RI companies receive venture funds
Rhode Island technology companies were among those sharing in $2.4 billion worth of venture capital deals conducted in New England during the first quarter of this year, according to the Boston Globe-Pricewaterhouse-Coopers Money Tree Survey. Five Rhode Island companies shared $25.1 million. They were: Spherics of Warwick, a bio-technology company that is developing advanced drug-delivery systems to improve oral absorption of pharmaceuticals, $4 million from CB Health Ventures and Zero Stage Capital Co.; Live Wire of Newport, Web interactive broadcasting, $500,000 from Zero Stage Capital; AAA Entertainment of Pawtucket, radio broadcasting, $4 million from Alta Communications; Context Media of Providence, end-to-end solutions for distribution and creation of media content, $11 million from Adams Capital Management, Macromedia, New Enterprise Associates, Silicon Valley Bank and others; and Mesa Systems Guild of Warwick, Web-based collaborative project management tools, $5.6 million from Mid-Atlantic Venture Funds, North Atlantic Capital Corp. and SpaceVest Fund.
Goosewing raises $500,000
PAWTUCKET – Goosewing, an Internet based customizable course material firm said it has raised $500,000 from individual investors. The company, which was established in October, will use the funds for technology development.
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ArQuele’s first quarter revenues double
WOBURN, Mass. – ArQuele, Inc. reported first quarter revenues of $10,388,000, more than double revenues for the first quarter a year ago. Net loss for the quarter was $1,042,000 compared to a net loss of $3,966,000 a year ago. ArQuele unites innovative thinking with proprietary technologies to design and produce molecules that will become the medicines of the future.
Log On America revenues increase
PROVIDENCE – Log On America, a company that provides broadband communications and data services to businesses and home offices, reported first quarter income of $2.4 million, a 901 percent increase over the same period a year ago. Net loss for the quarter was $2.7 million, compared with $188,021 for the first quarter last year.
Mt. Hope-Brown Program wins grant
PROVIDENCE – The Mount Hope Technology History Program was among 20 winners of grants from WorldCom and Brown University. Grants were awarded nationwide that link public schools or community organizations with local colleges or universities to develop educational technology projects for youth in underserved areas. The $5 million program is funded by WorldCom and administered by Campus Compact at Brown. The Mount Hope Project partnership includes The Mt. Hope Learning Center and the Howard R. Swearer Center for Public Service at Brown University. The program is designed to enhance Mt. Hope Learning Center’s existing technology education program, create a public library initiative in Mt. Hope, develop useful, neighborhood-specific content for the Web, connect Mt. Hope residents with other educational and economic opportunities in the city, and develop literacy and visual arts programming and strengthen ties between the Mt. Hope and Brown Communities.
Manpower expands global learning center
MILWAUKEE, WIS. – With an array of new courses and the addition of chat rooms and interactive live seminars, Manpower Inc. has expanded the curriculum and services offered through its on-line university – The Global Learning Center (GLC). The GLC Web site (www.manpowernet.com) delivers free training, skills assessment and career management services to its more than two million employees worldwide. It also offers 1,000 software and information technology training modules and 100 business skills courses.
Lycos TV to expand into Web broadcasting
WALTHAM, MASS. (Bloomberg) — Lycos Inc., one of the world’s top three Internet search services, unveiled its Lycos TV Web-broadcasting service that offers computer users free programming without commercial interruption. Lycos TV has five music channels, three animation channels and channels featuring extreme sports, movie trailers, soap operas and comedy videos. It also plans to create on-demand video programming, including a channel devoted to sitcoms from the 1960s, the Waltham, Massachusetts-based company said. Although the programming itself is commercial-free, advertisements are placed around the online screen from which the content is viewed. A recent Forrester Research report predicted interactive TV will generate $7 billion in purchases from its viewers by 2004, Lycos said.
Craftshop.com filing for bankruptcy
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y., (Bloomberg) — Craftshop.com, an arts and crafts retailing Web site backed by venture firm CMGI Inc., has laid off all 49 employees and plans to file for U.S. Bankruptcy Court protection, its chief executive said. Closely held Craftshop, with offices in Cooperstown, New York and East Norwalk, Connecticut, ceased operations May 5, about two months after venture backers declined to pump in a second cash infusion when the site failed to attract enough shoppers. It’s only the second failure for a CMGI-backed company, and a sign that privately owned Web retailers are suffering along with their publicly held brethren. Investors have abandoned shares of such companies on fears of continued losses and increasing competition from traditional companies, with the Bloomberg U.S. Internet Retailer Index is down 44 percent this year. Venture investors, who profit most when they can take portfolio companies public, have become more demanding.
(Compiled from news reports, wire services and releases, print and electronic)
