Berkshire Hathaway 1998 Annual Report Download - page 18

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investors in a variety of ways that often skirt or cross the line of unfairness. These practices leave the great bulk
of shareholders at a distinct disadvantage to a favored class.
At Berkshire, we regard the holder of one share of B stock as the equal of our large institutional investors.
We, of course, warmly welcome institutions as owners and have gained a number of them through the General
Re merger. We hope also that these new holders find that our owner’s manual and annual reports offer them
more insights and information about Berkshire than they garner about other companies from the investor relations
departments that these corporations typically maintain. But if it is “earnings guidance” or the like that
shareholders or analysts seek, we will simply guide them to our public documents.
This year we plan to post our quarterly reports on the Internet after the close of the market on May 14,
August 13, and November 12. We also expect to put the 1999 annual report on our website on Saturday, March
11, 2000, and to mail the print version at roughly the same time.
We promptly post press releases on our website. This means that you do not need to rely on the versions
of these reported by the media but can instead read the full text on your computer.
Despite the pathetic technical skills of your Chairman, I’m delighted to report that GEICO, Borsheim’s ,
See’s, and The B uffalo News are now doing substantial business via the Internet. We’ve also recently begun to
offer annuity products on our website. This business was developed by Ajit Jain, who over the last decade has
personally accounted for a significant portion of Berkshire’s operating earnings. While Charlie and I sleep, Ajit
keeps thinking of new ways to add value to Berkshire.
Shareholder-Designated Contributions
About 97.5% of all eligible shares participated in Berkshire's 1998 shareholder-designated contributions
program, with contributions totaling $16.9 million. A full description of the program appears on pages 54-55.
Cumulatively, over the 18 years of the program, Berkshire has made contributions of $130 million pursuant
to the instructions of our shareholders. The rest of Berkshire's giving is done by our subsidiaries, which stick
to the philanthropic patterns that prevailed before they were acquired (except that their former owners themselves
take on the responsibility for their personal charities). In aggregate, our subsidiaries made contributions of $12.5
million in 1998, including in-kind donations of $2.0 million.
To participate in future programs, you must own Class A shares that are registered in the name of the actual
owner, not the nominee name of a broker, bank or depository. Shares not so registered on August 31, 1999, will
be ineligible for the 1999 program. When you get the contributions form from us, return it promptly so that it
does not get put aside or forgotten. Designations received after the due date will not be honored.
The Annual Meeting
This year’s Woodstock for Capitalists will be held May 1-3, and we may face a problem. Last year more
than 10,000 people attended our annual meeting, and our shareholders list has since doubled. So we don’t quite
know what attendance to expect this year. To be safe, we have booked both Aksarben Coliseum, which holds
about 14,000 and the Holiday Convention Centre, which can seat an additional 5,000. Because we know that our
Omaha shareholders will want to be good hosts to the out-of-towners (many of them come from outside the U.S),
we plan to give those visitors first crack at the Aksarben tickets and to subsequently allocate these to greater
Omaha residents on a first-come, first-served basis. If we exhaust the Aksarben tickets, we will begin distributing
Holiday tickets to Omaha shareholders.
If we end up using both locations, Charlie and I will split our pre-meeting time between the two.
Additionally, we will have exhibits and also the Berkshire movie, large television screens and microphones at both
sites. When we break for lunch, many attendees will leave Aksarben, which means that those at Holiday can,
if they wish, make the five-minute trip to Aksarben and finish out the day there. Buses will be available to
transport people who don’t have cars.