Short Take: E-Stamp gains high-tech financing

E-Stamp, which has gained approval from the United States Postal Service to sell stamps electronically and over the Internet, announced that it has received a new round of financing worth $16 million from five companies: Compaq, Microsoft, AT&T Ventures, venture capital company Caanan Partners, and German-based firm Francotyp-Postalia. E-Stamp also announced it will launch beta testing of its product in the San Francisco area this month.