威瑞信 (VRSN) 2024 Q4 法說會逐字稿

Good day, everyone. Welcome to Verisign's fourth-quarter and full year 2024 earnings call.

大家好。歡迎參加 Verisign 2024 年第四季和全年財報電話會議。

Today's conference is being recorded.

今天的會議正在錄製。

Recording of this call is not permitted unless preauthorized.

除非事先獲得授權，否則不允許錄製此通話。

At this time, I'd like to turn the conference over to Mr. David Atchley, Vice President of Investor relations and Corporate Treasurer. Please go ahead, sir.

現在，我想將會議交給投資者關係副總裁兼公司財務主管 David Atchley 先生。先生，請繼續。

Thank you, operator. Welcome to Verisign's fourth-quarter and full year 2024 earnings call.

謝謝您，接線生。歡迎參加 Verisign 2024 年第四季和全年財報電話會議。

Joining me are Jim Bidzos, Executive Chairman, President and CEO; and George Kilguss, Executive Vice President and CFO.

與我一起的還有執行主席、總裁兼執行長 Jim Bidzos；以及執行副總裁兼財務長 George Kilguss。

This call and presentation are being webcast from the Investor Relations website, which is available under About Verisign on verisign.com. There you will also find our earnings release. At the end of this call, the presentation will be available on that site, and within a few hours, the replay of the call will be posted.

此次電話會議和演示將透過投資者關係網站進行網路直播，您可以在 verisign.com 上的「關於威瑞信」欄位下查看。您也可以在那裡找到我們的收益報告。此次通話結束後，簡報將在該網站上提供，通話重播將在幾小時內發布。

Financial results in our earnings release are unaudited, and our remarks include forward-looking statements that are subject to the risks and uncertainties that we discuss in detail in our documents filed with the SEC, specifically the most recent report on Form 10-K. Verisign does not update financial performance or guidance during the quarter unless it is done through a public disclosure. The financial results in today's call and the matters we will be discussing today include GAAP results and two non-GAAP measures used by Verisign, adjusted EBITDA and free cash flow. GAAP to non-GAAP reconciliation information is appended to the slide presentation, which can be found on the Investor Relations section of our website available after this call.

我們收益報告中的財務結果未經審計，我們的評論包括前瞻性陳述，這些陳述受我們在提交給美國證券交易委員會 (SEC) 的文件中詳細討論的風險和不確定性的影響，特別是最新的 10-K 表報告。除非透過公開揭露，否則 Verisign 不會更新季度內的財務表現或指引。今天電話會議上的財務結果和我們今天將要討論的問題包括 GAAP 結果和 Verisign 使用的兩個非 GAAP 指標、調整後的 EBITDA 和自由現金流。GAAP 與非 GAAP 的對帳資訊已附加到幻燈片簡報中，您可以在本次電話會議結束後在我們網站的「投資者關係」部分找到。

Jim and George will provide some prepared remarks, and afterward, we will open the call for your questions.

吉姆和喬治將發表一些準備好的發言，之後我們將開始回答大家的問題。

With that, I would like to turn the call over to Jim.

說完這些，我想把電話轉給吉姆。

Thank you, David. Good afternoon to everyone, and thank you for joining us.

謝謝你，大衛。大家下午好，感謝大家的參與。

I'm pleased with Verisign's success of continuing to deliver on our mission during 2024. We extended our unparalleled record of uninterrupted .com and .net resolution to more than 27 years in an increasingly evolving cyber threat environment while protecting, improving, and strengthening our network.

我很高興看到威瑞信能夠在 2024 年繼續成功地履行我們的使命。在日益演變的網路威脅環境中，我們在保護、改進和加強網路的同時，將我們無與倫比的 .com 和 .net 不間斷解析記錄延長至 27 年以上。

Verisign's network now processes on average more than 400 billion transactions daily. Our focus remains on providing the security, stability, and resiliency internet users worldwide have come to depend on, not only for .com and .net, but for the DNS Root Zone as well.

Verisign 的網路目前平均每天處理超過 4,000 億筆交易。我們的重點仍然是提供全球網路使用者所依賴的安全性、穩定性和彈性，不僅適用於 .com 和 .net，也適用於 DNS 根區域。

Financially, in 2024, we delivered 4.3% year over year revenue growth, while increasing operating income by 5.7%. Shares outstanding at the end of 2024 decreased by 6.2% from the total of outstanding shares at the end of 2023. Our financial and liquidity position continues to remain stable with $600 million in cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities at the end of the year.

從財務角度來看，2024 年，我們的營收年增 4.3%，同時營業收入成長 5.7%。2024 年末的流通股數較 2023 年末的流通股總數減少 6.2%。我們的財務和流動性狀況持續保持穩定，年底的現金、現金等價物和有價證券為 6 億美元。

During 2024, we returned $1.2 billion of capital to shareholders through the repurchase of 6.6 million shares. At year end, $1 billion remained available and authorized under the current share repurchase program, which has no expiration. At the end of December, the domain name base in .com and .net totaled 169 million domain names, a decrease of 2.1% or 3.7 million names year over year.

2024 年，我們透過回購 660 萬股股票向股東返還了 12 億美元的資本。截至年底，現行股票回購計畫下仍有 10 億美元可用並獲授權，且該計畫沒有到期日。截至12月底，.com和.net網域庫總數為1.69億個，年減370萬個，減少2.1%。

During the fourth quarter, the domain name base decreased by 500,000 names. From a new registration perspective, we saw improvements sequentially and year over year, with fourth quarter new registrations of 9.5 million compared with 9 million names for the same quarter last year and 9.3 million during the third quarter of 2024.

第四季度，網域庫減少了50萬個。從新註冊數量來看，我們看到環比和同比都有所改善，第四季度新註冊數量為 950 萬個，而去年同期為 900 萬個，2024 年第三季為 930 萬個。

The renewal rate for the fourth quarter of 2024, which is expected to be approximately 73.9%, shows improvement both sequentially and year over year. From a geographic region perspective, during Q4 and the full year 2024, we saw decreases in our domain name base from both our US and China-based registrars. The domain name base in EMEA was up both sequentially and for the full year 2024.

2024 年第四季的續約率預計約為 73.9%，環比和年比均有所改善。從地理區域來看，在第四季和 2024 年全年，我們發現來自美國和中國的註冊商的網域庫都有所減少。歐洲、中東和非洲地區的網域基數較上季和 2024 年全年均有所成長。

In 2024, the decrease in China volumes was in line with our expectations at the start of the year. For 2025, we continue to expect our China registrar segment to decline, albeit at a slower pace. As that segment now represents only 5% of our domain name base, the decrease from China will have a smaller impact.

2024年，中國銷量下降符合我們年初的預期。到 2025 年，我們預計中國註冊商部分仍將下滑，儘管速度會放緩。由於該部分目前僅占我們網域庫的 5%，因此來自中國的減少的影響較小。

As we have previously reported, we've seen US registrars prioritize ARPU over customer acquisition through higher retail pricing levels, reduced spend on marketing to new customers compared with prior years, and an increased focus on the secondary market for domain names. These factors impacted new registrations and renewal rates in 2024 for our US region.

正如我們之前所報道的，我們發現美國註冊商透過提高零售價格水平、與前幾年相比減少對新客戶的營銷支出以及更加關注域名二級市場，優先考慮 ARPU 而不是客戶獲取。這些因素影響了我們美國地區 2024 年的新註冊和續約率。

In response to these trends, we began working to re-engage registrars on new customer acquisition by launching new marketing programs for .com and .net to support our goal of returning to domain name base growth. As we stated last quarter, we have seen positive response to our new programs, and we expect many of the registrars to engage more fully in 2025.

為了因應這些趨勢，我們開始努力透過推出 .com 和 .net 的新行銷計劃來重新吸引註冊商來吸引新客戶，以支持我們恢復網域基礎成長的目標。正如我們上個季度所說，我們看到了對新計劃的積極回應，我們預計許多註冊商將在 2025 年更加充分參與。

It is early in this process, but we are optimistic that our efforts will start to improve the DNB growth trend in 2025.

這個過程還處於早期階段，但我們樂觀地認為，我們的努力將在 2025 年開始改善 DNB 成長趨勢。

Given these conditions and trends for 2025, we're expecting the year over year change in the base to be negative 2.3% to negative 0.3%.

考慮到 2025 年的這些條件和趨勢，我們預期基數的年變化將為負 2.3% 至負 0.3%。

And now, I'd like to turn the call over to George. I'll return when George has completed his financial report with closing remarks.

現在，我想把電話轉給喬治。等喬治完成財務報告並作完結束語後我就會回來。

Thanks, Jim, and good afternoon, everyone.

謝謝，吉姆，大家下午好。

For the year ended December 31, 2024, the company generated revenue of $1.557 billion, up 4.3%. Operating expenses totaled $499 million and were up 1.4% from the previous year, resulting in operating income of $1.58 billion, up 5.7% from 2023. For the fourth quarter ended December 31, 2024, the company generated a revenue of $395 million, up 3.9% from the same quarter of 2023, and delivered operating income of $264 million, an increase of 2.9% from the same quarter a year ago.

截至2024年12月31日止年度，該公司創造的收入為15.57億美元，成長4.3%。營業費用總計 4.99 億美元，比上年增長 1.4%，導致營業收入為 15.8 億美元，比 2023 年增長 5.7%。截至 2024 年 12 月 31 日的第四季度，該公司實現營收 3.95 億美元，較 2023 年同期成長 3.9%，實現營業收入 2.64 億美元，較去年同期成長 2.9%。

Operating expense in Q4 2024 totaled $132 million which compares to $121 million during the third quarter and $124 million a year earlier. As we discussed on our last quarter's earnings call, we expected an increase in Q4 operating expenses due to prior quarter spending delays that were pushed into the fourth quarter.

2024 年第四季的營運費用總計 1.32 億美元，而第三季為 1.21 億美元，去年同期為 1.24 億美元。正如我們在上個季度的財報電話會議上所討論的那樣，由於前一季的支出延遲被推遲到第四季度，我們預計第四季度的營運費用將會增加。

Net income in the fourth quarter totaled $191 million compared to $265 million a year earlier, which produced diluted earnings per share of $2 for the fourth quarter of 2024 compared to $2.60 for the same quarter of 2023.

第四季淨收入總計 1.91 億美元，去年同期為 2.65 億美元，2024 年第四季每股攤薄收益為 2 美元，而 2023 年同期為 2.60 美元。

As previously discussed, net income in the fourth quarter of last year included the recognition of a $69.3 million of income tax benefits, which increased diluted earnings per share by $0.68 in the year-ago quarter. Operating cash flow for the fourth quarter of 2024 was $232 million and free cash flow was $222 million compared with $204 million and $199 million respectively in the year-ago quarter.

如前所述，去年第四季的淨收入包括確認 6,930 萬美元的所得稅收益，這使得去年同期的每股攤薄收益增加了 0.68 美元。2024 年第四季的營運現金流為 2.32 億美元，自由現金流為 2.22 億美元，去年同期分別為 2.04 億美元和 1.99 億美元。

Operating cash flow and free cash flow for the full year of 2024 totaled $903 million and $875 million respectively.

2024年全年經營現金流和自由現金流分別為9.03億美元和8.75億美元。

I'll now discuss our full year 2025 guidance. Revenue is expected to be between $1.615 billion and $1.635 billion. Operating income is expected to be between $1.095 billion and $1.115 billion. Interest expense and non-operating income net, which includes interest income estimates, is expected to be an expense of between $50 million and $60 million. Capital expenditures are expected to be between $30 million and $40 million. And the GAAP effective tax rate is expected to be between 21% and 24%.

我現在將討論我們 2025 年全年指引。預計收入在 16.15 億美元至 16.35 億美元之間。預計營業收入在 10.95 億美元至 11.15 億美元之間。利息支出和非營業收入淨額（包括利息收入估算）預計在 5,000 萬美元至 6,000 萬美元之間。預計資本支出在3000萬至4000萬美元之間。預計GAAP有效稅率在21%至24%之間。

Overall, Verisign continued to demonstrate sound financial discipline during the fourth quarter and throughout 2024.

總體而言，Verisign 在第四季度和整個 2024 年繼續表現出良好的財務紀律。

Now I'll return the call back to Jim for his closing remarks.

現在我將回電給吉姆，請他作最後發言。

Thank you, George.

謝謝你，喬治。

In summary, Verisign successfully concluded the year by renewing the .com registry agreement with ICANN and the cooperative agreement with the NTIA. We extended our unparalleled 27 year track record of resolution availability for .com and .net, and we delivered sound financial and operational results.

總而言之，Verisign 透過與 ICANN 續約 .com 註冊協議以及與 NTIA 續約合作協議，成功地結束了這一年。我們延續了 27 年無與倫比的 .com 和 .net 解析度可用性記錄，並實現了良好的財務和營運績效。

As we look to 2025 and beyond, we'll continue to focus on and be driven by our mission. As it relates to the domain name base growth rate for 2025, we see three positive trends taking shape. First, the decrease from China-based registrars is expected to be more muted.

展望 2025 年及以後，我們將繼續關注並推動我們的使命。就 2025 年的域名基數成長率而言，我們看到三種正向趨勢正在形成。首先，預計中國註冊商的降幅將更加溫和。

Second, the marketing programs we rolled out in 2024 and continue to offer for 2025 are being adopted by our registrars and are starting to impact trends. Finally, while it's early in the cyclical trend, we do expect registrars to start refocusing on customer acquisition and are starting to hear from some registrars an expectation for increased marketing efforts in 2025.

其次，我們在 2024 年推出並在 2025 年繼續提供的行銷計劃已被我們的註冊商採用，並開始對趨勢產生影響。最後，雖然現在還處於週期趨勢的早期階段，但我們確實預計註冊商將開始重新關注客戶獲取，並開始聽到一些註冊商期望在 2025 年加大行銷力度。

Although we expect a slight decline to the domain name base in 2025, we do expect trends to improve from what we saw in 2024.

儘管我們預計 2025 年域名庫數量會略有下降，但我們確實預計趨勢將比 2024 年有所改善。

Thank you for your attention today. This concludes our prepared remarks, and now we'll open the call for your questions.

感謝您今天的關注。我們的準備好的演講到此結束，現在我們將開始回答大家的提問。

Operator, we're ready for the first question.

接線員，我們已準備好回答第一個問題。

(Operator Instructions)

（操作員指令）

Rob Oliver, Baird.

羅伯奧利弗，貝爾德。

Had a couple of questions. Jim, first for you.

有幾個問題。吉姆，首先請你發言。

In your closing remarks there, you mentioned it was a big year for you guys last year with the ICANN renewal as well as the cooperative agreement at the NTIA, and certainly the investor focus now is pivoted towards the domain base and you certainly -- you finished with 3 points as to why you're more optimistic on that.

在您的結束語中，您提到去年對您來說是重要的一年，因為 ICANN 續簽了協議，以及與 NTIA 達成了合作協議，當然，現在投資者的注意力已經轉向了域名基礎，您最後用 3 點來解釋為什麼您對此更為樂觀。

I guess from your perspective, maybe looking at the macro as well in addition to those 3 points, if you could give us some more color on the 3 points, but also just around the macro generally. I know you mentioned that you suspected that some of the registrars might be pivoting more towards new domains, which would be very encouraging. What gives you that comfort? And then I had a couple of follow-ups.

我想從您的角度來看，除了上述 3 點之外，也許還可以從宏觀角度考慮，如果您能就這 3 點給我們提供更多的細節，但也只是圍繞宏觀層面。我知道您提到過，您懷疑一些註冊商可能會更多地轉向新域名，這將非常令人鼓舞。什麼帶給你這種安慰？然後我又進行了幾次後續行動。

Thanks, Rob. Well, as you know, today, we guided the domain name base continuing to decrease during this year, 2025, although the midpoint of our range suggests an improving trend from what we saw last year. We do see the trends that have negative impact as cyclical in nature, and we do expect the domain name base to return to growth once we work through those trends.

謝謝，羅布。嗯，正如你所知，今天我們指導域名庫在今年（2025 年）繼續減少，儘管我們範圍的中點表明與去年相比呈改善趨勢。我們確實認為具有負面影響的趨勢具有週期性，並且我們確實預計，一旦我們解決了這些趨勢，域名基礎將恢復成長。

As I said earlier, China is lessening and now only represents 5% of our business. Also, our new marketing programs are being adopted. We're seeing positive impact from them. It's early. We expect more throughout the year.

正如我之前所說，中國業務正在減少，現在僅占我們業務的 5%。此外，我們的新行銷計劃正在被採用。我們看到了它們的正面影響。現在還早。我們期望全年會有更多表現。

Finally, while it's early in the cyclical trend, we do expect registrars to start refocusing on customer acquisition and are starting to hear from registrars, like I said, an expectation for increased marketing efforts. In fact, I'd point out that two registrars are running Super Bowl ads which will reach around 200 million viewers.

最後，雖然現在還處於週期趨勢的早期階段，但我們確實預計註冊商將開始重新關注客戶獲取，並開始聽到註冊商的聲音，就像我說的，他們期望加大行銷力度。事實上，我想指出的是，有兩家註冊商正在播放超級盃廣告，其受眾將達到約 2 億。

So as you look back, the two main trends we called out, China and ARPU, were impacting the DNB and both seem to be easing. And where we could influence on growth through marketing programs, there are encouraging signs and also renewal rates have improved. So that's the picture we see.

所以回顧一下，我們提到的兩個主要趨勢，中國和 ARPU，正在影響 DNB，而且兩者似乎都在緩解。我們可以透過行銷計劃影響成長，並且取得了令人鼓舞的跡象，而且續約率也有所提高。這就是我們看到的圖像。

And on those marketing programs, Jim, if you could just provide a little bit more color perhaps on, if there are particular regions where you guys are seeing early traction. I know you said it's still early and the results won't be immediate. We get that. Or perhaps this is for George. But any particular areas where you're seeing early signs that the marketing programs are starting to take hold or conversely where you've had to tweak them and feel comfortable that you now have the formula, right? Any color there would be great.

吉姆，關於這些行銷計劃，您是否可以提供更多細節，例如，您在哪些特定地區看到了早期的吸引力。我知道您說過現在還為時過早，結果不會立即顯現。我們明白了。或者也許這是給喬治的。但是，在哪些特定領域，您看到了行銷計劃開始發揮作用的早期跡象，或者相反，您必須對它們進行調整，並且覺得現在有了方案，對嗎？任何顏色都很棒。

Okay. I'll invite George to comment. I'll just say that it takes time to get these things integrated. There's adoption integration, and there's actual performance. So it may be early to give you a clear picture of where we are, but we do see signs.

好的。我將邀請喬治發表評論。我只想說，將這些東西整合起來需要時間。有採用整合，也有實際表現。因此，現在可能還無法清楚地表明我們目前的狀況，但我們確實看到了跡象。

George, do you want to comment?

喬治，你想發表評論嗎？

Yeah, sure, Rob.

是的，當然，羅布。

I mean as we've mentioned, the focus of our new programs is really to offer more options for our registrar community to help them engage in a variety of programs that really are more aligned with their particular go-to-market strategies. So again, looking for opportunities for a win-win.

正如我們所提到的，我們新計劃的重點實際上是為我們的註冊商社群提供更多選擇，以幫助他們參與各種真正符合他們特定的市場進入策略的計劃。因此，再次尋找雙贏的機會。

As we talked about in 2024, we spent a lot of time developing and piloting a lot of these programs. We have gotten feedback. We've also refined and recently, we launched these programs late in 2024 here. We actually had a few programs that we rolled out here early in January as well.

正如我們在 2024 年所談論的那樣，我們花了大量時間開發和試行許多此類專案。我們已收到回饋。我們也進行了改進，最近，我們在 2024 年底在這裡啟動了這些計畫。事實上，我們在一月初也推出了一些項目。

Again, from a little color, when we talk to registrars, they -- we've gotten a lot of positive feedback from registrars that our programs are aligning with the strategies that they're employing, and they feel they can use these programs within their own marketing programs.

再次，從一點來看，當我們與註冊商交談時，他們 - 我們從註冊商那裡得到了很多積極的反饋，他們說我們的計劃與他們所採用的策略相一致，他們認為他們可以在自己的營銷計劃中使用這些計劃。

So that's good news for us. As far as early adoption, I'd say it's a little early right now. Most registrars are just starting to roll out there. Even though we've had these programs launched late last year and we've gotten good feedback and we've modified some of them, they're really gearing up to roll them out here in 2025.

這對我們來說是個好消息。就早期採用而言，我認為現在還為時過早。大多數註冊商才剛開始推出服務。儘管我們在去年年底就已啟動這些計劃，並得到了良好的反饋，並對其中的一些進行了修改，但他們仍準備在 2025 年正式推出這些計劃。

Some registrars do engage a little earlier than others, but I think it's a little early for us to comment on that. But we are optimistic about the programs we've rolled out, and we've gotten great feedback.

一些註冊商確實比其他註冊商更早參與，但我認為現在評論這一點還為時過早。但我們對我們推出的計劃感到樂觀，並且我們得到了很好的回饋。

And then the last one for me. Jim, back to you. Just we've got a couple of kind of leadership changes happening. One -- obvious one, we have a new administration in DC. So we would be curious to hear from you what if anything you might expect or how we should think about that relative to Verisign's business and -- number one.

對我來說這是最後一個了。吉姆，回到你身邊。我們剛剛經歷了幾場領導階層的變動。顯而易見的是，華盛頓迎來了新政府。因此，我們很想聽聽您的意見，您有何期望，或者我們應該如何看待與 Verisign 的業務相關的問題——第一。

Number two, are discussions with the NTIA ongoing? I know that the NTIA obviously dictated -- did not ultimately request any changes, but you guys had agreed to sit down with them, so it would be curious to hear whether those discussions are ongoing. And then I know we have a new head of ICANN that came in in December. So any thoughts there would be helpful. I realize that's a lot.

第二，與 NTIA 的討論是否正在進行中？我知道 NTIA 顯然已作出規定 - 最終並未要求進行任何變更，但你們已同意與他們坐下來討論，因此我很想知道這些討論是否正在進行中。然後我知道我們在 12 月迎來了一位新的 ICANN 負責人。因此任何想法都會有幫助。我意識到那很多。

Okay. Thanks, Rob. Well, first of all, I would just point out that where we are today, Verisign, the cooperative agreement, ICANN, this whole process is a result of decades of very successful policy across many different administrations of many political stripes. So we tend to sort of see that as a not a directly impacting factor, just a long supported consistent policy with security and stability as the main driver.

好的。謝謝，羅布。嗯，首先，我只想指出，我們今天所處的階段，Verisign、合作協議、ICANN，整個過程是數十年來不同政治派別的許多政府部門製定的非常成功的政策的結果。因此，我們傾向於認為這不是一個直接影響因素，而只是一種長期支持的以安全和穩定為主要驅動力的一致政策。

And as you mentioned, there are new folks in December. Of course we have a new CEO at ICANN, and we'll be getting a new NTIA administrator shortly, we believe. And we -- look, we have great relationships with both organizations and we look forward to continuing them.

正如您所提到的，12 月有新人。當然，ICANN 已經有了新的首席執行官，而且我們相信，很快也會有新的 NTIA 管理員。而且我們與這兩個組織都保持著良好的關係，我們期待繼續保持這種關係。

We've always maintained a good working relationship with ICANN for many decades, and we look forward to working with the new CEO, Kurtis Lindqvist, and his leadership team, particularly in the areas we engage in mostly, which is the security and stability of the DNS and DNS abuse.

幾十年來，我們一直與 ICANN 保持著良好的工作關係，我們期待與新任執行長 Kurtis Lindqvist 和他的領導團隊合作，特別是在我們最關注的領域，即 DNS 的安全性和穩定性以及 DNS 濫用。

About the second part of your question, ongoing discussions with the NTIA, that's typical for our relationship. We look forward to working with the new NTIA assistant secretary upon her confirmation, and I look forward to meeting her. I think until then I won't speculate, but let me add some background that might be a little bit helpful there.

關於你問題的第二部分，與 NTIA 正在進行的討論，這對我們的關係來說很典型。我們期待在新任 NTIA 助理部長任命後與其合作，我也期待與她會面。我想在那之前我不會進行推測，但是讓我補充一些可能有點幫助的背景知識。

First, the cooperative agreement has long contained, as I think most of the listeners here know, strict requirements that Verisign meet the most rigorous availability and performance specifications of any TLD due to the reliance of services and infrastructure on .com and net.

首先，我想在座的大多數聽眾都知道，合作協議早已包含嚴格的要求，即由於.com和net上服務和基礎設施的依賴，Verisign必須滿足任何TLD最嚴格的可用性和性能規範。

In 2018, Amendment 35 retained these provisions, and while there was reduced regulation, there was also explicit protection for registrant First Amendment Rights by guaranteeing that the .com registry will remain content neutral. These and the other policies in the 2018 amendment have proven in the last six years to be successful. And continuing the policy of security and stability and resilience first and the critical importance of .com to the security and stability of the infrastructure that's literally critical to the digital economy of the US.

2018 年，第 35 條修正案保留了這些規定，雖然減少了監管，但也明確保護了註冊人的第一修正案權利，保證 .com 註冊機構保持內容中立。這些政策以及2018年修正案中的其他政策在過去六年中已被證明是成功的。繼續優先執行安全、穩定和彈性的政策，並強調.com 對於基礎設施安全與穩定的重要性，這對美國的數位經濟至關重要。

And finally, I'll just mention that the recent .com renewals enabled us to clear up some misinformation that was spread during that process. One, for example, is that we received money from the government, which simply isn't true. Our cooperative agreement is not a procurement contract, and the US government doesn't fund Verisign for the secure and reliable internet service that Verisign helps to preserve every day.

最後，我只想說，最近的 .com 續約使我們能夠澄清在過程中傳播的一些錯誤訊息。例如，有一說一，我們收到了政府的錢，但這根本不是事實。我們的合作協議不是採購合同，美國政府不會為 Verisign 每天幫助維護的安全可靠的互聯網服務提供資金。

And has without interruption for 27 years. And as I mentioned, now processing an average of over 400 billion transactions every day, which by the way, is 40 times the number of daily average Google searches, 40x.

並且已經連續27年沒有間斷過。正如我所提到的，現在平均每天處理超過 4000 億筆交易，順便說一下，這是谷歌每日平均搜尋次數的 40 倍。

And there was a lot of misinformation about our pricing as well. As you know, our pricing is capped and it's transparent. It's a simple fact that our limited pricing flexibility at the wholesale level hasn't kept up with global CPI over the last 6 years, while at the same time, we've seen the unregulated retail price increases exceed our wholesale price increases. So hopefully that bit is helpful.

而且我們的定價也存在著許多錯誤訊息。如您所知，我們的定價是有上限的，而且是透明的。一個簡單的事實是，過去六年來，我們批發層面的定價彈性有限，跟不上全球消費者物價指數 (CPI) 的上漲，而與此同時，我們看到不受管制的零售價格漲幅超過了批發價格漲幅。希望這一點能夠有所幫助。

We look forward to engaging with our new regulators and we look forward to it.

我們期待與我們的新監管機構合作，我們對此充滿期待。

I'm going to go back and I need to read that transcript.

我要回去並且我需要讀一下那份記錄。

Ygal Arounian, Citi.

Ygal Arounian，花旗。

Let me start on coming back to the comments on the cyclical trends, that you're expecting from the registrars to kind of go back and be a little bit more focused on the broader top of the funnel, customer acquisition. And that sounds like what you guys were trying to accomplish with the marketing programs, but it also sounds like you're talking about both of those points as two distinct things.

讓我先回到對週期性趨勢的評論，您期望註冊商能夠回過頭來更加關注漏斗的更廣闊的頂端，即客戶獲取。這聽起來就像你們試圖透過行銷計畫實現的目標，但也聽起來你們在談論的是兩件截然不同的事情。

Is that true? And if we're moving back in that part of the cyclical -- part of the cycle, why are the marketing programs important? Does it kind of help amplify and that move back up the cycle?

這是真的嗎？如果我們回到週期的這一部分——週期的一部分，為什麼行銷計劃如此重要？它是否有助於放大並重新推動循環？

I think if I understood the question, it's if a cyclical turn is coming, why the programs is that I hope that's not an unfair summary.

我想如果我了解這個問題，那就是如果週期性轉變即將到來，為什麼會有這些計劃，我希望這不是一個不公平的總結。

Yeah. Are they two distinct points and if yes, then why?

是的。它們是兩個不同的點嗎？

Yeah. So okay, I would say two things that we've brought up in the past. First of all, we pointed out that the other programs were actually being designed as a response to the evolving nature and structure of our channel. We got a lot of website builders who have become registrars. They have different business models. There are more of them. Some are large, some are small. So designing programs that met their needs and gave them flexibility as opposed to, and I'll generalize a bit here, the one-size-fits-all that we kind of used in the past, that was a that was a primary motivator.

是的。好吧，我想說一下我們過去提出的兩件事。首先，我們指出，其他計劃實際上是為了回應我們管道不斷發展的性質和結構而設計的。我們有很多網站建立者已經成為註冊商。他們有不同的商業模式。還有更多。有的大，有的小。因此，設計滿足他們需求並給予他們靈活性的程序，而不是像我們過去那樣採用一刀切的方案，我在這裡稍微概括一下，這是主要的動機。

And when we talked about the cyclical trend from ARPU back to customer acquisition, I think I remember a quarter or two ago saying that what, we would focus on programs and that we hope to get a tailwind from a return to customer acquisition. So I don't think those -- it's not sort of one or the other. We certainly can do both because they're really for different reasons.

當我們談論從 ARPU 回到客戶獲取的周期性趨勢時，我想我記得一兩個季度前我們說過，我們將專注於項目，並希望從客戶獲取的回歸中獲得順風。所以我不認為這些——它們不是其中之一。我們當然可以同時做這兩件事，因為它們確實是出於不同的原因。

Some of the programs maybe can incentivize a shift away from ARPU, but I don't think that has the same effect as giving our registrars the choice that the diverse nature of that channel is going to require.

有些計畫或許可以激勵人們擺脫 ARPU 的束縛，但我不認為這能與讓我們的註冊商根據該管道的多樣性做出選擇產生相同的效果。

George, do any have any comment?

喬治，大家有什麼評論嗎？

I would just say, Ygal, look at -- we clearly have a good channel. The stronger we can make that channel, the better off it is for us. And so we're trying to support that channel because they are evolving. They have different needs and sometimes, some of our previous programs may not have fit the needs of all registrars. We're taking that feedback. We're helping them. We're also trying to help them, target registrations, new registrations to high renewal rate cohorts, which would be good for them and good for us. And so, as Jim said, the channel continues to evolve, the market continues to evolve, and we believe we need to continue to do the same to support the channel.

我只想說，Ygal，看——我們顯然有一個很好的管道。我們越能把這個管道建設得強大，對我們就越有利。因此，我們正在嘗試支援該管道，因為它們正在不斷發展。他們有不同的需求，有時我們之前的一些計劃可能不符合所有註冊商的需求。我們正在接受該回饋。我們正在幫助他們。我們也試圖幫助他們，瞄準註冊，將新註冊定位到高續訂率群體，這對他們和我們都有好處。因此，正如吉姆所說，通路不斷發展，市場不斷發展，我們相信我們需要繼續做同樣的事情來支持通路。

And I guess one last thing I might add here is that we said -- I think George mentioned in his remarks that we're seeing take tick in the channel. I think this is a result of offering more flexibility and choice in our programs.

我想我在這裡要補充的最後一件事是，我們說過——我認為喬治在他的演講中提到，我們看到了該渠道的進展。我認為這是由於我們的計劃提供了更多的靈活性和選擇性。

In the past, when we had a fairly straightforward, simple program offered to all, we saw that it worked for some and didn't work for some. And what -- the feedback we're getting is that these choices are great and they're finding programs that work for them. That's the initial take up.

過去，當我們向所有人提供一個相當直接、簡單的程序時，我們發現它對某些人有用，對某些人則不起作用。我們收到的回饋是，這些選擇非常棒，他們找到了適合自己的計畫。這是最初的想法。

We'll see where it goes. Of course, we'll work hard to support them, but that's something we can put some energy into and hopefully get a return. But I would say ARPU is a cyclical tailwind in a sense. There's less we can influence there. We can benefit from it, and we are seeing signs that that shift is occurring as well.

我們將拭目以待。當然，我們會盡力支持他們，但這是我們可以投入精力並希望獲得回報的事情。但我想說，從某種意義上來說，ARPU 是一種週期性的順風。我們能影響那裡的程度較小。我們可以從中受益，也看到了這種轉變正在發生的跡象。

A quick follow up on that, or -- is it just a shift in strategy or are you spending more on the marketing, programs that maybe just if you could talk about how that's embedded in the operating income guidance for the year.

快速跟進一下，或者 - 這僅僅是策略的轉變，還是您在行銷計劃上投入了更多資金，也許您可以談談這是如何嵌入到年度營業收入指引中的。

Yeah. I would say primarily, it's a shift in strategy. Having said that, a lot of our programs are success-based. So if they're extremely successful, we will spend more, but those should be accretive to us over time. But it really is a shift to strategy recognizing the changing channel and trying to support them in their different strategies.

是的。我想說，首先，這是一種策略的轉變。話雖如此，我們的許多專案都是基於成功。因此，如果他們非常成功，我們就會投入更多，但隨著時間的推移，這些投入應該會為我們帶來價值。但這實際上是一種策略轉變，認識到變化的管道並試圖支持他們的不同策略。

And on the expense of all those programs is baked into our guidance. I would just -- I should add.

所有這些計劃的費用都已納入我們的指導之中。我只是——我應該補充一下。

I have two more if you don't mind. One is, the gross new registration number was if my numbers are right, the largest one since to 2Q '21 -- or on the year year growth, you talk about that. What you're seeing there? And that's a pretty impressive number in the quarter. I know the renewal rates are still a little bit below where they are normally, but if you look at the gross numbers, it looks like some of the cyclicality is already coming back here in 4Q.

如果你不介意的話我還有兩個。一是，如果我的數字沒錯的話，新註冊總數是自 2021 年第二季以來的最大增幅，或者說同比增長率，你可以談談這個。你在那看到了什麼？這是本季相當令人印象深刻的數字。我知道續約率仍然略低於正常水平，但如果看一下總量，似乎一些週期性因素已在第四季度回歸。

Yeah. As you point out, Ygal, we did 9.5 million new registrations in the quarter. That was up sequentially and also up year-over-year. Again, I would credit some of early successes to some of the programs we launched in the fourth quarter that supported that.

是的。正如您所指出的，Ygal，我們本季的新註冊人數為 950 萬。這是比上個季度和去年同期都上漲的。再次，我將早期的成功歸功於我們在第四季度推出的一些支持這項舉措的專案。

So we saw a good engagement from some people. Again, it's only a partial year, and we think once we get further into the year, we'll get multichannel partners engaging in these programs, but it's some early successes from those programs.

因此，我們看到一些人的積極參與。再說一遍，這只是一年中的一部分，我們認為，一旦進入今年，我們將讓多通路合作夥伴參與這些計劃，但這是這些計劃的一些早期成功。

So not huge numbers, but we are seeing positive trends and as you saw, and as you mentioned, the contraction of the domain name base was 0.5 million. That's -- it was 1.1 million down in the third quarter and 1.2 million down in the year-ago fourth quarter. So we saw some improvement here and that gives us some optimism here as we move into 2025.

因此，數字雖然不是很大，但我們看到了積極的趨勢，正如您所看到的，正如您所提到的，域名庫的收縮量為 50 萬。也就是說，第三季減少了 110 萬，去年同期第四季減少了 120 萬。因此，我們看到了一些改善，這讓我們對進入 2025 年充滿樂觀。

And then last, maybe a little bit of a bigger picture question. There's auctions coming up for some new generic TLDs later this year. Just want to get your thoughts on that, particularly with kind of the way ngTLDs have taken share of total domains over the last decade since they've been introduced. Are you interested in bidding for new domains? Is your strategy changed in the kind of amount of domains you want to be a registry for? How should we think about that? And within that, maybe you could just give us an update on .web. That's also a new TLD.

最後，也許是一個更大的問題。今年稍後將對一些新的通用頂級域名 (TLD) 進行拍賣。只是想聽聽您對此的看法，特別是自 ngTLD 推出以來，在過去十年中它佔據了域名總數的份額。您有興趣競標新網域嗎？根據您想要註冊的網域數量，您的策略是否改變了？我們該如何思考這個問題？除此之外，也許您可以向我們提供有關 .web 的更新資訊。這也是一個新的 TLD。

I'm glad you mentioned .web because I was going to sort of include that in the answer. We did some years ago, obviously move to acquire another TLD and expand our portfolio there.

我很高興您提到了.web，因為我打算將其包含在答案中。幾年前我們確實這麼做了，顯然是為了收購另一個 TLD 並在那裡擴大我們的投資組合。

So first of all, let me answer them in reverse order. So with .web, we are still very interested in being the registry operator for .web. Although this process has taken quite a few years, we still want to be able to offer .web domains to our customers.

因此首先，讓我以相反的順序回答這些問題。因此對於 .web，我們仍然非常有興趣成為 .web 的註冊管理機構。儘管這個過程已經花費了相當多的時間，但我們仍然希望能夠向客戶提供.web 網域。

The process is still with ICANN, and it's their IRP or roughly translates to arbitration process. And we understand -- what we've come to understand here recently is that there will be more briefings and hearings in 2025 with a planned final merits hearing currently slated for later 2025.

該流程仍在 ICANN 進行，這是他們的 IRP 或大致可譯為仲裁流程。我們最近了解到，2025 年將會有更多的簡報和聽證會，計劃中的最終實質聽證會目前定於 2025 年下半年舉行。

And we think that they're continuing to drag this process out and to abuse ICANN's rules actually is the intention of the competing party. As far as the new round, we're considering looking at it, tossing ideas around, looking at the potential for applications, but we have nothing to share at this point.

我們認為，他們繼續拖延這一進程並濫用 ICANN 規則實際上是競爭對手的意圖。至於新一輪的談判，我們正在考慮，提出各種想法，研究其應用的潛力，但目前我們還沒有什麼可以分享的。

All right. Thanks for taking 15 questions from 2 analysts.

好的。感謝您回答兩位分析師的 15 個問題。

Anytime.

任何時候。

And that does conclude the question-and-answer session.

問答環節到此結束。

I'll now turn the conference back over to Mr. David Atchley for final comments.

現在我將會議交還給戴維·阿奇利先生，請他發表最後的評論。

Thank you, operator.

謝謝您，接線生。

Please call the Investor Relations department with any follow-up questions from this call. Thank you for your participation. This concludes our call. Have a good evening.

如本次電話會議還有任何後續問題，請致電投資者關係部。感謝您的參與。我們的通話到此結束。祝你晚上愉快。

Thank you. That does conclude today's conference. We do thank you for your participation. Have an excellent day.

謝謝。今天的會議到此結束。我們非常感謝您的參與。祝您有個愉快的一天。