Two months from now, when your stockbroker calls to get you in on a "hot new IPO called Vringo," throw down the phone and run away screaming.

A "video ringtone company" with no profits and just $36,000 in revenue, Vringo just filed for an IPO. This, hands down, is the joke of the week.

Since its founding four years ago, Vringo has raised $17.5 million...and spent $18.04 million.

And what does it have to show for this monstrous incineration of shareholder capital?

$36,000 of 2009 revenue.

That's thousands, not millions. (True, it's only the first three quarters of the year. So if the company booked a good Q4, it might crack $50k for the year).

Meanwhile, Vringo burned $4 million, or about $500,000 a month.

So why on earth is it trying to go public? (Emphasis on trying. There's almost no chance this thing will get out. Who would be dumb enough to buy it?)

It's trying to go public, presumably, because its existing investors are tired of pouring millions of dollars down a rat hole. Vringo just received a $3 million bridge loan, presumably to carry it through to the IPO. After which, its existing investors will be the ones running away screaming.

Private equity group Warburg Pincus owns 31% of the company. Some astute folks work at Warburg, so we suspect the investment hasn't quite worked out the way they planned.

Vringo doesn't have a business right now (ergo, $36,000 of revenue), but it plans to have one eventually--by charging a monthly fee to users to access its video ringtone service. It will also charge for premium content. It allows users to make and download video ringtones.

In other words, Vringo doesn't do anything right now except burn money. But it might do something in the future.

Here are the gruesome specifics from the S1.

By the way, you might reasonably ask, who's underwriting this disaster?

ANSWER: The Maxim Group.

Ever heard of them?

We have.


Because they're the ones who tried to underwrite the last candidate for worst IPO ever: A New Jersey-based "search engine" called "Accoona."

When Accoona filed its IPO prospectus, back in 2007, we had a similar reaction (See: " Accoona Files $81 Million IPO: Run Away Screaming").

A couple of months later, thankfully, underwriter Maxim thought better of the idea and pulled the prospectus. Then Accoona slunk away and died.

We expect Vringo to go the same route.

See Also: 15 Hot Tech Companies Ready For An IPO