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V o l . X X I N o. I I Ja N ua r y 2 6 , 2 0 1 5 8 B U S I N E S S M A I N E B U S I N E S S M A I N E b u S i n e S S n e w S f ro m a ro u n d t h e S tat e control over health care costs by promoting health maintenance, prevention and care coordination and management." Chad MacLeod, a marketing and communications associate at Onpoint, told Mainebiz in an email that the contract is worth $867,000 per year, for up to three years. After the first year of work is completed, Vermont's health agency will have the option to renew for two extra years. Portland Pirates rank last in AHL attendance In its first year back in the refur- bished Cross Insurance Arena, formerly known as the Cumberland County Civic Center, the Portland Pirates hockey team is struggling at the box office, with an average attendance of 2,787 — filling about 40% of the arena's 6,733 seats. e Portland Press Herald reported the Pirates' attendance ranks last among Are you a Unitil customer? For more information, visit efficiencymaine.com (some restrictions apply) 1-866-376-2463 Your business may be eligible for up to $10,000 in incentives for high-efficiency heating equipment. Businesses upgrading this winter are eligible for an ADDITIONAL 25% INCENTIVE Maine venture capital deals rise in number, fall in value More Maine companies found venture capital investments in 2014 over the prior year, but the total value of the deals was about 68% less for the year, and fourth quarter numbers were anemic compared to each of the first three quarters. The full year saw a total of 12 deals valued at $18.67 million compared to five deals valued at $27.54 million in 2013, according to figures provided to Mainebiz by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. The fourth quarter saw two deals, but only the value of one, at $75,000, was revealed in the MoneyTree Report by PricewaterhouseCoopers and the National Venture Capital Association, which was released on Jan. 16. Data from the report came from Thomson Reuters. In the fourth quarter, Quoddy Inc., a Perry-based shoe manufacturer, raised $75,000 in a later stage round from St. Louis-based Advantage Capital Partners. And 4tell Solutions LP, a Portland software company, raised an unspecified amount from Arrowroot Capital LP of Boston and Cedarpoint Investments Inc. of Toronto. For all of 2014, Maine's biotech industry received the most venture capital at $16.66 million, thanks primarily to a $16.06 million later stage fund raised in the second quarter of 2014 by veterinary product company Putney Inc. of Portland. Biotech was followed by consumer products and services at $900,000, industrial/energy at $433,000, software at $325,000, telecommunications at $280,000 and retailing/distribution at $75,000. The Putney deal was the largest of the year in Maine, followed by Hyperlite Mountain Gear Inc. of Biddeford with $900,000. Most of the 2014 funding was later stage, some $17.41 million of the total, with the rest for expansion funding. No companies received seed or early-stage financing. The report's numbers do not include private equity deals or debt sales. Nationally, for the first time in the MoneyTree study history, two deals topped $1 billion, and there were more than 40 "megadeals" topping $100 million, according to Mark McCaffrey, a San Jose, Calif.-based global software leader and technology partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. McCaffrey said that with the continued economic conditions, he expects ven- ture capitalists to be positioned to continue strong levels of investing in 2015. Maine has some limitations, however, as it is not in a "hot spot" like Silicon Valley or Boston. He also said it is important for early-stage companies in the state to have access to talented workers in order to grow and attract investment. "A key to look at is the talent pool," he told Mainebiz. "I see companies gain- ing significant momentum and needing talent. Once companies get out of the incubation stage, they need to hire to grow infrastructure. A lot of companies go international right out of the gate. If they can't hire, that limits their prospects down the road and their ability to raise money." McCaffrey added that "venture capitalists are willing to go where innovation and disruptive technologies are being created. If it's a good story, they'll invest." John Burns, managing director of the Newport-based Maine Venture Fund, agrees with McCaffrey about the importance of finding talented workers, and is positive about what he is seeing in Maine. "I'm feeling better and better about Maine in that regard," Burns said. "In greater Portland, I see quarter-to-quarter increases in experienced managerial talent and sector expertise, and hopefully that [trend] is rippling north." — L O R I V A L I G R A For the full report and a list of 2014's top 10 venture capital deals, go to mainebiz.biz/vc14 @

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