Thursday, April 12, 2012

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PayDragon May Be The Easiest Way To Order Food On Your Phone Top
IMG_0439A new iPhone and Android app called PayDragon is trying to bring the one-click shopping experience to buying meals on your phone. The app was created by Paperlinks, a Y Combinator-backed startup that helps businesses create QR code-enabled materials. CEO Hamilton Chan demonstrated PayDragon for me last week, and it sounds like a great fit for anyone who's trying to grab lunch or dinner while they're busy working. Each restaurant has only four to six items on its PayDragon menu, usually its most popular dishes in combo meal form. You tap on the item you want, hit pay, and the order is complete. Then you just wait for the alert saying that your food is ready and head to the restaurant to pick it up.
 
This Is The Best Glimpse Into Foxconn Yet (Video) Top
foxconnThe shroud surrounding Foxconn is slowing being pulled back. Once a very secretive OEM manufacturer, the company has started to let reporters and their cameras inside their facilities in an effort to clear its name. The video here comes by way of Marketplace's Rob Schmitz, the publication's Shanghai Bureau Chief Rob Schmitz partly responsible for the unraveling of Mike Daisy's Foxconn exaggeration several weeks ago. His look lacks some of the sensationalism of ABC's Bill Weir report, but Schmitz's videos shows a first-rate manufacturing facility with the most dangerous aspect being the tedious work that comes naturally with mass manufacturing.
 
LogMeIn Prepares To Take On Dropbox & Box With Launch Of Cloud Storage Service Cubby Top
cubby-boxesLogMeIn, the company known best for its remote access tools, is today launching its own cloud storage service, as an alternative to others like Dropbox or Box, for example. With "Cubby," as it's called, users can share files across Macs, PCs, iPads, iPhones, or Android devices. The difference between some other cloud offerings and the new service is how it works: instead of having to copy files over to a different folder, as you do with Dropbox, Cubby lets you keep your existing file structure, allowing you to "cloud-enable" the folders you want synced.
 
Sony's $149 SmartWatch Finally Lands In The U.S. Top
swAfter the disappointing LiveView failed to make much of an impression when it launched in 2010, Sony surprised us when they revealed yet another wearable device -- the SmartWatch -- at this year's CES. After taking a brief spin in the U.K., Sony has just announced that their newest diminutive wrist-mounted gadget is now available here in the States for $149. Like the LiveView before it, the SmartWatch is essentially just a small secondary display that can connect to any Bluetooth-enabled Android device running Android 2.1 or later once the corresponding app has been installed. Thankfully, Sony saw fit to include a full multi-touch display this time around instead of the awkward edge-only navigation scheme seen in the SmartWatch's forebear.
 
Nest Labs Files Counterclaims In Honeywell Suit, Makes Apple's Former Chief Patent Counsel A VP Top
nest-vs-honeywellWatch out, Honeywell. Nest Labs is serious. The Palo Alto start-up previously stated that it has the resources to defend itself, which is clearly the case. Just today the company filed Answer and Counterclaims in Honeywell's patent infringement suit against the upstart thermostat company. Nest Labs flat-out denies infringement claims and validity of the seven patents listed by Honeywell. A press released issued today calls the complaint "meritless allegations." It goes on to quote its new vice president and general counsel, Richard "Chip" Lutton, Jr., who was Apple's former chief intellectual property office, "Instead of filing lawsuits, Honeywell should use its wealth and resources to bring innovative products to market. Nest will defend itself vigorously in court and we'll keep our company's focus where it should be – on developing and delivering great products for our customers." Grab some popcorn, folks. This is going to get good.
 
Online Fraud Detection Startup 41st Parameter Raises $13M From Kleiner Perkins And Others Top
PrintFraud detection company 41st Parameter has raised $13 million in Series D financing from Georgian Partners, Kleiner Perkins Caufield and Byers (KPBC), Norwest Venture Partners (NVP) and Jafco Ventures. This brings 41st Parameter's total funding to $38 million. 41st Parameter provides companies software, called FraudNet, for detecting and preventing fraud across a number of verticals, including finance, e-commerce, and travel. The company aims to protect against cybercrime threats including card not present fraud, new account origination fraud, phishing and account compromise, credit bust outs, and fraud ring attacks.
 
Men's Clothing Brand Bonobos Raises $16.4M From Accel; Lands Nordstrom Investment And Retail Deal Top
bonobos-1Bonobos, a brand that sells men's clothing online, has raised $16.4 million led by retail giant Nordstrom, with Accel Partners and Lightspeed Venture Partners participating. This brings the company's total funding to nearly $40 million. In addition to the funding, Nordstrom will now sell Bonobos clothing at a number of its stores and on Nordstrom.com. The news was originally reported by the New York Times. Bonobos is best known for launching an online site to help men find better-fitting pants. The company debuted in 2007 with their signature pants, and eventually expanded to offer a full menswear line, including dress shirts, suits, shorts, sweaters and more.
 
Help Gratefully Received: On-Screen Web Guidance System WalkMe Picks Up $1M+ From Mangrove Top
WalkMeMicrosoft has Clippy the Office Assistant to help confused users make their way around Word, and a startup from Israel called WalkMe earlier this month launched a service that offers the equivalent for the web: an interactive, on-screen guide that helps users get around complicated web pages. And two weeks out in the market, WalkMe has announced its first round of funding, from Luxembourg-based Mangrove Capital Partners. The exact value of the Series A investment was not disclosed but TechCrunch understands it is over $1 million.
 
Microsoft Inks Its Biggest Cloud Deal Yet: 7.5M Students And Teachers In India Top
4777675193_966dbf34d3Microsoft has announced that it has signed its largest-ever cloud services deal, an agreement with the All India Council for Technical Education to deploy Microsoft's Live@edu service to some 10,000 technical colleges in the country, covering 7.5 million users. The deal is significant not just for its size but also as a mark of how cloud services are developing in two big areas at the moment: education and emerging markets -- and how Microsoft is staking out a claim to be a player in both.
 
New Livestream Broadcaster Will Let You Stream From Almost Any Camera Top
Livestream Broadcaster - Poster ShotLivestream, the premium live video streaming service, is announcing an interesting new product today: a $485 hardware encoder that can be connected to virtually any camera and that can stream HD video directly to the Web through a WiFi connection or most USB wireless modems. The small device is fully integrated into the new Livestream platform. The purchase price includes three months of free access to Livestream's ad-free HD streaming service (normally $45/month). Livestream describes the device as "the industry's first affordable unlimited ad-free HD live streaming end-to-end solution."
 
With Punch, Tablets Get Their Own Humor Magazine Top
punch ipadHave you ever wanted a chance to dress Rick Santorum? What about listening to a playlist of your favorite dictators tackling your favorite musical standards? Now you can, thanks to a new app called Punch. Punch Media co-founder and CEO David Bennahum says the goal was to create "culturally relevant content that could only exist on a tablet" — not on a website or a printed magazine. The format is something called "The Culture Shelf," where you can tap on different icons leading to Punch's features. Most of those features are like pop culture games, or are at least interactive in some way.
 
How To Scale A $1 Billion Startup: A Guide From Instagram Co-Founder Mike Krieger Top
Mike KriegerInstagram's co-founders Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger have been noticeably silent since their photo-sharing app Instagram was bought by Facebook earlier this week for $1 billion. In the meantime there has been a lot written about that deal, from praise to backlash, parsing what it means and why. But if you'd like to hear a little (actually, a lot) about how Instagram got to where it did, read on.
 
Selling Versus Selling Out Top
Screen Shot 2012-04-12 at 1.22.38 AM"They could have done so much more," is a quip I've been hearing a lot the past few days, about, who else? Instagram. The news that the Silicon Valley darling sold to Facebook left so many people heartbroken. Paul Ford over at New York magazine even wrote a long article about why so many people were heartbroken and, gasp, threatening to delete their Instagram accounts.
 
Sony Confirms 10,000 Jobs To Go As Part Of Its Big 'One Sony' Reorganization Top
6_sony_logo_wSo the reports have proven to be true: Sony has now officially said that it will be reducing its headcount by 10,000 people worldwide, some six percent of its workforce, as the struggling electronics giant reorganizes under new management and its new "One Sony" plan. Sony says the employee reductions will be made over the course of this fiscal year, and will also include some employees leaving the company through sale and transfer. Meanwhile, the organizational restructuring will see Sony strengthen its focus on the core units of digital imaging, gaming and mobile; attempt to turn around its ailing TV business and expand in emerging markets. Altogether Sony estimates that the restructuring will cost it ¥75 billion ($926 million).
 
LoveThis Launches Social Recommendation 'Anti-App' By Adding Facebook, Email Tips To The Mix Top
lovethis_logo-114aa16b90eeaa731404742cc32f9a2eFeeling overloaded by social recommendation apps? Get ready for another one hitting the market, although this one says it will come with a twist: LoveThis, the social recommendation service that launched last year with $2 million in funding, today has launched an iOS app to let friends recommend across 10 categories, from books and films to places to eat. But unlike apps like Amen or Foursquare that rely on people using the app to suggest or tag things, this one says it will also take into account recommendations made by contacts elsewhere, such as Facebook and email, who do not have to be signed up to LoveThis to put their two cents into the mix. And, unlike many other apps that focus first on scale before trying to work in the business model, Alex Dormandy, the CEO of the company, says LoveThis already has a plan here, too. LoveThis is free to use, but the idea will be that something recommended through LoveThis can subsequently be bought via the app. It's not there yet but is in the works.
 
Viadeo Raises $32M To Expand Its Professional Social Network In China, Russia And Beyond Top
Viadeo-logoParis-based business social networking site Viadeo may have put a planned IPO into a holding pattern last year, but it is not having any trouble raising capital elsewhere as it forges ahead with its international expansion. Today, it has announced that it has picked up funding worth $32 million -- one of the largest recent tech investments in Europe and the biggest ever for a social network in the region. Investors in this round included government-backed funds the French Sovereign Wealth Fund and the Fonds Stratégique d'Investissement; institutional shareholders Idinvest and Ventech; and several new investors such as Allianz, Jefferies, and Middle Eastern private funds. This most recent round of funding, Viadeo's fourth, takes the total amount invested in the company to $50.2 million.
 
Instagram Aftermath: It's Time For Entrepreneurs To Go All-In Top
poker chipsQ: What does the Instagram acquisition mean for startups? A: A LOT. At the close of 2011, there was a lot of uncertainty for startups. Stock market fluctuations, underwhelming talent acquisitions ("acqui-hires"), and structural investment problems threatened the prospects for startups.
 
Walkie Talkie App Voxer Goes Big, IVP And Intel Lead $30 Million Round Top
1_PTT_webVoxer, a walkie talkie mobile app that lets you talk to friends across iPhones and Androids, looked like an overnight success last November when it soared to its current place as a top social networking app in the app stores. But the company is five years old and has been working hard to figure out the software and design it needed to win big. It's ready to go all the way, having just closed a funding round of more than $30 million led by Institutional Venture Partners, Intel Capital and numerous angels, I've heard from multiple sources. The company has confirmed the amount and agreed to share more -- but it didn't confirm the valuation, which I hear ended up at $180 million pre-money after a couple months of discussions with many interested investors.
 
InnoSpring Launches First U.S.-China Accelerator & Seed Fund, Backed By Kleiner Perkins & More Top
Screen shot 2012-04-11 at 5.39.43 PMAs research from the Startup Genome is beginning to show, the world has become a global entrepreneurial playing field, as cities from Tel Aviv to Santiago evolve into thriving startup ecosystems, becoming both regional and global engines of job creation. With such a large, increasingly Internet-connected population, China, too, has become an important part of this conversation for web startups. (See TechCrunch Disrupt Beijing.) In spite of the huge market opportunities, however, historically it's been tricky for foreign technology businesses to gain significant traction inside the Eastern power. Today, a consortium of Chinese and American financial institutions are looking to change that by launching Silicon Valley's first U.S.-China tech accelerator, called InnoSpring. The new incubator officially opened its doors today, giving the world a sneak peek at its first batch of 12 startups, which will be making their home in the company's new 13,500 square-foot facility in Santa Clara, Calif.
 
Adfonic Announces TV-Style Mobile Ad Units Top
adfonic_video_forprint (1)London-headquartered Adfonic is getting into the video side of the mobile ad business today with the launch of its first video ad units. Chief Marketing Officer Paul Childs says that as smartphone and tablet usage grows, advertisers should be able to treat mobile as just another channel for their campaigns — so Adfonic wants to provide an easy way for them to bring the video content they're already creating for TVs and movie theaters onto mobile.
 

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