Monday, September 20

SYSTEM OF A CHIP

Provigent, a chip designer based in Los Altos, California, secures $8 million in a Series C funding round to speed development and grow the customer base for its wireless broadband semiconductor designs. The company now has raised $19 million for its system-on-a-chip design from investors that include Sequoia Capital, Pitango Venture Capital, Magnum Communications Fund, Ascend Technology Ventures, Delta Ventures, and Andrew Viterbi, cofounder of Qualcomm.

The lowdown:

Sequoia, which has recently invested in over twenty chip companies, jumped into this deal at a late stage. System-on-a-chip technology packs all the necessary operating brains onto one microchip, making the system run faster and more efficiently. Provigent is working to use the technology to provide faster data processing rates for mobile broadband.

Tuesday, September 21

SUSTAINED PROGRESS

Internet advertising revenues in the United States grew to $4.6 billion in the first half of 2004, up 39.7 percent over the same period last year, according to Interactive Advertising Bureau (IAB), which tracks online ad revenues, and PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC), an accountancy and consulting firm. This is the seventh quarter of consecutive growth in revenues.

The lowdown:

Search-related advertising led the growth, with revenues almost doubling to $947 million for the second quarter. PWC believes traditional-medium advertisers will increasingly flock to the Internet as average bandwidth increases.

Wednesday, September 22

CA EXECUTIVES CHARGED

Federal prosecutors indict Sanjay Kumar, the former CEO of software-maker Computer Associates, for securities fraud and obstruction of justice. The prosecutors also charge former head of sales Stephen Richards, who allegedly worked with Mr. Kumar to violate generally accepted accounting practices (GAAP). The government charges the company lied about deal timing to meet earnings targets.

The lowdown:

Under a deal struck between CA and the Justice Department, the charges may be dismissed if the company successfully completes an 18-month monitoring period. CA has agreed to pay $225 million in restitution to wronged shareholders, in addition to issuing 5.7 million new shares to settle shareholder suits.

Thursday, September 23

SONY LOSES IP SUIT

Sony Computer Entertainment, a leader in consumer electronics, loses an $82-million patent suit to Immersion, a San Jose company specializing in haptics, a new field of touch-based user interface. Immersion makes components for medical devices, mobile phones, and automobiles that translate electronic data into sensory feedback that the user can feel.

The lowdown:

Haptics has gained traction in the consumer electronics market, in both vibrating phones and in vibrating video game controllers. Both Sony’s PlayStation2 and Microsoft’s Xbox videogame consoles use controllers that rattle in response to videogame events. Although the suit certainly constitutes a win for Immersion, the company had originally filed for $299 million in damages from both Sony and Microsoft.

Friday, September 24

PFIZER BUYS UP MERIDICA

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer announces it will acquire the remaining 90 percent of drug-delivery company Meridica. Pfizer, headquartered in New York City, has owned a 10 percent stake in Meridica since October 2003 and had licensed the company’s respiratory inhaler technology.

The lowdown:

Pfizer paid $125 million for the remaining 90 percent of the company, putting the startup’s valuation at $138.8 million. Meridica makes Xcelovent, a device that allows patients to inhale drugs into their lungs. The company was originally spun out of PA Consulting Group, an IT management consulting firm with over 3,000 employees. Pfizer said in a release that the acquisition would help fill an unmet need for allergy and respiratory therapeutics.