Smart phone maker Neopoint files for IPO
By Bloomberg News
Special to CNET News.com
January 11, 2000, 4:45 p.m. PT
Neopoint, one of the pioneers in making next-generation wireless phones that can offer Internet access and other functions, filed
with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a $75 million initial public offering.
La Jolla, Calif.-based NeoPoint is among several companies ushering in a new wave of communications products that can offer
appointment scheduling and other tasks of a handheld computer, with Internet browsing and email, in addition to making phone calls.
In its IPO filing, the company said its "SmartPhones' are "among the first products to capitalize on the convergence of wireless voice and
data applications.'
The company operates myAladdin.com Smart Service, which is a scaled-down Internet portal and content provider available for wireless
carriers. The service also uses a global positioning system that can provide specific information and services based on the user's
location.
NeoPoint said it will be competing against companies such as Audiovox, Ericsson, Nokia, Qualcomm and Motorola, along with makers of
personal digital assistants like 3Com, Casio, Hewlett-Packard and Motorola.
For the nine months ending Sept. 30, 1999, the company had a net loss of $15.5 million on revenue of
$23.6 million. During the same period of 1998, the company had a net loss of $4.8 million on revenue of
$232,000.
NeoPoint said it would use the net proceeds for general corporate purposes, which could include
working capital, expansion of sales and marketing efforts, repayment of debts and possible
acquisitions, although no specific targets were mentioned in the latest filing.
NeoPoint didn't list a price for its shares or set a total number of shares to be sold to the public. That's
usually revealed in a subsequent filing. It didn't say how much a stake the parent company would own
after the shares are offered to the public.
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