Andover.Net Files for IPO 173
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
Contact:
Janet Holian
Andover.Net
Communications
978/635-5300
janet@andover.net
Shawn Whalen/Manya Rossignoli
Schwartz
781/684-0770
manyar@schwartz-pr.com
ANDOVER.NET FILES REGISTRATION STATEMENT FOR INITIAL PUBLIC OFFERING
Acton, MA-September 17, 1999- Andover.Net (www.andover.net), a network of Linux/Open Source web sites which include Slashdot.org, today announced that it has filed a Registration Statement on Form S-1 with respect to a proposed initial public offering of 4,000,000 shares of Andover.Net common stock. All 4,000,000 shares are being offered by Andover.Net at a proposed price range of $12 to $15 per share. The offering is being underwritten by WR Hambrecht + Co. LLC, Advest, Inc. and DLJ Direct through WR Hambrecht + Co.'s proprietary OpenIPO system.
Andover.Net is a leading Linux/Open Source Internet destination with a total of over 2 million users and over 40 million page impressions on a monthly basis. Its network of web sites provides an independent, unbiased source for content, community and commerce for the Linux/Open Source communities. Andover.Net properties include Slashdot (slashdot.org), a Web site for Linux/Open Source news, community comments and resources and Freshmeat (freshmeat.net), a downloadable Linux software application repository.
The OpenIPO process is similar to a traditional underwriting except that the pricing and allocation of the shares will be based on the results of a modified Dutch auction. All investors place a bid for the number of shares they want to own and the price they want to pay. To participate in the offering, an investor must have an account with WR Hambrecht + Co. or a participating broker in the OpenIPO Network.
Information regarding the OpenIPO process may be obtained through www.wrhambrecht.com. Copies of the preliminary prospectus relating to the offering may be obtained when available through WR Hambrecht + Co.'s website, www.wrhambrecht.com, or by contacting WR Hambrecht + Co. in writing at 555 Lancaster Avenue, Suite 200, Berwyn, PA 19312 or by calling toll free 1-877-673-6476. Copies of the preliminary prospectus may also be obtained by contacting Advest, Inc. in writing at 100 Federal Street, 29th Floor, Boston, MA 02110, or by calling (800) 659-2678 x2390.
A registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission but has not yet become effective. The securities may not be sold nor may offers to buy be accepted prior to the time that the registration statement becomes effective. This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to their registration or qualification under the securities laws of such state.
###
Andover.Net and AndoverNews Network, are trademarks of Andover.Net.
/.ing W.R. Hambrecht (Score:1)
No, in all seriousness, I believe this will be one IPO I'll try to get in on, just because there'd be something neat about (indirectly?) owning a piece of my favorite community.
I didn't get in on RHAT (no problem, didn't want in), but I've got to get me some of these shares... I think I'll even have my online broker send me a paper copy (valued at just 1 share, keep the rest electronic) and frame it. :)
Hmm.. Can't tell (see above), but I wonder if SureTrade is part of OpenIPO.
No coward, just at school...
Re:Any way non-US residents can participate ? (Score:1)
The only thing you loose is a couple of statements, but with most online brokerages you can ask for duplicates if you absolutely need them.
But then, AFAIK, the "US resident" thing is purely an E*Trade houserule, and may not apply to DLJ Direct. DLJ Direct has a list with a couple of restrictions [dljdirect.com], but this one is not among them
Will we see "first share" posts? (Score:1)
(in case anybody wonders: Meow is the answer to "Cat got your tongue")
Re:Interesting Info on Andover (Score:1)
Re:How much does Andover actually make ? (Score:1)
1st 1000 Slashdot members were ACs! (Score:1)
(Score:1)
The bottom line: where's the revenue going to come from? For hyped IPOs, opening stock price != future profit potential. Andover is going to have to make some good money off their ads or find a better business model quick.
Get rich quick syndrome (Score:2)
Andover.bet bought out Slashdot.org (note: the dot.com and dot.net domains aren't theirs) in order to take advantage of its visibility in cashing in the IPO. This "anti-establishment" site which set out to make the world a better place for the geeky folks will just end up making Tamo, Hecos & Co millionaires; not to mention the Andover.bet executives who're really going to roll in dough soon. Courtesy of your average Slashdot visitor - not only as investors but as de facto makers of this site as well. I hope the guys' first post-IPO job will be to migrate all operations to the dot.com domain (pay the current holder the millions needed), the second job ought to be handing over the dot.org domain to new "maintainers" who're in it for the cause and idea, not big bucks. For me Slashdot was about a new genre in _journalism_. Good journalists simply aren't running after IPO riches.
Gates must be laughing in his castle watching the backbone community of geeks self-destruct for a few million dollars. You can't buy respect, you can only sell what you got, once.
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
-----------------------------------------------
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
Re:Andover.net == Linux/Opensource Hub? (Score:1)
JPEG - 116,122 bytes - Andover.Net Prospectus Page 2, "Linux Resource Sites -- Visits" [min.net]
IMPORTANT (Score:2)
(Andover.Net's prospectus, pgs. 40-41)
Saw it coming (Score:3)
That raises an interesting point.. Since Slashdot is a key selling point for them in this, you'll probably be forced to give up some creative control. It just won't fly in corporate-land if your main selling point can be taken elsewhere by a single person at a moment's notice. Then again, with the chunk of dough you'll be getting out of this, maybe creative control won't be an issue for you anymore. I don't know.
I've been watching Andover for awhile now, even moreso since they started their whole "Linux campaign". Their sole agenda seems to be advertising. With the way banner ads are going lately, I sure do hope they plan to branch out into other areas.
One possibilty to watch for is subscription print publication.. (Slashdot Magazine, anyone?) I just can't see a model centered solely on banner ads working for a media company. It may work for the porn industry, but there has to be something more there. What would really be neat is if they'd team up with Walnut Creek CDROM and sell subscriptions to weekly or monthly CDs of Freshmeat-featured Unix applications.
Oh well. Might be something to throw a few grand at. We'll see.
Stock symbol "FSCK", anyone?
Re:Andover.net == Linux/Opensource Hub? (Score:1)
Re:A cautionary tale (Score:1)
Noone recommended the stock to us. Red Hat offered, E*Trade was just the middleman. The investment amount was relatively small. $1400 for 100 shares? We're not talking IBM or AOL here. I went into this process having enough cash set aside for the shares I wanted to purchase.
If anything, those in the high tech industry are more familar with IPOs than other industries.
To top it off, I didn't buy shares to make a mint of money. That I did is a side issue. I bought the shares so that I would be a shareholder of RedHat. I have bought their products in the past, and will continue to do so in the future.
Huh? (Score:3)
-- Does Rain Man use the Autistic License for his software?
How about just the first 969 slashdotters? (Score:1)
see subject
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
Oh wait, you're 1093, bummer.
Anyway, I'll buy.
-- James Taylor
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
You for example, are slashdotter #84343
The idea being the people who have been reading and contributing to slashdot since it was just rob's news page, and later chips and dips, and finally this monstrosity, would have something essentially worthless but cool to hold up. It's for the hardcore groupies.
(hmmm... I miss eplus)
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
I'll support that!
Woohoo! (Score:1)
(Maybe we'll just encourage posts like this)
--
Do the same thing as redhat (Score:2)
Re:A quiet SlashDot? (Score:2)
Certainly if Rob (or anyone at Andover.net) were to comment, or moderate in this then ISTM that they might be deemed to be in breach of the 'Quiet Period'. The question is, if someone who is not associated with Andover.net, but who was selected to have some level of editorial control by a program that was written by an employee of Andover.net, what happens?
Personally, I'm not sure I want to go there...
The glue? (Score:2)
The Linux community was doing _just fine_ prior to either of these sites - you're forgetting just how recent
They are both good sites, but they are not important to any definable community (OpenSource, Linux, FreeBSD, Internet, Techy).
kernel.org might be important glue - certainly some of the mailing lists are important glue - but
Interesting Info on Andover (Score:2)
http://www.mtdc.com/press004.html
In particular:
Bruce Twickler, President of Andover, noted, "The acquisition, repurposing and commercialization of content is an extraordinary opportunity for growth. Our proprietary database-driven site creation tools, data collection tools, web tracking and reporting systems, and other technologies allow us to get to a breakeven point on a new site quickly."
Sounds like a man after Rupert Murdoch's heart, to me.
Karma entry in hof (Score:2)
I agree, although it's worth remembering the Andover doesn't have the huge media frenzy that accompanied the Red Hat IPO, so it's likely to be a little more restrained.
Anyway, while not wanting to start a "my karma's higher than yours" flamefest, how about a "users with highest karma" hall of fame entry, Rob?
Who currently owns Andover? (Score:3)
However, someone else raised a valid point. If traffic decreases, will changes be forced upon you to try and increase readership? I believe there's enough integrity there to try and fight such a move, but at the end of the day, you may not have much choice. One of the perils of beign publically traded is that the company is legally bound to maximise shareholder value, whatever the ethics of doing so. Hopefully, it'll never come to that, but you never know...
Stockholder benefits (Score:2)
;)
Seriously though, I think Andover should do like RedHat and give back to the community. How about a free share to the people with the lowest slashdot ID numbers? How about everyone 2822 and before? Yeah, that's good by me.
Seriously more, though, its good to see the
Re:DejaNews was "ruined"? (Score:2)
Re:Andover.net == Linux/Opensource Hub? (Score:1)
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
Of course, Rob's and Andover's response is "no comment" (couldn't think of a way to use C or Perl-type comments in an expression of "no comment").
no comment. (Score:1)
comment() {return(NULL)};
Or in perl:
undef $comment;
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:3)
---
"'Is not a quine' is not a quine" is a quine.
Re:ILLEGAL TO USE "SLASHDOT(tm)" AS A VERB? (Score:1)
Frankly, I'm not sure how yahoo!(TM) is getting away with "Do You Yahoo!?", but don't really feel up to slapping them with a lawsuit.
Yahoo! is able to use "Do You Yahoo!?" without problems because they also trademarked that phrase -- see the trademark filing [uspto.gov] on the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office database.
I don't think Slashdot is in much danger of trademark dilution at this point, though Andover employees and contributors probably should catch up on trademark guidelines so they don't use the name improperly.
A quiet SlashDot? (Score:2)
---------------------
Most Annoying
"If I use Red$at Gnulix to make a Beowulf,
Get a map of North Carolina, Gilliard! (Score:1)
When did they move Red Hat out of Durham? Or does this guy know a lot less about Red Hat than he thinks?
Re:Who currently owns Andover? (Score:1)
I don't think that's very likely - or at least, I don't think Andover would try to 'alter' Slashdot to attract more readers. It's snowballing new users as it is. Even if traffic did start to drop, it's not so much the number of eyeballs, as the brains behind those eyeballs. What I mean is that Slashdot has a particular, valuable audience - just accumulating millions of AOLers probably wouldn't be as commercially valuable.
If Slashdot gets 'broken', everyone will stop reading it. There are plenty of other news sites. Heck, you even have the Slashdot source to make your own version (a 'fork'), you're not subject to a monopoly supplier.
Hmm, is this sounding familiar?
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
Why not issue every reader with a number of shares equal to their karma? Or give a hundred shares to each successful 'first post'.
It's a shame about the quiet period, I was looking forward to Jon Katz's article about how the Andover.net IPO 'Dutch auction' system is challenging the conventional mindset of Wall Street investors (along with the pirated Buffy episode, of course).
Re:So what happens now? (Score:1)
I thought it started in late 1997. Have we had Slashdot's second birthday yet? (In dog years / Internet time, that would make it fourteen.)
A cautionary tale (Score:1)
Re:A cautionary tale (Duh!) (Score:1)
Re:Criticizing the guys you belong to is easy ! (Score:1)
Remember on the Simpsons when an Australian-accented fellow prisoner said "I own that network!" when Sideshow Bob criticized Fox?
Even Citizen Murdoch doesn't kill his minions for making fun of him.
Open IPO...way to go! (Score:1)
It will be great to watch it all so that we can learn from it for NewsTrolls' future IPO!...
Congrats Rob, Jeff, and crew!
-diva
Huh? (Score:2)
Seriously, I love /. and freshmeat, but no way is this a better investment than RedHat. Where's the revenue stream? Banner ads? I'd agree that Andover is a better investment than most '.com' IPO's, because I know that their sites are quality products and have a strong following. But at this point, web IPO's are still matters of faith. Investing in one means that either:
A) You believe that sooner or later, someone will come up with a workable business model for website profitability, or
B) You believe that the stock will be hot because the majority of investors are idiotic sheep, and you intend to buy low, and sell high, quickly.
Now neither of these is a bad thing in itself, but given the web IPO market lately, choice B is no longer a guaranteed path to riches, and choice A still relies on your believing that foo.com will still be around when someone figures out how to make money with "new media." On that score, I'd say Andover's a better bet than most, but I don't think I'd drop my cash here.
And given the choice between Redhat at 12 and Andover at 12, I'd take RH in a heartbeat. And YES I was one of the few who said that RH was a very strong buy before the IPO, and subsequent skyrocketing. I kept telling my coworkers to buy, even when it was at 60 in the first couple weeks. Wish I had had some money to buy it myself. :-)
Anyway, best of luck to Andover, and the /.-FM crew!
----
We all take pink lemonade for granted.
What's Wrong with Capitalism? (Score:1)
I've read a number of comments deriding Rob, Jeff & Co [slashdot.org] for "selling out" and throwing away their affiliation to the open source software movement. I'd just like to ask these people, and anyone else who holds similar beliefs: what is wrong with making money?
The six dot three mil BSI received for /. has bought a lot, so far. It's bought four booty-kickin' servers to make sure everyone can get to the site whenever they want to, most visibly. But most importantly, it's bought the Malda and his boys freedom from worrying about what they're going to eat next week.
Without incentives, the vast majority programmers would not program. I sure wouldn't. I don't want to see the Internet turn into an infinitely deep pool of free information just for kicks; I want it to happen because it'll make us all rich, improving our lives immeasurably.
The point of the Internet is to get everyone rich. So quit harping about how Rob's tossed his ideals out the window. His ideals, I suspect, were never yours: if they had been, Slashdot would not exist.
Re:So what happens now? (Score:2)
What happens if traffic on Slashdot decreases? Will shareholders insist on a format change to drive ad impressions up? If stock price plummets, shareholders will eventually hold the company accountable. I do not see any way to avoid ramifications to
I'd say that depends on how much of the stock goes on the block, and how many shares are kept... um... over there. *pointing to Andover*
RedHat only sold a small percentage of the total shares. That does two things -- it makes the pre-IPO owners fantastically rich, on paper, and it keeps them in charge of the company. Even if you can get all of the public shareholders to agree on something, the influence there may be 10% of the total voting shares. Or less.
Don't be surprised if Andover does the same thing. If there's a money crunch, they can always sell off some of the extra stock for more capital.
Maybe they should start a consulting business for sites using the Slash code... hmm... or the Freshmeat code, if people prefer PHP....
--
QDMerge [rmci.net] 0.21!
Re:How will they make money? Banner adds? (Score:1)
Seriously, most of us also know how to implement advertising filters, so it's not the best place to try and advertise...
CJ.
Re:On the original Andover deal... (Score:1)
(1) They get paid their salary for a year;
(2) Amounts owed within the contract for the purchase of Slashdot are still owed;
(3) They are released from any non-compete agreements.
So yes, they can legally restart Slashdot under those conditions, with a nice infusion of capital over the next few years.
Obviously, this isn't going to happen. And it looks like Andover is adhering to their end of the deal. I've noticed only two changes in Slashdot since the takeover: Rob has spent lots more time tinkering with the system, to mainly good results, and the overall quality (i.e. ability to pay bills) of sponsors has gone up. So far, so good.
D
----
Re:.org reserved for not for profit? Maybe not (Score:1)
The NET part of this was occasionally policed, but as far as I know the InterNIC never (or hardly ever) scrutinized applications for the ORG domain. Once they started charging for names, I believe that pretty much any type of policing went out the window - you could get whatever domain name you wanted, as long as it was not taken and you could afford the fee.
Now, as others have mentioned, you are actively encouraged to take your name in all domains so the InterNIC gets more money.
Rob has mentioned publically that he's tried to get slashdot.com, but the existing owner won't sell. Probably he's hoping for an AltaVista-style payout from Andover. It's a pretty similar situation - AltaVista spent a lot of time and money building up the altavista.digital.com brandname, but since people were confusing it with altavista.com, Digital/Compaq eventually had to buy the domain for $ 3.5 million. Likewise, the Slashdot brand name is now worth quite a bit of money (as we can see from the purchase amount), so the
Fortunately, I think most Slashdot readers are "hip" to the
Hope that gives you the proper perspective.
D
----
Re:Huh? (Score:1)
One minor point regarding "B.".
Andover is using the OpenIPO system - which is essentially a Dutch auction IPO system designed to stop the volatility inherent the "classic" IPO where money is left on the table to generate interest in the stock and drive up the price. Judging from past OpenIPO IPO performances (Salon.Com, and Ravenswood winery) there will be very little movement in the stock once it's actually on the market due to the stock being auctioned to the public in the pre-IPO.
I totally support the OpenIPO model (and have had an account with WR Hambrect since the start) and I wish Andover the best of luck, but if anyone is trying to get in on the pre-IPO through OpenIPO in the hopes of making money through point "B." in the above post, then they will almost certainly be disappointed.
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
This is a different situation from the Redhat IPO where the pre-IPO shares are pre-allocated by the underwritting companies.
Go open an account with WR Hambrect and you can get the opportunity to bid on the shares before they are traded on the market.
Besides... (Score:1)
Good luck (Score:4)
Good luck.
How do I get some ? (Score:1)
Uh-oh! (Score:2)
Thanks, now I'll continue.
As much as I can see how beneficial this will be to Rob, the rest of the slashdot crew, and even slashdot's availability as a site (I hope for the day that slashdot is no longer slashdotted
Aside from bigger servers, fatter pipes, and maybe more people reading submissions in search of articles to post, what will it bring to Slashdot? As far as I figure it will only serve to bring more accountability to the
What happens when a comment is posted that speaks negatvely of Andover?
Going further, what happens when (if) rumors start flying about Andover's future. Naturally,
I've already noticed a lack of critical articles and comments about Redhat, especially since the IPO. Prior to that, there were fears that they were attempting to dominate the Linux market and/or fragment it to their advantage (remember the fuss about Codewarrior for Redhat Linux?). Nowadays? Everything's good and well in Redhat land. Fewer and fewer articles and posts question them. Is this at all because Slashdot and more than a few readers are lovestruck by the company they now own a piece of? Maybe. Maybe not.
And what happens when shareholders expect to see revenue from
It also struck me as kind of funny that
So what now? Will we be bombarded with banners at the top of every page as well as after ever xxx comments, just to be sure to maximize exposures? Will
One plus: maybe
(It's a shame... I moderated two posts on this story, and now my points are gone!
No Comment (Score:4)
---
Me: Rob! I think we should have MetaMetaModeration for those people who unfairly MetaModerate posts...
Rob: No Comment.
Me: Hemos, I have devised a way to build miniature construction equipment from individual atoms.
Hemos: [gasp!] No Comment!
Me: Jon, I didn't like highschool. [snif]
Katz: err... ungh... erp.. NO COMMENT!!! [head explodes]
Ok, Rob, here's what you do: (Score:3)
When? (Score:1)
Oh yeah and if my eyes are OK, when is this IPO supposed to take place?
Re:How will they make money? Banner adds? (Score:2)
Besides look at Slashdot, it's an advertisers dream... a bunch of loaded techies who'll buy any gadget you stick in front of them, on a page with 500,000+ hits per day. People pay big money for that kinda exposure on there product.
-Al-
Re:IMPORTANT (Score:1)
Re:Who currently owns Andover? (Score:1)
Re:Huh? (Score:1)
Re:Boy - you guys were a cheap date (Score:2)
Friends and Family Plan. . .? (Score:1)
hey, rob. . .
how are you going to run the friends and family purchase plan?
will it be based on the user's current karma? or possibly a low user number?
i think any number
Re:ANDN vs RHAT (Score:1)
... and a Transmeta to run it on. "Comment Morphing" anyone?
Hmm, all this talk about money makes me wonder if high-karma posters should sell Adspace in their signatures?
Wired News article (Score:1)
Slashdot Enters Dutch IPO Oven [wired.com]
Re:Could have been the slashdot IPO... (Score:2)
Re:Good luck (Score:1)
Simply Senzuri
www.wrhambrecht.com slashdotted! (Score:1)
Well, anyway.. Just so I have something to say, this is not just a good thing, it's a great thing! However, the Dutch Auction of the shares I'm not so happy about. That'll run the price up way too high for any of us lowly poor people.
---
Re:A real company to invest in.... (Score:1)
This isnt meant as flaimbait. Everything commercial about linux could come crumbling down tommorow and I would still use it. But that's just me.
DejaNews was "ruined"? (Score:1)
know how to bookmark the "Power Search" page and
skip past all the drivel... yeah I see. =)
-WW
--
Re:DejaNews was "ruined"? (Score:1)
too many people sending DejaNews money for their
cool service.
2. Maybe they looked at the Lynx market-share,
and decided it was worth losing 1% of their
users (or less) in order to design the site to
appeal to the millions of people new to the net.
I believe the market for newbies is quite a bit
larger than Lynx users, so that would seem to be
a good bet.
Then again, I just use the Power Search, so I
guess I'm missing something.
-WW
--
Dutch Auction??? Oh no. (Score:2)
Slashdot? (Score:1)
-efisher
---
What does slashdot "own" .... (Score:3)
I think least there be a major misunderstanding along the lines of Yahoo/GeoCities, I would appreciate some assurance or indication of the separation between roles of the various key stakeholders.
LL
Quiet Periods (Score:2)
-cpd
Re:Do the same thing as redhat (Score:1)
Don't base it on Karma
Floris
Anonymous Coward (Score:1)
Ahh, but you can still tell us more. That is the beauty of Anonymous posting. Just don't use the commander Rob.
geach
On the original Andover deal... (Score:1)
I think that about sums it up. All we have to worry about is Rob and Jeff selling themselves to Microsoft.
[The link on the comment doesn't seem to work, but you can search for "#113"]
Re: (Score:2)
Re:No Comment (Score:1)
Correction: The exchange with Hemos might look more like this.
Me: Hemos, I have devised a way to build miniature construction equipment from individual atoms.
Hemos: [gasp!] Not Comment!
[/slashdot_humor]
So what happens now? (Score:4)
Slashdot has been my #1 favorite site for years now, and the character of its free-wheeling conversation and deep-think geek info has been the greatest part of it. I was happy for Rob and Jeff when
But with the dust yet to settle on the legal aspect of the net, I have to question whether it will have an effect on the
What happens if traffic on Slashdot decreases? Will shareholders insist on a format change to drive ad impressions up?
If stock price plummets, shareholders will eventually hold the company accountable. I do not see any way to avoid ramifications to
Moreover, neo-fascistic legislation has yet to run its course on the net. What happens when a 12 year-old's mother sees him reading Anonymous Coward flame-drivel, and sues Andover for child endangerment? (Could this bring even more moderation changes?)
In the end, though, I wish Andover the best. And I hope that when all is said and done,
Re:Please, please, please: no pop-up ads (Score:1)
My
Quux26 > Lazlo
ps - Big-ass hint to parent company...
My
Quux26
First IPOst? (Score:1)
Re:Good luck (Score:1)
But you make another good point in saying the offering company bears greater risk in an OpenIPO. In a standard IPO the underwriter bears that risk, which is theoretically why they stand to pocket the great rewards of a successful offering.
ANDN vs RHAT (Score:3)
Let's do some math here. Assume for the sake of argument that all andover.net's current revenue is from banner ads (they also expect some from software, according to the prospectus). andover.net says the sites they own currently get 40 million page views a month. Last I read, banner ad space generally was going for $20-60 CPM (cost per 1,000 page views) industrywide, as much as $100 CPM for specialty sites. Slashdot, freshmeat etc have GREAT demographics -- folks who'd run out and buy the Single-Person Air Scooter before we got to the seventh First Post on the subject. So I may be conservative in guessing they charge $50 CPM, but for the sake of argument:
$50 CPM at 40 million pageviews/month equals $2 million revenue/month or $24 million/year.
By comparison, Red Hat reported revenue of $10 million for the year ended 2/28/99.
Now in reality, andover.net reports $1.1 million revenue for the nine months ending June 30, all of it from advertising, and figures that will actually come to $1.6 million (including $215,000 for software) once the acquisitions of /. and The Animation Factory are factored in. But when was /. acquired? IOW, if we deduce that /. adds $300,000 to andover.net's bottom line for the 9 months ended June 30 and all of it in ad revenues, is that 5 day's worth of ads, a month's, or what? And the balance sheet doesn't seem to factor in FM at all.
I haven't looked much at the expense side of the picture yet but I'd think Red Hat would incur far greater R&D and tech support costs than andover.net. Although who knows what it might cost to get us to truly flawless MetaMetaMetaMetaMetaModeration? ;-)
Re:On the original Andover deal... (Score:1)
So much for the quiet period (Score:3)
In the world of the internet frenzy and the legal vultures, a lot of interesting theories have been offered, mostly because the SEC hasn't made regulation on these issues. Its generally the underwriter that enforces the "quiet period", in an effort to avoid any flaps with the SEC.
Generally, the undewriter laywers will tell you that sites that have conversation boards generally can't use them to promote the offering. Does HQ know what it going on here? I wouldn't be suprised if they shut this thread down.
Also, it's possible that the entire thread could end up in court one day in a shareholder lawsuit. Oh what fun.
I'm also interested in seeing what happens with OpenIPO. Because of the dutch auctions, the IPO is not likely to see ANY first day gains, which may be pasted in the the media as a "linux failure", since they tend not to be familiar with the OpenIPO approach
Will slashdot remain opensource? Will they start beating up anyone who makes a parody site? What about sites that have the same "trade-dress", due to use of the open source? Stock for people with high karma? Oh this is going to be fun.
Re:The glue? (Score:2)
With my current settings (highest first, nested) I rarely see the nastiness or even much cursing, especially if I wait for the article to get about halfway down the front page and the dust to settle.
I think Andover is a good buy, and they will most definitely be able to throw better parties now. My guess is that after this goes off, taco, hemos, and the gang will have a whole lot of 0s after that net worth column. Linux is hot, a lot of people are looking for the next "Big Thing", and the stock market is still strong (at least until Halloween...).
My fear is that at one of the shareholder meetings it will come up that this is an ad driven site and there's only one ad per page, go check Yahoo and count how many you see. Personally that's why I don't go there (or it's ilk), but that's why they are in the black.
So while
Why is it called a Dutch auction?? (Score:1)
Re:What does slashdot "own" .... (Score:2)
All trademarks and copyrights on this page are owned by their respective owners. Comments are owned by the Poster. The Rest © 1997-99 Andover.Net.
Andover.net == Linux/Opensource Hub? (Score:3)
I understand they're trying to work off the RHAT Linux buzz to boost their IPO price but it's still an inaccurate characterization of the company as a whole.
Boy - you guys were a cheap date (Score:5)
Acquisition of Slashdot.org. In June 1999, we acquired certain assets and
assumed certain liabilities relating to the Slashdot.org web site from
BlockStackers, Inc. for consideration consisting of a $1.5 million cash payment
made at the closing, and contingent payments of $2.0 million of stock valued at
the initial public offering price issuable upon the closing of this offering, up
to $3.5 million in cash and up to $5.0 million in stock valued at the initial
public offering price and payable during the two years following this offering.
The amount of cash and stock consideration that is contingent solely on the
continued employment of the principals of Slashdot.org in the amount of $6.3
million will be recorded as a compensation charge ratably over the period of the
payments. The amount of stock consideration that is contingent on the
achievement of performance milestones and the continued employment of the
principals of Slashdot.org will be recognized upon the achievement of these
milestones. To the extent any stock consideration is issued, we will record a
non-cash compensation charge based on the fair value of the shares issued at
such time.
A real company to invest in.... (Score:3)
Re:What does slashdot "own" .... (Score:2)
If you post something on an electronic bulletin board (be it an old-style BBS, SlashDot, or a private fee-paid system like CompuServe) you can be held liable for anything you say. So, for example, if you were to state that IBM was secretly funding the development of Little Black Helicopters for future use by U.N. shock troops, you just might hear from IBM's lawyers. (This isn't as big a deal as it sounds--in general a question cannot be libelous, so nobody can touch you if you post a message asking, "has anybody else heard rumors to the effect that IBM is secretly funding Little Black Helicopters...?" Just remember to use the question mark.)
As to the question of who owns the copyright on what you have written: this gets complicated. There generally is not a single entity that has a "copyright" on any published work. If you write a book and get it published you own the copyright (with some exceptions we'll ignore). But the publisher also has rights to the work--the publisher contributed to the work by paying editors and proofreaders, typesetters and designers, and may have paid for indexing, illustration, or photography. You own the words, but you probably do not have absolute ownership of the entire work. (About the only time you do have absolute ownership of the work is when you "publish" through a "vanity press," where you pay all the print and production costs up front.)
Similarly, SlashDot has rights to the collection of opinions expressed here. SlashDot's original contribution is the creation of software and the maintenance of hardware that permit (even encourage) the expression of ideas posted here. That, the courts have ruled, is enough to give SlashDot some rights to the aggregate collection of text that we all read. (If that sounds confusing, think of it like this: if you're thunderstruck by this comment and quote it in a research paper, you would cite me as the author, and SlashDot as the publisher.)
There is another angle to this: suppose somebody posts a comment here that is legally actionable. Can SlashDot and Andover.net be held liable for libelous (or seditious) posts that appear here.
There have been two views on this subject. The first, and the view that has prevailed in the courts, is that software-driven forums, like CompuServe (who fought all these battles in the 1980s) cannot reasonably edit messages before they appear. The volume of messages is too great, and the format of the service is such that it is obvious to any user than content is originated by specific people, not by the service provider (CompuServe). The courts (rightly) viewed CompuServe (and later AOL) as equivalent to a magazine distributor--even if the distributor carries an issue of Hustler that is later deemed to be pornographic, the distributor is free from liability. It is unreasonable to expect a magazine distributor to read every magazine in advance of placing orders--that isn't how the magazine business works. In the same way, when IBM's lawyers come looking to sue your sorry buns for those comments you made about Little Black Helicopters they will not have a claim against Rob, SlashDot, or Andover.net.
Digression:
An interesting question that has not been litigated is this: whose laws apply to content you read on SlashDot? Back in 1993 Corel bought Ventura Software from Xerox (Ventura developed Ventura Publisher, then the dominant DTP package on PCs). Ventura had a forum on CompuServe, led by a staff of volunteer sysops. Corel added a paid staffer to the sysop list. The actual physical location of the hardware was in Columbus, Ohio. All but one of the staffers lived in the United States (I was living in Japan then). But Corel is located in Ottawa, Ontario--in Canada. The legal construction is that CompuServe was the distributor, forum members were the authors, but Corel (the owner of the forum contract) was the publisher.
There was a gory murder trial in Ontario, and the judge issued a gag order prohibiting publishers from publishing anything about the trial. Canadian newspapers don't have a First Amendment to protect them, so they didn't publish a word. But the judge also required Canadian authorities to seize any newspapers or magazines coming into the country that made reference to the trial. The NY Times and Newsweek both ran articles on the trial to test this, and both publications were seized at the border and destroyed.
So, we wondered, what would happen if we discussed this on CompuServe? If I, in Japan, posted a message to user in the U.K., using hardware and software in Ohio--would the Corel staff guy in Ontario go to jail?
In less than an hour I got an email from Corel's staff attorney: "let's not find out."
Initial shares... (Score:2)
Re: .orgs and commerce (Score:2)
It seems to me the distinction between .org and .com and .net went out the window long ago.
InterNIC [networksolutions.com], in Network Solutions clothing, has been encouraging everyone to register their names inTheir "help" text says, about .org:
Note that .org is only typically used for non-profits, and is really just a kind of miscellaneous category.
Then, if you use their handy-dandy Register a Web Address form, they suggest:
Of course networksolutions is the spawn of Satan, but that's what people see- so why would it matter if a .org files for an ipo?
How will they make money? Banner adds? (Score:2)
But, how will this translate into $$ and make for a meaningfull IPO. I can't imagine selling banner adds alone will be a real revenue stream for Andover. What else do they do?
you'll never be rich, you son of a .... (Score:2)
Basically, the Dutch auction mechanism is the most efficient way to conduct IPOs, but it does have the effect that CmdrTaco, Mr. Andover et al. will be the ones making the mad phat crazy Benjamins, rather than the people buying into it.
you'll never be rich . . .
jsm
This will not change Slashdot (Score:3)
Just my