As well all know, the dot-com burst was all about crazy valuations and IPOs of web businesses with no business models behind them. Ma and Pa investors got burnt and a decade on the viability of IPOs in general are still being affected.
So it was cool to see that Rackspace, the Texan (where even Data-centres are bigger than Texas) data centre business is embarking on an IPO – selling 15 million shares at $12.50 each. Rackspace is a good solid profitable business from all accounts, and this IPO is apparently designed to bring in some capital to fund some investment in hardware – designed to make Rackspace more competitive in the cloud-computing environment.
Update – yes I know the Rackspace shares have drpped since listing – but give them time…..
Ben Kepes is an analyst, an entrepreneur, a commentator and a business adviser. His business interests include a diverse range of industries from manufacturing to property to technology. As a technology commentator he has a broad presence both in the traditional media and extensively online. Ben covers the convergance of technology, mobile, ubiquity and agility, all enabled by the Cloud. His areas of interest extend to enterprise software, software integration, financial/accounting software, platforms and infrastructure as well as articulating technology simply for everyday users. 