Both Sides of the Table
NOVEMBER 14, 2010
It’s really hard to zig when the whole world seems to be zagging. One of my favorite quotes I learned in high school was: “Nonconformity is the Highest Form of Social Attainment&#. It was written as the yearbook quote of the smartest seniors as I was finishing my freshman year. It has always stood with me. I have had a low bullshit meter.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Santa Monica-based LIVESTRONG.COM , the online health and fitness site joint venture of Demand Media and Lance Armstrong, said this week that it has launched a new, iPhone application geared at helping users quick smoking. Livestrong said its new MyQuit Coach iPhone application--which costs $3.99 in the Apple App store--will provide a customized quitting plan, track daily tobacco use and allowance, provide quitting facts and motivational information, plus allow users to earn badges and rewards.
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InfoChachkie
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
“You miss 100% of the shots you never take.”. Wayne Gretzky. Imagine how difficult it would be to score in hockey if you were required to rely on someone who is not your teammate to convince another third-party, whom you have not met, to take a shot on your behalf. As crazy as this scenario sounds, it is very similar to the “scoring process” companies engage in when they track Net Promoter Scores.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 13, 2010
Friday, November 19, 2010 -- Healthcare Strategies. The Financial Executive Roundtable chapter of TechAmerica Los Angeles will present and discuss health care strategies for small to medium sized companies. See [link] (more).
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Both Sides of the Table
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
I’m a high-volume person. That doesn’t make me important. It doesn’t mean I’m not accessible. It means simply what I’m stating – high volume. What that means is that in a typical week I might see 10-15 new company pitches. Sometimes more. I speak at conferences where I might meet 75-100 people and have conversations.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Last night, Amazon.com jumped into the movie business, with its own, online film submission site, Amazon Studios , backed by the help of a number of notable USC Film School advisors. Amazon is not the only company looking to make a business out of online film submissions: We dug up some of the other local competition in this space, mined from our database of startups , with brief details below: Amazon Studios.
Southern California Tech Central brings together the best content for technical professionals in Southern California from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Thursday, November 18, 2010 -- Patrick Soon-Shiong Innovation Awards. See https://www.pubservice.com/pr/labj/orderform2.aspx?PNO=LA10PSIandCO=CJ. (more).
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 14, 2010
By Joseph A. Bockerstette, Main Street Venture Fund As I outlined last week, trophy angel investors are always looking for trophy entrepreneurs. In many areas, not enough entrepreneurs meet the criteria, so it’s still a buyer’s market. The result is that the Main Street Venture Fund consistently has more money available than good opportunities for investment.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Los Angeles-based Oversee.net , the operator of a range of domain name and Internet marketing sites, said Monday that it has launched a new, travel planning and hotel booking site, HotelHostess.com. According to Oversee, the new site is aimed at women, to help them find the best travel deals, get vacation ideas, and get other vacation and travel information.
Tech Zulu Event
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
After months of submissions the moment you all have been waiting for is here! For those who still might be wondering what Spotlight: LA Tech is all about, It’s a screening room for new technology homegrown in our region. It’s a gallery of great entrepreneurship. It’s a toast to those who build and innovate. It’s a gathering of friends and tech enthusiasts of all stripes.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 -- Helping the Blind See. IEEE-EMBS -- Dr. Nick Talbot: Second Sight Medical Products, Inc. On Wednesday, November 17, 2010 at 7 pm please join us as Dr. Nick Talbot discusses Second Sight - giving slight to the blind. See [link] (more).
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
As an entrepreneur, you always need to be on the lookout for ways to expand your current business, and always on the lookout for your next big thing. The competition never stands still, and new opportunities are evolving, based on culture changes in your customers, new technologies, and new problems in the world which need to be solved. Steven Schussler, in his new book “ It’s a Jungle In There ” characterized this well in relation to his own success by recommending to all entrepreneurs that you
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Carlsbad-based PixelActive , a developer of 3D modeling software used for urban modeling in video games, simulation, and urban planning, has been acquired by map and traffic data provider NAVTEQ. NAVTEQ said the acquisition will support its move to a 3D-based architecture. PixelActive had 16 employees prior to the acquisition by NAVTEQ. Financial terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
Tech Zulu Event
NOVEMBER 14, 2010
Join us tomorrow as TechZulu brings you the Digital LA Entertainment Apps panel live featuring speakers from Disney ABC TV, FOX, Universal, Comcast, Fandango, Mobile Roadie, etc. They'll discuss the development, content, creation, approval process, and marketing for smartphone and tablet apps (iPhone, iPad, Blackberry, Android, etc.) based on popular movies, TV, music and games.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 -- Digital LA - BIG Games Panel. Join the fun at our BIG Games fest including our panel on BIG video game titles franchises, food trucks, and the GameTruck, all at Beverly Hills Porsche! We'll discuss how to manage game franchises from development to marketing with speakers from Activision, Disney Interactive Games, Jerry Bruckheimer Games, Square Enix, Atari and more.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
Go-to people get things done. As an entrepreneur, you need these people, and you need to be one, if you expect your startup to be successful. That may be easier said than done, since resumes do not tell the story, and without real nurturing, they won’t stay around long. To highlight how rare this breed is, a new CEO of a large company once said, "I have more than 1000 people in my head office organization, 900 can tell me something’s gone wrong, 90 can tell me what’s gone wrong, nine can te
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Last week, Los Angeles-based MOVIECLIPS.COM (www.movieclips.com) announced the firm's Series A funding round, worth $3M, from Shasta Ventures, First Round Capital, and a number of Silicon Valley angels. We caught up with Zach James and Rich Raddon , co-founders of MOVIECLIPS, to learn more about the company and also hear about the firm's funding round.
Tech Zulu Event
NOVEMBER 19, 2010
We here at TechZulu could have not asked for a better night. Amazing Spotlight companies, a fantastic audience, and great conversation sparked by the mixing and mingling of the academic and business worlds. We accomplished exactly what we were striving for with Spotlight, by providing a gallery of great entrepreneurship and raising a glass to those who build and innovate.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Wednesday, November 17, 2010 -- "The Future of Learning in a Digital Age" Central Coast MIT Enterprise Forum. Educational enterprises and corporations have increasingly embraced online education as well as training and the number of students engaged in distance learning programs is rapidly rising in colleges and universities throughout the United States.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 13, 2010
A lot of executives have noticed that the workplace is being flooded by a new generation of workers, and they are questioning who will be the winners, and who will be the losers. In reality, Gen-Y is here, and they are already inheriting our businesses, so let’s figure out how to make them winners, or we will all be losers. By definition, Gen-Y is the generation born between 1977 and 1995 (synonymous with Millennials).
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Aliso Viejo-based online retailer Buy.com looks to be in the midst of an effort to drive more holiday sales, by boosting payouts to the firm's affiliate marketing partners. Affiliates get a cut of sales driven by their links to products and web sites. According to a note from LinkShare to affiliates, Buy.com has significantly increased its percentage on sales from the site for the month of November.
Both Sides of the Table
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
All this heavy talk about angels, VCs, bubbles lately. I thought I’d go for a more tactical & practical post today. The art of the quick phone call. I had breakfast with David Tisch the other morning in NYC. If you don’t know David he’s the guy who will be running TechStars New York starting in January. And that’s a great thing because I was really impressed with him.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010 -- "The Art of a Deal" AccessEN. Speaker: John Strahl, Co-founder and CFO, MyForm. In only seven months after its official launch and less than a year in operation, Form Athletics was acquired by sneaker giant K-Swiss. Form Athletics is an athletic apparel company based in Laguna Beach, CA and co-founded by former WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber, one of the most popular athletes in the history of the Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) sport.
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 17, 2010
Too many entrepreneurs develop a new product without regard to market demand, then build an entire strategy based on creating a need, rather than acting on an existing market need. Investors characterize this approach as a “solution looking for a problem.” These don’t get funded. The best startups find a way to drive the market with their technology, rather than push their new technology-driven ‘solution’ on the marketplace.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Los Angeles-based Invested.in , the developer of a site which helps users raise money for projects and ideas, has launched an effort to provide a white label version of its platform. The new Invested.in platform allows anyone to create their own, white-labeled crowd-funding sites, according to the company. Alon Goren, Invested.in's founder, said the new offering is aimed at both media companies and entrepreneurs who might be interested in licensing the platform for their own uses.
Both Sides of the Table
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Everyone seems to be in such a rush to get shacked up these days. In normal times investors will look for “traction&# before investing. We want to make sure we’re in love. This sometimes frustrates entrepreneurs who just want to “get back to running the business.&# But if you understand it you’ll see that it is perfectly rational and it should also influence how you form relationships with investors.
SoCal Tech Calendar
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Tuesday, November 16, 2010 -- How Entrepreneurs Move the Needle. Catalyst For Thought Event. Dr. Larry Cox, Associate Professor of Entrepreneurship at Pepperdine University Graziadio School of Business and Management. Dr. Larry Cox explains how serial entrepreneurs systematically generate game-changing business ideas. He introduces an approach that will help you succeed as an entrepreneur even in turbulent times.with limited resources.when the market is unknown.when aand#731;formula for success
Startup Professionals Musings
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Most people think that the Peter Principle (employee rises to his level of incompetence) only applies to large organizations. Let me assure you that it is also alive and well within startups. There I see founders and managers who are stalled transplants from large organizations, and technologists trying to run the business. Forty years ago, in a satiric book named “ The Peter Principle ”, Dr.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
Santa Monica-based Activision Publishing has updated sales figures for its latest blockbuster release, Call of Duty: Black Ops , saying that the title has now grossed more than $650M in worldwide sell through in the last five days. Activision said the figure breaks the firm's prior record, set last year with Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2, which was $550M in five day sales.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
The University of Southern California is looking to tie together technology and media, saying Thursday that it has launched a new Annenberg Innovation Lab as part of the USC Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism. According to USC, the new lab--backed by IBM, Verizon, the Levi's brand and Mattel--will focus on the areas of geolocation, social networking, digital entertainment, gaming behavior and transmedia.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
Westlake Village-based In-Three , a developer of 3D conversion technology and services for the movie industry, has been acquired by visual effects house Digital Domain , according to reports. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. In-Three is reportedly moving its operations to Florida, where Digital Domain is headquartered. In-Three provided technology and services which allowed movie studios to convert their 2D content into 3D, without having to film originally in 3D or digital.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 15, 2010
Last week, Los Angeles-based Datapop (www.datapop.com) announced a Series A funding for the startup, which is developing search advertising products which better tune ads to improve click throughs. The company's founders are previously from Overture and Yahoo! Search Marketing. We caught up with Jason Lehmbeck , one of the firm's founders, to hear more about the company.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Hollywood-based BUZZMEDIA , the online publisher of entertainment focused blogs and web sites, said today that it has linked with photo sharing site Plixi , which until recently was known as TweetPhoto. According to the two, they are in an exclusive, multi-year partnership where they will create content offerings, marketing programs and branded entertainment campaigns.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 18, 2010
Further acknowledging that the firm has lost its former status as the center of the social networking universe, MySpace announced Thursday afternoon that it is now allowing its users to port information, likes, and interests from users' Facebook profiles over to MySpace. MySpace said its new feature-- Mashup with Facebook --will link a user's stream with entertainment content based on their interests in music, celebrities, TV, and movies.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Azusa-based Contour Energy , the developer of advanced battery technology, said today that it has named Joe Carcone as Vice President of Sales and Marketing, and also promoted Dr. Simon Jones to Vice President of Technology. Carcone joins the firm from PowerGenix, where he was Vice president of Marketing and Sales. Carone has also served at SANYON Energy USA, GE, and Bell Labs.
socalTECH
NOVEMBER 16, 2010
Poway-based BridgeSTOR , a new data backup and storage appliance firm headed by storage veteran John Matze, has emerged from stealth today, saying that it is offering products aimed at advanced data reduction for VMware and backup. Matze, who was involved in developing the iSCSI protocol, was the founder of both Siafu and Okapi Software. Matze sold Okapi in 2003 to Overland, and Siafu to Hifn in 2007, and was most recently VP of Storage Systems Products at Exar, Inc.
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