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by amattn 5208 days ago
It is very, very common to wait until just before an IPO to sue. The strategy is that the defendant will be more willing to settle just to get the lawsuit off the books before the IPO. It usually works against smaller companies.

Google was the recipient of borderline frivolous legal action just before the IPO, but Google didn't bite. In the case of Facebook, I don't expect anything to be resolved pre-IPO, as Facebook has the momentum to deflect nearly anything at this point.
1 comments
MobWalk 5208 days ago
What's really irritating is that it was Yahoo who sued Google before their IPO. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

I don't think Facebook is going to stand for this. Obviously, I don't have access to Yahoo's patent portfolios, but it just seems frivolous. If they actually had a case it seems they would've sued a long time ago.

And Google did bite. I read they gave up some 2.7 million shares to Yahoo. It worked once for them, so it looks like they're trying it again.

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dodedo 5208 days ago
No, this is not accurate.

Overture sued Google in 2002. Yahoo bought Overture in 2003, at which point Google settled. Google's IPO was in 2004.

Yahoo did not initiate the lawsuit against Google, and it was two years prior to their IPO.

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