TRMB, §1A diff (2017 → 2018)

Item 1A. Risk Factors RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES You should carefully consider the following risk factors, in addition to the other information contained in this Form 10-K and in any other documents to which we refer you in this Form 10-K, before purchasing our securities. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. The volatility of our stock price could adversely affect an investment in our common stock The market price of our common stock has been, and may continue to be, highly volatile. During fiscal 2018, our stock price ranged from $29.75 to $45.70. We believe that a variety of factors could cause the price of our common stock to fluctuate, perhaps substantially, including: • general conditions in the worldwide economy, • quarterly fluctuations in our actual or anticipated operating results and order levels, announcements and reports of developments related to our business, our major customers and partners, and the industries in which we compete or the industries in which our customers compete, • security breaches, • acquisition announcements, • new products or product enhancements announced or introduced by us or our competitors, • disputes with respect to developments in patents or other intellectual property rights, • developments in our relationships with our partners, customers and suppliers, • the imposition of tariffs or other trade barriers, • political, economic or social uncertainty, and • acts of terrorism. In addition, the stock market in general and the markets for shares of “high-tech” companies in particular have frequently experienced extreme price fluctuations, which have often been unrelated to the operating performance of affected companies. Any such fluctuations in the future could adversely affect the market price of our common stock. We operate globally and are subject to significant risks in many jurisdictions Global or regional conditions may harm our financial results. We have operations in many countries and a significant portion of our revenue is derived from countries outside of the United States. As a result, our operations and our financial results, including our ability to design, develop, or sell products, may be adversely affected by a number of factors outside of our control, including: • global and local economic conditions, • the demand and cost of commodities, such as corn and oil, • the strength of the agricultural, engineering, and construction markets, • inadequate infrastructure and other disruptions, such as supply chain interruptions and large-scale outages or unreliable provision of services from utilities, transportation, data hosting, or telecommunications providers, • government restrictions on our operations in any country, or restrictions on our ability to repatriate earnings from a particular country, • differing employment practices and labor issues, • formal or informal imposition of new or revised export and/or import and doing-business regulations, including trade sanctions, tariffs, and import or export licensing requirements, which could be changed without notice, • ineffective legal protection of our IP rights in certain countries, • local business and cultural factors that differ from our normal standards and practices, and • increased uncertainty regarding social, political, immigration, and trade policies in the U.S. and abroad, such as recent U.S. government action and policies, and the continuing uncertainty regarding the United Kingdom's impending withdrawal from the European Union ("Brexit"). A significant trade disruption or the establishment or increase of any trade barrier in any area where we do business, including the Asia Pacific region, could increase the cost of our products, which could adversely impact the margin that we earn on sales; make our products more expensive for customers or create uncertainty around demand for certain types of products, which could make our products less competitive and reduce customer demand; or otherwise have a materially adverse impact on our future revenue and profits, our and our customers’ businesses, and our results of operations. In response to U.S. tariffs, other countries may adopt tariffs and other trade barriers that could limit our ability to competitively offer our products and services. Recently, the U.S. government imposed tariffs on certain products imported into the U.S. and the Chinese government imposed tariffs on certain products imported into China. Tariffs may be increased in the future. Given the current U.S. political climate and recent actions of the administration, there is significant uncertainty about the trade policies, treaties, government regulations and tariffs that could apply to trade between the U.S. and China, as well as other nations, in the future. In addition, if there is significant deterioration in the global economy, the economies of the countries or regions where our customers are located or do business, or the industries that we or our customers serve, the demand for our products and services would likely decrease and our results of operations, financial position and cash flows could be materially and adversely affected. Changes in economic conditions and political uncertainty surrounding international trade also make it difficult to make financial forecasts, which could cause us to miss our financial guidance and adversely affect our stock price. We face risks inherent in conducting business internationally, including compliance with international and U.S. laws and regulations that apply to our international operations. These laws and regulations include data privacy requirements, labor relations laws, tax laws, anti-competition regulations, import and trade restrictions, export control laws, and laws that prohibit corrupt payments to governmental officials or certain payments or remunerations to customers, including the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act ("FCPA"), the U.K. Bribery Act, or other anti-corruption laws that have recently been the subject of a substantial increase in global enforcement. Many of our products are subject to U.S. export law restrictions that limit the destinations and types of customers to which our products may be sold, or require an export license in connection with sales outside the United States. Given the high level of complexity of these laws, there is a risk that some provisions may be inadvertently or intentionally breached, for example through fraudulent or negligent behavior of individual employees, our failure to comply with certain formal documentation requirements or otherwise. Also, we may be held liable for actions taken by our local dealers and partners. Violations of these laws and regulations could result in fines, criminal sanctions against us, our officers or our employees, and prohibitions or conditions on the conduct of our business. Any such violations could include prohibitions or conditions on our ability to offer our products in one or more countries and could materially damage our reputation, our brand, our international expansion efforts, our ability to attract and retain employees, our business, and our operating results. We operate in many parts of the world that have experienced significant governmental corruption to some degree and, in certain circumstances, strict compliance with anti-bribery laws may conflict with local customs and practices. We may be subject to competitive disadvantages to the extent that our competitors are able to secure business, licenses, or other preferential treatment by making payments to government officials and others in positions of influence or through other methods that relevant law and regulations prohibit us from using. Our success depends, in part, on our ability to anticipate these risks and manage these difficulties. Existing privacy-related laws and regulations in the United States and other countries are evolving and are subject to potentially differing interpretations, and various U.S. federal and state or other international legislative and regulatory bodies may expand or enact laws regarding privacy and data security-related matters. For example, the European Union General Data Protection Regulation became effective in May 2018 and is wide-ranging in scope. In order to be compliant with the new EU requirements, we must continue to invest resources necessary to implement and manage policy changes across our business units and services relating to how we collect and use personal data relating to customers, employees, and vendors. Failure to comply may lead to sizable fines. In parallel, with the advent of the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield (the new framework agreement between the U.S. Department of Commerce and the European Commission for transferring personal data from the European Union to the United States) and other national requirements, we expect that the international transfer of personal data will present ongoing compliance challenges and complicate our business transactions. Countries outside the EU are considering or have passed legislation that requires local storage and processing of data, which could increase the cost and complexity of delivering our services. We may be affected by fluctuations in currency exchange rates. We are potentially exposed to adverse as well as beneficial movements in currency exchange rates. Although most of our sales occur in U.S. dollars, expenses may be paid in local currencies. An increase in the value of the dollar could increase the real cost to our customers of our products in those markets outside the U.S. where we sell in dollars, and a weakened dollar could increase the cost of expenses such as payroll, utilities, tax, and marketing expenses, as well as overseas capital expenditures. We also conduct certain investing and financing activities in local currencies. Our hedging programs reduce, but do not eliminate, the impact of currency exchange rate movements; therefore, changes in exchange rates could harm our results of operations and financial condition. Catastrophic events or geopolitical conditions could disrupt our operations. Acts of war, acts of terrorism or civil unrest, natural disasters and other catastrophic events, especially any events that impact our larger markets or GNSS signals or systems, could have a material adverse impact on our business, operating results, and financial condition. The threat of terrorism and war and heightened security and military activity in response to this threat, or any future acts of terrorism or hostilities, may involve a redeployment of the satellites used in GNSS or interruptions of the system. Civil unrest, local conflicts, or other political instability may adversely impact regional economies, cause work stoppages, or result in limitations on business transactions with the affected foreign jurisdictions. To the extent that such interruptions result in delays or the cancellation of orders, disruption of the manufacturing or shipment of our products, or reduced demand for our products, these interruptions could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Engaging in international business inherently involves a number of other difficulties and risks. These risks include: • longer payment cycles and difficulties in enforcing agreements and collecting receivables through certain foreign legal systems, • difficulties and costs of staffing and managing foreign operations, • differing local customer product preferences and requirements than our U.S. markets, and • difficulties protecting or procuring intellectual property rights. These factors or any combination of these factors may adversely affect our revenue or our overall financial performance. Investing in and integrating new acquisitions could be costly, place a significant strain on our management systems and resources, or may fail to deliver the expected return on investment, which could negatively impact our operating results We typically acquire a number of businesses each year, and intend to continue to acquire other businesses. In the past year, two of our acquisitions, Viewpoint and e-Builder, were acquired for $1,211.3 million and $485.2 million respectively. Acquisitions entail numerous risks, including: • potential inability to successfully integrate acquired operations and products or to realize cost savings or other anticipated benefits from integration, • loss of key employees or customers of acquired operations, • difficulty of assimilating geographically dispersed operations and personnel of the acquired companies, • potential disruption of our business or the acquired business, • unanticipated expenses related to acquisitions, • unanticipated difficulties in conforming business practices, policies, procedures, internal controls, and financial records of acquisitions with our own business, • impairment of relationships with employees, customers, vendors, distributors or business partners of either an acquired company or our own business, • inability to accurately forecast the performance of recently acquired businesses, resulting in unforeseen adverse effects on our operating results, • potential liabilities, including liabilities resulting from known or unknown compliance or legal issues, associated with an acquired business, and • negative accounting impact to our results of operations because of purchase accounting treatment and the business or accounting practices of acquired companies. Any such effects from acquisitions could be costly and place a significant strain on our management systems and resources. As a result of acquisitions, we have significant assets that include goodwill and other purchased intangibles. The testing of goodwill and intangibles for impairment under established accounting guidelines requires significant use of judgment and assumptions. Changes in business conditions or in the prospects or results of operations of the acquired business could require negative adjustments to the valuation of these assets resulting in write-offs which adversely affect our results. If we divest a business and the proceeds are less than the net book value at the time, we would be forced to write off the difference. In addition, changes in the operating results or the valuation of companies in which we have investments may have a direct impact on our financial statements or could result in our having to write-down the value of such investment. Even if successfully negotiated and closed, acquisitions may not yield expected synergies, may not advance our business strategy as expected, may fall short of expected return-on-investment targets, or may not prove successful or effective for our business. Companies that we acquire may operate with different cost and margin structures, which could further cause fluctuations in our operating results and adversely affect our operating margins. Our internal and customer-facing systems, and systems of third parties we rely upon, may be subject to cybersecurity breaches, disruptions or delays A cybersecurity incident in our own systems or the systems of our third party providers may compromise the confidentiality, integrity, or availability of our own internal data, the availability of our products and websites designed to support our customers, or our customer data. Computer hackers, foreign governments or cyber terrorists may attempt to or succeed in penetrating our network security and our website. Unauthorized access to our proprietary business information or customer data may be obtained through break-ins, sabotage, breach of our secure network by an unauthorized party, computer viruses, computer denial-of-service attacks, employee theft or misuse, breach of the security of the networks of our third party providers, or other misconduct. Additionally, outside parties may attempt to fraudulently induce employees or users to disclose sensitive or confidential information in order to gain access to data. We have experienced security breaches in the past, and despite our efforts to maintain the security and integrity of our systems, it is impossible to eliminate this risk. For example, in late 2015 and early 2016, we were the subject of an attack by hackers operating in China. This incident resulted in the theft of proprietary and confidential data related to our GPS technology but has not had a meaningful impact on our business. Because the techniques used by computer hackers who may attempt to penetrate and sabotage our network security or our website change frequently, they may take advantage of weaknesses in third party technology or standards of which we are unaware or that we do not control, and may not be recognized until long after they have been launched against a target. We may be unable to anticipate or counter these techniques. It is also possible that unauthorized access to customer data or confidential information may be obtained through inadequate use of security controls by customers, vendors, or business partners. Efforts to prevent hackers from disrupting our service or otherwise accessing our systems are expensive to develop, implement, and maintain. Such efforts require ongoing monitoring and updating as technologies change and efforts to overcome security measures become more sophisticated and may limit the functionality of, or otherwise negatively impact our service offering and systems. A cybersecurity incident affecting our systems may also result in theft of our intellectual property, proprietary data or trade secrets, which would compromise our competitive position, reputation, and operating results. We also may be required to notify regulators about any actual or perceived personal data breach (including the EU Lead Data Protection Authority) as well as the individuals who are affected by the incident within strict time periods. The systems we rely upon also remain vulnerable to damage or interruption from a number of other factors, including access to the internet, the failure of our network or software systems, or significant variability in visitor traffic on our product websites, earthquakes, floods, fires, power loss, telecommunication failures, computer viruses, human error, and similar events or disruptions. Some of our systems are not fully redundant, and our disaster recovery planning is not sufficient for all eventualities. Our systems are also subject to intentional acts of vandalism. Despite any precautions we may take, the occurrence of a natural disaster, a decision by any of our third-party hosting providers to close a facility we use without adequate notice for financial or other reasons, or other unanticipated problems at our hosting facilities could cause system interruptions and delays, and result in loss of critical data and lengthy interruptions in our services. We rely on our information systems and those of third parties for activities such as processing customer orders, delivery of products, hosting and providing services and support to our customers, billing and tracking our customers, hosting and managing our customer data, and otherwise running our business. Any disruptions or unexpected incompatibilities in our information systems and those of the third parties upon whom we rely could have a significant impact on our business. An increasing portion of our revenue comes from software as a service ("SaaS") solutions and other hosted services in which we store, retrieve, communicate, and manage data which is critical to our customers’ business systems. Disruption of our systems that support these services and solutions could cause disruptions in our customers’ systems and in the businesses that rely on these systems. Any such disruptions could harm our reputation, create liabilities to our customers, hurt demand for our services and solutions, and negatively impact our revenues and profitability. We may not be able to enter into or maintain important alliances and distribution relationships We believe that in certain business opportunities our success will depend on our ability to form and maintain alliances with industry participants, such as Caterpillar, Nikon, Hilti, and CNH Global. Our failure to form and maintain such alliances, or the preemption or disruption of such alliances by actions of competitors, will adversely affect our ability to sell our products to customers. Our relationships with substantial industry participants such as Caterpillar and CNH are complex and multifaceted, and are likely to evolve over time based upon the changing business needs and objectives of the parties. Since these strategic relationships contribute to significant ongoing business in certain of our important markets, changes in these relationships could adversely affect our sales and revenues. In addition, we utilize dealer networks, including those affiliated with some of our strategic allies such as Caterpillar and CNH, to market, sell, and service many of our products. Changes in our product mix, including increasing provision of software and bundled solutions tailored to the needs of specific vertical markets, impose new demands on our distribution channels and may require significant changes in the skills and expertise required to successfully distribute our products and services, or the creation of new distribution channels. Recruiting and retaining qualified channel partners and training them in the use and the selling of our technology and product offerings requires significant time and resources. In order to develop and expand our distribution channels, we must continue to expand and improve our processes and procedures that support our distribution channels, including our investment in systems and training, and those processes and procedures may become increasingly complex and difficult to manage. The time and expense required for sales and marketing organizations of our channel partners to become familiar with our product offerings, including our new product developments, and newer types of offering such as software and services, may make it more difficult to introduce those products to end-users and delay end-user adoption, which could result in lower revenues. Disruption of dealer coverage within specific geographic or end-user markets could cause difficulties in marketing, selling, or servicing our products and have an adverse effect on our business, operating results, or financial condition. Moreover, dealers who carry products that compete with our products may focus their inventory purchases and sales efforts on goods provided by competitors due to industry demand or profitability. Such sourcing decisions can adversely impact our sales, financial condition, and results of operations. Our products are highly technical and may contain undetected errors, product defects, security vulnerabilities or software errors Our products, including our software products, are highly technical and complex and, when deployed, may contain errors, defects or security vulnerabilities. We must develop our products quickly to keep pace with the rapidly changing market, and we have a history of frequently introducing new products. Products and services as sophisticated as ours could contain undetected errors or defects, especially when first introduced or when new models or versions are released. Such occurrences could result in damage to our reputation, lost revenue, diverted development resources, increased customer service and support costs, warranty claims, and litigation. We warrant that our products will be free of defect for various periods of time, depending on the product. In addition, certain of our contracts include epidemic failure clauses. If invoked, these clauses may entitle the customer to return or obtain credits for products and inventory, or to cancel outstanding purchase orders even if the products themselves are not defective. Errors, viruses or bugs may be present in software or hardware that we acquire or license from third parties and incorporate into our products or in third party software or hardware that our customers use in conjunction with our products. Our customers’ proprietary software and network firewall protections may corrupt data from our products and create difficulties in implementing our solutions. Changes to third party software or hardware that our customers use in conjunction with our software could also render our applications inoperable. Any errors, defects or security vulnerabilities in our products or any defects in, or compatibility issues with, any third party hardware or software or customers’ network environments discovered after commercial release could result in loss of revenues or delay in revenue recognition, loss of customers, theft of trade secrets, data or intellectual property and increased service and warranty cost, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition, and results of operations. Undiscovered vulnerabilities in our products alone or in combination with third party hardware or software could expose them to hackers or other unscrupulous third parties who develop and deploy viruses, and other malicious software programs that could attack our products. Actual or perceived security vulnerabilities in our products could harm our reputation and lead some customers to return products, to reduce or delay future purchases, or use competitive products. If we are unable to effectively manage our increasingly diverse and complex businesses and operations, our ability to generate growth and revenue from new or existing customers may be adversely affected Because our operations are geographically diverse and increasingly complex, our personnel resources and infrastructure could become strained and our reputation in the market and our ability to successfully manage and grow our business may be adversely affected. The size, complexity, and diverse nature of our business and the expansion of our product lines and customer base have placed increased demands on our management and operations, and further growth, if any, may place additional strains on our resources in the future. Our ability to effectively compete and to manage our planned future growth will depend on, among other things, the following: • maintaining continuity in our senior management and key personnel, • increasing the productivity of our existing employees, • attracting, retaining, training, and motivating our employees, particularly our technical and management personnel, • deploying our solutions using third-party information systems, which may require changes to our applications, documentation, and operational processes, • improving our operational, financial and management controls, and • improving our information reporting systems and procedures. The company has increasingly diversified the nature of its businesses both organically and by acquisition. As a result, an increasing amount of our business involves business models which require managerial techniques and skill sets which are different from those required to manage our historical core businesses. Over the last few years we have focused more on SaaS subscription models. As a result, we expect to derive an increasing portion of our revenues in the future from subscriptions. This subscription model provides our customers the right to access certain of our software in a hosted environment or use downloaded software for a specified subscription period. Market acceptance of such offerings is affected by a variety of factors, including but not limited to: security, reliability, performance, current license terms, customer preference, social/community engagement, customer concerns with entrusting a third party to store and manage their data, public concerns regarding privacy and the enactment of restrictive laws or regulations. If we are unable to successfully account for, support and host our SaaS offerings in light of the foregoing risks and uncertainties, our results of operations could be negatively impacted. Our annual and quarterly performance may fluctuate which could negatively impact our operations, financial results, and stock price Our operating results have fluctuated and can be expected to continue to fluctuate in the future on a quarterly and annual basis as a result of a number of factors, many of which are beyond our control. Results in any period could be affected by: • changes in market demand, • competitive market conditions, • the timing of recognizing revenues, • fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates, • the cost and availability of components, • the mix of our customer base and sales channels, • the mix of products sold, • pricing of products, • changes in U.S. or foreign policies on taxes, trade, or spending, including the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act (the "Tax Act"), and • other risks, including those described below. Seasonal variations in demand for our products may also affect our quarterly results. Construction equipment revenues have historically been the highest in early spring. Our agricultural equipment revenues have historically been the highest in the first quarter, followed by the second quarter, reflecting buying in anticipation of the spring planting season in the Northern hemisphere. If we do not accurately forecast seasonal demand we may be left with unsold inventory or have a shortage of inventory, which could negatively impact our financial results. Due in part to the buying patterns of our customers, a significant portion of our quarterly revenue occurs from orders received and immediately shipped to customers in the last few weeks and days of each quarter, while our operating expense tends to remain fairly predictable. These patterns could harm our operating results if for any reason expected sales are deferred, orders are not received, or shipments are delayed a few days at the end of a quarter. The price of our common stock could decline substantially in the event any of these risks result in our financial performance being below the expectations of public market analysts and investors, which are based on historical and predictive models that are not necessarily accurate representations of the future. Changes in our software and subscription businesses may negatively affect our operations and financial results An increasing portion of our revenue is generated through software maintenance and subscription revenue, which includes SaaS. Our customers have no obligation to renew their agreements for our software maintenance or subscription services after the expiration of their initial contract period, which typically ranges from one to five years. Our customer acquisition and renewal rates may decline or fluctuate as a result of a number of factors, including overall economic conditions, the health of their businesses, competitive offerings, and customer dissatisfaction with our services. If customers do not renew their contracts for our products, our maintenance and subscription revenue will decline and our financial results will suffer. Any reduction in the number of licenses that we sell, even if our customer acquisition rates do not change, will have a negative impact on our future maintenance revenue growth. If any of our assumptions about expenses, revenue or revenue recognition principles from these initiatives proves incorrect, or our attempts to improve efficiency are not successful, our actual results may vary materially from those anticipated, and our financial results will be negatively impacted. We continually re-evaluate our software licensing programs and subscription renewal programs, including specific license models, delivery methods, and terms and conditions. Changes to our licensing programs and subscription renewal programs, including the timing of the release of enhancements, upgrades, maintenance releases, the term of the contract, discounts, promotions and other factors, could impact the timing of the recognition of revenue for our products, related enhancements and services and could adversely affect our operating results and financial condition. We may implement different licensing models which require the Company to recognize licensing fees over a longer period. Over the last few years, we have increasingly offered additional products through a SaaS model. SaaS revenues are currently recognized ratably over the subscription period. Any significant increase in the percentage of our business generated from such a subscription model could increase the amount of revenue to be recognized over time as opposed to upfront, which would delay revenue recognition and have a negative impact on our operating results in a quarterly period. Due to these complexities, we may not be able to accurately forecast our revenue, which could cause us to miss our earnings estimates or revenue projections and negatively impact our stock price. We face substantial competition in our markets which could decrease our revenue and growth rates or impair our operating results and financial condition Our markets are highly competitive and we expect that both direct and indirect competition will increase in the future. Our overall competitive position depends on a number of factors including the price, quality and performance of our products, the effectiveness of our distribution channel and direct sales force, the level of customer service, the development of new technology and our ability to participate in emerging markets. Within each of our markets, we encounter direct competition from other GNSS, software, optical and laser suppliers, and competition may intensify from various larger U.S. and non-U.S. competitors and new market entrants, particularly from emerging markets such as China. Our products, which commonly use GNSS for basic location information, may be subject to competition from alternative location technologies such as simultaneous location and mapping technology. As we sell an increasing amount of software and subscription services, we face competition from a group of large well-established companies with whom we have not previously competed. Our integrated hardware and software products may be subject to increasing competition from mass market devices such as smartphones and tablets used in conjunction with relatively inexpensive applications, which have not been heavily used for commercial applications in the past. These developments may require us to rapidly adapt to technological and customer preference changes that we have not previously been exposed to, including those related to cloud computing, mobile devices and new computing platforms. Such competition has in the past resulted, and in the future may result, in price reductions, reduced margins or loss of market share, any of which could decrease our revenue and growth rates or impair our operating results and financial condition. We believe that our ability to compete successfully in the future against existing and additional competitors will depend largely on our ability to execute our strategy to provide products with significantly differentiated features compared to currently available products. We may not be able to implement this strategy successfully, and our products may not be competitive with other technologies or products that may be developed by our competitors, many of whom have significantly greater financial, technical, manufacturing, marketing, sales, and other resources than we do. We are dependent on new products and services and if we are unable to successfully introduce them into the market, or to effectively compete with new, disruptive product alternatives, our customer base may decline or fail to grow as anticipated Our future revenue stream depends to a large degree on our ability to bring new products and services to market on a timely basis. We must continue to make significant investments in research and development in order to continue to develop new products and services, enhance existing products and achieve market acceptance of such products and services. We may encounter problems in the future in innovating and introducing new products and services. Our development stage products may not be successfully completed or, if developed, may not achieve significant customer acceptance. Development and manufacturing schedules for technology products are difficult to predict, and we might not achieve our goals as to the timing of introducing new technology products, or could encounter increased costs. The timely availability and cost effective production of these products in volume and their acceptance by customers are important to our future success. If we are unable to introduce new products and services, if other companies develop competing technology products and services, or if we do not develop compelling new products and services, our number of customers may not grow as anticipated, or may decline, which could harm our operating results. Many of our offerings are increasingly focused on software and subscription services. The software industry is characterized by rapidly changing customer preferences which require us to address multiple delivery platforms, new mobile devices and cloud computing. Life cycles of software products can be short and this can exacerbate the risks associated with developing new products. The introduction of third-party solutions embodying new, disruptive technologies and the emergence of new industry standards could make our existing and future software solutions and other products obsolete or non-competitive. If we are not able to develop software and other solutions that address the increasingly sophisticated needs of our customers, or if we are unable to adapt to new platforms, technologies or new industry standards that impact our markets, our ability to retain or increase market share and operating results could be materially adversely affected. Changes in our effective tax rate may reduce our net income in future periods As a global company, we are subject to income and other taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required to determine and estimate worldwide tax liabilities. Our effective tax rate is largely based on the geographic mix of earnings, statutory rates, inter-company transfer pricing, and enacted tax laws. A number of factors may increase our future effective tax rates, including: • the jurisdictions in which profits are determined to be earned and taxed, • the resolution of issues arising from tax audits with U.S. and foreign tax authorities, • changes in our intercompany transfer pricing methodology, • changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, • increases in expense not deductible for tax purposes, including transaction costs and impairments of goodwill in connection with acquisitions, • changes in the realizability of available tax credits, • changes in share-based compensation, • changes in tax laws or the interpretation of such tax laws, including the Tax Act and the Base Erosion and Profit Shifting (“BEPS”) project conducted by the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (“OECD”), and • changes in generally accepted accounting principles. We are subject to taxation in the U.S. and numerous foreign jurisdictions. On December 22, 2017, the U.S. government enacted the Tax Act which had a significant impact on our effective tax rate for the fourth quarter of 2017. Although we completed the accounting for the tax effects of the Tax Act as of the fourth quarter of 2018, any additional forthcoming legislative guidance and accounting standards related to the Tax Act could adversely affect our future effective tax rates. The implementation by us of new practices and processes designed to comply with, and benefit from, the Tax Act and its rules and regulations could require us to make substantial changes to our business practices, allocate additional resources, and increase our costs, which could negatively affect our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Additionally, longstanding international tax norms that determine each country’s jurisdiction to tax cross-border international trade are evolving as a result of the BEPS reporting requirements recommended by the G8, G20 and the OECD. On October 5, 2015, the OECD issued a series of reports recommending changes to numerous long-standing tax principles. Many of these recommendations are being adopted by various countries in which we do business and may increase our taxes in these countries. The foreign countries where we do business may change tax laws, regulations, and interpretations on a prospective or retroactive basis and these potential changes could adversely affect our effective tax rates. As these and other tax laws and related regulations change, our financial results could be materially impacted. Given the unpredictability of these possible changes and their potential interdependency, it is very difficult to assess whether the overall effect of such potential tax changes would be cumulatively positive or negative for our earnings and cash flow, but such changes could adversely impact our financial results. On June 1, 2018, we filed a petition with the U.S. tax court relating to a Notice of Deficiency pertaining to our 2011 tax year. We are also currently in various stages of multiple year examinations by federal, state, and foreign taxing authorities, including a review of our 2012 tax year by the U.S. Internal Revenue Service, or IRS. If the Tax Court, IRS or the taxing authorities of any other jurisdiction were to successfully challenge a material tax position, we could become subject to higher taxes and our earnings would be adversely affected. Our debt could adversely affect our cash flow and prevent us from fulfilling our financial obligations On November 24, 2014, we issued $400.0 million of 4.75% Senior Notes due December 1, 2024. On June 15, 2018, we issued $300.0 million of 4.15% Senior Notes due June 15, 2023 and $600.0 million of 4.90% Senior Notes due June 15, 2028. When our Senior Notes mature, we will have to expend significant resources to repay these Senior Notes or seek to refinance them. If we decide to refinance the Senior Notes, we may be required to do so on different or less favorable terms or we may be unable to refinance the Senior Notes at all, both of which may adversely affect our financial condition. In May 2018, we entered into a new credit agreement (the “2018 Credit Facility”), with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. and certain other institutional lenders that provides for $1.75 billion of unsecured credit facilities comprised of a $1.25 billion loan facility maturing May 2023 (the “Revolving Credit Facility”) and a $500.0 million delayed draw term loan facility that matures on the third anniversary of the funding date (the “Term Loan”). Subject to the terms of the 2018 Credit Facility, we may request an additional loan facility up to $500.0 million. We also have two $75.0 million and one €100.0 million Uncommitted Facilities, which are uncommitted and may be called by the lenders with very little notice. At the end of fiscal 2018, our total debt was comprised primarily of Senior Notes of $1,300.0 million, a term loan balance of $425.0 million under the 2018 Credit Facility and three revolving credit facilities of $255.9 million under the Uncommitted Facilities. In April 2018, as a result of the announcement of the Viewpoint acquisition and our plans to incur additional indebtedness, Moody’s Investor Service, Inc. downgraded our ratings from Baa2 to Baa3 and, while our Standard & Poor’s ratings were stable, we received a negative outlook. Any downgrade by credit rating agencies could adversely affect our cost of borrowing, limit our access to the capital markets, or result in more restrictive covenants in future debt agreements. Our outstanding indebtedness could have other important consequences, such as: • requiring us to dedicate a portion of our cash flow from operations and other capital resources to debt service, thereby reducing our ability to fund working capital, capital expenditures, general corporate purposes, and other cash requirements, particularly if the ratings assigned to our debt securities by rating organizations were revised downward, • increasing our vulnerability to adverse economic and industry conditions, • reducing our ability to make investments and acquisitions which support the growth of the company, or to repurchase shares of our common stock, • placing us at a competitive disadvantage as compared to our competitors, to the extent that they are not as highly leveraged, • limiting our flexibility in planning for, or reacting to, changes and opportunities in, our industry, which may place us at a competitive disadvantage, and • limiting our ability to incur additional debt on acceptable terms, if at all. There are various financial covenants and other restrictions in our debt instruments. If we fail to comply with any of these requirements, the related indebtedness (and other unrelated indebtedness) could become due and payable prior to its stated maturity, and we may not be able to repay the indebtedness that becomes due. A default under our debt instruments may also significantly affect our ability to obtain additional or alternative financing. Our ability to make scheduled payments or to refinance our obligations with respect to indebtedness will depend on our operating and financial performance, which in turn, is subject to prevailing economic conditions and to financial, business and other factors beyond our control. A significant portion of our outstanding debt has interest rates which float based on prevailing interest rates and we may incur additional variable-rate debt in the future. Such rates tend to fluctuate based on general economic conditions, general interest rates, Federal Reserve rates, and the supply of and demand for credit in the relevant interbanking market. In recent years, the Federal Reserve has incrementally raised the target range for the federal funds rate, with additional increases expected to come over the next year. If interest rates increase, our interest expense will also increase as would the costs of refinancing existing indebtedness or obtaining new debt. Our ability to incur additional indebtedness over time may be limited due to applicable financial covenants and restrictions, and due to the risk that significantly increasing our level of indebtedness could impact the ratings assigned to our debt securities by rating organizations, which in turn would increase the interest rates and fees that we pay in connection with our indebtedness. Some of our products rely on third party technologies including open source software, which could result in product incompatibilities or harm availability of our products and services We license software, technologies, and intellectual property underlying some of our software from third parties. The third party licenses we rely upon may not continue to be available to us on commercially reasonable terms, or at all, and the software and technologies may not be appropriately supported, maintained, or enhanced by the licensors, resulting in development delays. Some software licenses are subject to annual renewals at the discretion of the licensors. In some cases, if we were to breach a provision of these license agreements, the licensor could terminate the agreement immediately. The loss of licenses to, or inability to support, maintain and enhance, any such third party software or technology could result in increased costs, or delays in software releases or updates, until such issues have been resolved. This could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, and future prospects. We also incorporate open source software into our products. Although we monitor our use of open source software, the terms of many open source licenses have not been interpreted by U.S. courts, and there is a risk that such licenses could be construed in a manner that could impose unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to market or sell our products or to develop new products. In such event, we could be required to seek licenses from third-parties in order to continue offering our products, to disclose and offer royalty-free licenses in connection with our own source code, to re-engineer our products, or to discontinue the sale of our products in the event re-engineering cannot be accomplished on a timely basis, any of which could adversely affect our business. We are dependent on proprietary technology, which could result in litigation that could divert significant valuable resources Our future success and competitive position is dependent upon our proprietary technology, and we rely on patent, trade secret, trademark, and copyright laws to protect our intellectual property. The patents owned or licensed by us may be invalidated, circumvented, infringed, or challenged. The rights granted under these patents may not provide competitive advantages to us. Any of our pending or future patent applications may not be issued within the scope of the claims sought by us, if at all. Despite our efforts to protect our intellectual property rights, unauthorized parties may attempt to copy or otherwise obtain our software or develop software with the same functionality or to obtain and use information that we regard as proprietary. Others may develop technologies that are similar or superior to our technology, duplicate our technology or design around the patents owned by us. In addition, effective copyright, patent, and trade secret protection may be unavailable, limited, or not applied for in certain countries. The steps taken by us to protect our technology might not prevent the misappropriation of such technology. The value of our products relies substantially on our technical innovation in fields in which there are many current patent filings. Third-parties may claim that we or our customers (some of whom are indemnified by us) are infringing their intellectual property rights. For example, individuals and groups may purchase intellectual property assets for the purpose of asserting claims of infringement and attempting to extract settlements from us or our customers. The number of these claims has increased in recent years. As new patents are issued or are brought to our attention by the holders of such patents, it may be necessary for us to secure a license from such patent holders, redesign our products, or withdraw products from the market. In addition, the legal costs and engineering time required to safeguard intellectual property or to defend against litigation could become a significant expense of operations. Any such litigation could require us to incur substantial costs and divert significant valuable resources, including the efforts of our technical and management personnel, which could harm our results of operations and financial condition. We are dependent on sole source and limited source manufacturers and suppliers for certain of our products and critical components and a disruption in our supply chain could adversely affect our margins, revenues, and operating results We are dependent upon a limited number of contract manufacturers for the manufacture, testing, and assembly of certain products, including Flex Ltd. as our preferred manufacturing partner for many of our GNSS products, and specific suppliers for a number of our critical components. Our current reliance on specific or a limited group of suppliers and contract manufacturers involves risks, including a potential inability to obtain an adequate supply of required products or components to meet customers’ delivery requirements, a risk that we may accumulate excess inventories if we inaccurately forecast demand for our products, reduced control over pricing and delivery schedules, discontinuation of or increased prices for certain components, and economic conditions which may adversely impact the viability of our suppliers and contract manufacturers. Any disruption in our supply chain could reduce our revenue and adversely impact our financial results. Such a disruption could occur as a result of any number of events, including, but not limited to, increases in wages that drive up prices or labor stoppages, the imposition of regulations, quotas or embargoes on components, a scarcity of, or significant increase in the price of, required electronic components for our products, trade restrictions, tariffs or duties, fluctuations in currency exchange rates, transportation failures affecting the supply chain and shipment of materials and finished goods, third party interference in the integrity of the products sourced through the supply chain, the unavailability of raw materials, severe weather conditions, natural disasters, civil unrest, military conflicts, geopolitical developments, war or terrorism and disruptions in utility and other services. Any inability to obtain adequate deliveries or any other circumstance that would require us to seek alternative sources of supply or to manufacture, assemble and test such components internally could significantly delay our ability to ship our products, which could damage relationships with current and prospective customers and could harm our reputation and brand as well as our operating results. We are dependent on the availability and unimpaired use of allocated bands within the radio frequency spectrum and our products may be subject to harmful interference from new or modified spectrum uses Our GNSS technology is dependent on the use of satellite signals and on terrestrial communication bands. International allocations of radio frequency are made by the International Telecommunications Union ("ITU"), a specialized technical agency of the United Nations. These allocations are further governed by radio regulations that have treaty status and which may be subject to modification every two to three years by the World Radio Communication Conference. Each country also has regulatory authority over how each band is used in the country. In the United States, the Federal Communications Commission ("FCC") and the National Telecommunications and Information Administration share responsibility for radio frequency allocations and spectrum usage regulations. Any ITU or local reallocation of radio frequency bands, including frequency band segmentation and sharing of spectrum, or other modifications of the permitted uses of relevant frequency bands, may materially and adversely affect the utility and reliability of our products and have significant negative impacts on our customers, both of which could reduce demand for our products. For example, the FCC has been considering proposals to repurpose spectrum adjacent to the GPS bands for terrestrial broadband wireless operations throughout the United States. If the FCC were to permit implementation of such proposals, or similar proposals, terrestrial broadband wireless operations could create harmful interference to GPS receivers within range of such operations and impose costs to retrofit or replace affected receivers. Similarly, other countries have considered proposals for use of frequencies used by our products as well as adjacent bands that could cause harmful interference to our products. Many of our products use other radio frequency bands, such as the public land mobile radio bands, together with the GNSS signal, to provide enhanced GNSS capabilities, such as real-time kinematics precision. The continuing availability of these non-GNSS radio frequencies is essential to provide enhanced GNSS products to our precision survey, agriculture, and construction machine controls markets. In addition, transmissions and emissions from other services and equipment operating in adjacent frequency bands or in-band may impair the utility and reliability of our products. Any regulatory changes in spectrum allocation or in allowable operating conditions could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Many of our products rely on GNSS technology, GPS and other satellite systems, which may become degraded or inoperable and result in lost revenue GNSS technology, GPS satellites and their ground support systems are complex electronic systems subject to electronic and mechanical failures and possible intentional disruption. Many of the GPS satellites currently in orbit were originally designed to have lives of 7.5 years and are subject to damage by the hostile space environment in which they operate. However, of the current deployment of 31 operational satellites in orbit, nine have been in operation for more than 15 years, and over half have been in use for more than 7.5 years. Repair of damaged or malfunctioning satellites is currently not economically feasible. If a significant number of satellites were to become inoperable, there could be a substantial delay before they are replaced with new satellites. A reduction in the number of operating satellites below the 24-satellite standard established for GPS may impair the utility of the GPS system and the growth of current and additional market opportunities. In addition, software updates to GPS satellites and ground control segments, and infrequent known events such as GPS week number rollover, may adversely affect our products and customers. We depend on public access to open technical specifications in advance of system updates to mitigate these problems, which may not be available or complete. We are dependent on continued operation of GPS, the principal GNSS currently in operation. The GPS constellation is operated by the U. S. Government, which is committed to maintenance and improvement of GPS. If supporting policies were to change, or if user fees were imposed, it could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition. Many of our products also use signals from systems that augment GPS, such as the Wide Area Augmentation System and National Differential GPS System, and satellites transmitting signal corrections data on mobile satellite services frequencies utilized by our RTX corrections services. Some of these augmentation systems are operated by the U.S. government and rely on continued funding and maintenance of these systems. Any curtailment of the operating capability of these systems or limitations on access to, or use of the signals, or discontinuance of service could result in degradation of our services or product performance, with an adverse effect on our business. Many of our products use satellite signals from the Russian GLONASS System. Other countries, including China and India, are in the process of creating their own GNSS systems, and we either have developed or will develop products which use GNSS signals from these systems. The European community is developing an independent radio navigation satellite system, known as Galileo. National or European authorities may provide preferential access to signals to companies associated with their markets, including our competitors, which could harm our competitive position. Use of non-US GNSS signals may also be subject to FCC waiver requirements and to restrictions based upon international trade or geopolitical considerations. If we are unable to develop timely and competitive commercial products using these systems, or obtain timely and equal access to service signals, this could result in lost revenue. These authorities may also adopt protectionist measures favoring national companies who make use of their GNSS systems, to the detriment of Trimble products using the U.S. GPS system, which would harm our business. We are subject to the impact of governmental and other certifications processes and regulations which could adversely affect our products and our business We market many products that are subject to governmental regulations and certifications before they can be sold. The European Union increasingly regulates the use of our products on agriculture, construction, and other types of machinery. CE certification is required for GNSS receivers and data communications products, which must conform to the European harmonized GNSS receiver standard and the radio equipment directive, to be sold in the European community. Delays in publication of the European harmonized GNSS receiver standard could affect GNSS product access to European markets. In the future, U.S., European, or other governmental authorities may propose GPS receiver testing and certification for compliance with published GPS signal interface or other specifications. An inability to obtain any such certifications in a timely manner could have an adverse effect on our operating results. Governmental authorities may also propose other forms of GPS receiver performance standards, which may limit design alternatives, hamper product innovation, or impose additional costs. Some of our products that use integrated radio communication technology require product type certification and some products require an end-user to obtain licensing from the FCC for frequency-band usage. An inability or delay in obtaining such certifications or changes in applicable rules could adversely affect our ability to bring our products to market which could harm our customer relationships and therefore, our operating results. Compliance with evolving product regulations in our major markets could require that we redesign our products, cease selling products in certain markets, and increase our costs of product development. Failure to comply may result in fines and limitations on sales of our products. We have claims and lawsuits against us that may result in adverse outcomes We are subject to a variety of claims and lawsuits. Adverse outcomes in some or all of these claims may result in significant monetary damages or injunctive relief that could adversely affect our ability to conduct our business. Litigation and other claims are subject to inherent uncertainties and the outcomes can be difficult to predict. Management may not adequately reserve for a contingent liability, or may suffer unforeseen liabilities, which could then impact the results of a financial period. A material adverse impact on our consolidated financial statements could occur for the period in which the effect of an unfavorable final outcome becomes probable and reasonably estimable which, if not expected, could harm our results of operations and financial condition. Item 1B.