Question-and-Answer Session
Operator
(Operator Instructions) Your first question comes from the line of Joshua Zable - Natixis Bleichroeder.
Joshua Zable - Natixis Bleichroeder
Obviously it seemed like you had a strong couple of months, then December things just fell off and then it seems that you’re indicating that January is going better. Obviously, you have some new products launched or launching, which is obviously a good thing, but can you just talk about maybe some of the feedback, the dynamics of the marketplace, what you saw?
I know you’re giving a wide range but just what you’re seeing in January, maybe what changed if anything? And again obviously you saw a delay in payments, that’s coming now so just any more color would be real helpful.
Samuel L. Westover
First of all, I think it’s important to remember that a majority of our revenue comes from outside the US and the US is the only developed country in the world that doesn’t offer its citizen a hearing aid benefit. In Europe and Australia the government will pay for a hearing aid and even if the economy does have a downturn there, the government still gives you a free hearing aid so it tends not to have as much of an impact.
The US, on the other hand, is a little more subject to those sorts of issues and although we haven’t seen much of it, in December it was just a dramatic change. In talking to our customers who purchase products from us and then sell to the ultimate consumer, the patient, they just didn’t have as many patients as they’re used to. And it was a significant drop. Sure the weather was bad but weather is bad other times as well.
But I think if you watched the news it was just a constant drumbeat of impending financial disaster in the United States and most of our customers are senior citizens and I think they listen to that. But one good thing about health care is that when you delay health care for financial reasons it doesn’t mean you don’t buy it later, you just don’t buy it now. So I think December was the first big push on that.
As I say January is better, still not as good though as we would have expected. It’s much better than December, we’ll see how February shakes out and I know there have been some significant efforts to change the public relations aspect of this perceived potential downturn which isn’t necessarily showing up in the numbers yet.
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