Good news in the RFID and wireless market is the increase in interest, social chatter, buyers kicking tires, and growing sales in certain sectors.
Some of the RFID companies have been having a really good year, portending an even better 2011 forecast. In addition, many have been able, in this newer more positive climate, to gain investment capital.
And others . . . we will report on more as we get the permission to ‘go public,’ we hope next week!
AeroScout, a strong player in the RTLS market, received venture financing from new investor Evergreen Venture Partners, that led the round, with all of AeroScout’s existing investors – Cisco, Greylock Partners, Intel Capital, Menlo Ventures, Pitango Venture Capital, and Star Ventures coming along for this round, a sign of continued faith.
SecureRF was recently awarded funds from GE and Venture Capital Partners, which awarded $55M to a few young companies. SecureRF provides security solutions that address lower-powered embedded devices that will be used in a variety of applications. GE’s interest was SmartGrid, but SecureRF, as a DASH7 Alliance member, has ambitions for many application areas.
Omnitrol Networks, an innovator, middleware/appliance provider, that has reviewed new funding from Javelin Venture Partners, also brings along existing investors in this one. What is interesting about Omnitrol is the presence of former TIBCO execs who know a thing or two about middleware!
And of course, the recent acquisition of ThingMagic from Trimble. Talking to ThingMagic folks, it appears that Trimble will continue to let the new ‘division’ thrive, and invest in their growth vs. absorbing the technology into a division of the company that might not ‘get passive RFID’.
This year, RFID companies are still attracting investments.
We continue to see new players with new innovations that change the price/performance curve in the market. This is truly exciting, since the RFID market does rely on the Moore’s Law module.
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