Monthly Archives: March 2008

Blogging from SXSW Interactive

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Is there a bigger story this week than SXSW? News has been kind of slow because I’m sure everyone is holding their news for SXSWi, which is emerging as one of the top Web 2.0 conferences in the country. Here are some highlights from the festival, in our opinion. If you’ve got a favorite session upcoming, leave it in the comments.

There are definitely some conflicting events in there. So hard to choose! What are your recommended sessions?

Creditcards.com Gets Some Real Estate at Yahoo! Finance

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CreditCards.com, the leading online credit card comparison marketplace, today announced an agreement to distribute the noted CreditCards.com rate tables on Yahoo! Finance, the #1 finance site on the Web.The CreditCards.com search engine, containing hundreds of card offers updated daily, has been integrated into Yahoo! Finance’s rate averages module, which is located on pages across the Yahoo! Finance site. The search engine will enable Yahoo! Finance’s 18 million users to make more informed and confident financial decisions by allowing them to compare cards and identify favorable terms in the most popular categories including low interest, rewards and airline credit cards.

Under the agreement, Yahoo! Finance users gain access to the card search engine by clicking on the “Credit Cards” tab on the rates averages module. “One of our key objectives is always to help consumers obtain the card that best suits their needs, and to empower them so they can make informed decisions,” said Elisabeth DeMarse, CEO of CreditCards.com. “We are pleased to bring our personal finance tools and coverage to the world’s largest financial audience.”

The agreement provides Yahoo! Finance users a means to search, compare and apply for leading credit cards from CreditCards.com by easily sorting the most important criteria such as card category, APR, annual fees, rewards and other benefits, credit needed, and special offers.

Zales Jewelers Gives Five Diamond Rating to Bazaarvoice

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Bazaarvoice LogoZales and Gordon’s Jewelers joined the long list of top e-commerce websites that utilize Bazaarvoice’s ratings and reviews technology. That little jewelry store in the mall is a $2.1B per year business that has 2,200 retail outlets. Bazaarvoice’s advanced word-of-mouth analytics tools allow Zales to tune into this archive of customer opinions in order to bring marketing and merchandising strategies in line with customer tastes and preferences. Recent research from Bazaarvoice and Keller Fay Group shows that 79% of reviewers write reviews in order to reward a company and 70% want to help a company improve the products they build and carry, and Zales’ use of customer feedback to drive customer-centric decisions aligns exceptionally well with their reviewers’ intentions.

“Our research shows that reviewers are overwhelmingly motivated by the desire to help others make the best possible purchase decision,” said Brett Hurt, CEO of Bazaarvoice. “This not only benefits other shoppers, it also benefits the brand as shoppers buy more and return less. We look forward to continuing to work together with Zales to tap the positive sentiment of their customers and incorporate user-generated content into all aspects of the multichannel shopping experience.”

SolarWinds to Test IPO Waters?

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Solarwinds LogoAustin-based SolarWinds, which makes network management and monitoring software, has been shoring up the board of directors lately. John Thornton of Austin Ventures was added in February, and Salesforce.com CFO Steven Cakebread was announced as another board addition in early February. It’s a pretty odd move for a private company. Unless of course you need enough outside directors to fill up an audit committee, a compensation committee, etc. It would be a big, bold move considering the state of the financial markets. If we see a press release next week with quarterly revenue numbers, then we’ll definitely know that they’re conditioning the market for an IPO.

What would be a good NASDAQ symbol? WIND is taken by Wind River Systems. SOLR? Already taken by Solar-Mates. SLRW seems available. Post your suggestions in the comments.

Motion Launches Rugged F5

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Austin-based Motion Computing launched its new rugged tablet at the Gartner Wireless and Mobile Summit. The F5 is IP54 rated and designed to withstand exposure to moisture and dust, which should help Motion gain better marketshare in the rugged PC segment. The F5 also features a “field-ready” warranty, which covers short drops and exposure to rain and dust.

Motion F5

The unit also features extras such as vehicular docking capabilities, RFID reader, optional barcode scanner, a 2.0 megapixel camera, and a fingerprint reader. Pricing ranges from $2,699 – $4,000 depending upon configuration. Motion has been growing rapidly, and is reported to be the marketshare leader in Tablet PC’s.

Two New Partners at Austin Ventures

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Austin Ventures announced that Thomas Ball and David Lack were promoted to partner.  Tom Ball has emerged as the go-to guy for investments that are more oriented towards Web 2.0. He sits on the boards of Bazaarvoice, Pluck, Spiceworks, Jigsaw, and Boundless Network. “In a heavily competitive Series A, Tom made the difference. His blend of entrepreneurial skills, intelligence, and relationship focus impressed our entire executive team. He is extraordinarily quick to respond when I need his advice, and he is always on target. Tom is a rare venture capitalist, and I couldn’t be happier to see him be named as Partner at one of the world’s best VC firms,” said Brett Hurt, Founder and CEO of Bazaarvoice. Tom is a venture capitalist with an entrepreneurial background, which you don’t see all the time. Before Austin Ventures he co-founded Openfield Technologies which merged with Razorgator Interactive Group. He was also the founder and CEO of eCoupons, which was acquired by Lifeminders.

Mr. Lack joined Austin Ventures in September 2002 and helps drive our growth equity investment efforts. David’s primary focus is on business services markets with a particular emphasis on supply chain and logistics, information services, subscription-based media, and general business process outsourcing companies. David has also played an instrumental role in the development of our CEO-in-Residence program, and has successfully teamed with several executives to identify unique market opportunities and build partnerships with like-minded founders.