Should Google Go Public?
from the the-big-question dept
Red Herring takes a look at the question of whether or not Google should go public. Certainly, there are plenty of investors who think so. People seem to believe that a Google IPO would be a definite success - and that it might open the window to a few other successful private tech companies, such as Salesforce.com. The thinking then goes, if there are a couple of strong tech/internet IPOs, we might then go back to a happier world where tech companies (and their venture capitalists) can go back to cashing out. The problem with this fantasy is that there's really no reason for Google to go public right now (other than to make their investors and founders phenomenally wealthy). They don't need money. They don't need the prestige. They don't need the "legitimacy" that being public is supposed to provide. They're pretty set right now. Besides, as the article points out, even if there are a couple of successful tech IPOs right now, it's not like there are another 20 companies that are ready to go IPO. So, this isn't likely to open any kind of floodgate.
Thank you for reading this Techdirt post. With so many things competing for everyone’s attention these days, we really appreciate you giving us your time. We work hard every day to put quality content out there for our community.
Techdirt is one of the few remaining truly independent media outlets. We do not have a giant corporation behind us, and we rely heavily on our community to support us, in an age when advertisers are increasingly uninterested in sponsoring small, independent sites — especially a site like ours that is unwilling to pull punches in its reporting and analysis.
While other websites have resorted to paywalls, registration requirements, and increasingly annoying/intrusive advertising, we have always kept Techdirt open and available to anyone. But in order to continue doing so, we need your support. We offer a variety of ways for our readers to support us, from direct donations to special subscriptions and cool merchandise — and every little bit helps. Thank you.
–The Techdirt Team
