On Wednesday May 21, Capital Venue will host 3 premier firms investing in wireless in a panel discussion:
"Why and Where Venture Capitalists are Investing in Wireless Now"
"The wireless world has gone gaga over speed, to the tune of about $150 billion of new investment in the last few years. This is a lot of new money", said Steve Goldstein, Managing Partner of Growth Advisors. He went on to say "chasing a relatively new market, in a short period of time, smack-in-the-face of one of the worst downturns in technology, telecom and startup business history. Have we gotten caught in another growth speed-trap? Is the speed of investment and expectations for rapid returns based on speedy new technologies a case of all-too-recent history repeating itself? Remember the Internet, broadband content and optical networking? Is there something different going on in the wireless industry that emerging communications and information technology businesses can practically apply?".
Description: Wireless continues to be one of the more active areas of VC
investment with nearly $2B being invested in 2002. But the wireless market
has been changing rapidly and investors are pursuing a wide range of
strategies. Our panel of wireless focused VCs will bring private,
corporate, US based and global investment perspectives on where they and
others are investing.
They'll share their wireless investment theses, describe how they are
playing (and passing on) new wireless technology and market developments,
and describe what kinds of firms they are looking to put money into now.
Panelists:
Matthew Growney, Managing Director, Motorola Ventures
Mikko Suonenlahti, Director, 3i
Alan Peyrat, Apax
Moderator:
Steve Goldstein, Managing Partner, Growth Advisors
8:00am to 9:15am
http://www.capitalvenue.com/MA_ev05-21-03.htm
Bios
Moderator
Steve Goldstein is managing partner of Growth Advisors and has over 20 years experience as an operating executive and management advisor in the communications and information technology industries. He works with companies in the wireless, broadband, network equipment, service provider, software, managed services, semiconductor and Internet segments. He has advised senior executives and venture capital firms on critical growth challenges at companies including Motorola Ventures, Nokia, Ciena, Tivoli, Lotus, and Genuity. Steve co-founded and headed up the Communications Equipment and High Technology Practice at DiamondCluster International. He was an operating executive with P&L responsibility for a $40 million business at Texas Instruments and headed up a new venture funded by the company.
Panelists:
Matthew Growney, Managing Director, Motorola Ventures
Mikko Suonenlahti, Director, 3i
Alan Peyrat, Apax
Motorola Ventures (MV) is the strategic venture capital arm of the global communications and embedded electronics company, Motorola.MV invests in early and developmental stage companies where it can effectively coordinate and execute valued co-development between Motorola business units and MV portfolio companies. Typical investment size varies between $2M to $10M per investment and operations are headquartered between Boston and Chicago. MV helps manage the many relationships between its portfolio companies and internal Motorola business units, while providing access to potential external investors, customers, and partners. There are currently over 40+ companies located in over seven different countries in MV's global portfolio.
3i is one of the oldest venture capital firms in Europe, with offices in more than 40 countries (US offices in Boston and Palo Alto), and a current investment portfolio of approximately $6 billion. It is publicly traded on the London Stock Exchange, where it is a component company of the FTSE 100. It invests in high-growth technology companies, with initial investments ranging from $4 -15 million.
Apax's investment decisions place the primary emphasis on the ability of a business to grow rapidly into a market leader, preferably on a global scale. Apax has a dedicated team of experienced investment professionals around the world who are experts in their chosen fields, able to assess opportunities in the context of their sectors.
| Forums:
