New York Times: Inside Apple Stores, a Certain Aura Enchants the Faithful

"Apple now derives 20 percent of its revenue from its physical stores. And the number is growing. In the fourth quarter in 2007, which ended Sept. 30, Apple reported that the retail stores accounted for $1.25 billion of Apple’s $6.2 billion in revenues, a 42 percent increase over the fourth quarter in 2006.

Apple stores generate sales at the rate of about $4,000 per square foot a year, according to a report last year by Sanford C. Bernstein analysts.

As other electronics makers like Dell, Nokia and Sony still struggle to find the right retail formula, Apple seems to have perfected it.

Not only has the company made many of its stores feel like gathering places, but the bright lights and equally bright acoustics create a buzz that makes customers feel more like they are at an event than a retail store. "

Red Herring: Anda Networks files S-1

"Anda Networks, a venture capital-backed maker of equipment that helps Verizon and other telecom carriers provide broadband service to business customers, has filed for an $86.25 million initial public offering.


The Sunnyvale, California-based company, which says its "Silicon Valley-China hybrid business model" allows it to keep costs low while accelerating feature releases, is backed by a slate of venture capital firms including Venrock Associates, owner of 27.8 percent of pre-IPO shares. Other major investors include: Highland Capital, 20.8 percent; Crimson Asia Capital, 11.9 percent; Saints Ventures, 9.3 percent, Cascade Capital Management, 7.1 percent, and Fuhwa Venture Capital, 5.7 percent.


Anda's equipment lets carriers deliver broadband services to businesses over fiber and legacy-based copper networks. The company also helps wireless carriers move network traffic from wireless base stations back to their core networks. Competitors include Adtran, MRV Communications, Overture Networks, and RAD Communications.


The company bases its design, sales, and management in the United States, while keeping engineering and manufacturing functions in China. It manufactures gear for Ciena and has a reseller relationship with Nortel Networks.


In the nine months ended September 30, Verizon accounted for about 71 percent of revenue. Other major customers included XO Communications and MTS Allstream.


Thomas Weisel Partners and RBC Capital Markets are acting as underwriters for the IPO. The company has applied for a listing on the Nasdaq Global Market under the ticker symbol "ANDA."


The company, incorporated in 1998, has yet to turn a profit, but for the nine months ended September 30, its revenue increased to $18.3 million from $6.2 million in the 2006 period and its loss narrowed to $2.2 million, or $0.11 cents per share from $11 million, or $1.12 per share, in the prior year."

Form S-1: http://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1112683/000119312507269405/ds1.htm

A Post-Google Fraternity of Investors - New York Times

"It often pays to stick together in Silicon Valley. PayPal, the online payments system, spawned a bunch of serial entrepreneurs who went on to found and finance some of the hottest Web 2.0 companies, among them YouTube, LinkedIn and Slide. Many PayPal alums invest in one another’s companies. One co-founder, Peter Thiel, who now runs a $3 billion hedge fund and venture firm in San Francisco, is the godfather of what people jokingly call the PayPal Mafia."

"There are no guarantees, of course, that Google’s growing crop of alumni-investors will succeed, either individually or as a group.
“The challenge for the Google guys is to demonstrate what value they can bring, beyond making introductions to someone at Google,” said Paul Kedrosky, a senior fellow at the Kauffman Foundation, which promotes entrepreneurship. Mr. Kedrosky said that those at the center of the PayPal Mafia were founders and early employees who learned a great deal by building their start-up into an online payments powerhouse. EBay eventually bought PayPal for $1.5 billion. “They had experience at iterating strategy and making payroll,” he said of the PayPal gang."

Barrons: For Most of the Valley, It Was a Very Good Year

"THE SKY IS FALLING! HOUSING IS COLLAPSING! The mortgage market is a mess! The banks are in trouble! The brokers are worse! We're headed for recession! Or maybe stagflation! The consumer is tapped out! IT budgets are shrinking! Oil prices, OMG, oil prices are insane! And ye gods, the LBO market is history! Head for the hills! Run for your lives! Buy gold! And load up on duct tape!

Oh, I forgot to mention: None of this applies if you live in Palo Alto, Mountain View, Redwood Shores, Sunnyvale, Santa Clara, Menlo Park or San Jose. Or Taipei. Or Bangalore. Or Beijing.

You see, for all the alarmist chatter, tech turned out to be an island of calm in 2007. Through Thursday, the Nasdaq Composite was up 9.3% and the Morgan Stanley tech index has risen 10.2%, compared with gains of 3% for the S&P 500 and 6.3% for the Dow. According to Morningstar, the average tech mutual fund is up 13.5%. Weirdly, tech has become a place of refuge.

But the best returns for tech investors involved playing the right themes and avoiding some spectacular land mines. Let's take a walk down memory lane.

HOT AS THE SUN: Solar stocks don't fit the traditional definition of tech stocks, but they do rely on silicon, many are based in China, and more and more of them are funded by venture capital. First Solar (ticker: FSLR) last week looked on target to be the year's best-performing stock with a market cap over $250 million. Through Thursday, First Solar was up 723%. Also posting triple-digit gains: SunPower (SPWR), 254%; Trina Solar (TSL), 152%; Canadian Solar (CSIQ), 146%; Solarfun (SOLF), 118%; MEMC Electronic Materials (WFR), 135%; and Evergreen Solar (ESLR), 107%. Cypress Semiconductor (CY) jumped 113%, thanks to its stake in SunPower."

THE FOUR HORSEMEN: No tech stocks get more ink than the vaunted foursome: Google (GOOG), Apple (AAPL), Research In Motion (RIMM) and Amazon.com (AMZN). The stocks have been thoroughbreds. Through Thursday, Google was up 50%; Amazon, 130%; Apple, 121%, and Research In Motion, 151%.

TechCrunch: VC predictions 2008

"The National Venture Capital Association surveyed 170 of its members, and this is their collective wisdom for 2008:

The sectors VCs are most bullish about are Clean Tech, Media, Biotech, and the Internet, in that order:

Not to mention that the five-year rate of return for all VC funds, as measured by the NVCA, is 3 percent, which is less than that of the S&P 500.

What else do VCs know?

—On average, they think they will invest $27 billion in startups next year.

—They are bearish on semiconductors and software. A full 59 percent believe that the IPO market will continue to recover.

—More than half (55 percent) expect M&A deals to increase in volume, but only about a third (35 percent) expect those deals to increase in value.

—An overwhelming 84 percent believe that new VC funds will raise the same amount of money or more than current funds, while 59 percent expect the number of VC firms to decrease. So more money will go to fewer firms, essentially.

—And 39 percent think that Hillary Clinton will be elected president, nearly twice as many as those who predict Guiliani will win"

Merry Xmas to our readers! Thank YOU

PaidContent: Kayak Acquires SideStep For Reported $200 Million; Travel Search Engines Will Merge

"Travel search engines Kayak and SideStep are merging in a reported $200 million deal, creating what they believe will be the fifth largest travel search site. Both are “meta” sites, meaning they cull data from other sources, such as Orbitz. Despite their similar purview, the sites claim to have less than 10 percent audience overlap. Sidestep will operate as a subsidiary of Kayak, and the companies say that users won’t see a difference, according to WSJ. Actual integration will be in the areas of technology and content.
-- The deal has two components, according to TechCrunch: First, Kayak is raising $196 million from existing investors Sequoia Capital, General Catalyst Partners and Accel Partners, SideStep investors Norwest Venture Partners and Trident Capital, and new investors Oak Investment Partners and Lehman Brothers Venture Partners. It’s also raising debt from Silicon Valley Bank and Gold Hill Capital. The funding will then go towards the $200 million purchase—$20 million of this amount is SideStep’s own cash.
-- Woody Marshall of Trident Capital told VentureBeat that the merged companies intend to do an IPO next year, not so much to raise capital, but as a branding move.
-- Prior to this, SideStep, which has raised over $30 million from VCs, did some buys of its own, including social net TripUp and user reviews site TravelPost.
-- SeattlePI: “Madrona Venture Group’s Matt McIlwain, an investor in Farecast and a big believer in vertical search sites, said the Kayak/SideStep deal could have “big, positive implications for Farecast.” In an e-mail, McIlwain notes that Farecast could emerge as the No. 2 player in travel search behind the newly merged Kayak/SideStep.”
Other vertical travel search sites to have recently raised funds include Kango, which is taking a semantic approach, and Kosmix, which started off doing health, but is expanding into travel. There are a host of other small or niche travel sites, and it wouldn’t be surprising to see more join hands. "

Goodbye Giancarlo to Silver Lake

"Charles Giancarlo, Cisco Systems Inc.'s chief development officer and heir-apparent to Chairman and CEO John Chambers, resigned Thursday to join Silicon Valley investment firm Silver Lake. "

"In a conference call, Chambers called Giancarlo's departure a rare loss "where it wasn't the right time to lose him."

Giancarlo joined the network equipment maker 14 years ago when it bought Ethernet switch maker Kalpana. He started Cisco's business development organization and spearheaded its aggressive acquisition strategy, even in the lean years following the dot-com crash of 2000.

During the conference call Thursday afternoon, Chambers and Giancarlo were affable and nostalgic about their long working relationship — but they never minced words: Chambers said he has little intention of stepping down from Cisco in the near future, and Giancarlo, who has ambitions to be at the helm of a company, discussed the calculations he made about his future after turning 50 this year.

"I went home one day and talked to my wife and said, 'Honey, I now know what you mean by a biological clock,'" Giancarlo said. "I feel young, but you do the math: I don't know what my decision process will be in 5 years, but I know what it is today."

Shares of Cisco — the second most richly valued company in Silicon Valley after Google Inc. — closed Thursday at $28.28. After the announcement of Giancarlo's resignation, they gained 4 cents in extended trading.

Menlo Park, Calif.-based Silver Lake Partners is a private-equity firm that invests in technology companies. Giancarlo, whose last day at Cisco is Dec. 31, will be managing director, working at the most senior levels in its portfolio companies, he said.

Chambers emphasized Thursday that he would remain CEO for at least three years, more likely five. He is replacing Giancarlo with a "council" of executives — part of the company's broader switch from a "command and control" organization to a network of task forces and other teams.

Chambers said he had no intention of naming another individual to be chief development officer, and he might appoint multi-person councils to lead other divisions if it works well in the development department.

"I believe this type of structure will be the future, given the complexities and ... market adjacencies we're going to move into," Chambers said. "The future of our company will be about how groups work together architecturally."

Both men were clearly sad about parting ways. Cisco — often ranked among the top companies to work for nationwide — is known for its high morale and low turnover, at least by Silicon Valley standards.

High-profile departures are rare — and they're even more rarely of the awkward "resigning to pursue other opportunities" variety common in corporate America. Many executives at Cisco came from startups and want to return to smaller organizations.

In February, Cisco lost Mike Volpi, senior vice president and general manager in charge of the routing and service provider technology group. The entrepreneurial Volpi, 41, said his decision to leave was influenced by a desire to build a startup "where I have my signature, my DNA, within it."

"Buddy, you're my friend, I love ya, and you're one of the very few who got away," Chambers said to Giancarlo. "You can still reconsider."

Giancarlo chuckled and then turned serious.

"We'll see what life brings," Giancarlo said.

His new job begins Jan. 2. "

NetSuite IPO

"The long-awaited stock offering of software company NetSuite Inc. appeared hotter than ever before its debut on the New York Stock Exchange today.

Yesterday, the initial public offering of 6.2 million shares of NetSuite -- a company backed by Oracle Corp. Chief Executive Larry Ellison -- priced at $26 a share, above the expected per-share price range of $19 to $22, which itself was $6 higher than the original range.


Although the above-range price indicates high demand for NetSuite's offering, as this year's IPO market comes to a close, it also gave some observers pause.

Scott Sweet, managing director of IPOBoutique.com, an IPO-research service in Tampa, Fla., dropped his rating on the company to "moderate buy" from "strong buy," saying the auction format on the deal was causing investors to post artificially high bids for the stock in the hope of getting shares; while that would generate the highest price possible for the company, it wouldn't benefit new shareholders, he said.
"

NYTimes: Founder's Fund

"The Young Turks who made their mark as early backers of Facebook have raised a second investment round more than four times as large as their first, a move that seems to signal their growing clout as an alternative to venture capitalists on Silicon Valley’s Sand Hill Road.
Founders Fund Management, led by a quartet of wealthy and connected entrepreneurs behind such success stories as online payment service PayPal, said Monday that it had raised $220 million from institutional investors to pump into new companies.
Though not a huge sum by Silicon Valley standards, the investment round, which unlike the first round is made up mostly of outside investors, confirms that the financial world is paying attention to the San Francisco firm, The Los Angeles Times said.
“They’ve scared people more than anyone since Benchmark [Capital],” a partner in another prominent Valley financial firm told The Financial Times, referring to the V.C. outfit that sprang to prominence in the mid-1990s with its investments in early dot-coms like eBay and Webvan."

Hindi Times: 3 tips to advance one’s career

"The foremost quality you need for career advancement is to be demanding, says Dina Dublon. She serves on the boards of companies such as Microsoft, Accenture and PepsiCo.

“Dublon, born in Brazil, holds a Bachelors degree in economics and mathematics from the Hebrew University in Jerusalem and a Masters degree from the Business School at Carnegie Mellon University,” informs a page in www.microsoft.com, about the former Chief Financial Officer, JPMorgan Chase.

What does it mean to be demanding? “Be demanding of yourself, of your boss, and of the company you work for,” instructs Dublon in an essay titled ‘Three essential attributes for career advancement,’ included in Managing Your Career ( www.tatamcgrawhill.com)."

"The author narrates the story of two immigrants, Eugene Kleiner and Andrew Grove.

Kleiner who, at the age of 18, fled Vienna in 1941, worked under William Shockley, the inventor of transistor at Bell Labs. (Shockley won the 1956 Nobel Prize for his role in discovering the transistor.)

Shockley had left Bell Labs to start his own company with the idea of developing a multiple-transistor semiconductor, using germanium as the semi-conducting material.

Kleiner and seven others on the team, who believed silicon would be superior, broke away, “scraping together $3,500 of their own money to pursue their silicon-based research,” in the 1950s. With additional funding support, Fairchild Semiconductor was soon born. (Grove would work in the company, during the 1960s, before leaving to start Intel.)"

PaidContent: Levinsohn And Miller’s Velocity Merges With ComVentures; Forms $1.5B Velocity Interactive Group

"Just four months after finally announcing their investment firm Velocity Investment Group, former FIM (NYSE: NWS) president Ross Levinsohn and former AOL (NYSE: TWX) chairman Jon Miller are merging with ComVentures to form Velocity Interactive Group. Call it the investment equivalent of marrying for love—and into money. ComVentures brings more than $1.5 billion in assets and three partners: David Britts, Keyur Patel and Roland Van der Meer. Miller and Levinsohn have been advising ComVentures and working with the venture fund on investments during the past year. The five are general partners in the combined firm, described now as an “investment firm that provides financing for seed, early stage and growth companies” with an emphasis on digital media and communications globally. In an interview Monday, Levinsohn said VIG plans to raise another round in 2008. The fund is investing “as little as $100,000, as much as $30 million.”
What happened to PE firm General Atlantic as Levinsohn and Miller’s backer when the first version of Velocity launched? Levinsohn said they hope to continue to work with GA but that PE is “generally oriented towards cash-flowing assets—which many i-companies are not.” He said GA enabled Velocity to make offers but nothing that went through given a “frothy” market. "



----------
Welcome
Velocity Interactive Group is a dynamic, evolutionary partnership, but we are not new to the business. Our partners have led large companies like AOL, Fox Interactive Media, Inktomi, Alta Vista and USA Interactive and start ups like Sportsline.com and Webvibes, and have invested in standouts like Broadcom, PairGain, Ascend, SiteSmith and Chromatis. We are focused on working as a team with our partners. This teamwork extends around the world, with partners strategically located to help our companies in person. This is what makes the job fun. You get experience, resources and support from each of us.

Philosophy and Management
We know what it takes to make a company work because we've actually done it. From start ups to companies with more than 20,000 employees, our team has been in the trenches as executives, investors and board members. We've shared the glory of success and the pain of tough times and have learned every step of the way. We like rolling up our sleeves with entrepreneurs and strive to help our investments work for the people and teams we partner with. We will be at your side every step of the way because it's simply what we are used to. It's our way of life, not a job.

Investment Approach
We are focused on digital media and communications, globally. The firm likes to invest in companies that are focused on the transformation of these industries and have the courage and stamina to do it. We will invest as little as $100,000 or as much as $30 million. We're partners, which means we will do follow on investments, not just initial capital. We're also in it for the long haul and want to see companies grow to realize their dreams.

Capital
Velocity Interactive Group is investing out of its current fund and has over $1.5B in assets under management.

Nytimes: GOOG rumbling with Microsoft

"TO Mr. Raikes, the company’s third-longest-serving executive, after Mr. Gates and Mr. Ballmer, the Google challenge is an attack on Microsoft that is both misguided and arrogant. “The focus is on competitive self-interest; it’s on trying to undermine Microsoft, rather than what customers want to do,” he says."

"Microsoft, Mr. Raikes notes, has spent years and billions of dollars in product development and customer research, studying in minute detail how individual workers and companies use software. What they want, he says, is the desktop programs and features of Microsoft Office, and the proof is in the marketplace. “I mean, we have more than 500 million people who are using Microsoft Office tools,” he says.

Indeed, Microsoft is the wealthy incumbent with a huge lead in the market for personal productivity software, with a share of more than 90 percent. But the Google challenge, industry analysts say, is not so much a head-to-head confrontation with Microsoft in its desktop stronghold as it is a long-term shift toward Web software, which operates with different principles and economics."

Philippine prison thriller on CNN

John Cook: Venture Capital: Car dealers driving a hot streak at Cobalt

"THE COBALT GROUP could very well be the biggest Internet company in Seattle you've never heard of. And the 12-year-old company, which develops Web sites and online marketing services for about one-third of the automobile dealers in the U.S., is poised to get even bigger in 2008.
With revenue expected to hit $170 million this year, the privately held company is planning to hire about 300 people over the next 12 months, bringing worldwide employment to 1,000. Most of the new hires will be in the Seattle area, primarily in search engine marketing and content management of dealers' Web sites.
To accommodate that growth, Cobalt Group Chief Executive John Holt has been scouring the Lynnwood/Bothell area for 45,000 to 60,000 square feet of additional office space.
What's driving the hiring spree?
Holt says business is booming as automobile dealers shift resources from traditional advertising to the Internet. With dealers spending roughly 10 percent of their ad budgets online, Holt, 51, thinks there's plenty of room for The Cobalt Group to grow. In fact, he is targeting 35 to 40 percent annual growth for the next two years, which would give the company about $300 million in revenue by 2009."

Youtube: The $100 iPhone+iPod Touch Stand

EETimes: NewsGator Secures $12M in Venture Capital Funding and Adds Lisa Reeves to Its Board of Directors

" NewsGator Technologies, Inc., a pioneer in RSS and Enterprise 2.0, announced today that it has closed a $12 million round of funding. Led by new investor Vista Ventures, the round also includes existing investors -- Mobius Venture Capital and Masthead Venture Partners. NewsGator also announced the addition of Lisa Reeves, a general partner at Vista Ventures, to its Board of Directors.
"We are delighted to partner with Vista and we appreciate the continued support from Mobius Venture Capital and Masthead," said J.B. Holston, president and CEO of NewsGator. "We also welcome the addition of Lisa Reeves to our Board of Directors. Ms. Reeves has 15 years of experience at SAP AG, including managing its venture fund, as well as senior operational roles both in the U.S. and Europe. Lisa's unique enterprise software and venture investing expertise will be invaluable as NewsGator continues to lead the Enterprise 2.0 market."
"NewsGator is the most exciting late stage deal in Colorado," stated Lisa Reeves. "I look forward to serving on NewsGator's Board of Directors and leveraging my enterprise software experience from SAP to help foster NewsGator's revenue growth."
NewsGator provides an enterprise-class RSS platform and supporting RSS applications that help individuals and businesses improve the way they find information and communicate. Using NewsGator products and solutions, businesses and consumers can subscribe to news, information, podcasts and other relevant content more efficiently and effectively than with traditional channels. Since launching its enterprise RSS strategy in mid-2005, NewsGator has become the leading provider of RSS products to Fortune 2000 businesses and media companies.
Brad Feld, managing director of Mobius Venture Capital, stated, "It is exciting to be involved with the market leader for enterprise RSS software. NewsGator's Enterprise Server has been implemented at over 100 Fortune 2000 companies. This financing round will enable NewsGator to continue its aggressive expansion within the enterprise RSS market."
Richard Levandov, general partner of Masthead, added, "Masthead is pleased to invest additional funds in NewsGator given the company's achievements within the enterprise RSS and media markets. NewsGator's Widget Framework has been adopted by over 50 of the world's largest media companies, online publishers, and advertising agencies including Cablevision Systems Corporation, Macmillan, The Miami Herald, and San Jose Mercury News."
The continued support of Mobius and Masthead, along with new investment from Vista, provides NewsGator with the resources to expand its global sales and marketing efforts. "

Bye Bye CTO Second Life

"SAN FRANCISCO (AP) — Virtual world Second Life's chief technology officer — a colorful Navy veteran who delights in mocking creationism — has resigned.

Cory Ondrejka, employee No. 4 at San Francisco-based Linden Lab, which owns Second Life, quit Tuesday and will depart at the end of the year.

Ondrejka helped write the computer code that underpins the popular virtual world. Second Life is a 3D Internet destination where users create, buy and sell fantastic islands inhabited by virtual characters, or avatars.

Philip Rosedale, CEO of the eight-year-old company, said Ondrejka resigned to "pursue new professional challenges" and said he and Ondrejka had strategic differences.

"The needs of our company are changing, and the role of CTO, or technical lead, has also evolved," Rosedale said in a statement. "Cory and I are in agreement that our paths, at this point in time at least, lie in different directions."

Ondrejka could not be reached for comment Wednesday."

Funny Bubble Startups

Reuters: SAIF Partners is VC Fund of the Year and CDH Investments Wins PE Fund of the Year

SAIF Partners is VC Fund of the Year and CDH Investments Wins PE Fund of the
Year in the 2007 China VC&PE Annual Ranking

SAIF Partners won the highest proportion of votes and became "Venture Capital Fund of the Year 2007," ranking first on the list of "Top 50 Venture Capital Funds of the Year 2007." Andy Yan led his team to complete a wide variety of remarkable investment and exit deals in 2007, and accordingly he won "Venture Capitalist of the Year 2007." IDGVC Partners and Shenzhen Capital Group ranked second and third, respectively, on the list of "Top 50 Venture Capital Funds of the Year 2007."
One of the new features of this annual rewards ceremony is the rankings of private equity firms. After multiple-round votes on PE funds and investors focusing on investing in Mainland China, CDH Investments with absolute advantage wins three awards -- "Private Equity Fund of the Year 2007," "PE Fundraising Winner of the Year 2007" and "PE Exit Winner of the Year 2007," and Shangzhi Wu, Chairman & Managing Partner of CDH Investments, is crowned with the title of "PE Capitalist of the Year 2007." Morgan Stanley and Bain Capital rank second and third respectively on the list of "Top 30 Private Equity Funds of the Year 2007."

The success of alibaba.com debut makes the company "VC Exit of the Year 2007" and its founder Jack Ma "VC/PE-Backed Entrepreneur of the Year 2007." In the list of "Top 10 VC/PE-Backed Entrepreneurs of the Year 2007," you will also find Michael Chi (Chairman and CEO of Perfect World), Herman Guo (Chairman and CEO of Airmedia), and Qi Ji (CEO of Hanting Hotel Chain), etc. In the context of RMB funds tending to become popular and more and more investments exiting on domestic market, agencies provided such services as domestic listing and merger and acquisition for both investors and enterprises. Therefore, the ranking for agencies serving domestic IPO and merges and acquisitions is another highlight at the annual rewards & ranking ceremony. Jingtian & Gongcheng Attorneys at Law and King & Wood PRC Lawyers are respectively appraised as "Overseas IPO Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007"
and "Domestic IPO Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007;" Shearman & Sterling as "Merger & Acquisition Market Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007;" and Deloitte and PWC as "VC/PE-Backed Overseas IPO Lead Auditing Firm of the Year 2007" and "VC/PE-Backed Domestic IPO Lead Auditing Firm of the Year 2007." During the awards ceremony, the "Top 10 Venture Capitalists of the Year 2007," "Top 50 Venture Capital Funds of the Year 2007," and "Top 30 Private Equity Funds of the Year 2007" were also announced.


Appendix: 2007 China VC and PE Annual Ranking

Part I: Venture Capital

-- Venture Capital Fund of the Year 2007
SAIF Partners
-- VC Investment Winner of the Year 2007
IDGVC Partners
Shenzhen Capital Group Co., Ltd. (SCGC)
-- VC Fundraising Winner of the Year 2007
SAIF Partners
-- VC Exit Winner of the Year 2007
SAIF Partners


Top 50 Venture Capital Funds of the Year 2007

Rank VC Funds Rank VC Funds
1 SAIF Partners 26 China Merchants Technology
Holdings Co., Ltd.
2 IDGVC Partners 27 Granite Global Ventures
3 Shenzhen Capital Group Co., 28 iDTech Ventures
Ltd. (SCGC)
4 Sequoia Capital China 29 Shenzhen Fortune Venture
Capital Co., Ltd.
5 NewMargin Ventures 30 DCM Group
6 KPCB China Fund 31 Fidelity Investment Group
7 Susquehanna International 32 WI Harper Group
Group, LLP.
8 CDH Venture 33 JAFCO Investment (Asia
Pacific) Ltd
9 Legend Capital 34 Orchid Asia Group
Management Co., Ltd.
10 Northern Light Venture 35 Gobi Partners
Capital
11 Softbank China Venture 36 Tsing Capital
Capital
12 The CID Group 37 Lightspeed Venture
Partners
13 New Enterprise Associates 38 Wuhan Huagong Venture
Capital Co., Ltd.
14 DT Capital Partners 39 Redpoint Ventures
15 AsiaVest Partners, TCW/YFY 40 Shenzhen Oriental Fortune
Ltd. Capital Co., Ltd.
16 Qiming Venture Partners 41 Steamboat Ventures
17 Infotech Pacific Ventures 42 Jiangsu High-Tech
Investment Group Investment Group
18 KTB Ventures 43 Bluerun Ventures
Suzhou Ventures Group
19 (China-Singapore Suzhou 44 Draper Fisher Jurvetson
Industrial Park Ventures Dragon Fund
Co., Ltd.)
20 GSR Ventures 45 Canton Venture Capital
21 Chengwei Venture 46 ePlanet Ventures
22 Intel Capital 47 Draper Fisher Jurvetson
China
23 Capital Today 48 Bessemer Venture Partners
(Shanghai) Co., Ltd.
Heilongjiang Chenergy-HIT
24 Japan Asia Investment Co., 49 Hi-tech Venture Capital
Ltd. Co., Ltd. (CVC)
Hunan XiangTou Hi-Tech
25 Walden International 50 Venture Capital Co., Ltd
(Hunan Gaoke Telecom
Equipment Co., Ltd.)


Part II: Private Equity (focusing on Mainland China)

-- Private Equity Fund of the Year 2007
CDH Investments
-- PE Investment Winner of the Year 2007
Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc.
Bain Capital, LLC
-- PE Fundraising Winner of the Year 2007
CDH Investments
-- PE Exit Winner of the Year 2007
CDH Investments


Top 30 Private Equity Funds of the Year 2007
Rank PE Funds Rank PE Funds
1 CDH Investments 16 Lehman Brothers Inc.
2 Morgan Stanley 17 Prax Capital Management
Co.
3 Bain Capital, LLC 18 The Carlyle Group, L.L.C.
4 The Goldman Sachs Group, 19 General Atlantic LLC.
Inc.
5 Temasek Holdings Pte Ltd. 20 Bohai Industrial
Investment Fund
6 Warburg Pincus LLC. 21 Texas Pacific Group
7 The International Finance 22 Tiger Fund
Corporation
8 Merrill Lynch & Co., Inc. 23 American International
Group, Inc.
9 Hony Capital Limited 24 CVC Asia Pacific Ltd
10 Baring Private Equity Asia 25 3i Group
The Government of Singapore
11 Investment Corporation Pte 26 New Horizon Fund
Ltd.
12 The Blackstone Group 27 Natixis Private Equity
Asia Limited
13 KOHLBERG KRAVIS ROBERTS & Co. 28 H&Q Asia Pacific
14 Citigroup 29 Actis
15 The Cathay Capital Group 30 Blue Ridge Capital


Part III: People


Venture Capitalist of the Year 2007
Name VC Fund Position
Andy Yan SAIF Partners Managing Partner


Top 10 Venture Capitalists of the Year 2007
Name VC Fund Position
Feng Deng Northern Light Venture Founding Managing
Capital Director
Tao Feng NewMargin Ventures Managing Partner
Haitao Jin Shenzhen Capital Group Co., Chairman
Ltd. (SCGC)
Dongliang IDGVC Partners Partner
Lin
Gongquan CDH Venture General Partner
Wang
Chauncey Softbank China Venture Managing Partner
Shey Capital
Andy Yan SAIF Partners Managing Partner
Daniel Yang SAIF Partners Partner
Fan Zhang Sequoia Capital China Founding Managing Partner
Joe Zhou KPCB China Fund Managing Partner
-- Listed in order of last name


PE Capitalist of the Year 2007 (focusing on Mainland China)
Name PE Fund Position
Shangzhi Wu CDH Investments Chairman


Top 10 PE Capitalists of the Year 2007 (focusing on Mainland China)
Name PE Fund Position
Jing Huang Bain Capital, LLC Managing Director
Zhen Jiao CDH Investments Managing Partner
David Liu KOHLBERG KRAVIS ROBERTS & Co. Managing Director
Chang Sun Warburg Pincus LLC. Managing Director
Kevin Wang Natixis Private Equity Asia Managing Partner
Limited
Shangzhi Wu CDH Investments Chairman & Managing
Partner
Xiang-Dong The Carlyle Group, L.L.C. Managing Director
(X.D.) Yang
Conrad Baring Private Equity Asia Principal
Tsang
Kevin Zhang The Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. Managing Director
John H. Hony Capital Limited CEO & Managing Director
Zhao
-- Listed in order of last name


VC/PE-Backed Entrepreneur of the Year 2007
Entrepreneur Position Enterprise Investor

Chairman & Alibaba.com Softbank China
Jack Ma Non-Executive Director Limited Venture Capital,
GGV, etc.


Top 10 VC/PE-Backed Entrepreneurs of the Year 2007
Name Position Enterprise Investor
Michael Chairman & CEO Perfect world Co., Ltd. SAIF, etc.
Chi
Herman Chairman & CEO Airmedia CDH China Growth
Guo Capital, etc.
James Hu CEO Acorn International SAIF, etc.
Qi Ji CEO Hanting Hotels Inc. CDH, Northern
Light, etc.
Pak Kwan Chairman Kingsoft Corp. Intel Capital,
KAU etc.
Ge Li Chairman & CEO WuXi PharmaTech Co., Fidelity Investment,
Ltd. UOB, etc.
Zengxiang Chairman & CEO Beijing Novel-Tongfang SAIF, etc.
Lu Digital TV
Technology Co., Ltd.
Jack Ma Chairman & Alibaba.com Limited SBCVC and GGV, etc.
Non-Executive
Director
Yuzhu Shi Chairman & CEO Giant Interactive SIG, etc.
Group Inc

Ping Wu President, Spreadtrum NEA Legend
Chairman & CEO Communications Inc. Capital, etc.



Part IV: Deal

-- VC Investment of the Year 2007
-- Vacancy
-- VC Exit of the Year 2007
-- Alibaba.com Limited
-- PE Investment of the Year 2007
-- Vacancy
-- PE Exit of the Year 2007
-- Airmedia

Part V: Agency

-- Venture Capital Market Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007
--DLA PIPER
-- Private Equity Market Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007
--O'MELVENY & MYERS LLP
-- Overseas IPO Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007
--JINGTIAN & GONGCHENG
-- Domestic IPO Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007
--KING & WOOD PRC LAWYERS
-- VC/PE-Backed Overseas IPO Lead Auditing Firm of the Year 2007
--Deloitte
-- VC/PE-Backed Domestic IPO Lead Auditing Firm of the Year 2007
--PricewaterhouseCoopers


Top 3 Active Overseas IPO Lead Underwriters of the Year 2007
Rank Company
1 UBS
2 Goldman Sachs (Asia) Ltd.
3 Morgan Stanley Asia Limited


Top 3 Active Domestic IPO Lead Underwriters of the Year 2007
Rank Company
1 CITIC Securities Co., Ltd.
2 China International Capital Corporation Limited (CICC)
3 Guosen Securities Co, Ltd.


-- Merger & Acquisition Market Lead Legal Advisor of the Year 2007
--SHEARMAN & STERLING LLP

Gothamist: A Preview of the Meatpacking Apple Store

AP CleanTech: Eco-friendly kangaroo farts could help global warming: scientists

"Australian scientists are trying to give kangaroo-style stomachs to cattle and sheep in a bid to cut the emission of greenhouse gases blamed for global warming, researchers say. "

"Thanks to special bacteria in their stomachs, kangaroo flatulence contains no methane and scientists want to transfer that bacteria to cattle and sheep who emit large quantities of the harmful gas.

While the usual image of greenhouse gas pollution is a billowing smokestack pushing out carbon dioxide, livestock passing wind contribute a surprisingly high percentage of total emissions in some countries.

"Fourteen percent of emissions from all sources in Australia is from enteric methane from cattle and sheep," said Athol Klieve, a senior research scientist with the Queensland state government."

ComputerWorld: Warrior is new CTO at Cisco

" December 04, 2007 (IDG News Service) -- Padmasree Warrior, who resigned as Motorola Inc.'s chief technology officer yesterday, will take on the same job at Cisco Systems Inc., the networking vendor announced today.
Warrior will become Cisco's first CTO since Charles Giancarlo traded the title for chief development officer in 2005 in a broad management reorganization. Cisco has not disclosed when she will start the new job. Warrior, 47, will report to Chairman and CEO John Chambers.
The move takes Warrior from a struggling maker of consumer and enterprise mobile products to a company that dominates several markets and is rapidly expanding into others. Her departure from Motorola came just days after CEO Ed Zander was replaced amid falling sales and profits. Zander is set to leave the company at year's end. "

News.com: Visible Path to be acquired

"While rumors swirl about acquisitions of popular social-networking sites, one deal has already happened: Visible Path, which makes social-networking tools for business users, is set to be acquired.
A company representative on Tuesday said that Visible Path has signed a term sheet with a multibillion international company to sell the firm. She said the service is expected to continue operating.

Visible Path's hosted service gives people a map of their contacts and their contacts' relationships, which its software automatically builds. It lets people search through that network.
Unlike many social-networking sites, Visible Path is not a separate destination. Its tools are meant to be used with other desktop applications.
The company was founded in 2002 and funded by Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, Menlo Ventures, and Integral Capital Partners.
Rumors were circulating earlier this month that News Corp. was in negotiations to buy LinkedIn, a social network used by professionals. "

Meru Makes The Honor Roll In Philadelphia Schools

Meru Networks announces large-scale wireless network for the School District of Philadelphia, a significant win for a player who has often been snubbed for its small size. -->
-->
Dec 3, 2007 - By Frank Bulk

Meru Networks has come up from behind and apparently stole the prize for the largest deployed Wi-Fi installation in North America. Publicized accounts mention over 3000 access points installed at Ohio State University, and a source has said that Microsoft has over 10,000 access points deployed worldwide, both wins using Aruba Networks. In Australia Victoria's Department of Education deploy a few more: 10,000 access points across 1700 sites in Cisco's autonomous mode. Previously hinted in the Mobile Observer newsletter, it's now public news that the School District of Philadelphia has deployed over 7000 Meru radio switches in more than 90 schools. What's remarkable is that this is just the beginning - contingent on further funding from E-Rate, twice the existing number of schools will be deployed to complete the project. A representative from Meru Networks predicted that another third would be installed this coming year, and when that happens, the district will have the most wireless access points of any organization in the world. The School District of Philadelphia encompasses 268 schools, 166,000 students, and 10,000 teachers.
It was just a year ago that Meru announced their involvement with Philadelphia's "School of the Future" project, an initiative led by Microsoft. According to a school spokesperson in a radio interview with NPR, Microsoft's involvement in the "School of the Future" was to provide guidance and direction and they were not a significant financial supporter. Key themes of the "School of the Future" project included using technology and well-designed workspaces to help students achieve their maximum potential. The wireless network, one component of that project's technology infrastructure, was delivered by Meru.

Facebook Hong Kong

"Hong Kong billionaire Li Ka-shing has invested $60 million in social networking Web site Facebook, equivalent to a 0.4% stake, and has the option for an additional $60 million investment, according to a report by a technology blog."