Archive for June 2013
3DSystems bets big on 3D Printing with its 4th acquisition in France
3DSystems announced today that they have required Phenix Systems, a leading global provider of Direct Metal Selective Laser Sintering 3D Printers based in Riom, France. While the details of the acquisition have not been closed, 3DSystems is expected to acquire an 80% stake in the company, with a maxmium payout of 13 euros per share – […]
French court sentences 15 day ban from Internet in piracy suit
A French court in the suburbs of Paris laid down a ruling this week in piracy case, fining the individual 600 euros, as well as blocking their access to the internet for 15 days. The defendant will supposedly still have access to telephone, private messaging and email, as well as TV & telephone; however, it […]
The Parisian SXSW Futur En Seine kicks off its 10 day festival today
France’s biggest digital festival, Futur en Seine, kicks off today and runs through the 23rd. Launched by Cap Digital in 2009 and financed largely by the Ile-de-France region, the 10-day event seeks to both bring together major actors in the digital technology space and increase public awareness about digital innovation emerging in France and elsewhere. […]
Looking to launch your company this fall? TechCrunch Disrupt Berlin might be the answer
For those of you who haven’t heard, TechCrunch is bringing their coveted TechCrunch Disrupt event to Berlin for the first time this October. Like many startup conferences, the event will have a variety of great speakers, likely of the US variety, which will be a great opportunity for European entrepreneurs to build their US network, […]
In France, there’s a huge difference between an Entrepreneur and an Auto-Entrepreneur
In recent weeks, the “Auto-Entrepreneur” status has been in the forefront of political discussions, as the government assesses whether to lower the revenue cap that auto-entrepreneurs can make. The status was created by previous president Nicolas Sarkozy in order to enable out-of-work and independent workers to begin making money more easily; the seemingly simple (as it […]
Airbnb contributes €185 Million to the Paris economy, so don’t write-off the Sharing Economy just yet.
Peer-to-peer marketplace Airbnb has released an economic study of its Airbnb hosts and guests in Paris, looking at key figures pertaining to guests & hosts. The study, which comes a few months after a similar study on Airbnb’s effect on the San Francisco economy, showed some pretty interesting stats, such as the €185 Million contributed […]
Orange bets big on NFC, but will it pay off?
“Name one other technology that took 10 years to take off?” One skeptical colleague said to me over dinner when I told them I had just come from Orange’s NFC Awards which took place yesterday. The Awards ceremony concluded a six-month competition which saw 212 NFC projects submitted, of which the top 20 were invited […]
Fleur Pellerin discusses French Innovation on her 1st LinkedIn Post. The Internet disagrees.
After a long trip around the world, including Korea, Israel and the Silicon Valley, the Minister of SMEs, Innovation, and the Digital Economy Fleur Pellerin has given her thoughts in the form of a post on LinkedIn as one of LinkedIn’s influencers. Ignoring all sarcastic remarks about why she didn’t post on Viadeo, let’s get […]
Rude VC: 3 broken arrows of growth capital in France
The other day during a stimulating conversation with five of French tech’s movers and shakers, the subject came up about the challenges facing high-potential tech firms in need of growth capital. Setting aside the Yahoo/DailyMotion debacle for a moment (which I fear will carry disastrous long-term consequences for cross-border m&a, one of the three ‘arrows’), […]
Keep your online identity under lock and key with Experian’s DataPatrol
With approximately 60% of French stating that concerns around data confidentiality and privacy dissuade them from buying online and 64% stating that sites without sufficient payment security also drive them to restrict their online purchases, there’s definitely a market need for services that help mitigate these concerns. Sensing a big opportunity, the global leader of […]