(BIZ) Facebook VP: There’s A Lot Of Talent In Israel

"Blake Chandlee: We currently have no plans to open a development center in Israel, but that doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. Israel is an important market for Facebook.

'We currently have no plans to open a development center in Israel, but that doesn’t mean that it won’t happen. Israel is an important market for Facebook, both in terms of development and in commercial terms,' Facebook VP Asia Pacific, Latin America, and Emerging Markets Blake Chandlee told 'Globes'. 'It’s obvious that there’s a lot of talent in Israel, and we definitely are aware of that.'



Chandlee is participating in the 'Globes' Israel Business Conference 2010. 'The talent in Israel is obviously why companies like Google have already opened development centers in Israel, but it’s important to remember that we’re not like Google. Google has over 20,000 employees, whereas Facebook has about 2,000. All our developers are in Palo Alto. We naturally want to copy this model to other countries, but not in the near future.'

Chandlee started out as an entrepreneur, and then served as vice present at Yahoo! Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO) at the company’s UK offices, where he was responsible for development. He joined Facebook three years ago, and was the first to open a company office outside the US. He was in Singapore for the telephone interview, and sounded pleased by the progress there. 'Facebook is succeeding in Asian markets,' he says. 'For example, in Singapore, 65% of the population is already on Facebook, and even the government has begun to use this tool to communicate with its citizens. Facebook has high penetration rates in both Japan and South Korea.

However, Facebook is still banned in the world’s largest Internet market - China - after the government blocked users’ access for reasons of censorship. 'Regrettably, most users in China have difficulty accessing Facebook. I won’t go into the reasons for this, but it’s something that we’re thinking about.'

'Globes': Are you in contact with the Chinese government?

Chandlee: 'There are no talks about this at the moment, but we definitely want everyone to ultimately have access to Facebook.'

Face to face with Google

Facebook has long been the world’s largest social network, and according to ComScore, it is the third largest website in the world, with 633 million different users per month, after Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG), with 976 million users per month, and Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq: MSFT) websites, with 840 million users. As a result, whereas in 2009, Facebook focused its competition against social network MySpace, and was busy with the rising popularity of Twitter, which could surpass it, it is now clear that Facebook’s real rival is the search giant.

You’re ahead of Google in time spent by users on site. When will you surpass them and become the world’s biggest website?

'In certain markets, we’ve already surpassed Google in terms of user traffic, and in the US, for example, we’re really head to head. But we don’t think that Facebook is competing with Google for traffic. We’re focusing on our business, and if that means that we succeed, so much the better. We don’t devote too much time comparing ourselves with Google. Most of the world does that for us, and that’s fine.'

As for the rumors that Google plans to set up its own competing social network, called Google Me, Chandlee says, 'There’s a lot of speculation about this, but we haven’t seen what it’s about, and we don’t deal with this.'

Last month, Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg announced Facebook’s new messaging system, which would enable users to manage all their communications - chats, e-mails, and text messages - on one site. Across the web, it was called the 'Gmail killer', but Zuckerberg quickly announced that they were not competing against Google or Microsoft’s e-mail services, and that this was a completely new communications system.

Nonetheless, Chandlee does not shrug off the rivalry. 'Obviously, we’ll compete against Gmail, Hotmail, and Yahoo Mail with our new system,' he says, but quickly backs off, saying, 'We think that the mail is becoming less relevant as far as personal correspondence is concerned. The young generation no longer uses e-mail for communicating with friends, and all interpersonal communications is changing. Facebooks’ new system was designed in a way that says that the e-mail revolution is already here. This is a messaging system, not a mail system.'

The new service will reach Israel during the first quarter of 2011. Chandlee says, 'The recent period was very pressured for our engineers, and they were busy building many products that will be launched only early next year.'

Facebook recently launched another service, 'Facebook Places', a location-based feature that enables users to update their physical location on the social network. Chandlee promises that, 'Places will arrive in Israel early next year, and Facebook Deals will arrive two months later.'
Facebook Deals is a service for businesses to offer local discounts and awards to active users.
'It’s possible to do better work in Israel'



Facebook will reportedly have $1.4 billion revenue in 2010, 100% more than in 2009. Chandlee says, 'Most of Facebook’s revenue comes from the US, even though 80% of Facebook users are in other countries.' This situation, he adds, 'will change dramatically, and I expect that the gap will narrow quickly. That’s exactly what my job is.'

Most of Facebook’s revenue comes from advertising. Chandlee says, 'We launched Facebook internationally three years ago, and 90% of the world’s largest 100 advertisers are already investing heavily in advertising on Facebook. We also have hundreds of millions of small businesses that use our advertising system in order to reach segmented target audiences. These are naturally smaller budgets, but they are an important source of our revenue.

In Israel, Facebook has linked up with portal Nana10, which beginning this year markets advertising space on Facebook Israel’s homepage as part of Nana10’s new media unit Masa.
'We have a good partner in Israel', says Chandlee. 'We launched operations in Israel in order to increase local awareness and offer support to anyone who wanted to operate on Facebook,' adding, 'Is it possible to do better work in Israel? I think so, and we’re devoting many efforts to this.'

Facebook’s market cap has been estimated at secondary markets at $40 billion. Does this seem high to you?

'The secondary markets are mainly driven by people’s opinions, and there’s a lot of demand compared to low supply. That’s why Facebook’s share price continues to rise, and I assume that some people believe that the price is crazy. But there are also experienced investors who are willing to buy the share at these prices, and even believe that they can still make a profit. In any case, time will tell if the price is too high or not.'

What did you think about the movie 'The Social Network'. Does it resemble Facebook’s real story?
'I think that I’m the only employee who hasn’t seen the movie. I’m constantly travelling and flying, but I know that Facebook rented three cinemas in Palo Alto for one day for its employees, and afterwards it invited the employees to dinner. I’ve heard that it’s a good movie, but even though everyone says that Mark is shown in a negative light in the movie, I realized that it wasn’t as bad as I’d heard.

'If you meet Mark, you’ll understand that he isn’t as exciting a character as the movie implies. He’s said, ‘I wish my life was so interesting, but in reality, in the past six years, I’ve mostly written code.’ But we understand his portrayal in the movie; you can’t sell a movie without sex, drugs, and rock’n’roll, and I’m anxious to see it.'

'Cellcom should have used Facebook to explain the breakdown to its customers'
Last week, Cellcom Israel Ltd. (NYSE:CEL; TASE:CEL) suffered the largest breakdown in its history, with more than three million subscribers nationwide unable to make or receive phone calls or SMS. The technical glitch was accompanied by a not-small crisis of communications, which led to many complaints by the carrier’s subscribers. Cellcom is one of the few leading Israeli brands that does not have an official Facebook page, and except for a laconic message on the company’s website, there was no special attempt to contact consumers via Facebook or Twitter.

Chandlee believes that this was a mistake. 'Brands must have a Facebook page, where they manage their community according to the brand's values,' he says. 'A breakdown like that, which disrupts consumers’ regular lives, will not disappear on its own. In a social environment, consumers have a voice, and when something like this happens, consumers want to complain. If they don’t have an official place to do so on Facebook, they will find someplace else.

'Cellcom should have used a brand page to explain the problem to consumers, tell what it was doing about it, and that it understood their feelings. Avoiding explanations isn’t the right way to deal with a crisis. Consumers want transparency and information, and a Facebook page makes it possible to easily disseminate the relevant information. In most cases, if a brand explains the breakdown to consumers, 90% of the complaints are solved on the spot." (source)

(ARTS) International Film Production Returns To Israel

"After 15 years, Israel was back on the locations map.

Several deals for international film products to be shot in Israel were signed at the Location Expo in Seville. The Ministry of Industry, Trade and Labor set up a booth at the expo, which mediates between producers and film locations around the world. According to ministry figures, for the first time in years, deals worth tens of thousands of euros were signed for the production of films in Israel, mostly advertisements.

Zafrir Asaf, who is responsible for audiovisual productions at the Investment Promotion Center, told 'Globes' that after 15 years, Israel was back on the locations map. 'The economic potential of this industry is huge. The global industry has a turnover of tens of billions of dollars a year. The direct economic effect, in terms of workdays by the film crew, actors, and extras, and the indirect economic effect on other industries, such as restaurants, transport, hotels, and tourism, is immense,' he said.

A number of foreign movies, television shows, and advertisements have lately been filmed in Israel. The most noteworthy is a British series Homeland, about the lives of British soldiers during the Mandate." (source)

(NEWS) Israeli PM Orders Million-Dollar Armored Audi A8

"The specially adapted Audi A8 Security wll be delivered to Israel shortly.

The most expensive car ever to travel on our roads will arrive in Israel shortly.

This is the prime minister's new official car, an armored Audi A8 Security, which will replace various German and American cars used for the purpose up to now.

The official full price of the car, which is certified to the highest bullet-proofing classes B6+ and B7, according to the European standard, is $685 thousand dollars (about NIS 2.5 million) before taxes. However, the car ordered for Israel has many unique improvements and upgrades according to specifications of the Israeli security forces.



Automotive industry sources estimate the official price of the whole project, including additions, at $750-850 thousand dollars before taxes (NIS 2.7 = 3.1 million). Full tax is paid on official government cars, but often there is an exemption for the protection element, which forms a large part of the price of this vehicle. The price of the car including tax is therefore around $1 million (NIS 3.64 million).

The A8 Security was launched in late 2007. It is based on the W12 version of the Audi A8, with a 12-cylinder, 6-liter engine, with an output of some 450hp, and permanent four-wheel drive .According to the manufacturer's official data, it has an original, factory-produced, protected passenger compartment, proof against bullets and hand grenades. It has electronically controlled air suspension to support the great weight of the vehicle and the special safety systems.

The vehicle has safety features such as bullet-proof tires; and a device that blows the doors off if they have become jammed by shockwaves; an independent oxygen supply system; an automatic fire extinguishing system, and more. For passengers' comfort, a DVD player is installed in the back, with a wide screen, and there is a drinks fridge, and a device for keeping cigars moist.

The state has been previously procured A8 Security cars, used in recent years to transport VIPs.

One of them is now the official vehicle of former Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. However, these were standard cars, leased from Audi.

The Prime Minister's Office said, 'The vehicle intended for the prime minister has a high level of protection, as specified by the security forces, and was therefore chosen in a tender for vehicles capable of carrying the required protection level. The prime minister had no part in the decision making process on the type of vehicle. The matter was dealt with solely by professional staff.'" (source)

(TECH) Israel Second In World In Social Network Use

"The average time per user spent on social networks in Israeli is 9.2 hours a month.

ComScore Inc. reports that Russian Internet users are the world's most active users of social networks, and that Israel is in second place.

The survey found 34.5 million Internet users in Russia visited a social network site at least once during August 2010, 74.5% of all Internet users in the country. The average time per user spent on social networks is 9.8 hours a month. This figure is more than double the global average time spent on social networks - 4.5 hours a month.

The average time per user spent on social networks in Israeli is 9.2 hours a month. Turkey is in third place, with average time per user spent on social networks of 7.6 hours a month." (source)

(TECH) Google Strengthens Israel Connection

"Google's new VP search products Dr. Udi Manber wants Google's R&D center in Israel to double its work force.

All large Internet companies have been trying in recent months to fight back against Google Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG) in its core business areas, such as search engines. For this purpose, they have made alliances, such as Facebook and Bing, the search engine of Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq: MSFT), and between Microsoft and Yahoo Inc. (Nasdaq: YHOO).



Google monitors these collaborations, which do not appear to threaten its standing. With a share of over 90% in the global Internet search market, Google can take it easy while remembering that no one is immune.

'We are following the link-up between Microsoft and Facebook,' said Google VP engineering for web search Dr. Udi Manber, an Israeli, by video conference from California. The link-up will enable 'likes' listed by Facebook members to appear on Bing. This allows Microsoft to present personal results and gain an edge over Google.

'We have similar things, which I cannot discuss, since we have not yet announced them,' says Manber, hinting that Google's response will not be long in coming. 'Although one of the things I learned in academia is not to talk about things we haven’t done, I can say in general that as the number of signals increases during the search process, this is better. A search is more than one signal, and at Google, we know how to connect them all together. That's the important thing about the Google algorithm.'

Manber has resided in the US for over 30 years. He is about to succeed Google VP search products and user experience Marissa Mayer, one of the company's most senior executives, who will now oversee location and local services.

When asked how he intends to handle the new job, Manber said, 'I don’t look like Marissa, and I'll do the job differently from her. I am an engineer by training, and Google is based on engineering. The main thing is how engineering and users are integrated.'

Google Israel R&D Center director Prof. Yossi Matias said, 'Manber has an important role in building the Israeli center, and played a big role in bringing me to Google. Search is one of our core areas of activity in Israel, and we have scores of employees in Haifa and Tel Aviv engaged in it.'

Google Israel has 150 employees at its Haifa R&D Center, and Matias promises, 'We'll continue to grow.'

Manber says, 'Google's R&D Center in Israel is committed to search efforts. We're very pleased by the work underway in Israel, so that if the number of people in the search group in Israel doubles, I'll be very pleased. They're doing important work.'



Manber was born and raised in Kiryat Haim, and declines to reveal his age. 'I danced with a student band in Haifa, and I even played with Yehuda Poliker,' he says, and then immediately apologizes for his Hebrew. He obtained his B.Sc. from the Technion Israel Institute of Technology and his Ph.D. from the University of Washington. He has been working in the search field since teaching computer science at the University of Arizona in the late 1980s, and in the early 1990s, he developed and launched his own search engine.

Manber joined Google in 2006 as VP engineering. 'Until now, I was in one group that work on managing the product and another group the work on search. With my new appointment, these two groups will be consolidated and I will be responsible for the sector,' he says.

One of the places where Google hit a brick wall was Facebook because it cannot present full search results from the social network. He says, 'It doesn't hurt our search results. Most of the content on Facebook is connected to users and their friends and is not necessarily general information. Most people look for information from throughout the world and not just from their friends and even without Facebook, we already offer the user content that suits him.'

He adds, 'All of us at Google think that the social domain is very important, and in particular the possibility that the user will do a more personal search and get results connected to him.'

He claims that cooperation between Facebook and Microsoft does not hurt Google. Regarding the connection between Micosoft and Yahoo, Manber says, 'It is difficult to talk without being biased because I was one of the first who developed the search field at Yahoo and I know all the people there. Therefore, it was sad for me to hear that they decided to exit this topic. In the past, I tried to convince them to invest more efforts, and I suppose they will still do good things with Bing even if they are giving up on infrastructure based on search.'

Beyond this he repeats the accepted corporate mantras of senior executives in the US. 'More competitors is really better. The fact that Yahoo left the field means less competition, to my regret. Bing is a competitor that does very good work and we are happy to compete with them.'

One of the charges against Google which is heard is that the field of search engines has not changed over the years but has simply been improved. He says, 'I don't agree with that claim. The area has changed enormously over the past decade. The future for search is not just in one thing. There are no magic wands and it depends on the users' queries.'

He says that 15-20% of the enquiries they receive each day are absolutely new. 'That means that our methods are so strong that we can help you with your queries even though we have never encountered them. We make hundreds of changes in the search engine each year, and alter the index every few seconds, but most people do not pay attention to this. We do experiments on users but that's the way to get the best results. The real change is how to measure the improvement in the search and we have dozens of people just working on this. This is what allows us to improve the search engine.'" (source)

(NEWS) Amazon CTO In Israel

"Dr. Werner Vogels today attended a GarageGeeks event at the Tel Aviv Port.

Amazon CTO Dr. Werner Vogels is visiting Israel to promote the company's cloud computer services, Amazon Web Services. Amazon.com Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN) is offering applications developers a place to store their products, apparently in preparation for an applications store for smartphones, which market sources believe the company will soon launch.



Vogels today attended a GarageGeeks event at the Tel Aviv Port, together with high-tech investor Dr. Yossi Vardi. Vogels talked about Amazon Web Services. One service, EC2, offers developers and companies additional processing power, replacing the need to buy more computers.

When asked if Amazon knew what people were using its services for, Vogels replied, 'No. We don’t know what uses our computers are used for, whether it's to develop a product or to develop an atom bomb.'

In addition to the cloud computer services, one of Amazon's most interesting products is its e-book reader, Kindle. Amazon has been promoting Kindle worldwide for several years, and recently launched sales to Israelis via its website.

If and when Kindle reaches Israel and it will be possible to buy Kindle-adapted books in Hebrew, it will have a huge effect on the local market.

Vogels declined to disclose Amazon's plans for Kindle. 'I'm not going to talk about Kindle today,' he told GarageGeeks. 'The issue can be discussed on any other day.'" (source)

(BIZ) Africa-Israel Sells Half Of AFI Hotels

"Africa-Israel is selling the stake to private investors.

Africa-Israel Investments Ltd. (TASE:AFIL; Pink Sheets:AFIVY) is selling 50% of its AFI Hotels subsidiary for NIS 180 million.

Africa-Israel is selling the stake to private investors.



When the deal is completed, Africa-Israel will report a capital gain of NIS 210 million. The sale of AFI Hotels will also greatly reduce Africa-Israel's debt.

After halving its holding in AFI Hotels from 100% to 50%, Africa-Israel will cease consolidating AFI Hotels in its financial statements, which will reduce the debt on its balance sheet by NIS 800 million, and increase its shareholders' equity by NIS 235 million.

The buyer committed to acquire half of the owner's loan that was extended to AFI Hotels for NIS 18 million.

AFI Hotels operates about ten hotels in Israel, including Crowne Plaza hotels and two Holiday Inns.

Africa-Israel shares are up 3%." (source)

(BIZ) Carlton Tel Aviv Named Israel's Top Business Hotel

"The Carlton Tel Aviv Hotel was named 'The Leading Israeli Business Hotel 2010' at the global tourism industry's prestigious World Travel Awards.

The Carlton Tel Aviv beat Jerusalem's King David Hotel, which won the title the past two years.



Other nominees were Tel Aviv's David Intercontinental Hotel, the Renaissance Tel Aviv, and Sheraton Tel Aviv Hotel and Towers.

The World Travel Awards ceremony is held each year in order to rank the world's leading companies and organizations in each branch of tourism. The ranking is based on votes by the travelling public and travel agents.

This year's awards ceremony, the seventeenth, was held October 1st in Antalya, Turkey.

The Carlton Tel Aviv Hotel is located in the heart of Tel Aviv's coastline. The hotel has 270 guest rooms overlooking the Mediterranean, the Tel Aviv Marina, and Jaffa. The rooms were recently upgraded and re-designed. The renovation cost over $20 million. The hotel focuses on foreign tourism, with emphasis on business travelers. Most hotel guests are repeat guests.

Carlton Tel Aviv is privately owned by a group of investors from abroad, not part of an international network. The hotel is managed by the owners and CEO Jimmy Zohar, not an external management company." (source)

(BIZ) Israel And India Move Toward Free Trade Pact

"Negotiations on a financial protocol to promote trade between the two countries will begin in November.

Economic relations between Israel and India are set for a significant upgrade in the coming months. Minister of Finance Yuval Steinitz met with his Indian counterpart Pranab Mukherjee in Washington DC on Friday, and the two men agreed to prepare the ground for a free trade agreement (FTA) between their two countries.



Steinitz and Mukherjee agreed that talks on the signing of a financial protocol to promote trade between the two countries will begin in November. They also agreed that a large Israeli economic delegation, led by Steinitz and including the heads of many of Israel's largest companies, will visit India in early 2011.

In February India's Minister of State for Trade Jyotiraditya Madhavrao Scindia informed his Israeli counterpart Minister of Industry, Trade and Labor Binyamin Ben-Eliezer that Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh accepted Israel's proposal for a free trade zone between the two economies.

Steinitz is in the US capital for the semi-annual meeting of the IMF and World Bank and is meeting with senior economic figures in the Obama administration as well as many foreign Ministers of Finance.

Steinitz said, 'Israel cannot rely just on the markets in the US and Europe. We need new markets. We must look eastwards especially to India and China. I am interested in a closer connection between India and Israel, similar to the economic ties we have with the US and Europe.'

Steinitz added, 'I want to see Indian investments in Israel, just as there are investments by Israeli companies in India. There is a special close chemistry between Indians and Israelis. This closeness can take advantage of the special abilities of the US Jewish community for the benefit of Indian interests.



Steinitz did not say so but taking advantage of the special abilities of the US Jewish community was also one of the important aspects of strategic ties between Israel and Turkey.

Steinitz dismissed suggestions the possibility that an FTA with India would lead to jobs moving away from Israel to India. He said, 'Israel usually exports added value and not end products. We aim to achieve economic cooperation with India that is typical of our relations with the US. These relations make the ground fertile for exporting added value, such as chips, which are integrated into end products.'

Steinitz has brought to maturity a long term Israeli effort to deepen economic ties with India, one of the most important markets for Israel's defense industries and one of Israel's main trading partners in Asia.

Trade between the two countries, including diamonds, but not including defense deals, amounted to $3 billion in 2009, down 25% from 2008. Trade without diamonds totaled $1.77 billion, down 14% from the previous year. Israeli exports to India totaled $1.21 billion in 2009, and imports totaled $558 million." (source)

(NEWS) Israel Railways Ups Capacity With 78 New Coaches

"Bombardier will supply Israel Railways with 78 double-decker train cars, which will allow Israel's train company to increase its seating capacity by 10,000 places.

The deal, worth NIS 700 million, was signed after negotiations that lasted several months, after Bombardier was left as the only competitor in the Israel Railways tender.

At the same time, the tender for 15 diesel electric locomotives, and an option for an additional 8, continues. That tender is worth NIS 300 million, without the option. Bombardier is competing in the tender against European manufacturer Vosloh.

The current deal is the first one signed for new cars since 2006. During that time, the number of train passengers grew by an average rate of about 15% per year. The growth prompted Israel Railways to push for the supply of the cars as soon as possible. According to an agreed-upon timetable, the new cars will be supplied in stages, beginning in November, 2011, through April 2012.

The news cars are slated to meet rising demand ahead of new lines, and doubling of existing lines, chief among them the Tel Aviv-Beersheva line. The main new line opening in the next year is the Tel Aviv-Rishon Le'Zion west line, which is expected to carry about 3-5 million passengers per year. The line is set to begin operating in May, 2011." (source)

(BIZ) Israel Corp Unit To Raise Stake In Peru Power Company

"According to Israel Corp., Edegel is the largest power producer in Peru.

Israel Corporation (TASE: ILCO) holding Inkia Energy Ltd. will raise its stake in Edegel from 14% to about 25%, in a three stage process.



According to Israel Corp., Edegel is the largest power producer in Peru, with generating capacity of 1,700 megawatts. Edegel has seven hydroelectric power plants, and seven thermoelectric plants.

Edegel is a public company, traded on the Lima stock exchange.

The first step is a purchase offer which regulators in Peru limited to 3.47% of the public's shares. The precise company valuation will be set by regulators. If the offer is accepted in full, at the current share prices, the offer will be worth $47 million.

A second phase of the transaction involves buying 6.4% of Edegel shares from a third party, for $50 million. This represents using a right of refusal that Inkia has.

Lastly, the company has also offered another Edegel shareholder buy its entire 0.4% stake in Edegel." (source)

(BIZ) P&G To Buy Israel's ConTipi For Up To $100 Million

"ConTIPI has been acquired by Procter & Gamble for $100 million. The start-up, which develops disposable vaginal devices that reduce or prevent urinary incontinence, has signed an agreement to be sold which will be implemented in stages. ConTIPI will receive $15 million in cash immediately, and, depending on milestone payments, could receive up to $100 million from Procter & Gamble. To receive the maximum payment, ConTIPI's products must reach annual revenue of over $180 million.



ConTIPI and Procter & Gamble have had a distribution agreement since 2007 based on royalties, which has so far been worth tens of millions of dollars. The current agreement will replace the distribution agreement, although many of the clauses in the agreement are similar. ConTIPI declined to comment on the report.

The joint business activities between ConTIPI and Procter & Gamble are in their formative stages with pilot projects in a number of countries. ConTIPI's product has approval from the US Food & Drug Administration (FDA) but is not yet being marketed in the US. The product will be launched in 2011.

ConTIPI is exceptional in Israel's biomed landscape, because its device will be sold as a consumer product in pharmacies without the need of a prescription, although with a doctor's recommendation. Entering this market independently would be very difficult and require enormous marketing resources.

ConTIPI was founded in 2002 and is based in Caesarea. It has raised $3 million to date." (source)

(BIZ) Google Buys Israeli Company "Quiksee"

"According to Quiksee CEO Royz, its technology essentially fills in a gap with Google's Street View.

Search giant Google has found a second company to acquire in Israel, buying start-up Quiksee. The price is estimated to be several million dollars.



Both Google and Quiksee declined to respond.

The firm was founded in 2007 by CEO Gadi Royz, VP R&D Rony Amira, CTO Assaf Harel, and Pavel Yosifovich. The company's software allows Internet users to turn a simple video clip into an interactive video clip. Users can photograph any location where they are with a digital camera or mobile device, upload the file to Google Maps, and take part in the dynamic mapping of the world.

Quiksee's software turns the clip into an interactive one, by allowing people to wander through and get a real visit experience, without physically being there. Essentially it allows anyone to create location based media.

According to CEO Royz, Quiksee's technology essentially fills in a gap with Google's Street View. It allows surfers to virtually enter a hotel, business office, or other property, without GPS or any other medium.

Estimates are that the company has raised $3 million to date, from Van Leer Group Foundation unit Docor International BV and from Ofer Hi Tech Ltd.

In April, Google made its first acquisition in Israel, buying start-up LabPixies." (source)

(TECH) "Google Instant" Based On Israeli Development

"The new search engine feature finds results while you type search terms.

Faster, more efficient. Last week, search giant Google launched Instant, a new feature that seeks to change the search habits of hundreds of millions of users and to improve the way we find the information we are looking for.

The new feature enables surfers to find results even while they type in their search terms, without having to hit the 'Enter' button or click on 'Search'. The search engine identifies the first letters typed into the search box, and displays relevant results pages in real time, that update as you type.

Te new interface is based on Google Suggest technology, that was developed at the Google Israel research and development center. This technology presents the surfer with optional suggestions for completing the search terms as they are being typed. Prof. Yossi Matias, director of Google's Israel R&D Center, said, 'We are glad of the opportunity to be part of the launch of Instant and to create a better and faster surfing experience for millions of surfers around the world.'

The feature is available in 40 languages via Google.com and local Google sites. Although it is based on an Israeli development, the feature is not yet available in Hebrew, but the company intends shortly to adapt it for languages written from right to left, and for search from a cell phone." (source)

(NEWS) Israel To Sell Back Gas To Egypt At $12b Profit

"Israel could make a 600% return on the resale of gas to meet a shortage in Egypt.

Egyptian daily 'Al Shaab' reports that the Egyptian government is seeking to buy back 1.5 billion cubic meters of natural gas sold to Israel as part of the deal signed in 2005, under US pressure, and whose price per cubic meter was set at a level that in retrospect was significantly lower than the market price.

Anonymous sources told 'Al Shaab' that internal discussions at Egypt's Ministry of Petroleum and Mineral Resources determined that at least half the natural gas sold to Israel under the deal would have to be repurchased at $14 billion, even though it was sold for $2 billion."

(NEWS) NY Times: Israel Could Become Energy Exporter

"A 'New York Times' report on Israel's recent natural gas finds describes the history of exploration here by saying, 'Few countries had looked so hard with so little result.' The article explains that as a result, 'obliged to live off their wits, Israelis turned their country into a high-tech haven.'

The article lists a slew of challenges that flow from the discovery of the Tamar and Leviathan gas fields, including political tension with Lebanon, royalties policy, fears of Hizbullah missiles, and worries over the impact on the environment. But in addition to all those is the concern that 'Israel could blow its windfall and turn into a nation of single-resource slackers.'"

(NEWS) Israel Delivers 4 UAVs To Turkey

"The aircraft are the last of ten ordered in a $180 million deal in 2004.

Despite the crisis in relations between the two countries, Israeli companies have delivered the last four of ten Heron UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles) ordered by Turkey, Turkish newspaper Today's Zaman reports. The UAVs were produced by Elbit Systems Ltd. (Nasdaq: ESLT; TASE: ESLT) and Israel Aerospace Industries, under a deal worth $180 million that was signed in 2004."

(NEWS) Harvard University Fund Sells All Israel Holdings

"No reason for the sale was mentioned in the report to the SEC.

In another blow to Israeli shares, the Harvard Management Company notified the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Friday that it had sold all its holdings in Israeli companies during the second quarter of 2010. No reason for the sale was mentioned. The Harvard Management Company manages Harvard University's endowment."



Related Article:

• Israeli Investments Made Millions For Harvard

(NEWS) BusinessWeek: Tel Aviv More Expensive Than New York

"A survey by ECA International ranked 399 cities around the world.

Two years of rising property prices in Israel and falling property prices in the US, combined with a more severe recession in the US than in Israel, which contributed to the shekel's appreciation against the dollar, has resulted Tel Avivand Jerusalem surpassing New York in the rankings of the world's most expensive cities, according to a survey by global human resources company ECA International, which was published by 'BusinessWeek'.

ECA ranks Tel Aviv in 19th place in 2010 (up from 24th place in 2009) and Jerusalem in 22nd place (up from 27th place), whereas New York is in 29th place (down from 18th place). Tokyo is in first place, up from second place in 2009, followed by Oslo, which rose to second place from eighth."

(NEWS) Egypt Bans Israeli Planes From Taba

"The dispute and the banning of the use of Taba airstrip by Israeli pilots is the first incident of its kind since the 1979 peace treaty.

Egyptian weekly 'Rose Al-Youssef' reports that the Civil Aviation Authority has banned Israeli planes from using the airstrip at Taba in Sinai, adjacent to Eilat.

Israeli airlines sometimes use the Taba airstrip when traffic is heavy, in severe weather conditions, or for emergencies."