NCR Company Profile

Data Warehousing solutions transform information into knowledge, permitting businesses to respond with programs designed to improve customer acquisition, retention and profitability. Through the Company’s presence at customer interaction points, such as automated-teller machines (ATMs), retail point-of-sale (POS) workstations, and self-checkout systems, Financial Self Service and Retail Store Automation solutions enable companies to capture and process transaction-based information. Services are an essential component of each of NCR’s complete offerings, and the Customer Services division provides support services primarily to NCR solution customers.

NCR provides specific solutions for the retail and financial industries, and through the Data Warehousing and Customer Services businesses, the Company provides solutions for additional industries such as telecommunications, transportation, insurance, utilities and electronic commerce, as well as consumer goods manufacturers and government entities. NCR’s solutions are built on a foundation of long-established industry knowledge and consulting expertise, value-adding software and hardware technology, global customer support services, and a complete line of business consumables and specialty media products.

NCR was originally incorporated in 1884 and was a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange prior to its merger with a wholly-owned subsidiary of AT&T Corp. (AT&T) on September 19, 1991. Effective December 31, 1996, AT&T distributed to its stockholders all of its interest in NCR (the Distribution) on the basis of one share of NCR common stock for each 16 shares of AT&T common stock. The Distribution resulted in approximately 101.4 million shares of NCR common stock outstanding as of December 31, 1996. NCR common stock is listed on the New York Stock Exchange and trades under the symbol “NCR”.

Operating Segments

NCR operates in the information technology industry and categorizes its operations into seven reportable segments: Data Warehousing solutions, Financial Self Service solutions, Retail Store Automation solutions, Customer Services, Systemedia, Payment and Imaging solutions, and Other, each of which is described below. Each solution generally combines hardware, software, and professional and installation-related services.

Competition

NCR faces competition in the industries served by Data Warehousing in all geographic areas where it operates. NCR believes that key factors used to evaluate competitors in these markets are: vendor data warehousing experience and customer references; product quality; performance and scalability; support and professional service capabilities; industry knowledge; and total cost of ownership. NCR offers unique advantages in each of these categories.

In the markets in which NCR’s Teradata Data Warehousing competes, customers require complete solutions including applications, database software, system software, hardware, professional services, systems integration skills and ongoing solution support. Many competitors offer one or two of these components, but NCR believes it is one of few companies that can provide complete, integrated, and optimized data warehousing solutions that address all of these customer requirements. NCR’s primary competitors include companies such as International Business Machines (IBM) and Oracle Corporation.

Financial Self Service faces competition in the financial services industry in all geographic areas where it operates. The primary factors of competition can vary, but typically include: quality of the solutions or products; total cost of ownership; industry knowledge of the vendor; the vendor’s ability to provide and support a total end-to-end solution; the vendor’s ability to integrate new and existing systems; the fit of the vendor’s strategic vision with the customer’s strategic direction; and the quality of the vendor’s support and consulting services. NCR’s primary competitors are Diebold, Inc. and Wincor Nixdorf Gmbh & Co. (Wincor Nixdorf), but other competitors exist and vary by product and service offering, as well as geographic area.

Customer Services are an essential component of NCR’s complete solution offerings. NCR’s Customer Services division provides maintenance and support services for NCR’s solutions as well as several third party companies. The Customer Services segment provides other services including consulting, site design, staging and implementation, and complete systems management.

As a result of supporting NCR’s solutions around the world, Customer Services has established a competitive service delivery capability, and has leveraged this global presence and experience to develop and deliver a comprehensive portfolio of information technology (IT) infrastructure services to businesses in other industries. These high availability services focus on the vital systems, networks, software and security that comprise the IT infrastructure of today’s businesses, and include operations management, consulting, deployment and maintenance. Customer Services provides these services directly to global businesses as well as through partnerships with leading technology, network and systems suppliers including Cisco Systems, Dell Computer Corporation, Sun Microsystems and others.

Competition in the consumable and media solutions business is significant and varies by geographic area and product group. The primary areas of competitive differentiation are typically quality, logistics and supply chain management expertise, and total cost of ownership. While price is always a factor, Systemedia focuses on total cost of ownership for all of its products. Total cost of ownership takes into account not only the per unit cost of the media, but also service, usage and support costs over the life of the system.

NCR faces competition in the financial services industry in all geographic areas where it operates. The primary areas of competition can vary, but typically include: quality of the solutions or products; total cost of ownership; industry knowledge; the vendor’s ability to provide and support a total end-to-end solution; the vendor’s ability to integrate new and existing systems; the fit of the vendor’s strategic vision with the customer’s strategic direction; and the quality of the vendor’s support and consulting services. NCR’s competitors vary by product, service offering and geographic area, and include IBM and Unisys Corporation, among others.