Expedia 2005 Annual Report Download - page 17

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name may be available, or may be registered by us, even if available. The failure to protect our intellectual
property in a meaningful manner or challenges to our intellectual property rights, could materially
adversely affect our business, result in erosion of our brand names and/or limit our ability to control
marketing on or through the internet using our various domain names.
We have considered, and will continue to consider, the appropriateness of filing for patents to protect
future inventions, as circumstances may warrant. However, many patents protect only specific inventions
and there can be no assurance that others may not create new products or methods that achieve similar
results without infringing upon patents owned by us.
From time to time, we may be subject to legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of our
business, including claims of alleged infringement by us of the trademarks, copyrights, patents and other
intellectual property rights of third parties. In addition, litigation may be necessary in the future to enforce
our intellectual property rights, protect our trade secrets or to determine the validity and scope of
proprietary rights claimed by others. Any such litigation, regardless of outcome or merit, could result in
substantial costs and diversion of management and technical resources, any of which could materially harm
our business.
Regulation
We must comply with laws and regulations relating to the travel industry and the provision of travel
services, including registration in various states as ""sellers of travel'' and compliance with certain disclosure
requirements and participation in state restitution funds. In addition, our businesses are subject to
regulation by the U.S. Department of Transportation and must comply with various rules and regulations
governing the provision of air transportation, including those relating to advertising and accessibility.
As we continue to expand the reach of our brands into the European, Asia-Pacific and other
international markets, we may increasingly be subject to laws and regulations applicable to travel agents in
those markets, including laws regulating the provision of travel packages and industry specific value-added
tax regimes. For example, the EEC Council Directive on Package Travel Package Holidays and Package
Tours imposes various obligations upon marketers of travel packages, such as disclosure obligations to
consumers and liability to consumers for improper performance of the package, including supplier failure.
Financial Information about Segments and Geographic Areas
We operate as one reportable segment. We generate our revenue through a diverse customer base,
and there is no reliance on a single customer or small group of customers; no customer represented 10% or
more of our total revenue in the periods presented in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
The geographic information required herein is contained in Note 18, Segment Information, in the
notes to our consolidated financial statements.
Additional Information
Company Website and Public Filings. We maintain a corporate website at www.expediainc.com. The
information on our website, as well as the websites of our various brands and businesses, is not
incorporated by reference in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, or in any other filings with, or in any
information furnished or submitted to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (""SEC'').
We make available, free of charge through our website, our Annual Reports on Form 10-K, Quarterly
Reports on Form 10-Q and Current Reports on Form 8-K filed or furnished pursuant to Sections 13(a) or
Section 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, as soon as reasonably practicable after
they have been electronically filed with, or furnished to, the SEC.
Code of Ethics. We posted our code of business conduct and ethics, which applies to all employees,
including all executive officers and senior financial officers and directors, on our corporate website at
www.expediainc.com. Our code of business conduct and ethics complies with Item 406 of SEC
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