Connected World 2009 to Feature M2M Industry’s First-Ever Panel on Raising Venture Capital for Machine-to-Machine Initiatives During a Recession

CAROL STREAM, Ill.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The mystery of attaining venture funding has plagued the M2M (machine-to-machine) space for years and has been compounded by the recession; now BIGfrontier’s Steve Lundin and a hand-picked panel of VC (venture capital) and M2M industry leaders will throw a spotlight on the subject. M2M and VC: How to Communicate and Connect with Venture Capitalists, will be conducted on Wednesday, June 10 between 12:30 – 1:30 p.m. at M2M Connected World (June 9-12, Chicago, Ill.) hosted by M2M magazine. A companion piece on obtaining some of the $38 billion in available stimulus money, conducted by Brian J. Quirke, director of communications for the U.S. Dept. of Energy in the Midwest, will follow the VC panel.

“M2M is ready to cross the tipping point of customer adoption. Ubiquitous wireless data networks, cheap hardware, and government stimulus investments are creating the foundation for very strong growth”

The panel includes Alex Brisbourne, president and COO, KORE Telematics; Diana Propper de Callejo, general partner, Expansion Capital Partners; Todd Clapp, partner, Catalyst Investors; and Jeff Smith, CTO, Numerex.

“Of the M2M 100 companies that we track, fewer than 10% have received any funding, and not from a lack of trying. To the best of our knowledge this is the first time anyone has put together a panel in the economy addressing the disconnect between venture capitalists and M2M companies. I can’t imagine what could keep any company that has ever thought about obtaining funding away from this panel,” says Peggy Smedley, editorial director and publisher of M2M magazine.

“Part of the problem has been the way M2M companies have traditionally positioned themselves in the market and to VCs in particular. Our panel represents VCs who have funded deals and are actively looking for new ones as well as industry leaders who have been involved in all aspects of funding initiatives and liquidity events. You won’t find advice like this in any book; get ready to take notes and solve your funding issues,” says Steve Lundin, chief hunter and gatherer, BIGfrontier Communications Group; a firm specializing in communications work for startups and M2M companies.

“M2M is ready to cross the tipping point of customer adoption. Ubiquitous wireless data networks, cheap hardware, and government stimulus investments are creating the foundation for very strong growth,” says panelist Todd Clapp, who will be looking for new M2M deals at M2M Connected World.

With the recent statement by the DOE that M2M is part of the smart grid, the era of machine-to-machine communications has clearly arrived. M2M technology can be found in fields ranging from managing fleets, to urban planning, to home healthcare; there are few industries that are not touched by these M2M communications today.

Companies like Exelon, AGCO, RhiZone, Motorola, SJE Rhombus, AT&T, MedApps, T-Mobile, Schlage, Cinterion Wireless Modules, Hill-Rom, Zoombak, Tridium, Pacific Controls, Verizon Wireless, Cooper Power Systems, Sierra Wireless, and Alarm.com, will be in attendance to participate in and listen to three days of discussions on how companies are seeing definite return on investment from M2M technologies.

Collectively these companies make M2M Connected World the premier international gathering for M2M, smart services, wireless, telematics, and innovative communications companies, manufacturing and industrial adopters, thought leaders, technologists, and futurists.

Presentations cover a broad range of industries and include such topics as:

Complete agenda: http://www.m2mmag.com/connected_world/default.aspx

Special presentations:

M2M and VC: How to communicate and connect with Venture Capitalists: Panel discussion

How to Benefit from Stimulus Dollars: DOE presentation

Zero to Mach 25 … Challenges and Experiences of Space Flight

Fleet Management:

Managing Fleets for Agriculture

M2M Makes Our City Run

Usage-Based Insurance

Consumer:

Simplifying the Experience

A GPS World

The State of the Connected Home

Healthcare:

Connecting the Body

Empowering Patient Care

Keeping It Clean

Energy/Utilities:

Maximizing Uptime, Minimizing Costs

Wastewater Monitoring

Partnering for the Smart Grid

Industrial/Building Automation:

Building Control

M2M Goes Global

Smart, Centralized Building Control

Security:

Educational Efforts

Track and Recover in Construction

Beyond the Expectations

About M2M magazine

Connecting people, devices, and systems, M2M magazine is dedicated to the machine-to-machine communication market. With the goal of helping companies uncover ways to reduce costs and automate processes by networking their assets, M2M magazine helps companies turn data into actionable information. Visit M2M magazine on the Web at www.m2mmag.com.