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Expressing his disappointment towards Google killing Reader from July 1, my colleague Alan Buckingham said in our newsroom, “I swear I am switching to Firefox, Bing and Outlook.com in protest!”. Other users, however, have resorted to less extreme measures and instead chosen to show their non-acceptance through petitions.

Less than 24 hours since Google gave us the sad news, there are at least three petitions on change.org with more than 37,000 signatures combined demanding the search giant “Keep Google Reader Running” and “Do not remove Google Reader on July 1, 2013“. One petitioner tried to appeal to Google’s good side with “Please do not shut down Google Reader“. The number of signatures may not appear to be high enough at the moment to reach the goal, but that will undoubtedly change in a matter of days, if not hours.

On change.org, users like Bob Cagle portray the cloud-based service as the foundation for how they use the InterWebs. Cagle says: “Google Reader is the backbone of my daily web experience” and Kevin Timmerman further supports him: “I use Reader more frequently than ‘The Rest of the Internet’. I use it on PC, tablet and smartphone. Reader is the most important website in the world”.

Others share a similar point of view as well, while some agree with my colleague’s, Alan Buckingham, assertion. Ryan Lee says: “Google reader is what kept me a loyal droid and Google+ user. Without the reader, I might as well jump ship to other devices and services”.

On Twitter, for instance, Google Reader is the top trending topic, with related subjects including “google reader feedly”, “google reader petition”, “google reader alternative” and so on. Same goes for Google+ where #reader is the top trending topic yet again.

As I am writing this article the Keep Google Reader Running petition has reached over 33,000 signatures alone, which suggests — alongside the number of strong responses from users on various social networks — that Google Reader still has a very loyal fan base that is not willing to let go that easily.

Your move, Google.

Photo Credit: diez artwork/shutterstock

When the Ford F-150 Atlas concept showed off its electronically controlled active wheel shutters, we knew it wasn’t going to be cheap or durable. However, there is a new alternative that shows just as much fuel saving promise – eVOLVE™ Hybrid Wheels.

Will these futuristic wheels replace all stock manufacture wheels?

The wheel from Lacks Wheel Trim Systems (LWTS) is “designed to be a lower-cost alternative to the eVOLVE™ Hybrid Wheels – Another Futuristic Gas Saving Technology,” according to SAE.org. They have already made a debut at both the Los Angeles and Detroit auto shows on a 2012 Ford Focus. Track and EPA five-cycle testing have showed a highway fuel-economy improvement of 1.1 mpg and .04 city.

In a nut shell, there’s a very basic aluminum wheel with a composite cover attached. The basic wheel is light, and the cover is aerodynamic, so the system boost fuel economy about 3% on the highway, 1% in the city. That’s not much, but on a Tundra averaging 16mpg, that’s almost a 1mpg improvement.

LWTS is billing these tires as an “attractive, highly engineered composite wheels that decrease weight and optimize aerodynamics for increased vehicle MPGs.” This statement has a couple of interesting points: 1. As stated in the SAE article, engineers can build a tire that maximizes MPG, however, they are, well, ugly. 2. The statement comes with the standard disclaimer that MPGs are based on personal driving habits and other factors. This shouldn’t be news to anybody. 3. LWTS says that when you upgrade to their wheels you immediately upgrade BOTH your vehicle’s style and MPGs. Quite a sales pitch.

The eVolve wheels mounted on tires.

The truth is that the wheels weigh 19.20 lbs and a typical production wheel weighs 23.7 lbs. This savings of about 4 lbs per tire adds up. Plus, the composite cover is designed to be more aerodynamic. It has been tested at the AeroDyn wind tunnel in Moorsetown, NC where NASCAR cars are tested. It was also tested by Roush Engineering at FT Techno’s Fowlerville, MI proving grounds. Lastly, it was tested and meet both SAE J328 for radial and rotary fatigue using the GAWR (gross axle weight rating) for North America, also to SAE J175 (curb impact), according to SAE.org. All the testing concluded, it works.

The best part? These wheels are less costly than regular old aluminum rims. This might be one of the many ways that Toyota reduces fuel use on new trucks. LWTS told SAE that they expect “the aero wheel is intended to be an OE product, perhaps used on specific trim levels, not a retrofit,” said James Ardern, LWTS Director of Business Development.

Plus, it’s far better than Ford’s complex louver system on the Atlas Concept.

What do you think of these wheels?

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• 2012 tundra dash sagging tsb
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The post eVOLVE™ Hybrid Wheels – Another Futuristic Gas Saving Wheel appeared first on Tundra Headquarters Blog.

The Green Grid continues to broaden its scope. After expanding from data center energy to broader resource metrics, it is now tackling the current state of IT recycling.

The industry group is proposing an electronics disposal metric for commercial end-users of IT equipment, and believes that its new Electronics Disposal Efficiency (EDE) metric will boost recycling and influence change on a global scale. The Green Grid intends for this metric to be used as a way for organizations to measure themselves and improve over time, rather than as a score to be compared with other entities. We’re looking at you, PUE.

EDE has been developed as a simple, easy-to-use metric for understanding the disposition of IT assets. The new metric was introduced last week at The Green Grid’s 2013 Forum in Santa Clara. The goal is to provide a way for organizations to measure the responsible management of IT EEE (Electronics and Electrical Equipment) that reaches EOCU (end of current use) or EOL (end of life and reuse, recycling, and disposal), through providing guidance and maintaining standards.

The EDE describes the percentage of all decommissioned IT assets that are known to have entered a material stream where they will be handled with responsible disposition guidelines. The basic formula is  ”Weight of equipment responsibly disposed” divided by “Total Weight disposed” to arrive at the EDE. So in all cases, EDE is less than or equal to 100 percent.

Data for Different Disposal Streams

However, EDE doesn’t stop there. There are also calculations to track the channels and disposal streams. The ultimate goal is efficiency, with proper disposal, reuse or recycling when applicable – so tracking a company’s efficiency when it comes to this metric isn’t cut and dry.

The EDE metric complements the Data Center Maturity Model (DCMM), which contains clear goals and direction for improving energy efficiency and sustainability throughout a data center.

The Green Grid believes the two sides of Green IT are converging: Content (materials/end of life) and resources (energy/emissions/water), and data center (servers storage networking) and the office (desktop laptop workstations). Its metrics continue to address this evolution. Over the past few years, The Green Grid has developed a series of metrics to evaluate and improve data center operations. This includes Power Usage Effectiveness (PUE), Data Center Energy Productivity (DCeP), energy reuse effectiveness (ERE), data center compute efficiency (DCcE), and others.

The Green Grid delves far deeper into this in a white paper that also discusses considerations, the development of the metric, goals for EDE, considerations and recommendations.

Apple quietly updated its iMac options to include versions with a built-in VESA mount adapter today (via AppleInsider), available on both 21.5-inch and 27-inch models for a $40 additional fee. The option will come as a relief to users who were saddened by the lack of any VESA-mounting option on the new iMac design.

The VESA Mount variety of iMac is a separate line from the standard version, so buyers will have to choose at the outset whether they want VESA or stand-mounted all-in-one computers. The VESA mount version includes just the iMac itself, with stand and wall mount hardware sold separately, along with the power cord, wireless keyboard and wireless Magic Mouse included with the standard versions of the iMac.

To get the VESA Mount iMacs, you have to hunt a bit: there’s a link under the standard configuration options in the iMac section of the store. As mentioned, they carry a $40 premium over their non-VESA counterparts, but offer the same customization and upgrade options. Shipping estimates currently stand at 7-10 days for the new variety of iMacs.

When I reviewed Apple’s newest iMac, which features a dramatically thinner design, the lack of a VESA mounting option was the one thing that I regretted Apple getting rid of in the newer models. Apple said in earlier communications with a customer that it was taking customer feedback “into consideration” for customers who were disappointed about the lack of any kind of VESA mounting option, and it looks like the company was good to its word.

Apple offers buyers of the new Macs the option to buy one of two desktop mounting solutions available direct from the Apple Store at check out. Both are from Bretford, and one carries an additional mount arm that allows you to place a MacBook or mount a second display/iMac on the same stand. The mounting hardware built-in to the iMacs will work with any third-party mounts, of course.

Apple has actually improved things for those seeking a VESA mount versus previous generations, since it now offers the smaller 21.5-inch model in a VESA-compatible configuration, which it hadn’t before. True, it’d be nice if you still had the built-in stand option, too, but I’m sure third-parties will design accessories for those looking for a stand option pretty quickly.

Continue reading…

Uptime monitoring firm Pingdom analyzed the latest report from the International Telecommunication Union (ITU) to discover how much the world is paying for its broadband, and its findings show some incredible variations in global broadband costs.

While broadband in most of the world’s countries is generally available for between $5 and $60 per month, in Cuba it’s an eye watering $1,753 (the country additionally has no mobile-broadband services available). In Swaziland, the next most expensive country in the list, it’s a lot cheaper, but still comes in at a very hefty $875 per month.

On the other side of the coin, if you’re looking for cheap broadband your best bet (albeit a rather extreme option) would be to move to Sri Lanka, where fixed broadband costs just $5.50 per month. It’s $6.10 in India, and a further ten other nations pay under $10 a month.

The low cost of broadband in countries like India and the Russian Federation is mostly down to a high level of competition among the suppliers and the wish of the governments to keep the prices down.

Pingdom is keen to point out that the prices listed by the ITU do “not necessarily reflect what a customer in the respective country would be paying for their broadband service. It’s instead a value intended to make comparisons between countries easier”. ITU’s figures are based on an entry-level broadband service.

In the US and the UK, the price of broadband is $20, while in Canada and Australia it’s $29.50 and $39.30 respectively.

We constantly hear that to make the internet of things popular, we’re going to need to make connecting devices to the web and to each other easier. Electric Imp is hoping to handle both problems, according to CEO Hugo Fiennes. He discusses how his experience at Apple helped him build an easy-to-implement card that let’s people and manufacturers add connectivity to everything.

In the podcast he and I talk about how various startups are tackling the connectivity problem and where each fits in, why Wi-Fi is the best technology for the internet of things, despite its expense, and ponders the idea of our future devices having a slot where consumers can add an Electric Imp card if they see value in connecting it to the web.

(download this episode)

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Show notes:
Host: Stacey Higginbotham

• How to make Wi-Fi the de facto standard for the internet of things
• How other IoT players differ and where they fit into the ecosystem
• How to connect herds of cows and mangrove swamps
• Will everything have an “IoT slot,” and will consumers get to choose what they will add connectivity to after they buy it?

SELECT PREVIOUS EPISODES:
Call-In: Galaxy S 4 predictions, Chromebook Pixel cloud storage

Podcast: Facebook’s feedin’; Lean In’s meanin’; and everyone’s Hadoop-in

IoT podcast: When devices can talk, will they conspire against you?

Call in podcast: Galaxy S 4 predictions and Chromebook Pixel cloud storage

Call-in show: Why the “I’m leaving iPhone” trend?

Internet of things Podcast – Almond+’s nutty idea: Making sensor connectivity a snap

Yahoo’s WFH Boo-Boo

Podcast: Why the internet of things is cool and how Mobiplug is helping make it happen

Podcast: Ballmer’s in the Dell, do tweets ruin TV? And how ISPs are not like gas pumps

Podcast: Kabam founder on scaling globally and designing for different platforms

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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• Analyzing the wearable computing market
• Siri: Say hello to the coming “invisible interface”
• The connected planet: Smartphones aren’t the only player

FOMC/FRANCO-GERMAN SUMMIT/GERMAN-FRENCH-SPAIN AUCTIONS/GLOBAL FLASH PMIS FOR MARCH/UK BUDGET-JOBS-CPI-BOE MINS/ICC HEARING ON KENYATTA/SAFRICA RATES

       The revved-up U.S. dollar – whose trade-weighted index is now up almost 5 percent in just six weeks – could well develop into one of the financial market stories of the year as the cyclical jump the United States has over the rest of G10 combines with growing attention being paid to the country’s potential “re-industrialisation”. As with all things FX, there’s a zillion ‘ifs’ and ‘buts’ to the argument. Chief among them is many people’s assumption the Fed will be printing greenbacks well after this expansion takes hold as it targets a much lower jobless rate. Others doubt the much-vaunted return of the US Inc. back down the value chain into metal-bashing and manufacturing, while some feel the cheaper energy from the shale revolution and the lower structural trade deficits that promises will be short-lived as others catch up. However, with the dollar already super competitive (it’s down 30-40 percent on the Fed’s inflation-adjusted index over the past 10 years) the first set of arguments are more tempting. Even if you see the merits in both sides, the bull case clearly has not yet been discounted and may have further to go just to match the balance of risks.  With Fed printing presses still on full throttle, this has been a slow burner to date and it may be a while yet before it gets up a head of steam — many feel it’s still more of a 2^nd half of 2013 story and the dollar index needs to get above last year’s highs to get people excited. But if it does keep motoring, it has a potentially dramatic impact on the investment landscape and not necessarily a benign one, even if shifting correlations and the broader macro landscape show this is not the ‘stress trade’ of the short-lived dollar bounces of the past five years.

Commodities priced in dollars could well feel the heat from a steady dollar uptrend. And if gold’s spiral higher over the past six years has been in part due to the “dollar debasement” trade, then its recent sharp retreat may be less puzzling . Emerging market currencies pegged to the dollar will also feel the pressure as well as countries and companies who’ve borrowed heavily in greenbacks. The prospect of a higher dollar also has a major impact on domestic US investors willingness to go overseas, casting questions on countries with big current account gaps. As the dominant world reserve currency, a rising dollar effectively tightens financial conditions for everyone else and we’ve been used to a weakening one for a very long time.

Back to moment, stock markets around the world have continued to nudge new highs over the past week, with the upbeat US employment data underlining a still broadly positive global growth tilt even if Chinese data was more equivocal and Europe still looks dour. That said, at least the euro FX rate is going in the right direction for a change to help address the regional funk.

To keep a tally, global stocks are up almost 6 percent as the first quarter enters its final fortnight.

Next week, it will be hard to get beyond the FOMC and a heavy US data slate, though flash global PMIs for March will be critical in seeing whether the wobble in world business sentiment last month was a blip or a trend. The Franco-German summit in Berlin on Monday will be interesting to parse any new direction in euro policy and cooperation, with German/French and Spanish debt auctions throughout the week. Otherwise, it’s big five days for the UK economy with the government’s 2013 budget as well as jobless/inflation/retail/govt borrowing reports and BoE minutes . An ICC hearing on Kenyan election victor Kenyatta in the Hague on Monday will also need watching, with the latest South African rate decision on Wednesday a big moment next week in regional markets there.

Events and data to watch next week:

China annual parliament meeting ends Sun

Merkel/Hollande summit Berlin Mon

ICC hearing on Kenya’s Kenyatta, The Hague Mon

EZ Jan trade Mon

UK Feb inflation Tues

German March ZEW Tues

US Feb housing starts/permits Tues

German 10-yr bund auction Weds

UK Feb jobless Weds

EZ March consumer confidence Weds

UK 2013 budget Weds

BoE minutes Weds

EU’s Rehn at EU Parliament Committe Weds

FOMC decision/presser Weds

Obama visits Israel Weds

SAfrica/Iceland rate decisions Weds

Japan Feb trade Thurs

Global flash March PMIs Thurs

UK Feb retail sales/govt borrowing Thurs

French/Spanish bond auctions Thurs

US/UK index-linked bond auctions Thurs

Egypt rate decision Thurs

US March Philly Fed index/Feb existing home sales Thursday

German March Ifo/French March biz climate Fri

NVM Private Equity has sold Interlube Systems, to a subsidiary of US-based The Timken Company. The sale represents a money multiple of 3.0x on NVM’s original investment.

PRESS RELEASE

NVM Private Equity (NVM) has successfully sold one of its long-standing investments, Interlube Systems, to a subsidiary of US based The Timken Company (Timken). The sale represents a money multiple of 3.0x on NVM’s original investment.
Interlube is based in Plymouth, UK, and manufactures and markets automated lubrication products for use in commercial vehicles, cranes, quarries and heavy-duty production lines. Timken is based in Ohio, USA, and engineers, manufactures and markets mechanical components and high-performance steel. Timken has been steadily adding to its portfolio of businesses and sees Interlube as highly compatible to its core product lines and power transmission acquisitions.
NVM invested in the management buy-out/buy-in of Interlube over 12 years ago. Since then Mike Cusack, Interlube’s Managing Director, and his team have expanded the company’s manufacturing and assembly capability across the globe. With 2012 sales of £8.5 million and 90 employees, the company has successfully increased its market share by making strategic acquisitions and using its long established distributor network and experienced worldwide sales force to create a focused approach to its market. Interlube is now a world leader in lubrication solutions; helping customers to extend up-time and reduce maintenance costs. The company operates from facilities located in the UK and USA.
Mike Cusack, Managing Director of Interlube Systems comments: “I have been managing Interlube since the MBO/MBI and have enjoyed being a part of the company’s successful growth story. The sale to Timken is the obvious next step and Interlube will prosper under the ownership of a multinational. NVM have demonstrated their faith in the management team, through some very difficult economic times. It has been a pleasure working with them to build the business and we are all grateful for their support over the last 12 years.”
Martin Green, Managing Director of NVM Private Equity: “Interlube has performed well in some challenging markets over the life of NVM’s investment, so this is a very positive story for the British manufacturing industry. Mike Cusack and his team have a wealth of experience in this sector and have established strong customer relationships and loyalty. I am pleased that the sale to Timken will allow Interlube to continue to flourish as part of a larger organisation and expand into new markets. We have thoroughly enjoyed working with such a dedicated management team and wish them the best of luck for the future.”
-ENDS-
NOTES TO EDITORS
Advisers:
PwC LLP (Corporate finance advisers) – Gary Partridge, Colin Davis
Michelmores LLP (Legal advisers) – Richard Cobb, Henry Taylor, Harry Trick
Inclusions: Interlube imagery
Interlube Systems Limited is recognised for its quality, reliable service and workmanship in designing, manufacturing and installing lubrication delivery systems and components; and providing installation services. Based in Plymouth, UK, Interlube provides lubrication delivery solutions to commercial vehicle, mining, construction, manufacturing and other heavy industrial customers. www.interlubesystems.co.uk
The Timken Company
The Timken Company (NYSE: TKR; www.timken.com), a global industrial technology leader, applies its deep knowledge of materials, friction management and power transmission to improve the reliability and efficiency of machinery and equipment all around the world. The company engineers, manufactures and markets mechanical components and high-performance steel. Timken® bearings, engineered steel bars and tubes — as well as transmissions, gearboxes, chain, related products and services — support diversified markets worldwide. With sales of $5.0 billion in 2012 and approximately 20,000 people operating from 30 countries, Timken makes the world more productive and keeps industry in motion. www.timken.com
NVM Private Equity Limited (NVM) is independently owned with over 28 years’ experience of investing in unquoted UK businesses. NVM is a generalist investor, managing £220 million of funds, and is differentiated by having executives living and working in regional business communities throughout the UK. NVM seeks investment opportunities in UK businesses which have the right mix of growth potential and market vision. They may be looking to grow organically, acquire another business or secure a management buy-out. Typically, NVM looks to invest between £2 million and £10 million in each transaction.
For further information please contact:
Liberty Bollen (NVM: PR & Marketing) – 0118 951 7017 [email protected]
Martin Green (NVM: Managing Director) – 0118 951 7000 [email protected]

The post NVM Private Equity Exits Interlube Systems appeared first on peHUB.

Private equity firm TPG Capital has purchased the highly sought after assets of Australian poultry firm Ingham Enterprises, Bob Ingham confirmed in a statement, writes Reuters. Ingham wouldn’t confirm the deal valued Australia’s largest poultry producer at around A$1 billion ($1.02 billion) and that TPG paid more than A$850 million, including a small cash earn-out, as reported by the Australian newspaper.

Reuters – Private equity firm TPG Capital has purchased the highly sought after assets of Australian poultry firm Ingham Enterprises, Bob Ingham confirmed in a statement on Saturday.

Ingham wouldn’t confirm the deal valued Australia’s largest poultry producer at around A$1 billion ($1.02 billion) and that TPG paid more than A$850 million, including a small cash earn-out, as reported by the Australian newspaper on Saturday.

TPG beat several other bidders in the auction to acquire the prized Ingham assets, with U.S. private equity firm the Blackstone Group LP believed to have been a leading contender.

As part of the deal, the Ingham family are retaining ownership of their racing business as well as a substantial property portfolio.

Bob Ingham, sole shareholder of the company which owns the Ingham Chicken brand, put the poultry producer up for sale in July last year.

Australian food manufacturers have been highly sought after by private equity and other Asian buyers in the past two years due to resilient sales and solid cashflows.

Ingham Enterprises was advised by Investec Bank and TPG was advised by Macquarie Capital. Representatives from both banks were not immediately available for comment.

It will be business as usual at the 95-year-old chicken business under the new owners, Ingham said.

“An important part of the decision for me was finding a buyer who would ensure that our customers will continue to receive the highest level of service and our employees would be well looked after,” Bob Ingham said. (Reporting by Morag MacKinnon; Editing by Michael Perry)

The post TPG Capital wins bid for Australia’s Ingham poultry business appeared first on peHUB.

While YouTube’s vast choice of clips means there’s always something good to watch, tracking down the best videos can take a while. Especially if you’re clicking each clip in turn, checking the ratings, then returning to your search results to try something else.

Install YouTube Ratings Preview, though, and you don’t have to worry about that any more. This smart Firefox extension (also available for Chrome) highlights the best-rated videos immediately so you can spot them at a glance.

Once installed, a Likes/ Dislikes bar under every video thumbnail provides a general idea of its popularity (more green is good, more red really isn’t).

And if you need precise figures, just hover your mouse cursor over the bar (and it needs to be the bar, not just the thumbnail) to see the percentage of likes and dislikes, the total number of votes, and the overall rating.

YouTube Ratings Preview has some useful configuration settings, too.

Enable the Highlight option and the best videos on the page will have a blue box drawn around them, so you don’t even have to bother with looking at individual bars.

And while those bars are very narrow — only 4 pixels, by default — you’re able to increase them up to 7 pixels, if that’s an issue on your device.

Highland Capital Management has appointed Nikki Aquino Gill as director of business development and David Lyon as director of client services. Both report to Clay Shumway, managing director, head of business development and are based in the firm’s Dallas office.

PRESS RELEASE

Highland Capital Management, L.P. (“Highland”), a Dallas-based investment management firm, which together with its affiliates has approximately $18 billion in assets under management, today announced the appointments of Nikki Aquino Gill as Director of Business Development and David Lyon as Director of Client Services.

Both Gill and Lyon report to Clay Shumway, Managing Director, Head of Business Development and are based in the firm’s Dallas office. Mrs. Gill is responsible for developing and executing the firm’s global growth initiatives related to new products, fund formation, strategic growth and asset gathering. Mr. Lyon is responsible for the guidance of prospective investors through due diligence and funding processes and overseeing ongoing client service and communication.

Prior to Highland, Mrs. Gill was a Director in Global Markets at Bank of America Merrill Lynch, where she focused on Asian institutional sales and managing mutual fund and hedge fund client relationships. Before that, she was a Senior Investment Analyst at William M. Mercer Investment Consulting. She received her MBA in Finance and Accounting from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and her BS in Economics and Mathematics from Tulane University. Mrs. Gill is a Chartered Financial Analyst.

Before joining Highland, Mr. Lyon was Director at TPG Capital where he maintained and reviewed internal and external performance reporting. Prior to that, he was a hedge fund accountant at Maverick Capital. Before Maverick, Mr. Lyon was a senior audit associate for Ernst & Young. He received his MS in Accountancy from the University of Notre Dame and his MBA in Finance and BBA in Marketing from Texas Tech University.

“These hires illustrate our continued commitment to strengthen and enhance our business development and client service capabilities,” said Jim Dondero, President and Co-Founder.

About Highland Capital Management, L.P.

Highland Capital Management is an SEC-registered investment adviser which, together with its affiliates, has approximately $18 billion of assets under management. Founded in 1993 by Jim Dondero and Mark Okada, Highland is one of the largest and most experienced global alternative credit managers. Highland’s strategies include collateralized loan obligations (CLOs), high yield bonds, distressed credit, public and private equities, structured products and natural resources.

SOURCE Highland Capital Management, L.P.

Copyright (C) 2013 PR Newswire. All rights reserved

The post Highland Capital Names New Director appeared first on peHUB.

Last July physics researchers at CERN said they thought they had found evidence of the Higgs boson, a theoretical but essential component of our standard model of physics, and the raison d’être of the enormous Large Hadron Collider (LHC). Now they’ve come back with further analysis of their data, and they’re surer than ever that what they found is the real deal.

How sure? Well, these are scientists so there’s still a note of caution, but Joe Incandela, a spokesman for one of the LHC experiments, went on-record with a pretty confident statement: “The preliminary results with the full 2012 data set are magnificent and to me it is clear that we are dealing with a Higgs boson.”

However, they’re still not sure what kind of Higgs boson they’re looking at. From today’s statement:

“Having analysed two and a half times more data than was available for the discovery announcement in July, they find that the new particle is looking more and more like a Higgs boson, the particle linked to the mechanism that gives mass to elementary particles. It remains an open question, however, whether this is the Higgs boson of the Standard Model of particle physics, or possibly the lightest of several bosons predicted in some theories that go beyond the Standard Model. Finding the answer to this question will take time.”

It’s not surprising that this task takes time. CERN said a month ago that its storage systems were holding 100 petabytes of data.

The research organization has been working closely with companies such as Yandex to sift through that information in search of unusual events, and in Thursday’s statement CERN pointed out that finding one event means looking through around a trillion proton-proton collisions.

“To characterize all of the decay modes will require much more data from the LHC,” the statement read. For now, the LHC is turned off – it will come back online next year.

Related research and analysis from GigaOM Pro:
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Redbox Instant by Verizon may be ready to launch its public beta test as early as Thursday, GigaOM has learned from an industry insider. The joint-venture between Verizon and Redbox launched its private beta test in December, offering subscribers Redbox rentals as well as a Netflix-like streaming service with a focus on movies.

Redbox Instant CEO Shawn Strickland told reporters at a CES event in January that the service would launch publicly before the end of the first quarter. A Redbox Instant spokesperson confirmed earlier this week that this is still the case, but didn’t provide any further details.

The video service offers subscribers four DVD rentals as well as unlimited streaming of number of movies for $8 a month. The catalog is notably smaller than Netflix’s offering, but Redbox Instant hopes to make up for that by offering access to titles on DVD that aren’t available for streaming yet. Customers can also opt to supplement their subscription plan with transactional video on demand titles, also known as rentals.

Redbox Instant hasn’t done much publicity yet, but one shouldn’t be too surprised to see both companies market the service more aggressively to their customers in the coming months. Strickland told me in January that up to 50 percent of all Redbox customers already subscribe to a service like Netflix. The company now wants to steal away some of those customers from its competitor.

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OCZ Technology Group, a provider of high-performance solid-state drives for computing devices has entered into a $30 million loan and security agreement with Hercules Technology Growth Capital. The loan agreement consists of a $15 million term loan and a $15 million revolving loan facility.

PRESS RELEASE

OCZ Technology Group, Inc. OCZ -0.48% , a leading provider of high-performance solid-state drives (SSDs) for computing devices and systems, today announced that it has entered into a $30 million loan and security agreement (“loan agreement”) with Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc. (“Hercules”). This loan agreement consists of a $15 million term loan and a $15 million revolving loan facility.

“Obtaining this new credit facility is the first step in providing OCZ with a complete capital structure going forward. This capital will be used to strengthen the business, fund future growth, and support emerging enterprise opportunities,” said Ralph Schmitt, CEO of OCZ Technology. “I am pleased with the operational improvements our team is making as we continue building a profitable OCZ which is focused on designing innovative, best-in-class Solid State Storage solutions for our valued customers.”

The Company had reduced its use of the Wells Fargo Capital Finance credit facility and had no debt outstanding on it as of February 28, 2013. That facility has been terminated as part of the closing of the Hercules loan agreement. The first $10 million of the term loan was drawn at closing with repayments due in thirty monthly installments beginning in November 2013. The remaining $5 million of the term loan is contingent upon the Company being current in its SEC filings and achieving certain revenue levels for two consecutive quarters. Pursuant to the loan agreement, the Company issued Hercules a warrant to purchase 688,073 shares of OCZ Technology common stock at an exercise price of $2.18 per share. In addition to the term loan, the Company has access to a $10 million revolving loan facility which shall be repaid in full in April 2016. An additional $5 million of revolving loan facility will be available to the Company upon achieving certain financing covenants. Further information with respect to the loan agreement with Hercules will be contained in a Current Report on Form 8-K to be filed by OCZ Technology with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

About Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc.

Hercules Technology Growth Capital, Inc. HTGC -0.08% (“Hercules”) is the leading specialty finance company focused on providing senior secured loans to venture capital-backed companies in technology-related markets, including technology, biotechnology, life science and cleantech industries at all stages of development. Since inception (December 2003), Hercules has committed more than $3.4 billion to over 220 companies and is the lender of choice for entrepreneurs and venture capital firms seeking growth capital financing.

Hercules’ common stock trades on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) under the ticker symbol “HTGC.”

In addition, Hercules has two outstanding bond issuances of 7.00% Senior Notes due 2019 — the April 2019 Notes and September 2019 Notes — which trade on the NYSE under the symbols “HTGZ” and “HTGY,” respectively. Companies interested in learning more about financing opportunities should contact [email protected], or call 650.289.3060.

About OCZ Technology Group, Inc.

Founded in 2002, San Jose, CA-based OCZ Technology Group, Inc. (OCZ) is a global leader in the design, manufacturing, and distribution of high-performance solid-state storage solutions and premium computer components. Offering a complete spectrum of solid-state drives (SSDs), OCZ provides SSDs in a variety of form factors and interfaces (i.e. PCIe, SAS and SATA) to address a wide range of client and enterprise applications. Having developed firmware and controller platforms, to virtualization and endurance extending technologies, the company delivers vertically integrated solutions enabling transformational approaches to how digital data is captured, stored, accessed, analyzed and leveraged by customers. For more information, please visit: www.ocztechnology.com.

Forward Looking Statements

Certain statements in this release relate to future events and expectations and as such constitute forward-looking statements involving known and unknown factors that may cause actual results of OCZ Technology Group, Inc. to be different from those expressed or implied in the forward-looking statements. In this context, words such as “will,” “would,” “expect,” “anticipate,” “should” or other similar words and phrases often identify forward-looking statements made on behalf of OCZ. It is important to note that actual results of OCZ may differ materially from those described or implied in such forward-looking statements based on a number of factors and uncertainties, including, but not limited to, the risk that additional information may arise from the oversight of the audit committee; the risk that the process of preparing and auditing the financial statements or other subsequent events would require OCZ to make additional adjustments; the time and effort required to complete the restatement of the financial reports; the ramifications of OCZ’s potential inability to timely file required reports; including potential delisting of OCZ’s common stock on NASDAQ; the risk of litigation or governmental investigations or proceedings relating to such matters; the risk that OCZ may not be able to successful negotiate an amendment to its credit facility; market acceptance of OCZ’s products and OCZ’s ability to continually develop enhanced products; adverse changes both in the general macro-economic environment as well as in the industries OCZ serves, including computer manufacturing, traditional and online retailers, information storage, internet search and content providers and computer system integrators; OCZ’s ability to efficiently manage material and inventory, including integrated circuit chip costs and freight costs; and OCZ’s ability to generate cash from operations, secure external funding for its operations and manage its liquidity needs. Other general economic, business and financing conditions and factors are described in more detail in “Item 1A — Risk Factors” in Part I in OCZ’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on May 14, 2012, and statements made in other subsequent filings. The filing is available both at www.sec.gov as well as via OCZ’s website at www.ocztechnology.com. OCZ does not undertake to update its forward-looking statements.

All trademarks or brand names referred to herein are the property of their respective owners.

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Endgame, a provider of battle-tested cyber security solutions, has closed a $23 million Series B equity financing. Led by new investor Paladin Capital Group, the Series B includes participation from existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, Columbia Capital, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers and TechOperators.

PRESS RELEASE

Endgame, Inc., a leading provider of battle-tested cyber security solutions, announced today that it has closed a $23 million Series B equity financing to fund growth in its existing federal customer base as well as expansion into the commercial market.
Led by new investor Paladin Capital Group, a multi-stage private equity firm providing capital and strategic guidance to growing companies, the Series B includes participation from existing investors Bessemer Venture Partners, Columbia Capital, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers and TechOperators. Lt. General (Ret) Kenneth A. Minihan, former Director of the National Security Agency and Managing Director at Paladin, will join the Endgame Board of Directors.
“The cyber domain will be increasingly important across all dimensions of national power – military, economic, and informational,” said Lt. General Minihan. “Endgame’s revolutionary technology allows its customers to use intelligence seamlessly to gain situational awareness and support their end-to-end network operations.”

As part of its expansion, Endgame has recruited several new executives to the company’s management team, including: Nathaniel Fick, who joined as CEO in November, replacing Chris Rouland who remains a Founder and board member of the company; Niloofar Howe, who joined as Chief Strategy Officer to lead the company’s efforts in market and product strategy, as well as business and corporate development; and Matt Georgy, who joined Endgame as CTO after a decorated career as a senior executive at the Department of Defense supporting all aspects of computer network operations. Endgame’s new Chairman of the Board, Christopher Darby, has deep expertise in the intelligence space as the current President and CEO of In-Q-Tel, the independent strategic investment firm supporting the missions of the U.S. Intelligence Community.

“The cyber needs of federal and commercial entities are converging as states look beyond targeting other states to target private companies, and national security thinking must increasingly account for private infrastructure,” said Nate Fick, CEO of Endgame. “I’m excited about leveraging the solutions and technology that our mission partners depend on to help businesses with comprehensive command and control of their network operations.”

About Endgame
Endgame’s cyber operations platform provides real-time command and control, analytics, data visualization and knowledge discovery capabilities that support safety and security in cyberspace by revolutionizing the detection and mitigation of cyber-threats. Founded in 2008, Endgame is backed by Bessemer Venture Partners, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers, Columbia Capital and Paladin Capital Group. The company has offices in Northern Virginia, Maryland, San Antonio, and Atlanta. For more information, please visit http://www.endgame.com.
About Paladin Capital Group

Paladin Capital Group is a leading multi-stage private equity firm providing capital and strategic guidance to growing companies in the IT, telecommunications and alternative energy sectors. The firm focuses on companies with products and services that are “dual use” in nature, serving both commercial and government customers. Paladin has over $950 million dollars of committed capital across multiple funds and has invested in over 50 portfolio companies. For more information, please visit http://www.paladincapgroup.com.
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Contact:
Deepti Rohatgi,
Director of Product Marketing
[email protected]
404-941-3900

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PayPal has acquired mobile app developer Duff Research, part of an effort by the online payment payment processor to become more technology focused, writes Reuters. PayPal, owned by e-commerce company eBay, did not disclose a purchase price.

Reuters – PayPal said on Wednesday that it acquired mobile app developer Duff Research, part of an effort by the online payment giant to become more nimble and technology focused.

PayPal, owned by e-commerce company eBay Inc, did not disclose a purchase price.

Duff Research has built about 40 mobile apps for companies that include TiVo Inc and Adidas AG. The firm’s 18 employees, including co-founder Geoff Chatterton, will join PayPal, the companies said.

PayPal is battling a host of start-ups, such as Square Inc, that are trying to chip away at its lead in online and mobile payments.

PayPal has a reputation as slow and less innovative than some other technology companies and under new President David Marcus it is trying to change that.

“What we’re really after with this deal is the innovators and experience,” said James Barrese, chief technology officer at PayPal. “We are reinventing our organization to be more technology led.”

The Duff Research team will remain together at PayPal and work on projects aimed at making PayPal’s main digital wallet product easier to use for consumers and merchants, Barrese said.

(Reporting by Alistair Barr; Editing by Dan Grebler)

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