The online gaming company Zynga is close to an IPO!

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Zynga is preparing for an initial public offering, and a filing could come as early as next week, according to those with knowledge of the company's plans.

The creator of the -Ville online game franchise will make its public debut in a fast-thawing tech IPO market.

"I think Zynga has had this in the works for many months," says Nitsan Hargil, director of research at GreenCrest Capital. Two other sources confirmed that the IPO filing is coming soon. It will offer the first public look at the four-year-old company's finances.

Hargil estimates that Zynga is worth $14.5 billion. The company has seen massive success with FarmVille, FishVille, Mafia Wars and many other games on Facebook.

"They will not just be just a little profitable," Hargil said. "They will be profitable in a very big way."

That would set Zynga apart from the other splashy tech startups that have debuted this year.

LinkedIn, which went public last month, revealed that it earned just $15 million in 2010. Prior to that, LinkedIn was in the red every year since its 2003 inception -- except for a slight profit in 2006.

Groupon's river of red ink is even deeper. Groupon filed for its IPO on Thursday, revealing that it lost $413 million in 2010 and lost almost $114 million in the first quarter of 2011.

Investors seem to shrug off those figures, thanks to pent-up demand for tech IPOs. LinkedIn (LNKD) shares more than doubled in its debut, leaving the site with a $9 billion valuation. Trading has leveled off a bit since then but shares are still going for well above LinkedIn's $45 IPO price.

How Zynga makes money: Zynga could be even more successful, Hargil said, as it's "in a completely different category" than most of its peers. He estimates that the company pulls in a whopping $17 million in free cash flow per month.

"This is one of the fastest growing companies in history, in any sector," Hargil said. "Zynga is not your standard Internet bubble company. Not many four-year-old firms have great revenue, growth, and margins."

Hargil estimated that Zynga gets about 80% of its revenue from just 3% of its users paying real money for virtual goods, like tractors and animals for their online farms.

The other 20% comes from unique forms of advertising, he said -- like Starbucks (SBUX, Fortune 500) paying to have a virtual coffee shop in CityVille. Users might have to visit that virtual store 10 times in order to build a Starbucks franchise in their own virtual cities.

"It's a lot of clever methods that require constant interaction from the user," Hargil said. "It's much more powerful than traditional banner ads. It's very smart."

Overcoming a spammy past: These "smart" business methods are a far cry from Zynga's past, in which it resorted to spammy and scammy tactics to gain new gamers and monetize existing ones.

Facebook users became so frustrated with Zynga notifications clogging up their newsfeeds and dashboards that Facebook decided to expressly prohibit the practice. Existing Zynga users found themselves flooded with offers to try shady third-party "partner services."

"Zynga did resort to questionable methods," Hargil said. "They were using those very successfully to become a profitable company before they raised a single venture capital dollar."

Zynga has worked to distance itself from that "questionable" past, and they've made lots of moves to make the company more attractive ahead of the IPO -- including raising a reported $500 million in a funding round earlier this year.

"Showing the market that you don't need money is the best way to get more money," Hargil said. "Zynga is going to play this game to its every advantage."

Article provided by CNN MONEY

THIS GUY HAS MY MACBOOK!!!!!!!!!!!!

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(CNN) -- When Joshua Kaufman returned home March 21 to find his Oakland, California, apartment burglarized, he probably never imagined he'd see his stolen MacBook laptop again.

But technology came to the rescue. A trail of digital clues, including photos recorded by the camera on Kaufman's stolen laptop and posted by him on the Internet, helped police crack the case, ending a 10-week saga that became a Web sensation.

On Wednesday, Kaufman got his computer back.

"It was a relief that all my effort paid off," the digital designer told CNN Thursday. "I was excited that it worked."

It all started after Kaufman discovered the burglary and filed a report with the Oakland police. Then he began to gather information about his stolen MacBook using theft-tracking software called Hidden, which uses the laptop's webcam and other tools to surreptitiously capture photos and screen shots of the computer in use.
Tracking app helps catch suspected thief

What he discovered was startling: Photos of an unidentified man using his computer. Several grainy images showed the man staring into the laptop. Another photo showed him asleep on his couch.

Over the ensuing weeks the security software showed Kaufman some 500 images taken from his computer. Screen shots also revealed someone deleting Kaufman's Apple account and logging into Google.

"I was amazed and impressed that it (the software) was working. I never really tested it out, so I didn't know if it was going to work or not," Kaufman said. At the same time, he said, "I was thinking, 'This sucks. Someone has my computer and is viewing my stuff, and there's nothing I can do about it.' "

Kaufman went to an Oakland police investigator with the information, but the detective didn't follow up, he said.

"His first response was, 'I hate to be the one to tell you this, but we don't have the resources to deal with this right now. We're just too busy.' "

So on May 27, Kaufman created a Tumblr blog, This Guy Has My MacBook, and posted some of the photos there, and on his Twitter account.

"I set up the blog because I was frustrated and I wanted my story to get some more media attention [to get the police to act]," he said.

"Within hours it had thousands of tweets and thousand of likes from Facebook."

From there the media picked up the story. On Tuesday Kaufman said he got a call from an Oakland police spokesperson, who told him investigators would be following up on his case immediately.

"Thanks to the power of the Internet, I have the attention of the Oakland police, who are tracking this guy down RIGHT NOW!" he posted that evening.

Later that night, Oakland police arrested limo driver Muthanna Aldebashi, 27, of Oakland. Kaufman believes the key piece of evidence was Aldebashi's Gmail address, which pointed to his employer, a limo company in nearby Berkeley, California.
Joshua Kaufman, right, gets his stolen laptop back on Wednesday from the Oakland police.

Police recovered Kaufman's laptop Tuesday night from Aldebashi's home and returned it to him on Wednesday morning, he said. Kaufman said he's not convinced that Aldebashi was the burglar, however.

"I don't think he burglarized my house. I think he bought it off the street from someone who needed some fast cash," he said.

Aldebashi told investigators the computer was a gift from a relative, according to a story in Thursday's Oakland Tribune.

Aldebashi was being held Thursday evening on $20,000 bail in the Alameda County Jail and was scheduled to be arraigned Friday on charges of receiving known stolen property, according to the Alameda County Sheriff's website.

As for Kaufman, he has fielded more than 50 interview requests and gained more than 5,000 followers on Twitter. He's also been marveling at the power of technology to help solve a crime.

"I think it's fantastic that these tools are available, and there's no reason not to install it on your laptops -- unless you're really creeped out by the privacy implications."

CNN's Dan Simon Contributed to this report.

Groupon is going PUBLIC: Latest IPO news!!!

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Coupon website Groupon Inc. filed Thursday to go public, looking to raise up to $750 million, in what would be one of this year's most high-profile initial public offerings.

Groupon filed on Thursday to go public, looking to raise up to $750 million, in what would be one of this year's most high-profile IPOs. Anupreeta Das and Rolfe Winkler discuss.

Morgan Stanley, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Credit Suisse are the lead underwriters for the IPO of the Internet company, which sells coupons for discounted goods and services from local merchants.

Groupon had $644.7 million in revenue for the first quarter of 2011, up from $3.3 million in the second quarter of 2009 and $44.2 million in the first quarter of 2010. But it lost $102.7 million in the most recent quarter as it spent heavily on marketing and its expanding sales force.

Founded in November 2008, the Chicago-company rebuffed a $6 billion takeover offer from Google Inc. last year and instead sought to pursue a public offering.

Groupon CEO Andrew Mason took the stage at D9 today to talk about Google, clones, margins and what makes his face look fat, but he wouldn't talk seriously about an IPO.

Groupon's revenue has surged, as millions of people purchased coupons on everything from pedicures to horseback-riding lessons. Its full-year revenue of $713.3 million for 2010 nearly compares with the $644.7 million it reported just for the first quarter of 2011.

The company, which has deals with nearly 57,000 local merchants in 43 countries and takes a cut from each sale, had sold 28.1 million "Groupons" at the end of March 2011.

Groupon employed more than 7,000 people as of the end of the first quarter—many of them salespeople who hunt down tie-ups with merchants.

The company plans to trade under the symbol "GRPN." Groupon plans to use the proceeds from the IPO for general corporate purposes, including acquisitions.

The Groupon filing comes about two weeks after professional network LinkedIn Corp. went public on May 19 at $45 a share. The stock soared to over $100 and settled at $94 on the first day, which valued the company at a whopping $9 billion. On Thursday, LinkedIn shares traded around $79, giving it a market capitalization of about $7.5 billion.
IPO Booms and Busts

Take a look at how the stocks of some high-flying internet firms fared in the first year after their IPO. Values are percent change from price at closing on the day of the IPO.

The ballooning valuations of these social media companies has caused some observers to question whether there is a bubble in the works.

Online and mobile gaming firm Zynga Inc., which could have a valuation of around $10 billion, may file for an IPO at the end of this month, according to people familiar with the matter.

Groupon has investments from venture capital firms such as Lightbank, Andreessen Horowitz and Battery Ventures, as well as Russian Internet investment firm Digital Sky Technologies.

Written by ANUPREETA DAS And GINA CHON of Wall Street Journal

Wealth Is Made By Focusing In Stocks

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Anyone who has flicked through the financial channels on their cable TV box without really stopping to listen to what is being said will probably be occasionally confused by references to “bulls” and “bears”. These terms are common parlance in trading situations, and can be heard or read in any market analysis if you stay tuned long enough. They are not references to sports teams, nor to a traveling zoo visiting a trading floor, but rather to styles of market.

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A “bull” market is, in short, a market on the rise. It is characterised by a great deal of investor confidence, which can carry on for an indefinite period of time. When a currency breaks its resistance level, it is expected to continue rising, to move with a singularity of purpose. This is much like the way a bull is characterised. Additionally, it triggers herd behavior, as more and more investors will join in and invest more. The term “bull market” is therefore a good definition of a market behaving confidently.

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“Bear” markets, on the other hand, are the exact opposite of bulls. Where prices fall and the investor mood is negative, the support level may be broken and the price will continue to fall. The most common explanation for the terminology here is that when a bear attacks its prey, it tends to do so by striking downwards. For a true bear market to be declared, a majority of currencies need to fall, however a single currency can be described as behaving “bearishly”.

Shaquille O'neal Retires via Video Feed and Tweet.

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Via the Huffington Post:

Shaquille O'Neal announced on Twitter that he is retiring after 19 seasons in the NBA.

"We did it. 19 years baby. I want to thank you very much," O'Neal said in a video posted on his Twitter account. "That's why I'm telling you first. I'm about to retire. Love you. Talk to you soon."

Click HERE to watch the video of O'Neal announcing his retirement.

O'Neal was selected with the first overall pick by the Orlando Magic in the 1992 draft.

The 39-year-old won three NBA titles with the Los Angeles Lakers and one with the Miami Heat. He also played for the Phoenix Suns, Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics.

Story developing..

Cell Phones may need CANCER WARNING!!!!

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By now you may have heard that cell phones are "possibly carcinogenic to humans." That's according to the World Health Organization and something some scientists have suspected for a while. But now that it's coming from the WHO, those who have questioned the safety of cell phones have significant international support.

But why "possibly"? What is that supposed to mean? The latest judgment from the WHO sounds a little wishy-washy, and that's because of the inconclusive nature of the scientific studies on this subject.


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The available research on the health effects of cell phone is retrospective. That means scientists are looking into the past at the association between people's behavior and brain health, rather than designing an experiment that will require a controlled setting. Researchers can't control retrospectively how much any individual uses a cell phone, or regulate other environmental factors that might be detrimental to brain health, or even know how far away from the head different people hold their cell phones. Remember that the amount of radiation you receive is related to distance-squared from the source, so the further away your phone is physically, the safer you would be.

In a closer-to-ideal experiment regarding cell phone use, scientists would be able to monitor exact cellphone use of particular users over a given time period under controlled conditions, and track their health as well. That would be a prospective study. They would look at particular groups of users - those with high, medium and low usage - and compare health effects. They would know who has what kind of phone, make sure that person kept the same phone during the entire duration of the experiment, and figure out a way to standardize the phone's distance from the head.


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The Interphone study, the largest scientific look at the cell phone health question to date, is a retrospective study. It also is partly industry-funded, and while the WHO's International Agency for Research on Cancer coordinates it, several researchers who analyze the data receive money from the mobile phone industry.

In May 2010, Interphone published results indicating no connection between cancer and phones. But it defined "highest" exposure levels as using a mobile phone half an hour a day over a 10-year period. In the appendix of the study, published only online, the risk of developing a glioma brain tumor about doubles if you are using a cell phone over a 10-year period.

In general, the Interphone study has many flaws. Among them, participants self-reported how much they used their phones, and memory isn't always accurate. Also, Interphone does not include children and young adults, who could be at increased risk of brain disease from cell phone radiation. Interphone also fails to address cordless phone use. But the bottom line is that while it doesn't prove with absolute certainty that anything causes anything, it is still a reason to pause and think about your cell phone use.

Also, in February, a National Institutes of Health study found that cell phone use is associated with increased brain cell activity, although no one really knows what that means for longterm health.

As you can see, there are a lot of different factors involved here, and it's hard to know what to make of this data. CNN's own Dr. Sanjay Gupta says he uses a wired earpiece when talking on a cell phone. If you are concerned about cell phone safety, continue to check in with CNNHealth.com and "The Chart" for the latest reporting on medical and scientific studies and keep in mind, if leading neurosurgeons are using wired ear pieces, it may be a good idea to do the same. Here are some tips for minimizing cell phone radiation.

Written By: Elizabeth Landau of CNN.com

Atlanta Braves Memorial Day Evaluation 2011

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Despite the Braves plethora of soft bats this year they’ve maintained their competitiveness in the National League East. Though we are only in June and the final standings are months away, this time a year is a traditional benchmark for evaluating a clubs strengths and weaknesses.

Despite Roger McDowell’s suspension and injuries to Brandon Beachy and Tim Hudson, the Braves have maintain one of the strongest if not best rotations in all of baseball. Currently the rotation ranks 2nd in overall ERA, 1st in WHIP, 1st in BAA, and 6th in quality starts. The Braves currently have three pitchers within the NL’s top ten WHIP percentages (Hudson 1.10, Hanson 1.07, Jurrjens 1.02) and also have two of the lowest ERA’s in the game with Jurrjens leading the NL and Hanson in the top ten. In addition to Jurrjens Cy Young start and Hanson’s 65 Strikeouts the Braves have the luxury of great pitching depth filling the holes as guys like Beachy and Hudson work out their bumps and bruises. Earlier this year the Braves showcased their young depth by giving spot starts to two of their future stars Julio Teheran and Mike Minor. Neither blew the socks off anyone but both showed glimpses of their ability and justified the hype and expectations the Braves have for them. With Lowe, Hudson, Hanson, Jurrjens, Beachy, Minor, and Teheran the Braves are poised to compete all year with the Phillies self proclaimed best rotation in MLB history.

If you haven’t already heard, the Braves bullpen has bee lights out all year! Even with Moylan out with back surgery the Braves currently have the second lowest ERA of any bullpen in all of baseball. They also sport 16 saves (5th best in MLB), allowed 49 earned runs (3rd lowest in MLB), and accumulated 173 strikeouts (1st in MLB). To top it off they’ve held opponent’s batting averages lower than any other pen in all of baseball (.208 BAA). Kimbrel, Venters, and O’Flaherty have been superb and Sherrill, Gearrin, and Martinez have shown strong performances that have made an already good bullpen a great one. The weakest link seems to be Linebrink but he seems to have taken a mentor role for our young guns and those stats aren’t present on scorecards. Furthermore, to make the cake even sweeter Kris Medlan is ahead of schedule from his Tommy John Surgery PT. Medlan wasn’t expected back until August but he is currently throwing curve balls and live pitching making his return more likely to occur in July. Kris won’t shake the world with his return but he could prove very valuable out of the pen or as an occasional spot start during a September run or October series.

Every Yin has its Yang and the Braves are no exception. As great as the overall pitching has been the Braves have struggled with hitting in almost category. Atlanta currently ranks in the bottom half of the league in Runs, Batting Average, On Base Percentage, and Slugging. What’s worse is that major contributors of the team are struggling the most. Dan Uggla’s .178 BA, .246 OBP, and .586 OPS are well documented but to add further insult to injury others such as Chipper and Jey Hey are struggling to boot. Simply put, Chipper is getting older everyday. Atlanta's savior Heyward is batting an abysmal .218 and has a very mediocre OBP of .317. McLouth is quite frankly becoming consistently mediocre at best. He has glimpses of Pittsburgh Nate but he offers little more than filling a position for the Braves at this point. McLouth’s injury and Schafers call up could prove to be a significant moment in the Braves immediate and long-term future. Schafer is no longer a top prospect but his defense and speed alone seems more valuable when compared to McLouths’s overall production. However, I’ll leave the Schafer discussion for another day. Back to the point, if Uggla, Chipper, Heyward, and McLouth continue to give mediocre performances the Braves may falter in the NL east. Despite superb pitching, Atlanta is unlikely to repeat the Giant's fairy tale title run (Good Pitching + Inconsistent Hitting= 2010 World Series Title).

Finally, Freddi Gonzalez has maintained the course quite well to date. Despite following in the footsteps of one of the greatest managers in the history of baseball he has done so with relative ease. His bullpen management has been questionable at times but overall he has done an outstanding job. He has a top rotation and young outstanding bullpen. He has a horrendous bench and a lineup of 5-8 hitters spread out from 1-9 and he is still managing enough runs to win games. If he focuses on improving our bats and base running he could very well lead the Braves to the playoffs and find himself in the manager of the year conversation.

Overall, the Braves are doing quite well despite the lack of hitting. They are currently 4.5 games back of Philly in the NL East standings and 1 game out of the wild card. They have the 5th highest run differential in the MLB behind only the Yankees, Phillies, St. Louis, and the Indians. Yes, despite horrendous hitting Atlanta has one of the top run differentials in the game. June is a benchmark for evaluating a club and if Frank Wren is taking an honest look he realizes he needs a deeper bench and bats to heat up. If Wren and Gonzalez focus on hitting and strengthening the bench, either internal or externally, then the Braves are one of the top teams in all of baseball.

Written by: Daniel C Wilson
Sources: ESPN.com