VC watch: Formation gets $16 million

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Friday's deals

• Formation Systems has raised a $16 million fifth round of funding. Investors included Bain Capital Ventures, and previous investors Lightspeed Venture Partners and ABS Ventures. Southborough, Mass.-based Formation Systems has raised a total of $37 million and received a 5 percent decrease in valuation with its latest round, a representative said. The company's software allows companies to have a central repository of information, providing faster access to data.

• Actuality Systems is expected to announce on Monday that it has received a $1 million bridge round of funding from private investors. Reading, Mass.-based Actuality has received a total of $2.3 million between its seed funding and this latest round. Actuality's bridge funding is designed to give the company an infusion of cash while it waits to launch its first round of venture funding, expected this fall. The company develops 3D devices that attach to computers, enabling people to see images floating before them. Actuality expects to target the biotechnology and medical industries as well as design companies.

Thursday's deals

• ViaWest Internet Services said it received a $2 million fourth round of funding. Investors included SG Capital Partners, board members and existing shareholders. Denver-based ViaWest has raised a total of $34 million and received a 15 percent decline in valuation with this latest round. The company provides broadband access, Web hosting and contracted data center services and management to small and medium-sized businesses.

• Integral Access said it got a $45 million fourth round of funding, which was led by Technology Crossover Ventures. Previous investors participating in this round include Ascent Venture Partners, Coral Ventures, Prism Venture Partners and St. Paul Venture Capital. Both St. Paul Venture and Technology Crossover Ventures have received seats on the company's board. Chelmsford, Mass.-based Integral provides an Internet Protocol-based system for carriers, which allows voice, data and video to be carried on one network, rather than putting each service on a separate network. The company has raised a total of $108.5 million and received a slight decline in valuation with the latest round.

Wednesday's deals

• Newgistics said it received a $16.5 million second round of funding. Investors included Austin Ventures, Spiegel-Hermes General Service, R.R. Donnelley & Sons and AV Labs. Austin, Texas-based Newgistics provides software and services to the retail industry. The company manages retailers' product returns and logistics.

• Avian Communications said it received a $22 million second round of funding. Argo Global Capital, Nokia Venture Partners, Wasserstein Ventures, YankeeTek Ventures, Clarity Capital and previous investor St. Paul Venture Capital invested in this latest round. Marlborough, Mass.-based Avian has raised a total of $23 million for its mobile networking equipment business.

• Software company Fenestrae received a $12.9 million first round of funding, the company announced. Investors included Doughty Hanson & Co. Technology, Intel Capital and Kappa IT Ventures. Amsterdam-based Fenestrae develops software designed to allow mobile devices to communicate with corporate applications over the wireless networks.

• MorphInk has raised a $3 million first round of funding. The Santa Clara, Calif.-based company received investments from Euroventures and Quantum Fund. The company develops software designed to compress animations for wireless devices and the Internet.

Tuesday's deals

• Proxima Systems received $10 million toward its third round of funding, the company announced Tuesday. The Montreal-based company hopes to raise a total of $16 million by fall. Investors in this latest round included CDP Capital Communications and Fonds de solidarite FTQ. Proxima, which has raised a total of $33 million, has developed customer care and billing software for the telecommunications industry.

• Inxight Software announced it has raised a $24 million second round of funding, led by DB eVentures. The investment marks the first outside round of funding Inxight has received since its spinoff from Xerox in 1997. The company declined to disclose its total funding to date. Santa Clara, Calif.-based Inxight provides software designed to analyze a company's information that is not readily searchable and perform such tasks as pulling extracts or grouping documents in desired categories.

• Mirror Worlds Technologies said it received a $6.5 million second round of funding, led by Millennium 3 Opportunity Fund. Millennium, which will receive a seat on Mirror Worlds' board, was joined by previous investors Abacus & Associates and StartingPoint Venture Partners. Mirror Worlds markets its Scopeware products, which include technology to help employees work in groups, access information remotely, and scan and retrieve paper and e-mail documents. The New York-based company has raised a total of $14.5 million.

• SupplyChainge has received a $2 million seed round of funding from TSG Equity and private investors. Portland, Ore.-based SupplyChainge develops software for the retail industry that allows companies to work with suppliers and customers over the Internet and cut inventory costs.

• ProactiveNet announced it closed a $15 million fourth round of funding, led by Wit SoundView Ventures. Other investors included Sun Microsystems. Alviso, Calif.-based ProactiveNet has developed software to analyze and identify where problems occur on a Web site or with applications. The company has raised a total of $50 million, a company spokesman said.

• Viewlocity said it received a $30 million sixth round of funding and appointed a new chief executive. Jeffrey Simpson has joined the company after having served in a similar position at MH2 Technologies. Investors in this latest round included Liberty Mutual and previous investors Battery Ventures, BCI Partners, Banc Boston and JP Morgan Capital Partners. Atlanta-based Viewlocity, which has raised a total of $101.4 million, develops software designed to allow companies to capture information from different members in the supply chain.

• LightPointe said it has raised $33 million in its second round that includes funding from telecom equipment maker Cisco Systems and Corning Ventures, a division of fiber-optic cable maker Corning. Sevin Rosen Funds, Ampersand Ventures and Telecom Partners also anted-up in the second round on top of contributing to the $12 million first round last September. The company also received $6.5 million from Silicon Valley Bank and GATX Ventures earlier this year. The San Diego-based company makes optical equipment for metropolitan networks that transmits high-speed data through the air as opposed to sending it along fiber cables underground. LightPointe is undergoing field and lab trials with more than a dozen global carriers and has successfully passed a field trial with a major U.S. carrier.

Monday's deals

• SmartPrice.com said it has received $4 million in a second round of funding, led by SSM Ventures. Other investors included JAFCO Ventures. Austin, Texas-based SmartPrice offers a free online service designed to help businesses and consumers analyze their calling habits and seek out appropriate long-distance carriers and plans. The company has raised a total of $8 million with this latest round.

• General Bandwidth said it has received $66 million in a fourth round of funding, led by Invesco. Other investors included Texas Instruments, Wheatley Partners, Granite Global Ventures, and previous investors Sevin Rosen Funds, Sequoia Capital, Oak Investment Partners, Venrock Associates, Trellis Partners, Thomas Weisel Capital Partners, CIT Venture Capital, and HLM Management. General Bandwidth's telecommunications equipment is designed to enable service providers to cut their costs for sending voice services over existing broadband networks. The Austin, Texas-based company has raised a total of $150 million.

• RoundHeaven Communications said it received a $20 million first round of funding from M/C Venture Partners, which will receive two board seats. Vancouver, B.C.-based RoundHeaven offers hardware and services for tasks such as storage, security, content switching and network consulting.

• SteelEye Technology has raised a $20 million second round, led by Dali, Hook Partners. Other investors included Compaq Computer, CrossBridge Partners, Hitachi, Intel 64 Fund, Massey Burch Capital and Venrock Associates. Mountain View, Calif.-based SteelEye has raised a total of $33 million. The company's software is designed to easily link servers together to continuously act as one unit and can be used by companies of all sizes.

• NeuVis Software said it received a $10 million fourth round of funding. Investors included Goldman Sachs, J&W Seligman, Connecticut Innovations, Lehman Brothers, Admirals, CP Baker, General Electric Pension Trust, The Chatterjee Group and Archery Capital. NeuVis software is designed to help companies quickly create applications via its automated code-generation software. The Shelton, Conn.-based company has raised a total of $70 million with this latest round.

• InsureHiTech has raised $4.4 million in its second round from J.P. Morgan Corsair II Capital Partners and two strategic partners. Princeton, N.J.-based InsureHiTech, which has raised a total of $14.4 million, offers an online insurance brokerage service to companies. The information is simultaneously sent to six insurance carriers via the Internet, which is designed to speed up the response time for quotes.

• Chip company Wintegra said it received $10 million toward its second round, bringing the total round to $21 million. Genesis Partners and China Development Industrial Bank were the latest investors in Wintegra's latest round. The Austin, Texas-based company has raised a total of $26 million. Wintegra designs chips and manufacturers them at third-party fabrication plants. The company is developing chips that will allow equipment operators to move packets of Internet Protocol data from Asynchronous Transfer Mode technology without the need for new technological investments.

Friday's deals

• Lumigent Technologies said it has raised $700,000 in a round of angel funding, which included an investment by the chief executive of Object Management Group. Concord, Mass.-based Lumigent develops database software tools for companies such as online traders, Internet service providers and consumer goods manufacturers. Angel funding is an investment from an individual, typically a successful business leader investing in a particular area of expertise.

• Chipmaker Nitronex said it raised a $24.5 million second round of funding. TPG Ventures led the round, which included investments from previous investors Alliance Technology Ventures, VantagePoint Venture Partners, Centennial Venture Partners, Southeast Interactive Technology Funds, Boston University's Community Technology Fund and Contender Capital. Nitronex grows gallium nitride crystals on silicon, which is designed to increase the semiconductor's power by 1,000 times and offer greater frequency capabilities for high-bandwidth wireless devices. Raleigh, N.C.-based Nitronex has raised a total of $34.6 million and received more than a 50 percent increase in its valuation with the latest round.

• InfoLibria said it received $41 million in a fourth round of funding, led by Mellon Ventures. Other investors included StarVest Partners, Mitsubishi, and previous investors Adams Capital, Kemper Ventures, Patricof, Sandler Capital Partners, Madison Dearborn, GE Capital, Telesoft Partners, and Tudor Private Equity Fund. Waltham, Mass.-based InfoLibria provides streaming media equipment for its customers' networks. The equipment enables access to streaming video, audio, graphics and text from an Internet service provider or company, rather than the original source of the information. The company has raised a total of $116 million.

• Geobot has raised a $2.2 million first round of funding, led by Delta Capital Management. Memphis, Tenn.-based Geobot develops messaging software. A Delta representative will be joining Geobot's board of directors.

• Scene7 has raised an $11.3 million second round of funding, led by Moore Capital Management. Other investors include Xcelera, GCH Investments, and previous investors Hearst Interactive Media, Weston Presidio Capital, Halpern Denny & Co., Roger Horchow, Slifer Designs and TWB Investment Partnership. San Rafael, Calif.-based Scene7 has raised more than $26 million for its imaging software business. Scene7 markets its software to companies that use it for the Internet, print and Internet kiosks.