BuzzMob has signed a partnership with Comikaze Entertainment to provide social-media content tied to Stan Lee’s upcoming festival at the Los Angeles Convention Center for comic books fans.
Buzzmob developed a mobile app that creates social networks at live events. The Irvine-based startup will coordinate contests, panel discussions and fan interactions with celebrities for Stan Lee’s Comikaze Expo Presented by POW! Entertainment, which also targets fans of sci-fi/horror films and books.
“The interaction is customized for you,” said Chief Executive Jeff Jackel, who traded a brief stint in the boutique-clothing industry for a run as a tech entrepreneur. “The only ones participating are people who care about the event or are there.”
The show, which runs from Sept. 15 to 16, is one of the largest pop-culture expos in Southern California, attracting 40,000 fans in its inaugural event last year. It added the Stan Lee moniker this year after the comic book legend behind superheroes such as Spider-Man, the Hulk and Iron Man acquired a minority stake in Comikaze.
Buzzmob was established in January 2011 and was funded with a $600,000 angel round from friends and family.
The company is seeking $1 million to $2 million from institutional investors in a current fundraising round tagged for infrastructure and engineering hires, according to Jackel.
The OC native got his start at a small Los Angeles-based digital media company, marketing such brands as Coca-Cola, Home Depot and Delta Airlines. He then moved to Hozell, a boutique clothing brand first established in OC and then shifted to Los Angeles.
Jackel first developed the concept of Buzzmob during a packed Anaheim Angels game last year as he watched fans text family and friends, and post updates on Facebook and other social networks. He said the atmosphere created an opportunity for “moment marketing,” in which an event host or sponsor can interact with individuals on-site at games, concerts or political events.
Buzzmob is looking at revenue-sharing and other potential business models as it expands its network and partnerships.
Settlement
Irvine-based Vizio Inc. will license its high-definition digital television technologies to ON Corp., ending a patent infringement lawsuit it filed against the consumer electronics company.
Under the agreement, ON Corp., which sells HD TVs under the RCA brand, will make royalty payments to Vizio. Specific financial terms were not disclosed. The resolution ends legal actions brought against ON Corp. in the International Trade Commission and in U.S. District Court. Â
Vizio frequently has been entangled in patent disputes, as it diversifies from the flat-TV market into computers, tablets and other electronic products.
A wave of recent high-profile patent sales in the last year—driven by companies looking to wring revenue from legacies of research and development—has pushed issues of patent ownership and patent rights to the forefront in technology and legal circles.
Newport Beach-based Acacia Research Corp. is leading the charge as acceptance builds for this growing asset class. Acacia grew by licensing technologies on behalf of companies and reaching court settlements with patent infringers.
That took it from its startup days in the early 1990s through its ascent to industry leader today. The company saw record revenue in 2011 of $184.7 million, up 40% from a year earlier.
Bits and Pieces
JPMorgan Securities lowered its information technology spending outlook for 2012, citing a slowdown in global production and spending by China, and rising macroeconomic uncertainties in Europe and the U.S.
Technology analysts at the New York-based financial company lowered their forecast for global IT spending growth to 2.2% from 3.8% for the year, as most hardware IT segments were pegged for a drop, except tablets. … Santa Ana-based Identive Group Inc. dropped its accounting firm Deloitte & Touche GmbH and expects to hire a new independent auditor in the coming weeks. Investors seized upon the news, sending Identive shares down more than 10% on June 8, the day of the announcement. The company makes scanners, readers, cards and other security devices for buildings, computers and financial transactions. … Taiwan-based ASUSTek Computer Inc. will be the first company to use Broadcom Corp.’s 5G chip for computers. The next generation chip will be featured in ASUS’s G75VW gaming laptop, Broadcom Vice President Michael Hurlston announced at the recent Computex 2012 trade show in Taipei, Taiwan. Broadcom initially targeted modems, gateways and routers for the 5G chip—which promises faster speeds and extended battery life—with plans to move into computers and set-top boxes later in the year.
