Corporate Report

Corporate Report

by Sean Roth | Real Estate Editor

Obee's board backs stock reverse split

The board of directors for Port Charlotte-based restaurant franchiser Obee's Franchise Systems Inc. has approved a reverse split of the company's stock of 100-for-1 shares.

"We believe the reverse stock split will better position our company to apply for a listing on a national securities market or exchange," Peter Brown, division president of Obee's Franchise Systems, said in a press release. "Moreover, the company believes that a higher share price would broaden OBFM's appeal to new investors."

Obee's Franchise Systems is the parent company of the Obee's soup, salad, subs, a restaurant chain. The company has more than 50 locations open or under development, and has commitments from a network of area developers to open an additional 1,000 stores over the next 10 years.

Stinger says study

shows S-200's safer

Tampa-based electro-stun company Stinger Systems Inc. is touting the results of a new study it commissioned comparing the Stinger S-200 to two Taser International stun guns: the M26 and X26.

The firm contracted with Dr. Wayne McDaniel of the University of Missouri, who previously co-authored several papers in the area of Electronic Immobilization Devices and serves as a consultant and expert witness on the subject.

The company says the report concludes that the S-200 delivers significantly less peak electrical current than the Taser products, which makes the stun guns safer to use.

"The Stinger S-200 has demonstrated great knockdown power, through the use of a radically different electrical waveform," Robert Gruder, Stinger Systems' chairman, said in a press release. "We now have independent confirmation from an established researcher in this field, that the S-200 achieves this knock-down power while delivering less of what Dr. McDaniel believes to be the most important electrical parameters."

In other news, Stinger Systems announced it closed on a private $2.15-million senior convertible debt deal with an institutional investor. The note is initially convertible into 1.72-million shares of the company's common stock for $1.25 per share.

Stinger Systems sells an array of products utilizing electro sparc-pulsed technology.

Gulfview Automotive Group

opens Tarpon Springs location

Gulfview Motors, an independent automotive dealership group, has expanded into Pinellas County with the opening of Gulfview Motors II at 41041 U.S. 19, south of Tarpon Avenue in Tarpon Springs.

The new dealership features a 3,000-square-foot showroom and service and detail departments on 2.5 acres on the east side of U.S. 19.

Gulfview Motors' original location on U.S.19 in Port Richey opened in 1985. The new Tarpon Springs location will carry 250 late-model used cars at a time. Gulfview Automotive Group also owns import-car dealerships in Hernando County: Hernando Auto World Mitsubishi on U.S. 19 in Spring Hill and Hernando Suzuki at 15265 Cortez Blvd., east of the Suncoast Parkway. Leon Kreisler founded and owns Gulfview Automotive Group.

Gulfview Motors in Port Richey sells more pre-owned vehicles than any other independent new- or used-car dealer in Pasco, Hernando and Citrus counties, according to Modern Technologies, which tracks data on Florida automotive sales.

Syniverse Technologies

debuts payment system

Syniverse Technologies, a Tampa-based provider of technology and business solutions for the telecommunications industry, has introduced a new line of services for wireless communications operators it is branding Syniverse Financial Settlement Services.

Syniverse FSS will allow the settlement of hundreds of millions of financial transactions conducted each month between operators and their roaming partners. Syniverse FSS is designed to streamline the payment and receipt of financial positions between roaming partners.

Syniverse FSS features three solutions options: Syniverse Financial Net Settlement, Syniverse Invoice & Accounting and Syniverse Managed Invoice & Accounting.

Syniverse Financial Net Settlement consolidates the huge number of transactions conducted between roaming partners every month into a single payable amount per partner. Syniverse Invoice & Accounting is targeted for non-net operators and operators who use net settlement but would prefer to manage their own payments and collections for their non-net roaming agreements.

I&A provides information on financial activity, customized invoicing and check requests, aging, and transaction recording. Syniverse Managed Invoice & Accounting (Managed I&A) is a managed service that settles payments for operators. That solution is designed for operators who wish to have an external team handle payments, collections and the other task associated with roaming payments.

"Our new FSS offering has clearly injected more dynamism and more choice into the sector," Tony Holcombe, president and CEO of Syniverse, said in a press release. "We are pleased to be able to extend Syniverse's unrivalled heritage and proven ability to deliver trusted financial clearing services to the CDMA (operators of second- and third-generation wireless communications) market and to those operators who are looking for a way to solve the growing complexities they face when dealing with financial settlement issues."

Tampa Electric issues RFP,

seeks power alternatives

Tampa Electric has released a Request for Proposal outlining the company's future power needs and identifying Tampa Electric's proposed projects.

The RFP asks for competitive bids to provide 555 megawatts of additional electricity. The RFP says it will favor alternatives that provide the best value to its customers based on cost, reliability, flexibility and environmental performance. The company prefers generating resources within the Florida Reliability Coordinating Council region of the North American Electric Reliability Corp.

Proposals will compete with Tampa Electric's planned generation unit, a 555-MW natural gas-fired combined cycle facility with an expected in-service date of Jan. 1, 2013, at Tampa Electric's existing Polk Power Station site in Polk County, Florida.

"This RFP will allow us to evaluate and select the most cost-effective generation method to meet the growing electrical needs of our customers." Tampa Electric President Chuck Black, said in a press release.

The RFP will be available April 11 on the Tampa Electric Web site www.tampaelectric.com/2013powerrfp. Proposals must be received by June 10. An RFP workshop will be held on April 25 to provide a more detailed review of the requirements of the RFP. A short list of proposals should be announced in July.

Tampa Electric Co. is the principal subsidiary of TECO Energy Inc., an energy-related holding company with regulated utility operations in Florida including both Tampa Electric and Peoples Gas System.

Utek helps Artilium

buy location technology

Tampa-based UTEK Corp. assisted Artilium plc, a European telecommunications software, with its acquisition of Trisent Communications Limited, a specialist in location-based Services.

The acquisition will provided Artilium with Trisent's technology, which enables mobile network operators to deliver services to subscribing customers based on the geographic location of their mobile phones.

Trisent's Tri-Cell Intelligent Location System, offers real-time tracking service like GPS, but does not use satellites or require equipment to be installed on the network. The technology works by using standard phone handsets and offers several advantages over GPS, including cost savings, lower battery requirements, increased indoor coverage and an 'always on' status. Through its technology acquisition alliances, UTEK helps companies with the acquisition of proprietary intellectual capital from universities, companies and laboratory research centers.

Treviso Bay developer hires club manager

Wisconsin-based developer V.K. Development Corp. selected WTS International of Rockville, Md. to manage the 35,000-square-foot Buona Vita Club & Spa at Treviso Bay, a 1,050-acre resort and golf lifestyle community being developed on Tamiami Trail, one mile south of St. Andrews Boulevard in Naples.

"WTS International is a perfect match for the lifestyle we are creating at Treviso Bay," Sanjay Kuttemperoor, president of Treviso Bay-developer V.K. Development, said in a press release. "Their experience in the management of luxurious club and spa facilities and their commitment to providing guests with a memorable experience are unparalleled. We recently opened nine holes at the PGA Tour TPC Treviso Bay Golf Course for limited members-only play and construction has started on the 58,000-square-foot PGA Tour TPC Clubhouse."

WTS International is a spa, fitness and recreation activities consulting and management firms.

Along with the spa, the club will include a 4,300-square-foot fitness center, a 1,700-square-foot Pilates and aerobics studio, a dedicated spinning area, a retail shop and an organic snack and beverage Wi-Fi bar.

Tech Data exclusive with Parallels

Clearwater-based IT products distributor Tech Data Corp. has reached an exclusive distribution agreement with Parallels (formerly SWsoft) for that company's Virtuozzo Containers server virtualization solution. Parallels Virtuozzo Containers will be housed under Tech Data's Advanced Infrastructure Solutions Division, which sells and provides technology support for virtualization software.

"Server virtualization is clearly an emerging technology that offers VARs tremendous opportunities to grow their revenue and deliver more robust data center solutions," Amy Belcher, Tech Data's director of product marketing, advanced infrastructure solutions, said in a press release. "But as quickly as virtualization is reshaping the IT strategies of large enterprises and small businesses, the server virtualization landscape is rapidly evolving with new and creative solutions like Parallels Virtuozzo Containers. The AIS Division and its team of virtualization experts are on hand to help VARs understand the latest offerings and to choose the solutions that best meet the needs of their customers."

Tech Data has more than 90,000 customers worldwide.