SPA OFFERS HIGH-TECH COMPANIES ADVICE ON HOW TO SUCCESSFULLY BRING A
COMPANY PUBLIC

APRIL 24, 1995, (Washington, D.C.) - "We went public, but we weren't
ready," said one former marketing director. "The company went under about
10 months after the IPO." Companies like this one would have benefited
from the new "Investor Relations Handbook: An Introduction to Initial
Public Offerings and Mergers and Acquisitions," published by the Software
Publishers Association's (SPA) Public Relations Special Interest Group (PR
SIG). This guide details the steps of an initial public offering (IPO) and
provides tips to get the most money and exposure for your company during
an IPO, merger or acquisition.

Targeting the public relations professional in a high-tech business, this
easy-to-follow guidebook concentrates on how public relations - or its
role in a company's structure - is likely to change during an IPO, merger
or acquisition. Intended as an introduction to the concept of public
ownership, the "Investor Relations Handbook" includes topics such as
reasons to go public, working with the SEC, the shareholders' role and
investor relations vs. public relations. It also includes a glossary of
terms, collection of financial Web sites, commercial online services,
investment and business statistic news groups and a bibliography of
related books and periodicals.

"The public considers technology hot, and the industry is responding with
IPOs. The 'Investor Relations Handbook' is an excellent tool for public
relations and investor relations professionals in our industry whose
companies are changing from a privately held to a publicly traded
company," said SPA President Ken Wasch. "Over the last decade, several SPA
member companies have gone public, and the PR SIG has put a tremendous
amount of effort into addressing this in the handbook," said Wasch.

"Investor Relations Handbook: An Introduction to Initial Public Offerings
and Mergers and Acquisitions" is free to SPA PR SIG members, $99 for SPA
members and $150 for SPA nonmembers. To order the publication, contact
Sandy Meadows at smeadows@spa.org or (202) 452-1600. SPA's focus is on
companies developing and publishing software applications and interactive
content. SPA is the leading trade association of the desktop software
industry, representing the leading publishers as well as many start-up
firms in the business, consumer and education markets. Its 1,200 members
account for 90 percent of the sales of the U.S. packaged software
industry. SPA is an international organization with offices both in the
United States and Europe. SPA press releases are also available through
Fax-on-Demand at (800) 637-6823.

An Introduction to Initial Public Offerings and Mergers and Acquisitions

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 1. Introduction
 2. Why Does a Company Go Public?
 3. In the Grip of the Regulators
 4. The Need for an Investor Relations Department
 5. A Quick Course in Corporate Finance
 6. The Initial Public Offering
 7. The Investor Relations Department's Basic Goals
 8. About the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission
 9. The Importance of a Corporate Disclosure Policy
 10. Going High Tech: Electronic Communication
 11. Glossary
 12. Bibliography
 13. Resources

Software Publishers Association
1730 M St, Northwest, Suite 700, Washington, D.C. 20036
202-452-1600,  Fax: 202-223-8756
 
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