The long, winding road for driverless cars (The Economist)
Reporter has the story straight, I think.

With Gianforte's win, two of Montana's three congressional reps have ties to Oracl's win, two of Montana's three congressional reps have ties to Oracle (CNBC)



5/26: Dell Technologies Standardizes on Salesforce.com; Montana politico may have N.J. building named after him



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Greg Gianforte, Montana politico in fracas, may have N.J. building named after him (NJ.com)

Arris: DOCSIS 3.1 Wave Rising (Multichannel News)

Brocade goes bye-bye: Out on a high note ahead of Broadcom slurp (The Register)
Arris' purchase of the Ruckus business, now part of Brocade, won't happen until after Broadcom's acquisition of Brocade closes.


WideOpenWest shares fail to wow in debut (Reuters)
Altice USA should be next cable IPO.

S/4HANA cloud customers emerge – a video review and analysis (Diginomica)

Dell Technologies Standardizes on Salesforce.com
(CIOToday)

Ice Miller expanding IP practice with Philadelphia office (TheIndianaLawyer)







Billtrust raises $50 million to expand payment cycle management solution



Billtrust raises $50 million to expand payment cycle management solution
Plans include global expansion and investments in expanded services for Quantum Payment Cycle Management


HAMILTON, N.J., May 25, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- Billtrust, the leader in payment cycle management, announced today a $50 million funding round led by Riverwood Capital Management. Billtrust will use the investment to strategically grow into adjacent markets, continue to innovate the products and services available in their Quantum Payment Cycle Management solution and expand their global footprint.

Founded in 2001, Billtrust is the pioneer of payment cycle management, helping clients automate and accelerate their accounts receivable (AR) processes to increase cash flow, improve operational efficiency and increase customer satisfaction.

"Billtrust's mission is to not only accelerate, but to help clients grow cash flow," said Flint Lane, CEO and founder of Billtrust. "Our Quantum Payment Cycle Management solution is unique in the market because it seamlessly automates what is a traditionally labor intensive, manual process for AR teams. With this new investment, we will look for growth opportunities in current and adjacent markets, continue innovating our Quantum solution to meet expanding client needs, such as credit and collections support, and broaden our reach in international markets."

Since its inception, Billtrust has complemented its aggressive organic growth strategy with five acquisitions over the last six years. The company boasts the most comprehensive, end-to-end cloud-based billing and payment solution in the industry.

Quantum's features include:

Simple integration with any existing ERP system
Tailored invoice delivery for every customer
Secure, multi-channel invoice payment options
Intelligent cash application to eliminate manual invoice and payment matching
"Billtrust helps enterprises with a critical part of running their business: how they get paid. Their market-leading Quantum solution meets the needs of CFOs for a strategic, end-to-end solution that drives cash flow and cost savings through automation and improved efficiency," said Francisco Alvarez-Demalde, founding partner at Riverwood Capital Management. "We are excited to partner with Billtrust's entire team in creating an enduring leader in the B2B payment cycle management sector. We see a clear long term secular shift towards process automation software as a strong tailwind for Billtrust to continue delivering on its mission of improving outcomes for AR departments."

With this funding, Mr. Alvarez-Demalde will join the Billtrust board of directors.

Financial Technology Partners LP and FTP Securities LLC (together "FT Partners") served as exclusive strategic and financial advisor to Billtrust on this transaction.

About Billtrust: Billtrust accelerates cash flow by automating invoice delivery, invoice payment, and cash application. Companies can improve operational efficiency throughout the invoice-to-cash process with electronic invoicing and payments in a flexible, cloud-based solution. Finance executives and AR specialists love and recommend Quantum, Billtrust's payment cycle management solution, for the remarkable cost savings, ease-of-use, and improved customer satisfaction rates.

Related Links

http://www.billtrust.com



5/25: Veeva Up 4% on Fiscal Q1 Beat; RevZilla gets new CEO



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RevZilla gets new CEO (Philadelphia Business Journal)

IBD 50 Stock Veeva Surges On Consensus-Crushing Q1 (IBD)

Veeva Up 4% on Fiscal Q1: Approaching a Threshold of Scale (Barron's Tech Trader Daily)



Map: Emerging tech hubs and what they're specializing in (Marketplace)

Rackspace continues managed services pivot with TriCore acquisition (VentureBeat)
Based in Massachusetts, TriCore has an office in Berwyn.

How did an ex-Upper Merion football player end up allegedly ‘body slamming’ a reporter in Montana? (Philly.com)
Gianforte founded RightNow Technologies, which he sold to Oracle for a reported $1.5 billion.

Jeff Immelt Places Big Bets on GE’s Software Push (Fortune)

AT&T's DirecTV Now Online Service Said to See Growth Sputter (Ad Age)










Salesforce & Dell Technologies reach strategic agreement for cloud computing; Dell Boomi has key role (CNBC)



Osage Venture Partners Closes $90M Fund
Maintains Decade-Long Focus on Early-Stage East Coast Business-to-Business Software Investing (Press Release)



Osage Venture Partners Closes $90M Fund
Maintains Decade-Long Focus on Early-Stage East Coast Business-to-Business Software Investing


BALA CYNWYD, PA--(Marketwired - May 23, 2017) - Osage Venture Partners (OVP), today announced the closing of Osage Venture Partners IV, a $90 million fund focused on investing in early-stage, business-to-business (B2B) software companies on the East Coast. OVP IV represents the latest fund executing on OVP's decade-long strategy of backing exceptional East Coast entrepreneurs building leading B2B software companies that target large emerging or shifting markets.

"With OVP IV we advance our mission of finding and funding the highest quality startups on the East Coast", said OVP managing partner, Nate Lentz. "Innovation in the U.S. is no longer constrained to a small handful of U.S. markets, and our investment strategy focuses on established and emerging technology hubs including Philadelphia, New York, Boston, Washington D.C. / Northern Virginia, Raleigh-Durham, and Atlanta, among others. OVP III made investments in each of these markets and OVP IV's portfolio will reflect an increased focus on opportunities in 'Rise of the Rest' cities."

OVP IV represents a meaningful increase in commitments over OVP III, a $66 million fund, allowing more flexibility with the size of initial and follow-on investments. Since the first closing, OVP IV has completed five platform investments including Phone2Action, Noodle Partners, and Galactic Fog, with two recent investments to be announced shortly.

"We are grateful for the support that our many returning investors and new limited partners have shown for our strategy and our team," commented Bob Adelson, managing partner at Osage Venture Partners. "We also fully recognize that the lion's share of our success at OVP has been driven by dozens of outstanding entrepreneurs who have since become brand ambassadors for our fund. These relationships are critical to our continued success."

The investing team of Bob Adelson, Nate Lentz, David Drahms, and Sean Dowling has been together since the start of OVP III and will continue to expand as OVP IV is deployed. Osage Venture Partners is part of a family of investment funds within Osage Partners, which is based just outside Philadelphia, PA and manages in excess of $500 million.

About Osage Venture Partners
Osage Venture Partners (OVP) invests in early stage, business-to-business (B2B) software companies on the East Coast from its offices just outside of Philadelphia, PA. With over $150 million under management, OVP seeks to invest in determined and creative entrepreneurs and provide them with the capital and support required to build high-growth, market-leading businesses. For more information, visit osagepartners.com.



5/22: Rimini Street merger takes company public to fuel future growth; Company behind disastrous Fyre Festival claimed to be worth $90 million, as details emerge in court



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Rimini Street merger takes company public to fuel future growth (Inside SAP)

Supreme Court Messes With Texas ‘Patent Troll’ Hotbed in Win for Tech Industry (Fortune)
SAP has been dragged down to east Texas, among many others.

Francisco Said to Target More Than $3 Billion for Tech Buyouts (Bloomberg)



Company behind disastrous Fyre Festival claimed to be worth $90 million, as details emerge in court (Bloomberg via Chicago Tribune)

Comcast CFO Touts New Universal Studios Theme Park in Beijing (Hollywood Reporter)

T-Mobile: 'Capital Structure' Would Be Key In Sprint Merger (IBD)

Verizon CEO: Combined Yahoo-AOL Will Be Platform to Test Over-the-Top Video Service (Variety)
Didn't know AOL bought Yahoo! for an OTT platform.


Dish App Streams Live TV, VOD to Amazon’s Fire TV (Multichannel News)

TPG to Buy Wave Broadband for $2.36B
(Multichannel News)
TPG also owns Princeton-based RCN.





Weekend Highlights; Cloud Computing Wins Preakness Stakes, Techies Stoked; Pittsburgh Welcomed Uber’s Driverless Car Experiment. Not Anymore



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Cloud Computing Wins Preakness Stakes, and Techies Are Stoked
(Fortune)

FCC won't publish evidence of alleged DDoS attack, amid net neutrality battle (ZDNet)


EMR change cited as one of the reasons IBM Watson and MD Anderson collaboration failed (iMedicalApps)

Pittsburgh Welcomed Uber’s Driverless Car Experiment. Not Anymore. (NY Times)


Walmart’s U.S. Online Sales Rise 63% (Fortune)

Salesforce sails into record territory, and analysts see calm waters ahead (Marketwatch)

2017 Healthcare Prognosis (Venrock)
Will Epic start making acquisitions? Would people rather bet on Flatiron, Clover or Oscar?

Cloud-services company's [EvolveIP} Upper Macungie office could grow after acquisition of Arizona firm (Morning Call)


U.S. Startups Fail to Attract Crowd of Small Investors (Bloomberg)

Huntsman Is Said to Be Close to Merger With Clariant (NY Times: DealBook)


5/19: Benioff Touts Amazon as Salesforce’s New Best Friend; Comcast launches site for Xfinity Mobile sign-ups



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Salesforce's strong results allay slowing growth concerns (Reuters)


Marc Benioff Touts Amazon as Salesforce’s New Best Friend (Fortune)

PACT honors for Richard Vague, deals of the year (Philly.com)

Jonathan Bush’s Athenahealth Has a New Activist Investor (Fortune)
Paul Singer's latest target.

Comcast launches site for Xfinity Mobile sign-ups (Philadelphia Business Journal)

Comcast shuffles its digital ad business (Recode)

Roger Ailes lived in Media when he worked on the ‘Mike Douglas Show’ in the ‘60s (Philly.com)






5/18: Poynter on Philly papers (or website, really) ; Why Amazon’s Probably Not Going To Blow Up Wireless Next



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In Philadelphia, 3 newsrooms had to become 1. Now, they’re taking on a whole new kind of change (Poynter)

Why Amazon’s Probably Not Going To Blow Up Wireless Next
(Fortune)

Here’s Why Brookings Thinks Philly’s Innovation Scene Isn’t Competitive Enough (Philly.com)

Spark Therapeutics completes regulatory filing application for its experimental gene therapy medicine (Philly.com)

Salesforce Rising:: Trumpets Rising Profit Margins, Market Share (Barron's Tech Trader Daily)


​IBM Watson meets SAP Leonardo for cognitive procurement (ZDNet)





Ben Franklin-funded blockchain startup AlphaPoint racking up awards. and clients (Correction: mea culpa)

Tom Paine







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AlphaPoint, the innovative blockchain startup that began life in the Philly area but appears to have mostly migrated to New York, was  named the overall winner in the 2017 Benzinga Fintech Awards.

AlphaPoint received a $1.5 million seed investment in October 2014 from investors including Ben Franklin, Robin Hood Ventures and Invite Media cofounder Scott Becker. CEO Joe Ventura and VP of Development Jack Sallen are founders; Igor Telyatnikov (ex-LiftDNA) is President & COO. Vadim Telyatnikov, founder of King of Prussia-based LiftDNA (acquired by OpenX) is on the board.

CrunchBase shows AlphaPoint having raised a total of $2.5 million; CrunchBase also reported a March 2017 investment by SocialStart, a relatively small but interesting Seed / Series A VC , but the amount is not specified.

In addition to the Benzinga award, AlphaPoint also won Water's Technology Sell-Side Technology Award 2017 for Best Infrastructure Provider to the Sell Side. AlphaPoint is also a finalist in PACT's 2017 Enterprise Awards' Technology Startup category, with the winners to be named tomorrow night.

The AlphaPoint Distributed Ledger Platform (ADLP), which runs on Microsoft Azure, is currently installed at over a dozen “revenue-generating customers,” Water's Technology reported AlphaPoint as saying, including CME Group; Scotiabank; BTCC, a Chinese bitcoin exchange; and Brighton Peak, a Melbourne-based bitcoin exchange. It is designed to resolve key bottlenecks faced in high-performance enterprise environments.

Asked by Philly Tech News about its Philly area presence, COO Telyatnikov responded by email, "We have been growing our PA Technology and Operations teams and are currently hiring. We are excited to be expanding our Pennsylvania team and are committed to helping the region become a hub for blockchain technology." When asked whether its headquarters was in New York, he responded, "Our New York office is our primary sales office." AlphaPoint has offices on Sugartown Road in Berwyn, though as best as I can tell from LinkedIn maybe two of its roughly twenty employees are based there. A few others are scattered elsewhere in the US.

Clarification: I missed some email responses in the thread with COO Telyatnikov:

 "We actually currently have 7 people in PA."

"Worth noting we also recently brought on a VP of Sales based in Philadelphia, the tech and ops roles are the current open roles we are hiring for (5 in total)."

"Per the number we have in PA also would not agree that we mostly have migrated to NY. We only have 7 full time in NY as well - and we previously had offices in both locations as well (we also have staff in North Carolina and San Fransisco)."

I sincerely apologize for my error. I had asked a question explicitly aimed at gathering this information,  and  failed to note the full response.

Update 5/22: AlphaPoint Unveils an Asset Issuance and Custody Solution for Initial Coin Offerings (ICOs)




Philadelphia-based Chaikin Analytics also was a winner in the 'Trading Recommendation' category. Wayne-based Quantaverse, which I profiled last December, was also nominated for an award. Its also a nominee for PACT's 'Technology Startup' award.





5/17: Comcast's smart home app has a new hue; URBN looks beyond the store for growth



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Comcast's smart home app controls your Philips Hue lights (Engadget)

Comcast’s new wireless service, Xfinity Mobile, is now live (TechCrunch)


RDK Stokes Global Growth (Multichannel News)

Media firm Deltatre ready to move into U.S.
(SportsBusinessDaily)

Cheddar ​streams $19 million in new funding (Axios)



With Stores Slipping, Urban Outfitters Looks to Wholesale, International (WWD)
And also ecommerce.

Amazon, Dish Network In Wireless Partnership Talks: Report (IBD)
Big news if it materializes.

SAP unveils blockchain service in the cloud (CNBC)



5/16: DreamIt alum LevelUp gets $50 million; Report: Amazon eying pharmacy market



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SAP now offering multicloud option with AWS, Azure, Google (ZDNet)

SAP sends Leonardo digital innovation system into full swing (ZDNet)

LevelUp mobile app gets $50 million in latest fintech fundraising round (CNBC)
LevelUp, an early DreamIt grad now based in Boston, has had its ups and downs but appears to have found major traction; Chase relationship a key.

Why the Companies That Actually Make Your Drugs Are in a Merger Frenzy (Fortune)

WOW Sets Price Range for IPO (Multichannel News)

Comcast Places Bigger Target on Bigger Business (Multichannel News)


Amazon's streaming software powers new smart TVs (AP via Philly.com)

Amazon is hiring people to break into the multibillion-dollar pharmacy market (CNBC)

and... LevelUp mobile app gets $50 million raised $20 million from Thrive
(TechCrunch)
Joshua Kushner, brother of Trump assistant Jared, is one of Thrive's founders.
,,


Bullpen raises $83.6 mln for third fund (PE Hub)
Part-time Doylestown resident Paul Martino is founder and managing partner.






5/15: Looking at Comcast on three new fronts; IBM's Watson 'a joke?'



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Comcast takes the smart home beyond its service footprint (Stacey on IoT)

Cable’s Dense Infrastructure Suited for 5G Small Cell Networks: Analyst (Multichannel News)


Comcast Is Getting Close to Offering Internet TV Service (Fortune)
Only to its own broadband customers, it says.



IBM's Watson 'is a joke,' says Social Capital CEO Palihapitiya (CNBC)


INC Research to merge with inVentiv in latest contract medical research deal (Reuters)

State of Manufacturing ERP – Part 4 – Rootstock and NetSuite (Diginomica)


The Philadelphia 76ers and Team Dignitas reveal the parallels between esports and traditional sports
(VentureBeat)
I guess its trust the process, again.

The story of Uber's first CEO — before Travis Kalanick
(CNBC)

Lyft and Waymo Reach Deal to Collaborate on Self-Driving Cars (NY Times)


Globalstar Works With Advisers to Explore Potential Sale (Bloomberg)


Weekend Highlights; Virtustream launches healthcare cloud platform; SAP Goes to SAPPHIRE 2017



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Virtustream launches healthcare cloud platform, lets providers pay for what they use (HealthcareItNews)



Geisinger partners with Highmark in central Pennsylvania (Morning Call)

Wave of Telecom Mergers Not Hitting As Big As Promised
(Fortune)

Apple Just Acquired This Little-Known Artificial Intelligence Startup
(Fortune)

SAP Goes to SAPPHIRE 2017, part I (Joshua Greenbaum / Enterprise Applications Consulting)






The Philadelphia 76ers and Team Dignitas reveal the parallels between esports and traditional sports
(VentureBeat)
I guess its trust the process, again.

The story of Uber's first CEO — before Travis Kalanick
(CNBC)

Lyft and Waymo Reach Deal to Collaborate on Self-Driving Cars (NY Times)


Globalstar Works With Advisers to Explore Potential Sale (Bloomberg)






5/12: Comcast video chief still sees value in the bundle; NBCUniversal spent around $230 million to buy Craftsy



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Sprint, SoftBank Said in Informal Deal Talks With T-Mobile (Bloomberg)

Verizon backs off (Multichannel News)

This Cloud Technology Lives on But Its Promise Has Changed (Fortune)

In the age of cord cutting, Comcast video chief sees value in the bundle (Chicago Tribune)

"We don't see ourselves as a cable company," Strauss said. "We see ourselves as a technology and communication-entertainment company, much more in the consideration set of Apple and Google than more of the traditional cable and satellite providers."

NBCUniversal spent around $230 million to buy the video tutorial site Craftsy (Recode)

Can SAP afford its Newtown Square-based CEO Bill McDermott? (Philly.com)

Mkt cap: SAP-$125bn IBM-$140bn.

Microsoft Unveils New Cloud Services for AI and Industrial Sensors (Bloomberg)


GE's Immelt bets big on digital factories, shareholders are wary (Reuters)


When will pharma move from experimenting with digital health tools to adopting them? (Med City News)


SHI posts record revenue of $1.7B for Q1 (NJBiz)






NewSpring Capital Announces the Successful Raise of its Fourth Growth Equity Fund



2017 NEWS
BACK TO NEWS
May 11, 2017
NewSpring Capital Announces the Successful Raise of its Fourth Growth Equity Fund
RADNOR, PA - May 11, 2017 - NewSpring Capital (“NewSpring” or the “Firm”), a family of private equity funds providing growth and expansion capital, today announced the final close of NewSpring Growth Capital IV, L.P. ("NSG IV" or the “Fund"). The Fund successfully raised $280 million, making it the largest growth fund to date and bringing NewSpring’s total assets under management to $1.7 billion.

NSG IV received strong support from existing and new investors, including a diverse group of family offices, insurance companies, public pension plans, fund of funds, financial institutions, and university endowments. Consistent with the investment strategy of its predecessor funds, NSG IV will maintain its unique approach of partnering with leading growth-stage businesses in the information technology, enabling technology, and business services sectors, with an emphasis on the Mid-Atlantic region.

NewSpring’s growth and expansion stage strategy has invested in over 60 deals since inception. NSG IV continues to execute on a strong deal pipeline as the team is focused on building out the Fund’s portfolio and to date has committed capital to four portfolio companies: Circonus, Inc., Interactions Corporation, ReviMedia Group, B.V., and Snagajob.com, Inc.

Led by General Partners, Michael DiPiano, Marc Lederman, and Glenn Rieger, who have been deploying capital together since 2000, the investment team continues to grow and expand through both internal talent development and new additions. In the first quarter of 2017, NewSpring promoted three growth-dedicated investment professionals, including Brian Kim, who was promoted to Principal and now serves on the Boards of NewSpring Growth Capital portfolio companies, CallMiner, Inc. and Relay Network, Inc. In addition, Justin Nadile was promoted to Vice President and Hart Callahan was promoted to Senior Associate. These individuals exhibit the qualities and attributes that NewSpring values most and reinforce the strong future of NewSpring’s growth strategy.

In addition, the team is pleased to welcome Prashanth (PV) Boccasam, an entrepreneur and investment professional with over 25 years of executive management experience, as an Operating Partner dedicated to the growth strategy. Most recently, PV served as a General Partner for a DC-area private equity firm and has served on several growth-stage company Boards of Directors, including Appian Corporation, a market leader in modern business process management software, and WealthEngine, a leading provider of predictive marketing analytics. With his extensive entrepreneurial background, PV further strengthens NewSpring’s dedication to collaborating with the region’s top entrepreneurs to provide strong operational insights.

"This is a very exciting and dynamic time for NewSpring Growth Capital. This team is dedicated to providing superior returns for our investors and the continued success of our portfolio companies,” said Marc Lederman, NewSpring General Partner and co-founder of the Firm. “In addition to PV’s operating acumen, he will be based in metro-Washington, DC, which strengthens the Fund’s presence in the southern end of the Mid-Atlantic region and enables us to further reinforce NewSpring’s brand in the DC/NoVA/Maryland market.”

Lastly, NewSpring Growth Capital will welcome Jason Dresner this summer. Jason will join the Firm upon his graduation from the Masters of Business Administration program at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania.

NewSpring is extremely excited about the future of NSG IV and the growth strategy.
About / NewSpring Growth / NewSpring Healthcare / NewSpring Mezzanine / NewSpring Holdings / Portfolio / Team / News / Contact / Terms & Conditions
© 2012 NewSpring Capital, All Rights Reserved


Sidecar Closes $11 Million in Series C Financing


MAY 11, 2017
Sidecar Closes $11 Million in Series C Financing
The company will use the funds to enhance development of its machine learning technology and scale its team, sourcing talent heavily from the Philadelphia region

PHILADELPHIA – Sidecar has completed a Series C round of equity and debt financing totaling $11 million. New investor Harbert Growth Partners (HGP) joined previous investors Ascent Venture Partners and Osage Venture Partners to lead the round. Also participating was The Yard Ventures, a Harvard alumni venture fund. Silicon Valley Bank provided the debt financing. This Series C round brings Sidecar’s total financing to $26 million in less than three years. It also marks HGP’s first investment in a Philadelphia-based company.

Sidecar will use the funds to further develop its technology solutions—Sidecar for Google Shopping, Sidecar for Facebook Dynamic Ads, and Sidecar for Bing Shopping—to meet retailers’ evolving marketing needs. The SaaS company will increase headcount by 40% by the end of 2017 to support product development and market expansion. It will draw heavily from the Philadelphia area, emphasizing growth of its engineering and data science teams, as well as its customer success, partnership, sales, and marketing teams.

Guided by founder and CEO Andre Golsorkhi, Sidecar has emerged as a key tool in retailers’ e-commerce marketing stacks. Based on advanced machine learning and deep data science expertise, Sidecar’s technology powers shopping campaigns on Google, Facebook, and Bing, and is scalable to meet the demands of emerging channels.

Since Sidecar’s $8 million Series B financing 18 months ago, it has more than doubled the size of its customer base, which now includes Moosejaw, Vermont Teddy Bear, and others on the Internet Retailer Top 100. The company also expanded to the SMB and international markets, with organizations including wehkamp, the Netherlands’ largest online retailer, adopting Sidecar.

The company doubled headcount over the past year to support this growth, sourcing the majority of talent from the Philadelphia region while also establishing a U.K. team. Sidecar has developed new technology partnerships to further build out its capabilities. These combined factors led the company to triple recurring revenue year over year.

“Sidecar is driving online product advertising into the future,” said Tom Roberts, General Partner of Harbert Growth Partners. “The company continues to reimagine what’s possible with artificial intelligence in retail, and its solutions have been validated by brand-name retailers across the U.S. and abroad. We are confident Sidecar will keep building on its established leadership position, and feel honored to be a part of its success.”

One of the reasons retailers and investors alike value Sidecar is the surging growth of online retail. The National Retail Federation forecasts online retail will grow 8-12% in 2017, up to three times faster than the growth of retail as a whole.

This trend indicates continued opportunity to capitalize on the online product advertising market. Google remains the largest media owner in the world, attracting $79.4 billion in ad revenue in 2016. And last year marked a major tipping point in retailers’ AdWords budgets: For the first time, retailers allocated more spend to Google Shopping ads than text ads (53%).

“For online shopping to become the mainstay of retail, merchants and consumers need to better connect where the online shopping experience begins—the product discovery stage,” said Golsorkhi. “Machine learning and artificial intelligence are poised to make this massively complex challenge much easier, enabling retailers to better understand consumer behavior and predict buying patterns, while creating relevant, enjoyable experiences for shoppers. With our continued dedication to machine learning technology, our customers, and our people, Sidecar is positioned to deliver this critical advancement to retail.”

PRESS RESOURCE
Associated blog post by Sidecar founder and CEO Andre Golsorkhi: https://hello.getsidecar.com/blog/sidecar-closes-11-million-series-c-investment-round

ABOUT SIDECAR
Sidecar is an e-commerce marketing company that builds the advanced technology retailers need to optimize cross-channel online shopping campaigns. With a team of data science and e-commerce experts, our state-of-the-art machine learning engine, and a massive volume of data, Sidecar is the magic behind retail’s most efficient and powerful online shopping campaigns.

ABOUT HARBERT GROWTH PARTNERS
Harbert Growth Partners is an investor in emerging companies with high growth potential in markets underserved by traditional venture capital investors. We have been partners with entrepreneurs for the past 15 years and are currently investing out of HGP IV. In addition to Sidecar, HGP IV’s portfolio includes investments in Cloud Elements, Envera, MapAnything, Shipt and Springbot. HGP is the U.S. growth equity affiliate of Harbert Management Corporation (“HMC”), an alternative asset management firm with approximately $4.8 billion in Regulatory Assets under Management as of April 30, 2017. HMC is a privately-owned firm formed in 1993 to sponsor alternative asset investment funds. HMC serves foundations and endowments, funds of funds, pension funds, financial institutions, insurance companies, family offices and high net worth individuals across multiple asset classes. For more information, visit harbert.net.

ABOUT ASCENT VENTURE PARTNERS
Ascent Venture Partners is dedicated to investing in innovation for the enterprise. In backing more than 100 early-stage, emerging technology companies since 1985, Ascent has remained committed to its mission of partnering with exceptional entrepreneurs striving to build innovative market leaders. Ascent’s investments have yielded powerful results generating more than $10 billion in enterprise value, which speaks to the firm’s deep knowledge, experience, commitment, and networks. The Ascent investment team manages six venture funds with total commitments of more than $500 million, and is located in Boston, Mass.

ABOUT OSAGE VENTURE PARTNERS
Osage Venture Partners (OVP) invests in early stage, business-to-business (B2B) software companies on the East Coast from its offices just outside of Philadelphia, PA. With over $150M under management, OVP seeks to invest in determined and creative entrepreneurs and provide them with the capital and support required to build high-growth, market-leading businesses. For more information, visit osagepartners.com.





5/11: SoFi plans to apply for a bank charter through recent Delaware acquisition Zenbanx; Altice USA Open to MVNO Deal



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Verizon wins bidding war to acquire Straight Path for more than $3 billion (CNBC)
Its all about 5G.


Samsung and Cisco build 5G Verizon trial network (ZDNet)


SoFi plans to apply for a bank charter in the next month (TechCrunch)
SoFi's recently acquired Delaware bank, Zenbanx, the key.

Comcast challenging incumbent ADT in home security market, IHS says (FierceCable)

Goei: Altice USA Open to MVNO DealGoei: Altice USA Open to MVNO Deal (Multichannel News)

President Trump Loves His TiVo (Zatz Not Funny)

Fyre Festival founder tells employees they will no longer be paid (Business Insider)


iXchange honors seven, calls for ‘disruption’ (Lehigh Valley Business)






Statement on proposed PA Technology Tax (PACT)


Governor Tom Wolf recently proposed a massive Technology Tax to balance Pennsylvania's 2017-18 budget.

If adopted, this tax will impact nearly every business in the Commonwealth. Many business leaders will remember the last incarnation of the Tech Tax in Pennsylvania (the Computer Services Tax), which was adopted in 1991 and repealed six years later after intensive lobbying from our Pennsylvania's technology sector.

In collaboration with the Pittsburgh Technology Council, we need help from the community to fight against this new Tech Tax. Reach out to your local legislators today.

The budget estimates a $330-380 million tax increase on Pennsylvania’s technology sector. This is the highest business tax proposed this year by Governor Wolf. Currently only 4 states have such a tax- -NH, CT, SD and HI. Both MA and MD imposed such a tax under Democratic Governors, but repealed it prior to implementation.

WHO SHOULD BE CONCERNED?
Consumers of technology services (listed below) are projected to face new sales tax of up to seven percent:
Customized Software or App Development
Modifications to Software
Data Center / Hosting Services
System Integration
Help Desk Services
Website Development and Hosting Services
Data Storage and Retrieval Services
Information Security or Disaster Recovery Services
Installation and Wiring Services
Consulting Agreements
Software Training Services
Costs for Marketing Computer Hardware
Reporting Services

PLEASE NOTE: This is an initial list of services that are believed to be taxed under the proposal. The Governor has yet to release his legislative language. Many additional services may be added to this list.

“PACT opposes the proposed Pennsylvania Technology Tax. If adopted, this tax will impact nearly every business in the Commonwealth. We are in collaboration with the Pittsburgh Technology Council in the effort to fight against this proposal. We encourage PACT members to contact their local state legislators to show support in opposition of the newly proposed tech tax as well as to attend a Lobbying Day on June 6 in Harrisburg. Here, we plan to meet with Gov. Wolf’s administration and the Technology Councils of Pennsylvania,” explained PACT President and CEO, Dean Miller.



5/10: Focus on ecommerce; SAP barely defeats shareholder revolt over comp



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SAP Barely Won Shareholder Backing After a Spat Over Executive Pay (Reuter via Fortune)

Nvidia and SAP use AI to spot brand appearances in the real world (VentureBeat)


Pennsylvania tech sector rallies against proposed tax (AP via Reading Eagle)


How Amazon’s Bot Army Is Trouncing Walmart in E-Commerce Wars (Fortune)

Comcast NBCUniversal is buying Denver’s home-grown video startup Craftsy (Denver Post)


Martha Stewart Partners With QVC (Ad Week)

Speculation emerges about HSN’s future and ‘frenemy’ QVC (Tampa Bay Business Journal)

Liberty Interactive (QVCA) Tops Q1 Earnings and Revenues (Zacks)

NFL buys 3 percent equity stake in Jacksonville-based Fanatics (Jacksonville.com)

Clover Health Raises $130 Million, Valuing It at $1.2 Billion (Bloomberg)
Today Clover Health operates only in New Jersey, but the new money is meant to help it expand elsewhere. First Round Capital was an early investor.


Google Launches Its First Cloud Data Centers in AWS’s Virginia Backyard (Data Center Knowledge)



5/9: Delaware Introduces Bill to Legally Recognize Blockchain Stocks; Parexel seeking $4B sale: WSJ



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Delaware Introduces Bill to Legally Recognize Blockchain Stocks
(CoinDesk)


How Delaware’s Blockchain Trial Could Change Wall Street (Knowledge@Wharton)

Michael Dell Makes His Case For Dell Technologies (Fortune)

Verizon Feels No “Urgency” To Make Content Or Spectrum Deal, CEO Says (David Lieberman / Deadline)


AT&T, Verizon’s 5G Will Be a Cable Killer First, Say Cowen (Barron's Tech Trader Daily)

Straight Path: Why Is Everyone So Obsessed? Asks Moffett-Nathanson (Barron's Tech Trader Daily)

Disney Dogged by ESPN Woes, With Fewer Viewers and Higher Costs (Bloomberg via Ad Age)





Parexel seeking $4B sale: WSJ (FierceBiotech)
Boston-based Parexel has a considerable presence in the Philadelphia area. Past acquisitions include ClinPhone, LIQUENT, and in 2016 King of Prussia-based ExecuPharm; Parexel also has a distribution center in Quakertown.

Cozen law firm snags large group from Buchanan Ingersoll (Philly.com)








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Comcast and Charter to Explore Operational Efficiencies to Speed Entry into the Wireless Market

Business Wire
Comcast and Charter to Explore Operational Efficiencies to Speed Entry into the Wireless Market
May 08, 2017 07:30 AM Eastern Daylight Time
PHILADELPHIA & STAMFORD, Conn.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Comcast and Charter, both regional cable operators, today announced an agreement to explore potential opportunities for operational cooperation in their respective wireless businesses to accelerate and enhance each company’s ability to participate in the national wireless marketplace. The companies, which have each separately activated a mobile virtual network operator (“MVNO”) reseller agreement with Verizon Wireless, have agreed to explore working together in a number of potential operational areas in the wireless space, including: creating common operating platforms; technical standards development and harmonization; device forward and reverse logistics; and emerging wireless technology platforms. The efficiencies created are expected to provide more choice, innovative products and competitive prices for customers in each of their respective footprints. Additionally, the companies have agreed to work only together with respect to national mobile network operators, through potential commercial arrangements, including MVNOs and other material transactions in the wireless industry, for a period of one year.

“Both of our companies have regional wireless businesses using the same 4G LTE network, and by working together our goal is to create even better experiences for our customers.”
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Tom Rutledge, Chairman and CEO of Charter, said, “At Charter, we have a tremendous opportunity in front of us in the wireless space. Within our footprint, our network is perfectly suited to provide the data-rich wireless services that customers are increasingly demanding. By working with the team at Comcast, we can not only speed Charter’s entry into the marketplace, it will also enable us to provide more competition and drive costs down for consumers at a similar national scale as current wireless operators. We look forward to working with Comcast through this innovative arrangement and bringing our focus on superior products and services, craftsmanship and quality customer care to the wireless space.”

“We’re looking forward to launching Xfinity Mobile to our customers in the coming weeks and are excited about this opportunity to work with Charter to explore ways we can make our respective wireless initiatives more efficient and cost effective,” said Brian L. Roberts, Chairman and CEO of Comcast Corporation. “Both of our companies have regional wireless businesses using the same 4G LTE network, and by working together our goal is to create even better experiences for our customers.”

The companies will file an 8-K with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that contains their agreement.

About Comcast

Comcast Corporation (Nasdaq: CMCSA) is a global media and technology company with two primary businesses, Comcast Cable and NBCUniversal. Comcast Cable is one of the nation’s largest video, high-speed internet, and phone providers to residential customers under the XFINITY brand, and also provides these services to businesses. It also provides wireless and security and automation services to residential customers under the XFINITY brand. NBCUniversal operates news, entertainment and sports cable networks, the NBC and Telemundo broadcast networks, television production operations, television station groups, Universal Pictures and Universal Parks and Resorts. Visit www.comcastcorporation.com for more information.

About Charter

Charter (NASDAQ: CHTR) is a leading broadband communications company and the second largest cable operator in the United States. Charter provides a full range of advanced broadband services, including Spectrum TV™ video entertainment programming, Spectrum Internet™ access, and Spectrum Voice™. Spectrum Business™ similarly provides scalable, tailored, and cost-effective broadband communications solutions to business organizations, such as business-to-business Internet access, data networking, business telephone, video and music entertainment services, and wireless backhaul. Charter's advertising sales and production services are sold under the Spectrum Reach™ brand. More information about Charter can be found at www.charter.com.

Caution Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements. Readers are cautioned that such forward-looking statements involve risks and uncertainties that could cause actual events or our actual results to differ materially from those expressed in any such forward-looking statements. Readers are directed to Charter and Comcast’s periodic and other reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for a description of such risks and uncertainties. Neither Charter nor Comcast undertakes any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.

Contacts
Comcast
Media
John Demming, (215) 286-8011
John_Demming@comcast.com
or
Investors
Jason Armstrong, (215) 286-7972
Jason_Armstrong@comcast.com
or
Charter
Media
Justin Venech, (203) 905-7818
Justin.Venech@Charter.com
or
Investors
Stefan Anninger, (203) 905-7955
Stefan.Anninger@Charter.com


5/8: Comcast Launches ‘xFi,’ Invests in Plume: SAP targets $273.45 billion market cap in next years: CEO in memo



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Comcast Launches ‘xFi,’ Invests in Plume (Multichannel News)


Sinclair to Acquire Tribune Media for $3.9 Billion (Hollywood Reporter)


Sinclair Buys Tribune for $3.9 Billion, Creating TV Goliath (Bloomberg via Ad Age)
Sinclair, based in the Baltimore suburbs, has a traditionally conservative bent in its news coverage.


SAP targets $273.45 billion market cap in next years: CEO in memo (Reuters via KWSN)

State of Cloud Manufacturing ERP – Part 1, change is upon us (Diginomica)

Set to break ground on new HQ, GE has quickly made inroads into Boston’s business, philanthropic communities (Boston Globe)






Fluke, eMaint announce new platform to connect tools, software (Everett WA Herald)
Marlton-base eMaint Enterprises was acquired by Fluke late last year.

Dell Is Merging Its Venture Capital Units (Fortune)

Lower Merion's Magerman sues hedge fund boss Mercer for wrongful firing on Trump comments (PhillyDeals)

Contract research firm Parexel International explores sale-sources (Reuters)
Paraxel has some Philly-area ops.


As WeWork Grew, Some Employees Say They Were Mistreated (Bloomberg)






WebLinc celebrates platform rebrand with a bang!

Tom Paine



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From l-r: Eric Bigler (Project Manager for the Workarea Product Team), Chris Cressman (Developer), Ben Crouse (Product Lead)  Courtesy WebLinc

Old City-based WebLinc celebrated the newest version of its cloud-based ecommerce platform, Workarea. They typically fire off a mini tabletop cannon in the office to celebrate new versions of its platform, but this was much bigger.

Late Friday afternoon, WebLinc fired the cannon on the Battleship New Jersey, docked off Camden across from Penn's Landing.


Product Lead Ben Crouse received a certificate from the USS New Jersey gun captains as he's now an honorary member of the gun crew. WebLinc staff watched the explosion from Penn's Landing, which is across the street from the ecommerce company's newest historic property at 100 Market Street.

Workarea is a product by WebLinc. It is the recently rebranded ecommerce platform formerly called the WebLinc Commerce Platform.



Sunday highlights: Comcast and Charter reach operational agreement on joint wireless efforts: Source



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Comcast and Charter reach operational agreement on joint wireless efforts: Source (CNBC)




A Pool Table in Philadelphia Shows Nasdaq’s Thirst for Talent (Bloomberg)

In the internet era, retailers like Warby Parker and Lilly Pulitzer offer 'high experience' to thrive (Philly.com)

Celebrity Influencers Face Moment of Truth in Fyre Festival Lawsuit (Fortune)

Penn State, Geisinger Team on New Biomedical Big Data Program (GenomeWeb)


MLB Champion, Ryan Howard, joins SeventySix Capital as a Partner Grand slam collaboration creates unparalleled opportunities for sports and business world


MLB Champion, Ryan Howard, joins SeventySix Capital as a Partner
Grand slam collaboration creates unparalleled opportunities for sports and business world


NEWS PROVIDED BY
SeventySix Capital
04 May, 2017, 14:54 ET
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PHILADELPHIA, May 4, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- On the heels of signing a minor league deal with the Atlanta Braves organization, Ryan Howard today announced his role as a Partner at venture capital firm SeventySix Capital, which invests in innovative seed and early stage consumer-facing tech, retail, sports and wellness companies. Led by Managing Partners Wayne Kimmel and Jon Powell, SeventySix Capital's track record includes five portfolio companies acquired by Fortune 500 companies and a top performing U.S. stock for five consecutive years.

Howard will leverage his business acumen and relationships to source new opportunities for the firm and take portfolio companies to the next level. Additionally, he will work closely with entrepreneurs and investors who share in SeventySix Capital's commitment to building game-changing companies. Howard and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania's Ben Franklin Technology Development Authority are among several investors in the firm's newest fund, which they are continuing to raise.

"Other than playing the game I love, my passion is investing in innovative companies and helping the entrepreneurs behind them succeed. While I continue to work towards another opportunity with the Majors, I'm excited to grow my partnership with SeventySix Capital," said Howard. "Wayne, Jon and the SeventySix Capital team are best in class, and committed to building successful companies. Together, by leveraging the full weight of our knowledge, expertise and relationships, we can make a huge impact at home in Philadelphia and around the world."

Howard is actively involved with SeventySix Capital's portfolio companies and partners, including a recent collaboration with Whistle Sports and helping Rubicon Talent generate entrepreneurial opportunities for their clients, which include professional athletes Greg Olsen, DeMarco Murray and Kerri Walsh Jennings.

"At SeventySix Capital we don't just invest in ideas, we invest in people," said Wayne Kimmel, Managing Partner at SeventySix Capital. "For us, it's about passionate, smart and nice entrepreneurs who create companies that change the world for the better, and Ryan Howard embodies those traits. Whether on the field or off, Ryan is determined to continue to make a difference."

Howard most recently enjoyed 13 seasons with the Philadelphia Phillies including winning the National League (NL) Rookie of the Year Award (2005), the NL Most Valuable Player Award (2006) and World Series Championship (2008). During this time, he contributed to the Philadelphia community through charitable endeavors including the Ryan Howard Big Piece Foundation and Little Rhino book series, published by Scholastic, which focuses on engaging students in the essential area of literacy.

Howard's partnership is the latest in several strategic moves from SeventySix Capital over the past year including bringing the Microsoft Reactor to Philadelphia to foster innovation and entrepreneurship, announcing its latest Entrepreneur in Residence and its partnership with Rubicon Talent in the sports world. SeventySix Capital's current portfolio companies include Whistle Sports, Indiegogo and Startup Health. The new fund's initial investment is in Israeli startup, kwik, an open end-to-end IoT platform connecting retailers, brands and delivery providers.

About SeventySix Capital
SeventySix Capital, led by Wayne Kimmel, Jon Powell and Ryan Howard, invests in passionate, smart and nice entrepreneurs who are launching game-changing companies in the consumer-facing tech, retail, sports and wellness industries. Kimmel founded the fund in 1999 with top exits including SeamlessWeb (now public as GrubHub), Take Care Health Systems and Nutrisystem, the top performing stock in the U.S. for five consecutive years. Among the Fortune 500 companies that have acquired their portfolio companies are Aramark, Intel, IBM, Walgreens, and Yahoo. Powell is also the CEO of Kravco Company LLC, a leading real estate company that developed the King of Prussia Mall. His family was an owner of the Philadelphia/Baltimore Stars, the two-time United States Football League champions. Howard, a World Series Champion who is known as one of the all-time great home run hitters, has made a number of successful investments and has experience working with CEOs of top brands. SeventySix Capital's partners are extremely active in the entrepreneurial and non-profit communities around the world.



SOURCE SeventySix Capital



Weekend Highlights: Comcast Promotes Marcien Jenckes to President, Advertising; Feds investigate Uber over use of tool to evade Philly authorities



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Comcast Promotes Marcien Jenckes to President, Advertising (Multichannel News)

PTC holding the course and sticking to its story (GraphicSpeak)

CenturyLink Pushes OTT TV Launch to Early Q3 (Multichannel News)
CenturyLink will be rolling out the OTT product to customers in its own footprint as well as nationally.

Feds investigate Uber over use of tool to evade Philly authorities (NewsWorks)

Shareholder advisors challenge SAP board in row over pay
(Reuters)
McDermott's comp doesn't seem out of line by US standards.

New offices in Cuba, Philadelphia part of Quebec's expanding international presence (Montreal Gazette)

IBM: If Buffett’s Selling, So Should You, Says Bernstein (Barron's Tech Trader Daily)





5/5: Lehigh Valley manufacturer to acquire Radnor-based VWR for $6.4bn, with PE backing; Universal Display Rockets On Monster Q1 Beat



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$6.4 billion mega-deal: Lehigh Valley manufacturer to acquire Main Line lab products supplier VWR (Philadelphia Business Journal)
At first glance, an unusual combination.
“Avantor’s acquisition of VWR is both highly compelling and complementary,” said Avantor CEO Michael Stubblefield in a statement. “We will bring together our well-known expertise in ultra-high-purity materials and customized solutions with VWR’s global scale, unparalleled channel access, and deep customer relationships. Collectively, this will create a larger, stronger and more diversified company with significantly enhanced scale and product breadth.”



No one is getting internet TV right — yet (Recode)

IBM Set to Drop $5 Billion in Value After Warren Buffett Sheds a Third of His Stake (Fortune)

Using Salesforce to access SAP? Pour yourself a stiff drink (PC World)


Citi lists Netflix, Tesla as potential takeover targets for Apple (Reuters)

OLED Display Firm Universal Display Rockets On Monster Q1 Sales, Earnings Beat (IBD)
Universal Display is based in Ewing NJ.

Fanatics plunks down $225M for Majestic division (Morning Call)


Industrial IoT Superstars GE, Siemens Are Butting Heads In Manufacturing Market (CRN)

Synchronoss Technologies Spikes After Silver Private Holdings Reports Large Stake (The Street)
Synchronoss Technologies is based in Bridgewater NJ.

Google May Need an Acquisition to Catch Amazon, Microsoft, Says Goldman (Barron's Tech Trader Daily)
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