BillShrink’s new recommendation engine tells you where to stash your savings
BillShrink, a startup that advises its users on how to reduce their monthly bill payments, today launched a new savings tool that recommends the best savings and CD accounts for conserving cash. Calling itself a decision engine, the Menlo Park, Calif. company says it analyzes… Continue Reading
Nokeena Networks renames itself Ankeena Networks
Santa Clara, Calif.-based Nokeena Networks, a company that serves online video content at large scales and television quality, has changed its name to Ankeena Networks to avoid a trademark dispute, reports the San Jose Business Journal. No other details were provided except that the new… Continue Reading
Skyfire raises $5M more for better mobile browsing
Skyfire, make web browsing on your mobile phone as fast and easy as it is on your desktop computer, has raised $5 million in new funding.
The Mountain View, Calif. company said it had more than 1 million users when it lest beta testing a few… Continue Reading
As VCs struggle to survive, Trinity closes new $300M fund
It’s been a brutal year for venture capital firms — a non-existent IPO market, a credit crunch among limited partners, and new financial regulations are just a few of the issues making it hard for them to show results. The ones looking to raise new… Continue Reading
Ripple TV raises $4M more for in-store television
Ripple TV, which places digital television displays inside stores to deliver targeted advertising, has raised $4 million in new funding.
El Segundo, Calif.-based Ripple is one of a host of companies behind the televisions you see in coffee shops, bookstores, restaurants, and elsewhere. Ripple says it… Continue Reading
Exalt musters $15M for wireless backhauling
Exalt Communications, a company that transmits wireless data through microwave radio systems to relieve congestion on regular networks, announced today that it brought in $15 million in third-round funding to expand its “backhauling” systems globally. The Campbell, Calif. company claims that demand for its products… Continue Reading
Getting a pulse on the telecom/media venture capital markets
Every few months I like to take the pulse of the venture capital market. It chages so fast that you don’t really know what’s going on until you catch up with the people in the thick of things.
I had a chance to do that this… Continue Reading
New Relic raises $6M more to manage Ruby on Rails apps
Before the recent financial crash, we wrote about growing investment around the programming framework Ruby on Rails. It looks those investments haven’t stopped yet – New Relic, a company that helps you manage Rails applications, has raised $6 million in a second round of funding.
Dan… Continue Reading
How the tough get going
[Editor's Note: One of the benefits of inviting guest columnists from the business community is the ability to present first-hand accounts of their experiences (good and bad) -- and the lessons they've learned. Below, venture capitalist and founder of user-generated media startup Pinnacle Systems, Ajay… Continue Reading
Clearleap jumps $3.3M to bring online video to TV
Clearleap, a company that delivers video from a range of different sources to your living room television screen, announced today that it pulled in $3.3 million in debt financing from Silicon Valley Bank. These funds follow hot on the heels of a $9 million first… Continue Reading
Concentrating solar outfit Soliant Energy gets General Electric investment
General Electric seems to be covering its bases when it comes to solar power. The company, which four months ago bought a controlling stake in thin-film solar panel maker PrimeStar Solar, has added concentrating solar to its portfolio with a $2.5 million bet on Soliant… Continue Reading
BillShrink gets $8M to help you save money
BillShrink, a startup that advises users on ways to reduce their bills, has raised $8 million in a second round of venture funding.
Menlo Park, Calif.-based BillShrink was founded in 2007. It launched in April this year with a tool to help people find the cheapest… Continue Reading
GuardID raises $11M more to protect your identity
GuardID, whose products protect customers’ online financial information, has raised $11 million in a second round of venture funding. New investor PrismVentureWorks led the round with participation from Intersections Inc. and existing investor Trinity Ventures. The San Mateo, Calif. startup raised $5 million in 2006.
Avaak brings in $7M to prep wire-free camera
Avaak, a creator of video networking technology, received $7 million in its first round of private funding — money that will go toward putting the finishing touches on its new camera system, the Vue Personal Video Network. Even though it was initially developed for homeland… Continue Reading
UpTake, the travel search engine that gets its traffic from Google, takes in $10M
UpTake , the travel search engine formerly known as Kango, has raised over $10 million in a second round of financing.
Unlike many content-focused travel sites, which seem to proliferate daily (see TripWolf, IgoUgo, TripSay), UpTake has no illusions about becoming the first place people turn… Continue Reading
Guest editorial: Consumer engagement that matters
An increasing number of entrepreneurs have been asking me what I think of the prospects for consumer Internet startups. Strategic purchases of companies seem to be slowing; advertising spending might be flat next year; and growth on the large social network platforms is getting harder…. Continue Reading
Nokeena Networks raises $8.7M for faster streaming video
A stealthy content accelerator called Nokeena Networks has raised $8.7 million in a first round of funding, with an aim to sell a hardware appliance that will better process and transmit video across networks.
The company is specifically directing its efforts toward high-quality video, according to… Continue Reading
Game startup Trion to disrupt industry with cross-platform online games, nabs deal with Sci Fi Channel
Game startup Trion World Network is today revealing how it is designing massively multiplayer online games with high graphics fidelity that will run across video game platforms — such as consoles, PC, mobile, and set-top boxes — a feat that no other video game company… Continue Reading
Skyfire raises $13M to improve mobile web browsing
Skyfire has raised a $13 million second round of funding as it ramps up its campaign in the mobile browser wars.
The Mountain View, Calif. startup’s goal, says chief executive Nitin Bhandari, is to make a browser that makes the mobile web experience as close to… Continue Reading
Software improvement company Coverity acquires Codefast
Coverity, a San Francisco startup that analyzes software code for flaws, has purchased Codefast, a “build management” company. The terms of the acquisition — Coverity’s first — were not disclosed.
Codefast, a San Jose company that was founded in 2004, focuses on accelerating the process of… Continue Reading