Siemens to reduce SG&A costs – 12,600 jobs to be cut worldwide (Siemens Press Release)

NextG Launches Major Philadelphia DAS Network (BusinessWire)
I haven't heard of this before, so I'm not sure how it might compare to other kinds of wireless service. I'll find out more.


SAP, Oracle go vertical in ERP applications fight (SearchSAP.com)
Many more acquisitions to come.

Update: SAP module reorganization? (SearchSAP.com: SAP Watch)

Sandra Long to lead newspapers' consolidation efforts (Philadelphia Daily News)

Comcast, Vonage Partner on Network Management
(PC Magazine)

Comcast suddenly respects FCC authority over throttling (ars technica)

Is Cable Voice Getting a Sore Throat? (GigaOM)

FiOS TV Adding Big Ten Network (Broadcasting & Cable)

RFID Industry Reaction to Checkpoint-OAT Deal, Part 2
(RFID Update)

Bentley and Autodesk target interoperability (Extranet Evolution)

Kenexa Names Tim Beaumont as Vice President of Sales (Marketwire via CNN Money)

NewSpring Capital helps fund buyout of Thermacore (Philadelphia Business Journal)

CenTrak Acquires Important Patent for Dual Infrared/Radio Frequency (IR/RF) Technology; IR/RF Approach Enables 100% Room-Level Location Accuracy (CenTrak Press Release)

Herley Industries, Inc. Added to Russell 3000 Index (PRNewswire)

Flex and the Swiz Framework by Chris Scott on 07/10/08 (Philadelphia FlashPlatform AUG)



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RFID Industry Reaction to Checkpoint-OAT Deal, Part 1 (RFID Update)


Checkpoint Systems Deems OAT Acquisition Strategic
(RFID Journal)

One thing that surprised me about this acquisition was that the price was as low as it was ( $37 million). A recent article in Xconomy,
a Boston tech business blog, put the VC investment in OATSystems at $25 million. If that's correct, it means the return on that
investment was probably close to zero (after taking out whatever stake the principals had left), and really a loss considering the time value
of money.
I thought it would be worth more, not so much because of its financial fundamentals, but for the value of its technology to
a strategic buyer like Checkpoint. But obviously, it wasn't.



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Pa. Gov poaching business from N.J. (Newark Star-Ledger)

InterDigital says ITC staff in favor of Samsung in patent suit (Reuters)

InterDigital - Samsung ITC case (Wireless Industry Analyst)

iPipeline Secures Series A Funding
(Private Equity Hub)

Autodesk and Bentley to Advance AEC Software Interoperability (PRNewswire)

Gannett Confirms ShopLocal Buy; Total Company Valued At $52.5 Million (PaidContent)
ShopLocal will be used in conjunction with Gannett's PointRoll, which is based in Conshohocken.

Rohm and Haas Opens $60 Million Immersion Lithography Facility (BusinessWire)

Inquirer, Daily News Begin Merging (Philadelphia Weekly)
That was fast.

QlikTech Releases QlikView 8.5 (PRWeb)

SaaS star leaves SAP for Salesforce.com (ZDNet Blogs)

Aria Systems Appoints James D'Arcangelo Vice President of Marketing (PRNewswire)

PodCamp Philly is On the Road... Finally (PodcampPhilly.com)

Online communities for SAS users and SAS professionals (BI Blogs)

IDC Report Shows Steady Growth for BI, Pent-Up Demand for Analytics (Intelligent Enterprise)


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When I was putting together this little Google Map of Apple
Store locations in the area, I noticed with amazement that while Center City still does not have its own store, Atlantic City does! Somehow, I've never thought of people who spend a lot of time in Atlantic City as being Apple's target market. There have been rumors and photographs of storefronts that were supposedly being rennovated into Apple Stores in Philly, but none have ever materialized.
Couldn't Ed Rendell get on the phone to his old friend Al Gore, who is on Apple's Board (he probably invented the iPhone also), and say, "hey Al, we need an Apple Store in Philadelphia"? I'm sure the Governor could also steer $1 or$ 2 million in state economic development funds Apple's way to cover startup costs, since he seems to have an unlimited supply of that.



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Hurry up, the customer has a complaint (Boston Globe)

Is Comcast's move toward WiMAX femtocells reactive? (FierceBroadbandWireless)

Thomson Confirms Comcast’s Digital-to-Analog Adapter Order (Multichannel News)

NBC Universal, partners to buy Weather Channel (Reuters)
Comcast was considered a possible bidder, but apparently did not pursue it too far.

Nokia and InterDigital start to disassemble their running feud (BetaNews)

PHLX set to turn Nasdaq into options contender (Reuters via The Guardian)

SAP module reorganization? (SearchSAP.com: SAP Watch)

Gartner: CRM market up 23 percent in '07 (Network World)

ANALYSIS; BI 2.0, challenges and opportunities
(Manufacturing Business Technology)

Innovative Solutions & Support, Inc. Announces Judgment Against Kollsman, J2 Inc. and Other Defendants (BusinessWire)

CSC Signs Contract in Excess of $150 Million With Exelon Corporation (PRNewswire)

Gore's cables help transmit data from Mars (Wilmington News Journal)

Taking pulse of music industry (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Bill Uhrich: Pennsylvania Game Commission launches eBird (Reading Eagle)


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Bullish on Philadelphia
New mayor wants to reverse population outflow, attract more businesses (MarketWatch)

Platform for high throughput gene data
analysis (Laboratorytalk)
Philadelphia-based Integromics partners with Applied Biosystems.and Novartis.

New Nanowire-based Memory Could Beef up Information Storage (DailyTech)
Research at Penn.

Rohm and Haas Announces Enhanced Version of VaporStation Central Delivery System (nanowerk)

Tethered Molecules Act As Light-driven Reversible Nanoswitches (Science Daily)

Three Startups To Solve SaaS Integration Problems (Information Week)

In the Ether (Circumference of a Moose)
On CenTrak and RFID in hospitals.

Big Four accounting firms edge back into consulting biz (Philadelphia Business Journal)

Movers and Shakers Interview with Cathy Avgiris, Sr. VP and GM Voice Services, Comcast (Hellenic News of America)

Philadelphia papers reach pension settlement
with union (Associated Press via Forbes)

Friends, Romans, Country(people), Lend Us Your Fail (dangerously awesome)


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People in the News



EPAM Chairman and CEO Arkadiy Dobkin Named Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2008 Award Winner in New Jersey (PR.com)

Former NCR executive gets new job (Dayton Daily News)

SCTE Hopes To Land New Chief By Year's End
Cable Technology Group Looks To Replace Outgoing CEO John Clark (Multichannel News)
SCTE is based in Exton.

Christine A. Student is Appointed Managing Director at Arista Marketing! (BusinessWire)

ICT GROUP Appoints Richard R. Roscitt to Board of Directors (BusinessWire)

Content Data Solutions, Inc. Hires New Business Development Manager (BusinessWire)

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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.

Cover Story: Inside Comcast’s Downingtown (Multichannel News)



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Fitch Upgrades SunGard Data Systems' IDR to 'B+'; Outlook Stable (BusinessWire)


Penn National says takeover deal terminated (Reuters)

SAP CEO sees no impact on market share of Oracle acquisitions (Thomson Financial via Forbes)

The ING Direct Story (Payments News)
ING Direct USA is based in Wilmington.

Philadelphia papers appoints team to study consolidation of some functions (Associated Press via phillyBurbs.com)
The two papers aren't even on the same computer system.

Comcast restructuring eliminates a division (Philadelphia Inquirer)

Comcast Expands SDV Test Pool (Light Reading: Cable Digital News)
Testing in Cherry Hill.

Voters not gettin' what they paid for (Philadelphia Daily News)

Penn robots go viral (Penn Current)

What's the News in Your Neighborhood? (Fun With Networking)

Amazon's Misfit Toys: How E-Tailer Lost Ally (Investor's Business Daily)
How Amazon's loss became GSI Commerce's gain.

Awkward Moments and Serendipity
(the cornice)


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Nokia, InterDigital settle some IP disputes (EE Times)

EU Approves Nokia's $8.1 Billion Acquisition Of Navteq (Information Week)
Navteq owns Traffic.com of Wayne.

SunGard buys Ireland's Delphi Technologies (Finextra)

Unlimited Wireless Carrier MetroPCS Launches Service in Greater Philadelphia Region (BusinessWire)

Comcast Invests In Mobile WiMax Startup
MSO Takes Stake In Stealth-Mode Wireless Broadband Firm Cartiza Networks (Multichannel News)

CBaySystems says facing U.S. suit to halt sale of Philips stake in MedQuist (Thomson Financial via Forbes)

Technitrol slashes Q2 expectations (Philadelphia Inquirer)

SAP CRM trounces Oracle, Salesforce.com (SearchSAP.com: SAP Watch)
I would have some questions about how CRM is defined for the purposes of this analysis.

Top 20 supply chain management software suppliers (Modern Materials Handling)

Dynasil Completes $20 Million Acquisition of RMD Instruments (BusinessWire)

MedAvante Raises $20 Million (Private Equity Hub)

ClinPhone and Cytel - A New Partnership Delivering Complete Solutions for Adaptive Clinical Trials (PharmaLive)

Medco, Wal-Mart Merge Digital Prescription Networks (Bloomberg)



Francisco Completes Metrologic Sale (Private Equity Hub)

Retailers Go IP Geotargeting - Turning Internet Clients into Foot Traffic and More (Directions Magazine)
On GSI Commerce.

Seven Minutes To Millions
How to woo venture capital investors during a short presentation. (Forbes: Video)
From Early Stage East in Wilmington.

URMC and Power Line Systems Team to Integrate URMC’s Intelligence-based, Risk Management Solution with PLS-CADD
(BusinessWire)


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