Baidu Files for IPO on NASDAQ, Looks for $80M
Source Title:
Baidu files for IPO on NASDAQ to raise up to USD 80 mln
Baidu files for IPO on NASDAQ to raise up to USD 80 mln
Story Text:
It appears that the wait is over for Chinese Search engine Baidu. They have filed for IPO with the SEC with an aim to raise $80 on the NASDAQ exchange.
It appears that the wait is over for Chinese Search engine Baidu. They have filed for IPO with the SEC with an aim to raise $80 on the NASDAQ exchange.
Baidu currently provides a search index of over 690 mln web pages, 80 mln images and 10 mln multimedia files. The company generates the majority of revenues from its online marketing services, portal search services, enterprise search software, and related services. Baidu's auction-based pay-for-performance advertising service, also known as bid-for-placement services, had approximately 34,600 online marketing customers in 2004.
Shak tells me they have something like a 35-40% market share in China, so it's pretty big news if you're involved with busniess in that neck of the woods.
Google
Now i guess we'll soon find out if Google are to buy them out eh?
- Y! MyWeb
with an aim to raise $80 on
with an aim to raise $80 on the NASDAQ exchange.
woo, their exchange rate against the dollar must be fantastic!
:D
their exchange rate against
I believe their currency has been pegged to 8.3 Yuan to the dollar since 1994, although some US merchants are complaining about it leading to unfair trade practices, especially when you consider how hard the dollar fell in the last few years prior to the recent appreciation in the last couple months.
Interesting stuff going on in the oil industry right now too if you are following it. A government backed Chinese oil companie made a bid to buy Unocal.
It will be interesting to see what price the shares open at and what percent of Baidu will go in the float. One thing to note is while China is catching up technologically they have had 0 respect for trademarks, patents, and the like.
One of the home page tabs on Baidu is MP3, and Google will not want to be promoting music piracy on Google.com anytime soon, but owning a share of Baidu can help them ensure they gain a lockin in the profits while allowing Google to deflect some of the associated bad public relations associated with file sharing (as this is an issue Google has had problems with recently anyway).
The biggest things Google could probably gain are the cultural knowledge, business knowledge, and then snag some of Baidu's best workers from them.
I think Google wants to be C prompt for the web, and even if they buy a large stake in Baidu they will probably eventually beat that brand with Google. Google wants people to think search = Google, and that doesn't work as well if they are operating under a number of brand names, and if they buy out Baidu directly then they will have problems fitting the needs and desires of the local culture while meeting the copyright laws and ideals behind them here.