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Wiki Wiki Summary
Contract research organization In the life sciences, a contract research organization (CRO) is a company that provides support to the pharmaceutical, biotechnology, and medical device industries in the form of research services outsourced on a contract basis. A CRO may provide such services as biopharmaceutical development, biologic assay development, commercialization, clinical development, clinical trials management, pharmacovigilance, outcomes research, and Real world evidence.
Pricing Pricing is the process whereby a business sets the price at which it will sell its products and services, and may be part of the business's marketing plan. In setting prices, the business will take into account the price at which it could acquire the goods, the manufacturing cost, the marketplace, competition, market condition, brand, and quality of product.
Market structure Market structure, in economics, depicts how firms are differentiated and categorised based on the types of goods they sell (homogeneous/heterogeneous) and how their operations are affected by external factors and elements. Market structure makes it easier to understand the characteristics of diverse markets.
Operations research Operations research (British English: operational research), often shortened to the initialism OR, is a discipline that deals with the development and application of advanced analytical methods to improve decision-making. It is sometimes considered to be a subfield of mathematical sciences.
Professional development Professional development is learning to earn or maintain professional credentials such as academic degrees to formal coursework, attending conferences, and informal learning opportunities situated in practice. It has been described as intensive and collaborative, ideally incorporating an evaluative stage.
Intellectual property infringement An intellectual property (IP) infringement is the infringement or violation of an intellectual property right. There are several types of intellectual property rights, such as copyrights, patents, trademarks, industrial designs, and trade secrets.
Soft intellectual property Soft intellectual property (also sometimes, and confusingly (see below), abbreviated to "soft IP") is sometimes used to refer to trademarks, copyright, design rights and passing off, in contrast to "hard intellectual property", which is sometimes used to refer to patents. Use of this phrase is controversial among IP practitioners.The phrase "soft intellectual property" or Soft IP also refers to a system for licensing patents proposed in 2008.
Defend Trade Secrets Act The Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 (DTSA) (Pub.L. 114–153 (text) (PDF), 130 Stat. 376, enacted May 11, 2016, codified at 18 U.S.C. § 1836, et seq.) is a United States federal law that allows an owner of a trade secret to sue in federal court when its trade secrets have been misappropriated.
Zia Chishti Muhammad Ziaullah Khan Chishti (born 1971) is a Pakistani–American investor and business executive. He is the founder of Afiniti and TRG Global.After starting his career as a Morgan Stanley investment banker, Chishti invented the medical device Invisalign and co-founded Align Technology to market the product in 1997.
Orthodontics Orthodontics is a dentistry specialty that addresses the diagnosis, prevention, and correction of mal-positioned teeth and jaws, and misaligned bite patterns. It may also address the modification of facial growth, known as dentofacial orthopedics.
List of 2009 albums The following is a list of music albums, EPs, and mixtapes released in 2012. These are notable albums, defined as having received significant coverage from reliable sources independent of the subject.
Profit (economics) An economic profit is the difference between the revenue a commercial entity has received from its outputs and the opportunity costs of its inputs. It equals to total revenue minus total cost, including both explicit and implicit costs.
Profitability index Profitability index (PI), also known as profit investment ratio (PIR) and value investment ratio (VIR), is the ratio of payoff to investment of a proposed project. It is a useful tool for ranking projects because it allows you to quantify the amount of value created per unit of investment.
Small Is Profitable Small Is Profitable: The Hidden Economic Benefits of Making Electrical Resources the Right Size is a 2002 book by energy analyst Amory Lovins and others. The book describes 207 ways in which the size of "electrical resources"—devices that make, save, or store electricity—affects their economic value.
Strategic planning Strategic planning is an organization's process of defining its strategy or direction, and making decisions on allocating its resources to attain strategic goals.\nIt may also extend to control mechanisms for guiding the implementation of the strategy.
Permanent income hypothesis The permanent income hypothesis (PIH) is a model in the field of economics to explain the formation of consumption patterns. It suggests consumption patterns are formed from future expectations and consumption smoothing.
Depreciation In several fields, especially computing, deprecation is the discouragement of use of some terminology, feature, design, or practice, typically because it has been superseded or is no longer considered efficient or safe, without completely removing it or prohibiting its use. Typically, deprecated materials are not completely removed to ensure legacy compatibility or back up practice in case new methods are not functional in an odd scenario.
The Difficult Couple The Difficult Couple (Chinese: 难夫难妻; pinyin: Nànfū Nànqī), also translated as Die for Marriage, is a 1913 Chinese film. It is known for being the earliest Chinese feature film.
Rational expectations In economics, "rational expectations" are model-consistent expectations, in that agents inside the model are assumed to "know the model" and on average take the model's predictions as valid. Rational expectations ensure internal consistency in models involving uncertainty.
Strategic litigation Strategic litigation, also known as impact litigation, is the practice of bringing lawsuits intended to effect societal change. Impact litigation cases may be class action lawsuits or individual claims with broader significance, and may rely on statutory law arguments or on constitutional claims.
Vexatious litigation Vexatious litigation is legal action which is brought solely to harass or subdue an adversary. It may take the form of a primary frivolous lawsuit or may be the repetitive, burdensome, and unwarranted filing of meritless motions in a matter which is otherwise a meritorious cause of action.
Management Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a non-profit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business.
Maudood Chishti Maudood Chishti (Urdu: مودود چشتی) (also known as Qutubuddin, Shams Sufiyaan and Chiraag Chishtiyaan) was an early day Sufi Saint, a successor to his father and master Abu Yusuf Bin Saamaan, twelfth link in the Sufi silsilah of Chishti Order, and the Master of Shareef Zandani. He was born around 430 Hijri in the city of Chisht.
Intellectual An intellectual is a person who engages in critical thinking, research, and reflection about the reality of society, and who proposes solutions for the normative problems of society. Coming from the world of culture, either as a creator or as a mediator, the intellectual participates in politics, either to defend a concrete proposition or to denounce an injustice, usually by either rejecting or producing or extending an ideology, and by defending a system of values.
Landlord–tenant law Landlord–tenant law is a part of the common law that details the rights and duties of landlords and tenants. It includes elements of both real property law (specifically conveyances) and contract law.
Importation Act 1455 The Importation Act 1455 (33 Henry VI c. 5) was an act of the Parliament of England passed during the reign of Henry VI.\nIn 1455, London silkwomen complained that the Lombards were importing "ribbands and chains, falsely and deceitfully wrought, all manner girdles and other things concerning the said mistery and occupation, in no manner wise bringing in any good silk unwrought as they were wont to bring heretofore".
Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials The Agreement on the Importation of Educational, Scientific and Cultural Materials (also known as the Florence Agreement) is a 1950 UNESCO treaty whereby states agree to not impose customs duties on certain educational, scientific, and cultural materials that are imported.\n\n\n== Content ==\nThe materials covered by the treaty include printed books, newspapers, periodicals, government publications, printed music, works of art, antiques over 100 years old, scientific instruments used in education or research, and educational films.
List of states and territories of the United States The United States of America is a federal republic consisting of 50 states, a federal district (Washington, D.C., the capital city of the United States), five major territories, and various minor islands. The 48 contiguous states and Washington, D.C., are in North America between Canada and Mexico.
Criminal investigation Criminal investigation is an applied science that involves the study of facts that are then used to inform criminal trials. A complete criminal investigation can include searching, interviews, interrogations, evidence collection and preservation, and various methods of investigation.
Hostile witness A hostile witness, also known as an adverse witness or an unfavorable witness, is a witness at trial whose testimony on direct examination is either openly antagonistic or appears to be contrary to the legal position of the party who called the witness. This concept is used in the legal proceedings in the United States, and analogues of it exist in other legal systems in Western countries.
Yangju highway incident The Yangju highway incident, also known as the Yangju training accident or Highway 56 Accident, was a double-homicide that occurred on June 13, 2002, in Yangju, Gyeonggi-do, South Korea. A United States Army armored vehicle-launched bridge, returning to base in Uijeongbu on a public road after training maneuvers in the countryside, struck and killed two 14-year-old South Korean schoolgirls, Shin Hyo-sun (Korean: 신효순) and Shim Mi-seon (Korean: 심미선).
Francesco Schettino Francesco Schettino (Italian pronunciation: [franˈtʃesko sketˈtiːno]; born 14 November 1960) is an Italian ex-sea captain who commanded the cruise ship Costa Concordia when it struck an underwater rock and capsized with the deaths of 32 passengers and crew off the Italian island of Giglio on 13 January 2012. In 2015, he was sentenced to sixteen years in prison for his role in the incident.
Murder of Mollie Tibbetts On July 18, 2018, University of Iowa student Mollie Cecilia Tibbetts disappeared while jogging near her home in Brooklyn, Iowa. A month later, police identified 24-year-old Cristhian Bahena Rivera as a suspect in connection with the disappearance; surveillance footage showed Rivera's car following Tibbetts on her jog.
Risk Factors
ALIGN TECHNOLOGY INC ITEM 1A RISK FACTORS If we fail to sustain our revenue growth while controlling our expenses, the market price of our common stock may decline
You should consider our business and prospects in light of the risks, expenses and difficulties encountered by a company in an early stage of operations
Consistent with a company in an early stage of operations, we continue to incur significant operating expenses to: · develop new software and increase the automation of our manufacturing processes; · execute our consumer marketing campaign and dental professional marketing efforts; · execute clinical research and education plans; · develop technological improvements to our products and new product development; · continue our international sales and marketing efforts; · protect our intellectual property, including trade secrets; and · undertake quality assurance and improvement initiatives
For instance, in an effort to raise the profile of Invisalign and drive prospective patients to our most experienced dental professionals, in the second quarter of 2005, we launched a consumer marketing campaign involving television, radio and print media
Marketing programs of this nature are expensive and may have limited success, if any, and may not result in revenue generation commensurate with its costs
While we achieved profitability beginning in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2003, we experienced a net loss in the third quarter of 2005
If we are to achieve profitability in future periods, we will need to continue to increase our revenues, while controlling our expenses
We generated positive operating cash flow for the first time in fiscal year 2003 and continued to generate positive operating cash flow in fiscal years 2004 and 2005
However, we cannot be certain that we will be able to sustain or increase such positive cash flow from operations, from period to period, in the future
Because our business is evolving, it is difficult to predict our future operating results or levels of growth, and we may not be able to sustain our historical growth rates in future periods
If we do not increase profitability or revenue growth or otherwise meet the expectations of securities analysts or investors, the market price of our common stock will likely decline
We have a limited operating history and expect our future financial results to fluctuate which may cause volatility in our stock price
We were incorporated in April 1997 and began sales of Invisalign in July 1999
Thus, we have a limited operating history, which makes it difficult to evaluate our future prospects
In addition, we expect our future quarterly and annual operating results to fluctuate as we focus on increasing our commercial sales
These fluctuations could cause our stock price to decline
Some of the factors that could cause our operating results to fluctuate include: · the development and marketing of directly competitive products by existing and new competitors, such as OrthoClear, Inc
; · aggressive price competition from competitors, including OrthoClear; · changes in the timing of product orders; 19 ______________________________________________________________________ · unanticipated delays in production caused by insufficient capacity, any disruptions in the manufacturing process, including as a result of unexpected turnover in the labor force or the introduction of new production processes; · inaccurate forecasting of revenues, production and other operating costs; · costs and expenditures in connection with ongoing litigation, in particular the litigation related to OrthoClear; · changes in product mix due to the introduction of Invisalign Express, a lower-cost alternative for treating less complex cases; and · investments in research and development to develop new products and enhancements to Invisalign
To respond to these and other factors, we may need to make business decisions that could adversely affect our operating results such as modifications to our pricing policy, business structure or operations
Most of our expenses, such as employee compensation and lease payment obligations, are relatively fixed in the short term
Moreover, our expense levels are based, in part, on our expectations regarding future revenue levels
As a result, if our revenues for a particular period fall below our expectations, we may be unable to adjust spending quickly enough to offset any shortfall in revenues
Therefore, our operating results for a given period may be adversely affected
Due to these and other factors, we believe that quarter-to-quarter comparisons of our operating results may not be meaningful
You should not rely on our results for any one quarter as an indication of our future performance
We are currently involved in litigation with several former employees stemming from our efforts to protect our intellectual property
This litigation is costly and could distract our management and cause a decline in our results of operations and stock price
We seek to diligently protect our intellectual property rights
On February 2, 2005 we filed a complaint against OrthoClear, Inc, OrthoClear Holdings, Inc, Mr
Chishti, one of our founders, and several former employees
Among other things, the complaint alleges tort, contract, statutory and common law causes of action arising from OrthoClear and the individual defendants’ alleged plan to unlawfully utilize our intellectual property, confidential information and employees
The complaint also alleges that OrthoClear, Mr
Chishti, and other defendants are in breach of contractual obligations, statutory law and common law for attempting to intentionally interfere and disrupt our ongoing business operations and improperly gain access to our customer relationships and trade secrets
The complaint seeks injunctive relief and monetary damages in an amount to be determined
The complaint alleges numerous violations of the federal Lanham Act (15 USC §1051 et seq
) by OrthoClear and its officers and employees
These violations include unfair competition, trademark infringement and false advertising
The complaint also alleges violations by OrthoClear of California’s Unfair Practices Act (California Business and Professions Code §17200 et seq
On January 11, 2006, we filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission (“ITC”) against OrthoClear, seeking to halt the importation into the United States of infringing aligners manufactured by OrthoClear in Pakistan in violation of our patents and other intellectual property rights
The ITC Complaint requests the ITC institute an immediate investigation and ultimately issue an exclusionary order, enforced by US Customs and Border Protection, excluding OrthoClear aligners from importation into the United States
The ITC Complaint also requests the ITC issue two cease and desist orders specifically preventing OrthoClear from importing infringing aligners and from selling in the United States imported OrthoClear aligners
The ITC has determined to institute a formal investigation
In addition, on January 11, 2006, we filed a federal court patent infringement action in the Western District of Wisconsin (Madison)
This federal action seeks monetary damages and an injunction to augment the exclusionary relief available from the ITC 20 ______________________________________________________________________ Although each of these lawsuits is in the early stages, litigating claims of this type, whether or not ultimately determined in our favor or settled by us, is costly and diverts the efforts and attention of our management and technical personnel from normal business operations
Any of these results from our litigation could adversely affect our results of operations and stock price
In addition, we are currently a party to various other legal proceedings and claims
Management does not believe that the ultimate outcome of these other legal proceedings and claims will have a material adverse effect on our financial position or results of operations
However, in the Ormco litigation, there is no assurance that the court’s decision will not be overturned on appeal
In addition, litigation is subject to inherent uncertainties and unfavorable rulings could occur
An unfavorable ruling could include monetary damages or, in cases where injunctive relief is sought, an injunction prohibiting us from selling our products
Any of these results from our litigation could adversely affect our results of operations and stock price