News Byte

An Online Marketplace for Everyday Household Items Snags $3.6 Million

Alice.com, an online marketplace for household goods ranging from diapers to dog food to toothpaste, has raised $3.6 million in funding. A bit like Amazon-owned Diapers.com, the Middleton, Wis.-based company allows big brands to use the platform to connect with consumers and offer coupons. The round, coming from a group of Spanish investors, closely follows Alice’s expansion to Europe through Alice.es. The company has raised $18.2 million to date.

Amazon and Apple: Two Tablet Makers, Two Drastically Different Fourth Quarters

Amazon is expected to report a giant fourth quarter tomorrow, but the results couldn’t be more different from Apple’s monstrous fourth-quarter results reported last week.
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News Byte

Home Decor Flash Sales Site LuxeYard Raises $3.5 Million in Capital

LuxeYard, a home decor flash sales and group-buying site, has secured $3.5 million in new capital from undisclosed investors. The Los Angeles company is also unveiling a redesigned site that allows members to participate in two new ways: First, members can post photos of items that they would like to purchase at a discount; and second, they can drive prices down by encouraging others to buy the product on social networks. The more people who buy it, the less expensive it becomes. LuxeYard will be competing against Gilt Groupe, Rue La La, One Kings Lane, Fab.com and other similar sites.

UrbanSitter’s Social Babysitting Service Granted $1.75 Million in Allowance

UrbanSitter, which may become a high-tech version of “The Baby-Sitters Club,” now has a bigger allowance with which to operate.
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Zynga’s Stock Nosedives, Falling Nine Percent to Hit New Low

Zynga’s shares continued a downward spiral for a third straight day, sinking more than nine percent to hit an all-time low.
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News Byte

Zynga Closes Slightly Higher Following Bullish Analyst Report

Zynga inched higher today, closing up 19 cents, or 2 percent, to $9.24 a share, following a report by Wedbush’s Michael Pachter, who initiated coverage with an outperform rating and a $12.50 price target. “We believe Zynga is well-positioned for revenue growth due to its dominant market share among social game publishers,” he wrote in a note to investors. The social gaming company’s stock still has a ways to go to reach its IPO price of $10.

Zynga’s Stock Keeps Withering on Day Two

If only this were a virtual stock market and Zynga could used some anti-wither serum to make its stock bounce back.
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Adobe Adds Another $400 Million to Its Ad Business Shopping Spree

Last month, Adobe said it was buying search marketing firm Efficient Frontier, but didn’t disclose a purchase price. Yesterday, it came clean.
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Chasing the New Angel Investors

Budding entrepreneur Eric Bolden had never met an angel investor until he tried pitching a business idea to a few of them.

How to Avoid a VC Shotgun Wedding

In venture capital — as in romance — playing it slow is the way to go.