LinkedIn valued at over $3bn as IPO plans are revealed

LinkedIn plans to sell 7.84 million shares at $32 to $35 each in an initial public offering (IPO), valuing the professional social network at over $3bn, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday.

LinkedIn will be the first social network to go for an IPO, ahead of the anticipated Facebook IPO which industry watchers believe is coming next year.

Twitter has also spoken of plans to approach the stock market for funding if the site fails to generate sufficient revenue this year.

LinkedIn announced its IPO intentions in January but has only just revealed the number of shares and the price range.

The firm said previously that the net proceeds will help fund existing operations and expand the business, specifically in the areas of product development and field sales operations.

LinkedIn has more than 100 million members and operates in more than 200 countries, having reached the milestones just eight years after launch. More than half of its members come from outside the US.

However, as with other social networking sites, LinkedIn's popularity has led to security problems, experts warning of malware as well as spam.

It has also been argued that LinkedIn provides scammers with a goldmine of information with which to target specific members of an organisation with social engineering techniques.

LinkedIn posted 2010 revenues of $161m, up from $80m in 2009.