(8)
|
Subsequent Event
|
On
November 11, 1999, VeriSign announced a two-for-one stock
split for stockholders of record on November 22, 1999. This
stock split has not been reflected in the September 30, 1999
financial statements.
ITEM 2.
MANAGEMENTS DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL
CONDITION AND RESULTS OF
OPERATIONS
You should read the following discussion
in conjunction with the interim unaudited consolidated
financial statements and related notes.
Except for historical information, this
Report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning
of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E
of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These forward-looking
statements involve risks and uncertainties, including, among
other things, statements regarding our anticipated costs and
expenses and plans for addressing Year 2000 issues. Our actual
results may differ significantly from those projected in the
forward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or
contribute to these differences include, but are not limited
to, those discussed in the section below entitled
Factors That May Affect Future Results of Operations.
You should carefully review the risks described in other
documents we file from time to time with the Securities and
Exchange Commission, including the Quarterly Reports on Form
10-Q that we have filed or will file in 1999 and our Annual
Report on Form 10-K, which was filed on February 22, 1999. You
are cautioned not to place undue reliance on the
forward-looking statements, which speak only as of the date of
this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. We undertake no obligation
to publicly release any revisions to the forward-looking
statements or reflect events or circumstances after the date
of this document.
Overview
VeriSign is the leading provider of Internet
trust services for websites, enterprises and individuals to
conduct trusted and secure electronic commerce and
communications over IP networks. We have established strategic
relationships with industry leaders, including AT&T, BT,
Checkpoint Technologies, Cisco, Microsoft, Netscape, Network
Associates, Network Solutions, RSA Security and VISA, to
enable widespread utilization of our digital certificate
services and to assure interoperability with a wide variety of
applications and network equipment. We have used our secure
online infrastructure to sell over 180,000 of our website
digital certificates to date. In addition, we have issued over
3.9 million of our digital certificates for individuals. Our
website certificates currently protect the websites of a
predominant number of leading online merchants, global
financial institutions, Fortune 500 companies and government
agencies. We also offer VeriSign OnSite, a managed service
that allows an organization to leverage our trusted data
processing infrastructure to develop and deploy customized
digital certificate services for use by employees, customers
and business partners. Since its introduction in November
1997, we have sold over 600 OnSite service solutions to
enterprises including Bank of America, Barclays,
Hewlett-Packard, the Internal Revenue Service, Kodak,
Southwest Securities, Sumitomo Bank, Texas Instruments and US
West. We have also begun to build an international network of
affiliates who provide our trust services under licensed
co-branding relationships using our proprietary technology and
business practices. We currently have affiliate relationships
with 18 organizations including Arabtrust in the Middle East,
BT in the United Kingdom, CIBC of Canada, CertiSur of
Argentina, Certplus of France, eSign of Australia, HiTrust of
Taiwan, KPN Telecom of The Netherlands, Roccade of The
Netherlands, the South African Certification Agency in South
Africa, and VPN Tech of Canada.
We have derived substantially all of our
revenues to date from fees for services rendered in connection
with deploying Internet trust services. Revenues from these
trust services consist of fees for the issuance of digital
certificates, fees for digital certificate service
provisioning, fees for technology and business process
licensing to affiliates and fees for consulting,
implementation, training, support and maintenance services.
Each of these sources of revenue has different revenue
recognition methods. We defer revenues from the sale or
renewal of digital certificates and recognize these revenues
ratably over the life of the digital certificate, generally 12
months. We defer revenues from the sale of our OnSite managed
services and recognize these revenues ratably over the term of
the license, generally 12 months. We recognize revenues from
the sale of digital certificate technology and business
process licensing to affiliates upon delivery of the
technology and signing of an agreement, provided the fee is
fixed and determinable, collectibility is probable and the
arrangement does not require significant production,
modification or customization of the software. We
recognize revenues from consulting and training services using
the percentage-of-completion method for fixed-fee development
arrangements or as the services are provided for
time-and-materials arrangements. We recognize revenues ratably
over the term of the agreement for support and maintenance
services.
We market our Internet trust services
worldwide through multiple distribution channels, including
the Internet, direct sales, telesales, value added resellers,
systems integrators and our international affiliates. A
significant portion of our revenues to date has been generated
through sales from our website, but we intend to continue
increasing our direct sales force, both in the United States
and abroad, and to continue to expand our other distribution
channels.
In connection with the formation of VeriSign
Japan, we licensed technology and contributed other assets to
VeriSign Japan. Subsequent to its formation, additional
investors purchased minority interests in VeriSign Japan. As
of September 30, 1999, we owned 50.5% of the outstanding
capital stock of VeriSign Japan. Accordingly, our consolidated
financial statements include the accounts of VeriSign Japan
and our consolidated statements of operations reflect the
minority shareholders share of the net losses of
VeriSign Japan.
We have experienced substantial net losses
in each fiscal period since our inception. As of September 30,
1999, we had an accumulated deficit of $52.0 million. These
net losses and accumulated deficit resulted from the
significant costs incurred in the development and sale of our
Internet trust services and in the establishment and
deployment of our technology, infrastructure and practices.
Although our revenues have grown in recent periods, we may be
unable to sustain this growth. Therefore, you should not
consider our historical growth indicative of future revenue
levels or operating results. In addition, although we had a
slight profit during the quarter ended September 30, 1999, we
may not be able to sustain profitability on a quarterly or
annual basis in the future. A more complete description of
these and other risks relating to our business is set forth
under the caption Factors That May Affect Future Results
of Operations.
Results of Operations
|
Revenues
|
|
|
1999
|
|
1998
|
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands) |
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenues
|
|
$22,782
|
|
$10,505
|
|
117
|
% |
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Revenues
|
|
$57,100
|
|
$25,719
|
|
122
|
% |
Revenues increased significantly from the
prior year primarily due to increased sales of our Internet
trust services, particularly our website digital certificates
and VeriSign OnSite services, the expansion of our
international affiliate network and delivery of more training
and consulting services.
No customer accounted for 10% or more of
revenues during the three months or nine months ended
September 30, 1999 or 1998. Revenues of VeriSign Japan and
revenues from international customers accounted for 29% of
total revenues in the third quarter of 1999, and 12% of total
revenues in the third quarter of 1998. During the first nine
months of 1999, revenues of VeriSign Japan and revenues from
international customers accounted for 26% of total revenues,
while during the same period in 1998 revenues of VeriSign
Japan and revenues from international customers accounted for
11% of total revenues.
Costs and Expenses
|
Cost of revenues
|
|
|
1999 |
|
1998 |
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands) |
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cost of
revenues |
|
$
8,405 |
|
|
$
5,190 |
|
|
62
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
37
|
% |
|
49
|
% |
|
|
|
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Cost of
revenues |
|
$22,379
|
|
|
$13,467
|
|
|
66
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
39
|
% |
|
52
|
% |
|
|
|
Cost of revenues consists primarily of costs
related to providing digital certificate enrollment and
issuance services, customer support and training, consulting
and development services and costs of facilities and computer
equipment used in these activities. Cost of revenues also
includes fees paid to third parties to verify certificate
applicants identities, insurance premiums for our
service warranty plan and errors and omission insurance and
the cost of software resold to customers.
Growth of revenues was the primary cause of
the increase in cost of revenues from 1998 to 1999. We hired
more employees to support the growth of demand for our
products and services during the period and to support the
growth of our security consulting and training activities. The
cost of insurance premiums for our service warranty plan
increased because of greater certificate volume. In addition,
we incurred increased expenses for access to third-party
databases, higher support charges for our external disaster
recovery program and increased expenses related to the cost of
software products resold to customers as part of network
security solution implementations.
Cost of revenues as a percentage of revenue
decreased from 1998 to 1999 primarily due to the overall
increase in revenues, the continued experience of economies of
scale on our technology infrastructure and the efficiency
gains in the certificate enrollment and issuance process.
Certain of our services, such as
implementation consulting and training, require greater
initial personnel involvement and therefore have higher costs
than other types of services. As a result, we anticipate that
cost of revenues will vary in future periods depending on the
mix of services sold.
|
Sales and marketing
|
|
|
1999 |
|
1998 |
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands) |
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sales and
marketing |
|
$
8,829 |
|
|
$
6,117 |
|
|
44
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
39
|
% |
|
58
|
% |
|
|
|
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Sales and
marketing |
|
$24,492
|
|
|
$16,449
|
|
|
49
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
43
|
% |
|
64
|
% |
|
|
|
Sales and marketing expenses consist
primarily of costs related to sales, marketing, practices and
external affair activities. These expenses include salaries,
sales commissions and other personnel-related expenses, travel
and related expenses, costs of computer and communications
equipment and support services, facilities costs, consulting
fees and costs of marketing programs.
Sales and marketing expenses increased from
1998 to 1999 as a result of the continued growth of our direct
sales force and the expansion of our marketing efforts,
particularly in lead and demand generation
activities. The expansion of our international sales presence in
Europe during the third quarter of 1999 also contributed to
the increase in these expenses. Sales and marketing expenses
as a percentage of revenues decreased from 1998 to 1999
primarily due to the increase in recurring revenue from
existing customers, which tend to have lower acquisition costs
associated with them, the increase in the productivity of the
direct sales force, and the increase in the effectiveness of
the marketing lead and demand generation activities.
We anticipate that sales and marketing
expenses will continue to increase in absolute dollars as we
expand our direct sales force and increase our marketing and
demand generation activities both in the United States and
abroad.
|
Research and development
|
|
|
1999 |
|
1998 |
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands) |
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Research and
development |
|
$3,405
|
|
|
$2,552
|
|
|
33
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
15
|
% |
|
24
|
% |
|
|
|
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Research and
development |
|
$9,478
|
|
|
$6,242
|
|
|
52
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
17
|
% |
|
24
|
% |
|
|
|
Research and development expenses consist
primarily of costs related to research and development
personnel, including salaries and other personnel-related
expenses, consulting fees and the costs of facilities,
computer and communications equipment and support services
used in service and technology development.
Research and development expenses increased
in absolute dollars in the third quarter of 1999 from the
third quarter of 1998 as we invested in the design, testing
and deployment of, and technical support for, our expanded
Internet trust service offerings and technology. The increase
reflects the expansion of our engineering staff and related
costs required to support our continued emphasis on developing
new products and services as well as enhancing existing
products and services. During 1999, we continued to make
significant investments in development of all of our services.
The decrease in research and development expenses as a
percentage of revenues from 1998 to 1999 is primarily due to
the fact that revenues increased faster than research and
development expenses.
We believe that timely development of new
and enhanced Internet trust services and technology are
necessary to remain competitive in the marketplace.
Accordingly, we intend to continue to recruit experienced
research and development personnel and to make other
investments in research and development. As a result, we
expect research and development expenses will continue to
increase in absolute dollars. To date, we have expensed all
research and development expenditures as incurred.
|
General and administrative
|
|
|
1999 |
|
1998 |
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands) |
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
General and
administrative |
|
$2,142
|
|
|
$1,673
|
|
|
28
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
9 |
% |
|
16
|
% |
|
|
|
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
General and
administrative |
|
$6,122
|
|
|
$5,842
|
|
|
5 |
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
11
|
% |
|
23
|
% |
|
|
|
General and administrative expenses consist
primarily of salaries and other personnel-related expenses for
our administrative, finance and human relations personnel,
facilities and computer and communications equipment, support
services and professional services fees.
Our expenses increased from 1998 to 1999
primarily due to increased staffing levels required to manage
and support our expanded operations, the implementation of
additional management information systems and related
procedures, and the expansion of our corporate headquarters.
The decrease in general and administrative expenses as a
percentage of revenues from 1998 to 1999 is primarily due to
the fact that revenues increased faster than general and
administrative expenses as we begin to experience economies of
scale on our corporate infrastructure.
We expect to continue to invest in a more
comprehensive executive and administrative infrastructure. As
a result, we anticipate that general and administrative
expenses will increase in absolute dollars.
|
Special charges
|
|
|
1999 |
|
1998 |
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands) |
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Special
charges |
|
$
|
|
|
$3,555
|
|
|
(100
|
)%
|
Percentage
of revenues |
|
0 |
% |
|
34
|
% |
|
|
|
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Special
charges |
|
$
|
|
|
$3,555
|
|
|
(100
|
)%
|
Percentage
of revenues |
|
0 |
% |
|
14
|
% |
|
|
|
In connection with the acquisition of
SecureIT, we recorded in the third quarter of 1998 a special
charge to operating expenses for direct and other
merger-related costs pertaining to the merger transaction and
certain stock-based compensation charges of approximately $2.4
million and $1.2 million, respectively. Merger transaction
costs consisted primarily of fees for investment bankers,
attorneys, accountants, filing fees and other related charges.
The stock-based compensation charges related to certain
performance stock options held by Secure IT employees whose
vesting accelerated upon a change of control.
|
Other Income
|
|
|
1999 |
|
1998 |
|
Change |
|
|
(Dollars in thousands)
|
Three-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other income
|
|
$1,272
|
|
|
$
628 |
|
|
103
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
6 |
% |
|
6 |
% |
|
Nine-month
period: |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Other income
|
|
$4,071
|
|
|
$1,677
|
|
|
143
|
% |
Percentage
of revenues |
|
7 |
% |
|
7 |
% |
|
|
|
Other income consists primarily of interest
earned on our cash, cash equivalents and short-term
investments and the net effect of foreign currency transaction
gains and losses. Other income also includes charges for any
gains or losses on the disposal of property and equipment and
other miscellaneous expenses.
The increase in other income in 1999
compared to 1998 is primarily due to a significantly higher
average cash and short-term investment base in the 1999
period. This increase in the investment base was a result of
the cash generated from our follow-on public offering of
3,195,000 shares of our common stock during January 1999.
After deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and
offering expenses, proceeds from the follow-on offering were
approximately $121.4 million. The increase in other income was
slightly offset by the loss on disposal of property and
equipment and other miscellaneous expenses.
|
Provision for Income Taxes
|
We have not recorded any provision for
federal and California income taxes because we have
experienced net losses since inception. As of December 31,
1998, we had federal net operating loss carryforwards of
approximately $52.3 million and California net operating loss
carryforwards of approximately $46.5 million. If we are not
able to use them, the federal net operating loss carryforwards
will expire in 2010 through 2018 and the state net operating
loss carryforwards will expire in 2003. The Tax Reform Act of
1986 imposes substantial restrictions on the utilization of
net operating losses and tax credits in the event of a
corporations ownership change, as defined in the
Internal Revenue Code. Our ability to utilize net operating
loss carryforwards may be limited as a result of an ownership
change. We do not anticipate that any material limitation
exists on our ability to use our carryforwards and credits. We
have provided a full valuation allowance on our deferred tax
assets because of the uncertainty regarding their realization.
|
Minority Interest in Net Loss of Subsidiary
|
Minority interest in the net loss of
VeriSign Japan was $294,000 in the third quarter of 1999 and
$237,000 in the third quarter of 1998. During the first nine
months of 1999, the minority interest in the net loss of
VeriSign Japan was $722,000 compared to $950,000 during the
first nine months of 1998. The increase from the third quarter
of 1998 to the third quarter of 1999 was primarily due to
VeriSign Japans higher operating losses as compared to
the prior year. The decrease from the first nine months of
1999 to the first nine months of 1998 was primarily due to
VeriSign Japans lower operating losses as compared to
the prior year. As the VeriSign Japan business continues to
develop and evolve, we expect that the minority interest in
net loss of subsidiary will continue to fluctuate in future
periods.
Factors That May Affect Future Results
of Operations
|
We have a limited operating history.
|
VeriSign was incorporated in April 1995, and
we began introducing our Internet trust services in June 1995.
Accordingly, we have only a limited operating history on which
to base an evaluation of our business and prospects. Our
prospects must be considered in light of the risks and
uncertainties encountered by companies in the early stages of
development. These risks and uncertainties are often worse for
companies in new and rapidly evolving markets. Our success
will depend on many factors, including, but not limited to,
the following:
|
|
the rate and timing of the growth and use of IP
networks for electronic commerce and communications;
|
|
|
the extent to which digital certificates are used for
electronic commerce and communications;
|
|
|
the continued evolution of electronic commerce as a
viable means of conducting business;
|
|
|
the demand for our Internet trust services;
|
|
|
competition levels;
|
|
|
the perceived security of electronic commerce and
communications over IP networks;
|
|
|
the perceived security of our services, technology,
infrastructure and practices; and
|
|
|
our continued ability to maintain our current, and
enter into additional, strategic relationships.
|
To address these risks we must, among other things:
|
|
successfully market our Internet trust services and
our digital certificates to new and existing customers;
|
|
|
attract, integrate, train, retain and motivate
qualified personnel;
|
|
|
respond to competitive developments;
|
|
|
successfully introduce new Internet trust services;
and
|
|
|
successfully introduce enhancements to our existing
Internet trust services to address new technologies and
standards.
|
We cannot be certain that we will
successfully address any of these risks.
|
Our business depends on the adoption of IP
networks .
|
To date, many businesses and consumers have
been deterred from utilizing IP networks for a number of
reasons, including, but not limited to:
|
|
potentially inadequate development of network
infrastructure;
|
|
|
security concerns including the potential for
merchant or user impersonation and fraud or theft of stored
data and information communicated over IP networks;
|
|
|
inconsistent quality of service;
|
|
|
lack of availability of cost-effective, high-speed
service;
|
|
|
limited numbers of local access points for corporate
users;
|
|
|
inability to integrate business applications on IP
networks;
|
|
|
the need to operate with multiple and frequently
incompatible products; and
|
|
|
a lack of tools to simplify access to and use of IP
networks.
|
The adoption of IP networks will require a
broad acceptance of new methods of conducting business and
exchanging information. Companies and government agencies that
already have invested substantial resources in other methods
of conducting business may be reluctant to adopt new methods.
Also, individuals with established patterns of purchasing
goods and services and effecting payments may be reluctant to
change.
|
Our market is new and evolving.
|
We target our Internet trust services at the
market for trusted and secure electronic commerce and
communications over IP networks. This is a new and rapidly
evolving market that may not continue to grow. Accordingly,
the demand for our Internet trust services is very uncertain.
Even if the market for electronic commerce and communications
over IP networks grows, our Internet trust services may not be
widely accepted. The factors that may affect the level of
market acceptance of digital certificates and, consequently,
our Internet trust services, include the following:
|
|
market acceptance of products and services based upon
authentication technologies other than those we use;
|
|
|
public perception of the security of digital
certificates and IP networks;
|
|
|
the ability of the Internet infrastructure to
accommodate increased levels of usage; and
|
|
|
government regulations affecting electronic commerce
and communications over IP networks.
|
Even if digital certificates achieve market
acceptance, our Internet trust services may fail to address
the markets requirements adequately. If digital
certificates do not achieve market acceptance in a timely
manner and sustain acceptance, or if our Internet trust
services in particular, do not achieve or sustain market
acceptance, our business would be materially harmed.
|
System interruptions and security breaches could
harm our business.
|
We depend on the uninterrupted operation of
our data centers and our other computer and communications
systems. We must protect these systems from loss, damage or
interruption caused by fire, earthquake, power
loss, telecommunications failure or other events beyond our
control. Most of our systems are located at, and most of our
customer information is stored in, our facilities in Mountain
View, California and Kawasaki, Japan, areas susceptible to
earthquakes. Any damage or failure that causes interruptions
in our secure data centers and our other computer and
communications systems could materially harm our business. In
addition, our ability to issue digital certificates depends on
the efficient operation of the Internet connections from
customers to our secure data centers. These connections depend
upon efficient operation of web browsers, Internet service
providers and Internet backbone service providers, all of
which have had periodic operational problems or experienced
outages in the past. Any of these problems or outages could
adversely affect customer satisfaction.
Our success also depends upon the
scalability of our systems. Our systems have not been tested
at the volumes that may be required in the future. Thus, it is
possible that a substantial increase in demand for our
Internet trust services could cause interruptions in our
systems. Any interruptions could adversely affect our ability
to deliver our Internet trust services and therefore could
materially harm our business.
Although we periodically perform, and retain
accredited third parties to perform, audits of our operational
practices and procedures, we may not be able to remain in
compliance with our internal standards or those set by
third-party auditors. If we fail to maintain these standards,
we may have to expend significant time and money to return to
compliance and our business could be materially harmed.
We retain certain confidential customer
information in our secure data centers. It is critical to our
business strategy that our facilities and infrastructure
remain secure and are perceived by the marketplace to be
secure. Despite our security measures, our infrastructure may
be vulnerable to physical break-ins, computer viruses, attacks
by hackers or similar disruptive problems. It is possible that
we may have to expend additional financial and other resources
to address these problems. Any physical or electronic
break-ins or other security breaches or compromises of the
information stored at our secure data centers might jeopardize
the security of information stored on our premises or in the
computer systems and networks of our customers. In this event,
we could face significant liability and customers could be
reluctant to use our Internet trust services. This type of
occurrence could also result in adverse publicity and
therefore adversely affect the markets perception of the
security of electronic commerce and communications over IP
networks as well as of the security or reliability of our
services.
|
We must manage our growth and expansion.
|
Our historical growth has placed, and any
further growth is likely to continue to place, a significant
strain on our resources. VeriSign has grown from 26 employees
at December 31, 1995 to 371 employees at September 30, 1999.
We have also opened additional sales offices and have
significantly expanded our operations, both in the U.S. and
abroad, during this time period. We also expanded our
operations by acquiring SecureIT during 1998. To be
successful, we will need to implement additional management
information systems, develop further our operating,
administrative, financial and accounting systems and controls
and maintain close coordination among our executive,
engineering, accounting, finance, marketing, sales and
operations organizations. Any failure to manage growth
effectively could materially harm our business.
|
We must establish and maintain strategic
relationships.
|
One of our significant business strategies
has been to enter into strategic or other similar
collaborative relationships in order to reach a larger
customer base than we could reach through our direct sales and
marketing efforts. We may need to enter into additional
relationships to execute our business plan. We may not be able
to enter into additional, or maintain our existing, strategic
relationships on commercially reasonable terms. If we failed
to do so, we would have to devote substantially more resources
to the distribution, sale and marketing of our Internet trust
services than we would otherwise need to do. Furthermore, as a
result of our emphasis on these relationships, our success in
them will depend both on the ultimate success of the other
parties to these relationships, particularly in the use and
promotion of IP networks for trusted and secure electronic
commerce and communications, and on the ability of certain of
these parties to market our Internet
trust services successfully. Failure of one or more of our
strategic relationships to result in the development and
maintenance of a market for our Internet trust services could
materially harm our business.
Our existing strategic relationships do not,
and any future strategic relationships may not, afford
VeriSign any exclusive marketing or distribution rights. In
addition, the other parties may not view their relationships
with us as significant for their own businesses. Therefore,
they could reduce their commitment to VeriSign at any time in
the future. These parties could also pursue alternative
technologies or develop alternative products and services
either on their own or in collaboration with others, including
our competitors. If we are unable to maintain our strategic
relationships or enter into additional strategic
relationships, our business could be materially harmed.
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Certain of our Internet trust services have
lengthy sales and implementation cycles.
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We market many of our Internet trust
services directly to large companies and government agencies.
The sale and implementation of our services to these entities
typically involves a lengthy education process and a
significant technical evaluation and commitment of capital and
other resources. This process is also subject to the risk of
delays associated with customers internal budgeting and
other procedures for approving large capital expenditures,
deploying new technologies within their networks and testing
and accepting new technologies that affect key operations. As
a result, the sales and implementation cycles associated with
certain of our Internet trust services can be lengthy. Our
quarterly and annual operating results could be materially
harmed if orders forecasted for a specific customer for a
particular quarter are not realized.
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Our international operations are subject to
certain risks.
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Revenues of VeriSign Japan and revenues from
other international affiliates and customers accounted for
approximately 26% of our revenues in the first nine months of
1999 and 14% of our revenues for the full year of 1998. We
intend to expand our international operations and
international sales and marketing activities. Expansion into
these markets has required and will continue to require
significant management attention and resources. We may also
need to tailor our Internet trust services for a particular
market and to enter into international distribution and
operating relationships. We have limited experience in
localizing our Internet trust services and in developing
international distribution or operating relationships. We may
not succeed in expanding our Internet trust service offerings
into international markets. Any of these failures could harm
our business. In addition, there are certain risks inherent in
doing business on an international basis, including, among
others:
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regulatory requirements;
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legal uncertainties;
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export and import restrictions on cryptographic
technology and products incorporating that technology;
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tariffs and other trade barriers;
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difficulties in staffing and managing foreign
operations;
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longer sales and payment cycles;
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problems in collecting accounts receivable;
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difficulties in authenticating customer information;
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political instability;
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seasonal reductions in business activity; and
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potentially adverse tax consequences.
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We have licensed to certain international
affiliates the VeriSign Processing Center platform, which is
designed to replicate our own secure data centers and allows
the affiliate to offer back-end processing of Internet trust
services. The VeriSign Processing Center platform provides
these affiliates with the knowledge and technology to offer
Internet trust services similar to those offered by VeriSign.
It is critical to our business strategy that the facilities
and infrastructure used in issuing and marketing digital
certificates remain secure and be perceived by the marketplace
to be secure. Although we provide our affiliates with training
in security and trust practices, network management and
customer service and support, these practices are performed by
our affiliates and are outside of our control. Any failure of
an affiliate to maintain the privacy of confidential customer
information could result in negative publicity and therefore
adversely affect the markets perception of the security
of our services as well as the security of electronic commerce
and communication over IP networks generally. See
System interruptions and security breaches could harm our
business.
All of our international revenues from
sources other than VeriSign Japan are denominated in U.S.
dollars. If additional portions of our international revenues
were to be denominated in foreign currencies, we could become
subject to increased risks relating to foreign currency
exchange rate fluctuations.