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EX-31.2 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex31-2.htm
EX-32.1 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex32-1.htm
EX-23.1 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex23-1.htm
EX-32.2 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex32-2.htm
EX-12.1 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex12-1.htm
EX-31.1 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex31-1.htm
EX-21.1 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex21-1.htm
EX-11.1 - TRANSWITCH CORP /DEv177253_ex11-1.htm


UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549

FORM 10-K

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

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

        For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009

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 0-25996

 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION
(Exact name of Registrant as Specified in its Charter)
 
Delaware
 
06-1236189
(State or Other Jurisdiction of Incorporation or Organization)
 
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number)

Three Enterprise Drive
Shelton, Connecticut 06484
(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)

Telephone (203) 929-8810
 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
None

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:
 
Title of Each Class
 
Name of Each Exchange on Which Registered
Common Stock, par value $.001 per share
 
Nasdaq Capital Market
 

 
Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.
Yes ¨   No x    

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act.
Yes ¨   No x    

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes  x  No  ¨
 
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Date File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceeding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes o No o
 
Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K (§229.405) 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. ¨

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

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

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

The aggregate market value of the outstanding common stock, other than shares held by persons who may be deemed affiliates of the Registrant, on June 30, 2009 was approximately $69.3 million. At March 15, 2010, as reported on the Nasdaq Capital Market, there were 20,537,475 shares of common stock, par value $.001 per share, of the Registrant outstanding.

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Parts of the following document are incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K Report:

(1) Proxy Statement for the Registrant’s 2010 Annual Meeting of Shareholders—Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14.
 


 
 

 
 
Item 1.    Business

 The following description of our business should be read in conjunction with the information included elsewhere in this document. The description contains certain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. When used in this document, the words “intend,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “plan,” “expect” and similar expressions as they relate to us are included to identify forward-looking statements. Our actual results could differ materially from the results discussed in the forward-looking statements as a result of risk factors set forth elsewhere in this document. See also, “Item 1A. Risk Factors” and “Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”

COMPANY OVERVIEW

TranSwitch designs, develops and supplies innovative highly-integrated semiconductor solutions that provide core functionality for voice, data and video communications equipment for network, enterprise and customer premises applications.  TranSwitch customers for these semiconductor products are the original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) who supply wire-line and wireless network operators who provide voice, data and video services to end users such as consumers, corporations, municipalities etc. Our system-on-a-chip products incorporate digital and mixed-signal semiconductor technology and related embedded software. In addition to our system-on-a-chip products, we have been in the business of licensing intellectual property cores to both OEMs as well as other semiconductor companies.  One new area where we have made significant progress in the past couple years is in the area of licensing of our proprietary video interconnect technology that enables the transmission and reception of both HDMI and DisplayPort.  We have over 150 active customers, including the leading global equipment providers, and our products are deployed in the networks of the major service providers around the world.
 
TranSwitch Corporation is a Delaware corporation incorporated on April 26, 1988. Our principal executive offices are located at 3 Enterprise Drive, Shelton CT 06484, and our telephone number at that location is (203) 929-8810. Our Internet address is www.transwitch.com. We make available free of charge on or through our Internet website our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and all amendments to those reports as soon as reasonably practicable after such material is electronically filed with or furnished to the SEC. Our common stock trades on the Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “TXCC.”

INDUSTRY OVERVIEW
 
 Investment in telecommunications infrastructure is being driven primarily by the need for higher bandwidths, more ubiquitous connectivity and more flexibility of services.  In the US, Canada and Western Europe there has been an extensive telecommunications infrastructure in place for several decades; however, this infrastructure was designed primarily for voice services, and is in dire need of replacement in order to provide the high data bandwidth and flexibility required by current and future services.  In other parts of the world, such as China and India, the need for infrastructure expansion is being driven by the rapidly expanding global economy. These infrastructure requirements are driven by substantial increases in the number of users and new bandwidth-intensive computing and communications applications, such as web-based commerce, streaming audio and video, Internet Protocol television, or IPTV, and online gaming. In addition, information is increasingly available via wired and wireless networks through a variety of access devices, including personal computers and handheld computing devices such as personal digital assistants, portable digital audio players, digital cameras and cellular phones. These applications and devices are continuing to require higher and more cost-efficient data transfer rates throughout the network communications infrastructures that serve them.
 
This evolution has inspired equipment manufacturers and service providers to develop and expand existing broadband communications markets and has created the need for new generations of integrated circuits. Broadband transmission of digital information over existing infrastructure requires highly-integrated mixed-signal semiconductor products to perform critical systems functions such as complex signal processing and converting digital data to and from analog signals. Broadband communications equipment requires substantially higher levels of system performance, in terms of both speed and precision, which typically cannot be adequately addressed by traditional semiconductor products developed for low-speed transmission applications. Moreover, products that are based on multiple discrete analog and digital chipsets generally cannot achieve the cost-effectiveness, performance and reliability requirements demanded by today's broadband marketplace. These requirements are best addressed by new generations of highly-integrated mixed-signal and digital devices that combine complex system functions within high performance circuitry and can be manufactured in high volumes using cost-effective process technologies.

 
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In recent years, there were a number of mergers and acquisitions among North American telecommunication carriers (“telcos”) and Western Hemisphere communications OEMs.  As companies merge or consolidate, the rate of ordering, purchasing and deploying new equipment typically slows.  As these consolidations complete, we are seeing a shift in demand toward newer technologies that we introduced into the market in the last several years.  From 2006 through 2009, we saw demand for legacy network products decline, which is an indicator that the industry is ready to replace existing networks with new networks.
 
Communications service providers, internet service providers, regional Bell operating companies and inter-exchange carriers generally closely monitor their capital expenditures. Spending on voice-only equipment has been slowing over the last few years, while spending on equipment providing the efficient transport of data services on existing infrastructure continues to grow. More importantly to us, major infrastructure initiatives are underway where telecommunications companies (telcos) are building new, end-to-end internet protocol (IP)-based, next-generation networks. Demand for new, high bandwidth services such as video conferencing, broadband audio, high speed internet and other data services is placing an increased burden on existing public network infrastructure. Regulatory changes and advances in technology have fostered an intensively competitive environment for service providers. They have to provide a variety of services over the same infrastructure in order to maximize the revenue from their network investment and minimize the risk of losing customers to their competitors by bundling these services.  Competition between telcos and cable TV providers offering “triple play” services (voice, data and video) is driving equipment spending for broadband access, carrier-class routers/switches, and metro optical gear. Equipment vendors and communications IC suppliers with the right products and technologies will be major beneficiaries of this spending by telcos and cable TV service providers.
 
Wireless networks are also being driven by new, data oriented services requiring high bandwidth.  Third generation wireless infrastructures, such as UMTS and CDMA2000, and fourth generation wireless infrastructures based on LTE and /or WiMAX will be heavily based on IP and Ethernet technologies.  The convergence of the wire-line and wireless network infrastructures is underway, driven by the desire of service providers to provide “quadruple play” services (voice, data, video and mobility) to further enhance their competitive position and profitability.

INDUSTRY ENVIRONMENT

Over the past two decades, communications technology has evolved from simple analog voice signals transmitted over networks of copper telephone lines to complex analog and digital voice and data signals transmitted over a variety of media, such as copper wires, fiber optic strands and wireless transmission over radio frequencies. This evolution has been driven by substantial increases in the number of users and new bandwidth-intensive computing and communications applications, such as web-based commerce, streaming audio and video, Internet Protocol television, or IPTV, and online gaming. In addition, information is increasingly available via wired and wireless networks through a variety of access devices, including personal computers and handheld computing devices such as personal digital assistants, portable digital audio players, digital cameras and cellular phones. These applications and devices are continuing to require higher and more cost-efficient data transfer rates throughout the network communications infrastructures that serve them.

This evolution has inspired equipment manufacturers and service providers to develop and expand existing broadband communications markets and has created the need for new generations of integrated circuits. Broadband transmission of digital information over existing infrastructure requires highly-integrated mixed-signal semiconductor products to perform critical systems functions such as complex signal processing and converting digital data to and from analog signals. Broadband communications equipment requires substantially higher levels of system performance, in terms of both speed and precision, which typically cannot be adequately addressed by traditional semiconductor products developed for low-speed transmission applications. Moreover, products that are based on multiple discrete analog and digital chipsets generally cannot achieve the cost-effectiveness, performance and reliability requirements demanded by today’s broadband marketplace. These requirements are best addressed by new generations of highly-integrated mixed-signal and digital devices that combine complex system functions within high performance circuitry and can be manufactured in high volumes using cost-effective process technologies.
 
 
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TARGET MARKETS AND PRODUCTS
 
In addition to an extensive portfolio of standard integrated circuit products addressing voice, data, wireless and video markets, TranSwitch supplies a number of intellectual property core products for Ethernet and high definition video (HDMI protocol) applications as well as custom design services. Our combination of standard products, intellectual property cores and custom design services enables us to serve our customers needs more fully. Today, we provide our products and services through a worldwide direct sales force and a worldwide network of independent distributors and sales representatives.
 
Our products and services are compliant with relevant communications network standards.  We offer several products that combine multi-protocol capabilities on a single chip, enabling our customers to develop network equipment for triple play (voice, data and video) applications. A key attribute of our products is their inherent flexibility. Many of our products incorporate embedded programmable micro-processors, enabling us to rapidly accommodate new customer requirements or evolving network standards by modifying the functionality of the device via software instructions.
 
We bring value to our customers through our communications systems expertise, very large scale integration (“VLSI”) design skills and commitment to excellence in customer support. Our emphasis on technical innovation results in defining and developing products that permit our customers to achieve faster time-to-market and to develop communications systems that offer a host of benefits such as greater functionality, improved performance, lower power dissipation, reduced system size and cost, and greater reliability for their customers.

The following provides a brief description of each of our target markets and the semiconductor solutions we provide in each of these markets:
 
Next Generation (Converged) Network Infrastructure:
 
Data and video services are the main drivers for future network infrastructure investments. Carrier Ethernet is the industry’s accepted standard technology for next-generation networks, however, a large percentage of optical network infrastructure currently in place is based on SONET/SDH technology designed and optimized for voice traffic. Our products enable a mix of voice and data traffic to be efficiently transported over existing SONET /SDH networks using a number of techniques for mapping Ethernet data into the SONET or SDH format (EoS) in accordance with recently introduced industry standards. Our products are incorporated in Optical Transport equipment, and enable the fiber optic network to transport information with improved efficiency, thus increasing the overall network capacity. We also supply products designed for use in Ethernet equipment such as carrier-grade Ethernet routers and switches.  Our products, used in such equipment, enable carriers to provide robust and differentiated services using Ethernet technology in their wide-area networks.
 
Within this new infrastructure, voice traffic is also carried over Ethernet, and TranSwitch provides market leading solutions for use in equipment such as Media Gateways, Soft Switches and Multi-Service Access Nodes used in both wire-line and cellular carrier networks as well in corporate network applications. Currently, most telephony service providers maintain two separate networks - one for legacy voice traffic and a second for data traffic. VoIP technology compresses voice signals into discrete packets of data, thereby enabling the voice signals to be transmitted over lower-cost networks originally designed for data-only transmission. VoIP technology is used in numerous new types of communications equipment, such as next generation carrier- and enterprise-class gateways, soft switches, digital loop carriers, IP DSL access multiplexers, media terminal adapters, and home gateways for use by consumers and small businesses. These VoIP technology-based devices enable more efficient and cost-effective voice transmissions than their legacy circuit-switched equipment counterparts. In addition to significant cost savings, VoIP also enables advanced services that traditional telephony could not support. VoIP technology enables and enhances features such as unified messaging and managed services that provide additional value to consumers and businesses and allow service providers to enhance revenue opportunities. Our customers in this market segment include ZTE, Alcatel-Lucent, Tellabs Fiberhome, Fujitsu, Cisco Systems and Ericsson.
 
The Broadband Access portion of the market includes equipment that provides “last mile” connectivity between the end customer and the network for broadband services. It includes systems for connectivity over copper wires based on DSL, technology, fiber connectivity using Passive Optical Network (PON) technology or wireless connectivity using cellular, WiMAX or other technologies. Our products are incorporated into Broadband Access equipment, enabling telecommunications service providers to deliver next generation services such as voice, data and video over the broadband connection. Fiber based broadband access, generally referred to as FTTx is deployed in a variety of alternative architectures such as Fiber-to-the-home (FTTH), Fiber-to-the-building (FTTB) or Fiber-to-the-node (FTTN).  In the case of FTTH, fiber extends all the way to each individual subscriber location, while in the case of FTTB and FTTN fiber extends to multiplexing equipment located at a building with multiple end-users or in a neighborhood “node”, and each subscriber location (residence or office) is connected to the multiplexing equipment with copper wire using DSL or Ethernet technology.
 
 
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FTTH provides the highest bandwidth per subscriber, while FTTB and FTTN provide a more economical alternative.  The underlying technology for most FTTx deployments is Passive Optical Networking (PON) because it eliminates the need for active electronics in the fiber portion of the network. There are dominant variants of this technology namely Ethernet-based PON (EPON) which has been adopted extensively in Japan and to a lesser extent in other Asian countries, and Gigabit PON (GPON) which is currently being deployed primarily in North America and is expected to be deployed in several other regions worldwide.  EPON supports data rates up to 1 Gigabit per second (Gbps) while GPON supports data rates up to 2.5 Gbps. FTTx technology provides higher speeds than DSL technology for both residential and business end users and enables service providers to offer a wider range of next generation bundled services to potentially enhance their revenue streams.
 
Our Broadband Access product offerings include a variety of solutions for both EPON as well as GPON standards.  We also supply products that support the hybrid fiber-copper architectures such as FTTB and FTTN using DSL or Ethernet as well as Voice-over-IP (VoIP) processors to extract, encode and manage voice services at the node equipment in the case of FTTB and FTTN architectures.  Our customers in this market segment include Alcatel-Lucent, Oki Electronics, ZTE, Sumitomo, Nokia Siemens Networks and other OEMs.

Broadband Customer Premises Equipment (CPE):

The increasing role of Broadband CPE in the delivery of modern communications services is driven directly by the deployment of broadband access networks discussed above. A single broadband connection is capable of delivering multiple services (voice, video data) to the subscriber location in the form of a high speed packetized data stream. Equipment located at the customer premises (Broadband CPE) must then process this high speed packet data stream and deliver the various services to appliances within the home or office in the appropriate manner.  For instance, telephone (voice) service needs to be converted from packetized data using VoIP technology into its native electrical form and distributed over the internal telephone wiring or using a wireless technology such as DECT to cordless phones. Similarly, internet data traffic must be routed over Ethernet connections or WiFi to computers within the customer premises and video traffic must be routed to set-top devices or TV sets as appropriate. Increasing availability of High Definition video content is driving the need for high speed connectivity within the home. The Consumer Electronics industry standard known as High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) and the related DisplayPort standard adopted by the Computer industry are the de-facto interfaces of choice. Broadband CPE equipment also provides the necessary security features such as firewall and data encryption as well as a host of other management and control functions required for interworking with the service provider’s network.

TranSwitch provides a family of communications processors designed specifically for the broadband CPE applications, combining voice-over-IP, data routing and security functions in a single highly integrated device that meets the stringent cost-perfomance and low power consumption demands of this market segment.  Our customers for these products include ZTE, SK-Telesys, and OKI Networks as well as domestic Chinese equipment manufacturers such as Allywll and GK-Tel who are developing equipment for China Telecom and China Mobile.

TranSwitch also provides high speed interface technology conforming to HDMI, DisplayPort and Ethernet standards in the form of IP cores. Our customers for this technology are other semiconductor companies who supply complementary markets such as Consumer Electronics (TV, DVR and Video Camera) and Computer equipment manufacturers.

The Importance of Communications Standards in our Telecommunications Semiconductor Business

  In an effort to provide interoperability among communication networks and equipment, the communications industry has established numerous standards and protocols that address connectivity issues between networks and network equipment. Communication standards and protocols for transmission of information such as voice, high speed data or video over electrical, optical or wireless media have been implemented to ensure that equipment from different manufacturers and the various public and private networks can communicate with each other reliably and efficiently. The VLSI devices supplied by us conform to these standards, enabling such interoperability across the networks.

In the Optical Transport arena, SONET and SDH standards were defined for efficient and reliable transport of information over optical fiber. SONET is primarily a North American standard, while SDH is its international counterpart. Introduced in the late 1980s, SONET and SDH were initially employed primarily for the transport of voice traffic in telephone networks. Prior to the introduction of the SONET/SDH standards, Asynchronous/PDH standards were in use for transmission over metallic cables, radio and optical fiber. Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM) is a higher-level standard that enables public networks, internet, WAN and LAN systems designers to provide a mix of services to network users. ATM allows communication service providers to reduce the impact of network congestion, assure quality of service and to provide mixed high-speed and high-volume data communications, voice, video and imaging services. This ability allows the communication service providers to generate more revenue by offering more services to their customers.

 
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Recently, industry standards have emerged for carrying Ethernet over SONET/SDH. Ethernet is a protocol that is used throughout LANs. Increased requirements for connectivity between corporate LANs and WANs are driving the need for bridging Ethernet protocol over the public network. Communication service providers are beginning to deploy EoS technology to provide data services because it is an efficient means of transporting data over their embedded infrastructure and enables them to generate additional revenue.

Broadband Access technologies utilize IP as a standard protocol to enable packetized data to be forwarded, transmitted, and routed between networks. IP packets are often carried over ATM which serves as a transport layer for the IP packets particularly in DSL networks.   In newer DSL deployments, ATM is replaced by Carrier Ethernet as a transport layer. Carrier Ethernet is a new and evolving technology which brings with it a plethora of new standards that must be implemented by the equipment and hence by the underlying semiconductor components.  Fiber to the home (FTTH) and fiber to the curb (FTTC) deployments are also based on new technologies such as GPON or EPON each of which has a number of associated standards.

 In order to deploy new infrastructures and transmission protocols, communication service providers are demanding improved time to market of cost-effective, differentiated products from OEMs. The complexity of the equipment, increasing cost pressures and the need for high reliability and standards compliance mandate the use of VLSI devices incorporating a high degree of functionality. OEMs recognize that, similar to the trend experienced in the computer industry, the functionality incorporated into VLSI devices is contributing an increasing share of the intellectual property and the value of network equipment. The design of VLSI devices contained in Optical Transport, Broadband Access or Carrier Ethernet equipment requires specialized expertise in mixed-signal semiconductor design and implementation, in-depth knowledge of telecommunications and data communications standards and systems engineering expertise. Expertise in mixed-signal device design is relatively uncommon, and, as a result, OEMs needing these capabilities often seek independent semiconductor vendors. However, many semiconductor vendors lack the communications industry knowledge and experience, as well as familiarity with the standards, to be able to contribute significant value to the OEMs’ systems designs. Consequently, OEMs require a semiconductor vendor that understands their markets and the applicable standards and is able to provide a broad range of cost-effective semiconductor devices. Our core competencies include the ability to understand these standards and protocols and our experience in designing these specialized VLSI products.
 
 
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Our Products and the Functions They Serve

We believe that we are very well positioned to participate in the anticipated telecommunications growth cycle during the next several years.  This is because we anticipated many of the high growth market trends, at least directionally if not quantitatively, and aligned our product development direction accordingly.

Our products provide several of the key functionalities required for Converged Network Infrastructure, Broadband Access and Broadband CPE:

 
1.
Converged Network Infrastructure
 
a)
Infrastructure VoIP Processors
 
b)
EoS / EoPDH Mappers and Framers
 
c)
Tributary Switches
 
d)
Carrier Ethernet Solutions
 
e)
FTTx Protocol Processors
 
f)
Access VoIP Processors
 
g)
Access Controller

 
2.
Broadband CPE
 
a)
Multi-Service Communications Processors
 
b)
HDMI, DisplayPort and Ethernet IP Cores

Within each of these segments, we have developed a number of product families as described below:

1.
Products for Converged Network Infrastructure

a)
Infrastructure VoIP Processors

Our Entropia Series of Processors are Highly Integrated System-on-Chip solutions each incorporating multiple embedded RISC and DSP processors for encoding, decoding and transcoding Voice-over-IP traffic according to a multitude of protocols and standards adopted in different networks worldwide. Entropia III and IV can process up to 1,008 voice channels for high capacity applications while our Entropia II LP product supports medium density applications requiring up to 336 voice channels. The Entropia product line is designed for wire-line and wireless carrier equipment such as Media Gateways, Soft Switches, Integrated Multimedia Systems (IMS) and Multi-Service Access Nodes (MSAN) as well as in Enterprise Network applications such as IP-PBX. Because different VoIP coding standards are used by different network operators, a vital attribute of our Entropia processors is their ability to recognize and dynamically adapt to the appropriate coding standard and to trans-code the voice traffic from one standard to another as required. In addition to VoIP processing, our Entropia products provide a complete system level solutions by incorporating a variety of other related functions such as FAX relay, packet processing, circuit emulation, signaling and control required for operation in the carrier’s network.

b)
EoS / EoPDH Mappers and Framers

Our products address the predominant formats and data speeds employed in the access portion of the network.  We provide solutions that cover both North American (SONET/ Async) as well as International (SDH/PDH) standards.  Data rates covered by our products range from 1.5 mb/s to 2.5 Gb/s.

Our EtherMap and EtherPHAST product families address the need of carriers to efficiently transport data traffic over their existing SONET, SDH and PDH networks.  Our VTXP products provide low-level grooming of TDM circuits which will continue to be a requirement throughout the transition to IP and will be performed predominantly in smaller edge platforms rather than larger Metro platforms.  Our products are optimized for these edge platforms, and will continue to be applicable as will our broad line of mappers and framers.
 
 
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c)
Tributary Switches

This category includes switch fabric devices and adjunct switching devices that enable traffic to be switched or re-arranged (groomed) to use network capacity more efficiently.

d)
Carrier Ethernet Solutions

As carriers move to packet-based networks for more and more of their infrastructure, the need for both pure carrier class Ethernet devices as well as transition products continues to grow.  Our Envoy line of Ethernet controllers and switches allows for differentiation and creates the opportunity for market leadership with trend setting metro Ethernet features. Our PacketTrunk family of circuit emulation and clock recovery devices provide vital interworking capability between the new data (IP) based services and infrastructures and the legacy voice (TDM) based services and infrastructures.

e)
FTTx Protocol Processors

The prevalent Passive Optical Networking standards are EPON which is adopted primarily in Japan, China and Korea and a more recent standard GPON, which has been adopted by carriers in the US and is expected to be the deployed in several other countries.

Our Mustang product is a System-on-Chip solution for EPON Optical Network Unit (ONU) equipment which is deployed at the customer location, typically on the outside wall of a dwelling unit. Our Mustang product family consists of our ME250 and proprietary ME300 products. These highly-integrated, low power and turnkey FTTH solutions are ideal for service providers deploying EPON to deliver premium triple play services such as bandwidth-intensive IPTV. Mustang conforms to the rigid standards established by Nippon Telephone and Telegraph (NTT), and is one of only two such devices approved for deployment in their network.   Our COLT processor is a System-on-Chip solution for the Optical Line Terminator (OLT) equipment which resides in the Carrier’s Central Office location and is connected to multiple remote ONUs via fiber. Mustang and COLT are extensively deployed in Japan by NTT and other carriers.

Our Diplomat-ONT product is a highly integrated SoC solution for GPON ONU applications equipped to provide up to four channels of VoIP processing and is interoperable with OLTs from the leading equipment suppliers worldwide.
 
f)
Access VoIP processors

A large percentage of fiber based broadband access deployments are hybrid fiber-copper architectures such as fiber-to-the-node (FTTN) or fiber-to-the-building (FTTB). This is particularly true in countries such as China where large apartment buildings rather than single family houses are the norm.  Even in the United States, AT&T has chosen to deploy Fiber-to-the-Node rather than Fiber-to-the-Home based on its own economic analysis.  In these Hybrid architectures, the fiber cable terminates in Optical Network Termination (ONT) equipment designed to serve multiple subscribers is placed in a neighborhood site or in the basement of the apartment building, and the individual subscriber locations are served over copper wires using VDSL or Ethernet technology.

Voice traffic is carried over the fiber portion of the network in packetized form (VoIP), and is decoded and converted to the analog form at the ONT so it can be transmitted over the copper wires.  Our Entropia™ III-C series of processors are designed to serve these applications. This new series of Entropia processors scales the market-proven features and performance advantages of our larger flagship Entropia III and Entropia-IV series into an appropriately sized, highly integrated SoC that is ideally matched to the requirements for broadband access ONT equipment.
 
g)
Access Controllers

The multi-subscriber ONT equipment in FTTB or FTTN architectures performs the function of an access multiplexor in that it must appropriately rout the appropriate data from the fiber connection to the each subscriber over a separate copper connection and vice versa.  Data security, quality of service, and traffic management features are critical elements of this functionality.  Our Diplomat-IP Access Controller is designed to provide this core functionality for xDSL equipment such as MSAN, and MDU-ONT for FTTN and FTTB networks.
 
 
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2.
Products for Broadband CPE

a)
Multi-Service Communications Processors

Our Atlanta processor family is a multi-service SoC for customer premises equipment that supports toll-quality telephone voice, fax and routing functionality over any broadband access network. System designs based on the Atlanta product family can connect directly to a broadband modem or be added as part of a small office-home office, or SOHO, network. The Atlanta A70™ product is the family’s entry level SoC while the A80™ SoC adds the capability to interface with any WiFi or high-speed adapter. The A90™ SoC is optimized for the SOHO market with four voice channels and a high-performing routing engine available at 100 Mbit/second. The A100™ SoC adds powerful, enterprise-level security and encryption of all data and voice.

In 2009 we introduced Atlanta 2000 (A2000) the Flagship of our Atlanta processor line.  A2000 is a multi-core SoC supporting wire-speed Gigabit routing performance, up to eight channels of low-bit rate VoIP processing or four channels of High Definition voice processing and a rich set of data security features.  A2000 fulfills the high performance requirements for next generation residential or small business gateway appliances.

b)
HDMI, DisplayPort and Ethernet IP Cores

In addition to our telecommunications portfolio of standard products, we are a recognized worldwide leader in the licensing of interconnect technologies.  Our intellectual property serves as a key building block for many varied semiconductor applications ranging from consumer electronics to home network equipment to industrial and automotive applications. We have been licensing interface technology since 2006 with the introduction of our MystiPHY line of Ethernet IP cores obtained through our acquisition of Mysticom Ltd.  Our Ethernet technology has been adopted and incorporated by many of the world’s leading semiconductor and equipment manufacturers. In 2008 we introduced our HD-PXL family of products addressing multimedia interconnect standards specifically addressing the HDMI and DisplayPort standards for consumer electronics and PC appliances. These technologies have also been licensed by some of the leading semiconductor companies serving the consumer electronics and computer equipment industry.

Our MystiPHY 110 and MystiPHY 1011 DSP-based Ethernet transceiver cores address 10 / 100 megabit per second and 10/100/1000 megabit per second Ethernet data-rate specifications.  Both cores are fully compliant with IEEE standards, and the DSP-based design approach provides superior performance that exceeds standard requirements for cable length and noise immunity, while providing exceptionally low power consumption and small die size.

Our HD-PXL transmitter and receiver Intellectual Property (IP) cores can be used for a variety of digital video and audio applications operating over standard DVI, HDMI, or DisplayPort cables. The HD-PXL cores are compliant with DVI 1.0 and HDMI 1.4 high definition standards and support a wide range of video interface modes. Our cores support transmission rates of both 2.25 gigabit/second and 3.5 gigabit per second.

Technology

One of our core competencies is knowledge of the telecommunications and data communications landscape. Specifically, our systems engineering personnel possess substantial telecommunications and data communications design experience, as well as extensive knowledge of the relevant standards. This includes not only a thorough understanding of the actual written standards, but also an awareness of and appreciation for the nuances associated with the standards necessary for assuring that device designs are fully compliant.

Complementing our communications industry expertise is our VLSI design competence. Our VLSI design personnel have extensive experience in designing high-speed digital and mixed-signal devices for communications applications. These designs require a sophisticated understanding of complex technology, as well as the specifics of deep sub-micron manufacturing processes and their resulting impact on device performance. We have developed a large number of VLSI blocks and intellectual property cores that operate under the demanding requirements of the telecommunications and data communications industries. These blocks and intellectual property cores have been designed using standard VLSI-oriented programming languages such as VHSIC Hardware Descriptive Language (VHDL) and Verilog, and have been authenticated with standard verification tools.

 
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We have developed proprietary tool sets, called “Test Benches,” that facilitate rapid development of VLSI products and help assure that our products are standards compliant and meet customer requirements. These Test Benches consist of behavioral models of all applicable functions in a high-level design environment and also include test signal generators and analyzers such as models of SONET/SDH signals. Systems engineers use Test Benches to test new architectural concepts, while VLSI designers use Test Benches to ensure that the device conforms to product specifications.

In addition to the extensive hardware functionality, many of our products utilize embedded processors that are software programmable. This approach enables us to develop products with higher levels of functionality and flexibility than are possible with purely hardware based solutions. A digital signal processor, as it relates to communications applications, encodes digital data for transmission over bandwidth-limited media, such as copper telephone lines, and recovers the encoded data at the receiving end. Our software programmable digital signal processor is optimized for communications applications and provides high processing bandwidth with low power requirements. This digital signal processor can be programmed for several different applications, such as DSL and VoIP networking. This software programmable digital signal processor technology gives us the advantage of field programmability of devices. Field programmability means that service providers can remotely upgrade their equipment to address new standards or enable improved features, thereby extending the life cycles of their equipment while incurring lower costs.

Our products are multi-million gate devices, which are implemented in 65 nanometer, 0.13 and 0.18 micron complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) silicon technologies. They incorporate high speed mixed signal circuitry.  Some of these devices are equipped with embedded processors that provide added functionality through software.

We have developed substantial expertise in communications algorithms. Communications algorithms are the processes and techniques used to transform a digital data stream into a specially conditioned analog signal suitable for transmission across copper telephone wires. We possess a thorough understanding of, and practical experience in, the process of transmitting and receiving a digital data stream in analog form. We also have significant experience developing algorithms to enable voice compression, echo cancellation and telephony signal processing. This expertise allows us to design highly efficient algorithms that in turn enable us to create products with high performance, re-programmability and low power consumption.

We are experts in the area of highly complex, high-speed digital chip development. We design both the logic and the physical layout for our products. This design expertise has enabled us to develop tightly integrated digital chips that have small form factors with low power consumption. We have continued to improve upon our internal chip layout capabilities and our design for test capability, both of which have resulted in significant improvements in silicon efficiency, silicon testability and time-to-market. Our system-on-a-chip definition, architecture, verification expertise and design methodology ensure that hardware and software architectural trade-offs yield desired performance testing from our VLSI solutions. The system-on-a-chip performance simulation, emulation, verification and stress testing, using Test Benches and test equipment, ensure that our products meet carrier class quality, performance and reliability requirements.

 We have expertise in developing software embedded in our semiconductor products that addresses the needs of network equipment manufacturers and service providers. In addition, our understanding of various operating systems and personal computer environments allows us to create software embedded on the chip that provides for simple installation and operation.

The expertise of our personnel, our rigorous design methodology and our investment in state-of-the-art electronic design automation tools enable us to develop the complex and innovative products our customers demand.

Strategy

Our goal is to be the leading supplier of innovative, complete VLSI solutions to telecommunications and data communications OEMs worldwide for the applications we enable. The key elements of our business strategy include the following:
 
Provide the Optimal Solutions Within Target Markets

We offer our customers unique chip sets that enable optimized performance and functionality for applications ranging from Ethernet-over-SONET mapping and framing for Optical Transport systems, voice media gateway platforms, fiber-to-the-premises applications, and home gateway/routers.  Our solutions include:
 
 
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embedded software in the computer chip for control of our configurable devices;

 
product reference design models for both hardware and software applications;

 
evaluation boards and reference design;

 
OEM product design support;

 
multi-tier applications support; and

 
product technical and design documentation.

Our ‘complete product’ approach allows OEMs to optimally configure their products while maintaining product compatibility over multiple generations. This approach allows equipment vendors to selectively upgrade their products with next-generation higher functionality VLSI devices.
 
Continue to Promote the Deployment of Programmable Devices
 
We will continue to develop highly integrated products that combine the use of embedded software-programmable blocks and optimized hardware blocks in order to provide an optimal level of performance and flexibility to our customers.  This flexibility enables customers to adapt the product for their unique needs or to accommodate changes resulting from emerging telecommunications standards.
 
Seek Early Market Penetration through Customer Sponsorship

 We seek to develop close sponsoring relationships with strategic OEMs during product development in order to secure early adoption of our solutions. We believe that OEMs recognize the value of their early involvement through sponsorship of our products, as they can design their system products in parallel with our product development, thereby accelerating their time to market. In addition, we believe that our sponsoring relationships with leading OEMs help us to obtain early design wins and help reduce risks of market acceptance for our new products.

 Third-Party Semiconductor Fabrication

We work with select third-party foundries to produce our semiconductor devices. This approach allows us to avoid substantial capital spending, obtain competitive pricing and technologies, and retain the ability to migrate our products to new process technologies to reduce costs and optimize performance. Our design methodology enables the production of our devices at multiple foundries using well-established and proven processes. We engage foundries that are ISO 9001:2000 certified for quality and which use only semiconductor processes and packages that are qualified under industry-standard requirements.

Marketing and Sales

Our marketing strategy focuses on key customer relationships to promote early adoption of our VLSI devices in the products of market-leading communications equipment OEMs. Through our customer sponsorship program, OEMs collaborate on product specifications and applications while participating in product testing in parallel with our own certification process. This approach accelerates our customers’ time-to-market delivery while enabling us to achieve early design wins for our products and volume forecasts for specific products from these sponsors.

Our sales strategy primarily focuses on worldwide suppliers of high-speed communications and communications-oriented equipment. These customers include telecommunications, data communications, wireless and wire-line equipment, internet access, customer premise, computing, process control and defense equipment vendors. In addition, we target emerging technology leaders in the communications equipment market that are developing next generation solutions for the telecommunications and data communications markets. We identify and address sales opportunities through our worldwide direct sales force and our worldwide network of independent distributors and sales representatives.
 
 
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Our worldwide direct sales force, technical support personnel and design engineers work together in teams to support our customers. We have technical support capabilities located in key geographical locations throughout the world as well as a technical support team at our headquarters as a backup to the field applications engineers.

We have established foreign distributors and sales representative relationships in Australia, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Germany, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Japan, Korea, Luxembourg, Mexico, the Scandinavian countries, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, Turkey and the United Kingdom. We also sell our products through domestic distributors and a network of domestic sales representatives. We have regional sales and technical support capabilities in Boston, Massachusetts; Fremont, California;  Paris, France; Rome, Italy; Berkshire, England; Hilversum, Netherlands; Brussels, Belgium; New Delhi and Bangalore, India; Shanghai and Shenzhen, P.R.C.; Seoul, Korea; Tokyo, Japan; and Taipei, Taiwan, as well as at our headquarters facility in Shelton, Connecticut.

Customers

We have sold our products and services to over 400 customers since shipping our first product in 1990. Our customers include public network systems OEMs that incorporate our products into telecommunications systems, WAN and LAN equipment OEMs, internet-oriented OEMs, communications test and performance measurement equipment OEMs and government, university and private laboratories that use our products in advanced public network, and WAN and LAN developments. A small number of our customers have historically accounted for a substantial portion of our net revenues.

Note 11 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements provides data on major customers for the last three years.

Research and Development

We believe that the continued introduction of new products in our target markets is essential to our growth. As of December 31, 2009 we had 153 full-time employees engaged in research and product development efforts. We employ engineers who have the necessary VLSI, high speed mixed signal, firmware, software, hardware, physical design, verification, and validation expertise and development experience.  These engineers are responsible for delivering VLSI and Evaluation/Demo products for telecommunications and data communications applications.  Research and development expenditures for the years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007 were $19.1 million, $24.6 million, and $21.7 million, respectively.
 
All products are developed and delivered using documented design processes (product life cycle) operating under a quality management system certified to meet the ISO 9001:2008 international standard. Our design tools and development environment are continuously reviewed and updated to improve design, verification, fabrication and validation methodology, design flow and processes of our product life cycle.
 
From time to time, we subcontract design services and acquire products from third parties to enhance our product lines.  Our internal research and development organization thoroughly reviews the external development processes and the design of these products as part of our quality assurance process.

Patents and Licenses

Through the end of 2009, we have been issued or became an assignee of 69 presently maintained United States patents with an additional 31 patents pending in the United States. Of that number two patents are co-assigned. Eight of the 31 pending patents were applied for in 2009, for various system-on-chip innovations for broadband communications and high definition video interconnect applications. Many of the United States issued and pending patents were also filed internationally. For one or more of our United States patents, we have coverage in Canada, China, Taiwan, Israel, Japan, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Belgium, Italy, Sweden, Spain, and Hong Kong. Internationally, there are patents pending either in specific countries or in the European Patent Office (EPO) or under the Patent Cooperative Treaty (PCT). In addition we have lifetime licenses to use over 23 additional US patents and their foreign derivatives.
 
 
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We cannot guarantee that our patents will not be challenged or circumvented by our competitors, and we cannot be sure that pending patent applications will ultimately be issued as patents. Under current law, patent applications in the United States filed before November 29, 2000 are maintained in secrecy until they are issued, but applications filed after November 29, 2000 (and foreign applications) are generally published 18 months after their priority date, which is generally the filing date. The right to a patent in the United States is attributable to the first to invent, while in most other jurisdictions the right to a patent is obtained by the first to file the patent application. We cannot be sure that our products or technologies do not infringe patents that may be granted in the future based upon currently pending non-published patent applications or that our products do not infringe any patents or proprietary rights of third parties. From time to time, we receive communications from third parties alleging patent infringement. If any relevant claims of third-party patents are upheld as valid and enforceable, we could be prevented from selling our products or could be required to obtain licenses from the owners of such patents or be required to redesign our products to avoid infringement. We cannot be assured that such licenses would be available or, if available, would be on terms acceptable to us or that we would be successful in any attempts to redesign our products or processes to avoid infringement. Our failure to obtain these licenses or to redesign our products could have a material adverse effect on our business.

We also have been granted registration of 16 presently maintained trade or service marks in the United States and we have one more trademark registration awaiting approval. We have also obtained 4 presently maintained trademark registrations under the European Community Trademark (ECT) procedure and have two pending trademarks awaiting approval in Canada and the ECT.

Our ability to compete depends to some extent upon our ability to protect our proprietary information through various means, including ownership of patents, copyrights, mask work registrations and trademarks. While no intellectual property right of ours has been invalidated or declared unenforceable, we cannot assure that such rights will be upheld in the future. We believe that, in view of the rapid pace of technological changes in the communication semiconductor industry, the technical experience and creative skills of our engineers and other personnel are the most important factors in determining our future technological success.

We have entered into various license agreements for products or technology exchange. The purpose of these licenses has, in general, been to obtain second sources for standard products or to convey or receive rights to certain proprietary or patented cores, cells or other technology.

We sell our products for applications in the telecommunications and data communications industries, which require our products to conform to various standards that are agreed upon by recognized industry standards committees. Where applicable, we design our products to be in conformity with these standards. We have received and expect to continue to receive, in the normal course of business, communications from third parties stating that if certain of our products meet a particular standard, these products may infringe one or more patents of that third party. We review the circumstances of each communication, and, in our discretion and upon the advice of legal counsel, have taken or may take in the future one of the following courses of action: we may negotiate payment for a license under the patent or patents that may be infringed, we may use our technology and/or patents to negotiate a cross-license with the third party or we may decline to obtain a license on the basis that we do not infringe the claimant’s patent or patents, or that such patents are not valid, or other bases. We cannot be sure that licenses for any such patents will be available to us on reasonable terms or that we would prevail in any litigation seeking damages or expenses from us or to enjoin us from selling our products on the bases of any of the alleged infringements.

Manufacturing and Design Services

We produce a variety of VLSI devices utilizing the Fabless Semiconductor Model. This means that we do not own or operate any of the foundries used in the production of our devices. Rather, we contract with established independent foundries to manufacture all of our devices including silicon wafer production, package assembly and testing. In most cases we maintain a fully functional test environment for the purpose of production test development, low volume production testing, and product certification. Once the device reaches production volume, the test is transferred to a high volume, lower cost test facility. In some cases, the test development is done at the subcontractor site.

This approach permits us to focus on our design strengths, minimize fixed costs and capital expenditures and access the most advanced manufacturing technologies. It also allows us to maintain an effective and flexible supply chain which is managed using fully integrated ERP system. Quality assurance and customer service activities are all performed at our Shelton, Connecticut and Fremont, California facilities. Finished goods inventory, packing and shipping are performed either in our Shelton, Connecticut facility or managed at our subcontractors.

Our Shelton, Connecticut facility is registered to ISO 9001:2008 by TUV Rheinland of North America, Inc.  We use only ISO certified suppliers in the manufacture of our products.
 
 
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Our manufacturing objectives and emphasis are focused in the following areas:

 
maximizing the reliability and quality of our products utilizing world class foundry partners;

 
leveraging the most advanced semiconductor manufacturing technologies available;

 
maintaining a flexible supply chain to meet our customer’s demand and delivering on time;

 
minimizing capital and other resource requirements by subcontracting capital-intensive manufacturing; and

 
achieving a gross margin commensurate with the value of our products.

Our products and services can be categorized as follows:
 
 
·
 VLSI devices - This category covers the majority of our products. We purchase and own the unique mask sets (tools) required for the production of our silicon wafers. We then purchase the wafers from the foundry as needed which are shipped directly to one of our wafer sort or assembly partners. They are then stored until we issue an assembly or test release based on demand. We use a variety of assembly and test suppliers to complete the production process. We have supplier agreements in place with most of these suppliers including TSMC, Global Foundries and IBM for wafers and Amkor and STATS ChipPAC for assembly and test.  For some of our devices, we purchase the product in its final form. In these cases, the supplier fabricates the wafers and manages the work in process including assembly and test. Kawasho Semiconductor Corp. is an example of a turnkey supplier where we are delivered fully tested and functional product.
 
 
·
Intellectual Property Cores – We have several arrangements with foundries like Taiwan Semiconductor (TSMC) and Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation (SMIC) for example, where we make our intellectual property cores available to our customers for design in their products. The use of these cores is strictly controlled at the foundry and we receive license fees or royalties when they are used.

 
·
Services – We offer design and manufacturing services to our customers. In these cases we can utilize any of our established supply chain partners or use suppliers specified by our customer.
 
Acquisitions

While some of the next generation products we introduce are based on technologies that we develop ourselves, we have filled some of our technology and skills needs through acquisitions. The following is a table that summarizes technology and skills we obtained through acquisitions of stand-alone companies during the years 2007 through 2009.
 
Acquired Company
 
Date Acquired
 
Technology / Skill Acquired
Centillium Communications, Inc.
 
October  2008
 
VOIP and Optical transport
ASIC Design Center Division of Data – JCE
  
January 2007
  
Custom ASIC development and logistics
 
Investments in Non-Publicly Traded Companies and Venture Capital Funds

We will, from time-to-time, make investments in early stage venture-backed, start-up companies that develop technologies that are complementary to our product roadmap. In all cases, when investing in other semiconductor companies, we have also entered into commercial agreements giving us the rights to resell products developed by these companies. When determining the accounting method for these investments, we consider both direct ownership and indirect ownership. We also consider other factors, such as our influence over the financial, technology and operating policies of these companies.

We have invested in venture capital funds as it provides us access to new technologies and relationships integral for maintaining technological advantages in the development of advanced semiconductor products for the communications industry.  Neurone Ventures II (Neurone) is a venture capital fund organized as a partnership in the business of making, supervising and disposing of privately negotiated equity and equity-related investments, principally in early-stage Israeli and Israeli-related high-technology companies.  We have a 3% ownership interest in this partnership.
 
 
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Competition

The communication semiconductor industry is intensely competitive and is characterized by:

 
rapid technological changes in electronic design automation tools, wafer-manufacturing technologies, process tools and alternate networking technologies;

 
rapidly changing requirements;

 
manufacturing yield problems;

 
heightened international competition in many markets; and

 
price erosion.

Our principal competitors are Applied Micro Circuits Corporation, Broadcom Corporation, Exar Corporation, Infineon Technologies, LSI Corporation, Mindspeed Technologies, Inc., PMC-Sierra Inc., Texas Instruments Inc., and Vitesse Semiconductor Corporation.  In addition, there are several FPGA providers such as Altera Corporation and Xilinx, Inc. which compete with us by supplying programmable products to OEMs.  Other domestic and international vendors have announced plans to enter into this market.

Employees

At December 31, 2009, we had 227 full time employees, including 153 in research and development, 28 in marketing and sales, 16 in operations and quality assurance, and 30 in administration. We have no collective bargaining agreements. We have never experienced any work stoppage and we believe our employee relations are good.

Available Information

Our annual report on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K, and all amendments to those reports are made available free of charge through the Investor Relations section of our Internet website (http://www.transwitch.com) as soon as practicable after such material is electronically filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange Commission. Our executive offices are located at Three Enterprise Drive, Shelton, CT 06484.

You may read and copy any document we file at the SEC’s Public Reference Room located at: Headquarters Office, 100F Street N.E., Room 1580, Washington, DC 20549. You can request copies of these documents by writing to the Public Reference Section of the SEC, 100F Street N.E., Washington, DC 20549 or by calling the SEC at 1-800-SEC-0330. Our SEC filings are also available at the SEC’s website at http://www.sec.gov. This website address is included in this document as an inactive textual reference only.

Item 1A.  Risk Factors

From time to time, information provided by us, statements made by our employees or information included in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (including this Form 10-K) may contain statements that are not historical facts, so-called “forward-looking statements,” which involve risks and uncertainties. Such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.  In some cases you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “should,” “could,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “plans,” “predict,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “continue,” “believe” or the negative of these terms or other similar words. These statements discuss future expectations, contain projections of results of operations or of financial condition or state other forward-looking information. When considering forward-looking statements, you should keep in mind the risk factors and other cautionary statements in this Form 10-K.
 
 
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Our actual future results may differ significantly from those stated in any forward-looking statements. Factors that may cause such differences include, but are not limited to, the factors discussed below. Each of these factors, and others, are discussed from time to time in our filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Our operating results may fluctuate because of a number of factors, many of which are beyond our control. If our operating results are below the expectations of public market analysts or investors, then the market price of our common stock could decline. Some of the factors that affect our quarterly and annual results, but which are difficult to control or predict, are:

We have incurred significant net losses.

           Our net losses have been considerable for the past several years.  Due to current economic conditions, we expect that our revenues will continue to fluctuate in the future and there is no assurance that we will attain positive net earnings in the future.

Our net revenues may decrease.

Due to current economic conditions and slowdowns in purchases of VLSI semiconductor devices, it has become increasingly difficult for us to predict the purchasing activities of our customers and we expect that our net revenues may decrease.

Our business is characterized by short-term orders and shipment schedules, and customer orders typically can be cancelled or rescheduled without significant penalty to our customers.  Because we do not have substantial non-cancelable backlog, we typically plan our production and inventory levels based on internal forecasts of customer demand, which are highly unpredictable and can fluctuate substantially.  Future fluctuations to our operating results may also be caused by a number of factors, many of which are beyond our control.

In response to anticipated long lead times to obtain inventory and materials from our foundries, we may order inventory and materials in advance of anticipated customer demand, which might result in excess inventory levels if the expected orders fail to materialize.  As a result, we cannot predict the timing and amount of shipments to our customers, and any significant downturn in customer demand for our products would reduce our quarterly and annual operating results.

We continue to have substantial indebtedness.

As of December 31, 2009, we have approximately $8.8 million in principal amount of indebtedness outstanding in the form of our 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2011 (2011 Notes).

In addition to this indebtedness, we may incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future. The level of our indebtedness, among other things, could:

make it difficult for us to make payments on our 2011 Notes;

make it difficult for us to obtain any necessary future financing for working capital, capital expenditures, debt service requirements or other purposes;

limit our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to changes in, our business; and

make us more vulnerable in the event of a downturn in our business.
 
There can be no assurance that we will be able to meet our debt service obligations, including our obligations under the 2011 Notes.  The terms of our 2011 Notes permit the holders thereof to voluntarily convert their notes at any time into a certain number of shares of our common stock.
 
 
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We are using our available cash and cash equivalents each quarter to fund our operations, investments and financing activities.

In January of 2010 we have restructured our operating expense to allow us to break-even at the rate of sales of approximately $13 million per quarter. Such rate of sales may not be sustained. Also we may incur unforeseen expenses, which will cause us to consume our available cash and cash equivalents.

However, we believe that we have adequate cash and cash equivalents and other financing resources to fund our operations, and to meet our debt obligations through at least December 31, 2010.

 We may not be able to pay our debt and other obligations.

If our cash, cash equivalents and operating cash flows are inadequate to meet our obligations, we could face substantial liquidity problems. If we are unable to generate sufficient cash flow or otherwise obtain funds necessary to make required payments on the 2011 Notes or our other obligations, we would be in default under their respective terms.  This would permit the holders of the 2011 Notes and our other obligations to accelerate their respective maturities and could also cause defaults under any future indebtedness we may incur.  Any such default or cross default would have a material adverse effect on our business, prospects, financial condition and operating results.  In addition, we cannot be sure that we would be able to repay amounts due in respect of the 2011 Notes if payment of those notes were to be accelerated following the occurrence of an event of default as defined in the 2011 Notes indenture.

We may seek to reduce our indebtedness by issuing equity securities, thereby causing dilution of our stockholders’ ownership interests.

We may from time to time seek to exchange our 2011 Notes for shares of our common stock or other securities.  These exchanges may take different forms, including exchange offers or privately negotiated transactions.  As a result of shares of our common stock or other securities being issued upon such conversion or pursuant to such exchanges, our stockholders may experience substantial dilution of their ownership interest.
 
The terms of the 2011 Notes include voluntary conversion provisions upon which shares of our common stock would be issued. As a result of these shares of our common stock being issued, our stockholders may experience dilution of their ownership interest.
 
If we seek to secure additional financing we may not be able to do so.  If we are able to secure additional financing our stockholders may experience dilution of their ownership interest or we may be subject to limitations on our operations.

If we are unable to generate sufficient cash flows from operations to meet our anticipated needs for working capital and capital expenditures, we may need to raise additional funds.  However, events in the future may require us to seek additional capital and, if so required, that capital may not be available on terms favorable or acceptable to us, if at all.  If we raise additional funds through the issuance of equity securities, our stockholders may experience dilution of their ownership interest, and the newly issued securities may have rights superior to those of our common stock.  On October 21, 2009 we filed a shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-162609) (the “Shelf Registration Statement”) which was declared effective by the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 28, 2009, to sell up to $40,000,000 of our securities.   On December 31, 2009 we agreed, pursuant to a privately negotiated purchase agreement, to sell up to 1,950,000 shares of our common stock from the Shelf Registration Statement in multiple closings over the next twelve months.  As of March 15, 2010, we have sold 450,000 shares of our common stock in such closings.

If we raise additional funds by issuing debt, we may be limited in our success, as the terms of the 2011 Notes restrict our ability to issue debt that is senior to or pari passu with the 2011 Notes, without the consent of the holders of the 2011 Notes.

We may fail to realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisition of Centillium.

The success of the acquisition of Centillium depends on, among other things, our ability to realize anticipated cost savings and to combine the businesses of TranSwitch and Centillium in a manner that does not materially disrupt Centillium’s existing customer relationships or otherwise result in decreased revenues, and that allows us to capitalize on Centillium’s growth opportunities. If we are not able to successfully achieve these objectives, the anticipated benefits of the acquisition may not be realized fully or at all or may take longer to realize than expected.
 
 
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It is possible that the ongoing integration process could result in the loss of key employees, the disruption of our or Centillium’s ongoing businesses or inconsistencies in standards, controls, procedures and policies that could adversely affect our ability to maintain relationships with customers and employees or to achieve the anticipated benefits of the acquisition.

Our failure to continue to operate and manage the combined company effectively could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results.

We will need to meet significant challenges to realize the expected benefits and synergies of the acquisition of Centillium. These challenges include:
 
 
integrating the management teams, strategies, cultures and operations of the two companies;

 
retaining and assimilating the key personnel of each company;

 
integrating sales and business development operations;

 
retaining existing customers of each company;

 
developing new products and services that utilize the technologies and resources of both companies; and

 
creating uniform standards, controls, procedures, policies and information systems.

The accomplishment of these objectives will involve considerable risk, including:
 
 
the potential disruption of each company’s ongoing business and distraction of their respective management teams;

 
the difficulty of incorporating acquired technology and rights into our products and services;

 
unanticipated expenses related to technology integration; and

 
potential unknown liabilities associated with the acquisition.

If we do not succeed in addressing these challenges or any other problems encountered in connection with the acquisition, our operating results and financial condition could be adversely affected.

Our stock price is volatile.

The market for securities for communication semiconductor companies, including our Company, has been highly volatile. The daily closing price of our common stock has fluctuated between a low of $1.60 and a high of $22.72 (share price is reflective of the November 23, 2009 1 for 8 reverse stock split) during the period from January 1, 2006 to December 31, 2009. It is likely that the price of our common stock will continue to fluctuate widely in the future. Factors affecting the trading price of our common stock include:

responses to quarter-to-quarter variations in operating results;

announcements of technological innovations or new products by us or our competitors;

current market conditions in the telecommunications and data communications equipment markets; and

changes in earnings estimates by analysts.
 
 
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We may have to further restructure our business.

We may have to make further restructuring changes if we do not sustain the current level of quarterly revenues.

We anticipate that shipments of our products to relatively few customers will continue to account for a significant portion of our total net revenues.

Historically, a relatively small number of customers have accounted for a significant portion of our total net revenues in any particular period. For the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, shipments to our top five customers, including sales to distributors, accounted for approximately 63% and 51% of our total net revenues, respectively. We expect that a limited number of customers may account for a substantial portion of our total net revenues for the foreseeable future.

Some of the following may reduce our total net revenues or adversely affect our business:

reduction, delay or cancellation of orders from one or more of our significant customers;

development by one or more of our significant customers of other sources of supply for current or future products;

loss of one or more of our current customers or a disruption in our sales and distribution channels; and

failure of one or more of our significant customers to make timely payment of our invoices.

We cannot be certain that our current customers will continue to place orders with us, that orders by existing customers will return to the levels of previous periods or that we will be able to obtain orders from new customers. We have no long-term volume purchase commitments from any of our significant customers.

The cyclical nature of the communication semiconductor industry affects our business.

Communication service providers, internet service providers, regional operating companies and inter-exchange carriers continue to closely monitor their capital expenditures. Spending on voice-only equipment remains slow while spending on equipment providing the efficient transport of data services on existing infrastructure appears to be slowly recovering. Demand for new, high bandwidth applications such as video conferencing, broadband audio and telephone is placing an increased burden on existing public network infrastructure. We cannot be certain that the market for our products will not decline in the future.

Because of our lack of diversity in geographic sources of revenues, economic factors specific to certain countries may adversely affect our business and operating results.

During 2009, a substantial amount of our revenue was from, China, Japan, Korea, Israel and other foreign countries. We expect revenues in 2010 will be substantial concentrated in foreign markets.  All of our sales have been historically denominated in U.S. dollars and major fluctuations in currency exchange rates could materially affect our customers’ demand, thereby causing them to reduce their orders, which could adversely affect our operating results. While part of our strategy is to diversify the geographic sources of our revenues, failure to further penetrate other markets could harm our business and results of operations and subject us to increased currency risk.

If foreign exchange rates fluctuate significantly, our profitability may decline.

We are exposed to foreign currency rate fluctuations because we incur a significant portion of our operating expenses in currencies other than U.S. dollars (mainly Indian rupees, Israeli shekels and Euros). The U.S. dollar has devalued significantly and this trend may continue.
 
 
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Our international business operations expose us to a variety of business risks.

Foreign markets are a significant part of our net product revenues. For the years ended December 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008 foreign shipments accounted for approximately 70% and 85%, respectively of our total net product and services revenues. We expect foreign markets to continue to account for a significant percentage of our total net product revenues. A significant portion of our total net product revenues will, therefore, be subject to risks associated with foreign markets, including the following:
 
 
unexpected changes in legal and regulatory requirements and policy changes affecting the telecommunications and data communications markets;

 
changes in tariffs;

 
exchange rates, currency controls and other barriers;

 
political and economic instability;

 
risk of terrorism;

 
difficulties in accounts receivable collection;

 
difficulties in managing distributors and representatives;

 
difficulties in staffing and managing foreign operations;

 
difficulties in protecting our intellectual property overseas;

 
natural disasters;

 
seasonality of customer buying patterns; and

 
potentially adverse tax consequences.

Although substantially all of our total net product revenues to date have been denominated in U.S. dollars, the value of the U.S. dollar in relation to foreign currencies also may reduce our total net revenues from foreign customers. With the acquisition of our Israeli operations and the expansion of our India Design Center a substantial amount of our costs are denominated in Israeli shekels and the Indian rupee.  To the extent that we further expand our international operations or change our pricing practices to denominate prices in foreign currencies, we will expose our margins to increased risks of currency fluctuations.

Our net product revenues depend on the success of our customers’ products, and our design wins do not necessarily generate revenues in a timely fashion.

Our customers generally incorporate our new products into their products or systems at the design stage.  However, customer decisions to use our products (design wins), which can often require significant expenditures by us without any assurance of success, often precede the generation of production revenues, if any, by a year or more.  Some customer projects are canceled, and thus will not generate revenues for our products.  In addition, even after we achieve a design win, a customer may require further design changes.  Implementing these design changes can require significant expenditures of time and expense by us in the development and pre-production process.  Moreover, the value of any design win will largely depend upon the commercial success of the customer’s product and on the extent to which the design of the customer’s systems accommodates components manufactured by our competitors.  We cannot ensure that we will continue to achieve design wins in customer products that achieve market acceptance.  Further, most revenue-generating design wins take several years to translate into meaningful revenues.
 
We must successfully transition to new process technologies to remain competitive.

Our future success depends upon our ability to develop products that utilize new process technologies.
 
 
20

 
 
Semiconductor design and process methodologies are subject to rapid technological change and require large expenditures for research and development. We currently manufacture our products using 0.8, 0.5, 0.35, 0.25, 0.18 and 0.13 micron and 65 nanometer complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) processes. We continuously evaluate the benefits, on a product-by-product basis, of migrating to smaller geometry process technologies. Other companies in the industry have experienced difficulty in transitioning to new manufacturing processes and, consequently, have suffered increased costs, reduced yields or delays in product deliveries. We believe that transitioning our products to smaller geometry process technologies will be important for us to remain competitive. We cannot be certain that we can make such a transition successfully, if at all, without delay or inefficiencies.

Our success depends on the timely development of new products, and we face risks of product development delays.

Our success depends upon our ability to develop new VLSI devices and software for existing and new markets. The development of these new devices and software is highly complex, and from time to time we have experienced delays in completing the development of new products. Successful product development and introduction depends on a number of factors, including the following:
 
 
accurate new product definition;

 
timely completion and introduction of new product designs;

 
availability of foundry capacity;

 
achievement of manufacturing yields; and

 
market acceptance of our products and our customers’ products.

Our success also depends upon our ability to do the following:
 
 
build products to applicable standards;

 
develop products that meet customer requirements;

 
adjust to changing market conditions as quickly and cost-effectively as necessary to compete successfully;

 
introduce new products that achieve market acceptance; and

 
develop reliable software to meet our customers’ application needs in a timely fashion.

In addition, we cannot ensure that the systems manufactured by our customers will be introduced in a timely manner or that such systems will achieve market acceptance.

We sell a range of products that each has a different gross profit. Our total gross profits will be adversely affected if most of our shipments are of products with low gross profits.

We currently sell more than 60 products. Some of our products have a high gross profit while others do not. If our customers decide to buy more of our products with low gross profits and fewer of our products with high gross profits, our total gross profits could be adversely affected. We plan our mix of products based on our internal forecasts of customer demand, which are highly unpredictable and can fluctuate substantially.

The price of our products tends to decrease over the lives of our products.

Historically, average selling prices in the communication semiconductor industry have decreased over the life of a product, and, as a result, the average selling prices of our products may decrease in the future. Decreases in the price of our products would adversely affect our operating results. As global competition increases our customers are increasingly more focused on price. We may have to decrease our prices to remain competitive in some situations, which may negatively impact our gross margins.

 
21

 

Our success depends on the rate of growth of the global communications infrastructure.

We derive virtually all of our total net revenues from products for telecommunications, data and video communications applications. These markets are characterized by the following:
 
 
susceptibility to seasonality of customer buying patterns;

 
subject to general business cycles;

 
intense competition;

 
rapid technological change; and

 
short product life cycles.
 
We anticipate that these markets will continue to experience significant volatility in the near future.

Our products must successfully include industry standards to remain competitive.

Products for telecommunications and data communications applications are based on industry standards, which are continually evolving. Our future success will depend, in part, upon our ability to successfully develop and introduce new products based on emerging industry standards, which could render our existing products unmarketable or obsolete. If the telecommunications or data communications markets evolve to new standards, we cannot be certain that we will be able to design and manufacture new products successfully that address the needs of our customers and include the new standards or that such new products will meet with substantial market acceptance.

Our intellectual property indemnification practices may adversely impact our business.

We have historically agreed to indemnify our customers for certain costs and damages of intellectual property rights in circumstances where one of our products is the factor creating the customer’s infringement exposure. This practice may subject us to significant indemnification claims by our customers. In some instances, our products are designed for use in devices manufactured by our customers that comply with international standards. These international standards are often covered by patent rights held by third parties, which may include our competitors. The costs of obtaining licenses from holders of patent rights essential to such international standards could be high. The cost of not obtaining such licenses could also be high if a holder of such patent rights brings a claim for patent infringement. We are not aware of any claimed violations on our part. However, we cannot assure you that claims for indemnification will not be made or that if made, such claims would not have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations or financial condition.

We continue to expense our new product process development costs when incurred.

In the past, we have incurred significant new product and process development costs because our policy is to expense these costs, including tooling, fabrication and pre-production expenses, at the time that they are incurred. We may continue to incur these types of expenses in the future. These additional expenses will have a material and adverse effect on our operating results in future periods.

We face intense competition in the communication semiconductor market.

The communication semiconductor industry is intensely competitive and is characterized by the following:
 
 
rapid technological change;

 
subject to general business cycles;
 
 
22

 
 
 
price erosion;

 
limited access to fabrication capacity;

 
unforeseen manufacturing yield problems; and

 
heightened international competition in many markets.
 
These factors are likely to result in pricing pressures on our products, thus potentially affecting our operating results.

Our ability to compete successfully in the rapidly evolving area of high-performance integrated circuit technology depends on factors both within and outside our control, including:
 
 
success in designing and subcontracting the manufacture of new products that implement new technologies;

 
protection of our products by effective use of intellectual property laws;

 
product quality;

 
reliability;

 
price;

 
efficiency of production;

 
failure to find alternative manufacturing sources to produce VLSI devices with acceptable manufacturing yields;

 
the pace at which customers incorporate our products into their products;

 
success of competitors’ products; and

 
general economic conditions.
 
The telecommunications and data communications industries, which are our primary target markets, have become intensely competitive because of deregulation, heightened international competition and significant decreases in demand since 2000.  A number of our customers have internal semiconductor design or manufacturing capability with which we also compete in addition to our other competitors.  Any failure by us to compete successfully in these target markets, particularly in the communications markets, would have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.

We rely on outside fabrication facilities, and our business could be hurt if our relationships with our foundry suppliers are damaged.

We do not own or operate a VLSI circuit fabrication facility. Four foundries currently supply us with all of our semiconductor device requirements. While we have had good relations with these foundries, we cannot be certain that we will be able to renew or maintain contracts with them or negotiate new contracts to replace those that expire. In addition, we cannot be certain that renewed or new contracts will contain terms as favorable as our current terms. There are other significant risks associated with our reliance on outside foundries, including the following:
 
 
the lack of assured semiconductor wafer supply and control over delivery schedules;

 
the unavailability of, or delays in obtaining access to, key process technologies; and

 
limited control over quality assurance, manufacturing yields and production costs.

 
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Reliance on third-party fabrication facilities limits our ability to control the manufacturing process.

Manufacturing integrated circuits is a highly complex and technology-intensive process. Although we try to diversify our sources of semiconductor device supply and work closely with our foundries to minimize the likelihood of reduced manufacturing yields, our foundries occasionally experience lower than anticipated manufacturing yields, particularly in connection with the introduction of new products and the installation and start-up of new process technologies. Such reduced manufacturing yields have at times reduced our operating results. A manufacturing disruption at one or more of our outside foundries, including, without limitation, those that may result from natural disasters, accidents, acts of terrorism or political instability or other natural occurrences, could impact production for an extended period of time.
 
Our dependence on a small number of fabrication facilities exposes us to risks of interruptions in deliveries of semiconductor devices.

We purchase semiconductor devices from outside foundries pursuant to purchase orders, and we do not have a guaranteed level of production capacity at any of our foundries. We provide the foundries with forecasts of our production requirements. However, the ability of each foundry to provide wafers to us is limited by the foundry’s available capacity and the availability of raw materials. Therefore, our foundry suppliers could choose to prioritize capacity and raw materials for other customers or reduce or eliminate deliveries to us on short notice. Accordingly, we cannot be certain that our foundries will allocate sufficient capacity to satisfy our requirements.

We have been, and expect in the future to be, particularly dependent upon a limited number of foundries for our VLSI device requirements. In 2009, approximately 85% of our wafer requirements were manufactured by one foundry.  The time required to qualify alternative manufacturing sources for existing or new products could be substantial and we might not be able to find alternative manufacturing sources able to produce our VLSI devices with acceptable manufacturing yields. As a result, we expect that we could experience substantial delays or interruptions in the shipment of our products if there was a sudden increase in demand or if our foundry suppliers were to cease operations or limit our capacity.

We are subject to risks arising from our use of subcontractors to assemble our products.

Contract assembly houses in Asia assemble all of our semiconductor products.  Raw material shortages, natural disasters, political and social instability, service disruptions, currency fluctuations, or other circumstances in the region could force us to seek additional or alternative sources of supply or assembly.  This could lead to supply constraints or product delivery delays.

Our failure to protect our proprietary rights, or the costs of protecting these rights, may harm our ability to compete.

Our success depends in part on our ability to obtain patents and licenses and to preserve other intellectual property rights covering our products and development and testing tools. To that end, we have obtained certain domestic and foreign patents and intend to continue to seek patents on our inventions when appropriate. The process of seeking patent protection can be time consuming and expensive. We cannot ensure the following:
 
 
that patents will be issued from currently pending or future applications;

 
that our existing patents or any new patents will be sufficient in scope or strength to provide meaningful protection or any commercial advantage to us;

 
that foreign intellectual property laws will protect our foreign intellectual property rights; and

 
that others will not independently develop similar products, duplicate our products or design around any patents issued to us.
 
Intellectual property rights are uncertain and adjudication of such rights involves complex legal and factual questions. We may be unknowingly infringing on the proprietary rights of others and may be liable for that infringement, which could result in significant liability for us. We occasionally receive correspondence from third parties alleging infringement of their intellectual property rights. If we are found to infringe the proprietary rights of others, we could be forced to either seek a license to the intellectual property rights of others or alter our products so that they no longer infringe the proprietary rights of others. A license could be very expensive to obtain or may not be available at all. Similarly, changing our products or processes to avoid infringing the rights of others may be costly or impractical.
 
 
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We are responsible for any patent litigation costs. If we were to become involved in a dispute regarding intellectual property, whether ours or that of another company, we may have to participate in legal proceedings in the United States Patent and Trademark Office or in the United States or foreign courts to determine any or all of the following issues: patent validity, patent infringement, patent ownership or inventorship. These types of proceedings may be costly and time consuming for us, even if we eventually prevail. If we do not prevail, we might be forced to pay significant damages, obtain a license, if available, or stop making a certain product. From time to time we may prosecute patent litigation against others and as part of such litigation, other parties may allege that our patents are not infringed, are invalid and are unenforceable.

We also rely on trade secrets, proprietary know-how and confidentiality provisions in agreements with employees and consultants to protect our intellectual property. Such parties may not comply with the terms of their agreements with us, and we may not be able to adequately enforce our rights against these parties.

The loss of key management could affect our ability to run our business.

Our success depends largely upon the continued service of our executive officers and technical personnel and on our ability to continue to attract, retain and motivate other qualified personnel.

We may engage in acquisitions that may harm our operating results, dilute our stockholders and cause us to incur debt or assume contingent liabilities.

We may pursue acquisitions from time to time that could provide new technologies, skills, products or service offerings. Future acquisitions by us may involve the following:
 
 
use of significant amounts of cash and cash equivalents;

 
potentially dilutive issuances of equity securities; and

 
incurrence of debt or amortization expenses related to intangible assets with definitive lives.

In addition, acquisitions involve numerous other risks, including:

 
diversion of management’s attention from other business concerns;

 
risks of entering markets in which we have no or limited prior experience; and

 
unanticipated expenses and operational disruptions while acquiring and integrating new acquisitions.
 
From time to time, we have engaged in discussions with third parties concerning potential acquisitions of product lines, technologies and businesses. We currently have no commitments or agreements with respect to any such acquisition. If such an acquisition does occur, we cannot be certain that our business, operating results and financial condition will not be materially adversely affected or that we will realize the anticipated benefits of the acquisition.

We have made, and may continue to make, investments in development stage companies, which may not produce any returns for us in the future.

From time to time we have made investments in early stage venture-backed, start-up companies that develop technologies that are complementary to our product roadmap.  In April 2003, we made an initial investment in Opulan Technologies Corp. (Opulan). Opulan develops high performance and cost-effective IP convergence ASSPs from its development facility in Shanghai, China.  We plan to continue to use our cash to make selected investments in these types of companies. Certain companies in which we invested in the past have failed, and we have lost our entire investment in them. These investments involve all the risks normally associated with investments in development stage companies. As such, there can be no assurance that we will receive a favorable return on these or any future venture-backed investments that we may make. Additionally, our original and any future investments may continue to become impaired if these companies do not succeed in the execution of their business plans. Any further impairment or equity losses in these investments could negatively impact our future operating results.
 
 
25

 

We could be subject to class action litigation due to stock price volatility, which if it occurs, will distract our management and could result in substantial costs or large judgments against us.

In the past, securities and class action litigation has often been brought against companies following periods of volatility in the market prices of their securities. We may be the target of similar litigation in the future. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and divert our management’s attention and resources, which could cause serious harm to our business, operating results and financial condition or dilution to our stockholders.

Provisions of our certificate of incorporation, by-laws, stockholder rights plan and Delaware law may discourage takeover offers and may limit the price investors would be willing to pay for our common stock.

Delaware corporate law contains, and our certificate of incorporation and by-laws and shareholder rights plan contain, certain provisions that could have the effect of delaying, deferring or preventing a change in control of our Company even if a change of control would be beneficial to our stockholders. These provisions could limit the price that certain investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our common stock. Certain of these provisions:
 
 
authorize the issuance of “blank check” preferred stock (preferred stock which our Board of Directors can create and issue without prior stockholder approval) with rights senior to those of common stock;

 
prohibit stockholder action by written consent;

 
establish advance notice requirements for submitting nominations for election to the Board of Directors and for proposing matters that can be acted upon by stockholders at a meeting; and

 
dilute stockholders who acquire more than 15% of our common stock.
 
Natural disasters or acts of terrorism affecting our locations, or those of our suppliers, in the United States or internationally may negatively impact our business.

We operate our businesses in the United States and internationally, including the operation of a design center in India, and sales, design and engineering operations in Israel.  Some of the countries in which we operate or in which our customers are located have in the past been subject to terrorist acts and could continue to be subject to acts of terrorism.  In addition, some of these areas may be subject to natural disasters, such as earthquakes or floods.  If our facilities, or those of our suppliers or customers, are affected by a natural disaster or terrorist act, our employees could be injured and those facilities damaged, which could lead to loss of skill sets and affect the development or fabrication of our products, which could lead to lower short and long-term revenues. In addition, natural disasters or terrorist acts in the areas in which we operate or in which our customers or suppliers operate could lead to delays or loss of business opportunities, as well as changes in security and operations at those locations, which could increase our operating costs.

Our ability to sublease excess office space may adversely affect our future cash outflows.

          We have outstanding operating lease commitments of approximately $28.0 million, payable over the next eight years. Some of these commitments are for space that is not being utilized and, for which, we recorded restructuring charges in prior periods. We are in the process of trying to sublease additional excess space but it is unlikely that any sublease income generated will offset the entire future commitment. As of December 31, 2009, we have sublease agreements totaling approximately $12.0 million to rent portions of our excess facilities over the next five years. We currently believe that we can fund these lease commitments in the future; however, there can be no assurances that we will not be required to seek additional capital or provide additional guarantees or collateral on these obligations.
 
 
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Of the office space being leased in our Shelton, Connecticut location, as of December 31, 2009 approximately 118,335 square feet is considered excess for which we have taken restructuring charges in prior years. Substantially all of this space is currently being sublet, but not for the full term that we are committed to under our lease agreements. If we are unable to re-lease this space, at similar rates, our future cash outflows would be adversely affected.

Our business could be harmed if we fail to integrate future acquisitions adequately.

During the past four years, we have acquired three companies, one based in the United States and two in Israel.

Our management must devote time and resources to the integration of the operations of any future acquisitions. The process of integrating research and development initiatives, computer and accounting systems and other aspects of the operations of any future acquisitions presents a significant challenge to our management. This is compounded by the challenge of simultaneously managing a larger and more geographically dispersed entity.

Future acquisitions could present a number of additional difficulties of integration, including:
 
 
difficulties in integrating personnel with disparate business backgrounds and cultures;

 
difficulties in defining and executing a comprehensive product strategy; and

 
difficulties in minimizing the loss of key employees of the acquired company.

If we delay integrating or fail to integrate operations or experience other unforeseen difficulties, the integration process may require a disproportionate amount of our management’s attention and financial and other resources. Our failure to address these difficulties adequately could harm our business or financial results, and we could fail to realize the anticipated benefits of the transaction.

We have in the past, as a result of industry conditions, later discontinued or abandoned certain product lines acquired through prior acquisitions.

Item 1B.  Unresolved Staff Comments

Not applicable.

 
27

 

Item 2.   Properties

Our headquarters is located in a suburban office park in Shelton, Connecticut. We have additional sales offices and design centers located throughout the world. The following is a summary of our material offices and locations for which we have lease commitments:
 
Location
 
Business Use
 
Square
Footage
 
Lease
Expiration Dates
               
Shelton, Connecticut
 
Corporation Headquarters, Product Development, Operations, Sales, Marketing and Administration
    18,561  
November 2012
               
Herzeliya, Israel
 
Product Development, Sales & Service
    9,688  
Less than 1 Year
               
New Delhi, India
 
Product Development
    16,804  
January 2015
               
Fremont, California
 
Product Development, Sales, Marketing and Administration
    12,500  
February 2011
               
Bangalore, India
 
Product Development
    12,378  
February 2014
               
Excess property:
             
               
Fremont, California
 
Available for Lease
    91,500  
February 2011
               
Shelton, Connecticut
 
Available for Lease
    118,335  
November 2012—April 2017

Internationally, we lease space in Japan, China, Taiwan, France and South Korea for sales offices. Our current facilities are adequate for our needs.

Refer to Note 17—Commitments and Contingencies of our Consolidated Financial Statements for additional disclosures regarding our commitments under lease obligations. Also, refer to Note 16—Restructuring and Asset Impairment Charges in our Consolidated Financial Statements regarding our restructuring charges during fiscal years 2007 through 2009 as we have recorded charges for future rent payments relating to excess office space.

Item 3.    Legal Proceedings

We are not party to any material litigation proceedings.

From time to time, we may be subject to other legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of business. We are not currently aware of any such proceedings or claims that we believe will have, individually or in the aggregate, a material adverse effect on the business, financial condition or results of our operations.

Item 4.    Reserved

 
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PART II

Item 5.     Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
 
Our common stock is traded under the symbol “TXCC” on The Nasdaq Capital Market. The following table sets forth, for the periods indicated, the range of high and low closing prices for our common stock. The closing prices indicated reflect the 1 for 8 reverse stock split that was effected on November 23, 2009.

   
High
   
Low
 
             
Quarter to date
           
             
First Quarter (through March 12, 2010)
  $ 3.34     $ 1.52  
                 
Year ended December 31, 2009
               
First Quarter
  $ 4.00     $ 1.60  
Second Quarter
  $ 4.16     $ 2.40  
Third Quarter
  $ 6.00     $ 3.36  
Fourth Quarter
  $ 5.68     $ 1.66  
                 
Year ended December 31, 2008
               
First Quarter
  $ 7.04     $ 4.80  
Second Quarter
  $ 7.36     $ 4.88  
Third Quarter
  $ 8.96     $ 4.00  
Fourth Quarter
  $ 4.00     $ 2.08  
 
As of March 2, 2010, there were approximately 135 holders of record and approximately 16,107 beneficial shareholders of our common stock.

We have never paid cash dividends on our common stock. We currently do not anticipate paying any cash dividend in the foreseeable future. Any future declaration and payment of dividends will be subject to the discretion of our Board of Directors, will be subject to applicable law and will depend upon our results of operations, earnings, financial condition, contractual limitations, cash requirements, future prospects and any other factors deemed relevant by our Board of Directors.

We also have securities authorized for issuance under equity compensation plans. The following table provides information as of December 31, 2009 with respect to shares of our common stock that may be issued under our existing equity compensation plans, including our 1995 Fourth Amended and Restated Stock Plan (the “1995 Plan”), our 2000 Stock Option Plan (the “2000 Plan”), the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (the “2008 Plan”), the 1995 Non-Employee Director Stock Option Plan (the “Non-Employee Director Plan”), the 2005 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the “Purchase Plan”) and the 1999 Stock Incentive Plan of Onex Communications Corporation (the “Onex Plan”). As of May 22, 2008, no shares are available for grant under our 1995 Plan or 2000 Plan.

Plan Category
 
Number of
Securities to be
Issued upon
Exercise of
Outstanding
Options, Warrants
and Rights
   
Weighted
Average
Exercise Price
of Outstanding
Options,
Warrants and
Rights
   
Number of Securities
Remaining Available
for
Future Issuance
Under
Equity
Compensation
Plans (excluding
Securities reflected
in Column (a))
 
   
(a)
   
(b)
   
(c)
 
Equity Compensation Plans Approved by Stockholders (1)
    2,674,014 (3)(4)   $ 9.55 (3)     1,211,752  
Equity Compensation Plans Not Approved by Stockholders (2)
    377,129     $ 10.41       -  
Total
    3,051,143     $ 9.65       1,211,752  
 
 
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(1) 
Consists of the 1995 Plan, the 2008 Plan, and the Purchase Plan.
(2) 
Consists of the 2000 Plan and shares subject to outstanding options granted under equity compensation plans assumed by us in connection with   mergers and acquisitions of the companies which originally granted those options. No additional options may be granted under the assumed plans.
(3) 
Excludes purchase rights accruing under the Purchase Plan which has a stockholder-approved reserve of 125,000 shares. Under the Purchase Plan, each eligible employee is able to purchase up to 1,250 shares of our common stock at semi-annual intervals each year at a purchase price per share equal to 85% of the lower of the fair market value of our common stock on the first or last trading day of a purchase period.
(4) 
Includes restricted stock units of 571,182. These awards have no strike price and are issued from our 2008 Plan.
 
Equity Compensation Plans Not Approved by Stockholders

2000 Stock Option Plan. The purpose of the 2000 Plan adopted by our Board of Directors on July 14, 2000 and amended on December 21, 2001, was to promote our long-term success, by providing financial incentives to employees and consultants of the Company who are in positions to make significant contributions toward such success except that no member of our Board of Directors or officer of the Company appointed by the Board of Directors shall be eligible for grants of options under the 2000 Plan. The 2000 Plan is designed to attract individuals of outstanding ability to become or to continue as employees or consultants, to enable such individuals to acquire or increase proprietary through the ownership of shares of our Common Stock, and to render superior performance during their associations with us, by providing opportunities to participate in the ownership of our future growth through the granting of NQSOs. The 2000 Plan is administered by our Board of Directors or, at its option, a committee appointed by our Board of Directors. A total of 1,250,000 shares of common stock were reserved for issuance under the 2000 Plan. In April 2008, our Board of Directors determined that no further awards would be made under this plan and that all remaining 303,379 shares available for issuance under the 2000 Plan that are not subject to outstanding stock option awards will be eligible for issuance under the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan.

1999 Stock Incentive Plan of Onex Communications Corporation. The purpose of the Onex Plan was to advance the interests of the shareholders by enhancing the Onex Communications Corporation’s ability to attract, retain and motivate persons who make (or are expected to make) important contributions to Onex Communications Corporation by providing those persons with opportunities for equity ownership and performance-based incentives and thereby to better align the interests of those persons with those of the shareholders. All of Onex Communications Corporation’s employees, officers, directors, consultants and advisors were eligible to be granted options, restricted, stock, or other stock-based awards under the Onex Plan. We assumed the Onex Plan in connection with our acquisition of Onex Communications Corporation in 2001. No additional awards may be granted under the Onex Plan.

 
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Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
 
On February 13, 2008, we announced that our Board of Directors authorized a stock repurchase program under which we may repurchase up to $10 million of our outstanding common stock.  The share repurchase program authorizes the repurchase of shares through February 2010, from time to time, through transactions in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions.  The number of shares to be purchased and the timing of the purchases will be based on market conditions and other factors.  The stock repurchase program does not require us to repurchase any specific dollar value or number of shares, and we may terminate the repurchase program at any time.
 
During the year ended December 31, 2009, we did not repurchase any shares.

 
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Item 6.    Selected Financial Data 
 
The following selected consolidated financial data should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related notes thereto and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” appearing in Item 7 of this Form 10-K. The selected consolidated statements of operations data as well as the selected consolidated balance sheets data presented below are derived from our consolidated financial statements.

   
Years ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
   
2006
   
2005
 
   
(Amounts presented in thousands, except per share amounts)
 
Selected Consolidated Statements of Operations Data:
                             
                               
Net revenues
  $ 56,107     $ 41,934     $ 32,565     $ 38,920     $ 32,900  
                                         
Gross profit
    31,484       23,894       20,171       28,174       23,984  
                                         
Operating loss
    (9,720 )     (19,774 )     (18,800 )     (11,136 )     (14,662 )
                                         
Net loss (1)
  $ (11,531 )   $ (17,046 )   $ (19,712 )   $ (10,856 )   $ (23,754 )
                                         
Basic and diluted net loss per common share
  $ (0.58 )   $ (0.99 )   $ (1.19 )   $ (0.70 )   $ (1.81 )
                                         
Shares used in calculation of basic and diluted net loss per common share
    19,938       17,260       16,566       15,600       13,097  

   
December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
   
2006
   
2005
 
Selected Consolidated Balance Sheets Data:
                             
Cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments
  $ 5,075     $ 15,284     $ 34,098     $ 57,723     $ 72,702  
Total current assets
    23,224       35,179       45,527       68,236       80,822  
Working capital
    (2,706 )     8,708       36,867       30,323       73,385  
Total non-current assets
    29,732       43,248       22,060       14,420       6,004  
Total assets
    52,956       78,427       67,587       82,656       86,826  
                                         
Convertible Notes due within one year, net of discount
    5,004                   28,811        
Derivative liability, current
                      980        
Total current liabilities
    25,930       26,471       8,660       37,913       7,437  
5.45% Convertible Plus Cash Notes due 2007, net of debt discount, long-term
                            49,102  
5.45% Convertible Notes due 2010, long-term
          10,013       25,013              
5.45% Convertible Notes due 2011, long-term
    3,758                          
Derivative liability, long-term
                            6,040  
Total non-current liabilities
    14,351       29,677       45,259       20,689       76,180  
Total stockholders’ equity
    12,675       22,279       13,668       24,054       3,209  
 
 
(1)
Effective January 1, 2006, we adopted FASB ASC Topic 718.  As such, the reported net loss for 2009, 2008, 2007 and 2006 reflects stock-based compensation expense of $1.3 million, $1.5 million, $2.0 million and $2.4 million, respectively.

 
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Item 7.
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
 
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Conditions and Results of Operations (MD&A) is provided to supplement the accompanying consolidated financial statements and notes in Item 8 to help provide an understanding of our financial condition, changes in our financial condition and results of operations. MD&A is organized as follows:
 
Caution concerning forward-looking statements.    This section discusses how certain forward-looking statements made by us throughout the MD&A are based on management’s present expectations about future events and are inherently susceptible to uncertainty and changes in circumstances.
 
Overview.    This section provides a general description of our business.
 
Critical accounting policies and use of estimates.    This section discusses those accounting policies that are both considered important to our financial condition and operating results and require significant judgment and estimates on the part of management in their application.
 
Results of operations.    This section provides an analysis of our results of operations for the years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007. In addition, a brief description is provided of transactions and events that impact the comparability of the results.
 
Liquidity and capital resources.    This section provides an analysis of our cash position and cash flows, as well as a discussion of our financing arrangements. In this section, we also summarize related party transactions and recent accounting pronouncements not yet adopted by us.
 
CAUTION CONCERNING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
 
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations contain forward-looking statements that involve risks and uncertainties. When used in this report, the words, “intend,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “estimate,” “plan,” “expect” and similar expressions as they relate to us are included to identify forward-looking statements. Our actual results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of factors, including those set forth under “Item 1A Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this report. You should read this discussion in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in this report.
 
OVERVIEW
 
TranSwitch designs, develops and markets innovative semiconductor solutions that provide core functionality for voice, data and video communications network equipment. We supply innovative highly-integrated semiconductor solutions that provide core functionality for communications network equipment which is supplied to the world-wide telecommunications industry.  In this market, TranSwitch offers a broad range of next-generation telecom products addressing both copper and fiber-based broadband access, optical transport, carrier Ethernet, and Voice-over-Internet Protocol (VoIP) applications. Also, we deliver standards-based products and technologies that enable the transmission and reception of high-speed, high-definition content and data to third-party semiconductor companies, consumer electronics manufacturers, and OEMs worldwide.  The standards that are supported today by these products include Fast Ethernet, Gigabit Ethernet, HDMI, and DisplayPort. Our customers are the original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) who supply wire-line and wireless network operators who provide voice, data and video services to end users such as consumers, corporations, municipalities, etc.  We have approximately 150 active customers, including the leading global equipment providers, and our products are deployed in the networks of the major service providers around the world.
 
TranSwitch is a Delaware corporation incorporated on April 26, 1988. Our common stock trades on The NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “TXCC.”
 
Our products and services are compliant with relevant communications network standards.  We offer several products that combine multi-protocol capabilities on a single chip, enabling our customers to develop network equipment for triple play (voice, data and video) applications. A key attribute of our products is their inherent flexibility. Many of our products incorporate embedded programmable micro-processors, enabling us to rapidly accommodate new customer requirements or evolving network standards by modifying the functionality of the device via software instructions.

 
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We bring value to our customers through our communications systems expertise, very large scale integration (“VLSI”) design skills and commitment to excellence in customer support. Our emphasis on technical innovation results in defining and developing products that permit our customers to achieve faster time-to-market and to develop communications systems that offer a host of benefits such as greater functionality, improved performance, lower power dissipation, reduced system size and cost, and greater reliability for their customers.

Our revenues were $56.1 million in 2009, $41.9 million in 2008 and $32.6 million in 2007.  Despite our revenues being depressed by our world-wide recession, we view 2009 as another successful year for us. During 2009 we completed our integration of our acquisition of Centillium and further diversified our product portfolio to include rapidly growing Fiber-to-the-Home (FTTH) and VoIP solutions. The combination strengthens our leadership position in the next-generation communications semiconductor market. The combined companies will have greater scale, a significantly improved expense structure and a truly global reach. In addition to growing our revenue streams, we are focusing on improving our gross margin both by reducing costs on lower margin products and working to increase sales of higher margin products.

We continued our move toward profitability by reducing our operating loss from 2008 and 2007 both in dollar amount and as a percentage of revenue. This was achieved through strict cost control measures and the implementation of a force reduction plan in both TranSwitch and Centillium.  In the fourth quarter of 2008, we were also able to enter into an agreement with certain holders of our 2010 Notes to purchase $15.0 million of the aggregate principal amount for $9.9 million in cash, plus accrued and unpaid interest. This enabled us to reduce our long-term debt by 60% and also realize a $4.5 million gain. In the fourth quarter of 2009, we entered into an agreement with our note holders to exchange the remaining $10 million of 2010 notes for an equal aggregate principal amount of new 5.45% notes maturing in September of 2011. These 2011 notes call for monthly principal and interest payments that could, under certain conditions, be paid in our stock.

On December 31, 2009, we entered into a Common Stock Purchase Agreement with Seaside 88, LP, a Florida limited partnership (“Seaside”), relating to the offering and sale of up to 1,950,000 shares of our common stock.  The Common Stock Purchase Agreement requires us to issue and sell, and Seaside to purchase, up to 75,000 shares of Common Stock once every two (2) weeks, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, beginning on January 4, 2010 and ending on or about the date that is fifty (50) weeks subsequent to that initial closing.  Such offering and sale is made pursuant to our shelf registration statement on Form S-3 (File No. 333-162609), which was declared effective by the SEC on October 28, 2009.  The offering price of the Common Stock at each closing is an amount equal to the lower of (i) the daily volume weighted average of actual trading prices of the Common Stock on the trading market (the “VWAP”) for the ten consecutive trading days immediately prior to a closing date multiplied by 0.875 and (ii) the VWAP for the trading day immediately prior to a closing date multiplied by 0.90.  In the event that the 3-Day VWAP, as defined in the Common Stock Purchase Agreement, does not equal or exceed $1.00 (the “Floor”), as calculated with respect to any subsequent closing date, then such subsequent closing will not occur, and there will be one fewer subsequent closing and the aggregate number of Shares to be purchased under the Common Stock Purchase Agreement will be reduced by 75,000 shares for each subsequent closing that does not occur because the Floor has not been reached.  We have agreed to indemnify and hold harmless Seaside against certain liabilities in connection with the issuance and sale of the shares of our common stock under the Common Stock Purchase Agreement.  The price per share for the initial Closing was $1.6025, and we raised gross proceeds of approximately $120,000 at such closing, before estimated offering expenses of approximately $33,545.  Proceeds from subsequent closings are dependent on the VWAP calculations as provided above. 
 
CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND USE OF ESTIMATES
 
Our consolidated financial statements and related disclosures, which are prepared to conform with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (U.S. GAAP), require us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues and expenses during the period reported. We are also required to disclose amounts of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements. Our actual results in future periods could differ from those estimates and assumptions. Estimates and assumptions are reviewed periodically, and the effects of revisions are reflected in the consolidated financial statements in the period they are determined to be necessary.

 
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We consider the most critical accounting policies and uses of estimates in our consolidated financial statements to be those relating to:
 
(1) recognizing net revenues, cost of revenues and gross profit;
 
(2) estimating allowances for doubtful accounts;
 
(3) estimating the derivative liability associated with our 5.45% Convertible Plus Cash Notes due 2007;
 
(4) estimating assumptions used in the calculation of stock-based compensation;
 
(5) estimating values for goodwill and long-lived assets;
 
(6) estimating excess inventories;
 
(7) estimating restructuring liabilities; and
 
(8) estimating values of investments in non-publicly traded companies.
 
These accounting policies, the bases for these estimates and their potential impact to our consolidated financial statements, should any of these estimates change, are further described as follows:
 
Net Revenues, Cost of Revenues and Gross Profit.    Net revenues are primarily comprised of product shipments, principally to domestic and international telecommunications and data communications OEMs and to distributors. Net revenues from product sales are recognized at the time of product shipment when the following criteria are met: (1) persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists; (2) title and risk of loss transfers to the customer; (3) the selling price is fixed or determinable; and (4) collectability is reasonably assured. Agreements with certain distributors provide price protection and return and allowance rights. With respect to recognizing revenues from our distributors: (1) the prices are fixed at the date of shipment from our facilities; (2) payment is not contractually or otherwise excused until the product is resold; (3) we do not have any obligations for future performance relating to the resale of the product; and (4) the amount of future returns, allowances, refunds and costs to be incurred can be reasonably estimated and are accrued at the time of shipment. Service revenues are recognized when the following criteria are met: (1) persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists; (2) we have performed a service in accordance with our contractual obligations; (3) the fee is fixed or determinable; and (4) collectability is reasonably assured.
 
At the time of shipment, we record a reduction to revenue (with a related liability) to accrue for future price protection. This liability is established based on historical experience, contractually agreed-to provisions and future shipment forecasts. Such accruals have been insignificant for the last three years.
 
We also accrue, at the time of shipment, a reduction to revenue (with a related liability) and an inventory asset against product cost of revenues in order to establish a provision for the gross margin related to future returns under our distributor stock rotation program. Such accruals related to reductions of revenue were $0.6 million and less than $0.1 million at December 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively.  The accruals related to inventory assets are insignificant to our financial position and results of operations for all periods presented.  Should our actual experience differ from our estimated liabilities, there could be adjustments (either favorable or unfavorable) to our net revenues, cost of revenues and gross profits.
 
We warranty our products for up to one year from the date of shipment. Warranty expense is insignificant to all periods presented.

We license HDMI and other intellectual property.  Revenues from licensing arrangements generally consist of multiple elements such as license, implementation and maintenance services. The items (deliverables) included in the arrangements are evaluated to determine whether they represent separate units of accounting. We perform this evaluation at the inception of an arrangement and as we deliver each item in the arrangement.

            Generally, we account for a deliverable (or a group of deliverables) separately if (1) the delivered item(s) has standalone value to the customer, (2) there is objective and reliable evidence of the fair value of the undelivered items included in the arrangement, and (3) if we have given the customer a general right of return relative to the delivered items, delivery or performance of the undelivered items or services are probable and substantially in our control.

 
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We also recognize revenue from royalties upon notification of sale by our licensees. The terms of the royalty agreements generally require licensees to give us notification and to pay royalties within 45 days of the end of the quarter during which the sales by the licensees take place.
 
Estimated Allowances for Doubtful Accounts.  We record allowances for doubtful accounts for estimated losses based upon specifically identified amounts that we believe to be uncollectible along with our assessment of the general financial condition of our customer base. If our actual collections experience changes, revisions to our allowances may be required. We have a limited number of customers with individually large amounts due at any given balance sheet date. Any unanticipated change in one of those customers’ creditworthiness or other matters affecting the collectibility of amounts due from such customers could have a material effect on our results of operations in the period in which such changes or events occur.
 
Derivative Liability Associated with our 5.45% Convertible Plus Cash Notes due 2007.  The holder’s conversion right contained in the terms governing our 5.45% Convertible Plus Cash Notes due 2007 (the “Plus Cash Notes”) was not clearly and closely related to the characteristics of the Plus Cash Notes upon issuance. Accordingly, this feature qualified as an embedded derivative instrument and, because it does not qualify for any scope exception, it is required to be accounted for separately from the debt instrument and recorded as a derivative financial instrument.
 
During the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, there were no Plus Cash Notes outstanding. During the year ended December 31, 2007, we recorded other income of $1.0 million all of which related to the holder’s conversion right, to reflect the change in fair value of our derivative liability.
 
We adjust the derivative financial instruments to their estimated fair value and analyze the instruments to determine their classification as a liability or equity. As of December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007, the estimated fair value of our derivative liability was zero as these Plus Cash Notes due 2007 were no longer outstanding. On July 6, 2007, the Company exchanged approximately $21.2 million aggregate principal amount of its outstanding Plus Cash Notes for an equivalent principal amount of a new series of 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2010 (the “2010 Notes”).  The remaining $8.9 million balance of the Plus Cash Notes was redeemed at par value at the end of September, 2007.  The 2010 Notes were subsequently exchanged in October 2009 for an equivalent principal amount of 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2011.  The estimated fair value of the holder’s conversion right was determined using a lattice (trinomial) option-pricing model, while it was estimated.
 
Stock-based Compensation.  Determining the amount of stock-based compensation for awards granted includes selecting an appropriate model to calculate fair value at the grant date. We have used the Black-Scholes option valuation model to value employee stock option awards. Certain inputs to this valuation model require considerable judgment. These inputs include estimating the volatility of our stock, the expected life of the option awarded and the forfeiture rate. We have estimated volatility, the expected life and the forfeiture rate based on historical data. Volatility is estimated over a term that approximates the expected life of the option awarded.
 
Goodwill and Long-Lived Assets.   Our goodwill is tested for impairment annually or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the asset might be impaired.  We perform impairment reviews using a fair-value method and discounted cash flow models with estimated cash flows based on internal forecasts which include terminal values based on current market valuation metrics.  The fair value represents the amount at which a reporting unit could be bought or sold in a current transaction between willing parties on an arms-length basis.  In estimating fair value, we use our common stock’s market price to determine fair value and other valuation metrics. The estimated fair value is then compared with the carrying amount of the reporting unit, including goodwill.  In addition, we perform discounted cash flow analysis on the entity to determine fair value.  We are subject to financial statement risk to the extent that the carrying amount exceeds the estimated fair value.
 
During the fourth quarter of 2009, impairment testing we performed indicated that the estimated fair values of two reporting units tested were less than their corresponding carrying amounts. As a result of the analyses performed, we recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $10.1 million. The impaired goodwill related to business acquisitions in 2007 and 2006.
 
Indefinite lived intangible assets are subject to annual impairment testing, as well.  On an annual basis, the fair value of the indefinite lived assets is evaluated by us to determine if an impairment charge is required. We have only nominal amounts of indefinite lived assets.

 
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We review long-lived assets for impairment when events or changes in business circumstances indicate the carrying amount of the assets may not be fully recoverable.  If such indicators are present, we perform undiscounted operating cash flow analyses to determine if impairment exists.  If impairment is determined to exist, any related impairment loss is calculated based on fair value.
 
A considerable amount of management judgment and assumptions are required in performing impairment tests.  While we believe that our judgments and assumptions were reasonable, different assumptions could change the estimated fair values and, therefore, additional impairment charges could be required.
 
Estimated Excess Inventories.     We periodically review our inventory levels to determine if inventory is stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value. The telecommunications and data communications industries have experienced a significant downturn during the past few years and, as a result, we have had to evaluate our inventory position based on known backlog of orders, projected sales and marketing forecasts, shipment activity and inventory held at our significant distributors.  We recorded charges for excess and obsolete inventories totaling approximately $0.7 million in 2009, $0.3 million in 2008 and $0.4 million in 2007.
 
During 2009, 2008 and 2007, we recorded net product revenues of approximately $3.0 million, $4.8 million and $3.5 million, respectively, on shipments of excess and obsolete inventory that had previously been written down to their estimated net realizable value of zero. This resulted in almost 100% gross margin on these product revenues. Had these products been sold at our historical average cost basis, gross margin on these revenues would have been 51%, 64% and 64% in 2009, 2008 and 2007 respectively. We currently do not anticipate that a significant amount of the excess and obsolete inventories subject to the write-downs described above will be used in the future based upon our current demand forecast. Should our actual future demand exceed the estimates that we used in writing down our excess and obsolete inventories, we will recognize a favorable impact to cost of revenues and gross profits. Should demand fall below our current expectations, we may record additional inventory write-downs which will result in a negative impact to cost of revenues and gross profits.
 
Estimated Restructuring Liabilities.    During 2009, we recorded net restructuring credits of $6.3 million related to new sublease agreements we entered into during 2009 for unused space in our Shelton, Connecticut location which were partially offset by charges related to workforce reductions and other restructuring adjustments. During 2008 and 2007, we recorded restructuring charges and asset impairments totaling $3.8 million and $1.5 million, respectively, related to employee termination benefits and costs to exit certain facilities, net of sub-lease benefits. At December 31, 2009 and 2008, the restructuring liabilities were $12.4 million and $25.4 million, respectively, on our consolidated balance sheets. Restructuring liabilities at December 31, 2009 include approximately $12.1 million of liabilities for facility lease costs (Refer to Note 16 – Restructuring and Asset Impairment Charges of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements). These facility operating leases expire in 2017. The future cash outlays for all of our operating lease commitments are discussed in Note 17 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.  Certain assumptions are used by us to derive this estimate, including future maintenance costs, price escalation and sublease income derived from these facilities. Should we negotiate additional sublease rental income agreements or reach a settlement with our lessors to be released from our existing obligations, we could realize a favorable benefit to our results of future operations. Should future lease, maintenance or other costs related to these facilities exceed our estimates, we could incur additional expenses in future periods.
 
Valuation of Investments in Non-Publicly Traded Companies.    Since 1999, we have been making strategic equity investments in non-publicly traded companies that develop technologies that are complementary to our product road map. Depending on our level of ownership and whether or not we have the ability to exercise significant influence, we account for these investments on either the cost or equity method, and review such investments periodically for impairment. The appropriate reductions in carrying values are recorded when, and if, necessary. The process of assessing whether a particular investment’s net realizable value is less than its carrying cost requires a significant amount of judgment. In making this judgment, we carefully consider the investee’s cash position, projected cash flows (both short and long-term), financing needs, most recent valuation data, the current investing environment, management / ownership changes, and competition. This evaluation process is based on information that we request from these privately held companies. This information is not subject to the same disclosure and audit requirements as the reports required of U.S. public companies, and as such, the reliability and accuracy of the data may vary. Based on our evaluations, we recorded impairment charges related to our investments in non-publicly traded companies of less than $0.1 million, zero and $0.1 million during 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively. The total investment in non-public companies was $3.0 million as of both December 31, 2009 and 2008. (For further discussion, please refer to Note 6. Investments in Non-Publicly Traded Companies and Venture Capital Funds in our Consolidated Financial Statements). We used the modified equity method of accounting to determine the impairment loss for certain investments, as it was determined that no better current evidence of the value of our cost method investments existed and we believe that this gives us the best basis for our estimate given the historic negative cash flows of these companies. The modified equity method of accounting results in recording an impairment loss on a cost method investment equal to the investor’s proportionate share of the investee’s losses as its contributed capital is consumed to fund operating losses of the investee from the inception of the investor’s investment.

 
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RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
 
The results of operations that follow should be read in conjunction with our critical accounting policies and estimates summarized above as well as our consolidated financial statements and notes thereto contained in Item 8 of this report. The following table sets forth certain consolidated statements of operations data as a percentage of net revenues for the periods indicated.

   
Years ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
Net revenues:
                 
Product revenues
    90 %     95 %     90 %
Service revenues
    10 %     5 %     10 %
                         
Total net revenues
    100 %     100 %     100 %
Cost of revenues:
                       
Product cost of revenues
    38 %     40 %     32 %
Provision for excess and obsolete inventories
    1 %     1 %     1 %
Service cost of revenues
    5 %     2 %     5 %
                         
Total cost of revenues
    44 %     43 %     38 %
                         
Gross profit
    56 %     57 %     62 %
                         
Operating expenses:
                       
Research and development
    34 %     58 %     67 %
Marketing and sales
    19 %     21 %     32 %
General and administrative
    14 %     16 %     17 %
Restructuring charge and asset impairment, net
    6 %     9 %     4 %
                         
Total operating expenses
    73 %     104 %     120 %
                         
Operating loss
    (17 )%     (47 )%     (58 )%

 
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Comparison of Fiscal Years 2009 and 2008
 
Net Revenues.   We have two product line categories: Network Infrastructure and Customer Premises Equipment (CPE). Our Network Infrastructure product lines include our Optical Transport, Carrier Ethernet, Media Gateway using VoIP Technology and Broadband Access product line technologies and other Non-Telecommunications products. The Optical Transport product line is incorporated into OEM systems that improve the efficiency of fiber optic networks and in the process increase the overall network capacity. Media gateway/VoIP products are used in carrier-class and enterprise-class media gateways and access gateways and used in residential gateway markets. The Broadband Access product line is incorporated into OEM systems that allow telecommunications service providers to transition their legacy voice networks to support next generation services such as voice, data and video. The Carrier Ethernet product line allows carriers to provide robust and differentiated services using Ethernet technology in their wide-area networks. The Non-Telecommunications product line consists of non-telecommunications ASIC products. Our CPE product line category includes Multi-Service Communications Processors used in broadband modems or to be added as part of a small office, home office, or SOHO, network and HDMI, DisplayPort and Ethernet IP Cores which have been incorporated into a number of consumer electronics and PC appliances.
 
The following table summarizes our net revenue mix by product line category:

(Tabular dollars in thousands)
 
Year Ended
December 31, 2009
   
Year Ended
December 31, 2008
       
    
Revenues
   
Percent of
Total
Revenues
   
Revenues
   
Percent of
Total
Revenues
   
Percentage
 Increase
(Decrease) in
Revenues
 
                               
Network Infrastructure
  $ 34,988       62 %   $ 34,932       83 %      
                                         
Customer Premises Equipment
    21,119       38 %     7,002       17 %     202 %
                                         
Total
  $ 56,107       100 %   $ 41,934       100 %     34 %
 
Total net revenues in 2009 were $56.1 million as compared to $41.9 million in 2008, an increase of $14.2 million or 34%.  Our product revenues for 2009 were $50.7 million, a 27% increase compared to 2008 and our service revenues which consist of design services performed for third parties on a contract basis and HDMI and technology licenses were $5.4 million, a 180% increase compared to 2008. The increase in net revenue for 2009 compared to 2008 includes approximately $21.9 million of increased sales as a result of the acquisition of Centillium in the fourth quarter of 2008.  This was partially offset by decreased revenues from some of our legacy products and our non-telecommunications ASIC products.
 
Our 2009 Network Infrastructure revenues of approximately $35.0 million were flat with 2008 revenues. These 2009 revenues included increased sales of our Entropia products which were offset by decreased sales of our non-telecommunications ASIC products and our E1Mx21 product. Our 2009 CPE revenues were approximately $21.1 million, a $14.1 million increase as compared to 2008 revenues. This increase was attributable to increased sales from our Atlanta and Mustang products.
 
For 2009 and 2008 international net revenues were approximately 70% and 85%, respectively, of net revenues.
 
As of December 31, 2009 our backlog was $11.3 million, as compared to $8.3 million as of December 31, 2008. Backlog represents firm orders anticipated to be shipped, and service revenue expected to be billed under existing contracts, during the next 12 months. Our business and, to a large extent, that of the entire communication semiconductor industry, is characterized by short-term order and shipment schedules. Since orders constituting our current backlog are subject to changes in delivery schedules or to cancellation at the option of the purchaser without significant penalty, backlog is not necessarily indicative of future revenues.

 
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Gross Profit.   Gross profit was $31.5 million and $23.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively. Gross profit increased by approximately $7.6 million for 2009 as compared to 2008 while the gross profit as a percentage of revenue decreased by approximately 1%.  This is a result of increased revenues from our newly acquired Centillium products.   
 
During the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, gross profit was affected favorably in the amount of $1.3 million and $1.6 million, respectively, from the sales of products that had previously been written down to a cost basis of zero. Also during the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, we recorded provisions for excess and obsolete inventories in the amount of $0.7 million and $0.3 million, respectively. These charges had a negative impact on our gross profit.
 
We anticipate that gross profit will continue to be impacted by fluctuations in the volume and mix of our product shipments as well as material costs, yield and the fixed cost absorption of our production operations.
 
Research and Development.    Research and development expenses consist primarily of salaries and related costs of employees engaged in research, design and development activities, costs related to electronic design automation tools, subcontracting and fabrication costs, depreciation and amortization and facilities expenses. Research and development expenses for 2009 were $19.1 million which decreased $5.4 million, or 22% as compared to the prior year. This decrease was a result of decreased depreciation for computer chip design tools and decreases in facilities costs and salaries and employee related costs as a result of workforce reductions and other cost cutting measures that were implemented in 2008 partially offset by increased expenses due to the acquisition of Centillium.
 
Marketing and Sales.    Marketing and sales expenses consist primarily of personnel-related expenses, trade shows, travel expenses and facilities expenses. Marketing and sales expenses for 2009 were $10.4 million which increased $1.6 million, or 18% as compared to the prior year. This increase was a result of increased commissions due to increased revenues and increased salaries, amortization of purchase accounting intangibles and other expenses due to the acquisition of Centillium.  These expense increases were partially offset by decreased employee related expenses as a result of workforce reductions and other cost cutting measures that were implemented in 2008.
 
General and Administrative.   General and administrative (G&A) expenses consist primarily of personnel-related expenses, professional and legal fees, and facilities expenses. G&A expenses were $8.0 million in 2009, an increase of approximately $1.4 million or 20% compared to the prior year.  The increase was a result of increased legal fees and other increased expenses due to the acquisition of Centillium.
 
Restructuring (Credits) Charges, net.   During the years ended December 31, 2009 and 2008, we recorded net restructuring credits of approximately $6.3 million and net restructuring charges of $3.8 million, respectively. Information on restructuring credits and charges for each of the last two years is located in Note 16 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
 
Impairment of Goodwill.   For 2009 and 2008, we recorded goodwill impairment charges of $10.1 million and zero, respectively. Information on the impairment of goodwill recorded during 2009 is located in Note 1 and Note 9 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
 
Change in Fair Value of the Derivative Liability.  For 2009 and 2008, we recorded other expense of zero and approximately $0.3 million, respectively, to reflect the change in the fair value of the derivative liabilities.
 
During the first quarter of 2008 we entered into a number of foreign exchange contracts to purchase Indian rupees to fund our India operations. For the year ended December 31, 2008, we recorded other expense of approximately $0.3 million to reflect the change in the fair value of these derivative financial instruments. There were no foreign exchange contracts outstanding at December 31, 2009 or December 31, 2008.
 
Gain/Loss on Extinguishment of Debt.   We had no gain or loss on the extinguishment of debt during 2009.  On December 24, 2008, we entered into an agreement with certain holders of our 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2010 (the “2010 Notes”) to purchase $15.0 million aggregate principal amount of the Notes for $9.9 million in cash, plus accrued and unpaid interest.  As a result of this transaction, we recorded a $4.5 million gain on the extinguishment of debt in 2008.

 
40

 
 
Interest Expense net.    Interest expense, net was approximately $0.7 million in 2009, a decrease of $0.3 million as compared to 2008.
 
Interest expense decreased from $1.9 million in 2008 to $0.8 million in 2009 due to lower debt balances resulting from the extinguishment of $15.0 million of our 2010 Notes during the fourth quarter of 2008 and payments made during 2009 on our 2011 Notes of approximately $1.2 million.
 
Interest income decreased from $0.9 million in 2008 to $0.1 million in 2009 as a result of lower market yields due to decreased interest rates and lower cash and investment balances. At December 31, 2009 and 2008, the effective interest rates on our interest-bearing securities were approximately 0.43% and 1.63%, respectively.
 
Income Tax Expense.  Our income tax expense of $0.4 million in 2009 and $0.5 million in 2008 is applicable to the operating results of certain of our foreign subsidiaries.  We have incurred significant taxable losses for U.S. federal and state purposes. We have not recognized any income tax benefits on those losses because their realization is uncertain.
 
Comparison of Fiscal Years 2008 and 2007
 
Net Revenues.   We have two product line categories: Network Infrastructure and Customer Premises Equipment (CPE). Our Network Infrastructure product lines include our Optical Transport, Carrier Ethernet, Media Gateway using VoIP Technology and Broadband Access product line technologies and other Non-Telecommunications products. The Optical Transport product line is incorporated into OEM systems that improve the efficiency of fiber optic networks and in the process increase the overall network capacity. Media gateway/VoIP products are used in carrier-class and enterprise-class media gateways and access gateways and used in residential gateway markets. The Broadband Access product line is incorporated into OEM systems that allow telecommunications service providers to transition their legacy voice networks to support next generation services such as voice, data and video. The Carrier Ethernet product line allows carriers to provide robust and differentiated services using Ethernet technology in their wide-area networks. The Non-Telecommunications product line consists of non-telecommunications ASIC products. Our CPE product line category includes Multi-Service Communications Processors  used in broadband modems or to be added as part of a small office, home office, or SOHO, network and HDMI, DisplayPort and Ethernet IP Cores which have been incorporated into a number of consumer electronics and PC appliances.  The following table summarizes our net revenue mix by product line category:

(Tabular dollars in thousands)
 
Year Ended
December 31, 2008
   
Year Ended
December 31, 2007
       
   
Revenues
   
Percent of
Total
Revenues
   
Revenues
   
Percent of
Total
Revenues
   
Percentage
 Increase
(Decrease) in
Revenues
 
                               
Network Infrastructure
  $ 34,932       83 %   $ 29,836       92 %     17 %
                                         
Customer Premises Equipment
    7,002       17 %     2,729       8 %     157 %
                                         
Total
  $ 41,934       100 %   $ 32,565       100 %     29 %
 
Total net revenues in 2008 were $41.9 million as compared to $32.6 million in 2007, an increase of $9.3 million or 29%.  Our product revenues for 2008 were $40.0 million, a 36% increase compared to 2007 and our service revenues which consist of design services performed for third parties on a contract basis and HDMI and technology licenses were $1.9 million, a 41% decrease compared to 2007. The increase in net revenue for 2008 compared to 2007 includes approximately $6.2 million of increased sales as a result of the acquisition of Centillium in the fourth quarter of 2008.

 
41

 
 
Our 2008 Network Infrastructure revenues were approximately $34.9 million, a $5.1 million increase as compared to 2007 revenues. These 2008 revenues included increased sales of our non-telecommunications ASIC products and our Entropia, L3M, E1Mx21 and ET family products which were offset by decreased sales of our ASPEN, ASPEN Express and CUBIT-PRO products. Our 2008 CPE revenues were approximately $7.0 million, a $4.3 million increase as compared to 2007 revenues. This increase was attributable to increased sales from our Apollo, Atlanta and Mustang products, which are new product lines from the acquisition of Centillium.
 
For 2008 and 2007 international net revenues were approximately 85% and 79%, respectively, of net revenues.
 
As of December 31, 2008 our backlog was $8.3 million, as compared to $4.6 million as of December 31, 2007. Backlog represents firm orders anticipated to be shipped, and service revenue expected to be billed under existing contracts, during the next 12 months. Our business and, to a large extent, that of the entire communication semiconductor industry, is characterized by short-term order and shipment schedules. Since orders constituting our current backlog are subject to changes in delivery schedules or to cancellation at the option of the purchaser without significant penalty, backlog is not necessarily indicative of future revenues.
 
Gross Profit.   Gross profit was $23.9 million and $20.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2008 and 2007, respectively. Gross profit increased by approximately $3.7 million for 2008 as compared to 2007 while the gross profit as a percentage of revenue decreased by approximately 5%.  This is a result of increased revenue from our lower margin ASIC and newly acquired Centillium products.   
 
During the years ended December 31, 2008 and 2007, gross profit was affected favorably in the amount of $1.6 million and $1.2 million, respectively, from the sales of products that had previously been written down to a cost basis of zero. Also during the years ended December 31, 2008 and 2007, we recorded provisions for excess and obsolete inventories in the amount of $0.3 million and $0.4 million, respectively. These charges had a negative impact on our gross profit.
 
We anticipate that gross profit will continue to be impacted by fluctuations in the volume and mix of our product shipments as well as material costs, yield and the fixed cost absorption of our production operations.
 
Research and Development.    Research and development expenses consist primarily of salaries and related costs of employees engaged in research, design and development activities, costs related to electronic design automation tools, subcontracting and fabrication costs, depreciation and amortization and facilities expenses. Research and development expenses for 2008 were $24.6 million which increased $2.9 million, or 13% as compared to the prior year.  This increase was a result of increased expenses due to the acquisition of Centillium and increased expenses due to our HDMI development program partially offset by decreased depreciation and amortization and decreases in salaries and subcontracting costs as a result of workforce reductions and other cost cutting measures that were implemented in 2007 and 2008.
 
Marketing and Sales.    Marketing and sales expenses consist primarily of personnel-related, trade show, travel and facilities expenses. Marketing and sales expenses for 2008 were $8.8 million which decreased $1.4 million, or 14% as compared to the prior year. These expense decreases were primarily from lower salaries and employee related expenses partially offset by increased marketing and sales expenses due to the acquisition of Centillium.
 
General and Administrative.   General and administrative (G&A) expenses consist primarily of personnel-related expenses, professional and legal fees, and facilities expenses. G&A expenses were $6.7 million in 2008, an increase of approximately $1.1 million or 19% compared to the prior year.  The increase was due to increased expenses due to the acquisition of Centillium.
 
Restructuring Charges.   We recorded restructuring charges of $3.8 million and $1.4 million for 2008 and 2007, respectively.  Information on restructuring charges and asset impairments for each of the last two years is located in Note 16 of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.

 
42

 
 
Change in Fair Value of the Derivative Liability.  For 2008 and 2007, we recorded other expense of approximately $0.3 million and other income of approximately $1.0 million, respectively, to reflect the change in the fair value of the derivative liabilities.
 
During the first quarter of 2008 we entered into a number of foreign exchange contracts to purchase Indian rupees to fund our India operations. For the year ended December 31, 2008, we recorded other expense of approximately $0.3 million to reflect the change in the fair value of these derivative financial instruments. There were no foreign exchange contracts outstanding at December 31, 2008.
 
For the year ended December 31, 2007, we recorded other income of approximately $1.0 million to reflect the change in the fair value of the derivative liability resulting from the 5.45% Convertible Plus Cash Notes due 2007 (“Plus Cash Notes”).   (Refer to Note 15 – Convertible Notes of the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements). There were no Plus Cash Notes outstanding at December 31, 2008 and 2007.
 
Gain/Loss on Extinguishment of Debt.  On December 24, 2008, we entered into an agreement with certain holders of our 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2010 (the “2010 Notes”) to purchase $15.0 million aggregate principal amount of the Notes for $9.9 million in cash, plus accrued and unpaid interest.  As a result of this transaction, we recorded a $4.5 million gain on the extinguishment of debt in 2008.
 
On July 6, 2007, we exchanged approximately $21.2 million aggregate principal amount of our outstanding Plus Cash Notes for an equivalent principal amount of the 2010 Notes.  As a result, we recognized a $0.4 million extinguishment loss in 2007.
 
Interest Expense net.  Interest expense, net decreased approximately $0.1 million to $1.0 million in 2008.
 
Interest expense decreased from $3.6 million in 2007 to $1.9 million in 2008 due to lower debt balances resulting from the exchanges of our Plus Cash Notes in 2007, the payment at maturity of the remaining outstanding Plus Cash Notes in 2007 and the elimination of the debt discount associated with the Plus Cash Notes during 2007.
 
Interest income decreased from $2.5 million in 2007 to $0.9 million in 2008 as a result of lower market yields due to decreased interest rates and lower cash and investment balances. At December 31, 2008 and 2007, the effective interest rates on our interest-bearing securities were approximately 1.63% and 4.70%, respectively.

Income Tax Expense.  Our income tax expense of $0.5 million in 2008 and $0.3 million in 2007 is applicable to the operating results of certain of our foreign subsidiaries.  We have incurred significant taxable losses for U.S. federal and state purposes. We have not recognized any income tax benefits on those losses because their realization is uncertain.
 
LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES
 
As of December 31, 2009, we had cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash and short-term investments of approximately $5.1 million compared to $15.3 million as of December 31, 2008. Further, our working capital was a negative ($2.7) million compared to $8.7 million last year. Our primary source of liquidity is cash, cash equivalents and a bank line of credit. We have used cash in our operating activities in each of the last three years, including $9.1 million in 2009, $18.5 million in 2008 and $12.8 million in 2007. During 2009 we reduced our notes payable from $10.0 million as of December 31, 2008 to $8.8 million as of December 31, 2009.
 
In the fourth quarter 2008, we implemented restructuring plans that included the elimination of approximately 76 positions, primarily in our Shelton, Connecticut, Bedford, Massachusetts, Fremont, California, Eclubens, Switzerland, New Delhi, India and Bangalore, India locations. We continued to reduce expenses in 2009 and in the first quarter of 2010 we implemented another restructuring plan that included the elimination of an additional 20 positions. We believe that we have reduced our anticipated operating expenses to the point where we can break even on an operating income basis, excluding stock compensation costs and amortization of purchase accounting intangibles, at the rate of $13.0 million in revenue per quarter.

 
43

 
 
Also, we intend to continue to assess our cost structure in relationship to our revenue levels and to make appropriate adjustments to expense levels as required. None-the-less we believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents and a bank financing facility will be sufficient to fund operating activities and capital expenditures, and provide adequate working capital through at least December 31, 2010.
 
If our existing resources and cash generated from operations are insufficient to satisfy liquidity requirements, we may seek to raise additional funds through public or private debt or equity financings.  The sale of equity or debt securities could result in additional dilution to our stockholders, could require us to pledge our intellectual property or other assets to secure the financing, or could impose restrictive covenants on us.  We cannot be certain that additional financing will be available in amounts or on terms acceptable to us, or at all.  If we are unable to obtain this additional financing, we may be required to reduce the scope of our planned product development and sales and marketing efforts, which could harm our business, financial condition and operating results, and/or cause us to sell assets or otherwise restructure our business to remain viable.
 
Commitments and Significant Contractual Obligations
 
In October of 2009, we exchanged approximately $10.0 million aggregate principal amount of our 2010 Notes due September 30, 2010 for an equal principal amount of new 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2011 (2011 Notes). We have existing commitments to make future interest payments on the 2011 Notes and to pay principal on a monthly basis until September 2011. Over the remaining life of the outstanding 2011 Notes, we expect to pay approximately $0.4 million in interest and $8.8 million of principal.
 
We have outstanding operating lease commitments of $28.0 million, payable over the next eight years. Some of these commitments are for space that is not being utilized and, for which, we recorded restructuring charges in prior years for excess facilities. We are in the process of trying to sublease additional excess space but it is unlikely that any sublease income generated will offset the entire future commitment. As of December 31, 2009, we have approximately $12.0 million in anticipated sub-lease income over the next five years relating to portions of our excess facilities. We currently believe that we can fund these lease commitments in the future. However, there can be no assurances that we will not be required to seek additional capital or provide additional guarantees or collateral on these obligations.
 
A summary of our significant future contractual obligations and their payments follows (in thousands):

   
Payments Due by Period
 
Contractual Obligations
 
Total
   
2010
   
2011 &
2012
   
2013 &
2014
   
Thereafter
 
Interest on convertible notes
  $ 438     $ 352     $ 86     $     $  
Principal on convertible notes
    8,762       5,004       3,758              
Operating lease obligations
    28,036       5,506       8,536       6,601       7,393  
Purchase obligations
    5,657       5,657                    
                                         
    $ 42,893     $ 16,519     $ 12,380     $ 6,601     $ 7,393  
 
 We also have pledged approximately $2.7 million as collateral for stand-by letters of credit that guarantee certain long-term property lease obligations and to support customer credit requirements. This $2.7 million is in our bank accounts and is included in our restricted cash as of December 31, 2009.
 
Recent Accounting Pronouncements
 
Newly issued accounting pronouncements that potentially impact our financial statements are disclosed in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements of this report.

 
44

 
 
Item 7A.    Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk 
 
Interest Rate Risk.  We have investments in money market accounts that earn interest income that is a function of the market rates. As a result, we have exposure to changes in interest rates. For example, if interest rates were to decrease by one half percentage point from their current levels, our potential interest income for 2010, assuming a constant cash balance, would decrease by less than $0.1 million.
 
Foreign Currency Exchange Risk.  As substantially all of our net revenues are currently made or denominated in U.S. dollars, a strengthening of the dollar could make our products less competitive in foreign markets. Although we recognize our revenues in U.S. dollars, we incur expenses in currencies other than U.S. dollars. In 2009, operating expenses incurred in foreign currencies, excluding impairment of goodwill, were approximately 58% of our total operating expenses. Although we have not experienced significant foreign exchange rate losses to date, we may in the future, especially to the extent that we do not engage in hedging.  We do not enter into derivative financial instruments for trading or speculative purposes. The economic impact of currency exchange rate movements on our operating results is complex because such changes are often linked to variability in real growth, inflation, interest rates, governmental actions and other factors. These changes, if material, may cause us to adjust our financing and operating strategies. Consequently, isolating the effect of changes in currency does not incorporate these other important economic factors.
 
Fair Market Value of Financial Instruments.  As of December 31, 2009, our debt consisted exclusively of convertible notes due September 30, 2011 with interest at a fixed rate of 5.45%. Consequently, we do not have significant cash flow exposure on the interest payments on these notes. However, the Company does have considerable exposure in the requirement to redeem these convertible notes between now and September 30, 2011.  There is no guarantee that the Company will have either enough cash to pay down this debt, or the ability to refinance this debt on terms acceptable to the Company.  The fair market value of our outstanding 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2011 was estimated based on current market conditions at approximately $8.8 million at December 31, 2009. Among other factors, changes in interest rates and the price of our common stock affect the fair value of our convertible notes. Refer to critical accounting policies and use of estimates in Item 7 - “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” for additional information associated with our 2010 Notes.

 
45

 
 
Item 8.    Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
INDEX TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULE
 
 
  
Page
     
Financial Statements:
  
 
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
  
47
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2009 and 2008
  
 49
Consolidated Statements of Operations for the years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007
  
50
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity and Comprehensive Loss for the years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007
  
51
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007
  
52
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
  
53
     
Financial Statement Schedule:
  
 
Schedule II, Valuation and Qualifying Accounts
  
75

 
46

 

REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM

To the Stockholders and Board of Directors
TranSwitch Corporation

We have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of TranSwitch Corporation and subsidiaries (the Company) as of December 31, 2009 and 2008, and the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders' equity and comprehensive loss, and cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2009.  Our audit also included the financial statement schedule listed in the Index at Item 8. We have also audited the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2009, based on the criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).  These financial statements and schedule are the responsibility of the Company's management.  Further, the Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting included in Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting under Item 9A. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on these financial statements and schedules, and an opinion on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audits.

We conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States).  Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement and whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audits of the financial statements included examining, on a test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant estimates made by management, and evaluating the overall financial statement presentation.  Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audits also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances.  We believe that our audits provide a reasonable basis for our opinions.

A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
 
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
 
In our opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the Company as of December 31, 2009 and 2008, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the years in the three-year period ended December 31, 2009 in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.  Also in our opinion, the related financial statement schedule, when considered in relation to the basic financial statements taken as a whole, presents fairly, in all material respects, the information set forth therein. Further, in our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2009, based on criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO).

 
47

 

As discussed in Note 12, the Company adopted, as required, new accounting standards for uncertain tax positions effective January 1, 2007.

/s/ UHY LLP
 
New Haven, Connecticut
March 16, 2010

 
48

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(dollars in thousands, except par value)

 
  
December 31,
2009
 
  
December 31,
2008
 
                 
ASSETS
  
             
                 
Current assets:
  
     
  
     
Cash and cash equivalents
  
$
2,343
 
  
$
 7,462
 
Restricted cash
   
2,732
     
4,852
 
Short-term investments
   
 -
     
2,970
 
Accounts receivable (net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $516 in 2009 and $536 in 2008)
  
 
11,667
 
  
 
 12,865
 
Inventories
  
 
4,183
 
  
 
4,504
 
Prepaid expenses and other current assets
  
 
2,299
 
  
 
2,526
 
 
  
     
  
     
Total current assets
  
 
23,224
 
  
 
35,179
 
                 
Property and equipment, net
  
 
1,268
 
  
 
2,029
 
Goodwill
  
 
14,144
 
  
 
25,079
 
Other intangible assets, net
   
9,840
     
11,454
 
Investments in non-publicly traded companies
  
 
2,989
 
  
 
2,963
 
Deferred financing costs, net
  
 
193
 
  
 
403
 
Other assets
  
 
1,298
 
  
 
1,320
 
 
  
     
  
     
Total assets
  
$
52,956
 
  
$
78,427
 
                 
LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
  
     
  
     
                 
Current liabilities:
  
     
  
     
Accounts payable
  
$
4,949
 
  
$
4,240
 
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
  
 
15,977
 
  
 
22,231
 
Current portion of 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2011
  
 
5,004
 
  
 
 -
 
 
  
     
  
     
Total current liabilities
  
 
25,930
 
  
 
26,471
 
                 
Restructuring liabilities
  
 
10,593
 
  
 
19,664
 
5.45% Convertible Notes due 2010
   
 -
     
10,013
 
5.45% Convertible Notes due 2011, less current portion
   
3,758
     
 -
 
 
  
     
  
     
Total liabilities
  
 
40,281
 
  
 
56,148
 
 
  
     
  
     
Commitments and contingencies
  
     
  
     
Stockholders’ equity:
  
     
  
     
Common stock, $.001 par value: authorized - 300,000,000 shares; issued - 20,012,521 shares at December 31, 2009 and 19,834,292 shares at December 31, 2008
  
 
20
 
  
 
20
 
Additional paid-in capital
  
 
382,935
 
  
 
381,523
 
Accumulated other comprehensive income – currency translation
  
 
551
 
  
 
36
 
Common stock held in treasury (20,794 shares), at cost
   
(118
)
   
(118
)
Accumulated deficit
  
 
(370,713
)
  
 
(359,182
)
 
  
     
  
     
Total stockholders’ equity
  
 
12,675
 
  
 
22,279
 
 
  
     
  
     
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity
  
$
52,956
 
  
$
78,427
 
 
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.

 
49

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
(in thousands, except per share data)
 
   
Years ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
                   
Net revenues:
                 
Product revenues
  $ 50,709     $ 40,003     $ 29,310  
Service revenues
    5,398       1,931       3,255  
                         
Total net revenues
    56,107       41,934       32,565  
Cost of revenues:
                       
Cost of product revenues
    21,393       16,730       10,514  
Provision for excess and obsolete inventories
    678       316       443  
Cost of service revenues
    2,552       994       1,437  
                         
Total cost of revenues
    24,623       18,040       12,394  
                         
Gross profit
    31,484       23,894       20,171  
Operating expenses:
                       
Research and development
    19,132       24,568       21,703  
Marketing and sales
    10,413       8,816       10,223  
General and administrative
    8,038       6,678       5,617  
Restructuring (credits) charges, net
    (6,257 )     3,804       1,428  
Impairment of goodwill
    10,075              
Reversal of accrued royalties
    (197 )     (198 )      
                         
Total operating expenses
    41,204       43,668       38,971  
                         
Operating loss
    (9,720 )     (19,774 )     (18,800 )
Other (expense) income:
                       
Other (expense) income
    (750 )     81        
Impairment of investments in non-publicly traded companies
    (31 )           (109 )
Change in fair value of derivative liability
          (347 )     980  
Gain (loss) on extinguishment of debt
          4,491       (351 )
Interest:
                       
Interest income
    122       934       2,457  
Interest expense
    (787 )     (1,941 )     (3,606 )
                         
Interest expense, net
    (665 )     (1,007 )     (1,149 )
                         
Total other (expense) income, net
    (1,446 )     3,218       (629 )
                         
Loss before income taxes
    (11,166 )     (16,556 )     (19,429 )
Income taxes
    365       490       283  
                         
Net loss
  $ (11,531 )   $ (17,046 )   $ (19,712 )
                         
Basic and diluted loss per common share:
                       
Net loss
  $ (0.58 )   $ (0.99 )   $ (1.19 )
                         
Basic and diluted average common shares outstanding
    19,938       17,260       16,566  
 
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.

 
50

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
AND COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
(dollars in thousands)

   
Common stock
   
Common
stock held in
treasury
   
Additional
paid-in
capital
   
Accumulated
other
comprehensive
income
   
Accumulated
Deficit
   
Total
 
   
Shares
   
Amount
                               
Balance at December 31, 2006
    16,014,152     $ 16     $     $ 346,058     $ 404     $ (322,424 )   $ 24,054  
                                                         
Comprehensive loss:
                                                       
Net loss
                                            (19,712 )     (19,712 )
Currency translation adjustment
                                    454             454  
                                                         
Total comprehensive loss
                                                    (19,258 )
                                                         
Stock compensation
    10,679                   1,980                   1,980  
Shares of common stock issued in connection with business acquisition
    468,339       1             5,544                   5,545  
Shares of common stock issued under stock option and stock purchase plans
    144,134                   1,347                   1,347  
                                                         
Balance at December 31, 2007
    16,637,304     $ 17     $     $ 354,929     $ 858     $ (342,136 )   $ 13,668  
                                                         
Comprehensive loss:
                                                       
Net loss
                                            (17,046 )     (17,046 )
Currency translation adjustment
                                    (822 )           (822 )
                                                         
Total comprehensive loss
                                                    (17,868 )
                                                         
Stock compensation
    49,136                   1,516                   1,516  
Shares of common stock issued in connection with business acquisition
    3,125,000       3             24,947                   24,950  
Shares of common stock issued under stock option and stock purchase plans
    22,852                   131                   131  
Repurchase of 20,794 shares of common stock
                (118 )                       (118 )
                                                         
Balance at December 31, 2008
    19,834,292     $ 20     $ (118 )   $ 381,523     $ 36     $ (359,182 )   $ 22,279  
                                                         
Comprehensive loss:
                                                       
Net loss
                                            (11,531 )     (11,531 )
Currency translation adjustment
                                    515             515  
                                                         
Total comprehensive loss
                                                    (11,016 )
                                                         
Stock compensation
    97,895                   1,305                   1,305  
Shares of common stock issued under stock option and stock purchase plans
    39,234                   108                   108  
Shares of common stock issued under restricted stock plan
    41,352                                      
Payout of fractional shares as a result of reverse stock split
    (252 )                 (1 )                 (1 )
                                                         
Balance at December 31, 2009
    20,012,521     $ 20     $ (118 )   $ 382,935     $ 551     $ (370,713 )   $ 12,675  
 
See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.

 
51

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(dollars in thousands)

   
Years ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
Operating activities:
                 
Net loss
  $ (11,531 )   $ (17,046 )   $ (19,712 )
Adjustments required to reconcile net loss to net cash flows used by operating activities, net of effects of acquisitions:
                       
Depreciation and amortization
    2,669       4,020       4,527  
Amortization of debt discount and deferred financing fees
    210       569       1,536  
(Gain) loss on extinguishment of debt
          (4,491 )     351  
(Benefit) provision for doubtful accounts
    (20 )     (87 )     150  
Provision for excess and obsolete inventories
    678       316       443  
Non-cash restructuring (credits) charges, net
    (6,257 )     3,762       1,428  
Stock-based compensation expense
    1,305       1,516       1,970  
Impairment of investments in non-publicly traded companies
    31             109  
Impairment of goodwill
    10,075              
Change in fair value of derivative liability
          179       (980 )
Loss on retirement of property and equipment
          74        
Reversal of accrued royalties
    (197 )     (198 )      
Other non-cash items
    26       15        
Changes in operating assets and liabilities:
                       
Accounts receivable
    1,218       (3,452 )     (1,166 )
Inventories
    (357 )     437       146  
Prepaid expenses and other assets
    248       505       (118 )
Accounts payable
    709       747       435  
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities
    (1,219 )     (2,131 )     (124 )
Obligation under deferred revenue
    (28 )     146       37  
Restructuring liabilities
    (6,682 )     (3,427 )     (1,793 )
                         
Net cash used by operating activities
    (9,122 )     (18,546 )     (12,761 )
                         
Investing activities:
                       
Capital expenditures
    (348 )     (592 )     (3,884 )
Investments in non-publicly traded companies
    (57 )     (65 )     (42 )
Acquisition of business, net of cash acquired
          7,369       (1,650 )
Change in restricted cash
    2,120       (2,286 )      
Purchases of short and long-term investments
          (10,630 )      
Proceeds from sales and maturities of short and long-term investments
    2,970       8,658        
                         
Net cash provided (used) by investing activities
    4,685       2,454       (5,576 )
                         
Financing activities:
                       
Issuance of common stock under employee stock plans
    108       131       1,346  
Payments to extinguish debt
          (9,900 )     (8,908 )
Principal payments on 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2011
    (1,251 )            
Proceeds from issuance of debt (net of fees)
                1,901  
Purchase of 20,794 shares of common stock for treasury
          (118 )      
                         
Net cash used by financing activities
    (1,143 )     (9,887 )     (5,661 )
                         
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents
    461       (657 )     373  
                         
Change in cash and cash equivalents
    (5,119 )     (26,636 )     (23,625 )
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year
    7,462       34,098       57,723  
                         
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year
  $ 2,343     $ 7,462     $ 34,098  

See accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.

 
52

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Note 1.    Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
 
Description of Business
 
TranSwitch Corporation was incorporated in Delaware on April 26, 1988 and is headquartered in Shelton, Connecticut. TranSwitch Corporation and its subsidiaries (collectively, “TranSwitch” or the “Company”) design, develop and supply innovative highly-integrated semiconductor solutions that provide core functionality for voice, data and video communications network equipment.  TranSwitch customers, for these semiconductor products, are the original equipment manufacturers (“OEMs”) who supply wire-line and wireless network operators who provide voice, data and video services to end users such as consumers, corporations, municipalities etc. The Company’s system-on-a-chip products incorporate digital and mixed-signal semiconductor technology and related embedded software. In addition to its system-on-a-chip products, the Company has been in the business of licensing intellectual property cores to both OEMs as well as other semiconductor companies. TranSwitch also licenses proprietary video interconnect technology that enables the transmission and reception of both HDMI and DisplayPort.
 
Principles of Consolidation
 
The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of TranSwitch Corporation and its subsidiaries. All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.
 
Use of Estimates
 
The preparation of financial statements and related disclosures in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and revenues and expenses during the period reported. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Estimates relate to uncollectable accounts receivable, excess or slow-moving or obsolete inventories, impairment of assets, product warranty allowances, depreciation and amortization, income taxes, sales returns and allowances, stock rotation allowances and contingencies. Estimates and assumptions are reviewed periodically, and the effects of revisions are reflected in the consolidated financial statements in the period they are determined to be necessary.
 
Liquidity

 The Company has incurred significant operating losses and used cash in its operating activities for the past several years. Operating losses have resulted from inadequate sales levels for the cost structure. The Company has made business acquisitions in each of the past three years prior to 2009 to increase revenue. In addition, in the fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2010, the Company executed restructurings to eliminate cost redundancies and enhance operating effectiveness. The Company’s management believes it now has an appropriate cost structure for its anticipated sales. Management believes that operating expenses have been reduced to the point where the Company can break even, excluding stock compensation costs and amortization of purchased intangibles, at the rate of sales of $13.0 million per quarter. As such, management believes that the Company will provide sufficient cash flows to fund its operations in the ordinary course of business through at least the next twelve months. There can be no assurance that the anticipated sales level will be achieved. In addition, the Company entered into a bank financing agreement which provides for $5,000,000 of borrowing capacity based on specified levels of eligible accounts receivable (see Note 20).

Cash, Cash Equivalents and Investments
 
All highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased are considered cash equivalents. Cash equivalents consist of money market funds as of December 31, 2009 and 2008. The majority of the Company’s cash and cash equivalents balances are maintained with a limited number of major financial institutions. Cash and cash equivalents balances at institutions may, at times, be above the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation insured limit of $0.25 million per account.
 
Short-term investments as of December 31, 2008 consist of government bonds which are all due within one year. Such investments are classified as held-to-maturity. Held-to-maturity securities are those securities which the Company has both the ability and intent to hold to maturity. Held-to-maturity securities are stated at amortized cost. Amortized cost and accrued interest as of December 31, 2008 approximate market value.

 
53

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
 
The carrying amounts for cash and cash equivalents, short-term investments, accounts receivable, and accounts payable approximate fair value. The fair value of the outstanding 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2011 was estimated at approximately $8.8 million as of December 31, 2009 based on current market conditions and the fair value of the outstanding 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2010 was estimated at approximately $6.6 million as of December 31, 2008 based on market conditions. The fair value of investments in non-publicly traded companies is not readily determinable.
 
Inventories
 
Inventories are carried at the lower of cost (determined on a weighted-average cost basis) or estimated net realizable value.
 
Product Licenses
 
All product licenses were fully amortized as of December 31, 2008. Prior thereto product licenses were amortized using the greater of: (1) the amount computed using the ratio of a product’s current gross revenues to the product’s total of current and estimated future gross revenues; or (2) the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of the asset, generally three to five years, not to exceed the term of the license.
 
Property and Equipment
 
Property and equipment are carried at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Any gain or loss resulting from sale or retirement is included in the consolidated statement of operations. Repairs and maintenance are expensed as incurred while renewals and betterments are capitalized.
 
Goodwill
 
Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of identifiable net assets of the business acquired. The Company reviews goodwill for potential impairment at least annually.
 
Other Intangible Assets
 
Other intangible assets consist of purchased customer relationships and developed technology and are stated at cost, less accumulated amortization. Customer relationships and developed technology are being amortized by the straight line method over their estimated economic useful lives ranging from five to ten years.
 
Deferred Financing Costs
 
Deferred financing costs are being amortized using the interest method over the term of the related debt. Unamortized deferred financing fees were $0.2 million and $0.4 million as of December 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively. Amortization, included in the consolidated statement of operations as a component of interest expense, was $0.2 million, $0.6 million, and $0.5 million for 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively.
 
Impairment of Intangibles and Long-Lived Assets
 
The Company reviews long-lived and intangible assets (including goodwill) for impairment at least annually, or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of such assets may not be recoverable. When factors indicate that a long-lived asset should be evaluated for possible impairment, an estimate of the related asset’s undiscounted future cash flows over the remaining life of the asset is made to measure whether the carrying value is recoverable. Any impairment is measured based upon the excess of the carrying value of the asset over its estimated fair value which is generally based on an estimate of future discounted cash flows. A significant amount of management judgment is used in estimating future discounted cash flows.

 
54

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
The Company’s impairment reviews of goodwill were performed using a fair-value method and discounted cash flow models with estimated cash flows based on internal forecasts which included terminal values based on current market valuation metrics. The fair value represents the amount at which a reporting unit could be bought or sold in a current transaction between willing parties on an arms-length basis. In estimating fair value, the Company used its common stock’s market price to determine fair value and other valuation metrics. In addition, the Company performed discounted cash flow analysis on the reporting units to determine fair value. During the fourth quarter of 2009, impairment testing performed by the Company indicated that the estimated fair values of two reporting units tested were less than their corresponding carrying amounts. As a result of the analyses performed, the Company recorded a goodwill impairment charge of $10.1 million. The impaired goodwill related to business acquisitions in 2007 and 2006.
 
Investments in Non-Publicly Traded Companies
 
The Company has minority investments in certain non-publicly traded companies. Depending on the Company’s level of ownership and whether or not the Company has the ability to exercise significant influence, these investments are accounted for by either the cost or equity method. All such investments as of December 31, 2009 and 2008 are accounted for by the cost method. These investments are reviewed periodically for impairment.
 
Revenue Recognition
 
Net revenues from product sales are recognized at the time of product shipment when the following criteria are met: (1) persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists; (2) ownership and risk of loss transfers to the customer; (3) the selling price is fixed or determinable; and (4) collectability is reasonably assured.
 
Agreements with certain distributors provide price protection and return and allowance rights. With respect to recognizing revenues from distributors: (1) the prices are fixed at the date of shipment from the Company’s facilities; (2) payment is not contractually or otherwise excused until the product is resold; (3) the Company does not have any obligations for future performance relating to the resale of the product; and (4) the amount of future returns, allowances, refunds and costs to be incurred can be reasonably estimated and are accrued at the time of shipment.
 
At the time of shipment, the Company records a reduction to revenue (with a related liability) to accrue for future price protection. This liability is established based on historical experience, contractually agreed-to provisions and future shipment forecasts. Such accruals have been insignificant for the last three years.
 
The Company also accrues, at the time of shipment, a reduction to revenue (with a related liability) and an inventory asset against product cost of revenues in order to establish a provision for the gross margin related to future returns under the Company’s distributor stock rotation program. Such accruals related to reductions of revenue were $0.6 million and less than $0.1 million at December 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively. The accruals related to inventory assets are insignificant to the Company’s financial position and results of operations for all periods presented. Should actual experience differ from estimated liabilities, there could be adjustments (either favorable or unfavorable) to the Company’s net revenues, cost of revenues and gross profits.
 
Service revenues are recognized when the following criteria are met: (1) persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists; (2) services have been performed in accordance with the contractual obligations; (3) the fee is fixed or determinable; and (4) collectability is reasonably assured.
 
 The Company licenses HDMI and other intellectual property. Revenues from licensing arrangements generally consist of multiple elements such as license, implementation and maintenance services. The items (deliverables) included in the arrangement are evaluated to determine whether they represent separate units of accounting. The Company performs this evaluation at the inception of an arrangement and as the Company delivers each item in the arrangement.
 
 Generally, the Company accounts for a deliverable (or a group of deliverables) separately if (1) the delivered item(s) has standalone value to the customer, (2) there is objective and reliable evidence of the fair value of the undelivered items included in the arrangement, and (3) if the Company has given the customer a general right of return relative to the delivered items, delivery or performance of the undelivered items or services are probable and substantially in the Company’s control.

 The Company recognizes revenue from royalties upon notification of sale by its licensees. The terms of the royalty agreements generally require licensees to give notification to the Company and to pay royalties within 45 days of the end of the quarter during which the sales by its licensees take place.

 
55

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Allowance for Doubtful Accounts
 
The Company records allowances for doubtful accounts for estimated losses based upon specifically identified amounts that it believes to be uncollectible along with the Company’s assessment of the general financial condition of its customer base. If the Company’s actual collections experience changes, revisions to its allowances may be required. The Company has a limited number of customers with individually large amounts due at any given balance sheet date. Any unanticipated change in one of those customers’ creditworthiness or other matters affecting the collectability of amounts due from such customers could have a material effect on the Company’s results of operations in the period in which such changes or events occur.
 
Concentrations of Credit Risk
 
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to significant concentrations of credit risk consist principally of cash and cash equivalents, and accounts receivable.
 
Cash and cash equivalents are held by high-quality financial institutions, thereby reducing credit risk concentrations. In addition, the Company limits the amount of credit exposure to any one financial institution.
 
At December 31, 2009 and 2008, approximately 57% and 53% of accounts receivable were due from five customers. The majority of the Company’s sales are to customers in the telecommunications and data communications industries. The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers and generally does not require collateral.
 
Supplier Concentrations
 
The Company relies on a limited number of suppliers for wafer fabrication capacity. In 2009 one outside wafer foundry supplied approximately 85% of our semiconductor wafer requirements. Although the Company would likely be able to find alternative manufacturing sources, the Company would experience substantial delays or interruptions in the shipment of products if these suppliers were to cease operations.
 
Product Warranties
 
The Company provides warranties on its products for up to one year from the date of shipment. A liability is recorded for estimated costs to be incurred under product warranties, which is based on various inputs including historical experience. Estimated warranty expense is recorded as cost of revenues as products are shipped. Product warranty costs are nominal for all periods presented.
 
Research and Development Costs
 
Research and development costs are expensed as incurred.
 
Income Taxes
 
Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and for operating loss and tax credit carry forwards. Deferred income tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred income tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. A valuation allowance is provided to the extent that it is more likely than not that the Company will not be able to utilize deferred income tax assets in the future.
 
Stock-Based Compensation
 
The Company recognizes share-based compensation expense for the fair value of the awards on the date granted on a straight-line basis over their vesting term.

 
56

 

 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Compensation expense is recognized only for share-based payments expected to vest. The Company estimates forfeitures at the date of grant based on the Company’s historical experience and future expectations.
 
As of December 31, 2009, the unrecognized stock-based compensation cost related to non-vested option awards was $0.7 million and such amount will be recognized in operations over a weighted average period of 2.06 years. As of December 31, 2009, the unrecognized stock-based compensation cost related to non-vested stock awards was $1.2 million and such amount will be recognized in operations over a weighted average period of 3.17 years.
 
Stock compensation charged to operations was $1.3 million in 2009, $1.5 million in 2008 and $2.0 million in 2007.
 
Loss Per Common Share
 
The basic and diluted loss per common share amount is based upon the weighted average common shares outstanding during the periods. All “in-the-money” stock options and shares issuable upon the conversion of the 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2010 and the 5.45% Convertible Notes due 2011 were anti-dilutive.
 
Foreign Currency Translation
 
Substantially all foreign subsidiaries use their local currency as their functional currency. Therefore, assets and liabilities of foreign subsidiaries are translated at exchange rates in effect at the balance sheet date and revenue and expense accounts are translated at average exchange rates during the year. The resulting translation adjustments are recorded in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss). Translation gains and losses related to monetary assets and liabilities denominated in a currency different from a subsidiary’s functional currency are included in the consolidated statements of operations.
 
Derivatives and Hedging Activities
 
Fluctuating foreign exchange rates may significantly impact the Company’s operating results and cash flows. During 2008, the Company periodically hedged forecasted foreign currency transactions related to certain operating expenses. All derivatives are recorded in the balance sheet at fair value. For a derivative designated as a fair value hedge, the effective portion of changes in the fair value of the derivative and of the hedged item attributable to the hedged risk are recognized in operations. For a derivative designated as a cash flow hedge, the effective portions of changes in the fair value of cash flow hedges are recorded in other comprehensive income. If the derivative used in an economic hedging activity is not designated in an accounting hedging relationship or if it becomes ineffective, changes in the fair value of the derivative are recognized in operations.
 
FASB Establishes Accounting Standards Codification
 
On September 30, 2009, the Company adopted Accounting Standards Update No. 2009-01, “Generally Accepted Accounting Principles” (ASC Topic 105), The FASB Accounting Standards Codification and the Hierarchy of Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (“the Codification” or “ASC”). The Codification combines the previous U.S. GAAP hierarchy which included four levels of authoritative accounting literature distributed among a number of different sources. The Codification does not by itself create new accounting standards but instead reorganizes thousands of pages of existing U.S. GAAP accounting rules into approximately 90 accounting topics. All existing accounting standard documents are superseded by the Codification and all other accounting literature not included in the Codification is now considered non-authoritative. The Codification explicitly recognizes the rules and interpretive releases of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) under federal securities laws as authoritative GAAP for SEC registrants. The Codification is now the single source of authoritative nongovernmental accounting standards in the U.S.
 
As a result of the Codification, the references to authoritative accounting pronouncements included herein in this Annual Report on Form 10-K now refer to the Codification topic section rather than a specific accounting rule as was past practice and all references to pre-codified U.S. GAAP have been removed from this Form 10-K. The adoption of the Codification had no effect on any reported amounts.

 
57

 

 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
 Recent Accounting Pronouncements
 
The Company continually assesses any new accounting pronouncements to determine their applicability to the Company. In the case where it is determined that a new accounting pronouncement effects the Company’s financial reporting, the Company undertakes a study to determine the consequence of the change to its financial reporting, and assures that there are proper controls in place to ascertain that the Company’s financials properly reflect the change. New pronouncements assessed by the Company are discussed below:

In December 2007, the FASB issued new guidance related to ASC Topic 810, “Accounting for Noncontrolling Interests” (ASC 810). ASC 810 clarifies the classification of noncontrolling interests in consolidated balance sheets and reporting transactions between the reporting entity and holders of noncontrolling interests. Under this statement, noncontrolling interests are considered equity and reported as an element of consolidated equity. Further, net income encompasses all consolidated subsidiaries with disclosure of the attribution of net income between controlling and noncontrolling interests. ASC 810 is effective prospectively for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008. Currently, there are no noncontrolling interests in any of the Company’s subsidiaries. The Company adopted this guidance on January 1, 2009 and it had no impact on its financial statements at the time of adoption.

In March 2008, the FASB issued new guidance related to ASC Topic 815, “Disclosures about Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities” (ASC 815), which requires additional disclosures about the objectives of using derivative instruments, the method by which the derivative instruments and related hedged items are accounted for under and its related interpretations, and the effect of derivative instruments and related hedged items on financial position, financial performance, and cash flows. ASC 815 also requires disclosure of the fair values of derivative instruments and their gains and losses in a tabular format. ASC 815 is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years and interim periods beginning after November 15, 2008, with early adoption encouraged. The Company adopted this guidance on January 1, 2009 and it had no impact on its financial statements at the time of adoption.

In April 2008, the FASB issued new guidance related to ASC Topic 350, “Intangibles – Goodwill and Other” (ASC 350), to improve the consistency between the useful life of a recognized intangible asset and the period of expected cash flows used to measure the fair value of the intangible asset. The new guidance amends the factors to be considered when developing renewal or extension assumptions that are used to estimate an intangible asset’s useful life. The guidance in the new staff position is to be applied prospectively to intangible assets acquired after December 31, 2008 and increases the disclosure requirements related to renewal or extension assumptions. The Company adopted this guidance on January 1, 2009 and it had no impact on its financial statements at the time of adoption.

In June 2008, the FASB ratified ASC 815, “Determining Whether an Instrument (or an Embedded Feature) Is Indexed to an Entity’s Own Stock”. ASC 815 provides that an entity should use a two step approach to evaluate whether an equity-linked financial instrument (or embedded feature) is indexed to its own stock, including evaluating the instrument’s contingent exercise and settlement provisions. It also clarifies on the impact of foreign currency denominated strike prices and market-based employee stock option valuation instruments on the evaluation. The Company adopted this guidance on January 1, 2009 and it had no impact on its financial statements at the time of adoption.

 In May 2009, the FASB issued FASB ASC Topic 855, “Subsequent Events Topic” (ASC 855). This standard is intended to establish general standards of accounting for and the disclosures of events that occur after the balance sheet date but before financial statements are issued or are available to be issued. ASC Topic 855 is effective for fiscal years and interim periods ended after June 15, 2009, to be applied prospectively. There was no financial reporting impact due to the adoption of this standard. The Company has evaluated subsequent events through March 16, 2010, the date of issuance of the consolidated financial position and results of operations.

 In October 2009, the FASB issued an update related to ASC Topic 605, “Revenue Recognition — Multiple Deliverable Revenue Arrangements” (ASC 605). This update removes the objective-and-reliable-evidence-of-fair-value criterion from the separation criteria used to determine whether an arrangement involving multiple deliverables contains more than one unit of accounting, replaces references to “fair value” with “selling price” to distinguish from the fair value measurements required under the “Fair Value Measurements and Disclosures” guidance, provides a hierarchy that entities must use to estimate the selling price, eliminates the use of the residual method for allocation, and expands the ongoing disclosure requirements. This update is effective for fiscal years beginning on or after June 15, 2010, and can be applied prospectively or retrospectively. The Company is currently evaluating the effect that adoption of this update will have, if any, on its consolidated financial statements.

 
58

 

 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

Note 2.    Fair Value Measurements

In September 2006, the FASB issued ASC Topic 820 “Fair Value Measurements” (ASC 820). The Company adopted ASC 820 as of January 1, 2008 for financial assets and liabilities only. The adoption of this statement did not have an impact on our results of operation, financial position or cash flow, but required additional disclosures. ASC 820 defines fair value, establishes a framework for measuring the fair value of assets and liabilities, and expands disclosure requirements regarding the fair value measurement. It does not expand the use of fair value measurements, but specifies a hierarchy of valuation techniques which requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs that may be used to measure fair value:

Level 1 – Quoted prices in active markets are available for identical assets and liabilities.

Level 2 – Observable inputs other than Level 1 prices such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data.
 
Level 3 – Unobservable inputs that reflect a reporting entity’s own assumptions about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or liability.
 
As of December 31, 2009, the Company’s financial assets included investments in non-publicly traded companies. The Company considers net realizable value for its investments in non-publicly traded companies for purposes of determining asset impairment losses. For the year ended December 31, 2009, impairment losses on investments in non-publicly traded companies were less than $0.1 million.

Note 3.     Reverse Stock Split

On November 9, 2009, the Company announced that its Board of Directors had approved the implementation of a one-for-eight reverse stock split of the Company's common stock. The reverse stock split, which was authorized by the stockholders at the Company's 2009 annual meeting of stockholders on May 21, 2009, took effect at 11:59 p.m. (Eastern time) on November 23, 2009 (the "Effective Time"). Retroactive restatement has been given to all share numbers in this report, and accordingly, all amounts including per share amounts are shown on a post-split basis.
 
Note 4.    Acquisitions

On October 24, 2008, the Company acquired Centillium Communications, Inc. (“Centillium), a Delaware corporation. Centillium was a global company with headquarters in Fremont, CA and delivered highly innovative communications processing technology. The acquisition was financed with the issuance of 3,125,000 shares of the Company’s common stock with an approximate fair value of $25.0 million and $15.0 million of cash. The Company incurred transaction costs of approximately $2.6 million which resulted in a total purchase price of approximately $42.6 million. In connection with the acquisition of Centillium, the Company implemented a worldwide reduction in Centillium’s workforce which was implemented and concluded during the fourth quarter of 2008 and the first quarter of 2009. As such, the Company to incurred cash expenditures of approximately $3.4 million primarily for employee related costs and such costs were added to the Company’s purchase price of Centillium and allocated to the net assets acquired. The results of operations of Centillium have been included in the Company's consolidated financial results from October 24, 2008. All significant inter-company balances and transactions have been eliminated. The acquisition was accounted for by the purchase method of accounting. The Company has allocated the cost to acquire Centillium to its identifiable tangible and intangible assets and liabilities, with the remaining amount classified as goodwill. None of the amount allocated to goodwill is expected to be deductible for income tax reporting purposes.

 
59

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

On January 11, 2007, the Company acquired the ASIC Design Center Division of Data – JCE, an Israel-based publicly held electronics components distribution company. The ASIC Design Center develops and sells customer-specific semiconductor products. The acquisition was financed with the issuance of 468,339 shares of the Company’s common stock with an approximate fair value of $5.5 million and $1.4 million of cash. The Company incurred transaction costs of approximately $0.3 million which resulted in a total purchase price of approximately $7.2 million. Under the earn-out provisions of the ASIC Design Center acquisition agreement, the Company may have been required to pay up to an additional $14.5 million in the form of TranSwitch common stock or cash, at its option, if the ASIC Design Center achieved stipulated revenue and operating profit for 2007. Such targets were not achieved. The results of operations of the ASIC Design Center have been included in the Company's consolidated financial results from January 11, 2007. All significant inter-company balances and transactions have been eliminated. The acquisition was accounted for by the purchase method of accounting. The Company has allocated the cost to acquire the ASIC Design Center to its identifiable tangible and intangible assets and liabilities, with the remaining amount classified as goodwill. None of the amount allocated to goodwill is expected to be deductible for income tax reporting purposes.
 
The total purchase price of the Company’s acquisitions has been allocated in the Company's consolidated financial statements as follows:

   
Centillium
2008
   
ASIC Design
Center
2007
 
Current assets
  $ 34,246     $ 400  
Property, plant and equipment
    709       36  
Long-term investments
    992        
Other intangible assets (1)
    10,600       1,756  
Goodwill
    15,004       5,183  
Obligation under deferred revenue
    (23 )       (180 )  
Accounts payable & accrued expenses
    (14,158 )        
Restructuring reserve
    (4,798 )      
Purchase price
    42,572       7,195  
Less:
               
Common stock issued
    (24,950 )       (5,545 )  
                 
Cash and cash equivalents acquired
    (24,991 )      
Net cash (provided by) used for acquisitions
  $ (7,369 )   $ 1,650  

(1)
The valuation of Centillium’s customer relationships of $7.8 million was determined based on their estimated fair value at the acquisition date. The excess earnings methodology of the income approach was the technique used to value such relationships. The value assigned to Centillium’s customer relationships is being amortized ratably over ten years, which represents the estimated average remaining useful life.

The valuation of developed technology of Centillium of $2.8 million was determined based on its estimated fair value at the acquisition date. A form of the income approach known as the relief-from-royalty method was the technique used to value developed technology. The developed technology is being amortized ratably over five to seven years, which represents the estimated average remaining useful life.
 
The valuation of existing customer relationships of the ASIC Design Center of $1.8 million was determined based on their estimated fair value at the acquisition date. The income approach, which includes an analysis of the cash flows and risks associated with achieving such cash flows, was the primary technique used to value such contracts. The value assigned to the ASIC contracts is generally being amortized ratably over five years, which represents the estimated contract average remaining useful life.

 
60

 

 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

Unaudited pro forma results for 2008 and 2007 assuming that Centillium was acquired as of January 1, 2007: Net revenues of $58.3 million and $48.4 million, respectively; net loss of $(31.3) million and $(46.5) million, respectively; and basic and diluted loss per common share of $(1.58) and $(2.36), respectively.
 
Note 5. Restricted Cash
 
At December 31, 2009, the Company’s liquidity is affected by restricted cash balances of approximately $2.7 million, which are included in current assets and are not available for general corporate use. The Company has pledged approximately $2.7 million of such cash as collateral for stand-by letters of credit that guarantee certain long-term property lease obligations and to support customer credit requirements.
 
At December 31, 2008, the Company had restricted cash balances of approximately $4.9 million. The Company pledged $3.1 million of cash as collateral for stand-by letters of credit that guaranteed certain long-term property lease obligations and to support customer credit requirements. The other $1.8 million of restricted cash was being held in escrow for one year as security for certain indemnification obligations of Centillium as a result of an asset sale agreement which Centillium had entered into in February of 2008.
 
Note 6.    Investments in Non-Publicly Traded Companies and Venture Capital Funds
 
The Company owns convertible preferred stock of Opulan Technologies Corp. (“Opulan”), a 3% limited partnership interest in Neurone II, a venture capital fund organized as a limited partnership and a 0.42% limited partnership interest in Munich Venture Partners Fund (“MVP”). The Company accounts for these investments at cost. The financial condition of these companies is subject to significant changes resulting from their operating performance and their ability to obtain financing. The Company continually evaluates its investments in these companies for impairment. In making this judgment, the Company considers the investee’s cash position, projected cash flows (both short and long-term), financing needs, most recent valuation data, the current investing environment, management/ownership changes, and competition. This evaluation process is based on information that the Company requests from these privately held companies. This information is not subject to the same disclosure and audit requirements as the reports required of U.S. public companies, and as such, the reliability and accuracy of the data may vary.
 
As of December 31, 2006, the Company’s cost method investments were approximately $3.0 million, $2.7 million of which was in Opulan and $0.3 million of which was in Neurone II.
 
During 2007, the Company made additional investments of less than $0.1 million and recognized an impairment of $0.1 million on its investment in Neurone II.
 
During 2008, the Company made additional investments of approximately $0.1 million in MVP.

During 2009, the Company made additional investments of less than $0.1 million and recognized an impairment of less than $0.1 million on its investment in Neurone II. As of December 31, 2009, the Company’s cost method investments were approximately $3.0 million.
 
Note 7.    Inventories
 
The components of inventories follow:

   
December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
 
Raw material
  $ 199     $ 315  
Work-in-process
    1,188       1,503  
Finished goods
    2,796       2,686  
Total inventories
  $ 4,183     $ 4,504  

 
61

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)

Note 8.    Property and Equipment, Net
 
The components of property and equipment follow:
 
 
Estimated
 
December 31,
 
 
Useful Lives
 
2009
   
2008
 
Purchased computer software
1-3 years
  $ 14,647     $ 28,200  
Computers and equipment
3-7 years
    10,853       13,730  
Furniture
3-7 years
    2,163       2,488  
Leasehold improvements
Lease term*
    924       938  
Construction-in-progress (software and equipment)
      25       25  
Gross property and equipment
      28,612       45,381  
Accumulated depreciation and amortization
      (27,344 )     (43,352 )
Property and equipment, net
    $ 1,268     $ 2,029  

*
Estimated useful life of improvement if shorter.

Depreciation expense was $1.1 million, $3.3 million, and $3.9 million, for 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively.
 
Note 9.    Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
 
Changes in the carrying amounts of goodwill and information about intangible assets follow:
 
   
Goodwill
 
       
Balance at December 31, 2007
  $ 10,075  
Business acquisition - Centillium
    15,004  
Balance at December 31, 2008
    25,079  
Purchase price allocation adjustments (1)
    (860 )
Impairment of goodwill (2)
    (10,075 )
Balance at December 31, 2009
  $ 14,144  
 
 
(1)
Relates to tax refunds received and accrual adjustments in connection with the acquisition of Centillium Communications, Inc. consummated in October 2008.
 
(2)
During the fourth quarter of 2009, impairment testing performed by the Company indicated that the estimated fair values of two reporting units tested were less than their corresponding carrying amounts. As a result the Company recorded a goodwill impairment charge.
 
 
62

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
   
Other Intangible Assets
 
   
Developed
Technology
   
Customer
Relationships
   
Total
 
                   
Balances at December 31, 2009
                 
Cost
  $ 3,014     $ 9,557     $ 12,571  
Accumulated amortization
    (752 )     (1,979 )     (2,731 )
    $ 2,262     $ 7,578     $ 9,840  
                         
Balances at December 31, 2008
                       
Cost
  $ 3,014     $ 9,557     $ 12,571  
Accumulated amortization
    (293 )     (824 )     (1,117 )
    $ 2,721     $ 8,733     $ 11,454  
                         
2008
                       
Cost
  $ 2,800     $ 7,800     $ 10,600  
Weighted average amortization period
 
6.3 years
   
10 years
   
9 years
 
 
Amortization expense related to “Other intangible assets” was $1.6 million in 2009, $0.6 million in 2008 and $0.4 million in 2007.  Future estimated aggregate amortization expense for such assets for each of the five years succeeding December 31, 2009 follows:  2010 - $1.6 million; 2011 - $1.6 million; 2012 - $1.2 million, 2013 - $1.2 million and 2014 - $1.1 million.
 
Note 10.    Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities
 
The components of accrued and other current liabilities follow:
 
   
December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
 
Accrued and other current liabilities
  $ 4,939     $ 5,578  
Accrued royalties
    5,578       6,664  
Accrued compensation and benefits
    3,264       3,815  
Restructuring liabilities
    1,775       5,725  
Obligation under deferred revenue
    421       449  
Total accrued and other current liabilities
  $ 15,977     $ 22,231  
 
The Company periodically evaluates any contingent liabilities in connection with any payments to be made for any potential intellectual property infringements, asserted or unasserted. The Company’s accrued royalties as of December 31, 2009 and 2008 represents the contingent payments for asserted or unasserted claims that are probable as of the respective balance sheet dates based on the applicable patent law.
 
Note 11.    Segment and Major Customer Information
 
The Company has one business segment: communication semiconductor products.  Its VLSI semiconductor devices provide core functionality of communications network equipment. The integration of various technologies and standards in these devices result in a homogeneous product line for management and measurement purposes.
 
 
63

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Enterprise-wide Information
 
Enterprise-wide information provided on geographic net revenues is based on billing locations. Long-lived asset information is based on the physical location of the assets. The following tables present net revenues and long-lived assets information for geographic areas:

   
Years Ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
                   
Net revenues:
                 
United States
  $ 16,631     $ 6,122     $ 6,943  
Japan
    11,228       4,813       501  
Korea
    7,299       2,467       1,773  
Israel
    5,344       10.937       5,193  
China
    5,112       6,943       7,468  
Hong Kong
    3,654       1,495       71  
Italy
    2,098       1,324       224  
Germany
    438       1,163       4,055  
Other countries
    4,303       6,670       6,337  
                         
Total
  $ 56,107     $ 41,934     $ 32,565  

   
As of December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
                   
Long-lived tangible assets:
                 
United States
  $ 680     $ 1,261     $ 3,952  
Other countries
    1,888       2,089       2,071  
                         
Total
  $ 2,568     $ 3,350     $ 6,023  
 
Information about Major Customers
 
The Company ships its products to distributors and directly to end customers. The following table sets forth the percentage of net revenues attributable to the Company’s significant customers:

   
Years ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
                   
Significant Customers:
                    
Alcatel-Lucent
    22 %     18 %     17 %
OKI Electric Industry
    18 %     *       *  
Inbrics
    11 %     *       *  
PMC Sierra Israel
    *       21 %     *  
Nokia Siemens
    *       *       16 %

*
Revenues were less than 10% of the Company’s net revenues in these years.

 
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TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Note 12.    Income Taxes
 
          The Company adopted a new accounting standard for uncertain income tax positions, effective January 1, 2007.  The new standard clarifies and sets forth consistent rules for accounting for uncertain income tax positions. There was no cumulative effect of applying the provisions of this standard upon adoption due to the net operating loss and valuation allowance positions of the Company.  Changes in unrecognized income tax benefits follow:
 
Balance at January 1, 2008
  $ 6,103  
Increases related to prior year tax positions
    141  
Decreases related to prior year tax positions
    (351 )
Balance at December 31, 2008
  $ 5,893  
Decreases related to prior year tax positions
    (4 )
Balance at December 31, 2009
  $ 5,889  
 
          Due to the Company’s net operating loss position in the U.S., any subsequent recognition of these tax benefits would not likely change the Company’s effective tax rate. The Company does not reasonably expect any significant changes in the amount of unrecognized tax benefits to occur within the next twelve months.
 
          Historically the Company has not accrued or paid significant interest and penalties for underpayments of income taxes due to its net operating loss position.  Interest and penalties related to underpayment of income taxes would be classified as a component of income tax expense in the consolidated statement of operations.  Approximately $132,000 of interest has been recognized in the balance sheet of the Company through December 31, 2009. This amount has been recorded as a part of goodwill, therefore, no interest expense related to this uncertainty has been included in the consolidated statement of operations. 
 
          The Company files income tax returns in the U.S. and several foreign countries and has not extended the statute of limitations to assess additional taxes for any of these jurisdictions.  The Company has effectively settled U.S. Federal tax positions taken through 2002.  However, the Company is subject to adjustment in each of these periods, to the extent of its net operating loss carry forwards.  The open tax years for foreign jurisdictions are 2002 through 2009 and 1997 through 2009 for U.S. state and local jurisdictions.
 
The components of the loss before income taxes follow:
 
   
Years Ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
U.S. loss
  $ (11,996 )   $ (17,405 )   $ (19,874 )
Foreign income (loss)
    830       849       445  
Loss before income taxes
  $ (11,166 )   $ (16,556 )   $ (19,429 )
 
The provision for income taxes consists exclusively of current foreign income taxes.
 
A reconciliation of the U.S. federal statutory rate to the effective income tax rate follows:
 
   
Years Ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
U.S. federal statutory tax rate
    (35.0 )%     (35.0 )%     (35.0 )%
State taxes
    -       (9.5 )     0.6  
Disallowed interest deduction
    -       -       3.6  
Goodwill write down
    15.3       -       -  
Change in valuation allowance
    17.1       42.0       27.4  
Permanent differences, tax credits and other adjustments
    5.7       4.4       4.7  
Effective income tax rate
    3.1 %     1.9 %     1.3  %
 
 
65

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
The tax effects of temporary differences that give rise to deferred income taxes follow:

   
2009
   
2008
 
Deferred income tax assets:
     
 
 
Property and equipment
  $ 843     $ 1,882  
Other nondeductible accruals
    795       388  
Restructuring accrual
    4,607       10,031  
Capitalized research and development for tax purposes
    11,589       21,296  
Net operating loss carry-forwards
    162,797       142,678  
Capital losses
    1,004       15,263  
Research and development and other credits
    21,334       21,762  
Debt discount
          68  
Inventories
    14,383       14,735  
Stock compensation
    2,230       2,242  
Other
    2,717       360  
Total gross deferred income tax assets
    222,299       230,705  
Valuation allowance
    (221,207 )     (229,586 )
                 
Net deferred income tax assets
    1,092       1,119  
Deferred income tax liabilities:
               
Other
    (1,092 )     (1,119 )
Net deferred income tax liabilities
    (1,092 )     (1,119 )
                 
Net deferred income taxes
  $  —     $  —  
 
The Company continually evaluates its deferred income tax assets to determine whether it is more likely than not that such assets will be realized. In assessing the realizability, management considers the scheduled reversal of deferred tax liabilities, projected future taxable income, and tax planning strategies. Based on this assessment, management believes that significant uncertainty exists concerning the recoverability of the deferred income tax assets. As such, a valuation allowance has been provided for deferred income tax assets as of December 31, 2009 and 2008. Of the $221.2 million valuation allowance at December 31, 2009, subsequently recognized income tax benefits, if any, in the amount of $4.7 million will be applied directly to additional paid-in capital and $72.1 million to goodwill.
 
At December 31, 2009, the Company had available, for federal income tax purposes, net operating loss (“NOL”) carry-forwards of approximately $439.4 million and research and development tax credit carry-forwards of approximately $21.3 million expiring in varying amounts from 2009 through 2029. For state income tax purposes, the Company had available NOL carry-forwards of approximately $163.5 million and state tax credit carry-forwards of $7.7 million expiring in varying amounts from 2009 to 2029.  Additionally, the Company has generated $20.3 million of NOL’s in foreign jurisdictions which can be carried forward indefinitely.

 
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TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Certain transactions involving the Company’s beneficial ownership have occurred in prior years, which resulted in a stock ownership change for purposes of Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended. Consequently, approximately $189.2 million of the NOL carry-forwards and $11.6 million of research and development tax credit carry-forwards are subject to these limitations. The Company has not yet determined if any of the NOL and credits generated through 2009 will be subject to limitation under Section 382.
 
Note 13.    Stockholders’ Rights Plan
 
The Board of Directors enacted a stockholder rights plan and declared a dividend of one preferred share purchase right for each outstanding share of TranSwitch common stock outstanding at the close of business on October 1, 2001 to the stockholders of record on that date. Each stockholder of record as of October 1, 2001 received a summary of the rights and any new stock certificates issued after the record date contain a legend describing the rights. Each preferred share purchase right entitles the registered holder to purchase from the Company one one hundred and twenty-fifth of a share of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock, par value $0.01 per share, of the Company, at a price of $400.00 per one one hundred and twenty-fifth of a Preferred Share, subject to adjustment, upon the occurrence of certain triggering events, including the purchase of 15% or more of the Company’s outstanding common stock by a third party. Until a triggering event occurs, the common stockholders have no right to purchase shares under the stockholder rights plan. If the right to purchase the preferred stock is triggered, the common stockholders will have the ability to purchase sufficient stock to significantly dilute the 15% or greater holder.
 
Note 14.    Employee Benefit Plans
 
Employee Stock Purchase Plans
 
Under the Company’s employee stock purchase plans, eligible employees may purchase a limited number of shares of common stock at 85% of the fair market value at either the date of enrollment or the date of purchase, whichever is less. The 1995 Employee Stock Purchase Plan was closed effective December 31, 2004. On May 19, 2005 the Company’s shareholders approved the 2005 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (the 2005 ESPP). Under the 2005 ESPP, the Company is authorized to issue 125,000 shares of common stock. Shares issued under the 2005 ESPP in 2009, 2008, and 2007 were 10,172, 10,273, and 12,730 respectively.
 
 Stock Option and Award Plans
 
As of December 31, 2009, the Company has three stock options plans: the 1995 Stock Plan, as amended (the “1995 Plan”), 2000 Stock Option Plan as amended (the “2000 Plan”), and the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (the ‘2008 Plan”). The 1995 Non-Employee Director Stock Option Plan, as amended (the “Director Plan”) expired during 2005.
 
Under the 1995 Plan, 3,925,000 shares of the Company’s common stock are available to grant to employees in the form of incentive stock options. Also, non-qualified stock options and stock awards may be granted to employees, consultants and directors. The terms of the options granted are subject to the provisions of the 1995 Plan, as determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors.  The exercise price of options under the 1995 Plan must be equal to the fair market value of the common stock on the date of grant. Options granted under the 1995 Plan are generally nontransferable. The 1995 Plan, as amended, expires March 15, 2010.  In connection with the adoption of the 2008 Plan on May 22, 2008, shares are no longer available for grant under the 1995 Plan.
 
The 2000 Plan provides for the granting of non-qualified options to employees and consultants to purchase up to an aggregate of 1,250,000 shares of common stock.  No member of the Board of Directors or executive officers appointed by the Board of Directors is eligible for grants of options under the 2000 Plan. The terms of the options granted are subject to the provisions of the 2000 Plan, as determined by the Compensation Committee of the Board of Directors. Each non-qualified stock option shall either be fully exercisable on the date of grant or shall become exercisable thereafter in such installments as the Board of Directors may specify. The 2000 Plan will terminate in 2010. No option granted under the 2000 Plan may be exercised after the expiration of seven years from the date of grant. The exercise price of options under the 2000 Plan must be equal to the fair market value of the common stock on the date of grant. Options granted under the 2000 Plan are generally nontransferable. In connection with the adoption of the 2008 Plan on May 22, 2008, shares are no longer available for grant under the 2000 Plan.

 
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TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
           The 2008 Plan was approved by shareholders at the shareholder meeting held on May 22, 2008.  The purpose of this plan is to provide stock options, stock issuances, and other equity interests in the Company to employees, officers, directors, consultants, and advisors to the Company and its subsidiaries or any future parent corporation. The 2008 Plan is to be administered by the Board of Directors of the Company who will have sole discretion and authority to interpret and correct the provisions of the Plan and any Award. The Board will also have sole authority to determine the terms and provisions of the respective Stock Option Agreements and Awards, which need not be identical.  The aggregate number of shares of Common Stock of the Company that may be issued pursuant to the 2008 Plan is 3,196,250. As of December 31, 2009, there were 1,128,418 shares available for grant under the 2008 Plan.
 
Information regarding stock options follows:
 
   
Number 
of options
outstanding
   
Weighted average
exercise price
per share
 
                 
Outstanding at December 31, 2006
    3,030,895     $ 61.49  
Granted and assumed
    244,151       11.93  
Exercised
    (131,357 )     9.33  
Canceled, forfeited or expired
    (707,821 )     139.36  
Outstanding at December 31, 2007
    2,435,868       37.71  
Granted and assumed
    1,406,963       9.66  
Exercised
    (12,576 )     5.54  
Canceled, forfeited or expired
    (962,137 )     61.28  
Outstanding at December 31, 2008
    2,868,118       15.33  
Granted
    461,650       2.97  
Exercised
    (29,064 )     2.93  
Canceled, forfeited or expired
    (815,570 )     24.97  
Outstanding at December 31, 2009
    2,485,134     $ 10.02  
 
            Information regarding restricted stock awards follows:
 
Outstanding at December 31, 2007
    -     $ 0.00  
Granted
    -       0.00  
Assumed
    181,968       0.00  
Released
    (2,133 )     0.00  
Canceled, forfeited or expired
    (42,725 )     0.00  
Outstanding at December 31, 2008
    137,110       0.00  
Granted
    495,502       0.00  
Released
    (39,225 )     0.00  
Canceled, forfeited or expired
    (22,205 )     0.00  
Outstanding at December 31, 2009
    571,182     $ 0.00  
 
The Company has, in connection with the acquisitions of various companies, assumed the stock option plans of each acquired company.  The related options are included in the preceding table

 
68

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Options outstanding and exercisable at December 31, 2009 follow:
 
           
Options Outstanding
   
Options Exercisable
 
 
Range of  
Exercise prices
 
Number
Outstanding
   
Weighted
Average
Remaining
Contractual 
Life
   
Weighted
average
exercise
price
   
Number
Exercisable
   
Weighted
average
exercise
price
 
$
   2.00  to  2.32
    224,506       5.84     $ 2.27       80,118     $ 2.30  
 
2.43  to  2.43
    267,540       6.89       2.43       2,119       2.43  
 
2.48  to  5.12
    253,536       5.61       4.10       151,275       4.44  
 
5.52  to  7.36
    271,067       4.46       6.22       170,272       6.57  
 
           7.37 to 11.04
    260,441       4.69       9.51       227,263       9.45  
 
  11.12 to 12.40
    305,613       2.37       12.00       302,780       12.00  
 
12.41 to 13.28
    345,934       3.84       13.15       343,553       13.15  
 
13.44 to 16.88
    298,935       3.59       14.77       297,442       14.77  
 
17.04 to 27.12
    252,131       2.92       22.54       251,756       22.55  
 
       30.04 to 410.00
    5,431       1.58       39.97       5,431       39.97  
$
 2.00  to 410.00
    2,485,134       4.38     $ 10.02       1,831,989     $ 12.32  
 
Stock options generally expire five, seven or ten years from the date of grant and generally vest ratably over periods ranging from immediately to four years.
 
As of December 31, 2009 both the fair value of options outstanding and the fair value of options exercisable were less than the exercise price.
 
Stock compensation charged to operations was $1.3 million in 2009, $1.5 million in 2008, and $2.0 million in 2007. Further, no compensation cost was capitalized as part of inventory, and no income tax benefit was recognized in those years. Lastly, no equity awards were settled in cash.
 
 Stock-Based Compensation Fair Value Disclosures
 
The fair value of each option granted is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model with the following assumptions:
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
                   
Risk-free interest rate
    2.43 %     1.82 %     4.62 %
                         
Expected life in years
    4.03       2.95       3.38   
                         
Expected volatility
    89.26 %     68.21 %     91.98 %
                         
Expected dividend yield
          —        —    
 
The weighted average fair value of stock options granted, calculated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, is $1.89, $0.87 and $7.45 for 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively. The weighted average fair value of restricted stock units granted, calculated using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model, is $3.01 for 2009.  No restricted stock units were granted during 2008 or 2007. The total intrinsic value of the options exercised was $0.06 million, $0.02 million and $0.5 million for 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively. In 2009 and 2008, restricted stock units released had an intrinsic value of $0.1 million and approximately five thousand dollars, respectively. No restricted stock units were released in 2007.
 
             The Company recognized compensation expense related to stock options granted to non-employees of $0.01 million in 2009, $0.03 million in 2008 and $0.1 million in 2007.
 
 
69

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
 Employee 401(k) Plan
 
The TranSwitch Corporation 401(k) Retirement Plan (the “Plan”) provides tax-deferred salary deductions for eligible employees. Employees may contribute an annual maximum amount as set periodically by the Internal Revenue Service. The Company provides matching contributions equal to 50% of the employees’ contributions, up to a maximum of 6% of the employee’s annual compensation. On July 1, 2009, the Company indefinitely suspended its matching contributions. Company contributions begin vesting after two years and are fully vested after three years. Contribution expense related to the Plan was $0.1 million, $0.2 million and $0.2 million for 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively.
 
Note 15.    Convertible Notes
 
On July 6, 2007, the Company exchanged approximately $21.2 million aggregate principal amount of its then outstanding 5.45% Convertible Plus Cash Notes due September 30, 2007 (the “Plus Cash Notes”) for an equivalent principal amount of a new series of 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2010 (the “2010 Notes”). The remaining $8.9 million balance of the 2007 Plus Cash Notes were redeemed at par value for cash at the end of September, 2007. In connection with the exchange the Company recorded an extinguishment loss of approximately $0.4 million, including a non-cash write-off of unamortized debt discount and deferred debt issuance costs.
 
Also on July 6, 2007, the Company issued for an equal amount of cash an additional $3.8 million aggregate principal amount of 2010 Notes. At December 31, 2007, the Company had $25.0 million of the 2010 Notes outstanding.
 
On December 24, 2008, the Company entered into an agreement with certain holders of its 2010 Notes to purchase $15.0 million aggregate principal amount of the 2010 Notes for $9.9 million in cash, plus accrued and unpaid interest. As a result of this transaction, the Company recorded an extinguishment gain of $4.5 million, net of a non-cash write-off of unamortized deferred debt issuance costs. As of December 31, 2008, $10.0 million of the 2010 Notes remained outstanding.
 
          On October 26, 2009, the Company exchanged approximately $10.0 million aggregate principal amount of its unsecured 2010 Notes for an equal principal amount of new unsecured 5.45% Convertible Notes due September 30, 2011 (the “2011 Notes”).
 
           The 2011 Notes are convertible at the option of the holder, at any time on or prior to maturity at an initial conversion ratio of 138.8888 per $1,000 principal amount.

           If a holder of the 2011 Notes converts such notes in connection with a corporate transaction that constitutes a change in control, as defined, at any time prior to July 6, 2011, then in addition to the conversion shares, as defined, such holder is also entitled to receive upon such conversion, a make-whole payment premium in cash.

           Commencing on October 30, 2009, the 2011 Notes are payable in monthly principal payments of $417,000 plus interest. The Company’s future principal payments are expected to be $5.0 million in 2010 and $3.8 million in 2011. The interest payments on the 2011 Notes are expected to be $0.3 million in 2010 and $0.1 million in 2011.

           The principal payments for the 2011 Notes may be paid for in shares of the Company’s common stock, solely at the Company’s option and upon the satisfaction or waiver of certain conditions by the note holder.  If the Company elects to make any payment of or provision for principal in shares of its common stock, the shares to be delivered will be valued at the lower of $0.90 (subject to adjustment) or 90% of the arithmetic average of the daily volume-weighted average price of the common stock for the ten (10) consecutive trading days ending on or including the second trading day immediately preceding the applicable interest payment date but; not be less than $0.45.

           The Company may redeem some or all of the 2011 Notes at any time prior to maturity for cash equal to the principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest; provided, however, that the 2011 Notes will not be redeemable prior to maturity unless the closing price per share of the Company’s common stock exceeds 150% of the conversion price, which shall initially be $.90, for at least 20 trading days within a period of 30 consecutive trading days ending within five trading days immediately preceding notice to holders of such redemption.

           The holders of the 2011 Notes may require the Company to repurchase the 2011 Notes upon a change in control for cash at 100% of the principal amount, plus accrued and unpaid interest.

 
70

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
            The terms underlying the 2011 Notes contain certain customary covenants that limit, among other things, the Company’s ability to incur additional debt. The failure to comply with such covenants could cause the 2011 Notes to become due and payable immediately.
 
  As of December 31, 2009, $8.8 million of the 2011 Notes remained outstanding.  Approximately $5.0 million of the 2011 Notes has been classified as short-term as of December 31, 2009.
 
Note 16.    Restructuring and Asset Impairment Charges
 
During 2009, the Company recorded a net restructuring benefit of approximately $6.3 million, primarily resulting from a new sublease. On March 3, 2009 the Company entered into a sublease with a major corporation to sublease 92,880 square feet of office space located in Shelton, Connecticut to the year 2014.  As a result of this sublease, the Company reversed approximately $6.7 million of accrued restructuring expense that it initially recorded in 2001. The Company also reversed approximately $0.9 million of accrued restructuring expense as a result of certain other sub-lease agreements relating to the Company’s excess facilities in Shelton, Connecticut.  These benefits were partially offset by approximately $1.3 million of charges for workforce reductions and other restructuring adjustments.
 
During 2008 the Company implemented restructuring plans that resulted in total restructuring costs of approximately $7.2 million, of which approximately $3.8 million was recorded as restructuring charges in its Consolidated Statements of Operations and $3.4 was recorded as a liability assumed in the acquisition of Centillium.  These restructuring plans included the elimination of approximately 76 positions, primarily in the Company’s Shelton, Connecticut, Bedford, Massachusetts, Fremont, California, Eclubens, Switzerland, New Delhi, India and Bangalore, India locations.  As a result, the Company recorded restructuring charges in its Consolidated Statements of Operations of approximately $1.7 million related to employee termination benefits, $0.8 million related to asset impairments, $0.7 million related to excess facility costs net of anticipated sublease income and $0.8 million in other restructuring charges.  These 2008 charges were partially offset by approximately $0.2 million of benefits related to adjustments to certain sublease agreements relating to the Company’s excess facilities in Shelton, Connecticut
 
        In connection with the restructuring events of 2008, approximately $6.3 million of the $7.2 million in restructuring costs required cash expenditures. As of December 31, 2009, all but $0.2 million of the cash expenditures had been paid. The remaining $0.2 million will be paid in 2010.
 
During 2007 the Company recorded restructuring charges of approximately $1.5 million related to workforce reductions.
 
 
71

 
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
A summary of the restructuring liabilities and activity follows:
 
   
2009 Activity
 
   
Restructuring
Liabilities
December 31,
2008
   
Restructuring
Charges
   
Cash Payments
   
Non-cash
    asset    
write-offs
   
Adjustments
and Changes
to Estimates
   
Restructuring
Liabilities
December 31,
2009
 
Employee Termination Benefits
  $ 1,930     $ 523     $ (2,437 )   $     $ 227     $ 243  
                                                 
Facility lease costs
    22,534             (3,444 )           (6,965 )     12,125  
                                                 
Asset impairments
                      (82 )     82        
                                                 
Other
    925       48       (801 )           (172 )      
                                                 
Totals
  $ 25,389     $ 571     $ (6,682 )   $ (82 )   $ (6,828 )   $ 12,368  

   
2008 Activity
 
   
Restructuring
Liabilities
December 31,
2007
   
Liabilities
assumed in
acquisition of
business
   
Restructuring
Charges
   
Cash Payments
   
Non-cash
    asset    
write-offs
   
Adjustments
and Changes
to Estimates
   
Restructuring
Liabilities
December 31,
2008
 
Employee Termination Benefits
  $ 235     $ 3,071     $ 1,740     $ (3,080 )   $     $ (36 )   $ 1,930  
                                                         
Facility lease costs
    20,731       1,686       728       (346 )           (265 )     22,534  
                                                         
Asset impairments
          42       835             (877 )            
                                                         
Other
    124             783       (1 )           19       925  
                                                         
Totals
  $ 21,090     $ 4,799     $ 4,086     $ (3,427 )   $ (877 )   $ (282 )   $ 25,389  
 
 Note 17.    Commitments and Contingencies
 
Lease Agreements
 
The Company leases buildings and equipment at its headquarters in Shelton, Connecticut as well as at its subsidiaries’ locations worldwide.  Rental expense under all operating lease agreements was $1.5 million in 2009, $2.0 million in 2008 and $1.7 million in 2007. 
 
The following table summarizes as of December 31, 2009 future minimum operating lease commitments, including contractually obligated building operating commitments that have remaining, non-cancelable lease terms in excess of one year and future anticipated sublease income:
 
   
Operating
Commitments
   
Less:
Sublease
Agreements
   
Net
Commitments
 
2010
  $ 5,506     $ 3,331     $ 2,175  
2011
    4,299       2,732       1,567  
2012
    4,238       2,581       1,657  
2013
    3,380       2,180       1,200  
2014
    3,220       1,181       2,039  
Thereafter
    7,393       -       7,393  
    $ 28,036     $ 12,005     $ 16,031  
 
 
72

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
Patent Indemnity
 
Under the terms of substantially all of its sales agreements, the Company has agreed to indemnify its customers for costs and damages arising from claims against such customer based on, among other things, allegations that the Company’s products infringed upon the intellectual property rights of a third party. In the event of an infringement claim, the Company retains the right to (i) procure for the customer the right to continue using the product; (ii) replace the product with a non-infringing item which shall give equally good service; (iii) modify the product so that it becomes non-infringing; or (iv) remove the product and, on return of the product to the Company, the Company shall refund the buyers purchase price. Due to the nature of these indemnification agreements, the maximum potential future payments the Company could be required to make under these guarantees, when and if such claims may arise, cannot be reliably determined. No amounts have been accrued for any estimated losses with respect to these guarantees for customer indemnifications since it is not probable that a loss will be incurred. No claims have been made under these indemnity provisions.
 
Purchase Commitments

In the normal course of business, the Company makes various commitments to purchase goods or services from specific suppliers, including those related to capital expenditures. As of December 31, 2009, the Company had purchase commitments totaling $5.7 million

Note 18.    Supplemental Cash Flow Information
 
Supplemental cash flow information follows:    

   
Years Ended December 31,
 
   
2009
   
2008
   
2007
 
Cash paid for interest
  $ 712     $ 1,554     $ 1,705  
Cash paid for income taxes
  $ 194     $ 340     $ 373  
 
During 2008, in connection with the Centillium acquisition, the Company issued 3,125,000 shares of its common stock with an approximate fair value of $25.0 million.

In connection with the ASIC Design Center acquisition in 2007 the Company issued 468,339 shares of its common stock with an approximate fair value of $5.5 million.

Note 19.   Stock Repurchase Program
 
On February 13, 2008 the Company announced that its Board of Directors authorized a stock repurchase program under which the Company may repurchase up to $10 million of its outstanding common stock.  The share repurchase program authorizes the Company to repurchase shares through February 2010, from time to time, through transactions in the open market or in privately negotiated transactions.  The number of shares to be purchased and the timing of the purchases will be based on market conditions and other factors.  The stock repurchase program does not require the Company to repurchase any specific dollar value or number of shares, and the Company may terminate the repurchase program at any time.

 
73

 

TRANSWITCH CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES
 
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS – (Continued)
(Tabular dollars in thousands, except share and per share amounts)
 
During 2008, the Company purchased 20,794 shares of its outstanding common stock at an average price of $5.44 per share or approximately $0.1 million, excluding commissions.  There were no such repurchases in 2009.
 
Note 20.    Subsequent Events
 
        On December 31, 2009, the Company, entered into a Common Stock Purchase Agreement (the "Common Stock Purchase Agreement") with Seaside 88, LP, a Florida limited partnership ("Seaside"), relating to the offering and sale (the "Offering") of up to 1,950,000 shares (the "Shares") of the Company's common stock. The Common Stock Purchase Agreement requires the Company to issue and sell, and Seaside to purchase, up to 75,000 shares of Common Stock once every two (2) weeks, subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, beginning on January 4, 2010 and ending on or about the date that is fifty (50) weeks subsequent to  closing. The offering price of the Company’s common stock at each closing is an amount equal to the lower of (i) the daily volume weighted average of actual trading prices of the common stock on the trading market (the "VWAP") for the ten consecutive trading days immediately prior to a closing date multiplied by 0.875 and (ii) the VWAP for the trading day immediately prior to a closing date multiplied by 0.90.  In the event that the 3-Day VWAP, as defined in the Common Stock Purchase Agreement, does not equal or exceed $1.00 (the "Floor"), as calculated with respect to any subsequent closing date, then such subsequent closing will not occur, and there will be one fewer subsequent closing and the aggregate number of Shares to be purchased under the Common Stock Purchase Agreement will be reduced by 75,000 shares for each subsequent closing that does not occur because the Floor has not been reached. The Common Stock Purchase Agreement provides that the Company may, upon ten days' prior written notice to Seaside, terminate the Common Stock Purchase Agreement after the fifth subsequent closing (i.e., after six closings) but prior to the sixth subsequent closing. The Common Stock Purchase Agreement contains representations and warranties and covenants for each party, which must be true and have been performed at each closing.
 
        As of March 15, 2010, the Company has had 6 closings with Seaside and has sold 450,000 shares of stock to Seaside for an aggregate price of approximately $0.8 million.   

        On February 1, 2010, the Company announced that it recently effected a restructuring to be implemented and concluded during the first quarter of 2010. The Company expects that such restructuring and other cost reduction initiatives will result in annual savings of approximately $4.0 million, and that these savings will begin to be recognized in the first quarter of 2010.  Of this amount, the Company expects annual savings of approximately $2.4 million in reduced employee related costs, including base salary reductions, and $1.6 million from other cost savings initiatives. In connection with the restructuring, the Company expects to incur pre-tax restructuring charges of approximately $1.4 million which will be cash expenditures primarily for employee related costs. These charges are expected to be recorded in the first quarter of 2010.
 
        On March 12, 2010 the Company entered into a new credit facility agreement with Bridge Bank N.A., a subsidiary of Bridge Capital Holdings. The facility is for up to $5.0 million with availability determined by the Company’s outstanding accounts receivable.
 
Note 21.    Quarterly Information (Unaudited)
 
The table below shows selected unaudited quarterly information of operating results. The Company believes that this information reflects all normal recurring adjustments necessary for a fair presentation of the information for the periods presented. Interim operating results are not necessarily indicative of future period results.
 
   
First
Quarter
   
Second
Quarter
   
Third
Quarter
   
Fourth
Quarter
   
Full
Year
 
Year ended December 31, 2009
                             
Net revenues
  $ 14,247     $ 14,535     $ 15,181     $ 12,144     $ 56,107  
Cost of revenues
    5,937       5,983       7,050       5,653       24,623  
                                         
Gross profit
    8,310       8,552       8,131       6,491       31,484  
Net income (loss) (2)
    4,016       (1,320 )     (1,497 )     (12,730 )     (11,531 )
Net income (loss) per common share (1):
                                       
Basic
  $ 0.20     $ (0.07 )   $ (0.08 )   $ (0.64 )   $ (0.58 )
Diluted
  $ 0.19     $ (0.07 )   $ (0.08 )   $ (0.64 )   $ (0.58 )
                                         
Year ended December 31, 2008
                                       
Net revenues
  $  7,520     $ 8,891     $ 10,498     $ 15,025     $ 41,934  
Cost of revenues
    2,935       3,549       4,517       7,039       18,040  
                                         
Gross profit
    4,585       5,342       5,981       7,986       23,894  
Net loss (2)
    (5,494 )     (4,320 )     (2,956 )     (4,276 )     (17,046 )
Net loss per common share (1):
                                       
Basic
  $ (0.33 )   $ (0.26 )   $ (0.18 )   $ (0.22 )   $ (0.98 )
Diluted
  $ (0.33 )   $ (0.26 )   $ (0.18 )   $ (0.22 )   $ (0.98 )

(1)
The sum of quarterly per share amounts may not equal per share amounts reported for year-to-date periods due to changes in the number of weighted average shares outstanding and the effects of rounding.
(2)
The reported net loss for 2009 and 2008 reflects stock-based compensation expense of $1.3 million (Q1 of $0.3 million, Q2 of $0.3 million, Q3 of $0.3 million and Q4 of $0.4 million) and $1.5 million (Q1 of $0.4 million, Q2 of $0.3 million, Q3 of $0.3 million and Q4 of $0.5 million), respectively.

 
74

 

SCHEDULE II
 
TRANSWITCH CORPORATION
 
VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS
(in thousands)
 
         
Additions
             
Description
 
Balance at
Beginning
of Year
   
Charges to
Costs and
Expenses
   
Charges
to Other
Accounts
   
Deductions
   
Balance
at End
of Year
 
Year ended December 31, 2009:
                             
Allowance for losses on:
                             
Accounts receivable
  $ 536     $ 94     $     $ (114 )   $ 516  
Sales returns and allowances
    151       (2 )                 149  
Stock rotation
    44       704             (137 )     611  
Deferred income tax assets valuation allowance
    229,586       (8,379 )                 221,207  
                                         
    $ 230,317     $ (7,583 )   $     $ (251 )   $ 222,483  
Year ended December 31, 2008:
                                       
Allowance for losses on:
                                       
Accounts receivable
  $ 623     $ (3 )   $ 17     $ (101 )   $ 536  
Sales returns and allowances
    99       261       151       (360 )     151  
Stock rotation
    60       27             (43 )     44  
Deferred income tax assets valuation allowance
    148,250       9,263       72,073             229,586  
                                         
    $ 149,032     $ 9,548     $ 72,241     $ (504 )   $ 230,317  
Year ended December 31, 2007:
                                       
Allowance for losses on:
                                       
Accounts receivable
  $ 473     $ 118     $ 32     $     $ 623  
Sales returns and allowances
    37       322             (260 )     99  
Stock rotation
    75       34             (49 )     60  
Deferred income tax assets valuation allowance
    142,791       5,459                   148,250  
                                         
    $ 143,376     $ 5,933     $ 32     $ (309 )   $ 149,032  
 
Item 9.    Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
 
     None.
 
Item 9A.    Controls and Procedures
 
Conclusion Regarding the Effectiveness of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
 
Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, we conducted an evaluation of our disclosure controls and procedures, as such term is defined under Rule 13a-15(e) promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Based upon that evaluation, our principal executive officer and principal financial officer concluded that, as of the evaluation date, our disclosure controls and procedures are effective to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 are recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and forms.

 
75

 

Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
 
Our management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting, as such term is defined in Exchange Act Rules 13a-15(f). Under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our principal executive officer and principal financial officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting based on the framework in Internal Control - Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. Based on our evaluation under the framework in Internal Control — Integrated Framework, our management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2009.
 
The independent registered public accounting firm of the Company has issued a report on its assessment of the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2009.  That report appears under Item 8.
 
Changes in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
 
 No change in our internal control over financial reporting occurred during the quarter ended December 31, 2009, that materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
 
Item 9B.    Other Information
 
On March 12, 2010, TranSwitch entered into a Business Financing Agreement (the “Agreement”) with Bridge Bank, National Association (“Bridge Bank”) together with certain other related financing documents (the “Financing Documents”).  The Financing Documents collectively provide an uncommitted credit facility to TranSwitch of up to $5 million (the “Facility”) secured by substantially all the personal property of TranSwitch, including the Company’s accounts receivable and intellectual property.  Subject to the terms of the Agreement, availability under the Facility is based on a formula pursuant to which Bridge Bank would advance, in its discretion, an amount equal to the lower of $5,000,000 or 80% of TranSwitch’s eligible accounts receivable, with account eligibility determined by Bridge Bank in its sole discretion.  Either party may terminate the Facility at any time and all loan advances under the Facility would then become immediately due and payable.  TranSwitch has no immediate expectation of drawing funds under the Facility.

Except as otherwise set forth in the Agreement, borrowings made pursuant to the Agreement will bear interest at a rate equal to the higher of (i) the Prime Rate (as announced by Bridge Bank) or (ii) 4%, plus, in either case, a margin of 2.5%.  Bridge Bank is also entitled to the payment of certain fees and expenses pursuant to the Financing Documents, including an annual fee equal to $62,500 and an early termination fee of 1% of the gross amount of the Facility.

The Agreement contains customary representations, warranties, and affirmative and negative covenants for facilities of this type, including certain restrictions on dispositions of the Company’s assets, changes in business, and incurrence of certain indebtedness and encumbrances.  The Agreement also contains customary events of default, including payment defaults and a breach of representations and warranties and covenants.  If an event of default occurs and is continuing, Bridge Bank has customary rights and remedies under the Agreement, including the right to declare all outstanding indebtedness under the Facility immediately due and payable, ceasing to advance money or extend credit, and rights of set-off.

 
76

 

PART III
 
Item 10.    Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
 
Information with respect to directors, the Audit Committee of the Board of Directors, Audit Committee financial experts and named executive officers is incorporated herein by reference to the section entitled Proposal No. 1 “Election of Directors”, “Audit Committee Report” and “Compensation and Other Information Concerning Named Executive Officers”, respectively, contained in our definitive proxy statement for the annual meeting of shareholders of the Company to be held on May 20, 2010, which is to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days after the close of the year ended December 31, 2009. Information concerning Section 16(a) compliance is incorporated by reference to the section of our definitive proxy statement entitled “Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance.”
 
Code of Ethics
 
The Company has a code of ethics that applies to all its directors, officers, employees and representatives. This code is publicly available at the investor relations section of the Company’s website located at http://www.transwitch.com. Amendments to the code of ethics and any grant of a waiver from a provision of the code requiring disclosure under applicable SEC rules will be disclosed within the investor relations section of the Company’s website located at http://www.transwitch.com.   These materials may also be requested in print by writing to the Company’s Investor Relations Department at TranSwitch Corporation, Attention: Investor Relations, Three Enterprise Drive, Shelton, CT 06484.
 
Corporate Governance Principles and Charters
 
The Company’s corporate governance principles and the charters of its Board of Directors’ Audit and Finance Committee, Nominations and Corporate Governance Committee and Compensation Committee are available at the investor relations section of the Company’s website at http://www.transwitch.com. These materials may also be requested in print by writing to the Company’s Investor Relations Department at TranSwitch Corporation, Attention: Investor Relations, Three Enterprise Drive, Shelton, CT 06484.
 
Section 16(a) Beneficial Ownership Reporting Compliance
 
Section 16(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, requires the Company’s directors, executive officers, and persons who own more than ten percent of a registered class of the Company’s equity securities to file reports of ownership and changes in ownership with the SEC, and such persons are also required by SEC regulations to furnish the Company with copies of all Section 16(a) forms they file.  Based solely on its review of the copies of such forms received by it, the Company believes that during fiscal 2008 all executive officers, board members and greater than ten percent stockholders of the Company complied with all applicable filing requirements.
 
 Item 11.    Executive Compensation
 
Information with respect to executive compensation is incorporated herein by reference to the section entitled “Compensation and Other Information Concerning Named Executive Officers” contained in our definitive proxy statement for the annual meeting of shareholders of the Company to be held on May 20, 2010 which is to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days after the close of the year ended December 31, 2009.
 
 Item 12.    Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
 
Information regarding security ownership of certain beneficial owners, directors and executive officers is incorporated herein by reference to the information in the section entitled “Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management”, “Related Party Transactions” and “Indemnification Matters” contained in our definitive proxy statement for the annual meeting of shareholders of the Company to be held on May 20, 2010 which is to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days after the close of the year ended December 31, 2009.
 
Item 13.    Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
 
Information regarding certain relationships and related transactions of the Company is incorporated herein by reference to the sections entitled “Compensation Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation” and “Related Party Transactions” contained in our definitive proxy statement for the annual meeting of shareholders of the Company to be held on May 20, 2010 which is to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days after the close of the year ended December 31, 2009.

 
77

 
 
Item 14.    Principal Accountant Fees and Services
 
Information regarding principal accountant fees and services is incorporated herein by reference to the section entitled, under the headings “Information about the Corporation’s Independent Auditors” contained in our definitive proxy statement for the annual meeting of shareholders of the Company to be held on May 20, 2010, which is to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission not later than 120 days after the close of the year ended December 31, 2009.
 
 
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PART IV
 
Item 15.    Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules
  
(a)(1)
The following financial statements of TranSwitch Corporation are filed as part of this Form 10-K under Item 8 “Financial Statements and Supplementary Data.”
 
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
 
PAGE
 
Consolidated Balance Sheets – December 31, 2009 and 2008
   
49
 
Consolidated Statements of Operations – Years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007
   
50
 
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity and Comprehensive Loss – Years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007
   
51
 
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows – Years ended December 31, 2009, 2008 and 2007
   
52
 
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
   
53
 
Schedule II
   
75
 
 
(a)(2)
All other schedules are omitted because they are either not applicable, not required or because the information is presented in the Consolidated Financial Statements and Financial Statement Schedule or the notes thereto.
 
(a)(3)    Exhibits
 
3.1
  
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as amended to date (previously filed as Exhibit 3.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2005 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
3.2
  
Second Amended and Restated By-Laws, (previously filed as Exhibit 3.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on October 17, 2007 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
3.3
 
Certificate of Amendment of Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation (previously filed as Exhibit 3.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on November 23, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
3.4
 
Amended Certificate of Designation of Series A Junior Participating Preferred Stock of TranSwitch Corporation (previously filed as Exhibit 3.2 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on November 23, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.1
  
Specimen certificate representing the common stock of TranSwitch Corporation (previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended September 30, 2001 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.2
  
Rights Agreement, dated as of October 1, 2001, between TranSwitch Corporation and EquiServe Trust Company, N.A., which includes the form of Rights Certificate and the Summary of Rights to Purchase Preferred Shares (previously filed as Exhibit 1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement No. 0-25996 on Form 8-A filed on October 2, 2001 and incorporated by reference herein).
     
4.3
 
Amendment No. 1 to the Rights Agreement, between TranSwitch Corporation and Computershare Trust Company, N.A. (formerly known as Equiserve Trust Company, N.A) as Rights Agent, dated as of February 24, 2006.  (previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed on February 28, 2006 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.4
 
2005 Employee Stock Purchase Plan, as amended  (previously filed as Exhibit 99.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 12, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
4.5
 
Form of Employee Stock Purchase Plan Enrollment Authorization Form (previously filed as Exhibit 4.3 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-126129) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.6
 
Form of Employee Stock Purchase Plan Change / Withdrawal Authorization Form (previously filed as Exhibit 4.4 to the Company’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-126129) and incorporated herein by reference).

 
79

 
 
4.7
 
2008 Equity Incentive Plan, as amended (previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended June 30, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
4.8
 
Form of 2008 Equity Incentive Plan Stock Option Award Agreement (previously filed as Exhibit 4.3 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-151113) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.9
 
Form of 2008 Equity Incentive Plan 102 Stock Option Award Agreement (previously filed as Exhibit 4.4 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-151113) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.10
 
Form of Restricted Stock Award Agreement under the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (previously filed as Exhibit 4.5 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-151113) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.11
 
Form of Restricted Stock 102 Award Agreement under the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (previously filed as Exhibit 4.6 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-151113) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.12
 
Form of Non-Qualified Stock Option Award to Director Agreement under the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (previously filed as Exhibit 4.7 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-151113) and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
4.13
 
Form of 2008 Equity Incentive Plan 102 Stock Award Agreement (previously filed as Exhibit 4.8 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-151113) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
4.14
 
Indenture between TranSwitch Corporation and U.S. Bank National Trust (previously filed as Exhibit 4.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.1
 
Third Amended and Restated 1995 Stock Option Plan, as amended (previously filed as an exhibit to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed on May 23, 2005 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.2
  
1995 Non-Employee Director Stock Option Plan, as amended (previously filed as Exhibit 4.4 to the TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-89798) and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.3
  
Form of Incentive Stock Option Agreement under the 1995 Stock Plan (previously filed as an exhibit to the TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-94234) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.4
  
Form of Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the 1995 Stock Plan (previously filed as an exhibit to the TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-94234) and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.5
  
Form of Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the 1995 Non-Employee Director Stock Option Plan (previously filed as an exhibit to the TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-94234) and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.6
  
Lease Agreement, as amended, with Robert D. Scinto (previously filed as Exhibit 10.14 to the TranSwitch Corporation’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 1997 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.7
  
2000 Stock Option Plan (previously filed as Exhibit 4.2 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-75800) and incorporated by reference herein).
     
10.8
  
Form of Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the 2000 Stock Option Plan (previously filed as Exhibit 4.3 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-75800) and incorporated by reference herein).
     
10.9
  
1999 Stock Incentive Plan of Onex Communications Corporation (previously filed as Exhibit 4.2 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-70344) and incorporated by reference herein).
     
10.10
  
Form of Incentive Stock Option Agreement under the 1999 Stock Incentive Plan of Onex Communications Corporation (previously filed as Exhibit 4.3 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Registration Statement on Form S-8 (File No. 333-70344) and incorporated by reference herein).
 
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10.11
 
Form of Director Non-Qualified Stock Option Agreement under the Third Amended and Restated 1995 Stock Option Plan, as amended (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the SEC on May 25, 2007 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.12
 
Agreement and Plan of Merger by and among TranSwitch Corporation, Centillium Communications, Inc., Sonnet Acquisition Corporation and Haiku Acquisition Corporation, dated as of July 9, 2008 (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on July 11, 2008 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.13
 
Exchange Agreement by and among TranSwitch Corporation, QVT Fund LP and Quintessence Fund LP (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.14
 
Exchange Agreement by and among TranSwitch Corporation, JGB Capital LP, JGB Capital Offshore Ltd. and SAMC LLC (previously filed as Exhibit 10.2 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 26, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.15
 
Employment Agreement dated November 5, 2009 between Dr. M. Ali Khatibzadeh and TranSwitch Corporation (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on November 12, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.16
 
Common Stock Purchase Agreement dated December 31, 2009 by and between TranSwitch Corporation and Seaside 88, LP (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on January 4, 2010 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.17
 
Form of Director Indemnification Agreement as executed with each director of TranSwitch Corporation (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Current Report on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 9, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.18
 
Form of Director Restricted Stock Unit Award Agreement under the 2008 Equity Incentive Plan (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Current Report on Form 8-K as filed on May 27, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.19
 
Letter Agreement by and between TranSwitch Corporation and Robert Bosi, dated as of February 13, 2009 (previously filed as Exhibit 10.1 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).*
     
10.20
 
Sublease Agreement by and between TranSwitch Corporation and Sikorsky Aircraft Corporation, dated as of March 3, 2009 (previously filed as Exhibit 10.2 to TranSwitch Corporation’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2009 and incorporated herein by reference).
     
10.21
 
Separation Agreement by and between TranSwitch Corporation and Dr. Santanu Das, dated as of November 6, 2009 (filed herewith).*
     
10.22
 
Consulting Agreement by and between TranSwitch Corporation and Dr. Santanu Das, dated as of November 6, 2009 (filed herewith).*
     
10.23
 
Business Financing Agreement by and between TranSwitch Corporation and Bridge Bank, National Association, dated as of March 12, 2010 (filed herewith). 
     
11.1
  
Computation of Loss Per Share (filed herewith).
     
12.1
  
Computation of Ratio of Earnings to Fixed Charges (filed herewith).
     
21.1
  
Subsidiaries of the Company (filed herewith).
     
23.1
 
Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (filed herewith).
     
31.1
  
CEO Certification pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) and Rule 15d-14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (filed herewith).
     
31.2
  
CFO Certification pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) and Rule 15d-14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as adopted pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (filed herewith).
     
32.1
 
CEO Certification pursuant to Rule 13a-14(b) and Rule 15d-14(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (filed herewith).
 
81

 
32.2
 
CFO Certification pursuant to Rule 13a-14(b) and Rule 15d-14(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (filed herewith).
 
*
Indicates management contract or compensatory plan, contract or arrangement identified as required in Item 15(a)(3) of Form 10-K
 
(b)    Exhibits
 
We hereby file as exhibits to this Form 10-K those exhibits listed in Item 15 (a)(3) above.
 
(c)    Financial Statement Schedule
 
TranSwitch files as a financial statement schedule to this Form 10-K, the financial statement schedule listed in Item 8 and 15(a) (2) above.
 
 
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SIGNATURES
 
 Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
 
  Transwitch Corporation
     
 
By:
/s/    Dr. M. Ali Khatibzadeh
   
Dr. M. Ali Khatibzadeh
President and Chief Executive Officer
 March 16, 2010
 
POWER OF ATTORNEY AND SIGNATURES
 
We, the undersigned named executive officers and directors of TranSwitch Corporation, hereby severally constitute and appoint Dr. M. Ali Khatibzadeh and Mr. Robert A. Bosi, and each of them singly, our true and lawful attorneys, with full power to them and each of them singly, to sign for us in our names in the capacities indicated below, all amendments to this report, and generally to do all things in our names and on our behalf in such capacities to enable TranSwitch Corporation to comply with the provisions of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and all requirements of the Securities and Exchange Commission.
 
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated.
 
Name and Signature
 
Title(s)
 
Date
         
/s/    Dr. M. Ali Khatibzadeh
 
President and Chief Executive Officer (principal executive officer)
 
March 16, 2010
Dr. M. Ali Khatibzadeh
       
         
/s/ Mr. Robert A. Bosi
 
Vice President and Chief Financial Officer (principal financial and
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Robert A. Bosi
 
accounting officer)
   
         
/s/ Mr. Gerald F. Montry
 
Director and Chairman of the Board
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Gerald F. Montry
       
         
/s/ Mr. Faraj Aalaei
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Faraj Aalaei
       
         
/s/ Mr. Thomas Baer
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Thomas Baer
       
         
/s/ Mr. Herbert Chen
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Herbert Chen
       
         
/s/ Mr. Michael Crawford
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Michael Crawford
       
         
/s/ Mr. James M. Pagos
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. James M. Pagos
       
         
/s/ Mr. Sam Srinivasan
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Mr. Sam Srinivasan
       
         
/s/ Dr. Santanu Das
 
Director
 
March 16, 2010
Dr. Santanu Das
       
 
 
83