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Broadcom
Acquires Microprocessor Firm SiByte for $2 Billion
By Technologic
Partners, November 07, 2000
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Broadcom Acquires Microprocessor Firm SiByte for $2
Billion
IRVINE, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Broadcom,
a publicly-traded provider of integrated circuits enabling broadband
communication, said it acquired integrated processor chip developer
SiByte for up to $2 billion in stock. Dan Dobberpuhl, president and
CEO of SiByte, will join the senior management and technical staff
of Broadcom as a result of the acquisition. Broadcom said it will
issue up to 9.3 million shares of its stock to acquire SiByte.SiByte
raised a $40 million third round in May. Investors in the company
include Bowman Capital, ATI Technologies, Cisco Systems, Juniper
Networks, and the Raza Venture Fund.
http://www.broadcom.com/
http://www.sibyte.com/
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Alta Partners Raising Some $300 Million for Fund
III
SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Alta Partners
is raising a new fund with a goal of between $275 million and $325
million. The fund, Alta Partners III, has held its first close, with
another close expected in early 2001. The fund will focus on the IT
and life science sectors. It will invest between $8 million and $10
million per company.
http://www.altapartners.com/
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Web Retailer Furniture.com Shuts Down, Cuts Most of
Staff
FRAMINGHAM, Mass. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Online
furniture retailer Furniture.com said it shut down its operations
and laid off 76 of its 88 workers. The company blamed its demise on
difficulty raising capital to maintain its operations. The company
said customers with unfullfilled orders who have not received
refunds will receive a refund within approximately 60 days. In June,
the firm pulled its IPO registration, cut 41% of its workforce, and
closed a $27 million late-stage funding round. Living.com, another
well-funded home furnishings retailer, shut down in August.
Furniture.com received backing from Akaro Holding B.V., Amerindo
Investment Advisors, Bessemer Venture Partners, CMGI @Ventures,
Europe@Web, the Munder NetNet Fund, RRE Ventures, and Shad Run
Investments.
http://www.furniture.com/
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Web Processing Firm eStellarNet Has $30 Million Round
One
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
eStellarNet, which provides Internet applications for the workers'
compensation and integrated disability management industries, said
it raised $30 million in its first institutional round. Capital Z
Financial Services Fund II led the round, which also included
participation by Insurance Services Offices. The company will use
the funds for expansion and toward general working purposes.
http://www.estellarnet.com/
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NEW
MONEY
IT Equipment
Market Cymerc Lands $19.8 Million Round One
SAN
FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Cymerc, a marketplace for high-end
enterprise IT equipment, said it raised $19.8 million in its first
round of funding from Mohr Davidow Ventures, Trinity Ventures, and
Comdisco Ventures. The company will use the funds to expand its
service offerings. Nancy Schoendorf of Mohr Davidow and Gus Tai of
Trinity joined the board of directors. The company also said it will
launch a next-day, free-shipping parts service for Sun Microsystems
servers.
http://www.cymerc.com/
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E-commerce Firm WebCollage Raises $16 Million in First
Round
NEW YORK (VENTUREWIRE) -- WebCollage, makers
of software for Internet businesses, announced it raised $16 million
in its first round of financing from lead investor Sierra Ventures
as well as from the European venture group Glide IT Fund and from
Cedar Fund, which made a seed investment in WebCollage earlier this
year. Steve Williams, a Sierra Ventures general partner, will join
WebCollages board as the boards fourth member. WebCollage said it
will use the funds to accelerate product development and to expand
its marketing beyond the U.S.
http://www.webcollage.com/
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Fiber-Optic Firm Lumentis Raises $10 Million First
Round
STOCKHOLM (VENTUREWIRE) -- Lumentis, which
provides metropolitan area network fiber-optic technologies for
telecommunications operators, said it raised SEK 100 million ($10
million) in its first round of funding exclusively financed by DB
Holdings, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank. Lumentis, which was founded
in September, said the funding will be used to expand its management
team.
http://www.lumentis.com/
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Gen Y Music Site SaulGoodMan Raises $1 Million First
Round
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
SaulGoodMan, Internet retailer of independent music and lifestyle
products for 13 to 23-year-olds, announced it raised $1 million from
Intellysis Venture Partners I in its first round. Al LaBorde, a
general partner at Intellysis, will join the board of SaulGoodMan as
the boards third member. SaulGoodMan said it will use the funds to
expand its staff and to increase its marketing.
http://www.saulgoodman.com/
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Instant Messaging Firm Presence Works Has $1.2 Million
Seed
ALEXANDRIA, Va. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Presence
Works, a developer of instant messaging technology for businesses,
said it raised $1.2 million in its seed round. Investors include:
Mark Warner, founder of Nextel and chairman of Columbia Capital; Ray
Smith, chairman and CEO of Bell Atlantic; Cal Simmons, managing
director at ASAP Ventures; Mark Kington and Karl Khoury, partners at
Columbia Capital; Sanders Partee, CEO of ViewGate Technology;
Yves-Andre Istel, vice chairman at Rothschild; Larry Roshfeld, vice
president at Aether Software Systems; and John Durrett, director at
McKinsey & Co. The company will use the funds to build its sales
and marketing team.
http://www.presenceworks.com/
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IT Infrastructure Firm RedSiren Gets $5 Million Round
One
PITTSBURGH (VENTUREWIRE) -- Redleaf Group, a
technology operating company, invested $5 million in the first round
of funding for Pittsburgh-based managed service provider RedSiren
Technologies, which offers offers remote IT infrastructure
monitoring and maintenance services to businesses. Redleaf Group
will also provide support services in addition to the funding. The
funds will go towards general operations.
http://www.redsiren.com/
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Net Music News Firm Kick.com Lands $6 Million in Round
One
SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Kick.com, which
provides personalized delivery of music news and information, said
it raised $6 million in its first round. Utah Ventures and 550
Digital Media Ventures, the newly launched venture capital arm of
Sony Broadband Entertainment, participated in the round. Alan
Dishlip, general partner at Utah Ventures, and Rio D. Caraeff,
senior director of new technology and business development at 550
Ventures, joined the company's board of directors. Kick.com said it
will use the funds to develop its delivery platform.
http://www.kick.com/
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Property Services Firm ManageStar Has $8.5 Million
Series A
WALNUT CREEK, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
ManageStar.com, which provides an online system for property and
facility managers to procure services, said it raised $8.5 million
in its Series A round of funding from Dominion Ventures and Charter
Venture Capital. The company, which is expecting additional funding
in the Series A, raised two previous rounds from undisclosed
individuals and corporate investors including Arthur Andersen and
Colliers Parrish. The capital will be used to expand its technical
team and launch the company's site nationally. ManageStar also said
Mike Lee of Dominion and Ravi Chiruvolu of Charter will take seats
on the company's board.
http://www.managestar.com/
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Wireless Firm WiredPocket Lands $2 Million in Seed
Round
SEATTLE (VENTUREWIRE) -- WiredPocket, a
company that has developed an application to download full Web pages
to wireless devices, announced it received $2 million in seed
investment from Timberline Venture Partners. Jeffery C. Tung,
Timberlines managing partner, will join WiredPockets board of
directors as the board's third member. WiredPocket said it plans to
use the funds to increase staff and to develop products and
partnerships.
http://www.wiredpocket.com/
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Wireless Broadband Firm Dotcast Has $60 Million Third
Round
PALO ALTO, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Dotcast,
a wireless broadband service provider, said it closed its third
round of funding with $60 million. New investors Walt Disney
Company, GE Equity, Quantum, and Worldview Technology Partners
participated along with previous investors Intel Capital and Angel
Investors. Dotcast will use the funding for development and
deployment of its Dotcast Digital Network, which provides consumers
with feature-rich broadband and provides rich-media content
developers with a distribution path. The company has raised $80
million to date.
http://www.dotcast.com/
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Wireless Systems Firm Stellcom Gets $50 Million in
Series B
SAN DIEGO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Stellcom, a
wireless systems integrator, said it has secured $50 million in its
Series B round of funding from Goldman Sachs and Frontenac Co.
Stellcom said it used part of the funds to redeem shares from
existing shareholders. The remaining funds will be used to further
company growth.
http://www.stellcom.com/
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B2B Platform DoubleTrade Gets $7.8 Million in Second
Round
PARIS (VENTUREWIRE) -- DoubleTrade, a
neutral business-to-business trading Web site for buyers and
suppliers, said it raised EUR 12 million ($7.8 million) in its
second round of funding. The round was led by ING Barings and
InnovaFrance and previous investors CDC Innovation, Apollo Invest,
and SI Ventures also participated. The company said it will use the
funding to develop new services and increase its European sales and
marketing. The company has offices in France, Hong Kong, and the
United Kingdom and intends to expand to Italy, Germany, Portugal,
and Spain.
http://www.doubletrade.com/
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CIT Invests $15 Million in Aviation Web Site Developer
CAMP
LIVINGSTON, N.J. (VENTUREWIRE) -- CIT Venture
Capital, a business unit of the publicly traded CIT Group, said it
made its largest equity investment to date, $15 million, in CAMP
Systems International. CAMP, a provider of maintenance tracking and
aircraft management services, has created a line of Web enabled
products and services targeted at the corporate aircraft industry.
CIT Venture Capital has partnered with Boston Ventures and Todd
Hamilton, CEO of CAMP in this investment.
http://www.campsys.com/
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IBM, Bank of America, Prudential Take Stake in
netStruxr
SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) --
NetStruxr, an online marketplace for corporate real estate, said
that Bank of America, IBM, and Prudential Insurance have taken a
minority equity stake in the company to support its Web-based
transaction system, called Spacedirect. Financial terms of the deal
were not disclosed. The combined total comes to just under 20% and
the three companies plan to bring approximately $3 billion worth of
real estate transactions to Spacedirect. IBM will provide the
technology. Spacedirect will enable corporations to post specific
requirements for real estate space and review landlords' responses.
NetStruxr has been previously funded by B2B-Hive.
http://www.netstruxr.com/
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Mobile Software Firm Accelerate Gets $2 Million in
Round Two
SAN JOSE, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
Accelerate Mobile, which provides technology designed to accelerate
the delivery of data for wireless network providers, said it raised
$2 million in its second round of funding from Itochu and DigaCast.
The company will use the funds to develop its wireless data
infrastructure.
http://www.acceleratemobile.com/
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Music Creation Platform Firm Tonos Has $10 Million
Series B
CULVER CITY, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
Tonos Entertainment, developer of an online music creation and
collaboration platform, said it closed a $10 million Series B round
of funding led by Softbank Venture Capital. Previous investors
Sequoia Capital and Bob Daly, chairman of the Los Angeles Dodgers
and former chairman and CEO of Warner Brothers and the Warner Music
Group, along with new investors Bob Lessin, chairman and CEO of Wit
SoundView, and Bo Peabody, founder of community site Tripod, also
participated in the round. The company said the funds will be used
to launch its platform in January. Carl Rosendahl, Softbank's
managing director, has joined Tonos' board. The company was founded
in 1999 by songwriters Carole Bayer Sager, David Foster, and Kenneth
"Babyface" Edmonds and has raised $7 million in its first round in
March.
http://www.tonos.com/
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Real Estate Management Tech Firm RealPage Gets $20
Million
CARROLLTON, Texas. (VENTUREWIRE) --
RealPage, which provides products and services to the real estate
industry, said it secured $20 million in a funding round led by
Seren Capital. The company said it will use the funding to develop
and deploy its web-based property management system and expand the
market research databases of its subsidiary, M/PF Research, a
provider of market research to the apartment industry. Also RealPage
said it will use part of the funding for strategic acquisitions. In
addition to the funding announcement, the company said it has
acquired ChannelTECH, a supplier of handheld technology used in
facility management applications in the apartment industry. The
financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Dean Schmidt,
founder and president of ChannelTECH, will join RealPage as senior
vice president of product management.
http://www.realpage.com/
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Times N Systems Raises $11.5 Million in Series B
Funding
AUSTIN, Texas (VENTUREWIRE) -- Times N
Systems, a computer systems developer specializing in
multi-processor services, said it completed a $11.5 million Series B
financing round led by Convergent Investors with additional funding
from Sternhill Partners and previous investor Austin Ventures. Times
N Systems said it will use the funds to further develop and bring to
market its technology. The company's flagship technology, Teaming,
allows multiple computers running Microsoft NT or Linux to share
available processing power, memory, and disk input/output bandwidth.
Times N Systems raised $4.1 million in its first round of funding in
June 1999.
http://www.timesn.com/
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Web Brand Protection Firm GenuOne Has $4.2 Million
Round Two
BOSTON (VENTUREWIRE) -- GenuOne, which
provides intellectual property and brand protection services, said
it closed its second round with $4.2 million. DFS Advisors and Delta
Asset Management invested in this round along with individual
investors. The company plans to use the funds to develop its
technology portfolio and for marketing. The company also operates a
security-focused technology incubator, GenuOne Technology
Capital.
http://www.genuone.com/
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Banking Services Firm Magnet Lands $25 Million Third
Round
ATLANTA (VENTUREWIRE) -- Magnet
Communications, a financial supply chain for business banking, said
it closed a $25 million third round of financing. SunTrust Bank;
Banc of America Technology Investments; Washington Mutual; BT
Investment Partners, an affiliate of Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown;
Union Street Partners; Dain Rauscher Wessels; Saints Ventures, a
fund comprised of investments from executives in the technology
industry; and TechnoPlus, an Israeli-based technology fund,
participated in the round. They joined existing investors Coral
Ventures and LiveOak Equity. Magnet Communications provides secure
business banking and cash management services to banks worldwide.
The company said it will use the funds for sales force expansion,
research and development, and general corporate purposes. Magnet has
raised $38.5 million to date.
http://www.magnetbanking.com/
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Communications Firm Neolinear Raises $8 Million Third
Round
PITTSBURGH (VENTUREWIRE) -- Neolinear,
which develops mixed-signal technology for the communications and
networking industries, closed its third round of financing at $8
million with corporate investment from Cadence Design Systems and
venture capital from previous investors CEO Venture Fund, Intersouth
Partners, and TVM Techno Venture Management. Neolinear said Cadence
Design Systems received about a 10% equity stake as part of a
strategic partnership. Neolinear added that it will use the funds to
accelerate product research and development.
http://www.neolinear.com/
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Internet Rental Exchange Viva Secures $17.3 Million
Series C
SANTA MONICA, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
Viva, an Internet leasing exchange for the rental housing industry
said that seven apartment industry public companies, Archstone
Communities, AvalonBay Communities, Camden Property Trust, Equity
Residential Properties Trust, Gables Residential, Post Properties,
and United Dominion Realty, have combined resources to act as the
lead investor in Viva's $17.3 million Series C round. Other
investors in the round include Banc of America Mortgage Capital, a
subsidiary of Bank of America; Insignia Financial Group; and Viva's
previous investors, Allegis Capital, Rosewood Venture Group, and
Kline Hawkes & Co. Viva's reverse listing business model enables
renters to put themselves on the market and receive online rental
offers from properties. The company is also backed by Media
Technology Ventures and Thomas Weisel Partners.
http://www.viva.com/
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MetaEdge's Receives $11 Million in Round Three
Funding
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) --
MetaEdge, a provider of decision-support customer intelligence
software and services to e-commerce companies, received an $11
million in a Series C round of funding led by WK Technology Fund
with participation from Concord Venture Capital Group, SoftChina
Venture Capital, and Itochu Financial. The funds will be used for
product development and general company expansion.
http://www.metaedge.com/
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Motorola Invests In Optical Access Equipment Firm
Geyser
HORSHAM, Pa. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Geyser
Networks, which develops advanced multi-service optical access
equipment, announced it has received an undisclosed equity
investment from Motorola's broadband communications unit. Geyser
also said it has formed a partnership with Motorola to provide a
platform for the transport of video, voice, and data traffic to
cable operators. Geyser Networks is backed by Sequoia Capital,
Crimson Ventures, VantagePoint Partners, Boston Millennia Partners,
Vertex Management, and Access Technology Partners.
http://www.geysernetworks.com/
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Traq-wireless Closes $12.5 Million Second
Round
AUSTIN, Texas (VENTUREWIRE) --
Traq-wireless, an online provider of cross-carrier wireless
management services for business, said it completed its $12.5
million second round of funding. Previous investors Sevin Rosen and
HO2 Funds co-led the round with new participant Convergent
Investors. The company will use the funds for corporate client
acquisition, product development, and general operating expenses.
Willard Hanzlik, general partner of Convergent Investors, will join
the board of directors. The company previously raised $4.5 million
in its first round of funding. Motorola, Tarrant Venture Partners,
and VentureLink Partners also back traq-wireless.
http://www.traq.com/
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Collaborative Software Firm Centric Has $30 Million
Series D
SAN JOSE, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Centric
Software, creator of collaborative virtual product development
software for the distributed design chain, said it secured $30
million in its Series D round of funding. The round was led by
Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and co-investor ABS Ventures, a
venture capital affiliate of Deutsche Bank Alex Brown. Existing
investors BancBoston Ventures, Boston Capital Ventures, Kline Hawkes
& Co., and Seacoast Capital Partners also participated in the
round. The company said it will use the funding to increase its
engineering capacity and expand its sales and marketing channels to
reach additional customers. Centric Software connects a range of
manufacturers with partners and suppliers. The company has raised
$46 million to date.
http://www.centricsoftware.com/
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Colorado MicroDisplay Raises $35 Million in Round
Four
BOULDER, Colo. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Colorado
MicroDisplay, a developer of high-resolution microdisplay chipsets,
said it raised $35 million in its fourth round funding led by GE
Equity. Other investors included Chatterjee Group, EnerTech Capital
Partners, Gruber & McBain Capital Management, Mustang Ventures
Fund, Odyssey Capital and Polaroid. The round also included funding
from previous investors Intel, Texas Instruments, 3I, and Granite
Ventures. The company said it will use the funding to enhance its
operations, sales and marketing, and ongoing product development.
Bill Maw, vice president of GE Equity, will take a seat on the
company's board of directors.
http://www.comicro.com/
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Magma Design Gets $28 Million Series D, Merges with
Moscape
CUPERTINO, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Magma
Design Automation, which develops electronic design automation
software, said it raised $28 million in its Series D round of
funding. The company said most of the new funding came from existing
investors as well as new investors Toshiba and Vitesse
Semiconductor. The company also said it merged with Moscape, a
provider of electrical integrity and noise analysis and
verification. Magma said that the two companies have together raised
more than $91 million. Moscape will keep its name, retain all of its
employees, and operate as a subsidiary of Magma. Magma Design
Automation is backed by Alliance Venure Management, Cisco Systems,
Galleon Group unit Admirals, Hyundai, Intel, New Enterprise
Associates, Raza Venture Fund, and the Redwood Fund.
http://www.magma-da.com/
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E-Commerce Firm Frictionless Has $30 Million in Series
D
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Frictionless
Commerce, which provides purchasing technology for online companies,
said it secured $30 million in its Series D round of funding, led by
Olympus Partners. Other investors included RRE Ventures, Chevron
Technology Ventures, Net Market Partners, Needham Funds, Draper
International, and previous investor Polaris Venture Partners. The
company will use the funds to market and sell its product,
Frictionless e-Market Suite, and to complete development and launch
its electronic sourcing software application Global 2500. Dave
Cardenas, partner with Olympus Partners, will join the board of
directors, and Will Porteous of RRE and Don Riley of Chevron
Technology Ventures will hold board observer seats.
http://www.frictionless.com/
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ProSeed Capital Holdings Invests in Three Belgium
Startups
BRUSSELS, Belgium (VENTUREWIRE) --
ProSeed Capital Holdings, a seed investment company, said it
invested undisclosed amounts in three early stage Belgian companies;
Opt@lis, CiTOBi, and UbiCall Communications. ProSeed said the
investments will be used to develop the companies' business and
technology.
http://www.proseedcapital.com/
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Loan Tech Firm GHR Closes $15.2 Million Series E
Round
WAYNE, Pa. (VENTUREWIRE) -- GHR Systems, a
provider of loan origination technology, electronic transaction
processing, and support services to lenders, said it closed a $15.2
million Series E convertible preferred financing. Investors include
Mortgage Guaranty Insurance, a subsidiary of MGIC Investment;
Metavante, formerly M&I Data Services; K. Terrence Wakefield,
CEO of Customers Forever; and Washington Mutual. In addition to the
$15.2 million, earlier this year GHR issued $6.5 million of
convertible debt which is expected to convert to Series E
convertible preferred stock within 90 days. Investors in the
convertible debt include PNC Investment, a subsidiary of PNC
Financial Services Group; Intuit; RAF Ventures; and other existing
investors. GHR said it will use this capital for expansion,
enhancing support services, expanding its network infrastructure,
and developing new mortgage loan origination products and services.
http://www.ghrsystems.com/
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Mobile Application Developer Freever Raises $10.3
Million
PARIS (VENTUREWIRE) -- Freever, a French
provider of wireless technologies creating mobile communities with
content provision and chat capabilities, said it raised $10.3
million in its most recent round of funding. The round was led by
ADD Partners and Net Partners, and previous investors Apollo Invest
and CDC Innovation also participated in the funding. The company
said it will use the financing to support its international
development. The company focuses on the creation of wireless
communities popular among the 15-25 year old demographic in Europe.
http://www.freever.org/
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BAD NEWS
Divine interVentures Lays Off 43% of
Development Group Staff
CHCAGO (VENTUREWIRE) --
Divine interVentures, the publicly traded information technology
holding company, said it laid off 18 people from its partner
development group staff on Friday. Dave Onack, a spokesperson for
Divine interVentures, confirmed that the lay-offs came "as part of a
Divine strategy to adapt to current market conditions." The company,
while not ruling out future investments, has shifted its focus to
support the companies within its portfolio. "Divine is taking steps
to get cost structure in line with available capital," said Mr.
Onack. Divine interVentures currently holds $327 million in
available capital.
http://www.divineinterventures.com/
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Eos-Backed U.K. Cooking Site Foodoo Closes Online
Kitchen
LONDON (VENTUREWIRE) -- Foodoo.com, a
British site devoted to cooking, said it ceased operations. The
company said it closed due to an inability to secure further
funding. Foodoo said it will seek approval from members and
creditors to go into voluntary liquidation. The company was backed
by investors including Eos Internet Ventures, which recently
announced it is restructuring into a holding company in order to
focus on securing additional funding for its portfolio. Telephone
+44-207-627-5800.
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NEW
PRODUCTS
One-Hour
Delivery Service Expry Launches in Italy
MILAN
(VENTUREWIRE) -- Expry.it, an Italian delivery service, announced
its launch. Expry offers one-hour delivery of goods and services
ordered on the Internet and WAP phones. Delivery people arrive on
mopeds dressed in white gloves and bowties. The company plans to
expand throughout Europe. Expry is funded by individual
investors.
http://www.expry.it/
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Redleaf Group Launches Its Strategic Security
Platform
PITTSBURGH (VENTUREWIRE) -- Redleaf
Group, an Internet operating company that develops early-stage
business-to-business Internet commerce companies, said it launched
Redleaf Secure Systems (RSS), a strategic platform focused on
Internet security. RSS will invest capital, acquire, and build
companies that develop Internet security technology, as well as
create partnerships with security firms and develop technology
itself. Redleaf also said it made an agreement with and invested $5
million in managed service provider RedSiren Technologies, and that
it formed a partnership with RedCreek, which develops hardware and
software security products and services.
http://www.redleaf.com/
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Services Marketer eFrenzy Changes Name to Nextdoor
Networks
SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- eFrenzy,
which runs an online marketplace for a range of services, said it is
changing its name to Nextdoor Networks. The company said it plans to
extend its online marketplace applications to new partners and to
make its product accessible from any communications device. eFrenzy
has received financing from Trinity Ventures, Tribune Ventures, and
Ziff Brothers, among others, as well as investments from
corporations including Office Depot and MDSI Mobile Data Solutions.
http://www.nextdoor.com/
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ASP HomePage.com Changes Name to Frontera
LOS ANGELES (VENTUREWIRE) -- HomePage.com, which
provides Internet businesses with hosting applications, announced it
has changed its name to Frontera to coincide with a change in its
business model. Earlier this year, HomePage.com received $48 million
in a mezzanine round of funding from several investors including
idealab!, idealab Capital Partners, and J & W Seligman.
http://www.frontera-corp.com/
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Business Services Infrastructure Firm Biztro Renamed
Rivio
SANTA CLARA, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Biztro,
which provides business services infrastructure for small
businesses, said it changed its name and is now doing business as
Rivio. The company also developed a new brand strategy under which
it will market its products. Rivio investors include AC Ventures,
Bank of America, BellSouth, Softbank Venture Capital.
http://www.rivio.com/
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M&A
Sonus
Buys Telecom Technologies for More Than $451
Million
WESTFORD, Mass. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Publicly
traded Sonus Networks, a provider of voice infrastructure services,
said it has agreed to acquire telecom technologies, a developer of
network software products aimed at enabling service providers to
offer new voice and data services at a lower cost. Sonus will issue
10.8 million shares of stock, worth approximatley $451 million, plus
an additional 4.2 million shares if telecom technologies achieves
certain business objectives. Telecom technologies will become a
division of Sonus Networks and remain in Richardson, Texas. Telecom
technologies founder and CEO, Anousheh Ansari, will become general
manager and vice president of this Sonus division. All telecom
technologies employees will become employees of Sonus Networks.
Telecom technologies received funding from MSD Capital and
individual investors.
http://www.sonusnet.com/
http://www.telecomtechnologies.com/
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Locus Dialogue Acquired By InfoSpace For $128
Million
BELLEVUE, Wash. (VENTUREWIRE) --
InfoSpace, a publicly traded company which provides online
infrastructure services, said it acquired Locus Dialogue, a speech
recognition application developer. The all stock acquistion is
valued at about $128 million. Locus speech recognition software
technologies provide automatic speech recognition, natural language
understanding, speaker vericfication, speaker identification, and
text-to-speech server technology. The company was founded as a
spin-off of the Computer Research Institute of Montreal. Investors
in the company include Sofinov societe financiere d'innovation,
Innovatech du Grand Montreal, Le Fonds d Solidarite des Travailleurs
du Quebec, and GTI Capital.
http://www.infospace.com/
http://www.locusdialogue.com/
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E-Business Consulting Service Meritage Buys Consulting
Firms
COLUMBUS, Ohio. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Meritage
Technologies, which provides electronic business consulting and
professional services, said it has acquired electronic business
consulting firms, Thought Interactive and Castle Point Systems. The
financial terms of the acquisitions were not disclosed. Meritage has
received funding from Green Hill Capital Partners, which holds a 13%
stake in the company.
http://www.meritagetech.com/
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Investment Firm Lake Capital Acquires
DVC
CHICAGO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Lake Capital, an
investor in service-based companies, said it acquired DVC Group, a
marketing, communications and technology firm for an undisclosed
amount. Lake Capital; Frontenac, a Chicago-based private investment
firm; and an undisclosed group of investors plan to invest more than
$100 million to acquire DVC and expand the company. Co-founders
George Valva, CEO of DVC, and Peter Dugan, chief business
development officer, will remain in management positions.
http://www.dvc.com/
http://www.lakecapital.com/
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Timera Acquires Software Management Tech Firm
SoftThought
BOULDER, Colo (VENTUREWIRE) --
Timera, which provides commercial crew management and timekeeping
software applications for the railroad industry, announced it has
acquired SoftThought Systems, which provides labor scheduling
technology for workforce management. The financial terms of the
acquisition were not disclosed. Timera is backed by Fenix
Enterprises, a Union Pacific holding company.
http://www.fenixenterprises.com/
http://www.softthought.com/
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NEW
DIRECTORS
Electronics Portal eChips Names First Board of
Directors
SAN JOSE, Calif.. (VENTUREWIRE) --
eChips, a business-to-business online commerce platform for the
electronics industry, announced its new board of directors. The
board's chairman will be the company's CEO John "Sean" J. Powers,
who previously was vice president at Arrow Electronics. Other board
members include: Ryal Poppa, former chairman, president, and CEO of
Storage Technology; Fred Warnock, former president of Almac/Arrow
Electronics; and Rich Ward, former president of Avnet's computer
marketing group. eChips was formed this month as a result of a
merger between QuestLink Technology, ChipCenter, Arrow Electronic's
Advantage business unit, and Avnet's Production Supplies and Test
Equipment unit. Arrow, Avnet, CMP Media, and i2 Technologies have
all invested in eChips.
http://www.echips.com/
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U.K. Incubator Ideas Hub Names Chairman, Director of
Board
LONDON (VENTUREWIRE) -- Ideas Hub, an
Internet business accelerator, said Vic Steel joined the board as
chairman and David Simpson joined as director. Mr. Steel is
currently chairman of Forbidden Technologies, a developer of video
compression technology, as well as non-executive director of Navy
Army Air Force Institutes and Eidos, a developer and publisher of
computer and entertainment software. Mr. Simpson is co-founder and
deputy chairman of Pet Plan Group, a provider of pet healthcare
insurance.
http://www.ideashub.com/
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Broadband Firm Actelis Names Former SBC Exec Kaplan to
Board
FREMONT, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Actelis
Networks, a broadband transport systems developer, said it named
Marty Kaplan to its board of directors. Mr. Kaplan most recently
served as executive vice president of SBC, where he was responsible
for the integration of SBC Communications with Pacific Bell,
Southern New England Tel Co, and Ameritech. While at Pacific Bell,
he served as president of the network services group and chief
technology, quality, and re-engineering officer. Mr. Kaplan is
currently chairman of the board for JDS Uniphase and also served on
the Bellcore/Telcordia board for ten years. Actelis' investors
include New Enterprise Associates, U.S. Venture Partners, and The
Walden International Investment Group.
http://www.actelis.com/
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Healthcare Software Firm Outlaw Names New Board
Member
BOULDER, Colo. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Outlaw
Technologies, which develops healthcare relationship management
software aimed at health plan providers, said it appointed Dirk
Tyler as the fourth member of the company's board of directors. Mr.
Tyler is presently managing director of Taleria Ventures, a startup
accelerator. Mr. Tyler also founded BACE Industries in November
1988. Outlaw is backed by Colorado Venture Management.
http://www.outlawtech.com/
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NEW
PEOPLE
E-Mail Tech
Firm Disappearing Inc. Names Ex-Eventus Exec
CEO
SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Disappearing
Inc., which creates e-mail management applications for businesses,
said it has appointed Michael Burkland, founder of Eventus Software,
as its new president, chairman, and CEO. Former chairman and CEO
Maclen Marvit has been appointed as CTO. Disappearing Inc. was
funded by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Red Rock Ventures,
and former Netscape executive Eric Hahn in 1999.
http://www.disappearing.com/
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Bridgewater Systems Taps Former Nextel Exec as
CEO
KANATA, Ontario (VENTUREWIRE) -- Bridgewater
Systems, a developer of digital access control applications,
announced it has appointed Mike Ozburn, former vice president and
general manager of Nextel Online, as its new president and CEO. He
replaces Doug Somers, the former CEO, who has been appointed as
executive vice president. Earlier this year, Bridgewater Systems
received CAD $30 million ($19.5 million) in its sixth round of
funding co-led by Sprott Securities and Griffiths McBurney &
Partners.
http://www.bridgewatersystems.com/
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Messaging Firm IP Globalnet Names Ex-Bekaert Exec as
CEO
ZAVENTEM, Belgium (VENTUREWIRE) -- IP
Globalnet, an electronic message management firm, named Leo
Steenbergen as the companys new CEO, replacing acting interim CEO
David Havercroft, who is leaving IP Globalnet. Mr. Steenbergen was
executive vice president and CFO of the Bekaert Group and was in
senior management at Hewlett-Packards European headquarters for 17
years. Investors in IP Globalnet include GIMV and NIB Capital
Private Equity, Creafund, KBC Invest, and Mercator-Noorstar, among
others.
http://www.ip-globalnet.com/
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Advertising Infrastructure Firm Adwise Appoints
CEO
NEW YORK (VENTUREWIRE) -- Adwise, an
advertising infrastructure company which specializes in real-time
behavioral targeting software and services, named Dan Schwartz as
its new chief executive officer. Mr. Schwartz served as vice
president of North American Sales at Adforce prior to his
appointment as Adwise CEO. Investors for Adwise include the Emicom
Group.
http://www.adwise.net/
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VC FUND
NEWS
Israeli Firm
Veritas Raising New Fund, Opens Atlanta
Office
HERZLIYA PITUACH, Israel (VENTUREWIRE) --
Veritas Venture Partners, an investment firm that focuses on seed
and early stage high-tech companies in Israel, said it is raising a
new $100 million fund and is opening an office in Atlanta. The fund
will invest approximately $6 million in each company, focusing on
Internet communications and healthcare startups in Israel and the
Southeastern U.S. Veritas is managed by Yadin Kaufmann, Rann Marom,
Gideon Tolkowsky, and Gil Zaphrir in Israel, and Laurie Oliver in
Atlanta.
http://www.veritasvc.com/
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Osprey Ventures Raising its Second Fund for $100
Million
PALO ALTO, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Osprey
Ventures said it is planning to raise $100 million for its second
fund, named the Osprey Pacific Fund. The firm expects to have a
first closing from individual investors by the end of this year for
$20 million and have a second closing for $80 million by the spring
of 2001. The new fund will invest in early stage companies in
Silicon Valley, Asia, and India. Like its predecessor, the fund will
focus on early-stage rounds in companies in the infrastructure,
communications, and software sectors. The firm is holding meetings
this month for individual investors. The firm's first fund has $92
million in committed capital and 21 portfolio companies including
Appshop, Epicentric, Internet Wire, PeopleLink, and ShopEaze.
http://www.ospreyventures.com/
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Vertex Management Raises $76 Million From Singapore
Funds
TEL AVIV (VENTUREWIRE) -- Vertex Management
Israel, which manages three venture capital funds as part of the
Vertex Venture Capital Group, said it raised $76 million for its
third fund from Singapore-based firms. Strategic Investors from the
country include the National Science and Technology Board, Singapore
Technologies, Infocomm Investments, Government of Singapore
Investment Corporation, Vickers Ballas Holdings, Vickers Capital,
Jafco Investment, and Creative Technology. Vertex Management Israel
invests in seed and early stage Israeli and North American startup
companies.
http://www.vertexisrael.co.il/
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Three SSM Ventures Partners Form New Texan Firm,
Verity
AUSTIN, Texas (VENTUREWIRE) -- Verity, a
new venture firm based here, announced itself. The firm will be
headed by former SSM Ventures partners Eric Jones, Dick Moeller and
Bill Harrison. Verity will focus on early-stage technology and
telecommunications firms in Texas, particularly here and in Dallas,
and is in the process of raising its first fund. The company
estimates the first fund will be approximately $100 million. Verity
may co-invest with SSM once the new fund is complete. Mr. Jones, Mr.
Moeller, and Mr. Harrison will continue their roles in SSM Ventures
II, which will be fully committed in 2001.
http://www.verityventures.com/
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Westbridge Launches $140 Million Indian Technology
Fund
MUMBAI, India (VENTUREWIRE) -- WestBridge
Capital, which will invest in Indian-related technology companies,
announced the launch of its first fund. The firm founded by former
employees of Goldman Sachs, KP Balaraj, Sumir Chadha, and Raj Dugar,
raised $140 million for investment in companies with strong ties to
India, either through headquarters in the country or research and
development operations located there. The fund, however, will source
its deals internationally. Investors in the fund include Goldman
Sachs, SUN Technology, Capital Z Investments, Merrill Lynch,
Fidelity, Reuters, and Tibco. Subhash Arora, the co-founder of the
HCL Group of Companies, is an operating director of the fund.
Telephone +22-2020607
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Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Acquires British VC
Fund
LONDON (VENTUREWIRE) -- Dresdner Kleinwort
Benson's private equity business said it acquired Elderstreet
Investments, a UK venture capital fund focused on early stage
technology investing. The company, which took an initial 18%
interest in Elderstreet in 1999, is acquiring the remainder in an
"eight-figure acquisition, pounds sterling," according to a Anthony
Cowley, Head of Investment Strategy, Dresdener Kleinwort Benson
Private Equity. Dresdner said that under its ownership Elderstreet
will develop a pan-European platform for information technology
investments and launch a successor fund next year. Dresdner said it
will committ EUR 75 million ($64.6 million) to the new fund. As part
of the international expansion Elderstreet is building an investment
team to operate in Germany. Elderstreet will retain its brand
identitiy, team structure, and investment focus under Dresdner. As a
result of the acquisition Christopher Wright and Andrew Cowley will
take a seat on the company's management board.
http://www.drkbpe.com/
http://www.elderstreet.com/
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VC
PERSONNEL
Former
Bessemer Partner Joins Infinity Capital
PALO ALTO,
Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Infinity Capital, an early stage fund
focused on communications, software and Internet infrastructure
companies, said it named Bruce Graham as a venture partner. Mr.
Graham will focus on investments in the communications sector. He
most recently served as a venture partner with Bessemer Venture
Partners, where he co-invested with the Infinity team. Mr. Graham
will continue to serve on the boards of OMM, NeoSilicon, Genoa,
MorphICs, LightLogic, and Summit Microelectronics. Mr. Graham was
also previously with Vertex Management and Intel.
http://www.infinityllc.com/
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Sevin Rosen Promotes Ms. Tareen, Ex-Ascend Exec, to
Partner
PALO ALTO, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Sevin
Rosen Funds, which recently closed a $875 million fund, said it has
named Amra Tareen as partner. Ms. Tareen, who joined Sevin Rosen in
January as a senior associate, was previously product manager and
product marketing director at Ascend Communications. She is
currently working with Sevin Rosen portfolio companies, including
LightPointe Communications and Point Reyes Networks.
http://www.srfunds.com/
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VW
CORRECTIONS
Tantivy
NEW YORK (VENTUREWIRE) -- An
item in Friday's VentureWire about Tantivy's latest round of
financing contained an incorrect dateline. The company is located in
Melbourne, Florida.
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