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Internet Services
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Mountain
View, Calif.
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Google To Extend Reach
With Venture Capital Arm
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Google Inc. is working on plans to start a venture-capital
arm, according to several people briefed on the discussions.
The group will be lead by David Drummond, Google's senior vice president of
corporate development and chief legal officer, according to two of these
people. Google has hired William Maris, a 33-year-old former entrepreneur
who has worked as an investor, to help set up the venture. How the group
will be structured and what sort of investments it is likely to target
remain unclear.
Google executives previously have bandied about the idea of launching a
venture-capital unit, and the plans could still fall through. Maris
couldn't be reached for comment.
The move would make Google the latest technology giant to take on a
more-formal role in seeding start-ups. Intel Corp. has had a large
venture-capital arm for years, as have Motorola Inc., Comcast Corp. and
many others. In the consumer-Internet area, Walt Disney Co.'s Steamboat
Ventures has invested in a number of Web start-ups. So has Amazon.com Inc.,
which has funded a number of young companies without structuring a formal
fund.
Their track records have been mixed. Corporate venture-capital arms have
been hampered by challenges that traditional venture-capital businesses
don't face.
Many start-ups fear that taking corporate money limits their options and
comes with strings that could turn away other potential investors -- such
as a right to buy the company at a later date. Some funds with less
competitive compensation have struggled to retain managers, and corporate
venture funds often don't allow senior employees to invest personal money
in their funds, while other venture funds typically do.
Corporate venture capitalists' share of overall venture-capital dollars
invested in U.S. companies fell to 7% in the first half of 2008 from 8.4%
in 2007, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture
Capital Association. Corporate venture capitalists were involved in roughly
20% of the venture-capital deals signed during the first half of 2008,
compared with 21% in 2007.
With an abundance of venture-capital money available today, Google will
have to convince entrepreneurs that it has something to offer that other
investors don't. It has several advantages, including a brand admired by
start-ups and the ability to offer sizable technical resources.
The Mountain View, Calif., Web giant has long preferred to buy companies
rather than invest in them, and has plenty of cash to keep doing so. But it
has invested millions of dollars in companies ranging from Current Communications,
which offers broadband Internet over power lines, to Meraki, a
wireless-Internet-equipment manufacturer. The company said last year that
it intends to invest hundreds of millions of dollars in renewable-energy
projects in conjunction with its philanthropic arm, Google.org. Google also
has launched a number of informal funding programs, including contests for
software developers.
The new venture could help formalize those efforts and could help Google
expand the footprint of some of its online-software products geared at
small businesses. Other corporate venture funds have made investments as a
way to gain experience in new product areas and markets.
--Robert A. Guth contributed to this article.
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http://www.google.com
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Medical Devices
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Minneapolis
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CVRx Taps Insiders For
$84M To Complete Trial
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With several years of expensive clinical trials for its
implantable hypertension device still ahead, CVRx Inc. has raised $84
million in the second-largest venture round for a device company this year.
Inside investors provided the Series E funding, including round leads
Johnson & Johnson Development Corp. and New Enterprise Associates,
joined by BBT Fund LP, Frazier Healthcare Ventures, InterWest Partners,
SightLine Partners and Thomas Weisel Healthcare Venture Partners.
CVRx Chief Executive Nadim Yared said this was an up round, but he declined
to give the valuation.
Based in Minneapolis, CVRx was founded in 2001 as a spin-out of incubator
Protostar Inc. and is developing the Rheos System, an implantable device
for controlling hypertension and possibly staving off heart failure. The
device is placed along the carotid artery beside the baroreceptor, a cluster
of nerves believed to play a significant role in the body's control of
blood pressure. When the pressure is above a particular level, the system
sends signals to the brain, tricking it into thinking blood pressure is
even higher than it is and triggering the brain to lower the pressure.
CVRx started its pivotal trial for hypertension a year ago, not long after
a $69 million Series D in May 2007. "Our goal is to use the proceeds
of these last two rounds to finish the trials, commercialize in the U.S.
and Europe, and get some data in heart failure," Yared said.
Yared declined to say how far along the hypertension trial is or when he
expected it to be completed, but John Nehra, a special partner at NEA, said
he expected the company to be commercial by 2010. CVRx already has its CE
Mark.
With the new funding, CVRx has raised more than $209 million to date. This
current round is the second-largest device round this year, according to
VentureSource, a research unit of VentureWire publisher Dow Jones & Co.
Biotexion LLC, a Huntsville, Ala.-based diagnostics company, raised $100
million in February for the largest round, while CVRx has nudged into third
place TriVascular2 Inc., a Santa Rosa, Calif.-based catheter company, which
received a $65 million commitment in March.
Yared said that given the company's technology and the markets it is
pursuing, trials have been very pricey. "Trials for implanted devices
are expensive," he said. "And we are in between two markets -
neuromodulation and pacing - and getting products in either of these
markets is very expensive."
Nehra said the large Series E was also important with the public-offering
window likely to remain bolted shut for the foreseeable future. "The
funding positions the company to sales, if we maintain our current
schedule, but we could always hit the public markets," he said. The
Series E "was to take the uncertainty about the public markets out of
management and keep them focused."
Yared said that ultimately he decided to go with an insider round both because
it was quicker and because there was sufficient interest already at the
table. "When we know a group of guys and they have good chemistry on
the board, why bring in somebody unknown?" he said.
CVRx has about 100 employees.
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http://www.cvrx.com
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Kickfire Sparks $20M
For MySQL Appliance
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With hopes of capitalizing on the increasing popularity of
open-source database MySQL, Kickfire Inc. has closed a $20 million Series B
round.
New investor Pinnacle Ventures led the round, with participation from existing
investors Accel Partners, Greylock Partners and Mayfield Fund. The
valuation was not disclosed.
Kickfire has built a data warehousing appliance for analysis and reporting
of data from the MySQL database. Most other data warehouse appliances are built
using open-source databases such as PostgreSQL or Ingres, but they all add
some proprietary element. Kickfire is completely compatible with MySQL,
meaning that Kickfire customers can run any application that runs on MySQL
without making adjustments to those applications, said Charles Chi, a
partner with Greylock and member of the company's board.
Chi worked with Kickfire's co-founders, Joseph Chamdani and Raj Cherabuddi,
to refine the original concept for the company after the two left McData
Corp. The two founded another Greylock portfolio company, Sanera Systems
Inc., which was sold to McData for $102 million in 2003.
Kickfire, based in Santa Clara, Calif., targets smaller applications that
can't justify the price of high-end appliances like those offered by
Teradata Corp., Netezza Corp. and venture-backed Greenplum Inc. It will
target small- and medium-sized businesses and enterprise departments and
face competition from venture-backed companies such as Dataupia Corp.,
ParAccel Inc. and Vertica Systems Inc.
"We are looking for customers who are using MySQL and have data
volumes growing beyond what MySQL can support," said Steve Dille, the
company's vice president of marketing.
In addition to "drafting behind MySQL adoption," Kickfire is in a
position to succeed because it offers a significantly lower
price/performance ratio than any other appliance on the market, Chi said.
Kickfire will use the proceeds of this round to build distribution and
support channels in anticipation of the release of its first product, which
is slated for Oct. 14, Dille said.
The company raised a $10.75 million Series A round in June 2006. That round
was co-led by Accel and Greylock with participation from Mayfield, Dille
said.
In addition to Chi, the company's board includes Pete Wagner, a partner
with Accel, and Ken Pelowski, a founder and managing partner of Pinnacle
Ventures.
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http://www.kickfire.com
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Nokia Gives VC Division
$150M For Asia Plays
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Cellphone giant Nokia Corp. has more than doubled the war
chest for venture division Nokia Growth Partners as it aims to stake out
more territory in growing markets such as India and China.
The $150 million extension brings the venture division's total to $250
million under management. A $100 million fund was launched in 2004.
With the new backing, Nokia Growth Partners is looking to make eight to 10
venture investments per year for the next three or four years, said Rick
Simonson, executive vice president and chief financial officer of Nokia
Corp. A typical investment from the $150 million extension will be $6
million to $8 million, Simonson said.
Nokia is the mobile industry's top handset maker, with one foot in the
growing smart-phone market and the other in emerging markets like China and
India, where the company sells tens of millions of less-expensive phones.
"We have the resources to play on both ends," Simonson said.
"We are driving the low end, and at the same time, we invented the
so-called smart-phone market." The company made early investments in
the Symbian software platform, which was crucial for the growth of smart
phones.
Nokia Growth Partners, launched in 2004 and based in Menlo Park, Calif., is
now looking to invest in software and services that will enable lower-end
phones to evolve.
"What we're doing now is in sync with what's going on in the
industry," said John Gardner, a partner at Nokia Growth Partners.
"Our focus has been on enabling technology for mobile, but we have
expanded our scope to services and software."
One of the challenges, Simonson said, is figuring out what types of
applications and services will catch on in a given market.
"In emerging markets, offering services around agriculture, payments,
health and education" is expected to be big business, Simonson said.
Nokia also is keen on location-based services, multi-player games and music
applications, he said.
Nokia Growth Partners aims to hire eight to 12 investment professionals in
various locations, and already has brought aboard seven new people in
Silicon Valley, Simonson said. A new hire in Finland, where Nokia is based,
is charged with opening a new office in India. Two investors have been
hired in China.
Among the venture division's prior investments are a $15 million round for
mobile television platform maker Kyte Inc. and a $22.5 million round for
contactless payment company ViVOtech Inc.
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http://www.nokiagrowthpartners.com
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Sierra Neuropharma Eyes
Trials With $21.5M
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Sierra Neuropharmaceuticals Inc., a company developing
reformulations for neurological diseases and a novel delivery platform, has
raised $21.5 million in Series A financing to launch clinical trials.
HealthCare Ventures and Morgenthaler Ventures led the round, joined by
GC&H Investments, High Country Ventures and Sequel Venture Partners.
Valuation was not disclosed.
Based in Aurora, Colo., Sierra incorporated in 2005 and completed the
license of its core technology from the University of Colorado this spring.
The company is developing drug reformulations to treat conditions like
epilepsy, depression and schizophrenia and a proprietary implantable pump
to deliver the drugs to the fluid around the brain.
Sierra's acting chief executive, Daniel Abrams, said current treatments for
these indications, which involve oral drugs, have several drawbacks he is
trying to address with a direct-to-brain delivery system. "The major
problem with oral drugs are systemic side-effects," he said. Another
is compliance, a problem with patients suffering from cognitive impairment.
Abrams said three other companies have brain drug-delivery pumps on the
market or will shortly: Johnson & Johnson Inc., Inset Technologies Inc.
and Medtronic Corp. Sierra's edge, he said, is in its drug reformulations
using already-approved compounds. "We expect a diminished risk on
regulation and clinical proof-of-concept development," he said.
Sierra is keeping mum on which drugs it is using in its reformulation for
its lead compound, SNP-01, a potential treatment for epilepsy, and Abrams
declined to say which specific indication he would pursue after that one.
Sierra is set to launch the epilepsy trial in 12 to 18 months, Abrams said.
Abrams, who is also the company's founder and chief scientific officer,
said Sierra is currently hunting for a permanent CEO and hopes to have one
on board by the end of the year.
Sierra has three full-time employees.
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http://www.sierraneuro.com
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Biotechnology
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Markham,
Ontario
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Cytochroma Seals $44M
Series C, Inks Licensing Deal
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Specialty pharmaceutical company Cytochroma Inc. has raised
a C$45 million ($44 million) Series C round and signed a new license
agreement for one of its lead treatments, which could bring the company up
to C$105 million ($102.6 million) with milestone payments.
Mitsubishi Tanabe Pharma Corp. led the Series C, providing C$20 million
toward the round. The equity investment was part of the new license
agreement with Mitsubishi Tanabe, which included an equity investment, an
undisclosed upfront payment and potential milestone payments.
Existing investors provided the remaining C$25 million of the round. Those
investors include BDC Capital, Caisse de Depot et Placement du Quebec,
Canadian Medical Discoveries Fund, GrowthWorks Canadian Fund, Novo A/S,
T2C2/Bio 2000 LP, Vengrowth Advanced Life Sciences Fund and VentureLink
Brighter Future Fund. The valuation of the Series C, which closed July 30,
was not disclosed.
Cytochroma, based in Markham, Ontario, previously completed a C$24 million
fund-raising through inside investors in March 2007, according to
VentureWire records. That convertible debenture funding was independent of
this C$45 million round, Vice President of Commercial Operations Eric J.
Messner said. The debenture funding did convert to preferred stock, Messner
said, declining to provide further details.
Cytochroma formed its deal with Mitsubishi Tanabe to advance one of its
lead treatments, CTA018, a vitamin D analog for the treatment of secondary
hyperparathyroidism. With the license agreement, Mitsubishi Tanabe has
rights in the United States and Asia, including Japan, to develop and
commercialize the treatment. In addition, Mitsubishi Tanabe also holds
rights to follow-on compounds of the drug to the same regions. Cytochroma
holds rights to the drug and follow-on compounds to all other geographic
regions. CTA018 is entering Phase II development in Canada.
After evaluating other potential partners, Cytochroma found a fit in Mitsubishi
Tanabe, as the company also has programs focusing on the chronic kidney
disease market. Through CTA018, Cytochroma aims to introduce a new product
to the market that will simultaneously activate the vitamin D signaling
pathway and inhibit the catabolic enzyme that deactivates vitamin D.
The Series C proceeds will go toward all three of Cytochroma's lead
treatment programs, Messner said, which include CTA018 and other treatments
aimed at disorders caused by altered vitamin D metabolism in chronic kidney
disease patients. The other two programs to be advanced with the funding
include CTAP201, which is entering Phase I testing also for secondary
hyperparathyroidism, and CTAP101, which is entering Phase II testing to
treat vitamin D insufficiency.
"The closing of the C$45 million puts us in a very strong cash
position today," Messner said, indicating the company continues to
communicate with venture capital firms and could consider VC funding or an
initial public offering in the future. "We're opportunistic and will
keep ourselves open to any possibilities," Messner said.
Cytochroma intends to continue to develop CTAP201 and CTAP101 on its own,
Messner said. The company also has a phosphorous management program in
development, which is in the preclinical stages.
In connection with this deal, Mitsubishi Tanabe General Manager of Business
Development and Licensing Seiichi Kiso and GrowthWorks Vice President of
Investments Joseph Regan have joined Cytochroma's board. GeneChem
Management Vice President Elizabeth Douville has stepped down from the
board.
Cytochroma, with about 50 employees, has raised a total of C$108 million,
including its Series A, B, C and debenture fundings. The company's
investors also include CDP Capital Technology Ventures, GeneChem Management,
Skylon Capital and Working Ventures.
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http://www.cytochroma.com
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Concentrated Solar Co.
Cyrium Glows With $15M Series B
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High-efficiency solar cell maker Cyrium Technologies Inc.
has raised $15 million in a Series B round, led by Quercus Trust.
Also participating were major investors from previous rounds of financing, including
BDC Venture Capital, Chrysalix Energy Venture Capital, and Pangaea Ventures
Ltd.
The company said in a statement that money from this round will be used to
further the development and testing of its photovoltaic solar cell products
and increase manufacturing.
Ottawa-based Cyrium and Quercus didn't return calls requesting comment.
Chrysalix Managing Director Richard MacKellar said in an interview that
Cyrium's technology has a conversion rate of about 40% of the sun's energy,
whereas traditional photovoltaic systems capture about 15% and thin-film
solar captures about 9%.
In general, solar concentration works by using a lens to focus solar rays
on PV panels.
MacKellar said the company's technology costs more than traditional PV
systems, but it concentrates the sun's energy 500 times more.
"So you need 1/500th the amount of the material," MacKellar said.
"So when you add a solar concentrator to the PV piece and multiply it
by the efficiency, you can see that even if it can cost a lot more, you can
get more energy out of the same cost. This is why we think this can be a
winner. I have a lot of confidence this is one of the sectors that will be
a winner."
MacKellar wouldn't disclose how much his company invested in Cyrium in this
or previous rounds.
Chrysalix invests in a range of clean-technology companies, including those
that make solar, fuel cell and light-emitting diode technologies.
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http://www.cyriumtechnologies.com
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Crescendo Networks
Lifts $9M Series C Round
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Crescendo Networks Ltd., a maker of appliances for
accelerating Web applications, has secured $9.5 million in Series C
funding.
New investor Challenge Fund led the round with a $2.5 million investment.
The remaining $7 million was provided by existing investors Evergreen
Venture Partners, Apax Partners, Magma Venture Partners, StageOne Ventures
and Convergent Capital.
The company builds Web application acceleration appliances that offload
much of the processing from the Web servers and accelerate individual
applications, rather than the entire server, which results in between five
and 10 times the performance of its competitors, F5 Networks and Citrix
Systems Inc., said Janine Roth, Crescendo's president. Roth declined to
disclose her company's valuation.
Crescendo, based in Tel Aviv, sells its AppBeat appliance to media
companies, universities and corporations, which use it to speed up the
delivery of external and internal applications.
When Magma first seeded the company, "we saw superb architecture and
technology which we thought would deliver much better performance than any
other product on the market [and that] the market would grow very fast
because of the phenomena of the distributed organization," said Modi
Rosen, a managing partner with Magma Ventures. "On both dimensions,
things are meeting our expectations."
The company, which anticipates revenue around $10 million this year, has
landed customers such as Aeropostale Inc., Colgate-Palmolive Co.,
Friendster Inc. and IAC/Interactive Corp., Roth said.
Crescendo Networks initially launched its products in the Asia-Pacific
region, but has spent much of the last year building its U.S. presence.
Much of the funding from this round will be used to continue that effort
and to expand into Europe, beyond the channel sales it currently has in the
region, Roth said.
The company has 75 employees and was founded in 2002. Since that time, it
has raised $36.2 million in venture capital.
Crescendo will not make any changes to its board of directors as a result of
the round.
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http://www.crescendonetworks.com
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H2Scan Senses $4M
Series D Funding
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By
Staff Reporters
|
7/31/2008
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H2Scan Corp., a developer of hydrogen sensor systems for a
variety of industrial uses, has raised a $4 million Series D round.
The round was provided by existing investors Chrysalix Energy Venture
Capital, H5 Capital, Ravinia Venture Fund, Tri-Strip Associates, and
members of the Tech Coast Angels and Pasadena Angels. New investor TGB
Partners also contributed.
Dennis Reid, the company's president and chief executive, did not provide a
valuation for the round, which closed in April. To date, the company has
raised $14 million, Reid said.
The Valencia, Calif.-based company said it develops sensor systems for
control systems, safety monitoring and alarm systems that can detect the
presence of hydrogen without false readings.
The 26-person company, which was founded in 2002, will use the funds to
increase its sales and marketing efforts. The money should last it long
enough to reach profitability, which will likely occur in 2009, the company
said.
Some of the funds have been used to add to the company's staff, and to
increase research and development.
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http://www.h2scan.com
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Fugeia Swallows $1.6M
More For Wheat Bran Tech
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By
Staff Reporters
|
7/31/2008
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Food technology company Fugeia NV has received EUR1 million
($1.6 million) from KBC Arkiv and Fortis Private Equity Arkimedes in a
second closing of its Series A investment round led by Tate & Lyle
Ventures and Agri Investment Fund. The new tranche brings the total
investment in Fugeia to EUR4.5 million.
Leuven, Belgium-based Fugeia is developing, among other nutrition-focused
products, an ingredient derived from wheat bran fiber that has prebiotic
and antioxidant benefits, according to a company news release. The
ingredient is metabolized in an area of the digestive tract that is
vulnerable to disease and often not addressed by other prebiotic fibers. It
is highly soluble in water and can be mixed in any food or beverage
product, thereby harnessing the health benefit potential of wheat bran.
The technologies under development at Fugeia originate from research at the
University of Leuven and the University College KaHo Sint-Lieven. The
company was formed in February.
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http://www.fugeia.be
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Investors Reward
Incentives Co. With More Series A
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With its sights set on the U.S. market, I Love Rewards Inc.,
a Canadian software company that has developed employee incentive programs,
has added C$1.5 million ($1.46 million) to its Series A round of funding.
Existing investors JLA Ventures, Laurence Capital, senior management and
angel investors gave the company the additional shot of funding, which
closed Tuesday.
The previous tranche closed in November. This tranche brings the company's
total funding since it was formally founded in 2001 to C$4.7 million.
Razor Suleman, the company's founder and chief executive, said this round
brings the company's post-money valuation to just under C$10 million ($9.77
million) and gets the company to a cash-flow positive point. He said the
company has a revenue run rate of about $7 million for 2008.
I Love Rewards has developed an online points-based awards program for
employees at small to medium-sized businesses. The points can then be
redeemed for awards from companies such as Amazon Inc.
While the company currently focuses on Canada, the new funds mostly will be
used to roll out its U.S. rewards program, Rethink Rewards.
The new funds should last the company through the first quarter of 2009,
when it will likely seek a C$5 million to C$10 million Series B round,
Suleman said.
The Toronto-based company has 37 employees, Suleman said.
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http://www.iloverewards.com
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Derivix Lands Series A
For Hedge Fund Software
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By
Staff Reporters
|
7/31/2008
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Derivix Corp., a developer of software to analyze real-time
options for hedge funds, has raised a Series A round of funding.
Goldman Sachs and Susquehanna Growth Equity provided the round. Valuation
was not disclosed. Neither the company nor its investors could be reached
for comment.
With offices in New York, Boston and San Francisco, Derivix said it has
developed software designed to lower latency and give hedge funds an edge
in the market by using its real-time analytics, pricing and risk management
system.
The company was founded in 2005.
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http://www.derivix.com
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Cell Medica Names Burns
To New Chairman Position
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Venture-backed cell therapy company Cell Medica Ltd. has
appointed Nigel Burns to the newly created position of chairman.
"Now is the right time to appoint a chairman given the growth of the
company," Chief Executive Gregg Sando said, indicating the
18-month-old company intends to soon fill a number of positions.
As chairman, Burns will provide expertise and industry resources, and help
the company with its commercialization and production scale-up efforts.
Burns most recently was a senior executive at Cambridge Antibody Technology
Ltd., and held senior vice president positions overseeing strategic
alliances and preclinical development. Cambridge Antibody Technology was
acquired by AstraZeneca PLC in 2006 for $1.7 billion and then merged with
another company acquired by AstraZeneca, MedImmune Inc. Prior to that,
Burns was head of the process technology division at British Biotech PLC,
which is now part of Vernalis Group PLC.
The chairman appointment marks the first official announcement from the
company, which focuses on developing cellular therapeutics to treat
infectious diseases in immunosuppressed patients. Cell Medica's lead
treatment includes transferring virus-specific T cells from a donor to a
patient, with the aim of preventing infections after allogeneic
haematopoietic stem cell transplant procedures.
Cell Medica has raised a total of GBP2.4 million, Sando said, including
seed capital through Imperial Innovations and a technology translation
award from Wellcome Trust. The company continues to work from that funding,
which was completed in February 2007, Sando said. Cell Medica may look to
raise a Series A round in 2009, Sando said.
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http://www.cellmedica.co.uk
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Biotechnology
|
Manchester,
U.K.
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DxS Names Ron Long
Non-Executive Director
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By
Staff Reporters
|
7/31/2008
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Personalized medicine diagnostics company DxS Ltd. has
appointed Ron Long non-executive director.
Long worked with Wellcome Foundation PLC for more than 22 years, holding
divisional director appointments in Wellcome Biotechnology Ltd. and Coopers
Animal Health Ltd., and was group managing director of Calmic International
Ltd. before leaving Wellcome in 1990. He then joined Amersham as commercial
director, eventually serving as chief executive for Amersham Pharmacia
Biotech and vice chairman of Amersham PLC before retiring from the company in
June 2001.
DxS has raised GBP3.5 million to date, most recently taking in GBP2.5
million in 2004. Investors include Northern Venture Managers, Octopus Asset
Management and Yorkshire Fund Managers.
DxS has a range of products including cancer mutation assays and kits,
molecular diagnostic technologies and genetic analysis services. Last month
it signed a distribution agreement with F. Hoffmann-La Roche Ltd. for the
distribution of a K-ras gene mutation detection test.
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http://www.dxsgenotyping.com
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Jive Software Snags New
Finance Chief
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By
Staff Reporters
|
7/31/2008
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Jive Software Inc., an enterprise collaboration software
company backed by Sequoia Capital, has named Bryan LeBlanc chief financial
officer.
LeBlanc comes from Web analytics company WebTrends Inc., where he was CFO
and led the financial and operational teams. Before WebTrends, LeBlanc was
a member of Mercury Interactive Corp.'s executive team. He also has held
management roles in finance and marketing for inSilicon Corp., Documentum
Inc., Cadence Design Systems Inc. and Fogdog Sports Inc.
Jive makes social productivity software to bring together employees,
partners and customers in a unified collaboration system. Its flagship
products, Clearspace and Clearspace Community, are used by more than 2,000
customers worldwide, including more than 15% of the Fortune 500, the
company said.
In April, Jive acquired online calendaring company Jotlet LLC. Jive,
founded in 2001 and based in Portland, Ore., raised $15 million in Series A
funding from Sequoia last year.
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http://www.jivesoftware.com
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Venture Capital
|
San
Francisco
|
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Levensohn's Keith
Benjamin Dies At 49
|
|
By
Staff Reporters
|
7/31/2008
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Levensohn Venture Partners said that Keith E. Benjamin, a
managing partner with the firm, has died at age 49.
A spokeswoman for the firm said Benjamin passed away Tuesday night after
collapsing while exercising. A statement on the firm's Web site called
Benjamin "a kind and loving person who adored his family, loved his
work and was passionate about everything he did."
Benjamin joined Levensohn from Highland Capital Partners, where he opened
the firm's San Francisco office as a general partner. At Levensohn he
focused on software and digital media investments, sitting on the boards of
BigFix Inc., Levanta Inc. and Radiance Technologies Inc.
Benjamin is survived by his wife, Nancy, and their two children.
In lieu of flowers, the family requested that a charitable donation be made
to one of several organizations. Further information will be made available
on Levensohn's Web site.
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http://www.levp.com
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SparkSpace To Give
Start-Ups Access To Cloud 9
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David Rose hopes to see companies grow through the roof - or
at least to the top floor where the investors write the checks.
Rose, a serial entrepreneur and angel investor, plans to open next week an
entrepreneurial technology center in the heart of New York's Silicon Alley.
The incubator, located in Manhattan's Flatiron District, will house five
stories full of young companies all hoping to get a trip to the building's
penthouse, which will be a shared working space for investors.
SparkSpace is a fully equipped workspace for about two dozen start-ups.
Amenities include 24-hour access, full VoIP telephony, broadband, shared
boardrooms, team spaces and video studios. Rose said SparkSpace is designed
for teams of one to five people working on the next big thing. The
incubator offers a full range of co-working space options starting at $200
a month.
The space is currently home to Panjiva Inc., a company that provides data
that helps apparel companies identify overseas suppliers, and PerformLine
Inc., an online performance marketing company.
Membership in SparkSpace is by invitation, on a month-to-month basis, and
limited "only to really cool people," Rose said. More companies
will be announced soon, Rose said.
Cloud 9 is a luxury penthouse space with room for six to eight angel
investors.
"Most angel investors are not full-time in another business,"
Rose said. "They've made their money and moved on to something else. A
good angel portfolio has about 10 to 20 companies, and that takes time to
manage. Cloud 9 is a space for those who want to get out of their home
office."
Rose said the opportunity to work in a collaborative space and share ideas
with like-minded investors is attractive to many angels.
"They will have this gorgeous office with all these shared amenities
and all these cool start-ups coming in," Rose said. "It's an
exciting place to be in."
The official launch party for SparkSpace and Cloud 9 is scheduled for Aug.
6.
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http://sparkspaceny.com
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