Google CEO 'proud' of auction-style IPO

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[b]Google CEO 'proud' of auction-style IPO[/b]
[font=\"Arial\"][i]The chief executive of Google said the Web search company was "proud" of its recent auction-style initial public offering, but said he did not know if it would change the way companies choose to go public in the future.[/i]

"We're very proud of it," Google CEO Eric Schmidt said at an event in San Francisco hosted by BizWorld, a program that teaches entrepreneurship to school children.

Nevertheless, Schmidt said he was not sure if Google had changed the way IPOs work--responding to an often-asked question in venture capital circles.

Prior to its IPO, Google appeared to have angered Wall Street with its decision to hold an auction that delivered half the usual fees for typical IPOs. Among other things, it also came under fire when a Playboy interview with its founders was published just ahead of the deal.

"Very unhappy people talked to the press," Schmidt said, adding that everyone who wanted shares and properly followed the auction procedure got them.

Despite the grumbling about the process, investors were well served, Schmidt said.

"In every case, these are the happiest people on the planet," he said of Google investors, who saw the stock zoom over $200 after its $85 debut.

Shares of Google closed at $179.96 on the Nasdaq on Wednesday. Some analysts believe the price could fall in mid-February, when selling restrictions lift on millions of shares held by Google employees and insiders.
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