Author: Serkadis

MELBOURNE(Reuters) – Australian toll road operator Transurban Group (TCL.AX) rejected a takeover approach from two Canadian pension funds on Thursday, but left the door open to a better offer, sending its shares up 20 percent.

The move marks the latest swoop on an Australian infrastructure group by Canada’s pension funds, taking advantage of beaten-down share prices as their targets struggle to refinance debt in the credit crunch.

Transurban, worth A$6 billion ($5.5 billion) ahead of the announcement, said the offer came from the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and the Ontario Teachers’ Pension Plan Board, which together already own about 28 percent of the group.

The Australian group, which owns roads in Sydney, Melbourne and Virginia in the United States, declined to give any details on the approach.

Transurban made the announcement after media speculation that the Ontario Teachers’ fund planned a buyout of the Australian firm. The talk began last week after the fund sold down its stake in rival toll-road owner Macquarie Infrastructure Group (MIG.AX).

Transurban shares soared as high as A$5.25 and last traded up 17 percent at A$5.13. The stock had been down 19 percent so far this year, badly lagging the broader market’s 22 percent surge.

Analysts’ valuations on Transurban are just above A$5 and an offer much higher than A$5.25 would be surprising, said Will Seddon, investment analyst at White Funds Management, which owns shares in Transurban.

“But they (the Canadian funds) might have a different view on valuations,” Seddon said.

Canada Pension Plan Investment Board bought Macquarie Communications Infrastructure Fund in June for $1.3 billion, but only after top shareholders successfully pressed for a sweetened offer at double its closing price before the first offer.

Taking Transurban private would make sense for the pension funds, as its value would no longer be subject to sharp market swings, as they have this year, Seddon said. [ID:nSYD473541]

“They’re a good suite of assets, relatively low risk. It wouldn’t be a silly move,” he said.

Transurban’s biggest single shareholder, Australian fund CP2, with a 15 percent stake, could not be immediately reached for comment. ($1=1.095 Australian Dollar)

By Sonali Paul
(Editing by Mark Bendeich and Valerie Lee)

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Amherst College seeks a Manager of Internship Programs to join the Career Center and Center for Community Engagement teams. Reporting to the Directors of the Career Center (CC) and Center for Community Engagement (CCE), the Manager will work collaboratively with CC/CCE team members to advise and educate underclass students about all aspects of the internship search process and help them secure and make the most of challenging intern opportunities. The CCE portion of the position is grant-funded.

Amherst College is a private, co-educational, liberal arts institution with over 1700 students and 190 faculty located in the Connecticut River Valley of western Massachusetts. Amherst participates with Hampshire, Mount Holyoke, and Smith Colleges and the University of Massachusetts in the Five-College Consortium.

Specific duties will include the management of the newly created Amherst Select Internship Program and continued development of a public service internship program. Position will provide individual and group advising, create and deliver skill development workshops, and identify and implement panels, events and programs. Provide general career advising to students/alumni; host weekly drop-in hours; and engage in other activities (e.g. orientation, homecoming, alumni events) as deemed necessary. The position requires occasional evening and weekend responsibilities.

Qualifications: Master’s degree and professional experience in program development and management of domestic/international internship programs strongly preferred. A Bachelor’s degree and a minimum of three years’ professional experience in higher education, counseling, career advising or human resources required. Excellent communication, project and relationship management, presentation and organizational skills. Experience developing and facilitating panels, programs and events. Must be team-oriented with the ability to work well with other staff members in the development and administration of programs with the Career Center, the Center for Community Engagement and throughout the college.

Interested candidates should submit a cover letter, resume, and the names and contact information of three professional references. A review of applications will commence immediately and continue until the position is filled.

To apply online, please visit our website at https://jobs.amherst.edu

Amherst College is an equal opportunity employer and encourages women, persons of color, and persons with disabilities to apply. The College is committed to enriching its educational experience and its culture through the diversity of its faculty, administration, and staff.

Panolam Industries, a Shelton, Conn.-based decorative laminate company, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, as part of a previously announced debt restructuring agreement with lenders led by Apollo Capital Management and Eaton Vance Management. Genstar Capital and Sterling Group bought Panolam for $345 million in 2005.

PRESS RELEASE

Panolam Industries International, Inc. (the “Company”) today announced that it and its U.S. affiliates, including its parent, Panolam Holdings Co., have commenced a voluntary prepackaged proceeding under Chapter 11 of the Bankruptcy Code in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The Company’s non-U.S. operation, which is legally separate, is not included in the Chapter 11 filing. During this process and with the Bankruptcy Court’s approval, the Company will continue to operate in the ordinary course of business, which means that the Company will honor all obligations to its customers, vendors, suppliers and employees.

The Company previously announced that it had entered into a consensual Restructuring Support Agreement with holders of a supermajority of the principal amount of its senior subordinated notes, led by Apollo Capital Management and Eaton Vance Management, holders of a supermajority of its senior debt, and Credit Suisse, the agent for such senior lenders. The restructuring will significantly reduce the Company’s outstanding debt, and put the Company in a stronger financial position for the future. The restructuring will enable the Company to reduce the amount of debt on its balance sheet by approximately $151 million (or approximately 44%), which will eliminate approximately $16 million in annual cash interest payments on its senior subordinated notes.

The Company launched a formal solicitation of votes for the prepackaged plan of reorganization (the “Prepackaged Plan”) from its creditors on October 2, 2009, and has received far in excess of the requisite amount and number of votes needed to accept the Prepackaged Plan. The Company does not anticipate any delays in obtaining Bankruptcy Court approval of the Prepackaged Plan and expects that the Prepackaged Plan will be confirmed before the end of the 2009 calendar year.

This press release is also available within the “News About Panolam” section of the Company’s website at www.panolam.com.

Panolam Industries International, Inc. is a market leader and innovator in the decorative laminate industry. The Company’s products, which are marketed under the widely recognized Panolam®, Pionite®, Nevamar®, and Pluswood® brand names, are used in a wide variety of residential and commercial indoor surfacing applications, including kitchen and bath cabinets, furniture, store fixtures, case goods, and other applications. The Company also markets other decorative laminates including FRL, a fiber reinforced laminate product. In addition to decorative laminates, the Company manufactures and distributes industrial laminate products, including Conolite and Panolam FRP, a fiber reinforced product. The Company also produces and markets a selection of specialty resins for industrial uses, such as powdered paint, adhesives and melamine resins for decorative laminate production, custom treated and chemically prepared decorative overlay papers for the high pressure laminates, or HPL, and thermally-fused melamine, or TFM, industries, and a variety of other industrial laminate products such as aircraft cargo liners and bowling lanes.

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McJunkin Red Man Holding Corp., a Tulsa-based industrial pipe supplier owned by GS Capital Partners, has completed its acquisition of Transmark Fcx Group BV, a Houston, Texas-based distributor of specialty valves and flow control equipment. No financial terms were disclosed. McJunkin canceled a proposed $750 million IPO earlier this year. www.mcjunkinredman.com

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Quantum Energy Partners has formed Icon NGS LLC, a Houston-based acquisition platform focused on natural gas storage. The deal is being done in partnership with gas storage veterans Larry Bickle, Andy Lang and Mark Fullerton. No financial terms were disclosed.

PRESS RELEASE

Quantum NGS Holding, LLC announced today that together with Dr. Larry W. Bickle, William A. (”Andy”) Lang and Mark Fullerton, it has formed Icon NGS, LLC, a natural gas storage focused company. Based in Houston, TX, Icon NGS will develop and/or acquire high-deliverability, multi-cycle natural gas storage capacity in the United States.

Icon NGS is led by Lang, Fullerton and Bickle, who have collectively developed, operated, financed or acquired more than 200 billion cubic feet of working natural gas storage capacity. This experience includes the successful development and operation of numerous natural gas storage projects, including Bobcat, Egan, Kirby Hills, Lodi, Moss Bluff, NorTex and Tioga Gas Storage.

“Given the strong industry fundamentals we see today coupled with the financial disruption the natural gas storage development market has recently experienced, we are very excited about the prospects for a new well-capitalized, growth-oriented storage development company,” said Lang, President and Chief Executive Officer of Icon NGS. “With the quality of the management team we have assembled and the backing of a strong investment partner like Quantum NGS Holding, we believe Icon NGS will have tremendous access to attractive development and acquisition opportunities.”

Icon NGS will initially focus on identifying strategic supply and market locations where it can develop greenfield storage facilities from concept stage to commercial operations. The company will also evaluate the acquisition of in-process greenfield storage development projects and operating storage facilities that have significant expansion potential or can be operationally improved by the Icon NGS team.

“We are pleased to once again be partnering with Dr. Bickle to form a natural gas storage development company,” said Scott Soler, Managing Director at Quantum Energy Partners. “This management team has a long history of successfully working together in the midstream space and we are encouraged by the many opportunities they have already identified to improve the operational efficiency of the U.S. natural gas pipeline grid.”

Andy Lang, President and Chief Executive Officer of Icon NGS, is an accomplished executive with more than 25 years of experience in the midstream industry. Most recently, Lang was President of Somerset Gas Transmission Company, LLC, a privately held company which owns and operates an intrastate natural gas pipeline in Ohio and a natural gas gathering system in Pennsylvania. Prior to joining Somerset, Lang had served as CEO of NiSource Inc. subsidiary TPC Corporation and CEO of Vastar Gas Marketing Inc.

Mark Fullerton, Chief Operating Officer of Icon NGS, is a natural gas storage development and construction expert with over 19 years of industry experience. Previously, Fullerton served as Senior Vice President of Lodi Gas Storage. Prior to joining Lodi, Fullerton served as an independent gas storage consultant for various development projects.

Dr. Larry Bickle, Chairman of Quantum NGS Holdings and of Icon NGS, is a highly respected natural gas storage developer who has successfully developed numerous natural gas storage projects. Prior to working with Quantum, Bickle was a co-founder of Haddington Ventures, LLC, a private equity fund that invests in midstream energy companies and assets. Previously, Bickle was Co-founder, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Tejas Power Corporation.

Quantum NGS Holdings is a partnership between Quantum Energy Partners, a leading investment firm specializing in the energy industry with over $5.7 billion in capital under management, and Dr. Larry Bickle. Icon NGS represents Quantum NGS’ second subsidiary natural gas storage development company following its formation of Merchant Energy Partners in 2008.

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Eric Shiozaki has joined healthcare-focused VC firm Apposite Capital as an associate director in its San Francisco office. He previously was with Burrill & Company.

PRESS RELEASE

Apposite Capital, the healthcare specialist investment firm, today announced it has appointed Dr Eric Shiozaki as Associate Director, North America. Dr Shiozaki will be based in San Francisco, CA, USA and will support Apposite’s primary and secondary investments activities in North America. Apposite Capital currently manages a total of 12 investments in the United States: three of these are from Apposite Capital’s primary investment portfolio which focuses on life sciences companies across Europe and North America and healthcare services companies in the UK; the remainder are secondary healthcare assets that the firm acquired recently from another private equity group.

Dr Shiozaki has been involved in numerous aspects of the healthcare industry throughout his career. He was most recently with Burrill & Company, a life sciences venture capital firm where he helped make and manage new investments. Prior to joining Burrill, Eric worked in technology transfer at the University of California, Los Angeles where he managed a portfolio of healthcare technologies.

While at UCLA, he also conducted post-doctoral research as a Leukaemia & Lymphoma Society Fellow. Eric received a BA in Biophysics from Johns Hopkins University and a PhD in Molecular Biology from Princeton University.

“We are very pleased to welcome Eric to our investment team,” said David Porter, Managing Partner of Apposite Capital. “His appointment further strengthens our transatlantic investments activities as Eric will be on the ground to help source, make and manage some of our investments in the United States.” – Ends-

About Apposite Capital www.appositecapital.com

Apposite Capital is an independent investment firm focused exclusively on Healthcare. The firm invests in private companies involved in Healthcare Services and Life Sciences on a primary basis, as well as acquiring and managing direct Healthcare assets in the secondary market. Apposite has an in-depth sector knowledge covering all aspects of the healthcare industry globally, with a unique unrivalled reach to Japan. The investment team combines complementary entrepreneurial, private equity and investment banking skills. Apposite has built a high quality primary portfolio of companies in the US and Europe. The firm invests in seasoned management with a clear vision and is committed to adding value to its portfolio companies. Apposite balances its investments across all stages of company development, providing venture, development and growth financings as well as buyout capital. Apposite typically invests as a lead investor and has a representation at the Board of Directors. Apposite Capital was created in 2006 and is based in London, UK.

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The Prime Minister has visited Airbus UK’s manufacturing facility in the north Wales town of Broughton today.

Gordon Brown visited the site, which is being extended to help meet orders for the new A350 – the fastest selling passenger aircraft of all time.

The PM told workers and apprentices that the investment made in Airbus in the last few months is important for securing the future of the company.

“We are determined that this is and remains the biggest manufacturing facility in the United Kingdom.

At the same time, where small and medium-sized firms are finding it difficult with cash flow, thousands have benefited from the schemes that we have set up.”

He said the government was working to maintain the number of apprenticeships and to increase young people going to college and university.

“Any young person who has left school in the last few months has been offered further education, training or work.

Jobs are our first priority. We certainly don’t want to see a generation of young people who are lost to the labour market as we did in the 1980s.”

Mr Brown also visited the EA Technology Energy Innovation Centre in Chester today, where he was shown several examples of innovative green technologies.

The visit was followed by a round-table meeting chaired by Liam Byrne, Chief Secretary to the Treasury, where Mr Brown met business leaders from the North West to discuss the economic situation.

The PM met the Government’s ‘victims champion’ Sara Payne, who today released a report on support for victims in the UK.

During his visit to the Ditton Community Centre in Widnes, Cheshire, Mr Brown also spoke to victims of anti-social behaviour who have received support from local workers.

 That nasty lag during online play in Tekken 6 has been ruining matches and annoying players since the launch. Worry no further, Namco Bandai h…

“Americans’ opinion of the health care proposals now before Congress is eerily similar to public sentiment about the Clinton health reform initiatives in 1994, according to an analysis published online yesterday in The New England Journal of Medicine – and that may not bode well for Democrats,” The Boston Globe reports. “Americans believe the health care system needs to be fixed and they like many of the ideas Democrats are proposing, the report found. But they believe the specific proposals taking shape would not benefit them personally, and they fear they could result in more expensive and lower-quality care.” The study analyzed “more than 30 polls conducted this fall and during the spring of 1994, when the Clinton health reform effort was gasping its last breaths.”

Robert Blendon, a health policy professor at Harvard and co-author of the study, “said the reason support for health care overhaul deteriorates when the questions focus on specific legislation is that people rarely consider that fixing problems requires trade-offs.” Blendon added that the research “suggests that proponents of the health care overhaul should more clearly articulate how their legislation would benefit middle-class Americans … regular families facing large medical bills they cannot afford to pay” (Wangsness, 11/5).

The Associated Press has an explainer on past presidents who have attempted comprehensive health care reform and why they have not successes. “Many have tried. Only Lyndon Johnson achieved transcendent reform, with passage of Medicare and Medicaid protecting the elderly and poor, but universal coverage has been an elusive goal for over a century” (Woodward, 11/4).

AARP, the influential retirees’ lobby, is expected to endorse House Democrats’ plan to overhaul the health system today, the Associated Press reports, citing unnamed officials. “Backing the 10-year, $1.2 trillion House bill is a tricky move for AARP. Many retirees are concerned about cuts in Medicare payments to medical providers, which will be used to finance an expansion of health insurance coverage to millions of working families who now lack it. Also, AARP says its membership is about evenly divided among Democrats, Republicans and independents, meaning its endorsement in today’s highly politicized atmosphere could anger many members. Floor votes on the House bill could come as early as this weekend” (Werner and Alonso-Zaldivar, 11/4). 

ABC News reports that “Speaker [Nancy] Pelosi and her leadership team have been lobbying the lobby for weeks,” adding that Democratic sources had confirmed the AARP would endorse the bill. One Democrat called it a “big victory” (Stephanopoulos, 11/4).

Initiate Systems Inc., a Chicago-based provider of master data management solutions for the exchange of health information, has acquired Accenx, an Irvine, Calif.-based provider of interoperability solutions for electronic healthcare records. No financial terms were disclosed. Initiate Systems has raised over $67 million in VC funding, from Apex Venture Partners, First Analysis Group, Sigma Partners, BlueCross BlueShield Venture Partners and Paladin Capital Group. It canceled a proposed IPO in 2008. Accenx raised $3 million in Series A funding led by National Healthcare Services.

PRESS RELEASE

Initiate Systems, Inc., a leader in data management solutions for information sharing and improved data quality, has acquired Accenx Technologies, Inc., a leading provider of health information exchange solutions. This acquisition furthers Initiate’s growth strategy and expands its offerings in the healthcare market. The terms of the deal are confidential.

By acquiring Accenx, Initiate expands the breadth and reach of its proven interoperable health solutions enabling a broader set of healthcare stakeholders to connect and share information as market dynamics require greater focus on establishing well integrated healthcare communities. 

“The debates over healthcare IT adoption and payment reform have validated that healthcare communities that master information sharing realize improved outcomes at lower costs,” said Bill Conroy, president and CEO, Initiate. “EHR is the buzzword of The American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, but what electronic health records offer is potential for interoperability. This requires information sharing within and between EHRs.”

Conroy continued: “The addition of Accenx is a natural extension for our company, and we believe it will prove valuable to our customers. Leveraging Initiate® interoperable health solutions as services through Accenx Exchange, Initiate now offers master data management (MDM) along with a connectivity platform delivering applications and relevant information at all points of service.”

Accenx Exchange™ enables communities to rapidly connect healthcare providers, such as physician practices, reference labs and imaging centers, and easily share information such as orders and results. Accenx’ Software as a Service (SaaS) delivery model and physician outreach program offers the service levels required by physicians with rapid deployment and a low up-front investment.

“Joining Initiate will help Accenx fulfill its promise of delivering innovative technology solutions to stakeholders across a broadening healthcare ecosystem,” said David Cheng, CEO, Accenx. “Accenx and Initiate have both partnered together with other application vendors to deliver health information exchange solutions. The combined company will continue to offer customers and partners the technology and services to make relevant applications and information available at every point of care across an expanded healthcare community.”

Initiate has been addressing health information technology (HIT) for more than 15 years. The company has recently been recognized by leading industry analysts as one of the highest ranked vendors providing master data management solutions. Initiate’s high-performance, scalable software has set the standard for delivering a single, accurate view of patient and provider records. It is used by more than a hundred health organizations, including: hospitals, independent delivery networks (IDNs), regional health exchanges, e-subscribers, retail pharmacies, insurance payers, federal and state health agencies.  

About Initiate Systems
Initiate Systems enables organizations to confidently share critical data assets. Multinational corporations, healthcare organizations and government agencies rely on Initiate® software and services to deliver complete, accurate and real-time views of data spread across multiple systems, domains or databases. Initiate’s multi-domain master data management (MDM) solutions facilitate interoperability, information sharing, entity resolution and data quality to increase revenues, reduce costs and mitigate risks. Initiate operates globally through its subsidiaries, with corporate headquarters in Chicago and offices across the U.S., and in Toronto, London and Sydney. For more information, visit www.Initiate.com.

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Put all the Modern Warfare 2 controversy crap behind of you for just a minute and a half. Forget about the lack of PC dedicated server support and that you *might* kill civilians in the game. Just watch the official launch trailer and tell me you aren’t stoked about this game. Seriously.

Digby, an Austin, Texas-based provider of mobile commerce solution for retailers, has acquired Movaya Wireless, a Seattle-based developer of digital goods storefront applications for mobile devices like the iPhone and Android. No financial terms were disclosed. Digby has raised a small amount of VC funding from The BlackBerry Partners Fund (managed by JLA Ventures).

PRESS RELEASE

Digby, the leading provider of mobile commerce solutions for retailers, today announced the acquisition of Movaya Wireless, Inc., a Seattle, Washington-based mobile software company focused on building digital goods storefront applications for the iPhone, Android and mobile web platforms. Additionally, Movaya Chengdu Technology, Ltd., Movaya’s Asian operations center, will form the basis for Digby Chengdu Technology, Ltd. Digby Chengdu will serve as Digby’s hub for the rapidly expanding mobile commerce market in Asia. Movaya co-Founder and Chief Technology Officer, Stanley Wang, has joined Digby as Vice President of Engineering.

“Movaya is a pioneer in the mobile commerce ecosystem,” said David Sikora, founder and CEO of Digby. “Its storefront platform and team will significantly extend our current platform and overall production capacity. In addition, our new offices in Chengdu will allow us to serve the largest and fastest growing mobile market on the planet. Every month, seven million new mobile subscribers join the existing 650 million mobile users, and we’re only at the front of the smartphone adoption wave. This acquisition positions Digby to aggressively expand our leadership in the worldwide mobile commerce market.”

“We’re thrilled to be joining forces with Digby at this critical stage of market development,” said Phil Yerkes, co-founder and Chairman of Movaya. “The transaction will allow our mobile commerce vision to be realized through the Digby Mobile Commerce Suite, and it provides a very exciting opportunity for all of Movaya team members.”

Movaya Wireless was formed in 2006 by Phil Yerkes and Stanley Wang. Their core product, Movaya Platform M, is utilized by software developers, game developers, and content producers to monetize their digital assets created for mobile device users. The product offers rich capabilities that enable content producers to create branded storefronts utilizing a unique set of self-service technologies. Platform M was also tightly integrated into various carrier-based billing systems including ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile and others, enabling a seamless “bill-to-phone” payment system for acquiring digital products.

The transaction, subject to customary closing conditions, will be finalized by November 15, 2009. Catapult Advisors LLC advised Movaya on the transaction.

——————————————————————————–

About Digby
Digby is the leading software as a service provider of mobile commerce solutions for top retailers. The award winning Digby Mobile Commerce Suite delivers an optimized shopping experience with both web and application based mobile storefronts that include easy search, browse and purchase capabilities, personal information integration, secure wallet and location based service functionality. Led by software industry veterans, the privately held company is headquartered in Austin, Texas. For additional information, please visit www.digby.com.

About Movaya Wireless, Inc.
Movaya is a Seattle-based mobile commerce service provider (mCSP) company, whose mobile content management and distribution platform allows mobile content publishers and merchants to effortlessly extend their businesses to the growing off-deck mobile content marketplace. Movaya PlugNPlay and TryNBuy are the company’s flagship products, which bring together Mobile Game and Application Publishers, Online Retailers and consumers in one marketplace for mobile goods. Movaya is powering the off-deck mobile industry

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Funambol Inc., a Redwood City, Calif.-based developer of open-source mobile application servers, has acquired Zapatec Inc., a provider of AJAX web 2.0 frameworks. No financial terms were disclosed. Funambol has raised around $23 million in VC funding, from firms like Nexit Ventures, Castile Ventures, Walden International and HIG Ventures.

PRESS RELEASE

Funambol, the leading provider of open source mobile cloud sync and push email for billions of phones, today announced it has acquired Zapatec, Inc., a leader of AJAX web 2.0 frameworks. The acquisition enables Funambol to uniquely address the industry pervasive device fragmentation challenge that plagues developers and requires building native apps for too many platforms. The combination of Funambol’s open source mobile sync and push server, with Zapatec’s AJAX web 2.0 technology, will foster a new generation of open, rich mobile browser native apps for billions of smart- and feature phones. This provides the best of both worlds — rich mobile web native apps that ’sync and push’, and that work on all devices.

“Future mobile apps will resemble PC AJAX apps, they will be web-based yet will sync data with mobile devices and have push notifications”, said Fabrizio Capobianco, Funambol CEO. “We are very pleased to acquire Zapatec, the leading provider of AJAX web 2.0 frameworks. Together, our technology allows us to create the next generation of open, rich mobile browser native apps that sync and push billions of devices.”

There are four billion mobile phones today, growing to five billion over the next few years. These phones represent a major device fragmentation problem for the industry, as they are splintered across numerous platforms and manufacturers, including iPhone, Android, BlackBerry, Windows Mobile, Symbian, BREW, Java ME, mobile Linux and several proprietary offerings. Further, entire new classes of wireless devices are emerging, such as e-book readers, wireless digital cameras and printers, netbooks and appliances, with their own operating environments. This makes it extremely challenging for developers to build rich mobile apps that work across a wide range of devices.

Many industry experts believe that the next generation of mobile apps will be web-based, similar to AJAX web 2.0 apps for PC browsers that provide desktop-like capabilities and ease-of-use. Funambol recognizes that just providing rich mobile browser apps will be insufficient. Apps must also sync data and content locally with mobile devices and have push capabilities similar to push email. They must also be integrated into the core apps on devices such as their address book, calendar and messaging clients.

The integration of Funambol and Zapatec technology provides all of the required resources to build the next generation of open, rich mobile browser native apps. It combines Funambol’s open source mobile data sync and push server platform, with Zapatec’s AJAX web 2.0 framework. This will enable Funambol, its customers and open source community to create a new generation of open, rich mobile native apps that ’sync & push’ billions of devices to address the device fragmentation problem. As part of the acquisition, Dror Matalon, Zapatec CEO, is joining Funambol’s leadership team as Vice President, Emerging Technology.

“Open source is on fire in mobile, and Funambol is at the forefront,” said Dror Matalon. “Together, our technology can make it easy for people to build rich mobile native apps that support all major platforms.”

About Funambol
Funambol is the leading provider of mobile open source cloud sync and push email for billions of phones. Funambol open source software has been downloaded over three million times by 50,000 developers in 200 countries. The commercial version of Funambol has been deployed by the largest device manufacturers, mobile operators, portals, service providers and ISVs in the world, including AOL, 1&1, EarthLink and CA, Inc. Funambol is headquartered in Redwood City, California with an R&D center in Italy. You can follow Funambol on Twitter at http://twitter.com/funambol.

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Spinal Modulation Inc., a Menlo Park, Calif.-based developer of a spinal cord stimulator system to treat patients suffering from chronic pain, has raised $27.4 million in Series C funding. Johnson & Johnson Development Corp. led the round, and was joined by DFJ/InCube Ventures, Raffles Venture Partners and return backers DeNovo Ventures, ePlanet/DFJ, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and MedVenture. 

PRESS RELEASE

Spinal Modulation, Inc. announced today the completion of its $27.4 million Series C financing. Johnson & Johnson Development Corporation (JJDC) joined existing major investors including DeNovo Ventures, ePlanet/DFJ, Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, and MedVenture Associates in this financing. DFJ/InCube Ventures and Raffles Venture Partners are additional new investors. Proceeds from the financing will be used to support further development of the company’s next generation spinal cord stimulator system to treat patients suffering from chronic intractable pain.

“As we begin to better understand the mechanisms behind the disease, treatment options will advance and patients will have more alternatives. When you look at the technologies that currently exist for patients suffering with chronic pain, it is obvious that there is a great need for innovation,” said David Wood, President and CEO of Spinal Modulation, Inc. “We are very encouraged by our early results with Spinal Modulation’s innovative technology.”

Chronic pain represents a major cost to the US healthcare system of approximately $90 – $100 billion annually. Up to 30% of Americans are estimated to suffer from chronic pain. The direct medical costs of managing back pain alone in the United States are estimated to be greater than $25 billion per year. As patients progress through the continuum of care, physicians may treat patients by using traditional spinal cord stimulation, a technique in which tiny electrodes are placed near the spinal cord and electric currents are applied to relieve pain. Spinal Modulation is focusing its first product in the chronic pain market by developing a new spinal cord stimulator system to address the huge burden chronic pain represents to the healthcare system.

About Spinal Modulation

Spinal Modulation, headquartered in Menlo Park, California, is an early stage, private medical device company developing the next generation spinal cord stimulator system for treating chronic intractable pain. For more information, visit www.spinalmodulation.com.

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Zyngenia Inc., a Rockville, Md.-based pharma startup focused on antibody development, has raised $10 million in Series A funding from New Enterprise Associates.

PRESS RELEASE

Zyngenia, Inc., a privately held biotherapeutics company focused on next-generation antibody drug development, today announced that it has secured $10 million in Series A funding from New Enterprise Associates (NEA), one of the world’s leading venture capital firms. The capital will be used to create novel, multi-specific antibody-like molecules that address two or more biological targets with a single agent. The company will initially focus on various cancers and autoimmune diseases.

“Zyngenia’s technology platform, developed by Carlos Barbas of The Scripps Institute, is very compelling due to its ability to create biologics that are single protein-combination therapeutics in a manner that is likely to be scientifically, medically, and economically transforming,” said Peter Kiener, D.Phil., Zyngenia Chief Executive Officer. “With financial support from NEA, we are poised to take a leadership role in the development of multi-specific biologic therapies.”

In previous positions at MedImmune and Bristol-Myers Squibb (BMS), Dr. Kiener gained extensive experience in both biologics and small molecule drug discovery across oncology, immunology, infectious disease and other therapeutic areas. During eight years at MedImmune, most recently as Executive Vice President and Head of Research and Development, Dr. Kiener helped to build industry-leading protein and antibody engineering capabilities and oversaw the submission of numerous INDs and BLAs. Dr. Kiener was also responsible for the integration of both the protein/antibody engineering company Cambridge Antibody Technology and the B-cell biologics company Cellective Therapeutics into MedImmune. Prior to joining MedImmune, Dr. Kiener spent 18 years with Bristol-Myers Squibb’s Pharmaceutical Research Division.

Carlos F. Barbas, III, Ph.D., Zyngenia’s Chief Scientific Officer, is Professor and Chair of the Skaggs Institute of Chemical Biology and the Departments of Molecular Biology and Chemistry at The Scripps Institute, La Jolla, California. Dr. Barbas is renowned for his work in peptides and proteins, antibodies and chemically programmed antibodies. He has particular expertise in novel antibody technologies and was a founder of two successful antibody platform companies, Cov-X Pharmaceuticals (acquired by Pfizer) and Prolifaron (acquired by Alexion).

Zyngenia’s founding management team also includes Joseph Amprey, M.D., Ph.D., former head of MedImmune Ventures, Inc., as Chief Business Officer. Dr. Amprey joined MedImmune Ventures as the first full-time employee and helped grow the portfolio from 13 investments to 28. He led 11 deals during his time at MedImmune Ventures and served on five boards. Recently, David Hilbert, Ph.D., has been appointed the Vice President and Head of Research and Development. Dr. Hilbert formerly served as Vice President of Research at both Cellective Therapeutics and Human Genome Sciences. Dr Hilbert led Research and Development at Cellective until its acquisition by MedImmune in 2005. At Human Genome Sciences, Dr Hilbert led the transformation of the company from a genomics research company to an integrated drug development organization. His expertise in oncology, autoimmunity and antibody development enabled the first IND for the company and was pivotal in the development of ABthrax and Benlysta.

In conjunction with the Series A financing, David M. Mott, NEA General Partner, will become Chairman of the Board. Robert Garland, M.D., Partner at NEA, will also join the company’s board of directors. Mr. Mott focuses on biopharmaceutical investments at NEA. He is Chairman of 3-V Biosciences, a Director of Ardelyx and Zosano Pharma, and serves on the advisory board of the Scripps Translational Science Institute. Prior to joining NEA, he was President and CEO of MedImmune, which was acquired by AstraZeneca for $15.6 billion in 2007. During his 16 years at MedImmune, it grew from a small biotechnology company into one of the five largest biotechnology companies in the world. Dr. Garland focuses on biopharmaceutical investments at NEA and is a Director of 3-V Biosciences, Cardioxyl Pharmaceuticals and Trevena, Inc. He trained in Internal Medicine and Infectious Diseases at the University of California, San Francisco. Prior to NEA, in addition to clinical practice at UCSF, Dr. Garland was with McKinsey & Company where he worked with biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical device and diagnostics clients to evaluate investments, formulate product and corporate strategies and build businesses.

“We believe the unique Zyngenia platform has the potential to produce numerous therapeutic proteins, each with specificity for multiple targets, which may have significant advantages over both current single-specificity and bi-specific biologic drugs,” said Mr. Mott. “We are excited about combining the therapeutic potential of this technology with a management team that has an impressive record of successfully building companies and developing biologics.”

“It’s rewarding to see my scientific technology platform coupled with the capabilities of Zyngenia’s management team,” said Dr. Barbas. “I look forward to working closely with the team and to leveraging the experience in biologic drug development and corporate strategy that Mr. Mott and Dr. Garland bring as we build the organization.”

About Zyngenia, Inc.

Founded in 2008, Zyngenia, Inc. is a privately held biotherapeutics company focused on the development of next-generation multi-specific antibodies. The company uses proprietary patented technology to engineer single molecular entities that may interact with two or more targets. The company will initially focus its Zybody(TM) development on therapies for various cancers and autoimmune disorders. Zyngenia is headquartered in Rockville, Maryland. For more information, visit www.zyngenia.com.

About New Enterprise Associates

New Enterprise Associates, Inc. (NEA) is a leading venture capital firm focused on helping entrepreneurs create and build major new enterprises that use technology to improve the way we live, work and play. Since its founding in 1978, the firm has followed the same core principles: supporting its entrepreneurs, providing an excellent return to its limited partners and practicing its profession with the highest standards and respect. Through its affiliated funds, NEA focuses on investments at all stages of a company’s development, from seed stage through IPO. With approximately $8.5 billion in committed capital, NEA’s experienced management team has invested in over 650 companies, of which more than 165 have gone public and more than 255 have been acquired. NEA has U.S. offices in Chevy Chase, Maryland; Menlo Park, California; and Baltimore, Maryland. In addition, New Enterprise Associates (India) Pvt. Ltd. has offices in Bangalore and Mumbai, India and New Enterprise Associates (Beijing), Ltd. has offices in Beijing and Shanghai, China. For additional information, visit www.nea.com.

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Siguler Guff has acquired a minority equity stake in MDM Bank, one of Russia’s largest private banks, for an undisclosed amount. Brunel Capital served as broker. MDM was formed this past August via the merger of URSA Bank and MDM-Bank.

PRESS RELEASE

Brunel Capital, a boutique advisory and M&A firm, has successfully brokered sale of a minority stake in MDM Bank to Siguler Guff (SG), a major New York-based private equity firm. MDM is one of Russia’s largest private banks.
 
The agreement marks the first significant foreign investment in the Russian financial sector since the onset of the financial crisis. SG will join a number of other international investors in MDM, such as the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, the International Financial Corporation and DEG.
 
 “We are proud we were able to help MDM enhance its shareholder structure and assist the bank in continuing its spectacular growth“, said Brunel Capital’s CEO Max Atanassov. “We were confident that even in this difficult economic climate, good assets can attract quality investors. We are convinced that investors such as Siguler Guff can add value to MDM.”
 
Added Ashot Ter-Avanessov, Brunel’s Head of Private Equity and Financial Advisory: “We are pleased that we can bring an investor with a long-term view into partnership with MDM. The deal demonstrates that strategically minded investors can find good deals and that Russia and its financial sector can offer attractive investment opportunities. We believe that good corporate governance and modern management are essential for those companies that seek to attract international investors.”
 
MDM Bank was formed through the merger of URSA Bank and MDM-Bank in August 2009. It is among the largest in the country in terms of equity capital and assets. The major shareholders in MDM Bank are Sergey Popov, who owns 54.1%, and Igor Kim, with 10.5%.

END
 
Enquiries:  Anthony Payne/Max Hilton, Peregrine Communications
Tel (Direct): +44 20 3178 6869/+44 20 3178 6873
Tel (Mobile): +44 7930 643 983/+44 7950 003 138
[email protected]
[email protected] <mailto:[email protected]>

ABOUT BRUNEL CAPITAL
Brunel Capital Limited is a financial advisory and mergers and acquisitions firm based in London. It has been involved in projects in Europe, North America, Asia and Australasia. Brunel Capital is authorised and regulated by the Financial Services Authority. Web site: www.brunelcapital.com <http://www.brunelcapital.com> .

ABOUT SIGULER GUFF
Siguler Guff and Company is an international firm that manages direct investment funds, with assets of over $8 bn. It is headquartered in New York. SG is a leader in managing private equity investments in emerging markets. The company has had a presence in Russia and the CIS since 1994 through its investment arm, Russia Partners.

ABOUT MDM BANK
MDM Bank is a leading independent provider of banking services in Russia, comprised of two main banking units: Corporate Banking & Investment Banking (CIB), which encompasses Corporate Banking, Investment Banking, Financial Markets, Private Banking, Asset Management and Leasing; as well as Retail Banking, which includes Consumer and Small Business Banking. Approximately half of Russia’s top corporations are MDM Bank clients, and for individual clients and small business banking, MDM Bank provides a network of over 350 points-of-sale in 160 cities. Established in 1990, MDM Bank is currently one of Russia’s largest privately owned financial institutions in Russia. Its financial strength is underscored by credit ratings <http://www.mdmbank.com/about/ratings> : MDM Bank has some of the highest credit ratings among privately-owned Russian banks. It has received a wide range of industry awards <http://www.mdmbank.com/about/awards>  and employs over 10,000 people.

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While many tech geeks who fancy Verizon will be spending the majority of this week debating whether or not to pull the trigger on either the DROID or DROID Eris, today Verizon quietly started selling the LG Chocolate Touch, a non-smartphone with mass market appeal. Equipped with a 3″ touchscreen display and 3.2 megapixel camera, the Chocolate Touch also features support for VZ Navigator, V CAST Music/Video, Visual Voicemail and EV-DO Rev. 0 connectivity. Also of note is a convenience key that leads directly to social media sites like Facebook, MySpace and Twitter as well as the inclusion of Dolby Mobile technology, something which is claimed to deliver “audio quality that rivals MP3 players.” Of course with only 1GB of internal memory and no microSD card in the box users will be forced to drop some extra cash if they wish to listen to more than 250 songs, but at $79.99 on contract after a $50 rebate, what do you expect?Read

Eleven students at Simpson College completed 300 hours of community service apiece in one year as part of the federally funded Iowa Campus Compact AmeriCorps Program.…Eight Iowa colleges and universities, including Simpson, participate in the Iowa Campus Compact AmeriCorps Program.

Read the entire article in The Des Moines Register

A few weeks back, I noted that the low-budget (but highly-profitable) Paranormal Activity movie might teach Paramount a thing or two about how the business of making movies could succeed without spending millions on big stars and overly-expensive sets. However, it doesn’t look like that was the lesson learned here. Paramount’s CEO Philippe Dauman was recently interviewed about the success of the movie and talked about plans to make a sequel that he said would require the right marketing to ensure a benefit to Paramount. There’s also the following insight into Dauman’s strategy:

Asked by an analyst if the “Paranormal” model of a low-cost, high-box office film could be easily replicated with other releases, he said no, pointing to how much time passed between similar surprise hit “The Blair Witch Project” and “Paranormal.”

So apparently, the decade that passed between Blair Witch and Paranormal makes for some kind of justification that low-budget movies can’t be made profitably at will. Um. But couldn’t that decade also be interpreted to mean that a studio should want to try more low-budget productions, more frequently? I can certainly understand that Paramount might not want to adopt a “throw everything at the wall to see what sticks” kind of business model for its movies. However, the existence of two huge box office hits that were produced for a pittance sounds more like proof that such a business model could work — not a “lightning sometimes strikes twice” argument against making low-cost movies. But on the other hand, looking at the returns from the $15 million sequel Book of Shadows: Blair Witch 2, that release grossed almost $48 million worldwide… and there’s talk of another sequel for Blair Witch on the way. The scary ending to this story appears to be an endless cycle of horror movie sequels.

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