What changed in this filing

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Item 1. Business

2021-05-05 compared with 2020-05-06 · 76 added, 83 removed, 225 unchanged (41% of the section changed)

71 unchanged sentences

into inanimate objects.

Our unique products support global trends of smart, small,

low-power end nodes for the Internet of Things. We plan to monetize

our technology by selling the products described below and licensing our MRAM

To grow product sales, we plan to broaden our sensor and coupler product

lines, and longer term to target larger markets such as automotive electronics.

Our unique products support global trends of smart, low-power

end nodes for the Internet of Things. We plan to monetize our technology

by selling the products described below and licensing our MRAM technology.

grow product sales, we plan to broaden our sensor and coupler product lines, and

longer term to target larger markets such as automotive electronics.

Our Products and Markets

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sell them in more than 75 countries.

Distributors of our products include America II

Electronics, Inc., Avnet companies, and Digi-Key Corporation.

Our distributor

agreements generally renew annually.

In addition, we distribute versions of some

of our products under private-brand partnerships with large integrated device

manufacturers.

These private-brand partnerships broaden our distribution and enhance

our sales support, technical support, and brand awareness.

Distributors of our products include

America II Electronics, Inc., Angst+Pfister

Sensors and Power , Avnet companies, and Digi-Key

Our distributor agreements generally renew annually.

we distribute versions of some of our products under private-brand partnerships

with large integrated device manufacturers.

These private-brand partnerships broaden

our distribution and enhance our sales support, technical support, and brand awareness.

New Product Status

In the past year we began marketing a number of

new products, including:

new and improved products, including:

new smart sensors for the Internet of Things;

new TMR sensors and magnetic switches;

high transient immunity data couplers;

isolated power convertors;

new antitamper sensors.

new TMR magnetic sensors and magnetic switches;

data couplers with isolated power convertors;

couplers with improved Common-Mode Transient Immunity for more efficient

power control.

Long-term product development programs in fiscal

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Intellectual Property

As of March 31, 2020 we had more than 50 issued

As of March 31, 2021 we had more than 50

patents assigned to us.

We also have a number of foreign patents, a number

and foreign patents pending, and we have licensed patents from others.

There are no patents we regard as critical to our current business owned by us

or licensed to us that expire in the next 12 months.

We also have a number of foreign patents,

a number of U.S.

and foreign patents pending, and we have licensed patents from

There are no patents we regard as critical to our current business owned

by us or licensed to us that expire in the next 12 months.

We have patents on advanced MRAM designs

that we believe are important, including patents that relate to magnetothermal

MRAM, spin-momentum MRAM, and synthetic antiferromagnetic storage.

it is not critical to our current business, we have identified U.S.

patent 6,744,086

titled Current switched magnetoresistive memory cell as particularly

important for successful high-density, high-performance MRAMs.

The patent has

been reissued as RE 44,878 and expires May 15, 2022.

Much of our intellectual property has been developed

Government support.

Under federal legislation, companies normally may

retain the principal worldwide patent rights to any invention developed with U.S.

Under federal legislation, companies normally

may retain the principal worldwide patent rights to any invention developed

Government support.

Certain of our patents cover inventions we believe

may be necessary for successful high-density, high-performance MRAMs.

Patents 6,538,921 titled Circuit selection of magnetic memory cells

and related cell structures, and 6,744,086 titled Current switched

magnetoresistive memory cell are particularly important.

The 6,744,086 patent

has been reissued as RE 44,878 and expires May 15, 2022.

The 6,538,921

patent has been reissued as RE 47,583 and expires August 14, 2021.

We also have patents on advanced MRAM designs that

we believe are important, including patents that relate to magnetothermal MRAM,

spin-momentum MRAM, and synthetic antiferromagnetic storage.

NVE and IsoLoop are our

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and GT Sensor.

Working Capital Items

Like other companies in the electronics industry,

we have historically invested in capital equipment for manufacturing and testing

our products, as well as research and development equipment.

We have also deployed

significant capital in inventories to have finished products available from stock,

to receive more favorable pricing for raw materials, and to guard against raw

material shortages.

Dependence on Major Customers

We rely on several large customers for a significant

percentage of our revenue, including Abbott Laboratories, Sonova AG, certain

other medical device manufacturers, and certain distributors.

The loss of one

or more of these customers could have a material adverse effect on us.

As of March 31, 2020 we had $223,300 of contract

research and development backlog we believed to be firm, and which we expect to

be filled in fiscal 2021.

Certain contracts have performance requirements and

milestones, and there can be no assurance that backlog will result in future revenue.

Our product sales are made primarily under standard purchase orders, which are

generally cancellable.

Therefore product order backlog is not included in firm

backlog, and product sales backlog as of any particular date may not be

indicative of future results.

We also have certain agreements that require customers

to forecast purchases;

however, these agreements do not generally obligate the

customer to purchase any particular quantity of products.

Based on semiconductor

industry practice and our experience, we do not believe that such agreements are

meaningful for determining backlog amounts.

percentage of our revenue, including Abbott Laboratories,

Sonova AG, certain other medical device manufacturers, and certain distributors.

The loss of one or more of these customers could have a material adverse effect

Government Regulations

We are subject to government regulations including,

but not limited to, regulations related to environment, tax matters, securities,

conflict minerals, ethics and foreign corrupt practices, import and export controls,

product safety and liability, workplace health and safety, labor and employment,

and data privacy.

We incur and expect to continue to incur costs and expenses

to comply with these regulations and may incur penalties for any failure to

Additionally, certain contracts required us maintain

facilities and personnel security clearances to protect classified information.

Such clearances are subject Government audits and investigations, and any deficiencies

or illegal activities identified during the audits or investigations could result

in the forfeiture or suspension of payments and civil or criminal penalties.

Environmental Matters

We are subject to environmental laws and regulations

particularly with respect to industrial waste and emissions.

Compliance with these

laws and regulations has not had a material impact on our capital expenditures,

earnings, or competitive position to date.

Existing and future environmental laws

and regulations could result in expenses related to emission abatement or remediation,

but we are currently unable to estimate such expenses.

Number of Employees

We had 46 employees

as of March 31, 2020.

Our employment can fluctuate due to a variety of factors.

None of our employees are represented by a labor union or are subject to a collective

bargaining agreement, and we believe we maintain good relations with our employees.

particularly state and local laws and regulations relating to industrial waste

and emissions.

Compliance with these laws and regulations has not had a material

impact on our capital expenditures, earnings, or competitive position to date.

Existing and future environmental laws and regulations could result in expenses

related to emission abatement or remediation, but we are currently unable to

estimate such expenses.

Human Capital Resources

We had 44 employees as of March 31, 2021,

all of whom were full-time.

We have policies to prevent discrimination based

on gender, race, disability, ethnicity, nationality, religion, sexual orientation,

gender identity, or gender expression.

We take affirmative action to ensure

that applicants are employed, and that employees are treated during employment,

without regard to their race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

take affirmative action to employ and advance veterans in employment.

We offer employees free health risk assessments,

wellness programs, and financial incentives for healthy biometrics.

None of our employees are represented by a labor

union or are subject to a collective bargaining agreement, and we believe we

maintain good relations with our employees.

Available Information

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reports on Form 10-Q , current reports

on Form 8-K , and proxy statements and

additional proxy materials on Schedule 14A, as well as any amendments to

those reports and schedules, are accessible at no cost through the Investors

on Form 8-K , and proxy statements

and additional proxy materials on Schedule 14A, as well as any amendments

to those reports and schedules, are accessible at no cost through the Investors

section of our Website (www.nve.com).

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Compared sentence by sentence after normalising whitespace, quotation marks, case and digits, so re-formatting and restated figures do not read as changed language. Wording changes appear as one removal and one addition. The current filing and the prior one are authoritative.

What changed 10-K

Item 1. Business