O.Reilly takes web back to roots

Tim O.Reilly is without doubt one of the most important constituents of the glue that holds the internet together. As long ago as 1992, O.Reilly, founder of O.Reilly Media, wrote The Whole Internet User's Guide & Catalog, the first mass market book about the new medium. It was later selected by the New York Public Library as one of the most significant books of the 20th century.

O'Reilly sold his Global Network Navigator site, the first web portal and the first true commercial site, to America Online in 1995. And in 1998, O'Reilly Media organised the first .open source. summit, effectively creating the term. More recently, he has been credited with coining the term Web 2.0, even though he is honest enough to admit a colleague originally had the idea.

Delegates at Essential Web this week will be able to watch interviews with O.Reilly, which draw on his experience to provide insight into current opportunities in the high-tech sector. He will explain why he believes big companies find it hard to innovate. As he says: .My phone knows who my friends are, so why the devil isn.t my phone company Facebook?. O.Reilly has himself never led a large-scale company, having always been more interested in what the internet could do for society than in making money.

He thinks the single biggest lesson that Web 2.0 offers is that openness trumps closed networks. The video interview reveals his anger at the misunderstanding that surrounds the nascent social networking segment: .People are looking at user-generated content and they go: .we get it.. No, you don.t get it. It.s not just about easier ways to generate ideas about things you already know. It.s about what kinds of new applications get created as a result of this new platform..

Although Web 2.0 has only been commonly used as a phrase for a year or so, O'Reilly says many of its ideas are far from new. He sees 2.0 as the web rediscovered, harking back to Tim Berners-Lee's idea of it as a participatory medium. The companies that survived the boom and bust years are those that stayed true to this idea, he believes. He points to eBay, which is built on a community, and Amazon, which differentiated itself from other retail sites by getting people involved.

O'Reilly's eye on the big picture led him recently to propose a code of conduct for bloggers, calling for a ban on anonymous comments and abusive posts. Although the idea has not been widely well received, it has nevertheless provoked a global debate . testament to O.Reilly.s stature.

To hear him and a powerful line-up of high-tech investors and entrepreneurs, sign up for Essential Web 2007. For full information, go to www.libraryhouse.net/web07. The event will be held on Wednesday, at the IMAX Theatre, Waterloo, from 8am to 8pm.

The Week's Deals

picoChip Designs, the UK-based fabless semiconductor company, has raised $27m (.20.2m) in series D funding from Highland Capital Partners and undisclosed strategic investors. picoChip is developing high-performance chips for wireless infrastructure applications. The funding brings the total raised since the company was set up in 2000 to $75.5m (.63m).

MyStrands, the Spain and US-based developer of social recommendation technology, has raised $25m (.18.7m) in series B funding from Debaeque Venture Capital, Sequel R&D and Antonio Asensio. MyStrands has developed a social recommender engine that is able to provide real-time personalised recommendations of products and services through computers, mobile phones and other internet-connected devices.

Marine Current Turbines, the UK-based developer of technology for large-scale power generation from tidal currents, has raised £7.5m (.11.2m) from City Capital Asset Management, Triodos Investment Management and other undisclosed institutional investors. The company says that its SeaGen tidal energy project, being installed in Northern Ireland, is the world.s first commercial-scale subsea turbine. The funding will be used to support the SeaGen project as well as future developments in the UK and abroad.

ReVolt Technology, the Switzerland-based developer of rechargeable battery technology, has raised .10m from Northzone Ventures, SINTEF Group, Sofinnova Partners, TVM Capital, Verdane Capital and Viking Venture. ReVolt says that its Zinc-air batteries have more than twice as much energy as conventional Li-ion batteries, cost less to manufacture, are safer to use, and are environmentally friendly. The funding will be used for technology development and to install pilot lines to produce prototype batteries for the consumer electronics markets.

Elsewhere, InFone Tech, the Israel-based developer of technology for cellular communications, raised $20m (.14.9m) from Gemini Israel Funds, Genesis Partners and other undisclosed institutional investors; Nimbuzz, the Netherlands-based developer of applications to connect global users of mobile devices, raised $10m (.7.5m) from Holtzbrinck Ventures, Mangrove Capital Partners and Naspers; and Canalce, the France-based online consumers entertainment search engine, raised .7m from Banexi Ventures Partners and CIC Capital.

See below for a complete list of deal headlines.

Did we miss anything? If you think we have missed a deal or know of a deal that is about to close then send us your deal news.

The Week's Exits

MTEM, the UK-based developer of oil exploration technology, has been acquired by Norway-based Petroleum Geo-Services for $275m (.205m). MTEM spun out of the University of Edinburgh in 2004 with £7.4m (.10.6m) in funding from Geneva Energy Ventures, HitecVision Private Equity and Scottish Equity Partners. The company had reached the early stages of commercialising its electromagnetic technology to detect the presence of hydrocarbons both offshore and onshore.

NESS, the Israel-based developer of systems for the rehabilitation of impairments resulting from central nervous system disorders, has been acquired by US-based Bioness for $75m (.56m) in cash and shares. NESS was using surface neuromuscular electrical stimulation to develop products for activating paralysed muscles. Its products included systems for treating paralysed hands, gait and drop foot.

Amsterdam Molecular Therapeutics (AMT), the Netherlands-based human gene therapy company, has raised .50m through an IPO on Euronext. The listing values the company at about .139m. AMT is developing treatments for patients with serious inherited, metabolic or central nervous system disorders.

People Moves

Norstel, the Sweden-based developer of wide bandgap semiconductor materials, has appointed Iain Jackson as chief executive, and Hasse Johansson as chairman. Previous chief executive and founder, Dr Asko Vehanen has been appointed as a board director and will remain as full time member of the management team with global responsibility for customer and partner relationships.

Let It Wave, the France-based developer of video processors for the professional and consumer electronics markets, has appointed Vincent Mouret as chief executive. Professor Stéane Mallat, company co-founder and former chief executive, will continue to serve as chairman and chief scientist. Let It Wave.s technology is designed to provide high definition videos from lower resolution television signals.

Vollee, the Israel-based 3G mobile games company, has appointed Martin Dunsby as president and chief executive. Mr Dunsby will lead the company as it launches its streaming video game services to carriers worldwide. A former senior vice president of Nasdaq-listed Openwave Systems, Mr Dunsby has 15 years experience in the mobile industry.

Most Accessed Companies

Openads, the UK-based provider of open source advertising software, has attracted a lot of attention this week. Openads was founded in 1999 as an open source software development project at Unanimis, the UK-based digital advertising business. Since then it has signed up 25,000 web site publishers in more than 100 countries and 20 languages. Earlier this month it was incorporated as an independant company with funding from investors including Index Ventures, First Round Capital, Mangrove Capital Partners and O'Reilly AlphaTech Ventures. The company is now looking to accelerate product development and expand its team.

Polytherics, the UK-based UK-based drug discovery company, has also received a lot of attention recently. PolyTherics has developed a technology which can extend the half-life of novel and existing protein drugs. This means that drugs, such as Interferon, stay active in the body for longer, enabling longer periods between doses. Patients can therefore be treated less often, with fewer side-effects and at lower cost. Founded in 2002, PolyTherics currently has revenue-generating contracts with several companies and is in talks with a number of other parties.

Other companies generating interest recently include Garlik, Picsel Technologies, and Joost.