on more than 20 factors, such as startup success rate, availability of capital, market size and founder challenges. The report describes the attributes of Silicon Valley -- which in the study includes San Francisco, Oakland, Palo Alto and San Jose -- as "Biggest throughput. Strong early-stage funding ecosystem. More mentors. Most Ambitious. High Risk." New York, London, Toronto and Tel Aviv round out the top five. The complete rankings are available at the link below.
http://blog.startupcompass.co/the-rise-of-startup-ecosystems-silicon-valley

Oakland-Based BrightSource Pulls Plans for Initial Public Offering

Oakland -- BrightSource, an Oakland-based clean technology startup developing solar power plants, late Wednesday withdrew plans for its proposed initial public offering, just hours before it was expected to price the IPO. In a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the company said it decided to pull the offering "in light of current market conditions." BrightSource first announced plans for the IPO nearly a year ago, and more recently said it expected to price shares at $21-$23 each. "While we received significant interest from potential investors, the continued market and economic volatility are not optimal conditions for an IPO," said John Woolard, the company's president and CEO. "As a company, we've consistently made decisions in the best interest of our shareholders, employees and customers, and we will continue to do so."
http://www.brightsourceenergy.com/
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1471443/000119312512159644/d173853drw.htm
http://www.brightsourceenergy.com/images/uploads/press_releases/BrightSource_S1_Announcement_Final.pdf (PDF)

Foster City's Conduit to Sell 7% to J.P. Morgan for $100 Million

Foster City, Calif. -- Conduit, an Israeli developer of tools designed to help publishers create mobile sites and mobile apps, said it will sell a 7% stake in the company for approximately $100 million to an investment fund advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management. The deal values the company -- which has U.S. offices in Foster City -- at $1.3 billion. Founders Ronen Shilo, Dror Erez and Gaby Bilzyk will maintain a controlling stake. "The next few months will be some of the most important in the history of Conduit, and we're thrilled to have partners like J.P. Morgan Asset Management as our company continues to grow," said Shilo.
http://www.conduit.com
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120411006370/en/Conduit-Confirms-J.P.-Morgan-Fund-Agrees-Purchase

Zoosk Moving Headquarters to Larger Space in San Francisco

San Francisco -- Zoosk, the San Francisco-based developer of a romantic social network, said it plans to move its corporate headquarters to a 52,000-square-foot facility at 989 Market Street. The company said the larger space will help accommodate its growth, as it expands from 102 employees to around 160 by the end of this year. "We needed more room to grow and a location that will help attract top talent," said co-CEO Alex Mehr. We also wanted a space that was more in-line with Zoosk's fun and creative culture instead of a traditional, corporate office." The new lease more than doubles Zoosk's current Financial District footprint of 21,000 square feet. The building also houses Zendesk. Founded in 2007, Zoosk is backed by Canaan Partners, Bessemer Venture Partners and ATA Ventures.
http://www.zoosk.com
http://www.sfmayor.org/index.aspx?page=776

San Francisco-Based Yammer Acquires oneDrum

San Francisco -- Yammer, the San Francisco-based developer of private social networks for businesses designed to help employees more easily collaborate, said it has acquired U.K.-based oneDrum, a developer of file sharing and collaboration software for businesses. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Yammer said the acquisition will allow it to add desktop sync capabilities, enabling file folders to be shared across multiple users' desktops, as well as technology that lets multiple authors work together on Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint documents in real time. "Employees spend a huge amount of time working with files, especially in Microsoft Office," said CEO David Sacks. "Through oneDrum, Yammer will incorporate all of that content into the enterprise social graph, making it discoverable and collaborative." All of oneDrum's employees will join Yammer, with CEO Jasper Westaway leading the integration of the two products.  The news comes a month after Yammer raised $85 million in its fifth round of funding, led by DFJ Growth.
https://www.yammer.com/
http://onedrum.com/
http://www.marketwire.com/press-release/Yammer-Acquires-oneDrum-to-Make-Content-Social-1642789.htm

LinkedIn-Rival Viadeo Raises $32 Million in New Funding

San Francisco -- Viadeo, a France-based professional social network with over 45 million members, said on Thursday it has raised $32 million in a new round of funding. The company, which has U.S. headquarters in San Francisco, said it received investments from the French Sovereign Wealth Fund, the Fonds Strategique d'Investissement, previous backers Idinvest and Ventech and a pool of new investors including Allianz, Jefferies and Middle Eastern private funds. The company will use the proceeds to accelerate its growth in Europe and China, as well as other key emerging markets like Latin America, Russia, India and Africa. Viadeo, which focuses on non-English speaking markets, is the world's No. 2 professional social network behind LinkedIn. "We're a global society where critical business connections span multiple languages, geographies and cultures," said CEO Dan Serfaty. "We have always been laser-focused on our 'multi-local' approach, which goes beyond simple translation and focuses on catering to, and understanding the business and cultural needs of each market."
http://www.viadeo.com 
http://www.marketwatch.com/story/viadeo-closes-32-million-round-one-of-the-largest-european-tech-investments-of-the-last-12-months-2012-04-12

San Francisco-Based CloudPassage Raises $14 Million in Second Round

San Francisco -- CloudPassage, a San Francisco-based developer of cloud server security technology, said on Wednesday it has raised $14 million in its second round of funding, led by Tenaya Capital. Previous backers Benchmark Capital and Musea Ventures also participated in the round, which increased the company's total funding to $21 million. The company said it will use the proceeds to accelerate market penetration of Halo, its cloud server security platform, as well as to extend its functionality. The company launched Halo Professional, its first commercial product, last November, and followed in February with Halo NetSec. "With the cloud quickly gaining traction, we were the first to provide a security platform that allows companies to safely leverage this new computing model," said co-founder and CEO Carson Sweet.
http://www.cloudpassage.com 
http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20120411005102/en/CloudPassage-Lands-14-Million-Secure-Cloud-Servers

San Jose-Based OneID Lands $7 Million, Names Alex Doll as CEO

San Jose, Calif. -- OneID, the San Jose-based developer of a digital identity service that eliminates the need for multiple usernames and passwords, said on Wednesday it has landed $7 million in a new round of funding and named Alex Doll as its CEO. Khosla Ventures and North Bridge Venture Partners co-led the round, which will allow the year-old company to bring its service to market for use by identity providers, e-commerce businesses, enterprises, governments and individuals. Doll, most recently an executive-in-residence at Khosla Ventures and previously a founding executive at PGP, succeeds company founder Steve Kirsch, who will move to the role of CTO.
http://www.oneid.com/
http://www.oneid.com/about/news/funding
http://www.oneid.com/about/news/alexdoll-ceo

DOJ Files Antitrust Suit Against Apple, Publishers Over E-Book Pricing

Cupertino, Calif. -- The Department of Justice said on Wednesday it has filed an antitrust lawsuit against Cupertino-based Apple and five book publishers, alleging the companies reached a deal to fix the prices of e-books. Three of the publishers -- Simon & Schuster, Hachette and HarperCollins -- already have reached settlements in their cases. According to the suit, the companies agreed to raise the prices of their e-books prior to the 2010 release of the iPad, and guarantee Apple a 30% commission on each unit sold. The publishers allegedly also agreed to offer their lowest prices to Apple, helping the company gain market share from Amazon. "Defendants' ongoing conspiracy and agreement have caused e-book consumers to pay tens of millions of dollars more for e-books than they otherwise would have paid," the suit alleges. Other publishers named include Penguin Group and Macmillan. 
http://www.justice.gov/iso/opa/ag/speeches/2012/ag-speech-1204111.html

Citrix Acquires Podio, Maker of Collaborative Work Platform

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Citrix Systems, the Florida-based computing technology giant with regional headquarters in Santa Clara, said on Wednesday it has acquired Podio, the Denmark-based developer of a collaborative work platform with U.S. headquarters in San Francisco. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. "This acquisition represents an exciting new chapter in our collaboration business," said Brett Caine, the senior vice president and general manager of Citrix's online services division. "Podio extends our ability to provide a simple, secure and ‘works for everyone’ collaborative work platform in this post-PC era." Podio's cloud-based service is designed to support the collaboration of employees and teams Podio will become part of the company's GoTo cloud services portfolio, which includes GoToMeeting.
http://www.citrix.com
https://company.podio.com/
http://www.citrix.com/English/NE/news/news.asp?newsID=2323269 

Court of Appeals Reinstates Rosetta Stone's Trademark Suit Against Google

Mountain View, Calif. -- The U.S. Court of Appeals has reinstated a trademark infringement lawsuit filed in 2009 by Virginia-based Rosetta Stone, a provider of language learning software and online services, against Internet search giant Google. The suit, which seeks to prevent the Mountain View-based company from letting third parties -- including counterfeiters -- use Rosetta Stone's trademarks in ads, had been dismissed two years ago by a federal court in Virginia. The latest ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit now clears the way for the suit to proceed. "Rosetta Stone is deeply concerned about trademark infringement, including the rampant problem of online counterfeiters engaging in theft of intellectual property and confusing consumers regarding the products being offered for sale," the company said in a statement. "We look forward to further proceedings in this matter."
http://www.rosettastone.com/
http://investors.rosettastone.com/phoenix.zhtml?c=227935&p=irol-newsArticle&ID=1681662&highlight=

Sunnyvale-Based Asante Names David Thrower as President and CEO

Sunnyvale, Calif. -- Asante Solutions, a Sunnyvale-based medical device company focused on diabetes care, on Wednesday named David Thrower as its new president and CEO. He succeeds Phil Hopper, who will remain a board member and special advisor to the company. Thrower previously served as the CEO of InSound Medical and vice president of global sales and marketing at Align Technology. Asante also has named Eric Steuben, who previously led the manufacturing, engineering and operations teams at Align Technology and MicroDental Laboratories, as its vice president of operations. "We are pleased to bring David and Eric to Asante as we progress toward our U.S. launch of the Pearl Insulin Pump," said Pete McNerney, Asante's chairman and a partner at venture capital firm Thomas, McNerney & Partners.
http://www.asantesolutions.com
http://www.asantesolutions.com/images/asante/ASANTE_CEO%20press%20release_David_Phil%20mention_041112.pdf (PDF)

Software Engineer Rated Nation's Best Job in New Rankings

Carlsbad, Calif. -- Software Engineer remains the best job in the nation for the second straight year, with online advertising manager and computer systems analyst also included in the top 10, according to a new report by CareerCast.com. Jobs in the news business, including newspaper reporter and broadcaster, ranked among the worst. To compile the list, the site examined various facets of 200 job titles, then scored and ranked them in terms of environment, income, outlook, stress and physical demands. "The top-rated jobs have few physical demands, minimal stress, a good working environment and a strong hiring outlook," said Tony Lee, publisher of CareerCast.com's 2012 Jobs Rated Report. Conversely, Lee said that many jobs in the media are characterized by "high stress, short deadlines, long hours and a poor hiring outlook." The complete rankings are available at the link below.
http://www.careercast.com/jobs-rated

Santa Clara-Based Oasys Design Systems Raises Second Round of Funding

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Oasys Design Systems, a Santa Clara-based maker of chip design software, said on Tuesday it has raised an unspecified amount in its second round of funding. Intel Capital and Xilinx participated in the round, which the company will use as expand its research and development team and bolster its worldwide support structure. "We are excited to have the venture capital arm of the number one semiconductor company and the number one programmable platforms vendor as investors in Oasys," said Paul van Besouw, the company's president and CEO. "Their investment will enable us to scale commercially and to continue to advance our technology." Oasys Design Systems is developer of a platform called Chip Synthesis, which the company called a "fundamental shift" in how synthesis is used to design and implement integrated circuits larger than 20-million gates. 
http://www.oasys-ds.com/
http://www.oasys-ds.com/?cat=4

Thoma Bravo Acquires Controlling Interest in Network Instruments

San Francisco -- Thoma Bravo, a San Francisco-based private equity firm, said on Tuesday it will acquire a controlling interest in Minneapolis-based Network Instruments a developer of network and application performance management tools. Financial terms of the deal, expected to close later this month, were not disclosed. Since 1994, Network Instruments has supplied software and hardware platforms to help clients accurately report network and application behavior, resolve IT problems and optimize performance. "We look forward to working with Network Instruments to continue growing the business through both market and product expansion," said Seth Boro, a partner at Thoma Bravo.
http://www.networkinstruments.com
http://www.thomabravo.com 
http://www.thomabravo.com/2012/04/10/thoma-bravo-takes-controlling-interest-of-network-instruments/

Amgen to Acquire South San Francisco-Based KAI Pharmaceuticals

South San Francisco -- Amgen, a Thousand Oaks-based biotechnology firm, said on Tuesday it will pay $315 million in cash to acquire South San Francisco-based KAI Pharmaceuticals, a pharmaceutical firm developing drugs for patients with chronic kidney disease. KAI will become a subsidiary of Amgen. As part of the deal, Amgen has provided a loan to enable KAI to continue developing its lead drug candidate, codenamed KAI-4169. "Amgen is ideally positioned to bring KAI-4169 to market and to patients, given the company's decades of experience in developing and delivering therapies for patients with chronic kidney disease," said Steve James, the president and CEO of KAI. KAI has raised $63 million in two rounds of funding from InterWest Partners, Skyline Ventures, Intersouth Partners, Aberdare Ventures, Investor Growth Capital, Kearny Venture Partners, Lumira Capital and Delphi Ventures. 
http://www.amgen.com
http://www.kaipharma.com
http://www.amgen.com/media/media_pr_detail.jsp?releaseID=1681390

SAP to Expand Mobile Portfolio with Acquisition of Syclo

San Francisco -- SAP, the German business software giant, said it will acquire Illinois-based Syclo, a developer of enterprise mobile apps and technologies. The company made the announcement Tuesday morning in San Francisco, where it has one of its two Bay Area offices. Financial terms of the deal, which is expected to close by midyear, were not disclosed. SAP said the acquisition will bolster its mobile portfolio in industries such as utilities, oil & gas, life sciences and manufacturing. Already an SAP partner, Syclo currently has more than 600 customers in 39 countries, offering mobile apps that help companies extend business systems to a wide range of mobile devices and users.
http://www.sap.com
http://www.syclo.com
http://www.sap.com/about-sap/newsroom/press-releases/press.epx?pressid=18623

Santa Clara-Based Palo Alto Networks to Raise Up to $175M in IPO

Santa Clara, Calif. -- Palo Alto Networks, a Santa Clara-based developer of firewall technology, has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to raise up to $175 million in its initial public offering (IPO). The company has yet to disclose specific details of the offering, such as the number of shares to be sold or their expected price range. Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs and Citigroup will act as lead underwriters. Palo Alto's network security appliances are design to let clients -- such as service providers and government agencies -- more effectively secure their networks and the applications running on them. For the six months ended January 31, the company generated $113.8 million in revenue, up 141% from the prior year, and net income of $4.5 million.
http://www.paloaltonetworks.com
http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1327567/000119312512153764/d318373ds1.htm
http://www.paloaltonetworks.com/news/press_releases/2012-0406-ipo.html

Facebook to Acquire Instagram for About $1 Billion

Menlo Park, Calif. -- Facebook will acquire Instagram, the San Francisco-based developer of a popular photo-sharing app, for approximately $1 billion, Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of the Menlo Park-based social networking giant,  announced Monday on his Facebook page. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Facebook plans to build and grow Instagram independently, retaining its current team. Zuckerberg said the move will allow his company to offer users more opportunities to share their mobile photos based on interests. The company plans to keep features that let users post to other social networks, as well as choose not to share their Instagrams on Facebook. "This is an important milestone for Facebook because it's the first time we've ever acquired a product and company with so many users," wrote Zuckerberg. "We don't plan on doing many more of these, if any at all. But providing the best photo sharing experience is one reason why so many people love Facebook and we knew it would be worth bringing these two companies together."
https://www.facebook.com/home.php#!/zuck
http://blog.instagram.com/

AOL to Sell More than 800 Patents to Microsoft for $1.06 Billion

New York -- Looking to raise much-needed funds, AOL on Monday announced a deal to sell more than 800 of its patents and related patent applications to rival Microsoft for $1.06 billion in cash. The news drove shares of AOL up more than 34% in pre-market trading. The deal, expected to close by the end of this year, comes following a competitive auction process, and will leave AOL with just over a quarter of its patent portfolio covering areas such as advertising, search, mapping and security. As part of the agreement, the company will receive a non-exclusive license to the sold patents. "The combined sale and licensing arrangement unlocks current dollar value for our shareholders and enables AOL to continue to aggressively execute on our strategy to create long-term shareholder value," said Tim Armstrong, AOL's chairman and CEO. AOL, which has seen its revenue dwindle significantly over the past few years as its dial-up subscribers steadily have decreased, said it plans to return a "significant portion" of the sale proceeds to shareholders. "This is a valuable portfolio that we have been following for years and analyzing in detail for several months," said Brad Smith, Microsoft's general counsel and executive vice president of legal and corporate affairs.
http://corp.aol.com/2012/04/09/aol-and-microsoft-announce-1-056-billion-patent-deal/