The Silicon Bayou has been buzzing with tech and entrepreneurial news. Here are the most popular stories published on Silicon Bayou News in the past seven days:
Louisiana Technology Road Show is Back and Accepting Applications
The Louisiana Technology Council is giving entrepreneurs across the state a chance to showcase their innovative technologies in four regions (Shreveport/Bossier, Lafeyette, Baton Rouge, and New Orleans) at the 2012 Technology Road Show in September. Presenters will have the opportunity to expand outside of their usual residences and connect to other young, entrepreneurial companies. Applications must be for existing technology already in use and are due by Monday, July 30th at 5:00 PM CST.
Renewable energy tax credits influence greenpreneurs in New Orleans
Adriana Lopez highlights the progress of new solar energy companies, such as Joule Energy, in her contributing post last week. New Orleans now has a solar energy tax incentive, established in 2008, that helps companies like Joule get off the ground. The refundable tax credit allows up to $12,500 per solar system installed. Joule Energy uses 3D technology to design customizable systems. The company is also the only B-Corp currently in Louisiana.
Audiosocket Announces Collaboration with Associated Press to Provide Music to Users
Audiosocket and the Associated Press made a big announcement last week: AP users will now have licensing rights to music via Audiosocket’s platform. This allows access to original, culturally relevant music that has been curated from some of the top emerging artists. Audiosocket is known for housing independent music, but the database will also include more classical tunes to suit the needs of more users. The press release explains how AP users can now utilize, “seamless ‘plug-and-play’ technology fromAudiosocket’s MaaS™ (Music as a Service) platform,” and, “producers will be able to find and license high-quality, curated music for their work.”
CrowdSavings.com Acquires Bargain Bee and Expands into New Markets
Daily deal site CrowdSavings.com announced last week the acquisition of BargainBee.com, launching four new markets in Louisiana. All deals from the Bargain Bee market will now be available through the CrowdSavings platform. Nicholas Fontenot, Co-founder of Bargain Bee, is now the Marketing Manager at CrowdSavings, which surely helps with the transition post acquisition. Bargain Bee was CrowdSavings’ 13th acquisition since 2009, and its third in the last month alone.
All About You: Sasha Hartzog
Sasha Hartzog recently began working for Not Rocket Science, Inc. in the company’s social media marketing department. Sasha is now immersed in the world of tech and loving it. Find out more about her current position at Not Rocket Science here and on Twitter. She also walks happily to the beat of her own drum, enjoying life listening to music with her dog Diego and beautiful nature by her side. She also loves dancing to live bands playing original music, and playing instruments on her own, both piano and the trumpet.
Joseph Doherty Appointed CEO and Board Member at GCR, Inc.
Headquartered in New Orleans, GCR, Inc. has announced the appointment of Joseph P. Doherty, Jr. as CEO and board member. The international strategic portfolio firm was acquired by Clearview Capital LLC in December of 2011. The company’s area of expertise in professional services includes the fields of aviation, disaster recovery, elections, nuclear power, public safety, right-of-way, and urban planning. GCR partners with both government and commercial clients. Previously, Doherty was an executive vice president, government sector president, and COO for a Xerox company, Affiliated Computer Services.
Highlights of the Louisiana Techart Kickstarter Campaigns
Mission to Print: The Art of Hotel Whiskey Tango: Ron Domingue has already published his first book, Hotel Whiskey Tango, for the Ipad. His goal is to take the book one step further and, “create a tangible compliment to the digital product.” In other words, he is raising money to print and distribute a hard copy of his graphic album. With 35 days to go, the Kickstarter campaign is making good progress. Domingue has raised $1,672 of his $5,000 goal.
We are Cajun. (On est Cadien’.) A Documentary Film: Lafayette filmmaker Allen Clemens of Postage, Inc. has begun crowd-sourcing through Kickstarter to fund his documentary film about Cajun country. Sets out to find whether or not the Cajun culture and spirit is slowly disappearing. The film will be full of interviews, and the areas of focus will include Cajun food, music, dance, family traditions, and the Cajun-French dialect.
The New Orleans Community Printshop is moving and growing!: Over three years the New Orleans Community Printshop had switched locations a number of times, holding field trips, workshops, gallery shows, and drop-in screen printing nights for the community. Additionally, the space welcomed hundreds of local artists and students. Their space has been sold, forcing them to move once again into a new, very raw space. They began a Kickstarter campaign to raise money to section off a space for a classroom, create a darkroom, install plumbing and storage, and more.
Shake Up at VoteIt Causes CEO Departure
Molly Oehmichen tries to get to the bottom of why former VoteIt CEO, Taylor Beery, announced on July 4th that he was leaving the company. As of now, it seems that ongoing disagreements around the overall strategy and growth trajectory of the company was the major problem. A Ruby on Rails developer, Justin Wheeler, also left the company. CTO Cory Fabre and front end developer Matt Shwery remain on board.