MIME 2017 Annual Report

25 Our quarterly results may fluctuate for a variety of reasons and may not fully reflect the underlying performance of our business. Our quarterly operating results, including the levels of our revenue, gross margin, profitability, cash flow and deferred revenue, may vary significantly in the future, and period-to-period comparisons of our operating results may not be meaningful. Accordingly, the results of any one quarter should not be relied upon as an indication of future performance. Our quarterly financial results may fluctuate as a result of a variety of factors, many of which are outside of our control and, as a result, may not fully reflect the underlying performance of our business. Fluctuations in quarterly results may negatively impact the value of our ordinary shares. Factors that may cause fluctuations in our quarterly financial results include, but are not limited to: • foreign exchange rates; • our ability to attract new customers; • our revenue retention rate; • the amount and timing of operating expenses related to the maintenance and expansion of our business, operations and infrastructure; • network outages or security breaches; • general economic, industry and market conditions; • increases or decreases in the number of features in our services or pricing changes upon any renewals of customer agreements; • changes in our pricing policies or those of our competitors; • new variations in sales of our services, which has historically been highest in the fourth quarter of a given fiscal year; • the timing and success of new services and service introductions by us and our competitors or any other change in the competitive dynamics of our industry, including consolidation among competitors, customers or strategic partners; and • the impact of acquisitions. If we need to raise additional capital to expand our operations and invest in new technologies in the future and cannot raise it on acceptable terms or at all, our ability to compete successfully may be harmed. We believe that our existing cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient to meet our anticipated cash requirements for at least the next twelve months. However, unforeseen circumstances may arise which may mean that we may need to raise additional funds, and we may not be able to obtain additional debt or equity financing on favorable terms, if at all. If we raise additional equity financing, our security holders may experience significant dilution of their ownership interests and the value of our ordinary shares could decline. If we engage in debt financing, we may be required to accept terms that restrict our ability to incur additional indebtedness, force us to maintain specified liquidity or other ratios or restrict our ability to pay dividends or make acquisitions. If we need additional capital and cannot raise it on acceptable terms, if at all, we may not be able to, among other things: • develop and enhance our services; • continue to expand our research and development, sales and marketing organizations; • hire, train and retain key employees; • respond to competitive pressures or unanticipated working capital requirements; or • pursue acquisition opportunities. Our inability to do any of the foregoing could reduce our ability to compete successfully and harm our results of operations. Risks Related to Intellectual Property Any failure to protect our intellectual property rights could impair our ability to protect our proprietary technology and our brand. Our success and ability to compete depend in part on our intellectual property. We primarily rely on copyright, trade secret and trademark laws, trade secret protection and confidentiality or license agreements with our employees, customers, partners and others to protect our intellectual property rights. However, the steps we take to protect our intellectual property rights may be inadequate. As of March 31, 2018, we have 12 patents issued and 12 patent applications pending in the United States. We also have 4 patents issued and 5 patent applications pending for examination in non-U.S. jurisdictions. We may not be able to obtain any further patents, and our