Desktop publishing and document management software stalwart Adobe Systems Inc’s chief financial officer Jack Bell, was in a bullish mood when quizzed at the Robertson Stevens conference about how he was going to sustain the company’s long term revenues growth. The answer was an assault on the European market, involving more offices and more advertising. There will be an increased focus on emerging markets in the Asia/Pacific and South American regions and new product releases every 15 months. Adobe will also start pushing its professional products into the wider consumer market by spinning off downsized versions of its software and retailing them at lower prices. On the investor side, Bell was keen to talk about Adobe’s pioneering Venture Dividend Program which is an alternative to the zero dividend policy adopted by most stocks in the high technology sector. Shareholders on record at July 31 this year will receive one share in Netscape Inc, Adobe’s strategic partner, for every 100 shares they hold in Adobe. The idea is to promote investment in companies which can expand the market for Adobe’s products.
