Symantec 2009 Annual Report Download - page 69

revenues in fiscal 2009. In fiscal 2008 and 2007, one distributor, Ingram Micro accounted for 10% and 11%,
respectively, of our total net revenues. Our distributor arrangements with Ingram Micro consist of several non-
exclusive, independently negotiated agreements with its subsidiaries, each of which cover different countries or
regions. Each of these agreements is separately negotiated and is independent of any other contract (such as a master
distribution agreement), and these agreements are not based on the same form of contract. None of these contracts
were individually responsible for over 10 percent of our total net revenues in fiscal 2008 and 2007.
Research and Development
Research and development expenses, exclusive of in-process research and development associated with
acquisitions, were $880 million, $894 million and $867 million in fiscal 2009, 2008 and 2007, respectively,
representing approximately 14%, 15% and 17% of revenue in the respective periods. We believe that technical
leadership is essential to our success and we expect to continue to commit substantial resources to research and
development.
Symantec embraces a global R&D strategy to drive organic innovation across the company. Engineers
throughout the company pursue advanced projects and work with our engineering centers, research labs, global
services teams, and new business incubator to translate R&D into next-generation security, storage and systems
management technologies. Symantec focuses on short, medium, and long-term applied research, develops new
products in emerging areas, participates in government-funded research projects, and partners with universities to
conduct research to support Symantec’s vision. Symantec holds more than 600 global patents.
Our Security Response experts, located at research centers throughout the world, are focused on collecting and
analyzing the latest malware threats, ranging from network security threats and vulnerabilities to viruses and
worms. All this data is collected through the Symantec Global Intelligence Network, which provides insight into
emerging trends in attacks, malicious code activity, phishing, spam, and other threats. This hands-on expertise is
further leveraged in developing new technologies and approaches to protecting customers’ information
and systems.
Acquisitions
Our strategic technology acquisitions are designed to enhance the features and functionality of our existing
products, and extend our product leadership, as well as to expand into emerging businesses such as SaaS and
endpoint virtualization. We consider time to market, synergies with existing products, and potential market share
gains when evaluating acquisitions of technologies, product lines, or companies. We may acquire and/or dispose of
other technologies, products and companies in the future.
During fiscal 2009, we completed the following acquisitions:
Company Name Company Description Date Acquired
Mi5, Inc. A provider of web security appliances and technology to
protect organizations against web-based threats. March 20, 2009
MessageLabs Group Ltd. A provider of managed services to protect, control,
encrypt, and archive electronic communications including
email.
November 14, 2008
PC Tools Pty. Ltd. A global provider of innovative software products designed
to protect the privacy and security of Windows»computer
users.
October 6, 2008
nSuite Technologies, Inc. A provider of connection broker and mobile workspace
technology that is utilized in endpoint virtualization. August 8, 2008
SwapDrive, Inc. A provider of online backup and storage products. June 6, 2008
AppStream, Inc. A provider of application streaming technology that
provides an on-demand application delivery mechanism for
endpoint virtualization.
April 18, 2008
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