Back to GetFilings.com



Table of Contents

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 


 

FORM 10-K

 


 

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

 

FOR THE FISCAL YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2003

 

OR

 

¨ 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: 000-28217

 


 

AIRNET COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 


 

DELAWARE   59-3218138

(State or other jurisdiction of

incorporation or organization)

 

(I.R.S. Employer

Identification No.)

3950 DOW ROAD,

MELBOURNE, FLORIDA

  32934
(Address of principal executive offices)   (Zip Code)

 

REGISTRANT’S TELEPHONE NUMBER, INCLUDING AREA CODE:

(321) 984-1990

 


 

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(b) OF THE ACT:

NONE

 

SECURITIES REGISTERED PURSUANT TO SECTION 12(g) OF THE ACT:

 

COMMON STOCK, PAR VALUE $.001 PER SHARE

(TITLE OF CLASS)

 


 

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 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 registrant’s 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.  x

 

Indicate by check x whether the registrant is an accelerated filer (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.)    Yes  ¨    No  x

 

The aggregate market value of shares held by non-affiliates as of June 30, 2003, the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter, was $14,970,804 (based on a closing price on June 30, 2003 on Nasdaq of $1.07 per share). As of February 20, 2004, 49,966,935 shares of the Registrant’s Common Stock were outstanding.

 

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE:

NONE

 



Table of Contents

TABLE OF CONTENTS

 

ITEM


  

DESCRIPTION


   PAGE

     PART I     

Item 1.

   Business    1

Item 2.

   Properties    8

Item 3.

   Legal Proceedings.    9

Item 4.

   Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders    9
     PART II     

Item 5.

   Market for Registrant’s Common Equity and Related Stockholder Matters    10

Item 6.

   Selected Financial Data    11

Item 7.

   Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations    12

Item 7A.

   Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosure About Market Risk    35

Item 8.

   Financial Statements and Supplementary Data    35

Item 9.

   Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure    37

Item 9A.

   Controls and Procedures    37
     PART III     

Item 10.

   Directors and Executive Officers of the Registrant    38

Item 11.

   Executive Compensation    43

Item 12.

   Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management    46

Item 13.

   Certain Relationships and Related Transactions    48

Item 14.

   Principal Accountant Fees and Services    50
     PART IV     

Item 15.

   Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedule, and Reports on Form 8-K    50

 

i


Table of Contents

TRADEMARK AND TRADE NAMES

 

The stylized Airnet mark, AirNet®, AdaptaCell®, AirSite®, Backhaul Free, RapidCell, and SuperCapacity are trademarks of AirNet Communications Corporation.

 

All other trademarks, service marks and/or trade names appearing in this document are the property of their respective holders.

 

In this document, the words “we,” “our,” “ours,” and “us” refer only to AirNet Communications Corporation and not any other person or entity.

 

ii


Table of Contents

PART I

 

ITEM 1. BUSINESS

 

OVERVIEW

 

Historical Overview. We were incorporated in Delaware in 1994 as Overture Systems, Inc. and changed our name to AirNet Communications Corporation later that year.

 

We began marketing our GSM base stations in the beginning of 1996 and shipped our first GSM base station in May 1997. Through December 31, 2003, our base stations were being used in twenty-five deployed systems. Worldwide, we sell our products through our direct sales force, as well as through agents, resellers, and original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

 

From our inception in January 1994 through May 1997, our operations consisted principally of start-up activity associated with the design, development, and marketing of our products. We did not generate significant revenues until 1998 and have generated $114.0 million in net revenues from our inception through December 31, 2003. We have incurred substantial losses since commencing operations, and as of December 31, 2003, we had an accumulated deficit of $242.9 million. We have not achieved profitability on a quarterly or annual basis. As we continue to build our customer and revenue base, we expect to continue to incur net losses at least through 2004. We will need to generate significantly higher revenues in order to support research and development, sales and marketing and general and administrative expenses, and to achieve and maintain profitability. See Liquidity, Capital Resources and Going Concern in Item 7.

 

We provide base stations and other wireless telecommunications infrastructure products designed to support the GSM, or Global System for Mobile Communications, system of mobile voice and data transmission. We market our products worldwide to operators of wireless networks and to certain military and public safety organizations. A base station is a key component of a wireless network that receives and transmits voice and data signals over radio frequencies. We designed our base stations to be easier to deploy and upgrade and to have lower operating costs than other existing base stations.

 

Product Overview. Our system features four innovative base station products:

 

AdaptaCell base station. Our AdaptaCell base station is a software-defined base station, meaning it uses software to control the way it encodes or decodes wireless signals. Our AdaptaCell base station incorporates a patented radio architecture that is designed to enable operators to upgrade their wireless networks to offer high-speed data and Internet services by changing software with few, if any, hardware modifications rather than deploying new base stations. Our AdaptaCell base station also incorporates a broadband architecture, meaning that it uses only one radio to process a large number of radio channels simultaneously.

 

Adaptive array SuperCapacity base station. The broadband architecture of our flagship AdaptaCell base station makes it the ideal platform to deliver integrated software algorithms that will permit the addition of an adaptive array antenna feature. Adaptive array technology focuses radio signals on individual handset antennas instead of spreading the signals over the entire cell covered by one base station as well as blocks the strongest interference which significantly increases performance, capacity and high speed data rates. The AirNet adaptive array SuperCapacity base station provides network operators with a potentially compelling value proposition. The adaptive array technology, licensed by AirNet from ArrayComm, Inc., improves capacity, call quality, and high-speed data performance while reducing the number of cell sites required by up to a factor of 6x. In order to support capacity deployments on traditional wireless systems, operators must re-use their spectrum. This re-use of spectrum creates additional voice channels but inherently increases interference, degrading the quality of service provided by the network. In contrast, the AirNet SuperCapacity base station utilizing adaptive array processing reduces interference, improves voice quality, conserves signal power by focusing and receiving energy only in desired locations, and increases capacity by up to 6x.


Table of Contents

RapidCell base station. Our RapidCell base station is a miniaturized version of the AdaptaCell base station. The AirNet RapidCell base station is about the size of a large suitcase and can support up to 12 GSM carriers or 96 traffic channels configured for rapid deployment for use by emergency first responders or the military. Radio interoperability is a significant issue for both military and public safety communications systems. In the event of an emergency situation, local law enforcement, State Police, FEMA, Fire Departments, Civil Defense authorities and the National Guard are often first to respond. Each of these agencies have procured communications systems that meet their individual needs. Unfortunately, these communications systems are sometimes incompatible such that one agency cannot use their system to communicate with other agencies. A multi-band or multi-protocol base station could serve as a communications link between the agencies. AirNet has already demonstrated up to three different GSM bands in a single, RapidCell base station in a secure mode. In the future, we believe the RapidCell could be enabled to address the multi-protocol requirements of emergency first responders and the military.

 

AirSite Backhaul Free base station. The AirSite Backhaul Free base station carries voice and data signals back to the wireline network without using a physical wired communications link. Our AirSite Backhaul Free base station uses an operator’s existing radio frequencies as the media to provide the necessary connection to the wireline network. Unlike our competitors’ base stations, our AirSite Backhaul Free base station does not require an expensive physical communications link, usually through a digital T-1/E-1 telephone line or microwave, to the wireline network. As a result, an operator’s fixed network operating costs may significantly decrease.

 

Market Overview. Like other wireless infrastructure suppliers, we have experienced the adverse effects of the global downturn in telecommunications infrastructure spending. We have historically relied upon an integrated suite of infrastructure products for all our sales—a product line that was optimized to meet the needs of the initial-coverage and coverage-limited segments of the wireless infrastructure market. Through sales of the AdaptaCell base station together with the AirSite Backhaul Free base station, these are market segments where we believe our products enjoy a competitive advantage. Unfortunately, the slowdown in infrastructure spending, particularly in our North America markets, has adversely affected demand in all segments of the infrastructure market.

 

In response, we undertook a major restructuring starting in mid 2001 to better leverage our technology base and entrepreneurial culture to target new market opportunities for our GSM products. We have redirected our activities to focus on three applications for our products: (1) we have developed our adaptive array SuperCapacity base station for high capacity voice and 2.5G high speed data markets (for example GPRS and EDGE); (2) our traditional GSM infrastructure, including the AdaptaCell base station and the AirSite Backhaul Free base station, serve wireless markets that require a cost-effective coverage based solution; and (3) the growing market for secure, adaptable wireless infrastructure for governmental and public safety applications is served by our compact, rapidly deployable RapidCell base station.

 

The government and public safety market includes radio communications needs for local, state, and federal government agencies, foreign governments and military communications. Our RapidCell base station and AirSite products provide flexible and unique communications platforms capable of supporting these applications.

 

We continue to make progress in the development of our SuperCapacity base station utilizing adaptive array technology. This new base station is built on our current software-defined AdaptaCell base station platform by integrating adaptive array technology and is expected to be commercially released this year. Adaptive array technology dramatically increases the operators’ spectral efficiency resulting in tremendous increases in network performance at a reduced cost. This is accomplished by focusing transmitted radio signals on individual handset antennas instead of spreading them over the entire cell and by deliberately not broadcasting radio signals toward detected co-channel users. This technology also cancels or blocks the strongest interference in the receiver. This new base station is designed to benefit operators in the transition from current wireless standards to the new GPRS (providing high-speed wireless data in packet format) and Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution (or EDGE, providing yet higher speed) standards. Several customers, potential customers and wireless experts have

 

2


Table of Contents

repeatedly participated in drive testing our multi-cell GSM network utilizing the AirNet SuperCapacity base station. Specifically, the test demonstrated multiple, adjacent adaptive array cell sites with multiple co-channel interferers, and demonstrated a frequency reuse scheme of N=1 incorporating high-speed handovers. N=1 frequency reuse implies the reuse of a same frequency channel in adjacent cells and is an important feature for network operators because it affords a significant increase in network capacity by allowing simultaneous multiple users on the same timeslot, on the same frequency, in adjacent cells. This is otherwise not possible in traditional GSM networks. This feature enables previously unattainable capacity improvements and dramatically reduces the need to add cell sites in order to meet increasing subscriber counts and higher speed data requirements, such as EDGE. We plan to market the enhanced frequency reuse feature by targeting GSM carriers who are faced with limited spectrum in many markets, need to increase capacity, and/or are introducing EDGE into their networks. There are risks associated with new product introductions and some of these risks are outlined in the risk factors set forth in Item 7 below and elsewhere in this document.

 

Our portfolio of broadband software defined radio (or SDR) technology and our entrepreneurial tradition lend themselves to exploiting numerous new opportunities in the wireless arena. We believe these new opportunities driven by recent developments both inside and outside the company offer a tremendous potential for growth and success. SDR technology allows us to readily “reprogram” our wireless infrastructure products to address new markets and new opportunities in a cost effective manner. The development and acceptance of SDR technology in the marketplace has created new opportunities for us outside our core industry. Due to our significant portfolio of basic SDR intellectual property, it is now possible for us to explore licensing our technology in a variety of applications to third parties or other strategic relationships. Accordingly, we have engaged a licensing firm to assist us in developing and pursuing a technology licensing program.

 

We continue to develop and exploit leading edge technology and as of December 31, 2003, we had 51 domestic patents granted, and 18 patent applications pending. We received the 1998 GSM World Award for Best Technical Innovation from the GSM Association, an international body with members from over 150 countries, in recognition of our innovative infrastructure.

 

On October 23, 2002 we received certification under the ISO 9001:2000 standard. ISO 9001:2000 is the globally recognized standard for QMS aimed at consistently producing and delivering the highest quality products and services necessary to achieve complete customer satisfaction.

 

PRODUCTS

 

Our base station subsystem products currently support the GSM system for wireless voice and data communications services. We chose to develop products based on this standard both because it is the leading accepted standard in the world and because the interfaces, or connections, between the various pieces that make up the GSM base station subsystem are well defined and publicly documented. According to the GSM World, GSM subscribers are expected to exceed over 1 billion worldwide in the first quarter of 2004. One of these interfaces, the connection between the mobile switching center (MSC) and the base station controller, and ultimately the base stations that compose the base station subsystem, is referred to as the A-interface. This A-interface allows wireless operators to connect our base station subsystem equipment to an existing operator’s mobile switching center. It is this standard interface that makes any existing GSM operator a potential customer for our base station subsystem equipment. We are currently marketing the base station subsystem in four standard configurations, the GSM-850, GSM-900, GSM-1800 and GSM-1900, operating at 850 MHz, 900 MHz, 1800 MHz and 1900 MHz respectively. Our products have been deployed with customers using the following MSC providers: Nortel, Alcatel, Lucent, Nokia, Siemens, TECORE, Spatial Wireless, and Telos.

 

Our base station subsystem features four unique base station products: the AdaptaCell broadband, software-defined base station, the adaptive array SuperCapacity base station, the RapidCell base station, and the AirSite Backhaul Free base station. We also offer a Base Station Controller, a Transcoder Rate Adaption Unit, an Operations and Maintenance Center (radio), Mobile Switching Center, Serving GPRS Support Node (SGSN), and Gateway GPRS Support Node (GGSN).

 

3


Table of Contents

AdaptaCell base station: The AdaptaCell wireless base station supports up to 12 GSM radio frequency carriers (96 total channels including 92 voice/data channels and four control channels) for up to 4 pairs of antennas (sectors). The AdaptaCell base station differs from our competitors’ base stations in that its operation is defined by software, not hardware. This means that as subscribers demand new services from operators, specifically new high-speed data and Internet services, it will be possible to upgrade the AdaptaCell base station to support those services via a change of software and few, if any, hardware modifications. Operators using our competitors’ equipment may have to install new equipment and potentially a completely new base station for each new wireless standard they adopt.

 

Adaptive array SuperCapacity base station: We previously announced plans to introduce the AdaptaCell SuperCapacity base station which allows up to 12/12/12 (288 total channels) in limited channel spectrum. This new base station is built on our current software-defined AdaptaCell base station platform using adaptive array technology licensed from ArrayComm, Inc. Adaptive array technology dramatically increases the operators’ spectral efficiency resulting in tremendous increases in network performance by focusing radio signals on individual handset antennas instead of spreading them over the entire cell. The new base station is designed to benefit operators in the transition from current wireless standards to the new GPRS (General Packet Radio Service) standard, providing high-speed wireless data in packet format and the EDGE Enhanced Data rates for GSM Evolution, (also known as Enhanced GPRS or EGPRS) standard, providing yet higher speed. In order to support capacity deployments on traditional wireless systems, operators must re-use their spectrum. This re-use of spectrum creates additional voice channels but inherently increases interference, degrading the quality of service provided by the network. In contrast, the AirNet SuperCapacity base station utilizing adaptive array processing reduces interference, improves voice quality, conserves signal power by focusing and receiving energy only in desired locations, and increases capacity by up to 6x. When our development work is completed, the new base station will provide increased capacity and higher data rates without the need to deploy additional base stations, while avoiding decreases in cell coverage area.

 

RapidCell base station: Our RapidCell base station is miniaturized version of the AdaptaCell base station. The AirNet RapidCell base station is about the size of a large suitcase and can support up to 12 GSM carriers or 96 traffic channels configured for rapid deployment for use by emergency first responders or the military. Radio interoperability is a significant issue for both military and public safety communications systems. In the event of an emergency situation, local law enforcement, State police, FEMA, Fire Departments, Civil Defense authorities and the National Guard are often first to respond. Each of these agencies has procured communications systems that meet their individual needs. Unfortunately, these communications systems are sometimes incompatible such that one agency cannot use their system to communicate with other agencies. A multi-band or multi-protocol base station could serve as a communications link between the agencies. AirNet has already demonstrated up to three different GSM bands in a single, RapidCell base station in a secure mode. In the future, we believe the RapidCell could be enabled to address the multi-protocol requirements of these agencies also.

 

AirSite Backhaul Free base station: The AirSite Backhaul Free base station is a compact wireless base station that includes its own wireless backhaul system. By contrast, other existing base stations must be connected to the rest of the system using expensive physical communications links, usually digital T-1/E-1 telephone lines or microwave. The AirSite Backhaul Free base station is a full featured GSM base station, meaning it has a unique cell ID for billing and “911” emergency identification purposes, offers the same geographic coverage as other existing base stations, and has configuration, fault, and error detection integrated into the Operations and Maintenance Center (radio). The AirSite Backhaul Free base station operates by receiving a subscriber’s wireless telephone signal and transmitting it to the AdaptaCell base station. The AdaptaCell base station then sends the signal over a T-1/E-1 line or microwave to the base station controller and on to the mobile switching center. In reverse, digitized voice signals come from the mobile switching center to the base station controller and then to the serving AdaptaCell base station, which then transmits the signal to the AirSite Backhaul Free base station. The AirSite Backhaul Free base station then transmits the signal to the subscriber.

 

4


Table of Contents

Base Station Controller: Our base station controller (BSC) coordinates the activities of the AdaptaCell base stations physically attached to it and all the AirSite Backhaul Free base stations served by those AdaptaCell base stations. Among other things, the BSC monitors the operational status of each of its attached base stations and orchestrates handoffs between base stations.

 

To support packet data services (i.e. GPRS and EGPRS) the BSC supports an optional packet control unit (PCU). The PCU manages distribution of packet data to and from GPRS-enabled mobile units via the base stations attached to the base station controller and GPRS network components, namely the SGSN (Serving GPRS Support Node) and GGSN (Gateway GPRS Support Node).

 

Transcoder Rate Adaption Unit: In most telecommunications systems, digitized voice requires 64 Kbps of bandwidth to accurately convey human speech. Our transcoder rate adaptation unit compresses a standard 64 Kbps voice stream to a GSM-standardized 16 Kbps. This means that the digital T-1/E-1 telephone line or microwave used to connect the base station controller to the mobile switching center can carry four times as many voice conversations as it normally would. This makes it less expensive to attach a base station subsystem to its associated mobile switching center. Additionally, AirNet is developing software to support adaptive multirate (AMR) speech coding. This feature increases voice capacity of GSM networks while maintaining the current high levels of voice quality.

 

Operations and Maintenance Center (Radio): The operations and maintenance center-radio provides the network management facility for one or more of our base station subsystems. Our operations and maintenance center (radio) provides a comprehensive graphical user interface for maintenance personnel.

 

In addition to the previously described products, AirNet also provides for sale other GSM network components manufactured by others in order to provide complete voice and data systems to our customers. These include the MSC, SGSN, and GGSN.

 

Mobile Switching Center: The MSC interfaces to one or more base station controllers via the A-interface, previously mentioned. This MSC provides mobility management and switching to connect a caller on a mobile unit to a caller on another mobile unit or a caller on the wireline public switching telephone network (PSTN). The MSC supports other functions such authentication of mobile subscribers to prevent fraud. Additionally, the MSC supports features familiar to users of telephone systems such as call forwarding, call waiting, call conferencing, etc. The MSC may also interface to voice mail systems, short message service centers (SMSC), billing systems as well as other mobile switching centers.

 

Serving GPRS Support Node: The SGSN provides a mobility management function that tracks a GPRS mobile from one base station to another in order to route data packets to and from the mobile subscriber. The SGSN interfaces to the PCU in the base station controller and to the GGSN. Additionally, the SGSN supports other functions such as authentication of GPRS mobile subscribers as well as provides information on mobile subscriber usage for billing purposes.

 

Gateway GPRS Support Node: The GGSN is the gateway between the GPRS network and an external data network such as the Internet, supporting routing of data packets between the GPRS network and the external packet data network. The GGSN and SGSN may be combined into one physical unit, the GPRS Support Node (GSN).

 

CUSTOMERS

 

Each of the three customers, TECORE Inc. (TECORE), the U.S. Government, and Hafatel/Guam Wireless accounted for approximately 10% of more of our revenues for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2003 for product and services, with one customer, TECORE, accounting for $6.7 million, or 42.7% of our revenue for the year. The U.S. government accounted for $4.5 million, or 28.5% of our revenue for the year, and Hafatel/Guam Wireless accounted for $2.2 million or 14.1% of our revenue for the year. Together these three customers accounted for approximately 85% of our revenues for the year. See note 14 of Notes to Financial Statement for financial information regarding our customers.

 

5


Table of Contents

SALES AND MARKETING

 

Our worldwide sales and marketing efforts are conducted through a network of original equipment manufacturers, or OEMs, agents, resellers and our direct sales force. We currently have a staff of five in sales and sales support.

 

Sales in the North American PCS market may be impeded due to roaming considerations, decreased capital spending, and MSC price performance issues. Because our direct sales force is small, our worldwide sales strategy depends primarily on the use of OEMs to sell our products and to increase our revenue. We currently have four key OEMs: TECORE, a previously announced but undisclosed “top 5” communications equipment company, an undisclosed OEM which will concentrate on RapidCell sales, and a regional OEM reseller located in the Middle East.

 

We have established a marketing communications organization that is responsible for the branding and marketing of our products and services and for distinguishing the AdaptaCell base station, the adaptive array SuperCapacity base station, the RapidCell base station, and the AirSite Backhaul Free base station as branded product offerings. The marketing organization is responsible for all new product launches to ensure both internal execution and marketplace acceptance.

 

RESEARCH AND PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

 

We spent $9.2 million in 2003, $12.5 million in 2002, $25.6 million in 2001 on research and product development. As of December 31, 2003, 56 of our 106 employees were engaged in research and product development, including hardware and software engineering. We expect to hire additional employees to engage in research and product development during 2004 in order to staff research and development efforts funded by both strategic partners/customers and Company funded projects.

 

Our current product development plans focus on the adaptive array technology for our SuperCapacity base station, EDGE, RapidCell, product cost reductions and “end of life” component considerations and features for major operators by taking advantage of the evolution of digital signal processors and other digital components to reduce the cost of our base stations.

 

Ultimately, we expect to develop one or more advanced high-speed data upgrade packages. We may not be able to introduce these or any other products as scheduled. In addition, market conditions may not necessitate developing upgrade packages to support one or more of these emerging advanced high-speed data standards.

 

Our product development strategy has been to concentrate our engineering resources on our core technology while making maximum use of third-party contractors and products for everything else when possible. As a result, our engineering resources are primarily focused on broadband, software-defined base station technology and backhaul free base stations.

 

MANUFACTURING AND BACKLOG

 

We currently use a limited number of third-party contractors to manufacture most of our primary components and subassemblies for our products. As a result, our in-house customer fulfillment operations consist primarily of quality control, final assembly, and product integration and testing. Circuit boards, electronic and mechanical parts, and other component assemblies are purchased from OEMs and other selected suppliers. An in-house staff sets standards and monitors the quality control of our contract manufacturers. The majority of our proprietary radio frequency (RF) assemblies are currently built by a top-tier contract manufacturer.

 

Our product backlog was approximately $4.3 million at December 31, 2003 as compared to $4.0 million at December 31, 2002. We typically include a contract in backlog when signed by the customer and a deposit is received from the customer if required by the contract.

 

6


Table of Contents

The amount of our backlog is subject to fluctuation based on the timing of the receipt and completion of orders. The amount generally consists of orders shippable within one year and deferred revenue from products that have been shipped to customers but have not yet satisfied all significant terms and conditions of the customer contract as well as revenue from contracts with vendor financing arrangements which extend beyond one year. Such conditions include completion of installation and customer acceptance of product technical performance. See Note 1 of Notes to Financial Statements for a description of our revenue recognition policy.

 

Our backlog at any particular date is not necessarily indicative of future revenues.

 

COMPETITION

 

The wireless telecommunications infrastructure market is highly competitive. The market for our products is characterized by rapidly changing technology, evolving industry wireless standards and frequent new product introductions and enhancements. Failure to keep pace with these changes could seriously harm our competitive position and prospects for growth. Our ability to compete depends on many factors including product and standard flexibility, price, operating cost and reliability.

 

We have been negatively impacted by the reduction in global demand for telecommunications infrastructure equipment. As a result of the reduction in global demand, our competitors have been bundling Mobile Switch Centers (MSCs) together with base stations at deeply discounted pricing levels. These actions are targeting our traditional customer base and have resulted in intense price performance competition. This price competition has substantially reduced opportunities for us to expand or continue sales of “coverage solution products” to small/medium sized PCS operators in North America.

 

Current and potential competitors consist primarily of major domestic and international companies, most of which have longer operating histories; larger installed customer bases; higher volumes; substantially greater name recognition; and greater financial, technical, manufacturing, marketing, sales and distribution resources. Competing base station vendors can be divided into two groups: existing large equipment manufacturers who supply a complete range of wireless base station systems to wireless service operators and smaller companies that typically market components of wireless systems to system suppliers or directly to operators. Our current competitors include Alcatel S.A., LM Ericsson Telephone Company, Lucent Technologies Inc., Motorola, Inc., NEC Corporation, Nokia Corporation, Nortel Networks Corporation and Siemens AG. We also face actual and potential competition not only from these established companies but from start-up and smaller companies that develop and market new wireless telecommunications products and services.

 

PROPRIETARY RIGHTS

 

We consider our technologies proprietary and seek to protect our intellectual property rights. As of December 31, 2003, we had 51 domestic patents granted, and 18 domestic patent applications pending. In addition, we are seeking patent protection for our inventions in foreign countries. One of the issued domestic patents was based upon proprietary rights originally obtained from Harris Corporation, one of our stockholders, and is subject to a non-exclusive cross license to a third party. We also obtained from Harris Corporation a royalty-free, worldwide, non-exclusive right and license to use six other patents in the manufacture and sale of products covered by these patents. Our patents cover the basic architecture of the system, sub-components, and frequency reuse planning schemes. The Company has engaged a consulting firm that is an expert in technology licensing to consider monetizing our patent portfolio through the grant of royalty bearing, non-exclusive licenses. The Company believes that certain of its patents may have applications in other technologies beyond GSM.

 

Simultaneously with Motorola’s equity investment in January 1995, we signed an agreement granting Motorola the right to obtain a non-exclusive, royalty-free license under any two of our patents. With respect to any possible infringement of our respective digital base station patents, each of us agreed not to enjoin the other and to attempt dispute resolution, including negotiation of nonexclusive license agreements in good faith, before

 

7


Table of Contents

resorting to litigation. The Company has a relationship with a law firm that specializes in patent enforcement. This firm will look for licensing opportunities for our patents but there can be no assurances that they will be successful.

 

While we believe that our patents will render it more difficult for competitors to develop and market similar products, our patents may be invalidated, circumvented, or challenged. Our patent rights may fail to provide us with competitive advantages. Any pending or future patent applications, whether or not being currently challenged by applicable governmental patent examiners, may not be issued with the scope we seek.

 

We also rely upon copyright and trade secret laws. Source code for our own proprietary software is protected as an unpublished copyrighted work, as a trade secret, and for certain customers the source code is escrowed.

 

Notwithstanding our efforts to protect our rights, it may be possible for a third party to copy or to obtain and use our intellectual property without our authorization. We may have to pursue litigation in the future to enforce our proprietary rights or to defend against claims of infringement and such litigation could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and could seriously harm our business, operating results, and financial condition. We are not engaged in any legal proceedings concerning matters of patent infringement or enforcement; however, we are presently involved in a few minor legal proceedings involving rights in our AirNet trademark. In addition, others may develop technologies superior to our technology, duplicate our technology, or design around our patents.

 

GOVERNMENT REGULATION

 

Our products must conform to a variety of requirements and protocols. In order for our products to be used in certain jurisdictions, regulatory approval may be necessary. The delays inherent in this regulatory approval process may cause the rescheduling, postponement or cancellation of the installation of telecommunications systems by our customers, which, in turn, may significantly reduce sales of products to such customers. The failure to comply with current or future regulations or changes in the interpretation of existing regulations in a particular country could result in the suspension or cessation of sales in that country, restrictions on our development efforts and those of our customers, render current products obsolete, or increase the opportunity for additional competition. Such regulations or such changes in interpretation could require us to modify our products and incur substantial costs to comply with such regulations and changes. Products to support new services can be marketed only if permitted by frequency allocations and regulations. In most cases, we only plan to qualify our products in a foreign country once we have a purchase order from a customer located there, and this practice may deter customers or contribute to delays in receiving or filling orders.

 

EMPLOYEES

 

As of December 31, 2003, we had 106 employees. Of these individuals, 56 were in research and product development. We also retain independent contractors from time to time.

 

Most of our employees did not receive any merit increases in 2002 or in 2003 and none are planned in 2004. In January 2003 we postponed the payment of bonuses to employees and suspended the company matching contributions to the 401(K) plan. These items may create an impediment to the retention of our key employees.

 

None of our employees are represented by a labor union, and we believe that our relations with our employees are good. However, we cannot guarantee retention of key employees due to the issues noted above.

 

One half of the employee $0.01 stock options issued in September 2003 will vest in September 2004 and the remaining options will vest in September 2005. Vesting may impact our ability to retain key employees.

 

ITEM 2. PROPERTIES

 

Our headquarters consist of approximately 41,000 square feet of space leased through December 31, 2004, located at 3950 Dow Road in Melbourne, Florida. The space also houses the primary manufacturing and product

 

8


Table of Contents

engineering operation. Additional space of approximately 20,000 square feet at the Trio Complex in Melbourne, Florida, is leased through December 31, 2005 for final assembly and testing. The lease for the Dow Road facility gives us the right to terminate any time after June 2002 with a six-month notice. We believe that these facilities will be adequate to meet our requirements at least through 2004 and that suitable additional or substitute space will be available if needed.

 

ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

 

The Company, the members of the underwriting syndicate involved in our initial public offering and two of our former officers have been named as defendants in a class action lawsuit filed on November 16, 2001 in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The action, number 21 MC 92 (SAS), alleges that the defendants violated federal securities laws and seeks unspecified monetary damages and certification of a plaintiff class consisting of all persons and entities who purchased, converted, exchanged or otherwise acquired shares of our common stock between December 6, 1999 and December 6, 2000, inclusive. Specifically, the complaint charges the defendants with violations of Sections 11 and 15 of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. In substance, the allegations are that the underwriters of our initial public offering charged commissions in excess of those disclosed in the initial public offering materials and that these actions were not properly disclosed. We do not know whether the claims of misconduct by the underwriters have merit but at this time we believe the claims against us are without merit and intend to defend this matter when appropriate. Under the terms of the Underwriting Agreement, we have claims against the underwriters of the initial public offering for indemnification and reimbursement of all of the costs and any damages incurred in connection with this lawsuit and we intend to pursue those claims vigorously. On July 15, 2002 the Issuers’ Committee filed a Motion to Dismiss on behalf of all issuers and individual defendants in similar lawsuits. In February 2003, the Motion to Dismiss was granted in part (with respect to the Company) and denied in part (with respect to all issuer defendants). Discovery in this litigation is commencing while settlement talks between the plaintiffs and the issuers continue. The claims against our two former officers named in the class action lawsuit have been dismissed without prejudice. The issuer defendants and the plaintiffs have since drafted and agreed upon a settlement, which is pending approval by the court. Pending approval, the individual tolling agreements dismissing the named individual defendants have been extended, so that the individual defendants will be covered by the settlement as well. While awaiting court approval of the settlement, the issuers, including the Company, have complied with discovery obligations specified in the Settlement, by providing a limited number of documents.

 

In addition to the item listed above we are also involved in various claims and litigation matters arising in the ordinary course of business.

 

With respect to the above matters, it is believed that we have adequate legal defenses and/or provided adequate accruals for related costs such that the ultimate outcome will not have a material adverse effect on our future financial position or results of operations.

 

ITEM 4. SUBMISSION OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS

 

During the fourth quarter of the fiscal year covered by this report, no matter was submitted to a vote of security holders.

 

9


Table of Contents

PART II

 

ITEM 5. MARKET FOR THE REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY AND RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS

 

See Status of our Common Stock listing on Nasdaq National Market in Item 7.

 

Our common stock has been listed on the NASDAQ National Market System under the symbol ANCC since December 7, 1999. There is no established trading market for the shares underlying the Senior Secured Convertible Note that we issued in August 2003, nor is there a trading market for outstanding warrants we issued and sold in June and August 1999. The following table sets forth the high and low sales prices for our common stock as reported by NASDAQ for the periods indicated:

 

     LOW

   HIGH

YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2003

             

First Quarter

   $ 0.31    $ 0.62

Second Quarter

   $ 0.29    $ 1.37

Third Quarter

   $ 0.74    $ 1.63

Fourth Quarter

   $ 0.80    $ 1.30

YEAR ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2002

             

First Quarter

   $ 0.42    $ 2.98

Second Quarter

   $ 0.71    $ 2.42

Third Quarter

   $ 0.55    $ 1.30

Fourth Quarter

   $ 0.47    $ 1.12

 

We had 412 stockholders of record as of February 20, 2004. This number does not include the number of persons whose stock is in nominee or in “street name” accounts through brokers.

 

We have not paid dividends and do not anticipate paying cash dividends in the foreseeable future. We have a retained earnings deficit, and we expect to retain future earnings for use in our businesses.

 

10


Table of Contents

ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA

 

You should read the following selected financial information in conjunction with our financial statements and related notes and with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” included elsewhere in this report.

 

     YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31,

 
     1999

    2000

    2001

    2002

    2003

 

STATEMENT OF OPERATIONS DATA:

                                        

Net revenues

   $ 17,756     $ 34,332     $ 14,544     $ 23,026     $ 15,785  

Cost of revenues

     10,981       23,902       16,717       17,415       11,144  

Write down of obsolete and excess inventory

     263       7,302       8,759       145       384  
    


 


 


 


 


Gross profit (loss)

     6,512       3,128       (10,932 )     5,466       4,257  
    


 


 


 


 


Operating expenses (gains)

                                        

Research and development

     15,853       29,635       25,563       12,544       9,208  

Sales and marketing

     4,748       10,448       11,936       5,432       2,584  

General and administrative

     3,097       12,741       11,645       3,039       6,405  

Gain on vendor settlements

     —         —         (1,922 )     (704 )     —    

Loss on disposal or write-down of equipment

     2       —         —         —         —    
    


 


 


 


 


Total operating expenses

     23,700       52,824       47,222       20,311       18,197  
    


 


 


 


 


Loss from operations

     (17,188 )     (49,696 )     (58,154 )     (14,845 )     (13,940 )

Non-cash debt conversion interest charge

     —         —         —         —         (10,000 )

Interest charged on convertible debt

     —         —         —         —         (577 )

Other income, net

     609       4,672       542       397       84  
    


 


 


 


 


Net loss

     (16,579 )     (45,024 )     (57,612 )     (14,448 )     (24,433