UNITED STATES
FORM 10-K
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d)
OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
| For the fiscal year ended | Commission File | |
| December 31, 2001 | Number 0-11685 |
RADYNE COMSTREAM INC.
| Delaware | 11-2569467 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction | (I.R.S. Employer | |
| of incorporation or organization) | Identification No.) |
| 3138 East Elwood Street, Phoenix, Arizona | 85034 | |
| (Address of Principal Executive Offices) | (Zip Code) |
Registrants telephone number including area code: (602) 437-9620
Securities Registered Under Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act: None
Securities Registered Under Section 12(g) of the Exchange Act:
Common Stock, $.001 Par Value
Common Stock Purchase Warrants
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
No
Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to
Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be
contained, to the best of registrants knowledge, in definitive proxy or
information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form
10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.
The aggregate market value of the voting stock held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $25 million based on the closing price of $4.82 per share of common stock as reported on the Nasdaq Stock Market on March 22, 2002. For purposes of this determination, shares of common stock held by each officer and director and by each person who owns 5% or more of the outstanding common stock have been excluded in that such persons may be deemed to be affiliates of the registrant. This determination of affiliate status is not necessarily a conclusive determination for other purposes. The number of outstanding shares of the registrants common stock as of the close of business were 15,119,490.
DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Items 10, 11, 12, and 13 of Part III incorporate information by reference from the definitive proxy statement for the registrants Annual Meeting of Stockholders to be held on May 22, 2002.
PART I
DISCLOSURE CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Annual Report on Form 10-K, includes statements that constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (the Reform Act) and Radyne ComStream claims the protection of the safe-harbor for forward-looking statements contained in the Reform Act. These forward-looking statements are often characterized by the terms may, believes, projects, expects, or anticipates, and do not reflect historical facts. Specific forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements and under the captions Business and Managements Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations include, but are not limited to: (i) growth in demand for satellite system ground-based equipment and satellite-delivered communications services, (ii) continued global deregulation and privatization of telecommunications carriers, (iii) worldwide demand for Internet over Satellite connectivity and communications services in general, (iv) an increase in total foreign sales, and (v) an increase in market share and (vi) sufficient cash reserves and cash from operations to fund planned future operations and capital requirements through the end of 2002.
Forward-looking statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors which may cause actual results, performance or achievements of Radyne ComStream to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Factors that could affect Radyne ComStreams results and cause them to materially differ from those contained in the forward-looking statements include:
| | loss of, and failure to replace, any significant customers; | ||
| | timing and success of new product introductions; | ||
| | product developments, introductions and pricing of competitors; | ||
| | timing of substantial customer orders; | ||
| | availability of qualified personnel; | ||
| | the impact of local political and economic conditions and foreign exchange fluctuations on international sales; | ||
| | performance of suppliers and subcontractors; | ||
| | market demand and industry and general economic or business conditions; | ||
| | availability, cost and terms of capital; | ||
| | the Risk Factors set forth in Exhibit 99.1, which is attached hereto and incorporated by reference into this Annual Report on Form 10-K; and | ||
| | Other factors that Radyne ComStream is currently unable to identify or quantify, but may exist in the future. |
In addition, the foregoing factors may affect generally Radyne ComStreams business, results of operations and financial position.
Forward-looking statements speak only as of the date the statement was made. Radyne ComStream does not undertake and specifically declines any obligation to update any forward-looking statements.
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Overview
We design, manufacture, install and sell equipment used in the ground-based portion of satellite communication systems to receive, and transmit data, video, audio and Internet over satellite communications links. We also design, manufacture, and sell equipment used in cable television systems. Our products are used in applications for telephone, data, video and audio broadcast communications, private and corporate data networks, Internet applications, and digital television for cable and network broadcast. We serve customers in over 80 countries, including customers in the television broadcast industry, international telecommunications companies, Internet service providers, private communications networks, network and cable television and the United States government.
Our products have been utilized in major communication systems worldwide, including the following:
| | The worlds highest capacity domestic, digital satellite telephone network PT Telkom, Indonesia. | ||
| | Italys first digital telephone/data network Telespacio, Italian Railways. | ||
| | Colombias first alternate telecommunications network Americatel. | ||
| | Supplied HDTV Encoders and IRDs for Major Korean Broadcasters | ||
| | Earth stations for the first international satellite links in China, India, Pakistan, Brazil, Haiti and Zambia. | ||
| | One of the worlds largest private satellite broadcast network Reuters. | ||
| | International Cablecasting Technologies utilizing 40,000 digital audio broadcast receivers. | ||
| | Supply of Ground equipment for delivery of IP over Satellite to major satellite bandwidth providers. | ||
| | First major Internet over Satellite network with 300 terminals deployed in the Dominican Republic for a distance learning application. | ||
| | Major private audio network in Mexico and Central America for a department store chain which transmits music, advertising and product announcements to all its store locations. | ||
| | Supply of major control room equipment plus engineering, installation and training at new customer service center for PanAmSat Corporation. | ||
| | Broadband satellite modems and frequency converters to provide telephone and Internet connectivity for VSNL, the largest international telecommunications provider in India. | ||
| | High-Speed DVB Modulators for Hughes Direct to PC network. | ||
| | High Definition Television encoders and IRDs for major international sporting events (2002 winter Olympics through NBC, 2002 World Cup through Korea Telecom and various programming through ESPN-Star in Singapore) | ||
| | First Internet broadcast network in the Republic of Myanmar. | ||
| | Major expansion of US Government Satellite Communications Network. |
Industry Overview
Satellite technology has been established as a key element in the worldwide infrastructure of communications systems. Satellites enable high-speed communications service where there is no suitable alternative available. Unlike the cost of land-based
networks, such as microwave and fiber cable, the cost to provide services via satellite does not increase with the distance between sending and receiving stations. Satellite networks can be rapidly installed, upgraded, and reconfigured as compared with land-based networks, which require rights-of-way and are expensive and time consuming to install and upgrade. The three principal categories of satellite communications service applications are fixed satellite services, mobile satellite services, and direct broadcast services.
Fixed Satellite Services. Fixed satellite services provide point-to-point and point-to-multipoint satellite communication of voice, data, and video between fixed ground-based earth stations. The introduction of high-power satellites has created additional growth within the fixed satellite services segment by enabling the use of smaller, less costly earth stations for applications such as corporate data networks, Intranet access, and rural telephony.
Mobile Satellite Services. Mobile satellite services operate between fixed earth stations and mobile user earth stations, or terminals. These services provide mobile voice and data transmission capability on land, sea, and air. New mobile satellite services are being developed to bring more extensive coverage and circuit reliability for mobile telephone and data services to under-served populations throughout the world.
Direct Broadcast Services. Direct broadcast satellite services provide a direct transmission link from high-power satellites to customers over a wide geographic area. This includes direct-to-home television services, direct broadcast data services, and Internet access.
Satellite communication systems that are used to provide these services consist of two elements: satellites (the space segment) and ground-based transmission and reception systems (the ground segment). The space segment consists of a single satellite or a constellation of satellites in earth orbit, which typically provide continuous communications coverage over a wide geographic area. These satellites typically contain multiple transponders, each of which is capable of simultaneously receiving and transmitting one or more signals to or from multiple users. The satellite ground segment consists principally of one or more earth stations. An earth station is an integrated system consisting of antennae, radio signal transmitting and receiving equipment, a satellite modem, a frequency controller, and voice, data, and video network interface equipment. Earth stations provide a communications link to the end user either directly or through land-based networks.
We have participated principally in the ground segment products, systems, and networks portion of the market. A Merrill Lynch Study, Global Satellite Marketplace 2000, estimated the global market for satellite ground equipment and integration services was $30 billion in 2000, of which our management estimates $1 billion was for the type of equipment and systems we develop, manufacture, and market.
Industry Growth
We believe that demand for satellite system ground-based equipment has been and will continue to be driven by, among other things, the growth of satellite-delivered communications services such as the fixed, mobile, and direct broadcast services described above. We believe that future demand for satellite communications services will be driven principally by the following major factors:
| | Continued global deregulation and privatization of government-monopolized telecommunications carriers, which will stimulate growth in the communications industry in general. | ||
| | Worldwide demand for Internet over Satellite connectivity. Approximately 80% of the World Wide Web sites reside in North America and high-speed access to the web will continue to be a major issue over the next 3-5 years. | ||
| | Worldwide demand for communications services in general, including data communications services, high-speed digital television/HDTV and corporate Intranets. | ||
| | The relative cost-effectiveness of satellite communications for many applications, such as digital television delivery. |
| | Technological advancements that broaden applications for and increase the capacity in satellite networks. | ||
| | Lack of global terrestrial infrastructure to support increased demand for Broadband and Internet applications and services. | ||
| | U.S. Federal Communications Commission mandate for Television Broadcasters to adopt DTV standards by 2006. |
Deregulation and Privatization. Many developing countries that had previously not committed significant resources to or placed a high priority on developing and upgrading their communications systems are now doing so, primarily through deregulation and privatization. A significant number of these countries do not have the resources, or have large geographic areas or terrain that make it difficult, to install extensive land-based networks on a cost-effective basis. This provides an opportunity for satellite communications services systems to meet the requirement for communications services in these countries.
Worldwide Demand for Communications Services. Factors contributing to the demand for communications services include worldwide economic development and the increasing globalization of commerce. Businesses have a need for higher bandwidth services to communicate with their customers and employees around the world and are increasingly reliant upon Internet and multimedia applications. We expect demand for these kinds of higher bandwidth services to grow in both developed and developing countries.
Cost-Effectiveness of Satellite Communications. The relative cost-effectiveness of satellite communications services is a major factor driving the growth of satellite communications services in areas with rapidly growing telecommunications infrastructures. Large geographic areas, where population concentrations are separated by significant distances, require a technology whose cost and speed of implementation is relatively insensitive to distance. Unlike the cost of land-based networks, the cost to provide services via satellite does not increase with the distance between sending and receiving stations.
Technological Advances. Technological advances continue to increase the capacity of a single satellite and reduce the overall cost of a system and the service it delivers. This increases the number of potential end-users for the services and expands the available market. We believe that recent technological developments such as bandwidth on demand, digital television compression technology, and signal processing methods will continue to stimulate the demand for the use of satellite communication services.
Market Opportunities
Satellite communication systems provide a number of advantages over land-based networks for a variety of applications. We have identified several key markets and customer groups that we believe provide opportunities to sell our products.
International and Rural Telephony
Satellite communication systems enjoy advantages in international telecommunications markets for several reasons:
| | It is not cost-effective to utilize land-based networks in many areas of the world, especially developing countries where modern communications capabilities are just beginning to develop. | ||
| | All areas within a satellite beam receive the same level of service, making it highly attractive in rough terrain or underdeveloped regions. | ||
| | Satellites can be deployed much more rapidly to offer international services. |
We believe there are certain communication requirements that can be reasonably satisfied only with satellite systems. For example, satellite communications offer a cost-effective solution that can be installed relatively quickly to provide communications services in remote or sparsely populated areas, in rugged or in mountainous terrain, or in nations composed of many islands, a geographical feature which is relatively common in the Pacific region.
The potential to reach areas of low subscriber density without costly construction of land-based networks makes satellite communication systems a viable solution for rural telephony systems. Rural telephony can be described as an intra-country telecommunications network linking many remote locations, such as small villages or islands. These networks allow villages to communicate with each other and with the world. In a typical rural telephony system, a small village might install a satellite earth station in a central location such as the local post office. Residents then use this convenient location to communicate throughout the country and the world.
Private Networks
As businesses and other organizations expand into regions of the world where the telecommunications infrastructure is inadequate for land-based networks, the need for alternative communications connections among multiple facilities becomes evident. A private network is a dedicated communications and/or data transmission network. Such a network may link employees of a multiple-location business with co-workers located throughout the world. Users can consolidate multiple-applications over a single satellite network and receive the same quality of service at a lower over-all cost. We believe the satellite communications industry is poised to gain a foothold in this market by offering reliable high-speed connectivity. Satellite systems can bypass the complexity of land-based networks, multiple carriers, and varying price and billing schedules.
Information and Radio Broadcasts
Satellites are an ideal transmission medium for broadcast services, as a single satellite has the ability to communicate with ground locations spread across up to one-third of the surface of the earth. Financial news providers, merchandise retailers, and others use satellite systems to provide financial data and other audio and video transmissions for a variety of applications, such as news wire services and supermarket in-store radio.
Television Video Distribution
Compressed digital video is a recently developed technology that provides significant new market opportunities for the satellite communications industry. The development of digital compression technology allows the transmission of television signals via satellite in a smaller bandwidth than is currently possible through alternative technologies. This advance in communications technology is enabling a wider application of satellite solutions for television and video broadcast services, including the following:
| | Satellites provide television broadcasters with an efficient and economical method to distribute their programming to cable service providers and direct broadcast satellite operators. | ||
| | Compressed video encoding and decoding make satellites available for less demanding video transmissions, including business teleconferencing, private business networks, and telemedicine. | ||
| | The economics of compressed video allow the use of satellite transmission for long-distance teaching applications. |
| | Digital cinema distribution is emerging as a viable alternative to the physical distribution of feature length films. | ||
| | There is an emerging market to provide data and video directly to the personal computer via satellite. |
Internet Communications
The Internet is evolving into a global medium, allowing millions of individuals throughout the world to communicate, share information, and engage in electronic commerce. Growth in this sector is expected to be driven by the large and growing number of personal computers installed in homes and offices, the declining prices of personal computers, improvements in network infrastructure, the availability of faster and cheaper Internet access, and the increasing familiarity with and acceptance of the Internet by businesses and consumers. Internet usage also is expected to continue to grow rapidly due to unique characteristics that differentiate it from traditional media, such as real-time access to interactive content, real-time communication capabilities, and the absence of geographic or temporal limitations.
We expect satellite communications to continue to offer a cost-effective augmentation capability for Internet service providers, particularly in markets where land-based networks are unlikely to be either cost-effective or abundant, such as rural areas. Additionally, satellite broadcast architecture provides an attractive alternative for Internet service providers, which presently are dealing with the bottlenecks associated with rapid and uneven Internet growth. Satellite systems can relieve congestion by providing a low-cost means of selectively distributing content to sites closer to end-users. Today, only 1,000 Websites represent over 80% of the most frequently accessed content on the Internet. These Web pages can be transmitted via satellite at regular intervals to designated server destinations and then stored in servers for local users to access. This cached content reduces the need to retrieve the most popular data from the source, thus reducing delays and congestion on the Internet. Likewise, we expect Internet multicasting to serve as a solution for the distribution of large applications, such as database updates.
Government and Military
The United States government provides a significant market opportunity for satellite equipment manufacturers as the defense budget shrinks and government policies encourage the use of commercial off-the-shelf components whenever feasible. This provides us with the opportunity to configure our standard products for a customer that is sizable and likely to provide consistent business.
Strategy
Our business goals are to expand our market share in our ground-based satellite systems business and improve profitability. We expect to achieve these goals through the following strategies:
Target Providers of Fixed, Mobile, and Direct Broadcast Communications Services Worldwide. We plan to target developing markets that we believe will account for a significant portion of the demand for satellite-based systems. These markets typically lack terrestrial infrastructure adequate to support demand for domestic and international communications services. We plan to target providers of rural telephony services and Internet service providers in developing markets because we believe they will rely extensively upon satellite communication solutions. In developed countries, we plan to target emerging satellite communications service providers such as those offering direct broadcast applications.
Exploit New Applications for Our Existing Satellite Technology. We plan to adapt existing products for use in the Internet broadband, cable television, and television news gathering markets, which utilize digital receivers and transmission equipment using many of the same modulation, coding, interface, and protocol technologies as the satellite business. We have adapted some of our products for the television distribution market, including satellite modems that we converted for use in cable television systems.
Develop New Products to Exploit New Market Opportunities. We plan to use our international sales force and our research and development capabilities to identify new market opportunities and develop new products to exploit these opportunities. We intend to develop new products to penetrate and increase our presence in the markets for Internet communications, rural telephony for developing markets, high-speed satellite communications, government data equipment, cable television distribution, and private networks for businesses and governments.
Provide High-Margin Customized Products to Niche Markets. We design our products so we can adapt them to differing specifications with minimal engineering. We plan to design and produce customized products for niche markets, particularly military and government markets, which require customized technology.
Pursue Strategic Acquisitions. We intend to pursue strategic acquisitions of competitive or complementary companies in order to gain market share, increase our revenues, expand our product lines, improve our sales force and increase our profitability.
Products and Services
We offer the following product families:
| | Satellite modems and earth stations. | ||
| | Internet via Satellite terminal equipment | ||
| | Frequency converters. | ||
| | Data, audio, and video broadcast equipment. | ||
| | Digital video broadcast (DVB) and high-speed modems. | ||
| | Cable and microwave modems. | ||
| | Standard and High Definition digital Television (HDTV) encoders and IRDs (Integrated Receivers / Decoders). | ||
| | Digital TV ATM and network interface adapters |
We offer the following services:
| | Design, integration and installation of turnkey communication systems. |
Satellite Modems and Earth Stations
| We produce satellite modems that are sold individually and earth stations that are a bundled solution built around our satellite modems. Satellite modems transform user information, such as data, video or audio, into a signal that can be further processed for transmission via satellite. We produce several varieties of satellite modems, which operate at different speeds using a variety of modulation techniques. | ||
| Weve recently introduced a major addition to our satellite modem line, the Turbo forward error correction codec. The turbo product provides customers with greatly improved satellite and bandwidth performance, which directly translates to space segment cost savings. This product also affords our installed base of customers (in excess of 10,000 modems) the opportunity to improve their performance at a significant operational cost saving. | ||
| Our earth stations commonly consist of several components, including a satellite modem, a frequency converter, a transceiver, a transmitter, and an antenna. Earth stations serve as an essential link in transmitting signals to, and receiving signals from, satellites. Our earth stations enable users to program power levels and operating parameters in order to compensate for low signal levels, extreme weather conditions, and other variables. We design and manufacture our earth stations using components that we manufacture as well as components that we obtain from other manufacturers. | ||
| Our Star Network Management System augments these product offerings. The Star Network Management System, which consists of a Windows NT® point and click system, is used to remotely monitor and maintain the functioning of an entire network of modems, earth stations, and ancillary equipment. This can be done from a single location, thereby eliminating the |
| need to travel to each remote location. This system provides local and remote modem management, control of the equipment connected to the modems and earth stations, collection of network status and alarm information, remote channel monitoring, and dial-up control. |
Frequency Converters
| We currently market two varieties of converters used to transmit signals to satellites and three converters used to receive signals relayed from satellites. We also produce a redundancy control unit, which will switch a satellite system to stand-by equipment in the event of a malfunction in a satellite modem or converter. Such redundancy is a critical element for many of our customers, such as rural or international telephony networks, that strive to provide uninterrupted satellite communications services to their customers. | ||
| Each satellite is configured to receive or transmit a particular radio wave pattern, otherwise called a frequency band, which is typically different from the frequency of the satellite modem. Frequency converters are used to alter the input/output of a satellite modem into a wave pattern that can be interpreted by the particular satellite being used in the satellite system to relay communication signals. |
Data, Audio and Video Broadcast Equipment
| Our digital audio distribution products provide radio networks, service providers, and merchandise retailers with a satellite distribution system for the broadcast of in-store advertising and background music. Our data distribution products deliver real-time, high-value data and digital video broadcast services. To date, the primary customers for our data distribution products have been participants in the financial industry. For example, our IntelliCast Digital Data Broadcast Receiver is used by customers, such as Reuters, to distribute financial information, up-to-date news stories or image files of weather information and database updates from a central location to many remote outlets. Recently the Ministry of Radio & Television in the Republic of Myanmar has also adopted our IntelliCast Digital Data Broadcast Receiver as the standard for their distance learning network. | ||
| Our MediaCast Satellite PC/Receiver card allows personal computers to request information over a telephone link and then receive a digital video broadcast of a wide range of data, audio, and video information directly from a satellite. This speeds the reception of information, particularly in regions with underdeveloped telephony, and is often used by Internet service providers. |
Two-way Internet Satellite Terminal Equipment
| Our IPSat Internet Satellite Terminal is designed as a fully integrated modular system capable of receive only, transmit only or full duplex satellite connectivity to the Internet anywhere in the world. Utilizing the IPSats modularity and integrated routing capabilities end users can take advantage of hybrid configurations in situations where terrestrial return resources such as telephone, cable or other upstream technologies are available to be used in conjunction with satellite broadcasting. Where such return resources are not available, or too expensive, the IPSat system can support the return channel over satellite. The IPSat can offer the most flexible, cost efficient performance for high-speed satellite downloads from the World Wide Web for ISPs, Corporations, Educational Institutions and Government Agencies. |
Digital Video Broadcast (DVB) and High-Speed Modems
| Our DVB modems facilitate the transmission of high-quality video images among multiple locations via satellite. These modems utilize digital compression technology that allows users to transmit television signals in a smaller bandwidth than is possible using older technology, thereby making television transmission by satellite more economical. Video compression allows for the transmission by satellite of a much higher number of channels than was previously the case, thus producing a significant new market for our products. Satellites are often used in industries where live, high-quality video images are essential, such as direct television broadcasts. | ||
| Our high-speed digital modems transmit a greater volume of data than standard satellite modems. Our modems are used in large satellite system connections that transmit significant amounts of data at high speeds. Internet service providers and |
| government agencies are principal customers for our high-speed and digital high-speed products. |
Cable and Microwave Modems
| Our cable modems are used primarily in the distribution of digital video for use by cable television distributors and in high-definition television. The design of our cable modems allows for the transmission of digital video on terrestrial, broadband cable and enables system operators to manage and control the available bandwidth. Our microwave modems transmit over microwave frequencies and usually feature high-speed and multidata-rate capabilities that provide a complete point-to-multipoint communication link that facilitates microwave link upgrades. For example, television stations use our microwave modems to transmit audio and video over a microwave link to and from digital news gathering trucks. |
Standard and High Definition digital TV encoders
| We offer a complete product line of Standard and High Definition TV encoders for professional applications. Our encoders are used throughout the world to provide distribution, contribution and broadcast services. Encoders are used in satellite, cable and terrestrial applications. The majority of US broadcasters rely on our encoders to provide news gathering and direct to home service. Our encoders are recognized for their outstanding picture quality, ease of use and rugged design. |
Digital TV Integrated Receivers / Decoders
| Our integrated receiver/decoders complement the encoder products enabling us to provide complete system solutions. Receivers and decoders support DVB and ATSC standards for use in both domestic and international markets. One of our receiver/decoders, the TDR6 has been adopted by ABC and NBC as a standard. The modular TDR6 is unique, in that it supports both standard definition and high definition TV. |
Digital TV ATM and Network Interface Adapters
| There is an increasing demand to transport TV terrestrially via common and private carriers. Terrestrial transport of video introduces technical requirements relating to interface types, stability and jitter. Interface adapters allow encoders and decoders to operate in circuit-switched and ATM networks. Our products are widely accepted for these applications. For example, the TUI10 Universal Interface Adapter has been certified by AT&T and is an industry standard. |
Design, Integration and Installation of Turnkey Communications Systems
| At our Armer Communications Engineering facility in Chandler, Arizona, we design, integrate and test turnkey communications systems ranging from small VSAT installations to Intelsat standard stations. We deliver products and services from initial engineering and system development to final testing and after sales support. Our ability to deliver a full compliment of equipment and services to our customers is a benefit to our customers who desire a one-stop solution to their needs. |
Research and Development
We conduct an active and ongoing research and development program that focuses on advancing technology, developing improved design and manufacturing processes, and improving the overall quality of the products we provide. Our goal is to provide our customers with new solutions that address their needs. Our research and development personnel concentrate on technology for the satellite and microwave communications, telecommunications, and cable television industries. Our future growth depends on increasing the market share of our new products, adapting our existing products/technologies to new applications, and introducing new communications products that will find market acceptance and benefit from our established international distribution channels. Accordingly, we are actively applying our communications technology expertise to improving the performance of our existing products and developing new products to serve existing and new markets.
We work closely with our customers and potential customers to assess their needs in order to facilitate our design and development of new products. We believe that this approach minimizes our development risk and improves the potential for market acceptance of our product introductions. Additionally, we use information obtained from our customers and our technological expertise to develop custom-designed products for our customers special applications.
Research and development expenses amounted to $10.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2001, $9.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2000 and $9.1 million for the year ended December 31, 1999. A number of new products were either launched or reached an advanced stage of development during these periods.
We intend to use a significant portion of our cash flows from earnings to fund our research into products for Internet over Satellite links, High Definition Television (HDTV) and other new telecommunications products. We also plan to target our research and development activities at digital audio, video, and data products. However, there is no assurance that we will continue to have access to sufficient capital to fund the necessary research and development or that such efforts, even if adequately funded, will prove successful.
Sales and Marketing
We sell our products through an international sales force with sales and/or service offices in San Diego, Phoenix, Boca Raton, Beijing, Singapore, London, Amsterdam, and Jakarta. Our direct sales force consists of 14 individuals supported by systems and applications engineers. We focus direct sales activities on expanding our international sales by identifying emerging markets and establishing new customer accounts. Additionally, we directly target certain major accounts that may provide entry into new markets or lead to subsequent distribution arrangements. International representatives, distributors and systems integrators sell our products, supported by our sales and marketing personnel.
We participate in approximately six trade shows each year. We also generate new sales leads through advertising in trade magazines, direct mail, and our Web site (www.RadyneComStream.com) (reference to our Web site is intended to be an inactive textual reference).
We maintain a customer service and support staff that primarily supports customers and distributors and is responsible for after-sale support and installation supervision. In certain instances, we use third-party companies to install and maintain our products at our customers sites.
Customers
Our customers generally include national and international telecommunications providers, digital television users, including broadcast and cable networks, Internet service providers, financial information providers, systems integrators, and the U.S. government.
During the years ended December 31, 2001 and 1999, no single customer represented more than 10% of our net sales. For the year ended December 31, 2000 one customer represented 12.4% of our net sales. Because of the nature of our business, we anticipate that any customers that represent 10% or more of our total revenue will vary from period to period depending upon the placement of significant orders by a particular customer or customers in any given year.
Our sales in principal foreign markets for the periods indicated consisted of the following percentages of total sales.
| Year ended | Year ended | Year ended | ||||||||||
| Region | 12-31-01 | 12-31-00 | 12-31-99 | |||||||||
Asia |
20 | % | 25 | % | 25 | % | ||||||
Africa/Middle East |
3 | % | 2 | % | 4 | % | ||||||
Latin America |
7 | % | 3 | % | 4 | % | ||||||
Europe |
15 | % | 13 | % | 21 | % | ||||||
Canada |
1 | % | 1 | % | 2 | % | ||||||
Total Foreign Sales |
46 | % | 44 | % | 56 | % | ||||||
The one customer who accounted for 12.4% of our total sales, in 2000, was classified as a domestic customer. However, the products purchased by the customer were used to complete Internet over satellite circuits from the U.S. to foreign (principally Latin American) countries. Likewise, we believe that as much as 60% of our domestic sales are ultimately destined for foreign use.
We believe that foreign sales will continue to make up the bulk of our total sales in subsequent periods. We consider our ability to continue to sell our products in developing markets to be important to our future growth. We may not, however, succeed in our efforts to cultivate such markets.
Competition
We have a number of major competitors in the satellite communications field. These include large companies, such as Hughes Network Systems, NEC, and Comtech EFData Corp., all of which have significantly larger and more diversified operations and greater financial, marketing, human and other resources than we possess. We estimate that our major competitors, in the principal markets in which we compete, have the following market shares as compared to our market share:
| Market Segment | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Satellite Modems & | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Principle Companies Within | Small Earth | Broadband | ||||||||||||||||||
| Addressable Market Segment | Stations | IP VSAT | Datacasting | Digital TV | Integration | |||||||||||||||
Comtech EFData |
20 | % | * | * | * | * | ||||||||||||||
Paradise Datacom (Intelek) |
15 | % | * | * | * | * | ||||||||||||||
Gilat |
10 | % | 20 | % | 15 | % | * | * | ||||||||||||
HNS |
* | 30 | % | 5 | % | * | * | |||||||||||||
ViaSat |
5 | % | 20 | % | 15 | % | * | * | ||||||||||||
IDC |
* | * | 25 | % | * | * | ||||||||||||||
Tandberg TV |
* | * | * | 40 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
Scopus |
* | * | * | 10 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
Wegener |
* | * | * | 10 | % | * | ||||||||||||||
IDB |
* | * | * | * | 20 | % | ||||||||||||||
Globecomm Systems |
5 | % | * | * | * | 20 | % | |||||||||||||
Vertex RSI |
5 | % | * | * | * | 20 | % | |||||||||||||
Radyne ComStream |
20 | % | 5 | % | 5 | % | 10 | % | 5 | % | ||||||||||
| * | Competitor does not participate in product category or comprises less than 5% of the total market. |
We do not believe that any other single competitor has a greater than 10% market share for any of these product classes. However, the foregoing market share figures represent estimates based on the limited information available to us, and we cannot assure you that it is accurate.
We compete by concentrating our sales efforts in the international market
and emphasizing our product features, quality and after-sales service. We
believe that the quality, performance, and capabilities of our products, our
ability to customize certain
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network functions, and the relatively lower overall cost of our products as compared to the cost of the competing products generally offered by our major competitors represent major factors in our ability to compete. However, our major competitors have the resources to develop products with features and functions that are competitive with or superior to our products. Competition from current competitors or future entrants in the markets in which we compete could cause us to lose orders or customers or could force us to lower the prices we charge for our products.
We believe we are well positioned to capitalize on the demand for satellite ground segment systems and that our future success in this market will be based upon our ability to leverage our competitive advantages, which include the following:
| | An experienced management group, which has extensive technological and engineering expertise and excellent customer relationships. The members of our management team have an average of over 20 years of experience in the satellite communications industry. | ||
| | Our expansive line of well-known, well-respected, off-the-shelf, state-of-the-art equipment that enables us to meet our customers requirements. | ||
| | Our ability to custom design products for our customers special applications and to provide a one-stop shopping option to our customers. | ||
| | Our ability to meet the complex satellite ground communications systems requirements of our customers in diverse political, economic, and regulatory environments in various locations around the world. | ||
| | Our worldwide sales and service organization with the expertise to successfully conduct business internationally through sales and service offices staffed by our employees in most of our major markets throughout the world, including in Beijing, Singapore, London, Jakarta, and Amsterdam. |
Manufacturing
We assemble and test certain products at our Phoenix, Arizona and San Diego, California facilities using subsystems and circuit boards that we obtain from subcontractors. We obtain the remainder of our products, completely assembled and tested, from subcontractors. Although we believe that we maintain adequate stock to reduce the procurement lead-time for certain components, our products use a number of specialized chips and customized components or subassemblies produced by a limited number of suppliers. In the event that such suppliers were unable or unwilling to fulfill our requirements, we could experience an interruption in production until we develop an alternative supply source. We maintain an inventory of certain chips and components and subassemblies to limit the potential for such an interruption. We believe that there are a number of companies capable of providing replacements for the types of chips and customized components and subassemblies used in our products.
During 1999 and 2000, our Phoenix and San Diego facilities were awarded ISO 9001 certification, the international quality control standard for research and development, marketing, sales, manufacturing, and distribution processes. subsequently, we have continued to improve our processes and methods of operations, consistent with our goals and the certification requirements. This certification will assist in increasing the acceptance of our products in foreign markets.
Intellectual Property
We rely on our proprietary technology and intellectual property to maintain our competitive position. We protect a significant portion of our proprietary technology as trade secrets by relying on confidentiality agreements with our employees and some of our suppliers. We also control access to and distribution of confidential information concerning our proprietary information.
We also have patents which protect certain of our proprietary technology.
We have been cautious in seeking to obtain patent protection for our products,
since patents often provide only narrow protection that may not prevent
competitors from developing products that function in a manner similar to those
covered by our patents. In addition, some of the foreign countries
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in which we sell our products do not provide the same level of protection to intellectual property as the laws of the United States provide. We will continue to seek patent protection for our proprietary technology in those cases where we think it can be obtained and will provide us with a competitive advantage.
Employees
As of December 31, 2001, we had 259 full-time employees, including four executive officers, 154 in engineering and manufacturing, 47 in sales and marketing, 27 in installation and customer service and 31 in administration. These figures include employees who are based outside the United States. A union does not represent our employees in their collective bargaining with us. We believe that our relationships with our employees are satisfactory.
ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
We currently have 76,000 square feet available in Phoenix, 16,000 square feet in Chandler and 66,000 square feet available for our San Diego facility. The lease for our Phoenix facility expires in July 2008 and we have an option to renew for two consecutive terms of five years each. The lease for our Chandler facility expires in October 2008 and we have an option to renew for five years. The lease for our San Diego facility expires in March 2005 and we have an option to renew for two consecutive terms of five years each. We also lease facilities for our regional sales and service offices in Boca Raton, Beijing, Singapore, London, Jakarta, and Amsterdam. We believe that our facilities are adequate to meet current and reasonably anticipated needs in the immediate future.
ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
From time to time, we are party to certain legal proceedings incidental to the conduct of our business. We believe that the outcome of pending legal proceedings will not, either individually or in the aggregate, have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position, results of operations, cash flows or liquidity.
ITEM 4. SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS
No matters were submitted to a vote of securities holders during the three months ended December 31, 2001.
PART II
ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANTS COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
Market for Common Stock
Our common stock was traded on the OTC Bulletin Board under the symbol RADN as of December 31, 1999. As a result of our public offering, which became effective February 7, 2000, our common stock and warrants now trade on the Nasdaq National Market under the symbols RADN and RADNW, respectively. The following table sets forth the range of high and low trading prices as reported by the OTC Bulletin Board and Nasdaq National Market for the periods indicated.
| High $ | Low $ | ||||||||||||
| 1999: | |||||||||||||
First Quarter |
4.25 | 2.25 | |||||||||||
Second Quarter |
3.75 | 2.50 | |||||||||||
Third Quarter |
3.56 | 2.25 | |||||||||||
Fourth Quarter |
8.50 | 2.75 | |||||||||||
| 2000: | |||||||||||||
First Quarter |
35.00 | 6.50 | |||||||||||
Second Quarter |
23.38 | 11.13 | |||||||||||
Third Quarter |
17.56 | 7.81 | |||||||||||
Fourth Quarter |
10.13 | 3.91 | |||||||||||
| 2001: | |||||||||||||
First Quarter |
8.63 | 4.88 | |||||||||||
Second Quarter |
7.36 | 4.44 | |||||||||||
Third Quarter |
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