IP: @HOME'S NEW IPO: WILL INVESTORS RIP THE BAGS OPEN?

[David Farber <farber () cis upenn edu>]

@HOME'S NEW IPO:  WILL INVESTORS RIP THE BAGS OPEN?
An initial public offering of stock in the company @Home, Inc. for $7 a
share will the latest test of investor interest in Internet-focused
companies.  @Home provides high-speed Internet access and a package of
content via cable modems. When the company was founded in 1996, venture
capitalist John Doerr said optimistically:  ``It's not a matter of `Will
the dogs eat the dog food?' They're ripping the bags open.''  But the
company has accumulated a deficit of $38 million, and the new prospectus
says that @Home ``expects to incur additional substantial operating and net
losses for the foreseeable future.''  (San Jose Mercury News Center 1