Software startup Nexaweb Technologies Inc. has appointed a new CEO as the company looks to make it big in the emerging market for rich Internet applications (RIAs).
Thomas C. Browne, a former lieutenant commander and aviator in the U.S. Navy, has taken the helm from former CEO Larry Geisel, who remains in an advisory role with the company.
Coach Wei, Nexawebs founder and CTO, tells NDCF that the startup, which clinched around $4.5 million in funding in 2003, is now close to sealing its Series B. Were going to announce something very soon, says the former EMC Corp. (NYSE: EMC) software engineer and MIT graduate.
RIA software is essentially a hybrid of traditional Web and desktop applications, which aims to boost the performance of Web browsers. The software lets the browser access data without having to refresh entire Web pages, which means that information can be transferred more quickly. Nexaweb, for example, installs a Java applet, or "client engine," on the users browser, which is then used to deliver the applications.
Probably the best known RIA product is Macromedia Inc.s Flash platform, which is used to deliver complex visual images on a standard Web browser. Nexaweb and its competitors, however, are more focused on handling data-intensive business applications.
