American-Israel Chamber of Commerce

E-Commerce – Tel Aviv-based firm provides turn-key e-commerce solutions for export and retail companies including web design, SEO, SEM, PPC, CPA, CPM, Co-Reg, media buying and list management.  Call center provides customer service and retention, appointment scheduling, lead generation and verification, and telemarketing with representatives having multi-language fluency.  Seeking introduction to companies that export to English, German, Japanese, and Spanish speaking countries.

• Petach Tikvah-based Agent Vi with its US headquarters in Atlanta is partnering with Abeo Technical Solutions to provide video analytic software for the Potomac Basin Security System project that includes Reagan Washington National Airport, Bolling Air Force Base, and the Washington Navy Yard. 
• Ramat Hachayal-based Panorama Software is partnered with Google to provide new analytics, reporting, and visualization solution for Google applications.  Panorama maintains a Southeast regional office in Atlanta.
• Microsoft has acquired Ramat Gan-based Kidaro for an estimated $90-$100 million.  The Israeli start-up offers desktop visualization solutions for enterprises, providing management capabilities for virtual PCs, streamlining deployments, and easing application compatibility.
• Haifa-based Elbit Systems has been listed as the top ranked “Best Government Contractor Ethics Program for a Foreign Supplier“ by the US government according to the Ethisphere Institute which analyzed more than 1,000 federal government contractors.  The objective analysis was based on code of ethics and business conduct, leadership and tone from the top, internal control systems, and training and communication programs.
• Motorola-Israel has unveiled the SmartRider car phone that features GPS navigation, interactive voice activation, bluetooth wireless technology, and high audio quality that enables users to converse, navigate, and tend to business while on-the-go.  Features include turn-by-voice navigation, on-screen directions and maps, real-time traffic reports, and automatic rerouting. 
• IBM signed a definitive agreement to acquire Haifa-based data recovery start-up FilesX with the intention that their technology will become part of the Tivoli Storage Manager family of products, IBM’s flagship suite of data protection and information infrastructure offerings targeted at small and mid-sized business customers and individual PC users.  With its patented technology, FilesX helps IT staff restore data from virtually any type of failure and from nearly any point in time.
• Tel Aviv-based Gazit-Globes‘ US subsidiary, EquityOne, will sell seven properties to its new joint venture with Global Retail Investors for $197.4 million.  They include Presidential Marketplace in Snellville, Georgia and Sparkleberry Square in Columbia, South Carolina.
• Up round investments by venture capital firms in Israeli companies rose to 85% of the total number of deals in the second half of 2007, the highest proportion since the beginning of 2003 when the rate stood at 9%, according to the Tel Aviv law firm Shiboleth, Yisraeli, Roberts, Zisman & Co.  During the same period, up round deals fell to 74% in Silicon Valley, compared with 80% in the first half of the year.
• Forbes Magazine rated Israel as the world’s most “up and coming” real estate market in its April edition, followed by Malaysia.  Factors included economic expansion, inflation rates, strength of individual property rights, and access to lending. 
• 117,000 new jobs were created in Israel in 2007, a 4.2% increase that paralleled the drop in unemployment and rise in real wages according to the Bank of Israel.  The report also noted the encouraging 9.6% drop in the proportion of employees forced to work part-time.
• 45% of Israelis want to be partners in a start-up compared with 8% who want to be partners in a law firm and 11.4% who want to be a partner in an accounting firm, according to a survey by Geocartography Knowledge.  This dream is especially prevalent among younger Israelis.
• The Ministry of Industry, Trade & Labor’s Office of the Chief Scientist provided $283 million in R&D grants in 2007 compared to $270 million the previous year.  Highest grants were given to ECI Telecom, Teva, Elbit Systems, and Applied Materials.
• Mergers & acquisitions of Israeli hi-tech companies totaled $3.2 billion in 2007, and 27 companies raised an aggregate of $701 million in IPOs, according to IVC.  This total included 75 M&A deals, the second largest number in any one year in dollar terms.
• Israeli incubator companies raised a total of $435 million in 2007, 74% more than in 2006 and 2.4 times more than the $175 million in 2005.  Of the 50 companies that graduated last year, 64% obtained follow-on funding which reached a total of $75 million.