ANNUAL REPORT 2007 | 2008 - Gimv

VENTURE
CAPITAL
MAIN FOLLOW-ON INVESTMENTS
CoWare
www.coware.com
American microelectronics company CoWare, which originated
in the Imec research centre at Leuven, is an authority in developing
electronic design automation (EDA) software and services.
Founded in 1996, it is today the world’s largest independent
EDA company. CoWare delivers products and services for
systems-on-chips (SoC) designers. These chips are becoming
ever smaller and the applications ever more complex. CoWare
seeks to offer its customers a complete package of products and
services, to enable them to continue to meet the demands of a
highly complex and integrated SoC market. The main customers
are leading systems, semi-conductor and IP companies.
Gimv invested USD 2.8 million in a sixth capital round totalling
USD 10 million.
Digital Imaging Systems
www.disimage.com
Digital Imaging Systems (DIS), a spin-off of listed company
Dialog Semiconductor, develops advanced camera modules
for mobile phones with the same quality level as autonomous
digital cameras. DIS’s high quality modules offer resolutions of
up to eight megapixels, very low battery consumption and a
wide range of functionalities, including autofocus and optical
zoom. The company is located in Stuttgart (Germany) and New
Jersey (USA) and has around 60 employees. Gimv added DIS
to its portfolio in 2006. Gimv invested EUR 2.4 million in a
EUR 10 million capital round.
Gemidis
www.gemidis.com
Gemidis was set up in 2004 as a spin-off from the Imec research
centre and the University of Ghent. The company
develops LCOS (liquid crystal on chip) imagers. These liquid
crystal microdisplays are used to module a miniature image on
a minuscule chip, which is then enlarged with lenses to produce
very high resolution broad image displays. Gemidis applications
are intended both for the consumer market (home cinema
projects) and the professional market (monitors and simulators).
The company is seeking to offer superior image quality at
affordable prices. Gemidis has its head offi ce in Belgium, and
other facilities in Taiwan and Japan. 45 people work for Gemidis.
In June 2007 Gemidis collected EUR 6 million from a group of
investors including Gimv, Quest for Growth and Fortis.
42 | Gimv Annual Report 2007-2008 | Operating and fi nancial report
Inside Contactless
www.insidecontactless.com
French company Inside Contactless develops and sells chips
and other hardware for contactless smartcards and electronic
card readers. Inside’s contactless payment chips are used,
among other things, to permit wireless payments from mobile
telephones. The telephone is just placed next to a scanner and
the purchase is activated in wireless mode. Inside is taking full
advantage of the crucial importance of rapid, effi cient product
development in this fast growing market. With offi ces in France,
China, Poland, the USA and Singapore, Inside is a global player.
Gimv’s EUR 3 million investment was part of a total EUR 25 million
capital round, in which Nokia and Motorola also invested.
Gimv has been supporting Inside Contactless since 1998.
L&C
www.landcglobal.com
Language & Computing (L&C), which was set up in 1998, develops
software based on its own patented NLP (Natural Language
Processing) technology. L&C’s medical language technologies
enable a computer to understand the content of written medical
language and to reorganize and structure information from
databases of medical reports. The L&C technology signifi cantly
improves the level of detail and precision. Applications include
coding systems, electronic medical fi les and text analysis systems.
In 2007 the company relocated its headquarters from
Belgium to the USA. Gimv fi rst invested in L&C in 2000. The
follow-up investment amounts to EUR 1.3 million.