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06/19/2000: One On One With John Thompson, CEO, Symantec
SUSIE GHARIB: Recent Internet attacks are undermining confidence in the security of doing business on the Web. But Symantec Chairman and CEO John Thompson says Web security is the responsibility of the user. Thompson says that businesses and individuals must weigh what they're willing to spend and how much performance they'll sacrifice to feel safe online. At a recent "Forbes" CEO conference, Thompson talked about Web security with NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT'S Rodney Ward.
RODNEY WARD, NIGHTLY BUSINESS REPORT CORRESPONDENT: There was a great deal of excitement about the development of broadband and with the rollout of DSL and cable modems. We're seeing situations where the home computer, where the business computer will always be on. From a securities standpoint, is that just like leaving the door to your house, door to your office open all the time?
JOHN THOMPSON, CHAIRMAN & CEO, SYMANTEC: Well, It certainly is. I think it's important for people who want to engage in computing with broadband connections to really think about not just the DSL connection or the cable modem connection, but what are the security implications of that. Now, I personally would recommend to anyone who has a broadband connection install a personal firewall. Think about what they want in their mailbox, think about what they want people to know about them and to what extent do they want to have blocks in their computer so that cookies and small applets don't track their network engagements and in effect allow people to gather information about them that they may not want to share.
WARD: So security and privacy are the primary responsibility ultimately of the user?
THOMPSON: Well, certainly I think there is a responsibility that we as businesses have in our behavior using the technology that can find out things about people. But ultimately it comes down to you deciding how much you want to invest both in time, money and performance in the security of your environment. For a given corporation, let's say, it's a combination of risk, how much risk are you willing to take, how much money are you willing to spend and how much performance are you willing to sacrifice to achieve a certain level of security. And I think companies in particular try to reach that balance point as they implement their security plans.
WARD: You've been heavily concentrated in the retail market. Is that changing?
THOMPSON: Very much so. Our business in the enterprise market for the last fiscal year grew at 49 percent. Our goal this year is as we exit fiscal 2001 to have 55 percent of our business coming from the enterprise customer set as opposed to two years ago that was probably about 30 percent. Long-term our objective is to have 70 percent of our business come from that segment of the marketplace. So it's a very important shift for us, a shift that we think is more indicative of where the market is moving and, quite frankly, where the marketplace will ascribe value for what we do.
WARD: Wall Street seems to be pretty positive about Symantec. Are you comfortable with the Street's expectations with regard to your earnings going forward?
THOMPSON: Well, the outlook that we've provided the Street for this year is 20 percent top line revenue growth and 23 percent bottom line growth. I don't see anything at this moment that would preclude us from delivering that kind of performance or better for this fiscal year.
WARD: You talk about your Norton product. The marketplace knows Norton but they don't know a whole lot about Symantec. What are you trying to do to change that?
THOMPSON: Clearly, the Norton brand is a very popular and powerful brand and it's worked very well for our company. However, it works best in the consumer space. And so one of the things that we are doing is starting to manage the brands more appropriately. The Symantec brand will really be more associated with our enterprise initiatives and the Norton brand will be contained, if you will, to the consumer segment of the marketplace and that strategy as our revenues shift and as our business continues to grow will allow the Symantec brand to take on a more prominent position, if you will, in our overall portfolio.
WARD: Mr. Thompson, thank you.
THOMPSON: Thank you.
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