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Gay Online Media Firm PlanetOut Files for $74.9 Million IPO

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 16, 2004 - 5:20am.
San Francisco, Calif. -- PlanetOut, an Internet media company focused on the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgendered communities, has set the terms of its upcoming initial public offering (IPO). The company said that it plans to raise about $74.9 million by selling 4.65 million shares at $12-$14 each. The company, which originally filed for the IPO in April, said that it has a community of 3.3 million active members. It operates a network of web sites, including Gay.com, PlanetOut.com, Kleptomaniac.com and Out and About travel.
tags: Internet | IPO | PlanetOut | Gay |

Judge Strikes Down Wash. Law Banning Violent Game Sales to Minors

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 16, 2004 - 5:20am.
Seattle -- A Washington state law passed last year that restricts the sale of violent video games to minors has been struck down in federal court via summary judgment. U.S. District Judge Robert Lasnik said the law was "unconstitutionally vague" and violated free-speech rights. The law would have imposed a $500 fine on any clerk who sold games depicting violence against law enforcement officers. "While we may have lost this one battle in the sale of violent games against children, the war is far from over," Washington Democratic state Rep. Mary Lou Dickerson, who wrote the law, told Reuters. She added that she has not decided yet whether to appeal or propose new legislation. "It's our hope that Washington state and all other states will now turn their focus to helping us in our efforts to implement voluntary ratings measures at the retail level and enhance parental awareness and use of the ESRB game ratings," said Doug Lowenstein, president of industry trade group the Entertainment Software Association, which supported plaintiffs the Video Software Dealers Association.
tags: Law | Violent Games | Bans | Minors | Judge |

Search Technology Firm Lookout Acquired by Microsoft

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 16, 2004 - 5:19am.
San Francisco -- Hoping to bolster its capabilities in the search arena, Microsoft said on Friday that it has acquired San Francisco-based Lookout Software, a maker of software that searches emails, files and desktop data within Microsoft's Outlook. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Microsoft's MSN has been working in recent months to increase the relevancy of its search results in an effort to better compete with rivals Google and Yahoo. "Lookout has developed an innovative technology for searching e-mail that is aligned with our own MSN Search efforts," said Yusuf Mehdi, the corporate vice president of MSN. As part of the acquisition, Lookout founder Mike Belshe will become a full-time employee on the MSN Search team. Co-founder Eric Hahn will work closely with the MSN Search team during the transition of Lookout to Microsoft.
tags: Microsoft | Search Technology | Lookout |

Weblog Software Provider Six Apart Acquires Ublog, Names CEO

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 16, 2004 - 5:18am.
San Mateo, Calif. -- Looking to further build its international presence, Six Apart, a maker of weblog software, said that it has acquired Ublog, a provider of one of Europe's most popular blogging tools and hosting services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Ublog has served as the exclusive agent for San Mateo, Calif.-based Six Apart in Europe over the last six months. Already deployed in France and Spain, SixApart's TypePad service will be launched in Germany next week, and in the UK by this fall. Six Apart also said that it has added several top executives, including Barak Berkowitz, its chairman and CEO. Berkowitz, the former co-founder and president of OmniSky, has been the company's acting CEO for the past six months.
tags: Six Apart | Weblog Software | Ublog | Names CEO |

Report: Europe Suffering from "Broadband Divide"

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 16, 2004 - 5:16am.
Brussels -- A new report by market analysis firm Jupiter Research shows that Europe is experiencing something of a "broadband divide", with wide disparities in Internet speeds and quality of service depending on the country. While many Europeans have access to ultra-fast Internet connections, nearly 30% have connections slower than 512 kilobits per second, Jupiter said. "Across Europe, broadband is evolving at markedly different rates, speeds and prices," said Ian Fogg, author of the report. "It will lead to a kind of digital patchwork, where some areas have high-quality broadband and others have much more limited services, even within the same country." According to the report, Germany will boast the largest broadband market in Europe by 2009, with 13.5 million households, followed by the U.K., which will have more than 10 million broadband households.
tags: Europe | Reports | Broadband Divide |

DVD Rental Firm Netflix Sees Higher Revenue, Acquisition Costs

Authored by Mark Hefflinger on July 16, 2004 - 5:15am.
Los Gatos, Calif. Online DVD rental firm Netflix said it saw a 90% increase in revenue in its second quarter, as the company reported $120.3 million as compared with $63.2 million in revenue for the same period in 2003. The company added that it now counts 2.1 million subscribers, having added 583,000 new subscribers in the last quarter. However, Netflix shares fell over 25% on Friday on news that the company's acquisition cost for each new subscriber rose to $35.12, compared with $30.45 in the second quarter of 2003, and projections that acquisition costs will rise to between $37 and $39.
tags: DVD | Netflix | Higher Revenue | Acquisition Costs |