Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal articles from March 2001

Silicon Valley/San Jose Business Journal archives from March 2001

Webvan drives on.
March 2, 2001... Online grocer looking for $60 million in fuel If Foster City-based Webvan is going down, it won't be without a fight. Unlike dot-coms that stop short of total cash burnout to return value to shareholders or save face, Webvan is ramping...

Valley execs urge GOP moderation.
March 2, 2001... Many Silicon Valley executives are enamored of the Republican Party's limited-government philosophy, but they've been scared off by the party's stance on social issues. At the California Republican Party Convention in Sacramento Feb. 23...

Area gay in White House.
March 2, 2001... Silicon Valley has another contact in the Bush administration: Tom Beddingfield, a 22-year-old Republican activist and campaign consultant. He's moving into the Old Executive Office Building, where he will advise the president and other...

170 bills seek to cure energy shortage ills.
March 2, 2001... Gov. Gray Davis set the goals for the extraordinary state legislative session on energy going on in Sacramento: Avoid electricity blackouts this summer and make sure there is enough power for the long term while keeping prices at or near their...

Siebel chance for city to show its stuff.
March 2, 2001... The principal lure of the Siebel Classic, or any other event on the PGA Senior Tour, is watching legendary golfers such as Chi Chi Rodriguez and Tom Watson compete with other golfers 50 and older who have made the game a multibillion-dollar...

Pacific Gas and Electric Co.
March 2, 2001... This week's energy highlights: * On Feb. 23, California reached an agreement with Southern California Edison to buy its transmission lines for $2.7 billion. Gov. Gray Davis said Feb.27 that a similar deal with Pacific Gas and Electric Co....

"the worst is over".
March 2, 2001... * On Feb. 25, Mr. Davis called on Californians to cut electricity use 10 percent by this summer to help ease the energy crunch. He told Washington legislators "the worst is over" for California's energy crisis, but stopped short of predicting...

California Public Utilities Commission.
March 2, 2001... * On Feb. 26, California Public Utilities Commission Judge John Wong says PG&E and Southern California Edison should not be allowed to lay off 3,000 workers as planned because it would hurt electricity reliability ANDREW F. HAMM covers...

Moss Landing plant.
March 2, 2001... * On Feb. 26, officials from San Benito, Santa Cruz and Monterey counties unveiled plants near the existing Moss Landing plant. The new $500 million facility would be owned by the three counties and supply their energy. ANDREW F. HAMM...

Calpine Corp.
March 2, 2001... * On Feb. 27, the Santa Clara County Board of Supervisors unanimously urged the California Energy Commission to approve the proposed 600-megawatt power plant that Calpine Corp. wants to build in Coyote Valley. ANDREW F. HAMM covers sports...

seven straight days.
March 2, 2001... * On Feb. 28, the state marked seven straight days without a power alert. ANDREW F. HAMM covers sports management, energy issues and transportation for the Business Journal.

Standard and Poors.
March 2, 2001... * On Feb. 28, California officials announced the state has sold $982 million in bonds, a sign the power crisis is not affecting the state's ability to finance its debt. Standard and Poors had previously announced it would scrutinize...

Big turnout for the real Erin Brockovich.
March 2, 2001... It's an open question whether just any environmental activist would have drawn a sold-out crowd to a speech about the case. But when the person's name is Erin Brockovich, people turn out. Oscar-nominated actress Julia Roberts played Ms....

Republican takes up recycling cause.
March 2, 2001... Gloria Hom knows how to recycle. A Republican and chairwoman of the Department of Economics at Mission College in Santa Clara, she was defeated last fall in her race for state Senate against incumbent Democrat Byron Sher. But she saved her...

Sources say Cornish & Carey, CD Richard Ellis to merge.
March 2, 2001... Brokerage firms Cornish & Carey and CB Richard Ellis Inc. are in talks to merge their operations, according to several local real estate professionals familiar with the talks. If successful, the merger would give Santa Clara-based Cornish...

Bankruptcy filings fall for second year.
March 2, 2001... As Congress prepared to pass legislation reforming the nation's bankruptcy laws, the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts reported that the total number of bankruptcy filings dropped 5 percent last year. This marks the second year that...

Correction.
March 2, 2001... Smart Initiatives Initiative An article in the Feb. 23 Business Journal misquoted Marc Strassman of the Smart Initiatives Initiative on the subject of digital signature technology Such technology has already been developed.

Junk bonds yield solid returns in shaky times.
March 2, 2001... The asset class has had a solid 20-year history and is beginning to be viewed by some as a valuable long-term hold. Don't let the name fool you. In a year when equity investors have watched portfolios shrink, junk bonds so far have...

Blackouts hit 20 percent of small firms.
March 2, 2001... A survey of 523 small business owners in California found that 44 percent believe that electricity deregulation was a bad idea that never should have been tried. Thirty-three percent say electricity deregulation was a good idea that was...

No. 1 seed Agassi helping attract a crowd for Sybase Open.
March 2, 2001... What does a star player mean to a tennis tournament? No. 4-ranked Andre Agassi's first-round appearance on Feb. 27 at the Sybase Open brought ticket revenue up 20 percent for second-day sales compared with the last two years, says assistant...

Jobless rate lowest in 30 years.
March 2, 2001... California's unemployment rate was 4.5 percent in January the lowest since President Nixon was celebrating his first Christmas in the White House - December 1969-- when it was 4.4 percent The rate for January 2000 was 4.9 percent. San...

Special election for Diaz's seat.
March 2, 2001... When Manny Diaz was elected to the state Assembly in November he left behind an eastside San Jose council district facing issues of growth, traffic congestion and retail business development. District 5 has a large Hispanic population,...

More money for traffic projects.
March 2, 2001... How do you spell relief? When it comes to Silicon Valley traffic jams, it's m-o-n-e-y. And that's what the state is announcing -- a total of $22 million to be spent on congestion-relieving improvements in the Silicon Valley and purchase of...

Heart attacks treated with cold.
March 2, 2001... Radiant Medical Inc. of Redwood City says a method called "cool therapy" can be used to treat heart attacks. The experimental procedure it is developing is intended to reduce the injury caused by a heart attack by reducing the heart's need for...

Peaker power plant places picked.
March 2, 2001... The California Energy Commission has picked 32 potential sites throughout the state for "peaking" power plants to help meet the demand for electricity this summer. At least a third of the locations are in the Bay Area. The sites have a 95...

Stay off the roof, please.
March 2, 2001... One of the biggest solar electric systems in the United States will have a lot of captive customers -- the inmates at the Alameda County jail. County supervisors have approved installation of roof-mounted solar panels that will generate...

Tripling in home inventory helping 'balance' frantic market.
March 2, 2001... Real estate experts say a near tripling in the number of available homes in Santa Clara County isn't dropping demand enough to lower prices, but has "balanced" the market. There were 2,434 single-family and multifamily homes for sale for...

Keeping Spieker 'talent' seen as key task for Equity.
March 2, 2001... The challenge facing real estate giant Equity Office Properties Trust as it completes its purchase of Spieker Properties will be to leverage Spieker's existing Bay Area "talent," one analyst says. EOP already owns and operates more office...

It's official: We're smart.
March 2, 2001... Demographers have been grouping cities and suburbs into metropolitan areas since the early part of the 20th century. Now say hello to the "cerepolitan" area. Demographics Daily, a sister publication of the Silicon Valley/San Jose...

Property values in venerable Naglee Park going up.
March 2, 2001... Naglee Park is bounded roughly by 11th Street to the west Interstate 280 to the south, Coyote Creek to the east and Santa Clara Street to the north. The influx of residents into downtown San Jose in recent years has brought dramatic...

Compaq buys building on Palo Alto's main drag.
March 2, 2001... Compaq Computer Corp. has purchased a 41,000-square-foot office building on the main drag in downtown Palo Alto for $28 million, according to county records. Compaq has held the lease on the 250 University Ave. building since 1998, when it...

January continues home trends.
March 2, 2001... Home sales and median home prices continued to rise during the first month of 2001 compared with the same month last year, according to the California Association of Realtors and a real estate information service. Sales of existing homes...

Juniper Networks and Yahoo to move into Sunnyvale complex.
March 2, 2001... Valley giants Juniper Networks and Yahoo will move into Mathilda Research Centre in Sunnyvale. Juniper Networks will use the 143,704 square feet of office space for engineering and software development. Don Reimann, Gregg von Thaden...

8 in Bay among state's priciest.
March 2, 2001... Eight of the 10 communities with the highest median home prices in California during the fourth quarter are in the Bay Area, according to the California Association of Realtors. The 10 communities are: Atherton, $3.8 million; Los Altos...

Upturn during downturn.
March 2, 2001... Fiber-optic vendors prosper as their big customers struggle The most recent financial results for local makers of specialized fiber-optic components are defying the current downturn in the telecommunications market. Even vendors with...

Digital appliances in Apple's future?
March 2, 2001... Apple Computer Inc. has enjoyed a reputation for investing a little style in an otherwise dowdy computer industry Will it jazz up the home electronics market, too? By some indications, the Cupertino computer maker is considering a leap...

No way of making book on Amazon vs. Barnes & Noble case.
March 2, 2001... Patent attorneys and their Silicon Valley area clients are keeping their eyes on a federal court case critical to the future development of Web sites. At issue is the case against Barnes & Noble Inc. of New York City by Amazon.com Inc. of...

AT&T aims to bolster Excite@Home by lending it one of its key executives.
March 2, 2001... AT&T Corp. is lending broadband company Excite@Home one of its foremost networking experts and technical minds. The goal of the loan of Hossein Eslambolchi is to improve the operations of Excite's cable network and help it expand its...

Cisco searching northern Virginia for 100-acre campus.
March 2, 2001... Cisco Systems is shopping for about 100 acres in northern Virginia to accommodate a 1 million-square-foot office campus. "We are looking," confirms Steve Langdon, spokesman for San Jose-based Cisco. "We are still in the exploratory phase."...

3Com cuts staff by 10 percent.
March 2, 2001... Santa Clara-based 3Com Corporation has announced an across-the-board reduction in its work force of approximately 1,200 people, including full-time and alternative workers. Most of the cuts involve employees from temporary staffing agencies....

The air will remain free, but many Internet services will not.
March 2, 2001... Fans of online music-sharing service Napster are grumbling about the company's plans to start charging this summer, but the besieged startup isn't the only company feeling a little less charitable these days. Many free Internet-based...

Windows XP aims to boost network, satisfy software makers.
March 2, 2001... Silicon Valley software developers are gearing up for Microsoft Corp.'s release of Windows XP, the latest incarnation of the popular operating system and an early salvo in the ongoing war over a network-oriented future. The release...

Metricom proves glowing reviews do not guarantee financial success.
March 2, 2001... The troubles of San Jose-based Metricom Inc., a provider of wireless Internet service, has many analysts scratching their heads. The company is deploying a nationwide network called Ricochet that allows users of laptops and handheld...

Online coupons incentive to shoppers and reluctant retailers.
March 2, 2001... What would you think if someone followed you while you wheeled your shopping cart down the aisle of your neighborhood supermarket, pointing out special bargains available along the way? On Internet shopping sites, technology makes that type...

After achieving $1.7B cap in five years, Inktomi turns attention to wireless.
March 2, 2001... When Inktomi Corp. burst onto the tech scene in 1996, it was an academic startup in a gritty Berkeley neighborhood. It was flirting with greatness, but had yet to score a first date. Its core technology in parallel computing fascinated...

Pair of heavy hitters form networking firm, garner $435M.
March 2, 2001... Former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Reed Hundt and Netscape co-founder Marc Andreessen have joined to fund and launch networking company Sigma Networks. Mr. Hundt is chairman of the startup and Mr. Andreessen a board member....

EBay to acquire iBazar SA.
March 2, 2001... EBay Inc. of San Jose is buying a European online auction site. The company says acquisition of Paris-based iBazar will solidify eBay's position in Europe and significantly strengthen its global marketplace. Europe's total e-commerce...

Intel, Network Appliance ink $1 billion agreement.
March 2, 2001... Intel Corp. and Network Appliance have announced a long-term agreement valued at $1 billion. They did not reveal further financial details, but did say the seven-year agreement greatly expands an existing business relationship between Santa...

WebGain moves toward IPO.
March 2, 2001... Santa Clara-based WebGain Inc. says it has filed a registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial public stock offering. WebGain sells e-business automation software to manage the life cycle of an...

Apple jazzes up offerings.
March 2, 2001... Apple Computer Inc. has unveiled a new iMac and a new Power Mac G4 Cube, both featuring CD read-write drives. The new G4 Cube lets users make digital movies, create and manage music libraries and burn custom audio CDs, the company says. ...

Global rights management effort to deliver service via Internet.
March 2, 2001... Flywheel Communications Inc. says it will create a secure global service for managing rights among businesses. The San Francisco-based company was founded by former Netscape Communications Inc. General Counsel Roberta Katz, former...

Dot-com woes a boon.
March 2, 2001... There's one area of the Internet economy that's enjoying good times, thanks to the failures of dot-coms: online job search sites. Traffic on the 20 leading career-related Web sites increased 47.7 percent among U.S. users between December...

Small businesses slower to jump on growing wireless wave.
March 2, 2001... Armed with Ricochet modem laptops, cell phones and PDAs, many Bay Area cubical dwellers have cut their tech tethers, creating virtual offices with every flick of the "on" switch. Microsoft recently spent $3.9 million to install a wireless...

Wireless tech a hot topic at Intel event.
March 2, 2001... Wireless data, the super-fast InfiniBand standard and peer-to-peer technology were the themes highlighted this week by Santa Clara chipmaker Intel Corp. at its spring Developer Forum. The topics were among a dozen or so emphasized in a...

Durable, like leather.
March 2, 2001... Five generations have run Stern's Travel Shop since saddles were sold off a wagon The walk along tiled floors, past rows of glass storefronts in West-field Shoppingtown Valley Fair, offers few clues to the earliest iteration of Stern's...

Want to keep personal e-mails secret? Turn 'em into spam.
March 2, 2001... Secret messages aren't just for government agents. And when it comes to personal e-mails, you don't want to broadcast your private thoughts for just anyone to read. One possible solution? Disguise them as widely despised spam. Spam...

'This whole area of employee lifestyle is very important to us'.
March 2, 2001... Moving a large part of your operation has major implications for both the company and the employees. With two local manufacturing facilities in the valley it was hard to keep our competitive edge. The high rents and salaries, coupled with...

SCU center to study technology's impact on daily work, life.
March 2, 2001... Jim Koch compares the implications of technology to the advent of the automobile or urban growth: Without understanding and oversight, there could be dire consequences. So it's Mr. Koch's job as director of the new Santa Clara University...

Subaru Outback: luxury price tag with SUV practicality.
March 2, 2001... The Subaru Outback wagon has restored the Japanese manufacturer to good health, and the latest version, the H6-3.0 VDC, is shooting the model up into the lower reaches of the luxury market, where it competes with such European wagons as the...

Exec used to drive for the net; now helps firms drive the Net.
March 2, 2001... At 6 feet, 6 inches, Bill Ames personifies his company's mantra: Go big or stay home. And Mr. Ames, president of Internet consulting firm Gobosh (Go Big or Stay Home), is used to competitive pursuits. A scholarship enabled him to play...

People in the News.
March 2, 2001... Banking Mid-Peninsula Bank of Palo Alto has appointed Margaret Rotzin senior vice president of relationship management. Ms. Rotzin had been senior vice president and co-manager of the Palo Alto banking floor at University National Bank and...

Ask the exec: How has traffic affected your work and life?
March 2, 2001... Bruce Gellman Vice president AudioCodes Inc. San Jose I commute in from the North Bay on Highway 101.1 wait until about 9:30 a.m. when the traffic is lighter Since I work for a global company, I stay up site so I can phone...

Heavenly detour.
March 2, 2001... History, beauty abound in San Juan Bautista You've been to Monterey a dozen times. But when was the last time you detoured three miles east of Highway 101 into sleepy San Juan Bautista? This historic city in San Benito County sits just...

California history, by the sea.
March 2, 2001... Combine what your children learn about California history with a fun getaway. Step back in history on a tour of the Mission San Carlos Borromeo, also known as the Carmel Mission Basilica. Founded June 3, 1770, the mission was originally...

San Jose's Kelley Park offers learning and low-tech fun.
March 2, 2001... In tourism, image is everything. Mention San Francisco and distinct images abound -- the Golden Gate Bridge, Coit Tower, the TransAmerica Building. San Jose, despite its many attractions, lacks such prominent features. There once...

Where exactly is Silicon Valley? Agency plans to point tourists to key spots.
March 2, 2001... For some, Silicon Valley is a region. For others, it is a destination. This fine distinction is not a trivial bit of wordplay. For tourism, it is both an obstacle and an opportunity as visitors from other countries come to California...

Drive a little, go for the golden experience at historic Coloma.
March 2, 2001... When James Marshall discovered gold in January 1848, he never imagined that only six months later the news of gold discovery would be heard around the world. By June of that year, the city of Coloma, 32 miles east of Sacramento, found...

For a close-up of gray whales, go near the Monterey waters.
March 2, 2001... The February rain and snow are but a damp, chilly memory as spring unfolds along the coast of Monterey Bay As the wildflowers begin to carpet the bluffs and the days begin to warm, migrating gray whales make the bay itself one of the most...

What value is there in our schools having spring break?
March 2, 2001... The value in spring break is primarily tradition. If we removed the spring break, we would have to renegotiate with the unions. I don't think there are any real education-based reasons for spring break. The teachers and students say there...

Travelers like to make use of companies that sweat the small stuff.
March 2, 2001... When you think about your worst travel experiences, more often than not the things that made them unpleasant involved rude staff. Now think about a good experience you've had. Remember how helpful the concierge was? Remember how fun and...

Largest Conventions and Trade Shows.
March 2, 2001... Largest Conventions and Trade Shows In Silicon Valley [*] -- ranked by estimated 2001 attendance Rank Convention or trade show Estimated 2001 2000 Rank Location attendance 1 Wescon...

Most Popular Tourist Attractions.
March 2, 2001... Most Popular Tourist Attractions In Silicon Valley [*] -- ranked by number of visitors in 2000 Attraction Address Number of visitors Rank Phone, fax in...

Brick-and-mortar grocers take their time going online.
March 2, 2001... While Webvan's hare is scrambling frantically in the Web supermarket race, brick-and-mortar tortoises are pursuing a slow and steady course. "I would say we are taking our time with this venture," says Jenny Enochson, spokeswoman for...

Republicans planning to use energy woes to discredit Gov. Davis.
March 2, 2001... Republicans may have been in charge when California enacted energy deregulation three years ago, but they hope to use the issue now against Democrat Gov. Gray Davis. Meeting in Sacramento from Feb. 23 through 25, state Republicans talked...

A reel quest for corporate cash.
March 2, 2001... This past week and a half has been a cineaste's delight in Silicon Valley especially in San Jose, where most of the 11th annual Cinequest film festival has taken place. By the time this year's event closes March 4, about 50,000 people will have...

Good sense flunks out at Urbana.
March 2, 2001... The University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign has popped the cork on a dubious new class, History 298: Oprah Winfrey, the Tycoon. The class is said to be the first of its kind. That's probably because no serious institution would try to...

Letter to the Editor.
March 2, 2001... A call for outsourcing Editor: I appreciated your series of articles in the Feb. 16 Topic section on the growing role of telephone sales in the business-to-business sector. One phenomenon not accounted for, though, was the growth...

Getting rid of jobs would prevent workplace injuries.
March 2, 2001... In 1996, California became the first state in the nation to adopt ergonomics regulations. The federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration regulations started last month with policing to commence in October. The cost to...

Deregulation can work here.
March 2, 2001... We should not halt our deregulation plans because of what is happening in California. By deregulating in Arizona, we are allowing the competitive market to regulate electricity rates. True deregulation should allow consumers to have...

Private sector outpaces government growth.
March 2, 2001... There have been times when big government was the driving force for economic growth in America. Like the 1930s, when Franklin Roosevelt's New Deal employed millions on public-works projects to combat the Great Depression. Or the 1960s,...

Redevelopment sees big things ahead for San Jose.
March 2, 2001... Redevelopment is a dynamic, effective tool for San Jose. It provides the impetus to jumpstart areas where private development won't occur on its own. It can be highly successful if it is intelligently planned and implemented to secure quality...

Energy report dispute.
March 9, 2001... Metcalf foes say options ignored Opponents of the proposed Met-calf Energy Center in Coyote Valley say that a report by the California Energy Commission identifying six sites that could serve as alternatives to Metcalf is being largely...

Kaiser guarantees 40-hour weeks.
March 9, 2001... Amid a severe nursing shortage, Kaiser Permanente has started a recruitment and retention strategy of guaranteeing nurses the number of hours they will work. It is doing this by ceasing a common hospital cost-saving practice of canceling...

The Clinton, Deepak, M.C. Hammer show.
March 9, 2001... When Bill Clinton appeared on stage at the Jubilee Christian Center in North San Jose March 2, he was wearing a dark blue suit and a very presidential red tie. Gone was the relaxed Regis Philbin look for our immediate past president. He last...