Los Angeles, CA – January 18, 2008 – The Los Angeles Venture Association (LAVA) held its fifth annual awards dinner yesterday to recognize some of Southern California’s best growth companies and to present the Lifetime Achievement Award in Venture Capital to Idealab CEO Bill Gross. The awards dinner benefited the Pasadena Union Station Foundation and was held at the Luxe Summit Hotel Bel-Air in Los Angeles.

The award winners were:

Best Venture Financing in Biotechnology and Medical Devices:
Agensys is a private biotechnology company located in Santa Monica.

Best Venture Financing in Communications and Wireless:
Mobile Messenger is a leading global provider of technology and services for mobile content management and distribution.

Best Venture Financing in Software and Media:
Spot Runner develops technology solutions that revolutionize the way advertising is created, targeted, bought and sold.  It focuses on automating many of the more inefficient aspects of the advertising process and creating turnkey ways for businesses of all sizes to access high quality creative and expert media planning and buying services. 

Best Venture Financing in Clean Technology:
Ceres, Inc.is a leading developer of high-yielding energy crops that can be planted as feedstocks for cellulosic ethanol production.

Best M&A Exit:
Business.com is a leading business search engine, directory and pay-per-click advertising network.

Best IPO:
Entropic Communications is a leading fabless semiconductor company that designs, develops and markets system solutions that enable connected home entertainment.

The dinner also paid special tribute to Mr. Gross, a lifelong entrepreneur who has been developing groundbreaking technology companies and business leaders for over two decades.

“We are proud to acknowledge the area’s hottest venture financings, M&A exit, and IPO,” said Leonard Lanzi, LAVA’s Executive Director. “We also felt it was our duty and honor to recognize the incredible achievements of Bill Gross, who has been a mentor and hero to many in the LAVA community. Plus, all of this benefits the Pasadena Union Station Foundation, so in the end everybody is a winner.” he added.

About LAVA
The Los Angeles Venture Association is Southern California’s premier forum for entrepreneurs, middle-market companies, venture capitalists, financial advisors, and other professional service providers. For over 20 years, LAVA’s monthly breakfast meetings, annual Investment Capital Conference, and co-produced events have created an unprecedented platform for innovation and financing in Southern California. To learn more about LAVA, please visit www.lava.org.

About Agensys
Agensys, Inc. is a privately held biotechnology company that is developing a pipeline of therapeutic monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) to treat solid tumor cancers. These antibodies, many of which are fully human, are being generated to a diverse portfolio of proprietary, clinically relevant cancer targets that encompass 14 types of solid tumors. The company has the capabilities to generate, develop and manufacture and move into clinical trials antibody products and, through a partnership with Amgen Inc (formerly Abgenix), access to the XenoMouse® technology to generate fully human antibodies to multiple targets. Agensys is progressing a pipeline of preclinical MAb candidates with potential as naked or payload-conjugated therapeutic products, directed at a variety of cancer indications, including prostate, kidney, bladder, pancreas, lung, colon, ovary, breast, and skin. Agensys has initiated clinical trials with AGS-PSCA, a fully human MAb to Prostate Stem Cell Antigen (PSCA), a novel target expressed in the majority of prostate, pancreatic and bladder cancers. AGS-PSCA is being co-developed with Merck & Co, Inc. and is currently in clinical development. In parallel to developing certain antibody products, Agensys has established partnerships to develop and commercialize selected antibody products with Genentech, Inc., antibody drug conjugate products with Seattle Genetics, and cancer vaccine applications for its proprietary targets with sanofi pasteur. The company’s laboratories, GMP manufacturing facility and offices are located in Santa Monica, California. On December 18, 2007, Agensys was acquired by Astellas Pharma, Inc., the second largest Japanese pharmaceutical company, for total consideration of $537 million. It now operates as a subsidiary of Astellas, continuing its prior programs and adding new ones to develop a world class center in bio-oncology. For further information about Agensys, please visit http://www.agensys.com.

About Mobile Messenger
Mobile Messenger is the leading Mobile Solutions Provider, supplying its partners with cutting edge technology and services that facilitate the marketing, distribution, and monetization of digital content to mobile devices. By providing strong, secure, and trusted connections to consumers, Mobile Messenger helps businesses around the globe build long-lasting, successful brands and mobile campaigns. Established in 1999, Mobile Messenger has unrivaled experience as an aggregator, mobile enabler, and content messaging supplier. Today, Mobile Messenger runs successful operations in North America, The United Kingdom, South Africa and the Asia Pacific Region with aggressive plans for new market expansion. In November 2009 the company acquired m-Qube mobile delivery gateway from VeriSign. Mobile Messenger is headquartered in Los Angeles, with a technology hub in Boston. Silver Lake Sumeru, http://www.silverlake.com/sumeru) a leading private equity company in California, owns a majority of the company. For more information, visit: www.mobilemessenger.com.

About Spot Runner
Headquartered in Los Angeles, Spot Runner develops technology solutions that revolutionize the way advertising is created, targeted, bought and sold. The company was founded on the idea that the Internet could help make television advertising more affordable and accessible for local businesses and put them on a level the playing field with larger competitors. Today, Spot Runner focuses on automating many of the more inefficient aspects of the advertising process and creating turnkey ways for businesses of all sizes to access high quality creative and expert media planning and buying services. Visit Spot Runner at www.spotrunner.com.

About Ceres Inc
Ceres, Inc. is a leading developer of high-yielding energy crops that can be planted as feedstocks for cellulosic ethanol production. Founded as a plant genomics company, Ceres holds one of the world’s largest proprietary collections of fully sequenced plant genes. The privately held company also licenses its technology and traits to other organizations.

About Business.com
Business.com, a wholly owned subsidiary of R.H. Donnelley Corporation (NYSE: RHD), is the leading business search engine, directory and pay-per-click advertising network. The Business.com site helps business decision makers quickly find whatever they need to manage and grow their businesses, and the Business.com Network – including premier partners The Wall Street Journal Online, BusinessWeek, Hoovers, Financial Times, Internet.com, and more –enables B2B advertisers to reach qualified buyers wherever they are online. The company also operates Work.com, a B2B community publishing platform featuring more than 2,400 business how-to guides contributed by business experts. Business.com was named to the 2006 Inc. 500 and 2007 BtoB Media Power 50, Los Angeles Business Journal list of Best Places to Work and Deloitte Technology Fast 500.

About Entropic Communications
Entropic Communications, Inc. is a leading fabless semiconductor company that designs, develops and markets system solutions that enable connected home entertainment. The company's technologies significantly change the way high-definition television-quality video and other multimedia content such as movies, music, games and photos are brought into and delivered throughout the home. For more information please visit: www.entropic.com.