TripIt launches iPhone app — puts itineraries at your fingertips
TripIt, the online service that lets you create and share your travel itineraries, has launched a free application for the iPhone. The app lets users view their meticulously organized travel plans on the go — even in airplane mode — eliminating the need for cumbersome maps and paper schedules, the company says.
When you view an itinerary in the app, it’s not just a list of next stops. For 500 different sites and brands — … Continue Reading
Intel chief optimistic about computer industry's recovery
Kicking off the tech earnings season as an optimist, Intel chief executive Paul Otellini said consumer demand for computers is much stronger than enterprise demand and that the overall picture isn’t as bleak as some feared.
Otellini’s comments in today’s earnings conference call are worth delving into deeper because they offer clues to the shape of the economic downturn and its effect on consumer buying patterns. Everyone still wants to know just how bad things … Continue Reading
Bay Area restaurant tweets up a good deal
Hip San Franciscan restaurant Luna Park has turned to Twitter to help promote its business. It’s initial promotion is the tweeting of a “password” to its followers, which they can then give to their waiter to get the employee discount — 50 percent off their bill. Pretty sweet deal.
Luna Park’s fare, according to its website, is “mostly French and Italian with a few American and Asian accents,” and it also offers cocktail service. It … Continue Reading
Nokeena to improve online video, reduce costs
Startup Nokeena Networks says it’s come up with a way to improve online video viewing and save money for ISPs and content delivery networks (CDNs).
The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company, launched its Media Flow Director “software appliance” today. The company says the software increases server capacity and reduces operating expenses by 50 to 65 percent. So, say 40,000 people want to watch an episode of ABC’s Lost online. With existing software, content delivery networks require … Continue Reading
MeFeedia doing well with video search . . . for now
MeFeedia, a video search company that many people haven’t heard of, says it has a whopping 7.6 million unique monthly visitors.
How? It’s playing in a crowded video search market, but it says it is distinguishing itself by using social information such as comments, ratings, and recommendations to categorize videos on its service. Competitors like Blinkx, VideoSurf and Pixsy use video file inspection techniques to help them organize content, and rely less on such social … Continue Reading
Want to search for your look-alike?
GazoPa has built a search engine that finds images similar to those you upload or draw. Now the company is spinning out of Hitachi, moving its headquarters to Silicon Valley and when summer comes going into beta stage with its search engine.
The technology is based on putting different colors and shapes into groups, or clusters. Because images contain much more information than text, searching through indexed images takes more time than ordinary text search.
PlaySpan helping social network Hi5 to cash in on virtual goods
Updated with information from Hi5 on its gaming effort.
Social network Hi5 is continuing its foray into the business of virtual gaming today by introducing two new ways for users to pay it real money for its “Coins” virtual currency. The services, offered by gaming payment company PlaySpan, include PayByCash, which lets you buy Coins using cash or check, as well as the Ultimate Gaming Card, a prepaid card so parents can buy a set … Continue Reading
CoaLogix fires up clean coal efforts with new $11.5M
CoaLogix, a unique company that specializes in filtering out harmful agents from coal-fired plant emissions, has secured $11.5 million to deploy its technology for more electric utilities. Offering a combination of chemical processes and equipment, the Acorn Energy subsidiary says it can substantially reduce environmental footprints for plants that might otherwise continue to pump harmful fumes into the atmosphere.
For example, its two lead products/processes right now work to remove heavy metals and nitrogen oxides … Continue Reading
In a surprise, eBay announces Skype will have an IPO in 2010
Contradicting rumors that it would sell Skype back to its founders, eBay announced today that it would separate the Internet calling business from eBay’s core auction business through an initial public offering in the first half of 2010.
A lot can happen between now and then, including bids from private equity firms to buy the division, which eBay bought for $2.6 billion 2006.
But John Donahoe, chief executive of eBay, said that Skype is a … Continue Reading
Solera finds $7M for network forensics software
Solera Networks, maker of software that allows network operators to retrace their steps and pinpoint past glitches and security breaches, has landed $7 million in a second round of funding to expand its marketing efforts and its Washington, D.C. office in convenient proximity to likely government clients.
While the Lindon, Utah, company would not disclose any of its current customers, it did say its business is split pretty evenly between corporate and government organizations. Especially … Continue Reading
Intel results show PC industry hit bottom in the first quarter
Intel, a bellwether for the bleak first quarter earnings season and the whole tech industry, may have just thrown a life jacket to sinking tech stocks.
The world’s biggest chip maker reported that its first-quarter net income fell 55 percent from the first quarter a year ago. But the net income of $647 million, or 11 cents a share, wasn’t nearly as bad as analysts had feared.
Paul Otellini, chief executive of the company, said … Continue Reading
FastScale secures $5.5M for cloud management
FastScale Technology, a provider of tools for managing virtual computing environments and data centers, has raised $5.5 million in a second round of funding from ATA Ventures, Leapfrog Ventures, Hunt Ventures and an undisclosed corporate investor.
Based in Santa Clara, Calif., the company’s flagship software, FastScale Composer Suite, makes it easier for companies to flexibly respond to changing data and volume requirements by adding or subtracting virtual servers from its system. It also reduces the … Continue Reading
Nintendo to launch this summer the long-awaited Wii MotionPlus to improve controller accuracy
Nintendo announced today that it will launch Wii Sports Resort, a sequel to its flagship console game Wii Sports, and an improved version of its motion-sensing controller dubbed the Wii MotionPlus. Both are due to come out this summer.
First out of the gate is the Wii MotionPlus, a long-awaited accessory that attaches to the bottom of a Wii controller to make it more accurate. It will debut at $19.99 on June 8 in the … Continue Reading
Entrepreneurs: Apply for Silicon Alley Insider's startup conference!
Silicon Alley Insider is launching its first annual “Startup” conference, a one-day event and competition meant to recognize the very best early-stage internet company. You can enter your startup this week for the opportunity to win buzz, bragging rights and $50,000 in cash and prizes.
Applying for the conference is free, and all entries will be evaluated by General Catalyst Partners, Softbank, Venrock, and FirstMark Capital for possible investments. The top 10 companies will be … Continue Reading
Goom channels $16M for user-generated online radio
Online radio stations have been taking a hit lately, with record companies cracking down on streaming copyrighted material. But Goom Radio, a new internet radio startup, has decided to take its chances, relying largely on user-defined playlists — much like its peer Pandora Radio. And despite steep odds, it just nabbed $16 million in first-round funding to roll out its service in the U.S. and beef up its advertising sales.
Goom lets users pick and … Continue Reading
ExtraHop raises $5.1M to manage your network
ExtraHop, a company that makes devices for application and network management, has raised $5.1 million in a first round of venture funding from Madrona Venture Partners, as well as well-known angel investors Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz.
The Seattle company describes itself as “Google Earth for your network,” meaning that it provides IT managers and application delivery teams with a high-level view of what’s happening in their networks — allowing them to drill down into … Continue Reading
iZumi raises $20 million for stem-cell development
iZumi Bio, a company specializing in stem-cell research used to create a range of treatments, has landed $20 million in first-round funding and a partnership with Kyoto University in Japan to conduct parallel studies and collaborate on the results.
One of the company’s primary investors is Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, a firm that has been vocal in its support of stem-cell based therapies for Parkinson’s disease, diabetes and muscular dystrophy. Former vice president and … Continue Reading
Microsoft revises warranties to cover new E74 defects for Xbox 360
More stories are popping up about a new flaw in the Xbox 360 dubbed the E74 bug, named for the error code that appears onscreen when the console grinds to a halt.
Today, Microsoft acknowledged that a small number of systems are suffering from the error — which can disable your machine completely — and said the company is extending its free replacement warranty to cover afflicted consoles.
This proactive approach is much different from … Continue Reading
Late to the iPhone, Trip Hawkins' Digital Chocolate falls in love with it
We’ve written about how new developers are enamored with the iPhone. But Trip Hawkins (founder of Electronic Arts) admits that his mobile game company, Digital Chocolate, was late to the iPhone. The San Mateo, Calif.-based company has 350 employees making games for all sorts of cell phones, but the iPhone’s popularity caught it by surprise. Now Hawkins has come back with a vengeance. His company has launched five iPhone games since December and four of … Continue Reading
Simple backup service Backblaze now available to all Mac users
Backblaze, perhaps the easiest tool available for backing up your hard drive, is moving the Mac version of its service out of beta testing today, making it accessible to anyone with a Mac.
The product’s appeal is simple: You install Backblaze and it handles the rest of your backup processes. You don’t have to select any folders, you don’t have to connect any devices, and you don’t have to remember to run a program every … Continue Reading
