Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal_Estonian prime minister opens San Jose trade office (November 30)

30.11.2007

 by Timothy Roberts
Friday, November 30, 2007 - 4:21 PM PST

The Prime Minister of Estonia came to San Jose Friday to open a trade office that he hopes will bring startups from his small country and Silicon Valley technology companies together.

"Silicon Valley changed the world, Andrus Ansip told a small gathering of reporters and city hall officials Friday afternoon. "All of our companies would like to cooperate more with the companies in Silicon Valley."

Estonia has been scouting the valley for two years. The prime minister officially opened an office of Enterprise Estonia, located in the U.S. Market Access Center on Market Street in Downtown San Jose. The one-person office will be headed by Andrus Viirg.

Estonia is an emerging technology center, aided in part by its proximity to Scandinavian tech centers. Skype, a software program that enables Internet phone calls, was created in Estonia, and has a big presence in Tallinn and Tartu, the two largest cities in Estonia. The company is now owned by San Jose-based eBay Inc.

"The future is bright for Silicon Valley and Estonia," said Mayor Chuck Reed. "We want them to stay here and grow here."

Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal - November 30, 2007
http://sanjose.bizjournals.com/sanjose/stories/2007/11/26/daily87.html