Wednesday, August 11, 2004, 03:00 pm

iPod chipmaker to go public

By AppleInsider Staff

PortalPlayer, the Silicon Valley company whose chip powers the iPod, is looking to play its tune for Wall Street, according to CNet's News.com.

The company took the first step toward an initial public offering last week, filing registration papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Although it did not say how many shares it expects to sell, Portable Player hopes to raise over $75 million in the offering.

According to CNet, a major challenge for the company in going public is that its fortunes are largely tied to Apple's iPod digital music player.

"Although PortalPlayer's software and chips go in players from companies such as Aiwa, Philips, Rio and Samsung, the overwhelming majority of its business comes from the iPod, with roughly 85 percent of last year's sales stemming from the iPod."

PortalPlayer's staff of 134 designs but does not actually manufacture its chips. In the filing, PortalPlayer claims that it is actively trying to diversify its business.