Priceline 2010 Annual Report Download - page 83

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Operations and Technology
Our business is supported by multiple systems platforms, which were designed with an emphasis on
scalability, performance and reliability. The platforms are largely independent among Booking.com, priceline.com,
Agoda and TravelJigsaw. The software platforms and architecture use a variety of tools within each corporate
implementation, including server-side Java, C++, ASP, .Net and Perl, and SQL scripts integrated with Oracle,
MySQL and Microsoft SQL-servicer relational database systems. These internal platforms were designed to include
open application protocol interfaces that can provide connectivity to vendors in the industries in which we operate.
These include large global systems, such as airline and hotel room reservation systems and financial service
providers, as well as individual suppliers, such as individual hotels. Our Internet servers utilize digital certificates to
help us conduct secure communications and transactions, as appropriate.
The systems infrastructure and web and database servers of our international operations are primarily
hosted at Equinix Europe Ltd. in London, England, Global Switch Amsterdam B.V. and TelecityRedbus in the
Netherlands and NTT in Hong Kong. Each location has backup generators and infrastructure typical of hosted data
centers.
Our systems infrastructure and web and database servers in the U.S. are hosted at SAVVIS in Jersey City,
New Jersey, which provides communication links, as well as 24-hour monitoring and engineering support. SAVVIS
has its own generator and multiple back-up systems in Jersey City. We also maintain a second web hosting facility
at AT&T in New York City. Our network operations center monitors both web hosting facilities and is located in
our Norwalk, Connecticut headquarters. All three facilities have a continuous power supply system, generators and
redundant servers. If SAVVIS were unable, for any reason, to support our primary web hosting facility, we would
need to activate our secondary site at AT&T.
We outsource most of our domestic call center and customer service functions, and use a real-time
interactive voice response system with transfer capabilities to our call centers and customer service centers.
Intellectual Property
We currently hold twenty-eight issued United States patents, Nos. 5,794,207; 5,897,620; 6,085,169;
6,108,639; 6,134,534; 6,240,396; 6,332,129; 6,345,090; 6,356,878; 6,418,415; 6,466,919; 6,484,153; 6,510,418;
6,553,346; 6,993,503; 7,188,176; 7,203,660; 7,333,941; 7,386,508; 7,472,074; 7,526,089; 7,617;491; 7,620,619;
7,664,672; 7,769,612; 7,801,751; 7,848,940; 7,848,945 and over twenty pending United States and foreign patent
applications. All of our issued United States patents expire between September 4, 2016 and December 4, 2027. We
file additional patent applications on new inventions, as appropriate.
While we believe that our issued patents and pending patent applications help to protect our business, there
can be no assurance that:
x a third party will not have or obtain one or more patents that can prevent us from practicing features of
our business or that will require us to pay for a license to use those features;
x our operations do not or will not infringe valid, enforceable patents of third parties;
x any patent can be successfully defended against challenges by third parties;
x the pending patent applications will result in the issuance of patents;
x competitors or potential competitors will not devise new methods of competing with us that are not
covered by our patents or patent applications;
x because of variations in the application of our business model to each of our services, our patents will
be effective in preventing one or more third parties from utilizing a copycat business model to offer the
same service in one or more categories;
x new prior art will not be discovered that may diminish the value of or invalidate an issued patent; or