Deal Watch: MyStrands raises $25 million


MyStrands.jpg

Oregon’s snazziest young high-tech company is Corvallis-based MyStrands and the 50-employee operation has a cool $25 million to prove it.

 

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MyStrands.jpgMyStrands, my tastes, their ads

Oregon’s snazziest young high-tech company is Corvallis-based MyStrands and the 50-employee operation has a cool $25 million to prove it. Never heard of them? You’re probably not in their target market — at least not yet.

There’s a theory out there in the technosphere that personalization is the new search, the new killer Web ap. That means MyStrands has a shot at becoming the next Google. Long shot? Maybe.

But MyStrands’ sizzle is a complicated algorithm that detects patterns in the things you like (right now their technology is applied mostly to music) and makes recommendations of other things you might like. It taps the wisdom of the masses by also analyzing the listening patterns of the friends in your social network. And it’s mobile. A new service, PartyStrands, allows you to send a text message to a club’s DJ requesting a favorite song.

And the sizzle will find other applications. “We think the technology can help companies provide personalized advertising,” says MyStrands spokesman Gabriel Aldamiz-echevarria. That is, ads that know your preferences, your friends’ preferences and where you are located.

The $25 million MyStrands investment came from a trio of investors in Spain, where a third of the employees reside. Company founder Fransciso Martin, an artificial intelligence entrepreneur from Barcelona, came to Oregon State University for a post-doc and developed the MyStrands idea in Corvallis, where company headquarters will remain.

Aldamiz-echevarria says the MyStrands deal did not capture the attention of any Oregon investors. We hope there are no regrets.

—  Christina Williams

MERGERS AND ACQUISITIONS
ANNOUNCEDEXP. CLOSEBUYER (HQ)SELLER (HQ)/PARENTPRICE (TERMS)
7-JunQ2 ‘07Murphy Co. (Eugene)veneer operation (WA) / Weyerhaeuser Co.ND
11-JunQ2 ‘07Mentor Graphics Corporation (Wilsonville)Sierra Design Automation (CA)$90m (cash+ stock)
13-JunQ3 ‘07Kellwood Company (MO)Hanna Andersson (Portland) / Castanea Partners; Dorset Capital; mgmt team$175m
13-JunQ2 ‘07PremierWest Bancorp (Medford)Consumer Finance Division business (Eugene) / Pacific Continental BankND
15-JunQ2 ‘07Oversee.net (CA)SnapNames (Portland)ND
15-JunNDWebTrends (Portland)Webcontrol (Sweden)ND
15-JunQ2 ‘07BASIS International Ltd. (NM)AddOnSoftware (Beaverton) / MicroAccounting SytsemsND
18-JunQ3 ‘07Restaurants Unlimited Inc. (WA)Pacific Coast Restaurants (Portland)ND
18-JunQ3 ‘07Precision Castparts Corp. (Portland)Caledonian Alloys Group Ltd. (Scotland)ND
19-JunQ2 ‘07Cardno Limited (Australia)WRG Design (Portland)ND (stock+cash)
20-JunQ2 ‘07Wacom Co. Ltd. (Vancouver, WA)Touchscreen Konnection Oasis (TX)ND
20-JunQ2 ‘07Toby’s Family Foods (Springfield)Genesis Juice (Eugene)ND
21-JunQ2 ‘07TRM Multitech Services (Canada)photocopier business (Canada) / TRM (Portland)$398,645
25-JunQ2 ‘07infoUSA (NE)expresscopy.com (Portland)ND
25-JunQ2 ‘07LTC Global Solutions (Medford)Gelbwaks Insurance Services (FL)ND
26-JunQ2 ‘07Delphon Industries (CA)UltraTape Industries (Salem)ND
27-JunQ2 ‘07Aequitas Catalyst Fund (Portland)/Aequitas Capital ManagementParamount Graphics (Beaverton)$10.8m

CAPITAL RAISING
ANNOUNCEDCOMPANY (HQ) / LEADERSHIPINVESTORPRICE (TERMS)
5-JunAxial Vector Engine (Portland) / Raymond Brouzes, CEOprivate lender$250,000 (secured credit line)
6-JunDaverci Solutions Inc. (Hillsboro) / Marc Cameron, CEOND$3m (series A3)
12-JunMathStar, Inc. (Hillsboro) / Doug Pihl, CEOpublic offering$32.4m (equity)
14-JunCorrigo, Inc., (Wilsonville) / Rick Michaux, CEOSierra Ventures$10m (series 5)
14-JunOregon State University (Corvallis) / Edward Ray, PresidentHallie Ford, co-founder, Ford Fnd.$8m (donation)
18-JunMyStrands (Corvallis) / Francisco Martin, CEOAntonio Asensio, CEO, Grupo Zeta$25m (series B)
25-JunOr. Investment Fund (Portland) / Michael Arpey, mang. directorOr. Public Employees Retirement Fund$50m
25-JunTektronix, Inc. (Beaverton) / Rick Wills, CEOprivate institutional investors$354m (sr. convertible notes)
26-JunVirtugo Software (Beaverton)Foundation Cap.; OVP Venture Partners$4m
27-JunYMCA of Columbia-Willamette (Portland) / Bob Hall, CEOWatumull Properties.; Winkler Dev.$9m (sale-leaseback)

REAL ESTATE TRANSACTIONS
ANNOUNCEDBUYER (HQ)REAL ESTATE (LOCATION)SELLERPRICE
1-JunPhillips Edison & Company (MD)Sandy Marketplace (Sandy)ND
4-JunOregon Liquor Control CommissionWilhelm Warehouse (Milwaukie)$6.2m
4-JunCascade Industrial LLC (MN)industrial land (14.23 acres) (Gresham)Sandy Boulevard Dev.$2.9m
4-JunVander Houwen Properties LLCindustrial space (Portland)Beall Macadam LLC$2.07m
5-JunSolena Cellars; John NiemeyerHyland Vineyard (100 acres) (McMinnville)ND
13-JunFelton Properties (Portland)office building (Beaverton)McGill Commercial LLC$10.3m
18-JunArden Realty (CA)6 buildings (Portland)Blackstone Group LPND
18-JunBean Investment Real Estate (Portland)Sunrise Meadows apartments (NV)$103m
18-JunCherry Creek Prop. LLC (Lake Oswego)gas station (Albany)Camden Holdings LLC (CA)$1.48m
20-JunCorbett Summit LLC2 office properties (Portland)Michael and Mary Murphy (CA)$2.47m

List researched by Mark Druskoff

ND=Not disclosed

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