Launch Ties Growth Plans to IPO

Launch Media, a Santa Monica company that produces a Web site and CD-ROM magazine about new music, filed papers last week to raise as much as $40.25 million in an initial public offering. Launch said it would use the proceeds to attract a larger audience, boost sales and marketing, and develop new technology and content. The company, which targets 12- to 34-year-olds, has 275,000 magazine subscribers and reached 849,000 Web surfers in December, according to Media Metrix. In 1998, Launch took in $5 million in revenue but had a net loss of $13.4 million, according to the SB-2 filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company said it expects to lose money for at least another year. The stock will trade on Nasdaq under the ticker symbol LAUN.