EDGAR 10-K Filing

Company CIK: 1254699
Filing Year: 2022
Filename: 1254699_10-K_2022_0001254699-22-000010.json

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ITEM 1. BUSINESS
Item 1. Business
Overview
QVC, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries (unless otherwise indicated or required by the context, the terms "we," "our," "us," the "Company," and "QVC" refer to QVC, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries) curates and sells a wide variety of consumer products via highly engaging, video-rich, interactive shopping experiences, distributed to approximately 216 million worldwide households each day through our broadcast networks. We also reach audiences through our websites (including QVC.com, HSN.com and others); virtual multichannel video programming distributors (including Hulu + Live TV, AT&T TV and YouTube TV); applications via streaming video; Facebook Live, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Xfinity Flex and Samsung TV Plus; mobile applications; our social pages and over-the-air broadcasters. We believe we are a global leader in video retailing, e-commerce, mobile commerce and social commerce, with operations based in the United States ("U.S."), Germany, Japan, the United Kingdom ("U.K."), and Italy.
Our operating strategies are to (i) Curate special products at compelling values; (ii) Extend video reach and relevance; (iii) Reimagine daily digital discovery; (iv) Expand and engage our passionate community; and (v) Deliver joyful customer service. In addition, we are exploring opportunities to evolve the International operating model to pursue growth opportunities in a more leveraged way across markets.
For the year ended December 31, 2021, approximately 94% of QVC's worldwide shipped sales were from repeat and reactivated customers (i.e., customers who made a purchase from us during the prior twelve months and customers who previously made a purchase from us but not during the prior twelve months). In the same period, QVC attracted approximately 3.7 million new customers and the global e-commerce operation comprised $6.5 billion, or 56.9%, of QVC's consolidated net revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021.
We offer a wide assortment of high-quality merchandise and classify our products into six groups: home, beauty, apparel, jewelry, accessories and electronics. It is our product sourcing team's mission to research and curate compelling and differentiated products from manufacturers who have sufficient scale to meet anticipated demand. We offer many exclusive and proprietary products, leading national brands and limited distribution brands offering unique items. Many of our products are endorsed by celebrities, designers and other well-known personalities who often join our presenters on our live programming and provide lead-in publicity on their own social pages, websites and other customer touchpoints. We believe that our ability to demonstrate product features and present “faces and places” differentiates and defines the QVC shopping experience. We closely monitor customer demand and our product mix to remain well-positioned and relevant in popular and growing retail segments, which we believe is a significant competitive advantage relative to competitors who operate brick-and-mortar stores.
We operate thirteen distribution centers and seven call centers worldwide. In 2021, our work force consisted of approximately 22,000 employees who handled approximately 114 million customer calls, shipped approximately 236 million units globally and served approximately 15.1 million unique customers. We believe our long-term relationships with major U.S. television distributors, including cable operators (e.g., Comcast, Charter Communications and Cox), satellite television providers (e.g., DISH Network and DIRECTV) and telecommunications companies (e.g., Verizon and AT&T), provide us with broad distribution, favorable channel positioning and significant competitive advantages. We believe that our significant market share, brand awareness, outstanding customer service, repeat customer base, flexible payments options, international reach and scalable infrastructure distinguish us from our competitors.
History
QVC was founded on June 13, 1986 by Joseph Segel. Our first U.S. live broadcast took place at 7:30 PM ET on November 24 of that year, reaching 7.6 million homes. Initially broadcast live from 7:30 PM ET until midnight each weekday and all day Saturdays and Sundays, the channel extended its live U.S. programming to 24 hours per day in January 1987. QVC began its International operations in 1993.
In 1995, Comcast purchased a majority shareholding in QVC. In 2003, Comcast sold its majority share to Qurate Retail, Inc. ("Qurate Retail") (formerly known as Liberty Interactive Corporation).
I-1
HSN, Inc. ("HSN"), now a subsidiary of QVC, began broadcasting television home shopping programming from its studios in St. Petersburg, Florida in 1981 and, by 1985, was broadcasting its programming through a national network of cable and local television stations 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
On December 29, 2017, Qurate Retail completed the acquisition of the remaining 62% ownership interest of HSN it did not previously own in an all-stock transaction. On December 31, 2018, Qurate Retail transferred its 100% ownership interest in HSN to QVC through a transaction among entities under common control.
Operating segments
QVC has two reportable segments: QxH and QVC-International. These segments reflect the way the Company evaluates its business performance and manages its operations. For financial information about our operating segments, please refer to note 16 of our accompanying consolidated financial statements, as well as to Item 7. "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations."
QxH
QxH's programming is distributed in the U.S., 20 hours per day of live programming, 364 days per year, to approximately 92 million television households and is distributed to approximately 99% of households subscribing to services offered by television distributors. QxH's televised shopping programs, including live and recorded content, are broadcast across multiple channels nationally on a full time basis, including the main QVC and HSN channels as well as the additional channels of QVC2, QVC3 and HSN2. These additional channels offer viewers access to a broader range of QxH programming options as well as more relevant programming for viewers in different time zones. QxH also has over-the-air broadcasting in designated U.S. markets that can be accessed by any household with a digital antenna in such markets, regardless of whether it subscribes to a paid television service. This allows QxH to reach customers who previously did not have access to the program through other television platforms.
QxH's programming is also available through QVC.com and HSN.com (our "Websites") as well as virtual multichannel video programming distributors (including Hulu + Live TV, AT&T TV and YouTube TV); applications via streaming video; Facebook Live, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Xfinity Flex and Samsung TV Plus; mobile applications; our social pages and over-the-air broadcasters (collectively, our "Digital Platforms"). Our Digital Platforms enable consumers to purchase goods offered on our broadcast programming along with a wide assortment of products that are available only on our Websites. Our Websites and other Digital Platforms are natural extensions of our business model, allowing customers to engage in our shopping experience wherever they are, with live or on-demand content customized to the device they are using. In addition, our Websites and mobile applications allow shoppers to browse, research, compare and perform targeted searches for products, read customer reviews, control the order-entry process and conveniently access their account. For the year ended December 31, 2021, approximately 85% of our new QxH customers made their first purchase through our digital platforms. QxH, including our Digital Platforms, contributed $8.3 billion, or 73%, of consolidated net revenue, $1,017 million of operating income and $1,439 million of Adjusted OIBDA (defined in note 16 to the accompanying notes to our consolidated financial statements) for the year ended December 31, 2021.
The table below illustrates QxH's digital sales growth since 2019:
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
QxH digital platform revenue $ 5,003 5,089 4,708
Total QxH net revenue 8,277 8,505 8,277
QxH digital platform % of total QxH net revenue 60.4 % 59.8 % 56.9 %
QVC-International
Our international business brings the QVC shopping experience to approximately 124 million households outside the U.S., primarily in Germany, Austria, Japan, the U.K., the Republic of Ireland, and Italy. Similar to QxH, our international business engages customers via multiple platforms, including broadcast networks, websites, mobile applications and social pages. Our international product sourcing teams select products tailored to the interests of each local market. For the year ended December 31, 2021, our international operations, including our Digital platforms, generated $3.1 billion, or 27%, of consolidated net revenue, $490 million of operating income and $562 million of Adjusted OIBDA (defined in note 16 to the accompanying notes to our consolidated financial statements).
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The table below illustrates QVC-International's digital sales growth since 2019:
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
QVC - International digital platform revenue $ 1,458 1,359 1,114
Total QVC - International net revenue 3,077 2,967 2,709
QVC - International digital platform % of total QVC - International net revenue 47.4 % 45.8 % 41.1 %
QVC-Japan. We own 60% of QVC-Japan through a venture with Mitsui & Co., LTD. QVC-Japan launched in April 2001 and currently broadcasts 19 hours of live programming each day and reaches approximately 29 million households. QVC-Japan also operates digital platforms including a website, mobile applications and social pages. In 2014, QVC-Japan launched Q-plus, which consists of infomercial programming distributed by purchasing available airtime on certain channels. On December 1, 2018, QVC-Japan launched 4K high dynamic range broadcasting ("HDR"), making QVC-Japan the first network in Japan to broadcast native, full-scale 4K HDR programming 24 hours a day.
QVC-Germany. QVC-Germany went on air in December 1996 and currently broadcasts 17 hours of live programming each day and reaches approximately 42 million households that are located in both Germany and Austria. Beyond the main channel, QVC-Germany also broadcasts shows on two additional channels, QVC Style and QVC2, which provide a broader range of programming options. QVC-Germany also operates digital platforms including a website, a mobile application, smart TV applications, and social pages.
QVC-U.K. QVC-U.K. went on air in October 1993 and currently broadcasts 16 hours of live programming each day and reaches approximately 28 million households that are located in both the U.K. and the Republic of Ireland. Beyond the main channel, QVC-U.K. also broadcasts shows on three additional channels, QVC Beauty, QVC Extra, and QVC Style, which provides a broader range of programming options, along with digital platforms including a website, mobile applications and social pages.
QVC-Italy. QVC-Italy went on air in October 2010 and currently reaches approximately 25 million households. QVC-Italy broadcasts live for 17 hours each day on satellite and digital terrestrial television. QVC-Italy also operates digital platforms including a website, a mobile application and social pages.
China Joint Venture. Prior to September 2021, the Company had a television shopping channel and e-commerce business joint venture with CNR Media Group, a limited liability company owned by China National Radio ("CNR"). The joint venture, CNR Home Shopping Co., Ltd. ("CNRS"), was owned 49% by QVC and 51% by CNR through subsidiaries of each company. The CNRS joint venture was accounted for as an equity method investment recorded as equity in losses of investee in our consolidated statements of operations. QVC sold its interest in CNRS during the year-ended December 31, 2021.
Merchandise
We believe that our ability to combine product and programming helps us create competitive advantages over traditional brick-and-mortar and Internet retailers. We seek to offer our customers an assortment of compelling, high-quality products. In the U.S., the QVC and HSN brands present on average 640 products and 533 products, respectively, every week on our live programming, approximately 28.7% and 25.8%, respectively, of which have not been presented previously to our television audience. We offer customers high-quality and brand name products, presented in a creative, informative, entertaining and engaging style. We provide a differentiated shopping experience by offering customers the opportunity to experience not only the product being sold, but also the people and places behind that product, thereby enhancing their overall shopping experience.
I-3
Our global merchandise mix features: (i) home, (ii) beauty, (iii) apparel, (iv) accessories, (v) electronics and (vi) jewelry. Many of our brands are exclusive, while others are created by well-known designers. Our global sales mix is provided in the table below:
Years ended December 31,
Product category 2021 2020 2019
Home 40 % 42 % 38 %
Beauty 18 % 18 % 18 %
Apparel 16 % 14 % 16 %
Accessories 11 % 11 % 11 %
Electronics 10 % 10 % 11 %
Jewelry 5 % 5 % 6 %
Total 100 % 100 % 100 %
Unlike traditional brick-and-mortar retailers with inventories across a network of stores, we are able to quickly adapt our offerings in direct response to changes in our customer's purchasing patterns. We utilize a test and re-order model to determine initial customer demand. Through constant monitoring, we manage our product offerings to maximize net revenue and fulfill current demand in large growth segments where we can gain a greater share of our customers' purchases. Our merchandising team is dedicated to continually researching, pursuing and launching new products and brands. With a mandate to deliver hard-to-find value, our merchants find and curate collections of high quality goods from manufacturers with the scale to offer sufficient supply to our existing and future customers. We maintain strong relationships with our vendors, which are attracted by the showcasing and story-telling elements of our programming, and the volume of sales during featured presentations.
We purchase, or obtain on consignment, products from U.S. and foreign manufacturers and wholesalers, often on favorable terms based upon the volume of the transactions. We have attracted some of the world's most respected consumer brands as well as celebrities, entrepreneurs and designers to promote these brands. Brand leaders such as HP, Dooney & Bourke, Dyson, Skechers and Philosophy reach a broad audience while product representatives share the stories behind these brands. We have agreements with celebrities, entrepreneurs and designers such as Isaac Mizrahi, Curtis Stone and Giuliana Rancic enabling us to provide entertaining and engaging programming that develops a lifestyle bond with our customers. These celebrity personalities and product representatives often provide pre-appearance publicity for their QVC products on their own social pages and broadcast shows, enhancing demand during their QVC appearances. We present and promote across our networks, websites, mobile applications and social platforms, allowing shoppers to engage with us on multiple platforms and devices.
We do not depend on any single supplier or designer for a significant portion of our inventory purchases.
Distribution
QVC distributes its programmings via satellite and optical fiber, to cable television and direct-to-home satellite system operators for retransmission to its subscribers in the U.S., Germany, Japan, the U.K., Italy and neighboring countries. The Company also transmits its programmings over digital terrestrial broadcast television to viewers throughout Italy, Germany, and the U.K. and to viewers in certain geographic regions in the U.S. In the U.S., the Company uplinks its digital programming transmissions using a third party service or internal resources. The transmissions are uplinked to protected, non-preemptible transponders on U.S. satellites. "Protected" status means that, in the event of a transponder failure, QVC's signal will be transferred to a spare transponder or, if none is available, to a preemptible transponder located on the same satellite or, in certain cases, to a transponder on another satellite owned by the same service provider if one is available at the time of the failure. "Non-preemptible" status means that, in the event of a transponder failure, QVC's transponders cannot be preempted in favor of a user of a failed transponder, even another user with "protected status." The Company's international business units each obtain uplinking services from third parties and transmit their programming to non-preemptible transponders on international satellites and terrestrial transmitters. QVC's transponder service agreements for the Company's U.S. transponders expire at the earlier of the end of the lives of the satellites or the service agreements. The service agreements for QxH expire between 2023 and 2025. The service agreements for QVC-International transponders and terrestrial transmitters expire between 2022 and 2029.
I-4
We continually seek to expand and enhance our broadcast and e-commerce platforms, as well as to further our international operations and multimedia capabilities. In addition to our websites and mobile applications, we continue to adapt to emerging technologies to offer elements of our programming via new technologies. To reach consumers who use online sources for viewing content, our programming is being offered through virtual multichannel video providers (including Hulu + Live TV, AT&T TV and YouTube TV), online video distributors and programming networks that provide our content directly to consumers over the internet rather than through traditional television services (including Facebook Live, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Xfinity Flex and Samsung TV Plus).
Affiliation agreements
QVC enters into long-term affiliation agreements with certain of our television distributors who downlink our programming and distribute the programming to their customers. Our affiliation agreements with QVC distributors have termination dates ranging from 2022 to 2025. Our ability to continue to sell products to our customers is dependent on our ability to maintain and renew these affiliation agreements in the future. Although we are typically successful in obtaining and renewing these agreements, we do not have distribution agreements with some of the distributors that carry our programming. We are currently providing programming without affiliation agreements to distributors representing approximately 6% of our QVC channel distribution and 1% of our HSN channel distribution. Some of our international programming may continue to be carried by distributors after the expiration dates on our affiliation agreements with them have passed.
In return for carrying our signals, each programming distributor for our U.S. distribution receives an allocated portion, based upon market share, of up to 5% of the net sales of merchandise sold via the television programs and from certain Internet sales to customers located in the programming distributor's service areas. In some cases, pay television operators receive additional compensation in the form of commission guarantees in exchange for their commitments to deliver a specified number of subscribers, channel placement incentives and advertising insertion time. QVC-International programming distributors predominantly receive an agreed-upon annual fee, a monthly or yearly fee per subscriber regardless of the net sales, a variable percentage of net sales or some combination of the above arrangements.
In addition to sales-based commissions or per-subscriber fees, QVC also makes payments to distributors primarily in the U.S. for carriage and to secure channel positioning within a broadcast area or within the general entertainment area on the distributor's channel line-up. We believe that a portion of our sales is attributable to purchases resulting from channel "surfing" and that a channel position near broadcast networks and more popular cable networks increases the likelihood of such purchases. As technology evolves, we will continue to monitor optimal channel placement and attempt to negotiate agreements with our distributors to maximize the viewership of our television programming.
Demographics of customers
We enjoy a very loyal customer base, as demonstrated by the fact that for the twelve months ended December 31, 2021, approximately 88% of our shipped sales came from repeat customers (i.e., customers who made a purchase from us during the prior twelve months), who spent an average of $1,336 each during this period. An additional 6% of shipped sales in that period came from new customers and the remaining 6% of shipped sales came from reactivated customers (i.e., customers who previously made a purchase from us, but not during the prior twelve months).
We experienced a decline in customer count during 2021. Customer count decreased by approximately 8% compared to 2020; however, customer count during 2021 was consistent with 2019. On a trailing twelve month basis, total consolidated customers were approximately 15.1 million which includes 10.4 million QxH customers and 4.7 million QVC-International customers. We believe our core customer base represents an attractive demographic target market. Based on internal customer data for QxH, approximately 44% of our 10.4 million customers for the twelve months ended December 31, 2021 were women between the ages of 35 and 64.
We do not depend on any single customer for a significant portion of our revenue.
Order taking and fulfillment
We take a majority of our orders via our websites and via mobile applications on iPhone, iPad, Apple Watch, Android and other devices. QxH and QVC-International customers placed approximately 41% and 36%, respectively, of all orders directly through their mobile devices in 2021.
I-5
We primarily utilize home based customer service agents to handle calls, e-mail contacts and social contacts, allowing staffing flexibility for peak volume hours. In addition, we utilize computerized interactive voice response order systems for telephonic orders, which handle approximately 25% of all orders taken on a worldwide basis. QxH has nine distribution centers and QVC-International has four distribution centers. Our distribution centers and drop ship partners have shipped on average 456,000 units per day at QxH and 190,000 units per day for QVC-International during 2021. On December 18, 2021, QxH experienced a fire at its Rocky Mount distribution center in North Carolina. Refer to Part II, Item 7. "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations--Strategies and challenges of business units" for further details.
QVC has built a scalable operating infrastructure focused on sustaining efficient, flexible and cost-effective sale and distribution of our products. Since our physical store locations are minimal, we require lower inventory levels and capital expenditures compared to traditional brick-and-mortar retailers. In recent years, we have made and continue to make significant investments in our distribution centers that we believe will accommodate our foreseeable growth needs. Further, since we have no set “floor plan” and can closely manage inventory levels at our centralized warehouses, we believe we have the flexibility to analyze and react quickly to changing trends and demand by shifting programming time and product mix. Our cost structure is highly variable, which we believe allows us to consistently achieve attractive margins relative to brick-and-mortar retailers.
Third party carriers transport our packages from our distribution centers to our customers. In each market where we operate, we have negotiated long-term contracts with shipping companies, which in certain circumstances provide for favorable shipping rates.
Competition
We operate in a rapidly evolving and highly competitive retail business environment. We have numerous and varied competitors at the national and local levels, ranging from large department stores to specialty shops, e-commerce retailers, direct marketing retailers, wholesale clubs, discount retailers, infomercial retailers, and mail-order and catalog companies. Some of our competitors, such as Amazon and Walmart, have a significantly greater web-presence. We believe that the principal competitive factors for our web-commerce operations are high-quality products, brand recognition, selection, value, convenience, price, website performance, customer service and accuracy of order shipment.
We believe that QxH is a leader in video shopping, e-commerce, mobile commerce and social commerce by curating quality products at outstanding values, providing exceptional customer service, establishing favorable channel positioning and multiple touchpoints across digital platforms and generating repeat business from our core customer base and that it also compares favorably in terms of sales to general, non-video based retailers due to our extensive customer reach and efficient cost structure. QxH's closest video shopping competitor is ShopHQ and our international operations face similar competition in their respective markets, such as Jupiter Shop Channel in Japan, HSE in Germany and Austria, GM24 in Italy, and Ideal World in the U.K.
We also compete for access to customers and audience share with other providers of broadcast, digital and hard copy entertainment and content. The price and availability of other programming and the conversion to digital programming platforms may unfavorably affect the placement of our programming in the channel line-ups of our distributors, and may affect our ability to obtain distribution agreements with small cable distributors. Competition from other programming also affects the compensation that must be paid to distributors for carriage. Principal competitive factors for us include (i) value, quality and selection of merchandise; (ii) customer experience, including customer service and speed, cost and reliability of fulfillment and delivery services, and (iii) convenience and accessibility of sales channels.
Human Capital
Headcount. QVC employed approximately 22,000 full-time and part-time employees (including approximately 2,000 Rocky Mount employees who were separated from the Company due to the fire that occurred on December 18, 2021) as of December 31, 2021, which includes 14,700 employees at QxH and 7,300 employees at QVC-International. Employment levels fluctuate due to seasonal factors affecting our business. Additionally, we utilize independent contractors and temporary staffing personnel to supplement our workforce, particularly on a seasonal basis. We consider our employee relations to be good and a key factor in our workforce strategy.
I-6
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion ("DEI"). We are committed to fostering an inclusive culture that ensures fairness and a sense of belonging for every team member, business partner and customer experience we offer by leveraging diversity in all its forms to deliver on our promise to continuously exceed expectations. Our DEI commitments focus on the following areas: representation, leadership accountability, culture, consumers & marketplace, community impact and transparency. We serve a broad and diverse range of customers around the world and we strive to understand the lives they lead in order to deliver authentic customer experiences with meaningful curated products. For this reason we embrace the benefits that the diverse backgrounds, perspectives and experiences of our team members bring to our culture and the decisions we make. We aim to ensure that we consistently apply a lens of inclusion and equity in our processes and decisions relating to our team members, business partners, products, and customer experiences. We are taking steps to help team members discover new perspectives, build empathy, have critical conversations about race, and support each other. We have launched and expanded Team Member Resource Groups to promote team member connections, career development, community impact and consumer and marketplace growth. We are delivering our DEI training to all team members via online modules, videos, and e-learning experiences. We are also continuing our efforts to attract and grow diverse talent and suppliers, offer inclusive product assortments, and ensure broad representation in our marketing, digital, and on-air activities.
Team Member Engagement and Enablement. To improve team member engagement and enablement, we conduct an annual team member engagement survey and various pulse surveys throughout the year on topics such as company direction, leadership, culture, performance and rewards, and change management. The results of these surveys are used by management to improve the overall team member experience and retention, as well as help to inform our approach to company programs and practices.
Health and Safety. As a result of the spread of the novel coronavirus ("COVID-19"), most local, state and federal governmental agencies imposed various restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including travel restrictions, local quarantines or stay at home restrictions, and vaccine and testing requirements. In an effort to minimize the risk of COVID-19 to our team members and the communities in which we operate, we mandated that all employees work from home when possible. For team members who need to perform their jobs on-site, including our warehouse and studio production teams, we are taking precautions to protect their health and safety. We have reduced the number of people on-site to allow for more social distancing; we have limited visitors and we are screening all people who come into our sites; and we have elevated cleaning protocols in alignment with the recommended protocols from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. We are also taking measures to support our team members’ ability to make a living. In addition to offering flexible hours and expanding our work-at-home policy, we have made changes to our attendance policies and are offering additional paid time off options to support certain COVID-19 related absences. We are also focused on protecting the health and financial well-being of our team members. We expanded programs to support our team members, including alternative work arrangements to help families juggling competing work and personal challenges, greater access to home care help, added resources to support mental health, and paid special bonuses for many team members, among a number of other initiatives.
Government regulation
The manner in which we sell and promote merchandise and related claims and representations made in connection with these efforts is regulated by federal and state law. Some examples of regulatory agencies and regulations that affect the manner in which we sell and promote merchandise include the following:
•The Federal Trade Commission ("FTC") and the state attorneys general regulate the advertising of retail products and services offered for sale in the U.S., including, for example, the FTC's Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising and Guides for the Use of Environmental Marketing Claims.
•The Food and Drug Administration has specific regulations regarding claims that can be made about food products and regulates marketing claims that can be made for cosmetic beauty products, medical devices and over-the-counter drugs.
•The Environmental Protection Agency ("EPA") requires products that make certain types of claims, such as "anti-bacterial," to be registered with the EPA prior to making such claims.
•Each of the FTC's Telemarketing Sales Rules, the Federal Communication Commission's ("FCC") rules implementing the Telephone Consumer Protection Act and similar state laws, establish procedures that must be followed when telemarketing or placing particular types of calls to consumers.
•The Consumer Product Safety Commission has specific regulations regarding products that present unreasonable risks of injuries to consumers.
I-7
•Import and export laws, including U.S. economic sanction and embargo regulations, U.S. homeland security laws and regulations and other laws such as the U.S. anti-boycott law and U.S. export controls regulations.
•Comparable regulatory agencies and regulations in countries in which we have our non-U.S. operations.
In addition, the FCC regulates the cable television systems, direct broadcast satellite ("DBS") distributors and other multichannel video programming distributors ("MVPDs") that distribute the Company’s services, has adopted various requirements related to the Company’s programming, and also licenses radio transmission facilities that the Company uses in connection with its business, such as satellite uplink facilities and internal private radio systems.
As a result of an interest in various cable operators attributed to Qurate Retail, the Company may be deemed to be a satellite cable programming vendor in which a cable operator has an attributable interest for purposes of various FCC rules regarding the distribution of video programming to MVPDs. These include, for example, the FCC’s program access rules, which, in general, prohibit various unfair practices involving the distribution of video programming to MVPDs; and its program carriage rules, which, among other things, prohibit cable operators from favoring affiliated programmers so as to restrain unreasonably the ability of unaffiliated programmers to compete. The FCC program access and program carriage rules also make provision for enforcement of alleged violations through complaint proceedings initiated by aggrieved entities. The Company also may be subject to program access rules as a result of an FCC condition adopted in connection with its 2008 approval of a transaction involving a predecessor of Qurate Retail and News Corp. Previously adopted FCC channel occupancy rules, which limited carriage by a cable operator of national programming services in which that operator holds an attributable interest, were vacated and remanded by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit in 2001. The FCC issued further notices of proposed rulemaking in 2001 and 2005 to consider channel occupancy limitations, but has not adopted any rules.
In 2000, we became subject to a consent decree issued by the FTC barring us from making certain deceptive claims for dietary supplements and specified products related to the common cold, pneumonia, hay fever and allergies. We also became subject to an expanded consent decree issued by the FTC in 2009 that terminates on the later of May 26, 2029, or 20 years from the most recent date that the U.S. or the FTC files a complaint in federal court alleging any violation thereunder. Pursuant to this expanded consent decree, we are prohibited from making certain claims about specified weight-loss, dietary supplement and anti-cellulite products unless we have competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate such claims. Violation of the QVC consent decree may result in the imposition of significant civil penalties for non-compliance and related redress to consumers and/or the issuance of an injunction enjoining us from engaging in prohibited activities. Additionally, HSN was subject to a consent order issued by the FTC that expired in 2019 and which barred HSN (including its subsidiaries and affiliates) from making certain claims with respect to specified categories of products.
Congress enacted the Commercial Advertisement Loudness Mitigation ("CALM") Act in 2010. The CALM Act directs the FCC to incorporate into its rules and make mandatory a technical standard that is designed to prevent digital television commercial advertisements from being transmitted at louder volumes than the program material they accompany. Although the FCC's CALM Act regulations place direct compliance responsibility on broadcasters and MVPDs, the FCC adopted a "safe harbor" compliance approach applicable to commercials embedded in programming provided by programmers, such as the Company. Under the FCC's safe harbor approach, broadcasters and MVPDs may meet their CALM Act compliance obligations through reliance on programmer-provided CALM Act compliance certifications that are made "widely available" to broadcasters and MVPDs through a website or other means. The Company has determined that its programming is CALM Act compliant, and in response to requests from its distributors, and in order to allow its distributors to meet the FCC's safe harbor, the Company has posted a CALM Act compliance certification to a website that is available to its distributors.
FCC rules adopted pursuant to the Telecommunications Act of 1996 generally require closed captioning of the Company’s televised programming distributed on broadcast television stations, cable television systems, DBS and other MVPDs, with only limited exemptions. The FCC’s closed captioning rules applicable to televised programming initially placed closed captioning compliance obligations directly on the Company’s distributors, and are enforced with respect to the Company’s programming through its affiliation agreements with its distributors. Amendments to those rules adopted by the FCC in 2016 extend direct compliance responsibility, jointly with distributors, to video programmers such as the Company, impose certain registration and certification requirements on the Company, and subject the Company to new captioning complaint procedures. Certain aspects of these amended rules have not yet become effective.
I-8
Regulations adopted by the FCC pursuant to the Twenty-First Century Communications and Video Accessibility Act of 2010 impose captioning requirements on various types of programming distributed via Internet protocol ("IP") that was previously televised with captions. The Company is subject to the IP-captioning rules as a Video Programming Owner and as a Video Programming Distributor that distributes covered programming on its website and via mobile and video streaming platforms. In 2014, the FCC adopted closed captioning quality standards for televised programming distributed by the Company’s distributors. Although compliance obligations for the captioning quality standards are placed directly on the Company’s distributors, under the captioning quality rules, the Company’s distributors can demonstrate compliance with the quality rules by relying on a certification from programmers, such as the Company, that its programming satisfies the caption quality standards adopted by the FCC, that the programmer has adopted and follows captioning best practices for video programmers adopted by the FCC, or that its programming is exempt from captioning requirements. These closed captioning quality requirements took effect in March 2015. In the 2016 amendments to the closed captioning rules noted above, the FCC also extended direct responsibility for televised captioning quality to video programmers such as the Company. As a result of the foregoing changes and rules involving captioning of IP-delivered programming and captioning quality standards, QVC may incur additional costs and compliance obligations related to closed captioning of its programming.
We market and provide a broad range of merchandise through our broadcast networks, websites, mobile applications and social pages. As a result, we are subject to a wide variety of statutes, rules, regulations, policies and procedures in various jurisdictions that are subject to change at any time, including laws regarding consumer protection, privacy, the regulation of retailers generally, the importation, sale and promotion of merchandise and the operation of retail stores and warehouse facilities, as well as laws and regulations applicable to the Internet and businesses engaged in online commerce, such as those regulating the sending of unsolicited, commercial electronic mail and texts.
For example, the Children's Online Privacy Protection Act prohibits web sites from collecting personally identifiable information online from children under age 13 without parental consent and imposes a number of operational requirements. Certain email activities are subject to the Controlling the Assault of Non-Solicited Pornography and Marketing Act of 2003, commonly known as the CAN-SPAM Act. The CAN-SPAM Act regulates the sending of unsolicited commercial email by requiring the email sender, among other things, to comply with specific disclosure requirements and to provide an "opt-out" mechanism for recipients. Both of these laws include statutory penalties for non-compliance. The Digital Millennium Copyright Act limits, but does not eliminate, liability for listing or linking to third party websites that may include content that infringes on copyrights or other rights so long as our Internet businesses comply with the statutory requirements. Various states also have adopted laws regulating certain aspects of Internet communications. Federal legislation enacted in 2016 permanently extended the moratorium on state and local taxes on Internet access and commerce.
Our online commerce businesses are subject to domestic and foreign laws governing the collection, use, retention, security and transfer of personally-identifiable information about their users. The enactment, interpretation and application of user data protection laws are in a state of flux, and the interpretation and application of such laws may vary from country to country. For example, the European Union’s ("E.U.") General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which established new data laws that give customers additional rights and impose additional restrictions and penalties on companies for illegal collection and misuse of personal information, took effect in May 2018. Further, in 2015, the Court of Justice of the E.U. invalidated the "Safe Harbor Framework," which had allowed companies to collect and process personal data in E.U. nations for use in the U.S. The E.U.-U.S. Privacy Shield, which replaced the Safe Harbor Framework, and became fully operational in 2016, provided a mechanism to comply with data protection requirements when transferring personal data from the E.U. to the U.S. On July 16, 2020, the Court of Justice of the E.U. invalidated the E.U.-U.S. Privacy Shield, and imposed new obligations on the use of Standard Contractual Clauses ("SCCs") - another key mechanism to allow data transfers between the U.S. and the E.U.. Although the U.S. and the E.U. are negotiating a privacy framework to replace the E.U.-U.S. Privacy Shield, it is unclear when the U.S. and the E.U. will adopt a new data transfer framework. The European Commission adopted revised SCCs on June 4, 2021. On February 10, 2021, the Council of the E.U, adopted final regulations regarding privacy and electronic communications that would complement the GDPR, including additional regulation of the Internet tracking tools known as "cookies." The final regulations are subject to review by the European Parliament and European Commission, and may be enacted in 2022 or 2023. Following the “Brexit” withdrawal of the United Kingdom (“U.K.”) from the E.U., on June 28, 2021, the European Commission determined that the U.K.’s data protection laws essentially are equivalent to data protection laws in the European Economic Area. Finally, countries in other regions, most notably Asia, Eastern Europe and Latin America, are increasingly implementing new privacy regulations, resulting in additional compliance burdens and uncertainty as to how some of these laws will be enforced.
In the U.S., Congress may consider legislation that would require organizations that suffer a breach of security related to personal information to notify owners of such information. Many states have adopted laws requiring notification to users when there is a security breach affecting personal data, such as California's Information Practices Act. California also has enacted the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”), which, among other things, allows California consumers to
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request that certain companies disclose the types of personal information collected by such companies. The CCPA took effect on January 1, 2020. The California Attorney General has issued implementation regulations and guidance regarding the law. In November 2020, California voters approved the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020 (“CPRA”), which amends and extends the CCPA and establishes the California Privacy Protection Agency to implement and enforce consumer privacy laws. Most of the CPRA’s provisions become effective on January 1, 2023. In addition, Virginia enacted the Consumer Data Protection Act in March 2021, which regulates the handling of personal data and takes effect on January 1, 2023, and Colorado enacted a personal data protection law in July 2021, the Colorado Privacy Act, which takes effect on July 1, 2023. Complying with these different national and state privacy requirements may cause us to incur substantial costs. In addition, we generally have and post on our websites privacy policies and practices regarding the collection, use and disclosure of user data. A failure to comply with such posted privacy policies or with the regulatory requirements of federal, state, or foreign privacy laws could result in proceedings or actions by governmental agencies or others (such as class action litigation) which could adversely affect our business.
Our business is also dependent upon our continued ability to transmit our programming to television distributors from our third party FCC-licensed satellite uplink facilities, which are subject to FCC compliance in the U.S. and foreign regulatory requirements in our international operations.
For information regarding regulations related to U.S. trade policy with China, see the risk factor "Significant developments stemming from U.S. trade policy with China, including in response to forced labor and human rights abuses in China may adversely impact our business and operating results" in Item 1A., "Risk Factors."
Intellectual property
We regard our tradenames, service marks, patents, copyrights, domain names, trade dress, trade secrets, proprietary technologies and similar intellectual property as critical to our success. We rely on a combination of tradename, patent and copyright law, trade-secret protection, and confidentiality and/or license agreements with our employees, customers, suppliers, affiliates and others to protect these proprietary rights. We have registered, or applied for the registration of, a number of tradenames, service marks, patents, copyrights and domain names through U.S. and foreign governmental authorities and vigorously protect our proprietary rights against infringement.
In the U.S., we have registered tradenames and service marks including, but not limited to our brand names and logo, "QVC," "Quality Value Convenience," "Find What You Love, Love What You Find," the "Q Logo," and "Q" and trademarks for our proprietary products sold such as "Arte D’Oro," "Cook’s Essentials," "Denim & Co.," "Diamonique," "Nature's Code," "Northern Nights" and "Ultrafine Silver." Similarly, foreign registrations have been obtained for many tradenames and service marks for our brand names, logo and propriety products including, but not limited to, "QVC," the "Q Logo," "Q," "Cook’s Essentials," "Denim & Co.," "Diamonique" and "Northern Nights."
HSN has numerous tradename registrations or pending applications in the United States which help to expand HSN’s brand awareness. These registrations and applications include the “HSN” brand name and the “HSN logo” as well as registrations for HSN’s propriety products and services, including, but not limited to, “HSN Shop By Remote,” “Technibond,” and “Concierge Collection.”
We consider the "QVC" and "HSN" names the most significant tradenames and service marks held by us because of their impact on market awareness across all of our geographic markets and on customers’ identification with us. As with all U.S. tradenames or service marks, our tradename and service mark registrations in the U.S. are for a ten year period and are renewable every ten years, prior to their respective expirations, as long as the tradenames or service marks are used in the regular course of trade.
Qurate Retail relationship and related party transactions
The Company is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail (Nasdaq: QRTEA, QRTEB and QRTEP), which owns interests in a broad range of digital commerce businesses, including Qurate Retail's other wholly-owned subsidiaries Zulily, LLC ("Zulily") and Cornerstone Brands, Inc. ("CBI"), as well as other minority investments. QVC is part of the Qurate Retail Group ("QRG"), formerly QVC Group, a portfolio of brands including QVC, HSN, Zulily and CBI.
QVC engages with Zulily, which has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail since October 2015. Zulily is not part of the results of operations or financial position of QVC presented in this Form 10-K. QVC and Zulily engaged in multiple transactions relating to sales, sourcing of merchandise, marketing initiatives, and business advisory services. Refer to note 14 to the consolidated financial statements for further details.
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In September 2020, QVC and Zulily executed a Master Promissory Note ("Promissory Note") whereby Zulily may borrow up to $100 million at a variable interest rate equal to the London Interbank Offered Rate ("LIBOR") rate plus an applicable margin rate. The Promissory Note matures in September 2030. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, there were no borrowings on the Promissory Note.
QVC engages with CBI, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail and prior to the common control transaction between QVC and Qurate Retail, included as part of HSN. CBI is not part of the results of operations or financial position of QVC presented in the accompanying consolidated financial statements. During the year ended December 31, 2021, QVC and CBI engaged in multiple transactions relating to sourcing of merchandise, personnel and business advisory services. Refer to note 14 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements for further details.
On December 30, 2020, the Company and Liberty Interactive LLC ("LIC") completed an internal realignment of the Company's global finance structure that resulted in a common control transaction with Qurate Retail. As part of this realignment and upon entering into a payment agreement, QVC Global Corporate Holdings, LLC ("QVC Global"), a subsidiary of the Company, became the primary co-obligor on LIC’s 3.5% Senior Exchangeable Debentures Due 2031 (the “MSI Exchangeables”), which allowed the MSI Exchangeables to be serviced directly by cash generated from the Company’s foreign operations (see note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). Concurrently, LIC issued a promissory note to the Company with an initial face amount of $1.8 billion, a stated interest rate of 0.48%, payable annually, and a maturity of December 29, 2029. QVC recorded $9 million of related party interest income for the year ended December 31, 2021, included in interest expense, net in the consolidated statement of operations. LIC also repaid $85 million of the note receivable to QVC during the year December 31, 2021.
On October 27, 2021, a notice was issued to all holders to redeem any and all outstanding MSI Exchangeables on December 13, 2021. Bondholders had until the close of business on December 10, 2021 to exchange their bonds. During the fourth quarter of 2021, QVC Global delivered MSI shares, which were acquired pursuant to a forward purchase contract, to holders of the MSI Exchangeables with a fair value of approximately $573 million to settle the exchanges of the MSI Exchangeables. For holders who did not participate in the exchange, their bonds were redeemed on December 13, 2021 at adjusted principal, plus accrued interest and dividend pass-thru for a total cash payment of approximately $1 million. No MSI Exchangeables remain outstanding as of December 31, 2021. As a result of the exchange and the redemption, the Company recorded a loss on extinguishment of debt in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations of $7 million for the year ended December 31, 2021.
On October 27, 2021, QVC amended and restated its senior secured credit facility (the "Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement") which is a multi-currency facility that provides for a $3.25 billion revolving credit facility (see note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). The Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement may be borrowed on by QVC, Zulily, CBI, and QVC Global (collectively, the “Borrowers”). Under the terms of the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, the Borrowers are jointly and severally liable for all outstanding borrowings. In accordance with the accounting guidance for obligations resulting from joint and several liability arrangements, QVC will record a liability for amounts it has borrowed under the credit facility plus any additional amount it expects to repay on behalf of Zulily and CBI. As of December 31, 2021, there was $151 million borrowed by Zulily on the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement. In December 2021, QVC determined it was necessary to record a liability for the full amount of Zulily's outstanding borrowings. As part of a common control transaction with Qurate Retail in December 2021 (see note 2(s) to the accompanying consolidated financial statements), QVC recorded a liability for $151 million of Zulily's outstanding borrowings. There were no borrowings by CBI on the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement as of December 31, 2021.
We are a "close corporation" under Delaware law and, as such, our stockholder, rather than a board of directors, manages our business. Since our stockholder is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail, certain aspects of our management, including the approval of significant corporate transactions such as a change of control, are controlled by Qurate Retail, rather than an independent governing body. Our Chief Executive Officer and President, David L. Rawlinson II, also became president and chief executive officer of Qurate Retail during 2021.
Qurate Retail's interests may not coincide with our interests or yours and Qurate Retail may cause us to enter into transactions or agreements with related parties or approve corporate actions that could involve conflicts of interest. For example, Qurate Retail's dependence on our cash flow for servicing its debt and for other purposes is likely to result in our payment of large dividends to Qurate Retail, which may increase our leverage and decrease our liquidity. We paid $963 million, $1,184 million, and $879 million of dividends to Qurate Retail during the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively. See also Item 1A. "Risk Factors."
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* * * * *
Certain statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K constitute forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including statements regarding our business, product and marketing strategies; the novel coronavirus ("COVID-19"); the impact of the fire at the Rocky Mount fulfillment center; capital expenditures; revenue growth; the recoverability of our goodwill and other long-lived assets; our projected sources and uses of cash; repayment of debt; and the anticipated impact of certain contingent liabilities related to legal and tax proceedings and other matters arising in the ordinary course of business. In particular, statements under Item 1. "Business," Item 1A. "Risk-Factors," Item 2. "Properties," Item 7. "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations," and Item 7A. "Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk" contain forward-looking statements. Where, in any forward-looking statement, we express an expectation or belief as to future results or events, such expectation or belief is expressed in good faith and believed to have a reasonable basis, but there can be no assurance that the expectation or belief will result or be achieved or accomplished. The following include some but not all of the factors that could cause actual results or events to differ materially from those anticipated:
•the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic and local, state and federal governmental responses to COVID-19 on the economy, our customers, our vendors and our businesses generally;
•customer demand for our products and services and our ability to attract new customers and retain existing customers by anticipating customer demand and adapting to changes in demand;
•competitor responses to our products and services;
•increased digital TV penetration and the impact on channel positioning of our programs;
•the levels of online traffic on our websites and our ability to convert visitors into consumers or contributors;
•uncertainties inherent in the development and integration of new business lines and business strategies;
•our future financial performance, including availability, terms and deployment of capital;
•our ability to effectively manage our installment sales plans and revolving credit card programs;
•the cost and ability of shipping companies, manufacturers, suppliers, digital marketing channels and vendors to deliver products, equipment, software and services;
•the outcome of any pending or threatened litigation;
•availability of qualified personnel;
•the impact of the seasonality of our business;
•changes in, or failure or inability to comply with, government regulations, including, without limitation, regulations of the Federal Communications Commission, and adverse outcomes from regulatory proceedings;
•changes in the nature of key strategic relationships with partners, distributors, suppliers and vendors;
•domestic and international economic and business conditions and industry trends;
•changes in tariffs, trade policy and trade relations and the U.K.'s exit from the E.U. (“Brexit”);
•changes in trade policy and trade relations with China;
•consumer spending levels, including the availability and amount of individual consumer debt;
•the effects of our debt obligations;
•advertising spending levels;
•system interruption and the lack of integration and redundancy in the system and infrastructures of our business;
•changes in distribution and viewing of television programming, including the expanded deployment of video on demand technologies and Internet Protocol television and their impact on home shopping programming;
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•failure to protect the security of personal information, subjecting us to potentially costly government enforcement actions and/or private litigation and reputational damage;
•the regulatory and competitive environment of the industries in which we operate;
•threatened terrorist attacks, political unrest in international markets and ongoing military action around the world;
•fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates;
•natural disasters, public health crises (including COVID-19), political crises, and other catastrophic events or other events outside of our control; and
•Qurate Retail's dependence on our cash flow for servicing its debt and for other purposes.
These forward-looking statements and such risks, uncertainties and other factors speak only as of the date of this Annual Report, and we expressly disclaim any obligation or undertaking to disseminate any updates or revisions to any forward-looking statement contained herein, to reflect any change in our expectations with regard thereto, or any other change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any such statement is based. When considering such forward-looking statements, one should keep in mind the factors described in Item 1A. "Risk Factors" and other cautionary statements contained in this Annual Report. Such risk factors and statements describe circumstances which could cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statement.
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ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Item 1A. Risk Factors
Risks Related to Our Financial Condition and Business
The retail business environment is subject to intense competition, and we may not be able to effectively compete for customers
We operate in a rapidly evolving and highly competitive retail business environment. Although we are the U.S.’s largest television shopping retailer, we have numerous and varied competitors at the national and local levels, ranging from large department stores to specialty shops, electronic retailers, direct marketing retailers, wholesale clubs, discount retailers, other televised shopping retailers such as ShopHQ in the U.S., Jupiter Shop Channel in Japan, HSE (Formerly referred to as HSE24) in Germany and Italy, and Ideal World in the U.K., infomercial retailers, Internet retailers, including livestream shopping retailers, and mail-order and catalog companies. Many of our current and potential competitors have greater resources, longer histories, more customers and greater brand recognition than we do. They may secure better terms from vendors, adopt more aggressive pricing, offer free or subsidized shipping and devote more resources to technology, fulfillment and marketing. Other companies also may enter into business combinations or alliances that strengthen their competitive positions. Such business combinations or alliances may result in competitors with greatly improved financial resources, improved access to merchandise, greater market penetration than they previously enjoyed and other improvements in their competitive positions. This may cause our customers to elect to purchase products from a competitor that they would have historically purchased from QVC, resulting in less revenue to QVC.
Although we sell a variety of exclusive products, one of the most significant challenges we face is competition on the basis of price. Price is of great importance to most customers, and price transparency and comparability continues to increase, particularly as a result of digital technology. The ability of consumers to compare prices on a real-time basis puts additional pressure on us to maintain competitive prices. Additionally, as a result of inflationary pressures currently being experienced in many markets, our cost to obtain, import and deliver the products we sell has increased, which has required us to charge consumers more for those products, or reduce our margin on those products, or both. These price increases may result in us being unable to maintain competitive prices with other retailers.
In addition, many retailers, especially online retailers with whom we compete, are increasingly offering customers aggressive shipping terms, including free or discounted expedited shipping. As these practices become more prevalent, we may experience further competitive pressures to attract customers and/or to change our shipping program. Our ability to be competitive on delivery times and shipping costs depends on many factors, and our failure to successfully manage these factors and offer competitive shipping terms could negatively impact the demand for our products and our profit margins. We also compete for access to customers and audience share with other providers of televised, online and hard copy entertainment and content. Our inability to compete effectively with regard to the assortment, product price, shipping terms, shipping pricing or free shipping and quality of the merchandise we offer for sale or to keep pace with competitors in our marketing, service, location, reputation, credit availability and technologies, could have a material adverse effect.
The COVID-19 pandemic is negatively impacting our business, key financial and operating metrics, and results of operations in numerous ways that remain unpredictable.
In December 2019, a novel coronavirus, COVID-19, was reported to have surfaced in Wuhan, China and subsequently spread across the world, including to countries in which QVC operates. Since that time, most local, state and federal governmental agencies imposed various restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including travel restrictions, local quarantines or stay at home restrictions, and vaccine and testing requirements. The spread of COVID-19 and the various containment measures put in place around the world have resulted in significant disruption to the global economy. Ongoing or heightened resurgences of COVID-19 including new variants in the future or the occurrence of another disaster or crisis could recreate and/or exacerbate the risks and adverse impacts described below. In response to these restrictions and in an effort to minimize the risk of COVID-19 to our employees and the communities in which we operate, we mandated that all employees work from home when possible, and reduced the number of employees, third parties and visitors who are allowed into our on-site facilities, such as our studios and fulfillment centers. We have implemented increased cleaning protocols, social distancing measures and temperature screenings for those employees who enter into company facilities. In some cases, the move to a work from home arrangement for our employees will be permanent, which has resulted in the reduction of office space. As a result of these resource constraints, QVC included fewer hours of live programming on some of its secondary channels and has experienced some delays in shipping at certain fulfillment centers. As a result, our ability to create new content has decreased, and we have had to
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limit the number of products we are able to promote on air. Our programming could be further disrupted if any of our on-site employees were suspected or confirmed of having COVID-19 or other illnesses and such illness required us to quarantine some or all such employees or disinfect our locations. Due to ongoing staffing issues related to COVID-19 and labor shortages, we have increased wages and offer incentives, resulting in additional costs to our company. The inability to control the spread of COVID-19, or the expansion or extension of containment measures, such as stay at home restrictions, could negatively impact our results in the future.
Government restrictions have also had an adverse impact on our supply chain due to factory closures, shipping and trucking delays and labor shortages, resulting in shipping delays and other resource constraints related to the products we import and those we produce domestically. As a result, our manufacturers and vendors may be unable to produce and deliver the products we sell, either on a timely basis or at all. Additionally, these factory closures, shipping and trucking delays and labor shortages may result in our manufacturers and vendors experiencing financial difficulties, including bankruptcy, or otherwise ceasing to do business with us. The inability of manufacturers and vendors to meet our supply needs in a timely manner, or at all, could cause us to shift product promotion to items which are available, but possibly not in demand, which could have a negative impact on sales. For example, beginning in the second quarter of 2021, we saw increased product shortages as a result of high market demand in some product categories such as home and electronics. As a result, although we normally plan our product presentations months in advance based on our expectations of consumer demand, supply chain issues have required that we shift or reschedule a number of product presentations due to a lack of product availability. In some cases, the products were part of a broader marketing campaign, which also impacts the sale of related items that were originally intended to leverage off of the shifted product promotion.
Delays by manufacturers and vendors could also result in delays to delivery dates to our customers, which could result in the cancellation of orders, customers’ refusal to accept deliveries, a reduction in purchase prices and ultimately, termination of customer relationships. For example, beginning in the second quarter of 2021, we experienced escalating shipping disruptions due to challenges in the global supply chain and labor market. While we believe we can manage our exposure to these risks, we cannot be certain that we will be able to identify alternative sources for our products without delay or without greater cost to us. Although we are assessing the impact of these and other macroeconomic trends related to the pandemic, the extent to which COVID-19 impacts our results and financial condition will depend on future developments, such as any new information that may emerge concerning the severity of COVID-19, new strains of the virus and the actions to contain and treat its impacts, among others. There can be no assurance that we will be able to accurately predict or plan for any long-term effects on our business, and thus the ultimate impact of the pandemic on our business, financial condition and result of operations remains uncertain.
These government restrictions, including stay at home restrictions, as well as the various actions we have taken in response to COVID-19, may adversely impact our ability to comply with various legal and contractual obligations and may expose us to increased litigation, including labor and employment claims, breach of contract claims and consumer claims by our customers. Our insurance coverage may not be applicable to, or sufficient to cover, all claims, costs, and damages we may incur as a result of these COVID-19 related claims, which would result in our bearing these costs and which could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and results of operations.
In addition, there are several potential adverse impacts of COVID-19 that could cause a material negative impact to our financial results, including our capital and liquidity, for 2022 and beyond. These include governmental restrictions on our ability to continue to operate under stay at home restrictions and produce content; reduced demand for products we sell; decreases in the disposable income of existing and potential new customers; the impacts of inflation, recession and other uncertainties with respect to the continuity of government stimulus programs implemented in response to COVID-19; increased currency volatility resulting in adverse currency rate fluctuations; higher unemployment; labor shortages; and an adverse impact to our supply chain and shipping disruptions for both the products we import and purchase domestically and the products we sell, including essential products experiencing higher demand, due to factory closures, labor shortages and other resource constraints. While the impact is currently uncertain, the inability to control the spread of COVID-19 could cause any one of these adverse impacts, or combination of adverse impacts, to have a material impact on our financial results.
Further, the extent of the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on our businesses remains fluid and the likelihood of an impact on us that could be material increases the longer the virus impacts activity levels in the locations in which we operate. In particular, although vaccines are now widely available, acceptance of vaccines remains uncertain and cannot be predicted at this time. Lack of public acceptance could lead people to continue to self-isolate and not participate in the economy at prepandemic levels for a prolonged period of time. Further, even if vaccines are widely distributed and accepted, there can be no assurance that the vaccines will ultimately be successful in limiting or stopping the spread of COVID-19. Even after the COVID-19 pandemic subsides, the U.S. economy and other major global economies may experience a recession, and we anticipate our businesses and operations could be materially adversely affected by a prolonged recession in the U.S. and other major markets.
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Our net revenue and operating results depend on our ability to predict or respond to consumer preferences
Our net revenue and operating results depend, in part, on our ability to predict or respond to changes in consumer preferences and fashion trends in a timely manner. We develop new retail concepts and continuously adjust our product mix in an effort to satisfy customer demands. Consumer preferences may be affected by many factors outside of our control, including responses of competitors and general economic conditions. Any sustained failure by us to identify and respond to emerging trends in lifestyle and consumer preferences could have a material adverse effect on our relationship with our customers and the demand for the products we sell.
Our long-term success depends in large part on our continued ability to attract new customers and retain existing customers and we may not be able to do that in a cost-effective manner
In an effort to attract and retain customers, we engage in various merchandising and marketing initiatives, which involve the expenditure of money and resources, particularly in the case of the production and distribution of our television programming and, to an increasing extent, digital advertising. We have spent, and expect to continue to spend, increasing amounts of money on, and devote greater resources to, certain of these initiatives, particularly in our continuing efforts to increasingly engage customers through online digital marketing and to personalizing our customers’ shopping experience. These initiatives, however, may not resonate with existing customers or consumers generally or may not be cost-effective. In addition, costs associated with the production and distribution of our television programming and costs associated with digital marketing, including marketing on third-party platforms such as Google and Facebook, have increased and are likely to continue to increase in the foreseeable future and, if significant, could have a material adverse effect to the extent that they do not result in corresponding increases in net revenue.
In addition, the stay at home restrictions imposed in response to COVID-19 led many traditional brick and mortar retailers to temporarily close their stores but allowed distance retailers, such as QVC, to continue operating. As a result, QVC initially experienced an increase in new customers and an increase in demand for certain categories, such as home and electronics. However, as the stay-at-home restrictions were moderated, traditional brick and mortar retailers were allowed to reopen their stores and consumers were able to resume some level of prepandemic shopping habits. Beginning in the second quarter of 2021, we observed a decline in new customers and a decline in demand for our home product category.
We depend on the television distributors that carry our programming and no assurance can be given that we will be able to maintain and renew our affiliation agreements on favorable terms or at all
In the U.S., we currently distribute our programming through affiliation or transmission agreements with many television service providers, including, but not limited to, Comcast, DIRECTV, Charter, DISH Network, Verizon and Cox. Internationally, we currently distribute our programming through Vodafone Kabel Deutschland GmbH, Media Broadcast GmbH, SES ASTRA, Telekom Deutschland GmbH, Unitymedia GmbH, Tele Columbus and Primacom, Jupiter Telecommunications, Ltd., Sky Perfect and World Hi-Vision Channel, Inc., A1 Telekom Austria AG, UPC Telekabel Wien GmbH, British Sky Broadcasting, Freesat, Freeview and Virgin Media, and Mediaset, Hot Bird and Sky Italia. Our affiliation agreements with distributors are scheduled to expire between 2022 to 2025.As part of normal course renewal discussions, occasionally we have disagreements with our distributors over the terms of our carriage, such as channel placement or other contract terms. If not resolved through business negotiation, such disagreements could result in litigation or termination of an existing agreement. Termination of an existing agreement resulting in the loss of distribution of our programming to a material portion of our television households may adversely affect our growth, net revenue and earnings.
The renewal negotiation process for affiliation agreements is typically lengthy. In some cases, renewals are not agreed upon prior to the expiration of a given agreement while the programming continues to be carried by the relevant distributor without an effective agreement in place. We do not have distribution agreements with some of the cable operators that carry our programming. In total, we are currently providing programming without affiliation agreements to distributors representing approximately 6% of our QVC-U.S. distribution and approximately 1% of our HSN distribution. Some of our international programming may continue to be carried by distributors after the expiration dates on our affiliation agreements with them have passed.
We may be unable to obtain renewals with our current distributors on acceptable terms, if at all. We may also be unable to successfully negotiate affiliation agreements with new or existing distributors to carry our programming and no assurance can
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be given that we will be successful in negotiating renewals with these distributors or that the financial and other terms of these renewals will be acceptable. Although we consider our current levels of distribution without written agreement to be ordinary course, the failure to successfully renew or negotiate new affiliation agreements covering a material portion of television households could result in a discontinuation of carriage that may adversely affect our viewership, growth, net revenue and earnings.
The failure to maintain suitable placement for our programming or to adapt to changes in consumer behavior driven by online video distribution platforms for viewing content could adversely affect our ability to attract and retain television viewers and could result in a decrease in revenue
We are dependent upon the continued ability of our programming to compete for viewers. Effectively competing for television viewers is dependent, in substantial part, on our ability to negotiate and maintain placement of our programming at a favorable channel position, such as in a basic tier or within a general entertainment or general broadcasting tier. Less favorable channel position for our programming, such as placement adjacent to programming that does not complement our programming, a position next to our televised home shopping competitors or isolation in a "shopping" tier could adversely affect our ability to attract television viewers to our programming.
In addition, if our programming is carried exclusively by a distributor on a digital programming tier, we may experience a reduction in revenue to the extent that the digital programming tier has less television viewer penetration than the basic or expanded basic programming tier. We may experience a further reduction in revenue due to increased television viewing audience fragmentation to the extent that not all television sets within a digital cable home are equipped to receive television programming in a digital format.
Changes in consumer behavior driven by online video distribution platforms for viewing content may have an adverse impact on our business. Distribution platforms for viewing content over the internet have been, and will likely continue to be, developed that further increase the competition for viewers of programming. These distribution platforms are driving changes in consumer behavior as consumers seek more control over when, where and how they consume content.
Consumers are increasingly turning to online sources for viewing content, which has and likely will continue to reduce the number of viewers of our television programming. Although we have attempted to adapt our offerings to changing consumer behaviors, virtual multichannel video providers, online video distributors and programming networks providing their content directly to consumers over the internet rather than through traditional television services continue to emerge, gain consumer acceptance and disrupt traditional television distribution services, which we rely on for the distribution of our television programming.
An increasing number of companies offering streaming services, including some with exclusive high-quality original video programming, as well as programming networks offering content directly to consumers over the internet, have increased the number of entertainment choices available to consumers, which has intensified audience fragmentation. The increase in entertainment choices adversely affects the viewership of our programming. Additionally, time-shifting technologies, such as video on demand services and DVR and cloud-based recording services, could adversely affect our ability to attract television viewers to our programming.
Our future success will depend, in part, on our ability to anticipate and adapt to technological changes and to offer elements of our programming via new technologies in a cost-effective manner that meets customer demands and evolving industry standards. Our failure to effectively anticipate or adapt to emerging technologies or competitors or changes in consumer behavior, including among younger consumers, could have an adverse effect on our competitive position, businesses and results of operations.
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We may be subject to claims for representations made in connection with the sale and promotion of merchandise or for harm experienced by customers who purchase merchandise from us
The manner in which we sell and promote merchandise and related claims and representations made in connection with these efforts is regulated by federal, state and local law, as well as the laws of the foreign countries in which we operate. We may be exposed to potential liability from claims by purchasers or by regulators and law enforcement agencies, including, but not limited to, claims for personal injury, wrongful death and damage to personal property relating to merchandise sold and misrepresentation of merchandise features and benefits. In certain instances, we have the right to seek indemnification for related liabilities from our vendors and may require such vendors to carry minimum levels of product liability and errors and omissions insurance. These vendors, however, may be unable to satisfy indemnification claims, obtain suitable coverage or maintain this coverage on acceptable terms, or insurance may provide inadequate coverage or be unavailable with respect to a particular claim. See Item 1. "Business - Government regulation" for further discussion of regulations to which we are subject.
In 2000, we became subject to a consent decree issued by the FTC barring us from making certain deceptive claims for dietary supplements and specified products related to the common cold, pneumonia, hay fever and allergies. We also became subject to an expanded consent decree issued by the FTC in 2009 that terminates on the later of May 26, 2029, or 20 years from the most recent date that the U.S. or the FTC files a complaint in federal court alleging any violation thereunder. Pursuant to this expanded consent decree, we are prohibited from making certain claims about specified weight-loss, dietary supplement and anti-cellulite products unless we have competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate such claims. Violation of the QVC consent decree may result in the imposition of significant civil penalties for non-compliance and related redress to consumers and/or the issuance of an injunction enjoining us from engaging in prohibited activities.
Failure to comply with existing laws, rules and regulations, or to obtain and maintain required licenses and rights, could subject us to additional liabilities
We market and provide a broad range of merchandise through television shopping programs and our websites. As a result, we are subject to a wide variety of statutes, rules, regulations, policies and procedures in various jurisdictions, including foreign jurisdictions, which are subject to change at any time, including laws regarding consumer protection, privacy, the regulation of retailers generally, the license requirements for television retailers in foreign jurisdictions, the importation, sale and promotion of merchandise and the operation of retail stores and warehouse facilities, as well as laws and regulations applicable to the Internet and businesses engaged in online and mobile commerce, such as those regulating the sending of unsolicited, commercial electronic mail and texts. Our failure to comply with these laws and regulations could result in a revocation of required licenses, fines and/or proceedings against us by governmental agencies and/or consumers, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, unfavorable changes in the laws, rules and regulations applicable to us could decrease demand for merchandise offered by us, increase costs and/or subject us to additional liabilities. Similarly, new disclosure and reporting requirements, established under existing or new state or federal laws, such as regulatory rules regarding requirements to disclose efforts to identify the origin and existence of certain "conflict minerals" or abusive labor practices in portions of our supply chain, could increase the cost of doing business, adversely affecting our results of operations. Finally, certain of these regulations impact the marketing efforts of our brands and business.
We may fail to adequately protect our intellectual property rights or may be accused of infringing intellectual property rights of third parties
We regard our intellectual property rights, including service marks, trademarks and domain names, copyrights (including our programming and our websites), trade secrets and similar intellectual property, as critical to our success. Our business also relies heavily upon software codes, informational databases and other components that make up their products and services.
From time to time, we are subject to legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of business, including claims of alleged infringement of the trademarks, patents, copyrights and other intellectual property rights of third parties. In addition, litigation may be necessary to enforce our intellectual property rights, protect trade secrets or to determine the validity and scope of proprietary rights claimed by others. Any litigation of this nature, regardless of outcome or merit, could result in substantial costs and diversion of management and technical resources, any of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Our failure to protect our intellectual property rights, particularly our proprietary brands, in a meaningful manner or third party challenges to related contractual rights could result in erosion of brand names and
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limit our ability to control marketing on or through the Internet using our various domain names or otherwise, which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations.
We offer our installment payment option on most of our merchandise and, in certain circumstances, offer it as the default payment option. Failure to effectively manage our installment sales plans and revolving credit card programs could negatively impact our results of operations
We offer an installment payment option in all of our markets other than Japan, which is available on certain merchandise we sell. This installment payment option is called “Easy-Pay” at QVC-U.S. and in the U.K., “Q-Pay” in Germany and Italy, and “Flex-Pay” at HSN. Our installment payment option is currently offered on most of our merchandise and, for QVC-U.S. website and mobile sales and QVC-U.K. mobile sales, is the default payment option on all products on which it is offered. Full payment for merchandise at the time of sale would require the customer to affirmatively change that option. Our installment payment option, when offered, allows customers to pay for certain merchandise in multiple interest-free monthly installments. When the installment payment option is offered by us and elected by the customer (or if the customer inadvertently purchases merchandise using the installment payment option because it was the default payment option), the first installment is typically billed to the customer’s credit or debit card upon shipment. Generally, the customer’s credit or debit card is subsequently billed in additional monthly installments until we have billed the total purchase price of the products. We cannot predict whether customers will pay their installments when due or at all, especially during the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic, regardless of whether the customer would have preferred to pay in one lump-sum but did not opt out of the installment payment option. Accordingly, we maintain an allowance for customer bad debts arising from these late and unpaid installments. This provision for customer bad debts is provided as a percentage of accounts receivable based on our historical experience in the period of sale and is included within selling, general and administrative expense. To the extent that customers elect installment payment options at greater rates, or to the extent the number of customers failing to opt out of the default installment payment option increases, we would be required to maintain a greater allowance for customer bad debt and to the extent that installment payment option losses exceed historical levels, our results of operations may be negatively impacted.
Most major retailers either directly or through third parties offer some form of Buy Now Pay Later (“BNPL”) financing arrangements that typically charge interest or late fees. Recently, a number of jurisdictions in which we operate have indicated that these BNPL financing arrangements will be subject to increased regulation to ensure compliance with various consumer protection laws and regulations. Although we do not charge interest or impose late fees as part of our installment payment options, changes to existing laws and regulations or their interpretation, or the adoption of new laws or regulations could require mandatory changes to our installment payment options. Implementing these changes may increase our costs to maintain our installment payment options and may make our installment payment options less desirable to our customers which could lead to a decline in sales; additionally, failure to comply with these laws and regulations could result in the imposition of fines and penalties, any of which could have an adverse effect on our results of operations.
In the U.S., QxH has agreements with a large consumer financial institution (the "Bank") pursuant to which the Bank provides revolving credit directly to our customers for the sole purpose of purchasing merchandise from us with a Private Label Credit Card ("PLCC"). We cannot predict the extent to which customers will use the PLCC, nor the extent that they will make payments on their outstanding balances, especially during the duration of the COVID-19 pandemic. As QVC receives a portion of the net economics from the credit card program, the ability of customers to make payments on their outstanding balances due to circumstances related to the pandemic could result in reduced private label credit card income from the financial institution providing the revolving credit to our customers.
Natural disasters, political crises, and other catastrophic events or other events outside of our control may damage our facilities or the facilities of third parties on which we depend, adversely affect our ability to operate our businesses and have broader effects
Our corporate headquarters and operations center are located in West Chester, Pennsylvania, and we also operate regional headquarters and administrative offices, distribution centers and call centers worldwide. If any of these facilities or the facilities of our vendors or third-party service providers are affected by natural disasters (such as fires, earthquakes, tsunamis, power shortages or outages, floods or monsoons), public health crises (such as pandemics and epidemics), political crises (such as terrorism, war, political instability, insurrections or other conflict), or other events outside of our control, our business, financial condition and results of operations could be materially adversely affected. On Saturday, December 18, 2021, QVC experienced a fire at its QVC Rocky Mount, Inc. fulfillment center in North Carolina, during which one contractor lost his life. The building will be closed for the foreseeable future. Rocky Mount was the Company’s second-largest fulfillment center, processing
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approximately 25% to 30% of volume for QVC-U.S., and also served as QVC-U.S.’s primary returns center for hard goods. Inbound deliveries have been diverted to other distribution facilities within the Company’s distribution network and the Company is evaluating secondary facilities to supplement fulfillment and returns demand while Rocky Mount remains closed. In addition, any of these events occurring at our or our vendors’ facilities also could impact our reputation and our customers’ perception of the products we sell, and adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. Moreover, these types of events could cause broader issues in the areas where our businesses operate. For example, these types of events could negatively impact consumer spending in the impacted regions or depending upon the severity, globally, which could adversely impact our business, financial condition and results of operations.
Risks Related to Technology and Information Security
Any continued or permanent inability to transmit our programming via satellite would result in lost revenue and could result in lost customers
Our success is dependent upon our continued ability to transmit our programming to television providers from our satellite uplink facilities, and for our distributors to continue to receive our programming at their satellite earth station downlink facilities. These transmissions are subject to FCC regulation and compliance in the U.S. and foreign regulatory requirements in our international operations. In most cases, we have entered into long-term satellite transponder leases to provide for continued carriage of our programming on replacement transponders and/or replacement satellites, as applicable, in the event of a failure of either the transponders and/or satellites currently carrying our programming. Although we believe we take reasonable and customary measures to ensure continued satellite transmission capability and that these international transponder service agreements can be renewed (or replaced, if necessary) in the ordinary course of business, termination or interruption of satellite transmissions may occur, particularly if we are not able to successfully negotiate renewals or replacements of any of our expiring transponder service agreements in the future.
In order to free up additional spectrum for the provision of next generation commercial wireless broadband services, commonly referred to as 5G, the FCC has adopted rules to reallocate for 5G a portion of the 500 MHz in the 3.7 to 4.2 GHz (“C-Band”) spectrum, which is currently used for the delivery of our programming, and other video programming, to our distributors’ satellite earth stations. The FCC has established December 5, 2025 as the deadline for the relocation of the C-Band. The Company has worked closely with its satellite uplink and downlink operators in an effort to minimize disruptions to the Company’s television programming distribution operations that might result from the conversion of those portions of C-Band to 5G usage. However, the Company can give no assurance that there will not be any disruptions to the Company’s television programming distribution operations during this transition.
Our Ecommerce business could be negatively affected by changes in third-party digital platform algorithms and dynamics as well as our inability to monetize the resulting web traffic
The success of our Ecommerce business depends on a high degree of website traffic, which is dependent on many factors, including the availability of appealing website content, user loyalty and new user generation from various digital marketing channels that charge a fee. Third-party digital platforms, such as Google and Facebook, frequently update and change the logic that determines the placement and display of results of a user’s search, or advertiser content, such that the purchased or algorithmic placement of advertisements or links to the websites of our Ecommerce business can be negatively affected. If a major search engine or third-party digital platform changes its algorithms in a manner that negatively affects our paid advertisement distribution or unpaid search ranking, the business and financial performance of our Ecommerce business would be adversely affected, potentially to a material extent. Additionally, Mobile application distribution platforms, such as Apple’s App Store and the Amazon Appstore for Android, may require that third party digital platforms and ecommerce companies present users with an option where the user chooses to opt-in or opt-out of tracking technology used by these third party digital platforms or included in mobile applications. To the extent that users opt-out of tracking technology used by third party digital platforms on which we advertise or users of our applications opt-out of tracking technology included in our applications, our ability to monitor and improve customer experience and track the effectiveness of our digital marketing strategies would be adversely impacted. Furthermore, our failure to successfully manage our digital marketing strategies could result in a substantial decrease in traffic to our website, as well as increase costs if we were to replace free traffic with paid traffic. Even if our Ecommerce business is successful in generating a high level of website traffic, no assurance can be given that our Ecommerce business will be successful in achieving repeat user loyalty or that new visitors will explore the offerings on our site. Monetizing this traffic by converting users to consumers is dependent on many factors, including availability of inventory, consumer preferences, price, ease of use and website quality. Globally, the cost of digital marketing has increased significantly
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and no assurance can be given that the fees we pay to third-party digital platforms will not exceed the revenue generated by our visitors. The increasing costs of digital marketing may require that we find more cost-effective ways of reaching and retaining consumers, which may not be as effective as the current methods of digital marketing. Any failure to sustain user traffic or to monetize such traffic could materially adversely affect the financial performance of our Ecommerce business and, as a result, adversely affect our financial results.
Our Ecommerce business may experience difficulty in the ongoing development, implementation and customer acceptance of applications for personal electronic devices, which could harm our business
Although our Ecommerce business has developed services and applications to address user and consumer interaction with website content on personal electronic devices, such as smartphones and tablets, the ways in which consumers use or rely on these personal electronic devices is continually changing. If the services or applications we develop in response to changes in consumer behavior are less effective or are not accepted by consumers, our Ecommerce business may experience difficulty attracting and retaining traffic on these platforms. Any failure to attract and retain traffic on these personal electronic devices could materially adversely affect the financial performance of our Ecommerce business and, as a result, adversely affect our financial results. Additionally, as new devices and new platforms are continually being released, it is difficult to predict the challenges that may be encountered in developing versions of our Ecommerce business offering for use on these alternative devices, and our Ecommerce business may need to devote significant resources to the creation, support, and maintenance of their services on such devices.
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Our business is subject to online security risks, including security breaches and identity theft
Through our operations, sales, marketing activities, and use of third-party information, we collect and store certain non-public personal information that customers provide to purchase products, enroll in promotional programs, register on websites, or otherwise communicate to us. This may include phone numbers, driver license numbers, contact preferences, personal information stored on electronic devices, and payment information, including credit and debit card data. We gather and retain information about employees in the normal course of business. We may share information about such persons with vendors, contractors and other third-parties that assist with certain aspects of our business. In addition, our online operations depend upon the transmission of confidential information over the Internet, such as information permitting cashless payments. Like many e-commerce companies, we frequently encounter unauthorized parties attempting to gain access to our or our vendors’ computer systems by, among other things, hacking into our systems or those of our vendors, through fraud or other means of deceiving our employees or vendors, burglaries, errors by our or our vendors’ employees, misappropriation of data by employees, vendors or unaffiliated third-parties, or other irregularities that may result in persons obtaining unauthorized access to our company’s data. As we have significantly increased the number of employees working remotely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and as our vendors and other business partners move to remote work as well, we and our partners may be more vulnerable to cyber attacks. The techniques used to gain such access to our or our vendors’ computer systems, data or customer information, disable or degrade service, or sabotage systems are constantly evolving, may be difficult to detect quickly, and often are not recognized until launched against a target. Increasingly, unauthorized parties are exploiting access they gain to third party vendors to target companies that do business with these vendors, this may include third party vendors with whom we do business. We have implemented systems and processes intended to secure our computer systems and prevent unauthorized access to or loss of sensitive data, but as with all companies, these security measures may not be sufficient for all eventualities and there is no guarantee that they will be adequate to safeguard against all cyber attacks, system compromises or misuses of data. Although we have not detected a material security breach or cybersecurity incident to date, we have been the target of events of this nature and expect to be subject to similar attacks in the future. Any penetration of network security or other misappropriation or misuse of customer, employee or other personal information, whether at our company or any of our vendors, could cause interruptions in the operations of our business and subject us to increased costs, fines, litigation, regulatory actions and other liabilities. Security breaches could also significantly damage our reputation with consumers and third parties with whom we do business, which could result in lost sales and customer and vendor attrition. We continue to invest in new and emerging technology and other solutions to protect our retail commerce websites, mobile commerce applications and information systems, but there can be no assurance that these investments and solutions will prevent any of the risks described above. If we are unable to maintain the security of our retail commerce websites and mobile commerce applications, we could suffer loss of sales, reductions in traffic, diversion of management attention, and deterioration of our competitive position and incur liability for any damage to customers whose personal information is unlawfully obtained and used. We may be required to expend significant additional capital and other resources to protect against and remedy any potential or existing security breaches and their consequences, such as additional infrastructure capacity spending to mitigate any system degradation and the reallocation of resources from development activities. We also face similar risks associated with security breaches affecting third parties with which we are affiliated or otherwise conduct business.
System interruption and the lack of integration and redundancy in these systems and infrastructures may adversely affect our ability to transmit our television programs, operate websites, process and fulfill transactions, respond to customer inquiries and generally maintain cost-efficient operations
Our success depends, in part, on our ability to maintain the integrity of our transmissions, systems and infrastructures, including the transmission of our television programs, as well as our websites, information and related systems, call centers and fulfillment facilities. We may experience occasional system interruptions that make some or all transmissions, systems or data unavailable or prevent us from transmitting our signal or efficiently providing services or fulfilling orders. We are in the process of implementing new technology systems and upgrading others. Our failure to properly implement new systems or delays in implementing new systems or failing to integrate new systems with our legacy systems could impair our ability to provide services, fulfill orders and/or process transactions. We also rely on affiliate and third-party computer systems, broadband, transmission and other communications systems and service providers in connection with the transmission of our signals, as well as to facilitate, process and fulfill transactions. Any interruptions, outages or delays in our signal transmissions, systems and infrastructures, our business, our affiliates and/or third parties, or deterioration in the performance of these transmissions, systems and infrastructures, could impair our ability to provide services, fulfill orders and/or process transactions. Fire, flood, power loss, telecommunications failure, hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes, acts of war or terrorism, acts of God and similar events or disruptions may damage or interrupt television transmissions, computer, broadband or other communications systems and infrastructures at any time. These risks are exacerbated by our move to a more remote workforce in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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Any of these events could cause transmission or system interruption, delays and loss of critical data, and could prevent us from providing services, fulfilling orders and/or processing transactions. While we have backup systems for certain aspects of our operations, these systems are not fully redundant and disaster recovery planning is not sufficient for all possible risks. In addition, we may not have adequate insurance coverage to compensate for losses from a major interruption.
The processing, storage, sharing, use, disclosure and protection of personal data could give rise to liabilities as a result of governmental regulation, conflicting legal requirements or differing views of personal privacy rights
In the processing of consumer transactions and managing our employees, our business receives, transmits and stores a large volume of personally identifiable information and other user data. The processing, storage, sharing, use, disclosure and protection of this information are governed by the privacy and data security policies maintained by us. Moreover, there are federal, state and international laws regarding privacy and the processing, storage, sharing, use, disclosure and protection of personally identifiable information and user data. Specifically, personally identifiable information is increasingly subject to changing legislation and regulations, in numerous jurisdictions around the world, which are intended to protect the privacy of personal information that is collected, processed and transmitted in or from the governing jurisdiction. Compliance with these laws and regulations may be onerous and expensive and may be inconsistent from jurisdiction to jurisdiction, further increasing the cost of compliance. For example, the European Court of Justice in 2015 invalidated the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework, which facilitated personal data transfers to the U.S. in compliance with applicable European data protection laws. The EU-U.S. Privacy Shield, which replaced the U.S.-EU Safe Harbor Framework, and became fully operational in 2016, provided a mechanism to comply with data protection requirements when transferring personal data from the E.U. to the U.S. On July 16, 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union invalidated the E.U.-U.S. Privacy Shield, and imposed new obligations on the use of standard contractual clauses (“SCCs”) - another key mechanism to allow data transfers between the U.S. and the E.U.
Although the U.S. and E.U are negotiating a privacy framework to replace the E.U.-U.S. Privacy Shield, it is unclear when the U.S. and the E.U. will adopt a new data transfer framework. The European Commission adopted revised SCCs on June 4, 2021. Further, the General Data Protection Regulation (“GDPR”), which became effective in 2018, gives consumers in the E.U. additional rights and imposes additional restrictions and penalties on companies for illegal collection and misuse of personal information. On February 10, 2021, the Council of the E.U. adopted final regulations regarding privacy and electronic communications that would complement the GDPR, including additional regulation of the Internet tracking tools known as “cookies.” The final regulations are subject to review by the European Parliament and European Commission and may be enacted in 2022 or 2023. Following the "Brexit" withdrawal of the United Kingdom (U.K.) from the E.U., on June 28, 2021, the European Commission determined that the U.K.’s data protection laws essentially are equivalent to data protection laws in the European Economic Area. As a result, personal data transfers from the E.U. to the UK may continue without a new data transfer framework. California has enacted the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (“CCPA”), which, among other things, allows California consumers to request that certain companies disclose the types of personal information collected by such companies. The CCPA became effective on January 1, 2020. The California Attorney General has issued draft implementing regulations and guidance regarding the law. In November 2020, California voters approved the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020 (“CPRA”), which amends and expands the CCPA and establishes the California Privacy Protection Agency to implement and enforce consumer privacy laws. Most of the CPRA’s provisions become effective on January 1, 2023. In addition, Virginia enacted the Consumer Data Protection Act in March 2021, which regulates the handling of personal data and takes effect on January 1, 2023, and Colorado enacted a personal data protection law in July 2021, the Colorado Privacy Act, which takes effect on July 1, 2023. Other states in the United States are also separately proposing laws to regulate privacy and security of personal data. Our failure, and/or the failure by the various third party vendors and service providers with which we do business, to comply with applicable privacy policies or federal, state or similar international laws and regulations, or changes in applicable laws and regulations, or any compromise of security that results in the unauthorized release of personally identifiable information or other user data could damage our reputation and the reputation of our third party vendors and service providers, discourage potential users from trying our products and services and/or result in fines and/or proceedings by governmental agencies and/or consumers, any one or all of which could adversely affect our business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition, we may not have adequate insurance coverage to compensate for losses.
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Risks Related to Economic Conditions
We have operations outside of the U.S. that are subject to numerous operational and financial risks
We have operations in countries other than the U.S. and we are subject to the following risks inherent in international operations:
•fluctuations in currency exchange rates;
•longer payment cycles for sales in foreign countries that may increase the uncertainty associated with recoverable accounts;
•recessionary conditions and economic instability, including fiscal policies that are implementing austerity measures in certain countries, which are affecting markets overseas;
•inflationary pressures, such as those the market is currently experiencing, which may increase the costs of the products we sell, as well as the shipping and delivery of these products;
•our ability to repatriate funds held by our foreign subsidiaries to the U.S. at favorable tax rates;
•potentially adverse tax consequences;
•export and import restrictions, changes in tariffs, trade policies and trade relations;
•disruptions to international shipping and supply chains;
•increases in taxes and governmental royalties and fees;
•our ability to obtain and maintain required licenses or certifications, such as for web services and electronic devices, that enable us to operate our business in foreign jurisdictions;
•changes in foreign and U.S. laws, regulations and policies that govern operations of foreign-based companies;
•changes to general consumer protection laws and regulations;
•difficulties in staffing and managing international operations; and
•threatened and actual terrorist attacks, political unrest in international markets and ongoing military action around the world that may result in disruptions of services that are critical to our international businesses.
Additionally, in many foreign countries, particularly in certain developing economies, it is not uncommon to encounter business practices that are prohibited by regulations applicable to us, such as the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and similar laws. Although we have undertaken compliance efforts with respect to these laws, our employees, contractors and agents, as well as those companies to which we outsource certain of our business operations, may take actions in violation of our policies and procedures. Any such violation, even if prohibited by our policies and procedures or the law, could have a material adverse effect. Any failure by us to effectively manage the challenges associated with the international operation of our business could have a material adverse effect.
Significant developments stemming from Brexit could have a material adverse effect on us
The Brexit process and negotiations have created political and economic uncertainty, particularly in the U.K. and the E.U., and this uncertainty may last for years. On June 23, 2016, the U.K. held a referendum in which voters approved, on an advisory basis, an exit from the E.U. The U.K. formally left the E.U. on January 31, 2020. This began a transition period that ran until December 31, 2020. On January 1, 2021, the U.K. left the E.U. Customs Union and Single Market, as well as all E.U. policies and international agreements. On December 24, 2020, the European Commission reached a trade agreement with the U.K. on the terms of its future cooperation with the E.U. (the “Trade Agreement”). The Trade Agreement offers U.K. and E.U. companies preferential access to each other’s markets, ensuring imported goods that satisfy applicable point of origin rules (that is, that U.K. or E.U. goods are wholly produced or significantly worked in the U.K. or E.U., as applicable) will be free of tariffs and quotas; however, economic relations between the U.K. and the E.U. will now be on more restrictive terms than existed previously. For example, packages sent to and from the U.K., will need to satisfy new customs requirements and obtain applicable transit documents which may result in delays exporting items to customers outside of the U.K. and delays importing products into the U.K. that are shipped to us by our vendors. The Trade Agreement did not have a material impact to our business; however, we cannot predict the impact that any future agreements on economic relations between the U.K. and the E.U. will have on our businesses and our customers, and it is possible that new terms or new agreements may adversely affect our operations and financial results.
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The potential impacts, if any, of the considerable uncertainty relating to Brexit or the terms of the new economic and security relationship between the U.K. and the E.U. on the free movement of goods, services, people and capital between the U.K. and the E.U., customer behavior, economic conditions, interest rates, currency exchange rates, availability of capital or other matters are unclear. Our business could be affected with respect to these matters during this period of uncertainty, and perhaps longer. In particular, our business could be negatively affected by new trade agreements between the U.K. and other countries, including the U.S., and by the possible imposition of trade or other regulatory barriers, including the imposition of tariffs, in the U.K. which could result in shipping delays and shortages or increased costs of products sold by our business. Additionally, the U.K. economy and consumer demand in the U.K., including for our products, could be negatively impacted. Further, various geopolitical forces related to Brexit may impact the global economy, the European economy and our business, including, for example, due to other E.U. member states where we have operations proposing referendums to, or electing to, exit the E.U. These possible negative impacts, and others resulting from the U.K.’s withdrawal from the E.U., may adversely affect our operating results.
Weak economic conditions worldwide may reduce consumer demand for our products and services
Prolonged economic uncertainty in various regions of the world in which our subsidiaries and affiliates operate could adversely affect demand for our products and services since a substantial portion of our revenue is derived from discretionary spending by individuals, which typically falls during times of inflation, recession and economic instability. Global financial markets may experience disruptions, including increased volatility and diminished liquidity and credit availability. If economic and financial market conditions in the U.S. or other key markets, including China, Japan and Europe deteriorate our customers may respond by suspending, delaying, or reducing their discretionary spending. A suspension, delay or reduction in discretionary spending could adversely affect revenue. Accordingly, our ability to increase or maintain revenue and earnings could be adversely affected to the extent that relevant economic environments decline. We currently are unable to predict the extent of any of these potential adverse effects.
Significant developments stemming from U.S. trade policy with China, including in response to forced labor and human rights abuses in China, may adversely impact our business and operating results
Early decisions by the Biden Administration confirm continuity of a bipartisan consensus in the U.S. government favoring increased confrontation of China in trade practices and economic matters, national security and human rights. The imposition of any new U.S. tariffs on Chinese imports or the taking of other actions against China in the future, and any responses by China, could impair our ability to meet customer demand and could result in lost sales or an increase in our cost of merchandise, which would have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations.
Recently there have been heightened tensions in relations between Western nations and China. The U.S. government has made statements and taken certain actions that have led to changes to U.S. trade policies towards China. For example, on January 19, 2021, the U.S. State Department declared that China’s human rights abuses in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (“XUAR”) is a “genocide” against ethnic Uyghur Muslims. On December 23, 2021, President Biden signed the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (the “UFLPA”) into law, which is intended to address the use of forced labor in the XUAR. Among other things, the UFLPA imposes a presumptive ban on the import of goods to the United States that are made, wholly or in part, in the XUAR or by persons that participate in certain programs in the XUAR that entail the use of forced labor. The UFLPA will take effect on June 21, 2022 and will increase the risk of delay of goods and inventory shortages. Additionally, the U.S. Customs and Border Protection (“CBP”) issued a region-wide withhold release order (“WRO”), effective January 13, 2021, pursuant to which the CBP will detain cotton products produced in the XUAR. The WRO applies to, among other things, cotton grown in the XUAR and to all products made in whole or in part using such cotton, regardless of where the downstream products are produced, and importers are responsible for ensuring the products they are attempting to import do not exploit forced labor at any point in their supply chain, including the production or harvesting of the raw material. As a result of the WRO, products imported into the U.S. could be held by the CBP based on a suspicion that they originated from the XUAR or that they may have been produced by Chinese suppliers accused of participating in forced labor, pending the importer providing satisfactory evidence to the contrary. Such process could result in a delay or complete inability to import such goods, which could result in inventory shortages and lost sales. Additionally, the United States Treasury Department placed sanctions on China’s Xinjiang Production and Construction Corporation (“XPCC”) for serious human rights abuses against ethnic minorities in the XUAR. The XUAR is the source of large amounts of cotton and textiles for the global apparel supply chain and XPCC controls many of the cotton farms and much of the textile industry in the region. Although we do not knowingly do business with XPCC, we could be subject to penalties, fines or sanctions if any of the vendors from which we purchase goods is found to
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have dealings, directly or indirectly with XPCC or entities it controls. Even if we were not subject to penalties, fines or sanctions, if products we source are linked in any way to XPCC, our reputation could be damaged. We may also incur expenses for the review pertaining to these matters and the cost of remediation and other changes to products, processes or sources of supply as a consequence of such verification activities. In the event of a significant disruption or unavailability in the supply of the fabrics or raw materials used by our vendors in the manufacture of our products, our vendors might not be able to locate alternative suppliers of materials of comparable quality at an acceptable price. In addition, prices of purchased finished products also depend on wage rates in the regions where our vendors’ contract manufacturers are located, as well as freight costs from those regions. Fluctuations in wage rates required by legal or industry standards could increase our costs. Increases in raw material costs or wage rates, unless sufficiently offset by our pricing actions, may cause a decrease in our profitability and negatively impact our sales volume.
Risks Related to our Facilities and Third-Party Suppliers and Vendors
We rely on distribution facilities to operate our business, and any damage to one of these facilities, or any disruptions caused by incorporating new facilities into our operations, could have a material adverse impact on our business
We operate a limited number of distribution facilities worldwide. Our ability to meet the needs of our customers depends on the proper operation of these distribution facilities. If any of these distribution facilities were to shut down or otherwise become inoperable or inaccessible for any reason, we could suffer a substantial loss of inventory and disruptions of deliveries to our customers. For example, any resurgence of COVID-19 in the areas where our distribution facilities are located, or if we are unable to adequately staff our distribution facilities to meet demand in the future, or if the cost of such staffing is higher than historical or projected costs due to wage increases, regulatory changes, or other factors, could harm our operating results. In addition, we could incur significantly higher costs and longer lead times associated with the distribution of our products during the time it takes to reopen or replace the impacted facility. Any of the foregoing factors could result in decreased sales and have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition and operating results. In addition, we have been implementing new warehouse management systems to further support our efforts to operate with increased efficiency and flexibility. There are risks inherent in operating in new distribution environments and implementing new warehouse management systems, including operational difficulties that may arise with such transitions. We may experience shipping delays should there be any disruptions in our new warehouse management systems or warehouses themselves.
In December 2021, our distribution facility located in Rocky Mount, North Carolina suffered significant fire damage. Although the cause of the fire is being investigated, we expect that the facility will be closed for the foreseeable future. Rocky Mount was our second largest distribution facility and processed most of our returned merchandise. As a result of the supply chain disruptions caused by the loss of this facility, we have shifted shipments to other distribution facilities within our distribution network. Although it is still early in the process, we are investigating available alternatives to restore the capacity to our distribution network and returned merchandise processing that were lost as a result of the Rocky Mount fire. Delays caused by shifting capacity to other facilities and delays in restoring lost capacity to our distribution network could cause disruptions to our order fulfillment process, causing delays in delivering product to customers which would result in lost sales, strain our relationships with customers, and cause harm to our reputation, any of which could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and operating results. We maintain property and business interruption insurance coverage. As of the date of this report, we are still in the process of assessing damage to the property and inventory and submitting relevant insurance claims to determine the recovery of certain fire related costs in connection with the Rocky Mount fire. In December 2021, we received an advance of $100 million from our insurance provider related to initial fire related costs. There can be no assurance that we will be able to collect additional insurance proceeds to cover the losses resulting from the Rocky Mount fire.
In 2019, we opened a new distribution facility in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. As a result of opening this facility, in 2021 we closed distribution facilities in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Roanoke, Virginia. Although we have been shipping customer orders from our Bethlehem distribution center since 2019, the facility is not operating at full capacity as of the date of this report primarily due to staffing issues related to COVID-19 and labor shortages. Delays in the Bethlehem distribution center operating at full capacity could cause delays in delivering product to customers which would result in lost sales, strain our relationships with customers, and cause harm to our reputation, any of which could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and operating results.
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We rely on independent shipping companies to deliver the products we sell
We rely on third party carriers to deliver merchandise from vendors and manufacturers to us and to ship merchandise to our customers. As a result, we are subject to carrier disruptions and delays due to factors that are beyond our control, including employee strikes, inclement weather and regulation and enforcement actions by customs agencies. For example, as a result of COVID-19 many consumers have significantly increased their use of ecommerce which has resulted in a significant increase in the volume of packages handled by third-party carriers, including those we rely on, which could cause us to experience delays in merchandise deliveries and cause our customers to experience delays in their order delivery. Any failure to deliver products to our customers in a timely and accurate manner may damage our reputation and brand and could cause us to lose customers. Enforcement actions by customs agencies can also cause the costs of imported goods to increase, negatively affecting our profits.
We are also impacted by increases in shipping rates charged by third party carriers, which over the past few years, have increased significantly in comparison to historical levels. We currently expect that shipping and postal rates will continue to increase. In the case of deliveries to customers, in each market where we operate, we have negotiated agreements with one or more independent, third party shipping companies, which in certain circumstances provide for favorable shipping rates. If any of these relationships were to terminate or if a shipping company was unable to fulfill its obligations under its contract for any reason, we would have to work with other shipping companies to deliver merchandise to customers, which would most likely be at less favorable rates. Other potential adverse consequences of changing carriers include:
•reduced visibility of order status and package tracking;
•delays in order processing and product delivery; and
•reduced shipment quality, which may result in damaged products and customer dissatisfaction.
Any increase in shipping rates and related fuel and other surcharges passed on to us by our current carriers or any other shipping company would adversely impact profits, given that we may not be able to pass these increased costs directly to customers or offset them by increasing prices without a detrimental effect on customer demand.
We depend on relationships with vendors, manufacturers and other third parties, and any adverse changes in these relationships could result in a failure to meet customer expectations which could result in lost revenue
We purchase merchandise from a wide variety of third party vendors, manufacturers and other sources pursuant to short- and long-term contracts and purchase orders. Our ability to identify and establish relationships with these parties, as well as to access quality merchandise in a timely and efficient manner on acceptable terms and cost, can be challenging. In particular, we purchase a significant amount of merchandise from vendors and manufacturers abroad, and cannot predict whether the costs for goods sourced in these markets will remain stable. We depend on the ability of vendors and manufacturers in the U.S. and abroad to produce and deliver goods that meet applicable quality standards, which is impacted by a number of factors, some of which are not within the control of these parties, such as political or financial instability, trade restrictions, tariffs, currency exchange rates and transport capacity and costs, among others.
Our failure to identify new vendors and manufacturers, maintain relationships with a significant number of existing vendors and manufacturers and/or access quality merchandise in a timely and efficient manner could cause us to miss customer delivery dates or delay scheduled promotions, which would result in lost sales or the failure to meet customer expectations and could cause customers to cancel orders or cause us to be unable to source merchandise in sufficient quantities, which could result in lost revenue.
The unanticipated loss of certain larger vendors or the consolidation of our vendors could negatively impact our sales and profitability on a short term basis
It is possible that one or more of our larger vendors could experience financial difficulties, including bankruptcy, or otherwise could elect to cease doing business with us. While we have periodically experienced the loss of a major vendor, if multiple major vendors ceased doing business with us, or did not perform consistently with past practice, this could have a material adverse impact on our business, financial condition and operating results. Further, there has been a trend among our vendors towards consolidation in recent years that may continue. This consolidation could exacerbate the foregoing risks and increase our vendors’ bargaining power and their ability to demand terms that are less favorable to us.
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Risks Related to the Seasonality of Our Business
We face significant inventory risk
We are exposed to significant inventory risks that may adversely affect our operating results as a result of seasonality, new product launches, rapid changes in product cycles and pricing, defective merchandise, changes in consumer demand, consumer spending patterns, changes in consumer tastes with respect to our products, spoilage, and other factors. For example, the COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in significant changes to daily life, working arrangements, and social events, which has impacted the type of products our consumers seek to purchase. There is significant uncertainty over potential changes in consumer behavior and shopping patterns as the COVID-19 pandemic continues and as different regions experience heightened resurgences. We endeavor to accurately predict these trends and avoid overstocking or understocking products we sell. Demand for products, however, can change significantly between the time inventory or components are ordered and the date of sale. In addition, when we begin selling a new product, it may be difficult to establish vendor relationships, determine appropriate product or component selection, and accurately forecast demand. The acquisition of certain types of inventory or components may require significant lead-time and prepayment and they may not be returnable. We carry a broad selection and significant inventory levels of certain products, such as consumer electronics, and at times we may be unable to sell products in sufficient quantities or to meet demand during the relevant selling seasons. Any one of the inventory risk factors set forth above may adversely affect our operating results.
The seasonality of our business places increased strain on our operations
Our net revenue in recent years indicates that our business is seasonal due to a higher volume of sales in the fourth calendar quarter related to year-end holiday shopping. In recent years, we have earned, on average, between 21% and 24% of our global revenue in each of the first three quarters of the year and between 30% and 32% of our global revenue in the fourth quarter of the year. If we or our vendors are not able to provide popular products in sufficient amounts (for example, due to the loss of inventory, illness or absenteeism of our or our vendors’ workforces, government mandated shutdown orders, impaired financial conditions or other reasons resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic) such that we fail to meet customer demand, it could significantly affect our revenue and our future growth. The supply of such products may not return to pre-COVID-19 levels, and if so, product supplies may return to pre-COVID-19 levels at different times, and our efforts to ensure popular products are in stock may not be successful. If too many customers access our websites within a short period of time due to increased holiday demand, we may experience system interruptions that make our websites unavailable or prevent us from efficiently fulfilling orders, which may reduce the volume of goods we offer or sell and the attractiveness of our products and services. In addition, we may be unable to adequately staff our fulfillment network and customer service centers during these peak periods and delivery and other third party shipping (or carrier) companies may be unable to meet the seasonal demand. Risks described elsewhere in this Part I, Item 1A relating to fulfillment network optimization and inventory are magnified during periods of high demand.
To the extent we pay for holiday merchandise in advance of the holidays (i.e., in August through November of each year), our available cash may decrease, resulting in less liquidity. We have limited availability under our revolving credit facility and may not be able to access financing to the extent our cash balance is impaired. We may be unable to maintain a level of cash sufficient to permit us to pay the principal, premium, if any, and interest on our indebtedness.
Risk Related to Management and Key Personnel
Our success depends in large part on our ability to recruit and retain key employees capable of executing our unique business model
We have a business model that requires us to recruit and retain key employees, including management, with the skills necessary for a unique business that demands knowledge of the general retail industry, television production, direct to consumer marketing and fulfillment and the Internet. We cannot assure you that if we experience turnover of our key employees we will be able to recruit and retain acceptable replacements because the market for such employees is very competitive and limited.
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We have not voluntarily implemented various corporate governance measures, in the absence of which you may have more limited protections against interested transactions, conflicts of interest and similar matters
Federal legislation, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, encourages the adoption of various corporate governance measures designed to promote the integrity of corporate management and the securities markets. Some of these measures have been adopted in response to legal requirements. Others have been adopted by companies in response to the requirements of national securities exchanges on which their securities are listed. Among the corporate governance measures that are required under the rules of national securities exchanges are those that address board of directors’ independence and audit committee oversight.
As a “close corporation” under Delaware law, our stockholder, rather than a board of directors, manages our business. Our stockholder is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail, meaning that we do not have any independent governing body. In addition, we have not adopted corporate governance measures such as the implementation of an audit committee or other independent governing body. It is possible that if we were to appoint a board of directors and include one or more independent directors and adopt some or all of these corporate governance measures, there may be somewhat greater assurances that internal corporate decisions were being made by disinterested directors and that policies had been implemented to define responsible conduct. However, our stockholder has the ability to make decisions regarding transactions with related parties and corporate actions that could involve conflicts of interest.
In addition, our Chief Executive Officer and President, David Rawlinson II, is also president and chief executive officer of Qurate Retail. Investors should bear in mind our current lack of independent directors, the positions with Qurate Retail that are held by Mr. Rawlinson and corporate governance measures in formulating their investment decisions.
The interests of our stockholder may not coincide with your interests and our stockholder may make decisions with which you may disagree
Our stockholder is an indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail. As a “close corporation” under Delaware law, our stockholder, rather than a board of directors, manages our business. As a result, Qurate Retail controls certain aspects of our management, including the approval of significant corporate transactions such as a change of control. The interests of Qurate Retail may not coincide with our interests or your interests. For example, Qurate Retail’s dependence on our cash flow for servicing Qurate Retail’s debt and for other purposes, including payments of dividends on Qurate Retail’s capital stock, stock repurchases or to fund acquisitions or other operational requirements of Qurate Retail and its subsidiaries is likely to result in our payment of large dividends to Qurate Retail when permitted by law or the terms of our senior secured credit facility and the indentures governing our outstanding senior secured notes, which may increase our accumulated deficit or require us to borrow under our senior secured credit facility, increasing our leverage and decreasing our liquidity. We have made significant distributions to Qurate Retail in the past. See Item 1. "Business - Qurate Retail relationship and related party transactions."
Risks Related to Our Indebtedness
We have a substantial amount of indebtedness, which could adversely affect our financial position and prevent us from fulfilling our debt obligations
We have a substantial amount of indebtedness. As of December 31, 2021, we had total debt, other than our finance lease obligations, of $4,929 million, consisting of $4,448 million of secured indebtedness under our existing notes and $481 million of secured indebtedness under our senior secured credit facility, in each case, secured by a first priority perfected lien on all shares of our capital stock. Additionally, there was $2.75 billion of unused capacity under our senior secured credit facility. In addition, we had $157 million of finance lease obligations and $203 million of operating lease liabilities. We may incur significant additional indebtedness in the future. If new indebtedness is added to our current debt levels, the related risks that we now face could intensify.
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Our level of indebtedness could limit our flexibility in responding to current market conditions, adversely affect our financial position, prevent us from meeting our obligations under our debt instruments or otherwise restrict our business activities
The existence of and limitations on the availability of our debt could have important consequences. The existence of debt could, among other things:
•require a substantial portion of our cash flow from operations to be dedicated to the payment of principal and interest on our indebtedness;
•limit our ability to use cash flow or obtain additional financing for future working capital, capital expenditures or other general corporate purposes, which reduces the funds available to us for operations and any future business opportunities;
•increase our vulnerability to general economic and industry conditions; or
•expose us to the risk of increased interest rates because certain of our borrowings, including borrowings under our credit facility, are at variable interest rates.
Limitations imposed as a part of the debt, such as the availability of credit and the existence of restrictive covenants may, among other things:
•make it difficult for us to satisfy our financial obligations, including making scheduled principal and interest payments on the notes and our other indebtedness;
•restrict us from making strategic acquisitions or cause us to make non-strategic divestitures;
•limit our ability to borrow additional funds for working capital, capital expenditures, acquisitions or other general business purposes on satisfactory terms or at all;
•limit our flexibility to plan for, or react to, changes in our business and industry;
•place us at a competitive disadvantage compared to our less leveraged competitors; and
•limit our ability to respond to business opportunities.
We may not be able to generate sufficient cash to service our debt obligations
Our ability to make payments on our indebtedness will depend on our financial and operating performance, which is subject to prevailing economic and competitive conditions, the pendency of the COVID-19 pandemic, and to certain financial, business and other factors beyond our control. We may be unable to maintain a level of cash flows from operating activities sufficient to permit us to pay the principal, premium, if any, and interest on our indebtedness.
We may need to refinance our indebtedness.
Although we expect to refinance or otherwise repay our indebtedness, we may not be able to refinance our indebtedness on commercially reasonable terms or at all. The financial terms or covenants of any new credit facility, notes or other indebtedness may not be as favorable as those under our senior secured credit facility and our existing notes. Our ability to complete a refinancing of our senior secured credit facility and our existing notes prior to their respective maturities will depend on our financial and operating performance, our credit rating with rating agencies, as well as a number of conditions beyond our control. For example, if disruptions in the financial markets were to exist at the time that we intended to refinance this indebtedness, we might be restricted in our ability to access the financial markets. If we are unable to refinance our indebtedness, our alternatives would include negotiating an extension of the maturities of our senior secured credit facility and our existing notes with the lenders and holders, respectively, and seeking or raising new equity capital. If we were unsuccessful, the lenders under our senior secured credit facility and the holders of our existing notes could demand repayment of the indebtedness owed to them on the relevant maturity date, which could adversely affect our financial condition.
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Despite our current level of indebtedness, we may still incur substantially more indebtedness. This could exacerbate the risks associated with our existing indebtedness
We and our subsidiaries may incur substantial additional indebtedness in the future. Our senior secured credit facility and the terms of the indentures for our notes limit, but do not prohibit, us or our subsidiaries from incurring additional indebtedness. Also, our subsidiaries could incur additional indebtedness that is structurally senior to the notes or we and our subsidiaries could incur indebtedness secured by a lien on assets that do not constitute collateral, including assets of ours and our subsidiaries, and the holders of such indebtedness will have the right to be paid first from the proceeds of such assets. If we incur any additional indebtedness that ranks equally with the notes and the guarantees, the holders of that indebtedness will be entitled to share ratably with the holders of the notes and the guarantees in any proceeds distributed in connection with our insolvency, liquidation, reorganization or dissolution. This may have the effect of reducing the amount of proceeds paid to the existing note holders. In addition, existing note holders’ rights to the collateral would be diluted by any increase in the indebtedness secured by this collateral. If new indebtedness is added to our current debt levels, the related risks that we and our subsidiaries now face could intensify.
Covenants in our debt agreements restrict our business in many ways
Our senior secured credit facility and the indentures governing the notes contain various covenants that limit our ability and/or our restricted subsidiaries’ ability to, among other things:
•incur or assume liens or additional debt or provide guarantees in respect of obligations of other persons;
•pay dividends or make distributions or redeem or repurchase capital stock;
•prepay, redeem or repurchase debt;
•make loans, investments and capital expenditures;
•enter into agreements that restrict distributions from our subsidiaries;
•sell assets and capital stock of our subsidiaries;
•enter into sale and leaseback transactions;
•enter into certain transactions with affiliates;
•consolidate or merge with or into, or sell substantially all of our assets to, another person; and
•designate our subsidiaries as unrestricted subsidiaries.
In addition, our senior secured credit facility contains restrictive covenants and requires us to maintain a specified leverage ratio. The leverage ratio is defined in Part II. Item 7. "Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Financial Position, Liquidity and Capital Resources - Senior Secured Credit Facility.” Our ability to meet this leverage ratio can be affected by events beyond our control, and we may be unable to meet those tests. A breach of any of these covenants could result in a default under our senior secured credit facility, which in turn could result in a default under the indentures governing the notes. Upon the occurrence of an event of default under our senior secured credit facility, the lenders could elect to declare all amounts outstanding under our senior secured credit facility to be immediately due and payable and terminate all commitments to extend further credit. If we were unable to repay those amounts, the lenders could proceed against the collateral granted to them to secure that indebtedness. Our senior secured credit facility, our notes and certain future indebtedness are secured by a first priority perfected lien in all shares of our capital stock. If the lenders and counterparties under our senior secured credit facility, our notes and certain future indebtedness accelerate the repayment of obligations, we may not have sufficient assets to repay such obligations. Our borrowings under our senior secured credit facility are, and are expected to continue to be, at variable rates of interest and expose us to interest rate risk. If interest rates increase, our debt service obligations on the variable rate indebtedness will also increase even though the amount borrowed remains the same, and our net income would decrease. In addition, we may hedge against interest rate fluctuations by using hedging instruments such as swaps, caps, options, forwards, futures or other similar products. These instruments may be used to selectively manage risks, but there can be no assurance that we will be fully protected against material interest rate fluctuations.
We may be adversely affected by the discontinuance of the London Inter-Bank Offered Rate and the transition to alternative reference rates
Our borrowings under our senior secured credit facility carry a variable interest rate based on London Inter-bank Offered Rate (“LIBOR”) as a benchmark for establishing the rate of interest. LIBOR is the subject of national, international and other regulatory guidance and proposals for reform. In 2017, the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority (the "FCA"), which
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regulates LIBOR, announced that it intends to phase out LIBOR. On March 5, 2021, the FCA announced that all LIBOR settings will either cease to be provided by any administrator or no longer be representative: (a) immediately after December 31, 2021, in the case of the one week and two month U.S. dollar settings; and (b) immediately after June 30, 2023, in the case of the remaining U.S. dollar settings. The United States Federal Reserve has also advised banks to cease entering into new contracts that use USD LIBOR as a reference rate. The Alternative Reference Rate Committee, a committee convened by the Federal Reserve that includes major market participants, has identified the Secured Overnight Financing Rate, or SOFR, a new index calculated by short-term repurchase agreements, backed by Treasury securities, as its preferred alternative rate for LIBOR. Additionally, our senior secured credit facility provides for a transition to a SOFR based rate or to other alternative reference rates depending acceptance in the market of these rates. At this time, it is not possible to predict how markets will respond to SOFR or other alternative reference rates as the transition away from the LIBOR benchmarks is anticipated in coming years. Accordingly, the outcome of these reforms is uncertain and any changes in the methods by which LIBOR is determined or regulatory activity related to LIBOR’s phaseout could cause LIBOR to perform differently than in the past or cease to exist. The consequences of these developments cannot be entirely predicted, but could include an increase in the cost of our borrowings under our senior secured credit facility.
Our ability to pay dividends or make other restricted payments to Qurate Retail is subject to limited restrictions
There are no restrictions under our bond indentures on our ability to pay dividends or make other restricted payments if we are not in default on the senior secured notes and our consolidated leverage ratio is no greater than 3.5 to 1.0. In addition, there are no restrictions under our senior secured credit facility on our ability to pay dividends or make other restricted payments if we are not in default on the senior secured credit facility and our consolidated leverage ratio is no greater than 4.0 to 1.0. Further, under our bond indentures and the senior secured credit facility credit agreement, unlimited dividends are permitted to service the debt of Qurate Retail so long as there is no default (i.e., no leverage test is needed). As a result, Qurate Retail will, in many instances, be permitted to rely on our cash flow for servicing Qurate Retail’s debt and for other purposes, including payments of dividends on Qurate Retail’s capital stock, if declared, or to fund acquisitions or other operational requirements of Qurate Retail and its subsidiaries. These events may deplete our equity or require us to borrow under our senior secured credit facility, increasing our leverage and decreasing our liquidity. QVC has made significant distributions to Qurate Retail in the past. These dividends were funded with draws from our revolving credit facility or from cash generated from operations. In the ordinary course of business, we may continue to make additional distributions to Qurate Retail in the future. See Item 1. "Business - Qurate Retail relationship and related party transactions."

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ITEM 1B. UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS
Item 1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
None.
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ITEM 2. PROPERTIES
Item 2. Properties
We own our corporate headquarters and operations center in West Chester, Pennsylvania, which includes executive offices, video broadcast studios, showrooms, broadcast facilities and administrative offices for QVC. Our corporate headquarters and the remainder of our material properties are summarized as follows:
Properties
Location Type Own or Lease Operating Segment
West Chester, Pennsylvania Corporate Headquarters Own QxH
Chesapeake, Virginia Call Center Own QxH
Bochum, Germany Call Center Own QVC-International
Kassel, Germany Call Center Own QVC-International
Chiba-Shi, Japan Call Center Own QVC-International
Bethlehem, Pennsylvania Distribution Center Lease QxH
Suffolk, Virginia Distribution Center Own QxH
Rocky Mount, North Carolina Distribution Center Own QxH
Florence, South Carolina Distribution Center Own QxH
Ontario, California Distribution Center Own QxH
Piney Flats, Tennessee Distribution Center Own QxH
Chiba, Japan Distribution Center Own QVC-International
Hückelhoven, Germany Distribution Center Own QVC-International
St. Petersburg, Florida Multi-functional Own QxH
Knowsley, United Kingdom Multi-functional Own QVC-International
Chiba, Japan Multi-functional Own QVC-International
Brugherio, Italy Multi-functional Own QVC-International
Düsseldorf, Germany Multi-functional Own QVC-International
London, U.K. Multi-functional Lease QVC-International
We supplement the facilities listed above by leasing various facilities worldwide. We believe that the duration of each lease is adequate and we do not anticipate any future problems renewing or obtaining suitable leases for our principal properties. We believe that our principal properties, whether owned or leased, are currently adequate for the purposes for which they are used and are suitably maintained for these purposes. From time to time, we consider various alternatives related to our long-term facilities' needs.
On December 18, 2021, QxH experienced a fire at its Rocky Mount distribution center in North Carolina and as a result the facility will be closed for the foreseeable future. Refer to Part II, Item 7. "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations--Strategies and challenges of business units" for further details.

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ITEM 3. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
Item 3. Legal Proceedings
We are not a party to or subject to any material pending legal proceedings. We are parties to various claims and pending litigation as part of the normal course of business. In the opinion of management, the nature and disposition of these matters are considered routine and arising in the ordinary course of business.

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ITEM 4. MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURE
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
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PART II

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ITEM 5. MARKET FOR REGISTRANT'S COMMON EQUITY
Item 5. Market for Registrant's Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
There is no established trading market for our equity securities. There is one holder of record of our equity, Qurate Retail Group, Inc., an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail, Inc. ("Qurate Retail") (formerly Liberty Interactive Corporation).
See also "Item 1. Business - Qurate Retail relationship and related party transactions" for information related to our dividends to Qurate Retail and note 8 to our consolidated financial statements for our debt issuance descriptions.

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ITEM 6. SELECTED FINANCIAL DATA
Item 6. [Reserved]
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ITEM 7. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS
Item 7. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis provides information concerning our results of operations and financial condition. This discussion should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto.
Overview
QVC, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries (unless otherwise indicated or required by the context, the terms "we," "our," "us," the "Company" and "QVC" refer to QVC, Inc. and its consolidated subsidiaries) is a retailer of a wide range of consumer products, which are marketed and sold primarily by merchandise-focused televised shopping programs, the Internet and mobile applications. QVC is comprised of the reportable segments of QxH, which is comprised of QVC-U.S. and HSN, Inc. ("HSN"), and QVC-International.
In the U.S., QVC's televised shopping programs, including live and recorded content, are broadcast across multiple channels nationally on a full-time basis, including QVC, QVC2, QVC3, HSN, and HSN2. The Company's U.S. programming is also available on QVC.com and HSN.com, QVC's "U.S. websites"; virtual multichannel video programming distributors (including Hulu + Live TV, AT&T TV and YouTube TV); applications via streaming video; Facebook Live, Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire, Xfinity Flex and Samsung TV Plus; mobile applications; social pages and over-the-air broadcasters.
QVC's digital platforms enable consumers to purchase goods offered on our broadcast programming, along with a wide assortment of products that are available only on our U.S. websites. QVC.com and our other digital platforms (including our mobile applications, social pages and others) are natural extensions of our business model, allowing customers to engage in our shopping experience wherever they are, with live or on-demand content customized to the device they are using. In addition to offering video content, our U.S. websites allow shoppers to browse, research, compare and perform targeted searches for products, read customer reviews, control the order-entry process and conveniently access their account.
Internationally, QVC's televised shopping programs, including live and recorded content, are distributed to households outside of the U.S., primarily in Germany, Austria, Japan, the United Kingdom ("U.K."), the Republic of Ireland, and Italy. In some of the countries where QVC operates, QVC's televised shopping programs are broadcast across multiple QVC channels: QVC Style and QVC2 in Germany and QVC Beauty, QVC Extra and QVC Style in the U.K. Similar to the U.S., our international businesses also engage customers via websites, mobile applications and social pages. QVC's international business employs product sourcing teams who select products tailored to the interests of each local market.
The Company's Japanese operations ("QVC-Japan") are conducted through a joint venture with Mitsui & Co., LTD ("Mitsui"). QVC-Japan is owned 60% by the Company and 40% by Mitsui. The Company and Mitsui share in all profits and losses based on their respective ownership interests. QVC-Japan paid dividends to Mitsui of $60 million, $62 million, and $40 million in the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
The Company is an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail, Inc. ("Qurate Retail") (formerly Liberty Interactive Corporation) (Nasdaq: QRTEA, QRTEB and QRTEP), which owns interests in a broad range of digital commerce businesses, including Qurate Retail's other wholly-owned subsidiary Zulily, LLC ("Zulily"), as well as other minority investments. QVC is part of the Qurate Retail Group ("QRG"), formerly QVC Group, a portfolio of brands including QVC, Zulily and Cornerstone Brands, Inc. ("CBI").
QVC engages with Zulily, which has been a wholly-owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail since October 2015. Zulily is not part of the results of operations or financial position of QVC presented in this Form 10-K. During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, QVC and Zulily engaged in multiple transactions relating to sales, sourcing of merchandise, marketing initiatives, and business advisory services. QVC allocated expenses to Zulily of $8 million for each of the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively, and $7 million for the year ended December 31, 2019. Zulily allocated expenses of $8 million, $11 million, and $9 million to QVC for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020, and 2019, respectively.
In September 2020, QVC and Zulily executed a Master Promissory Note ("Promissory Note") whereby Zulily may borrow up to $100 million at a variable interest rate equal to the LIBOR rate plus an applicable margin rate. The Promissory Note matures in September 2030. As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, there were no borrowings on the Promissory Note.
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QVC engages with CBI, which is a wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail and prior to the common control transaction between QVC and Qurate Retail, included as part of HSN. CBI is not part of the results of operations or financial position of QVC presented in the accompanying consolidated financial statements. During the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, QVC and CBI engaged in multiple transactions relating to personnel and business advisory services. QVC allocated expenses of $22 million, $23 million and $28 million to CBI for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. CBI allocated expenses of $1 million to QVC for each of the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019. CBI also repaid a $29 million note receivable to QVC during the year ended December 31, 2019.
On October 17, 2018, QRG announced a series of initiatives designed to better position its QxH business (“QRG Initiatives”). As part of the QRG Initiatives, QVC entered into an agreement to lease a new fulfillment center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania, which commenced in 2019 (see note 9 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements) and closed its fulfillment centers in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and Roanoke, Virginia in 2021.
On December 30, 2020, the Company and Liberty Interactive LLC ("LIC") completed an internal realignment of the Company's global finance structure that resulted in a common control transaction with Qurate Retail. As part of this realignment and upon entering into a payment agreement, QVC Global Corporate Holdings, LLC ("QVC Global"), a subsidiary of the Company, became the primary co- obligor on LIC’s 3.5% Senior Exchangeable Debentures due 2031 (the “MSI Exchangeables”), which allowed the MSI Exchangeables to be serviced directly by cash generated from the Company’s foreign operations (see note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). Concurrently, LIC issued a promissory note (“LIC Note”) to the Company with an initial face amount of $1.8 billion, a stated interest rate of 0.48% and a maturity of December 29, 2029. Interest on the LIC Note is paid annually. In addition, Qurate Retail transferred additional assets and liabilities as part of the transaction. The difference between the total assets received and the liabilities assumed was treated as a capital contribution from Qurate Retail as part of the common control transaction. All MSI Exchangeables not surrendered for exchange were redeemed on December 13, 2021.
On October 27, 2021, a notice was issued to all holders to redeem any and all outstanding MSI Exchangeables on December 13, 2021. Bondholders had until the close of business on December 10, 2021 to exchange their bonds. During the fourth quarter of 2021, QVC Global delivered MSI shares, which were acquired pursuant to a forward purchase contract, to holders of the MSI Exchangeables with a fair value of approximately $573 million to settle the exchanges of the MSI Exchangeables. For holders who did not participate in the exchange, their bonds were redeemed on December 13, 2021 at adjusted principal, plus accrued interest and dividend pass-thru for a total cash payment of approximately $1 million. No MSI Exchangeables remain outstanding as of December 31, 2021. As a result of the exchange and the redemption, the Company recorded a loss on extinguishment of debt in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations of $7 million for the year ended December 31, 2021.
On October 27, 2021, QVC amended and restated its senior secured credit facility (the "Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement") which is a multi-currency facility that provides for a $3.25 billion revolving credit facility (see note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). The Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement may be borrowed by QVC, Zulily, CBI, and QVC Global (collectively, the “Borrowers”). Under the terms of the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, the Borrowers are jointly and severally liable for all outstanding borrowings. In accordance with the accounting guidance for obligations resulting from joint and several liability arrangements, QVC will record a liability for amounts it has borrowed under the credit facility plus any additional amount it expects to repay on behalf of Zulily and CBI. As of December 31, 2021, there was $151 million borrowed by Zulily on the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement. In December 2021, QVC determined it was necessary to record a liability for the full amount of Zulily's outstanding borrowings (see note 8 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements). There were no borrowings by CBI on the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement as of December 31, 2021.
On July 12, 2021, the compensation committee of the board of directors of Qurate Retail approved Qurate Retail’s entry into an employment agreement with David Rawlinson II, effective July 12, 2021. Effective August 1, 2021, Mr. Rawlinson began to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer-Elect of Qurate Retail, with Michael A. George continuing as Chief Executive Officer, and effective October 1, 2021, Mr. Rawlinson began to serve as President and Chief Executive Officer of Qurate Retail, with Mr. George assuming the role of Senior Advisor. Mr. Rawlinson concurrently assumed the same positions with QVC. Mr. George resigned from the board of directors effective January 1, 2022, at which time Mr. Rawlinson joined Qurate Retail's board of directors. With respect to his roles at Qurate Retail and QVC, Mr. George stepped down as President effective August 1, 2021 and Chief Executive Officer effective October 1, 2021.
In the fourth quarter of 2018, QVC recorded a charge related to the potential closure of its operations in France. The formal announcement to execute the closure was made in March 2019 and broadcasting for QVC in France was subsequently terminated on March 13, 2019.
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Strategies and challenges of business units
The goal of QVC is to extend its leadership in video commerce, e-commerce, mobile commerce and social commerce by continuing to create the world’s most engaging shopping experiences, combining the best of retail, media, and social, highly differentiated from traditional brick-and-mortar stores or transactional e-commerce. QVC provides customers with curated collections of unique products, made personal and relevant by the power of storytelling. We curate experiences, conversations and communities for millions of highly discerning shoppers, and we also reach large audiences, across our many platforms, for our thousands of brand partners.
QVC intends to employ several strategies to achieve these objectives. Among these strategies are to (i) Curate special products at compelling values; (ii) Extend video reach and relevance; (iii) Reimagine daily digital discovery; (iv) Expand and engage our passionate community; and (v) Deliver joyful customer service. In addition, we are exploring opportunities to evolve the International operating model to pursue growth opportunities in a more leveraged way across markets.
QVC's future net revenue growth will primarily depend on sales growth from e-commerce, mobile platforms and applications via streaming video, additions of new customers from households already receiving QVC's broadcast programming and increased spending from existing customers. QVC's future net revenue may also be affected by (i) the willingness of cable television and direct-to-home satellite system operators to continue carrying QVC's programming service; (ii) QVC's ability to maintain favorable channel positioning, which may become more difficult due to governmental action or from distributors converting analog customers to digital; (iii) changes in television viewing habits because of personal video recorders, video-on-demand and Internet video services; (iv) QVC's ability to source new and compelling products and (v) general economic conditions.
The current economic uncertainty in various regions of the world in which our subsidiaries and affiliates operate could adversely affect demand for our products and services since a substantial portion of our revenue is derived from discretionary spending by individuals, which typically falls during times of economic instability. Global financial markets may experience disruptions, including increased volatility and diminished liquidity and credit availability. If economic and financial market conditions in the U.S. or other key markets, including Japan and Europe, continue to be uncertain or deteriorate, our customers may respond by suspending, delaying or reducing their discretionary spending. A suspension, delay or reduction in discretionary spending could adversely affect revenue. Accordingly, our ability to increase or maintain revenue and earnings could be adversely affected to the extent that relevant economic environments decline. Such weak economic conditions may also inhibit our expansion into new European and other markets. We currently are unable to predict the extent of any of these potential adverse effects.
Early decisions by the Biden Administration confirm continuity of a bipartisan consensus in the U.S. government favoring increased confrontation of China in trade practices and economic matters, national security and human rights. The imposition of any new U.S. tariffs or other restrictions on Chinese imports or the taking of other actions against China in the future, and any responses by China, could impair our ability to meet customer demand and could result in lost sales or an increase in our cost of merchandise, which would have a material adverse impact on our business and results of operations.
In December 2019, the COVID-19 pandemic was reported to have surfaced in Wuhan, China and has subsequently spread across the globe, including all of the countries in which QVC operates. Since that time, most local, state and federal governmental agencies imposed various restrictions to prevent the spread of COVID-19, including travel restrictions, local quarantines or stay at home restrictions, and vaccine and testing requirements. The spread of COVID-19 and the various containment measures put in place around the world have resulted in significant disruption to the global economy. In response to these stay at home restrictions, QVC has mandated that all employees work from home when possible and has reduced the number of employees, third parties and visitors who are allowed into its on-site facilities, such as the studios and fulfillment centers. QVC has implemented increased cleaning protocols, social distancing measures and temperature screenings for those employees who enter into certain facilities. In some cases, the move to a work from home arrangement for certain employees will be permanent, which has resulted in the reduction of office space. As a result of these resource constraints, QVC included fewer hours of live programming on some of its secondary channels and has experienced some delays in shipping at certain fulfillment centers. Due to ongoing staffing issues and labor shortages, QVC has increased wages and offered incentives, resulting in additional costs to the company. The inability to control the spread of COVID-19, or the expansion or extension of containment measures, such as stay at home restrictions, could negatively impact our results in the future.
The stay at home restrictions imposed in response to COVID-19 required many traditional brick and mortar retailers to temporarily close their stores, but allowed distance retailers, including QVC, to continue operating. As a result, from the end of the first quarter of 2020 and continuing through the first quarter of 2021, we observed an increase in new customers and an increase in demand for certain categories, such as home. Beginning in the second quarter of 2021, we observed a decline in
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new customers and a decline in demand for our home product category, while also seeing an increase in demand for our apparel product category.
In addition, there are several potential adverse impacts of COVID-19 that could cause a material negative impact to the Company’s financial results, including its capital and liquidity. These include governmental restrictions on QVC’s ability to continue to operate under stay at home restrictions and produce content; reduced demand for products we sell; decreases in the disposable income of existing and potential new customers; the impacts of any recession and other uncertainties with respect to the continuity of government stimulus programs implemented in response to COVID-19; increased currency volatility resulting in adverse currency rate fluctuations; higher unemployment; labor shortages; and an adverse impact to our supply chain and shipping disruptions for both the products we import and purchase domestically and the products we sell, including essential products experiencing higher demand, due to factory closures, labor shortages and other resource constraints. While the future impact is currently uncertain, the inability to control the spread of COVID-19 could cause any one of these adverse impacts, or combination of adverse impacts, to have a material impact on our financial results.
Beginning in the second quarter of 2021, the Company saw increased product shortages as a result of high market demand in some product categories such as home and electronics. We also experienced escalating shipping disruptions due to challenges in the global supply chain and labor market. These factors impacted our ability to offer certain goods and ship orders timely to our customers. In addition, the Company began to see increased inflationary pressures during the period. If these pressures persist, it may result in certain increased costs outpacing our pricing power in the near term.
In July 2020, QVC implemented a planned workforce reduction with the goal of making the organizational structure streamlined and more efficient. As a result, QVC recorded $20 million of severance expense during the year ended December 31, 2020, which is recorded in selling, general and administrative expense.
On December 18, 2021, QVC experienced a fire at its Rocky Mount, Inc. fulfillment center in North Carolina. Rocky Mount was the Company’s second-largest fulfillment center, processing approximately 25% to 30% of volume for QVC-U.S., and also served as QVC-U.S.’s primary returns center for hard goods. The building was significantly damaged as a result of the fire and related smoke and will be closed for the foreseeable future. The Company has taken steps to mitigate disruption to operations including diverting inbound orders to its other fulfillment centers and will continue to leverage its existing fulfillment centers in the near-term. For the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company incurred fire related costs including $134 million in loss on inventory, $87 million in loss on fixed assets, and $29 million in other fire related costs, including $21 million of costs that were not fully reimbursable by QVC's insurance policies, primarily related to related to shut-down pay and severance expense, that were netted with expected insurance recoveries (collectively, "Fire related costs, net"). While there can be no assurance, based on the provisions of QVC’s insurance policies and discussions with insurance carriers, the Company has determined that recovery of certain fire related costs is probable, and an insurance receivable balance of $129 million, net of $100 million of insurance proceeds received in advance, has been recorded as of December 31, 2021.
As of the date of this report, we are still in the process of assessing damage to property and inventory and submitting relevant insurance claims. There is approximately $117 million of inventory at the Rocky Mount facility that is currently being assessed for damage and is included in Inventories in the consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2021. We anticipate any additional inventory losses will be covered by our insurance policies. We expect to continue to record additional costs and recoveries until the property and inventory assessment is completed and the insurance claim is fully settled. While the Company has started taking steps to minimize the overall impact to the business, we expect a negative impact to net sales as a result of lost inventory as well as increased warehouse and logistics costs in 2022.
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Results of Operations- QVC Consolidated
QVC's operating results were as follows:
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
Net revenue $ 11,354 11,472 10,986
Operating costs and expenses:
Cost of goods sold (exclusive of depreciation, amortization and fire related costs, net shown separately below) 7,368 7,418 7,148
Operating 791 786 768
Selling, general and administrative, excluding transaction related costs and stock-based compensation 1,194 1,211 1,088
Adjusted OIBDA (defined below) 2,001 2,057 1,982
Fire related costs, net 21 - -
Impairment loss - - 147
Transaction related costs - - 1
Stock-based compensation 44 37 39
Depreciation 159 171 186
Amortization 270 282 282
Operating income 1,507 1,567 1,327
Other (expense) income:
Equity in losses of investee (2) (30) -
Gains (losses) on financial instruments 8 3 (5)
Interest expense, net (249) (257) (240)
Foreign currency (loss) gain (9) 6 (3)
Loss on extinguishment of debt (7) (42) -
Other income 11 - -
(248) (320) (248)
Income before income taxes 1,259 1,247 1,079
Income tax expense (408) (337) (262)
Net income 851 910 817
Less net income attributable to the noncontrolling interest (64) (58) (50)
Net income attributable to QVC, Inc. stockholder $ 787 852 767
Net revenue
Net revenue for each of QVC's segments was as follows:
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
QxH $ 8,277 8,505 8,277
QVC-International 3,077 2,967 2,709
Consolidated QVC $ 11,354 11,472 10,986
QVC's consolidated net revenue decreased 1.0% and increased 4.4% for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively, as compared to the corresponding prior years. The $118 million decrease in 2021 net revenue was primarily due to a 1.3% decrease in units sold driven by QxH, a decline of 0.8% in average selling price per unit ("ASP"), primarily driven by QxH, and a decrease of $18 million in shipping and handling revenue across both segments. These declines were partially offset by an $84 million decrease in estimated product returns, primarily driven by QxH, and $57 million in favorable foreign exchange rates.
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For 2020, the $486 million increase in net revenue was primarily due to a 2.6% increase in units sold, a $172 million decrease in estimated product returns, primarily driven by QxH, a $22 million increase in shipping and handling revenue across both segments and $54 million in favorable foreign exchange rates, which was partially offset by a slight decline in average selling price per unit ("ASP").
During the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, the changes in revenue and expenses were affected by changes in the exchange rates for the Japanese Yen, the Euro and the U.K. Pound Sterling. In the event the U.S. Dollar strengthens against these foreign currencies in the future, QVC's revenue and operating cash flow will be negatively affected.
In discussing our operating results, the term "currency exchange rates" refers to the currency exchange rates we use to convert the operating results for all countries where the functional currency is not the U.S. dollar. We calculate the effect of changes in currency exchange rates as the difference between current period activity translated using the prior period's currency exchange rates. Throughout our discussion, we refer to the results of this calculation as the impact of currency exchange rate fluctuations. When we refer to "constant currency operating results", this means operating results without the impact of the currency exchange rate fluctuations. The disclosure of constant currency amounts or results permits investors to understand better QVC’s underlying performance without the effects of currency exchange rate fluctuations.
The percentage change in net revenue for QVC's segments in U.S. Dollars and in constant currency was as follows:
Year ended December 31, 2021 Year ended December 31, 2020
U.S. Dollars Foreign Currency Exchange Impact Constant Currency U.S. Dollars Foreign Currency Exchange Impact Constant Currency
QxH (2.7) % - % (2.7) % 2.8 % - % 2.8 %
QVC-International 3.7 % 1.9 % 1.8 % 9.5 % 2.0 % 7.5 %
In 2021, the QxH net revenue decrease was primarily due to a 1.4% decrease in units shipped, a 1.7% decline in ASP and a $12 million decrease in shipping and handling revenue, partially offset by a $60 million decrease in estimated product returns. For the year ended December 31, 2021, QxH experienced shipped sales growth in apparel and accessories with declines in all other categories. The decrease in estimated product returns was primarily driven by a decrease in sales volume partially offset by a shift in product mix to higher return rate categories. QVC-International net revenue growth in constant currency was primarily due to a 1.8% increase in ASP, driven by ASP increases in Japan and the U.K., and a $24 million decrease in estimated product returns driven by Germany. These increases were partially offset by a 0.9% decrease in units shipped. QVC-International experienced shipped sales growth in constant currency in all categories except electronics and beauty.
In 2020, the QxH net revenue increase was primarily due to a 1.8% increase in units shipped, a $171 million decrease in estimated product returns and a $7 million increase in shipping and handling revenue, partially offset by a 1.3% decline in ASP. For the year ended December 31, 2020, QxH experienced shipped sales growth in home and accessories with declines in all other categories. The decrease in estimated product returns was primarily driven by a shift in product mix to lower return rate categories, partially offset by an increase in sales volume. The increase in shipping and handling revenue was primarily driven by the increase in units shipped and fewer promotional offers. QVC-International net revenue growth in constant currency was primarily due to a 4.6% increase in units shipped, driven by increases in units shipped across all markets, a 1.5% increase in ASP, driven by ASP increases in Germany and the U.K., and a $15 million increase in shipping and handling revenue driven by increases in all markets except Italy, primarily due to the increase in units shipped. QVC-International experienced shipped sales growth in constant currency in home, beauty and electronics with declines in all other categories.
Cost of goods sold (excluding depreciation, amortization and fire related costs, net)
QVC's cost of goods sold as a percentage of net revenue was 64.9%, 64.7%, and 65.1% for years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The increase in cost of goods sold as a percentage of revenue in 2021 is primarily due
to increased warehouse expenses driven by higher wages due to labor shortages and increased freight costs at QxH. These increases were partially offset by decreased obsolescence as a result of less aged inventory at QxH and product margin favorability. Product margin favorability was primarily driven by QVC-International, partially offset by margin pressure at QxH. For 2020, the decrease in cost of goods sold as a percentage of revenue in 2020 is primarily due to strategic promotional and pricing initiatives, which decreased product costs as a percentage of net revenue across both segments and favorable estimated product returns at QxH, which was partially offset by increased fulfillment costs at QxH, primarily related to increased freight charges.
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Operating expenses
QVC's operating expenses are principally comprised of commissions, order processing and customer service expenses, credit card processing fees and telecommunications expenses. Operating expenses increased $5 million or 1% and $18 million or 2% for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively as compared to the corresponding prior year. Operating expenses were 7.0%, 6.9% and 7.0% of net revenue for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively.
The increase in 2021 was primarily due to a $9 million increase in customer service expenses, driven by QxH, due to higher labor costs. This increase was partially offset by a decrease in commissions and credit card fees primarily due to lower sales volume at QxH.
The increase in 2020 was primarily due to a $15 million increase in customer service expenses primarily at QxH, a $6 million increase in credit card fees across both segments and a $5 million increase due to unfavorable exchange rates partially offset by a $6 million decrease in commissions, primarily at QxH. The increase in customer service expenses is primarily driven by increased call volume during the year. The increase in credit card fees is primarily due to increased sales and lower sales penetration of our U.S. Private Label Credit Cards, which do not charge certain credit card fees. The decrease in commissions is primarily due to increased digital penetration.
Selling, general and administrative expenses (excluding transaction related costs and stock-based compensation)
QVC's selling, general and administrative expenses (excluding transaction related costs as defined below and stock-based compensation) include personnel, information technology ("IT"), provision for credit losses, production costs, marketing and advertising expenses. Such expenses decreased $17 million to 10.5% of net revenue for the year ended December 31, 2021 as compared to the prior year and increased $123 million to 10.6% of net revenue for the year ended December 31, 2020 as compared to the prior year.
The decrease in 2021 was primarily due to a $74 million decrease in personnel costs across both segments. and a $39 million decrease in estimated credit losses primarily at QxH. These decreases were partially offset by an $80 million increase in marketing costs primarily at QxH, a $9 million increase due to unfavorable exchange rates, and an increase in IT expenses. The decrease related to personnel costs was primarily driven by a decrease to our incentive pay across both segments. The decrease to estimated credit losses was due to lower loss rates in the current year, a favorable shift in product category mix and favorable adjustments of prior periods based on actual collections. The increase in marketing costs in 2021 was driven by greater investment in advertising in addition to the increasing cost of digital marketing.
The increase in 2020 was primarily due to a $111 million increase in personnel costs across both segments, a $53 million increase in online marketing primarily at QxH and $7 million in unfavorable exchange rates. These increases were partially offset by a $34 million decrease in estimated credit losses primarily at QxH, a $14 million decline in outside services primarily at QxH and a $10 million decrease in travel expenses across both segments. The increase related to personnel costs was primarily due to an increase to our estimated incentive pay across both segments and a work from home allowance as a result of COVID-19, which was partially offset by the closure of our operations in France in 2019. The decrease to estimated credit losses was due to favorable adjustments based on actual collections, a decrease in the number of installment counts offered to and taken by customers, enhanced risk screening and a favorable shift in product category mix. The decrease in travel expenses was primarily due to less travel as a result of COVID-19.
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Fire related costs, net
Fire related costs, net includes expenses related to the Rocky Mount fulfillment center fire net of expected and received insurance recoveries. QVC recorded $21 million of fire related costs, net for the year ended December 31, 2021 including losses on inventory and fixed assets that were offset by insurance recoveries, as well as costs that were not fully reimbursable by QVC's insurance policies primarily related to shut-down pay and severance expense. There were no fire related costs, net recorded by QVC for the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019.
Impairment loss
There was no impairment loss recorded by QVC for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020. QVC recorded an impairment loss of $147 million for the year ended December 31, 2019, related to the decrease in the fair value of the HSN indefinite-lived tradename within the QxH segment as a result of the quantitative assessment that was performed by the Company (refer to note 6 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements).
Transaction related costs
Transaction related costs include expenses related to the closure of operations in France. There were no transaction related costs recorded by QVC for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020. QVC recorded $1 million of transaction related costs for the year ended December 31, 2019.
Stock-based compensation
Stock-based compensation includes compensation related to options and restricted stock granted to certain officers and employees. QVC recorded $44 million, $37 million and $39 million of stock-based compensation expense for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The increase in 2021 was primarily due to fewer cancellations of restricted stock awards and the issuance of awards to certain officers. There was no significant decrease for 2020.
Depreciation and amortization
Depreciation and amortization consisted of the following:
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
Affiliate agreements $ - 2 2
Customer relationships 47 49 49
Other technology 15 15 15
Acquisition related amortization 62 66 66
Property and equipment 159 171 186
Software amortization 101 85 85
Channel placement amortization and related expenses 107 131 131
Total depreciation and amortization $ 429 453 468
For the year ended December 31, 2021, property and equipment depreciation decreased primarily due to the sale of QVC's Lancaster and San Antonio facilities during 2021. The increase in software amortization for the year ended December 31, 2021 is due to software additions including QVC's new Enterprise Resource Planning (“ERP”) system. The decrease in channel placement amortization and related expenses for the year ended December 31, 2021 was due to lower subscriber counts. For the year ended December 31, 2020, property and equipment depreciation decreased primarily due to the disposition of assets in France in 2019.
Equity in losses of investee
Prior to September 2021, the Company had a joint venture with CNR Media Group, a limited liability company owned by China National Radio (''CNR''). The Company owned a 49% interest in a CNR subsidiary, CNR Home Shopping Co., Ltd. (''CNRS'') that was accounted for as an equity method investment. In September 2021, QVC sold its interest in CNRS which resulted in an immaterial loss for the year ended December 31, 2021 recorded in equity in losses of investee in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations. For the year ended December 31, 2020, as a result of an impairment review, the Company reduced its investment in CNRS by $29 million which was recorded as equity in losses of investee in the consolidated statement of operations.
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Gains (losses) on financial instruments
Gains (losses) on financial instruments are comprised of changes in the fair value of the following:
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
Exchangeable senior debentures $ (144)
Financial instruments 150
Interest rate swap 2 3 (5)
Gains (losses) on financial instruments $ 8 3 (5)
For the year ended December 31, 2021 there was $8 million in gains on financial instruments which increased in comparison to the prior year primarily due to gains on derivative instruments used to hedge upward price fluctuations of the MSI Exchangeables partially offset by losses on the MSI Exchangeables. All MSI Exchangeables not surrendered for exchange were redeemed on December 13, 2021 and the related hedges were unwound in the fourth quarter of 2021 (see "Exchangeable Senior Debentures" below). For the years ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 there was $3 million in gains and $5 million in losses on financial instruments, respectively, which were primarily related to the change in the fair value of the interest rate swaps (see "Interest Rate Swap Arrangements" below).
Interest expense, net
For the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, consolidated net interest expense decreased $8 million and increased $17 million, respectively, as compared to the corresponding prior years. The decrease in net interest expense in 2021 is primarily related to related party interest income on the LIC note. The increase in net interest expense in 2020 is primarily related to refinancing our borrowings on our senior secured credit facility with newly issued senior secured notes, which have higher interest rates, partially offset by lower outstanding debt balances due to repayment of amounts outstanding on the senior secured credit facility.
Foreign currency (loss) gain
Certain loans between QVC and its subsidiaries are deemed to be short-term in nature, and accordingly, the translation of these loans is recorded in the consolidated statements of operations. The change in foreign currency (loss) gain was also due to variances in interest and operating payables balances between QVC and its international subsidiaries denominated in the currency of the subsidiary and the effects of currency exchange rate changes on those balances.
Loss on extinguishment of debt
QVC recorded a $7 million loss on extinguishment of debt during the year ended December 31, 2021 primarily due to the exchange and redemption of the MSI Exchangeables. QVC recorded a $42 million loss on extinguishment of debt during the year ended December 31, 2020 due to the redemption of the 5.125% Senior Secured Notes due 2022 (the "2022 Notes"). There was no loss on extinguishment of debt recorded for the year ended December 31, 2019.
Income taxes
Our effective tax rate was 32.4%, 27.0% and 24.3% for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, respectively. The effective tax rate increased in 2021 in comparison to 2020, due to the impact of the U.S. global intangible low-taxed income rules (which the Company treats as a period cost), relating to the redemption and exchange of all the outstanding MSI Exchangeables during 2021. The effective tax rate increased in 2020 in comparison to 2019, due to the absence of an income tax benefit realized in 2019 as a result of the write-off in 2019 of an investment and notes in a foreign subsidiary.
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Adjusted Operating Income before Depreciation and Amortization ("Adjusted OIBDA")
To provide investors with additional information regarding our financial statements, we disclose Adjusted OIBDA, which is a non-GAAP measure. QVC defines Adjusted OIBDA as operating income plus depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation, fire related costs, net, transaction related costs and impairment loss. QVC's chief operating decision maker and management team use this measure of performance in conjunction with other measures to evaluate the businesses and make decisions about allocating resources among the businesses. QVC believes that this is an important indicator of the operational strength and performance of the segments by identifying those items that are not directly a reflection of each segment's performance or indicative of ongoing business trends. In addition, this measure allows QVC to view operating results, perform analytical comparisons and perform benchmarking among its businesses and identify strategies to improve performance. Accordingly, Adjusted OIBDA should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, operating income, net income, cash flow provided by operating activities and other measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with U.S generally accepted accounting principles (" U.S. GAAP").
The primary material limitations associated with the use of Adjusted OIBDA as compared to U.S. GAAP results are (i) it may not be comparable to similarly titled measures used by other companies in the industry, and (ii) it excludes financial information that some may consider important in evaluating QVC's performance. QVC compensates for these limitations by providing disclosure of the difference between Adjusted OIBDA and U.S. GAAP results, including providing a reconciliation of Adjusted OIBDA to U.S. GAAP results, to enable investors to perform their own analysis of QVC's operating results. The following table provides a reconciliation of operating income to Adjusted OIBDA.
Years ended December 31,
(in millions) 2021 2020 2019
Operating income $ 1,507 1,567 1,327
Depreciation and amortization 429 453 468
Stock-based compensation 44 37 39
Fire related costs, net 21 - -
Transaction related costs - - 1
Impairment loss - - 147
Adjusted OIBDA $ 2,001 2,057 1,982
QVC Adjusted OIBDA decreased by $56 million and increased by $75 million for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively, as compared to the corresponding prior year.
The decrease for the year ended December 31, 2021 is due to a $108 million decrease at QxH partially offset by a $52 million increase at QVC-International. The increase for the year ended December 31, 2020 is due to a $64 million increase in QVC-International and an $11 million increase in QxH.
Seasonality
QVC's business is seasonal due to a higher volume of sales in the fourth calendar quarter related to year-end holiday shopping. In recent years, QVC has earned, on average, between 21% and 24% of its revenue in each of the first three quarters of the year and between 30% and 32% of its revenue in the fourth quarter of the year.
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Financial Position, Liquidity and Capital Resources
Exchangeable Senior Debentures
3.5% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2031
As part of the common control transaction with Qurate Retail that was completed in December 2020, QVC Global, a subsidiary of the Company, became the primary co-obligor of the MSI Exchangeables, exchangeable for common stock of Motorola Solutions, Inc. (“MSI common stock”), and acquired all of the rights and liabilities associated with certain related hedges. The Company elected to account for its MSI Exchangeables using the fair value option. Accordingly, changes in the fair value of these instruments have been recognized as losses on financial instruments in the statements of operations and in other comprehensive income as it relates to instrument specific credit risk on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income. The Company classified for financial reporting purposes the MSI Exchangeables as a current liability as the MSI Exchangeables were exchangeable at the option of the holder at any time.
Prior to 2021, the Company entered into certain derivative transactions in order to hedge against upward price fluctuations on certain shares. Such derivative instruments have been recognized in the other current assets line item in the consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2020, and were marked to fair value each reporting period. The changes in fair value have been recognized in (losses) gains on financial instruments in the statement of operations. On October 27, 2021, a notice was issued to all holders to redeem any and all outstanding MSI Exchangeables on December 13, 2021 that were not previously properly surrendered for exchange. The Company terminated such derivative transactions in October 2021 and entered into a forward purchase transaction to acquire shares that were used to settle exchanges of the MSI Exchangeables. All MSI Exchangeables not surrendered for exchange were redeemed on December 13, 2021 and the related forward was unwound in the fourth quarter of 2021. As a result of the exchange and the redemption, the Company recorded a loss on extinguishment of debt in the consolidated statements of operations of $7 million for the year ended December 31, 2021.
Senior Secured Notes
All of QVC's senior secured notes are secured by the capital stock of QVC and certain of its subsidiaries and have equal priority to the senior secured credit facility. With the exception of the 6.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2067 (the "2067 Notes") and the 6.25% Senior Secured Notes due 2068 (the "2068 Notes"), for which interest is payable quarterly, the interest on QVC's senior secured notes is payable semi-annually.
Senior Secured Credit Facility
On October 27, 2021, QVC entered into the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement with QVC, Zulily, CBI, and QVC Global, each a direct or indirect wholly owned subsidiary of Qurate Retail. The Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement is a multi-currency facility providing for a $3.25 billion revolving credit facility, with a $450 million sub-limit for letters of credit and an alternative currency revolving sub-limit equal to 50% of the revolving commitments thereunder. The Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement may be borrowed by any Borrower (see note 14 to the accompanying consolidated financial statements), with each Borrower jointly and severally liable for the outstanding borrowings. Borrowings bear interest at either the alternate base rate (“ABR Rate”) or a LIBOR-based rate (or the applicable non-U.S. Dollar equivalent rate) (“Term Benchmark/RFR Rate”) at the applicable Borrower’s election in each case plus a margin. Borrowings that are ABR Rate loans will bear interest at a per annum rate equal to the base rate plus a margin that varies between 0.25% and 0.625% depending on the Borrowers’ combined ratio of consolidated total debt to consolidated EBITDA (the “consolidated leverage ratio”). Borrowings that are Term Benchmark/RFR Rate loans will bear interest at a per annum rate equal to the applicable rate plus a margin that varies between 1.25% and 1.625% depending on the Borrowers’ consolidated leverage ratio. Each loan may be prepaid at any time and from time to time without penalty other than customary breakage costs. No mandatory prepayments will be required other than when borrowings and letter of credit usage exceed availability; provided that, if Zulily, CBI, QVC Global or any other borrower (other than QVC) is removed, at the election of QVC, as a borrower thereunder, all of its loans must be repaid and its letters of credit are terminated or cash collateralized. Any amounts prepaid may be reborrowed. The facility matures on October 27, 2026. Payment of loans may be accelerated following certain customary events of default.
QVC had $2.75 billion available under the terms of the senior secured credit facility at December 31, 2021, on which Zulily and CBI may also borrow. The interest rate on the senior secured credit facility was 1.5% at December 31, 2021.
The payment and performance of the Borrowers’ obligations under the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement are guaranteed by each of QVC’s, QVC Global’s, Zulily’s and CBI’s Material Domestic Subsidiaries (as defined in the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement), if any, and certain other subsidiaries of any Borrower that such Borrower has chosen to provide guarantees. Further, the borrowings under the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement are secured,
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pari passu with QVC’s existing notes, by a pledge of all of QVC’s equity interests. The borrowings under the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement are also secured by a pledge of all of Zulily’s and CBI’s equity interests.
The Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement contains certain affirmative and negative covenants, including certain restrictions on the Borrowers and each of their respective restricted subsidiaries (subject to certain exceptions) with respect to, among other things: incurring additional indebtedness; creating liens on property or assets; making certain loans or investments; selling or disposing of assets; paying certain dividends and other restricted payments; dissolving, consolidating or merging; entering into certain transactions with affiliates; entering into sale or leaseback transactions; restricting subsidiary distributions; and limiting the Borrowers’ consolidated leverage ratio.
Parent Issuer and Subsidiary Guarantor Summarized Financial Information
The following information contains the summarized financial information for the combined parent (QVC, Inc.) and subsidiary guarantors (Affiliate Relations Holdings, Inc.; Affiliate Investment, Inc.; AMI 2, Inc.; ER Marks, Inc.; QVC Global Corporate Holdings, LLC; QVC GCH Company, LLC; QVC Rocky Mount, Inc.; QVC San Antonio, LLC; QVC Global Holdings I, Inc.; HSN, Inc; HSNi, LLC; HSN Holding LLC; AST Sub, Inc.; Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.P.; Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.L.C; Ingenious Designs LLC; NLG Merger Corp.; Ventana Television, Inc.; and Ventana Television Holdings, Inc.) pursuant to Rules 3-10, 13-01 and 13-02 of Regulation S-X.
This consolidated summarized financial information has been prepared from the Company's financial information on the same basis of accounting as the Company's consolidated financial statements. Transactions between the parent and subsidiary guarantors presented on a combined basis have been eliminated. The principal elimination entries relate to investments in subsidiaries and intercompany balances and transactions, such as management fees, royalty revenue and expense, interest income and expense and gains on intercompany asset transfers. Goodwill and other intangible assets have been allocated to the subsidiaries based on management’s estimates. Certain costs have been partially allocated to all of the subsidiaries of the Company.
The subsidiary guarantors are 100% owned by the Company. All guarantees are full and unconditional and are joint and several. There are no significant restrictions on the ability of the Company to obtain funds from its U.S. subsidiaries, including the guarantors, by dividend or loan.
Summarized financial information for the most recent annual period was as follows:
Combined Parent-QVC, Inc. and Subsidiary Guarantors
December 31, 2021
Current assets $ 2,734
Intercompany receivable from non-guarantor subsidiaries (3,040)
Note receivable - related party 1,740
Noncurrent assets 9,027
Current liabilities 1,840
Noncurrent liabilities 5,678
Combined Parent-QVC, Inc. and Subsidiary Guarantors
Year ended
December 31, 2021
Net revenue $ 9,292
Net revenue less cost of goods sold 4,090
Income before taxes 836
Net income 851
Net income attributable to QVC, Inc. Stockholder 787
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Other Debt Related Information
QVC was in compliance with all of its debt covenants as of December 31, 2021.
The weighted average interest rate applicable to all of the outstanding debt (excluding finance leases) prior to amortization of bond discounts and related debt issuance costs was 4.7% as of December 31, 2021.
As of December 31, 2021 and 2020, outstanding trade letters of credit totaled $18 million and $13 million, respectively.
There are no restrictions under the debt agreements on QVC's ability to pay dividends or make other restricted payments if QVC is not in default on its senior secured notes or the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement and (i) with respect to QVC’s senior secured notes, QVC's consolidated leverage ratio would be no greater than 3.5 to 1.0 and (ii) with respect to the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, the consolidated leverage ratio for QVC, QVC Global, Zulily and CBI, would be no greater than 4.0 to 1.0. As a result, Qurate Retail will, in many instances, be permitted to rely on QVC's cash flow for servicing Qurate Retail's debt and for other purposes, including repurchases of Qurate Retail's common stock, paying dividends to Qurate Retail's shareholders, including quarterly cash dividends to holders of Qurate Retail's Series A Cumulative Redeemable Preferred Stock (Nasdaq: QRTEP), or to fund acquisitions or other operational requirements of Qurate Retail and its subsidiaries. These events may increase accumulated deficit or require QVC to borrow under the Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, increasing QVC's leverage and decreasing liquidity. QVC has made significant distributions to Qurate Retail in the past. See “Item 1. Business - Qurate Retail Relationship and Related Party Transactions.”
Interest Rate Swap Arrangements
In July 2019, the Company entered into a three-year interest swap arrangement with a notional amount of $125 million to mitigate the interest rate risk associated with interest payments related to its variable rate debt. The swap arrangement did not qualify as a cash flow hedge under U.S. GAAP and the fair value of the swap instrument was in a net liability position of $1 million and $3 million as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The swap arrangement was included in accrued liabilities and other long-term liabilities as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
On December 31, 2018, QVC entered into a thirteen month interest rate swap arrangement that effectively converted $250 million of its variable rate bank credit facility to a fixed rate of 1.05% which expired in January 2020.
Changes in the fair value of the swaps are reflected in losses on financial instruments in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations.
General
Historically, QVC's primary sources of cash have been cash provided by operating activities and borrowings. In general, QVC uses this cash to fund its operations, make capital purchases, make dividend payments to Qurate Retail, make interest payments and minimize QVC's outstanding senior secured credit facility balance.
As of December 31, 2021, substantially all of QVC's cash and cash equivalents were invested in AAA rated money market funds and time deposits with banks rated equal to or above A.
Additional Cash Flow Information
During the year ended December 31, 2021, QVC's primary uses of cash were $963 million of dividends to Qurate Retail, $625 million of payments for issuances of financial instruments, $402 million of principal payments on debt and finance lease obligations, $397 million of capital and television distribution rights expenditures and $60 million in dividend payments from QVC-Japan to Mitsui. These uses of cash were funded primarily with $1,169 million of cash provided by operating activities, $705 million of principal borrowings from the senior secured credit facility and $311 million of proceeds from settlements of financial instruments. As of December 31, 2021, QVC's cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash balance was $519 million.
As of December 31, 2021, $272 million of the $519 million in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash was held by foreign subsidiaries. Cash in foreign subsidiaries is available for domestic purposes with no significant tax consequences upon repatriation to the U.S. QVC accrues taxes on the unremitted earnings of its international subsidiaries. Approximately 79% of this foreign cash balance was that of QVC-Japan. QVC owns 60% of QVC-Japan and shares all profits and losses with the 40% minority interest holder, Mitsui. We believe that we currently have appropriate legal structures in place to repatriate foreign cash as tax efficiently as possible and meet the business needs of QVC.
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During the year ended December 31, 2020, QVC's primary uses of cash were $1,236 million of principal payments on debt and finance lease obligations, $1,184 million of dividends to Qurate Retail, $500 million of principal repayments of our senior secured notes, $274 million of capital and television distribution rights expenditures and $62 million in dividend payments from QVC-Japan to Mitsui. These uses of cash were funded primarily with $1,075 million from the issuance of the 2027 Notes and 2028 Notes, $112 million of principal borrowings from the senior secured credit facility and $2,234 million of cash provided by operating activities. As of December 31, 2020, QVC's cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash balance was $690 million.
The change in cash provided by operating activities for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 compared to the previous corresponding years was primarily due to a change in working capital items. Working capital at any specific point in time is subject to many variables, including seasonality, inventory management, the timing of cash receipts and payments, vendor payment terms, and fluctuations in foreign exchange rates.
As of December 31, 2020, $380 million of the $690 million in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash was held by foreign subsidiaries. Approximately 63% of this foreign cash balance was that of QVC-Japan.
During the year ended December 31, 2019, QVC's primary uses of cash were $2,599 million of principal payments on debt and finance lease obligations, $879 million of dividends to Qurate Retail, $425 million of capital and television distribution rights expenditures, $400 million of principal repayments of our senior secured notes, $40 million in dividend payments from QVC-Japan to Mitsui and $4 million of other financing activities. These uses of cash were funded primarily with $2,496 million of principal borrowings from the senior secured credit facility, $500 million from the issuance of the 2068 Notes, $50 million in capital contributions from Qurate Retail and $1,322 million of cash provided by operating activities. As of December 31, 2019, QVC's cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash balance was $569 million.
Other
QVC’s material cash requirements for the next year, outside of normal operating expenses, include the costs to service outstanding debt, expenditures for affiliation agreements with television providers, and capital expenditures expected to be between $210 and $240 million. The Company also may make dividend payments to Qurate Retail. Refer to the off-balance sheet arrangements and aggregate contractual obligations table below for a summary of other material cash requirements. The Company expects that cash on hand and cash provided by operating activities in future periods and outstanding borrowing capacity will be sufficient to fund projected uses of cash.
QVC has contingent liabilities related to legal and tax proceedings and other matters arising in the ordinary course of business. Although it is reasonably possible QVC may incur losses upon the conclusion of such matters, an estimate of any loss or range of loss cannot be made. In the opinion of management, it is expected that amounts, if any, that may be required to satisfy such contingencies will not be material in relation to the Company's consolidated financial statements.
Off-balance Sheet Arrangements and Aggregate Contractual Obligations
Information concerning the amount and timing of cash requirements, both accrued and off-balance sheet, under our contractual obligations at December 31, 2021 is summarized below:
Payments due by period
(in millions) 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Thereafter Total
Long-term debt (1) $ - 750 600 600 481 2,500 4,931
Interest payments (2) 236 219 189 161 145 2,423 3,373
Finance lease obligations (including imputed interest) 27 27 26 23 22 67 192
Operating lease obligations 37 29 25 21 20 148 280
Purchase obligations and other (3) 3,209 39 14 7 6 4 3,279
(1) Amounts exclude finance lease obligations and the issue discounts on the 4.375%, 4.85%, 4.45%, 5.45% and 5.95% Senior Secured Notes.
(2) Amounts (i) are based on the terms of our senior secured notes and exchangeable senior debentures, (ii) assumes that our existing debt is repaid at maturity and (iii) exclude finance lease obligations.
(3) Amounts include open purchase orders for inventory and non-inventory purchases along with other contractual obligations, regardless of our ability to cancel such obligations.
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Critical Accounting Estimates
The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires QVC to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Estimates include, but are not limited to, sales returns, uncollectible receivables, inventory obsolescence, depreciable lives of fixed assets, internally developed software, valuation of acquired intangible assets and goodwill, and income taxes. QVC bases its estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that QVC believes to be reasonable under the circumstances. These estimates form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. Actual results may differ from those estimates under different assumptions or conditions. In addition, as circumstances change, QVC may revise the basis of its estimates accordingly.
Goodwill and long-lived assets
QVC's long-lived asset valuations are primarily comprised of the annual assessment of the recoverability of goodwill and other nonamortizable intangibles, such as tradenames, and the evaluation of the recoverability of other long-lived assets upon certain triggering events. If the carrying value of long-lived assets exceeds their undiscounted cash flows, QVC is required to write the carrying value down to the fair value. Any such writedown is included as an impairment loss in the consolidated statements of operations. A high degree of judgment is required to estimate the fair value of the long-lived assets. QVC may use quoted market prices, prices for similar assets, present value techniques and other valuation techniques to prepare these estimates. QVC may need to make estimates of future cash flows and discount rates as well as other assumptions in order to implement these valuation techniques. Due to the high degree of judgment involved in estimation techniques, any value ultimately derived from the long-lived assets may differ from the estimate of fair value. As all of QVC's operating segments have long-lived assets, this critical accounting estimate affects the financial position and results of operations of each segment.
QVC utilizes a qualitative assessment for determining whether step one of the goodwill impairment analysis is necessary. The accounting guidance permits entities to first assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount as a basis for determining whether an impairment exists. In evaluating goodwill on a qualitative basis, QVC reviews the business performance of each reporting unit and evaluates other relevant factors as identified in the relevant accounting guidance to determine whether it is more likely than not that an indicated impairment exists for any of our reporting units. A reporting unit is defined in accounting guidance in accordance with U.S. GAAP as an operating segment or one level below an operating segment (also known as a component). A component of an operating segment is a reporting unit if the component constitutes a business for which discrete financial information is available and segment management regularly reviews the operating results of that component. The Company considers whether there were any negative macroeconomic conditions, industry specific conditions, market changes, increased competition, increased costs in doing business, management challenges and the legal environments, and how these factors might impact country specific performance in future periods.
For the year ended December 31, 2021, QVC only performed a qualitative assessment for its QxH and QVC-International reporting segments as it was more likely than not that the fair values exceeded the carrying values for each of the reporting units. There was no goodwill impairment recorded for the year ended December 31, 2021.
QVC utilizes a qualitative assessment to evaluate the risk of impairment of indefinite-lived intangible assets. If deemed necessary based on qualitative factors, a quantitative test is used to determine if the carrying value of an indefinite-lived intangible asset exceeds its fair value. If the carrying value exceeds the fair value, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to that excess in accordance with FASB Accounting Standards Codification 350-30-35. There was no impairment loss recorded for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020. QVC recorded a $147 million impairment loss related to its HSN indefinite-lived tradename during the year ended December 31, 2019. The carrying value of the HSN indefinite-lived tradename as of December 31, 2021 is $450 million.
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The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill by operating segment for the years ended December 31, 2021 and 2020 were as follows:
(in millions) QxH QVC-International Total
Balance as of December 31, 2019 $ 5,112 859 5,971
Exchange rate fluctuations - 63 63
Balance as of December 31, 2020 5,112 922 6,034
Exchange rate fluctuations - (66) (66)
Balance as of December 31, 2021 $ 5,112 856 5,968
Retail related adjustments and allowances
QVC records adjustments and allowances for sales returns, inventory obsolescence and uncollectible receivables. Each of these adjustments is estimated based on historical experience. Sales returns are calculated as a percent of sales and are netted against revenue in the consolidated statement of operations. For the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, sales returns represented 15.3%, 15.6% and 17.3% of gross product revenue, respectively. The inventory obsolescence reserve is calculated as a percent of inventory at the end of a reporting period based on, among other factors, the aging of our inventory balance, the likely method of disposition, and the estimated recoverable values based on historical experience of inventory markdowns and liquidation. The change in the reserve is included in cost of goods sold in the consolidated statements of operations. As of December 31, 2021, inventory was $1,355 million, which was net of the obsolescence reserve of $122 million. As of December 31, 2020, inventory was $1,119 million, which was net of the obsolescence reserve of $170 million. The allowance for credit losses is calculated as a percent of accounts receivable at the end of a reporting period, and it is based on historical experience, with the change in such allowance being recorded as a provision for credit losses in selling, general and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations. Trade accounts receivable (including installment payment, credit card and customer receivables) were $1,521 million and $1,630 million, as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Allowance for credit losses related to uncollectible trade accounts receivable was $86 million and $108 million as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Each of these adjustments requires management judgment. Actual results could differ from management's estimates.
Accounting for income taxes
QVC is required to estimate the amount of tax payable or refundable for the current year and the deferred income tax liabilities and assets for the future tax consequences of events that have been reflected in the financial statements or tax returns for each taxing jurisdiction in which QVC operates. This process requires management to make judgments regarding the timing and probability of the ultimate tax impact of the various agreements and transactions into which QVC enters. Based on these judgments, QVC may record tax reserves or adjustments to valuation allowances on deferred tax assets to reflect the expected realizability of future tax benefits. Tax benefits from uncertain tax positions may be recognized when it is more likely than not that the position will be sustained. A valuation allowance is provided when it is more likely than not that some portion of a deferred tax asset will not be realized. Actual income taxes could vary from these estimates due to future changes in income tax law, significant changes in the jurisdictions in which QVC operates, QVC's inability to generate sufficient future taxable income or unpredicted results from the final determination of each year's liability by taxing authorities. These changes could have a significant impact on QVC's financial position.
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ITEM 7A. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
Item 7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
QVC is exposed to market risk in the normal course of business due to ongoing investing and financial activities and the conduct of operations by subsidiaries in different foreign countries. Market risk refers to the risk of loss arising from adverse changes in stock prices, interest rates and foreign currency exchange rates. The risk of loss can be assessed from the perspective of adverse changes in fair values, cash flows and future earnings. QVC has established procedures and internal processes governing the management of market risks and the use of financial instruments to manage exposure to such risks.
Interest rate risk
QVC is exposed to changes in interest rates primarily as a result of borrowing activities. Over the long-term, QVC manages the exposure to interest rates by maintaining what QVC believes is an appropriate mix of fixed and variable rate debt. QVC believes this best protects itself from interest rate risk.
The table below summarizes the Company’s debt obligations, related interest rates and fair value of debt at December 31, 2021:
(in millions, except percentages) 2022 2023 2024 2025 2026 Thereafter Total Fair Value
Fixed rate debt (1) (2) $ - 750 600 600 - 2,500 4,450 4,595
Weighted average interest rate on fixed rate debt - % 4.4 % 4.9 % 4.5 % - % 5.4 % 5.0 % N/A
Variable rate debt (1) $ - - - - 481 - 481 481
Average interest rate on variable rate debt - % - % - % - % 1.5 % - % 1.5 % N/A
(1) Amounts exclude finance lease obligations and the issue discounts on the 4.375%, 4.45%, 4.85%, 5.45% and 5.95% Senior Secured Notes.
(2) Amounts exclude impact related to interest rate swaps, which we have discussed further below.
N/A - Not applicable.
In July 2019, the Company entered into a three-year interest swap arrangement with a notional amount of $125 million to mitigate the interest rate risk associated with interest payments related to its variable rate debt. The swap arrangement did not qualify as a cash flow hedge under U.S. GAAP and the fair value of the swap instrument was in a net liability position of $1 million and less than $3 million as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively. The swap arrangement was included in accrued liabilities and other long-term liabilities as of December 31, 2021 and 2020, respectively.
Changes in the fair value of the swaps are reflected in gains (losses) on financial instruments in the consolidated statements of operations.
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Foreign currency exchange rate risk
QVC is exposed to foreign exchange rate fluctuations related to the monetary assets and liabilities and the financial results of its foreign subsidiaries. Assets and liabilities of foreign subsidiaries for which the functional currency is the local currency are translated into U.S. Dollars at period-end exchange rates, and the statements of operations are translated at the average exchange rate for the period. Exchange rate fluctuations on translating foreign currency financial statements into U.S. Dollars that result in unrealized gains or losses are referred to as translation adjustments. Cumulative translation adjustments are recorded in other comprehensive income as a separate component of stockholder's equity. Transactions denominated in currencies other than the functional currency are recorded based on exchange rates at the time such transactions arise. Subsequent changes in exchange rates result in transaction gains and losses, which are reflected in income as unrealized (based on period-end transactions) or realized upon settlement of the transactions. Cash flows from operations in foreign countries are translated at the average rate for the period. Accordingly, QVC may experience economic loss and a negative impact on earnings and equity with respect to its holdings solely as a result of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. QVC's reported Adjusted OIBDA for the years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019 would have been impacted by approximately $6 million, $5 million, and $5 million, respectively, for every 1% change in foreign currency exchange rates relative to the U.S. Dollar.
The senior secured credit facility provides QVC with the ability to borrow in multiple currencies. This allows QVC to somewhat mitigate foreign currency exchange rate risks. As of December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019, no borrowings in foreign currencies were outstanding.

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ITEM 8. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
Item 8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
The consolidated financial statements of QVC are filed under this Item 8, beginning on page II-25. The financial statement schedules required by Regulation S-X are filed under Item 15 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

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ITEM 9. CHANGES IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
Item 9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
None.
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ITEM 9A. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
Item 9A. Controls and Procedures
Disclosure Controls and Procedures
In accordance with Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, (the "Exchange Act")
the Company carried out an evaluation, under the supervision and with the participation of management, including its chief executive officer and its principal accounting and financial officer (the “Executives”), of the effectiveness of its disclosure controls and procedures as of the end of the period covered by this report. Based on that evaluation, the Executives concluded that the Company's disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of December 31, 2021 to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in its reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and forms.
Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
There has been no change in the Company’s internal control over financial reporting that occurred during the Company’s quarter ended December 31, 2021, that has materially affected, or is reasonably likely to materially affect, the Company’s internal control over financial reporting.
Management’s Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting
See page II-22 for Management's Report on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting.
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ITEM 9B. OTHER INFORMATION
Item 9B. Other Information
None.

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ITEM 10. DIRECTORS, EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
Item 10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
Intentionally omitted in accordance with General Instruction I(2)(c) of Form 10-K.

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ITEM 11. EXECUTIVE COMPENSATION
Item 11. Executive Compensation
Intentionally omitted in accordance with General Instruction I(2)(c) of Form 10-K.

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ITEM 12. SECURITY OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS
Item 12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
Intentionally omitted in accordance with General Instruction I(2)(c) of Form 10-K.

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ITEM 13. CERTAIN RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS
Item 13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
Intentionally omitted in accordance with General Instruction I(2)(c) of Form 10-K.

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ITEM 14. PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTING FEES AND SERVICES
Item 14. Principal Accounting Fees and Services
Audit Fees and All Other Fees
The following table presents fees for professional audit services rendered by KPMG LLP and its international affiliates for the audit of QVC's consolidated financial statements for 2021 and 2020 and fees billed for other services rendered by KPMG LLP:
Year ended December 31,
2021 2020
Audit fees (1) $ 6,471,976 $ 6,492,046
Audit related fees - -
Audit and audit related fees 6,471,976 6,492,046
Tax fees (2) 94,533 9,938
Total fees $ 6,566,509 $ 6,501,984
(1) Audit fees include fees for the audit and quarterly reviews of QVC's 2021 and 2020 consolidated financial statements, statutory audits, and reviews of registration statements and issuance of consents.
(2) Tax fees consist of tax compliance and consultations regarding the tax implications of certain transactions.
Policy on Pre-Approval of Audit and Permissible Non-Audit Services of Independent Auditor
The audit committee of Qurate Retail has adopted a policy regarding the pre-approval of all audit and permissible non-audit services provided by QVC's independent auditor. Pursuant to this policy, Qurate Retail's audit committee has approved the engagement of QVC's independent auditor to provide the following services (all of which are collectively referred to as "pre-approved services"):
•Audit services as specified in the policy, including (i) financial audits of QVC and its subsidiaries, (ii) services associated with QVC's registration statements, periodic reports and other documents filed or issued in connection with securities offerings (including comfort letters and consents), (iii) attestations of management reports on QVC's internal controls and (iv) consultations with management as to accounting or disclosure treatment of transactions;
•Audit related services as specified in the policy, including (i) due diligence services, (ii) financial statement audits of employee benefit plans, (iii) consultations with management as to the accounting or disclosure treatment of transactions, (iv) attest services not required by statute or regulation, (v) certain audits incremental to the audit of QVC's consolidated financial statements, (vi) closing balance sheet audits related to dispositions, and (vii) general assistance with implementation of the requirements of certain SEC rules or listing standards; and
•Tax services as specified in the policy, including federal, state, local and international tax planning, compliance and review services, and tax due diligence and advice regarding mergers and acquisitions.
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Notwithstanding the foregoing general pre-approval, if an individual project involving the provision of pre-approved services is expected to result in fees in excess of $100,000, or if individual projects under $100,000 are expected to total $500,000 during the period between the regularly scheduled meetings of Qurate Retail's audit committee, then such projects will require the specific pre-approval of Qurate Retail's audit committee. Qurate Retail's audit committee has delegated the authority for the foregoing approvals to the chairman of the audit committee, subject to his subsequent disclosure to the entire audit committee of the granting of any such approval. M. Ian G. Gilchrist currently serves as the chairman of Qurate Retail's audit committee. In addition, the independent auditor is required to provide a report at each regularly scheduled audit committee meeting on all pre-approved services incurred during the preceding quarter. Any engagement of QVC's independent auditor for services other than the pre-approved services requires the specific approval of Qurate Retail's audit committee.
Qurate Retail's pre-approval policy prohibits the engagement of QVC's independent auditor to provide any services that are subject to the prohibition imposed by Section 201 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act.
All services provided by QVC's independent auditor during 2021 and 2020 were approved in accordance with the terms of the policy.
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ITEM 15. EXHIBITS, FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
Item 15. Exhibits and financial statement schedules
(a) (1) Financial Statements
Included in Part II of this report:
Page
QVC, Inc.:
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (KPMG LLP, Philadelphia, PA, Auditor Firm ID: 185)
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Consolidated Balance Sheets, December 31, 2021 and 2020
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Consolidated Statements of Operations, Years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019
II-26
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income, Years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019
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Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows, Years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019
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Consolidated Statement of Equity, Years ended December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019
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Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements, December 31, 2021, 2020 and 2019
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(a) (2) Financial Statement Schedules
(i) All schedules have been omitted because they are not applicable, not material or the required information is set forth in the financial statements or notes thereto.
(a) (3) Exhibits
Listed below are the exhibits which are filed as a part of this Report (according to the number assigned to them in Item 601 of Regulation S-K):
3 - Articles of Incorporation and Bylaws:
3.1 Restated Certificate of Incorporation of QVC, Inc. dated October 26, 2009 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to the Registrant's Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-184501) as filed on October 19, 2012 (the "2012 S-4")).
3.2 Amended and Restated By-Laws of QVC, Inc. (effective September 30, 2015) (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to QVC, Inc.'s Current Report on Form 8-K (file No. 000-55409) as filed on October 6, 2015)
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4 - Instruments Defining the Rights to Securities Holders, Including Indentures:
4.1 Indenture dated as of March 18, 2013 among QVC, Inc., the guarantors party thereto and U.S. Bank National Association (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to the Registrant's Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the quarter ended March 31, 2013 (File No. 333-184501) as filed on May 9, 2013).
4.2 Form of Indenture dated as of March 18, 2014 among QVC, Inc., the guarantors party thereto and U.S. Bank National Association (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant's Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-195586) as filed on April 30, 2014).
4.3 Indenture dated as of August 21, 2014 among QVC, Inc., the guarantors party thereto and U.S. Bank National Association (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant's Registration Statement on Form S-4 (File No. 333-199254) as filed on October 10, 2014).
4.4 Fifth Amended and Restated Credit Agreement, dated as of October 27, 2021, among QVC, Inc., Zulily, LLC, QVC Global Corporate Holdings, LLC and Cornerstone Brands, Inc., as Borrowers, JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A., as Lead Arranger, Lead Bookrunner and Administrative Agent and the parties named therein as Lenders, Co-Bookrunners, Co-Syndication Agents and Co-Documentation Agents (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K (File No. 001-38654) as filed on October 28, 2021).
4.5 Indenture, dated September 13, 2018, by and among QVC, Inc., Affiliate Investment, Inc., Affiliate Relations Holdings, Inc., AMI 2, Inc., ER Marks, Inc., QVC Global Holdings I, Inc., QVC Global Holdings II, Inc., QVC Rocky Mount, Inc., QVC San Antonio, LLC and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to the Registrant’s Form 8-A (File No. 001-38654), as filed on September 13, 2018 (the “Form 8-A”)).
4.6 First Supplemental Indenture, dated September 13, 2018, by and among QVC, Inc., Affiliate Investment, Inc., Affiliate Relations Holdings, Inc., AMI 2, Inc., ER Marks, Inc., QVC Global Holdings I, Inc., QVC Global Holdings II, Inc., QVC Rocky Mount, Inc., QVC San Antonio, LLC and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Form 8-A).
4.7 Form of 6.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2067 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the Form 8-A).
4.8 Second Supplemental Indenture, dated November 26, 2019, by and among QVC, Inc., Affiliate Investment, Inc., Affiliate Relations Holdings, Inc., AMI 2, Inc., ER Marks, Inc., QVC Global Holdings I, Inc., QVC Global Holdings II, Inc., QVC Rocky Mount, Inc., QVC San Antonio, LLC, QVC Deutschland GP, Inc., HSN, Inc., HSNi, LLC, HSN Holding LLC, AST Sub, Inc., Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.L.C., Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.P., H.O.T. Networks Holdings (Delaware) LLC, HSN of Nevada LLC, Ingenious Designs LLC, NLG Merger Corp., Ventana Television, Inc., and Ventana Television Holdings, Inc., as guarantors, and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Form 8-A (File No. 001-38654), as filed on November 26, 2019 (the “2019 Form 8-A”)).
4.90 Form of 6.250% Senior Secured Notes due 2068 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the 2019 Form 8-A).
4.10 Third Supplemental Indenture, dated February 4, 2020, by and among QVC, Inc., Affiliate Investment, Inc., Affiliate Relations Holdings, Inc., AMI 2, Inc., ER Marks, Inc., QVC Global Holdings I, Inc., QVC Global Holdings II, Inc., QVC Rocky Mount, Inc., QVC San Antonio, LLC, QVC Deutschland GP, Inc., HSN, Inc., HSNi, LLC, HSN Holding LLC, AST Sub, Inc., Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.L.C., Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.P., H.O.T. Networks Holdings (Delaware) LLC, HSN of Nevada LLC, Ingenious Designs LLC, NLG Merger Corp., Ventana Television, Inc., and Ventana Television Holdings, Inc., as guarantors, and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K (File No. 001-38654) as filed on February 4, 2020 (the “February 2020 Form 8-K”)).
4.11 Form of 4.75% Senior Secured Notes due 2027 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the February 2020 Form 8-K).
4.12 Fourth Supplemental Indenture, dated August 20, 2020, by and among QVC, Inc., Affiliate Investment, Inc., Affiliate Relations Holdings, Inc., AMI 2, Inc., ER Marks, Inc., QVC Global Holdings I, Inc., QVC Global Holdings II, Inc., QVC Rocky Mount, Inc., QVC San Antonio, LLC, QVC Deutschland GP, Inc., HSN, Inc., HSNi, LLC, HSN Holding LLC, AST Sub, Inc., Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.L.C., Home Shopping Network En Espanol, L.P., H.O.T. Networks Holdings (Delaware) LLC, HSN of Nevada LLC, Ingenious Designs LLC, NLG Merger Corp., Ventana Television, Inc., and Ventana Television Holdings, Inc., as guarantors, and U.S. Bank National Association, as trustee (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to the Registrant’s Current Report on Form 8-K (File No. 001-38654) as filed on August 20, 2020 (the “August 2020 Form 8-K”)).
4.13 Form of 4.375% Senior Secured Notes due 2028 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.3 to the August 2020 Form 8-K).
4.14 Description of the Registrant’s Securities Registered Pursuant to Section 12 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.13 to the Registrant's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2019 (File No. 001-38654) as filed on February 26, 2020).
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10 - Material Contracts:
10.1 Forms of Indemnification Agreements between QVC, Inc. and executive officers (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.16 to the 2012 S-4).
21 - Subsidiaries:*
21.1 Subsidiaries of the Registrant*
22 - Subsidiary Guarantors and Issuers of Guaranteed Securities and Affiliates Whose Securities Collateralize Securities of the Registrant:*
22.1 List of Subsidiary Guarantors*
23 - Consents:*
23.1 Consent of KPMG LLP*
31 - Certification Letters:*
31.1 Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification*
31.2 Rule 13a-14(a)/15d-14(a) Certification*
32 - Section 1350 Certification Letter:**
32.1 Section 1350 Certification**
101 - XBRL:*
101.INS XBRL Instance Document* - The instance document does not appear in the interactive data file
because its XBRL tags are embedded within the inline XBRL document.
101.SCH XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document*
101.CAL XBRL Taxonomy Calculation Linkbase Document*
101.LAB XBRL Taxonomy Label Linkbase Document*
101.PRE XBRL Taxonomy Presentation Linkbase Document*
101.DEF XBRL Taxonomy Definition Document*
104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101)*
*Filed herewith.
**Furnished herewith.
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EXHIBIT INDEX