HP 2007 Annual Report Download - page 17

Forward-Looking Statements
This Annual Report on Form 10-K, including “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and
Results of Operations” in Item 7, contains forward-looking statements that involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions. If
the risks or uncertainties ever materialize or the assumptions prove incorrect, the results of Hewlett-Packard Company and
its consolidated subsidiaries (“HP”) may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements and assumptions. All statements other than statements of historical fact are statements that could be deemed
forward-looking statements, including but not limited to any projections of revenue, margins, expenses, tax provisions,
earnings, cash flows, benefit obligations, share repurchases or other financial items; any statements of the plans, strategies
and objectives of management for future operations, including the execution of cost reduction programs and restructuring
plans; any statements concerning expected development, performance or market share relating to products or services; any
statements regarding future economic conditions or performance; any statements regarding pending investigations, claims or
disputes; any statements of expectation or belief; and any statements of assumptions underlying any of the foregoing. Risks,
uncertainties and assumptions include macroeconomic and geopolitical trends and events; the execution and performance of
contracts by HP and its customers, suppliers and partners; the challenge of managing asset levels, including inventory; the
difficulty of aligning expense levels with revenue changes; assumptions related to pension and other post-retirement costs;
expectations and assumptions relating to the execution and timing of cost reduction programs and restructuring plans; the
outcome of pending legislation and accounting pronouncements; the resolution of pending investigations, claims and
disputes; and other risks that are described herein, including but not limited to the items discussed in “Risk Factors” in Item
1A of this report, and that are otherwise described or updated from time to time in HP’s Securities and Exchange
Commission reports. HP assumes no obligation and does not intend to update these forward-looking statements.
PART I
ITEM 1. Business.
HP is a leading global provider of products, technologies, software, solutions and services to individual consumers,
small- and medium-sized businesses (“SMBs”) and large enterprises, including in the public and education sectors. Our
offerings span:
• personal computing and other access devices,
• imaging and printing-related products and services,
• enterprise information technology infrastructure, including enterprise storage and server technology and software
that optimizes business technology investments, and
• multi-vendor customer services, including technology support and maintenance, consulting and integration and
outsourcing services.
HP was incorporated in 1947 under the laws of the State of California as the successor to a partnership founded in 1939
by William R. Hewlett and David Packard. Effective in May 1998, we changed our state of incorporation from California to
Delaware.
HP Products and Services; Segment Information
During fiscal 2007, our operations were organized into seven business segments: Enterprise Storage and Servers
(“ESS”), HP Services (“HPS”), HP Software, the Personal Systems Group (“PSG”), the Imaging and Printing Group (“IPG”),
HP Financial Services (“HPFS”) and Corporate Investments. Given the solution sale approach across our enterprise offerings,
and in order to capitalize on up-selling and cross-selling opportunities, ESS, HPS and HP Software are structured beneath a
broader
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