News Articles 2005

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Newsweek
September 26, 2005—"If a Salt Lake City nonprofit has its way, everyone in the world will be able to use DNA to find his or her forebears. The Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation is building a huge database of family trees and DNA samples in hopes of demonstrating worldwide biological connections."
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Salt Lake Tribune
September 24, 2005—"Golden Rauner, a private equity firm specializing in management buyouts and consolidations, has reached agreement to acquire Utah's Sorenson Communications."

"In announcing the deal Friday, neither company would reveal specifics of the investment, other than to confirm the Chicago-based Golden Rauner will gain controlling stock interest in the privately-held Salt Lake City company."

Deseret Morning News
September 22, 2005—"Equity firm makes major investment in Sorenson. GTCR Golder Rauner, a Chicago-based private equity firm, announced Wednesday that it has agreed to make a major investment in Sorenson Communications, a Salt Lake-based provider of video relay services and equipment for the deaf and hard-of-hearing."

Salt Lake Tribune
September 14, 2005—"Tuesday's launch of the Sorenson IP Relay service made the world of deaf communication bigger and faster, and boosted Utah's economy with the promise of up to 750 new jobs."

"The free, Internet-based text-to-speech relay service is a high-tech replacement for the old land-based telephone TTY text-to-text system. It allows the hearing impaired to conduct calls not only from their personal computers and laptops, but BlackBerry, Treo, HP iPAQ and Sidekick hand-held, mobile devices."

"Chris Royal, the governor's senior economic development advisor, welcomed both the advances in deaf services and the jobs the program will create. ‘This is really a tribute to the whole innovative, entrepreneurial spirit Sorenson has brought to Utah,' he said."

Deseret News
September 14, 2005—"A free messaging service for the deaf promises to create 750 new Utah jobs and take handheld mobile devices to a whole new level."
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Washington Post
September 6, 2005—"Sorenson VRS, part of Sorenson Media, the company largely responsible for the widespread expansion of VRS."

Video Systems
September 1, 2005—"What should you put on your site? A few key things, one of which is video. Web video has advanced in the past few years, and one of the best suites for compressing video is the Sorenson Media Sorenson Squeeze 4.1 Compression Suite. This program hits it out of the park with small file sizes and beautiful video. It also supports Flash video with presets for all bandwidth targets. In addition, Macromedia Flash MX 2004 now imports video and easily publishes it to a Flash video file, complete with controls for playback and volume. Flash MX, coupled with Sorenson, is an excellent way to get media up on a site quickly."

The Straits Times
August 3, 2005—"Yesterday, Mr. Shepherdson shared his findings at Singapore’s first family history exhibition, launched at the National Library by Minister of State (community Development, Youth and Sports) Yu Foo Yee Shoon. The exhibition, entitled Who Am I? The Joy Of Discovering Your Family History, was organized by Mr. Shepherdson and the National Library Board to encourage people to research their family history. It is part of a larger line-up activity by the board to celebrate the Nations’ 40th anniversary, and is on August 28th."

"As part of the imitative, the non profit Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation has established the Singapore DNA Family Pool, which aims to collect genetic information from 300 Singaporeans. Individuals can chart a four-generation family tree, are encouraged to visit the exhibition and donate their DNA and family tree to the foundation. The information will be included in the foundation’s free database, allowing public searches. To protect donors’ privacy, search results will reveal only common ancestors born before 1900."

DV Magazine
August 1, 2005—"Fear not, Cleaner users. Squeeze 4 Compression Suite, (www.sorensonmedia.com), a from-the-ground-up redesign of Sorenson's video encoding tool released in late 2004, is fast becoming an attractive alternative for professional compressionists and novices alike, who are justifiably worried about the fate of the venerable compression program from Discreet."

TeleSpan
June 20, 2005—"Sorenson Communications, which offers the Video Relay Service used by the Western Pennsylvania School of the Deaf, has been offering the VRS for three years. The service is so heavily used that Sorenson now relies on a pool of 1,200 interpreters who can be called on a videophone any time of day or night, for services as casual and ordinary as ordering a pizza. The service relies on Sorenson's VP-100 videophone, which is distributed by D-Link as the i2eye videophone, which lists for under $200."

The Salt Lake Tribune
June 3, 2005—"Thailand, overwhelmed last December when the Indian Ocean tsunami left thousands of badly-decomposed bodies to identify, turned to Utah's Sorenson Genomics."

"Sorenson's early success with tsunami victim identification, and its status as the only laboratory in the world accredited to do genealogical-level DNA testing, put the company in a unique position to identify the remaining tsunami dead - and to help Thailand upgrade its forensic abilities."

"Meanwhile, James LeVoy Sorenson, the billionaire founder of the testing company, is spending $2 million on the DNA project."

Deseret Morning News
June 3, 2005—" Porntip - as she is known far and wide in Thailand, where she is something of a one-woman real-life CSI movie - is in Utah as part of a Thai delegation hosted by Utah billionaire James Sorenson's DNA testing company, Sorenson Genomics."
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Deseret Morning News
June 1, 2005—"Dr. Khunying Porntip Rojanasunan, deputy director of Thailand's Central Institute of Forensic Science, dubbed 'Dr. Death' by the media for her early work in processing corpses after the disaster, hopes to learn more from Sorenson Genomics, one of the few labs internationally accredited for verifying human identity."

"Porntip wants to convince her government that Sorenson Genomics is the right place to retest roughly 2,000 unidentified remains of roughly 5,300 bodies that were recovered in Thailand. Another 10,000 people remain missing in Thailand."

"'We're actually in a beginning process,' Sorenson said. 'We want to be up there right at front, helping and working with them.'"
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Deseret Morning News
May 24, 2005—"James Lee Sorenson, chief executive of Sorenson Communications, recently was recognized for his contributions to the deaf community with the 2005 Business Partner of the Year Award."
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Arizona Daily Star
May 11, 2005—"The equipment ... is made available free of charge to the deaf and hard-of-hearing by Sorenson Media, a Salt Lake City company that has built a reputation as a leader in the development of communication services for the hearing-impaired."

"Coupled with the company's Video Relay Service, the videophones also make it possible for the deaf to communicate with the hearing world by providing translation from American Sign Language to English."

Medical Device Link
May 11, 2005—"People are always looking for things that are small, cheap, and easy to use. Why shouldn’t that apply to infusion pumps, too? Members of a design team at Sorenson Medical Inc. (West Jordan, UT) found a way to accommodate those needs without compromising quality or safety."
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Millimeter
May 1, 2005—"But since we've been using Sorenson's Squeeze software compression suite, we are able to balance the space we have with the video quality our clients require."

The Wall Street Journal
April 26, 2005—"James Sorenson loved his 1999 trip to Norway retracing the steps of distant ancestors. When he got home, he invited geneticist Scott Woodward to his office and told him: "Let's analyze all of Norway's DNA!"

"The 83-year-old entrepreneur is a billionaire several times over thanks to his development of plastic catheters and heart-monitoring equipment plus a half-century of wise investments. Mr. Sorenson ended up dropping the Norway idea, but he did so to pursue an even greater ambition. He wants to dominate the fast-growing field of connecting people with their roots through genetic testing."

MacWorld
April 18, 2005—"Sorenson Media on Monday announced the release of Sorenson Squeeze v4.1, the latest update to its video encoding and compression software for Mac OS X."
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Bio World
April 5, 2005—"Just punch into the computer the numerical values of certain genetic biomarkers, and - just like that! - access your own family tree. What if all the individuals in the world could trace their genealogy through their genetic material this way?"

"That's the question that Utah biotechnology and medical device billionaire James LeVoy Sorenson posed about five years ago when he launched the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (Salt Lake City). The answer to that question - and the mission he set for the foundation - was to map the entire human family tree via genetics. "

The Salt Lake Tribune
April 5, 2005—"As Herriman leaders work to avoid the growing pains suffered by other boomtowns, they are confronting a host of questions: how to balance high-density and low-density housing, how to create parks and protect dwindling open space and, one of the most-pressing challenges, how to capture commercial tax dollars to sustain the mushrooming residential development."

"One development, Rosecrest, helps tell Herriman's growth tale. The subdivision, which covers 2,200 acres on the south side, was unveiled in 1999. Developers planned to keep adding houses as late as 2014. But builders already have erected 70 percent of the planned 2,700 units."

"'Builders want more lots than we have available,' said Donald Wallace, CEO of Rosecrest Inc. 'We probably could have sold out' but the company purposely slowed the pace.'"

The Columbus Dispatch
April 4, 2005—"Bill Estes doesn't have to rely on his sons to make phone calls for him anymore. Estes, who is deaf, now can make the calls using a video-relay system that allows users to call with the help of a certified American Sign Language interpreter and a high-speed Internet connection."

"The system, called a Sorenson VP-100 videophone, is made by Sorenson Media. 'The system allows deaf users to communicate using sign language rather than typing an entire conversation in an e-mail, instant message, TTY or a note through a fax machine,' said Pat Nola, Sorenson Media's chief operating officer."

DingBat Magazine
April 1, 2005—"Videoheads are jumping for joy over the release of Sorenson Squeeze 4.0. This full-featured compression suite is aimed at video professions as well as prosumers."

"So what are you waiting for, put those bloated videos on the Sorenson diet and squeeze 'em for all they're worth. "

Medical Device Daily
April, 2005—"When Boston surgeon Peter Bregman, MD, performs podiatric surgery on a patient, he attaches a small, microchip-controlled infusion pump to a thin tube that bathes the nerves of the patient's foot in anesthetic."

"The product: the ambIT infusion pump from Sorenson Medical (Salt Lake City, Utah). The product and company have evolved from the fertile medical device pioneering work of James LeVoy Sorenson, perhaps challenging the entrepreneurial ingenuity -- seen in the cardiovascular device arena -- even of the legendary Thomas Fogarty, MD."

The Salt Lake Tribune
April 1, 2005—"After more than two months of painstaking testing, Sorenson Genomics researchers have tentatively matched the DNA of 50 victims from December's Indian Ocean tsunami."

"While an estimated 40 forensic teams from different nations are volunteering their help to Thailand, Mouritsen said 'Sorenson Genomics is the only one from the United States.' The Utah lab's efforts are being donated at an estimated cost of up to $2 million in goods and services."

"For James LeVoy Sorenson, the billionaire founder of the company and a renowned biotechnology pioneer, said 'it all will have been a job well done. '" "This is the little bit we can do for now, and we are glad to have helped," he said. "We must use the gifts we have."

The Salt Lake Tribune
April 1, 2005—"Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation on Monday said it has expanded data and online research tools available on its free Internet site."

"Billionaire biotechnology pioneer James LeVoy Sorenson conceived of and is financing the assembly and publishing of the free, genetic-genealogy database. Eventually, he hopes to map the entire human family tree through genetics."

About.com
March 28, 2005—"The Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation (SMGF) announced today that it has significantly expanded the genetic data available on its free Web site and enhanced the research tools for visitors. "
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Deseret Morning News
February 18, 2005—"The Deaflympics - a sporting event without starting guns and referee whistles - is coming to Utah in 2007. The Winter Games, which will run February 1-10, will draw more than 400 deaf and hard-of-hearing athletes and 4,000 fans from at least 24 countries."

"Thursday's press conference and a reception afterward were attended by athletes, Deaflympics officials, students from Salt Lake City's Jean Massieu School of the Deaf, and officials from Sorenson Media. The company's CEO, James Lee Sorenson, presented the Deaflympics with a check for $250,000."
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The Salt Lake Tribune
February 18, 2005—"Sorenson Media, maker of a compressed video telephone system for the deaf, has donated $250,000 to the 2007 Deaflympic Winter Games, which will be held Feb. 1-10 in northern Utah. James L. Sorenson, chief executive of Sorenson Media, praised the event as one with a dual purpose: To encourage healthy participation in sports and to promote understanding between the deaf and hearing populations."

Deseret Morning News
February 17, 2005—"Vision, faith, adaptability and execution are the four components of tenacity, which Utah business scion James Lee Sorenson called necessary to success."
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Videography
February 15, 2005—"The Sorenson Squeeze 4 Compression Suite gives any media specialist--regardless of his operating system--a new encoding toolset that is ready for the newest standards, ranging from the Web to HD."
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Investor's Business Daily
February 14, 2005—"Born into a poor family in Idaho, James Sorenson realized he had one path to wealth: create his own opportunities. Today at 83, he's worth an estimated $3.7 billion, holds more than 40 patents and owns 32 businesses and 520,000 acres of real estate. His secret? 'The ability to see trends early,' he said in an interview."

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
February 8, 2005—"One of the most interesting projects is that of the Sorenson Molecular Genealogy Foundation in Utah, which aims to build the world's largest correlated genetic and genealogical database to scientifically demonstrate how all humans are related."

"The project's billionaire founder, James LeVoy Sorenson, believes 'that if people know how closely related we are, we will treat each other better.' "
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VideoSystems
February 1, 2005—"Most important, Sorenson still delivers the goods when it comes to the actual task of encoding, and it's doing it in a much friendlier manner."
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The Salt Lake Tribune
January 30, 2005—"Pried from the mouths of the anonymous dead, the 63 bits of teeth in plastic bags from Thailand were arrayed on a laboratory workbench at Sorenson Genomics, ready for the South Salt Lake company's volunteer effort to extract DNA in hopes of identifying their owners."

"Eventually, the company's technicians may process up to 1,700 such samples. Recovered DNA then will be compared with a growing database of DNA swabs taken from living survivors of the tsunami who are still searching for missing loved ones."

"'We were thrilled we could help', says founder and billionaire philanthropist James LeVoy Sorenson, whose contribution in goods and services may approach $2 million."

Deseret Morning News
January 29, 2005—"Now, two Utah companies, using DNA analysis, are helping the Thai government identify some of the estimated 5,384 people who died in that country."

"Salt Lake-based Sorenson Genomics, owned by Utah billionaire James LeVoy Sorenson, together with Park City-based Pacific Rim Consulting Group have collected and are analyzing hundreds of tissue samples."

"James LeVoy Sorenson said he wanted to help with the identification because he feels each person has an obligation to help others in need."
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Tampa Tribune
January 29, 2005—"N Davelis ''D.C.'' Goutoufas is animated, signing and mouthing words to interpreter Aaron Orange through a camera-phone combination that sits atop a television at the Wachovia Center downtown. Goutoufas is one of an estimated 400 deaf or hearing-impaired people in the Tampa Bay area who use video phones made by Salt Lake City-based Sorenson Media."

"On Thursday, privately held Sorenson unveiled its newest call center, the Sorenson Video Relay Service Tampa Interpreting Center, located in 5,000 square feet of leased space at Tampa Commons, One North Dale Mabry. 'The operation employs 50,' said Jim Sorenson, chief executive officer."

Dow Jones Newswires
January 26, 2005—"A group of college students in Utah who run their own VC fund lined up real institutional investors, and plans to invest the money in actual startups. The 25 students who work for the fund don't get paid, but they earn valuable experience that can pay off in the form of a good job after college."

"The effort got a big boost in 2001 with the help of a $500,000 donation from Sorenson Development Inc., a Salt Lake City umbrella company for businesses owned by the wealthy Sorenson family. James Lee Sorenson, vice chairman of Sorenson Development and an alumnus of the University of Utah, challenged the students to raise money from actual institutional investors rather than just rely on charitable donations."

"'I like philanthropy that has the ability to continue to grow and ultimately become self-sufficient, and return greater benefits to the community and the recipients,' Sorenson said."