Chinese search engine Baidu.com (BIDU) announced that Goldman Sachs (Asia) L.L.C. and Credit Suisse First Boston LLC, co-lead underwriters for Baidu's IPO in August 2005, have decided to release a total of up to three million outstanding ordinary shares from lock-up restrictions, effective from December 19, 2005.

This early partial release will allow each shareholder who is subject to lock-up restrictions to sell, transfer or otherwise dispose of part of its shares on a pro rata basis as determined based on the number of shares held by such shareholder and the total number of shares held by all the shareholders subject to lock-up restrictions as of December 2, 2005.

With respect to the shareholders who are currently subject to the standard 180-day lock-up restrictions, all of their remaining shares will be released upon expiration of the 180-day lock-up period.

In addition, the co-lead underwriters have agreed to release from the lock-up restrictions 25% of the shares held by each shareholder who is currently subject to the extended lock-up restrictions beyond the standard 180-day period, beginning on the 180th day after August 4, 2005, and to release all the remaining shares held by such shareholder beginning on the 360th day after August 4, 2005.

The underwriters' original lock-up restrictions on Baidu's ordinary shares are detailed in Baidu's IPO prospectus.