Expedia 2008 Annual Report Download - page 27

We cannot be sure that our intellectual property is protected from copying or use by others,
including potential competitors.
Our websites rely on content and technology intellectual property, much of which we regard as
proprietary. We protect our proprietary technology by relying on trademarks, copyrights, trade secret laws and
confidentiality agreements. In connection with our license agreements with third-parties, we seek to control
access to and distribution of our technology, documentation and other proprietary information. Even with all
of these precautions, it is possible for someone else to copy or otherwise obtain and use our proprietary
technology or content without our authorization or to develop similar technology independently. Effective
trademark, copyright and trade secret protection may not be available in every country in which our services
are made available through the internet, and policing unauthorized use of our proprietary information is
difficult and expensive. We cannot be sure that the steps we have taken will prevent misappropriation of our
proprietary information. This misappropriation could have a material adverse effect on our business. In the
future, we may need to go to court to enforce our intellectual property rights, to protect our trade secrets or to
determine the validity and scope of the proprietary rights of others. This litigation might result in substantial
costs and diversion of resources and management attention.
We currently license from third-parties some of the technologies incorporated into our websites. As we
continue to introduce new services that incorporate new technologies, we may be required to license additional
technology. We cannot be sure that such technology licenses will be available on commercially reasonable
terms, if at all.
Part I. Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
None.
Part I. Item 2. Properties
We lease approximately 1.3 million square feet of office space worldwide, pursuant to leases with
expiration dates through October 2018.
We lease approximately 348,000 square feet for our headquarters in Bellevue, Washington, pursuant to a
lease with an expiration date of October 2018. We also lease approximately 570,000 square feet of office
space for our domestic operations in various cities and locations in Arizona, California, Florida, Hawaii, Idaho,
Illinois, Massachusetts, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Washington and Washing-
ton DC, pursuant to leases with expiration dates through January 2015.
We also lease approximately 395,000 square feet of office space for our international operations in
various cities and locations, including Australia, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Italy, Japan,
Mexico, the Netherlands, Spain and the United Kingdom, pursuant to leases with expiration dates through
February 2018.
Part I. Item 3. Legal Proceedings
In the ordinary course of business, Expedia and its subsidiaries are parties to legal proceedings and claims
involving property, personal injury, contract, alleged infringement of third-party intellectual property rights and
other claims. The amounts that may be recovered in such matters may be subject to insurance coverage.
Rules of the SEC require the description of material pending legal proceedings, other than ordinary,
routine litigation incident to the registrant’s business, and advise that proceedings ordinarily need not be
described if they primarily involve damages claims for amounts (exclusive of interest and costs) not
individually exceeding 10% of the current assets of the registrant and its subsidiaries on a consolidated basis.
In the judgment of management, none of the pending litigation matters that the Company and its subsidiaries
are defending, including those described below, involves or is likely to involve amounts of that magnitude.
The litigation matters described below involve issues or claims that may be of particular interest to our
stockholders, regardless of whether any of these matters may be material to our financial position or results of
operations based upon the standard set forth in the SEC’s rules.
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