Skype Files for $100 Million IPO

By Geoff Duncan Published August 10, 2010

Image used with permission by copyright holder

Luxembourg-based VoIP operator Skyype said Monday that is has filed with the United States’ Securities and Exchange Commission to make an initial public stock offering. The company estimated the value of the initial offering will be around $100 million, although that number is an estimate used mostly as a basis for the filing. Skype did not announce a date for the IPO, or say what price it plans to set for its stock.

Industry watchers have been waiting for Skype to announce and IPO ever since the VoIP service regained independence from corporate parent eBay last year.

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Skype has indicated that it plans to make a portion of its IPO shares available to its customers, but offered no other specifics.

eBay sold off a major of Skype to a private investment group led by SIlver Lake, Andreessen Horowitz, and the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board—combined, the group owns about 56 percent of the company. Another 14 percent went to Joltid, a firm controlled by Skype founders Janus Friis and Nicholas Zennstrom. Ebay retains the remainder of the company.

Skype won’t be the first VoIP company to try an IPO: back in 2006, VoIP operator Vonage launched a high-profile initial public offering that turned into a disaster, as many early investors tried to cash out immediately when the IPO launched, leading to a substantial price drop.

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