Blackberry 2009 Annual Report Download - page 47

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exposure to any one entity or group of related entities. As at
February 28, 2009, no single issuer represented more than
12% of the total cash, cash equivalents and investments
(March 1, 2008 – no single issuer represented more than 9%
of the total cash, cash equivalents and investments).
Market values are determined for each individual security
in the investment portfolio. The Company assesses declines
in the value of individual investments for impairment to
determine whether the decline is other-than-temporary. The
Company makes this assessment by considering available
evidence, including changes in general market conditions,
specific industry and individual company data, the length of
time and the extent to which the fair value has been less than
cost, the financial condition, the near-term prospects of the
individual investment and the Company’s ability and intent to
hold the debt securities to maturity. As of February 28, 2009,
the Company did not record an other-than-temporary
impairment charge. See “Liquidity and Capital Resources –
Structured Investment Vehicle”.
Disclosure Controls and Procedures and Internal Controls
Disclosure Controls and Procedures
As of February 28, 2009, the Company carried out an
evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation
of the Company’s management, including the Company’s
Co-Chief Executive Officers and its Chief Accounting Officer,
of the effectiveness of the design and operation of the
Company’s disclosure controls and procedures, as defined
in Rules 13(a)-15(e) and 15(d)-15(e) under the United States
Securities and Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”).
Based on that evaluation, the Co-Chief Executive Officers and
the Chief Accounting Officer have concluded that, as of such
date, the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures were
effective to give reasonable assurance that the information
required to be disclosed by the Company in reports that
it files or submits under the Exchange Act is (i) recorded,
processed, summarized and reported, within the time periods
specified in the SEC’s rules and forms, and (ii) accumulated
and communicated to management, including its principal
executive and principal financial officers, or persons
performing similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely
decisions regarding required disclosure.
Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial
Reporting
Management of the Company is responsible for establishing
and maintaining adequate internal control over financial
reporting. Internal control over financial reporting is defined
in Rule 13(a)-15(f) and 15(d)-15(f) under the Exchange Act
as a process designed by, or under the supervision of,
the Company’s principal executive and principal financial
officers and effected by the Company’s Board of Directors,
management and other personnel to provide reasonable
assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and
the preparation of financial statements for external purposes
in accordance with U.S. GAAP and includes those policies and
procedures that:
• pertain to the maintenance of records that in reasonable
detail accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and
dispositions of the assets of the Company;
• provide reasonable assurance that transactions are
recorded as necessary to permit preparation of
financial statements in accordance with U.S. GAAP, and
that receipts and expenditures of the Company are
being made only in accordance with authorizations of
management and directors of the Company; and
• provide reasonable assurance regarding the prevention
or timely detection of unauthorized acquisitions, use or
dispositions of the Company’s assets that could have a
material affect on the Company’s financial statements.
Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over
financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements.
Projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods
are subject to the risks that controls may become inadequate
because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of
compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
Management assessed the effectiveness of the Company’s
internal control over financial reporting as of February 28, 2009.
In making this assessment, management used the criteria set
forth by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the
Treadway Commission (COSO) in Internal Control-Integrated
Framework. Based on this assessment, management believes
that, as of February 28, 2009, the Company’s internal control
over financial reporting was effective.
The Company’s independent auditors have issued an
audit report on the Company’s internal control over financial
reporting. This report is included with the Consolidated
Financial Statements.
Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
During the fiscal year ended February 28, 2009, no changes
were made to the Company’s internal control over financial
reporting that have materially affected, or are reasonably
likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over
financial reporting.