Facebook Files for IPO, Goes Public

MICHELLE PAULINO
Staff Writer

At the beginning of February, the Facebook Company filed for IPO (initial public offering), making their stocks open to purchase by the public. This is the result of the company exceeding the 500-shareholder limit for private investors, meaning that a private company must publicly release financial data once it has at least 500 shareholders, according to USA Today.
In 2011, the major corporation was reported to have taken in $3.7 billion in revenue and $1 billion in profit.
With up to 845 million users, the filing for IPO is anticipated to bring in $75 billion to $100 billion, a move predicted since the corporation began. In addition, the personal net worth of Facebook creator Mark Zuckerberg would increase to $24 billion, according to Washington Post.
In terms of how it affects the social networking giant, the site is subject to conform to financial regulations and policies. Under the new IPO, quarterly financial reports, internal transactions and balance sheets are open to review by public investors.
There have been speculations about possible fundamental changes, such as paid membership, but they remain unconfirmed. The effects are also not guaranteed to take place immediately but gradually over the course of a few weeks.
According to the associate director of the El Paso Finance Center at the Jones Graduate School of Business at Rice University, the anticipated changes are not to be drastic. User recommendations include adjusting privacy and permission settings accordingly and remaining cautious while managing social networks.
“If it gives out information […] personal to us, then it [would] be bad. We shouldn’t complain since they’re not making us use Facebook—we choose to[.] We can always switch to [another social networking site],” sophomore Larson Chang said.
Since social networking is intended for public use, many users are fully conscious of this fact and remain mindful of their decision to use Facebook.
“As a Facebook user, [since] my information can be released somehow without me knowing [is concerning] because I’m a minor. It has already affected the general format, for example, the timeline feature with its more personalized approach,” junior Chelsea Ty said.
With the new movement taking effect, it seems users still hold onto previous concerns regarding privacy within social networks.
“Facebook isn’t private. They’re already able to access everything you have [posted]. If you put [pictures or information] on Facebook, then it’s probably not something that’s going to stay private for long,” sophomore Ximena Araujo said.
While some users trust in Facebook’s privacy policies, others remain adamant in its lack of privacy.