Intel 2007 Annual Report Download - page 25

Table of Contents
Changes in our effective tax rate may harm our results of operations.
A number of factors may increase our future effective tax rates, including:
Any significant increase in our future effective tax rates could reduce net income for future periods.
We invest in companies for strategic reasons and may not realize a return on our investments.
We make investments in companies around the world to further our strategic objectives and support our key business
initiatives. Such investments include investments in equity securities of public companies and non-marketable equity
investments in private companies, which range from early-stage companies that are often still defining their strategic direction
to more mature companies with established revenue streams and business models. The success of these companies is
dependent on product development, market acceptance, operational efficiency, and other key business factors. The private
companies in which we invest may fail because they may not be able to secure additional funding, obtain favorable investment
terms for future financings, or take advantage of liquidity events such as initial public offerings, mergers, and private sales. If
any of these private companies fail, we could lose all or part of our investment in that company. If we determine that an other-
than-temporary decline in the fair value exists for an equity investment in a public or private company in which we have
invested, we write down the investment to its fair value and recognize the related write-down as an investment loss.
Furthermore, when the strategic objectives of an investment have been achieved, or if the investment or business diverges
from our strategic objectives, we may decide to dispose of the investment. Our non-marketable equity investments in private
companies are not liquid, and we may not be able to dispose of these investments on favorable terms or at all. The occurrence
of any of these events could harm our results of operations. Additionally, for cases in which we are required under equity
method accounting to recognize a proportionate share of another company’s income or loss, such income and loss may impact
our earnings.
Interest and other, net could vary from expectations, which could harm our results of operations.
Factors that could cause interest and other, net in our consolidated statements of income to fluctuate include:
Our acquisitions, divestitures, and other transactions could disrupt our ongoing business and harm our results of
operations.
In pursuing our business strategy, we routinely conduct discussions, evaluate opportunities, and enter into agreements
regarding possible investments, acquisitions, divestitures, and other transactions, such as joint ventures. Acquisitions and other
transactions involve significant challenges and risks, including risks that:
When we decide to sell assets or a business, we may encounter difficulty in finding or completing divestiture opportunities or
alternative exit strategies on acceptable terms in a timely manner, and the agreed terms and financing arrangements could be
renegotiated due to changes in business or market conditions. These circumstances could delay the accomplishment of our
strategic objectives or cause us to incur additional expenses with respect to businesses that we want to dispose of, or we may
dispose of a business at a price or on terms that are less than we had anticipated, resulting in a loss on the transaction.
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the jurisdictions in which profits are determined to be earned and taxed;
•
the resolution of issues arising from tax audits with various tax authorities;
•
changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities;
•
adjustments to estimated taxes upon finalization of various tax returns;
• increases in expenses not deductible for tax purposes, including write-offs of acquired in-process R&D and
impairments of goodwill in connection with acquisitions;
•
changes in available tax credits;
•
changes in share
-
based compensation;
•
changes in tax laws or the interpretation of such tax laws, and changes in generally accepted accounting principles; and
•
the repatriation of
non
-
U.S.
earnings for which we have not previously provided for U.S. taxes.
•
fixed
-
income and credit market volatility;
•
fluctuations in interest rates;
•
changes in our cash and investment balances;
•
fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates;
•
other
-
than
-
temporary impairments in the fair value of fixed
-
income instruments;
•
changes in our hedge accounting treatment; and
•
gains or losses from divestitures.
•
we may not be able to identify suitable opportunities at terms acceptable to us;
•
the transaction may not advance our business strategy;
•
we may not realize a satisfactory return on the investment we make;
•
we may not be able to retain key personnel of the acquired business; or
•
we may experience difficulty in integrating new employees, business systems, and technology.