Tucows 2015 Annual Report Download - page 6

PART I
ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Overview
Our principal place of business is located in Canada.
Our mission is to provide simple useful services that help people unlock the power of the Internet.
We accomplish this by reducing the complexity our customers’ experience as they access the Internet (at home or
on the go) and while using Internet services such as domain name registration, email and other Internet services. We are
organized, managed and report our financial results as two segments, Network Access Services and Domain Services,
which are differentiated primarily by their services, the markets they serve and the regulatory environments in which they
operate.
Our management regularly reviews our operating results on a consolidated basis, principally to make decisions
about how we utilize our resources and to measure our consolidated operating performance. To assist us in forecasting
growth and to help us monitor the effectiveness of our operational strategies, our management regularly reviews revenue
for each of our service offerings in order to gain more depth and understanding of the key business metrics driving our
business. Accordingly, we report Network Access Services and Domain Services revenue separately.
Network Access Services
Network Access Services derives revenue from the sale of retail mobile phones and services (“Ting Mobile”) to
individuals and small businesses through the Ting website.
We also derive revenue from the sale of fixed high-speed Internet access (“Ting Internet”) in select towns
including Holly Springs, North Carolina; Westminster, Maryland; and Charlottesville, Virginia. We also derive revenue
from providing Internet hosting and network consulting services to customers in Central Virginia through our acquisition
of a 70% share in Ting Virginia, LLC on February 27, 2015.
Revenues from Ting Mobile and Ting Internet are generated in the United States and are provided on a monthly
basis with no fixed contract term.
Domain Services
Domain Services include wholesale and retail domain name registration services, value added services and
portfolio services. We earn revenues primarily from the registration fees charged to resellers in connection with new,
renewed and transferred domain name registrations; the sale of retail Internet domain name registration and email services
to individuals and small businesses; and by making our portfolio of domain names available for sale.
Domain Services revenues are attributed to the country in which the contract originates, primarily Canada.
Domain Services’ primary distribution channel is a global network of more than 13,000 resellers in more than 100
countries who typically provide their customers, the end-users of the Internet, with a critical component for establishing
and maintaining an online presence. Our primary focus is serving the needs of this network of resellers by providing
superior services, easy-to-use interfaces, proactive and attentive customer service. We seek to provide superior customer
service to our resellers by anticipating their business needs and technical requirements. This includes providing easy-to-use
interfaces that enable resellers to quickly and easily integrate our services into their individual business processes. We also
provide “second tier” support to our resellers in the event resellers experience issues with our services. In addition, our
Network Operating Center provides proactive support to our resellers by monitoring all network infrastructure to address
deficiencies before customer services are impacted.
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