jomaxx - 11:48 pm on Apr 30, 2004 (gmt 0)

Tech stocks generally pay either nothing or some microscopic dividend anyways.

As for the shares, my reading of that sentence is that only US residents will be able to participate in the auction process. I don't think this decision will "lose" them existing customers/users, but they are definitely missing out on a chance to create a buying frenzy worldwide, which would generate an incalculable amount of publicity and mindshare.