Posts Tagged ‘Texas’
Tuesday, May 7th, 2013
 For the ninth year in a row, CEOs rate Texas as the #1 state in which to do business, according to Chief Executive magazine’s annual Best & Worst States Survey, released today. Florida, North Carolina, Tennessee and Indiana also made the top five.
The results may alleviate some fears in North Carolina, where other such evaluations have not placed the state as high as in previous years.
The states rated worst for business are California, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts and New Jersey.
It’s interesting that states with powerhouse venture capital sources and nation-leading business sectors such as California, Massachusetts, and New York top the list of worst states for business in these polls time after time. Makes you wonder just what these business-friendly state rankings really mean.
| Best 5 States for Business |
Rank 2013 |
| Texas |
1st |
| Florida |
2nd |
| North Carolina |
3rd |
| Tennessee |
4th |
| Indiana |
5th |
| Worst 5 States for Business |
Rank 2013 |
| California |
50th |
| New York |
49th |
| Illinois |
48th |
| Massachusetts |
47th |
| New Jersey |
46th |
The Best & Worst States Survey measures the sentiments of CEOs on a range of issues, including regulations, tax policies, workforce quality, educational resources, quality of living and infrastructure. For the 2013 survey, 736 CEOs from across the country evaluated the states between Jan. 16 and Feb. 14, 2013.
Ohio was the biggest gainer in this year’s survey, rising 13 spots from #35 to #22. “Ohio is doing some amazing things to attract and support a pro-business environment,” said Don Taylor , CEO of Fairlawn, Ohio-based Welty Building Company. The biggest loser was Delaware, which dropped 13 spots to #27.
California hostile to business?
CEOs say California’s poor ranking is the result of a perceived hostility to business, high state taxes and onerous regulations, all of which drive investment, companies and jobs to other states. According to the California Manufacturers & Technology Association,California accounts for 12.6% of total U.S. GDP, but only has a 2.2% share of investments in new and expanding manufacturing sites.
“When you investigate acquiring businesses in some of the states rated poorly for business conditions, the anecdotes all wind up being true,” said Kevin Hawkesworth , President & CEO of Florida-based Shaw Development. “The horror stories about these states are real.”
“California, Illinois and New York are simply awful states to operate facilities or employ people,” according to another CEO. “We will do almost anything possible to minimize our exposure to these anti-business environments.”
Piles of regulations a problem
“Thank you, California!” responded one Texas-based CEO facetiously. “Keep applying pressure on your job creators and we will keep welcoming their moves to Texas.”
A common theme among CEOs is the burden of constantly changing regulations. “Business is too hard without dealing with piles of regulations that are constantly changing,” said Rick Waechter , CEO of Boston Magazine. “I believe there have to be controls, but keep them simple and straightforward—and most importantly, don’t make it a moving target.”
“CEOs continue to tell us that California seems to be doing everything possible to drive business from the state. Texas Governor Rick Perry , by contrast, personally makes it his mission to lead corporate recruitment and economic development efforts in his state,” saidJ.P. Donlon , Editor-in-Chief of Chief Executive magazine and ChiefExecutive.net.
Playbook for success
“The playbook for successful states boils down to three simple moves: engage in real dialogue with business leaders, adapt policies to create an attractive environment, and effectively communicate your story to real job creators,” said Marshall Cooper , CEO of Chief Executive magazine and ChiefExecutive.net. “This year’s rankings prove that smart policies result in increased investments, jobs and greater overall economic activity.”
| 2013 Biggest Gainers |
Positions Gained |
| Ohio |
+13 |
| Minnesota |
+6 |
| Alabama |
+5 |
| Arizona |
+4 |
| Kansas |
+4 |
| 2013 Biggest Losers |
Positions Lost |
| Delaware |
-13 |
| Mississippi |
-8 |
| Missouri |
-7 |
| Kentucky |
-4 |
| Wyoming |
-4 |
For complete results, including individual state rankings on multiple criteria, CEO comments, methodology and more, please visitChiefExecutive.net.
Tags: best, business, California, Chief Executive, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, M&A, NC, NJ, NY., ranking, states, Tennessee, Texas, worst
Posted in Alabama, Carolinas, Economy/Jobs, Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee | No Comments »
Friday, January 25th, 2013
 State and local governments waste billions of dollars annually on economic development subsidies given to companies for moving existing jobs from one state to another rather than focusing on creating truly new positions, according to a study released today by Good Jobs First, a non-profit, non-partisan research center based in Washington, DC.
“What was long ago dubbed a Second War Between the States is, unfortunately, raging again in many parts of the country,” said Greg LeRoy , executive director of Good Jobs First and principal author of the report.
“The result is a vast waste of taxpayer funds, paying for the geographic reshuffling of existing jobs. By pretending that these jobs are new, public officials and the recipient companies engage in what amounts to interstate job fraud.”
Interstate job piracy is not a fruitful strategy for economic growth, LeRoy noted: “The costs are high and the benefits low, given that a tiny number of companies get huge subsidies for moving a small number of jobs.” LeRoy added: “Moreover, the availability of relocation subsidies allows companies that have no intention of moving to extract payoffs to stay put.”
Interstate relocations have microscopic job effects
Summarizing studies demonstrating that interstate relocations have microscopic job effects, the report also reviews the history of economic competition among the states and presents eight case studies of those areas where job piracy is most pronounced.
The case studies cover metropolitan areas such as Kansas City, Charlotte, New York and Memphis, where companies get subsidized to move short distances across state borders; states such as Texas, Tennessee, Georgia, New Jersey and Rhode Island that are aggressive users of relocation subsidies; and states such as Illinois and Ohio, which have given big retention or “job blackmail” packages.
The report recommends that states stop subsidizing companies for relocating jobs from other states, noting that four-fifths of the states already refuse to pay for intrastate job relocations.
The report also recommends that states end their business recruitment activities that are explicitly designed to pirate existing jobs from other states. It also suggests a modest role for the federal government: reserving a small portion of its economic development aid for those states that amend their incentive codes to make existing jobs ineligible for subsidies.
The report, entitled The Job-Creation Shell Game, is available at www.goodjobsfirst.org/shellgame.
Tags: Charlotte, DC, Economic Development, Georgia, government waste, job development, Kansas City, Memphis, New Jersey, Rhode Island, subsidies, taxpayer dollars, Tennessee, Texas
Posted in Carolinas, Economic Development, Economy/Jobs, Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee, Washington, DC | No Comments »
Monday, January 14th, 2013
 Austin Ventures , a venture capital firm investing in early-stage startup companies in Texas, has added Gene Austin as an Entrepreneur-in-Residence.
As an EIR, Austin will apply his expertise in the B2B software market, with a particular emphasis on SaaS and Cloud computing applications.
“Gene is known for his ability to consistently build strong leadership teams that deliver growth and results. His knowledge of the SaaS/OnDemand software space will allow him to make an immediate impact by either starting a company or joining an existing company in our portfolio.” said Thomas Ball, AV General Partner.
More than 30 years leading high growth companies
Gene has over 30 years of experience in leading high-growth technology companies as Chairman of the Board, CEO, VP and General Manager, among other key operating positions. Austin has extensive experience in leading both private venture-backed and public technology companies.
Gene is joining AV after serving as CEO of Convio, an AV portfolio company and the leading SaaS provider of CRM solutions for nonprofits. During his 10-year tenure at Convio, he grew the business to a successful IPO in 2010, followed by a successful sale in 2012.
Prior to Convio, Gene served as VP and General Manager of the Enterprise Data Management business for BMC Software.
He has also worked as VP of Internet Servers for Dell, VP of Sales and Marketing for CareerBuilder.com, and VP of Marketing for Servers at Compaq. While at CareerBuilder.com, he was part of the team that took the company public. He currently serves on the boards of the JDRF in Austin, and KIPP School of Austin.
Tags: Austin Ventures, Gene Austin, Startups, Texas
Posted in Cloud, entrepreneurship, People | No Comments »
Wednesday, December 12th, 2012
 If you’re looking for that special restaurant in which to wine and dine a potential big ticket customer, woo a business partner, or just to have a great meal while at home or on the road, OpenTable (NASDAQ: OPEN), a provider of free, real-time online restaurant reservations for diners guest management solutions for restaurants, has named the 2012 Diners’ Choice Award winners for the Top 100 Best Restaurants in the United States.
These awards reflect the combined opinions of more than 5 million reviews submitted by verified OpenTable diners for more than 15,000 restaurants in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.
All restaurants with a minimum number of qualifying reviews were included for consideration.
Qualifying restaurants were then sorted according to a score calculated from each restaurant’s average rating in the “overall” category along with that restaurant’s rating relative to others in the same metropolitan area and the average number of restaurants reviewed by diners who reviewed that restaurant.
Based on this methodology, the following restaurants, listed in alphabetical order, comprise the Top 100 Best Restaurants in the U.S. according to OpenTable diners.
2012 Diners’ Choice Award Winners for the Top 100 Best Restaurants in the U.S.
Acquerello – San Francisco, California
Addison at The Grand Del Mar – San Diego, California
Altura – Seattle, Washington
Andrea at Pelican Hill – Newport Coast, California
Annisa – New York, New York
Artisanal Restaurant – Banner Elk, North Carolina
The Ashby Inn – Paris, Virginia
Atelier Crenn – San Francisco, California
Auberge du Soleil – Rutherford, California
Bacchanalia – Atlanta, Georgia
The Belvedere – Beverly Hills, California
Bibou – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Binkley’s Restaurant – Cave Creek, Arizona
Bistro L’Hermitage – Woodbridge, Virginia
Blue Hill at Stone Barns – Pocantico Hills, New York
Bouchard Restaurant and Inn – Newport, Rhode Island
Bouley – New York, New York
Café Provence – Prairie Village, Kansas
Café Renaissance – Vienna, Virginia
Canlis – Seattle, Washington
Capital Grille – Kansas City, Missouri
Capital Grille – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Carpe Vino – Auburn, California
Castle Hill Inn – Newport, Rhode Island
Chachama Grill – East Patchogue, New York
Chama Gaucha Brazilian Steakhouse – Downers Grove, Illinois
Charleston – Baltimore, Maryland
Charleston Grill – Charleston, South Carolina
Chez Francois – Vermilion, Ohio
Chez Nous French Restaurant – Humble, Texas
CityZen – Washington, D.C.
Commis – Oakland, California
Cottage Place Restaurant – Flagstaff, Arizona
Daniel – New York, New York
Daniel-Lounge Seating – New York, New York
Del Posto – New York, New York
Eleven Madison Park – New York, New York
Farmhouse Inn & Restaurant – Forestville, California
Fearrington House Restaurant – Pittsboro, North Carolina
Fountain Restaurant – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
The French Laundry – Yountville, California
The French Room – Dallas, Texas
Geronimo – Santa Fe, New Mexico
The Goodstone Inn & Estate Restaurant – Middleburg, Virginia
Gracie’s – Providence, Rhode Island
Gramercy Tavern – New York, New York
Hannas Prime Steak – Rancho Santa Margarita, California
The Hobbit – Orange, California
Jean Georges – New York, New York
Joseph Tambellini – Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
JUNGSIK – New York, New York
Kai – Sheraton Wild Horse Pass Resort – Chandler, Arizona
Keiko à Nob Hill – San Francisco, California
King Umberto – Elmont, New York
The Kitchen Restaurant – Sacramento, California
La Ciccia – San Francisco, California
La Folie – San Francisco, California
La Grenouille – New York, New York
L’Auberge Chez Francois – Great Falls, Virginia
Le Bernardin – New York, New York
Le Vallauris – Palm Springs, California
Le Yaca – Williamsburg, Virginia
L’Espalier – Boston, Massachusetts
The Loft at Montage Laguna Beach – Laguna Beach, California
Mama’s Fish House – Paia, Hawaii
Manresa – Los Gatos, California
Marcel’s – Washington, D.C.
Marinus-Bernadus Lodge – Carmel Valley, California
Menton – Boston, Massachusetts
Michael’s – South Point Casino – Las Vegas, Nevada
The Modern-Dining Room – New York, New York
n/naka – Los Angeles, California
NAOE – Miami, Florida
Nicholas – Red Bank, New Jersey
Norman’s at The Ritz-Carlton Orlando – Orlando, Florida
The North Fork Table & Inn – Southold, New York
o ya – Boston, Massachusetts
ON20 – Hartford, Connecticut
Orchids at Palm Court – Cincinnati, Ohio
The Painted Lady – Newberg, Oregon
Palace Arms at The Brown Palace – Denver, Colorado
Per Se – New York, New York
Perry Street Brasserie – Galena, Illinois
Providence – Los Angeles, California
Restaurant Alma – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Restaurant Iris – Memphis, Tennessee
Rover’s – Seattle, Washington
Rudy & Paco Restaurant & Bar – Galveston, Texas
Saint Jacques French Cuisine – Raleigh, North Carolina
Saison – San Francisco, California
Scalini Fedeli – New York, New York
ShinBay – Scottsdale, Arizona
Sonoma – Princeton, Massachusetts
Splendido – Beaver Creek, Colorado
Studio at Montage Laguna Beach – Laguna Beach, California
Tony’s – St. Louis, Missouri
Tosca Ristorante – Washington, D.C.
Vetri – Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
VOLT – Frederick, Maryland
Woodfire Grill – Atlanta, Georgia
Diners can also read more about the Diners’ Choice Awards for the Top 100 Best Restaurants in the U.S. by visiting OpenTable Chief Dining Officer Caroline Potter’s “Dining Check” blog.
Tags: California, DC, Hawaii, Ill, Issouri, Kansas, MD, MN, NC, Nevada, New Mexico, NJ, Ohio, Open Table, Oregon, PA, RI, SC, Texas, TN, top 100 U.S. restaurants, Washington
Posted in Uncategorized | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 23rd, 2012
 The Apple iPhone continues to lead mobile video messaging usage, increasing from 7.4 percent to 23.6 percent since August 2011, however the use of Samsung devices is quickly gaining ground, increasing from 2.9 percent to 21.9 percent over the same period.
These numbers are according to the semiannual 2012 Mobile Marketing Analytics Report released by Mogreet, a multimedia-based mobile marketing provider.
“As the installed base of smartphones surpasses 50 percent in the United States, MMS provides a unique opportunity for marketers to reach all of their consumers with high-quality, engaging mobile video”
Currently, over two-thirds of all multimedia messaging delivered by businesses to consumers in the United States is done via the Mogreet platform.
This saturation of the mobile market provides the company deep insights into what messaging consumers view on their phones, giving unique types of useful knowledge for mobile marketers looking to improve and strengthen their messages, according to carrier, handset type and geography.
In addition, the semiannual report includes the following key statistics:
Percent of mobile multimedia messaging (MMS) delivered by mobile carrier:
- Verizon Wireless – 45.4 percent
- AT&T – 42.9 percent
- Sprint – 8.2 percent
- Cricket (Leap Wireless) – 2.4 percent
- T-Mobile – 0.7 percent
Percent of MMS delivered by handset type:
- Apple iPhone – 23.6 percent
- Samsung – 21.9 percent
- LG – 17.8 percent
- Blackberry – 5.1 percent
- Motorola – 5 percent
Top 5 U.S. regions using MMS:
- Atlanta
- South Carolina
- Phoenix
- Texas – Houston
- Las Vegas Area
“As the installed base of smartphones surpasses 50 percent in the United States, MMS provides a unique opportunity for marketers to reach all of their consumers with high-quality, engaging mobile video,” said James Citron, CEO of Mogreet.
The expanded report is available for download at http://blog.mogreet.com
Tags: Apple iPhone, AT&T, Atlanta, Balckberry, Cricket, Houston, Las Veges, LG, MMS, Mobile video messaging, Mogrreet, Motorola, Phoenix, Samsung devices, SC, smartphones, Sprint, T-Mobile, Texas, Verizon
Posted in Best Practices, Internet/New Media, Marketing, Mobile, smartphones, Studies, surveys, reports, Telecommunications | No Comments »
Wednesday, May 2nd, 2012
For the eighth year in a row, CEOs rate Texas as the #1 state in which to do business, according to Chief Executive magazine’s annual Best & Worst States Survey, released today.
Florida rose one spot to take the #2 rank, while North Carolina slipped to #3.
Tennessee remained at #4 while Indiana climbed a spot to capture the #5 rank. CEOs named the worst states to do business as California, New York, Illinois, Massachusetts and Michigan.
The Best & Worst States Survey measures the sentiment of CEOs on business conditions around the nation.
For the 2012 survey, 650 CEOs from across the country evaluated the states on a broad range of issues, including regulations, tax policies, workforce quality, educational resources, quality of living and infrastructure. The survey was conducted from Jan. 24 to Feb. 26, 2012.
Louisiana biggest gainer
Louisiana was the biggest gainer in the survey, rising 14 spots to be the #13th most attractive state in the country to do business. The biggest loser was Oregon, which dropped nine spots to #42.
CEOs surveyed said California’s poor ranking is the result of its hostility to business, high state taxes and overly stringent regulations, which is driving investment, companies and jobs to other states.
According to Spectrum Locations Consultants, 254 California companies moved some or all of their work and jobs out of state in 2011, an increase of 26 percent over the previous year and five times as many as in 2009.
“CEOs tell us that California seems to be doing everything possible to drive business from the state. Texas, by contrast, has been welcoming companies and entrepreneurs, particularly in the high-tech arena,” said J.P. Donlon, Editor-in-Chief of Chief Executivemagazine and ChiefExecutive.net.
“Local economic development corporations, as well as the state Texas Enterprise Fund, are providing attractive incentives. This, along with the relaxed regulatory environment and supportive State Department of Commerce adds up to a favorable climate for business.”
Inhospitable business environments mean less jobs, as entrepreneurs and established corporations seek more cost-efficient and tax-friendly locales, said Marshall Cooper, CEO of Chief Executive magazine and ChiefExecutive.net. “This survey shows that states that create policies and incentives are rewarded with investment, jobs and greater overall economic activity.”
For complete results, including individual state rankings on multiple criteria, methodology and more, please visitChiefExecutive.net.
| Best 5 States for Business |
Rank 2012 |
Rank 2011 |
| Texas |
1st |
1st |
| Florida |
2nd |
3rd |
| North Carolina |
3rd |
2nd |
| Tennessee |
4th |
4th |
| Indiana |
5th |
6th |
Source: Chief Executive magazine (ChiefExecutive.net)
| Worst 5 States for Business |
Rank 2012 |
Rank 2011 |
| California |
50th |
50th |
| New York |
49th |
49th |
| Illinois |
48th |
48th |
| Massachusetts |
47th |
45th |
| Michigan |
46th |
46th |
Source: Chief Executive magazine (ChiefExecutive.net)
| 2012 Biggest Gainers |
Positions Gained |
| Louisiana |
+14 |
| Mississippi |
+8 |
| West Virginia |
+8 |
| Ohio |
+6 |
| North Dakota |
+6 |
Source: Chief Executive magazine (ChiefExecutive.net)
| 2012 Biggest Losers |
Positions Lost |
| Oregon |
-9 |
| Kentucky |
-8 |
| New Hampshire |
-8 |
| Nebraska |
-7 |
| Minnesota |
-7 |
Source: Chief Executive magazine (ChiefExecutive.net)
Tags: Californian, CEOs rank best states for business, Florida, Ill, Indiana, KY, Lousiana, M&A, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, NC, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, NY., Ohio, Oregon, Texas, TN, W. Virginia
Posted in Carolinas, Economic Development, Economy/Jobs, Florida, Kentucky, North Carolina, Studies, surveys, reports, Tennessee, West Virginia | No Comments »
Friday, April 27th, 2012
Amazon Kindle Fire Doubles its Share of Android Tablet Market in Two Months
 A Kindle Fire tablet computer The Kindle Fire, introduced to the market in November 2011, has seen rapid adoption among buyers of tablets, far ahead of the others, but larger tabs see almost 40 percent more use, according to comScore’s Digital Essentails report.
Within the Android tablet market, Kindle Fire has almost doubled its share in the past two months from 29.4 percent share in December 2011 to 54.4 percent share in February 2012, already establishing itself as the leading Android tablet by a wide margin.
Samsung’s Galaxy Tab family followed with a market share of 15.4 percent in February, followed by the Motorola Xoom with 7.0 percent share. The Asus Transformer and Toshiba AT100 rounded out the top five with 6.3 percent and 5.7 percent market share, respectively.
We’ve tried both the larger 10 inch tablets and the Kindle Fire and prefer the smaller screen for most things we use a tablet to do. Here’s our intial review: http://www.techjournal.org/2011/11/kindle-fire-a-good-value-for-the-money/. We like it even more now that we’ve used it for several months. Other people who try ours also seem to like it.
U.S. Market Share of Android Tablets by Unique Devices
Dec-2011, Jan-2012, Feb-2012
Total U.S.
Source: comScore Device Essentials* |
|
% Share of Android Tablets |
| Dec-11 |
Jan-12 |
Feb-12 |
| Amazon Kindle Fire |
29.4% |
41.8% |
54.4% |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab Family |
23.8% |
19.1% |
15.4% |
| Motorola Xoom |
11.8% |
9.0% |
7.0% |
| Asus Transformer |
6.4% |
6.2% |
6.3% |
| Toshiba AT100 |
7.1% |
7.0% |
5.7% |
| Acer Picasso |
6.0% |
5.2% |
4.3% |
| Acer Iconia |
2.8% |
2.6% |
2.1% |
| Dell Streak |
2.2% |
1.7% |
1.3% |
| Lenovo IdeaPad Tablet K1 |
0.7% |
0.9% |
1.2% |
| Sony Tablet S |
0.9% |
0.8% |
0.7% |
| Other |
8.9% |
5.6% |
1.6% |
*comScore Device Essentials measures unique devices accessing the web during the time period noted, including home, enterprise and secondary devices across all age groups.
Larger Screen Tablets See Higher Level of Content Consumption
Tablet adoption among U.S. consumers continues to climb as more devices appealing to various price and feature preferences are introduced to the market. Screen size is perhaps the most outwardly apparent differentiator between devices, with the market offering consumers a wide variety of options such as the 10″ Apple iPad, 9″ Sony S1, 7″ Amazon Kindle Fire and 5″ Dell Streak.
Analysis of page view consumption by screen size found a strong positive association between screen size and content consumption. Specifically, 10″ tablets have a 39-percent higher consumption rate than 7″ tablets and a 58-percent higher rate than 5″ tablets.
Average Browser Page Views per Tablet
Feb-2012
Total U.S.
Source: comScore Device Essentials* |
| Tablet Screen Size |
Browser Page Views
per Tablet |
| 10 inch |
125 |
| 9 inch |
116 |
| 7 inch |
90 |
| 5 inch |
79 |
*comScore Device Essentials measures unique devices accessing the web during the time period noted, including home, enterprise and secondary devices across all age groups.
Although many factors – such as demographics, content availability, connection speed and ease of portability – may influence consumption levels, the results of this analysis highlight important questions for the industry as the tablet space develops.
With the emergence of a growing number of smaller-sized tablet devices, advertisers and publishers will need to understand whether these devices limit the opportunity for advertising compared to their larger-screen counterparts, or if they are able to build incremental reach and engagement by presenting different use cases.
Smartphone Carrier Market Share Shows Variation Across Key States
Among the new capabilities introduced in Device Essentials is the ability to segment data into custom geographies to provide more granular insights into local market device usage. comScore analyzed the share of unique smartphone devices among the top four carriers in the most populous U.S. states and found significant variation between markets.
Looking exclusively at the top four carriers, AT&T accounted for the largest share of unique smartphones in Texas (46.2 percent), California (42.9 percent) and Illinois (42.1 percent), while Verizon claimed the top spot in New York (43.6 percent) and Florida (36.5 percent). The greatest disparity in carrier share between AT&T and Verizon occurred in Texas, where AT&T’s smartphone share was more than double that of Verizon’s share.
Sprint PCS ranked as the third largest smartphone carrier in each of the top five markets, with the carrier owning its highest market share in Illinois at 22.8 percent. T-Mobile USA captured its highest market share in Texas, where the carrier accounted for 11.9 percent of smartphone devices.
U.S. Market Share of Unique Smartphone Devices Among AT&T, Verizon, Sprint and T-Mobile by Top 5 States
February 2012
Total U.S.
Source: comScore Device Essentials* |
|
% Share of Unique Smartphone Devices by Market |
| AT&T |
Verizon |
Sprint PCS |
T-Mobile USA |
| California |
42.9% |
29.2% |
17.4% |
10.5% |
| Florida |
31.7% |
36.5% |
20.7% |
11.2% |
| Illinois |
42.1% |
25.3% |
22.8% |
9.8% |
| New York |
28.4% |
43.6% |
21.2% |
6.8% |
| Texas |
46.2% |
22.3% |
19.5% |
11.9% |
*comScore Device Essentials measures unique devices accessing the web during the time period noted, including home, enterprise and secondary devices across all age groups.
Tags: Acer Iconia, Acer Picasso, android tablet market, Asus transformer, AT&T, comScore Digital Essentials, Dell Streak, Kindle Fire, Lenovo IdeaPad, Lenovo IdeaPadd Tablet K1, Motorola Xoom, New York, Sansung Galaxy Tab, smartphone carrier share, Sony tablet S, Texas, Toshiba AT100
Posted in Amazon, Apple, Digital Devices, Studies, surveys, reports | No Comments »
Monday, January 30th, 2012
 TechStars, recently recognized as the No. 1 startup accelerator in the world, and Microsoft Corp. are working together to help startups fast-track their businesses with free cloud services.
The enhanced program allows TechStars accelerators in Boulder, Colo.; Boston; New York; Seattle; and Texas to offer each of their startups up to$60,000 of Windows Azure compute and storage over a 24-month period, at no cost.
Interviewing entrepreneurs over the last few years for the TechJournal and hearing their pitches at TechMedia’s annual Southeast Venture Conference (next one slated for Tysons Corner, VA, Feb. 29-March 1), we know that the ability to operate via cloud services has enabled many tech startups to launch with much less capital then they needed previously.
Many use Amazon’s cloud, which eliminates the need for them to have significant in house infrastructure. It also makes software that only large Enterprise firms could afford just a decade ago, available to small and medium-sized businesses.
BizSpark Plus is an extension of the Microsoft BizSpark program, designed to accelerate the success of startups around the world. BizSpark Plus works through select incubators and accelerators such as TechStars to provide value-added products and services to high-potential startups.
In addition to offering this to TechStars, Microsoft is making this offer available to all founders whose accelerator is part of theGlobal Accelerator Network, a network of nearly 40 high-quality accelerators from around the world that follow a model similar to TechStars.
“Our passion is helping startups succeed around the world by providing funding and mentorship from the best and brightest Internet entrepreneurs and investors on the planet. The enhanced relationship with Microsoft will allow us to provide our founders with even more valuable support and services,” said David Cohen, founder and CEO of TechStars. “Access to technologies such as Windows Azure and other software and services from Microsoft through the BizSpark Plus program gives our companies a leg up in the all-encompassing race to scale and succeed.”
TechStars has a wealth of experience working with tech startups around the world that are building products and services in the cloud. Cloud applications and smart devices are driving the new startup ecosystem, affording startups the ability to drive user adoption, scale their companies and generate financial returns with far less capital and much more quickly than ever before.
Windows Azure offers a simple, comprehensive and powerful platform for the creation of Web applications and services.
Tags: Boston, Boulder, cloud services, CO, free cloud servicess for startups, M&A, Microsoft, New York, NYC, Seattle, Southeast Venture Conference, Startups, Tech Stars, Texas, Windows Azure
Posted in Cloud, Internet/New Media, IT | No Comments »
Tuesday, January 3rd, 2012
 Low fares business class specialist Lets Fly Cheaper (LFC) has compiled its first “world’s worst airports” list of international and domestic airports with the worst records for delayed flights.
LFC culled through several sources to ultimately come up with its own criteria and list of worst performing airports.
“There are tons of year-end worst airports lists out there. Some are based on overall satisfaction, while others focus on details like how easy it is to sleep in the airport,” said Ramon Van Meer, Lets Fly Cheaper marketing director. “We wanted our list to be relevant to our customers, who travel primarily for business, and to our company, which specializes in getting customers the best travel deal, right here, right now.”
“Business travelers live in the moment,” said Van Meer. “They care about making their flight connections today, not whether they could have made them 11 months ago. Their #1 concern is getting to their next big deal on time. Period.
That’s why LFC has shortened our time horizon from all year to the past month and focused exclusively on delays, not airport amenities. Our data is based on December 2011 statistics only. This gives us the flexibility to publish new results monthly, if customers find our list useful.”
Lets Fly Cheaper’s 10 worst airports based on delayed departures:
International Airports:
5. Pu Dong, Shanghai
4. Madrid-Barajas, Madrid
3. Charles De Gaulle, Paris
2. Changi, Singapore
1. Capital International, Beijing
Domestic Airports:
5. George Bush Intercontinental, Houston
4. Denver International, Denver
3. Hartsfield-Jackson, Atlanta
2. O’Hare, Chicago
1. Dallas/Ft. Worth International
Not surprisingly, all “winners” are among the world’s busiest airports. LFC’s international list includes three Asian-Pacific entries and two European entries. Charles De Gaulle is one that appears consistently on almost every “worst” compilation across the board.
Yet it only clocks in midway down the LFC list. The “top” honor for most delayed flights – by a margin of almost 2:1 is Beijing, with a whopping 12,864 delayed flights for December.
Domestically, the “usual suspects” that seem to always top other worst lists (Miami, JFK) are notably absent from LFC’s picks for delayed flights. LFC’s list includes two Texas airports, plus three that come as no surprise, given the volume of air traffic they handle.
WORST INTERNATIONAL AIRPORTS:
5. Pu Dong Airport (PVG), Shanghai
Number of Delayed Flights: 5,175
Shanghai Pudong International Airport (sometimes noted as Pu Dong) is the world’s 20th busiest airport and China’s third busiest, hosting over 40 million passengers annually. The airport is a hub for both Shanghai Airlines and China Eastern Airlines.
4. Madrid-Barajas Airport (MAD), Madrid
Number of Delayed Flights: 5,448
Madrid-Barajas Airport is an international bridge connecting Europe with Central and South America. The airport serves Spanish carriers, members of Star Alliance and Skyteam Iberia Airlines, as well as international carriers.
3. Charles De Gaulle Airport (CDG), Paris
Number of Delayed Flights: 6,731
Charles de Gaulle Airport is Europe’s second busiest airport (after London’s Heathrow). The airport serves international travelers, Air France and other European airlines.
2. Changi Airport, (SIN), Singapore
Number of Delayed Flights: 7,428
Changi Airport in Singapore is the world’s 17th busiest airport serving 100 international airlines to more than 60 countries. The airport handles over 19 million passengers every year. Changi has received the “World’s Best Airport” award from Ultratravel Magazine the last four years.
1. Beijing Capital International Airport (PEK), Beijing
Number of Delayed Flights: 12,864
Beijing Capital International Airport is the busiest airport in Asia and the second busiest in the world. The airport hosts over 73 million passengers annually with 70+ airlines flying to more than 200 cities worldwide.
WORST DOMESTIC AIRPORTS:
5. George Bush Intercontinental (IAH), Houston
Number of Delayed Flights: 4,919
George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston is the eighth busiest airport in the United States and #3 for non-stop domestic and international service. It is also provides service to 30 destinations in Mexico.
4. Denver International (DEN), Denver
Number of Delayed Flights: 5,300
Denver International Airport is the fifth busiest airport the United States and 11th busiest in the world. Denver Airport opened in 1995 and in less than 20 years has become a major transportation hub, handling some 50 million passengers annually.
3. Hartsfield-Jackson (ATL), Atlanta
Number of Delayed Flights: 5,472
Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport is the world’s busiest, serving 90 million domestic and international passengers. The airport has spent the last decade making major improvements. The Air Transport Research Society named Atlanta the world’s most efficient airport in 2011. [Note: Considering the tremendous volume it processes, we’d say Atlanta is doing pretty darned well with “only” 5,472 delays for the month!]
2. Chicago O’Hare International (ORD), Chicago
Number of Delayed Flights: 6,817
Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport is well known as the second busiest airport in the states. It’s also the world’s fourth busiest. O’Hare is the major hub for United/Continental Airlines. The vast airport has four terminals, with three serving both domestic and international flights and one serving international flights only.
1. Dallas/Fort Worth International (DFW), Dallas
Number of Delayed Flights: 7,231
Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport is the fourth busiest airport in the US and eighth busiest in the world. The airport has five terminals with two dedicated exclusively to serving American Airlines passengers.
Tags: Atlanta, Beijing, Capital International, Changi, Charles De Gaulle, Chicago, Dalla/Ft. Worth International, Denver International, flight delays at domestic airports, George Bush Intercontinental, Houston, Madrid-Barajas, O'Hare, Paris, Pu Dong, Singapore, Texas, worst airports for business travel
Posted in Business advice, Studies, surveys, reports | No Comments »
Friday, December 23rd, 2011
 One thing marketers always have to take into account is where their consumers are and more of them moved to the sunbelt last year than to any other states.
Texas gained more people than any other state between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011 (529,000), followed by California(438,000), Florida (256,000), Georgia (128,000) and North Carolina (121,000), according to the latest U.S. Census Bureau estimates for states and Puerto Rico.
Combined, these five states accounted for slightly more than half the nation’s total population growth.
“These are the first set of Census Bureau population estimates to be published since the official 2010 Census state population counts were released a year ago,” said Census Bureau Director Robert Groves.
“Our nation is constantly changing and these estimates provide us with our first measure of how much each state has grown or declined in total population since Census Day 2010.”
The United States as a whole saw its population increase by 2.8 million over the 15-month period, to 311.6 million. Its growth of 0.92 percent between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, was the lowest since the mid-1940s.
“The nation’s overall growth rate is now at its lowest point since before the baby boom,” Groves said.
California remained the most populous state, with a July 1, 2011, population of 37.7 million. Rounding out the top five states were Texas (25.7 million), New York (19.5 million), Florida (19.1 million) and Illinois (12.9 million).
DC led growth
Among states and equivalents, the District of Columbia experienced the fastest growth between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, as its population climbed 2.7 percent. This marks the first time it led states and equivalents in growth since the early 1940s. D.C. ranked 35th in percent growth between the 2000 and 2010 censuses.
Following D.C. in terms of percent increase between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, were Texas (2.1 percent), Utah (1.9 percent), Alaska (1.8 percent), Colorado (1.7 percent) and North Dakota (1.7 percent). North Dakota was 37th in percent growth between the 2000 and 2010 censuses.
The only three states to lose population between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, were Rhode Island (1,300 or -0.12 percent),Michigan (7,400 or -0.08 percent) and Maine (200 or -0.01 percent).
Nevada, the nation’s fastest-growing state between 2000 and 2010, ranked only 27th in population growth between April 1, 2010, and July 1, 2011, increasing by 0.8 percent.
During 2012, the Census Bureau will release 2011 estimates of the total population of counties and incorporated places, as well as national, state and county population estimates by age, sex, race and Hispanic origin.
The Census Bureau develops state population estimates by measuring population change since the most recent census. These are the first set of population estimates to be based on the 2010 Census. The Census Bureau uses births, deaths, administrative records and survey data to develop estimates of population. For more detail regarding the methodology see
Tags: California, Colorado, Florida, Maine, Michigan, Nevada, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Rhode Island, states that gained the most population 2010-2011, Texas, U.S. Census
Posted in Government/Defense, Studies, surveys, reports | No Comments »
Tuesday, December 6th, 2011
 Over the past few years, research from Pricewaterhouse Coopers has indicated that three areas of the US – Boston, New York, and Silicon Valley – dominate the venture capital scene, but Los Angeles, Northwest/Seattle, Midwest/Chicago, Texas, and the D.C. Metro area are closing in as new hot spots, according to new research.
Last week, Boston venture capital firm OpenView Partners released its latest research report on geographical and sector trends for technology companies in the expansion stage. The research conducted by OpenView Labs focused on identifying areas outside of the big three that have secured venture capital in the first half of 2011.
According to the team’s research Los Angeles, Northwest/Seattle, Midwest/Chicago, Texas, and D.C. Metro area are all on the verge of becoming hot spots for receiving venture capital. As young companies continue to secure funding away from the traditional hot spots, each of these areas has worked to carve their own niche in the investment landscape.
The report features commentary from venture capitalists including Howard Morgan of First Round Capital, Chris Girgenti of New World Ventures, Greg Gottesman of Madrona Venture Partners, and George Roberts of OpenView Partners.
“Recently a CEO told me he was turned down for capital because he company isn’t location in Silicon Valley. That story saddened me because OpenView would never make such a statement; we go to them, rather than telling a company to come to us,” said George Roberts.
The research revealed the following:
- 50 deals in the D.C Metro area totaling $189.3 million in investment
- 75 deals in the Midwest totaling $455.3 million in venture capital (all data current through Q2 201)
- Investments total $479.9 million in the software sector and $376.5 million in media and entertainment sector across the 5 areas analyzed in the study
The full report.
Mid-Atlantic and DC area entrepreneurs looking for a way to connect with top venture capitalists might want to consider attending the upcoming Southeast Venture Conference at Tysons Corner, VA, Feb. 29-March 1.
Tags: Boston, cities becoming venture capital magnets, Los Angeles, Midwest/Chicago, New York, Northwest/Seattle, OpenView Partenrs, Pricwaterhouscoopers, Silicon Valley, Texas, venture capital hot spots
Posted in Money, Potomac, Studies, surveys, reports, Tech Culture, venture capital report, Washington, DC | No Comments »
Monday, November 28th, 2011
 What are the best cities for technology jobs now? You can probably guess that Seattle, would be high on the list, and it indeed came in at number one on a list compiled by newgeography.com. But if you guessed the Silicon Valley, you would be wrong.
The Valley, despite a concentration of tech jobs- six times the national average – it came in at 17 on the site’s list of the top 51 cities for tech jobs. It points out that the Valley was one of the biggest tech job losers over the last decade, dropping 80,000 positions, despite the more recent dot-com funding craze.
San Francisco itself is way down at number 29.
Newgeography used high-tech employment data from EMSI, an economic modeling firm. It then charted those areas that have gained the most high-tech manufacturing, software and services jobs over the past 10 years.
The top ten, newgeography says, are:
Seattle, Baltimore, Columbus, Raleigh, Salt Lake City, Jacksonville, Washington, DC, New Orleans, Riverside/San Bernardino, and San Diego.
The next batch inlcudes more surprises: Indianapolis is 11, Buffalo 12, San Antonio 13, and Charlotte 14. Boston is way down at 22.
Factors affecting high-tech job creation, the site says, include the presence of a major research university – although that wasn’t of much help to Boston, which lost 45,000 tech jobs (18 percent) in the last decade.
Business costs are another factor. They’re high in the Valley, Boston, and the Bay area, less so in many of top ten cities. Even low business costs are not a sure path to tech job creation though. Texas has good business metrics, but nevertheless experienced losses in tech jobs, primarily due to cutbacks in telecom, electronics, and communications equipment manufacturing.
Personally, we think a careful look at the results of this study suggest something we’ve said all along: big manufacturing operations are not the be all and end all of job creation. Placing an emphasis on creating a welcoming atmosphere for startup tech companies is a better way to go, and some areas, including Durham in the Research Triangle of North Carolina, are taking that route.
Newgeography suggests that two up and comers in this decade might be Detroit, which it says “has some real high-tech mojo,” and New Orleans, which has expanded its tech workforce by about 10 percent since 2009.
Tags: Baltimore, best cities for tech jobs, Charlotte, Columbus, DC, Detroit, Durham NC, eattle, Jacksonville, New Orleans, newgeography.com, Raleigh, Riverside/San Bernardino, Salt Lake City, San Diego, Texas, top tech growth cities, Washington
Posted in Internet/New Media, IT, Studies, surveys, reports, TechJobs, TechLife, Telecommunications | No Comments »
Monday, September 19th, 2011
 Texas, North Carolina and South Carolina are viewed as having the best business climates among the 50 states, according to a new survey of U.S. corporate executives.
The poll pinpointed California, New York and Illinois as the U.S. states with the least favorable business climates.
Conducted by Development Counsellors International (DCI) every three years, the “Winning Strategies in Economic Development Marketing” survey has tracked trends in economic development since its inception in 1996.
“With the battle for business more intense than ever, states and their economic development organizations need to pay close attention to the results of this survey,” said DCI President Andrew T. Levine. “Whether accurate or misguided, perceptions about a location’s business climate often play a crucial role in site selection decisions and where companies invest money and create jobs.”
Half the firms to make relocation decisions
Nearly half (46%) of the 322 corporate executive who responded to the survey indicated that their firm would make a location decision in the next 24 months – whether a move, expansion or consolidation of a manufacturing plant, offices, distribution center or other facilities. More than half (51%) said that they would outsource a portion of the site selection process to a real estate broker or site selection consultant.
Texas was the clear-cut favorite among the respondents to the survey, with 49.4% naming the Lone Star state as having one of the most favorable business climates in the nation. North Carolina ranked second with 27.8%; South Carolina has 14.3% of the votes.
Texas and North Carolina have consistently landed in the top spots since the survey began more than a decade ago.Texas has held the #1 ranking since 1999, while North Carolina has been #2 since 2002. South Carolina, Tennessee andFlorida have frequently traded top positions in the survey and 2011 marks the return of South Carolina to the #3 slot.
Low operating costs a top concern
When asked why they selected the states they did as being best for business, the corporate executives frequently cited low operating costs and a pro-business climate. In the 2008 survey, more executives pointed to the availability of a strong workforce than they did in 2011.
For the fourth consecutive time, California was deemed as having the least favorable business climate, with 70.5% of the responses. New York was named second most frequently with 46.5%, followed by Illinois (24.4%) Taxes, high costs and “anti-business climate/regulation” spurred most of the negative opinions.
The comprehensive survey also asked a series of questions to divine the most effective economic development marketing tools, the leading sources of information that influence executive perceptions of a community’s business climate and the most important factors in business location decisions.
DCI conducted the survey online, polling a random selection of C-level executives at U.S. companies with annual revenues of$25 million or more. The survey was augmented by 250 location advisors/consultants.
For a free copy of the full “Winning Strategies” survey report or an executive summary, see: www.aboutdci.com/winning-strategies.
Tags: best staes for business, California, corporate execs see Texas, Illinois, low operating costs, NC, New York, SC, SC best for business, state business environments, Texas, workforce development
Posted in Carolinas, Economic Development, North Carolina, South Carolina, Studies, surveys, reports | No Comments »
Friday, August 5th, 2011
 CAMBRIDGE, MA – New data from Jumptap, a targeted mobile advertising firm, shows that consumers in the South and Southwest tend to be Android-biased compared to the rest of the country, while those in the Midwest and Northeast lean towards iOS.
California, Texas and Florida over-index for Android use and states in New England and the Midwest over-index for iOS use.
Blackberry use, which over-indexed in New York, was also included in the geographic data. This new data establishes an evolving narrative of a North vs. South divide in the ongoing battle of the two top mobile operating systems.
The results are revealed as part of Jumptap’s monthly data report, Mobile STAT (Simple Targeting & Audience Trends), which is based on data for the first half of 2011 from the over 83 million unique users on the Jumptap mobile ad network. The report also showed that Android continues to hold the top spot in terms of overall share (with iOS coming in a close second), but that iOS ads continue to outperform ads on other operating systems.
“Our advertisers are requesting the most granular data available on mobile users so they can create the most targeted campaigns,” said Paran Johar, Chief Marketing Officer for Jumptap. “This new data reveals some interesting patterns for advertisers to consider when targeting consumers using Android devices vs. iOS devices.”
Ad performance on Sony Ericsson Android devices rivals Apple’s iOS devices
The STAT report also examines the ad performance on Android devices in new dimensions, breaking out ad performance by both manufacturer and carrier.
The manufacturer analysis showed that Sony Ericsson devices are the only Android devices with ad performance nearing that of iOS devices. Ads running on Sony Ericsson devices in the first half of 2011 averaged a .54% click-through rate, making it the only Android manufacturer above the industry average of .52%, but still not as high as iOS devices at .78%.
Jumptap’s Mobile STAT report is a monthly view into targeting and audience trends in mobile advertising. Jumptap takes a unique data-driven approach to mobile advertising, enabling it to surface the insights contained in the report. STAT contains analysis of hundreds of gigabytes of log data, powered by the scalable, efficient and lightning-fast Jumptap technology. Jumptap strives to make mobile advertising smart and simple, and STAT was designed to benefit the entire mobile ecosystem.
To download a full copy of the Jumptap STAT report, see: jumptap.com/STAT.
Tags: ad performance on mobile devices, Apple, Blackberry, California, Florida, Google Android, iOS, Jumptap STAT report, New York, RIM, Sony Ericcson, Texas
Posted in Apple, Google, Marketing, Mobile, smartphones, Studies, surveys, reports, Telecommunications | No Comments »
Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011
 We’re seeing an uptick in venture funding rounds for Internet-centric companies in the third quarter, although it’s still too early to tell if it will continue in the face of an economy still in the doldrums. Investors are still looking favorably on deal-focused startups, with Google Ventures taking a stake in WhaleShark, and angels backing Choozon, which was started by former Yahoo execs.
WhaleShark Media, Inc., a marketplace for coupons and deals named Brian Sharples, CEO and co-founder of HomeAway, to the company’s board. In addition, the company announced an investment in an undisclosed amount from Google Ventures.
WhaleShark continues to demonstrate strong progress. The company’s websites worldwide, which include RetailMeNot.com in the United States, connect consumers with discounts from more than 100,000 top merchants, stores and retailers. More than 230 million visitors come to shop its sites every year.
The WhaleShark Media portfolio of coupon and deal websites includes www.RetailMeNot.com, the largest online coupon site in the United States, www.Deals.com, www.Deals2Buy.com, www.CheapStingyBargains.com, www.CouponSeven.com and www.CouponShare.com.
ChoozOn closes on $3.2M funding for deal discovery
Bellevue, WA - ChoozOn, the world’s first personalized service for deal discovery and social shopping for deals, has closed a $3.2 million Series A round of funding.
Leading this round and joining ChoozOn Corp’s Board are Michael Orsak of Worldview Technology Partners and James Brown of AVG Ventures.
Founded by former Yahoo! executives and led by a team of digital marketing experts, ChoozOn will use the resources to ramp up the development of its innovative service, which allows consumers to create customized “personal deal networks” comprising their favorite stores, brands, product categories, loyalty programs, deal clubs, daily deal services, and shopping pals. The company also revealed that, in the three months since ChoozOn’s founding was announced, over 1,000 leading brands have signed on to be “chozen” by consumers for inclusion in their personal deal networks.
FirstRain grabs $6.4M for business monitoring engine
SAN MATEO, CA.- FirstRain, the innovative Business Monitoring Engine used by global business professionals to track the critical developments impacting their business has raised $6.4 Million in new funding led by global technology venture capital firm Oak Investment Partners.
FirstRain had previously raised a total of $41 Million since FirstRain President & CEO, Penny Herscher reset the product strategy in 2006 and brought in Oak Investment Partners as the new majority owner. “This new capital will be used to help maintain our growth trajectory, grow the sales team and invest in the product development that keeps us in the forefront of the B2B digital information industry.” www.firstrain.com
Charlotte-based Adaptivity nails half of planned $6M round
Adaptivity Inc., a computer services company, has raised $3 million of a targeted $6 million rais according to a filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
BetterWorks nabs $8M for employee engagement tech
Los Angeles-based BetterWorks, a company focused on helping small and medium-sized businesses recognize, reward and engage employees, has raised an $8 million Series A round from Redpoint Ventures. Funding will be used for hiring, expansion and continued development of the BetterWorks Perks platform, a simple online solution for employers to create, manage and measure employee perks programs. Total raise, including an early angel-backed round, brings investments to $10 million. www.betterworks.com
Campusbookrentals.com shelves $20M 2nd round
Utah-based CampusBookRentals.com has raised $20 million in a second funding round led by Level Equity, Five Elms Capital, and Cherokee & Walker. The company serves college students on more than 5,600 U.S. campuses and also buys back textbooks.
Twitter gets “significant” funding
DST Global has invested a “significant” but undisclosed amount of funding in Twitter. The company said on its blog that several existing investors participated.
Twitter says it will use the funds – which some online sources say is worth at least $400 million and may also include $400 million in secondary funding.
The funding, which values the company at $8 billion, reports say, would be a record for a venture round, includes backing from Russia’s DST Global, which also made a large investment in Facebook.
Tags: Adaptivity, Austin, AVG Ventures, Bellevue, BetterWorks, CA, CampusBookRentals.com, Charlotte, ChoozOn, deal discovery, DST Global, financings, FirstRain, James Brown, Los Angeles, Michael Orsak, NC, personal deal networks, San Mateo, Texas, Twitter funded, Twitter venture funding a record, Utah, venture fundings, WA, WhaleShark Media, Worldview Technology Partners, Yahoo
Posted in Internet/New Media, IT, Money, Twitter | No Comments »
Monday, August 1st, 2011
 AT&T says that starting Oct. 1, heavy data users may see downstream connections slow if they end up in the top 5 percent in use during any billing cycle.
The change will only affect unlimited data plan users. Data use on Wi-Fi won’t count toward the total.
The company says it is also investing in continually upgrading its network and attempting to acquire more network capacity. But AT&T says throttling heavy data users and its other efforts will not meet the data crunch challenge.
“Nothing short of completing the T-Mobile merger will provide additional spectrum capacity to address these near-term challenges,” the company said in a statement, speaking of the $39 billion merger announced in March. The deal faces some opposition from Washington legislators and competitors.
Symantec names Steve Bennet chair
Symantec Corp. (NASDAQ: SYMC) says its board intends to elect independent board member Steve Bennett to the position of chairman. Bennett will succeed John W. Thompson, former Symantec CEO and chairman. Thompson will continue to serve the remainder of his term, but has chosen not to stand for reelection in order to pursue other business and personal interests. Bennett will assume the Chairman position effective October 25, 2011, at the conclusion of Thompson’s term and immediately following Symantec’s 2011 annual meeting of stockholders.
Facebook offers bug bounty
 Facebook says it will pay hackers to uncover pr0blems on its website as long as they report it to Facebook’s security team first.
The company’s Web Bounty program, similar to efforts from Google and Mozilla, will pay a base rate of $500 to discover security problems such as cross site scripting flaws and will pay even more to uncover even more serious security problems.
Security researchers can sign up at Facebook’s Whitehat Hacking Portal.
Austin-Texas-based Kimbia lands $4M for online fundraising tech
Kimbia Inc.it raised more than $4 million in a Series 2 round of funding led by S3 Ventures to expand industry adoption of its Web-based fundraising and event management software. Kimbia’s innovative platform is designed to power the next generation of online fundraisers, event organizers and social advocates. Kimbia donation and registration forms are fully customizable through a Web-based control panel and are deployable anywhere on the Web via fully-secure form widgets — effectively allowing any Web page, blog or mobile device to accept credit card donations and/or registration fees.
Nashville-based EDO Interactive grabs $20M funding
EDO Interactive, which sells a digital deals and incentives platform, has reaise $20 million in a B round led by Baird Venture Partners and VantagePoint Capital Partners.
Hearsay Social raises $18M to connect local branches and reps
Hearsay Social, a San Francisco-based firm selling social media SaaS solutions for local branches and representatives of brands, raise $18 million from New Enterprise Associates with participation by existing investor Sequoia Capital.
BigCommerce nabs $12.6M for ecommerce software
BigCommerce, based in Austin, Texas, which sells ecommerce software for SME’s, has raised $12.6 million in a B round led by Madrone Capital. Sigma Partners participated in the round.
Tags: AT&T throttles heavy data use, Austin, BigCommerce, broadband data use, Facebook bug bounty, Facebook Whitehat Hacking Portal, financings, Hearsay Social, John W. Thompson, Kimba, Nashville, online charity giving, San Francisco, Steve Bennet, Symantec names chair, Texas, TN
Posted in Facebook, Internet/New Media, IT, Microsoft, Mobile, Money, social media, TechJobs, Telecommunications | No Comments »
Thursday, May 5th, 2011
 For the seventh year in a row, CEOs rate Texas as the #1 state in which to do business and California as the worst. North Carolina maintained its #2 rank, while Florida rose three positions to the #3 spot. Tennessee fell one slot from last year to #4 while Georgia climbed two positions to claim the #5 rank.
Chief Executive magazine’s annual “Best & Worst States” survey takes the pulse of CEOs on business conditions around the nation. For the 2011 survey, 550 CEOs from across the country evaluated the states on a broad range of issues, including regulations, tax policies, workforce quality, education resources, quality of living and infrastructure.
“A handful of states have made business-friendly policies a priority,” says J.P. Donlon, Editor-in-Chief ofChief Executive magazine and ChiefExecutive.net. “These forward-thinking states are the exception rather than the rule and include Utah, Arizona, Florida, Tennessee, Louisiana, Texas and Oklahoma.”
CEOs voted California as the worst state in 2011, with New York, Illinois, New Jersey and Michiganrounding out the bottom five.
“ABC — Anywhere But California,” said T.J. Rodgers, CEO of Cypress Semiconductor, a $668 million chip maker headquartered in San Jose, California, and with plants in 10 countries. “It’s expensive, it’s hostile to business, and environmental regulations are more of a drag on business than protecting the environment.” Cypress Semiconductor’s headcount in California peaked at 1,500. It’s now down to about 600.
With finances in shambles due to the weak economy, many states have been increasing tax rates.
“Today’s ‘soak the rich’ mentality hits business leaders especially hard,” says Marshall Cooper, CEO ofChief Executive magazine and ChiefExecutive.net. “CEOs and entrepreneurs vote with their feet — and also pack up jobs and investment with them when they leave.”
It’s interesting that North Carolina, which has one of the highest tax rates in the Southeast, maintains its number two position, largely due to the talent available through its eduction system and its quality of life. It’s education system is about to take a huge cut as the state wrestles with the same type of budget deficit that plagues other states.
TechJournal South is a TechMedia company. TechMedia presents the annual conferences:
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Digital Summit: www.digitalsummit.com
Georgia’s rise is also interesting. Another recent report noted that Georgia is right at the top when it comes to startup activitity, with more than 500 businesses a month launching.
Tags: Best States for Business, Chief Executive Magazine, FL, GA, NC, states ranked, Texas, TN
Posted in Carolinas, Florida, Georgia, North Carolina, Other SE, Tennessee | No Comments »
Wednesday, March 9th, 2011
 By Allan Maurer
RESEARCH TRIANGLE, NC - Have you ever purchased something from an online retailer such as Amazon to avoid paying sales taxes? A group called Alliance for Main Street Fairness (AMSF), argues that by failing to collect sales taxes, online retailers have an unfair advantage over brick and mortar stores that is costing jobs, killing businesses and contributing to state budget deficits.
AMSF says it is funded by and advocates on behalf of employers who believe there must be a fair and balanced approach concerning the sales tax collection system. The group distributes the increasing number of media editorials supporting collection of sales taxes from online retailers.
We have reported on North Carolina’s attempts to get Amazon and other online retailers to collect sales taxes. The state, which requires residents to pay sales taxes on online and catalog purchases whether the retailer collects them or not, lost the first round of a federal court battle in which it sought to collect information on its resident’s purchases from Amazon. It has threatened to bill residents for sales taxes on Amazon purchases going back to 2003.
Federal law currently requires retailers to collect sales taxes in states where they have a nexus (a physical presence such as a store, warehouse or other facilities). Since Internet-only retailers do not have a nexus in most states, they are not currently required to collect the taxes.
Other states wrestling with the problem include Arkansas, California, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Minnesota, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and Texas. The National Conference of State Legislatures says states lost about $8.6 billion in 2010 in failing to collect sales tax from online and catalog sales. The number is projected to be approximately $37 billion from 2009 to 2012.
Personally, we can see how buying a big ticket item from an online retailer might save a significant pieces of change, but even there, we doubt that most people buy online just so they won’t have to pay sales taxes. We buy online because it is convenient. We can do our shopping from our desks, which has inherent advantages that will not disappear when online retailers collect sales taxes.
We shop online because we often find a much wider selection available at the lowest possible prices online, whether we are looking for a book, a camera, or a refrigerator. We save gas and wear and tear on our vehicles and ourselves. But we have never bought an item online to avoid paying a sales tax.
Sooner or later, we suspect, this problem will be resolved through legal means that require online retailers to collect state sales taxes. That’s fine with us, although we think states threatening to collect years of back taxes are certainly wrong-headed as well as on legally shaky ground.
In the meantime, the way states and the online retailers are going about dealing with the problem is just causing more problems: such as Amazon dismissing its associates in North Carolina and other states attempting to use their status to say the reatailer has the physical presence in the state to create a nexus.
That move causes grief for many online startup businesses. Some larger ones actually left North Carolina when Amazon fired its state associates, and others complain it makes it harder to get that early revenue necessary to achieve outside growth funding.
Amazon is not helping matters by negotiating not to pay sales taxes even in states such as Texas, Indiana, Nevada and Tennessee where they have distribution centers.
The whole mess will likely require action on the part of the US Congress. “The Main Street Fairness Act,” H.R. 5660 was introduced in the US House in July 2010, and it would behoove Congress to vote on the bill.
While requiring online businesses to pay sales taxes may indeed help ailing state budgets and possibly help some brick and mortar retailers of big ticket items, we do not think it will do much to save book stores large or small or most other on the ground businesses from their online rivals.
E-commerce gained remarkable ground during the 2010 holiday season and we doubt that is because shoppers could avoid sales taxes. Brick and mortar retailers would be better off focusing on how they can develop an online marketing program and an online sales presence than bemoaning the perceived sales tax advantage. The real advantage of selling online, 24/7, is far greater than saving a few cents on the dollar.
Just today, AMSF launched a new web page in response to online-only retailers like Amazon.com threatening to terminate relationships with in-state affiliates to avoid playing by the same rules as Main Street and collecting sales tax. AMSF says it is ready to help small businesses thrown under the bus by Amazon connect with other retailers who are interested in doing business with them and collect the sales tax at the point of purchase.
NC Settles Amazon sales tax dispute, reserves the right to go after customers – This piece includes links to a considerable amount of background information on the online sales tax dispute.
TechJournal South is a TechMedia company. TechMedia presents the annual conferences:
SoutheastVentureConference: www.seventure.org
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Tags: Amazon tax, Ark., CA, NC, Nevada, online shopping advantages, Stand With Mainstreet, Texas, The Main Street Fairness Act, TN
Posted in Uncategorized | 7 Comments »
Tuesday, September 14th, 2010
 ATLANTA –Atlanta’s MedAssets Inc. (NASDAQ: MDAS) agreed to acquire The Broadlane Group for $850 million.
Based in Dallas, Texas, The Broadlane Group is a leading provider of supply chain management, strategic sourcing of supplies and services, capital equipment lifecycle management, medical device or PPI cost management, centralized procurement, clinical and lean process consulting, and clinical workforce optimization.
Patrick Ryan, chairman and CEO of The Broadlane Group, is expected to join the MedAssets board and assume the role of president of the company’s Spend Management segment upon completion of the transaction. “This transaction offers an exceptional opportunity to bring together two very strong enterprises and deliver end-to-end cost management capabilities.
Under the terms of the agreement, MedAssets will purchase The Broadlane Group for approximately $850 million in cash, with $725 million to be paid at closing and $125 million to be paid in January 2012. To fund the transaction, MedAssets has obtained financing commitments from J.P. Morgan and Barclays Capital.
MedAssets partners with healthcare providers to improve their financial strength by implementing integrated spend management and revenue cycle solutions that help control cost, improve margins and cash flow, increase regulatory compliance, and optimize operational efficiency. MedAssets serves more than 125 health systems, 3,300 hospitals and 40,000 non-acute healthcare providers.
Tags: Acquisitions, Atanta, Dallas, Georgia, Healthcare, MedAssets, supply chain management, Texas, The Broadlane Group
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