The technology industry is in an IPO desert. A lone tech company, a Dell spinoff called SecureWorks, has gone public in the U.S. so far in 2016. Meanwhile, 162 "unicorns" -- startups valued at $1 billion or more -- are waiting, waiting, waiting to maybe go public and give investors a shot at getting their money back.
And no wonder we're in this dry spell. The performance of tech companies that went public since 2010 -- when the IPO market reopened after a financial crisis blockade -- should give investors pause. Young public tech firms have been at best a coin-toss bet, both on their own and as acquisition fodder.
