WebEx 2002 Annual Report Download - page 28

ⳮcurrent and future competitors may independently develop similar technology, duplicate our services or
design around any of our patents;
ⳮour pending patent applications may not result in the issuance of patents; and
ⳮeffective patent protection may not be available in every country in which we do business.
We also rely upon trademarks, copyrights and trade secrets to protect our technology, which may not be
sufficient to protect our intellectual property.
We also rely on a combination of laws, such as copyright, trademark and trade secret laws, and contractual
restrictions, such as confidentiality agreements and licenses, to establish and protect our technology. Our
trademarks include: ActiveTouch, WebEx (word and design), WebEx bifurcated ball design, WebEx power
button design, WebEx.com, MyWebEx, Bringing the Meeting to You, MediaTone, Meeting Center, WebEx
Meeting Center, WebEx sound mark, Meeting-Enable Your Web Site, We’ve Got To Start Meeting Like This,
Powering Real Time Business Meetings, and One Button, Infinite Power. We also refer to trademarks of other
corporations and organizations in this document. Also, our software is automatically protected by copyright law.
These forms of intellectual property protection are critically important to our ability to establish and maintain our
competitive position. However,
ⳮthird parties may infringe or misappropriate our copyrights, trademarks and similar proprietary rights;
ⳮlaws and contractual restrictions may not be sufficient to prevent misappropriation of our technology or
to deter others from developing similar technologies;
ⳮeffective trademark, copyright and trade secret protection may be unavailable or limited in foreign
countries;
ⳮother companies may claim common law trademark rights based upon state or foreign laws that
precede the federal registration of our marks; and
ⳮpolicing unauthorized use of our services and trademarks is difficult, expensive and time-consuming,
and we may be unable to determine the extent of any unauthorized use.
Reverse engineering, unauthorized copying or other misappropriation of our proprietary technology could
enable third parties to benefit from our technology without paying us for it, which would significantly harm our
business.
We may face intellectual property infringement claims that could be costly to defend and result in our loss of
significant rights.
We may be subject to legal proceedings and claims, including claims of alleged infringement of the
copyrights, trademarks and patents of third parties. Our services may infringe issued patents. In addition, we may
be unaware of filed patent applications which have not yet been made public and which relate to our services.
From time to time we receive notices alleging that we infringe intellectual property rights of third parties. In such
cases, we typically investigate and respond to the allegations. We are currently not aware of any such allegations
that we believe represent a risk of material liability to the company. In July 2002, a lawsuit was filed by Eric
Hamilton, an individual, in U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland alleging infringement of U.S. patent
number 5,176,520 (the “Hamilton Patent”) against us and several other companies. In March 2003, we entered
into a settlement agreement with the plaintiff pursuant to which the plaintiff released us from all claims asserted
in the lawsuit and agreed to dismiss the lawsuit with prejudice. Although this lawsuit was settled, other
intellectual property claims may be asserted against us in the future. Intellectual property litigation is expensive
and time-consuming and could divert management’s attention away from running our business. Intellectual
property litigation could also require us to develop non-infringing technology or enter into royalty or license
agreements. These royalty or license agreements, if required, may not be available on acceptable terms, if at all,
in the event of a successful claim of infringement. Our failure or inability to develop non-infringing technology
or license proprietary rights on a timely basis would harm our business.
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