MANAMA, 28 November 2004 — PortalPlayer Inc., an investment part-owned by the global investment group Investcorp and its investors in the region, has announced its initial public offering of 6,250,000 shares of its common stock at $17 per share. PortalPlayer’s common stock will be traded on the NASDAQ National Market in the United States under the symbol “PLAY.”
PortalPlayer Inc., based in California, is the leading provider of the core technologies behind the new generation of consumer electronics devices, in particular the personal media players that capture, store, play back and display music, photos, images and video.
A record of successful exits has underlined the success of Investcorp’s unique investment strategy in the technology area. The firm has returned to its investors in the Gulf $53.1 million to date in net proceeds from the realizations of its Technology Ventures Fund I, which was launched in the last quarter of 2001. Its most recent technology exits were Willtek, a German-based leading developer of test equipment for the wireless communications industry, and Spectel, the world’s largest independent provider of teleconferencing equipment to corporations and teleconferencing service providers, based in Ireland.
Head of Investcorp’s technology investment business Savio Tung, who recently toured the Gulf region to market Investcorp’s second technology fund, explained that the strategy over the past three years had been to undertake venture buyouts of small spin-offs and subsidiaries of major telecom and technology conglomerates, as well as to make selective investments in young technology startups.
“This focused investment strategy has allowed us to generate highly attractive returns for our fund investors that position us in the top 10 percent of comparable technology funds,” he said.
“We fund business growth in later stage IT companies in North America and Western Europe. These are usually private businesses that are active in one of four areas: Wireless data, software, infrastructure or digital content. They must demonstrate strong prospects for sustainable competitive advantage and long-term profitability by having solid business fundamentals, experienced and motivated management teams and products and services that are innovative and leading edge. Adding value is achieved through the active contribution of our technology investment team, typically through board representation.”
By the end of 2004, Investcorp expects to have returned approximately $75 million in net proceeds returned to investors, representing 36 percent of committed and 51 percent of invested capital in Technology Ventures Fund I. The firm is currently taking subscriptions for Technology Ventures Fund II.
Gary Long, chief operating officer of Investcorp commented: “Our offer for our second technology ventures fund will close at the end of this month, after which the team will begin its investments in new technology firms in the US and Europe, selected to continue delivering the returns benchmarked by the achievements established by the first fund”.
Investcorp is a global investment group with offices in Bahrain, London and New York. It was established in 1982 and has since completed transactions with an aggregate value exceeding $25 billion.