?	
?	VentureWire
	Monday, June 04, 2001		?
?	CONTENTS | COMPANIES | INVESTORS | ADVERTISE | TELL A FRIEND	VentureWire Index
		'VentureWire
		today: 684.6 ? +0.07%	?
? 		
		
		top stories
		
		  Matrix Partners Raises $1 Billion Fund
		  Atom Shockwave Says 'Game Over' to Some Staff
		  Sevin Rosen Teaming Up With N. Va. Firm 
		 Imaging Tech Firm NuCORE Raises $20 Million Series C
		 
		
		TODAY'S FEATURES 
		Week in Review: VC Fallout Continues, Bertelsmann Stays in Tune
		By Daniel Boylan
		With venture capital returns plummeting, LaunchCenter39 (LC39) Venture Group 
has decided its investors will be better off with their money back rather 
than risking losing it all. more>>
		UPCOMING EVENTS
		June 26-27: San Francisco
		Enterprise Outlook 2001
		Investment remains strong in enterprise software with over 250 deals so far 
this year! Listen to Dick Shaffer's interview with ON24 discussing analysis 
of this industry and previewing the upcoming Enterprise Outlook. Only 3 weeks 
until Enterprise Outlook, so register today! 
		
		
		Outlook for the Venture Capital Market
		* 20th Univ. of Michigan Growth Capital Symposium, June 19-20
		* Meet with LPs and GPs of successful funds. Interact with
		execs from life sciences, MEMS, Telematics & IT firms
		* Outlooks include Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers,
		Draper Fisher Jurvetson, State of Michigan Pension Fund.
		* Connect with the Center for Venture Capital and Private
		Equity Finance at the University of Michigan --- serving
		the institutional VC community for 20 years.
		* Call 734-936-3528 or view the Center's website for 
details:http://www.umich.edu/~cvpumbs
		
		
		
		
		
		
		new money
		
		  Clearswift, Formerly Net-Tel, Raises $9.6 Million A Round
		  SPS Commerce Raises $10 Million in Round Four
		  Transportation App. Firm Kizoom Gets $2.1 Million Round One
		  Power Technology Firm Cheng Power Raises $3 Million
		  Records Management Software Firm iWitness Has $11M Round Two
		  Micro-Electro Mechanical System Firm PHS MEMS Raises $26.3 M
		  Johnson & Johnson Backs Nanoparticles, Polymer Firm Alnis 
		 Wireless LAN Firm Service Factory Closes Second Round 
		 Biotech Firm Vasca Raises $19.6M in Series F Financing
		  CML-ATC Technologies Picks Up $2M in Round Two
		  German Venture Firm bmp Increases Stake in indecom By 25%
		  IBT Technologies Raises $4.8M Series C, Appoints President
		  Cadant Announces Funding, New CEO, and 15% Layoffs
		
		
		bad news
		
		  B2B Commerce Platform for Media Ads, eMadison.com, Closes
		
		
		new deals
		
		  Venture Frogs Sells drugs.com Domain Name 
		
		
		new products
		
		  Professional Services Automation Firm PrimeActive Launches
		  With Cenetec Funds, Brokerage Renamed Innovation Capital   
		 Enterprise Software Firm Bodha Launches First Product
		
		
		m&a
		
		  Barclays Private Equity Backs MBO of Recruitment Solutions
		
		
		new people
		
		  Optical Access Firm Native Networks Appoints CEO
		  Media Tech Firm EnterTec Group Names Dror Chevion President
		  Comprehensive Software Systems Names New President & CEO
		
		
		vc fund news
		
		  New Zealand Gov't. Launches $40.9M Early-Stage Fund 
		 Silicon Valley Bank Forms New Seed Capital Practice
		
		
		vw corrections
		
		  Accumedia
		
		 TOP STORIES... NEW MONEY... BAD NEWS... NEW DEALS... NEW PRODUCTS... M&A... 
NEW PEOPLE... VC FUND NEWS... VW CORRECTIONS
		
		
		top
		
		
		When it comes to money, it's evolutionary.
		
		Financial Services Outlook will host up to 50 innovative,
		technology-driven companies, who are altering the landscape
		from global markets to reinsurance, trade credit to risk
		management.
		
		Financial Services Outlook
		July 31
		The Marriott World Trade Center
		
		Check out the latest industry updates and hear the
		best of the best give their views on market opportunities.
		Register before June 19 and SAVE 
$100:http://www.financialservicesoutlook.com/register.asp
		
		
		
		 top stories 
		?
		Matrix Partners Raises $1 Billion Fund
		 mail? top
		
		 WALTHAM, Mass. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Matrix Partners, a Waltham, Mass.-based 
early-stage venture capital firm, has closed on a fund of $1 billion, 
VentureWire has learned. The new fund is the firm's seventh. The firm 
confirmed that it has raised the new fund but declined to make further 
comment until making a formal announcement, which it plans to do this summer. 
Matrix closed its last fund in 2000, Matrix Partners VI with $530 million. 
The firm, which has nine partners and a satellite office in Palo Alto, 
Calif., was founded in 1982. Matrix Partners backs companies in the 
computing, Internet, networking equipment, semiconductor, software, and 
storage sectors.  The firm invests between $100,000 and $300,000 in seed 
deals and invests up to $10 million in early-stage rounds. According to 
VentureWire data, Matrix is the twelfth venture capital firm to close a fund 
this year with at least $1 billion. Apax Partners raised a fund of about $4 
billion to target Israeli and European companies, while ten other firms, 
including Austin Ventures, Charles River Ventures, Greylock, and U.S. Venture 
Partners, closed funds closer to the $1 billion mark. Atlas Venture came in 
just short with its $950 million Fund VI in April. In all of last year, 
eighteen VC firms closed $1 billion funds. Matrix Partners portfolio 
companies include Appian Communications, a Boxborough, Mass.-based developer 
of optical networking technologies for communications carriers; Blue Dolphin 
Group, a Wayland, Mass. e-mail-based subscription agent that recently cut 20% 
of its staff; Lexra, a San Jose, Calif.-based microprocessor developer; and 
Sunnyvale, Calif.-based RealChip Communications, which provides custom and 
standard chips for communications applications. 
		http://www.matrixpartners.com
		
		
		Atom Shockwave Says 'Game Over' to Some Staff
		 mail? top
		
		 SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- AtomShockwave, an online entertainment and 
content distribution company, said it was restructuring the company and has 
terminated some of its staff. The company said an undisclosed number of 
employees were let go on Friday. The company, which was formed by the 
December 2000 merger of Atom Films and Shockwave, would not comment on 
whether employees received severance packages. AtomShockwave said the cuts 
were part of an effort to help the company reach profitability sooner but did 
not say when profits were expected. The company, which raised $22.9 million 
in March, said it will now focus more on sydication, advertising, 
sponsorship, and e-content, and less on content creation and development. 
AtomShockwave's backers include Allen & Co., Arts Alliance, Chase Capital 
Partners, Intel Capital, J.P. Morgan Entertainment Partners, Macromedia 
Ventures, Sequoia Capital, Trans Cosmos USA, Warner Bros. Online, WaterView 
Advisors, and individuals.
		http://www.atomfilms.com
		http://www.shockwave.com
		
		
		Sevin Rosen Teaming Up With N. Va. Firm 
		mail? top
		
		 PALO ALTO, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- To get a heads-up on new deals, early 
stage venture firm Sevin Rosen Funds is setting up a formal relationship with 
a venture firm in Northern Virginia. Steve Dow, a general partner at Sevin 
Rosen, declined to name the firm but said the relationship is likely to 
resemble one his firm recently established with Silicon Valley Seed 
Investors, a fledgling New York City venture capital firm. According to Mr. 
Dow, Sevin Rosen has been on the lookout for areas that "have the potential 
to be more interesting over time." In the last year, Mr. Dow's firm, which 
has offices in Dallas and Palo Alto, Calif., has opened two new satellite 
offices in Austin, Texas and San Diego. The firm has one partner in the 
Austin office, while another splits his time between Palo Alto and San Diego. 
The deal with the Virginia firm will likely be the end of Sevin Rosen's 
expansion. "I would be shocked if you see us opening anymore [offices]," said 
Mr. Dow. He said the firm, which has ten partners, wants to make sure they 
have the ability to bounce ideas off one another. "Unlike with law firms, 
it's not always clear how you should scale an early stage venture capital 
firm," he said. Founded in January, Silicon Valley Seed Investors, which 
focuses on early stage high tech companies in the New York metro area, raised 
$30 million from three venture firms: Canaan Partners, based in Rowayton, 
Conn., Rho Management, based in New York, and Sevin Rosen. Each firm 
contributed $10 million to the firm's first fund. As part of the deal, Sevin 
Rosen Funds gets an early look at Silicon Valley Seed Investors deals. Should 
all three of the investing firms want to take part in the same deal, Mr. Dow 
said they would each receive equal shares of the company. While expanding its 
early stage relationships, Mr. Dow said Sevin Rosen is also considering 
making later stage investments outside its portfolio. He said lower 
valuations have moved the firm to think about making some later stage deals, 
though no are pending. The firm has made five investments this year, all of 
which were either in existing portfolio companies or new early stage startups.
		http://www.srfunds.com
		
		
		Imaging Tech Firm NuCORE Raises $20 Million Series C
		 mail? top
		
		 SANTA CLARA, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- NuCORE Technology, which develops 
digital imaging chips for still and video cameras, said that it raised $20 
million in its Series C financing from Sigma Partners, Horizon Ventures, 
JAFCO, J.P. Morgan Partners, and Techfund. This round was co-led by new 
investors Sigma Partners and JAFCO. NuCORE plans to dedicate the new funds to 
staff expansion, as well as to technology and product development. As a 
result of this financing, the company has granted seats to Lawrence G. Finch 
of Sigma Partners and Jack Carsten of Horizon Ventures on its five-member 
board of directors. Also sitting on the board are Chairman Gordon Cambpell of 
Techfarm and Melissa Crane of VantagePoint. Although Joe Raffa, NuCORE's CEO, 
declined to disclose the company's monthly burn rate, he said he expects the 
new funds to carry the company for "at least twelve months, or until 
profitability." The company, which maintains offices here and in Japan, has a 
team of 60 full-time employees and is actively hiring engineers in the fields 
of integrated circuit design, firmware, software, and marketing, as well as 
at all levels of management. Headcount is expected to reach 90 by year's end. 
In addition NuCORE is seeking strategic partners in the areas of image 
sensors, compression, display technologies, and microprocessor technology. In 
July 1998, NuCORE raised $3 million in Series A funding led by TechFund, with 
J.P. Morgan Capital Partners and NTT Lease Ventures participating. In March 
2000, the company closed an $8.7 million Series B led by VantagePoint 
Ventures, with Horizon Ventures, J.P. Morgan Capital Partners, and TechFund. 
		http://www.nucoretech.com
		
		
		 new money 
		?
		Clearswift, Formerly Net-Tel, Raises $9.6 Million A Round
		 mail? top
		
		 HERTFORDSHIRE, England (VENTUREWIRE) -- Clearswift, a provider of e-mail and 
content security services formerly known as Net-Tel, said it launched with a 
Series A GBP 6.75 million ($9.6 million) from investors including U.S.-based 
investment firm 4C Ventures, the British investor Amadeus Capital, and the 
Italian venture capital fund Pino Ventures. Amadeus led the round, which 
gives Clearswift a post-money valuation of $15 million, according to 
Clearswift spokesman, Paul Rutherford. The company will use the funding to 
support the restructuring of Net-Tel into Clearswift and the launch of 
Clearswift's services in France, Germany, and the U.S. Richard Anton, a 
director with Amadeus Capital, will take a seat on the company's board of 
directors as a result of the funding. With the help of Amadeus, Clearswift 
has assembled a new management team to head the development of its 
international operations. Andy De Mari, the founder of the security services 
firm ISOCOR that was acquired by Critical Path in 1999, will serve as the 
company's chairman, while Don Taylor, former international vice president of 
Tumbleweed Communications, will assume the post of chief executive. Two of 
the four original founders of Net-Tel, Steven Nokes and John Horton, will 
remain with the company in finance and business development, respectively. 
Mr. Anton said that salaries represented the company's biggest expense and 
that Clearswift expects to raise its Series B round next year. With products 
already in the market, Clearswift had been generating revenues prior to the 
Series A funding. The company's clients include English retailer Marks & 
Spencer, Virgin Group, and departments within the British government. 
Clearstream will be launching offices in Boston, Paris, and a German location 
still to be determined. The company intends to roll out a new version of its 
Mailguard product in July. According to Mr. Anton, Ivan O.Sullivan will head 
the Boston office. There were no outside agents involved in the transaction. 
		http://www.clearswift.com
		
		
		SPS Commerce Raises $10 Million in Round Four
		 mail? top
		
		 ST. PAUL, Minn. (VENTUREWIRE) -- SPS Commerce, a supply integration service 
provider, said it has secured $10 million in fourth round financing. Adams 
Street Partners, Axiom Venture Partners, CID Equity Partners, Damac Al Bureka 
Investments, Granite Private Equity, and St. Paul Venture Capital 
participated in this round. The financing came from existing investors and 
was led by CID Equity Partners; post-money valuation decreased since the last 
round. New money will be used for building the company's hosted Internet 
service infrastructure, expanding strategic partnerships, product 
development, and technology purchases. Chief strategy officer, Jim Frome, 
said the company expects revenues of between $5 million and $10 million and 
anticipates becoming cash-flow positive by early 2002. Next year the company 
will begin to consider a public offering or being acquired. To date, SPS 
Commerce has raised $43 million.
		http://www.spscommerce.com
		
		
		Transportation App. Firm Kizoom Gets $2.1 Million Round One
		 mail? top
		
		 LONDON (VENTUREWIRE) -- Kizoom, a developer of wireless applications for use 
in  transportation systems, said that it raised $2.1 million in a first round 
from Dawnay Day Lander. The company plans to dedicate the new funds to 
product development. Post-money, the company is valued at approximately $5.6 
million. CEO Damian Bown expects that the new funds will carry the company 
through to profitability within the next three months. As a result of this 
financing, Nick Lander of Dawnay Day Lander has been granted a seat on the 
six-member Kizoom board of directors. Kizoom, which was founded in April 
1999, derives revenues by licensing its platform to mobile portal operators 
and transport companies. Prior to this round the company was backed by 
individuals. 
		http://www.kizoom.com
		
		
		Power Technology Firm Cheng Power Raises $3 Million
		 mail? top
		
		 ATLANTA (VENTUREWIRE) -- Mirant, a publicly traded energy company, said it 
has invested $3 million in Cheng Power, which provides technology designed to 
improve output, efficiency, and environmental performance of power generating 
systems. The $3 million investment, which was part of a $9 million round of 
funding led by previous investor Saw Mill Capital, is Mirant's first since it 
launched its venture capital group in January. Cheng Power said it intends to 
use the funding to develop and commercialize its products. As part of the 
agreement, Bill Harper will join Cheng Power's board of directors. In April, 
Cheng raised $3.5 million from Saw Mill Capital in a Series A round. 
		http://www.chengpower.com
		http://www.mirant.com
		
		
		Records Management Software Firm iWitness Has $11M Round Two
		 mail? top
		
		 BOULDER, Colo. (VENTUREWIRE) -- iWitness, which provides digital business 
records management software, said it has raised $11 million in a second 
round. Sequel Venture Partners led the round, with participation from 75 Wall 
Street Technology Partners, Geneva Venture Partners, Telesoft Partners, and 
World Ventures. As a result of the round, Tim Conner and Victoria Katsov of 
new investor 75 Wall Street join CEO Mike Donaldson, Telesoft CEO Arjun 
Gupta, and founder and CTO, Frank Lambert, on the board.  iWitness also 
expects to add two outside directors from the enterprise software industry. 
With this second round of funding, iWitness now has a total of $15 million in 
investments. In December 1999 the company closed a first round led by 
Telesoft, with participation from Geneva and World Ventures. The company 
expects funds from this round will last into 2002, and will be used for 
research, development, and marketing and sales, as well as for adding to the 
executive team. iWitness will focus on e-mail, instant messaging, and Web 
transactions records management. CEO Mike Donaldson said the company expects 
to break even in the middle of next year. The company employs 40 and expects 
to add 10 to 15 more positions, most in sales and marketing, by the end of 
the year.
		http://www.iwitness.com
		
		
		Micro-Electro Mechanical System Firm PHS MEMS Raises $26.3 M
		 mail? top
		
		 PARIS (VENTUREWIRE) -- PHS MEMS, a French micro-electro mechanical systems 
designer, raised EUR 31 million ($26.3 million) in its third round of funding 
from an investment group including AXA Private Equity, IDI Group, Thales CSF 
Ventures, Finov, and Innovafrance. The company said it will use the funding 
to expand its operations in the U.S. and Europe, and to support the 
development of new products through increased staffing in the research and 
development areas. Vincent Gombaut, from new investor AXA Group Private 
Equity, will join Maurice Khawam, managing director for ETF Group France, on 
the company's board of directors. The investment gives ETF Group a 17% stake 
in the company, and the total investment group over 50% of PHS MEMS. The 
company is managed by Alberto Martorell, president and CEO, who previously 
served with ETF Group Investments and worked in Sun Microsystems'  
microelectronic division. There was no placement agent for the funding. 
		http://www.phsmems.com
		
		
		Johnson & Johnson Backs Nanoparticles, Polymer Firm Alnis 
		mail? top
		
		 EMERYVILLE, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Alnis Biosciences, which is developing 
nanoparticles and polymer materials for biotechnology applications, said it 
has secured an undisclosed amount of funding from Johnson & Johnson 
Development Corp. The company said it will use the funding to continue to 
develop its technology, which focuses on oncology and infectious diseases. 
Prior to this investment Alnis was primarily funded by a three-year grant 
from the Defense Advanced Research Project Agency (DARPA). Alnis said it had 
also received funding from Dow Chemical and Global Venture Capital. The 
company was founded in 1997 by David Soane, who is also founder of Nano-Tex 
and Aclara Biosciences. 
		http://www.alnis.com
		
		
		Wireless LAN Firm Service Factory Closes Second Round 
		mail? top
		
		 STOCKHOLM, Sweden (VENTUREWIRE) -- Service Factory, which provides Internet 
access through services a wireless local area network (LAN), said it closed 
its second round with an undisclosed amount of funding with BrainHeart 
Capital. Service Factory said BrainHeart now holds a 10% equity stake in the 
company. Magnus Melander, an investment manager at BrainHeart, will take the 
sixth seat on Service Factory's board of directors. Service Factory said it 
will use the funding to expand its services into Germany, France, Spain, and 
Italy, and it further said it already has test sites in some of these 
countries. The company also said it plans on entering the U.S. market. The 
funding is expected to last until the end of the year. Service Factory was 
founded in December 1999 and reached profitability at the end of 2000. The 
company had $10.5 million in revenue last year, with $1.1 million as profit. 
Outside investors hold a 40% equity stake in the firm. Service Factory also 
said it plans on raising a new round later this year or early next year with 
a U.S. venture capital firm. The company received $1.4 million in first-round 
funding from Telia Business Innovation and Telia. 
		http://www.servicefactory.se
		
		
		Biotech Firm Vasca Raises $19.6M in Series F Financing
		 mail? top
		
		 TEWKSBURY, Mass. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Vasca, a developer of an access device for 
hemodialysis, said it has raised $19.6 million in a Series F round from Atlas 
Venture, Bedrock Capital, Crossroads, MVM Limited, Pacific Ventures, Weiss 
Peck and Greer, The Sprout Group, and Tailwind Capital Partners. The company 
plans to dedicate the new funds to further research and development, as well 
as for sales. MVM Limited, a new investor, led this financing. The Crossroads 
Group and Tailwind Capital Partners are also new to the round. As a result of 
this investment, Dr. Stephen Reeders, who is chief executive officer of MVM 
and a nephrologist, has been granted a seat on the 11-member Vasca board of 
directors. The board includes Philippe Chambon and Jeani Delagardelle of The 
Sprout Group and Paul Brown of Bedrock Capital. While a company spokesperson 
declined to reveal a post-money valuation on the round, the spokesperson 
indicated that the recent funds should carry the company through to 
profitability, which is anticipated by the fourth quarter of 2002. Including 
this round, Vasca has raised approximately $62 million in venture capital to 
date. 
		http://www.vasca.com
		
		
		CML-ATC Technologies Picks Up $2M in Round Two
		 mail? top
		
		 HULL, Quebec (VENTUREWIRE) -- CML-ATC Technologies, which designed and 
manufactured voice communications systems composed of hardware and embedded 
software for aviation control systems, has closed CAD 3 million ($2 million) 
in second-round funding from Innovatech of Montreal and The Solidarity Fund, 
said CEO Franz Plangger. New investor Solidarity Fund contributed $1 million 
in this round, while the balance came from existing investor Innovatech. 
Quebec-based venture capital firm SDEO, which participated in the first 
round, did not reinvest. Post-money, Mr. Plangger said the company has a 
valuation of $10.4 million, an increase from $3.9 million. Edith Gaudet, 
investment advisor at Solidarity Fund, joins the board of directors, which is 
full at six seats. CML-ATC, which has a burn rate of $195,000 per month, will 
use the new money for research and development, and marketing. The company 
will add approximately 10 manufacturing employees to the current staff of 40. 
The communications systems manufacturer is also expecting to add a vice 
president of marketing and sales and a vice president of research and design 
to its management team. Mr. Plangger said CML-ATC will likely raise another 
round late this year or early next year. The company expects $6.5 million in 
revenues this year. The company raised $780,000 in a first round from 
Innovatech and SDEO. 
		http://www.cmlatc.com
		
		
		German Venture Firm bmp Increases Stake in indecom By 25%
		 mail? top
		
		 BERLIN (VENTUREWIRE) -- bmp, a venture capital firm focusing on e-business 
and life sciences investments, said it increased its equity stake in the 
application service provider, independent computing (indecom), from 20% to 
45%. bmp did not provide financial details of the investment, but did say 
that no other institutions participated in the round. bmp said the financing 
would be used for indecom's expansion plans. 
		http://www.bmp.com
		http://www.indecom.de
		
		
		IBT Technologies Raises $4.8M Series C, Appoints President
		 mail? top
		
		 AUSTIN, Texas (VENTUREWIRE) -- IBT Technologies, an application service 
provider focused on the corporate training market, said that it received $4.8 
million in Series C financing from Counsel Corp. and Techxas Ventures. The 
company plans to use the new funding for product development and sales. This 
round was co-led by Counsel Corp. and Techxas Ventures, both return 
investors. Although a company spokesperson would not cite a burn rate, she 
said the funds should take the company to profitability within twelve months. 
In addition, IBT announced the appointment of Cynthia Sheridan as president 
of the company. Prior to joining IBT, she served as president and CEO of 
WebIQ, a provider of collaborative decision-support tools. The company's CEO 
and chairman, William H. Cunningham, who is the former chancellor of the 
University of Texas System, has headed the company since December 2000. In 
March 2000, IBT Technologies raised $6.4 million in its Series B financing 
led by Counsel, with participation from Q Investments, Techxas Ventures, 
Thomas Weisel Partners, and unnamed individuals. 
		http://www.ibt-technologies.com
		
		
		Cadant Announces Funding, New CEO, and 15% Layoffs
		 mail? top
		
		 LISLE, Ill. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Cadant, a provider of high-speed cable 
networking products, said it has closed a new round of funding from World 
Associates and other investors. The amount was not disclosed. Charlie Walker, 
founder of Access Technology Partners, joins the company as CEO. The company 
also said it reduced its staff by 15%. New investor World Associates joined 
Cadant's existing investors in this round, which will be used for product 
development and launch in the fall. Staff reductions were made in marketing, 
sales, operations, and finance. The company said its engineering team has 
remained intact. Prior to this round Cadant raised $23 million in funding. 
Investors included Access Technology Partners, Chase Capital, and Venrock 
Associates. 
		http://www.cadant.com
		
		
		 bad news 
		?
		B2B Commerce Platform for Media Ads, eMadison.com, Closes
		 mail? top
		
		 FREMONT, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- eMadison, a business-to-business electronic 
commerce company that provides a platform for the buying and selling of 
traditional media advertising, has shut down. A source close to the company 
confirmed that eMadison ceased all operations about two weeks ago and laid 
off its entire staff. The source said the company is currently looking to 
sell its assets. eMadison, which had been in operation for barely a year, 
launched in June 2000 with $12.9 million in funding from Sequoia Capital and 
Sandler Capital. 
		http://www.emadison.com
		
		
		 new deals 
		?
		Venture Frogs Sells drugs.com Domain Name 
		mail? top
		
		 SAN FRANCISCO (VENTUREWIRE) -- Venture Frogs, a technology incubator and 
venture firm, said it sold the domain name of drugs.com, an online health 
portal, to an unidentified buyer in an all-cash deal of undisclosed value. 
Venture Frogs said the rest of drugs.com, an incubated portfolio company, 
would cease to exist by the end of the year. Venture Frogs also said it was 
concentrating its efforts in its other portfolio company Zappos.com, an 
e-retailer of shoes.To date, Zappos.com has raised $3.5 million in three 
rounds from Venture Frogs and individuals.
		http://www.drugs.com
		http://www.vfrogs.com
		
		
		 new products 
		?
		Professional Services Automation Firm PrimeActive Launches
		 mail? top
		
		 COLUMBUS, Ohio (VENTUREWIRE) -- PrimeActive Technologies, which offers 
browser-based professional services automation (PSA) tools for mid-market 
professional services organizations, said it has launched. The company's 
technology is provided as either licensed software for an organization's 
intranet, or as a hosted application. The company was founded by CEO Brian 
Delphia, the president of Delphia Consulting, and Benjamin Drake, its 
president, who was formerly with the consulting division of Arthur Andersen. 
PrimeActive lists among its clients Delphia Consulting, R.Dorsey&Co., and the 
professional services division of Best Software of Reston, Va. PrimeActive is 
privately funded by individual investors and hopes to close its first round 
of funding between $1.8 million and $3 million within six months. 
		http://www.primeactivepsa.com
		
		
		With Cenetec Funds, Brokerage Renamed Innovation Capital   
		mail? top
		
		 BOCA RATON, Fla. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Cenetec, a technology accelerator, 
announced the formation of brokerage firm Innovation Capital, to be 
headquartered at Cenetec's headquarters in Boca Raton, Fla. Innovation 
Capital was formerly known as the brokerage CB Capital and was located in 
West Palm Beach, Fla. The company changed its name in April to reflect 
Centec's investment in the firm and the company's technology focus. 
Innovation Capital will provide placement services to private companies 
seeking to raise $1 million to $10 million. Innovation Capital said it is 
currently raising funding for four companies in Florida. The firm also said 
it is currently focusing on providing its services in the southeastern U.S. 
Michael Yasi, formerly of CB Capital, is the president of Innovation Capital 
and Rob Picard is the other principal. Cenetec, which owns one-third of 
Innovation Capital, has raised $11 million for equity investments in 
startups. 
		http://www.innovation-capital.com
		
		
		Enterprise Software Firm Bodha Launches First Product
		 mail? top
		
		 MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Bodha, an enterprise software and 
services company, announced its first product, Bodha Rapid IntEgration 
Framework, an integration system that enables companies to connect with the 
Web interfaces of their partners. The company is raising $10 million in its 
first institutional round, which it expects to close by fall. Funds from that 
round will be used for product development and business development. CEO 
Vishal Sikka founded Bodha in 1999. Prior to Bodha, Mr. Sikka had founded 
iBrain, an integration software company servicing the pharmaceutical industry 
that was eventually acquired by PlanetRx. He had also held positions at Xerox 
Research Labs. Bodha employs 18 and has raised $1 million from individual 
investors.
		http://www.bodha.com
		
		
		 m&a 
		?
		Barclays Private Equity Backs MBO of Recruitment Solutions
		 mail? top
		
		 LONDON (VENTUREWIRE) -- Barclays Private Equity has invested GBP 9 million 
($12.8 million) as part of a $25.6 million funding package to back the 
management buyout of Recruitment Solutions Group (RSG). RSG operates Medics 
and Social Work Solutions, subsidiaries that provide temporary professional 
staffing to public- and private-sector clients. The management team is led by 
managing director, Jeff Downey; finance director, Mac Robertson; and 
marketing director, Mike Adams. Mark Aldridge, formerly a director of Hayes 
plc, joins the team as a non-executive chairman. The company is considering 
growth through acquisition, Mr. Downey said in a statement. Barclays Private 
Equity holds a substantial majority stake. Barclays Acquisition Finance 
provided senior debt and working capital. DHD Corporate Finance advised the 
purchase side of the transaction, while Capital Strategies Corporate Finance 
advised the vendor.
		http://www.recruitmentsolutions.co.uk
		
		
		 new people 
		?
		Optical Access Firm Native Networks Appoints CEO
		 mail? top
		
		 LONDON (VENTUREWIRE) -- Native Networks, a developer of technology for 
optical access networks, said that it has appointed Stephen Harbour, formerly 
marketing director for Cisco Photonics, as its chief executive officer. Mr. 
Harbour replaces co-founder and former CEO Gilad Goren, who will continue 
with Native Networks as president. Prior to joining Native Networks, Mr. 
Harbour was marketing director for Cisco Photonics, a division of Cisco that 
was formed after the acquisition of Pirelli's WDM systems business in 
February 2000. In September 2000, Native Networks completed a private 
placement of $18.2 million from investors including Anschutz Investment, 
Jerusalem Venture Partners, and Soros Private Equity Partners. 
		http://www.nativenetworks.com
		
		
		Media Tech Firm EnterTec Group Names Dror Chevion President
		 mail? top
		
		 HERZELIYA, Israel (VENTUREWIRE) -- EnterTec Group, a provider of 
entertainment and media technologies, said it has named Dror Chevion as the 
company's president. Mr. Chevion is the first person to hold this position. 
Prior to his appointment the company was headed by founding chairman and CEO, 
David Chissick. Most recently Mr. Chevion served as vice president of 
business development at Ness Technologies. In addition he has served as 
director of government information technology and budget director for the 
Israeli government. To date, EnterTec has raised $1.5 million in first-round 
financing from Israeli Theaters and unnamed individuals. The company is 
currently seeking $2 million in additional financing, which it hopes to raise 
in the next few months.
		http://www.enterteclab.com
		
		
		Comprehensive Software Systems Names New President & CEO
		 mail? top
		
		 GOLDEN, Colo. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Comprehensive Software Systems, a developer 
of financial services software, announced the appointment of Chris Poelma as 
president and CEO. Prior to joining CSS, Mr. Poelma served as executive vice 
president, chief technology officer and board director for ASP provider  
USinternetworking, which he co-founded. Mr. Poelma replaces acting-president 
William B. McClure, who will continue with the company as senior vice 
president of client services. He also joins as the eleventh member of the 
company's board, which includes David Glatstein and Don A. Buchholz of 
Southwest Securities Group; Thomas A. James of Raymond James Financial; 
Robert H. Beriault of Fiserv; Warren A. Stephens and Mark C. Doramus of 
Stephens; Robert T. Clutterbuck and David J. Schafer of McDonald Investments; 
James Ditmore of Ameritrade Holding; and Bob Gartland of Morgan Stanley. CSS 
has backing from ADP Brokerage Services Group, Ameritrade Holding, Fiserv 
Securities, McDonald Investments, Morgan Stanley Dean Witter, Raymond James 
Financial, Southwest Securities Group, and Stephens. 
		http://www.csssoftware.com
		
		
		 vc fund news 
		?
		New Zealand Gov't. Launches $40.9M Early-Stage Fund 
		mail? top
		
		 WELLINGTON, New Zealand (VENTUREWIRE) -- New Zealand's Ministry of Research, 
Science & Technology  announced the launch of the New Zealand Venture 
Investment Fund (VIF), a NZD 100 million ($40.9 million) fund. It will invest 
in funds that back seed and early-stage technology companies in New Zealand. 
VIF said the initial fund will be split into ten funds over a two- to 
three-year period. Each fund will range in size from $12.3 million to $20.4 
million and VIF will invest up to one third of this amount. VIF said each 
fund would invest in between 15 to 20 companies over a seven- to ten-year 
period. VIF will invest in funds that will invest in New Zealand companies 
and no more than 10% of a fund may be invested in any one company. VIF also 
said it would give co-investors a chance to buy out VIF's investment after 
the third year of the fund. VIF also said it expects to finalize the 
selection of fund managers from the private sector by the end of the year. 
		http://www.morst.govt.nz
		
		
		Silicon Valley Bank Forms New Seed Capital Practice
		 mail? top
		
		 SANTA CLARA, Calif. (VENTUREWIRE) -- Silicon Valley Bank, a wholly-owned 
subsidiary of Silicon Valley Bancshares, announced it has established a seed 
capital practice. The practice will provide funding to seed-stage companies 
as well as a variety of services to both startups and early-stage investors. 
John P. Flinn, who will serve as a director of the practice, said the group 
will co-invest with other leading early-stage investment firms. It will also 
invest directly in companies and in seed funds. Mr. Flinn said a typical 
direct investment will range from $100,000 to $5 million, depending on the 
nature of the deal. Mr. Flinn said the seed group, just like Silicon Valley 
Bank's venture capital group, will use funds from the company's $100 million 
fund, which closed last year. In addition, the group plans to create 
networking opportunities between early-stage investors and startups, to 
provide assistance with syndications as well as market intelligence and 
research, and to offer credit facilities to angel investors and general 
partners. Silicon Valley Bank vice chairman Harry W. Kellogg and professional 
services division manager Steve Empey will oversee the practice. 
		http://www.svbank.com
		
		
		 vw corrections 
		?
		Accumedia
		 mail? top
		
		 NEW YORK (VENTUREWIRE) -- An item in last Tuesday's VentureWire about 
Accumedia contained an incorrect description of the company's services. 
According to CEO Ed Williams, Accumedia can cut a large media firm's cost of 
running a Web site with 3 million page views a month from $1.75 million to 
$625,000 over the course of three years, not annually. 
		
		
		company index
		top
		
		Alnis Biosciences, AtomShockwave, bmp, Bodha, Cadant, Cheng Power Systems, 
Clearswift, CML-ATC Technologies, drugs.com, eMadison, EnterTec Group, IBT 
Technologies, Indecom, Innovation Capital, iWitness, Kizoom, Matrix Partners, 
Ministry of Research, Science & Technology, Mirant, Native Networks, NuCore 
Technology, PHS MEMS, PrimeActive Technologies, Recruitment Solutions Group, 
Service Factory, Sevin Rosen Funds, shockwave.com, Silicon Valley Bank, SPS 
Commerce, Vasca, Venture Frogs 
		
		
		Time is money and time can be saved through
		effortless, streamlined Web-based enterprise
		services.
		
		As IBM preps to launch Web-based software
		allowing for smoother enterprise-application-
		integration, it will face competition from the
		likes of Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Oracle and Sun.
		Which will attract the greatest number of
		developers and customers in the Web-services
		arena?
		
		Hear what Steven Mills, Senior VP & Group
		Executive of IBM Software, has to say about
		IBM's latest at Enterprise Outlook, June 26 & 27.
		
		Register today:http://www.enterpriseoutlook.com/register.asp
		
		
		
		investor index
		top
		
		4C Ventures, Adams Street Partners, Amadeus Capital Partners, AXA Private 
Equity, Axiom Venture Partners, bmp, BrainHeart Capital, CID Equity Partners, 
Damac Al Baraka Investment Co., Dawnay Day Lander, Finov, Granite Ventures, 
IDI Group, InnovaFrance, Innovatech Grand Montr,al, Johnson & Johnson 
Development, Pino Ventures, Solidarity Fund QFL, St. Paul Venture Capital, 
Thales CSF Ventures, World Associates
		
		
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