April 23, 2004

Google's IPO announcement is linked to the fact that the company will soon be required to publicly disclose more information about its search engine business, under a certain SEC rule triggered after closely held companies surpass a certain size.

Internet-search pioneer Google Inc. plans to announce within days that it will push forward with an initial public offering, people familiar with the matter told The Wall Street Journal.

Google is expected to have to make such disclosures as early as next week. Lawyers have said that the disclosure requirements can be a trigger for companies to list their shares.

Major elements of Google's expected offering remain unknown, including its size, which banks have been tapped to lead it, and the extent to which individual investors will be able to participate. A Google spokeswoman declined to comment.

Rumors around the Mountain View, Calif., company's IPO have swirled through markets since October. Based on early chatter among bankers, the offering could value Google at as much as $25 billion , and spread nearly $100 million in fees across Wall Street.

Last fall, some of Google's prospective advisers estimated the valuation of the company could be in line with other Internet leaders. Those include Yahoo Inc. (YHOO), valued at $38 billion , Amazon.com Inc. (AMZN) at $20 billion and eBay Inc. ( EBAY ) at $54 billion .

Source: Dow Jones News

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