Expanded "Young Companies to Watch"
My list of "Young Companies to Watch" is not particularly scientific, and certainly not perfect. It represents the companies I have found to have shown the greatest potential, either in terms of achieved benchmarks in the marketplace or proprietary intellectual capital and strategy. I know there are a few on this list that haven't found their niche yet, but overall I think it would make a fairly good portfolio.
But there are literally hundreds of interesting young IT startups in the Philadelphia region, and I'd like to be a little more inclusive in providing information and details about them. So here is the beginning of a more expanded database, to which I will add to over time selectively.
Others to watch
Ringside Networks of Marlton is probably getting the most hype right now. It provides an open source social application server that can be used to build applications and integrate them into different social networks. Bob Bickel (formerly of Bluestone and JBoss) has done a remarkable job of evangelizing the company. Its still a little early to measure the actual traction Ringside is gaining in the market, as they only officially launched about three months ago, but a lot of people are building applications on it. Initial funding came from Matrix Partners; another round is expected soon.
Redlasso is also getting a great deal of publicity, but not all good. Its going to have to develop a more legally acceptable business model to survive. Originally funded by Pat Croce, among others, Redlasso is seeking another round but is going to have difficulty doing so given their legal issues. Others particularly intruiging are Integromics, GenSight, Commerce360, CenTrak, and FlyTunes. Intregromics and GenSight are actually based in Europe, but have their US headquarters here.
The focus here is on younger, mostly early stage startups. Companies that are entirely or majority owned subsidiaries of larger corporations are not included.
