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Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) calling company Vonage Holdings Corp. is reportedly putting the finishing touches on a plan to go public, a move that could help it raise as much as US$600 million in cash as it girds for battle with a slew of competitors. The Daily Deal and the Wall Street Journal reported that Vonage has already raised some $400 million in venture capital and believes the time is right for the company to go public.
Re: Vonage Reportedly Eyeing $600 Million IPO
Posted by: VoIPAction 2005-08-25 15:08:44 In reply to: Keith Regan
Have you seen this:
Vonage: It’s Our Way Or the Highway, 'MCN’
By Ted Hearn EdHearn@aol.com
Vonage Holdings Corp. is making a fuss these days about phone and cable companies blocking its voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP) service. The Federal Communications Commission has fined one small telco, but so far no action has been taken against a cable company.
Less well-publicized is Vonage’s policy of blocking reporters with the temerity to pose “inappropriate” questions to Vonage CEO Jeffrey Citron. Several months ago (we don’t remember the exact date) — at a Washington D.C., telecom forum at which Citron was a panelist — a reporter from MCN stood up and asked Citron about his history with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and its potential impact on Vonage’s future, operational and commercial. Citron brushed off the question.
Some background: A decade ago, Citron was CEO of Datek Online Holdings, an electronic stock-trading service for individual investors. The SEC investigated Citron and other Datek officials for stock manipulation in order to make themselves millions of dollars.
In 2003, the SEC fined Citron $22.5 million, one of the largest in SEC history, according to The New York Times. Citron was forced to resign from Datek and banned from the securities industry, though he admitted no wrongdoing.
Vonage spokeswoman Brooke Schulz said she isn’t talking to the Multichannel News reporter now “because [he] asked a question that was inappropriate of our CEO a while ago.”
Why was the question inappropriate? “[He] asked him about his background at a conference that was inappropriate and not well suited to the fora [sic],” she added.
Evidently, Citron himself imposed the ban. “It came down from on high that we are not allowed to talk to [him] anymore,” she said. When might Vonage end the boycott? “It’s a decision that’s constantly up for review, but not at this time,” Schulz said.
Bottom line: It’s inappropriate to block Vonage, but totally appropriate for Vonage to block a reporter who isn’t a Citron hagiographer.
Vonage: It’s Our Way Or the Highway, 'MCN’
By Ted Hearn EdHearn@aol.com
Vonage Holdings Corp. is making a fuss these days about phone and cable companies blocking its voice-over-Internet protocol (VoIP) service. The Federal Communications Commission has fined one small telco, but so far no action has been taken against a cable company.
Less well-publicized is Vonage’s policy of blocking reporters with the temerity to pose “inappropriate” questions to Vonage CEO Jeffrey Citron. Several months ago (we don’t remember the exact date) — at a Washington D.C., telecom forum at which Citron was a panelist — a reporter from MCN stood up and asked Citron about his history with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, and its potential impact on Vonage’s future, operational and commercial. Citron brushed off the question.
Some background: A decade ago, Citron was CEO of Datek Online Holdings, an electronic stock-trading service for individual investors. The SEC investigated Citron and other Datek officials for stock manipulation in order to make themselves millions of dollars.
In 2003, the SEC fined Citron $22.5 million, one of the largest in SEC history, according to The New York Times. Citron was forced to resign from Datek and banned from the securities industry, though he admitted no wrongdoing.
Vonage spokeswoman Brooke Schulz said she isn’t talking to the Multichannel News reporter now “because [he] asked a question that was inappropriate of our CEO a while ago.”
Why was the question inappropriate? “[He] asked him about his background at a conference that was inappropriate and not well suited to the fora [sic],” she added.
Evidently, Citron himself imposed the ban. “It came down from on high that we are not allowed to talk to [him] anymore,” she said. When might Vonage end the boycott? “It’s a decision that’s constantly up for review, but not at this time,” Schulz said.
Bottom line: It’s inappropriate to block Vonage, but totally appropriate for Vonage to block a reporter who isn’t a Citron hagiographer.
