Links 8/8/2013: Monetate introduces new segmentation offering; Unisys & Intel join forces on new computing platform

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Accenture Enhances Drug Development from Discovery to Approval with Launch of Accenture Accelerated R&D Services
Company investing more than $200 million to help clients modernize R&D and accelerate new products to market through the combination of cloud computing, mobility and analytics
(Business Wire)
Curious whether "more than $200 million" figure includes cost of acquiring Octagon Research Solutions.

Office Max Tests Back-to-School Segments Down to Political Leanings (Ad Week)
Testing Monetate's LivePredict system, which is being announced today.

Monetate Launches LivePredict, Automated Customer Segment Discovery Connecting Smart Segmentation and Personalization with Real-Time Action
(PR Newswire)

Amid Strategy Shift, T-Mobile Adds 1.1 Million Customers in Second Quarter (All Things D)

SAP Supports Customer Growth in Emerging Markets by Combining SAP® ERP With Mobile, Analytic and Cloud Innovations (PR Newswire)

Unisys to forge new Xeon iron with homegrown s-Par partitioning
Mainframe virtualization is better – and more secure – than x86 alternatives (The Register)


Unisys and Intel Join Forces on Breakthrough Secure Computing Platform for Cloud Computing, Big Data and RISC Migration (PR Newswire)

Oracle rolls out virtual appliances for its 12c database (PC World)

Shares of Tableau soar after revenues rise 71% in first earnings report post IIPO (GeekWire)

MeetMe Reports Second Quarter 2013 Financial Results (Business Wire)
Revenue significantly exceeds previously stated expectations; Transition to mobile revenue
sources seems to be gaining traction.

Arris Braces For Cable’s Set-Top Transition
Fills Pipeline With IP-Capable Products As MSOs Leave Legacy Boxes Behind (Multichannel News)

CardConnect Acquires SmartPay from Onsharp
Enterprise billing tool eliminates need for paper invoices, allows payment processor’s customers to bill online (Business Wire)
CardConnect is based in King of Prussia.


AMETEK Reports Record Second Quarter 2013 Results (PR Newswire)

Daily Links 8/7/2013: New York Times on Cory Booker's WayWire

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SAP outlines plans for Hybris, push into 'omni-commerce' (PC World)

SAP business resource planning customers can now snazz up their user interface (PC World)

IBM Furloughs U.S. Hardware Employees to Reduce Costs Bloomberg)

Amazon Web Services: size, profit, distribution, and efficiency (infographic) (VentureBeat)

Google Cloud Platform Adds Load Balancing To Provide More Scale Out Capability And Control To Developers (TechCrunch)


OpenView, Data Point Capital Betting on Metrics in Fickle VC World (Xconomy Boston)
OpenView is an investor in Philly area startups Monetate, NextDocs and Xtium.

Venture capitalist [Josh Kopelman] counsels cities looking to contend in tech marketplace (Providence Journal)

Tech Magnates Bet on Booker and His Future (New York Times)
Although the Times article doesn't mention it, First Round Capital is also an investor
in WayWire.

Digital incubator at Philly media site gets $345K in funding (Philadelphia Inquirer)


Medical technology firms 'eye' collaboration (Philadelphia Business Journal)



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LLR Partners an investor in expanding East Norriton-based HighPoint Solutions

Tom Paine

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Philadelphia-based PE firm LLR Partners has apparently invested in East Norriton-based Healthcare IT consultant HighPoint Solutions, according to a brief announcement that appeared on the LLR's website in March, although there has been little publicity about it.

LLR called the investment a recapitalization. The amount was not given.

HighPoint Solutions is a big company already. It has 500 employees now, and last week announced they were building an expansion to their headquarters in East Norriton which will enable them to add another 100 employees to their Philadelphia area workforce. Not all their current employees are based here, because they have several other offices including one in Bridgewater, New Jersey.

The company said in its statement that it is "on a path to, not only, continue their 20%+ YoY growth, but become the largest, privately held consulting firm serving the Life Science & Healthcare marketplace by 2017."

Yesterday, HighPoint announced it was opening its new European headquarters in Geneva, Switzerland on October 1. HighPoint says it expects this to be the first of many global offices as it expands internationally.

HighPoint provides a range of IT services to major pharmaceutical companies and healthcare providers and payers. Technology services include Business Intelligence,Business Process Management, Business Integration, Managed Services,Master Data Management, Sharepoint, and Contract Lifecycle Management. John Seitz is HighPoint's founder and CEO.

HighPoint Solutions should not be confused with New Jersey-based IT provider High Point Solutions, which holds the naming rights to Rutger's football stadium.



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Quotes from last week: Brian Roberts, Steve Ballmer & others

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Comcast Chairman & CEO Brian Roberts, when asked during Comcast's earnings conference call if there was an absolute (legal) limit on how big Comcast could get in the US cable business: "I don't think there really is. There's been a number of rulemakings that have been knocked down, but obviously that's a gray area."
Seeking Alpha

Comcast CFO Michael Angelakis on how much financial leverage the company is willing to take on: "Given the total amount of debt that we have which is approximately $48 billion, we feel that we're very comfortable in the range that we've set which is 1.5 to 2 times. I think that we really prefer to have a bit of conservatism in our balance that provides appropriate flexibility and obviously we've given this a tremendous amount of thought and are pleased with where we're going right now." (He said that as of the end of Q2 it was 2.3 times.)
Seeking Alpha

Cablevision CEO James Dolan: "There could come a day" when Cablevision stops offering television service, and instead just provides broadband.
Wall Street Journal

Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer on Surface RT: "We built a few more devices than we could sell."
The Verge

SAP platforms head Steve Lucas: “We aren’t going to buy Tableau. There’s no need to buy an overvalued software company.”
VentureBeat

Unnamed SAP executive quoted (paraphrased) by SAP consultant/analyst Jon Reed at The SAP Americas Partner Leadership Summit: "You need a PhD to understand our pricing…we are undergoing a massive pricing simplification."
Diginomica

Dell Boomi co-founder and former GM Rick Nucci on his future plans: “My plan, I guess, is to start something from scratch like I did with Boomi in Philadelphia again and hope to only make new mistakes this time”
Philadelphia Business Journal



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Daily Links 8/6/2013: SAP merging Hana with Hybris to boost commerce offering

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SAP merging Hana with Hybris to boost commerce offering (V3.co.uk)

Focus is key: 6 cloud startups kicking ass by going narrow (VentureBeat)

SAP’s Brand, Product Lines and Channel Partners- Reconciliation Needed (Brian Sommer/ZDNet)

VMware brain gain? SAP vet Sanjay Poonen enters to head up end-user computing (Gigaom)

Oracle Loses Top North American Sales Guy Anthony Fernicola To Salesforce.com
(Business Insider)

What the CIA Private Cloud Really Says About Amazon Web Services (Computerworld)


Liberty Interactive Corporation Reports Second Quarter 2013 Financial Results (Business Wire)
QVC US revenue up 3%; 30% of eCommerce orders globally from mobile devices.

Social-Commerce Channel Coming to QVC.com (Ad Week)

Artisan Mobile Experience Management Platform Powers Mobile App Growth for A View From My Seat (Business Wire)



Comcast’s plan to turn pirates into customers: breakthrough or bogus? (Gigaom)

Post-Newsweek Group, Cable One Not Part of Washington Post Sale (Broadcasting & Cable)

Charter Reports Second-Quarter Loss as Video Losses
Accumulate (Bloomberg)

Dish Posts $11M Net Loss, Sheds 78,000 Net Video Subs in Q2
Multichannel News)

UPDATE: DISH Chairman not interested in DIRECTV merger for now (SNL)

Daily Links 8/5/2013: Safeguard Scientifics leads $5.3 miilion round in Ned Moore's startup Clutch

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Washington Post to be sold to Jeff Bezos (Washington Post)

Cablevision CEO on a Possible Sale, the Online Future of TV and His Family (Hollywood Reporter)

Time Warner Cable CEO Offers a-la-Carte Proposal in CBS Dispute (Bloomberg)

For Cable-TV Operators, Bigger Is Looking Even Better (Business Week)

Safeguard Scientifics Leads $5.3M Series B Financing for Clutch
Backs successful entrepreneur, Ned Moore, who previously co-founded Portico Systems, which was acquired by McKesson (Business Wire)

Mobile Shopping Companion Clutch Raises $5M Series B, Acquires Gift & Loyalty Platform Provider ProfitPoint
(TechCunch)


Small Agency of the Year, 11-75 Employees: Red Tettemer O'Connell & Partners (Ad
Age)

Accenture and hybris Team to Implement Multichannel Commerce Solutions for Global Enterprises (Business Wire)
Accenture release dated today doesn't mention that hybris is now owned by SAP, though acquisition closed on August 1. Odd.

Forrester Sees Shifting Sands In Retail As Roles And Channels Converge (Ad Exchanger)
Talks alot about eBay and its GSI Commerce (now eBay Enterprise) unit.


Can Infor upset the Oracle-SAP duopoly? (Infoworld)

Google’s Motorola Mobility Faces MPEG-2 Lawsuit
Mitsubishi, Philips & Thomson Target Company That Sold Set-Top (Multichannel News)

HighPoint Solutions, a Company that Keeps On Growing
(PR Newswire)
Health IT consultant says its adding 100 more jobs in East Norriton.


U Delaware Hack Hits 72,000 Staffers (Campus Technology)
That's about half the state, isn't it.

Philly Tech People News 8/3/2013

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NBCU Executive Jeff Shell Buys Beverly Hills Home, Spurs Talk of New L.A. Job (Exclusive) (Hollywood Reporter)

Red Tettemer O'Connell + Partners Wins Gold at Ad Age's 2013 Small Agency Conference and Awards Show (Marketwire)



Accolade Hires Long-Time Starbucks Executive James Snook as CTO (Business Wire)

Mark Burkhart joins DRC as VP of Sales and Marketing (PR Newswire)

Halcyon Software Hires Garrett Schut as Vice President, Sales (PR Web)

Unisys Elects Jared L. Cohon to Board of Directors (PR Newswire)

CBS Blackout by Time Warner goes into 2nd day (AP via Fox News)


TiVo, media center PC makers alarmed by CableCard-cutting bill
(Ars Technica)

Capital One set to hire 170 in Delaware
Official: Year-end goal of 2,100 within reach (Wilmington News Journal)
Many are tech jobs.

Enterprise hits & misses – August 4 (Jon Reed/Diginomica)

CBS Takes TWC Fight to Times Square
Uses billboard to show viewers what they're missing (Broadcasting & Cable)

With An Astounding $6 Billion Valuation, ServiceNow Has Become 'The Next Salesforce.com' (Business Insider)

Marissa Mayer’s Rockmelt Buy Underlines Her Obsession With Social (Wired)
Yahoo's second recent acquisition of a First Round Capital portfolio company - the other being Xobni - both in the $60 to $80 million range.

Reported Charter-Cox talks, Cablevision comments raise cable M&A speculation; Comcast's view

Tom Paine

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Talk of cable industry consolidation, spurred by John Malone's stated desire to roll up other operators with Charter Communications (in which his Liberty Media holds a 27% stake) to create a company with near Comcast-like scale, gained momentum today on two fronts.

One is a Bloomberg article that reports that Charter (#4 in subscribers) is in talks with #3 Cox Communications about a possible deal. Also, the Chairman of Cox Communications parent Cox Enterprises recently asked a court to dissolve a trust that controls 49% of the company, a step that may be a necessary precondition to a sale.
Update: An internal Cox Communications memo obtained by the Atlanta Journal-Constitution(which is owned by Cox Enterprises) denied that any talks had taken place.

The other involves comments by #5 Cablevision CEO Jim Dolan, during that company's earnings conference call today, that appeared not to close the door completely on Cablevision being a seller.

I had wondered last month whether Comcast would (or could) take any steps to try to maintain the unique scale it currently has in the industry.

Comcast, which reported solid 2nd quarter results (better than most others in the industry) on Wednesday, with revenue growing 7% and operating cash flow growing 8.4%, had some questions come up during its conference call Q&A about whether it had an interest in buying other cable companies.


My interpretation is that Comcast's answer was not an absolute no. CEO Brian Roberts responded: "I think you can tell by the results we have just posted, we are really focused on executing our business plan and we really think there is a lot of organic growth opportunities in the business. That being said, we always want to look at everything, we want to be educated, we really want to spend time internationally."

The international reference seemed to be more about expanding content (NBCU related) opportunities than in buying cable systems overseas.

When asked if there was an absolute (legal) limit on how big Comcast could get in the US cable business, Roberts said "I don't think there really is. There's been a number of rulemakings that have been knocked down, but obviously that's a gray area."

CFO Michael Angelakis said Comcast did not want to leverage itself financially to extent that Malone said he might, and that Comcast is more comfortable with a leverage ratio of 1.5 to 2 times rather than the 4 times Malone says he might consider, which doesn't seem to leave much room for adding leverage at present. Angelakis said that as of the end of Q2 it was 2.3 times.


Cablevision shares were up 5.2% today and the company has a market value of $5.2 billion, though it also has almost $10 billion of long-term debt.

The transcript of Comcast's earnings conference call was provided by Seeking Alpha.

Daily Links 8/2/2013: Pennsylvania dumps IBM from IT project; on SAP invading Silicon Valley

State [Pennsylvania] dumping IBM after IT project runs 42 months late, $60 million over budget (PC World)

SAP Invades Silicon Valley via Acquisitions (Business Week)

Michael Dell and Silver Lake Reach Last-Minute Buyout Deal
(All Things D)

SunGard Announces Second Quarter 2013 Results (Business Wire)

Cablevision Jumps 8%: CEO Dolan’s Remarks Seem Less M&A-Averse (Barron's: Tech Trader Daily)

Cox Said to Discuss Merger With Malone-Backed Charter (Bloomberg)

Time Warner Cable's Risky Push Past the 'Triple Play' (Business Week)

Microsoft and Philadelphia Pair Up through CityNext Program
(Government Technology)