Adaptec 2011 Annual Report Download - page 11

Table of Contents
• is commercially available on a timely basis.
OEMs also consider the quality of the supplier when determining which component to include in a design. Many of our customers will consider the
breadth and depth of the supplier's technology, as using one supplier for a broad range of technologies can often simplify and accelerate the design of next
generation equipment. OEMs will also consider a supplier's design execution reputation, as many OEMs design their next generation equipment concurrently
with the semiconductor component design. OEMs also consider whether a supplier has been pre-qualified, as this ensures that components made by that
supplier will meet the OEM's quality standards.
We compete against established peer-group semiconductor companies that focus on the communications and storage semiconductor business. These
companies include the following: Altera Corp., Applied Micro Circuits Corp.; Broadcom Corp.; Cortina Systems, Inc.; Emulex Corp.; Exar Corp.; Infineon
Technologies AG; Intel Corp.; Texas Instrument Inc; LSI Corp.; Maxim Integrated Products, Inc.; Marvell Technology Group Ltd.; Mindspeed Technologies,
Inc.; QLogic Corp.; Vitesse Semiconductor; and Xilinx, Inc. Many of these companies are well financed, have significant communications semiconductor
technology assets and established sales channels, and depend on the market in which we participate for the bulk of their revenues.
It is possible for additional competitors to enter the market with new products, some of which may also have greater financial and other resources than
we do.
LICENSES, PATENTS AND TRADEMARKS
We rely in part on patents to protect our intellectual property and have a total of 649 U.S. and 88 foreign patents for circuit designs and other
innovations used in the design and architecture of our products. In addition, we have 76 patent applications pending in the U.S. Patent and Trademark office.
Our patents typically expire 20 years from the patent application date, with our existing patents expiring between 2012 and 2031.
We do not consider our business to be materially dependent upon any one patent. We believe that a strong portfolio of patents combined with other
factors such as our ability to innovate, technological expertise and the experience of our personnel are important to compete effectively in our industry. Our
patent portfolio also provides the flexibility to negotiate or cross license intellectual property with other semiconductor companies to broaden the features in
our products.
We also rely on mask work protection, trademarks, copyrights, trade secret laws, employee and third-party nondisclosure agreements, and licensing
arrangements to protect our intellectual property.
PMC, PMC-Sierra and our logo are registered trademarks and service marks. Any other trademarks used in this Annual Report are owned by other
entities. We own other trademarks and service marks not appearing in this Annual Report.
EMPLOYEES
As of December 31, 2011, we had 1,564 employees, including 982 in Research and Development, 109 in Production and Quality Assurance, 310 in
Sales and Marketing and 163 in Administration. During 2011, we increased our number of employees by 115 employees. Our employees are not represented
by a collective bargaining agreement and we have never experienced any related work stoppage.
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION AND SEC REPORTS
Our principal executive offices are located at 1380 Bordeaux Drive, Sunnyvale, CA 94089. Our internet webpage is located at www.pmc-sierra.com;
however, the information accessed on or through our webpage is not part of this report. Our annual reports on Form 10-K, quarterly reports on Form 10-Q,
current reports on Form 8-K, and amendments to such reports are available, free of charge, on our webpage after we electronically file or
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