======================================================
        VENTUREWIRE --- Tuesday, November 7, 2000
======================================================
           Private Company Business News
------ Published Daily by Technologic Partners -------
           http://technologicpartners.com
======================================================

Top Stories:

o Broadcom Acquires Microprocessor Firm SiByte for $2 Billion
o Alta Partners Raising Some $300 Million for Fund III
o Web Retailer Furniture.com Shuts Down, Cuts Most of Staff
o Web Processing Firm eStellarNet Has $30 Million Round One

|||||||||||||||||||| Advertisement ||||||||||||||||||||

COMMERCE UNHINGED

A new breed of smart phones and connected PDAs are enabling
us to shop, even long after we've dropped. But the mobile
shopper is a new breed of consumer, and the mobile value
chain presents a host of new issues. Mobile Services, one of
five expert panels at Technology Outlook 2000, will examine
the promises and pitfalls of m-commerce, wireless advertising,
and the role of location-based services. Come hear from:

Mark F. Bregman, CEO, AirMedia
Bernard Desarnauts, CEO, ViaFone
Paul Palmieri, VP & GM, Wireless Services, Advertising.com

Only at Technology Outlook 2000:
The Future of Pervasive Computing
December 4 and 5, San Francisco
A VentureWire investment conference.
http://technologicpartners.com/tp/conf/to2000/?vw=20001107

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

Also in This Issue:

     New Money:
o IT Equipment Market Cymerc Lands $19.8 Million Round One
o E-commerce Firm WebCollage Raises $16 Million in First Round
o Fiber-Optic Firm Lumentis Raises $10 Million First Round
o Gen Y Music Site SaulGoodMan Raises $1 Million First Round
o Instant Messaging Firm Presence Works Has $1.2 Million Seed
o IT Infrastructure Firm RedSiren Gets $5 Million Round One
o Net Music News Firm Kick.com Lands $6 Million in Round One
o Property Services Firm ManageStar Has $8.5 Million Series A
o Wireless Firm WiredPocket Lands $2 Million in Seed Round
o Wireless Broadband Firm Dotcast Has $60 Million Third Round
o Wireless Systems Firm Stellcom Gets $50 Million in Series B
o B2B Platform DoubleTrade Gets $7.8 Million in Second Round
o CIT Invests $15 Million in Aviation Web Site Developer CAMP
o IBM, Bank of America, Prudential Take Stake in netStruxr
o Mobile Software Firm Accelerate Gets $2 Million in Round Two
o Music Creation Platform Firm Tonos Has $10 Million Series B
o Real Estate Management Tech Firm RealPage Gets $20 Million
o Times N Systems Raises $11.5 Million in Series B Funding
o Web Brand Protection Firm GenuOne Has $4.2 Million Round Two
o Banking Services Firm Magnet Lands $25 Million Third Round
o Communications Firm Neolinear Raises $8 Million Third Round
o Internet Rental Exchange Viva Secures $17.3 Million Series C
o MetaEdge's Receives $11 Million in Round Three Funding
o Motorola Invests In Optical Access Equipment Firm Geyser
o Traq-wireless Closes $12.5 Million Second Round
o Collaborative Software Firm Centric Has $30 Million Series D
o Colorado MicroDisplay Raises $35 Million in Round Four
o Magma Design Gets $28 Million Series D, Merges with Moscape
o E-Commerce Firm Frictionless Has $30 Million in Series D
o ProSeed Capital Holdings Invests in Three Belgium Startups
o Loan Tech Firm GHR Closes $15.2 Million Series E Round
o Mobile Application Developer Freever Raises $10.3 Million

     Bad News:
o Divine interVentures Lays Off 43% of Development Group Staff
o Eos-Backed U.K. Cooking Site Foodoo Closes Online Kitchen

     New Products:
o One-Hour Delivery Service Expry Launches in Italy
o Redleaf Group Launches Its Strategic Security Platform
o Services Marketer eFrenzy Changes Name to Nextdoor Networks
o ASP HomePage.com Changes Name to Frontera
o Business Services Infrastructure Firm Biztro Renamed Rivio

     M&A:
o Sonus Buys Telecom Technologies for More Than $451 Million
o Locus Dialogue Acquired By InfoSpace For $128 Million
o E-Business Consulting Service Meritage Buys Consulting Firms
o Investment Firm Lake Capital Acquires DVC
o Timera Acquires Software Management Tech Firm SoftThought

     New Directors:
o Electronics Portal eChips Names First Board of Directors
o U.K. Incubator Ideas Hub Names Chairman, Director of Board
o Broadband Firm Actelis Names Former SBC Exec Kaplan to Board
o Healthcare Software Firm Outlaw Names New Board Member

     New People:
o E-Mail Tech Firm Disappearing Inc. Names Ex-Eventus Exec CEO
o Bridgewater Systems Taps Former Nextel Exec as CEO
o Messaging Firm IP Globalnet Names Ex-Bekaert Exec as CEO
o Advertising Infrastructure Firm Adwise Appoints CEO

     VC Fund News:
o Israeli Firm Veritas Raising New Fund, Opens Atlanta Office
o Osprey Ventures Raising its Second Fund for $100 Million
o Vertex Management Raises $76 Million From Singapore Funds
o Three SSM Ventures Partners Form New Texan Firm, Verity
o Westbridge Launches $140 Million Indian Technology Fund
o Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Acquires British VC Fund

     VC Personnel:
o Former Bessemer Partner Joins Infinity Capital
o Sevin Rosen Promotes Ms. Tareen, Ex-Ascend Exec, to Partner

     VW Corrections:
o Tantivy

|||||||||||||||||||| Advertisement ||||||||||||||||||||

What's the buzz all about in Chicago?  i-Street.com gives
you the scoops and analysis behind Chicago's hot new economy
companies.  Special for VentureWire readers, visit
http://www.i-street.com to sign up for the free weekly
i-Street Reporter email newsletter and get a free subscription
to the monthly i-Street magazine (a $47 value)!  Check out the
corporate finder, dot com job board, tech calendar, and
webcasts.  Want the low-down on the L.A. scene?  You can also
sign up for i-Street LA!  Go to http://www.i-street.com today!

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

======= Top Stories =======

o Broadcom Acquires Microprocessor Firm SiByte for $2 Billion

IRVINE, Calif. -- Broadcom, a publicly-traded provider
of integrated circuits enabling broadband communication,
said it acquired integrated processor chip developer
SiByte for up to $2 billion in stock. Dan Dobberpuhl,
president and CEO of SiByte, will join the senior
management and technical staff of Broadcom as a
result of the acquisition. Broadcom said it will
issue up to 9.3 million shares of its stock to acquire
SiByte.SiByte raised a $40 million third round in
May. Investors in the company include Bowman Capital,
ATI Technologies, Cisco Systems, Juniper Networks,
and the Raza Venture Fund.
http://www.broadcom.com/
http://www.sibyte.com/
_____________________________________________

o Alta Partners Raising Some $300 Million for Fund III

SAN FRANCISCO -- Alta Partners is raising a new
fund with a goal of between $275 million and $325
million. The fund, Alta Partners III, has held its
first close, with another close expected in early
2001. The fund will focus on the IT and life science
sectors. It will invest between $8 million and $10
million per company.
http://www.altapartners.com/
_____________________________________________

o Web Retailer Furniture.com Shuts Down, Cuts Most of Staff

FRAMINGHAM, Mass. -- Online furniture retailer Furniture.com
said it shut down its operations and laid off 76
of its 88 workers. The company blamed its demise
on difficulty raising capital to maintain its operations.
The company said customers with unfullfilled orders
who have not received refunds will receive a refund
within approximately 60 days. In June, the firm
pulled its IPO registration, cut 41% of its workforce,
and closed a $27 million late-stage funding round.
Living.com, another well-funded home furnishings
retailer, shut down in August. Furniture.com received
backing from Akaro Holding B.V., Amerindo Investment
Advisors, Bessemer Venture Partners, CMGI @Ventures,
Europe@Web, the Munder NetNet Fund, RRE Ventures,
and Shad Run Investments.
http://www.furniture.com/
_____________________________________________

o Web Processing Firm eStellarNet Has $30 Million Round One

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. -- eStellarNet, which provides
Internet applications for the workers' compensation
and integrated disability management industries,
said it raised $30 million in its first institutional
round. Capital Z Financial Services Fund II led
the round, which also included participation by
Insurance Services Offices. The company will use
the funds for expansion and toward general working
purposes.
http://www.estellarnet.com/

======= New Money =======

o IT Equipment Market Cymerc Lands $19.8 Million Round One

SAN FRANCISCO -- Cymerc, a marketplace for high-end
enterprise IT equipment, said it raised $19.8 million
in its first round of funding from Mohr Davidow
Ventures, Trinity Ventures, and Comdisco Ventures.
The company will use the funds to expand its service
offerings. Nancy Schoendorf of Mohr Davidow and
Gus Tai of Trinity joined the board of directors.
The company also said it will launch a next-day,
free-shipping parts service for Sun Microsystems
servers.
http://www.cymerc.com/
_____________________________________________

o E-commerce Firm WebCollage Raises $16 Million in First Round

NEW YORK -- WebCollage, makers of software for Internet
businesses, announced it raised $16 million in its
first round of financing from lead investor Sierra
Ventures as well as from the European venture group
Glide IT Fund and from Cedar Fund, which made a
seed investment in WebCollage earlier this year.
Steve Williams, a Sierra Ventures general partner,
will join WebCollage's board as the board's fourth
member. WebCollage said it will use the funds to
accelerate product development and to expand its
marketing beyond the U.S.
http://www.webcollage.com/
_____________________________________________

o Fiber-Optic Firm Lumentis Raises $10 Million First Round

STOCKHOLM -- Lumentis, which provides metropolitan
area network fiber-optic technologies for telecommunications
operators, said it raised SEK 100 million ($10 million)
in its first round of funding exclusively financed
by DB Holdings, a subsidiary of Deutsche Bank. Lumentis,
which was founded in September, said the funding
will be used to expand its management team.
http://www.lumentis.com/
_____________________________________________

o Gen Y Music Site SaulGoodMan Raises $1 Million First Round

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- SaulGoodMan, Internet retailer
of independent music and lifestyle products for
13 to 23-year-olds, announced it raised $1 million
from Intellysis Venture Partners I in its first
round. Al LaBorde, a general partner at Intellysis,
will join the board of SaulGoodMan as the board's
third member. SaulGoodMan said it will use the funds
to expand its staff and to increase its marketing.
http://www.saulgoodman.com/
_____________________________________________

o Instant Messaging Firm Presence Works Has $1.2 Million Seed

ALEXANDRIA, Va. -- Presence Works, a developer of
instant messaging technology for businesses, said
it raised $1.2 million in its seed round. Investors
include: Mark Warner, founder of Nextel and chairman
of Columbia Capital; Ray Smith, chairman and CEO
of Bell Atlantic; Cal Simmons, managing director
at ASAP Ventures; Mark Kington and Karl Khoury,
partners at Columbia Capital; Sanders Partee, CEO
of ViewGate Technology; Yves-Andre Istel, vice chairman
at Rothschild; Larry Roshfeld, vice president at
Aether Software Systems; and John Durrett, director
at McKinsey & Co. The company will use the funds
to build its sales and marketing team.
http://www.presenceworks.com/
_____________________________________________

o IT Infrastructure Firm RedSiren Gets $5 Million Round One

PITTSBURGH -- Redleaf Group, a technology operating
company, invested $5 million in the first round
of funding for Pittsburgh-based managed service
provider RedSiren Technologies, which offers offers
remote IT infrastructure monitoring and maintenance
services to businesses. Redleaf Group will also
provide support services in addition to the funding.
The funds will go towards general operations.
http://www.redsiren.com/
_____________________________________________

o Net Music News Firm Kick.com Lands $6 Million in Round One

SAN FRANCISCO -- Kick.com, which provides personalized
delivery of music news and information, said it
raised $6 million in its first round. Utah Ventures
and 550 Digital Media Ventures, the newly launched
venture capital arm of Sony Broadband Entertainment,
participated in the round. Alan Dishlip, general
partner at Utah Ventures, and Rio D. Caraeff, senior
director of new technology and business development
at 550 Ventures, joined the company's board of directors.
Kick.com said it will use the funds to develop its
delivery platform.
http://www.kick.com/
_____________________________________________

o Property Services Firm ManageStar Has $8.5 Million Series A

WALNUT CREEK, Calif. -- ManageStar.com, which provides
an online system for property and facility managers
to procure services, said it raised $8.5 million
in its Series A round of funding from Dominion Ventures
and Charter Venture Capital. The company, which
is expecting additional funding in the Series A,
raised two previous rounds from undisclosed individuals
and corporate investors including Arthur Andersen
and Colliers Parrish. The capital will be used to
expand its technical team and launch the company's
site nationally. ManageStar also said Mike Lee of
Dominion and Ravi Chiruvolu of Charter will take
seats on the company's board.
http://www.managestar.com/
_____________________________________________

o Wireless Firm WiredPocket Lands $2 Million in Seed Round

SEATTLE -- WiredPocket, a company that has developed
an application to download full Web pages to wireless
devices, announced it received $2 million in seed
investment from Timberline Venture Partners. Jeffery
C. Tung, Timberline's managing partner, will join
WiredPocket's board of directors as the board's
third member. WiredPocket said it plans to use the
funds to increase staff and to develop products
and partnerships.
http://www.wiredpocket.com/
_____________________________________________

o Wireless Broadband Firm Dotcast Has $60 Million Third Round

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Dotcast, a wireless broadband
service provider, said it closed its third round
of funding with $60 million. New investors Walt
Disney Company, GE Equity, Quantum, and Worldview
Technology Partners participated along with previous
investors Intel Capital and Angel Investors. Dotcast
will use the funding for development and deployment
of its Dotcast Digital Network, which provides consumers
with feature-rich broadband and provides rich-media
content developers with a distribution path. The
company has raised $80 million to date.
http://www.dotcast.com/
_____________________________________________

o Wireless Systems Firm Stellcom Gets $50 Million in Series B

SAN DIEGO -- Stellcom, a wireless systems integrator,
said it has secured $50 million in its Series B
round of funding from Goldman Sachs and Frontenac
Co. Stellcom said it used part of the funds to redeem
shares from existing shareholders. The remaining
funds will be used to further company growth.
http://www.stellcom.com/
_____________________________________________

o B2B Platform DoubleTrade Gets $7.8 Million in Second Round

PARIS -- DoubleTrade, a neutral business-to-business
trading Web site for buyers and suppliers, said
it raised EUR 12 million ($7.8 million) in its second
round of funding. The round was led by ING Barings
and InnovaFrance and previous investors CDC Innovation,
Apollo Invest, and SI Ventures also participated.
The company said it will use the funding to develop
new services and increase its European sales and
marketing. The company has offices in France, Hong
Kong, and the United Kingdom and intends to expand
to Italy, Germany, Portugal, and Spain.
http://www.doubletrade.com/
_____________________________________________

o CIT Invests $15 Million in Aviation Web Site Developer CAMP

LIVINGSTON, N.J. -- CIT Venture Capital, a business
unit of the publicly traded CIT Group, said it made
its largest equity investment to date, $15 million,
in CAMP Systems International. CAMP, a provider
of maintenance tracking and aircraft management
services, has created a line of Web enabled products
and services targeted at the corporate aircraft
industry. CIT Venture Capital has partnered with
Boston Ventures and Todd Hamilton, CEO of CAMP in
this investment.
http://www.campsys.com/
_____________________________________________

o IBM, Bank of America, Prudential Take Stake in netStruxr

SAN FRANCISCO -- NetStruxr, an online marketplace
for corporate real estate, said that Bank of America,
IBM, and Prudential Insurance have taken a minority
equity stake in the company to support its Web-based
transaction system, called Spacedirect. Financial
terms of the deal were not disclosed. The combined
total comes to just under 20% and the three companies
plan to bring approximately $3 billion worth of
real estate transactions to Spacedirect. IBM will
provide the technology. Spacedirect will enable
corporations to post specific requirements for real
estate space and review landlords' responses. NetStruxr
has been previously funded by B2B-Hive.
http://www.netstruxr.com/
_____________________________________________

o Mobile Software Firm Accelerate Gets $2 Million in Round Two

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Accelerate Mobile, which provides
technology designed to accelerate the delivery of
data for wireless network providers, said it raised
$2 million in its second round of funding from Itochu
and DigaCast. The company will use the funds to
develop its wireless data infrastructure.
http://www.acceleratemobile.com/
_____________________________________________

o Music Creation Platform Firm Tonos Has $10 Million Series B

CULVER CITY, Calif. -- Tonos Entertainment, developer
of an online music creation and collaboration platform,
said it closed a $10 million Series B round of funding
led by Softbank Venture Capital. Previous investors
Sequoia Capital and Bob Daly, chairman of the Los
Angeles Dodgers and former chairman and CEO of Warner
Brothers and the Warner Music Group, along with
new investors Bob Lessin, chairman and CEO of Wit
SoundView, and Bo Peabody, founder of community
site Tripod, also participated in the round. The
company said the funds will be used to launch its
platform in January. Carl Rosendahl, Softbank's
managing director, has joined Tonos' board. The
company was founded in 1999 by songwriters Carole
Bayer Sager, David Foster, and Kenneth "Babyface"
Edmonds and has raised $7 million in its first round
in March.
http://www.tonos.com/
_____________________________________________

o Real Estate Management Tech Firm RealPage Gets $20 Million

CARROLLTON, Texas. -- RealPage, which provides products
and services to the real estate industry, said it
secured $20 million in a funding round led by Seren
Capital. The company said it will use the funding
to develop and deploy its web-based property management
system and expand the market research databases
of its subsidiary, M/PF Research, a provider of
market research to the apartment industry. Also
RealPage said it will use part of the funding for
strategic acquisitions. In addition to the funding
announcement, the company said it has acquired ChannelTECH,
a supplier of handheld technology used in facility
management applications in the apartment industry.
The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Dean Schmidt, founder and president of ChannelTECH,
will join RealPage as senior vice president of product
management.
http://www.realpage.com/
_____________________________________________

o Times N Systems Raises $11.5 Million in Series B Funding

AUSTIN, Texas -- Times N Systems, a computer systems
developer specializing in multi-processor services,
said it completed a $11.5 million Series B financing
round led by Convergent Investors with additional
funding from Sternhill Partners and previous investor
Austin Ventures. Times N Systems said it will use
the funds to further develop and bring to market
its technology. The company's flagship technology,
Teaming, allows multiple computers running Microsoft
NT or Linux to share available processing power,
memory, and disk input/output bandwidth. Times N
Systems raised $4.1 million in its first round of
funding in June 1999.
http://www.timesn.com/
_____________________________________________

o Web Brand Protection Firm GenuOne Has $4.2 Million Round Two

BOSTON -- GenuOne, which provides intellectual property
and brand protection services, said it closed its
second round with $4.2 million. DFS Advisors and
Delta Asset Management invested in this round along
with individual investors. The company plans to
use the funds to develop its technology portfolio
and for marketing. The company also operates a security-focused
technology incubator, GenuOne Technology Capital.
http://www.genuone.com/
_____________________________________________

o Banking Services Firm Magnet Lands $25 Million Third Round

ATLANTA -- Magnet Communications, a financial supply
chain for business banking, said it closed a $25
million third round of financing. SunTrust Bank;
Banc of America Technology Investments; Washington
Mutual; BT Investment Partners, an affiliate of
Deutsche Banc Alex. Brown; Union Street Partners;
Dain Rauscher Wessels; Saints Ventures, a fund comprised
of investments from executives in the technology
industry; and TechnoPlus, an Israeli-based technology
fund, participated in the round. They joined existing
investors Coral Ventures and LiveOak Equity. Magnet
Communications provides secure business banking
and cash management services to banks worldwide.
The company said it will use the funds for sales
force expansion, research and development, and general
corporate purposes. Magnet has raised $38.5 million
to date.
http://www.magnetbanking.com/
_____________________________________________

o Communications Firm Neolinear Raises $8 Million Third Round

PITTSBURGH -- Neolinear, which develops mixed-signal
technology for the communications and networking
industries, closed its third round of financing
at $8 million with corporate investment from Cadence
Design Systems and venture capital from previous
investors CEO Venture Fund, Intersouth Partners,
and TVM Techno Venture Management. Neolinear said
Cadence Design Systems received about a 10% equity
stake as part of a strategic partnership. Neolinear
added that it will use the funds to accelerate product
research and development.
http://www.neolinear.com/
_____________________________________________

o Internet Rental Exchange Viva Secures $17.3 Million Series C

SANTA MONICA, Calif. -- Viva, an Internet leasing
exchange for the rental housing industry said that
seven apartment industry public companies,  Archstone
Communities, AvalonBay Communities, Camden Property
Trust, Equity Residential Properties Trust, Gables
Residential, Post Properties, and United Dominion
Realty, have combined resources to act as the lead
investor in Viva's $17.3 million Series C round.
Other investors in the round include Banc of America
Mortgage Capital, a subsidiary of Bank of America;
Insignia Financial Group; and Viva's previous investors,
Allegis Capital, Rosewood Venture Group, and Kline
Hawkes & Co. Viva's reverse listing business model
enables renters to put themselves on the market
and receive online rental offers from properties.
The company is also backed by Media Technology Ventures
 and Thomas Weisel Partners.
http://www.viva.com/
_____________________________________________

o MetaEdge's Receives $11 Million in Round Three Funding

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- MetaEdge, a provider of decision-support
customer intelligence software and services to e-commerce
companies, received an $11 million in a Series C
round of funding led by WK Technology Fund with
participation from Concord Venture Capital Group,
SoftChina Venture Capital, and Itochu Financial.
The funds will be used for product development and
general company expansion.
http://www.metaedge.com/
_____________________________________________

o Motorola Invests In Optical Access Equipment Firm Geyser

HORSHAM, Pa. -- Geyser Networks, which develops
advanced multi-service optical access equipment,
announced it has received an undisclosed equity
investment from Motorola's broadband communications
unit. Geyser also said it has formed a partnership
with Motorola to provide a platform for the transport
of video, voice, and data traffic to cable operators.
Geyser Networks is backed by Sequoia Capital, Crimson
Ventures, VantagePoint Partners, Boston Millennia
Partners, Vertex Management, and Access Technology
Partners.
http://www.geysernetworks.com/
_____________________________________________

o Traq-wireless Closes $12.5 Million Second Round

AUSTIN, Texas -- Traq-wireless, an online provider
of cross-carrier wireless management services for
business, said it completed its $12.5 million second
round of funding. Previous investors Sevin Rosen
and HO2 Funds co-led the round with new participant
Convergent Investors. The company will use the funds
for corporate client acquisition, product development,
and general operating expenses. Willard Hanzlik,
general partner of Convergent Investors, will join
the board of directors.  The company previously
raised $4.5 million in its first round of funding.
Motorola, Tarrant Venture Partners, and VentureLink
Partners also back traq-wireless.
http://www.traq.com/
_____________________________________________

o Collaborative Software Firm Centric Has $30 Million Series D

SAN JOSE, Calif. -- Centric Software, creator of
collaborative virtual product development software
for the distributed design chain, said it secured
$30 million in its Series D round of funding. The
round was led by Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. and
co-investor ABS Ventures, a venture capital affiliate
of Deutsche Bank Alex Brown. Existing investors
BancBoston Ventures, Boston Capital Ventures, Kline
Hawkes & Co., and Seacoast Capital Partners also
participated in the round. The company said it will
use the funding to increase its engineering capacity
and expand its sales and marketing channels to reach
additional customers. Centric Software connects
a range of  manufacturers with partners and suppliers.
The company has raised $46 million to date.
http://www.centricsoftware.com/
_____________________________________________

o Colorado MicroDisplay Raises $35 Million in Round Four

BOULDER, Colo. -- Colorado MicroDisplay, a developer
of high-resolution microdisplay chipsets, said it
raised $35 million in its fourth round funding led
by GE Equity. Other investors included Chatterjee
Group, EnerTech Capital Partners, Gruber & McBain
Capital Management, Mustang Ventures Fund, Odyssey
Capital and Polaroid. The round also included funding
from previous investors Intel, Texas Instruments,
3I, and Granite Ventures. The company said it will
use the funding to enhance its operations, sales
and marketing, and ongoing product development.
Bill Maw, vice president of GE Equity, will take
a seat on the company's board of directors.
http://www.comicro.com/
_____________________________________________

o Magma Design Gets $28 Million Series D, Merges with Moscape

CUPERTINO, Calif. -- Magma Design Automation, which
develops electronic design automation software,
said it raised $28 million in its Series D round
of funding. The company said most of the new funding
came from existing investors as well as new investors
Toshiba and Vitesse Semiconductor. The company also
said it merged with Moscape, a provider of electrical
integrity and noise analysis and verification. Magma
said that the two companies have together raised
more than $91 million. Moscape will keep its name,
retain all of its employees, and operate as a subsidiary
of Magma. Magma Design Automation is backed by Alliance
Venure Management, Cisco Systems, Galleon Group
unit Admirals, Hyundai, Intel, New Enterprise Associates,
Raza Venture Fund, and the Redwood Fund.
http://www.magma-da.com/
_____________________________________________

o E-Commerce Firm Frictionless Has $30 Million in Series D

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- Frictionless Commerce, which
provides purchasing technology for online companies,
said it secured $30 million in its Series D round
of funding, led by Olympus Partners. Other investors
included RRE Ventures, Chevron Technology Ventures,
Net Market Partners, Needham Funds, Draper International,
and previous investor Polaris Venture Partners.
The company will use the funds to market and sell
its product, Frictionless e-Market Suite, and to
complete development and launch its electronic sourcing
software application Global 2500. Dave Cardenas,
partner with Olympus Partners, will join the board
of directors, and Will Porteous of RRE and Don Riley
of Chevron Technology Ventures will hold board observer
seats.
http://www.frictionless.com/
_____________________________________________

o ProSeed Capital Holdings Invests in Three Belgium Startups

BRUSSELS, Belgium -- ProSeed Capital Holdings, a
seed investment company, said it invested undisclosed
amounts in three early stage Belgian companies;
Opt@lis, CiTOBi, and UbiCall Communications. ProSeed
said the investments will be used to develop the
companies' business and technology.
http://www.proseedcapital.com/
_____________________________________________

o Loan Tech Firm GHR Closes $15.2 Million Series E Round

WAYNE, Pa. -- GHR Systems, a  provider of loan origination
technology, electronic transaction processing, and
support services to lenders, said it closed a $15.2
million Series E convertible preferred financing.
Investors include Mortgage Guaranty Insurance, a
subsidiary of MGIC Investment; Metavante, formerly
M&I Data Services; K. Terrence Wakefield, CEO of
Customers Forever; and Washington Mutual. In addition
to the $15.2 million, earlier this year GHR issued
$6.5 million of convertible debt which is expected
to convert to Series E convertible preferred stock
within 90 days. Investors in the convertible debt
include PNC Investment, a subsidiary of PNC Financial
Services Group; Intuit; RAF Ventures; and other
existing investors. GHR said it will use this capital
for expansion, enhancing support services, expanding
its network infrastructure, and developing new mortgage
loan origination products and services.
http://www.ghrsystems.com/
_____________________________________________

o Mobile Application Developer Freever Raises $10.3 Million

PARIS -- Freever, a French provider of wireless
technologies creating mobile communities with content
provision and chat capabilities, said it raised
$10.3 million in its most recent round of funding.
The round was led by ADD Partners and Net Partners,
and previous investors Apollo Invest and CDC Innovation
also participated in the funding. The company said
it will use the financing to support its international
development. The company focuses on the creation
of wireless communities popular among the 15-25
year old demographic in Europe.
http://www.freever.org/

======= Bad News =======

o Divine interVentures Lays Off 43% of Development Group Staff

CHCAGO -- Divine interVentures, the publicly traded
information technology holding company, said it
laid off 18 people from its partner development
group staff on Friday. Dave Onack, a spokesperson
for Divine interVentures, confirmed that the lay-offs
came "as part of a Divine strategy to adapt to current
market conditions." The company, while not ruling
out future investments, has shifted its focus to
support the companies within its portfolio. "Divine
is taking steps to get cost structure in line with
available capital," said Mr. Onack. Divine interVentures
currently holds $327 million in available capital.
http://www.divineinterventures.com/
_____________________________________________

o Eos-Backed U.K. Cooking Site Foodoo Closes Online Kitchen

LONDON -- Foodoo.com, a British site devoted to
cooking, said it ceased operations. The company
said it closed due to an inability to secure further
funding. Foodoo said it will seek approval from
members and creditors to go into voluntary liquidation.
The company was backed by investors including Eos
Internet Ventures, which recently announced it is
restructuring into a holding company in order to
focus on securing additional funding for its portfolio.
Telephone +44-207-627-5800.

======= New Products =======

o One-Hour Delivery Service Expry Launches in Italy

MILAN -- Expry.it, an Italian delivery service,
announced its launch. Expry offers one-hour delivery
of goods and services ordered on the Internet and
WAP phones. Delivery people arrive on mopeds dressed
in white gloves and bowties. The company plans to
expand throughout Europe. Expry is funded by individual
investors.
http://www.expry.it/
_____________________________________________

o Redleaf Group Launches Its Strategic Security Platform

PITTSBURGH -- Redleaf Group, an Internet operating
company that develops early-stage business-to-business
Internet commerce companies, said it launched Redleaf
Secure Systems (RSS), a strategic platform focused
on Internet security. RSS will invest capital, acquire,
and build companies that develop Internet security
technology, as well as create partnerships with
security firms and develop technology itself. Redleaf
also said it made an agreement with and invested
$5 million in managed service provider RedSiren
Technologies, and that it formed a partnership with
RedCreek, which develops hardware and software security
products and services.
http://www.redleaf.com/
_____________________________________________

o Services Marketer eFrenzy Changes Name to Nextdoor Networks

SAN FRANCISCO -- eFrenzy, which runs an online marketplace
for a range of services, said it is changing its
name to Nextdoor Networks. The company said it plans
to extend its online marketplace applications to
new partners and to make its product accessible
from any communications device. eFrenzy has received
financing from Trinity Ventures, Tribune Ventures,
and Ziff Brothers, among others, as well as investments
from corporations including Office Depot and MDSI
Mobile Data Solutions.
http://www.nextdoor.com/
_____________________________________________

o ASP HomePage.com Changes Name to Frontera

LOS ANGELES -- HomePage.com, which provides Internet
businesses with hosting applications, announced
it has changed its name to Frontera to coincide
with a change in its business model. Earlier this
year, HomePage.com received $48 million in a mezzanine
round of funding from several investors including
idealab!, idealab Capital Partners, and J & W Seligman.
http://www.frontera-corp.com/
_____________________________________________

o Business Services Infrastructure Firm Biztro Renamed Rivio

SANTA CLARA, Calif. -- Biztro, which provides business
services infrastructure for small businesses, said
it changed its name and is now doing business as
Rivio. The company also developed a new brand strategy
under which it will market its products. Rivio investors
include AC Ventures, Bank of America, BellSouth,
Softbank Venture Capital.
http://www.rivio.com/

======= M&A =======

o Sonus Buys Telecom Technologies for More Than $451 Million

WESTFORD, Mass. -- Publicly traded Sonus Networks,
a provider of voice infrastructure services, said
it has agreed to acquire telecom technologies, a
developer of network software products aimed at
enabling service providers to offer new voice and
data services at a lower cost. Sonus will issue
10.8 million shares of stock, worth approximatley
$451 million, plus an additional 4.2 million shares
if telecom technologies achieves certain business
objectives. Telecom technologies will become a division
of Sonus Networks and remain in Richardson, Texas.
Telecom technologies founder and CEO, Anousheh Ansari,
will become general manager and vice president of
this Sonus division. All telecom technologies employees
will become employees of Sonus Networks. Telecom
technologies received funding from MSD Capital and
individual investors.
http://www.sonusnet.com/
http://www.telecomtechnologies.com/
_____________________________________________

o Locus Dialogue Acquired By InfoSpace For $128 Million

BELLEVUE, Wash. -- InfoSpace, a publicly traded
company which provides online infrastructure services,
said it acquired Locus Dialogue, a speech recognition
application developer. The all stock acquistion
is valued at about $128 million. Locus speech recognition
software technologies provide automatic speech recognition,
natural language understanding, speaker vericfication,
speaker identification, and text-to-speech server
technology. The company was founded as a spin-off
of the Computer Research Institute of Montreal.
Investors in the company include Sofinov societe
financiere d'innovation, Innovatech du Grand Montreal,
Le Fonds d Solidarite des Travailleurs du Quebec,
and GTI Capital.
http://www.locusdialogue.com/
http://www.infospace.com/
_____________________________________________

o E-Business Consulting Service Meritage Buys Consulting Firms

COLUMBUS, Ohio. -- Meritage Technologies, which
provides electronic business consulting and professional
services, said it has acquired electronic business
consulting firms, Thought Interactive and Castle
Point Systems. The financial terms of the acquisitions
were not disclosed. Meritage has received funding
from Green Hill Capital Partners, which holds a
13% stake in the company.
http://www.meritagetech.com/
_____________________________________________

o Investment Firm Lake Capital Acquires DVC

CHICAGO -- Lake Capital, an investor in service-based
companies, said it acquired DVC Group, a marketing,
communications and technology firm for an undisclosed
amount. Lake Capital; Frontenac, a Chicago-based
private investment firm; and an undisclosed group
of investors plan to invest more than $100 million
to acquire DVC and expand the company. Co-founders
George Valva, CEO of DVC, and Peter Dugan, chief
business development officer, will remain in management
positions.
http://www.dvc.com/
http://www.lakecapital.com/
_____________________________________________

o Timera Acquires Software Management Tech Firm SoftThought

BOULDER, Colo -- Timera, which provides commercial
crew management and timekeeping software applications
for the railroad industry, announced it has acquired
SoftThought Systems, which provides labor scheduling
technology for workforce management. The financial
terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. Timera
is backed by Fenix Enterprises, a Union Pacific
holding company.
http://www.fenixenterprises.com/
http://www.softthought.com/

======= New Directors =======

o Electronics Portal eChips Names First Board of Directors

SAN JOSE, Calif.. -- eChips, a business-to-business
online commerce platform for the electronics industry,
announced its new board of directors. The board's
chairman will be the company's CEO John "Sean" J.
Powers, who previously was vice president at Arrow
Electronics. Other board members include: Ryal Poppa,
former chairman, president, and CEO of Storage Technology;
Fred Warnock, former president of Almac/Arrow Electronics;
and Rich Ward, former president of Avnet's computer
marketing group. eChips was formed this month as
a result of a merger between QuestLink Technology,
ChipCenter, Arrow Electronic's Advantage business
unit, and Avnet's Production Supplies and Test Equipment
unit. Arrow, Avnet, CMP Media, and i2 Technologies
have all invested in eChips.
http://www.echips.com/
_____________________________________________

o U.K. Incubator Ideas Hub Names Chairman, Director of Board

LONDON -- Ideas Hub, an Internet business accelerator,
said Vic Steel joined the board as chairman and
David Simpson joined as director. Mr. Steel is currently
chairman of Forbidden Technologies, a developer
of video compression technology, as well as non-executive
director of Navy Army Air Force Institutes and Eidos,
a developer and publisher of computer and entertainment
software. Mr. Simpson is co-founder and deputy chairman
of Pet Plan Group, a provider of pet healthcare
insurance.
http://www.ideashub.com/
_____________________________________________

o Broadband Firm Actelis Names Former SBC Exec Kaplan to Board

FREMONT, Calif. -- Actelis Networks, a broadband
transport systems developer, said it named Marty
Kaplan to its board of directors. Mr. Kaplan most
recently served as executive vice president of SBC,
where he was responsible for the integration of
SBC Communications with Pacific Bell, Southern New
England Tel Co, and Ameritech. While at Pacific
Bell, he served as president of the network services
group and chief technology, quality, and re-engineering
officer.  Mr. Kaplan is currently chairman of the
board for JDS Uniphase and also served on the Bellcore/Telcordia
board for ten years. Actelis' investors include
New Enterprise Associates, U.S. Venture Partners,
and The Walden International Investment Group.
http://www.actelis.com/
_____________________________________________

o Healthcare Software Firm Outlaw Names New Board Member

BOULDER, Colo. -- Outlaw Technologies, which develops
healthcare relationship management software aimed
at health plan providers, said it appointed Dirk
Tyler as the fourth member of the company's board
of directors. Mr. Tyler is presently managing director
of Taleria Ventures, a startup accelerator. Mr.
Tyler also founded BACE Industries in November 1988.
Outlaw is backed by Colorado Venture Management.
http://www.outlawtech.com/

======= New People =======

o E-Mail Tech Firm Disappearing Inc. Names Ex-Eventus Exec CEO

SAN FRANCISCO -- Disappearing Inc., which creates
e-mail management applications for businesses, said
it has appointed Michael Burkland, founder of Eventus
Software, as its new president, chairman, and CEO.
Former chairman and CEO Maclen Marvit has been appointed
as CTO. Disappearing Inc. was funded by Kleiner
Perkins Caufield & Byers, Red Rock Ventures, and
former Netscape executive Eric Hahn in 1999.
http://www.disappearing.com/
_____________________________________________

o Bridgewater Systems Taps Former Nextel Exec as CEO

KANATA, Ontario -- Bridgewater Systems, a developer
of digital access control applications, announced
it has appointed Mike Ozburn, former vice president
and general manager of Nextel Online, as its new
president and CEO. He replaces Doug Somers, the
former CEO, who has been appointed as executive
vice president. Earlier this year, Bridgewater Systems
received CAD $30 million ($19.5 million) in its
sixth round of funding co-led by Sprott Securities
and Griffiths McBurney & Partners.
http://www.bridgewatersystems.com/
_____________________________________________

o Messaging Firm IP Globalnet Names Ex-Bekaert Exec as CEO

ZAVENTEM, Belgium -- IP Globalnet, an electronic
message management firm, named Leo Steenbergen as
the company's new CEO, replacing acting interim
CEO David Havercroft, who is leaving IP Globalnet.
Mr. Steenbergen was executive vice president and
CFO of the Bekaert Group and was in senior management
at Hewlett-Packard's European headquarters for 17
years. Investors in IP Globalnet include GIMV and
NIB Capital Private Equity, Creafund, KBC Invest,
and Mercator-Noorstar, among others.
http://www.ip-globalnet.com/
_____________________________________________

o Advertising Infrastructure Firm Adwise Appoints CEO

NEW YORK -- Adwise, an advertising infrastructure
company which specializes in real-time behavioral
targeting software and services, named Dan Schwartz
as its new chief executive officer. Mr. Schwartz
served as vice president of North American Sales
at Adforce prior to his appointment as Adwise CEO.
Investors for Adwise include the Emicom Group.
http://www.adwise.net/

======= VC Fund News =======

o Israeli Firm Veritas Raising New Fund, Opens Atlanta Office

HERZLIYA PITUACH, Israel -- Veritas Venture Partners,
an investment firm that focuses on seed and early
stage high-tech companies in Israel, said it is
raising a new $100 million fund and is opening an
office in Atlanta. The fund will invest approximately
$6 million in each company, focusing on Internet
communications and healthcare startups in Israel
and the Southeastern U.S. Veritas is managed by
Yadin Kaufmann, Rann Marom, Gideon Tolkowsky, and
Gil Zaphrir in Israel, and Laurie Oliver in Atlanta.
http://www.veritasvc.com/
_____________________________________________

o Osprey Ventures Raising its Second Fund for $100 Million

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Osprey Ventures said it is
planning to raise $100 million for its second fund,
named the Osprey Pacific Fund. The firm expects
to have a first closing from individual investors
by the end of this year for $20 million and have
a second closing for $80 million by the spring of
2001. The new fund will invest in early stage companies
in Silicon Valley, Asia, and India. Like its predecessor,
the fund will focus on early-stage rounds in companies
in the infrastructure, communications, and software
sectors. The firm is holding meetings this month
for individual investors. The firm's first fund
has $92 million in committed capital and 21 portfolio
companies including Appshop, Epicentric, Internet
Wire, PeopleLink, and ShopEaze.
http://www.ospreyventures.com/
_____________________________________________

o Vertex Management Raises $76 Million From Singapore Funds

TEL AVIV -- Vertex Management Israel, which manages
three venture capital funds as part of the Vertex
Venture Capital Group, said it raised $76 million
for its third fund from Singapore-based firms. Strategic
Investors from the country include the National
Science and Technology Board, Singapore Technologies,
Infocomm Investments, Government of Singapore Investment
Corporation, Vickers Ballas Holdings, Vickers Capital,
Jafco Investment, and Creative Technology. Vertex
Management Israel invests in seed and early stage
Israeli and North American startup companies.
http://www.vertexisrael.co.il/
_____________________________________________

o Three SSM Ventures Partners Form New Texan Firm, Verity

AUSTIN, Texas -- Verity, a new venture firm based
here, announced itself. The firm will be headed
by former SSM Ventures partners Eric Jones, Dick
Moeller and Bill Harrison. Verity will focus on
early-stage technology and telecommunications firms
in Texas, particularly here and in Dallas, and is
in the process of raising its first fund. The company
estimates the first fund will be approximately $100
million. Verity may co-invest with SSM once the
new fund is complete. Mr. Jones, Mr. Moeller, and
Mr. Harrison will continue their roles in SSM Ventures
II, which will be fully committed in 2001.
http://www.verityventures.com/
_____________________________________________

o Westbridge Launches $140 Million Indian Technology Fund

MUMBAI, India -- WestBridge Capital, which will
invest in Indian-related technology companies, announced
the launch of its first fund. The firm founded by
former employees of Goldman Sachs, KP Balaraj, Sumir
Chadha, and Raj Dugar, raised $140 million for investment
in companies with strong ties to India, either through
headquarters in the country or research and development
operations located there. The fund, however, will
source its deals internationally. Investors in the
fund include Goldman Sachs, SUN Technology, Capital
Z Investments, Merrill Lynch, Fidelity, Reuters,
and Tibco. Subhash Arora, the co-founder of the
HCL Group of Companies, is an operating director
of the fund. Telephone +22-2020607
_____________________________________________

o Dresdner Kleinwort Benson Acquires British VC Fund

LONDON -- Dresdner Kleinwort Benson's private equity
business said it acquired Elderstreet Investments,
a UK venture capital fund focused on early stage
technology investing. The company, which took an
initial 18% interest in Elderstreet in 1999, is
acquiring the remainder in an "eight-figure acquisition,
pounds sterling," according to a Anthony Cowley,
Head of Investment Strategy, Dresdener Kleinwort
Benson Private Equity. Dresdner said that under
its ownership Elderstreet will develop a pan-European
platform for information technology investments
and launch a successor fund next year. Dresdner
said it will committ EUR 75 million ($64.6 million)
to the new fund. As part of the international expansion
Elderstreet is building an investment team to operate
in Germany. Elderstreet will retain its brand identitiy,
team structure, and investment focus under Dresdner.
As a result of the acquisition Christopher Wright
and Andrew Cowley will take a seat on the company's
management board.
http://www.drkbpe.com/
http://www.elderstreet.com/

======= VC Personnel =======

o Former Bessemer Partner Joins Infinity Capital

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Infinity Capital, an early
stage fund focused on communications, software and
Internet infrastructure companies, said it named
Bruce Graham as a venture partner. Mr. Graham will
focus on investments in the communications sector.
He most recently served as a venture partner with
Bessemer Venture Partners, where he co-invested
with the Infinity team. Mr. Graham will continue
to serve on the boards of OMM, NeoSilicon, Genoa,
MorphICs, LightLogic, and Summit Microelectronics.
Mr. Graham was also previously with Vertex Management
and Intel.
http://www.infinityllc.com/
_____________________________________________

o Sevin Rosen Promotes Ms. Tareen, Ex-Ascend Exec, to Partner

PALO ALTO, Calif. -- Sevin Rosen Funds, which recently
closed a $875 million fund, said it has named Amra
Tareen as partner. Ms. Tareen, who joined Sevin
Rosen in January as a senior associate, was previously
product manager and product marketing director at
Ascend Communications. She is currently working
with Sevin Rosen portfolio companies, including
LightPointe Communications and Point Reyes Networks.
http://www.srfunds.com/

======= VW Corrections =======

o Tantivy

NEW YORK -- An item in Friday's VentureWire about
Tantivy's latest round of financing contained an
incorrect dateline. The company is located in Melbourne,
Florida.

|||||||||||||||||||| Advertisement ||||||||||||||||||||

eBOOK HIM, DANNO!

Top executives at some of the world's largest and most
powerful technology companies are predicting the demise
of the paper publishing industry. But how are they planning
to capture this lucrative market? Come hear from keynote
speaker Henry Yuen, CEO of Gemstar, who will soon release a
pair of electronic readers under Thomson Multimedia's RCA
brand. We've also assembled an expert panel on this emerging
industry, featuring Yogen Dalal of Mayfield Fund, an early
investor in ebook technologies, Louis E. Lenzi, VP of Global
Business Development & New Ventures in the New Media Services
Group at Thomson Multimedia, and Richard Tam, CEO of iUniverse.
It promises to be an arresting session.

Only at Technology Outlook 2000:
The Future of Pervasive Computing
December 4 and 5, San Francisco
A VentureWire investment conference.
http://technologicpartners.com/tp/conf/to2000/?vw=20001107

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

SEND TO A FRIEND

To subscribe to VentureWire, tell your friends
and colleagues to go to:
http://venturewire.net/

This copy of VentureWire may be distributed
freely, provided that the distribution is without
charge, that the issue is distributed complete and
unaltered, and that all copies retain the Technologic
copyright notice.  This copy of VentureWire and
the information within it, however, may not be reproduced,
saved, or otherwise copied into a database without
the prior written consent of Technologic Partners.

_____________________________________________

TO SUBSCRIBE go to:
http://venturewire.net/

To CHANGE your address, send your old and new e-mail
address to:
change@venturewire.com

To UNSUBSCRIBE, send e-mail to:
listoff@venturewire.com

Send COMMENTS, QUESTIONS, or NEWS ITEMS to:
editor@venturewire.com

Entire Contents Copyright 2000 by Technologic Partners
VentureWire is a Service Mark of Technologic Partners
=====================================