Pitney Bowes 2013 Annual Report Download - page 14

PART I
3
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
General
Pitney Bowes Inc. (we, us, our, or the company), was incorporated in the state of Delaware in 1920. We are a global provider of technology
solutions helping small, mid-sized and large firms connect to customers to build loyalty and grow revenue. We deliver our solutions on
open platforms to best organize, analyze and apply public and proprietary data to two-way customer communications. We offer solutions
for direct mail, transactional mail, customer engagement management and analytics and e-commerce parcel management, along with
digital channel messaging for the Web, email and mobile applications. We continue to develop and invest in products, software, services
and solutions that help our clients grow their business by more effectively communicating with their customers across physical, digital
and hybrid channels.
For more information about us, our products, services and solutions, visit www.pb.com. Also, our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly
reports on Form 10-Q, current reports on Form 8-K and any amendments thereto filed with, or furnished to, the Securities and Exchange
Commission (the SEC), are available, free of charge, through the Investor Relations section of our website at www.pb.com/investorrelations
or from the SEC's website at www.sec.gov, as soon as reasonably practicable after these reports are electronically filed with, or furnished
to, the SEC. The other information found on our website is not part of this or any other report we file with or furnish to the SEC.
You may also read and copy any document we file with the SEC at the SEC's Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Washington,
DC 20549 or request copies of these documents by writing to the Office of Public Reference. Call the SEC at [phone] for further
information on the operations of the Public Reference Room and copying charges.
Our Strategy and Business Segments
Our current strategy is to focus on three critical areas: stabilizing the mailing business, achieving operational excellence and driving
growth within our digital commerce solutions segment. During 2013, we sold our International Management Services business (PBMSi),
North America Management Services business (PBMS NA), Nordic furniture business and International Mailing Services business (IMS).
Further, we made certain organizational changes and realigned our business units to reflect how we manage, review, analyze and measure
our operations. Our business is now organized around three distinct sets of solutions -- Small and Medium Business (SMB) Solutions,
Enterprise Business Solutions and Digital Commerce Solutions. See Note 17 to the Consolidated Financial Statements for financial
information concerning our reporting segments.
Small and Medium Business Solutions
Within SMB Solutions, we provide a full range of mailing equipment and postage meters, maintenance and support services and supplies
that enable our clients to efficiently create mail and evidence postage. We segment our SMB Solutions business between our North
America operations, comprising the U.S. and Canadian businesses, and our International operations. We are a leading provider of postage
meters and have approximately one million meters installed in North America and over three-hundred thousand meters installed elsewhere.
We also offer numerous shipping management solutions that enable our clients to select the best carrier based on need and cost, improve
delivery times, track packages in real-time and reduce transportation and logistics costs. In addition, we offer scalable global logistics
management systems that can be integrated into mail centers, as well as desktop and production shipping environments.
In the United States, we offer our clients who rent or lease our mailing equipment and postage meters a variety of financing solutions.
Through our wholly owned subsidiary, The Pitney Bowes Bank (the Bank), we offer a revolving credit solution that enables our clients
to finance their postage costs and supply purchases. The Bank also provides a deposit solution to those clients that prefer to prepay postage
and earn interest on their deposits. The Bank is chartered as an Industrial Bank under the laws of the State of Utah, and regulated by the
Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Utah Department of Financial Institutions.
This business is characterized by a high level of recurring revenue driven by rental, lease and loan arrangements, contract maintenance
services and supply sales.
Enterprise Business Solutions
Enterprise Business Solutions includes equipment and services that enable large enterprises to process inbound and outbound mail. We
segment our Enterprise Business Solutions group between our Production Mail operations and Presort Services operations.
Production Mail
Our product and service offerings enable our clients to create high-value, relevant and timely communications targeted to their customers.
The core products within this segment include high-speed, high-volume inserting equipment, customized sortation products and high-
speed digital color printing systems. Inserting equipment folds mail pieces and inserts them into envelopes, while sorting equipment
enables clients to sort high-volumes of mail by zip code and realize reduced postage costs.