CIEN, §1A diff (2018 → 2019)

Item 1A. Risk Factors Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. In addition to the other information contained in this report, you should consider the following risk factors before investing in our securities. Our revenue, gross margin and operating results can fluctuate significantly and unpredictably from quarter to quarter. Our revenue, gross margin and results of operations can fluctuate significantly and unpredictably from quarter to quarter. Our budgeted expense levels are based on our visibility into customer spending plans and our projections of future revenue and gross margin. Visibility into customer spending levels can be uncertain, spending patterns are subject to change, and reductions in our expense levels can take significant time to implement. A significant portion of our quarterly revenue is generated from customer orders received during that same quarter (which we refer to as “book to revenue”). Accordingly, our revenue for a particular quarter is difficult to predict, and a shortfall in expected orders in any given quarter can materially adversely affect our revenue and results of operations for that quarter or future quarterly periods. Additional factors that contribute to fluctuations in our revenue, gross margin and operating results include: • changes in spending levels or network deployment plans by customers, particularly with respect to our service provider and Web-scale provider customers; • order timing and volume, including book to revenue orders; • shipment and delivery timing; • backlog levels; • the level of competition and pricing pressure in our industry; • the pace and impact of price erosion that we regularly encounter in our markets; • the impact of commercial concessions or unfavorable commercial terms required to maintain incumbency or secure new opportunities with key customers; • the mix of revenue by product segment, geography and customer in any particular quarter; • our level of success in achieving targeted cost reductions and improved efficiencies in our supply chain; • our incurrence of start-up costs, including lower margin phases of projects required to support initial deployments, gain new customers or enter new markets; • our level of success in accessing new markets and obtaining new customers; • technology-based price compression and our introduction of new platforms with improved price for performance; • changing market, economic and political conditions, including the impact of tariffs and other trade restrictions; • the financial stability of our customers and suppliers; • consolidation activity among our customers, suppliers and competitors; • the timing of revenue recognition on sales, particularly relating to large orders; • installation service availability and readiness of customer sites; • availability of components and manufacturing capacity; • adverse impact of foreign exchange; and • seasonal effects in our business. As a result of these factors and other conditions affecting our business and operating results, we believe that quarterly comparisons of our operating results are not necessarily a good indication of possible future performance. Quarterly fluctuations from the above factors may cause our revenue, gross margin and results of operations to underperform in relation to our guidance, long-term financial targets or the expectations of financial analysts or investors, which may cause volatility or decreases in our stock price. A small number of customers account for a significant portion of our revenue. The loss of these customers or a significant reduction in their spending could have a material adverse effect on our business and results of operations. A significant portion of our revenue is concentrated among a small number of customers. For example, our ten largest customers contributed 59.3% of our fiscal 2019 revenue. Historically, our largest customers by revenue principally consisted of large communications service providers. For example, Verizon and AT&T accounted for approximately 12.9% and 10.9% of fiscal 2019 revenue, respectively. As a result of efforts in recent years to diversify our business, the customer segments and geographies that comprise our customer base and top customers by revenue have changed. During fiscal 2019, three Web-scale providers were among our top ten customers. Web-scale customers have been important contributors to our overall growth through both our direct sales to them, including for data center interconnection, and their indirect impact on purchases by other network operators. Consequently, our financial results and our ability to grow our business are closely correlated with the spending of a relatively small number of customers. Our business and results of operations could be materially adversely impacted by the loss of a large customer within or outside of these customer segments as well as by reductions in spending or capital expenditure budgets, changes in network deployment plans or changes in consumption models for acquiring networking solutions by our largest customers. Because of our concentration of revenue with communications service providers and Web-scale providers, our business and results of operations can be significantly affected by market, industry or competitive dynamics adversely affecting these customer segments. For example, communications service providers continue to face a rapidly shifting competitive landscape as cloud service operators, “over-the-top” (OTT) providers, and other content providers challenge their traditional business models and network infrastructures. These dynamics have in the past had an adverse effect on network spending levels by certain of our largest service provider customers. Several of these, including AT&T, with whom we experienced declines in annual revenue during fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2018, have announced various initiatives that seek to modify how they purchase networking infrastructure or reduce capital expenditures on network infrastructure in future periods that may adversely affect our results of operations. In addition, a number of our communications service providers and cable operator customers, including AT&T, Verizon and CenturyLink, have either recently announced significant acquisition transactions or are in the process of significant related integration activities, including the acquisition of media or content companies. Such transactions have in the past, and may in the future, result in spending delays or deferrals, or changes in preferred vendors due to changes in strategy or leadership, the timing of regulatory approvals and debt burdens associated with such transactions. Similarly, certain of our largest Web-scale customers have announced an intention to reduce capital spending in future periods and we expect our revenue from this customer segment to moderate from the level achieved in fiscal 2019. Web-scale providers are also under consumer and government scrutiny and have been the subject of regulatory and other government actions, including antitrust investigations. There can be no assurance that these government actions will not adversely impact the network spending, procurement strategies, or business practices of our Web-scale customers in a manner adverse to us. Our business and results of operations could be materially adversely affected by these factors and other market, industry or competitive dynamics adversely impacting our customers. We face intense competition that could hurt our sales and results of operations, and we expect the competitive landscape in which we operate to continue to broaden to include additional solutions providers. We face an intense competitive market for sales of communications networking equipment, software and services. Competition is intense on a global basis, as we and our competitors aggressively seek to capture market share and displace incumbent equipment vendors. Our industry has historically been dominated by a small number of very large vendors, some of which have substantially greater financial and marketing resources, broader product offerings and more established relationships with service providers and other customer segments than we do. In addition, to drive scale and market share gains and meet the intense investment capacity required to keep pace with technology innovation, acquisition activity among vendors of networking solutions has increased. Consolidation in our industry may result in competitors with greater resources, pricing flexibility, or other synergies, which may provide them with a competitive advantage. Certain of our customers are adopting procurement strategies that seek to purchase a broader set of networking solutions from a single or small number of vendors. Because of their scale, resources, and a more diverse set of solution offerings, certain of our larger competitors may be perceived to be a better fit for the procurement or network operating and management strategies of these customers. We also compete with a number of smaller companies that provide significant competition for specific products, applications, customer segments or geographic markets. Due to the narrower focus of their efforts, these competitors may achieve commercial availability of their products more quickly or may be more attractive to customers in a particular product niche. Generally, competition in our markets is based on any one or a combination of the following factors: • the ability to meet customer business needs and drive successful outcomes; • functionality, speed, capacity, scalability, performance, quality and reliability of solutions; • price for performance, cost per bit and total cost of ownership of solutions; • incumbency and strength of existing business relationships; • ability to offer comprehensive networking solutions, consisting of hardware, software and services; • time-to-market in delivering products and features; • technology roadmap and forward innovation capacity and ability to deliver on network innovation; • company stability and financial health; • flexibility and openness of platforms, including ease of integration, interoperability and integrated management; • ability to offer solutions that accommodate a range of emerging customer consumption models for network solutions; • operating costs, space requirements and power consumption of network solutions; • software and network automation and analytics capabilities; • manufacturing and lead-time capability; and • services and support capabilities. Part of our strategy is to leverage our technology leadership and to aggressively capture additional market share and displace competitors, particularly with communications service providers internationally. In an effort to maintain our incumbency or to secure new customer opportunities, we have in the past, and may in the future, agree to aggressive pricing, commercial concessions and other unfavorable terms that result in low or negative gross margins on a particular order or group of orders. Competition can also result in onerous commercial and legal terms and conditions that place a disproportionate amount of risk on us. We expect the competition in our industry to continue to broaden and to intensify, as network operators pursue a diverse range of network strategies and consumption models. As these changes occur, we expect that our business will compete more directly with additional networking solution suppliers, including IP router vendors, data center switch providers and other suppliers or integrators of networking technology. In addition, as we seek increased customer adoption of our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services, and as network operator demands for programmability, automation and analytics increase, we expect to compete more directly with software vendors and IT vendors or integrators of these solutions. We may also face competition from system and component vendors, including those in our supply chain, that develop networking products based on off-the-shelf or commoditized hardware technology, referred to as “white box” hardware, particularly where a customer’s network strategy seeks to emphasize deployment of such product offerings or adopt a disaggregated approach to the procurement of hardware and software. An increase in competitive intensity, the adoption of new consumption models, or the entry of new competitors into our markets, may adversely impact our business and results of operations. If competitive pressures increase, or if we fail to compete successfully in our markets, our business and results of operations could suffer. Our business and operating results could be adversely affected by unfavorable changes in macroeconomic and market conditions and reductions in the level of spending by customers in response to these conditions. Our business and operating results depend significantly on general market and economic conditions. Market volatility and weakness in the regions in which we operate have previously resulted in sustained periods of decreased demand for our products and services, which has adversely affected our operating results. Macroeconomic and market conditions could be adversely affected by a variety of political, economic or other factors in the United States and international markets, which could in turn adversely affect spending levels of our customers and their end users, and could create volatility or deteriorating conditions in the markets in which we operate. Due to our concentration of revenue in the United States, we would expect to incur a more significant impact from any adverse change in the capital spending environment or macroeconomic or market weakness in the United States. Macroeconomic uncertainty or weakness could result in: • reductions in customer spending and delay, deferral or cancellation of network infrastructure initiatives; • increased competition for fewer network projects and sales opportunities; • increased pricing pressure that may adversely affect revenue, gross margin and profitability; • decreased ability to forecast operating results and make decisions about budgeting, planning and future investments; • increased overhead and production costs as a percentage of revenue; • tightening of credit markets needed to fund capital expenditures by us or our customers; • customer financial difficulty, including longer collection cycles and difficulties collecting accounts receivable or write-offs of receivables; and • increased risk of charges relating to excess and obsolete inventories and the write-off of other intangible assets. Reductions in customer spending in response to unfavorable or uncertain macroeconomic and market conditions, globally or in a particular region where we operate, would adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Investment of research and development resources in communications networking technologies for which there is not an adequate market demand, or failure to sufficiently or timely invest in technologies for which there is market demand, would adversely affect our revenue and profitability. The market for communications networking hardware and software solutions is characterized by rapidly evolving technologies, changes in market demand and increasing adoption of software-based networking solutions. We continually invest in research and development to sustain or enhance our existing hardware and software solutions and to develop or acquire new technologies including new software platforms. There is often a lengthy period between commencing these development initiatives and bringing new or improved solutions to market. During this time, technology preferences, customer demand and the markets for our solutions may move in directions that we had not anticipated. There is no guarantee that our new products, including our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services, or enhancements to other solutions, will achieve market acceptance or that the timing of market adoption will be as predicted. As a result, there is a significant possibility that some of our development decisions, including significant expenditures on acquisitions, research and development, or investments in technologies, will not meet our expectations, and that our investment in some projects will be unprofitable. There is also a possibility that we may miss a market opportunity because we failed to invest or invested too late in a technology, product or enhancement sought by our customers or the markets into which we sell. Changes in market demand or investment priorities may also cause us to discontinue existing or planned development for new products or features, which can have a disruptive effect on our relationships with customers. If we fail to make the right investments or fail to make them at the right time, competing solutions may be more attractive in the market. As a result, our competitive position may suffer, and our revenue and profitability could be adversely affected. We have no guaranteed purchases and regularly have to re-win business for existing customers. Generally, our customer contracts do not require customers to purchase any minimum or guaranteed volumes, and we conduct sales through framework contracts under which customers place purchase orders for which they often have the right to modify or cancel. We must regularly compete for and win business with existing customers across all of our customer segments. In addition, Web-scale providers tend to operate on shorter procurement cycles than some of our traditional customers, which can require us to compete to re-win business with these customers more frequently than required with other customers segments. As such, there is no assurance that our incumbency will be maintained at any given customer or that our revenue levels from a customer in a particular period can be achieved in future periods. Customer spending levels can be unpredictable, and our sales to any customer could significantly decrease or cease at any time. Network equipment sales often involve lengthy sales cycles and protracted contract negotiations that may require us to agree to commercial terms or conditions that negatively affect pricing, risk allocation, payment and the timing of revenue recognition. Our sales efforts, particularly with communications service providers, Web-scale providers and other large customers, often involve lengthy sales cycles. These selling efforts often involve a significant commitment of time and resources that may include extensive product testing, laboratory or network certification, network or region-specific product certification and homologation requirements for deployment in networks. Even after a customer awards its business to us or decides to purchase our solutions, the length of time before deployment can vary depending on the customer’s schedule, site readiness, the size of the network deployment, the degree of custom configuration required and other factors. Additionally, these sales also often involve protracted and sometimes difficult contract negotiations in which we may deem it necessary to agree to unfavorable contractual or commercial terms that adversely affect pricing, expose us to penalties for delays or non-performance and require us to assume a disproportionate amount of risk. To maintain incumbency with key customers, we may be required to offer discounted pricing, make commercial concessions or offer less favorable terms as compared to our historical business arrangements with these customers. We may also be requested to provide deferred payment terms, vendor or third-party financing or other alternative purchase structures that extend the timing of payment. Alternatively, customers may insist on terms and conditions that we deem too onerous or not in our best interest, and we may be unable to reach a commercial agreement. As a result, we may incur substantial expense and devote time and resources to potential sales opportunities that never materialize or result in lower than anticipated sales and gross margin. If the market for network software does not evolve in the way we anticipate or if customers do not adopt our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services, we may not be able to monetize these software assets and realize a key part of our business strategy. A key part of our business strategy is to increase customer adoption of our Blue Planet Automation Software Platform for intelligent, closed loop automated networks. This strategy depends in significant part on our ability to commercialize and gain market adoption for our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services. If the markets relating to software solutions for network automation, including service orchestration, route optimization, analytics and assurance, and SDN or NFV, do not develop as we anticipate, or if we are unable to increase market awareness and adoption of our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services within those markets, revenue from our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services may not grow. We have a limited history in commercializing and selling these software solutions and have only recently acquired certain elements of our Blue Planet portfolio. Moreover, the market and competitive landscape for these solutions is dynamic, and it is difficult to predict important trends, including the potential growth, if any, of this market. If the market for these software solutions does not evolve in the way we anticipate or if customers do not adopt our Blue Planet Automation Software and Services, a key part of our strategy for growth would be adversely affected and our financial results may suffer. If we are unable to adapt our business to the consumption models for networking solutions adopted by our customers and to offer attractive solutions across these consumption models, our business, competitive position and results of operations could be adversely affected. Growing bandwidth demands and network operator efforts to reduce costs are resulting in a diverse range of approaches to the design and procurement of network infrastructure. We refer to these different approaches as “consumption models.” These consumption models can include: the traditional systems procurement of fully integrated solutions including hardware, software and services from the same vendor; the procurement of a fully integrated hardware solution from one vendor with the separate use of a network operator’s own SDN-based controller; the procurement of an integrated photonic line system with open interfaces from one vendor and the separate or “disaggregated” procurement of modem technology from a different vendor; or the development and use of published reference designs and open source specifications for the procurement of “white box” hardware to be used with open source software. In parallel, network operators are also exploring procurement alternatives for software solutions, ranging from integrated and proprietary software platforms to fully open source software. We believe that network operators will continue to consider a variety of different consumption models. Many of these approaches are in their very early stages of development and evaluation, and the types of models and their levels of adoption will depend in significant part on the nature of the circumstances and strategies of particular network operators. Among our customers, AT&T and others are pursuing network strategies that emphasize enhanced software programmability, management and control of networks, and deployment of “white box” hardware. A number of network operators are pursuing the deployment of smaller form factor, pluggable modem technology, particularly within switching and routing solutions, as an alternative to integrated optical networking platforms. Other network operators, including certain of our Web-scale customers, are playing a leading role in the transition to software-defined networking or the standardization of communications network solutions. We believe that the potential for different approaches to the procurement of networking infrastructure will require network operators and vendors to evolve and broaden their existing solutions and commercial models over time. Adoption of a range of consumption models may also alter and broaden our competitive landscape to include other technology vendors, including routing vendors, component vendors and IT software vendors. If we are unable to adapt our business to these new consumption models and offer attractive solutions and commercial models that accommodate the range of consumption models ultimately adopted by our customers or within our markets, our business, competitive position and results of operations could be adversely affected. We may experience delays in the development and production of our products that may negatively affect our competitive position and business. Our hardware and software networking solutions, including our coherent optical chipset, our WaveLogic modem technology and the components thereof, are based on complex technology, and we can experience unanticipated delays in developing, manufacturing and introducing these solutions to market. Delays in product development efforts by us or our supply chain may affect our reputation with customers, affect our ability to capture market opportunities and impact the timing and level of demand for our products. Among other things, we are currently introducing our fifth generation of our coherent optical modem technology, extending our Packet Networking portfolio with additional IP features, and introducing new solutions within our Platform Software and Services and Blue Planet Automation Software and Services segments. Each step in the development cycle of our products presents serious risks of failure, rework or delay, any one of which could adversely affect the cost-effectiveness and timely development of our products. We may encounter delays relating to engineering development activities and software, design, sourcing and manufacture of critical components, and the development of prototypes. The development of new technologies may increase the complexity of supply chain management or require the acquisition, licensing or interworking with the technology of third parties. In addition, intellectual property disputes, failure of critical design elements and other execution risks may delay or even prevent the release of these products. If we do not successfully develop or produce products in a timely manner, our competitive position may suffer, and our business, financial condition and results of operations could be harmed. We rely on third-party contract manufacturers and our business and results of operations may be adversely affected by risks associated with their businesses, financial condition and the geographies in which they operate. We rely on third-party contract manufacturers with facilities in Canada, Mexico, Thailand and the United States to perform a substantial portion of our supply chain activities, including component sourcing, manufacturing, product testing and quality, and fulfillment and logistics relating to the distribution and support of our products. There are a number of risks associated with our dependence on contract manufacturers, including: • reduced control over delivery schedules and planning; • reliance on the quality assurance procedures of third parties; • potential uncertainty regarding manufacturing yields and costs; • availability of manufacturing capability and capacity, particularly during periods of high demand; • risks and uncertainties associated with the locations or countries where our products are manufactured, including potential manufacturing disruptions caused by social, geopolitical or environmental factors; • changes in U.S. law or policy governing tax, trade, manufacturing, development and investment in the countries where we currently manufacture our products, including the World Trade Organization Information Technology Agreement or other free trade agreements; • inventory liability for excess and obsolete supply; • limited warranties provided to us; and • potential misappropriation of our intellectual property. These and other risks could impair our ability to fulfill orders, harm our sales and impact our reputation with customers. If our contract manufacturers are unable or unwilling to continue manufacturing our products or components of our products, or if we experience a disruption of manufacturing or our contract manufacturers discontinue operations, we may be required to identify and qualify alternative manufacturers, which could cause us to be delayed in or unable to meet our supply requirements to our customers and result in the breach of our customer agreements. The process of qualifying a new contract manufacturer and commencing volume production is expensive and time-consuming, and if we are required to change or qualify a new contract manufacturer, we would likely experience significant business disruption and could lose revenue and damage our existing customer relationships. Our reliance on third-party component suppliers, including sole and limited source suppliers, exposes our business to additional risk and could limit our sales, increase our costs and harm our customer relationships. We maintain a global sourcing strategy and depend on a diverse set of third-party suppliers in international markets that comprise our supply chain. We rely on these third parties for activities relating to product design, development and support, and in the sourcing of products, components, subcomponents and related raw materials. Our products include optical and electronic components for which reliable, high-volume supply is often available only from sole or limited sources. We do not have any guarantees of supply from our third-party suppliers, and in certain cases we have limited contractual arrangements or are relying on standard purchase orders. As a result, there is no assurance that we will be able to secure the components or subsystems that we require, in sufficient quantity and quality, and on reasonable terms. The loss of a source of supply, or lack of sufficient availability of key components, could require that we locate an alternate source or redesign our products, either of which could result in business interruption and increased costs and could negatively affect our product gross margin and results of operations. There are a number of significant technology trends or developments underway or emerging - including the Internet of Things, autonomous vehicles, and advances in mobile communications such as the emergence of 5G - that have previously resulted in, and can be expected in the future to result in, increased market demand for key raw materials or components upon which we rely. Increases in market demand or scarcity of raw materials for components have resulted, and may in the future result, in shortages in availability of important components for our solutions, product allocation challenges, deployment delays and increased cost, lead times and delivery cycle time lines. We have experienced, and may experience in the future, consolidation among suppliers of our components. Consolidation in the optical components and semiconductor industry can result in a reduction in the number of suppliers available to us, which can negatively impact our ability to access components or the price we have to pay for such components. Moreover, our access to necessary components could be adversely impacted by evolving competitive landscapes, converging solutions offerings and competition from component vendors, including those in our supply chain, who develop competing networking products for emerging consumptions models, including pluggable modem technology or offerings based on “white box” hardware. These and other industry, market and regulatory disruptions and challenges affecting our suppliers could expose our business to increased costs, loss or lack of supply, or discontinuation of components that can result in lost revenue, additional product costs, increased lead times and deployment delays that could harm our business and customer relationships. The international scale of our sales and operations exposes us to additional risk and expense that could adversely affect our results of operations. We market, sell and service our products globally, maintain personnel in numerous countries, and rely on a global supply chain for sourcing important components and manufacturing our products. Our international sales and operations are subject to inherent risks, including: • adverse social, political and economic conditions in countries outside the United States; • effects of adverse changes in currency exchange rates; • greater difficulty in collecting accounts receivable and longer collection periods; • difficulty and cost of staffing and managing foreign operations; • higher incidence of corruption or unethical business practices; • less protection for intellectual property rights in some countries; • tax and customs changes that adversely impact our global sourcing strategy, manufacturing practices, transfer-pricing, or competitiveness of our products for global sales; • compliance with certain testing, homologation or customization of products to conform to local standards; • significant changes to free trade agreements, trade protection measures, tariffs, export compliance, domestic preference procurement requirements, qualification to transact business and additional regulatory requirements; and • natural disasters, epidemics and acts of war or terrorism. Our international operations are subject to complex foreign and U.S. laws and regulations, including anti-bribery and corruption laws, antitrust or competition laws, data privacy laws, such as the EU General Data Protection Regulation, and environmental regulations, among others. In particular, recent years have seen a substantial increase in anti-bribery law enforcement activity by U.S. regulators, and we currently operate and seek to operate in many parts of the world that are recognized as having greater potential for corruption. Violations of any of these laws and regulations could result in fines and penalties, criminal sanctions against us or our employees, prohibitions on the conduct of our business and on our ability to offer our products and services in certain geographies, and significant harm to our business reputation. Our policies and procedures to ensure compliance with these laws and regulations and to mitigate these risks may not protect us from all acts committed by our employees or third-party vendors, including contractors, agents and services partners. Additionally, the costs of complying with these laws (including the costs of investigations, auditing and monitoring) could adversely affect our current or future business. The success of our international sales and operations will depend, in large part, on our ability to anticipate and manage these risks effectively. Our failure to manage any of these risks could harm our international operations, reduce our international sales, and could give rise to liabilities, costs or other business difficulties that could adversely affect our operations and financial results. Changes in trade policy, including the imposition of tariffs and efforts to withdraw from or materially modify international trade agreements, may adversely affect our business, operations and financial condition. The United States and various foreign governments have established certain trade and tariff requirements under which we have implemented a global approach to the sourcing and manufacture of our products, as well as distribution and fulfillment to customers around the world. Recently, the U.S. government has indicated a willingness to revise, renegotiate, or terminate various existing multilateral trade agreements and to impose new taxes on certain goods imported into the U.S. Because we rely on a global sourcing strategy and third-party contract manufacturers in markets outside of the U.S. to perform substantially all of the manufacturing of our products, such steps, if adopted, could adversely impact our business and operations, increase our costs, and make our products less competitive in the U.S. and other markets. For example, the U.S. government has threatened to undertake a number of actions relating to trade with Mexico, including the closure of the border and the imposition of escalating tariffs on goods imported into the U.S. from Mexico. A substantial portion of our products are manufactured and distributed by third-party contract manufacturers in Mexico. If adopted, such actions could adversely impact our business and significantly disrupt our operations. These actions may also make our products less competitive in the United States and other markets. In addition, the U.S. government reached a new trade agreement with the Canadian and Mexican governments to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (“NAFTA”) with the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (“USMCA”). Withdrawal from NAFTA by the U.S. or failure of these countries to ratify USMCA could similarly adversely impact our business and significantly disrupt our operations. In addition, as a result of our global sourcing strategy, our supply chain includes certain direct and indirect suppliers based in China who supply goods to us, our manufacturers or our third-party suppliers. Recently, there have been a number of significant geopolitical events, including trade tensions and regulatory actions, involving the governments of the United States and China. The U.S. government has raised tariffs, and imposed new tariffs, on a wide range of imports of Chinese products, including component elements of our solutions and certain finished goods products that we sell. Effective September 1, 2019, a new 15% tariff was imposed on approximately $120 billion of China-origin imports covered by the so called “List 4A,” which includes certain of our products. In December 2019, the U.S. government announced that as part of a so called “Phase One” agreement between the U.S. and China on trade matters, this tariff was expected to be reduced to 7.5%. At this time, it remains unclear what additional actions, if any, will be taken by the U.S. or other governments with respect to international trade agreements, the imposition of tariffs on goods imported into the U.S., tax policy related to international commerce, or other trade matters. Based on our manufacturing practices and locations, there can be no assurance that any future executive or legislative action in the United States or other countries relating to tax policy and trade regulation would not adversely affect our business, operations and financial results. Government regulation of usage, import or export of our products, or our technology within our products, changes in that regulation, or our failure to obtain required approvals for our products, could harm our international and domestic sales and adversely affect our revenue and costs of sales. Failure to comply with such regulations could result in enforcement actions, fines, penalties or restrictions on export privileges. In addition, costly tariffs on our equipment, restrictions on importation, trade protection measures and domestic preference requirements of certain countries could limit our access to these markets and harm our sales. These regulations could adversely affect the sale or use of our products, substantially increase our cost of sales and adversely affect our business and revenue. Our reliance on certain third-party component suppliers exposes us to certain risks relating to their businesses that, in turn, could disrupt our business or limit our sales. We are exposed to risks relating to unfavorable economic conditions, financial conditions and a wide range of challenges affecting the businesses and results of operations of our component suppliers. These challenges can affect their material costs, sales, liquidity levels, ability to continue investing in their businesses, ability to import or export goods, ability to meet development commitments and manufacturing capability. A number of our key technology vendors rely upon sales to customers, including our competitors, in China for a material portion of their revenue. In January 2018, China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology released its Optoelectronic Devices Industry Technology Roadmap, a five-year plan to improve China’s capabilities in the optoelectronics industry. There can be no assurance that this initiative, or similar efforts in China such as the Made in China 2025 initiatives, will not have an adverse impact on the business of our component suppliers or our access to necessary components. Separately, in May 2019, the U.S. Department of Commerce amended the Export Administration Regulations by adding Huawei Technologies Co., Ltd. and 68 of its non-U.S. affiliates to the “Entity List” for actions contrary to the national security and foreign policy interests of the United States, which amendment imposes significant new restrictions on export, reexport and transfer of U.S. regulated technologies and products to Huawei. In August, the U.S. Department of Commerce further added 46 affiliates to the Entity List (collectively, “Huawei”). Several of our third-party component suppliers, including certain sole and limited source suppliers, sell products to Huawei and, in some cases, Huawei is a significant customer for such suppliers. Any continued restriction on our suppliers’ ability to make sales to Huawei may adversely impact their businesses. Such industry, market and regulatory disruptions affecting these suppliers could, in turn, expose our business to loss or lack of supply or discontinuation of components that could result in lost revenue, additional product costs, increased lead times and deployment delays that could harm our business and customer relationships. Our business and results of operations would be negatively affected if we were to experience any significant disruption or difficulties with key suppliers affecting the price, quality, availability or timely delivery of required components. At this time, there can be no assurance regarding the scope or duration of the restrictions imposed on Huawei and any future impact on our suppliers. Product performance problems and undetected errors affecting the performance, interoperability, reliability or security of our products could damage our business reputation and negatively affect our results of operations. The development and production of sophisticated hardware and software for communications network equipment is highly complex. Some of our products can be fully tested only when deployed in communications networks or when carrying traffic with other equipment, and software products may contain bugs that can interfere with expected performance. As a result, undetected defects or errors, and product quality, interoperability, reliability and performance problems are often more acute for initial deployments of new products and product enhancements. We have recently launched, and are in the process of launching, a number of new hardware and software offerings, including evolutions of our WaveLogic coherent optical modem technology, Packet Networking platforms and solutions targeting access and metro networks and data center interconnect applications. Unanticipated product performance problems can relate to the design, manufacturing, installation, operation and interoperability of our products. Undetected errors can also arise as a result of defects in components, software or manufacturing, installation or maintenance services supplied by third parties, and technology acquired from or licensed by third parties. From time to time we have had to replace certain components, provide software remedies or other remediation in response to defects or bugs, and we may have to do so again in the future. Remediation of such events could materially adversely impact our business and results of operations. In addition, we may encounter unanticipated security vulnerabilities relating to our products or the activities of our supply chain. Our products are used in customer networks transmitting a range of sensitive information and any actual or perceived exposure of our solutions to malicious software or cyber-attacks could adversely affect our business and results of operations. Product performance, reliability, security and quality problems may result in some or all of the following effects: • damage to our reputation, declining sales and order cancellations; • increased costs to remediate defects or replace products; • payment of liquidated damages, contractual or similar penalties, or other claims for performance failures or delays; • increased warranty expense or estimates resulting from higher failure rates, additional field service obligations or other rework costs related to defects; • higher charges for increased inventory obsolescence; • costs, liabilities and claims that may not be covered by insurance coverage or recoverable from third parties; and • delays in recognizing revenue or collecting accounts receivable. These and other consequences relating to undetected errors affecting the quality, reliability and security of our products could negatively affect our business and results of operations. If we fail to accurately predict demand, we may be required to write off significant amounts of inventory as a result of our inventory purchase practices and could incur additional costs or experience manufacturing delays. To avoid delays and meet customer demand for shorter delivery terms, we place orders with our contract manufacturers and component suppliers based on forecasts of customer demand. In a number of cases these suppliers may require longer lead times for fulfillment than we have with our customers. Thus, our practice of buying inventory based on forecasted demand exposes us to the risk that our customers ultimately may not order the products we have forecast or will purchase fewer products than forecast. As a result, we may purchase inventory in anticipation of sales that ultimately do not occur. We regularly incur, on a quarterly basis, expense provisions against excess or obsolete inventory and may have difficulty forecasting inventory and customer spending. Moreover, our customer purchase agreements generally do not include any minimum purchase commitment and customers often have the right to modify, reduce or cancel purchase quantities. Our products are highly configurable, and certain new products have overlapping feature sets or application with existing products. Accordingly, it is increasingly possible that customers may forgo purchases of certain products we have inventoried in favor of a similar or newer product. We may also be exposed to inventory write-offs as a result of certain supply chain initiatives, including consolidation and transfer of key manufacturing activities. If we are required to write off or write down a significant amount of inventory, our results of operations for the applicable period would be materially adversely affected. Conversely, if we underestimate our demand, our contract manufacturers and component suppliers may have inadequate time, materials, or components required to manufacture our products. This could increase costs or delay or interrupt manufacturing of our products, resulting in delays in shipments and deferral or loss of revenues and could adversely impact customer satisfaction. Our go-to-market activities and the distribution of our WaveLogic coherent modem technology within the merchant modem market could expose us to increased or new forms of competition, or adversely affect our existing systems business and results of operations. We recently entered the merchant modem market to monetize our coherent optical technology, expand our addressable market and address a range of customer consumption models for networking solutions. Making our critical technology available in this manner could adversely impact the sale of products in our existing systems business. For example, our customers may choose to adopt disaggregated consumption models or third-party solutions that embed Ciena-designed optical modules instead of purchasing systems-based solutions from us. Accordingly, we may encounter situations where we are competing for opportunities in the market directly against a system from one of our competitors that incorporates Ciena-designed modules. Making this key technology available and enabling third-party sales of Ciena-designed modules may adversely affect our competitive position and increase the risk that third parties misappropriate or attempt to use our technology or related intellectual property without our authorization. These and other risks or unanticipated liabilities or costs associated with the sales of our WaveLogic coherent technology could harm our reputation and adversely affect our business and our results of operations. Our go-to-market activities and the distribution of our WaveLogic coherent technology within the merchant modem market could expose us to increased or new forms of competition, or adversely affect our systems business and results of operation. Data security breaches and cyber-attacks could compromise our intellectual property or other sensitive information and cause significant damage to our business and reputation. In the ordinary course of our business, we maintain on our network systems, and on the networks of our third-party providers, certain information that is confidential, proprietary or otherwise sensitive in nature. This information includes intellectual property, financial information and confidential business information relating to us and our customers, suppliers and other business partners. Companies in the technology industry have been increasingly subject to a wide variety of security incidents, cyber-attacks and other attempts to gain unauthorized access to networks or sensitive information. Our network systems and storage and other business applications, and the systems and storage and other business applications maintained by our third-party providers, have been in the past, and may be in the future, subject to attempts to gain unauthorized access, breach, malfeasance or other system disruptions. In some cases, it is difficult to anticipate or to detect immediately such incidents and the damage caused thereby. If an actual or perceived breach of security occurs in our network or any of our third-party providers’ networks, we could incur significant costs and our reputation could be harmed. While we work to safeguard our internal network systems and validate the security of our third party providers to mitigate these potential risks, including through information security policies and employee awareness and training, there is no assurance that such actions will be sufficient to prevent cyber-attacks or security breaches. We have been subjected in the past to a range of incidents including phishing, emails purporting to come from a company executive or vendor seeking payment requests, and communications from look-alike corporate domains. While these have not had a material effect on our business or our network security to date, security incidents involving access or improper use of our systems, networks or products could compromise confidential or otherwise protected information, destroy or corrupt data, or otherwise disrupt our operations. These security events could also negatively impact our reputation and our competitive position and could result in litigation with third parties, regulatory action, loss of business, potential liability and increased remediation costs, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and results of operations. Efforts to increase our sales and capture market share in targeted international markets may be unsuccessful. Part of our business and growth strategy is to expand our geographic reach and increase market share in international markets through a combination of direct and indirect sales resources. We are also aggressively pursuing opportunities with service provider customers in additional geographies, including EMEA and APAC. This diversification of our markets and customer base has been a significant component of the growth of our business in recent years. Our efforts to continue to increase our sales and capture market share in international markets may ultimately be unsuccessful or may adversely impact our financial results, including our gross margin. Our failure to continue to increase our sales and market share in international markets could limit our growth and could harm our results of operations. Our intellectual property rights may be difficult and costly to enforce. We generally rely on a combination of patents, copyrights, trademarks and trade secret laws to establish and maintain proprietary rights in our products and technology. Although we have been issued numerous patents, and other patent applications are currently pending, there can be no assurance that any of these patents or other proprietary rights will not be challenged, invalidated or circumvented, or that our rights will provide us with any competitive advantage. In addition, there can be no assurance that patents will be issued for our pending applications or that claims allowed on any patents will be sufficiently broad to protect our technology. Further, the laws of some foreign countries may not protect our proprietary rights to the same extent as do the laws of the United States. We are subject to the risk that third parties may attempt to access, divert or use our intellectual property without authorization. Protecting against the unauthorized use of our products, technology and other proprietary rights is difficult, time-consuming and expensive, and we cannot be certain that the steps that we are taking will prevent or minimize the risks of such unauthorized use. In addition, our intellectual property strategy must continually evolve to protect our proprietary rights in new solutions, including our software solutions. Litigation may be necessary to enforce or defend our intellectual property rights or to determine the validity or scope of the proprietary rights of others. Such litigation could result in substantial cost and diversion of management time and resources, and there can be no assurance that we will obtain a successful result. Any inability to protect and enforce our intellectual property rights could harm our ability to compete effectively. We may incur significant costs in response to claims by others that we infringe their intellectual property rights. From time to time third parties may assert claims or initiate litigation or other proceedings related to patent, copyright, trademark and other intellectual property rights to technologies and related standards that are relevant to our business. The rate of infringement assertions by patent assertion entities is increasing, particularly in the United States. Generally, these patent owners neither manufacture nor use the patented invention directly, and they seek to derive value from their ownership solely through royalties from patent licensing programs. We could be adversely affected by litigation, other proceedings or claims against us, as well as claims against our manufacturers, suppliers or customers, alleging infringement of third-party proprietary rights by our products and technology, or components thereof. Regardless of the merit of these claims, they can be time-consuming, divert the time and attention of our technical and management personnel, and result in costly litigation. These claims, if successful, could require us to: • pay substantial damages or royalties; • comply with an injunction or other court order that could prevent us from offering certain of our products; • seek a license for the use of certain intellectual property, which may not be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all; • develop non-infringing technology, which could require significant effort and expense and ultimately may not be successful; and • indemnify our customers or other third parties pursuant to contractual obligations to hold them harmless or pay expenses or damages on their behalf. Any of these events could adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition. Our exposure to risks associated with the use of intellectual property may increase as a result of acquisitions, as we would have a lower level of visibility into the development process with respect to the acquired technology and the steps taken to safeguard against the risks of infringing the rights of third parties. Our products incorporate software and other technology under license from third parties, and our business would be adversely affected if this technology were no longer available to us on commercially reasonable terms. We integrate third-party software and other technology into our operating system, network management, and intelligent automation software and other products. As a result, we may be required to license certain software or technology from third parties, including competitors. Licenses for software or other technology may not be available or may not continue to be available to us on commercially reasonable terms. Third-party licensors may insist on unreasonable financial or other terms in connection with our use of such technology. Our failure to comply with the terms of any license may result in our inability to continue to use such license, which may result in significant costs, harm our market opportunities and require us to obtain or develop a substitute technology. Some of our solutions, including our Blue Planet Automation Software, utilize elements of open source or publicly available software. As network operators seek to enhance programmability and automation of networks, we expect that we and other communications networking solutions vendors will increasingly contribute to and use technology or open source software developed by standards settings bodies or other industry forums that seek to promote the integration of network layers and functions. The terms of such licenses could be construed in a manner that could impose unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to commercialize our products. This increases our risks associated with our use of such software and may require us to seek licenses from third parties, to re-engineer our products or to discontinue the sale of such solutions. Difficulty obtaining and maintaining technology licenses with third parties may disrupt development of our products, increase our costs and adversely affect our business. We rely on third-party resellers and distribution partners to sell our solutions, and our failure to develop and manage these relationships effectively could adversely affect our business and result of operations. In order to sell into new markets, diversify our customer base and broaden the application for our solutions, and to complement our global field resources, we rely on a number of third-party resellers, distribution partners and sales agents, both domestic and international, and we believe that these relationships are an important part of our business. There can be no assurance that we will successfully identify and qualify these resources or that we will realize the expected benefits of these sales relationships. Our failure to effectively identify, develop and manage our third-party sales relationships could adversely affect our business, growth and result of operations. We must also assess and qualify resellers, distribution partners and sales agents under our channel programs to ensure their understanding of and willingness and ability to adhere to our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, our Ciena Partner Network Code of Business Conduct and Ethics and ethical business practices. We may be held responsible or liable for the actions or omissions of these third parties. Actions, omissions or violations of law by our third-party sales partners or agents could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition. Our failure to manage our relationships with third-party service partners effectively could adversely impact our financial results and relationships with customers. We rely on a number of third-party service partners, both domestic and international, to complement our global service and support resources. We rely on these partners for certain installation, maintenance and support functions. In addition, as network operators increasingly seek to rely on vendors to perform additional services relating to the design, construction and operation of their networks, the scope of work performed by our support partners is likely to increase and may include areas where we have less experience providing or managing such services. We must successfully identify, assess, train and certify qualified service partners in order to ensure the proper installation, deployment and maintenance of our products, as well as to ensure the skillful performance of other services associated with expanded solutions offerings, including site assessment and construction-related services. We must also assess and certify service partners in order to ensure their understanding of and willingness and ability to adhere to our Code of Business Conduct and Ethics, and ethical business practices. Vetting and certification of these partners can be costly and time-consuming, and certain partners may not have the same operational history, financial resources and scale as we have. Moreover, certain service partners may provide similar services for other companies, including our competitors. We may not be able to manage our relationships with our service partners effectively, and we cannot be certain that they will be able to deliver services in the manner or time required, that we will be able to maintain the continuity of their services, or that they will adhere to our approach to ethical business practices. We may also be exposed to a number of risks or challenges relating to the performance of our service partners, including: • delays in recognizing revenue; • liability for injuries to persons, damage to property or other claims relating to the actions or omissions of our service partners; • our services revenue and gross margin may be adversely affected; and • our relationships with customers could suffer. As our service offering expands and customers look to identify vendors capable of managing, integrating and optimizing multi-domain, multi-vendor networks with unified software, our relationships with third-party service partners will become increasingly important. If we do not effectively manage our relationships with third-party service partners, or if they fail to perform these services in the manner or time required, our financial results and relationships with customers could be adversely affected. We may be adversely affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. As a company with global operations, we face exposure to movements in foreign currency exchange rates. Due to our global presence, a significant percentage of our revenue, operating expense and assets and liabilities are non-U.S. Dollar denominated and therefore subject to foreign currency fluctuation. We face exposure to currency exchange rates as a result of the growth in our non-U.S. Dollar denominated operating expense in Canada, Europe, Asia and Latin America. An increase in the value of the U.S. Dollar could increase the real cost to our customers of our products in those markets outside the United States where we sell in Dollars, and a weakened Dollar could increase the cost of local operating expenses and procurement of materials or service that we purchase in foreign currencies. From time to time, we hedge against currency exposure associated with anticipated foreign currency cash flows or assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currency. Such attempts to offset the impact of currency fluctuations are costly, and we cannot hedge against all foreign exchange rate volatility. Losses associated with these hedging instruments and the adverse effect of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuation may negatively affect our results of operations. Changes in government regulations affecting the communications and technology industries and the businesses of our customers could harm our prospects and operating results. The Federal Communications Commission (the “FCC”) has jurisdiction over the U.S. communications industry, and similar agencies have jurisdiction over the communication industries in other countries. Many of our largest customers, including service providers and cable and multiservice network operators, are subject to the rules and regulations of these agencies, while others participate in and benefit from government-funded programs that encourage the development of network infrastructures. These regulatory requirements and funding programs are subject to changes that may adversely impact our customers, with resulting adverse impacts on our business. In December 2017, the FCC voted to roll back its 2015 order regulating broadband internet service providers as telecommunications service carriers under Title II of the Telecommunications Act. This decision repeals net neutrality regulations that prohibit blocking, degrading or prioritizing certain types of internet traffic and restores the light touch regulatory treatment of broadband service in place prior to 2015. Although the FCC has preempted state jurisdiction on net neutrality, at least two states, Montana and New York have already taken executive action directed at reinstating aspects of the FCC’s 2015 order. In addition, in September 2018, California passed legislation that seeks to reestablish net neutrality. Changes in regulatory requirements or uncertainty associated with the regulatory environment could delay or serve as a disincentive to investment in network infrastructures by network operators, which could adversely affect the sale of our products and services. Similarly, changes in regulatory tariff requirements or other regulations relating to pricing or terms of carriage on communications networks could slow the development or expansion of network infrastructures and adversely affect our business, operating results, and financial condition. In October 2019, the Supreme Court in India ruled against an industry group of India service providers in a long-standing dispute over the calculation of license and other regulatory fees owing to the Department of Telecommunications. The ruling has resulted in the possibility of significant near-term liability among these service providers, which include our customers, for amounts owing to the Department of Telecommunications in relation to these revenue-based license fees along with certain penalties and interest. There can be no assurance that this ruling, the resulting license fee interpretation and amounts owing, will not adversely affect spending by these customers or our business or sales in India. Separately, certain of our Web-scale customers have been the subject of regulatory and other government actions, including inquiries and investigations, formal or informal, by competition authorities in the United States, Europe and other jurisdictions. In July 2019, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it would commence an antitrust review into significant online technology platforms, and in September 2019, various state attorneys general announced antitrust investigations involving certain technology companies. In addition, certain committees of the U.S. Congress have recently held hearings to consider the businesses associated with these platforms and their impact on competition. There can be no assurance that these government actions will not adversely impact the network spending, procurement strategies, or business practices of our Web-scale customers in a manner adverse to us. We are a party to legal proceedings, investigations and other claims or disputes, which are costly to defend and, if determined adversely to us, could require us to pay fines or damages, undertake remedial measures or prevent us from taking certain actions, any of which could adversely affect our business. In the course of our business, we are, and in the future may be, a party to legal proceedings, investigations and other claims or disputes, which have related and may relate to subjects including commercial transactions, intellectual property, securities, employee relations, or compliance with applicable laws and regulations. A description of certain of these matters can be found in Note 25, Commitments and Contingencies, in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 of Part II of this Report. Legal proceedings and investigations are inherently uncertain and we cannot predict their duration, scope, outcome or consequences. There can be no assurance that these or any such matters that have been or may in the future be brought against us will be resolved favorably. In connection with any government investigations, in the event the government takes action against us or the parties resolve or settle the matter, we may be required to pay substantial fines or civil and criminal penalties and/or be subject to equitable remedies, including disgorgement or injunctive relief. Other legal or regulatory proceedings, including lawsuits filed by private litigants, may also follow as a consequence. These matters are likely to be expensive and time-consuming to defend, settle and/or resolve, and may require us to implement certain remedial measures that could prove costly or disruptive to our business and operations. They may also cause damage to our business reputation. The unfavorable resolution of one or more of these matters could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition or cash flows. Our exposure to the credit risks of our customers and resellers may make it difficult to collect receivables and could adversely affect our revenue and operating results. In the course of our sales to customers and resale channel partners, we may have difficulty collecting receivables, and our business and results of operations could be exposed to risks associated with uncollectible accounts. Lack of liquidity in the capital markets, macroeconomic weakness and market volatility may increase our exposure to these credit risks. Our attempts to monitor customer payment capability and to take appropriate measures to protect ourselves may not be sufficient, and it is possible that we may have to write down or write off accounts receivable. Such write-downs or write-offs could negatively affect our operating results for the period in which they occur, and, if large, could have a material adverse effect on our revenue and operating results. Growth of our business is dependent on the proper functioning and scalability of our internal business processes and information systems. Adoption of new systems, modifications or interruptions of services may disrupt our business, processes and internal controls. We rely on a number of internal business processes and information systems to support key business functions, and the efficient operation of these processes and systems is critical to managing our business. Our business processes and information systems must be sufficiently scalable to support the growth of our business and may require modifications or upgrades that expose us to a number of operational risks. We continually pursue initiatives to transform and optimize our business operations through the reengineering of certain processes, investment in automation, and engagement of strategic partners or resources to assist with certain business functions. These changes require a significant investment of capital and human resources and may be costly and disruptive to our operations, and they could impose substantial demands on management time. These changes may also require changes in our information systems, modification of internal control procedures and significant training of employees or third-party resources. There can be no assurance that our business and operations will not experience disruption in connection with system upgrades or other initiatives. Even if we do not encounter these adverse effects or disruption in our business, the design and implementation of these new systems may be more costly than anticipated. Our IT systems, and those of third-party IT providers or business partners, may also be vulnerable to damage or disruption caused by circumstances beyond our control, including catastrophic events, power anomalies or outages, natural disasters, cyber-security related incidents, and computer system or network failures. There can be no assurance that our business systems or those of our third-party business partners will not be subject to similar incidents, exposing us to significant cost, reputational harm and disruption or damage to our business. Outstanding indebtedness under our senior secured credit facilities may adversely affect our liquidity and results of operations and could limit our business. We are a party to credit agreements relating to a $300 million senior secured asset-based revolving credit facility and an outstanding senior secured term loan with approximately $693.0 million repayable at maturity in fiscal 2025. The agreements governing these credit facilities contain certain covenants that limit our ability, among other things, to incur additional debt, create liens and encumbrances, pay cash dividends, redeem or repurchase stock, enter into certain acquisition transactions or transactions with affiliates, repay certain indebtedness, make investments, or dispose of assets. The agreements also include customary remedies, including the right of the lenders to take action with respect to the collateral securing the loans, that would apply should we default or otherwise be unable to satisfy our debt obligations. Our indebtedness could have important negative consequences, including: • increasing our vulnerability to adverse economic and industry conditions; • limiting our ability to obtain additional financing, particularly in unfavorable capital and credit market conditions; • debt service and repayment obligations that may adversely impact our results of operations and reduce the availability of cash resources for other business purposes; • limiting our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes in our business and the markets; and • placing us at a possible competitive disadvantage to competitors that have better access to capital resources. We may also enter into additional debt transactions or credit facilities, including equipment loans, working capital lines of credit, senior notes and other long-term debt, which may increase our indebtedness and result in additional restrictions on our business. In addition, major debt rating agencies regularly evaluate our debt based on a number of factors. There can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain our existing debt ratings, and failure to do so could adversely affect our cost of funds, liquidity and access to capital markets. Significant volatility and uncertainty in the capital markets may limit our access to funding on favorable terms or at all. The operation of our business requires significant capital. We have accessed the capital markets in the past and have successfully raised funds, including through the issuance of equity, convertible notes and other indebtedness, to increase our cash position, support our operations and undertake strategic growth initiatives. We regularly evaluate our liquidity position, debt obligations and anticipated cash needs to fund our long-term operating plans, and we may consider it necessary or advisable to raise additional capital or incur additional indebtedness in the future. If we raise additional funds through further issuance of equity or securities convertible into equity, or undertake certain transactions intended to address our existing indebtedness, our existing stockholders could suffer dilution in their percentage ownership of our company or our leverage and outstanding indebtedness could increase. Global capital markets have undergone periods of significant volatility and uncertainty in the past, and there can be no assurance that such financing alternatives will be available to us on favorable terms or at all, should we determine it necessary or advisable to seek additional capital. The effects of the UK’s potential withdrawal from membership in the European Union remain uncertain. In June 2016, the UK held a referendum in which voters approved an exit from the EU, commonly referred to as “Brexit,” and in March 2017, notified the EU that it intended to exit as provided in Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. The terms of the withdrawal are subject to ongoing negotiation that has created significant uncertainty about the future relationship between the UK and the EU. It is possible that the level of economic activity in this region will be adversely impacted and that there will be increased regulatory and legal complexities, including those relating to tax, trade, security and employees. Such changes could be costly and potentially disruptive to our operations and business relationships in these markets. Economic uncertainty related to Brexit, including volatility in global stock markets and currency exchange rates, could adversely impact our business. In addition, there is a risk that the UK will withdraw from the EU without any agreement on the terms of the withdrawal, which has resulted in additional uncertainty and could lead to further costs and disruptions. While we have adopted certain operational and financial measures to reduce the risks of doing business internationally, we cannot ensure that such measures will be adequate to allow us to operate without disruption or adverse impact to our business and financial results in the affected regions. Restructuring activities could disrupt our business and affect our results of operations. We have taken steps, including reductions in force, office closures, and internal reorganizations to reduce the cost of our operations, improve efficiencies, or realign our organization and staffing to better match our market opportunities and our technology development initiatives. We may take similar steps in the future as we seek to realize operating synergies, to achieve our target operating model and profitability objectives, or to reflect more closely changes in the strategic direction of our business. These changes could be disruptive to our business, including our research and development efforts, and could result in significant expense, including accounting charges for inventory and technology-related write-offs, workforce reduction costs and charges relating to consolidation of excess facilities. Substantial expense or charges resulting from restructuring activities could adversely affect our results of operations and use of cash in those periods in which we undertake such actions. If we are unable to attract and retain qualified personnel, we may be unable to manage our business effectively. Competition to attract and retain highly skilled technical, engineering and other personnel with experience in our industry is intense, and our employees have been the subject of targeted hiring by our competitors. Competition is particularly intense in certain jurisdictions where we have research and development centers, including the Silicon Valley area of northern California, and we may experience difficulty retaining and motivating existing employees and attracting qualified personnel to fill key positions. Because we rely on equity awards as a significant component of compensation, particularly for our executive team, a lack of positive performance in our stock price, reduced grant levels, or changes to our compensation program may adversely affect our ability to attract and retain key employees. In addition, none of our executive officers is bound by an employment agreement for any specific term. We have a number of workforce planning initiatives underway and our failure to manage these programs effectively could result in the loss of key personnel. Similarly, the failure to properly manage the necessary knowledge transfer required from these employee transitions could impact our ability to maintain industry and innovation leadership. The loss of members of our management team or other key personnel could be disruptive to our business and, were it necessary, it could be difficult to replace such individuals. If we are unable to attract and retain qualified personnel, we may be unable to manage our business effectively, and our operations and financial results could suffer. Strategic acquisitions and investments could disrupt our operations and may expose us to increased costs and unexpected liabilities. From time to time, we acquire or make investments in other technology companies, or enter into other strategic relationships, to expand the markets we address, diversify our customer base or acquire, or accelerate the development of, technology or products. To do so, we may use cash, issue equity that could dilute our current stockholders, or incur debt or assume indebtedness. Strategic transactions can involve numerous additional risks, including: • failure to achieve the anticipated transaction benefits or the projected financial results and operational synergies; • greater than expected acquisition and integration costs; • disruption due to the integration and rationalization of operations, products, technologies and personnel; • diversion of management attention; • difficulty completing projects of the acquired company and costs related to in-process projects; • difficulty managing customer transitions or entering into new markets; • the loss of key employees; • disruption or termination of business relationships with customers, suppliers, vendors, landlords, licensors and other business partners; • ineffective internal controls over financial reporting; • dependence on unfamiliar suppliers or manufacturers; • assumption of or exposure to unanticipated liabilities, including intellectual property infringement or other legal claims; and • adverse tax or accounting impact. As a result of these and other risks, our acquisitions, investments or strategic transactions may not realize the intended benefits and may ultimately have a negative impact on our business, results of operation and financial condition. We may be exposed to unanticipated risks and additional obligations in connection with our resale of complementary products or technology of other companies. We have entered into agreements with strategic supply partners that permit us to distribute their products or technology. We may rely on these relationships to add complementary products or technologies, to diversify our product portfolio, or to address a particular customer or geographic market. We may enter into additional original equipment manufacturer (OEM), resale or similar strategic arrangements in the future. We may incur unanticipated costs or difficulties relating to our resale of third-party products. Our third-party relationships could expose us to risks associated with the business, financial condition, intellectual property rights and supply chain continuity of such partners, as well as delays in their development, manufacturing or delivery of products or technology. We may also be required by customers to assume warranty, indemnity, service and other commercial obligations, including potential liability to customers, greater than the commitments, if any, made to us by our technology partners. Some of our strategic supply partners are relatively small companies with limited financial resources. If they are unable to satisfy their obligations to us or our customers, we may have to expend our own resources to satisfy these obligations. Exposure to these risks could harm our reputation with key customers and could negatively affect our business and our results of operations. Government regulations related to the environment, climate change and social initiatives could adversely affect our business and operating results. Our operations are regulated under various federal, state, local and international laws relating to the environment and climate change. If we were to violate or become liable under these laws or regulations, we could incur fines, costs related to damage to property or personal injury and costs related to investigation or remediation activities. Our product design efforts and the manufacturing of our products are also subject to evolving requirements relating to the presence of certain materials or substances in our equipment, including regulations that make producers for such products financially responsible for the collection, treatment and recycling of certain products. For example, our operations and financial results may be negatively affected by environmental regulations, such as the Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) and Restriction of the Use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment (RoHS) that have been adopted by the EU. Compliance with these and similar environmental regulations may increase our cost of designing, manufacturing, selling and removing our products. The SEC requires disclosure regarding the use of “conflict minerals” mined from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and adjoining countries (the “DRC”) and disclosure with respect to procedures regarding a manufacturer’s efforts to prevent the sourcing of such minerals from the DRC. Certain of these minerals are present in our products. SEC rules implementing these requirements may have the effect of reducing the pool of suppliers that can supply “conflict free” components and parts, and we may not be able to obtain conflict free products or supplies in sufficient quantities for our operations. Because our supply chain is complex, we may face reputational challenges with our customers, stockholders and other stakeholders if we are unable to verify sufficiently the origins for the “conflict minerals” used in our products and cannot assert that our products are “conflict free.” Environmental or similar social initiatives may also make it difficult to obtain supply of compliant components or may require us to write off non-compliant inventory, which could have an adverse effect on our business and operating results. We may be required to write down the value of certain significant assets, which would adversely affect our operating results. We have a number of significant assets on our balance sheet as of October 31, 2019 and the value of these assets can be adversely impacted by factors related to our business and operating performance, as well as factors outside of our control. As of October 31, 2019, our balance sheet includes a $714.9 million net deferred tax asset. The value of our net deferred tax assets can be significantly impacted by changes in tax policy or our tax planning strategy. For example, the Tax Act required us to write down our net deferred tax assets by approximately $438.2 million in fiscal 2018. If any additional write downs are required, our operating results may be materially adversely affected. As of October 31, 2019, our balance sheet also includes $297.9 million of goodwill. We test each reporting unit for impairment of goodwill on an annual basis and, between annual tests, if an event occurs or circumstances change that would, more likely than not, reduce the fair value of the reporting unit below its carrying value. As of October 31, 2019, our balance sheet also includes $455.1 million in long-lived assets, which includes $112.8 million of intangible assets. Valuation of our long-lived assets requires us to make assumptions about future sales prices and sales volumes for our products. These assumptions are used to forecast future, undiscounted cash flows on which our estimates are based. The value of our net deferred tax asset above may also be subject to change in the future, based on our actual or projected generation of future taxable income. If market conditions or our forecasts for our business or any particular operating segment change, we may be required to reassess the value of these assets. We could be required to record an impairment charge against our goodwill and long-lived assets or a valuation allowance against our deferred tax assets. Any write down of the value of these significant assets would have the effect of decreasing our earnings or increasing our losses in such period. If we are required to take a substantial write down or charge, our operating results would be materially adversely affected in such period. Failure to maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and stock price. Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 requires that we include in our annual report a report containing management’s assessment of the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting as of the end of our fiscal year and a statement as to whether or not such internal controls are effective. Compliance with these requirements has resulted in, and is likely to continue to result in, significant costs and the commitment of time and operational resources. Certain ongoing initiatives, including efforts to transform business processes or to transition certain functions to third-party resources or providers, will necessitate modifications to our internal control systems, processes and related information systems as we optimize our business and operations. Our expansion into new regions could pose further challenges to our internal control systems. We cannot be certain that our current design for internal control over financial reporting, or any additional changes to be made, will be sufficient to enable management to determine that our internal controls are effective for any period, or on an ongoing basis. If we are unable to assert that our internal controls over financial reporting are effective, market perception of our financial condition and the trading price of our stock may be adversely affected, and customer perception of our business may suffer. Our stock price is volatile. Our common stock price has experienced substantial volatility in the past and may remain volatile in the future. Volatility in our stock price can arise as a result of a number of the factors discussed in this “Risk Factors” section. During fiscal 2019, our closing stock price ranged from a high of $45.95 per share to a low of $30.64 per share. The stock market has experienced significant price and volume fluctuation that has affected the market price of many technology companies, with such volatility often unrelated to the operating performance of these companies. Divergence between our actual results and our forward-looking guidance for such results, the published expectations of investment analysts, or the expectations of the market generally, can cause significant swings in our stock price. Our stock price can also be affected by market conditions in our industry as well as announcements that we, our competitors, vendors or our customers may make. These may include announcements by us or our competitors of financial results or changes in estimated financial results, technological innovations, the gain or loss of customers, or other strategic initiatives. Our common stock is also included in certain market indices, and any change in the composition of these indices to exclude our company would adversely affect our stock price. These and other factors affecting macroeconomic conditions or financial markets may materially adversely affect the market price of our common stock in the future. Changes in effective tax rates and other adverse outcomes with taxing authorities could adversely affect our results of operations. Our future effective tax rates could be subject to volatility or adversely affected by changes in tax laws, regulations, accounting principles, or interpretations thereof. The impact of income taxes on our business can also be affected by a number of items relating to our business. These may include estimates for and the actual geographic mix of our earnings; changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets; the use or expiration of net operating losses or research and development credit arrangements applicable to us in certain geographies; and changes in our methodology for transfer pricing, valuing developed technology or conducting intercompany arrangements. On December 22, 2017, the Tax Act was signed into law and introduced significant changes to U.S. federal corporate tax law. These changes include a reduction to the federal corporate income tax rate, the current taxation of certain foreign earnings, the imposition of base-erosion prevention measures which may limit the deductions relating to certain intercompany transactions, and possible limitations on the deductibility of net interest expense or corporate debt obligations. Accounting for the income tax effects of the Tax Act requires significant judgments and estimates that are based on then current interpretations of the Tax Act and could be affected by changing interpretations of the Act, as well as additional legislation and guidance around the Act. Any refinements to tax estimates are difficult to predict and could impact our financial results. We are also subject to the continuous examination of our income tax and other returns by the Internal Revenue Service and other tax authorities and have a number of such reviews underway at any time. It is possible that tax authorities may disagree with certain positions we have taken and an adverse outcome of such a review or audit could have a negative effect on our financial position and operating results. There can be no assurance that the outcomes from such examinations, or changes in our effective tax rates, will not have an adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations. Item 1B.