Siliconvalley.com: Intel's VC arm gets more aggressive

"Sodhani is turning the chip maker's sprawling investment arm - one of the world's largest and most active corporate venture capital organizations - in a dramatic new direction.
Once a back-seat investor that let others "lead," or structure deals, Intel Capital is displaying a new aggressiveness.
It is stepping more nimbly, spending more money and shedding its reputation for slow decision-making. It also expects to improve profits.
While the new, faster pace may someday set the standard for other corporate VCs, it already is attracting the notice of dealmakers up and down Sand Hill Road, the main artery of Silicon Valley's thriving venture capital business.
Intel Capital invested in more U.S. deals last year than several local VC heavyweights, including Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Sequoia Capital."

N.Y. state college plans largest 11n WLAN rollout - Network World

"A small New York state college will be the site of the first large-scale wireless LAN based on the draft 802.11n high-throughput standard.
Within the next two weeks, Morrisville State College will start initial testing of thin access points from Meru Networks, plus the vendor's existing 802.11abg devices and early models of its recently announced 11n device, the AP300. Even at this stage, the net is posing intriguing new challenges for Morrisville, Meru and IBM Global Technology Services, the systems integrator for the project.
By the end of September, the college plans to have installed a campuswide net of some 900 11n access points. The net will also include Meru's recently announced high-end companion controller, the MC5000. Jean Boland, Morrisville's vice president of information services, says she expects conservatively that each AP will offer 130Mbit/sec. of throughput, shared by whatever number of clients associate to it. That compares with 20-25Mbit/sec. for 11a nets, also in the 5-GHz band, and 11g nets in the 2.4-GHz band."

Friendster still blows despite huge jump in traffic

"Friendster clocked a 40 percent pageview growth rate in May, thanks to growth in countries like Malaysia and the Philippines, as well as recent updates to the site, reports VentureBeat (via comScore).
According to the latest comScore data, Friendster had 24.7 million unique users last month. Though lagging behind MySpace and Facebook, it is holding its own in the sea of second-tier social networks like Piczo and Bebo.
Friendster's pageviews in May, however, grew to a whopping 9 billion - 41 percent more than in April. Though there were several factors for the jump, the big one was a back-end fix that manages users' social networks."

Blade.org: Establishes VC Advisory Board

"Blade.org, the industry consortium driving innovation in blade-based solutions, today announced its new Venture Capital Advisory Board to provide strategic guidance to Blade.org members on the future of blade technologies and strategies. Founding members of the VC Advisory Board will consist of leaders and influencers from key industry VC firms including Accel, Intel Capital, Mayfield, U.S. Venture Partners (USVP) and Walden International.
Blade computers integrate servers, storage, networking and applications into one system. The blade server market is rapidly expanding as more customers look for the flexibility and ease of management blade computing offers, giving them a competitive advantage in the marketplace. With the blade server market predicted to grow from $3B to $11B by 20101, the global venture capital community has invested over $1B in the last two years to fund companies developing emerging technologies and solutions in this rapidly growing market. "

The Blade.org VC Advisory Board includes:
Carl Everett, Venture Partner, Accel
Bryan Wolf, Managing Director, Intel Capital
Kevin Fong, Managing Director, Mayfield Fund
David Liddle, General Partner, U.S. Venture Partners
Lip-Bu Tan, Chairman AND CEO, Walden International
Andy Kau, Managing Director, Walden International

Biz 2.0: Marchex goes for big splash, unveils 100,000 local sites

"Seattle-based Marchex (MCHX) today launched what it characterizes as the largest-scale Website effort of its kind: 100,000 "local and vertical" sites. In all, the effort boasts more than one billion pages of local content -- all aimed at people looking for local information and all aimed at local advertisers....In part, this is Marchex's next step to put to work the 100,000-plus domain portfolio it bought in 2004 from Name Development, which I wrote about almost two years ago in a piece called Masters of Their Domains and in a recent story called The Man Who Owns The Internet. (Company execs won't say it, but man behind Name Development was Yun Ye, a legendary and mysterious domineer who now lives in Vancouver.) "

Official Google Blog: Why we're buying DoubleClick

"In short, Google’s acquisition of DoubleClick will benefit all parties in the online advertising business, including advertisers, publishers, agencies and, most importantly, consumers. "

Top Firms for Early Stage Companies by No. Deals in 2006

Top Firms for Early Stage Companies
No. Deals in 2006*
VC
Location
23
Maryland Technology Development Corp.
Columbia, MD
17
Draper Fisher Jurvetson
Menlo Park, CA
17
Tech Coast Angels
Laguna Hills, CA
14
Maryland Dept. of Business and Economic Development
Baltimore, MD
13
New Enterprise Associates
Baltimore , MD
12
Khosla Ventures
Menlo Park, CA
12
Sequoia Capital
Menlo Park, CA
11
Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers
Menlo Park, CA
11
U.S. Venture Partners
Menlo Park, CA
11
Village Ventures
Williamstown, MA
10
Austin Ventures
Austin, TX
9
Band of Angels
Menlo Park, CA
9
Omidyar Network
Redwood, CA
8
Accel Partners
Palo Alto, CA
8
Band of Angels
Menlo Park, CA
8
BioAdvance
Philadelphia, PA
8
Canaan Partners
Westport, CT
8
IllinoisVentures LLC
Chicago, IL
8
Intel Capital
Santa Clara, CA
8
JumpStart Inc.
Cleveland , OH
8
Menlo Park
Foundation Capital, CA
8
Mohr Davidow Ventures
Menlo Park, CA
8
New Enterprise Associates
Baltimore, MD
8
North Bridge Venture Partners
Waltham, MA
8
Polaris Venture Partners LP
Waltham, MA
8
Redpoint Ventures
Menlo Park, CA
8
Sanderling Ventures
San Mateo, CA
7
Atlas Venture
Waltham, MD
7
Ben Franklin Technology Partners Southeastern PA
Philadelphia , PA
7
Canaan Partners
Rowayton, CT

DataSynapse GridServer 5.0 Delivers Mega-Grid Capabilities

"DataSynapse, the global provider of application virtualization software, today announced the newest version of GridServer, making it the first product on the market to offer mega-grid capabilities for grids of up to 20,000 nodes. GridServer 5.0 answers the call for improved global administration, including seamless integration with enterprise authorization frameworks and role-based security policies that allow organizations to protect application integrity in a distributed environment.

These major enhancements give organizations and administrators first-in-class management capabilities based on real-world customer experiences from the DataSynapse client base, many of whom are running global grids of 5,000-plus CPUs that span multiple datacenters."

Abi Adest (seekingalpha): This Week's IPOs Part I: AuthenTec, comScore, Data Domain, Polypore International, PROS Holdings

"The following are some of the IPOs on deck for this week. Companies going public include: AuthenTec (AUTH), a mixed-signal semiconductor company that provides fingerprint authentication sensors; comScore (SCOR), provider of digital marketing data collection services that track internet activity; Data Domain (DDUP), a provider of capacity-optimized storage appliances for disk-based backup and network-based disaster recovery; Polypore International (PPO), maker of specialized microporous membranes used in separation and filtration processes; PROS Holdings (PRO), a leading provider of pricing and revenue optimization software. "

SJMerc Blog: A trip to Heidi Roizen’s house: a report from SD Forum’s Visionary Awards

"Dan’l Lewin, the top Microsoft executive in Silicon Valley, introduced Michael Moritz, who was a journalist who wrote a book about Apple and a Time magazine bureau chief before he took a job at Sequoia. Moritz has had some of the biggest home runs, like being the lead investor on Yahoo! and Google. Lewin said, “I asked Eric Schmidt about Michael. He said many people think he’s a loner. I think it’s because he’s ahead of everyone else.”

Lewin noted that companies funded by Sequoia account for 10 percent of the value of Nasdaq. But he also reminded everyone of Moritz’s more memorable failures: Red Envelope, eToys, Webvan, and (Moritz later said) Planet Rx."

Emergence Capital Partners Oversubscribed for $200 Million Second Fund

"Emergence Capital Partners, a venture capital firm that specializes in investing in technology-enabled services companies, announced that it recently closed its second venture fund at $200 million. The firm was targeting $175 million and was oversubscribed more than twofold. All institutional investors from Emergence Capital's first fund returned as investors in the new fund, along with several new investors, including some of the country's leading foundations and university endowments.
'Emergence is one of the few firms positioned to be among the next generation of venture capital leaders,' said Rick Hayes, Managing Partner of Oak Hill Investment Management and one of Emergence Capital's new investors. 'Its team, track record of success and focused investment strategy have attracted some of the country's most prestigious institutional investors. Emergence has quickly established itself by backing many of the next-generation leaders, such as Salesforce.com, HireRight and SuccessFactors.'
Leader in TES Investing "

Seeking Alpha: Goog, Here's Your Chance To Buy Yhoo

"The bloggers and analysts are now speculating on potential directions for Yahoo. Mergers with or acquisitions by Time Warner (TWX), Microsoft (MSFT) and the other usual suspects have been mentioned.

My opinion is that Google (GOOG) should spend some of their billions and acquire Yahoo. The two companies are completely complementary. Google offers the dominant search and online advertising platforms on the web. Who needs Yahoo's Panama when you can sign up with Google?"

SJ Merc: Yahoo shakeup a sign company's bet on content failed to trump technology

"But is it too late?

While Semel, 64, oversaw a turnaround following the dot-com collapse of 2000, he has been under fire in recent years as Yahoo has been increasingly eclipsed by Google.

After failing to buy Google in 2002, Semel bought advertising technology that had inspired Google's business model - but failed to make integration a top priority until last year. The delay allowed Google to ring up $10.6 billion in advertising sales in 2006 - 40 percent more than Yahoo - while claiming 48 percent of the U.S. search market, compared to 28 percent for Yahoo, according to Comscore."

Synchronoss Technologies Ranked Top Software IPO: Time for a Closer Look - Seeking Alpha

"Paul Banco submits: Since its IPO last June, Synchronoss Technologies (SNCR) posted a solid 248% return. Its initial offer price of $8 is currently hovering in the $27 range. This year-over-year performance ranks the company as the top software IPO of 2006 according to IPOHome.com.

If you are unfamiliar with Synchronoss, take a closer look. The company’s ConvergenceNow software platform allows telecom, cable and wireless providers to automate back-end processes associated with customer activation and service provisioning. This on-demand platform is especially useful in linking disparate systems required to deliver bundled services such as triple-plays.

Synchronoss customers include Time Warner Cable (TWC), Comcast (CMCSA), Vonage (VG), Level 3 (LVLT) and AT&T (T), which will be rolling out the Apple (AAPL) iPhone later this month. The demand for converged services provides a strong outlook for continued growth as providers aim to improve average revenue per user [ARPU] and reduce churn – two critical industry metrics. Synchronoss helps address these needs while simultaneously delivering a better customer experience."

"I would never blame Microsoft" Ted Schlein / KP says about security | NetworkWorld.com

"Here is an interesting comment from part of a longer article. Security-guy-turned-venture-capitalist, Ted Schlein, argues that network-based security doesn't cut it anymore . Schlein has been investing in security companies for the last decade as a money man with Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. Prior to that he was known for helping Symantec create its original antivirus software. "

Paul Kedrosky: Is USVP Going All Healthcare VC?

"In an otherwise unrelated post, Nick at Valleywag says that he hears venture firm USVP is going all healthcare. While every multi-strategy venture firm is wrestling how to deal with (poor performing and low capital) IT and (reasonably performing and high capital) life sciences, I find this one hard to believe."

The Seattle Post-Intelligencer VC: Bag Borrow or Steal bags $15 million

"Bag Borrow or Steal, which rents high-end handbags and jewelry to consumers, has bagged a $15 million venture capital round that it will use to expand into new product categories.
Top of the list are sunglasses, gowns, belts, watches and shoes, though the company declined to say which is next. A name change also is imminent in order to reflect the broader array of products that consumers will be able to rent. "

WiQuest raises $28M

"WiQuest Communications Inc., a fabless semiconductor company focused on the design and production of ultrawideband-based wireless silicon solutions, said that its Series C round of funding has closed.
The round attracted $23 million in private equity financing and up to $5 million in growth capital financing.
The round added Adams Street Partners, the D. E. Shaw group, and TriplePoint Capital to its list of investors. This round also included the full participation of existing WiQuest investors Sequoia Capital, Menlo Ventures, Palomar Ventures and iD Ventures America."

CNN: Google Leading Cisco In Start-up Acquisitions This Year

"If you build it, Google will come.



It's a sentiment rousing entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley: build a start-up compatible with Google Inc.'s (GOOG) business strategy, pick up some venture capital along the way to stay competitive, and sell quickly to the cash-oozing search giant. In the past week or so, Google tossed RSS feed aggregator Feedburner Inc. and server computer start-up Peakstream Inc. into its shopping cart. Both companies were quick exits for their venture backers, especially Peakstream, which raised its first funding round less than a year ago from VC kings Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Sequoia Capital (two original investors in Google).

For years Cisco Systems Inc. (CSCO) has been the most prolific acquirer of venture-backed start-ups, pocketing 22 such companies since 2004, according to industry tracker VentureOne. But Google has emerged at the top of the list so far this year, acquiring five venture-backed start-ups to Cisco's four. And it's showing no sign of stopping, as the search outfit looks for companies that fit its overarching mission: "To organize the world's information and make it universally accessible and useful." In other words, make money off online advertising, where Google generates 99% of its revenue."

Mike Cassidy has joined Benchmark as an EIR

"Benchmark Capital, a leading early-stage high-technology venture capital firm, today announced that Mike Cassidy has joined the firm as an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR). Most recently, he served as chief executive officer (CEO) of Xfire, the fastest-growing gaming community on the Internet, which now operates as a division of Viacom Inc.'s MTV Networks.



Mr. Cassidy has co-founded, served as CEO, and led three consumer Internet companies to market leadership and successful acquisitions. They include Xfire, Direct Hit, an award-winning Internet search engine that was acquired by Ask Jeeves, and Stylus Innovation, a creator of computer telephony tools and applications that was acquired by Artisoft. In his new role as an EIR, he will evaluate new business opportunities in the consumer Internet market and assist Benchmark companies across the portfolio."

Net firm ChinaCache lands US$31.5m overseas capital

"ChinaCache, a Beijing-based Internet content delivery network (CDN) operator, has secured $31.5 million from overseas investors such as Intel Capital and Ignition Partners, thanks to the rapid development of China's Internet industry.

Shanghai-based venture capital firm Qiming Venture Partners led the investment in ChinaCache. Six other investors such as Intel Capital, the investment arm of the world's leading chipmaker, also bought stakes.

Established in 1998, ChinaCache had secured $8.5 million in 2005 from venture investors to fund its growth.

"The rapid growth of video and audio contents on the Internet creates a huge demand for content delivery services in China," said Wang Song, ChinaCache's CEO."

Starent Networks is a Star - Motley

"Despite a rough market on Wednesday, there were no problems with the IPO of Starent Networks (Nasdaq: STAR). The offering, initially priced a buck above its $9-to-$11 range, surged 16.75% on its first day of trading. Its successful market debut gives the company an additional $100 million in the bank to fuel further expansion.

Starent develops software and hardware systems to help mobile operators deliver video, Internet access, email, and games. The platform also enables subscriber management, billing, content filtering, and security."

"As with other recent high-growth IPOs such as Riverbed Technologies (Nasdaq: RVBD) and Aruba Networks (Nasdaq: ARUN), Starent's valuation isn't cheap: Shares are trading at about 8.5 times sales. But according to a study from Strategy Analytics, the wireless data services market is expected to grow from $106 billion in 2006 to $200 billion in 2011. That's a nice headwind for Starent."

Limelight Networks' IPO Drives CDN Enthusiasm, Akamai Shares Gain 8% - Seeking Alpha

"It's been a while since we've seen conspicuous first-day pops in the share prices of IPOs. Limelight Networks (LLNW) had all the marks of a hot IPO: the pricing was raised from $12 to $14 the day prior to trading, and again to $15 when the shares hit the market. Once LLNW began trading, it shot as high as $24.33 before closing at $22.18, up 48 percent on the session.



Limelight's strong debut came a day after shares of optical networking firm Infinera Corp. (INFN) jumped 52 percent in its NASDAQ trading debut, which prevented LLNW from being the strongest first-day gain of a tech IPO this year. Limelight raised $240 million in its IPO, selling 16 million shares (12.5 million offered by the company, and 3.5 million by shareholders) for $15 each. Limelight, which operates a content delivery network [CDN] for bandwidth-intensive files and applications, will net $170 million of the proceeds. It will use the money to fund capital spending and pay off $23.8 million in debt."

Modern wildcatters see gushers of green / Researchers have high hopes that a tropical grass known as a 'superweed' will one day replace crude oil or farmers have high hopes that 'superweed' will prove an able successor to crude oil in the years

"Researchers have high hopes that a tropical grass known as a 'superweed' will one day replace crude oil or farmers have high hopes that 'superweed' will prove an able successor to crude oil in the years to come"

YouTube - PANDACHUTE.com - spelling bee champ - another funny

Too funny! Jimmy Kimmel Live Spelling Bee 2007

Revver going the way of Ampd? CEO fired

"Video hosting site Revver said Friday that founder Steven Starr will step down as CEO, but remain board chairman.

Mr. Starr’s move comes as Revver has failed to keep pace with larger rivals and more nimble upstarts, and follows the departure last December of the company’s other two founders. COO Kevin Wells was named as Revver’s new CEO.

Mr. Starr said he has been working for a long time on transitioning away from management, into a position that would allow him to work on big-picture relationships and new directions.

Mr. Wells joined the company in September after founding aviation technology startup Naverus, and managing teams at Disney. Los Angeles-based Revver has raised almost $13 million from Draper Fisher Jurvetson, Draper Richards, Bessemer Venture Partners, Comcast Interactive Capital, and Turner Broadcasting"

Infinera's Significant Competitive Advantage

"Infinera (INFN) had a very successful first day of trading after seven years of working counter to the popular and misguided beliefs of a Gilderesque, all optical future.

Great controversy surrounds the company and investors wonder whether the valuation attached to company is justifiable. The valuation is indeed debatable and is predicated on their success penetrating the PTT’s & Bellcos.

However, I feel this is a real company with a significant competitive advantage derived from their early attempt to use integrated photonics as a disruptive technology. Their key differentiation was dropping the cost of optical to electrical conversion (see 'Death of the All Optical Network') and building a system that leveraged this strength."

Clean tech investment keeps on booming

"As the G8 leaders continue to argue about whether economic development and reduced carbon emissions are compatible the European investment community is apparently convinced that they are after it emerged yesterday that European investment in clean energy technologies is continuing to soar.
According to a new report from The Carbon Trust clean energy investments now accounts for a tenth of all European venture capital investments with €2bn ploughed into the sector between 2003 and 2006, putting the sector on a with the European IT, biotech and semiconductor industries in terms of venture capital investment."

Springwise: Crowd-finding the next blockbuster

"Think consumers can predict the next big book, CD, television show or movie better than top producers and publishing houses can? Media Predict challenges users to put their virtual money where their mouths are with an online prediction market game, where players buy and sell shares based on how well they think new entertainment ventures might do in the real marketplace."

VC fund to make Mickey Mouse famous in China

"Steamboat Ventures, a venture-capital firm established on behalf of The Walt Disney Company, has invested in three Chinese start-up companies that have a strong presence in Internet broadcasting, including the country’s largest Web TV operator UUSee, which also distributes programming from the state-run government channel CCTV.



In March, Steamboat invested—along with Silicon Valley firms Draper Fisher Jurvetson and Sequoia Capital—in UUSee, China's largest Web TV operator with more than 36 million registered users. UUSee is the only peer-to-peer network approved by China and distributes programming from state-run CCTV. Steamboat also put money into the video-sharing Web site 56.com in December."

Google acquires server computer startup PeakStream | Reuters.com

"Google Inc. said on Tuesday it has acquired PeakStream Inc., a maker of software for running powerful computers, as the Web search leader seeks ever more computer power.
PeakStream makes systems designed to run on both computer workstations and computer servers, which are used to manage network services. Google operates one of the world's largest networks of servers but declines to detail its size.
Terms were not disclosed by Mountain View, California-based Google, according to spokesman Aaron Zamost."

M&A in the Digital Ad Sector is Smoking Hot: Who's Next? - Seeking Alpha

"A list of recent M&A in the sector is below. But first, here are the single folks still waiting to be scooped up:
aQuantive (AQNT), Valueclick (VCLK), Burst Media, and AdPepper, the latter two of which trade on London's AIM. How much might the U.S. ones go for? AQNT is worth $44 if you use the 24/7 Real Media, Inc. (TFSM) take-out multiple (23x), $60 if you use the DoubleClick multiple (33x), and $75 if you use the Right Media multiple (10x EV/Revs). VCLK is worth $44 if you use the TFSM multiple, $66 if you use DCLK, $70 if you use Right Media. And then of course there are all the private beauties: Blue Lithium, Tacoda, Efficient Frontier, Did-It, etc. Go to it, bankers!
Recent Digital Advertising M&A
Google (GOOG) for Doubleclick: $3.1b cash (32x '07 EBITDA - my estimate) - ad serving, SEM, affiliate network
Publicis (PUB) for Digitas: $1.3b cash (16x '07 EBITDA) - digital ad agency
Yahoo (YHOO) for 80% Right Media: $680m cash & stock - implied value = $850m (10x revs - rumored value) - ad media exchange
WPP (WPPGY) for 24/7 Real Media: $649m cash (23x '07 EBITDA) - media network, ad serving, SEM
aQuantive for Accipiter: $30m - publisher side ad server
aQuantive for Duke Digital Marketing: $8m + earnout - European digital ad agency
AOL (TWX) for AdTech: terms undisclosed - European ad server
Aegis for Trigger Communications: terms undisclosed - digital ad agency
Fox Interactive Media (NWS) for Strategic Data Corp: terms undisclosed - publisher side ad server and site optimization
Doubleclick for Falk eSolutions: terms undisclosed - European ad server"

San Jose Mercury: IAC to open VC firm, Prmail Ventures

"IAC/InterActive Corp., the New York-based media and e-commerce conglomerate run by former Hollywood mogul Barry Diller, already has pieced together an empire of dozens of Web properties, ranging from ticket seller Ticketmaster.com to loan site LendingTree to the dating service Match.com.
And it's just getting started.
That's the message it's sending to Silicon Valley, where IAC is opening a venture investing arm called Primal Ventures in the next couple of weeks.
'We're interested in things that will complement IAC's portfolio,' said former Match.com CEO Jim Safka, who is moving from Dallas to San Francisco to launch the operation. Its goal: to incubate some companies, roll up others and find promising start-ups that it can bring into its fold."

mocoNews.net: Amp’d Bankruptcy Filing: Verizon Wireless Largest Creditor With $33 Million

2 years since founding and $310M raised later. Disaster:

"Amp’d Mobile’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware has a wealth of info on the company’s creditors, and a list of shareholders of the company (we broke the story first here). According to the court documents, Amp’d owes about $33 million to its infrastructure/network provider Verizon Wireless, followed by its handset provider Motorola—$16 million; Vivendi about $10 million, BestBuy about $8 million; MTV Networks about $1.8 million; and others. In total, the total debt is more than $100 million. Amp’d says its assets total less than $100 million.
As for the shareholders, CEO-founder Peter Adderton (through his trust) holds the largest share of common stock, just above 5 percent. RedPoint Ventures holds around 3 percent plus more acrued through various equity rounds. Other shareholders in five subsequent rounds are also listed ... in addition to VCs Redpoint, Highland Capital Parters, Columbia Capital, these include creditors MTV Networks, Qualcomm, Vivendi Universal, Best Buy and many others. "

DataSynapse Lays Out Application Virtualization Vision

"Global enterprises today demand “more, better, faster” -- requiring critical applications to meet evolving business requirements at the same rate and at a lower cost. DataSynapse, the global provider of application virtualization software, has laid out its vision of creating a real-time infrastructure that helps large organizations align their IT resources with their business objectives. By addressing the business issues of both computing supply and application demand, businesses can improve service quality to corporate end-users and customers, reducing operating expenses and creating new revenue streams more quickly. "

Burning Questions • It's True-gle! Goog Acquires Feeedburner for $100m

"It's True-gle!
Unlike the rumor that FeedBurner is nearly code-complete on a multiplayer Wii edition, the blog posts, phone calls and conjecture about our future as part of the Google family tree are now officially true.
FeedBurner has been acquired by Google. The local weather forecast calls for general euphoria with intermittent periods of off-the-rails delight."

"There is so much alignment between how we think about publisher services and how Google has executed around publisher services, that we'll try to pick just a few specific areas that we believe are the most compelling reasons for working together:
Google's competencies and focus around publisher analytics, distribution, and monetization map perfectly to our suite of services.
Publishers want a single dashboard and single source for the metrics that give them feedback about the value of their content and its impact on their business. By combining our market leading feed metrics with Google's market leading site and marketing analytics, publishers now get a comprehensive, 360-degree view of their audience. This 'total perspective' has long been a goal of ours, and we think our combined analytics offering is going to provide publishers with previously undiscovered insights and opportunities.
The measurement of awareness advertising is evolving from unique impressions to audience engagement. By providing our hundreds of thousands of publishers with Google's world-class advertising marketplace and metrics, we can provide far more value to publishers and begin to deliver this next step in ROI measurement to advertisers.
Speed of innovation. We have always prided ourselves in our ability to deliver extensive functionality to the market rapidly. As we have grown to hundreds of thousands of publishers with global demands, we are delighted to be combining forces with an organization that has a deep understanding of the most efficient ways in which to deploy significant functionality to the widest possible audience. It is one thing to roll out a capability to 3 percent of your customers and it's something else entirely to roll out a broad set of new services simultaneously to customers around the globe."