Sat.Sep 20, 2014 - Fri.Sep 26, 2014

article thumbnail

Why Recruiting Isn’t Over When an Employee Accepts Your Offer

Both Sides of the Table

'Recruiting. It is the bane of every startups existence because it takes up so much time, it is so competitive to sign people and it feels like unproductive time because it’s not moving the ball forward on product, engineering, sales, marketing, biz dev, fund raising. It consumes time and energy and the payoff doesn’t come for a long time.

Press 341
article thumbnail

Activision Blizzard Gets Patent Win

socalTECH

'Santa Monica-based Activision Blizzard reported a win in court late Thursday, saying that the United States District Court, Central District of California has invalidated all patent claims asserted by McRO, Inc. dba Planet Blue. McRO had sued Activision over the use of lip synchronization and facial expression technology in Call of Duty, Skylanders, and StarCraft II.

Insiders

Sign Up for our Newsletter

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.

article thumbnail

Lighting the match – going viral

Berkonomics

'It doesn’t happen by accident. Not every new game site is a Club Penguin or Minecraft. Not every social network is a Facebook or Instagram. Not every texting application is a Twitter. What are the elements needed to focus upon in making the attempt to take a product viral? Intrigued by the thought, I recently made a list. It was as much in reaction to my getting blank stares from entrepreneurs when I asked that question as it was for me to better understand the problem itself.

article thumbnail

10 Entrepreneur Approaches That Turn Off Investors

Startup Professionals Musings

'Many new entrepreneurs are so excited by their latest idea that they can’t resist contacting every investor they know, assuming the investor will be equally excited and want to contribute immediately. Others will work hard on a business plan, and then mail it indiscriminately to every potential investor they can find on the Internet. Both of these approaches are a waste of your time and theirs.

article thumbnail

Can You Ask for Office Rent Relief? How to Manage Your Lease During COVID-19

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.

article thumbnail

Shopping for a Change | Shopping for Fair Trade Goods

Tech Zulu Event

'The internet connects us to billions of products online. Online merchandise range from being silly to creative design to daily items. Fair trade is becoming more common, but many of the sites that offer those goods follow a for-profit business model and only a handful follow the non-profit road. Shopping for a Change (SFAC) is one of the few non-profit, fair trade businesses to change and help improve the lives of many in underdeveloped communities.

article thumbnail

Shopzilla Becomes Connexity

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based marketing technology provider Shopzilla said this morning that it has officially chanced its company named to Connexity , to help highlight the shift of the company from comparison shopping to technology driven marketing solutions. Shopzilla said the change comes as it looks to highlight the range of marketing capabilities it has for retailers and brands, which are now a majority of its revenues.

Ventura 185

More Trending

article thumbnail

Workpop: Using UX And Design To Power The Next Career Site

socalTECH

'Online job and career sites still seem to be in another decade, when it comes to both design--and user friendliness. Can a startup gain a foothold in the competitive market by designing the right UX and user experience to make a job and career site for everyone? Los Angeles-based Workpop (www.workpop.com) thinks so. The startup was co-founded by former Zynga GM Reed Shafnner and Viddy co-founder Chris Ovitz , who spoke to us about how their prior experience in the social gaming and consumer Int

Design 174
article thumbnail

Club W Gets $9.5M

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based subscription wine delivery company Club W announced this morning that it has raised $9.5M in a Series A funding, for the company''s service which provides monthly delivery of wins to members. The startup said the funding was led by Bessemer Venture partners. The startup is led by Xander Oxman. According to Club W, the new funding will go towards product development, integration of its supply chain, and marketing initiatives.

article thumbnail

Walmart Launches GoBank With Green Dot

socalTECH

'In a move which will not surprise anyone familiar with Monrovia, California-based Green Dot , the company''s mobile banking service, GoBank , has been launched by Walmart. According to Walmart and Green Dot, GoBank, the FDIC-insured checking account driven by mobile apps and low fees, the checking account product will be available nationwide exclusively through Walmart by the end of October.

Monrovia 173
article thumbnail

Science Inc. Buys PlayHaven

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based Science Inc. has acquired mobile ad network PlayHaven from current owner Upsight , the two companies aid this morning. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. According to the two, the deal includes PlayHaven''s ad monetization, ad serving, and other tools. Science said the deal came as it was looking for a mobile advertising firm.

article thumbnail

UCLA To Tap Outside Board For Startup Deals

socalTECH

'The University of California, Los Angeles is looking to an outside board to help it negotiate technology transfer and research deals with companies, according to reports. The group will tap a yet un-named group of outside experts to help technology startups coming out of UCLA to better navigate their way through commercialization efforts. The moves come as the University of California system approved a move to allocate $250M in a venture capital fund to invest in startups founded by UC faculty

UCLA 166
article thumbnail

Redfin Expands 3D Home Walkthroughs To SoCal

socalTECH

'Wish you could do a 3D, virtual walkthrough of that house you''re thinking about buying in LA? You can--if it happens to be listed with online real estate brokerage Redfin. According to Redfin, it has extended its Matterport 3D walkthroughs--which let users walk through real life properties for sale on their computers like you might walk through a first person shooter video game--to all of Southern California.

article thumbnail

AnyMeeting Adds Toll Free, International Numbers

socalTECH

'Huntington Beach-based AnyMeeting , the web and video conferencing tools provider led by Costin Tuculescu, told its users today that it is expanding its service, and will now offer new phone options to its users. The company said that Pro subscribers can now add a toll free, dial-in number for their meetings, in addition to letting customers offer local, dial-in numbers internationally.

Web 164
article thumbnail

j2 Global Acquires Australian Web Hosting Firm Web24

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based internet services giant j2 Global is continuing to build out its vast empire of Internet services, saying this morning that it has acquired Australian web hosting company Web24 Group Pty Ltd. Financial terms of the buy were not disclosed. Web24 was based in Melbourne, Australia, and offers up domain name, web hosting, dedicated and share servers, and more to the small and mid-sized business market. j2 Global said the acquisition moves the company into the web hosting arena. j2

Web 159
article thumbnail

Former AMO CEO Jim Mazzo Indicted Over Insider Trading

socalTECH

'Jim Mazzo , the former CEO of Advanced Medical Optics , has been indicted on allegations of insider trading, according to federal prosecutors this week. According to the United States Attorney''s Office for the Central District of California, Mazzo allegedly shared non-public information with former professional baseball player Douglas DeCinces and two associates, which was used to trade stock of AMO before the company''s acquisition by Abbott Laboratories.

article thumbnail

SCE Plans Giant Energy Storage Battery In Tehachapi

socalTECH

'Southern California Edison said Wednesday that it is planning to build what it says is the largest, battery energy storage project in North America in Tehachapi. According to SCE, the project--being partially funded by the Department of Energy--will store 32 megawatt hours of energy storage in Tehachapi, California, and will be used to store wind energy generated from the wind farms in the area.

article thumbnail

Sunrun Plans Major Hiring In Southern California

socalTECH

'Residential solar installer Sunrun said this morning that it is planning a major hiring and expansion drive, with the hiring of 800 additional employees and the opening of ten new offices--many of them in Southern California. The San Francisco company said that it plans hiring and expansion in Escondido, North Hollywood, Orange County, Pomona, San Diego, and San Luis Obispo, among other locations.

article thumbnail

Ivantis Gets $25M More

socalTECH

'Irvine-based Ivantis , which is developing medical devices to treat glaucoma, has raised $25M more in its Series B funding, the company said this morning. The company said the new funding increases the round to a total of $71M in funding. The funding came from Foresite Capital, along with New Enterprise Associates (NEA), Delphi Ventures, Ascension Ventures, Vertex Ventures, GBS Ventures, EDBI, and MemorialCare Innovation Fund.

article thumbnail

theAmplify Takes On Instagram Video Ads

socalTECH

'A new, Culver City-based startup, theAmplify , said this morning that it has launched a new, Instgram video ad service, aimed at helping brands create video content to distribute through Instagram. theAmplify said its service and tool combines tools and technology with services as a "Instagram agency". Pricing on the new product was not announced. theAmplify is led by Justin Rezvani.

article thumbnail

Los Angeles DA Takes Legal Action Against Uber, Lyft, and Sidecar

socalTECH

'In the neverending saga of smartphone-driven ridesharing services in Los Angeles, the Los Angeles District Attorney has sent a letter to Uber , Lyft , and Sidecar , warning the firms that they are misleading consumers, due to their failure to complete background checks on their buyers. The letters threaten injunctive relief and civil penalties against the companies, if they do not make major changes to their services.

article thumbnail

YP Links With GrubHub For Restaurant Ordering

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based local search and directory site YP has linked up with GrubHub , to enable restaurant ordering and delivery through YP''s sites and brands. According to the companies, the deal will let users of YP''s online sites and mobile apps to order food from GrubHub''s restaurants. Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. The deal also helps GrubHubs'' restaurants with placement throughout YP''s directory.

Sites 147
article thumbnail

Cinedigm Sells Hollywood Software

socalTECH

'Century City-based Cinedigm said late Tuesday that it has sold its Hollywood Software division to an outside team of investors, led by David Gajda, one of the company''s original founders. Financial terms of the sale were not disclosed. Cinedigm said the all cash deal came as it decided that it no longer made strategic sense to pursue the software business, where it was selling to many of its competitors.

Hollywood 147
article thumbnail

musicBleeper Launches Music Bleeping App

socalTECH

'Tired of your kids listening to profanity laced music? Tustin-based Bleeper said Tuesday that it has launched a new app called musicBleeper , which filters out objectionable words in music on any iOS device playlist. According to the company, its new app scans through songs in a playlist and scrubs words from the music, based on a library of songs maintained by the company.

Customer 147
article thumbnail

ServiceNow Sued By BMC

socalTECH

'ServiceNow , the developer of IT cloud management software, is being sued by competitor BMC Software , over patent infringement claims. BMC said that ServiceNow is violating seven of its patents, covering areas around incident managemnt, performance analytics, configuration management, and more. The lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas, a well known location for pursuing patent infringement claims.

Patents 147
article thumbnail

YouTube's New Investments Aimed At Hollywood Creators

socalTECH

'Google''s YouTube has created a huge upswing in content and media startups-and fortunes--in Los Angeles, with the rise of multi-channel networks. A new effort by YouTube to fund individual content creators-- announcd last week --might further fuel that fire. YouTube has not said how much it will invest in the new, individual investments in content creators, but the company says it hopes to create new content on YouTube, and help broaden the appeal of the content being produced by that talent.

Hollywood 147
article thumbnail

Companies Propose $8 Billion Green Energy Initiative For LA

socalTECH

'Four companies said today that they have proposed a new, $8 billion initiative which will provide a huge amount of clean electricity to the Los Angeles area, which combines the creation, of one of America''s largest wind farms, a huge energy storage facility, and a 525-mile, transmission line, to help power an estimated 1.2 million LA area homes. The initiative--being proposed by Pathfinder Renewable Wind Energy , Magnum Energy , ZDresser Rand , and Duke-American Transmission --would be the lar

Company 147
article thumbnail

FAA Gives Nod To Hollywood For Drone Use

socalTECH

'Hollywood is helping to pave the way for commercial use of unmanned aerial vehicles, thanks to a FAA ruling Thursday letting the film and television industry use drones in their filming efforts. According to the FAA, it will allow six aerial photo and video production companies to use unmanned aircraft systems in the National Airspace System. The announcement was made by U.S.

Hollywood 140
article thumbnail

Transphorm Partners With ON Semiconductor

socalTECH

'Goleta-based power conversion technology developer Transphorm --which is venture backed by such investors as Furukawa Electric Co., Ltd., Bright Capital, Foundation Capital, Google Ventures, Innovation Network Corporation of Japan. Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers, Lux Capital, and Nihon Inter Electronics Company--has inked a big co-development deal with ON Semiconductor , the two said Thursday.

Google 138
article thumbnail

Brighter Turns To Employers With Brighter PRO

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based dental care marketplace Brighter --which is led by startup veteran Jake Winebaum--said Thursday that it has launched a new platform called Brighter PRO. The new platform is aimed specifically at employers, helping them to gain control of their dental costs and claims. Brighter said the new product helps lower health costs for self-insured employers, and includes things as plan design, actuarial analysis, claims adjudication, wellness outreach, member services, and other featur

article thumbnail

Microsemi Loses Mazzo From Board

socalTECH

'Aliso Viejo-based Microsemi said late Wednesday that James V. Mazzo--the former CEO of Advanced Medical Optics--has resigned from the company''s board. Microsemi did not say why Mazzo decided to leave the board, but said the resignation "did not arise as a result of any disagreement on any matter relating to Microsemi''s operations, policies or practices.

article thumbnail

AssetAvenue Bolsters Executive Team

socalTECH

'Los Angeles-based online, commercial real estate peer to peer lending site AssetAvenue has named a new executive, saying that Eddie Prosser has joined the company as its Senior Vice President of Real Estate Investments. Prosser was most recently at Legacy Partners, and also had served at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC). AssetAvenue, which is led by David Manshoory, is venture backed by Matrix Partners, NetEase, Vectr Ventures, Russ Meyer (Grandpoint Capital); Bam Ventures; and

Invest 138
article thumbnail

Ixia Names New CFO

socalTECH

'Calabasas-based Ixia , the network testing hardware and software developer, said Tuesday that it has named Brent Novak as its new Chief Financial Officer. Novak has been Ixia''s VP of Finance since 2006, and was appointed acting CFO of the company in March. Novak also has served at Idealab and PricewaterhouseCoopers. READ MORE>>.

Calabasas 138
article thumbnail

Beachfront Media Debuts Mobile Video Ad Product

socalTECH

'Burbank-based Beachfront Media , the video software and technology provider led by Frank Sinton, said Tuesday that it has launched a new programmatic video ad platform called Beachfront.io. Beachfront said the new product provides programmatic video ads for mobile video advertising, which combines both real-time-bidding (RTB) with private marketplaces and programmatic inventory.

Mobile 138
article thumbnail

Former eHarmony Chief Waldorf Surfaces At Invoice2go

socalTECH

'The former head of eHarmony , Greg Waldorf , has surfaced over at a small mobile invoicing and expense management startup called Invoice2go , after a big funding round for the company. Invoice2go--founded in Australia--said it raised $35M in a funding round from Accel Partners and Ribbit Capital today, and named Waldorf as its CEO. Waldorf had most recently been CEO-in-Residence for Accel Partners.

eHarmony 138
article thumbnail

Kurion Sets New CFO

socalTECH

'Irvine-based nuclear and hazardous waste management technology developer Kurion said Monday that it has named Stephen Wright as the company''s new Chief Financial Officer. Wright was most recently at Materia, where he had been Chief Operating OFficer. Wright also has served as SVP and CFO of Aerovironment, and also has been at L-3 Prime Wave Communications, Cellotape, Inc., Globalstar L.P., and Adicom Wireless, Inc.

article thumbnail

Activision Taps Rudy Giuliani To Fight Former Dictator Noriega

socalTECH

'In a bid to stave off a lawsuit from former Panamanian dictator Manual Noriega , Santa Monica-based Activision has hired former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani to fight Noriega''s claim that the company misappropriate Noriega''s likeness in developing the game "Call of Duty: Black Ops II". Noriega had sued Activision in Julyover the use of his name and likeness in the game.