Google Inc. slashed the size of its initial public offering nearly in half to less than $2 billion on Wednesday, splashing cold water on what has been touted as the hottest Internet IPO in years. After an initial delay, securities regulators are expected to declare Google's registration statement effective after 4 p.m. EDT (2000 GMT), sources familiar with the matter said, paving the way for the world's most popular Web search engine to price its shares and sell them to the public. That means Google shares could make their market debut on the Nasdaq market as soon as Thursday. The offering is now slated to raise as much as $1.9 billion, sharply lower than the $3.5 billion initially expected had Google priced at the top of its original range of $108 to $135 per share. On Wednesday, Google cut the range to between $85 and $95 a share. The revision came as Google disclosed in an amended filing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission requested additional information about a recent Playboy magazine article featuring an interview with Google's co-founders. --MORE 2131 Local Time 1831 GMT
