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Date: Wed, 13 Dec 2000 03:04:00 -0800 (PST)
From: jeffrey.snyder@enron.com
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	michael.miller@enron.com, john.norden@enron.com, drew.ries@enron.com, 
	jeffrey.snyder@enron.com, allan.sommer@enron.com, 
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Subject: Venture News, Wednesday, December 13, 2000
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ENW VENTURES PORTFOLIO NEWS

Acta's New B2B Data Server Now Available for Multiple Operating Platforms; 
ActaWorks 4.4 Significantly Expands Support for Industry-Leading Data 
Integration Solutions

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 12, 2000--Acta Technology, Inc., the leader 
in business-to-business (B2B) data integration, announced today the general 
availability of ActaWorks 4.4, the latest version of its award winning 
enterprise data server. ActaWorks 4.4 provides recent product and performance 
enhancements that previously were available only for Windows NT (under 
ActaWorks 4.3). Acta made the announcement at the eBusiness Conference and 
Expo in New York City. 
The new product significantly expands support for the industry-leading 
provider of B2B data integration. With ActaWorks 4.4, businesses with Windows 
NT, Windows 2000, and Unix environments (HP-UX, Sun Solaris, and IBM AIX) can 
all employ Acta's new enhancements for packaging and delivering the data 
essential for B2B eCommerce and business intelligence. 
Among the new features is a repository architecture that enables centralized 
metadata management and multi-user development. As businesses implement a 
data platform to support both internal and external access to enterprise 
data, the need to manage metadata from external and internal sources becomes 
critical -- and the need for multiple users increases. 
The addition of these new enhancements further solidifies Acta's leadership 
position in B2B data integration, a rapidly emerging component of B2B 
integration. Industry analysts have sized the data integration market at $15B 
(cumulative) by 2005 -- a market that is being driven by the growing need to 
provide information-rich data both inside and outside the extended 
enterprise. 
_________________________________________________________
OTHER NEWS
  
o Myutility Raises $3.5 Million, Buys Utility Business

NEW YORK -- Myutility, an energy services marketplace
and information provider for businesses, said it
bought the Teldata Solutions automated meter reading
systems (AMR) and revenue cycle services (RCS) business
from National Grid Group, which simultaneously invested
$3.5 million in Myutility. National Grid purchased
Teldata, a data acquisition products and services
firm, last year. Myutility said it will use the
funding to expand its services and for operations
and is still seeking additional funding. Myutility
raised an undisclosed amount of seed capital from
TSG Equity Partners in September.
http://www.myutility.com/
_____________________________________________

o Managed ASP Cosential Raises $1.8 Million in Funding

WILTON, Conn. -- Cosential, a managed ASP for architecture,
construction, and engineering companies, said it
raised $1.8 million in financing. Silicon Alley
Venture Partners led the round, which included Milestone
Venture Partners and Venture Quest. The company
will use the funding to launch a new ASP service.
Cosential said its enhanced ASP product will be
available in the first quarter of 2001.
http://www.cosential.com/
_____________________________________________

AQUILA ENERGY CORPORATION (*TBA*) Files for $425.00 Million Initial Public 
Offering

http://www.ipo.com/ipoinfo/profile.asp?p=IPO&c=0001128032

Aquila Energy Corporation is a wholesale energy merchant
that provides comprehensive energy solutions to clients
in North America, the United
Kingdom and continental
Europe.

Lead Managed By: Lehman Brothers
________________________________________________________________________
Trade-Ranger integrates multiple buying programs

HOUSTON, Dec. 13 -- Trade-Ranger, an Internet marketplace for the procurement 
of supplies by the energy industry, has integrated another type of software 
into its site to eliminate barriers to its customers and to help build 
liquidity. 
Allen May, interim co-CEO, told LocalBusiness.com the site has added another 
buying tool, iPlanet BuyerXpert software, at the request of one of its 
founding partners. Trade-Ranger already had Oracle Corp.'s iProcurement and 
Commerce One's e-procurement programs. 
"Our members are transacting, we have integrated multiple buying tools to the 
Commerce One platform, and we are continuing our effort to build the most 
efficient content hub in the industry," May said. 
"We will adopt the best-of-breed technology," he said. 
Houston-based Trade-Ranger was incorporated in August. Oracle (Nasdaq: ORCL) 
is based in Redwood City, Calif., while Commerce One (Nasdaq: CMRC) is based 
in Pleasanton, Calif. Meanwhile, iPlanet is a product of iPlanet E-Commerce 
Solutions, a Sun-Netscape Alliance. Sun Microsystems (Nasdaq: SUNW) is based 
in Palo Alto, Calif. 
Trade-Ranger is building its membership, and no numbers were immediately 
available, May said. 
Technology can be a barrier to liquidity growth, May said. Some marketplaces 
simply tell customers they must adopt that marketplace's technology, he said. 
"We definitely have an open policy," May said. 
He added that Trade-Ranger has made a significant investment in technology, 
although he was unwilling to disclose the amount spent. 
Formerly the Energy and Petrochemical Exchange, the Houston-based exchange 
announced its formation on April 11. The exchange describes itself as 
"created by the industry for the industry." 
Membership is available to all companies, buyers and sellers, in the 
upstream, downstream, retail and petrochemical sectors. Upstream refers to 
oil and gas producers, while downstream refers to the refining section of the 
business. 
The original 14 founding partners are Royal Dutch/Shell, BP, TotalFinaElf, 
The Dow Chemical Co., Conoco Inc., Motiva Enterprises, Occidental Petroleum, 
Equilon Enterprises, Phillips Petroleum, Mitsubishi Corp., Repsol, YPF, 
Statoil, Unocal and Tosco. 
The collective annual purchasing budgets of the founding partners exceeds 
$125 billion worldwide. 
____________________________________________________________
GM, Ford take $1.26-billion US stake in Commerce One software company

12/12/2000 
The Canadian Press 
Copyright (c) 2000 The Canadian Press. All rights reserved. 
DETROIT (AP) _ Ford Motor Co. and General Motors Corp. will take a combined 
$1.26-billion US stake in Commerce One, making the business-to-business 
software company a technology partner in the automakers' Covisint online 
exchange. 
Pleasanton, Calif.-based Commerce One said it will issue to GM and Ford 14.4 
million shares apiece, with each stake valued at about $631.8 million, based 
on Commerce One's close Tuesday of $43.88 on the Nasdaq Stock Market. The 
combined number of shares represents a 14 per cent interest in Commerce One. 
Half the shares for each company will be held in escrow until 2002, and will 
be released to Ford and GM upon satisfaction of certain conditions. If 
conditions are not met, the shares will be released to the two automakers in 
mid-2004. 
Commerce One said it will undergo a corporate restructuring into a holding 
company and get a two per cent equity interest in Covisint, the Internet 
exchange started by Ford, GM and three other automakers. Covisint 
incorporated for business Monday. 
Commerce One's stake in Covisint will be held in escrow until the completion 
of the restructuring, on which Commerce One shareholders are to vote next 
year. 
Commerce One will be entitled to a share of the revenue generated by the 
Covisint exchange for an expected 10-year term, as well as be paid for 
consulting services it provides to Covisint. 
``We look forward to continuing our efforts with Covisint to deliver a global 
e-marketplace platform for the automotive industry,'' Mark Hoffman, Commerce 
One's chairman and chief executive, said in a statement. ``Covisint is an 
excellent example of Commerce One's business model and reflects our 
commitment to moving the world's business commerce onto the Web.'' 
In addition to Ford and GM, Covisint's backers include DaimlerChrysler AG, 
Nissan and Renault, as well as Commerce One and fellow software firm Oracle. 
Covisint is supposed to act as an Internet marketplace for the auto industry, 
allowing suppliers and automakers to swap information and conduct business 
far more quickly and cheaply than they have in the past. 
Detroit's automakers have said Covisint should be able to route their 
purchases of $250 billion a year in goods and services. 
Covisint said it has more than 250 customers on two continents already using 
its services, including catalogues, auctions, quote management and 
collaborative design. 
______________________________________________
 
o Compaq Adds $100 Million to Storage Investment Fund

HOUSTON -- Compaq Computer said it is expanding
its storage investment fund with an additional $100
million in 2001. The company's investment program
focuses on accelerating the development and adoption
of storage hardware, software, and utility provider
technology. Compaq has invested in storage firms
such as HighGround Systems, Prisa Networks, and
StorageNetworks.
http://www.compaq.com/
_____________________________________________

o Remote Net Access Firm iPass Adds $20 Million to Round Four

REDWOOD SHORES, Calif. -- iPass, a provider of global
remote Internet access services, said it has closed
its fourth, Series F round with an additional $20
million, bringing in Cisco as a new investor. Total
funding for the round was $50 million. As reported
in September, Crosspoint Ventures, Accel Partners,
Comdisco, Equant, Rogers Communications and Sand
Hill Capital also contributed to the round. iPass
said it will use the funds to extend the development
of its settlement and authentication technologies.
http://www.ipass.com/
_____________________________________________

o Securant Technologies Lands $31 Million in Series C

SAN FRANCISCO -- Securant Technologies, which provides
access management software and services for Internet
business security, said it raised $31 million in
its Series C round of funding. Oak Investment Partners
led the round, which included Merrill Lynch and
individual investors. Oak Investment Partners general
partner Fred Harman and Richard Pierce, senior vice
president and COO of Inktomi, will sit on the company's
board of directors. The company will use the funding
for product development, sales and marketing, and
for international operating expenses.
http://www.securant.com/
_____________________________________________

o FIS Gets Funds from Autodesk; Autodesk Invest in Two Others

CAMARILLO, Calif. -- Facility Information Systems,
a provider of enterprise software for facility management
and corporate infrastructure resource management,
said it received funding from Autodesk Ventures.
Financial details were not disclosed. Separately,
Autodesk said it also invested in Alchemedia, a
developer of technology that protects against unauthorized
use of digital images, and Izoic, a software firm
focused on managing underground infrastructure maintenance.
Autodesk said the three investments totalled $3
million. Alchemedia also received funding in that
round from Carlyle Venture Partners and Hollinger
Capital. Izoic received funds from Insight Capital
Partners and Bechtel Ventures as well as Autodesk.
http://www.fisinc.com/
http://www.autodesk.com/
_____________________________________________

o App Infrastructure Firm Exenet Has $35 Million First Round

NEW YORK -- Exenet Technologies, an application
infrastructure provider, said it closed its $35
million initial round of funding. Telecom Partners
and CIBC Capital Partners participated in the round.
Exenet will use the funding to expand its outsourced
infrastructure service for ASPs, independent software
vendors, value added resellers (VARs), Regional
Bell operating companies, local exchange carriers,
and other corporations. Exenet provides lT outsourcing
and application infrastructure services, including
directory services, management services, storage
services, database management, and bandwidth provisioning
services.
http://www.exenet.com/


