Week of May 10 - May 16, 2004 ~ v.6, n.19
Top Stories

Israel's Flourishing Biotech Industry
Driven by government Research and Development investments, Israel has transformed in the last few decades into a leading contender in advanced biotechnology.

America's R&D Capitals
Los Angeles came in first place for U.S. cities in R&D expenditures that include the top 100 R&D universities, according to data published by the National Science Foundation.

Shukla Speaks at Bio 2004 Global Forum
Larta Institute CEO Rohit Shukla will be speaking at the
Bio 2004 Global Biotechnology Forum, an International Marketplace Seminar on June 6, 2004, which is sponsored by the United States-Israel Science and Technology Foundation and the United States-Israel Science and Technology Commission, as part of the Bio 2004 Annual International Convention June 6-9, 2004, in San Francisco, California.

Branding for a Century
Long-term branding online is now made possible using Network Solution’s latest offer of $1000 to secure a domain name for an entire century.

Now Available from Larta Institute
Technology Transfer and the Life Sciences
Universities, federal labs, corporations and research organizations need help commercializing new technologies in the life sciences. Larta Institute provides a new resource guide to help companies, researchers and policy makers encourage biotechnology transfer.

The Sand Dollar Report 2004: An Analysis of Venture Investing in Southern California
The Sand Dollar Report 2004 features a historical analysis as well as the latest information and data on the venture capital industry in Southern California, and includes interviews with leading venture capitalists in the region. Available with the purchase of Larta Institute's Sand Dollar Report 2004 is PricewaterhouseCoopers/Venture Economics/National Venture Capital Association MoneyTree Survey.

Send comments and submissions to James Klein, Larta VOX Editor, at voxeditor@larta.org

Larta University


SSTI, the State Science and Technology Institute, calls Larta University one of the "best programs in the country," having "helped hundreds of entrepreneurs, implemented innovative programs, and assisted client companies to raise hundreds-of-millions of dollars.

May 13: Successful Selling Skills and Tactics
This 3-hour boot camp helps participants learn how to use a defined sales process to sell successfully. In an interactive setting, you will create specific and customized scripts (or prompters) to assist in your selling process. We will focus on how to turn the prospect who is “not looking” into a buying customer. We will discuss how to uncover your buyer’s needs and how to qualify your buyer by using a defined sales process. In addition, we will touch on getting past the “gate keepers” and how to control sales costs (by using marketing collateral, demos, proposals, etc., as a way to stall the decision). By creating a repeatable sales process, you will be able to build a sales team who will follow a defined series of steps and sell your product successfully. Once the sales process is in place, you will be able to manage with accurate forecasts month after month.
Location: Los Angeles

May 20: Preparing the Financial Forecast Model
This workshop will show you how to build a financial forecast model. Using Excel, you will learn how to build your forecast from the bottom up, taking the primary elements of your business (sales, cost of goods sold, staffing and overhead) and translating them into a forecasted Income Statement, Cash Flow Statement and Balance Sheet in a format that potential investors will find attractive.
Location: Los Angeles

Larta University's Course Schedule

Tech Sector News
Sponsored by LATimes.com

Top Stories in Hot Technology Sectors

Biotechnology
Titans of Tech: Generic drugs’ score (Red Herring)
A new court win against big pharma proves the worth of generic makers’ scrappy – and savvy – strategies.
more Biotech news

Communications
Motorola's Hat Trick (Forbes)
Motorola's triplets seem to have scored a triple play with cell phone customers.
more Communications news

Consumer Electronics
Game Makers' Hand-to-Hand Combat (Wired)
Nintendo, the biggest seller of video-game consoles 15 years ago, once again faces a tough street fight against Sony. This time, the fight is over handheld video-game machines, and if Nintendo loses, it could be in serious trouble.
more Consumer Electronics News

Internet
The How and Why of Google's Auction (BusinessWeek)
Lots of investors are wondering just how this unorthodox IPO process is going to work.
more Internet news

Investments
VC in Asia: Survival of the smallest (Red Herring)
A struggler-turned-success, Singapore wireless startup Radixs lived on bootstrapping, big dreams, and a little help from the government.

more Investment news

Media
Time Warner Shareholder Suit Will Proceed (Washington Post)
A federal judge in New York denied most requests by Time Warner Inc., its America Online division and various current and former senior officials to throw out billions of dollars of shareholder claims that the parties engaged in sham transactions before and after the companies merged in 2001.

Security
US hit by rise in phishing attacks (CNet News)
An estimated one in five Americans have likely been the target of an Internet scam in the past year, as the number of such "phishing" attacks rose dramatically.
more Security news

Semiconductors
Rambus Suit Targets 3 Memory Chip Rivals (Los Angeles Times)
Rambus Inc. filed a lawsuit that claims Micron Technology Inc., Hynix Semiconductor Inc. and Infineon Technologies conspired to fix prices and keep Rambus out of the memory chip market.
more Semiconductor news

Software
Microsoft plans laptop tune-up with Longhorn (CNet News)
With the next version of Windows, Microsoft is looking to add a number of laptop-specific features designed to make portable machines both more powerful and at the same time as easy to use as consumer devices such as portable DVD players.
More Software news

Events Calendar

This calendar lists events endorsed by Larta Institute.

May 10: Economic Recovery: Entrepreneurs Lead the Way
Harvard Business School Association of Orange County host their 2004 Entrepreneurs Conference. The 20th Annual Entrepreneurs Conference features keynote speakers Ted Waitt, Founder of Gateway; and Henry Juszkiewicz, CEO of Gibson Guitar.

May 10: Fast Pitch Competition
Tech Coast Angels host their 4th annual Fast Pitch Competition event. Entrepreneurs can pitch their ventures to the largest group of angel investors in the country, network with dozens of Tech Coast Angels, and have the chance to win a funding meeting with a top VC firm.

May 11: The Future of Intellectual Property
A Nationwide Seminar and On-Demand Webcast from Morrison & Foerster. Hear current and future trends in Intellectual Property law from the definitive authorities on Copyrights, Patents and Trademarks.


May 12-14: Director Training and Certification Program
UCLA Anderson School will be holding its Seventh Director Training and Certification Program at UCLA. This three-day intensive director-level educational event is designed for executives, directors, and officers of private and public companies. More than a dozen world-class subject matter experts will cover every aspect of being a successful corporate director.

May 13: Successful Selling Skills and Tactics
This 3-hour Larta U boot camp helps participants learn how to use a defined sales process to sell successfully. In an interactive setting, you will create specific and customized scripts to assist in your selling process. By creating a repeatable sales process, you will be able to build a sales team that will follow a defined series of steps and sell your product successfully.

May 19: Entrepreneurial Opportunities from Sarbanes-Oxley & Spitzer Settlement
Harvard Business School Association of Orange County presents a Management Networking Breakfast with Max Donner, Financial Columnist. Get the latest on Sarbanes-Oxley and the Spitzer Settlement. Learn about the regime change in finance. Come see how 2004 will be a window of opportunity for entrepreneurial initiates involved in securities reform and shareholder protection.

May 19: Accounting & Finance Issues for Emerging Technology Companies - Revenue Recognition
PricewaterhouseCoopers brings their accounting expertise and experience to start up companies in this informative, classroom style series for Pasadena Entretec. The classes are intended for finance executives including CEO's, CFO's and controllers.

May 20: 7th Annual Strictly Business Luncheon
JVS hosts a luncheon honoring biotech industry pioneer Alfred E. Mann and Staples, Inc., to be held in the International Ballroom of the Beverly Hilton Hotel. For sponsorship opportunities and ticket information, please contact David Moses at (323) 761-8888 x8895 or visit JVS on the web at www.jvsla.org.

May 20: Preparing the Financial Forecast Model
This Larta U workshop will show you how to build a financial forecast model. Using Excel, you will learn how to build your forecast from the bottom up, translating the primary elements of your business into a format that potential investors will find attractive.

May 20: Corporate Investment: The New Venture Capital
As part of their Monthly Breakfast Program, Orange County Venture Group is bringing together senior executives of three leading SoCal venture-backed companies along with an investment manager from Motorola Ventures. Find out how to attract and manage a venture investment from the “Big Boys.”

May 26: Mergers & Acquisitions
This session will provide an opportunity for entrepreneurs to learn about the “path to liquidity”. The course will discuss what makes a successful acquisition candidate and what a business can do to maximize value before the sale process and how the M&A process works and how to maximize value during the sale process.

May 31-June 1: Focus on Business
At Focus on Business you will gain up to date knowledge and networks to help you win new business. Around the themes of innovation, networking, federal politics, world class government administration and exporting, Focus on Business is the premier biennial regional business event, and a tremendous opportunity to involve your organisation in a bold initiative designed to showcase Canberra and the surrounding region as a thriving centre of business excellence.

June 9-11: 5th Annual Venture Capital Investing Conference
International Business Forum presents the flagship event for private equity investors and VCs. This conference will show each group ways to profit from the inevitable changes ahead.

June 14-17: North American IPv6 Summit
The North American IPv6 Summit welcomes everyone interested in meeting the pioneers and time-to-market developers and adopters of Internet Protocol version 6 (IPv6), the Next Generation Internet. The North American IPv6 Summit is the premier event for the world IPv6 community, providing an international forum for advancing the development and implementation of next generation Internet networks, technologies, applications and policies.

Larta Institute's Events Calendar

***** Tech Marketplace *****
Project T2
Project T2
FIDELYS
Foley/Freisleben
Project T2
PricewaterhouseCoopers
******** About Larta ********

Larta Institute
connecting people to drive innovation

We bring people together to move technologies into the marketplace. Our client solutions include: conferences, training workshops, technology transfer, advisory services, and research and analysis.

Since 1993, companies helped by Larta Institute have raised over $1.5 billion in capital. Larta Institute's conferences and seminars provide insights to thousands of businesspeople each year. Larta Institute's weekly electronic magazine on business innovation is read by over 20,000 people.

www.Larta.org

Los Angeles Office
714 W. Olympic Blvd.
Suite 750
Los Angeles, CA 90015
Tel: (213) 744-1314
Fax: (213) 744-1791

Orange County Office:
2 Peters Canyon Road
Second Floor
Irvine, CA 92606

Sponsorship: To sponsor VOX, Larta events or publications, contact Carlos Gutierrez

If you would like to subscribe, unsubscribe, change your subscription email address, or change your preferences you can do so here http://echo.bluehornet.com/clients/larta/clupdate.htm?eemail=fuji@dicult.com.

You are currently subscribed to Larta as: fuji@dicult.com