John Palfrey of Harvard Law School has joined Highland Capital Partners as a venture executive. Palfrey studies intellectual property in digital media, and will focus on both existing Highland portfolio companies and new opportunities.
PRESS RELEASE
Highland Capital Partners today announced that John Palfrey of Harvard Law School has joined the firm as a Venture Executive. Palfrey is one of the world's leading authorities on intellectual property in digital media. His addition reflects Highland's commitment to be the preferred partner for ambitious e-commerce, social networking and next-wave Internet companies. Palfrey will work with existing companies and help identify the next generation of market leaders.
“Innovation in user-generated content and digital media continues at a blistering pace,” said John Palfrey. “I have had the opportunity to work closely with Highland over the years. They have an incredibly deep bench and outstanding track record in bringing real value to their portfolio companies. I couldn't be more excited to be part of the Highland team.”
Palfrey is Clinical Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and the Executive Director of the Berkman Center for Internet and Society. His research and teaching focuses on the impact of the Internet upon society, and specifically the intellectual property ramifications of digital media and user-generated content. The Berkman Center is the nation's leading think-tank exploring the potential of new technologies to strengthen democracies around the world.
“It's great to have John as part of Highland. His expertise highly complements that of our former CEOs and seasoned investors. Through his university roots, his relationships extend deep into the next generation of digital media leaders,” said Dan Nova, General Partner at Highland. “There is no one who is more thoughtful about how user-generated content, intellectual property ownership and digital media will play out together. He'll be a great resource for our companies, helping them shape the future of their industries.”
Bringing Palfrey into the Highland fold represents another step in the firm's march toward becoming an unrivalled partner for executives in the digital media world. Last year, the firm relocated seasoned investors Fergal Mullen and Chuan Thor to Geneva and Shanghai, respectively. In 2007 alone, the team made seven digital media investments-spanning the globe from England to China. The team's investments covered all stages, from seed investments with companies still in stealth mode, to the buyout of US Search, a California-based provider of premium people search services.
About Highland Capital Partners
Highland Capital Partners was founded with the mission of helping great people build great companies. Since its inception in 1988, the firm has taken a sector-focused approach to investing in exceptional communications, consumer, digital media, healthcare and information technology companies. With over $3 billion of committed capital and offices in Boston, Silicon Valley, Shanghai and Geneva, Highland has invested in and worked to create such firms as Ask Jeeves, Avid Technology, CheckFree, Conor Medsystems, Continental Cable, Helicos BioSciences, lululemon athletica, Lycos, MapQuest, Ocular Networks, Odyssey Healthcare, Quigo, Starent Networks, Sybase, Telica and VistaPrint. For more information, visit Highland's web site at http://www.hcp.com/.
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