Form 10-Q

 

 

UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

Washington, D.C. 20549

Form 10-Q

 

x   QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934.

For the quarterly period ended April 3, 2011.

 

¨   TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934.

For the transition period from                     to                     

Commission file number: 000-50350

NETGEAR, Inc.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

Delaware   77-0419172

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

 

(IRS Employer

Identification No.)

350 East Plumeria Drive,

San Jose, California

  95134
(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)

(408) 907-8000

(Registrant’s telephone number including area code)

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days.    Yes  x    No  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).    Yes  ¨    No  ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer or a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See definition of “accelerated filer,” “large accelerated filer,” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):

 

Large Accelerated filer   ¨    Accelerated filer   x
Non-Accelerated filer   ¨    Smaller reporting company   ¨

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 12b-2).    Yes  ¨    No  x

The number of outstanding shares of the registrant’s Common Stock, $0.001 par value, was 36,601,611 as of May 5, 2011.

 

 

 


TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

PART I: FINANCIAL INFORMATION

  

Item 1.

   Financial Statements      3   
   Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets      3   
   Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations      4   
   Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows      5   
   Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements      6   

Item 2.

   Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations      25   

Item 3.

   Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk      34   

Item 4.

   Controls and Procedures      34   
   PART II: OTHER INFORMATION   

Item 1.

   Legal Proceedings      35   

Item 1A.

   Risk Factors      35   

Item 2.

   Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds      52   

Item 3.

   Defaults Upon Senior Securities      52   

Item 4.

   Reserved      52   

Item 5.

   Other Information      52   

Item 6.

   Exhibits      52   

Signatures

        53   

EXHIBIT 31.1

  

EXHIBIT 31.2

  

EXHIBIT 32.1

  

EXHIBIT 32.2

  

 

2


PART I: FINANCIAL INFORMATION

 

Item 1. Financial Statements

NETGEAR, INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS

(In thousands)

 

     April 3,
2011
    December 31,
2010
 
ASSETS     

Current assets:

    

Cash and cash equivalents

   $ 157,536      $ 126,173   

Short-term investments

     121,637        144,564   

Accounts receivable, net

     197,622        226,731   

Inventories

     140,113        127,394   

Deferred income taxes

     19,584        19,332   

Prepaid expenses and other current assets

     26,572        23,850   
                

Total current assets

     663,064        668,044   

Property and equipment, net

     17,060        17,503   

Intangibles, net

     4,884        6,241   

Goodwill

     74,198        74,198   

Other non-current assets

     14,243        14,335   
                

Total assets

   $ 773,449      $ 780,321   
                
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY     

Current liabilities:

    

Accounts payable

   $ 81,233      $ 89,155   

Accrued employee compensation

     15,357        24,130   

Other accrued liabilities

     101,805        110,413   

Deferred revenue

     18,381        27,538   

Income taxes payable

     —          3,487   
                

Total current liabilities

     216,776        254,723   

Non-current income taxes payable

     20,217        19,719   

Other non-current liabilities

     5,326        5,443   
                

Total liabilities

     242,319        279,885   
                

Commitments and contingencies (Note 12)

    

Stockholders’ equity:

    

Common stock

     37        36   

Additional paid-in capital

     326,845        316,108   

Cumulative other comprehensive income (loss)

     (53     281   

Retained earnings

     204,301        184,011   
                

Total stockholders’ equity

     531,130        500,436   
                

Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity

   $ 773,449      $ 780,321   
                

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

3


NETGEAR, INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS

(In thousands, except per share data)

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Net revenue

   $ 278,823      $ 211,555   

Cost of revenue

     191,037        138,731   
                

Gross profit

     87,786        72,824   
                

Operating expenses:

    

Research and development

     11,014        9,305   

Sales and marketing

     36,648        30,789   

General and administrative

     9,645        8,942   

Restructuring

     —          13   

Litigation reserves, net

     (53     68   
                

Total operating expenses

     57,254        49,117   
                

Income from operations

     30,532        23,707   

Interest income

     129        70   

Other income (expense), net

     (330     (194
                

Income before income taxes

     30,331        23,583   

Provision for income taxes

     9,142        9,856   
                

Net income

   $ 21,189      $ 13,727   
                

Net income per share:

    

Basic

   $ 0.58      $ 0.39   
                

Diluted

   $ 0.57      $ 0.38   
                

Weighted average shares outstanding used to compute net income per share:

    

Basic

     36,414        34,947   
                

Diluted

     37,340        35,716   
                

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

4


NETGEAR, INC.

UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS

(In thousands)

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Cash flows from operating activities:

    

Net income

   $ 21,189      $ 13,727   

Adjustments to reconcile net income to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities:

    

Depreciation and amortization

     3,707        3,183   

Purchase premium amortization (discount accretion) on investments

     252        (48

Non-cash stock-based compensation

     3,372        3,141   

Income tax benefit associated with stock option exercises

     835        1,519   

Excess tax benefit from stock-based compensation

     (893     (1,416

Deferred income taxes

     36        514   

Changes in assets and liabilities:

    

Accounts receivable

     29,109        12,713   

Inventories

     (12,719     (19,344

Prepaid expenses and other assets

     (3,167     1,188   

Accounts payable

     (7,922     (15,720

Accrued employee compensation

     (8,773     769   

Other accrued liabilities

     (8,318     (535

Deferred revenue

     (9,157     (6,189

Income taxes payable

     (2,989     (1,058
                

Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities

     4,562        (7,556
                

Cash flows from investing activities:

    

Purchases of short-term investments

     (96,904     (50,012

Proceeds from sale of short-term investments

     119,590        15,000   

Purchase of property and equipment

     (1,906     (1,156

Payments made in connection with business acquisitions

     (500     (2,000
                

Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities

     20,280        (38,168
                

Cash flows from financing activities:

    

Purchase and retirement of treasury stock

     (899     (563

Proceeds from exercise of stock options

     5,818        3,110   

Proceeds from issuance of common stock under employee stock purchase plan

     709        542   

Excess tax benefit from stock-based compensation

     893        1,416   
                

Net cash provided by financing activities

     6,521        4,505   
                

Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents

     31,363        (41,219

Cash and cash equivalents, at beginning of period

     126,173        172,202   
                

Cash and cash equivalents, at end of period

   $ 157,536      $ 130,983   
                

The accompanying notes are an integral part of these unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

5


NETGEAR, INC.

NOTES TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS

Note 1. The Company and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

NETGEAR, Inc. (“NETGEAR” or the “Company”) was incorporated in Delaware in January 1996. The Company is a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers, businesses, and service providers. For consumers, the Company makes high performance, dependable and easy to use home networking, storage and digital media products to connect people with the Internet and their content and devices. For businesses, the Company provides networking, storage and security solutions without the cost and complexity of Big IT. The Company also supplies leading service providers with retail proven, whole home networking solutions for their customers. The Company’s products are built on a variety of proven technologies such as wireless, Ethernet and powerline, with a focus on reliability and ease-of-use. The Company sells products primarily through a global sales channel network, which includes traditional retailers, online retailers, wholesale distributors, direct market resellers, or DMRs, value added resellers, or VARs, and broadband service providers.

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of NETGEAR, Inc., and its wholly owned subsidiaries. They have been prepared in accordance with established guidelines for interim financial reporting and with the instructions of Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. The balance sheet dated December 31, 2010 has been derived from audited financial statements at such date. In the opinion of management, the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments considered necessary (consisting only of normal recurring adjustments) to fairly state the Company’s financial position, results of operations and cash flows for the periods indicated. These unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the notes to the consolidated financial statements included in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2010.

The Company’s fiscal year begins on January 1 of the year stated and ends on December 31 of the same year. The Company reports its interim results on a fiscal quarter basis rather than on a calendar quarter basis. Under the fiscal quarter basis, each of the first three fiscal quarters ends on the Sunday closest to the calendar quarter end, with the fourth quarter ending on December 31.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect (i) the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, (ii) the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and (iii) the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reported period. Actual results could differ from those estimates and operating results for the three months ended April 3, 2011 are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for the year ending December 31, 2011.

The Company has made certain reclassifications to prior period net revenue by geography in order to conform to the current period presentation. For details of these reclassifications, please see Note 11 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

The Company’s significant accounting policies are disclosed in the Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010. The Company’s significant accounting policies have not materially changed during the three months ended April 3, 2011.

2. Recent Accounting Pronouncements

In December 2010, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU 2010-28, “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other (Topic 350): When to Perform Step 2 of the Goodwill Impairment Test for Reporting Units with Zero or Negative Carrying Amounts.” For reporting units with zero or negative carrying amounts, if it is more likely than not that a goodwill impairment exists, ASU 2010-28 requires performance of an additional test to determine whether goodwill has been impaired and to calculate the amount of impairment. In determining whether it is more likely than not that a goodwill impairment exists, an entity should consider whether there are any adverse qualitative factors indicating that an impairment may exist. ASU 2010-28 is effective for the Company in the three months ended April 3, 2011. Though the impact of adopting ASU 2010-28 will not be known until the Company performs its evaluations of goodwill impairment, this adoption is not expected to impact the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

 

6


In December 2010, the FASB issued ASU 2010-29, “Business Combinations (Topic 805): Disclosure of Supplementary Pro Forma Information for Business Combinations.” ASU 2010-29 specifies that, for material business combinations when comparative financial statements are presented, revenue and earnings of the combined entity should be disclosed as though the business combination had occurred as of the beginning of the comparable prior annual reporting period. ASU 2010-09 also expands the supplemental pro forma disclosures to include a description of the nature and amount of material, nonrecurring pro forma adjustments directly attributable to the business combination included in the reported pro forma revenue and earnings. ASU 2010-09 is effective prospectively for the Company for business combinations with an acquisition date on or after January 1, 2011. The Company will comply ASU 2010-29 when future acquisitions occur. Since the adoption of the update to the authoritative guidance for consolidation only requires additional disclosures, the adoption will not impact the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

3. Business Acquisition

Leaf Networks, LLC

On January 15, 2010, the Company completed the acquisition of certain intellectual property and other assets of Leaf Networks, LLC (“Leaf”), a developer of virtual networking software. The acquisition qualified as a business acquisition and was accounted for using the purchase method of accounting. The Company believes the acquisition will accelerate the Company’s continuing networking technology research and development initiatives. The aggregate purchase price was $2.1 million, of which $2.0 million was paid in cash in the three months ended March 28, 2010 and $100,000 was paid in the three months ended April 3, 2011.

Additionally, the acquisition agreement specified that Leaf shareholders may receive a total additional payout of up to $900,000 in cash over the three years following closure of the acquisition if developed products pass certain acceptance criteria. During the three months ended March 28, 2010, the Company had determined that the present value of the $900,000 potential additional payout was approximately $800,000, for which the Company will measure at fair value for each reporting period and record a liability. The Company paid $400,000 for the first portion of this additional payout in the three months ended April 3, 2011. As of April 3, 2011, the Company had determined the remaining acceptance criteria for the final $500,000 portion of the eligible additional payout were nearing completion, and as such recorded a liability of $480,000.

The results of Leaf’s operations have been included in the consolidated financial statements since the date of acquisition. The historical results of operations of Leaf prior to the acquisition were not material to the Company’s results of operations.

In accordance with the purchase method of accounting for business combinations, the Company allocated the total purchase price to identifiable intangible assets based on each element’s estimated fair value. Acquisition costs were expensed as incurred, and were immaterial for this transaction. Purchased intangibles, representing the existing technology acquired from Leaf, will be amortized on a straight-line basis over their respective estimated useful lives. Goodwill was recorded based on the residual purchase price after allocating the purchase price to the fair market value of intangible assets acquired. Goodwill arose as a result of the $800,000 present valuation of the $900,000 potential additional payout, plus $100,000 in additional payment consideration. The allocation of the purchase price was as follows (in thousands):

 

Intangibles, net

   $ 2,000   

Goodwill

     900   
        

Total purchase price allocation

   $ 2,900   
        

Of the $900,000 of goodwill recorded on the acquisition of Leaf, approximately $416,000 was deductible for federal and state income tax purposes.

The $2.0 million in acquired intangible assets was designated as existing technology. The value was calculated based on the present value of the future estimated cash flows derived from projections of future revenue attributable to existing technology. This $2.0 million will be amortized over its estimated useful life of seven years.

4. Stock-based Compensation

The Company grants options and restricted stock units from the Amended and Restated 2006 Long-Term Incentive Plan, under which awards may be granted to all employees. In addition, the Company’s stock option program includes the 2003 Stock Plan, from which the Company does not currently grant awards, but may choose to do so. Award vesting periods for these plans are generally

 

7


four years. As of April 3, 2011, a total of 1,408,463 shares were reserved for future grants under these plans.

Additionally, the Company sponsors an Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “ESPP”), pursuant to which eligible employees may contribute up to 10% of base compensation, subject to certain income limits, to purchase shares of the Company’s common stock. Employees may purchase stock semi-annually at a price equal to 85% of the fair market value on the purchase date.

The following table sets forth the total stock-based compensation expense resulting from stock options, restricted stock awards, and the ESPP included in the Company’s Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (in thousands):

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
     March 28,
2010
 

Cost of revenue

   $ 235       $ 279   

Research and development

     661         581   

Sales and marketing

     1,301         1,212   

General and administrative

     1,175         1,069   
                 
   $ 3,372       $ 3,141   
                 

The fair value of each option award is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes-Merton option valuation model and the weighted average assumptions in the following table. The expected term of options granted is derived from historical data on employee exercise and post-vesting employment termination behavior. The risk free interest rate is based on the implied yield currently available on U.S. Treasury securities with an equivalent remaining term. Expected volatility is based on the historical volatility of the Company’s stock for the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010:

 

     Stock Options  
     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Expected life (in years)

     4.4        4.5   

Risk-free interest rate

     1.87     2.21

Expected volatility

     50     50

Dividend yield

     —          —     

As of April 3, 2011, $21.3 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to stock options, adjusted for estimated forfeitures, is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.56 years. Additionally, $1.1 million of total unrecognized compensation cost related to non-vested restricted stock awards, adjusted for estimated forfeitures, is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 0.59 years.

5. Product Warranties

The Company provides for estimated future warranty obligations at the time revenue is recognized. The Company’s standard warranty obligation to its direct customers generally provides for a right of return of any product for a full refund in the event that such product is not merchantable or is found to be damaged or defective. At the time revenue is recognized, an estimate of future warranty returns is recorded to reduce revenue in the amount of the expected credit or refund to be provided to its direct customers. At the time the Company records the reduction to revenue related to warranty returns, the Company includes within cost of revenue a write-down to reduce the carrying value of such products to net realizable value.

The Company’s standard warranty obligation to its end-users provides for replacement of a defective product for one or more years. Factors that affect the warranty obligation include product failure rates, material usage, and service delivery costs incurred in correcting product failures. The estimated cost associated with fulfilling the Company’s warranty obligation to end-users is recorded in cost of revenue. Because the Company’s products are manufactured by third party manufacturers, in certain cases the Company has recourse to the third party manufacturer for replacement or credit for the defective products. The Company gives consideration to

 

8


amounts recoverable from its third party manufacturers in determining its warranty liability.

Changes in the Company’s warranty liability, which is included as a component of “Other accrued liabilities” in the unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheets, are as follows (in thousands):

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Balance as of beginning of the period

   $ 40,513      $ 30,610   

Provision for warranty liability made during the period

     12,611        17,297   

Settlements made during the period

     (15,072     (13,451
                

Balance at end of period

   $ 38,052      $ 34,456   
                

6. Shipping and Handling Fees and Costs

The Company includes shipping and handling fees billed to customers in net revenue. Shipping and handling costs associated with inbound freight are included in cost of revenue and ending inventory. Shipping and handling costs associated with outbound freight are included in sales and marketing expenses and totaled $3.2 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, and $2.8 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010.

 

9


7. Derivative Financial Instruments

The Company’s subsidiaries have had and will continue to have material future cash flows, including revenue and expenses, which are denominated in currencies other than the Company’s functional currency. The Company and all its subsidiaries designate the U.S. dollar as the functional currency. Changes in exchange rates between the Company’s functional currency and other currencies in which the Company transacts will cause fluctuations in cash flow expectations and cash flow realized or settled. Accordingly, the Company uses derivatives to mitigate its business exposure to foreign exchange risk. The Company enters into foreign currency forward contracts in euros, British pounds, Australian dollars, and Japanese yen to manage the exposures to foreign exchange risk related to expected future cash flows on certain forecasted revenue, costs of revenue, operating expenses, and on certain existing assets and liabilities. The Company does not enter into derivatives transactions for trading or speculative purposes.

    Cash flow hedges

To help manage the exposure of operating margins to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, the Company hedges a portion of its anticipated foreign currency revenue, costs of revenue, and certain operating expenses. These hedges are designated at the inception of the hedge relationship as cash flow hedges under the authoritative guidance for derivatives and hedging. Effectiveness is tested at least quarterly both prospectively and retrospectively using regression analysis to ensure that the hedge relationship has been effective and is likely to remain effective in the future. The Company typically hedges portions of its anticipated foreign currency exposure for three to five months. The Company enters into about six forward contracts per quarter with an average size of about $6 million USD equivalent related to its cash flow hedging program.

The Company expects to reclassify to earnings all of the amounts recorded in other comprehensive income associated with its cash flow hedges over the next 12 months. Other comprehensive income associated with cash flow hedges of foreign currency revenue is recognized as a component of net revenue in the same period as the related revenue is recognized. Other comprehensive income associated with cash flow hedges of foreign currency costs of revenue and operating expenses are recognized as a component of cost of revenue and operating expense in the same period as the costs of revenue and operating expenses are recognized, respectively.

Derivative instruments designated as cash flow hedges must be de-designated as hedges when it is probable the forecasted hedged transaction will not occur within the designated hedge period or if not recognized within 60 days following the end of the hedge period. Deferred gains and losses in other comprehensive income associated with such derivative instruments are reclassified immediately into earnings through other income and expense. Any subsequent changes in fair value of such derivative instruments also are reflected in current earnings unless they are re-designated as hedges of other transactions. The Company did not recognize any material net gains or losses related to the loss of hedge designation on discontinued cash flow hedges during the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010.

    Non-designated hedges

The Company enters into non-designated hedges under the authoritative guidance for derivatives and hedging to manage the exposure of non-functional currency monetary assets and liabilities held on its financial statements to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, as well as to reduce volatility in other income and expense. The non-designated hedges are generally expected to offset the changes in value of its net non-functional currency asset and liability position resulting from foreign exchange rate fluctuations. Foreign currency denominated accounts receivable and payable are hedged with non-designated hedges when the related anticipated foreign revenue and expenses are recognized in the Company’s financial statements. The Company also hedges certain non-functional currency monetary assets and liabilities which may not be incorporated into the cash flow hedge program. The Company adjusts its non-designated hedges monthly and enters into about ten non-designated derivatives per quarter. The average size of its non-designated hedges is about $2 million USD equivalent and these hedges range from one to five months in duration.

The Company may choose not to hedge certain foreign exchange exposures for a variety of reasons, including, but not limited to, immateriality, accounting considerations, and the prohibitive economic cost of hedging particular exposures. There can be no assurance the hedges will offset more than a portion of the financial impact resulting from movements in foreign exchange rates. The Company’s accounting policies for these instruments are based on whether the instruments are designated as hedge or non-hedge instruments in accordance with the authoritative guidance for derivatives and hedging. The Company records all derivatives on the balance sheet at fair value. The effective portions of cash flow hedges are recorded in other comprehensive income until the hedged item is recognized in earnings. Derivatives that are not designated as hedging instruments and the ineffective portions of its designated hedges are adjusted to fair value through earnings in “Other income (expense), net.”

 

10


The Company’s foreign currency forward contracts do not contain any credit-risk-related contingent features. The Company is exposed to credit losses in the event of nonperformance by the counter-parties of its forward contracts. The Company enters into derivative contracts with high-quality financial institutions and limits the amount of credit exposure to any one counter-party. In addition, the derivative contracts are limited to a time period of less than six months and the Company continuously evaluates the credit standing of its counter-party financial institutions. The counter-parties to these arrangements are large highly rated financial institutions and the Company does not consider non-performance a material risk.

The fair values of the Company’s derivative instruments and the line items on the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet to which they were recorded as of April 3, 2011 and December 31, 2010 are summarized as follows (in thousands):

 

Derivative Assets

  

Balance Sheet
Location

   Fair Value at
April  3,

2011
   

Balance Sheet
Location

   Fair Value at
December 31,
2010
 

Derivative assets not designated as hedging instruments

   Prepaid expenses and other current assets    $ 182      Prepaid expenses and other current assets    $ 1,381   

Derivative assets designated as hedging instruments

   Prepaid expenses and other current assets      —        Prepaid expenses and other current assets      8   
                      

Total

      $ 182         $ 1,389   
                      

Derivative Liabilities

  

Balance Sheet
Location

   Fair Value at
April 3,

2011
   

Balance Sheet
Location

   Fair Value at
December 31,
2010
 

Derivative liabilities not designated as hedging instruments

   Other accrued liabilities    $ (709   Other accrued liabilities    $ (770

Derivative liabilities designated as hedging instruments

   Other accrued liabilities      (95   Other accrued liabilities      (19
                      

Total

      $ (804      $ (789
                      

For details of the Company’s fair value measurements, please see Note 13 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

 

Derivatives Not Designated as Hedging Instruments

  

Location of Gains or (Losses)
Recognized in Income on Derivative

   Amount of Gains or (Losses)
Recognized in Income on  Derivative
 
      Three Months Ended
April 3, 2011
    Three Months Ended
March 28, 2010
 

Foreign currency forward contracts

   Other income (expense), net    $ (1,858   $ 1,767   

The effects of the Company’s derivative instruments on other comprehensive income and the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statement of Operations for the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010 are summarized as follows (in thousands):

 

11


Derivatives Designated as
Hedging Instruments

   Three Months Ended April 3, 2011  
   Gain or (Loss)
Recognized in
OCI -
Effective
Portion (a)
   

Location of

Gain or (Loss)
Reclassified from OCI
into Income - Effective
Portion

   Gain or (Loss)
Reclassified
from
OCI into
Income -
Effective
Portion (a)
   

Location of

Gain or (Loss)
Recognized in
Income and

Excluded from

Effectiveness Testing

   Amount of Gain or
(Loss) Recognized in
Income and
Excluded from
Effectiveness Testing
 

Cash flow hedges:

            

Foreign currency forward contracts

   $ (218   Net revenue    $ 62      Other income (expense), net    $ (38

Foreign currency forward contracts

     —        Cost of revenue      2      Other income (expense), net      —     

Foreign currency forward contracts

     —        Operating expenses      59      Other income (expense), net      —     
                              

Total

   $ (218      $ 123         $ (38
                              

Derivatives Designated as
Hedging Instruments

   Three Months Ended March 28, 2010  
   Gain or (Loss)
Recognized in
OCI -
Effective
Portion (a)
   

Location of
Gain or (Loss)
Reclassified from OCI
into Income - Effective
Portion

   Gain or (Loss)
Reclassified
from
OCI into
Income -
Effective
Portion (a)
   

Location of
Gain or (Loss)
Recognized in
Income and
Excluded from
Effectiveness Testing

   Amount of Gain or
(Loss) Recognized in
Income and
Excluded from
Effectiveness Testing
 

Cash flow hedges:

            

Foreign currency forward contracts

   $ 155      Net revenue    $ 247      Other income (expense), net    $ (26

Foreign currency forward contracts

     —        Cost of revenue      (4   Other income (expense), net      —     

Foreign currency forward contracts

     —        Operating expenses      (93   Other income (expense), net      —     
                              

Total

   $ 155         $ 150         $ (26
                              

 

(a)   Refer to Note 14, “Comprehensive Income and Cumulative Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net” of the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, which summarizes the activity in other comprehensive income related to derivatives.

The Company did not recognize any net gain or loss related to the ineffective portion of cash flow hedges during the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010.

8. Balance Sheet Components

Accounts receivable, net (in thousands):

 

     April 3,
2011
    December 31,
2010
 

Gross accounts receivable

   $ 212,463      $ 241,632   

Less: Allowance for doubtful accounts

     (1,480     (1,481

Allowance for sales returns

     (11,544     (10,273

Allowance for price protection

     (1,817     (3,147
                

Total allowances

     (14,841     (14,901
                

Accounts receivable, net

   $ 197,622      $ 226,731   
                

 

12


Inventories (in thousands):

 

     April 3,
2011
     December 31,
2010
 

Raw materials

   $ 2,478       $ 1,591   

Finished goods

     137,635         125,803   
                 

Total

   $ 140,113       $ 127,394   
                 

The Company records provisions for excess and obsolete inventory based on forecasts of future demand. While management believes the estimates and assumptions underlying its current forecasts are reasonable, there is risk that additional charges may be necessary if current forecasts are greater than actual demand.

Property and equipment, net (in thousands):

 

     April 3,
2011
    December 31,
2010
 

Computer equipment

   $ 6,037      $ 6,057   

Furniture, fixtures and leasehold improvements

     9,145        9,450   

Software

     19,449        18,553   

Machinery and equipment

     18,223        17,465   

Construction in progress

     73        30   
                
     52,927        51,555   

Less: accumulated depreciation and amortization

     (35,867     (34,052
                

Property and equipment, net

   $ 17,060      $ 17,503   
                

Other accrued liabilities (in thousands):

 

     April 3,
2011
     December 31,
2010
 

Sales and marketing programs

   $ 34,317       $ 37,020   

Warranty obligation

     38,052         40,513   

Freight

     5,894         7,174   

Other

     23,542         25,706   
                 

Other accrued liabilities

   $ 101,805       $ 110,413   
                 

9. Net Income Per Share

Basic net income per share is computed by dividing the net income for the period by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Diluted net income per share is computed by dividing the net income for the period by the weighted average number of shares of common stock and potentially dilutive common stock outstanding during the period. Potentially dilutive common shares include outstanding stock options and unvested restricted stock awards, which are reflected in diluted net income per share by application of the treasury stock method. Under the treasury stock method, the amount that the employee must pay for exercising stock options, the amount of stock-based compensation cost for future services that the Company has not yet recognized, and the amount of tax benefit that would be recorded in additional paid-in capital upon exercise are assumed to be used to repurchase shares.

 

13


Net income per share for the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010 are as follows (in thousands, except per share data):

 

      Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
     March 28,
2010
 

Net income

   $ 21,189       $ 13,727   
                 

Weighted average shares outstanding:

     

Basic

     36,414         34,947   

Dilutive potential common shares

     926         769   
                 

Total diluted

     37,340         35,716   
                 

Basic net income per share

   $ 0.58       $ 0.39   
                 

Diluted net income per share

   $ 0.57       $ 0.38   
                 

Weighted average stock options and unvested restricted stock awards to purchase 1,412,623 shares of the Company’s stock for the three months ended April 3, 2011, and 2,547,540 shares for the three months ended March 28, 2010, were excluded from the computation of diluted net income per share because their effect would have been anti-dilutive.

10. Income Taxes

The income tax provision and effective tax rate for the three months ended April 3, 2011 was $9.1 million and 30.1 percent, respectively, compared to the tax provision and effective tax rate for the three months ended March 28, 2010 of $9.9 million and 41.8 percent, respectively. The decrease is mainly due to higher pre-tax income in foreign jurisdictions that are taxed at rates lower than the U.S. federal tax rate. The Company is subject to income taxes in the U.S. and numerous foreign jurisdictions. The Company’s future foreign tax rate could be affected by changes in the composition in earnings in countries with tax rates differing from the U.S. federal rate.

The Company has recorded its liability for uncertain tax positions as part of its long-term liability as payments are not anticipated over the next 12 months. The existing tax positions of the Company continue to generate an increase in the liability for uncertain tax positions. The liability for uncertain tax positions may be reduced for liabilities that are settled with taxing authorities or on which the statute of limitations could expire without assessment from tax authorities. The possible reduction in liabilities for uncertain tax positions in multiple jurisdictions in the next 12 months is approximately $5.3 million, excluding the interest, penalties and the effect of any related deferred tax assets or liabilities.

11. Segment Information, Operations by Geographic Area and Significant Customers

Operating segments are components of an enterprise about which separate financial information is available and is regularly evaluated by management, namely the chief operating decision maker of an organization, in order to determine operating and resource allocation decisions. By this definition, the Company has through the first fiscal quarter of 2011 operated in one business segment, which comprises the development, marketing and sale of networking products for the commercial business and home markets. The Company’s corporate headquarters and a significant portion of its operations are located in the United States. The Company also conducts sales, marketing, customer service activities and certain distribution center activities through several small sales offices in Europe, the Middle-East and Africa (“EMEA”) and Asia as well as outsourced distribution centers.

For reporting purposes revenue is attributed to each geographic region based on the location of the customer. Net revenue by geographic region comprises gross revenue less such items as end-user customer rebates and other sales incentives deemed to be a reduction of net revenue per the authoritative guidance for revenue recognition, sales returns and price protection.

In the three months ended April 3, 2011, in order to achieve operational efficiencies, the Company combined its North American, Central American and South American sales forces to form the Americas territory. Previously North America was its own geographic region and the Central American and South American territories were categorized within the Asia Pacific geographic region. Following this change, the Company is organized into the following three geographic territories: Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. The Company has reclassified the disclosure of net revenue by geography for prior periods to conform to the current period’s

 

14


presentation. The change did not result in material differences from what was previously reported. Net revenue by geography comprises gross revenue less such items as marketing incentives paid to customers, sales returns and price protection. The following table shows net revenue by geography for the periods indicated (in thousands):

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
     March 28,
2010
 

United States

   $ 127,764       $ 106,418   

Americas (excluding U.S.)

     4,183         868   

United Kingdom

     46,633         19,712   

EMEA (excluding U.K.)

     75,987         61,435   

Asia Pacific

     24,256         23,122   
                 

Total net revenue

   $ 278,823       $ 211,555   
                 

Starting in the second quarter of 2011, the Company’s business will be managed in three specific business units: retail, commercial, and service provider. Each business unit will be managed by a Senior Vice President/General Manager. The Company believes this new structure will enable the Company to better focus its efforts on the Company’s core customer segments and allow it to be more nimble and opportunistic as a company overall. As such, the Company will provide further financial information specific to each of these three business units, including expected restructuring costs associated with this reorganization, in its quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended July 3, 2011. In that quarter the Company will also allocate goodwill to each segment and will evaluate those allocations for potential impairment.

Long-lived assets, comprising fixed assets, are reported based on the location of the asset. Long-lived assets by geographic location are as follows (in thousands):

 

     April 3,
2011
     December 31,
2010
 

United States

   $ 11,620       $ 11,808   

Americas (excluding U.S.)

     21         22   

EMEA

     163         205   

China

     4,470         4,848   

Asia Pacific (excluding China)

     786         620   
                 
   $ 17,060       $ 17,503   
                 

Significant customers are as follows (as a percentage of net revenue):

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Best Buy Co., Inc. and Affiliates (Retailer)

     13     17

Virgin Media Limited and Affiliates (Service Provider)

     10     1

Ingram Micro, Inc. and Affiliates (Distributor)

     10     13

All others

     67     69
                
     100     100
                

 

15


12. Commitments and Contingencies

Litigation and Other Legal Matters

Wi-Lan Inc. v. NETGEAR

In October 2007, a lawsuit was filed against the Company by Wi-Lan Inc. (“Wi-Lan”), a patent-holding company existing under the laws of Canada, in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas. Wi-Lan alleged that the Company infringed U.S. Patent Nos. 5,282,222, RE37,802 and 5,956,323. Wi-Lan accused the Company of infringement with respect to its wireless networking products compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standards and ADSL products compliant with the ITUG.992 standards. Wi-Lan also sued 21 other technology companies alleging similar claims of patent infringement. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in the first quarter of 2008. A claim construction hearing took place for the ‘222 and ‘802 Patents on March 11, 2010, and on May 11, 2010, the Court issued its order interpreting the claims of these patents (claim construction order). The claim construction hearing on the ‘323 patent occurred on September 1, 2010, and the Court subsequently issued its claim construction order for this patent. The Court ordered that infringement of the RE37,802 and 5,282,222 (Wi-Fi) patents would be tried first, as to all defendants, and infringement of the 5,956,323 (DSL) patent would be addressed in a second trial. Shortly before the beginning of the first trial, the Company and Wi-Lan entered into settlement discussions. Without admitting any wrongdoing or violation of law and to avoid the distraction and expense of continued litigation and the uncertainty of a jury verdict on the merits, the Company and Wi-Lan signed a binding release agreement in which the Company agreed to make a one-time lump sum payment to be paid by May 15, 2011 in consideration for mutual general releases. In the agreement, each party agreed to release the other party from all claims, known or unknown, under any of the ‘222, ‘802 and ‘323 Patents with respect to the manufacture, use, sale, etc. of products by the Company. Each party agreed to bear its own costs and attorneys’ fees. The Company made the required one-time lump sum payment that is due by May 15, 2011. This arrangement is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows. The Court has dismissed all claims between Wi-Lan and the Company, including all claims presented by Wi-Lan’s complaint and all of the Company’s counterclaims, and neither of the scheduled trials between Wi-Lan and the Company will occur.

Fujitsu et. al v. NETGEAR

In December 2007, a lawsuit was filed against the Company by Fujitsu Limited, LG Electronics, Inc. and U.S. Philips Corporation in the U.S. District Court, Western District of Wisconsin. The plaintiffs allege that the Company infringes U.S. Patent Nos. 6,018,642, 6,469,993 and 4,975,952. The plaintiffs accuse the Company’s wireless networking products compliant with the IEEE 802.11 standards of infringement. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in the first quarter of 2008. The District Court held a claim construction hearing on August 15, 2008. On September 10, 2008, the District Court issued a claim construction order. In February 2009, the parties filed numerous motions for summary judgment concerning, among other things, non-infringement, invalidity, and other affirmative defenses. In September 2009, the District Court granted the Company’s motion for summary judgment of non-infringement of the three patents-in-suit. The District Court determined that the Company’s compliance with the 802.11 standard did not necessarily infringe the patents-in-suit and that the plaintiffs did not provide adequate evidence regarding the function of the Company’s products to put the issue of infringement before a jury. In light of the District Court’s determination that the patents-in-suit were not infringed, the District Court declined to address the Company’s summary judgment claims of the invalidity of the patents in question. On December 30, 2009, the District Court ordered litigation costs in the amount $175,000 to be reimbursed to the Company, which have not yet been collected or recognized. On December 23, 2009, the Plaintiffs filed two briefs with the Federal Circuit appealing the District Court’s summary judgment rulings. The Company’s opposition brief was submitted on February 18, 2010. The Federal Circuit heard oral arguments on the Plaintiffs’ appeal on June 7, 2010. On September 20, 2010, the Federal Circuit issued a unanimous ruling that made three separate findings. It affirmed a summary judgment ruling from the District Court that the Company did not infringe the claims of a Fujitsu patent related to wireless communications technology. In addition, the Court affirmed a summary judgment ruling that the Company did not infringe the claims of an LG Electronics Inc. patent also related to wireless communications technology. Further, the court affirmed the lower court’s ruling that the Company did not infringe a Philips patent for a method of transmitting data messages in a communications network, except for four products. For those four products, the Court ruled that Philips produced sufficient evidence of direct infringement, so that an infringement trial for these four products could proceed. On October 19, 2010, plaintiff LG Electronics submitted a petition for rehearing to the Federal Circuit requesting that the Federal Circuit’s decision be set aside with respect to LG Electronics’ asserted patent and that a rehearing be granted. The Federal Circuit denied LG Electronics’ petition for a rehearing on November 2, 2010, letting stand its September 20, 2010 order affirming the District Court’s decision to grant the Company summary judgment of noninfringement on the patent asserted by LG Electronics. Subsequent to the Federal Circuit ruling, the parties began settlement discussions with respect to the four remaining products accused of infringing the Philips patent. On March 8, 2011, the District Court approved the settlement agreement between Philips and the

 

16


Company. This arrangement is not expected to have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows. This litigation matter is now terminated.

OptimumPath, L.L.C. v. NETGEAR

In January 2008, a lawsuit was filed against the Company by OptimumPath, L.L.C (“OptimumPath”), a patent-holding company existing under the laws of the State of South Carolina, in the U.S. District Court, District of South Carolina. OptimumPath claims that certain of the Company’s wireless networking products infringe on OptimumPath’s U.S. Patent No. 7,035,281. OptimumPath also sued six other technology companies alleging similar claims of patent infringement. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in the second quarter of 2008. Several defendants, including the Company, jointly filed a request for inter partes reexamination of the OptimumPath patent with the United States Patent and Trademark Office (the “USPTO”) on October 13, 2008. On January 12, 2009, a reexamination was ordered with respect to claims 1-3 and 8-10 of the patent, but denied with respect to claims 4-7 and 11-32 of the patent. On February 4, 2009, the defendants jointly filed a petition to challenge the denial of reexamination of claims 4-7 and 11-32. In March 2009, the District Court granted defendants’ motion to transfer the case to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. In July 2009, the petition to challenge the denial of reexamination of claims 4-7 and 11-32 was denied. The Company and OptimumPath attended a Court-ordered mediation on September 22, 2009 but were unable to make progress towards settlement. The parties recently completed fact discovery and have disclosed expert reports. The Company and other defendants filed a combined claim construction/summary judgment brief on December 23, 2010. OptimumPath responded on January 20, 2011, and the defendants replied on February 3, 2011. The oral arguments on claim construction and the summary judgment motion were made on February 17, 2011. On April 12, 2011, the District Court granted Defendants’ motion for summary judgment on OptimumPath’s claim for literal infringement and Defendants’ motion to preclude OptimumPath’s infringement claims based on the doctrine of equivalents. The Court also found that the accused devices did not infringe under the doctrine of equivalents. The Court also granted Defendants’ motion for summary judgment that asserted claims 1, 2, 6, and 9 through 13 of the ‘281 patent were invalidated by various prior art. The pretrial conference and trial dates were vacated.

Ruckus Wireless v. NETGEAR

In May 2008, a lawsuit was filed against the Company by Ruckus Wireless (“Ruckus”), a developer of Wi-Fi technology, in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. Ruckus alleges that the Company infringes U.S. Patent Nos. 7,358,912 and 7,193,562 in the course of deploying Wi-Fi antenna array technology in its WPN824 RangeMax wireless router. Ruckus also sued Rayspan Corporation alleging similar claims of patent infringement. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in the third quarter of 2008. The Company and Rayspan Corporation jointly filed a request for inter partes reexamination of the Ruckus patents with the USPTO on September 4, 2008. The Court issued a stay of the litigation while the reexaminations proceeded in the USPTO. On November 28, 2008, a reexamination was ordered with respect to claims 11-17 of U.S. Patent No. 7,193,562, but denied with respect to claims 1-10 and 18-36. On December 17, 2008, the defendants jointly filed a petition to challenge the denial of reexamination of claims 1-10 and 18-36 of U.S. Patent No. 7,193,562. In July 2009, the petition was denied, and the remaining claims 11-17 were confirmed. The Company is appealing the confirmation of claims 11-17. On December 2, 2008, reexamination was granted with regard to U.S. Patent No. 7,358,912. In early October 2009, the Company received an Action Closing Prosecution in the reexamination of the 7,358,912 patent. All the claims of the 7,358,912 patent, with the exception of the unchallenged claims 7 and 8, were finally rejected by the USPTO. On October 30, 2009, Ruckus submitted an “after-final” amendment in the 7,358,912 patent reexamination proceeding. The Company’s comments to Ruckus’ “after-final” amendment were submitted on November 30, 2009. On December 1, 2009, the Court found that bifurcating the 7,193,562 patent from the 7,358,912 patent and commencing litigation on the 7,193,562 patent while the USPTO reexamination process and appeals are still pending would be an inefficient use of the Court’s resources. Accordingly, the Court ruled that the litigation stay remains in effect. On September 12, 2010, the Company filed the Rebuttal Brief in its appeals of the USPTO’s rulings during the reexamination of the ‘562 patent, and the Company requested an oral hearing with the Board of Appeals at the USPTO to discuss this brief. On September 13, 2010, Ruckus filed a Notice of Appeal of the ‘912 Patent to appeal the adverse rulings it received from the USPTO in the reexamination of this patent. The Company filed a respondent’s brief in the ‘912 patent case on Jan. 24, 2011. An oral hearing in the ‘562 case was set for February 1, 2011, but the Company decided to cancel it and let the USPTO decide the ‘562 case based solely on the previously submitted papers. Thus, the reexaminations and related appeals are currently proceeding in the USPTO.

On November 4, 2009, Ruckus filed a new complaint in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California alleging the Company and Rayspan Corporation infringe a patent that is related to the patents previously asserted against the Company and Rayspan Corporation by Ruckus, as discussed above. This newly asserted patent is U.S. Patent No. 7,525,486 entitled “Increased wireless coverage patterns.” As with the previous Ruckus action, the WPN824 RangeMax wireless router is the alleged infringing device. The Company challenged the sufficiency of Ruckus’s complaint in this new action and moved to dismiss the complaint.

 

17


Ruckus opposed this motion. The Court partially agreed with the Company’s motion and ordered Ruckus to submit a new complaint, which Ruckus did. The initial case management conference occurred on February 11, 2010. On March 25, 2010, the Court ordered a stay until the completion of the ‘562 Patent’s reexamination proceedings in the first Ruckus lawsuit against the Company and Rayspan. The Court instructed the parties to submit status reports to the Court every 6 months, apprising the Court of the status of the pending reexamination proceedings in the USPTO. Upon final exhaustion of all pending reexamination proceedings of the ‘562 Patent, including any appeals, the Court ordered the parties to jointly submit to the Court a letter indicating that all appeals have been exhausted and requesting a further case management conference.

On November 19, 2010, the Company filed suit against Ruckus in the U.S. District Court, District of Delaware for infringement of four of the Company’s patents. The Company alleges that Ruckus’s manufacture, use, sale, or offers for sale within the United States or importation into the United States of products, including wireless communication products, infringe United States Patent Nos. 5,812,531, 6,621,454, 7,263,143, and 5,507,035, all owned by the Company. The Company granted Ruckus an extension to file its answer to the Company’s suit, and on January 11, 2011, Ruckus filed a motion to dismiss the Company’s suit based on insufficient pleadings. The Company filed its response to Ruckus’s motion on January 31, 2011.

Northpeak Wireless, LLC v. NETGEAR

In October 2008, a lawsuit was filed against the Company and thirty other companies by Northpeak Wireless, LLC (“Northpeak”) in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of Alabama. Northpeak alleges that the Company’s 802.11b compatible products infringe certain claims of U.S. Patent Nos. 4,977,577 and 5,987,058. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in the fourth quarter of 2008. On January 21, 2009, the District Court granted a motion to transfer the case to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. In August 2009, the parties stipulated to a litigation stay pending a reexamination request to the USPTO on the asserted patents. The reexaminations of the patents are proceeding. In March 2011, the USPTO confirmed the validity of the asserted claims of the ‘577 patent over certain prior art references. In April 2011, the USPTO issued a final office action rejecting both asserted claims of the ‘058 patent as being obvious in light of the prior art. The case remains stayed by stipulation, and no trial date has been set.

WIAV Networks, LLC v. NETGEAR

In July 2009, a lawsuit was filed against the Company and over fifty other companies by WIAV Networks, LLC (“WIAV”) in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas. WIAV alleges that the Company and the other defendants infringe U.S. Patent Nos. 6,480,497 and 5,400,338. WIAV alleges that the Company’s wireless networking devices, including various routers and gateways, infringe upon WIAV’s patents. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in October 2009 and asserted that WIAV’s patents were both invalid and not infringed upon by the Company. In March 2010, the Company and its co-defendants filed a motion to transfer the case to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. WIAV opposed the motion. On June 3, 2010, the Court heard the defendants’ motion to transfer the case from the Eastern District of Texas to the Northern District of California. The Court took the motion under consideration, and on July 15, 2010, the Court ruled that it would transfer the case to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. Discovery has not commenced. On August 31, 2010, the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California ordered WIAV to demonstrate why the Court should not dismiss all but the first named defendant from the lawsuit. The parties briefed and argued this issue before the Court. In response, the Court dismissed without prejudice all the defendants from the case except Hewlett Packard.

PACid Group, LLC v. NETGEAR

In July 2009, a lawsuit was filed against the Company and thirty other companies by The PACid Group, LLC (“PACid”) in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas. PACid alleges that the Company and the other defendants infringe U.S. Patent Nos. 5,963,646 and 6,049,612. PACid alleges that certain unnamed NETGEAR products that use encryption methods infringe upon PACid’s patents. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in September 2009 and asserted that PACid’s patents were both invalid and not infringed by the Company. Discovery has not yet commenced. Most of the Company’s chipset suppliers have settled out of the lawsuit and obtained a license to the plaintiff’s asserted patents. Because most of the accused infringement occurred in the chipset, this settlement by the chipset suppliers limits the claims the plaintiff has against the Company. On March 7, 2011, the Company attended a status conference. At this status conference, the Court indicated it would likely hold a consolidated conference when a trailing PACid case (PACid sued several defendants in another case in the Eastern District of Texas) is ready for its status conference – likely in the summer of 2011.

 

18


MPH Technologies Oy v. NETGEAR

On February 4, 2010, the Company was sued by MPH Technologies Oy (“MPH”) for infringement of U.S. patent 7,346,926 entitled “Method for Sending Messages Over Secure Mobile Communication Links.” MPH alleges that the Company’s VPN Client Software, Dual WAN gigabit SSL VPN Firewall, ProSafe Dual WAN VPN Firewall with 8-port 10/100 Switch, ProSafe VPN Firewall with 8-port 10/100 Switch, ProSafe VPN Firewall 8 with 8-Port 10/100 Switch, ProSafe VPN Firewall 8 with 4-Port 10/100 Mbps Switch, ProSafe 802 11 g Wireless ADSL Modem VPN Firewall Router, ProSafe Wireless-N VPN Firewall, and ProSafe 802 11 wireless VPN Firewall 8 with 8-port 10/100 Mbps Switch infringe claims of the ‘926 Patent. On May 17, 2010, the defendants jointly filed a motion to transfer the case to the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California. In addition, the Company filed its answer, affirmative defenses, and counterclaims on that day. On June 9, 2010, the plaintiff filed its answer to the Company’s invalidity counterclaim and its response to the defendants’ motion to transfer. On June 23, 2010, the defendants filed their joint reply to plaintiff’s response to the defendants’ motion to transfer venue. On July 16, 2010, the Court issued an order transferring the case to the Northern District of California. On September 10, 2010, the Company amended its answer to the complaint. The initial scheduling conference occurred on December 2, 2010. In response to this conference, the Court ordered that the Plaintiff must file its opening claim construction brief no later than May 17, 2011 and that defendants must file their responsive claim construction briefs no later than May 31, 2011. The Court also ordered that a claim construction hearing take place on June 22, 2011. The parties are currently participating in the discovery process.

Atwater Partners of Texas LLC v. NETGEAR

On June 1, 2010, the Company, along with 24 other companies, was sued by a non-practicing entity called Atwater Partners of Texas LLC (“Atwater”) in U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas. The complaint alleges that the Company directly or indirectly infringes five patents based on the use of technology from Sharedband Technologies, LLC. The patents involve bonded DSL technology. No accused products were named by Atwater in its complaint. The Company moved the Court in August 2010 for an order to dismiss for failure to state a claim, or, in the alternative, for a more definite statement. Plaintiff submitted a reply brief to the Company’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim. On October 25, 2010, Atwater and the Company moved the Court for an order dismissing all claims between them in this action without prejudice, with each party to bear its own costs, expenses and attorneys fees. On October 27, 2010 the Court dismissed the Company from this case.

Ericsson v. NETGEAR

On September 14, 2010, Ericsson Inc. and Telefonaktiebolaget LM Ericsson filed a patent infringement lawsuit against defendants D-Link Corporation, D-Link Systems, Inc., NETGEAR, Inc., Acer, Inc., Acer America Corporation, and Gateway, Inc. in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas alleging that the defendants infringe certain Ericsson patents. The Company has been accused of infringing 8 U.S. patents: 5,790,516; 6,330,435; 6,424,625; 6,519,223; 6,772,215; 5,987,019; 6,466,568; and 5,771,468. Ericsson generally alleges that the Company and the other defendants have infringed and continue to infringe the Ericsson patents through the defendants’ IEEE 802.11-compliant products. In addition, Ericsson alleges that the Company has infringed, and continues to infringe, the claimed methods and apparatuses of the ‘468 Patent through the Company’s PCMCIA routers. The Company filed its answer to the Ericsson complaint on December 17, 2010 where it asserted the affirmative defenses of noninfringement and invalidity of the asserted patents. On March 1, 2011, the Defendants filed a motion to transfer venue to the District Court for the Northern District of California and their memorandum of law in support therof. On March 21, 2011, Ericsson filed is opposition to the motion, and on April 1, 2011, defendants filed their reply to Ericsson’s opposition to the motion to transfer. The Court has not ruled on the motion to transfer, and discovery in this case has not yet commenced. The initial status conference in the case has been set for June 9, 2011.

Fujitsu v. NETGEAR

On September 3, 2010, Fujitsu filed a complaint against Belkin International, Inc., Belkin, Inc., D–Link Corporation, D–Link Systems, Inc., NETGEAR, Inc., ZyXEL Communications Corporation, and Zyxel Communications, Inc in the U.S. District Court, Northern District of California alleging that certain of the Company’s products infringe upon Fujitsu’s U.S. patent Re. 36,769 patent (‘769 Patent) through various cards and interface devices within the Company’s products. The Company answered the complaint denying the allegations of infringement and claiming that the asserted patent is invalid. In addition, the Company filed a motion to disqualify counsel for Fujitsu. The Company’s disqualification motion was argued before the Court on December 16, 2010, and on December 22, 2010, the Court granted the Company’s motion and disqualified counsel for Fujitsu. In response, Fujitsu requested a stipulation from all parties to reset the Case Management Conference and scheduled hearing dates for the motions to dismiss. The initial case management conference was held on March 18, 2011. The parties are currently participating in the discovery process.

 

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Data Network Storage, LLC v. NETGEAR

In April 2009, a lawsuit was filed against the Company and fourteen other companies by Data Network Storage, LLC (“DNS”) in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California. DNS alleges that the Company and the other third parties infringe U.S. Patent No. 6,098,128. In particular, DNS is alleging that several of the Company’s ReadyNAS products infringe upon DNS’s patents. The Company filed its answer to the lawsuit in July 2009 and asserted that DNS’s patents were both invalid and had not been infringed upon by the Company. In September 2009, at a Court-sanctioned early neutral evaluation, the parties were unable to reach an agreement on a settlement, and discovery is in process. On January 27, 2010, the Court denied co-defendant Fujitsu America, Inc.’s motion to stay the litigation, and the Company submitted its invalidity contentions on February 1, 2010. The Company and the plaintiff entered into settlement discussions in early March. Without admitting any wrongdoing or violation of law and to avoid the distraction and expense of continued litigation and the uncertainty of a jury verdict on the merits, the Company agreed to make a one-time lump sum payment in consideration for a fully paid and perpetual license to, and a covenant not to sue on, the ‘128 patent and the plaintiff’s entire portfolio of U.S. patents, related patents, and foreign counterparts. The Company has made the required one-time lump sum payment, and the lawsuit by DNS against the Company was dismissed with prejudice on April 23, 2010. This arrangement did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2010.

NETGEAR v. CSIRO

In May 2005, the Company filed a complaint for declaratory relief against the Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organization (“CSIRO”), in the San Jose division of the United States District Court, Northern District of California. The complaint alleged that the claims of CSIRO’s U.S. Patent No. 5,487,069 are invalid and not infringed by any of Company’s products. CSIRO had asserted that the Company’s wireless networking products implementing the IEEE 802.11a, 802.11g, and 802.11n wireless LAN standards infringe this patent. In July 2006, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit affirmed the District Court’s decision to deny CSIRO’s motion to dismiss the action under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act. In September 2006, the Federal Circuit denied CSIRO’s request for a rehearing en banc. CSIRO filed a response to the complaint in September 2006. In December 2006, the District Court granted CSIRO’s motion to transfer the case to the Eastern District of Texas, where CSIRO had brought and won a similar lawsuit against Buffalo Technology (USA), Inc., which Buffalo appealed and which was partially remanded to the District Court. The District Court consolidated this action with three related actions involving other companies (such as Buffalo) accused of infringing CSIRO’s patent. The Company attended a Court-mandated mediation in November 2007 but failed to resolve the litigation. The District Court held a June 26, 2008 claim construction hearing. On August 14, 2008, the District Court issued a claim construction order and denied a motion for summary judgment of invalidity. In December 2008, the parties filed numerous motions for summary judgment concerning, among other things, infringement, validity, and other affirmative defenses. The District Court commenced a jury trial on April 13, 2009 regarding all liability issues for the four consolidated cases. On April 20, 2009, the Company and CSIRO executed a Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) setting forth the terms of a settlement and license agreement between the Company and CSIRO. Without admitting any wrongdoing or violation of law and to avoid the distraction and expense of continued litigation and the uncertainty of a jury verdict on the merits, the Company agreed to make a one-time lump sum payment in consideration for a fully paid perpetual license and a covenant not to sue with respect to the ‘069 patent and all foreign counterparts and related patents. Based on the historical and estimated projected future unit sales of the Company’s products that were alleged to infringe the asserted patent, the Company allocated a portion of the settlement cost towards product shipments prior to the settlement, which the Company recorded as a litigation settlement expense of $2.4 million, which was primarily recognized in the three months ended March 29, 2009. Additionally, the Company allocated $2.6 million of the settlement cost to prepaid royalties which will be recognized as a component of cost of revenue as the related products are sold. Of this $2.6 million, $413,000 and $551,000 were amortized and expensed in the year ended December 31, 2009 and December 31, 2010, respectively. $138,000 was amortized and expensed in the three months ended April 3, 2011.

Finoc, LLC v. NETGEAR

In February 2009, a lawsuit was filed against the Company and fourteen other companies by Finoc Design Consulting OY (“Finoc”) in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Finoc alleged that the Company’s wireless DSL gateway products infringe U.S. Patent No. 6,850,560. In June 2009, without admitting any patent infringement, wrongdoing or violation of law and to avoid the distraction and expense of continued litigation, the Company agreed to make a one-time lump sum payment of $82,500 in consideration for a fully paid perpetual license to the patent in suit as well as a dismissal with prejudice by Finoc. Based on the historical and estimated projected future unit sales of the Company’s products that were alleged to infringe the asserted patents, the Company allocated a portion of the settlement cost towards product shipments prior to the settlement, which the Company recorded as a litigation settlement expense in the three months ended June 28, 2009. Additionally, the Company allocated the balance of the

 

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settlement cost to prepaid royalties which will be recognized as a component of cost of revenue as the related products are sold.

Network-1 Security Solutions, Inc. v. NETGEAR

In February 2008, a lawsuit was filed against the Company by Network-1 Security Solutions, Inc. (“Network-1”), a patent-holding company existing under the laws of the State of Delaware, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas. Network-1 alleged that the Company’s power over Ethernet (“PoE”) products infringed its U.S. Patent No. 6,218,930. Network-1 also sued six other companies alleging similar claims of patent infringement. The Company filed its answer in the second quarter of 2008. In May 2009, without admitting any patent infringement, wrongdoing or violation of law and to avoid the distraction and expense of continued litigation, the Company agreed to make a one-time lump sum payment of $350,000 in consideration for a license to the patent in suit as well as a dismissal with prejudice of the lawsuit. Under the license, the Company will pay future running royalties on certain of its PoE products which will be recognized as a component of cost of revenue as the related products are sold.

IP Indemnification Claims

In addition, in its sales agreements, the Company typically agrees to indemnify its direct customers, distributors and resellers (the “Indemnified Parties”) for any expenses or liability resulting from claimed infringements of patents, trademarks or copyrights of third parties that are asserted against the Indemnified Parties, subject to customary carveouts. The terms of these indemnification agreements are generally perpetual after execution of the agreement. The maximum amount of potential future indemnification is generally unlimited. From time to time, the Company receives requests for indemnity and may choose to assume the defense of such litigation asserted against the Indemnified Parties.

In June 2006, the Company received a request for indemnification from Charter and Charter Communications Operating, LLC, related to a lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Texas, by Rembrandt Technologies, L.P. (“Rembrandt”), a patent-holding company. Rembrandt also filed a similar lawsuit in the same jurisdiction against Comcast Corporation, Comcast Cable Communications, LLC and Comcast of Plano, LP. Rembrandt alleged that products implementing the DOCSIS standard, which are supplied to Charter, Comcast Corporation, Comcast Cable Communications, LLC and Comcast of Plano, LP by, among others, the Company, infringe various patents held by Rembrandt. In June 2007, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ordered these and other similar patent cases brought by Rembrandt consolidated and transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware. In November 2007, the Company along with Motorola, Inc., Cisco Systems, Inc., Scientific-Atlanta, Inc., ARRIS Group, Inc., Thomson, Inc. and Ambit Microsystems, Inc. filed a complaint for declaratory judgment in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware against Rembrandt, seeking a declaration that eight asserted Rembrandt patents asserted in the transferred cases are either invalid or not infringed. The District Court held a claim construction hearing on August 5, 2008. On November 29, 2008, the District Court issued its claim construction order. After the District Court’s order, Rembrandt agreed to drop three patents from the case, leaving five patents at issue. The District Court held a mediation on March 3-4, 2009 but the parties were unable to reach a resolution. On July 21, 2009, Rembrandt delivered to the Company and other parties an executed covenant not to sue on any of the eight patents originally in the suit, contending that the execution of the covenant divests the District Court of jurisdiction or renders moot the remaining claims and counterclaims in the action. On July 31, 2009, Rembrandt filed a motion to dismiss the litigation. While Rembrandt’s motion was pending, the defendants filed motions for summary judgment, sanctions, and responses to Rembrandt’s motion to dismiss. In early October 2009, the District Court suspended all further dates for the case while it reviewed the pending motions and case status. On October 23, 2009, the Court ordered Rembrandt to supplement the covenant not to sue to include any products or services that comply with DOCSIS 1.0, 1.1, 2.0 or 3 and dismissed Rembrandt’s various infringement claims on the eight patents with prejudice. The Court gave Rembrandt five days to withdraw its motion to dismiss the litigation if it found the Court’s conditions on dismissal to be unacceptable. Rembrandt did not withdraw its motion to dismiss the litigation, and on October 30, 2009, Rembrandt executed a covenant not to sue on any of the eight patents in the case and any products or services that comply with DOCSIS 1.0, 1.1, 2.0 or 3. The Company and its co-defendants moved for attorneys’ fees to be paid by Rembrandt. Rembrandt has opposed the motion. The parties are waiting for the Court to rule on the motion.

All of the above described claims against the Company, or filed by the Company, whether meritorious or not, could be time-consuming, result in costly litigation, require significant amounts of management time, and result in the diversion of significant operational resources. Were an unfavorable outcome to occur, there exists the possibility it would have a material adverse impact on the Company’s financial position and results of operations for the period in which the unfavorable outcome occurs or becomes probable. In addition, the Company is subject to legal proceedings, claims and litigation arising in the ordinary course of business, including litigation related to intellectual property and employment matters.

 

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Based on currently available information, the Company does not believe that the ultimate outcomes of any unresolved matters, individually and in the aggregate, are likely to have a material adverse effect on the Company’s financial position, liquidity or results of operations within the next twelve months. However, litigation is subject to inherent uncertainties, and the Company’s view of these matters may change in the future. Were an unfavorable outcome to occur, there exists the possibility of a material adverse impact on the Company’s financial position and results of operations or liquidity for the period in which the unfavorable outcome occurs or becomes probable, and potentially in future periods.

Environmental Regulation

The European Union (“EU”) has enacted the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Directive, which makes producers of electrical goods, including home and commercial business networking products, financially responsible for specified collection, recycling, treatment and disposal of past and future covered products. The deadline for the individual member states of the EU to transpose the directive into law in their respective countries was August 13, 2004 (such legislation, together with the directive, the “WEEE Legislation”). Producers participating in the market are financially responsible for implementing these responsibilities under the WEEE Legislation beginning in August 13, 2005. Similar WEEE Legislation has been or may be enacted in other jurisdictions, including in the United States, Canada, Mexico, China, India, Australia and Japan. The Company adopted the authoritative guidance for asset retirement and environmental obligations in the third quarter of fiscal 2005 and has determined that its effect did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated results of operations and financial position for the three months ended April 3, 2011. The Company is continuing to evaluate the impact of the WEEE Legislation and similar legislation in other jurisdictions as individual countries issue their implementation guidance.

Additionally, the EU has enacted the Restriction of Hazardous Substances Directive (“RoHS Legislation”), the REACH Directive and the Battery Directive. EU RoHS Legislation, along with similar legislation in China, requires manufacturers to ensure certain substances, including polybrominated biphenyls (“PBD”), polybrominated diphenyl ethers (“PBDE”), mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium and lead (except for allowed exempted materials and applications), are below specified maximum concentration values in certain products put on the market after July 1, 2006. The REACH Directive similarly requires manufacturers to ensure the published list of substances of very high concern in certain products are below specified maximum concentration values. The Battery Directive prohibits use of certain types of battery technology in certain products. The Company believes it has met the requirements of the RoHS Legislation, the REACH Directive and the Battery Directive.

Additionally, the EU has enacted the Energy Using Product (“EuP”) Directive, which requires manufacturers of certain products to meet minimum energy efficiency limits. These limits are documented in EuP implementing measures issued for specific types of equipment and document minimum power supply efficiencies and may include required equipment standby modes which also reduce energy consumption. The Company believes it has met the requirements of the applicable EuP implementing measures.

Employment Agreements

The Company has signed various employment agreements with key executives pursuant to which if their employment is terminated without cause, such employees are entitled to receive their base salary (and commission or bonus, as applicable) for 52 weeks (for the Chief Executive Officer), 39 weeks (for the Senior Vice President of Worldwide Operations and Support) and up to 26 weeks (for other key executives) and such employees will also continue to have stock options vest for up to a one year period following such termination without cause. If a termination without cause or resignation for good reason occurs within one year of a change in control, such employees are entitled to full acceleration (for the Chief Executive Officer) and up to two years acceleration (for other key executives) of any unvested portion of his or her stock options.

Leases

The Company leases office space, cars and equipment under operating leases, some of which are non-cancelable, with various expiration dates through December 2026. The terms of some of the Company’s office leases provide for rental payments on a graduated scale. The Company recognizes rent expense on a straight-line basis over the lease period, and has accrued for rent expense incurred but not paid.

Guarantees and Indemnifications

The Company has entered into various inventory-related purchase agreements with suppliers. Generally, under these agreements, 50% of orders are cancelable by giving notice 46 to 60 days prior to the expected shipment date and 25% of orders are cancelable by

 

22


giving notice 31 to 45 days prior to the expected shipment date. Orders are non-cancelable within 30 days prior to the expected shipment date. At April 3, 2011, the Company had $105.8 million in non-cancelable purchase commitments with suppliers. The Company establishes a loss liability for all products it does not expect to sell for which it has committed purchases from suppliers. Such losses have not been material to date.

The Company, as permitted under Delaware law and in accordance with its Bylaws, indemnifies its officers and directors for certain events or occurrences, subject to certain limits, while the officer or director is or was serving at the Company’s request in such capacity. The term of the indemnification period is for the officer’s or director’s lifetime. The maximum amount of potential future indemnification is unlimited; however, the Company has a Director and Officer Insurance Policy that limits its exposure and enables it to recover a portion of any future amounts paid. As a result of its insurance policy coverage, the Company believes the fair value of these indemnification agreements is minimal. Accordingly, the Company has no liabilities recorded for these agreements as of April 3, 2011.

In its sales agreements, the Company typically agrees to indemnify its direct customers, distributors and resellers for any expenses or liability resulting from claimed infringements of patents, trademarks or copyrights of third parties. The terms of these indemnification agreements are generally perpetual any time after execution of the agreement. The maximum amount of potential future indemnification is unlimited. The Company believes the estimated fair value of these agreements is minimal. Accordingly, the Company has no liabilities recorded for these agreements as of April 3, 2011.

13. Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The Company measures certain financial assets and liabilities at fair value on a recurring basis. The following table summarizes the valuation of the Company’s financial instruments as of April 3, 2011 and December 31, 2010 (in thousands):

 

     As of April 3, 2011  
     Total      Quoted market
prices in active
markets
(Level 1)
     Significant
other
observable
inputs
(Level 2)
     Significant
unobservable
inputs
(Level 3)
 

Cash equivalents—money market funds

   $ 33,792       $ 33,792       $ —         $ —     

Cash equivalents—U.S. Treasuries

     25,000         25,000         —           —     

Available-for-sale securities—U.S. Treasuries (1)

     120,137         120,137         —           —     

Available-for-sale securities—Certificates of Deposit (1)

     1,500         1,500         —           —     

Foreign currency forward contracts (2)

     182         —           182         —     
                                   

Total

   $ 180,611       $ 180,429       $ 182       $ —     
                                   

 

(1)   Included in short-term investments on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet.
(2)   Included in prepaid expenses and other current assets on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet.

 

     As of April 3, 2011  
     Total     Quoted market
prices in active
markets
(Level 1)
     Significant
other
observable
inputs
(Level 2)
    Significant
unobservable
inputs
(Level 3)
 

Foreign currency forward contracts (3)

   $ (804   $ —         $ (804   $ —     
                                 

Total

   $ (804   $ —         $ (804   $ —     
                                 

 

(3)   Included in other accrued liabilities on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet.

 

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     As of December 31, 2010  
     Total      Quoted market
prices in active
markets
(Level 1)
     Significant
other
observable
inputs
(Level 2)
     Significant
unobservable
inputs
(Level 3)
 

Cash equivalents—money market funds

   $ 77,795       $ 77,795       $ —         $ —     

Available-for-sale securities—U.S. Treasuries (1)

     144,564         144,564         —           —     

Foreign currency forward contracts (2)

     1,389         —           1,389         —     
                                   

Total

   $ 223,748       $ 222,359       $ 1,389       $ —     
                                   

 

(1)   Included in short-term investments on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet.
(2)   Included in prepaid expenses and other current assets on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet.

 

     As of December 31, 2010  
     Total     Quoted market
prices in active
markets
(Level 1)
     Significant
other
observable
inputs
(Level 2)
    Significant
unobservable
inputs
(Level 3)
 

Foreign currency forward contracts (3)

   $ (789   $ —         $ (789   $ —     
                                 

Total

   $ (789   $ —         $ (789   $ —     
                                 

 

(3)   Included in other accrued liabilities on the Company’s unaudited condensed consolidated balance sheet.

The Company’s investments in cash equivalents and available for sale securities are classified within Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy because they are valued based on quoted market prices in active markets. The Company enters into foreign currency forward contracts with only those counterparties that have long-term credit ratings of A+/A1 or higher. The Company’s foreign currency forward contracts are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy as they are valued using pricing models that take into account the contract terms as well as currency rates and counterparty credit rates. The Company verifies the reasonableness of these pricing models using observable market data for related inputs into such models. Additionally, the Company includes an adjustment for non-performance risk in the recognized measure of fair value of derivative instruments. At April 3, 2011 and December 31, 2010, the adjustment for non-performance risk did not have a material impact on the fair value of the Company’s foreign currency forward contracts. The carrying value of non-financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value in the financial statements on a recurring basis, including accounts receivable and accounts payable, approximate fair value attributable to their short maturities.

14. Comprehensive Income and Cumulative Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net

The following table sets forth the activity for each component of other comprehensive income (loss), net of related taxes, for the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010 (in thousands):

 

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     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Net income

   $ 21,189      $ 13,727   

Unrealized gains (losses) on derivative instruments

     (341     5   

Unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities

     7        3   
                

Other comprehensive income (loss)

   $ (334   $ 8   
                

Comprehensive income

   $ 20,855      $ 13,735   

The following table sets forth the components of cumulative other comprehensive income (loss), net of related taxes, as of April 3, 2011 and December 31, 2010 (in thousands):

 

     April 3,
2011
    December 31,
2010
 

Net unrealized gains (losses) on derivative instruments

   $ (68   $ 273   

Net unrealized gains on available-for-sale securities

     15        8   
                

Total cumulative other comprehensive income (loss), net of taxes

   $ (53   $ 281   
                

15. Subsequent Events

On April 15, 2011, the Company completed the acquisition of certain intellectual property and other assets of the Customer Networking Solutions division of Westell Technologies, Inc. at a purchase price of approximately $37.0 million in cash. This amount reflects post-closing adjustments related to actual inventory acquired, and may be subject to further additional adjustments. The acquisition qualifies as a business acquisition and will be accounted for using the acquisition method of accounting in the upcoming fiscal quarter ending July 3, 2011. The Company believes the acquisition will bolster its service provider revenue growth and strengthen its market position among U.S. telecommunications operators.

 

Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations

Forward-looking Statements

This report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such statements are based upon current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. For example, the words “believes,” “anticipates,” “plans,” “expects,” “intends” and similar expressions are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Our actual results and the timing of certain events may differ significantly from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause such a discrepancy include, but are not limited to, those discussed in “Part II—Item 1A—Risk Factors” and “Liquidity and Capital Resources” below. All forward-looking statements in this document are based on information available to us as of the date hereof and we assume no obligation to update any such forward-looking statements. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes contained in this quarterly report. Unless expressly stated or the context otherwise requires, the terms “we,” “our,” “us” and “NETGEAR” refer to NETGEAR, Inc. and our subsidiaries.

Overview

We are a global networking company that delivers innovative products to consumers, businesses, and service providers. For consumers, we make high performance, dependable and easy to use home networking, storage and digital media products to connect people with the Internet and their content and devices. For businesses, we provide networking, storage and security solutions without the cost and complexity of Big IT. We also supply leading service providers with retail proven, whole home networking solutions for their customers. Our products are built on a variety of proven technologies such as wireless, Ethernet and powerline, with a focus on reliability and ease-of-use.

 

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Our product line consists of wired and wireless devices that enable commercial business networking, broadband access, network connectivity, network storage and security appliances. These products are available in multiple configurations to address the needs of our end-users in each geographic region in which our products are sold.

We sell our networking products through multiple sales channels worldwide, including traditional retailers, online retailers, wholesale distributors, DMRs, VARs, and broadband service providers. Our retail channel includes traditional retail locations domestically and internationally, such as Best Buy, Fry’s Electronics, Radio Shack, Staples, Wal-Mart, Argos (U.K.), Dixons (U.K.), PC World (U.K.), MediaMarkt (Germany, Austria), Dick Smith (Australia), JB HiFi (Australia) and Elkjop (Norway). Online retailers include Amazon.com, Dell, Newegg.com and Buy.com. Our DMRs include CDW Corporation, Insight Corporation and PC Connection in domestic markets and Misco throughout Europe. In addition, we also sell our products through broadband service providers, such as multiple system operators (MSOs), DSL, and other broadband technology operators domestically and internationally. Some of these retailers and broadband service providers purchase directly from us while others are fulfilled through wholesale distributors around the world. A substantial portion of our net revenue to date has been derived from a limited number of wholesale distributors and retailers, including Ingram Micro and Best Buy. We expect that these wholesale distributors and retailers will continue to contribute a significant percentage of our net revenue for the foreseeable future. Our service provider business has been growing steadily and it is difficult to ascertain a seasonal pattern given that the business is less predictable than our other core businesses. Virgin Media contributed 10% of our revenue in the three months ended April 3, 2011.

Our net revenue increased 31.8% from the three months ended March 28, 2010 to the three months ended April 3, 2011. The increase in net revenue was principally attributable to higher sales in several of our product categories in both the Americas and Europe, the Middle-East and Africa (“EMEA”) regions. These include wireless-N products sold to retailers and existing service provider customers, Powerline products, ReadyNAS products, and switch products. We also experienced lower than expected sales returns, in part related to our relatively faster growth in our revenue from service providers, which generally carry lower sales returns.

The commercial business, consumer, and broadband service provider markets are intensely competitive and subject to rapid technological change. We expect our competition to continue to intensify. We believe that the principal competitive factors in these markets for networking products include product breadth, size and scope of the sales channel, brand name, timeliness of new product introductions, product availability, performance, features, functionality and reliability, ease-of-installation, maintenance and use, and customer service and support. To remain competitive, we believe we must continue to aggressively invest resources in developing new products and enhancing our current products while continuing to expand our channels and maintaining customer satisfaction worldwide.

Our gross margin decreased to 31.5% for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from 34.4% for the three months ended March 28, 2010. The decrease in gross margin was primarily attributable to relatively faster growth in our revenue from service providers, which generally carry lower gross margins than our other products. Operating expenses for the three months ended April 3, 2011 were $57.3 million, or 20.5% of net revenue, compared to $49.1 million, or 23.2% of net revenue, for the three months ended March 28, 2010.

Net income increased $7.5 million, or 54.4%, to $21.2 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $13.7 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. This increase was primarily attributable to an increase in gross profit of $15.0 million and a decrease in the provision for income taxes of $0.7 million. This increase was primarily offset by an increase in operating expenses of $8.2 million.

Starting in the second quarter of 2011, our business will be managed in three specific business units: retail, commercial, and service provider. Each business unit will be managed by a Senior Vice President/General Manager. We believe this new structure will enable us to better focus our efforts on our core customer segments and allow us to be more nimble and opportunistic as a company overall. As such, we will provide further financial information specific to each of these three business units, including expected restructuring costs associated with this reorganization, in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended July 3, 2011. In that quarter we will also allocate our goodwill to each segment and will evaluate those allocations for potential impairment.

On April 15, 2011, we completed the acquisition of certain intellectual property and other assets of the Customer Networking Solutions division of Westell Technologies, Inc. at a purchase price of approximately $37.0 million in cash. This amount reflects post-closing adjustments related to actual inventory acquired, and may be subject to further additional adjustments. The acquisition qualifies as a business acquisition and will be accounted for using the acquisition method of accounting in the upcoming fiscal quarter ending July 3, 2011. We believe the acquisition will bolster our service provider revenue growth and strengthen our market position among U.S. telecommunications operators.

 

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Results of Operations

The following table sets forth the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations and the percentage change for the three months ended April 3, 2011, with the comparable reporting periods in the preceding year.

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

Net revenue

   $ 278,823        31.8   $ 211,555   

Cost of revenue

     191,037        37.7        138,731   
                        

Gross profit

     87,786        20.5        72,824   
                        

Operating expenses:

      

Research and development

     11,014        18.4        9,305   

Sales and marketing

     36,648        19.0        30,789   

General and administrative

     9,645        7.9        8,942   

Restructuring

     —          (100.0     13   

Litigation reserves, net

     (53     *     68   
                        

Total operating expenses

     57,254        16.6        49,117   
                        

Income from operations

     30,532        28.8        23,707   

Interest income

     129        84.3        70   

Other income (expense), net

     (330     70.1        (194
                        

Income before income taxes

     30,331        28.6        23,583   

Provision for income taxes

     9,142        (7.2     9,856   
                        

Net income

   $ 21,189        54.4   $ 13,727   
                        

 

** Percentage change not meaningful.

 

27


The following table sets forth the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations, expressed as a percentage of net revenue, for the periods indicated:

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 

Net revenue

     100     100

Cost of revenue

     68.5        65.6   
                

Gross margin

     31.5        34.4   
                

Operating expenses:

    

Research and development

     3.9        4.4   

Sales and marketing

     13.1        14.6   

General and administrative

     3.5        4.2   

Restructuring

     0.0        0.0   

Litigation reserves, net

     0.0        0.0   
                

Total operating expenses

     20.5        23.2   
                

Income from operations

     11.0        11.2   

Interest income

     0.0        0.0   

Other income (expense), net

     (0.1     (0.1
                

Income before income taxes

     10.9        11.1   

Provision for income taxes

     3.3        4.6   
                

Net income

     7.6     6.5
                

Three Months Ended April 3, 2011 Compared to Three Months Ended March 28, 2010

Net Revenue

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
     Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

Net revenue

   $ 278,823         31.8   $ 211,555   

Our net revenue consists of gross product shipments, less allowances for estimated returns for stock rotation and warranty, price protection, end-user customer rebates and other sales incentives deemed to be a reduction of net revenue and net changes in deferred revenue.

Net revenue increased $67.2 million, or 31.8%, to $278.8 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $211.6 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. The increase in net revenue was principally attributable to higher sales in several of our product categories in both the Americas and EMEA regions. These include wireless-N products sold to retailers and existing service provider customers, Powerline products, ReadyNAS products, and switch products. We also experienced lower than expected sales returns, in part related to our relatively faster growth in our revenue from service providers, which generally carry lower sales returns. Sales in EMEA increased 51.1%, primarily due to strong service provider sales in United Kingdom as a result of increased deployments of Docsis 3.0.

In the three months ended April 3, 2011, in order to achieve operational efficiencies, we combined our North American, Central American and South American sales forces to form the Americas territory. Previously North America was its own geographic region and the Central American and South American territories were categorized within the Asia Pacific geographic region. Following this change, we are organized into the following three geographic territories: Americas, EMEA and Asia Pacific. We have reclassified the

 

28


disclosure of net revenue by geography for prior periods to conform to the current period’s presentation. The change did not result in material differences from what was previously reported. Net revenue by geography comprises gross revenue less such items as marketing incentives paid to customers, sales returns and price protection.

Net revenue by geographic location is as follows:

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

Americas

   $ 131,947        23.0   $ 107,286   

Percentage of net revenue

     47.3       50.7

Europe, Middle-East, and Africa

   $ 122,620        51.1   $ 81,147   

Percentage of net revenue

     44.0       38.4

Asia Pacific

   $ 24,256        4.9   $ 23,122   

Percentage of net revenue

     8.7       10.9

Cost of Revenue and Gross Margin

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

Cost of revenue

   $ 191,037        37.7   $ 138,731   

Gross margin percentage

     31.5       34.4

Cost of revenue consists primarily of the following: the cost of finished products from our third party contract manufacturers; overhead costs including purchasing, product planning, inventory control, warehousing and distribution logistics; inbound freight; warranty costs associated with returned goods; write-downs for excess and obsolete inventory, and amortization expense of certain acquired intangibles. We outsource our manufacturing, warehousing and distribution logistics. We believe this outsourcing strategy allows us to better manage our product costs and gross margin. Our gross margin can be affected by a number of factors, including fluctuation in foreign exchange rates, sales returns, changes in average selling prices, end-user customer rebates and other sales incentives, and changes in our cost of goods sold due to fluctuations in prices paid for components, net of vendor rebates, warranty and overhead costs, inbound freight, conversion costs, and charges for excess or obsolete inventory.

Cost of revenue increased $52.3 million, or 37.7%, to $191.0 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $138.7 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. In addition, our gross margin decreased to 31.5% for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from 34.4% for the three months ended March 28, 2010. The decrease in gross margin was primarily attributable to relatively faster growth in our revenue from service providers, which generally carry lower gross margins than our other products. Relatively lower warranty costs associated with returned goods generally offset our relatively higher provisions for excess and obsolete inventory. Additionally, the decrease in gross margin was slightly offset by our relatively lower usage of air freight.

 

29


Operating Expenses

Research and Development

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

Research and development expense

   $ 11,014        18.4   $ 9,305   

Percentage of net revenue

     3.9       4.4

Research and development expenses consist primarily of personnel expenses, payments to suppliers for design services, safety and regulatory testing, product certification expenditures to qualify our products for sale into specific markets, prototypes and other consulting fees. Research and development expenses are recognized as they are incurred. We have invested in building our research and development organization to enhance our ability to introduce innovative and easy-to-use products. In the future, we believe that research and development expenses will increase in absolute dollars as we expand into new networking product technologies and broaden our core competencies.

Research and development expenses increased $1.7 million, or 18.4%, to $11.0 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $9.3 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. The increase was primarily attributable to increased costs of $1.2 million related to an increase in payroll and other employee expenses primarily resulting from increased overall research and development headcount. Furthermore, we experienced higher outside service costs of $417,000, primarily related to our increased research and development projects.

Sales and Marketing

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

Sales and marketing expense

   $ 36,648        19.0   $ 30,789   

Percentage of net revenue

     13.1       14.6

Sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of advertising, trade shows, corporate communications and other marketing expenses, product marketing expenses, outbound freight costs, personnel expenses for sales and marketing staff and technical support expenses.

Sales and marketing expenses increased $5.8 million, or 19.0%, to $36.6 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $30.8 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. Of this increase, $2.7 million was related to an increase in payroll and other employee expenses primarily attributable to increased overall sales and marketing headcount and an increase in travel expenses. Sales and marketing headcount increased 12%, to 318 employees at April 3, 2011 compared to 284 employees at March 28, 2010. Additionally, marketing expenses and other outside service costs increased $2.5 million in line with our higher net revenues.

 

30


General and Administrative

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    Percentage
Change
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands, except percentage data)  

General and administrative expense

   $ 9,645        7.9   $ 8,942   

Percentage of net revenue

     3.5       4.2

General and administrative expenses consist of salaries and related expenses for executive, finance and accounting, human resources, information technology, professional fees, allowance for doubtful accounts and other corporate expenses.

General and administrative expenses increased $703,000, or 7.9%, to $9.6 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $8.9 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. This increase is mainly related to an increase in payroll and other employee expenses primarily attributable to increased headcount.

Litigation Reserves

During the three months ended April 3, 2011 and March 28, 2010, we recorded a litigation reserve benefit of $53,000 and an expense of $68,000, respectively, related to the settlement of various lawsuits filed against us. For a detailed discussion of our litigation matters, please see Note 12 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

Interest Income and Other Income (Expense), Net

 

     Three Months Ended  
     April 3,
2011
    March 28,
2010
 
     (In thousands)  

Interest income

   $ 129      $ 70   

Other expense, net

     (330     (194
                

Total interest income and other expense, net

   $ (201   $ (124
                

Interest income represents amounts earned on our cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments. Other income (expense), net, primarily represents gains and losses on transactions denominated in foreign currencies and other miscellaneous expenses.

Interest income increased $59,000, or 84.3%, to $129,000 for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $70,000 for the three months ended March 28, 2010. The increase in interest income was primarily attributable to an increase in our average effective interest rate earned and our average balance of cash, cash equivalents, and short-term investments in the three months ended April 3, 2011, as compared to the three months ended March 28, 2010.

Other income (expense), net, increased $136,000 in expense, to an expense of $330,000 for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from an expense of $194,000 for the three months ended March 28, 2010. Our foreign currency hedging program more than offset our foreign exchange risk related to the Australian dollar, British pound, euro, and Japanese yen during three months ended April 3, 2011. The expense of $330,000 is primarily related to expenses related to forward points for hedged currency and exposures in currencies that are not hedged. For details of our hedging program and related foreign currency contracts, please see Note 7 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

Provision for Income Taxes

The income tax provision and effective tax rate for the three months ended April 3, 2011 was $9.1 million and 30.1 percent, respectively, compared to the tax provision and effective tax rate for the three months ended March 28, 2010 of $9.9 million and 41.8 percent, respectively. The decrease is mainly due to higher pre-tax income in foreign jurisdictions that are taxed at rates lower than the U.S. federal tax rate. We are subject to income taxes in the U.S. and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Our future foreign tax rate could

 

31


be affected by changes in the composition in earnings in countries with tax rates differing from the U.S. federal rate.

Net Income

Net income increased $7.5 million, or 54.4%, to $21.2 million for the three months ended April 3, 2011, from $13.7 million for the three months ended March 28, 2010. This increase was primarily attributable to an increase in gross profit of $15.0 million and a decrease in the provision for income taxes of $0.7 million. This increase was primarily offset by an increase in operating expenses of $8.2 million.

Liquidity and Capital Resources

Our cash and cash equivalents balance increased from $126.2 million as of December 31, 2010 to $157.5 million as of April 3, 2011. Operating activities during the three months ended April 3, 2011 provided cash of $4.6 million, compared to $7.6 million used in the three months ended March 28, 2010. Investing activities during the three months ended April 3, 2011 provided cash of $20.3 million, primarily due to $22.7 million in net sale of short-term investments, which is offset by $1.9 million in the purchase of property and equipment. During the three months ended April 3, 2011, financing activities provided cash of $6.5 million, resulting primarily from the issuance of common stock related to stock option exercises and our employee stock purchase program.

Our days sales outstanding decreased from 78 days as of December 31, 2010 to 66 days as of April 3, 2011. Days sales outstanding as of December 31, 2010 was higher due to seasonal payment terms extended to our larger retail customers; as of April 3, 2011 we have returned to a more normal range of days sales outstanding.

Our accounts payable decreased from $89.2 million at December 31, 2010 to $81.2 million at April 3, 2011. The decrease is primarily attributable to timing of payments.

Inventory increased by $12.7 million from $127.4 million at December 31, 2010 to $140.1 million at April 3, 2011. In the three months ended April 3, 2011 we experienced annualized ending inventory turns of approximately 5.5, slightly down from approximately 5.6 in the three months ended December 31, 2010.

On April 15, 2011, we completed the acquisition of certain intellectual property and other assets of the Customer Networking Solutions division of Westell Technologies, Inc. at a purchase price of approximately $37.0 million in cash. This amount reflects post-closing adjustments related to actual inventory acquired, and may be subject to further additional adjustments. The acquisition qualifies as a business acquisition and will be accounted for using the acquisition method of accounting in the upcoming fiscal quarter ending July 3, 2011. We believe the acquisition will bolster our service provider revenue growth and strengthen our market position among U.S. telecommunications operators.

We lease office space, cars and equipment under non-cancelable operating leases with various expiration dates through December 2026. The terms of certain of our facility leases provide for rental payments on a graduated scale. We recognize rent expense on a straight-line basis over the lease period, and have accrued for rent expense incurred but not paid.

 

32


We enter into various inventory-related purchase agreements with suppliers. Generally, under these agreements, 50% of the orders are cancelable by giving notice 46 to 60 days prior to the expected shipment date and 25% of orders are cancelable by giving notice 31 to 45 days prior to the expected shipment date. Orders are non-cancelable within 30 days prior to the expected shipment date. At April 3, 2011, we had approximately $105.8 million in non-cancelable purchase commitments with suppliers. We establish a loss liability for all products we do not expect to sell for which we have committed purchases from suppliers. Such losses have not been material to date.

We enter into foreign currency forward-exchange contracts, which typically mature in three to five months, to hedge a portion of our exposure to foreign currency fluctuations of foreign currency-denominated revenue, costs of revenue, certain operating expenses, receivables, payables, and cash balances. We record on the consolidated balance sheet at each reporting period the fair value of our forward-exchange contracts and record any fair value adjustments in our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations and in our Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheet. Gains and losses associated with currency rate changes on hedge contracts that are non-designated under the authoritative guidance for derivatives and hedging are recorded within other income (expense), net, offsetting foreign exchange gains and losses on our monetary assets and liabilities. Gains and losses associated with currency rate changes on hedge contracts that are cash flow hedges under the authoritative guidance for derivatives and hedging are recorded within cumulative other comprehensive income until the related revenue, costs of revenue, or expenses are recognized.

In October 2008, the Board of Directors approved plans to purchase shares of our common stock in the open market. As of April 3, 2011, we were authorized to purchase up to an additional 4.8 million shares under the share repurchase plan. The stock repurchase authorization does not have an expiration date and the pace of repurchase activity will depend on various factors including, but not limited to, such factors as levels of cash generation from operations, cash requirements for acquisitions, and current stock price.

Contractual Obligations

The following table describes our commitments to settle contractual obligations in cash as of April 3, 2011 (in thousands):

 

Contractual Obligations

   Less than
1 Year
     1 - 3
Years
     3 - 5
Years
     Over 5
Years
     Total  

Operating leases

   $ 6,625       $ 10,052       $ 7,788       $ 8,854       $ 33,319   

Purchase obligations

     105,753         —           —           —           105,753   
                                            
   $ 112,378       $ 10,052       $ 7,788       $ 8,854       $ 139,072   
                                            

Off-Balance Sheet Arrangements

As of April 3, 2011, we did not have any off-balance-sheet arrangements, as defined in Item 303(a)(4)(ii) of SEC Regulation S-K.

Based on our current plans and market conditions, we believe that our existing cash, cash equivalents and short-term investments will be sufficient to satisfy our anticipated cash requirements for at least the next twelve months. However, we may require or desire additional funds to support our operating expenses and capital requirements or for other purposes, such as acquisitions, and may seek to raise such additional funds through public or private equity financing or from other sources. We cannot assure you that additional financing will be available at all or that, if available, such financing will be obtainable on terms favorable to us and would not be dilutive. Our future liquidity and cash requirements will depend on numerous factors, including the introduction of new products and potential acquisitions of related businesses or technology.

As of April 3, 2011, we had total gross unrecognized tax benefits and related interest liabilities of $20.3 million. The timing of any payments which could result from these unrecognized tax benefits will depend upon a number of factors. Accordingly, the timing of payment cannot be estimated. We do not expect a significant tax payment related to these obligations to occur within the next 12 months.

Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates

Our critical accounting policies are disclosed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010. Our critical accounting policies have not materially changed during the three months ended April 3, 2011.

 

33


Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk

Interest Rate Risk

We do not use derivative financial instruments in our investment portfolio. We have an investment portfolio of fixed income securities that are classified as “available-for-sale securities.” These securities, like all fixed income instruments, are subject to interest rate risk and will fall in value if market interest rates increase. We attempt to limit this exposure by investing primarily in highly rated short-term securities. Additionally, our investment policy generally limits the amount of credit exposure to any one issuer. Our investment policy requires investments to be rated triple-A with the objective of minimizing the potential risk of principal loss. Due to the short duration and conservative nature of our investment portfolio, a movement of 10% by market interest rates would not have a material impact on our operating results and the total value of the portfolio over the next fiscal year. We monitor our interest rate and credit risks, including our credit exposure to specific rating categories and to individual issuers. There were no impairment charges on our investments during the three months ended April 3, 2011.

Foreign Currency Transaction Risk

We invoice some of our international customers in foreign currencies including, but not limited to, the Australian dollar, British pound, euro, and Japanese yen. As the customers that are currently invoiced in local currency become a larger percentage of our business, or to the extent we begin to bill additional customers in foreign currencies, the impact of fluctuations in foreign exchange rates could have a more significant impact on our results of operations. For those customers in our international markets that we continue to sell to in U.S. dollars, an increase in the value of the U.S. dollar relative to foreign currencies could make our products more expensive and therefore reduce the demand for our products. Such a decline in the demand for our products could reduce sales and negatively impact our operating results. Certain operating expenses of our foreign operations require payment in the local currencies.

We are exposed to risks associated with foreign exchange rate fluctuations due to our international sales and operating activities. These exposures may change over time as business practices evolve and could negatively impact our operating results and financial condition. The objective of these foreign currency forward contracts is to reduce the impact of currency exchange rate movements on our operating results by offsetting gains and losses on the forward contracts with increases or decreases in foreign currency transactions. The contracts are marked-to-market on a monthly basis with gains and losses included in other income (expense), net in the Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations, and in cumulative other comprehensive income on the Balance Sheet. We do not use foreign currency contracts for speculative or trading purposes. Hedging of our balance sheet and anticipated cash flow exposures may not always be effective to protect us against currency exchange rate fluctuations. In addition, we do not fully hedge our balance sheet and anticipated cash flow exposures, leaving us at risk to foreign exchange gains and losses on the un-hedged exposures. If there were an adverse movement in exchange rates, we might suffer significant losses. See Note 7 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for additional disclosure on our foreign currency contracts, which are hereby incorporated by reference into this Part I, Item 3.

We are exposed to credit losses in the event of nonperformance by the counter-parties of our foreign currency forward contracts and non-designated hedges. We enter into foreign currency forward contracts and non-designated hedges with high-quality financial institutions. In addition, the foreign currency forward contracts and non-designated hedges are limited to a time period of less than one year, and we continuously evaluate the credit standing of our counter-party financial institutions. See Note 7 to the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements.

A hypothetical 10% movement in foreign exchange rates would result in an after-tax positive or negative impact of $517,000 to net income, net of our hedged position, at April 3, 2011. Actual future gains and losses associated with our foreign currency exposures and positions may differ materially from the sensitivity analyses performed as of April 3, 2011 due to the inherent limitations associated with predicting the foreign currency exchange rates, and our actual exposures and positions. For the three months ended April 3, 2011, 15.6% of total net revenue was denominated in a currency other than the U.S. dollar.

 

Item 4. Controls and Procedures

Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures

Based on an evaluation under the supervision and with the participation of our management (including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer), our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that our disclosure controls and

 

34


procedures as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), were effective as of the end of the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Based on this evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer have concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures are effective to ensure that information we are required to disclose in reports that we file or submit under the Exchange Act is (i) recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission rules and forms, and (ii) accumulated and communicated to management, including our Chief Executive Officer and our Chief Financial Officer, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosures.

Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting

There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially effect, our internal control over financial reporting.

PART II: OTHER INFORMATION

 

Item 1. Legal Proceedings

The information set forth under Note 12 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, included in Part I, Item 1 of this report, is incorporated herein by reference. For an additional discussion of certain risks associated with legal proceedings, see the section entitled “Risk Factors” in Part II, Item 1A of this report.

 

Item 1A. Risk Factors

Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. The risks described below are not exhaustive of the risks that might affect our business. Other risks, including those we currently deem immaterial, may also impact our business. Any of the following risks could materially adversely affect our business operations, results of operations and financial condition and could result in a significant decline in our stock price. Before deciding to purchase, hold or sell our common stock, you should carefully consider the risks described in this section. This section should be read in conjunction with the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes thereto, and Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.

We expect our operating results to fluctuate on a quarterly and annual basis, which could cause our stock price to fluctuate or decline.

Our operating results are difficult to predict and may fluctuate substantially from quarter-to-quarter or year-to-year for a variety of reasons, many of which are beyond our control. If our actual results were to fall below our estimates or the expectations of public market analysts or investors, our quarterly and annual results would be negatively impacted and the price of our stock could decline. Other factors that could affect our quarterly and annual operating results include those listed in the risk factors section of this report and others such as:

 

   

changes in the pricing policies of or the introduction of new products by us or our competitors;

 

   

unanticipated shift or decline in profit by geographical region that would adversely impact our tax rate;

 

   

slow or negative growth in the networking product, personal computer, Internet infrastructure, home electronics and related technology markets, as well as decreased demand for Internet access;

 

   

operational disruptions, such as transportation delays or failure of our order processing system, particularly if they occur at the end of a fiscal quarter;

 

   

geopolitical disruption leading to delay or even stoppage of our operations in manufacturing, transportation, technical support and research and development;

 

   

delay or failure of our service provider customers to purchase at the volumes that we forecast;

 

35


   

foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations in the jurisdictions where we transact sales and expenditures in local currency;

 

   

changes in or consolidation of our sales channels and wholesale distributor relationships or failure to manage our sales channel inventory and warehousing requirements;

 

   

delay or failure to fulfill orders for our products on a timely basis;

 

   

allowance for bad debts exposure with our existing customers and new customers, particularly as we expand into new international markets;

 

   

disruptions or delays related to our financial and enterprise resource planning systems;

 

   

our inability to accurately forecast product demand;

 

   

component supply constraints from our vendors;

 

   

unfavorable level of inventory and turns;

 

   

unanticipated shift in overall product mix from higher to lower margin products that would adversely impact our margins;

 

   

changes in the terms of our contracts with customers or suppliers that cause us to incur additional expenses or assume additional liabilities;

 

   

delays in the introduction of new products by us or market acceptance of these products;

 

   

an increase in price protection claims, redemptions of marketing rebates, product warranty and stock rotation returns or allowance for doubtful accounts;

 

   

litigation involving patent infringement;

 

   

epidemic or widespread failure in one or more of our products;

 

   

unanticipated safety issues involving one or more of our products;

 

   

challenges associated with integrating acquisitions that we make, or with realizing value from our strategic investments in other companies;

 

   

labor unrest at facilities managed by our third-party manufacturers;

 

   

unanticipated increase in costs, including air freight, associated with shipping and delivery of our products;

 

   

our failure to implement and maintain the appropriate internal controls over financial reporting which may result in restatements of our financial statements; and

 

   

any changes in accounting rules.

As a result, period-to-period comparisons of our operating results may not be meaningful, and you should not rely on them as an indication of our future performance.

Our stock price may be volatile and your investment in our common stock could suffer a decline in value.

With the continuing uncertainty about economic conditions in the United States and abroad, there has been significant volatility in the market price and trading volume of securities of technology and other companies, which may be unrelated to the financial performance of these companies. These broad market fluctuations may negatively affect the market price of our common stock.

Some specific factors that may have a significant effect on our common stock market price include:

 

36


   

actual or anticipated fluctuations in our operating results or our competitors’ operating results;

 

   

actual or anticipated changes in the growth rate of the general networking sector, our growth rates or our competitors’ growth rates;

 

   

conditions in the financial markets in general or changes in general economic conditions;

 

   

interest rate or currency exchange rate fluctuations;

 

   

our ability or inability to raise additional capital;

 

   

our ability to report accurate financial results in our periodic reports filed with the SEC;

 

   

disclosures of previously non-public information relating to our reorganization into three units in the second fiscal quarter of 2011; and

 

   

changes in stock market analyst recommendations regarding our common stock, other comparable companies or our industry generally.

Some of our competitors have substantially greater resources than we do, and to be competitive we may be required to lower our prices or increase our sales and marketing expenses, which could result in reduced margins and loss of market share.

We compete in a rapidly evolving and fiercely competitive market, and we expect competition to continue to be intense, including price competition. Our principal competitors in the commercial business market include Allied Telesyn, Barracuda, Buffalo, Dell, D-Link, Fortinet, Inc., Hewlett-Packard, Huawei, Cisco Systems, the Linksys division of Cisco Systems, QNAP Systems, Seagate Technology, SonicWALL, Synology, WatchGuard and Western Digital. Our principal competitors in the home market for networking devices and television connectivity products include Apple, Belkin, D-Link, the Linksys division of Cisco Systems, Samsung, Vizio, Sony and Roku. Our principal competitors in the broadband service provider market include Actiontec, ARRIS, Comtrend, D-Link, Hitron, Huawei, Motorola, Pace, Sagem, Scientific Atlanta-a Cisco company, SMC Networks, TechniColor, Ubee, and ZyXEL. Other current and potential competitors include numerous local vendors such as Devolo, LEA and AVM in Europe, Corega and Melco in Japan and TP-Link in China. Our potential competitors also include consumer electronics vendors, including LG Electronics, Panasonic and Toshiba, who could integrate networking capabilities into their line of products, such as televisions, set top boxes and gaming consoles, and our channel customers who may decide to offer self-branded networking products. We also face competition from service providers who may bundle a free networking device with their broadband service offering, which would reduce our sales if we are not the supplier of choice to those service providers. In the service provider space, we are also facing increased competition from original design manufacturers, or ODM’s, and contract manufacturers who are selling and attempting to sell their products directly to service providers around the world.

Many of our existing and potential competitors have longer operating histories, greater name recognition and substantially greater financial, technical, sales, marketing and other resources. These competitors may, among other things, undertake more extensive marketing campaigns, adopt more aggressive pricing policies, obtain more favorable pricing from suppliers and manufacturers, and exert more influence on sales channels than we can. We anticipate that current and potential competitors will also intensify their efforts to penetrate our target markets. For example, price competition is intense in our industry in certain geographical regions and product categories. Average sales prices have declined in the past and may again decline in the future. These competitors may have more advanced technology, more extensive distribution channels, stronger brand names, greater access to shelf space in retail locations, bigger promotional budgets and larger customer bases than we do. These companies could devote more capital resources to develop, manufacture and market competing products than we could. If any of these companies are successful in competing against us, our sales could decline, our margins could be negatively impacted and we could lose market share, any of which could seriously harm our business and results of operations.

 

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Economic conditions are likely to materially adversely affect our revenue and results of operations.

Our business has been and may continue to be affected by a number of factors that are beyond our control such as general geopolitical, economic and business conditions, conditions in the financial services markets, and changes in the overall demand for networking products. A severe and/or prolonged economic downturn could adversely affect our customers’ financial condition and the levels of business activity of our customers. Uncertainty about current global economic conditions could cause businesses to postpone spending in response to tighter credit, negative financial news and/or declines in income or asset values, which could have a material negative effect on the demand for networking products.

The recent economic problems affecting the banking system and financial markets and the recent uncertainty in global economic conditions has resulted in a tightening in the credit markets, a low level of liquidity in many financial markets, extreme volatility in credit, equity, currency and fixed income markets, and high unemployment. There could be a number of follow-on effects from these economic developments and negative economic trends on our business, including the inability of customers to obtain credit to finance purchases of our products; customer insolvencies; decreased customer confidence to make purchasing decisions; decreased customer demand; and decreased customer ability to pay their trade obligations.

If conditions in the global economy, U.S. economy or other key vertical or geographic markets remain uncertain or weaken further, such conditions could have a material adverse impact on our business, operating results and financial condition. In addition, if we are unable to successfully anticipate changing economic and political conditions, we may be unable to effectively plan for and respond to those changes, which could materially adversely affect our business and results of operations.

Our business is subject to the risks of international operations.

We derive a significant portion of our revenue from international operations. As a result, our financial condition and operating results could be significantly affected by risks associated with international activities, including economic and labor conditions, political instability, tax laws, changes in the value of the U.S. dollar versus local currencies, and natural disasters. Margins on sales of our products in foreign countries, and on sales of products that include components obtained from foreign suppliers, could be materially adversely affected by foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations and by international trade regulations. Additionally, certain foreign countries have complex regulatory requirements as conditions of doing business. Meeting these requirements may increase our operating expenses as we expand internationally.

We obtain several key components from limited or sole sources, and if these sources fail to satisfy our supply requirements, we may lose sales and experience increased component costs.

Any shortage or delay in the supply of key product components would harm our ability to meet scheduled product deliveries. Many of the semiconductors used in our products are specifically designed for use in our products and are obtained from sole source suppliers on a purchase order basis. In addition, some components that are used in all our products are obtained from limited sources. These components include connector jacks, plastic casings and physical layer transceivers. We also obtain switching fabric semiconductors, which are used in our Ethernet switches and Internet gateway products, and wireless local area network chipsets, which are used in all of our wireless products, from a limited number of suppliers. Semiconductor suppliers have experienced and continue to experience component shortages themselves, such as with substrates used in manufacturing chipsets, which in turn adversely impact our ability to procure semiconductors from them. Our third-party manufacturers generally purchase these components on our behalf on a purchase order basis, and we do not have any contractual commitments or guaranteed supply arrangements with our suppliers. If demand for a specific component increases, we may not be able to obtain an adequate number of that component in a timely manner. In addition, if worldwide demand for the components increases significantly, the availability of these components could be limited. Further, our suppliers may experience financial or other difficulties as a result of uncertain and weak worldwide economic conditions. It could be difficult, costly and time consuming to obtain alternative sources for these components, or to change product designs to make use of alternative components. In addition, difficulties in transitioning from an existing supplier to a new supplier could create delays in component availability that would have a significant impact on our ability to fulfill orders for our products.

If we are unable to obtain a sufficient supply of components, or if we experience any interruption in the supply of components, our product shipments could be reduced or delayed. Component shortages and delays affect our ability to meet scheduled product deliveries, damage our brand and reputation in the market, and cause us to lose market share. For example, component shortages in the fourth quarter of 2009 limited our ability to supply all the worldwide demand for our products and our revenue was affected. In

 

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addition, the earthquakes in Northern Japan in March 2011 and the resultant nuclear threats and tsunamis have created uncertainty of supply for certain components and raw materials for our products. We have made alternative arrangements and have planned accordingly but there is no guarantee that our ancillary planning will be effective to maintain production of our products.

If we do not effectively manage our sales channel inventory and product mix, we may incur costs associated with excess inventory, or lose sales from having too few products.

If we are unable to properly monitor, control and manage our sales channel inventory and maintain an appropriate level and mix of products with our wholesale distributors and within our sales channels, we may incur increased and unexpected costs associated with this inventory. We generally allow wholesale distributors and traditional retailers to return a limited amount of our products in exchange for other products. Under our price protection policy, if we reduce the list price of a product, we are often required to issue a credit in an amount equal to the reduction for each of the products held in inventory by our wholesale distributors and retailers. If our wholesale distributors and retailers are unable to sell their inventory in a timely manner, we might lower the price of the products, or these parties may exchange the products for newer products. Also, during the transition from an existing product to a new replacement product, we must accurately predict the demand for the existing and the new product.

We determine production levels based on our forecasts of demand for our products. Actual demand for our products depends on many factors, which makes it difficult to forecast. We have experienced differences between our actual and our forecasted demand in the past and expect differences to arise in the future. If we improperly forecast demand for our products we could end up with too many products and be unable to sell the excess inventory in a timely manner, if at all, or, alternatively we could end up with too few products and not be able to satisfy demand. This problem is exacerbated because we attempt to closely match inventory levels with product demand leaving limited margin for error. If these events occur, we could incur increased expenses associated with writing off excessive or obsolete inventory, lose sales, incur penalties for late delivery or have to ship products by air freight to meet immediate demand incurring incremental freight costs above the sea freight costs, a preferred method, and suffering a corresponding decline in gross margins.

If we fail to continue to introduce new products that achieve broad market acceptance on a timely basis, we will not be able to compete effectively and we will be unable to increase or maintain net revenue and gross margins.

We operate in a highly competitive, quickly changing environment, and our future success depends on our ability to develop and introduce new products that achieve broad market acceptance. Our future success will depend in large part upon our ability to identify demand trends in the commercial business, consumer, and service provider markets and quickly develop, manufacture and sell products that satisfy these demands in a cost effective manner. Successfully predicting demand trends is difficult, and it is very difficult to predict the effect introducing a new product will have on existing product sales. We will also need to respond effectively to new product announcements by our competitors by quickly introducing competitive products.

We have experienced delays and quality issues in releasing new products in the past, which resulted in lower quarterly net revenue than expected. In addition, we have experienced, and may in the future experience, product introductions that fall short of our projected rates of market adoption. Any future delays in product development and introduction or product introductions that do not meet broad market acceptance could result in:

 

   

loss of or delay in revenue and loss of market share;

 

   

negative publicity and damage to our reputation and brand;

 

   

a decline in the average selling price of our products;

 

   

adverse reactions in our sales channels, such as reduced shelf space, reduced online product visibility, or loss of sales channel; and

 

   

increased levels of product returns.

Throughout 2010 and early 2011, we have significantly increased the rate of our new product introductions. If we cannot sustain the rapid pace of innovation, we may not be able to maintain or increase the market share of our products. In addition, if we are unable to successfully introduce new products with higher gross margins, our net revenue and overall gross margin would likely decline.

 

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The average selling prices of our products typically decrease rapidly over the sales cycle of the product, which may negatively affect our net revenue and gross margins.

Our products typically experience price erosion, a fairly rapid reduction in the average unit selling prices over their respective sales cycles. In order to sell products that have a falling average unit selling price and maintain margins at the same time, we need to continually reduce product and manufacturing costs. To manage manufacturing costs, we must collaborate with our third-party manufacturers to engineer the most cost-effective design for our products. In addition, we must carefully manage the price paid for components used in our products. We must also successfully manage our freight and inventory costs to reduce overall product costs. We also need to continually introduce new products with higher sales prices and gross margins in order to maintain our overall gross margins. If we are unable to manage the cost of older products or successfully introduce new products with higher gross margins, our net revenue and overall gross margin would likely decline.

Changes in tax rates, adverse changes in tax laws or exposure to additional income tax liabilities could affect our future profitability.

Factors that could materially affect our future effective tax rates include but are not limited to:

 

   

Changes in the regulatory environment;

 

   

Changes in accounting and tax standards or practices

 

   

Changes in the composition of operating income by tax jurisdiction; and

 

   

Our operating results before taxes.

We are subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Our effective tax rate has fluctuated in the past and may fluctuate in the future. Future effective tax rates could be affected by changes in the composition of earnings in countries with differing tax rates, changes in deferred tax assets and liabilities, or changes in tax laws.

We are also subject to examination by the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) and other tax authorities, including state revenue agencies and foreign governments. The IRS has begun an examination of the Company’s 2008 and 2009 tax years. While we regularly assess the likelihood of favorable or unfavorable outcomes resulting from examinations by the IRS and other tax authorities to determine the adequacy of our provision for income taxes, there can be no assurance that the actual outcome resulting from these examinations will not materially adversely affect our financial condition and operating results. Additionally, the IRS and other tax authorities have increasingly focused attention on intercompany transfer pricing with respect to sales of products and services and the use of intangible assets. Tax authorities could disagree with our intercompany charges, cross-jurisdictional transfer pricing or other matters and assess additional taxes. Any such disagreements may affect our profitability.

We are subject to numerous governmental regulations concerning the manufacturing and use of our products. We must stay in compliance with all such regulations and any future regulations. Some of our customers also require that we stay in compliance with their own unique requirements relating to these matters. Any failure to comply with such regulations and requirements, and the unanticipated costs of complying with future regulations and requirements, may adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We manufacture and sell products which contain electronic components, and such components may contain materials that are subject to government regulation in both the locations that we manufacture and assemble our products, as well as the locations where we sell our products. An example of a regulated material is the use of lead in electronic components. To the best of our knowledge, we maintain compliance with all current government regulations concerning the materials utilized in our products, for all the locations in which we operate. Since we operate on a global basis, this is a complex process which requires continual monitoring of regulations and an ongoing compliance process to ensure that we and our suppliers are in compliance with all existing regulations. There are areas where future regulations may be enacted which could increase our cost of the components that we utilize. While we do not currently know of any proposed regulation regarding components in our products which would have a material impact on our business, if there is an unanticipated new regulation which significantly impacts our use of various components or requires more expensive components, that would have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

 

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Our manufacturing process is also subject to numerous governmental regulations, which cover both the use of various materials as well as environmental concerns. To the best of our knowledge, we maintain compliance with all current government regulations concerning our production processes, for all locations in which we operate. Since we operate on a global basis, this is also a complex process which requires continual monitoring of regulations and an ongoing compliance process to ensure that we and our suppliers are in compliance with all existing regulations. There are areas where future regulations may be enacted which could increase our cost of manufacture. One area which has a large number of potential changes in regulations is the environmental area. Environmental areas such as pollution and climate change have had significant legislative and regulatory efforts on a global basis, and there are expected to be additional changes to the regulations in these areas. These changes could directly increase the cost of energy which may have an impact on the way we manufacture products or utilize energy to produce our products. In addition, any new regulations or laws in the environmental area might increase the cost of raw materials we use in our products. Other regulations in the environmental area may require us to continue to monitor and ensure proper disposal or recycling of our products. While future changes in regulations appears likely, we are currently unable to predict how any such changes will impact us and if such impacts will be material to our business. If there is a new law or regulation that significantly increases our costs of manufacturing or causes us to significantly alter the way that we manufacture our products, this would have a material adverse affect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

In addition to government regulations, many of our customers require us to comply with their own requirements regarding manufacturing, health and safety matters, employee treatment, use of materials and environmental concerns. Some customers may require us to periodically report on compliance with their unique requirements, and some customers reserve the right to audit our business for compliance. We are increasingly subject to requests for compliance with these customer requirements. We may not have the resources to maintain compliance with these customer requirements and failure to comply may result in decreased sales to these customers, which may have a material adverse affect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We rely on a limited number of retailers and wholesale distributors for most of our sales, and if they refuse to pay our requested prices or reduce their level of purchases, our net revenue could decline.

We sell a substantial portion of our products through retailers, including Best Buy Co., Inc. and its affiliates, and wholesale distributors, including Ingram Micro, Inc. and Tech Data Corporation. We expect that a significant portion of our net revenue will continue to come from sales to a small number of retailers and wholesale distributors for the foreseeable future. In addition, because our accounts receivable are concentrated with a small group of purchasers, the failure of any of them to pay on a timely basis, or at all, would reduce our cash flow. We are also exposed to increased credit risk if any one of these limited numbers of retailers and wholesale distributors fails or becomes insolvent. We generally have no minimum purchase commitments or long-term contracts with any of these retailers or distributors. These purchasers could decide at any time to discontinue, decrease or delay their purchases of our products. These customers have a variety of suppliers to choose from and therefore can make substantial demands on us, including demands on product pricing and on contractual terms, which often results in the allocation of risk to us as the supplier. Accordingly, the prices that they pay for our products are subject to negotiation and could change at any time. Our ability to maintain strong relationships with our principal customers is essential to our future performance. If any of our major retailers or wholesale distributors reduce their level of purchases or refuse to pay the prices that we set for our products, our net revenue and operating results could be harmed. If our retailers or wholesale distributors increase the size of their product orders without sufficient lead-time for us to process the order, our ability to fulfill product demands would be compromised.

Additionally, if there is consolidation among our customer base, certain customers may be able to command increased leverage in negotiating prices and other terms of sale, which could adversely affect our profitability. In addition, if, as a result of increased leverage, customer pressures require us to reduce our pricing such that our gross margins are diminished, we could decide not to sell our products to a particular customer, which could result in a decrease in our revenue. Consolidation among our customer base may also lead to reduced demand for our products, replacement of our products with those of our competitors and cancellations of orders, each of which would harm our operating results.

We depend on large, recurring purchases from certain significant customers, and a loss, cancellation or delay in purchases by these customers could negatively affect our revenue.

The loss of recurring orders from any of our more significant customers could cause our revenue and profitability to suffer. Our ability to attract new customers will depend on a variety of factors, including the cost-effectiveness, reliability, scalability, breadth and depth of our products. In addition, a change in the mix of our customers, or a change in the mix of direct and indirect sales, could adversely affect our revenue and gross margins. During the fiscal quarter ended April 3, 2011, sales to Best Buy and its affiliates accounted for approximately 13% of our net revenue and sales to Virgin Media and its affiliates accounted for approximately 10% of

 

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our net revenue. While these customers each accounted for greater than 10% of our net revenue during the fiscal quarter ended April 3, 2011, there is no assurance that either of them will continue to purchase our products at the same rate for any future periods.

Although our financial performance may depend on large, recurring orders from certain customers and resellers, we do not generally have binding commitments from them. For example:

 

   

our reseller agreements generally do not require substantial minimum purchases;

 

   

our customers can stop purchasing and our resellers can stop marketing our products at any time; and

 

   

our reseller agreements generally are not exclusive and are for one-year terms, with no obligation of the resellers to renew the agreements.

Further, our revenue may be impacted by significant one-time purchases which are not contemplated to be repeatable. While such purchases are reflected in our financial statements, we do not rely on and do not forecast for continued significant one-time purchases. As a result, lack of repeatable one-time purchases will adversely affect our revenue.

Because our expenses are based on our revenue forecasts, a substantial reduction or delay in sales of our products to, or unexpected returns from, customers and resellers, or the loss of any significant customer or reseller, could harm or otherwise disrupt our business. Although our largest customers may vary from period to period, we anticipate that our operating results for any given period will continue to depend on large orders from a small number of customers.

We depend substantially on our sales channels, and our failure to maintain and expand our sales channels would result in lower sales and reduced net revenue.

To maintain and grow our market share, net revenue and brand, we must maintain and expand our sales channels. We sell our products through our sales channels, which consists of traditional retailers, online retailers, DMRs, VARs, and broadband service providers. Some of these entities purchase our products through our wholesale distributors. We generally have no minimum purchase commitments or long-term contracts with any of these third parties.

Traditional retailers have limited shelf space and promotional budgets, and competition is intense for these resources. If the networking sector does not experience sufficient growth, retailers may choose to allocate more shelf space to other consumer product sectors. A competitor with more extensive product lines and stronger brand identity, such as Cisco Systems, may have greater bargaining power with these retailers. Any reduction in available shelf space or increased competition for such shelf space would require us to increase our marketing expenditures simply to maintain current levels of retail shelf space, which would harm our operating margin. The recent trend in the consolidation of online retailers and DMR channels has resulted in intensified competition for preferred product placement, such as product placement on an online retailer’s Internet home page. Expanding our presence in the VAR channel may be difficult and expensive. We compete with established companies that have longer operating histories and longstanding relationships with VARs that we would find highly desirable as sales channel partners. We also sell products to broadband service providers. Competition for selling to broadband service providers is intense. Penetrating service provider accounts typically involves a long sales cycle and the challenge of displacing incumbent suppliers with established relationships and field-deployed products. If we were unable to maintain and expand our sales channels, our growth would be limited and our business would be harmed.

We must also continuously monitor and evaluate emerging sales channels. If we fail to establish a presence in an important developing sales channel, our business could be harmed.

We depend on a limited number of third-party manufacturers for substantially all of our manufacturing needs. If these third-party manufacturers experience any delay, disruption or quality control problems in their operations, we could lose market share and our brand may suffer.

All of our products are manufactured, assembled, tested and generally packaged by a limited number of original design manufacturers (“ODMs”) and original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”). We rely on our manufacturers to procure components and, in some cases, subcontract engineering work. Some of our products are manufactured by a single manufacturer. We do not have any long-term contracts with any of our third-party manufacturers. Some of these third-party manufacturers produce products for our competitors. Due to weak economic conditions, the viability of some of these third-party manufacturers may be at risk. The loss of the

 

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services of any of our primary third-party manufacturers could cause a significant disruption in operations and delays in product shipments. Qualifying a new manufacturer and commencing volume production is expensive and time consuming. As we contemplate moving manufacturing into different jurisdictions, we will be subject to additional significant challenges in ensuring that quality, processes and costs, among other issues, are consistent with our expectations.

Our reliance on third-party manufacturers also exposes us to the following risks over which we have limited control:

 

   

unexpected increases in manufacturing and repair costs;

 

   

inability to control the quality of finished products;

 

   

inability to control delivery schedules;

 

   

potential lack of adequate capacity to manufacture all or a part of the products we require; and

 

   

potential labor unrest affecting the ability of the third-party manufacturers to produce our products.

All of our products must satisfy safety and regulatory standards and some of our products must also receive government certifications. Our ODMs and OEMs are primarily responsible for obtaining most regulatory approvals for our products. If our ODMs and OEMs fail to obtain timely domestic or foreign regulatory approvals or certificates, we would be unable to sell our products and our sales and profitability could be reduced, our relationships with our sales channel could be harmed, and our reputation and brand would suffer.

Specifically, substantially all of our manufacturing occurs in mainland China and any disruptions from natural disasters, health epidemics and political, social and economic instability would affect the ability of our ODMs to manufacture our products. In addition, our ODM’s in China have continued to increase our costs of production, particularly in the recent year. These increased costs have affected our margins and ability to lower prices for our products to stay competitive. Recent labor unrest in China may also affect our ODMs as workers may strike and cause production delays. If our manufacturers or warehousing facilities are disrupted or destroyed, we would have no other readily available alternatives for manufacturing our products and our business would be significantly harmed. Further, if the ODMs and OEMs fail to maintain good relations with their employees or contractors, and production and manufacturing of our products is affected, then we may be subject to shortages of products and quality of products delivered may be affected.

If we lose the services of our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Patrick C.S. Lo, or our other key personnel, we may not be able to execute our business strategy effectively.

Our future success depends in large part upon the continued services of our key technical, sales, marketing, finance and senior management personnel. In particular, the services of Patrick C.S. Lo, our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, who has led our company since its inception, are very important to our business. We do not maintain any key person life insurance policies. The loss of any of our senior management or other key research, development, sales or marketing personnel, particularly if lost to competitors, could harm our ability to implement our business strategy and respond to the rapidly changing needs of the commercial business, consumer, and service provider markets. While we have adopted an emergency succession plan for the short term, we have not formally adopted a long term succession plan. As a result, if we suffer the loss of services of any key executive, our long term business results may be harmed. In addition, because we do not have a formal long term succession plan, we may not be able to have the proper personnel in place to effectively execute our long term business strategy if Patrick Lo or other key personnel retire, resign or are otherwise terminated.

We are currently involved in numerous litigation matters and may in the future become involved in additional litigation, including litigation regarding intellectual property rights, which could be costly and subject us to significant liability.

The networking industry is characterized by the existence of a large number of patents and frequent claims and related litigation regarding infringement of patents, trade secrets and other intellectual property rights. In particular, leading companies in the data communications markets, some of which are competitors, have extensive patent portfolios with respect to networking technology. From time to time, third parties, including these leading companies, have asserted and may continue to assert exclusive patent, copyright, trademark and other intellectual property rights against us demanding license or royalty payments or seeking payment for damages, injunctive relief and other available legal remedies through litigation. These also include third-party non-practicing entities

 

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who claim to own patents or other intellectual property that cover industry standards that our products comply with. If we are unable to resolve these matters or obtain licenses on acceptable or commercially reasonable terms, we could be sued or we may be forced to initiate litigation to protect our rights. The cost of any necessary licenses could significantly harm our business, operating results and financial condition. Also, at any time, any of these companies, or any other third-party could initiate litigation against us, or we may be forced to initiate litigation against them, which could divert management attention, be costly to defend or prosecute, prevent us from using or selling the challenged technology, require us to design around the challenged technology and cause the price of our stock to decline. In addition, third parties, some of whom are potential competitors, have initiated and may continue to initiate litigation against our manufacturers, suppliers, members of our sales channels or our service provider customers, alleging infringement of their proprietary rights with respect to existing or future products. In the event successful claims of infringement are brought by third parties, and we are unable to obtain licenses or independently develop alternative technology on a timely basis, we may be subject to indemnification obligations, be unable to offer competitive products, or be subject to increased expenses. Finally, consumer class-action lawsuits related to the marketing and performance of our home networking products have been asserted and may in the future be asserted against us. For additional information regarding certain of the lawsuits in which we are involved, see the information set forth under Note 12 of the Notes to Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements. If we do not resolve these claims on a favorable basis, our business, operating results and financial condition could be significantly harmed.

We are required to evaluate our internal controls under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 and any adverse results from such evaluation could impact investor confidence in the reliability of our internal controls over financial reporting.

Pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, we are required to furnish a report by our management on our internal control over financial reporting. Such report must contain among other matters, an assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of the end of our fiscal year, including a statement as to whether or not our internal control over financial reporting is effective. This assessment must include disclosure of any material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting identified by management.

During the second quarter of fiscal 2009, in connection with the restatement of our previously issued financial statements for the period ended March 29, 2009, and our assessment of our disclosure controls and procedures, management concluded that as of March 29, 2009, our disclosure controls and procedures were not effective and that we had a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting. The material weakness related to the accounting for income taxes. Specifically, we did not maintain a sufficient complement of tax personnel with the required proficiency to identify, evaluate, review, and report complex tax accounting matters. In order to remediate the material weakness, we hired additional personnel in the tax department with sufficient knowledge and experience in tax to strengthen the controls around the tax provision. We also engaged tax specialists to assist us in the preparation and review of the income tax provision. As a result of these actions, management has concluded that we have remediated the material weakness related to income taxes as of December 31, 2009.

We will continue to perform the system and process documentation and evaluation needed to comply with Section 404, which is both costly and challenging. During this process, if our management identifies one or more material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, we will be unable to assert such internal control is effective. If we are unable to assert that our internal control over financial reporting is effective as of the end of a fiscal year or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, we could lose investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, which may have an adverse effect on our stock price.

If our products contain defects or errors, we could incur significant unexpected expenses, experience product returns and lost sales, experience product recalls, suffer damage to our brand and reputation, and be subject to product liability or other claims.

Our products are complex and may contain defects, errors or failures, particularly when first introduced or when new versions are released. The industry standards upon which many of our products are based are also complex, experience change over time and may be interpreted in different manners. Some errors and defects may be discovered only after a product has been installed and used by the end-user. For example, in January 2008, we announced a voluntary recall of the XE103 Powerline Ethernet Adapter made for Europe and other countries using 220-240 volt power sources and sold individually or in a bundled kit. In addition, certain of our contracts include epidemic failure clauses. If invoked, these clauses may entitle the customer to return for replacement or obtain credits for products and inventory, as well as terminate an existing contract and cancel future purchase orders. In such instances, we may also be obligated to cover significant costs incurred by the customer associated with the consequences of such epidemic failure, including freight and transportation required for product replacement. Costs or payments we make in connection with an epidemic failure may

 

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materially adversely affect our results of operations and financial condition. If our products contain defects or errors, or are found to be noncompliant with industry standards, we could experience decreased sales and increased product returns, loss of customers and market share, and increased service, warranty and insurance costs. In addition, our reputation and brand could be damaged, and we could face legal claims regarding our products. A product liability or other claim could result in negative publicity and harm our reputation, resulting in unexpected expenses and adversely impact our operating results. For instance, if a third party were able to successfully overcome the security measures in our products, such a person or entity could misappropriate customer data, third party data stored by our customers and other information, including intellectual property. In addition, the operations of our end-user customers may be interrupted. If that happens, affected end-users or others may file actions against us alleging product liability, tort, or breach of warranty claims.

We are exposed to adverse currency exchange rate fluctuations in jurisdictions where we transact in local currency, which could harm our financial results and cash flows.

Because a significant portion of our business is conducted outside the United States, we face exposure to adverse movements in foreign currency exchange rates. These exposures may change over time as business practices evolve, and they could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. Although a portion of our international sales are currently invoiced in United States dollars, we have implemented and continue to implement for certain countries and customers both invoicing and payment in foreign currencies. Our primary exposure to movements in foreign currency exchange rates relates to non-U.S. dollar denominated sales in Europe, Japan and Australia as well as our global operations, and non-U.S. dollar denominated operating expenses and certain assets and liabilities. In addition, weaknesses in foreign currencies for U.S. dollar denominated sales could adversely affect demand for our products. Conversely, a strengthening in foreign currencies against the U.S. dollar could increase foreign currency denominated costs. As a result we may attempt to renegotiate pricing of existing contracts or request payment to be made in U.S. dollars. We cannot be sure that our customers would agree to renegotiate along these lines. This could result in customers eventually terminating contracts with us or in our decision to terminate certain contracts, which would adversely affect our sales.

We implemented a hedging program in November 2008 to hedge exposures to fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates as a response to the risks of changes in the value of foreign currency denominated assets and liabilities. We may enter into foreign currency forward contracts or other instruments, the majority of which mature within approximately five months. Our foreign currency forward contracts reduce, but do not eliminate, the impact of currency exchange rate movements. For example, we do not execute forward contracts in all currencies in which we conduct business. In addition, in the second fiscal quarter of 2009, we commenced implementation of a hedging program to reduce the impact of volatile exchange rates on net revenues, gross profit and operating profit for limited periods of time. However, the use of such hedging activities may not offset more than a portion of the adverse financial effect resulting from unfavorable movements in foreign exchange rates.

If disruptions in our transportation network occur or our shipping costs substantially increase, we may be unable to sell or timely deliver our products and our operating expenses could increase.

We are highly dependent upon the transportation systems we use to ship our products, including surface and air freight. Our attempts to closely match our inventory levels to our product demand intensify the need for our transportation systems to function effectively and without delay. On a quarterly basis, our shipping volume also tends to steadily increase as the quarter progresses, which means that any disruption in our transportation network in the latter half of a quarter will likely have a more material effect on our business than at the beginning of a quarter.

The transportation network is subject to disruption or congestion from a variety of causes, including labor disputes or port strikes, acts of war or terrorism, natural disasters and congestion resulting from higher shipping volumes. Labor disputes among freight carriers and at ports of entry are common, particularly in Europe, and we expect labor unrest and its effects on shipping our products to be a continuing challenge for us. Since September 11, 2001, the rate of inspection of international freight by governmental entities has substantially increased, and has become increasingly unpredictable. If our delivery times increase unexpectedly for these or any other reasons, our ability to deliver products on time would be materially adversely affected and result in delayed or lost revenue as well as customer imposed penalties. In addition, if increases in fuel prices occur, our transportation costs would likely increase. Moreover, the cost of shipping our products by air freight is greater than other methods. From time to time in the past, including in the fourth quarter of 2009, we have shipped products using extensive air freight to meet unexpected spikes in demand, shifts in demand between product categories and to bring new product introductions to market quickly. If we rely more heavily upon air freight to deliver our products, our overall shipping costs will increase. A prolonged transportation disruption or a significant increase in the cost of freight could severely disrupt our business and harm our operating results.

 

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We are exposed to the credit risk of some of our customers and to credit exposures in weakened markets, which could result in material losses.

A substantial portion of our sales are on an open credit basis, with typical payment terms of 30 to 60 days in the United States and, because of local customs or conditions, longer in some markets outside the United States. We monitor individual customer financial viability in granting such open credit arrangements, seek to limit such open credit to amounts we believe the customers can pay, and maintain reserves we believe are adequate to cover exposure for doubtful accounts.

In the past, there have been bankruptcies amongst our customer base. Although any resulting loss has not been material to date, future losses, if incurred, could harm our business and have a material adverse effect on our operating results and financial condition. To the degree that the recent turmoil in the credit markets makes it more difficult for some customers to obtain financing, our customers’ ability to pay could be adversely impacted, which in turn could have a material adverse impact on our business, operating results, and financial condition.

If we fail to successfully overcome the challenges associated with profitably growing our broadband service provider sales channel, our net revenue and gross profit will be negatively impacted.

We sell a substantial portion of our products through broadband service providers worldwide. We face a number of challenges associated with penetrating, marketing and selling to the broadband service provider channel that differ from what we have traditionally faced with the other channels. Difficulties and challenges in selling to service providers include a longer sales cycle, more stringent product testing and validation requirements, a higher level of customization demands, requirements that suppliers take on a larger share of the risk with respect to contractual business terms, competition from established suppliers, and pricing pressure resulting in lower gross margins. For example, as the deployment of DOCSIS 3.0 technology by broadband service providers increases worldwide during 2011, we anticipate competing in an extremely price sensitive market and our margins may be affected. Orders from service providers generally tend to be large but sporadic, which causes our revenues from them to fluctuate and challenges our ability to accurately forecast demand from them. In certain cases, we may commit to fixed price long term purchase orders, with such orders priced in foreign currencies which could lose value over time in the event of adverse changes in foreign exchange rates. Even if we are selected as a supplier, typically a service provider will also designate a second source supplier, which over time will reduce the aggregate orders that we receive from that service provider. If we were to lose a service provider customer for any reason, we may experience a material and immediate reduction in forecasted revenue that may cause us to be below our net revenue and operating margin expectations for a particular period of time and therefore adversely affect our stock price. In addition, service providers may choose to prioritize the implementation of other technologies or the roll out of other services than home networking. Weakness in orders from this industry could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial condition. We have seen slowdowns in capital expenditures by certain of our service provider customers in the past, and believe there may be potential for similar slowdowns in the future. Any slowdown in the general economy, over capacity, consolidation among service providers, regulatory developments and constraint on capital expenditures could result in reduced demand from service providers and therefore adversely affect our sales to them. If we do not successfully overcome these challenges, we will not be able to profitably grow our service provider sales channel and our growth will be slowed.

As part of growing our business, we have made and expect to continue to make acquisitions. If we fail to successfully select, execute or integrate our acquisitions, then our business and operating results could be harmed and our stock price could decline.

From time to time, we will undertake acquisitions to add new product lines and technologies, gain new sales channels or enter into new sales territories. For example, we closed our acquisition of the Customer Networking Solutions division of Westell Technologies, Inc. in April 2011. Acquisitions involve numerous risks and challenges, including but not limited to the following:

 

   

integrating the companies, assets, systems, products, sales channels and personnel that we acquire;

 

   

growing or maintaining revenues to justify the purchase price and the increased expenses associated with acquisitions;

 

   

entering into territories or markets that we have limited or no prior experience with;

 

   

establishing or maintaining business relationships with customers, vendors and suppliers who may be new to us;

 

46


   

overcoming the employee, customer, vendor and supplier turnover that may occur as a result of the acquisition; and

 

   

diverting management’s attention from running the day to day operations of our business.

As part of undertaking an acquisition, we may also significantly revise our capital structure or operational budget, such as issuing common stock that would dilute the ownership percentage of our stockholders, assuming liabilities or debt, utilizing a substantial portion of our cash resources to pay for the acquisition or significantly increasing operating expenses. Our acquisitions have resulted and may in the future result in charges being taken in an individual quarter as well as future periods, which results in variability in our quarterly earnings. In addition, our effective tax rate in any particular quarter may also be impacted by acquisitions.

As part of the terms of acquisition, we may commit to pay additional contingent consideration if certain revenue or other performance milestones are met. We are required to evaluate the fair value of such commitments at each reporting date and adjust the amount recorded if there are changes to the fair value.

We cannot assure you that we will be successful in selecting, executing and integrating acquisitions. Failure to manage and successfully integrate acquisitions could materially harm our business and operating results. In addition, if stock market analysts or our stockholders do not support or believe in the value of the acquisitions that we choose to undertake, our stock price may decline.

We invest in companies for strategic reasons and may not realize a return on our investments.

We have made, and continue to seek to make, investments in companies around the world to further our strategic objectives and support our key business initiatives. These investments may include equity or debt instruments of public or private companies, and may be non-marketable at the time of our initial investment. We do not restrict the types of companies in which we seek to invest. These companies may range from early-stage companies that are often still defining their strategic direction to more mature companies with established revenue streams and business models. If any company in which we invest fails, we could lose all or part of our investment in that company. If we determine that an other-than-temporary decline in the fair value exists for an equity or debt investment in a public or private company in which we have invested, we will have to write down the investment to its fair value and recognize the related write-down as an investment loss. The performance of any of these investments could result in significant impairment charges and gains (losses) on other equity investments. We must also analyze accounting and legal issues when making these investments. If we do not structure these investments properly, we may be subject to certain adverse accounting issues, such as potential consolidation of financial results.

Furthermore, if the strategic objectives of an investment have been achieved, or if the investment or business diverges from our strategic objectives, we may seek to dispose of the investment. Our non-marketable equity investments in private companies are not liquid, and we may not be able to dispose of these investments on favorable terms or at all. The occurrence of any of these events could harm our results. Gains or losses from equity securities could vary from expectations depending on gains or losses realized on the sale or exchange of securities and impairment charges related to debt instruments as well as equity and other investments.

If our goodwill or amortizable intangible assets become impaired we may be required to record a significant charge to earnings.

Under generally accepted accounting principles, we review our amortizable intangible assets for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value may not be recoverable. Goodwill is required to be tested for impairment at least annually. Factors that may be considered when determining if the carrying value of our goodwill or amortizable intangible assets may not be recoverable include a significant decline in our expected future cash flows or a sustained, significant decline in our stock price and market capitalization.

As a result of our acquisitions, we have significant goodwill and amortizable intangible assets recorded on our balance sheet. In addition, significant negative industry or economic trends, such as those that have occurred in the last couple of years, including reduced estimates of future cash flows or disruptions to our business could indicate that goodwill or amortizable intangible assets might be impaired. If, in any period our stock price decreases to the point where our market capitalization is less than our book value, this too could indicate a potential impairment and we may be required to record an impairment charge in that period. Our valuation methodology for assessing impairment requires management to make judgments and assumptions based on projections of future operating performance. We operate in highly competitive environments and projections of future operating results and cash flows may vary significantly from actual results. As a result, we may incur substantial impairment charges to earnings in our financial statements

 

47


should an impairment of our goodwill or amortizable intangible assets be determined resulting in an adverse impact on our results of operations.

Starting in the second quarter of 2011, in connection with the Company’s reorganization into three specific business units (retail, commercial, and service provider), the Company will allocate goodwill to each business unit and will evaluate those allocations for potential impairment. The allocation of goodwill may have greater impact for certain of the business segments, as compared to the other segments. Accordingly, the performance of a business unit may be adversely affected by the allocation of goodwill.

If we are unable to provide our third-party manufacturers a timely and accurate forecast of our component and material requirements, we may experience delays in the manufacturing of our products and the costs of our products may increase.

We provide our third-party manufacturers with a rolling forecast of demand, which they use to determine our material and component requirements. Lead times for ordering materials and components vary significantly and depend on various factors, such as the specific supplier, contract terms and demand and supply for a component at a given time. Some of our components have long lead times, such as wireless local area network chipsets, switching fabric chips, physical layer transceivers, connector jacks and metal and plastic enclosures. If our forecasts are not timely provided or are less than our actual requirements, our third-party manufacturers may be unable to manufacture products in a timely manner. If our forecasts are too high, our third-party manufacturers will be unable to use the components they have purchased on our behalf. The cost of the components used in our products tends to drop rapidly as volumes increase and the technologies mature. Therefore, if our third-party manufacturers are unable to promptly use components purchased on our behalf, our cost of producing products may be higher than our competitors due to an oversupply of higher-priced components. Moreover, if they are unable to use components ordered at our direction, we will need to reimburse them for any losses they incur.

We rely upon third parties for technology that is critical to our products, and if we are unable to continue to use this technology and future technology, our ability to develop, sell, maintain and support technologically innovative products would be limited.

We rely on third parties to obtain non-exclusive patented hardware and software license rights in technologies that are incorporated into and necessary for the operation and functionality of most of our products. In these cases, because the intellectual property we license is available from third parties, barriers to entry may be lower than if we owned exclusive rights to the technology we license and use. On the other hand, if a competitor or potential competitor enters into an exclusive arrangement with any of our key third-party technology providers, or if any of these providers unilaterally decide not to do business with us for any reason, our ability to develop and sell products containing that technology would be severely limited. If we are shipping products which contain third-party technology that we subsequently lose the right to license, then we will not be able to continue to offer or support those products. Our licenses often require royalty payments or other consideration to third parties. Our success will depend in part on our continued ability to have access to these technologies, and we do not know whether these third-party technologies will continue to be licensed to us on commercially acceptable terms or at all. If we are unable to license the necessary technology, we may be forced to acquire or develop alternative technology of lower quality or performance standards. This would limit and delay our ability to offer new or competitive products and increase our costs of production. As a result, our margins, market share, and operating results could be significantly harmed.

We also utilize third-party software development companies to develop, customize, maintain and support software that is incorporated into our products. If these companies fail to timely deliver or continuously maintain and support the software that we require of them, we may experience delays in releasing new products or difficulties with supporting existing products and customers. In addition, if these third-party licensors fail, then we may be unable to continue to sell products that incorporate the licensed technologies and we may be unable to continue to maintain and support these products. We are increasingly exposed to these risks as we continue to develop and market more products with third-party software, such as our TV connectivity and network attached storage products.

If the redemption rate for our end-user promotional programs is higher than we estimate, then our net revenue and gross margin will be negatively affected.

From time to time we offer promotional incentives, including cash rebates, to encourage end-users to purchase certain of our products. Purchasers must follow specific and stringent guidelines to redeem these incentives or rebates. Often qualified purchasers choose not to apply for the incentives or fail to follow the required redemption guidelines, resulting in an incentive redemption rate of

 

48


less than 100%. Based on historical data, we estimate an incentive redemption rate for our promotional programs. If the actual redemption rate is higher than our estimated rate, then our net revenue and gross margin will be negatively affected.

If we are unable to secure and protect our intellectual property rights, our ability to compete could be harmed.

We rely upon third parties for a substantial portion of the intellectual property we use in our products. At the same time, we rely on a combination of copyright, trademark, patent and trade secret laws, nondisclosure agreements with employees, consultants and suppliers and other contractual provisions to establish, maintain and protect our intellectual property rights. Despite efforts to protect our intellectual property, unauthorized third parties may attempt to design around, copy aspects of our product design or obtain and use technology or other intellectual property associated with our products. For example, one of our primary intellectual property assets is the NETGEAR name, trademark and logo. We may be unable to stop third parties from adopting similar names, trademarks and logos, particularly in those international markets where our intellectual property rights may be less protected. Furthermore, our competitors may independently develop similar technology or design around our intellectual property. Our inability to secure and protect our intellectual property rights could significantly harm our brand and business, operating results and financial condition.

Our sales and operations in international markets expose us to operational, financial and regulatory risks.

International sales comprise a significant amount of our overall net revenue. International sales were 48% of overall net revenue in fiscal 2010 and 53% of overall net revenue for the three months ended April 3, 2011. We continue to be committed to growing our international sales. We have committed resources to expanding our international operations and sales channels and these efforts may not be successful. International operations are subject to a number of other risks, including:

 

   

political and economic instability, international terrorism and anti-American sentiment, particularly in emerging markets;

 

   

preference for locally branded products, and laws and business practices favoring local competition;

 

   

exchange rate fluctuations;

 

   

increased difficulty in managing inventory;

 

   

delayed revenue recognition;

 

   

less effective protection of intellectual property;

 

   

stringent consumer protection and product compliance regulations, including but not limited to the Restriction of Hazardous Substances directive, the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment directive and the recently enacted Ecodesign directive (EuP) in Europe, that may vary from country to country and that are costly to comply with;

 

   

difficulties and costs of staffing and managing foreign operations; and

 

   

changes in local tax laws.

We are required to comply with local environmental legislation and our customers rely on this compliance in order to sell our products. If our customers do not agree with our interpretations and requirements of new legislation, such as the European Ecodesign directive (EuP), they may cease to order our products and our revenue would be harmed.

We are expanding and reorganizing our operations and infrastructure, which may strain our operations and increase our operating expenses.

We are expanding and reorganizing our operations and pursuing market opportunities domestically and internationally to grow our sales. We expect that this attempted expansion will require enhancements to our existing management information systems, and operational and financial controls. In addition, if we continue to grow, our expenditures will likely be significantly higher than our historical costs. We may not be able to install adequate controls in an efficient and timely manner as our business grows, and our current systems may not be adequate to support our future operations. The difficulties associated with installing and implementing new systems, procedures and controls may place a significant burden on our management, operational and financial resources. In addition, if we grow internationally, we will have to expand and enhance our communications infrastructure. Commencing with the

 

49


second quarter of 2011, we are reorganizing our business into three business units: retail, commercial, and service provider. The Company’s reorganization into three business units may cause significant distraction to our management and employees. In addition, disclosures of previously non-public information in connection with our reorganization into three units in the second fiscal quarter of 2011 may also provide our competitors with strategic data which may put us at a competitive disadvantage and harm our business. In addition, disclosures of previously non-public information in connection with our reorganization may also provide our competitors with strategic data which may put us at a competitive disadvantage and harm our business. If we fail to continue to improve our management information systems, procedures and financial controls or encounter unexpected difficulties during expansion and reorganization, our business could be harmed.

For example, we have invested, and will continue to invest, significant capital and human resources in the design and enhancement of our financial and enterprise resource planning systems, which may be disruptive to our underlying business. We depend on these systems in order to timely and accurately process and report key components of our results of operations, financial position and cash flows. If the systems fail to operate appropriately or we experience any disruptions or delays in enhancing their functionality to meet current business requirements, our ability to fulfill customer orders, bill and track our customers, fulfill contractual obligations, accurately report our financials and otherwise run our business could be adversely affected. Even if we do not encounter these adverse effects, the enhancement of systems may be much more costly than we anticipated. If we are unable to continue to enhance our information technology systems as planned, our financial position, results of operations and cash flows could be negatively impacted.

We have had to restate our historical financial statements.

In July 2009, we announced that we had incorrectly reported our income tax provision for the three months ended March 29, 2009 and, as a result of this error, we restated the financial statements in our quarterly report on Form 10-Q for the three months ended March 29, 2009. The restatement, which related solely to the correction of the income tax provision for the three months ended March 29, 2009, resulted in adjustments related to income taxes in our financial statements. In our previously filed financial statements for the three months ended March 29, 2009, we incorrectly included a particular foreign entity in calculating our estimated annualized tax provision. This foreign entity should not have been included in the calculation because the anticipated losses in that entity would not give rise to tax benefits. While our overall annual tax provision was not affected for the entire year, we made an error in inter-quarter allocations of the tax provision. Material changes to our previously reported financial information occurred as a result of this error.

In connection with this restatement we identified certain control deficiencies relating to the application of applicable accounting literature related to recordation of tax expenses. These deficiencies constituted a material weakness in internal control over financial reporting as of March 29, 2009, which led to items requiring correction in our financial statements and our conclusion to restate such financial statements to correct those items. Specifically, the control deficiencies related to our failure to correctly apply the authoritative guidance for income taxes in determining the proper allocation of our annualized tax provision.

Although this material weakness had been remediated by December 31, 2009, we cannot be certain that the measures we have taken since this restatement will ensure that restatements will not occur in the future. Execution of restatements like the one described above create a significant strain on our internal resources and could cause delays in our filing of quarterly or annual financial results, increase our costs and cause management distraction. Restatements may also significantly affect our stock price in an adverse manner.

Governmental regulations of imports or exports affecting Internet security could affect our net revenue.

Any additional governmental regulation of imports or exports or failure to obtain required export approval of our encryption technologies could adversely affect our international and domestic sales. The United States and various foreign governments have imposed controls, export license requirements, and restrictions on the import or export of some technologies, particularly encryption technology. In addition, from time to time, governmental agencies have proposed additional regulation of encryption technology, such as requiring the escrow and governmental recovery of private encryption keys. In response to terrorist activity, governments could enact additional regulation or restriction on the use, import, or export of encryption technology. This additional regulation of encryption technology could delay or prevent the acceptance and use of encryption products and public networks for secure communications, resulting in decreased demand for our products and services. In addition, some foreign competitors are subject to less stringent controls on exporting their encryption technologies. As a result, they may be able to compete more effectively than we can in the United States and the international Internet security market.

We are exposed to credit risk and fluctuations in the market values of our investment portfolio.

Although we have not recognized any material losses on our cash equivalents and short-term investments, future declines in their market values could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and operating results. Given the global nature of our business, we have investments with both domestic and international financial institutions. If these financial institutions default on their obligations or their credit ratings are negatively impacted by liquidity issues, credit deterioration or losses, financial results, or other

 

50


factors, the value of our cash equivalents and short-term investments could decline and result in a material impairment, which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and operating results.

Economic conditions, political events, war, terrorism, public health issues, natural disasters and other circumstances could materially adversely affect us.

Our corporate headquarters are located in Northern California and one of our warehouses is located in Southern California, regions known for seismic activity. Significantly all of our critical enterprise-wide information technology systems, including our main servers, are currently housed in colocation facilities near our headquarters in Northern California. While we have moved our critical information technology systems in 2010 to colocation facilities in a different geographic region in the United States, our headquarters and warehouses remain susceptible to seismic activity so long as they are located in California. In addition, substantially all of our manufacturing occurs in two geographically concentrated areas in mainland China, where disruptions from natural disasters, health epidemics and political, social and economic instability may affect the region. If our manufacturers or warehousing facilities are disrupted or destroyed, we would be unable to distribute our products on a timely basis, which could harm our business.

Moreover, if our computer information systems or communication systems, or those of our vendors or customers, are subject to disruptive hacker attacks or other disruptions, our business could suffer. We have not established a formal disaster recovery plan. Our back-up operations may be inadequate and our business interruption insurance may not be enough to compensate us for any losses that may occur. A significant business interruption could result in losses or damages and harm our business. For example, much of our order fulfillment process is automated and the order information is stored on our servers. If our computer systems and servers go down even for a short period at the end of a fiscal quarter, our ability to recognize revenue would be delayed until we were again able to process and ship our orders, which could cause our stock price to decline significantly.

We depend significantly on worldwide economic conditions and their impact on levels of consumer spending, which have recently deteriorated significantly in many countries and regions, including without limitation the United States, and may remain depressed for the foreseeable future. Factors that could influence the levels of consumer spending include increases in fuel and other energy costs, conditions in the residential real estate and mortgage markets, labor and healthcare costs, access to credit, consumer confidence and other macroeconomic factors affecting consumer spending behavior.

In addition, war, terrorism, geopolitical uncertainties, public health issues, and other business interruptions have caused and could cause damage or disruption to international commerce and the global economy, and thus could have a strong negative effect on us, our suppliers, logistics providers, manufacturing vendors and customers. Our business operations are subject to interruption by natural disasters, fire, power shortages, terrorist attacks, and other hostile acts, labor disputes, public health issues, and other events beyond our control. For example, labor disputes at manufacturing facilities in China occurred in 2010 and have led to workers going on strike. The recent trend of labor unrest could materially affect our third-party manufacturers’ abilities to manufacture our products. In addition, earthquakes and resultant nuclear threats and tsunamis in Japan in March 2010 have caused some disruption to our supply of raw materials and components for our products and may impact our operating results in Japan. Such events could decrease demand for our products, make it difficult or impossible for us to make and deliver products to our customers or to receive components from our suppliers, and create delays and inefficiencies in our supply chain. Should major public health issues, including pandemics, arise, we could be negatively affected by more stringent employee travel restrictions, additional limitations in freight services, governmental actions limiting the movement of products between regions, delays in production ramps of new products, and disruptions in the operations of our manufacturing vendors and component suppliers.

 

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Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds

Repurchase of Equity Securities by the Company

 

Period

  Total Number of
Shares Purchased
    Average Price
Paid per Share
    Total Number of Shares
Purchased as Part of
Publicly Announced Plans
or Programs
    Maximum Number
of Shares that May
Yet Be Purchased
Under the Plans or
Programs
 

January 1, 2011 - January 31, 2011

    24,207      $ 37.11        —          4,831,220   

February 1, 2011 - February 28, 2011

    —          —          —          4,831,220   

March 1, 2011 - April 3, 2011

    —          —          —          4,831,220   
                         

Total

    24,207      $ 37.11        —       
                         

We repurchased approximately 24,000 shares or $899,000 of common stock related to the lapse of restricted stock units during the three months ended April 3, 2011.

 

Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities

None.

 

Item 4. Reserved

 

Item 5. Other Information

None.

 

Item 6. Exhibits

 

Exhibit

Number

  

Description

31.1   

Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification of Principal Executive Officer

31.2   

Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification of Principal Financial Officer

32.1   

Section 1350 Certification of Principal Executive Officer

32.2   

Section 1350 Certification of Principal Financial Officer

10.56#*   

Change of Control and Severance Agreement, dated March 31, 2011, between the registrant and David Soares

 

*   Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on April 4, 2011 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
#   Indicates management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

 

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SIGNATURES

Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunto duly authorized.

 

NETGEAR, INC.

Registrant

/s/ CHRISTINE M. GORJANC
Christine M. Gorjanc
Chief Financial Officer
(Principal Financial and Accounting Officer)

Date: May 10, 2011

 

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Exhibit Index

 

Exhibit

Number

  

Description

31.1   

Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification of Principal Executive Officer

31.2   

Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification of Principal Financial Officer

32.1   

Section 1350 Certification of Principal Executive Officer

32.2   

Section 1350 Certification of Principal Financial Officer

10.56#*   

Change of Control and Severance Agreement, dated March 31, 2011, between the registrant and David Soares

 

*   Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 of the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K filed on April 4, 2011 with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
#   Indicates management contract or compensatory plan or arrangement.

 

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