(SAN FRANCISCO) April 17, 2008 – Heller Ehrman, an international law firm with 14 offices worldwide, is helping 20 UK-based Web companies build an important bridge to Silicon Valley.

A select group of 20 companies are visiting the Bay Area from April 19 through April 25 as part of Web Mission 2008, a week of business meetings and social events that are designed to showcase UK Web talent and help company representatives connect with venture capitalists and strategic partners in the US.  Web Mission 2008 also represents the first step for many of the participating UK companies that are planning to move to the Bay Area.  All 20 companies have firm plans to expand into the US.

During their visit, company executives will have the opportunity to meet with key investors in Silicon Valley and throughout the Bay Area.  Participants are scheduled to hear presentations from influential technology professionals and visit with entrepreneurs and principals from local, Internet-based companies.  They also will have a chance to attend the Web 2.0 Expo, a combined technology and business conference and tradeshow that is scheduled to be held in San Francisco from April 22 through April 25.  The complete Web Mission 2008 agenda is online at: www.webmission08.com/agenda.html.

One of the agenda’s highlights is scheduled for Tuesday, April 22, when each company will make a presentation to selected venture capitalists and angel investors.  Among the VC firms scheduled to attend are Sequoia Capital, Norwest Venture Partners and VantagePoint Venture Partners.  Heller Ehrman is hosting the presentation session, as well as the lunch that follows it, in the firm’s Silicon Valley office in Menlo Park, Calif.  The presentation session is scheduled from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m.  Members of the media are invited to attend the presentation session.

Heller Ehrman is also hosting a master class session on “Doing Business in the US” on Thursday, April 24.  This master class will be hosted in the firm’s San Francisco office.  Lawyers from the firm and professionals from other sponsors are scheduled to make presentations from 11 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., followed by breakout sessions from 1:00 p.m. to 2:00 p.m.

“WebMission represents an amazing opportunity for the best of entrepreneurial UK talent to visit Silicon Valley, and learn for themselves the differences that make the US a breeding ground for innovation and the successful execution of ideas,” said Michael Birch, founder of Bebo, a global, next generation social networking service based in London.

The 20 companies were selected from a pool of more than 100 interested applicants. Organizers assessed each company based on its ability to do meaningful business in the US, from setting up offices and finding funding to extending its network and developing sustainable, cross-pond relationships. Companies were also assessed based on business viability and management team strength.  Organizers wanted the final group of 20 businesses to show the breadth of UK technology companies in the space.  The list of the 20 companies selected is online at: http://www.webmission08.com/whoisgoing.html. 

“The sheer volume of applicants provides convincing evidence of the depth and breadth of emerging growth technology companies in the UK,” said Chris Grew, a partner in Heller Ehrman’s London office and a member of the firm’s Corporate/VLG Practice Group.  “ The shortlist of companies selected demonstrates that the UK is able to produce credible web businesses.”

Two of the companies selected are Heller Ehrman clients: Skimbit and Zogix. Skimbit is a social decision-making tool that works like an online shareable scrapbook populated by automatically ‘skimming’ the best bits of sites you like.  UK-based Zogix provides a SaaS (software as a service) platform for companies and consumers to measure and track green house gas emissions, monitor and store emissions reduced from energy efficiency initiatives, and monetize CO² saved from change in energy consumption.

Heller Ehrman is the only law firm among a group of international businesses that are supporting Web Mission 2008, which is in its first year.  Other sponsors are TechCrunch,  BT (LSE: BT), UK Trade & Investment and HSBC.  For a complete list of sponsors and program organizers, visit Web Mission 2008.

For Heller Ehrman, Web Mission 2008 is an opportunity to demonstrate the expertise of the firm’s Venture Law Group practice, which works with early-stage technology companies and stretches from Silicon Valley to London, where the firm opened an office in early 2007.  Since opening in London, Heller Ehrman has established itself as a top legal services provider to technology companies in the UK  A few years earlier, in 2003, Heller Ehrman merged with Venture Law Group, which helped the firm further penetrate technology markets in the US and abroad.  Heller Ehrman has represented some of the most successful technology companies in the Bay Area, including Aspect Communications, Autodesk, Ironport, Macrovision, Seagate, Symantec, and Yahoo!

“Every participant has a unique opportunity to explore what it takes to tap into Silicon Valley and other helpful resources in the Bay Area,” said Scott Leonard-Morgan, a partner in Heller Ehrman’s London office and a member of the firm’s Corporate/VLG Practice Group.  “We’re pleased to be a part of this inaugural Web Mission venture and we look forward to collaborating with the companies that are involved, as well as those who come on board to work with them.”

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