WASHINGTON, Jan. 14 (UPI) -- Google has settled its $80 million stock option dispute with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
The SEC alleged Google awarded the stock options from 2002 to 2004, a highly profitable period, without properly informing employees about the company's financial performance for fear the information could leak to Google's competitors.
Google, which neither admitted nor denied wrongdoing, settled the issue by agreeing to halt any improper activities and to abide by federal securities laws in the future, the Washington Post said Friday.
The SEC decided against taking action against Google over allegations the company violated the so-called "quiet period" prior to its initial public offering of stock when its founders, Sergey Brin and Larry Page, granted an interview to Playboy magazine in the spring of 2004.
The quiet period is designed to prevent executives from hyping a company's business and financial prospects before it sells shares to the public.
