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Frequently Asked Questions |
Below are some commonly asked questions and their answers. For your convenience, they are divided into eight categories:
If a particular category is of interest to you then you can use the links above to jump directly to it.
Enquiries and comments regarding Mergent's products and services may be directed to Mergent customer service at customerservice@mergent.com.
| Q | What is Mergent Online? |
| A | Mergent Online is an online product database allowing subscribers to access information on over 30,000 U.S. and non-U.S. publicly traded companies. |
| Q | Is it possible to subscribe to either FactSheets or U.S. Annual Reports only? |
| A | At the present time, both FactSheets and U.S. Annual Reports module are accessible through the U.S. Company Data module. In the future, we may provide access to these resources on a separate annual subscription basis, or allow customers to access individual reports on a pay-as-you-go basis. |
| Q | Can one "limit" or "sort" by a specific country? |
| A | Yes, from the Advanced Search screen. You can search by one country or multiple countries by separating each country with a comma and a space. |
| Q | For comparison between companies' analyses, can one choose firms individually to compare to the target firm, or only those firms returned by the search? |
| A | You can select the companies that you wish to compare. If you wanted to compare one company to other companies, you can select the companies in the listing box and select the criteria that you would like to compare against. |
| Q | Do I need a certain browser to access Mergent Online? |
| A | Mergent Online's subscription service provides you with a User ID and Password or through IP authentication to access the database of over 10,000 public companies. It is Internet-accessible via any 3.0 or higher version of Microsoft Explorer, or any 2.01 or higher version of Netscape. |
| Q | What if I have a problem while browsing the site? Do you have the same customer support for this Internet product that you have for your FISonline and print products? |
| A | We provide customers with a toll-free technical product support line - 1.800.955.8080 or 212.413.7744 - which is available from 8:30 am to 6:30 pm, Monday through Friday. We are also available via e-mail at technicalsupport@mergent.com. |
| Q | How do I get more information? |
| A | Please contact your local sales representative or the Mergent customer service department for pricing details. Mergent customer service can be reached at 1.800.342.5647, or 212-413-7601, or via e-mail at customerservice@mergent.com. |
| Q | If I already have U.S. Company Data on FISonline, why should I subscribe to Mergent Online? |
| A | Mergent Online offer more features and functionalities and data enhancements than FISonline. The advantage of subscribing to Mergent Online is that the browser interface provides weekly vs. monthly updates and it contains more data than can fit on a CD-ROM, e.g. 10 (vs. 7 on CD-ROM) yrs. financials, access to EDGAR, etc. |
| Q | Does Mergent Online offer real-time EDGAR (SEC) filings? Does it contain information on companies outside the U.S.? |
| A | Yes, client can access U.S. Company Data that provides you with all real-time EDGAR (SEC) filings (including mutual fund, REIT, and insurance company filings). All filings can be searched for any word or phrase. In addition to a U.S. company database, we offer a companion International database, International Company Data, which contains more non-U.S. based public companies from more countries than any other international database. |
| Q | Are any private companies included, or only public? |
| A | Yes, at present, we offer D&B Million Dollar Database, which is integrated into Mergent Online. Clients interested in this product can add it to their subscription at an additional cost. |
| Q | Are all NASDAQ firms included or just a subset? |
| A | NASD is divided into four markets - the National Market System (NMS), NASDAQ Small-Cap Issues, the OTC Bulletin Board and the "pink sheets." We have full coverage for all NMS and small-cap issues in the database. Bulletin board companies are maintained in the database on a best efforts basis. Many of these companies are exempt from any periodic filing requirements making it tough to follow them effectively. We do not cover pink sheet companies, as these tend to be highly speculative firms. |
| Q | Is it possible to create, and pay for, personalized reports that contain selected information? |
| A | U.S. Company Data offers subscribers the ability to build a custom company report by selecting the data section items or select a pre-defined company report that have already been created. |
| Q | What news services are available? |
| A | U.S. Company Data customers now have access to a real-time corporate news service (Inlumen). Information will be drawn from such notable sources as PR Newswire, Business Wire, M2 Press WIRE and Motley Fool wire. |
| Q | How do I get more information? |
| A | Please contact your local sales representative or the Mergent customer service department for pricing details. Mergent customer service can be reached at 1.800.342.5647 or 212-413-7601, or via e-mail at customerservice@mergent.com. |
| Q | How do I download an annual report image? |
| A | U.S. Annual Reports, like Fact Sheets sections of company reports and other resources, are accessible through the tabs of the company details page. To view these images, you must download the Adobe Acrobat Reader plug-in. |
| Q | Is it possible to subscribe to U.S. Annual Reports without subscribing to U.S. Company Data? |
| A | No. U.S. Annual Reports is fully integrated with the U.S. Company Data database. In the future, we may provide access to U.S. Annual Reports on a separate annual subscription basis or allow customers to access individual reports on a pay-as-you-go basis. |
| Q | How many reports are available in the U.S. annual report database? How often they are updated? What percent, roughly, are in electronic PDF form? |
| A | In the complete global Mergent Online annual report database, there are currently over 105,000 documents representing 27,000 companies. Of these, 39,000 are U.S. Documents, representing 11,333 U.S. Companies. Reports are updated daily and all are available in PDF. |
| Q | Why should I pay for an annual reports service when I can get annuals for free by calling the company or by visiting the company's web site? |
| A |
There are several reasons to use U.S. Annual Report for accessing annual reports:
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| Q | Do the image files allow viewing or printing in color? |
| A | Yes. Color images are now being added to the U.S. Annual Reports service and can be printed using a color printer. |
| Q | Do all companies issue annual reports? |
| A | While it is mandatory under SEC regulations for a public company to make an annual document available to it's shareholders, the format is not regulated beyond the inclusion of financial results and certain other disclosures. Many smaller companies (over a thousand) use their 10K filing as the annual report, often not even placing it under separate cover. Our intention is to scan these 10Ks and identify them on the service as the company's annual. This process will give 10Ks the same format and navigation/print capabilities as annual reports. |
| Q | Does Mergent have any advantage/disadvantage in securing annuals from the companies? |
| A | Mergent has the benefit of being a primary and long-standing direct recipient of company documents. No information provider has an advantage over Mergent in this area since annual reports are not an SEC filing document. |
| Q | What hardware/software/line speed requirements does the service have? |
| A | Obviously, the more recent the hardware and software, the better U.S. Annual Reports will operate; and the faster the line or modem, the better. We recommend using Netscape 3.0 or Internet Explorer 3.0 and higher on a Windows 95 or better operating system. |
| Q | Do customers have to subscribe to U.S. Company Data in order to subscribe to International Company Data? |
| A | No. International Company Data is offered as a separate subscription. |
| Q | How many companies are in Company Data Direct/International? |
| A | Over 17,000 purely non-U.S. based companies as of June 2002. Other international databases include U.S. companies in their total company counts. |
| Q | How is it determined whether the financials will be in the country's native currency, the Euro (for European) or in US$? |
| A | Mergent presents an issuer's financials in the currency chosen by the issuer. If an issuer changes from one currency to another in a subsequent year, Mergent will change the currency or presentation as well. For example, in 1998 Nokia changed its presentation from the FIM to the Euro. Mergent changed the currency of presentation at that point. US$ amounts are used for Nokia's ADR price range listed on the NYSE. These figures are traditionally presented in US$. A client can, however, view the financials in any currency by selecting the currency presentation option. |
| Q | What criteria do you follow in adding companies to the database? |
| A | The MSCI is only the starting point. We have also identified the companies contained in 64 global and local indexes for inclusion. This approach insures that International Company Data will contain almost every non-U.S. company of interest to researchers. On top of all that, we have added thousands of non-index companies covered by competitive global database services on a country-by-country basis. This process will ultimately yield a database that represents about 98% of the non-U.S. company market cap and more non-U.S. companies than any other database. |
| Q | What information is contained in your reports? |
| A | The International Company Data module is prepared the Mergent way: History, Business, Property, Subsidiaries, Officers, Directors, Long-Term Debt, Debt Rating, Capital Stock, Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Auditors, Number of Employees, Number of Shareholders, Address, Telephone Number, Investor Relations Contact, Stock Price Ranges, Trustee, Registrar, Transfer Agent, Stock Splits, and Annual Meeting Date. |
| Q | Is there a difference in company coverage between the International Manual, the International Company Data CD-ROM and International Company Data module? |
| A | Yes. In general, more companies are in the Manual and CD, but due to space and other publishing constraints, generally contain less text and older financials. In order to offer the most up-to-date information, we decided not to include any companies in International Company Data with most recent financials older than 1997. |
| Q | Do I need to subscribe to Company Data Direct/International to get FIS Annuals/International? |
| A | Yes. As with the Company Data Direct/U.S. and FIS Annuals/U.S., you must subscribe to the database service in order to access the annuals. |
| Q | How many reports are available in the International Annual Reports database? How often they are updated? |
| A | In the complete global Mergent Online annual report database, there are currently 115,000 documents representing 27,625 companies. Of these, 66,000 are non-U.S. documents, representing 20,000 non-U.S. companies. Reports are updated daily and all are available in PDF. |
| Q | How do I download International Annual Reports images? |
| A | The International Annual Reports module is accessible through the tabs of the company details page. To view these images, you must download the Adobe Acrobat Reader plug-in. |
| Q | Why should I pay for an annual reports service when I can get annuals for free by calling the company or by visiting the company's web site? |
| A |
There are several reasons to use International Annual Reports for accessing annual reports:
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| Q | Are all annual reports contained in International Annual Reports published in English? |
| A | No. Many annual reports are produced in the native language of the country where the company is based. In some cases, we have both a native language and an English language version of the annual. Both will be made available on International Annual Reports. |
| Q | Do the image files allow viewing or printing in color? |
| A | Yes. Color images are now being added to the International Annual Reports service and can be printed using a color printer. |
| Q | Will annual reports download as quickly as International Company Data full report? |
| A | No. Images are a different document and file type than the text found in our databases. Add to that the fact that most annual reports are 30 pages or more, and you've got a significant downloading differential. |
| Q | What hardware/software/line speed requirements does the service have? |
| A | Obviously, the more recent the hardware and software, the better International Annual Reports will operate; and the faster the line or modem, the better. We recommend using Netscape 3.0 or Internet Explorer 3.0 and higher on a Windows 95 or better operating system. |
| Q | Does Mergent offer an archived database of U.S. public companies? |
| A | Yes, U.S. Company Archives, our newest database, provides extensive financial and business detail on over 4,000 U.S. companies that are no longer publicly traded. |
| Q | What companies are included in the U.S. Company Archives database? |
| A | U.S. Company Archives contain all publicly traded U.S. firms that were acquired, went bankrupt, or merged from 1995 onward, with limited coverage of archival companies back to 1989. |
| Q | What information do you provide on these 4,000 companies? |
| A | U.S. Company Archives provides you with the last full company record, including information such as: The last balance sheet or income statement filed by the company The Board of Directors at the time of acquisition, bankruptcy or merger The company's complete historical story. |
| Q | What will happen to current public companies that get acquired, go bankrupt or merge? |
| A | U.S. Company Archives is a growing archive. As now public companies delist, a snapshot of the company at its end will move to U.S. Company Archives -- six months after the firm stops trading. |
| Q | How do I get more information? |
| A | Please contact your local sales representative or the Mergent customer service department for pricing details. Mergent customer service can be reached at 1-800-342-5647 or 212-413-7601, or via e-mail at customerservice@mergent.com. |
| Q | Does Mergent offer an archived database of International public companies? |
| A | Yes, International Company Archives, our newest database, provides extensive financial and business detail on over 2,000 U.S. companies that are no longer publicly traded. |
| Q | What companies are included in the International Company Archives database? |
| A | International Company Archives contain all publicly-traded non-U.S. firms that were acquired, went bankrupt, or merged from 1996 onward, with limited coverage of archival companies back to 1989. |
| Q | What information do you provide on these 2,000 companies? |
| A | International Company Archives provides you with the last full company record, including information such as: The last balance sheet or income statement filed by the company The Board of Directors at the time of acquisition, bankruptcy or merger The company's complete historical story. |
| Q | How do I get more information? |
| A | Please contact your local sales representative or the Mergent customer service department for pricing details. Mergent customer service can be reached at 1-800-342-5647 or 212-413-7601, or via e-mail at customerservice@mergent.com. |
| Q | How do I find out who the major buyers and sellers are for a particular company? |
| A | Mergent Online's Institutional Holdings, provides information on the largest institutional holders, buyers and sellers for all U.S. companies. Aggregate statistics for each company are also presented. |
| Q | With Insider Trading, how much archived information can I retrieve? |
| A | Insider Trading provides a complete, up-to-date record of all share buys and sells by U.S. corporate officers and directors for the past three and six months. |
| Q | Do I need to subscribe to U.S. Company Data to access Institutional Holdings and Insider Trading? |
| A | Yes. Both Institutional Holdings and Insider Trading are integrated into U.S. Company Data database of over 10,000 U.S. public companies. They can be added to your subscription at an additional charge. |
| Q | Where does this information come from? |
| A | Institutional Holdings is presented in partnership with Computer Share. Insider Trading is sourced from the Washington Service Bureau. |
| Q | How do I get more information? |
| A | Please contact your local sales representative or the Mergent customer service department for pricing details. Mergent customer service can be reached at 1-800-342-5647 or 212.413.7601, or via e-mail at customerservice@mergent.com. |