Om Malik is hearing a new round of speculation that Vonage is looking raise another US$100 million in private equity. This would increase Vonage's financing tally to more than US$300-million. Using 8x8's 40,000 subscribers and $56.2 million market cap as a benchmark, Vonage is worth about US$850-million. Of course, it's impossible to place an accurate value on Vonage because there is no way of telling how much money the company is losing after all those marketing expenses. So how come Vonage is doing another private round rather than an IPO? For one, a private round means Vonage gets more time to "grow" the business without disclosing its financial results. In this market where revenue and profits are apparently back in vogue, Vonage may not have the proper balance sheet to meet today's IPO criteria. Of course, it also gives Vonage more time for a suitor (Sprint?) to step forward.