InfoChachkie
OCTOBER 8, 2012
Nearly every entrepreneur has heard the refrain, "Get back to me when you have some traction,” while seeking funding. From an unsophisticated investor, this response might be a non-confrontational way of saying "No." However, when uttered by most Venture Capitalists (VCs) it conveys a desire to obtain validation of your venture's value proposition from dispassionate, objective third parties.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 23, 2012
One of the biggest complaints that local entrepreneurs have with Los Angeles has been a dearth of local sources of venture capital. However, the recent surge in startup activity has attracted a lot more capital into the area, including a significant amount of capital from LA's latest fund: Karlin Ventures (www.karlinvc.com). We sat down with TX Zhuo , who is heading up the firm's venture investments, about the fund and his path here after a recent stint at Eric Schmidt's Innovation Endeavors fun
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Berkonomics
OCTOBER 11, 2012
More and more today, shareholder organizations recommend that the positions of chairman and president (or CEO) be split, so there are checks and balances at the board level in the leadership. This recommendation is true for all companies with outside investors who are active and have or seek board representation. If we examine the blowups that have been so public these past years in public company leaders exceeding their reasonable authority or exercising dictatorial authority to the ultimate d
SoCal Tech Calendar
OCTOBER 19, 2012
Thursday, October 25, 2012 -- SoCal Microsoft Tech User Group. Have you noticed the buzz around Microsoft Lync? Are you curious as to why so many are incorporating this tool? Do you have a set of final questions you need answered before making the final commitment? We have just the event for you! The next SoCal Microsoft Technology User Group will be focused solely on Lync!
Advertiser: Aggregage
Office leases are one of companies’ largest expenses, and if your whole team is working from home with no clear end in sight, you may be wondering what to do about your lease.
InfoChachkie
OCTOBER 15, 2012
A version of this article previously appeared in Forbes. One the most frequent questions asked of me by entrepreneurs is, "How can I become a Venture Capitalist?" The inquiry is common because being a VC is (to an entrepreneur, at least) a sexy job. You control substantial amounts of capital, have tremendous autonomy, a flexible work schedule and you get to play Santa by bestowing financial gifts upon worthy entrepreneurs.
InfoChachkie
OCTOBER 1, 2012
I was shocked by the headline: "71% Of President Barack Obama's Twitter Followers Are Fake." By this measure, of the President's nearly 19 million followers, 13.5 million are bogus. Irrespective of your political affiliation, one must admit that nearly three-fourths is an extremely high percentage of phony followers, suggesting that some shenanigans were employed to bolster the President's social status.
Southern California Tech Central brings together the best content for technical professionals in Southern California from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 31, 2012
Hoping to help foreign students better prepare themselves to get into U.S. colleges, a new, Santa Monica startup, ArborBridge , has recently begun to ramp up its online tutoring service for the standardized SAT and ACT tests. Arborbridge, founded by Tim Urban and Andrew Finn, connects those foreign students with one-on-one, live online SAT and ACT test preparation help from tutors.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 18, 2012
Sports fans: how do you prove you're the master of sports knowledge and sports predictions? What's the best way to claim your position among your friends as tops in the world of everything sports? How about an online game? We spoke with Jon Knarreborg , co-founder of Bragstr (www.bragstr.com), a new Los Angeles startup, about how the company's new social game lets you prove your sports knowledge and prediction skills by challenging your friends in a virtual fantasy league, revolving around wager
socalTECH
OCTOBER 25, 2012
If you're a woman with unwanted--but fashionable--clothing in your closet, which you wish you could sell, what's the easiest way to sell it? It might just be Tradesy (www.tradesy.com), a brand new service which lets women sell their unwanted clothing via a mobile app or website--and even takes care of dealing with shipping and returns. The site is the brainchild of Tracy DiNunzio , who took her experience running RecycledBride.com and is now applying the same concept to women's clothing.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 16, 2012
textPlus , the maker of the popular texting application by the same name, said today that it has raised $18M in a new funding round, led by The Raine Group. Prior investors Kleiner Perkins Caufield Byers, Matrix Partners and GRP Partners also participated in the funding. In addition to the new funding, the company also said it has acquired Los Angeles-based Jarvus , which develops an app to people capture and share experiences, events and moments together. textPlus, which is based in Marina Del
socalTECH
OCTOBER 29, 2012
One of the major growth areas along Silicon Beach has been in the whole area of creating content for digital platforms. But, how do you figure out what actual content will resonate with online consumers? And in particular, if you're developing comedy and humor content -- which is a big segment of the content being created--how to do you help people find the content which will resonate with them.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 2, 2012
It looks like the annual TCVN Survivor event is heating up this year, as the group said it will be offering up a new $25,000 cash investment for startups looking to pitch their company in front of an audience. TCVN has been running its Survivor events for a number of years, with the last event being held in 2010. This year's event looks to have slightly changed the format of the event, requiring prospective entrepreneurs to fill out an application to present, and send a quick pitch video to the
socalTECH
OCTOBER 9, 2012
A new deal by Los Angeles-based Hulu this morning will add content from Nickelodeon to Hulu's premium service, Hulu Plus. The Nickelodeon deal brings titles such as "iCarly," "Big Time Rush," "VICTORiOUS," "How to Rock," "Supah Ninjas," "SpongeBob Squarepants," "Kung Fu Panda," "Penguins of Madagascar," "Winx Club," "Robot & Monster," "The Legend of Korra," "T.U.F.F.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 31, 2012
There's been a sudden surge in accelerator in Southern California, looking to help get startups off the ground and funded. But, do they really help? For ThinkNear , it looks like the whole process paid off in less than two years, after the Los Angeles company went from the TechStars accelerator just last June, to a healthy acquisition by TeleNav earlier this month for $22.5M.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 16, 2012
Users of Apple's new iPhone 5 and iOS 6 have another vendor supporting Apple's new wallet feature, Passbook today, as Goldstar , the Pasadena-based provider of half price live entertainment tickets announced integration with the feature. Goldstar, which offers last-minute bargains on live events like concerts, theater, comedy, sports, and other entertainment, said that Goldstar's mobile website and "will call" purchase confirmations are now Passbook compatible.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 24, 2012
A new, Los Angeles startup, Appetize , is looking to make it easier for sports and other event fans. Appetize said Wednesday that it has released a new version of its app, which lets fans at venues order from a menu and have food delivered right to their seat. The app--which runs on both iPhone and Android--is currently live at a number of concert and sporting venues in California, according to the company, including at the Valley View Casino Center, which is hosting Thursday's Laker's pre-seaso
socalTECH
OCTOBER 25, 2012
El Segundo-based integrated circuit maker International Rectifier said this morning that it has raised $100M in four year, senior unsecured credit facility. The funding came from a group of lenders led by Wells Fargo Bank, National Association, along with JP Morgan Chase Bank NA, HSBC Bank USA, National Association and Bank of the West. The company said the facility will go towards working capital, acquisition, stock repurchases, and other general corporate use.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 17, 2012
The option deals are coming fast and furious at Amazon Studios , the effort being run here in Los Angeles to develop content for Amazon Prime and other platforms. Amazon Studios said this week that it has optioned two new comedy series, including Support, centered around a band's life on the road, and The Face and The Heel, focused on the world of wrestling.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 10, 2012
In the latest cuts among Silicon Beach's high tech community, CityGrid , which runs Citysearch, Insider Pages, and Urbanspoon--has laid off a chunk of its staff, including a significant number of Los Angeles employees. Initial news of the cuts, which were made in the last couple of days, came through recruiters and others close to the company. Citygrid did not respond to emails for comment yesterday from socalTECH, however, TechCrunch is placing the size of the cuts at 15 percent of the company.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 3, 2012
Anyone with the slightest interest in the world of social Internet services nowadays has by now heard of Pinterest , the online site which allows users to "pin" and comments on their favorite photos from across the web. Pinterest is one of the latest services to sweep the Internet world in terms of popularity, particularly with women. However, how about similar services aimed at the male demographic?
socalTECH
OCTOBER 8, 2012
World of Warcraft , the massively multiplayer online game run by Irvine-based Blizzard Entertainment, suffered an in-game hack which resulted in a mass (virtual) bloodbath, where thousand and thousands of players and characters were slaughtered over the weekend. The hack--which apparently was quickly fixed by the firm--resulted in piles and piles of skeletons across the game due to a "kill hack".
socalTECH
OCTOBER 24, 2012
Venice, California-based comedy startup Laffster said this morning that it has raised $750,000 in a funding round, which came from Greylock Partners, Howard Lindzon, Adam Nash (LinkedIn), Chris Williams (Maker Studios), Samer Hamadeh (Vault.com), Christopher Grey (CapLinked), Sonny Singh (Jumio), and The Paradigm Agency, along with others. The company--one of the startups out of Santa Monica's MuckerLab--helps users find funny videos, articles, and more.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 18, 2012
The latest numbers from the PricewaterhouseCoopers/National Venture Capital Association MoneyTree report finds that companies here in Southern California raised $695.4M in funding in Q3, up in terms of dollars from Q3 of last year, when $670.9M was raised. In terms of deals, the quarter was actually down from last year, with 79 deals completed in Q3 of this year, versus 91 in Q3 of 2011.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 22, 2012
It had to happen sooner or later -- the startup world has its own parody of the hit song Gangnam Style. And, two local SoCal startups, UberMedia and PerfectMarket --both spinout of Idealab--are part of a set of startups who contributed to the hilarious parody of the South Korean hit (and now, international) hit. READ MORE>>.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 26, 2012
A new, Los Angeles startup BrandBounty is hoping to tap into the power of the crowd to help brands fight counterfeiting. The software developer--one of the companies that is part of Los Angeles-based StartupMinds--has a product which allows brands to offer virtual prizes, contests, and cash rewards to people to help them fight counterfeiting through reports from users of brand violations, such as unauthorized use of a company's products, logos, and trademarks.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 18, 2012
Ad Hoc Labs, the developer behind the Burner mobile app, has just scored a round of angel funding. Size of the round was not disclosed. Burner is a mobile app which allows users to create disposable phone numbers, which they can hand out to people for one-time or temporary use. The funding came from 500 Startups, David Cohen, Ted Rheingold, Robert Goldberg, Kevin Slavin, Ric Calvillo, and others.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 31, 2012
If you're Darth Vader, what do you do now that you are owned by Walt Disney Co. ? A video just released by Walt Disney Parks imagines the result. (Burbank-based Walt Disney bought LucasFilm , the company started by George Lucas and which owns Star Wars, for $4.05 billion Tuesday). READ MORE>>.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 26, 2012
DeveloperAuction , a Bay Area startup which is looking to let employers bid for engineers on an auction basis, has expanded into Los Angeles, beyond an initial launch in the San Francisco Bay Area, New York, and Boston. The startup is looking to take advantage of the demand for developers by getting startups to "bid" on engineering talent. The startup lets engineers post their resumes for a 14-day auction, where multiple startups bid up what they're willing to pay that engineer to work at a comp
socalTECH
OCTOBER 10, 2012
Hawthorne-based SpaceX has had another big milestone today, after NASA reported that the SpaceX Dragon cargo craft successfully docked with the International Space Station this morning at 9:03 a.m. EDT. SpaceX launched its first, cargo carrying mission to the ISS Sunday evening. According to NASA, the SpaceX Dragon was captured by Expdition 33 Commander Suni Willians by the station's robotic arm, with the capsule securely bolted to the station.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 4, 2012
Bragstr , a new startup based in Chatsworth, said today that it has launched a new service which combines fantasy sports and social gaming. Bragstr said its new service will let fans compete, socialize, and tout their knowledge of sports, allowing users to make fantasy bets on upcoming sporting events for virtual gold coins. The site said users can earn players virtual coins which can be redeemed for real world prizes.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 29, 2012
In what might be one of the more unusual perks for a Southern California high tech company, LRN , a developer of enterprise compliance and ethics software, has an unlimited, paid vacation policy. The firm's policy recently came to light in a WSJ article. The firm--which looks to be recruiting Java Developers, project managers, and UX/UI designers in its LA location--apparently lets employees take off as much time as they feel like they need, as one of the perks for working for the company.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 24, 2012
Tradesy , a new website and mobile app developed by Recycled Bride 's Tracy DiNunzio, is launching Wednesday, with $1.5M in funding from Rincon Venture Partners, 500 Startups, Dany Levy (DailyCandy), Daher Capital, Bee Partners, Double M Capital and Launchpad LA. The Los Angeles-based startup has developed a service which makes it easy for women to take and sell their clothing, even handling returns and shipping.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 9, 2012
How energy efficient is that new television you just bought for your house, and how can you be sure? A new, Santa Monica-based startup, Enervee , has recently rolled out a new tool to help people estimate how much energy their television--and soon, other appliances--are consuming. The startup said it is working on introducing what it calls a miles-per-gallon (MPG) sticker for TVs, called the "Enervee Score".
socalTECH
OCTOBER 30, 2012
Burbank-based The Walt Disney Company has acquired Lucasfilm Ltd. , the film company owned by George Lucas, in a deal worth $4.05 billion, Disney said Tuesday afternoon. Disney said it would pay stock and cash for Lucasfilm, with approximately half in cash and 40M in shares. Lucasfilm owns the rights to Star Wars. According to George Lucas, the move came as it was time to "pass Star Wars on to a new generation of filmmakers.
socalTECH
OCTOBER 3, 2012
A new project out of the University of Southern California is looking to help people visualize public sentiment towards the 2012 United States presidential candidates, by analyzing Twitter. According to the school, its new real-time sentiment analysis project analyzes public sentiment towards President Obama and Mitt Romney, by analyzing the emotion of tweets--figuring out if those Tweets are positive, negative, neutral or otherwise--and using it to figure out, in real-time, how the public is re
socalTECH
OCTOBER 25, 2012
High tech startups--and the service providers who serve the industry--are continuing to cluster along Santa Monica's Third Street Promenade, as Stubbs, Alderton & Markiles LLP , one of the Los Angeles legal firms focused on the high tech market, announced a grand opening date for a new office on the 3rd Street Promenade. Stubbs, Alderton & Markiles, which has had a long standing presence in the LA area (disclaimer: Stubbs Alderton is a sponsor of socalTECH), and told its supporters and c
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