Igal Lichtman

Igal Lichtman (also known by the Internet pseudonym "Mrs. Jello"[1]) was the founder, chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) of Magic Solutions International, Inc., a company that specialized in help desk and asset management software. Lichtman was also a seed investor in targeted advertising network Quigo, which was sold to America Online in 2007 for US$340 million.[2]

Biography

Lichtman earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering (BSEE) from Technion, the Israeli Institute of Technology, and then held various positions as both an engineer and programmer. Lichtman also served as an officer in the Israeli Air Force.

Lichtman co-founded a prosperous computer/local area network (LAN) value-added reseller (VAR) business that achieved recognition in a list of the top 100 LAN VAR's in the U.S. between 1986 and 1988.

Magic Solutions

Founded by Lichtman in 1988 and headquartered in Paramus, New Jersey, United States (U.S.), Magic Solutions International, Inc. (known as "Magic Solutions") was a company that specialized in help desk automation and asset management software. The company emerged as an unplanned spin-off from a computer systems integrator, and was later considered one of the most successful independent software vendors on the East Coast of the U.S. during the 1990s.

At inception, the company consisted of a single programmer in the service of one customer. At its height, Magic Solutions consisted of 300 employees, a base of 6,000 customers, and annual trailing sales worth over US$50 million. In 1996 and 1997, Magic Solutions was among the INC 500's fastest growing companies in the U.S., and in April 1998 was acquired by Network Associates Inc. (NETA) (McAfee Inc, as of July 2004[3]) for US$110 million.[4]

In 1997, search technology that Magic Solutions created was licensed to Microsoft for use in the "TechNet" product.[5]

Post-Magic Solutions

After the sale of Magic Solutions, Lichtman built and funded a number of high-technology startup companies, including iBoogie.com, TrafficMedia (responsible for the "Vortalizer Technology" innovation[1]),[6] Quigo.com,[7] and Domainspa.com[8] (an early example of the "pay per click" internet advertising business model).

During this period, Lichtman also worked in the area of virtual reality and produced the website Jerusalem.com, where visitors adopt an avatar to navigate through a virtual tour of Jerusalem.[1]

Charity work

Lichtman's charity work included board membership for the Friends of the Israel Defense Forces, and the endowment of a wing to the Israel National Museum of Science, Technology, and Space (also known as "MadaTech").

Awards

In 1996, Lichtman was awarded the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award[9] for New Jersey in the "Software" category, and Magic Solutions ranked #238 in the 1996 INC 500 after growth of more than 1,000 percent was recorded over five years.[10][11]

Death

Lichtman died on February 18, 2013, due to complications from cancer.[12]

References
  1. Ron Jackson (2012). "Fly Like an Igal: Lichtman Innovates Again With Vortalizer Automatic Website Building Technology at TrafficMedia". Domain Name Journal. Internet Edge, Inc. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  2. Erick Schonfeld (7 November 2007). "AOL Buys Quigo (Confirmed)". Tech Crunch. Aol Tech. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  3. Robert McMillan (1 July 2004). "Network Associates changes name back to McAfee". Network World. Network World, Inc. Archived from the original on 1 November 2008. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  4. internetnews.com Staff (25 March 1998). "Network Associates to Acquire Magic Solutions". Internet News. QuinStreet Inc. Retrieved 30 March 2013.
  5. Magic Solutions (1997). "MAGIC SOLUTIONS ANNOUNCES AGREEMENT WITH MICROSOFT". PR Newswire. PR Newswire Association LLC. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  6. "Domain Broker". RobSequin.com. RobSequin.com. 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  7. "A chat with Igal Lichtman (Mrs. Jello)". HybridDomainer.com. HybridDomainer. 28 July 2011. Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  8. Ron Jackson (8 March 2003). "New Company Promises New Life for Your Tired Old & Inactive Domain Names". Domain Name Journal. Internet Edge, Inc. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  9. Igal Lichtman, Founder Of Magic Solutions, Inc. Awarded Nj Entrepreneur Of The Year For Computer Software - Pr Newswire - Highbeam Research Archived March 31, 2007, at the Wayback Machine
  10. "MAGIC SOLUTIONS NAMED ONE OF THE USA'S FASTEST-GROWING COMPANIES". PR Newswire. PR Newswire Association LLC. 15 October 1996. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  11. Robert A. Mamis (1 March 1997). "Growth Happens". Inc. Mansueto Ventures LLC. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
  12. directnavigation (18 February 2013). "Igal Lichman, Software and Domain Pioneer Passes Away". DirectNavigation.com. Wordpress. Retrieved 31 March 2013.
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