Cisco, German utility Yello Strom team for Smart Grid pilot project

Cisco, German utility Yello Strom team for Smart Grid pilot project

Cisco Systems has recently stepped up its participation in the Smart Grid — the formation of a cleaner, more efficient electrical grid. Two weeks ago, it formed a coalition of Smart Grid companies that agreed to ensure interoperability between their devices and services. Today, it… Continue Reading

Latest speaker at GreenBeat 2009: Cisco’s Smart Grid guru, Laura Ipsen

Latest speaker at GreenBeat 2009: Cisco’s Smart Grid guru, Laura Ipsen

I’m pleased to announce that Laura Ipsen, VP and General Manager for Cisco Systems‘ Smart Grid Business Unit, will be joining us as a speaker at GreenBeat 2009.

Over the next several days, you’ll be hearing more announcements about our exciting lineup for GreenBeat 2009, the… Continue Reading

Trilliant, ABB partner to make Smart Grid technologies interoperable

Trilliant, ABB partner to make Smart Grid technologies interoperable

Trilliant, provider of communications infrastructure used to beam energy consumption data between so-called smart meters, utilities and their customers, announced today that it is partnering with automation company ABB to make sure their technologies can talk to one another. This type of interoperability is one… Continue Reading

Cisco recruits Smart Grid players into interoperable consortium

Cisco recruits Smart Grid players into interoperable consortium

A day after IBM announced its new SAFE software package providing a standard infrastructure platform for utilities and Smart Grid startups, Cisco Systems has announced its own consortium of companies adopting common IP-based communications standards. In doing so, the company hopes to network Smart Grid… Continue Reading

Emergent Game Tech gobbles up $14M for game development platform

Emergent Game Technologies, builder of applications for video-game development, has snapped up $14.4 million in equity, amending a filing from February reporting that the company raised more than $12.5 million, according to VentureWire.

Based in Calabasa, Calif., the company says it can slash game development costs… Continue Reading

Vyatta lands $10.3M for open-source networking

Vyatta, maker of open-source network software, has raised nearly all of its planned $10.3 million round of equity. It adds this amount to the $11 million in second-round funding it brought in two years ago from ArrowPath Venture Capital, Comcast Intractive Capital, Fuse Capital and… Continue Reading

Roundup: Twitter’s ready for its close-up, Apple says yes to the Kama Sutra, and more

Roundup: Twitter’s ready for its close-up, Apple says yes to the Kama Sutra, and more

Here’s the latest action:

Twitter on the tube – More producers are turning to the micro-blogging service for television-based projects, and the site is only too happy to go Hollywood.

Auctions on the way down for eBay — The site is frantically trying to reinvent as its core… Continue Reading

San Francisco launches EcoMap, busts high-emission zip codes

San Francisco launches EcoMap, busts high-emission zip codes

The city of San Francisco has launched a revolutionary online mapping project, called the Urban EcoMap, that tracks the amount of greenhouse gas emissions produced by its various neighborhoods — and beyond that, what has produced them: transportation, energy use or waste. Basically, it’s borrowing… Continue Reading

Cisco joins the race for a leaner, cheaper smart grid

Cisco joins the race for a leaner, cheaper smart grid

Cisco Systems threw its hat into the increasingly crowded smart grid ring today, laying out a more defined strategy and projecting that this market could soon be worth up to $20 billion a year. The core of its plan is twofold: to partner with utilities… Continue Reading

Roundup: Street View blinded, curtain to rise on new PS3 and more

Roundup: Street View blinded, curtain to rise on new PS3 and more

Here’s the latest action:

It’s a pirate’s life for Asia — A new study indicates that software piracy is growing rapidly in Asia where the number of computer owners continues to skyrocket.

Street View’s prying eyes — Google must reshoot footage for its maps Street View tool in Japan… Continue Reading

Roundup: Ev Williams stumbles to the top, privacy goes obsolete, jet packs are back and more

Roundup: Ev Williams stumbles to the top, privacy goes obsolete, jet packs are back and more

Cisco eyeing Pure Digital? — The maker of the Flip video camera is in acquisition talks. TechCrunch has more.

Rocketeer envy going strong — The Wall Street Journal looks at the public’s fascination with jet packs, and the shape they’re taking today.

A series of fortunate events for Ev… Continue Reading

Soonr raises $3M to give mobile access to home computers

Soonr, maker of software that lets people access content on their home computers from their cell phones, just raised $3 million in third-round funding from Cisco Systems, Clearstone Venture Partners, Intel Capital and Sand Hill Capital, reports VentureWire. Last month, it announced the launch of… Continue Reading

Roundup: New Android G2 makes an appearance, layoffs hit 300,000, Apple sales slowing

Roundup: New Android G2 makes an appearance, layoffs hit 300,000, Apple sales slowing

Here’s the latest action:

HTC’s G2 Android phone – Sites like Gizmodo are giving the new Android phone the thumbs up based on working demos available at the Mobile World Congress.

Hacking Caller ID – A service dubbed TrapCall from TelTech Systems of New Jersey lets people figure out… Continue Reading

Force10 rolls out virtualization products

Force10 Networks, a developer of 10-gigabit networking hardware, will be launching a new line of products over the next half year to help companies set up automated and virtual networks. Currently, it provides routers and switches to web companies like Facebook and eHarmony, to help… Continue Reading

Cisco Systems investing $100M more into India

Cisco Systems, the giant San Jose, Calif., networking company, said it will invest a further $100 million in venture capital initiatives in India.

The plan was mentioned by Chief Executive John Chambers yesterday. It follows two years after Cisco announced a plan to invest $1.1 billion… Continue Reading

Cisco gets serious about WiMax, buys Navini for $330M

Cisco gets serious about WiMax, buys Navini for $330M

Cisco, the large networking company, said it has agreed to acquire Navini Networks, a company that offers a WiMAX “upgrade” for mobile customers, for $330 million in cash and stock.

This shows that Cisco is getting serious about WiMax, a technology long in development but which… Continue Reading

BroadLogic Network raises $17M more for cable provider chip

BroadLogic Network Technologies, a San Jose, Calif. company that makes a video-processing chip that lets cable providers upgrade their networks to provide faster internet access and more high-definition television content, has raised a $17 million round of financing.

Comcast, the nation’s leading cable provider, led the… Continue Reading

Cisco begins VC investing in Russia, announces deal: $18M in e-commerce site, Ozon

Cisco Systems has started a venture capital initiative in Russia, and the giant San Jose, Ca. networking company announced its first deal: Russian e-commerce site, Ozon.

Cisco hired a full-time investment manager, based in Moscow, the company said in a statement sent to VentureBeat yesterday.

It said… Continue Reading

Cisco buys anti-spam co., IronPort Systems for $830 million

Cisco buys anti-spam co., IronPort Systems for $830 million

Networking giant Cisco agreed to acquire anti-spam and spyware security company IronPort Systems for $830 million in cash and stock.

Ironport, of San Bruno, Calif., soaked up about $100 million from its founding in 2000, so this is a big win for its ten investors.

They include… Continue Reading

Silicon Valley-wide WiFi? Despite deal, long way to go

Silicon Valley-wide WiFi? Despite deal, long way to go

Silicon Valley leaders picked a consortium led by Cisco Systems and IBM to build and operate a free wireless network for up to 2.4 million across the region. But if you look at the details of the deal, it’s unclear how quickly this will come… Continue Reading