14 May 2012Audrey Scarff

Anyone who has their eyes on the markets is eagerly awaiting the $100 billion Facebook IPO.  Will Facebook live up to the hype?  Will Mark Zuckerberg turn into Rupert Murdoch?  Will businesses that are riding its coattails benefit as much as they expect?  A new book from Reuters Breakingviews gives investors clear insight into why Zuckerberg’s dorm room creation may be a game-changer, but a risky investment.

“Facebook: A Like Story – Why Investors Shouldn’t Fall in Love” is a compilation of two dozen columns that illustrates “Facebook’s trajectory and increasing importance – from a site used by college students to a business approaching a billion users and potentially worth more than $100 billion.” Breakingviews has led the agenda on Facebook’s story since the beginning, writing its first piece when the social network had just 9 million collegiate users.

The Breakingviews ebook hits on three important themes:

• Valuation: The social network is aiming for an IPO at $28-$35 a share, for a value of up to $95 billion. But as a Breakingviews analysis shows, sanity resides at the low end of the valuation scale.

• Governance: It could take decades or only a few years but the overwhelming control investors are ceding to the 27-year-old Facebook founder will eventually cease to be in their best interest.

• Dependence: It’s not just social networking junkies that are hooked on the firm. Businesses such as Zynga have been created on its back. Bankers are pegging their careers on floating the firm. And California needs the impending IPO to help close its yawning budget gap.

For the first time, customers can buy the Breakingviews ebook for their iPad, Kindle or Nook. Give it a read and let us know what you think…