UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington,
D.C. 20549
FORM
10-K
☒
ANNUAL REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For
the fiscal year ended December 31 , 2022
☐ TRANSITION
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934
For
the transition period from __________ to __________
Commission
file number 001-12471
THE
ARENA GROUP HOLDINGS, INC.
(formerly
known as theMaven, Inc.)
(Exact
name of registrant as specified in its charter)
Delaware
68-0232575
(State
or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)
(I.R.S.
Employer
Identification No.)
200
Vesey Street
24 th
Floor
New
York , New York
10281
(Address
of principal executive offices)
(Zip
Code)
( 212 )
321-5002
(Registrant’s
telephone number, including area code)
Securities
registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title
of each class
Trading
Symbol(s)
Name
of each exchange on which registered
Common
Stock, $0.01 par value
AREN
NYSE
American
Securities
registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate
by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate
by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2)
has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule
405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant
was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting
company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,”
“smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
Large
accelerated filer ☐
Accelerated
filer ☒
Non-accelerated
filer ☐
Smaller
reporting company ☒
Emerging
growth company ☐
If
emerging growth company, indicated by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying
with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant has filed a report on and attestation to its management’s assessment of the effectiveness
of its internal control over financial reporting under Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (15 U.S.C. 7262(b)) by the registered
public accounting firm that prepared or issued its audit report. ☒
If
securities are registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act, indicate by check mark whether the financial statements of the registrant
included in the filing reflect the correction of an error to previously issued financial statements. ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether any of those error corrections are restatements that required a recovery analysis of incentive-based compensation
received by any of the registrant’s executive officers during the relevant recovery period pursuant to §240.10D-1(b). ☐
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ or No ☒
As
of June 30, 2022, which was the last business day of the registrant’s most recently completed second fiscal quarter for fiscal
2022, the aggregate market value of the common stock held by non-affiliates was $ 90,417,933 .
This calculation is based upon the closing price of the common stock of $9.00 per share on that date, as reported by the NYSE
American.
As
of March 21, 2023, the Registrant had 18,820,926 shares of common stock outstanding.
DOCUMENTS
INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement for its 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders, or Proxy Statement, to be
filed within 120 days after the end of the fiscal year covered by this Annual Report on Form 10-K, are incorporated by reference in Part
III. Except with respect to information specifically incorporated by reference in this Annual Report, the Proxy Statement shall not be
deemed to be filed as part hereof.
Form
10-K
Table
of Contents
Page
Part I.
7
Item
1.
Business
7
Item
1A.
Risk Factors
15
Item
1B.
Unresolved Staff Comments
30
Item
2.
Properties
30
Item
3.
Legal Proceedings
30
Item
4.
Mine Safety Disclosure
30
Part II.
30
Item
5.
Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
30
Item
6.
[Reserved]
31
Item
7.
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
31
Item
7A.
Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
47
Item
8.
Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
47
Item
9.
Changes in and Disagreements With Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
47
Item
9A.
Controls and Procedures
47
Item
9B.
Other Information
48
Item
9C.
Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections
48
Part III.
48
Item
10.
Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
48
Item
11.
Executive Compensation
48
Item
12.
Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
48
Item
13.
Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
50
Item
14.
Principal Accounting Fees and Services
50
Part IV.
50
Item
15.
Exhibits, Financial Statement Schedules
50
Item
16.
Form 10-K Summary
55
Signatures
56
2
Cautionary
Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Information
Certain
statements and information in this Annual Report on Form 10-K may constitute “forward-looking statements” within the meaning
of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended (“Exchange Act”). Forward-looking statements relate to future events or future performance and include,
without limitation, statements concerning our business strategy, future revenues, market growth, capital requirements, product introductions,
and expansion plans and the adequacy of our funding. Other statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K that are not historical
facts are also forward-looking statements. We have tried, wherever possible, to identify forward-looking statements by terminology such
as “may,” “will,” “could,” “should,” “expects,” “anticipates,”
“intends,” “plans,” “believes,” “seeks,” “estimates,” and other comparable
terminology.
Forward-looking
statements in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, for example, statements about:
●
our
ability to achieve and maintain profitability in the future;
●
our
ability to maintain an effective system of internal control over financial reporting;
●
our
ability to attract new subscribers and to persuade existing subscribers to renew their subscriptions;
●
the
success of strategic relationships with third parties;
●
our
ability to recruit and retain qualified personnel;
●
our
ability to manage our growth effectively, including through strategic acquisitions;
●
our
ability to attract, develop, and retain capable Publisher Partners and expert contributors;
●
our
ability to attract new advertisers and to persuade existing advertisers to continue to advertise on the Platform;
●
our
ability to grow market share in our existing markets or any new markets we may enter;
●
our
ability to respond to general economic conditions;
●
the
impact of the novel coronavirus (“COVID-19”) pandemic;
●
our
ability to continue to satisfy NYSE American listing rules;
●
our
estimates of the sufficiency of our existing capital resources combined with future anticipated cash flows to finance our operating
requirements; and
●
other
factors detailed under the section entitled “ Risk Factors .”
We
caution investors that any forward-looking statements presented in this Annual Report on Form 10-K, or that we may make orally or in
writing from time to time, are based on the beliefs of, assumptions made by, and information currently available to, us. Such statements
are based on assumptions, and the actual outcome will be affected by known and unknown risks, trends, uncertainties, and factors that
are beyond our control or ability to predict. Although we believe that our assumptions are reasonable, they are not guarantees of future
performance, and some will inevitably prove to be incorrect. As a result, our actual future results can be expected to differ from our
expectations, and those differences may be material. Accordingly, investors should use caution in relying on forward-looking statements,
which are based only on known results and trends at the time they are made, to anticipate future results or trends.
Certain
risks are discussed in this Annual Report on Form 10-K and also from time to time in our other filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange
Commission (the “SEC” or “Commission”).
This
Annual Report on Form 10-K and all subsequent written and oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or any person acting on
our behalf are expressly qualified in their entirety by the cautionary statements contained or referred to in this section. We do not
undertake any obligation to release publicly any revisions to our forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after
the date of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
3
Risk
Factor Summary
The
following is a summary of the principal risks to which our business is subject. This summary is not complete, and the risks summarized
below are not the only risks we face. You should review and carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described in more detail in
the section titled “Risk Factors” of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, which includes a more complete discussion of the risks
summarized below as well as a discussion of other risks related to our business and an investment in our common stock.
Risks
Related to Our Business
● If
we fail to retain current users or add new users, or if our users decrease their level of
engagement with the Platform, our business would be seriously harmed.
● The
market in which we participate is intensely competitive, and if we do not compete effectively,
our operating results could be harmed.
● The
sales and payment cycle for online advertising is long, and such sales may not occur when
anticipated or at all, all of which could adversely affect our business.
● We
are dependent on the continued services and on the performance of key third party content
contributors, the loss of which could adversely affect our business.
● Our
revenues could decrease if the Platform does not continue to operate as intended.
● The
growing percentage of users whose computers, tablets, or phones that do not support identification
through third-party cookies, mobile identifiers, or other tracking technologies could adversely
affect our business, results of operations, and financial conditions.
● Our
Publisher Partners may engage in intentional or negligent misconduct or other improper activities
on the Platform or otherwise misuse the Platform, which may damage our brand image, our business
and our results of operations.
● The
Platform and our technology systems contain open source software, which may pose particular
risk to our proprietary software and Platform features and functionalities in a manner that
negatively affect our business.
Economic
and Operational Risks
● We
may have difficulty managing our growth.
● The
strategic relationships that we may be able to develop and on which we may come to rely may
not be successful.
● A
significant portion of our revenues is derived from a single customer. If we were to lose
this customer, our revenues could decrease significantly.
● Interruptions
or performance problems associated with our technology and infrastructure may adversely affect
our business and operating results.
● We
operate our exclusive coalition of professional-managed online media channels on third party
cloud platforms and data center hosting facilities.
● Real
or perceived errors, failures, or bugs in the Platform could adversely affect our operating
results and growth prospects.
4
● Malware,
viruses, hacking attacks, and improper or illegal use of the Platform could harm our business
and results of operations.
● If
we are unable to protect our intellectual property rights, our business could suffer.
● We
could be required to cease certain activities or incur substantial costs as a result of any
claim of infringement of another party’s intellectual property rights.
● We
are subject to a variety of laws and regulations in the United States and abroad that are
constantly evolving and involve matters central to our business, including privacy, data
protection, and personal information, rights of publicity, content, intellectual property,
advertising, marketing, distribution, data security, data retention and deletion, personal
information, electronic contracts and other communications, competition, protection of minors,
consumer protection, telecommunications, employee classification, product liability, taxation,
economic or other trade prohibitions or sanctions, securities law compliance, and online
payment services, and the related compliance costs and our failure to comply with these laws
and regulations could adversely affect our business.
● Our
services involve the storage and transmission of digital information; therefore, cybersecurity
incidents, including those caused by unintentional errors and those intentionally caused
by third parties, may expose us to a risk of loss, unauthorized disclosure or other misuse
of this information, litigation liability, regulatory exposure, reputational harm and increased
security costs.
● Existing
or future strategic alliances, long-term investments and acquisitions may have a material
and adverse effect on our business, reputation and results of operations.
● Our
products may require availability of components or known technology from third parties and
their non-availability can impede our growth.
● Our
business is subject to the risk of catastrophic events such as pandemics, earthquakes, flooding,
fire, and power outages, and to interruption by man-made problems such as acts of war and
terrorism.
● Compliance
with the reporting obligations under the United States securities laws and Section 404 of
the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“Sarbanes”) will require expenditure of capital and other
resources and may divert management’s attention. If we fail to comply with these reporting
obligations or to maintain adequate internal control over financial reporting, our business,
financial condition, and results of operations, and investors’ confidence in us, could
be materially and adversely affected.
● Unfavorable
economic and market conditions could adversely affect our business, reputation and results
of operations.
Risks
Related to Our Indebtedness, Financial Condition, and Internal Control
● As
the general economic and market conditions present uncertainty as to our ability to secure
additional capital, there can be no assurances that we will be able to secure additional
financing on acceptable terms, or at all, as and when necessary to continue to conduct operations.
● We
have a history of losses.
● Our
results of operations may fluctuate significantly and may not meet our expectations or those
of securities analysts and investors.
● Any
future litigation against us could be costly and time-consuming to defend.
● Our
ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards may be limited.
5
Risks
Related To Governance
● We
are dependent on the continued services and on the performance of our key executive officers,
management team, and other key personnel, the loss of which could adversely affect our business.
● The
elimination of monetary liability against our directors, officers, and employees under Delaware
law and the existence of indemnification rights for our obligations to our directors, officers,
and employees may result in substantial expenditures by us and may discourage lawsuits against
our directors, officers, and employees.
● Because
we are a “smaller reporting company,” we will not be required to comply with
certain disclosure requirements that are applicable to other public companies, and we cannot
be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies
will make our common stock less attractive to investors.
● Provisions
in our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws and Delaware law may discourage a takeover
attempt even if a takeover might be beneficial to our stockholders and limit our stockholders’
ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers
and employees.
● Claims
for indemnification by our directors and officers may reduce our available funds to satisfy
successful third-party claims against us and may reduce the amount of money available to
us.
Risks
Related to Investment in Our Securities
● The
trading price of the shares of our common stock has been and may continue to be volatile
and could subject us to litigation.
● Our
Board is authorized to issue additional shares of our common stock that would dilute existing
stockholders and sales, distribution or issuance of substantial amounts of our common stock
could cause the market price of our common stock to decline.
● We
may issue additional securities with rights superior to those of our common stock, which
could materially limit the ownership rights of our stockholders.
We
may issue additional securities with rights superior to those of our common stock, which could materially limit the ownership rights
of our stockholders.
6
Part
I
Item
1. Business
The
Arena Group Holdings, Inc. (the “Company,” “Arena Group,” “we,” “our,” or “us”),
is a tech-powered media company that focuses on building deep content verticals powered by a best-in-class digital media platform (the
“Platform”) empowering premium publishers who impact, inform, educate, and entertain. Our strategy is to focus on key verticals
where audiences are passionate about a topic category (e.g., sports and finance), and where we can leverage the strength of our core
brands to grow our audience and increase monetization both within our core brands as well as our media publisher partners (each, a “Publisher
Partner”). Our focus is on leveraging our Platform and iconic brands in targeted verticals to maximize audience reach, improve
engagement, and optimize monetization of digital publishing assets for the benefit of our users, our advertiser clients, and our greater
than 40 owned and operated properties as well as properties we run on behalf of independent Publisher Partners. We operate the media
businesses for Sports Illustrated (“Sports Illustrated”), own and operate TheStreet, Inc. (“TheStreet”) and College
Spun Media Incorporated (“The Spun”), Parade Media (“Parade”), Men’s Journal and power more than 225 independent
Publisher Partners, including the many sports team sites that comprise FanNation. Each Publisher Partner joins the Platform by invitation
only and is drawn from premium media brands and independent publishing businesses with the objective of augmenting our position in key
verticals and optimizing the performance of the Publisher Partner. Publisher Partners incur the costs in content creation on their respective
channels and receive a share of the revenue associated with their content. Because of the state-of-the-art technology and large scale
of the Platform and our expertise in search engine optimization, social media, ad monetization and subscription marketing, Publisher
Partners continually benefit from our ongoing technological advances and bespoke audience development expertise. Additionally, we believe
the lead brand within each vertical creates a halo benefit for all Publisher Partners in the vertical while each of them adds to the
breadth and quality of content. While the Publisher Partners benefit from these critical performance improvements they also may save
substantially in costs of technology, infrastructure, advertising sales, and member marketing and management.
The
Platform
We
developed the Platform, a proprietary online publishing platform that provides our owned and operated media businesses, Publisher Partners
(who are third parties producing and publishing content on their own domains), and individual creators contributing content to our owned
and operated sites (“Expert Contributors”), the ability to produce and manage editorially focused content through tools and
services provided by us. We have also developed proprietary advertising technology, techniques and relationships that allow us, our Publisher
Partners and Expert Contributors to monetize online, editorially focused content through various display and video advertisements and
tools and services for driving a subscription or membership based business and other monetization services (the “Monetization Solutions”
and, together with the Platform, the “Platform Services”). Our Platform offers audiences bespoke content with optimized design
and page construction.
The
Platform comprises state-of-the-art publishing tools, video platforms, social distribution channels, newsletter technology, machine learning
content recommendations, notifications, and other technology that deliver a complete set of features to drive a digital media business
in an entirely cloud-based suite of services. Our software engineering and product development teams are experienced at delivering these
services at scale. We continue to develop the Platform software by combining proprietary code with components from the open-source community,
plus select commercial services as well as identifying, acquiring, and integrating other platform technologies, where we see unique long-term
benefits to us.
The
Platform Services include:
● Content
management, machine learning driven content recommendations, traffic redistribution, hosting
and bandwidth;
● Video
publishing, hosting, and player solution via an integrated set of third-party providers;
● Dashboards
for our Publisher Partners as well as integration with leading analytics services like Google
Analytics;
7
● User
account management;
● User
account migration to platform, including emails and membership data;
● Technical
support team to support our Publisher Partners and staff (if applicable) on the Platform;
● Advertising
serving, trafficking/insertion orders, yield management, and reporting and collection;
● Various
integrations to enable the syndication of content (e.g., Apple News, Facebook Instant Articles,
Google AMP, Google news and RSS feeds); and
● Other
features, as they may be added to the Platform from time to time.
Our
Publisher Partners use the Platform Services to produce, manage, host and monetize their content in accordance with the terms and conditions
of partner agreements between each of our Publisher Partners and us (the “Partner Agreements”). Our Publisher Partners incur
the costs with respect to creating their content; thus, not requiring capital expenditures by us. Pursuant to the Partner Agreements,
we and our Publisher Partners split revenue generated from the Platform Services used in connection with the Publisher Partner’s
content based on certain criteria such as whether the revenue was from direct or programmatic advertising sales, was generated by our
Publisher Partner or us, was generated in connection with a subscription or a membership, was generated from syndicating or licensing
the content to third-parties, or whether the revenue was derived from affiliate links.
Subject
to the terms and conditions of each Partner Agreement and in exchange for the Platform Services, our Publisher Partners grant us, for
so long as our Publisher Partner’s assets are hosted on the Platform, (i) the right to use, host, store, cache, reproduce, publish,
publicly display, distribute, transmit, modify, adapt and create derivative works of the content provided by the Publisher Partner to
provide, maintain and improve the Platform Services; (ii) use, publicly display, distribute and transmit the name, logo, and trademarks
of the Publisher Partner to identify them as users of the Platform Services; (iii) exclusive control of ads.txt with respect to our Publisher
Partner’s domains and (iv) the exclusive right to include our Publisher Partner’s website domains and related URLs in our
coalition in a consolidated listing assembled by third party measurement companies such as comScore, Nielsen or other similar measuring
services selected by us. As such, the Platform serves as the primary digital media and social platform with respect to each of our Publisher
Partners’ website domains during the applicable term of each Partner Agreement.
Our
Brands and Growth Strategy
Our
business model is to grow our Platform audience while striving to diversify revenue and drive gross margin through traditional media
brands as well as new digital-first brands. We believe our vertical model allows us and our partners to leverage audience growth, technological
efficiencies and cost savings across all of our brands. Our vertical model consists of (i) acquiring or partnering with powerful brands
that can offer our audience bespoke content and domain authority, (ii) forming key strategic partnerships with like-minded partners of
high-quality content, (iii) partnering with entrepreneurial publishers to drive local content at variable cost tied to performance, and
(iv) growing our Publisher Partners on our network to expand our content offerings and add scale to the ecosystem.
Our
growth strategy is to continue to expand the coalition by adding new Publisher Partners in key verticals that management believes will
expand the scale of unique users interacting on the Platform. In each vertical, we seek to build around a leading brand, such as Sports
Illustrated (for sports), TheStreet (for finance) and Parade and Men’s Journal (for lifestyle), surround it with subcategory specialists,
and further enhance coverage with individual Expert Contributors. The primary means of expansion is adding independent Publisher Partners
or acquiring publishers that have premium branded content and can broaden the reach and impact of the Platform. As our digital revenue
and gross margin grows, we believe we can further accelerate our growth. Specifically, our 2023 growth initiatives include: (i) increasing
syndication of the content on our Platform through the re-publishing the content on third-party websites, (ii) offering of podcasts and
e-commerce through our Platform, (iii) growing Sports Illustrated sportsbook (“SI Sportsbook”), (iv) acquiring or developing
new verticals for our users, and (v) continuing to identify and partner with new Publisher Partners.
8
Sports
Illustrated
In
2019, we entered into a licensing agreement, as amended (the “Sports Illustrated Licensing Agreement”) with ABG-SI LLC (“ABG”),
pursuant to which we have the exclusive right and license in the United States, Canada, Mexico, United Kingdom, Republic of Ireland,
Australia, and New Zealand to operate the Sports Illustrated media business (in the English and Spanish languages), including to (i)
operate the digital and print editions of Sports Illustrated (including all special interest issues and the swimsuit issue) and Sports
Illustrated for Kids, (ii) develop new digital media channels under the Sports Illustrated brands, and (iii) operate certain related
businesses, including without limitation, special interest publications, video channels, bookazines, and the licensing and/or syndication
of certain products and content under the Sports Illustrated brand. ABG is a brand development, marketing, and entertainment company.
Since
assuming management of the Sports Illustrated media assets in October 2019, we have implemented significant changes to rebuild the historic
brand and beacon of sports journalism, to evolve and expand the business, and to position it for growth and continued success going forward.
With
respect to Sports Illustrated Swim (“SI Swim”), we have transitioned to a female-focused lifestyle brand, with the annual
content release in May 2022. Our fan-facing event to celebrate the 2022 annual content release and ongoing digital sponsorships was held
over several nights in May 2022 and we partnered with Hard Rock, Maybelline, Celsius, Frida Mom and others.
SI
Sportsbook, an online sports betting app, was launched in 2021 in Colorado and has expanded to several states through the end of fiscal
2022. Pursuant to a licensing agreement, we provide content for SI Sportsbook and our partner, 888 Holdings PLC, one of the world’s
leading online betting and gaming companies, provides the gambling engine, which it makes available to users in certain states in which
it is registered.
TheStreet
TheStreet
is a leading financial news and information provider to investors and institutions worldwide and produces business news and market analysis
for individual investors. TheStreet has a strong editorial tradition, robust subscription platform, and valuable membership base to us,
and benefits from our mobile-friendly CMS, social, video, and monetization technology.
The
Spun
The
Spun, founded in September 2012, and acquired by us in June 2021, is an online independent sports publication that brings readers the
most interesting athletic stories of the day. The Spun focuses on the social media aspect of the industry. The former Chief Executive
Officer of The Spun is now serving as our Senior Vice President of Growth, a role we believe will continue to assist us in growing our
sports vertical business.
Parade
We
acquired Parade, a premium-branded company in April 2022 which helped to expand our digital audience reach. Parade has become the anchor
of our new lifestyle vertical, and Athlon Sports, one of Parade’s premium-brands, has expanded our sports vertical. In the fourth
quarter of 2022, we discontinued the Parade print business. See Note 3, Discontinued Operations in our accompanying consolidated
financial statements for additional information.
Men’s
Journal
We
acquired the digital assets of Men’s Journal from Weider Publications, a subsidiary of A360 Media, LLC in December 2022 to supplement
our growing lifestyle vertical. This suite of digital assets provides our audience with access to premium active lifestyle brands including
Men’s Journal, Men’s Fitness, Surfer, Powder, Bike, SKATEboarding, Snowboarder and NewSchoolers.
9
HubPages
HubPages
enhances the user’s experience by including content from individual creators to the HubPages network of premium content channels
that are owned and operated by Arena. These channels, such as PetHelpful, dengarden and Fashionista, act as an open community for writers,
explorers, knowledge seekers, and conversation starters to connect in an interactive and informative online space.
Corporate
History
We
were originally incorporated in Delaware as Integrated Surgical Systems, Inc. (“Integrated”) in 1990. On October 11, 2016,
Integrated and TheMaven Network, Inc. (“Maven Network”) entered into a share exchange agreement (the “Share Exchange
Agreement”), whereby the stockholders of Maven Network agreed to exchange all of the then-issued and outstanding shares of common
stock for shares of common stock of Integrated. On November 4, 2016, the parties consummated a recapitalization pursuant to the Share
Exchange Agreement and, as a result, Maven Network became a wholly owned subsidiary of Integrated. Integrated changed its name to theMaven,
Inc. on December 2, 2016.
On
September 20, 2021, we re-branded to “The Arena Group.” Effective on February 8, 2022, we changed our legal name to The Arena
Group Holdings, Inc. in conjunction with filing a Certificate of Amendment and Certificate of Corrections with the State of Delaware
and on February 9, 2022, our common stock began trading on the NYSE American.
Intellectual
Property
We use proprietary technology
to operate our business, and our success depends, in part, on our ability to protect our technology and intellectual property. We rely
on a combination of patent, copyright, trademark and trade secret laws, as well as contractual restrictions, to establish and protect
our intellectual property. We maintain a policy requiring our employees, contractors, consultants and other third parties to enter into
confidentiality and proprietary rights agreements to control access to our proprietary information. These laws, procedures and restrictions
provide only limited protection and any of our intellectual property rights may be challenged, invalidated, circumvented, infringed or
misappropriated. Further, the laws of certain countries do not protect proprietary rights to the same extent as the laws of the United
States and, therefore, in certain jurisdictions, we may be unable to protect our proprietary technology.
As of December 31, 2022, we had 7 issued patents in the United States,
all expiring by 2033.
As of December 31, 2022, we also owned
approximately 1,300 U.S. copyright registrations and had unregistered copyrights in our software documentation, software code,
marketing materials, and website content that we develop, and owned over 1,600 registered domain names. As of December 31, 2022, we
also owned 165 U.S. trademark registrations, 15 pending U.S. trademark applications, and 88 issued foreign trademark registrations
and 20 pending foreign trademark applications in over 30 countries, and a number of unregistered marks that we use in the United
States and other countries to promote our brands.
Our registered trademarks
are all subject to renewal at various times through 2033.
We will continue to file updated trademark applications in the United
States and abroad to reflect our branding evolution and to continue strengthening our trademark portfolio as financial resources permit.
From time to time we also expect to file additional patents and copyrights.
10
Our
Publisher Partners and Licensing
In
connection with our Partner Agreements and any other applicable agreements between us and our Publisher Partners, (i) we and our affiliates
own and retain (a) all right, title, and interest in and to the Platform, other Monetization Solutions and data collected by us, and
(b) we and our licensors’ trademarks and branding and all software and technology we use to provide and operate the Platform and
Monetization Solutions, and (ii) each Publisher Partner owns and retains (a) all right, title, and interest in and to the Publisher Partner’s
assets, content, and data collected by Publisher Partner and (b) each Publisher Partner’s trademarks and branding.
Seasonality
We
do experience seasonality during the year, as a result of advertising seasonality and sports seasons and major sporting events. Advertising
typically peaks in the fourth quarter of our fiscal year as advertisers concentrate their budgets during the holiday season. This trend
is magnified as it also includes the professional sports and college football seasons, which account for a significant portion of our
advertising revenue during that period of the year. Other sporting events such as the Super Bowl, Winter and Summer Olympics, soccer’s
World Cup, and major golf, tennis and cycling events create increased traffic surrounding the respective events.
Competition
Currently,
we believe that there are many competitors delivering media content in the verticals that we serve on the web and on mobile devices and
an even broader array of general media companies and major media brands that compete for the attention of users and the advertisers who
desire to reach them. We have developed a playbook that leverages our state-of-the-art platform to optimize the performance of both our
owned and operated and our Publisher Partners’ properties. The playbook is a set of processes, procedures and tactics that help
improve the consumer experience, develop a greater organic audience reach, apply data management and artificial intelligence tools, optimize
monetization and leverage content through syndication and improved distribution. This all happens within our vertical structure, which
leverages the iconic brands leading each vertical to deliver a highly engaging and effective experience for our users, advertisers and
subscribers.
The
web provides unlimited access to the market by niche or general media companies, so there are a large number and variety of direct competitors
of ours competing for audience and ad and membership dollars. The general business of online media, combined with some level or method
of leveraging community attracts many potential entrants, and in the future, there may be strong competitors that will compete with us
in general or in selected markets. These and other companies may be better financed and be able to develop their markets more quickly
and penetrate those markets more effectively. The following is a list of possible competitors and their respective categories:
● Vice,
Buzzfeed, Business Insider, et al. – niche content, leverages social, mobile, and video,
and competes for ad dollars;
● Fortune,
CNN, ESPN, Yahoo!, Google, et al. – general content, major media companies, and competes
for ad dollars;
● WordPress,
Medium, RebelMouse, Arc – content management software, open to all including experts
and professionals, and competes for publishers;
● Leaf
Group Ltd. and Future PLC – competes for partners and ad dollars;
● YouTube,
Twitter, Facebook, Reddit – social platforms open to all including experts and professionals;
and
● Affiliate
networks such as Liberty Alliance – competes for ad dollars.
In
addition, even though do not compete in the same market, we view Nexstar Media Group, Inc. and Ziff Davis as peer companies for purposes
of comparing our performance.
We
believe that we compete on the basis of our technology, substantial scale in traffic, ease of use, recognized lead media brands, and
platform evolution through a continuing development and acquisition program. We believe that our scale, methods, technology, and experience
enable us to compete for a material amount of market share of media dollars and membership revenue.
11
Government
Regulations
Our operations are subject to a number of United States federal and
state laws and regulations that involve data privacy, data protection, rights of publicity, content regulation, intellectual property,
or other subjects. Many of these laws and regulations are still evolving and being tested in courts and could be interpreted in ways that
could harm our business. In addition, the application and interpretation of these laws and regulations often are uncertain, particularly
in the new and rapidly evolving industry in which we operate. We continue to monitor existing and pending laws and regulations. and the
impact of regulatory changes cannot be predicted with certainty.
Several
government authorities, both in the United States and abroad, and private parties are increasing their focus on privacy issues and the
use of personal information. All U.S. states have enacted some form of data security legislation, including data breach notification
laws. There are a number of federal laws governing data privacy, and a growing number of U.S. states have enacted laws regarding the
collection, use and disclosure of personal information. California has been the most active in consumer privacy legislation, including
passing a comprehensive law requiring transparency, access, and choice known as the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (the “CCPA”),
which was amended by the California Privacy Rights Act (the “CPRA”) which went into effect January 1, 2020, with enforcement
beginning in June 2023. In addition to California, certain states have already enacted (e.g. VA, CO, CT, and UT) comprehensive consumer
privacy legislation and numerous others have introduced or are considering similar legislation. Certain states, such as Massachusetts,
have also enacted legislation requiring that companies have written information security programs to protect certain personal data, and
more states are considering laws for or have enacted laws about information security, which may require the adoption of written information
security policies that are consistent with state laws if businesses have personal information of residents of those states.
Data privacy and information security legislation is also being considered
at the federal level. In the United States, the Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) and state attorneys general have oversight
of business operations concerning the use of personal information and breaches of the privacy laws under existing consumer protection
laws. In particular, an attorney general or the FTC may examine privacy policies to ensure that a company discloses all material practices
and fully complies with representations in the policies regarding the manner in which the information provided by visitors to a website
is used and disclosed, and the failure to do so could give rise to penalties under state or federal unfair competition or consumer protection
laws. The California Attorney General has begun aggressively investigating companies, especially those with websites, with respect to
CCPA compliance, and these investigations include inquiries into issues for which there has not yet been clear guidance issued by the
state, such as regarding third party cookies that collect personal information from users when they visit our and other websites.
We review our privacy policies and overall operations on a regular
basis to ensure compliance with applicable United States federal and state laws, and to the extent applicable, any foreign laws. We launched
a CCPA compliance program in January 2020, and have expedited it to cover CPRA as well. On an annual basis we review the program and adjust
our privacy notice and compliance program practices to account for our evolving practices and the CCPA/CPRA regulations, which were first
promulgated in July 2020 and continue to be subject to ongoing rulemaking. There are conflicting interpretations of the law that have
been adopted by various parties in the digital media industry, and given the lack of guidance to date on many of these issues, our compliance
posture on some issues might not be accepted by the State of California.
In addition to the laws of the United States, we may be subject to
foreign laws regulating web sites and online services, and the laws in some jurisdictions outside of the United States are stricter than
the laws in the United States. For instance, in May 2018, the General Data Protection Regulation (the “GDPR”) went into effect
in the EU and European Economic Area and Switzerland. The GDPR includes operational requirements for companies that receive or process
personal data of residents of the EU that include significant penalties for non-compliance. In addition, some EU countries are considering
or have passed legislation implementing additional data protection requirements or requiring local storage and processing of personal
data or similar requirements that could increase the cost and complexity of delivering our services. The GDPR also includes certain requirements
regarding the security of personal data and notification of data processing obligations or security incidents to appropriate data protection
authorities or data subjects, as well as requirements for establishing a lawful basis on which personal data can be processed. How the
GDPR will be fully applied to online services, including cookies and digital advertising, is still being determined through ongoing rulemaking
and evolving interpretation by applicable authorities. On June 16, 2020, the Court of Justice of the European Union (“CJEU), declared
the E.U.-U.S. Privacy Shield framework (“Privacy Shield”) to be invalid. As a result, Privacy Shield is no longer a valid
mechanism for transferring personal data from the E.E.A. to the United States. We are addressing this issue, for instance, by including
standard contractual clauses as part of our Data Processing Agreements; however, it is uncertain whether the standard contractual clauses
will also be invalidated by the European courts or legislature, which seems possible given the rationale behind the CJEU’s concerns
about U.S. law and practice on government surveillance. GDPR also convers a private right of action on data subjects and consumer associations
to lodge complaints with supervisory authorities, seek judicial remedies and obtain compensation for damages resulting from violations
of the GDPR. GDPR imposes substantial fines for breaches and violations (up to the greater of €20 million or 4% of our consolidated
annual worldwide gross revenue).
12
Social
networking websites are also under increasing scrutiny. Legislation has been introduced on the state and federal level that could regulate
social networking websites. Some rules call for more stringent age-verification techniques, attempt to mandate data retention or data
destruction by Internet providers, and impose civil or criminal penalties on owners or operators of social networking websites.
The
FTC regularly considers issues relating to online behavioral advertising (a/k/a interest-based advertising), which is a significant revenue
source for us, and Congress and state legislatures are frequently asked to regulate this type of advertising, including requiring consumers
to provide express consent for tracking purposes, so that advertisers may know their interests and are, therefore, able to serve them
more relevant, targeted ads. Targeted ads generate higher per impression fees than non-targeted ads. New laws, or new interpretations
of existing laws, could potentially place restrictions on our ability to utilize our database and other marketing data (e.g., from third
parties) on our own behalf and on behalf of our advertising clients, which may adversely affect our business.
Legislation
concerning the above-described online activities has either been enacted or is in various stages of development and implementation in
other countries around the world and could affect our ability to make our websites available in those countries as future legislation
is made effective. It is possible that state and foreign governments might also attempt to regulate our transmissions of content on our
website or prosecute us for violations of their laws. United States law offers limited safe harbors and immunities to publishers for
certain liability arising out of user-posted content, but other countries do not. Further, there are a number of legislative proposals
in the United States and internationally, that could impose new obligations in areas affecting our business, such as liability for copyright
infringement by third parties and liability for defamation or other claims arising out of user-posted content. Our business could be
negatively impacted if applicable laws subject us to greater regulation or risk of liability.
Our
business could also be adversely affected if regulatory enforcement authorities, such as the California Attorney General or EU/EEA data
protection authorities, take issue with any of our approaches to compliance, or if new laws, regulations or decisions regarding the collection,
storage, transmission, use or disclosure of personal information are implemented in such ways that impose new or additional technological
requirements on us, limit our ability to collect, transmit, store and use or disclose the information, or if government authorities or
private parties challenge our data privacy or security practices that result in liability to, or restrictions on us, or we experience
a significant data or information breach which would require public disclosure under existing notification laws and for which we may
be liable for damages or penalties.
Furthermore,
governments of applicable jurisdictions might attempt to regulate our transmissions or levy sales or other taxes relating to our activities
even though we do not have a physical presence or operate in those jurisdictions. As our platforms, products and advertising activities
are available over the Internet anywhere in the world, multiple jurisdictions may claim that we are required to qualify to do business
as a foreign corporation in each of those jurisdictions and pay various taxes in those jurisdictions. We address state and local jurisdictions
where we believe we have nexus, however, there can be no assurance that we have complied with all jurisdictions that may assert that
we owe taxes.
Currently, we carry cybersecurity and business interruption coverage
to mitigate certain potential losses, but this insurance is limited in amount and may not be sufficient in type or amount to cover us
against claims related to a cybersecurity breach and related business and system disruptions. We cannot be certain that such potential
losses will not exceed our policy limits, insurance will continue to be available to us on economically reasonable terms, or at all, or
any insurer will not deny coverage as to any future claim. In addition, we may be subject to changes in our insurance policies, including
premium increases or the imposition of large deductible or co-insurance requirements.
13
Human
Capital Resources
Our
total number of employees as of December 31, 2021, was 400, of which 391 were full-time employees and 9 were part-time employees. Roughly
23% of our workforce, or 92 employees, is represented by a union named The NewsGuild of New York, CWA Local 31003 (the “Guild”)
pursuant to a binding Memorandum of Agreement executed by and between the Guild and The Arena Media Brands, LLC (“Arena Media”)
on December 31, 2021 (the “MOA”), which covers Sports Illustrated editorial staff. The MOA is intended to be finalized in
the form of a collective bargaining agreement during fiscal 2023. The MOA comprehensively addresses the terms of employment for covered
employees and non-employees regarding, among other things, wages, raises, bonuses, severances, benefits, discipline and the like. We
have incorporated the terms of the MOA into our fiscal 2022 employment practices.
Corporate
Culture
We
like to say that The Arena Group is where the action is - where passion drives each of us. The things we love are what keep us coming
back to read, watch and experience the best in sports, finance, and entertainment – brought to you by the iconic brands you admire
most. We are building out the pathways to passion – your ticket to continuous excitement.
We
are working to build and sustain a company culture that enables our employees to show up as their best, whole selves; to communicate,
collaborate, and innovate with their colleagues, no matter where they are located; and to learn, grow, and belong.
DEI Initiatives
We
believe that a workforce rich in diversity of thought, background, and experience helps us build a company and community where we can
all succeed. This year, we launched our first company-wide Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (“DEI”) Council – comprised
of 18 employees with a variety of identities and backgrounds that also represented as wide a selection as possible across brands, functions,
and tenures at Arena, and most importantly, represented a clear commitment to diversity and inclusion at our company. The Council meets
monthly, and meets with and advises senior leadership on how to direct an annual DEI budget.
We
expect to launch our first company-wide engagement survey in 2023, alongside multi-faceted efforts to build and sustain an inclusive
culture of feedback and engagement. The feedback from this survey will help us prioritize our best next steps in continued improvement
of our workplace community.
Available
Information
We
file our annual, periodic and current reports, and other required information, electronically with the SEC. The SEC maintains a website
at www.sec.gov that contains reports, proxy and information statements and other information that we file with the SEC electronically.
We also make available on our website at www.thearenagroup.net, free of charge, copies of these reports and other information as soon
as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish it to, the SEC.
We
use our website, blog, press releases, public conference calls and public webcasts as means of disclosing material non-public information
and for complying with our disclosure obligations under Regulation FD. The information disclosed by the foregoing channels could be deemed
to be material information. As such, we encourage investors, the media, and others to follow the channels listed above and to review
the information disclosed through such channels. The contents of the websites referred to above are not incorporated into this filing.
14
Item
1A. Risk Factors
Investing
in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. Listed below is a summary of the principal risks that could adversely affect our
business, operations and financial results. There are numerous factors that affect our business, operations and financial results, many
of which are beyond our control. The risks described below are not the only risks we face. Additional risks and uncertainties not presently
known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also affect our business operations. If any of the following risks actually occur,
our business, financial condition, results of operations, cash flows, or our ability to pay our debts and other liabilities could suffer.
As a result, the trading price and liquidity of our securities could decline, perhaps significantly, and you could lose all or part of
your investment. The risks discussed below also include forward-looking statements and our actual results may differ substantially from
those discussed in these forward-looking statements. See the section entitled “Cautionary Statement Regarding Forward-Looking Statements.”
All dollar figures are presented in thousands unless otherwise stated.
RISKS
RELATED TO OUR BUSINESS
If
we fail to retain current users or add new users, or if our users decrease their level of engagement with the Platform, our business
would be seriously harmed.
The
success of our business heavily depends on the size of our user base and the level of engagement of our users. Thus, our business performance
will also become increasingly dependent on our ability to increase levels of user engagement in existing and new markets. We are continuously
subject to a highly competitive market in order to attract and retain our users’ attention. A number of factors could negatively
affect user retention, growth, and engagement, including if:
●
our
users increasingly engage with competing platforms instead of ours;
●
we
fail to introduce new and exciting products and services, or such products and services do not achieve a high level of market acceptance;
●
we
fail to accurately anticipate user needs, or we fail to innovate and develop new software and products that meet these needs;
●
we
fail to price our products competitively;
●
we
do not provide a compelling user experience because of the decisions we make regarding the type and frequency of advertisements that
we display;
●
we
are unable to combat spam, bugs, malwares, viruses, hacking, or other hostile or inappropriate usage of our products or the Platform;
●
there
are changes in user sentiment about the quality or usefulness of our existing products in the short-term, long-term, or both;
●
there
are increased user concerns related to privacy and information sharing, safety, or security on the Platform;
●
there
are adverse changes in our products or services that are mandated by legislation, regulatory authorities, or legal proceedings;
●
technical
or other problems frustrate the user experience, particularly if those problems prevent us from delivering our products in a fast
and reliable manner;
●
we,
our Publisher Partners, or other companies in our industry are the subject of adverse media reports or other negative publicity,
some of which may be inaccurate or include confidential information that we are unable to correct or retract; or
●
we
fail to maintain our brand image or our reputation is damaged.
Any
decrease in user retention, growth, or engagement could render our products and the Platform less attractive to users, advertisers, or
our Publisher Partners, thereby reducing our revenues from them, which may have a material and adverse impact on our business, financial
condition, and results of operations. In addition, there can be no assurance that we will succeed in developing products and services
that will eventually become widely accepted, that we will be able to timely release products and services that are commercially viable,
or that we will establish ourselves as a successful player in any new business area we decide to enter in the future. Our inability to
do so would have an adverse impact on our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
The
market in which we participate is intensely competitive, and if we do not compete effectively, our operating results could be harmed.
The
digital media industry is fragmented and highly competitive. There are many players in the digital media market, many with greater name
recognition and financial resources, which may give them a competitive advantage. Some of our current and potential competitors have
substantially greater financial, technical, marketing, distribution, and other resources than we do. Our competitors may be able to respond
more quickly and effectively than we can to new or changing opportunities, technologies, standards, customer, and user requirements and
trends. In addition, our customers and strategic partners may become competitors in the future. Certain of our competitors may be able
to negotiate alliances with strategic partners on more favorable terms than we are able to negotiate. Pricing pressures and increased
competition generally could result in reduced sales, reduced margins, losses, or the failure of the Platform to achieve or maintain more
widespread market acceptance, any of which could adversely affect our revenues and operating results. With the introduction of new technologies,
the evolution of the Platform, and new market entrants, we expect competition to intensify in the future.
The
sales and payment cycle for online advertising is long, and such sales may not occur when anticipated or at all, all of which could adversely
affect our business.
The
decision process is typically lengthy for brand advertisers and sponsors to commit to online campaigns. Some of their budgets are planned
a full year in advance. The decision process for such purchases, even in normal business situations, is subject to delays and aspects
that are beyond our control. In addition, some advertisers and sponsors take months after the campaign runs to pay, and some may not
pay at all, or require partial “make-goods” based on performance.
15
We
are dependent on the continued services and on the performance of key third party content contributors, the loss of which could adversely
affect our business.
We
rely on content contributed by third party providers, which has in turn attracted users that drive advertising and subscription revenue.
The loss of the services of any of such key contributors could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and
financial condition. Although we have service agreements with some of our key contributors, many are short term in nature or have cancelation
clauses in the agreements. We also depend on our ability to identify, attract, and retain, other highly skilled third-party content contributors.
Competition for such contributors is intense, and there can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully attract, assimilate,
or retain them. The loss or limitation of the services of any of our key third party contributors, or our inability to attract and retain
additional qualified key contributors, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations.
Our
revenues could decrease if the Platform does not continue to operate as intended.
The
Platform performs complex functions and is vulnerable to undetected errors or unforeseen defects that could result in a failure to operate
or inefficiency. There can be no assurance that errors and defects will not be found in current or new products or, if discovered, that
we will be able to successfully correct them in a timely manner or at all. The occurrence of errors and defects could result in loss
of or delay in revenue, loss of market share, increased development costs, diversion of development resources and injury to our reputation
or damage to our efforts to expand brand awareness.
The
growing percentage of users whose computers, tablets, or phones that do not support identification through third-party cookies, mobile
identifiers, or other tracking technologies could adversely affect our business, results of operations, and financial conditions.
We
use “cookies,” or small text files placed on user devices when an Internet browser is used, as well as mobile device identifiers,
to connect users’ computers anonymously to information that we gather, enabling the Platform to demonstrate to advertisers its
efficacy. Our cookies and mobile device identifiers do not identify users directly, but provide an anonymized identifier that connects
users to our records on what that user views or clicks on, as well as other information provided by the user’s device.
M ore and more devices have offered
functionalities that block such anonymized identifiers or provided the ability for the users to proactively block such anonymized identifiers,
which could reduce the ability of the Platform to discover which users are most relevant to a message or to measure the effectiveness
of such messages. Some prominent technology companies, including Google, have also announced intentions
to discontinue the use of cookies, and to develop alternative methods and mechanisms for tracking users. As companies replace cookies,
it is possible that such companies may rely on proprietary algorithms or statistical methods to track users without cookies, or may utilize
log-in credentials entered by users into other web properties owned by these companies, such as their email services, to track web usage,
including usage across multiple devices, which could come into conflict with local regulations in various jurisdictions.
Although
we believe the Platform is well-positioned to continue to provide key data insights to advertisers without cookies, actions
by advertisers to buy advertising based on alternative identifiers could lead to changes in purchase behavior of such advertisers, thereby
possibly impacting our operations, and our financial condition could be adversely affected.
Our
Publisher Partners may engage in intentional or negligent misconduct or other improper activities on the Platform or otherwise misuse
the Platform, which may damage our brand image, our business and our results of operations.
The
Platform provides our owned and operated media businesses, Publisher Partners, and individual creators contributing content to our owned
and operated sites the ability to produce and manage editorially focused content through tools and services provided by us. We might
not be able to monitor or edit a significant portion of the content, such as advertising content, that appears on the Platform. We use
a mix of automated and human controls to detect and manage editorial content produced by Publisher Partners and individual creators
that could cause damage to our brands.
If
Publisher Partner misconduct and misuse of the Platform for inappropriate or illegal purposes occurs, user experience on the Platform
may suffer, and claims may be brought against us. Our business and public perception of our brands may be materially and adversely affected
if we face any related lawsuits or other liabilities.
16
The
Platform and our technology systems contain open source software, which may pose particular risk to our proprietary software and Platform
features and functionalities in a manner that negatively affect our business.
We
use open source software in the Platform and our technology systems and will continue to use open source software in the future. To handle
risks in this regard, we have set up an internal system to monitor the open source software we use in our operation and to manage the
risk it poses to our business. Despite these risk management efforts, open source software licenses could be construed in a manner that
imposes unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to provide our services through the various features and functionalities
of the Platform. Additionally, we may face claims from third parties claiming ownership of, or demanding release of, the open source
software or derivative works that we developed using such software. These claims could result in litigation and could require us to make
our software source code freely available, purchase a costly license or cease offering the implicated services unless and until we can
re-engineer them to avoid infringement. This re-engineering process could require significant additional technology and development resources,
and we may not be able to complete it successfully.
ECONOMIC
AND OPERATIONAL RISKS
We
may have difficulty managing our growth.
We
have added, and expect to continue to add, Publisher Partner and end-user support capabilities, to continue software development activities,
and to expand our administrative operations. In the past two years, we have entered into multiple strategic transactions. These strategic
transactions, which have significantly expanded our business, have and are expected to place a significant strain on our managerial,
operational, and financial resources. To manage any further growth, we will be required to improve existing, and implement new, operational,
customer service, and financial systems, procedures and controls and expand, train, and manage our growing employee base. We also will
be required to expand our finance, administrative, technical, and operations staff. There can be no assurance that our current and planned
personnel, systems, procedures, and controls will be adequate to support our anticipated growth, that management will be able to hire,
train, retain, motivate, and manage required personnel or that our management will be able to successfully identify, manage and exploit
existing and potential market opportunities. If we are unable to manage growth effectively, our business could be harmed.
The
strategic relationships that we may be able to develop and on which we may come to rely may not be successful.
We
will seek to develop strategic relationships with advertising, media, technology, and other companies to enhance the efforts of our market
penetration, business development, and advertising sales revenues. These relationships are expected to, but may not, succeed. There can
be no assurance that these relationships will develop and mature, or that potential competitors will not develop more substantial relationships
with attractive partners. Our inability to successfully implement our strategy of building valuable strategic relationships could harm
our business.
We
rely heavily on our ability to collect and disclose data and metrics in order to attract new advertisers and retain existing advertisers.
Any restriction, whether by law, regulation, policy, or other reason, on our ability to collect and disclose data that our advertisers
find useful would impede our ability to attract and retain advertisers. Our advertising revenue could be seriously harmed by many other
factors, including:
●
a
decrease in the number of active users of the Platform;
●
our
inability to create new products that sustain or increase the value of our advertisements;
●
our
inability to increase the relevance of targeted advertisements shown to users;
●
adverse
legal developments relating to advertising, including changes mandated by legislation, regulation, or litigation; and
●
difficulty
and frustration from advertisers who may need to reformat or change their advertisements to comply with our guidelines.
The
occurrence of any of these or other factors could result in a reduction in demand for advertisements, which may reduce the prices we
receive for our advertisements or cause advertisers to stop advertising with us altogether, either of which would negatively affect our
business, financial condition, and results of operations.
17
A
significant portion of our revenues is derived from a single customer. If we were to lose this customer, our revenues could decrease
significantly.
In
fiscal 2022, we had revenues from one customer that comprised approximately 13.9% of our annual revenue. Therefore, we are highly dependent
on a single customer to generate a material percentage of our annual revenue. The loss of this customer, or a significant reduction in
sales to such customer, could adversely affect our financial condition and operating results. We attempt to diversify our business in
order to minimize any revenue concentration risk.
Interruptions
or performance problems associated with our technology and infrastructure may adversely affect our business and operating results.
Our
growth will depend in part on the ability of our users, customers and Publisher Partners to access the Platform at any time and within
an acceptable amount of time. We believe that the Platform is proprietary, and we rely on the expertise of members of our engineering,
operations, and software development teams for their continued performance. It is possible that the Platform may experience performance
problems due to a variety of factors, including infrastructure changes, introductions of new functionality, human or software errors,
capacity constraints due to an overwhelming number of users accessing the Platform software simultaneously, denial of service attacks,
or other security related incidents. We may not be able to identify the cause or causes of any performance problems within an acceptable
period of time. It may be that it will be difficult to maintain or improve our performance, especially during peak usage times and as
the Platform becomes more complex and our user traffic increases. If the Platform software is unavailable or if our users are unable
to access it within a reasonable amount of time or at all, our business would be negatively affected. Therefore, in the event of any
of the factors described above, or certain other failures of our infrastructure, partner or user data may be permanently lost. Moreover,
the Partner Agreements with our Publisher Partners include service level standards that obligate us to provide credits or termination
rights in the event of a significant disruption in the Platform. To the extent that we do not effectively address capacity constraints,
upgrade our systems as needed, and continually develop our technology and network architecture to accommodate actual and anticipated
changes in technology, our business and operating results may be adversely affected.
We
operate our exclusive coalition of professional-managed online media channels on third party cloud platforms and data center hosting
facilities.
We
rely on software and services licensed from, and cloud platforms provided by, third parties in order to offer our digital media services.
Any errors or defects in third-party software or cloud platforms could result in errors in, or a failure of, our digital media services,
which could harm our business. Any damage to, or failure of, these third-party systems generally could result in interruptions in the
availability of our digital media services. As a result of this third-party reliance, we may experience the aforementioned issues, which
could cause us to render credits or pay penalties, could cause our Publisher Partners to terminate their contractual arrangements with
us, and could adversely affect our ability to grow our audience of unique visitors, all of which could reduce our ability to generate
revenue. Our business would also be harmed if our users and potential users believe our product and services offerings are unreliable.
In the event of damage to, or failure of, these third-party systems, we would need to identify alternative channels for the offering
of our digital media services, which would consume substantial resources and may not be effective. We are also subject to certain standard
terms and conditions with Amazon Web Services and Google Cloud related to data storage purposes. These providers have broad discretion
to change their terms of service and other policies with respect to us, and those changes may be unfavorable to us. Therefore, we believe
that maintaining successful partnerships with Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud, and other third-party suppliers is critical to our success.
18
Real
or perceived errors, failures, or bugs in the Platform could adversely affect our operating results and growth prospects.
Because
the Platform is complex, undetected errors, failures, vulnerabilities, or bugs may occur, especially when updates are deployed. Despite
testing by us, errors, failures, vulnerabilities, or bugs may not be found in the Platform until after they are deployed to our users.
We expect from time to time to discover software errors, failures, vulnerabilities, and bugs in the Platform and anticipate that certain
of these errors, failures, vulnerabilities, and bugs will only be discovered and remediated after deployment to our Publisher Partners
and used by our users. Real or perceived errors, failures, or bugs in our software could result in negative publicity, loss of or delay
in market acceptance of the Platform, loss of competitive position, or claims by our Publisher Partners or our users for losses sustained
by them. In such an event, we may be required, or may choose, for customer relations or other reasons, to expend additional resources
in order to help correct the problem.
Malware,
viruses, hacking attacks, and improper or illegal use of the Platform could harm our business and results of operations.
Malware,
viruses, and hacking attacks have become more prevalent in our industry and have occurred on our systems and may occur in the future.
Any security breach caused by hacking, which involves efforts to gain unauthorized access to information or systems, or to cause intentional
malfunctions or loss or corruption of data, software, hardware, or other computer equipment, and the inadvertent transmission of computer
viruses could harm our business, financial condition and operating results. Any failure to detect such attack and maintain performance,
reliability, security and availability of products and technical infrastructure to the satisfaction of our users may also seriously harm
our reputation and our ability to retain existing users and attract new users.
Our
information technology systems are susceptible to a growing and evolving threat of cybersecurity risk. Any compromise of our data security,
whether externally or internally, or misuse of agent, customer, or employee data, could cause considerable damage to our reputation,
cause the public disclosure of confidential information, and result in lost sales, significant costs, and litigation, which would negatively
affect our financial position and results of operations. Although we maintain policies and processes surrounding the protection of data,
which we believe to be adequate, there can be no assurances that we will not be subject to such claims in the future.
If
we are unable to protect our intellectual property rights, our business could suffer.
Our
success significantly depends on our proprietary technology. We rely on a combination of copyright, trademark and trade secret laws,
employee and third-party non-disclosure and invention assignment agreements and other methods to protect our proprietary technology.
However, these only afford limited protection, and unauthorized parties may attempt to copy aspects of the Platform’s features
and functionality, or to use information that we consider proprietary or confidential. There can be no assurance that the Platform will
be protectable by patents, but if it is, any efforts to obtain patent protection that is not successful may harm our business in that
others will be able to use our technologies. For example, previous disclosures or activities unknown at present may be uncovered in the
future and adversely impact any patent rights that we may obtain. In addition, the laws of some foreign countries do not protect proprietary
rights to the same extent as do the laws of the United States. There can be no assurance that the steps taken by us to protect our proprietary
rights will be adequate or that third parties will not infringe or misappropriate our trademarks, copyrights, and similar proprietary
rights. If we resort to legal proceedings to enforce our intellectual property rights, those proceedings could be expensive and time-consuming
and could distract our management from our business operations. Our business, profitability and growth prospects could be adversely affected
if we fail to receive adequate protection of our proprietary rights.
19
We
could be required to cease certain activities or incur substantial costs as a result of any claim of infringement of another party’s
intellectual property rights.
Some
of our competitors, and other third parties, may own technology patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets and website content, which
they may use to assert claims against us. We cannot assure you that we will not become subject to claims that we have misappropriated
or misused other parties’ intellectual property rights. Any claim or litigation alleging that we have infringed or otherwise violated
intellectual property or other rights of third parties, with or without merit, and whether or not settled out of court or determined
in our favor, could be time-consuming and costly to address and resolve, and could divert the time and attention of our management and
technical personnel.
The
results of any intellectual property litigation to which we might become a party may require us to do one or more of the following:
●
cease
making, selling, offering, or using technologies or products that incorporate the challenged intellectual property;
●
make
substantial payments for legal fees, settlement payments, or other costs or damages;
●
obtain
a license, which may not be available on reasonable terms, to sell or use the relevant technology; or
●
redesign
technology to avoid infringement.
If
we are required to make substantial payments or undertake any of the other actions noted above as a result of any intellectual property
infringement claims against us, such payments or actions could have a material adverse effect upon our business and financial results.
We
are subject to a variety of laws and regulations in the United States and abroad that are constantly evolving and involve matters central
to our business, including privacy, data protection, and personal information, rights of publicity, content, intellectual property, advertising,
marketing, distribution, data security, data retention and deletion, personal information, electronic contracts and other communications,
competition, protection of minors, consumer protection, telecommunications, employee classification, product liability, taxation, economic
or other trade prohibitions or sanctions, securities law compliance, and online payment services, and the related compliance costs and
our failure to comply with these laws and regulations could adversely affect our business.
We
must comply with regulations in the United States as well as any other regulations adopted by other countries where we may do business.
The introduction of new products, expansion of our activities in certain jurisdictions, or other actions that we may take may subject
us to additional laws, regulations, monetary penalties or other government scrutiny. In addition, foreign data protection, privacy, competition,
and other laws and regulations can impose different and/or conflicting obligations or be more restrictive than those in the United States.
These United States federal and state and foreign laws and regulations, which in some cases can be enforced by private parties in addition
to government entities, are constantly evolving and can be subject to significant change, which could adversely affect our business.
As a result, the application, interpretation, and enforcement of these laws and regulations are often uncertain, particularly in the
new and rapidly evolving industry in which we operate and may be interpreted and applied inconsistently from country to country and inconsistently
with our current policies and practices. For example, laws relating to the liability of providers of online services for activities of
their users and other third-parties are currently being tested by a number of claims, including actions based on invasion of privacy
and other torts, unfair competition, copyright, and trademark infringement, and other theories based on the nature and content of the
materials searched, the ads posted, or the content provided by users. In addition, there have been calls by members of Congress, from
both parties, to limit the scope of the current immunities and safe harbors afforded online publishers with regard to user content and
communications under the federal Digital Millennium Copyright Act and the federal Communications Decency Act. Any material reduction
of those protections would make us more vulnerable to third party claims arising out of user content published by our online services.
20
In
particular, the adoption or modification of laws or regulations relating to online media, communities, commerce, security and privacy
could harm our business, operating results and financial condition by increasing our compliance costs and administrative burdens. It
may take years to determine whether and how existing laws such as those governing intellectual property, privacy, security, libel, consumer
protection, and taxation apply. Laws and regulations directly applicable to Internet activities are becoming more diverse and prevalent
in all global markets. The growth and development of Internet content, commerce and communities may prompt calls for more stringent consumer
protection laws, privacy laws and data protection laws, both in the United States and abroad, as well as new laws governing the taxation
of these activities. Compliance with any newly adopted laws may prove difficult for us and may harm our business, operating results,
and financial condition. For example, regulatory or legislative actions affecting the manner in which we display content to our users
or obtain consent to various practices could adversely affect user growth and engagement. Such actions could affect the manner in which
we provide our services or adversely affect our financial results.
Furthermore,
significant penalties could be imposed on us for failure to comply with various statutes or regulations. Violations may result from:
●
ambiguity
in statutes;
●
regulations
and related court decisions;
●
the
discretion afforded to regulatory authorities and courts interpreting and enforcing laws;
●
new
regulations affecting our business; and
●
changes
to, or interpretations of, existing regulations affecting our business.
While
we prioritize ensuring that our business and compensation model are compliant, and that any product or income related claims are truthful
and non-deceptive, we cannot be certain that the FTC or similar regulatory body in another country will not modify or otherwise amend
its guidance, laws, or regulations or interpret in a way that would render our current practices inconsistent with the same.
Our
services involve the storage and transmission of digital information; therefore, cybersecurity incidents, including those caused by unintentional
errors and those intentionally caused by third parties, may expose us to a risk of loss, unauthorized disclosure or other misuse of this
information, litigation liability, regulatory exposure, reputational harm and increased security costs.
We
and our third-party service providers experience cyber-attacks of varying degrees on a regular basis, one of which infiltrated our systems
and accessed a limited amount of our non-financial and encrypted data. We expect to incur significant, increasing costs in ongoing efforts
to detect and prevent cybersecurity-related incidents. The COVID-19 pandemic has increased opportunities for cyber-criminals and the
risk of potential cybersecurity incidents, as more companies and individuals work online. We cannot ensure that our efforts to prevent
cybersecurity incidents will succeed. An actual or perceived breach of our cybersecurity could impact the market perception of the effectiveness
of our cybersecurity controls. Our users or business partners, including our Publisher Partners, could lose trust and confidence in us,
decrease their use of our services or stop using them in entirely. We could also incur significant legal and financial exposure, including
legal claims, higher transaction fees and regulatory fines and penalties, which in turn could have a material and adverse effect on our
business, reputation and operating results. While our insurance policies include liability coverage for certain of these types of matters,
a significant cybersecurity incident could subject us to liability or other damages that exceed our insurance coverage, increase the
cost of our insurance policy going forward, and preclude us from obtaining adequate insurance levels in the future.
21
Existing
or future strategic alliances, long-term investments and acquisitions may have a material and adverse effect on our business, reputation
and results of operations.
We
may enter into strategic alliances with various third parties to further our business purpose from time to time. These alliances could
subject us to a number of risks, including risks associated with sharing proprietary information, non-performance by the third party
and increased expenses in establishing new strategic alliances, any of which may materially and adversely affect our business. We may
have limited ability to monitor or control the actions of these third parties and, to the extent any of these strategic third parties
suffers negative publicity or harm to their reputation from events relating to their business, we may also suffer negative publicity
or harm to our reputation by virtue of our association with any such third party. In addition, if appropriate opportunities arise, we
may acquire additional assets, products, technologies or businesses that are complementary to our existing business. Future acquisitions
and the subsequent integration of new assets and businesses into our own would require significant attention from our management and
could result in a diversion of resources from our existing business, which in turn could have an adverse effect on our business operations.
Acquisitions may not achieve our goals and could be viewed negatively by users, business partners or investors. Acquisitions could result
in the use of substantial amounts of cash, potentially dilutive issuances of equity securities, the occurrence of significant goodwill
impairment charges, amortization expenses for other intangible assets and exposure to potential unknown liabilities of the acquired business.
Moreover, the costs of identifying and consummating acquisitions may be significant. In addition to possible shareholders’ approval,
we may also have to obtain approvals and licenses from relevant authorities for the acquisitions, which could result in increased delay
and costs.
Our
products may require availability of components or known technology from third parties and their non-availability can impede our growth.
We
license/buy certain technology integral to our products from third parties, including open-source and commercially available software.
Our inability to acquire and maintain any third-party product licenses or integrate the related third-party products into our products
in compliance with license arrangements, could result in delays in product development until equivalent products can be identified, licensed,
and integrated. We also expect to require new licenses in the future as our business grows and technology evolves. We cannot provide
assurance that these licenses will continue to be available to us on commercially reasonable terms, if at all.
Our
business is subject to the risk of catastrophic events such as pandemics, earthquakes, flooding, fire, and power outages, and to interruption
by man-made problems such as acts of war and terrorism.
Our
business is vulnerable to damage or interruption from pandemics, including the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, earthquakes, flooding, fire,
power outages, telecommunications failures, terrorist attacks, acts of war, human errors, break-ins, and similar events. A significant
natural disaster could have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, and financial condition, and our insurance
coverage may be insufficient to compensate us for losses that may occur. Furthermore, acts of terrorism, which may be targeted at metropolitan
areas that have higher population density than rural areas, could cause disruptions in our or our Publisher Partners’ businesses
or the economy as a whole. Our technology infrastructure may also be vulnerable to computer viruses, break-ins, denial-of-service attacks,
and similar disruptions from unauthorized tampering with our computer systems, which could lead to interruptions, delays, loss of critical
data. We may not have sufficient protection or recovery plans in some circumstances, such as natural disasters affecting New York and
other states where we have properties. As we rely heavily on our computer and communications systems and the Internet to conduct our
business and provide high-quality user and customer service, these disruptions could negatively impact our ability to run our business
and either directly or indirectly disrupt our Publisher Partners’ businesses, which could adversely affect our business, results
of operations, and financial condition.
22
Compliance
with the reporting obligations under the United States securities laws and Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (“Sarbanes”)
require expenditure of capital and other resources and may divert management’s attention. If we fail to comply with these reporting
obligations or to maintain adequate internal control over financial reporting, our business, financial condition, and results of operations,
and investors’ confidence in us, could be materially and adversely affected.
As
a public company, we are required to comply with the periodic reporting obligations of the Exchange Act, Sarbanes and other applicable
securities rules and regulations, including the preparation of annual reports, quarterly reports, and current reports. Complying with
these rules and regulations have caused us and will continue to cause us to incur additional legal and financial compliance costs, make
some activities more difficult, be time-consuming or costly, and continue to increase demand on our systems and resources. Further, by
complying with public disclosure requirements, our business and financial condition are more visible, which we believe may result in
the likelihood of increased threatened or actual litigation, including by competitors and other third parties. Compliance with these
additional requirements may also divert management’s attention from operating our business. Any of these results may adversely
affect our operating results.
If
we fail to timely meet our reporting obligations under the Exchange Act, Sarbanes and other applicable securities rules and regulations
in their entirety, we could be subject to penalties under federal securities laws and regulations of the NYSE American and face lawsuits,
and our ability to access financing on favorable terms could be restricted severely. We will also not be able to obtain independent accountant
certifications required for public companies under Sarbanes if we fail to or are unable to comply with Sarbanes. In addition, pursuant
to Section 404 of Sarbanes, we are required to evaluate and provide a management report of our systems of internal control over financial
reporting and our independent registered public accounting firm is required to annually audit the effectiveness of our internal control
over financial reporting commencing with the year ended December 31, 2022, which has, and will continue to, require increased costs,
expenses and management resources.
As
discussed in Item 9A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, in the course of preparing our financial statements, we identified material
weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting related to (i) controls over segregation of duties consistent
with control objectives related to our information technology general controls specifically as relates to change management and (ii)
insufficient validation of non-Google impression data provided by certain third-party service providers .
As a result of the identified material weaknesses, our management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not
effective as of December 31, 2022. A material weakness is a deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial
reporting, such that there is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the annual or interim financial statements will
not be prevented or detected on a timely basis. The material weaknesses identified in Item 9A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K did
not result in any misstatement of our financial statements. Our management is currently evaluating remedial actions to address the material
weaknesses identified as of December 31, 2022. However, our remediation efforts may be inadequate, or we may in the future discover material
weaknesses in other areas of our internal control over financial reporting that require remediation.
We
cannot assure you that the measures we have taken to date, and actions we may take in the future, will be sufficient to remediate the
control deficiencies that led to the material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting or that they will prevent or
avoid potential future material weaknesses. Any failure
to maintain internal control over financial reporting could severely inhibit our ability to accurately report our financial condition
or results of operations. If we are unable to conclude that our internal control over financial reporting is effective, or if our independent
registered public accounting firm determines we have a material weakness or significant deficiency in our internal control over financial
reporting, we could lose investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, the market price of our common
stock could decline, and we could be subject to sanctions or investigations by the SEC or other regulatory authorities. Failure to remedy
any material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting, or to implement or maintain other effective control systems required
of public companies, could also restrict our future access to the capital markets.
23
If
we fail to timely meet our reporting obligations under the Exchange Act, Sarbanes and other applicable securities rules and regulations
in their entirety, we could be subject to penalties under federal securities laws and regulations of the NYSE American and face lawsuits,
and our ability to access financing on favorable terms could be restricted severely. We will also not be able to obtain independent accountant
certifications required for public companies under Sarbanes if we fail to or are unable to comply with Sarbanes. In addition, pursuant
to Section 404 of Sarbanes, we are required to evaluate and provide a management report of our systems of internal control over financial
reporting and our independent registered public accounting firm is required to annually audit the effectiveness of our internal control
over financial reporting commencing with the year ended December 31, 2022, which has, and will continue to, require increased costs,
expenses and management resources. During the evaluation and testing process of our internal controls, if we identify one or more material
weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, we will be unable to certify that our internal control over financial reporting
is effective. We cannot assure you that there will not be material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in our internal control over
financial reporting in the future. Any failure to maintain internal control over financial reporting could severely inhibit our ability
to accurately report our financial condition or results of operations. If we are unable to conclude that our internal control over financial
reporting is effective, or if our independent registered public accounting firm determines we have a material weakness or significant
deficiency in our internal control over financial reporting, we could lose investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our
financial reports, the market price of our common stock could decline, and we could be subject to sanctions or investigations by the
SEC or other regulatory authorities. Failure to remedy any material weakness in our internal control over financial reporting, or to
implement or maintain other effective control systems required of public companies, could also restrict our future access to the capital
markets.
Unfavorable
economic and market conditions could adversely affect our business, reputation and results of operations.
Our
services, products and properties are may be adversely impacted by uncertain economic conditions, including the impact of the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic; the Ukraine – Russia conflict; adverse changes in interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates, tax laws
or tax rates; inflation; a recession; contraction in the availability of credit in the marketplace due to legislation or other economic
conditions, which may potentially impair our ability to access the capital markets on terms acceptable to us or at all; and the effects
of government initiatives to manage economic conditions. Moreover, we cannot predict how future economic conditions will affect our users
and Publisher Partners and any negative impact on our users or Publisher Partners may also have an adverse impact on our results of operations
or financial condition. A severe or prolonged economic downturn, as result of a global pandemic such as the COVID-19 pandemic or otherwise,
could result in a variety of risks to our business, including weakened demand for our products and services and our ability to raise
additional capital when needed on favorable terms, if at all. Any of the foregoing could harm our business and we cannot anticipate all
of the ways in which the current economic climate and financial market conditions could adversely impact our business.
RISKS
RELATED TO OUR INDEBTEDNESS, FINANCIAL CONDITION, AND INTERNAL CONTROL
As
the general economic and market conditions present uncertainty as to our ability to secure additional capital, there can be no assurances
that we will be able to secure additional financing on acceptable terms, or at all, as and when necessary to continue to conduct operations.
Our
future liquidity and capital requirements will depend upon numerous factors, including the success of the Platform, our offerings, competing
technological developments, and general economic and market conditions, which have presented substantial uncertainty in recent months.
We may need to raise funds through public or private financings, strategic relationships, or other arrangements. There can be no assurance
that such funding will be available on terms acceptable to us, or at all. Furthermore, any equity financing will be dilutive to existing
stockholders, and debt financing, if available, may involve restrictive covenants that may limit our operating flexibility with respect
to certain business matters. Strategic arrangements may require us to relinquish our rights or grant licenses to some or substantial
parts of our intellectual property. If funds are raised through the issuance of equity securities, the percentage ownership of our stockholders
will be reduced, stockholders may experience additional dilution in net book value per share, and such equity securities may have rights,
preferences, or privileges senior to those of the holders of our existing capital stock. If adequate funds are not available on acceptable
terms, we may not be able to continue operating, develop or enhance products, take advantage of future opportunities or respond to competitive
pressures, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial condition.
24
We
have a history of losses.
In
fiscal 2022, we had net loss of approximately $70,858 compared to approximately $89,940 in fiscal 2021. Our accumulated deficit as of
December 31, 2022 was approximately $323,071. We may continue to incur losses in the future if we do not achieve sufficient revenue to
achieve and maintain profitability. There is no assurance that our operations will generate sufficient cash flows to support our continued
operations in the future without needing to seek additional capital funding or borrowings. We can provide no assurance that if we need
to seek such additional outside capital that it will be available on favorable terms or at all. Any failure to achieve and maintain profitability
could have a materially adverse effect on our ability to implement our business plan, our results and operations, and our financial condition.
Our
results of operations may fluctuate significantly and may not meet our expectations or those of securities analysts and investors.
We
operate in an evolving industry, and as a result, our business has evolved over time such that our operating history makes it difficult
to evaluate our business and future prospects. Our results of operations have fluctuated in the past, and future results of operations
are likely to fluctuate as well. Although we have experienced substantial revenue growth, we may not be able to sustain this growth rate
or current revenue levels or achieve profitability. In addition, because our business is evolving, our historical results of operations
may be of limited utility in assessing our future prospects. We expect to face challenges, risks, and difficulties frequently experienced
by growing companies in rapidly developing industries, including those relating to:
●
changes in demand and pricing for our products, services and
the Platform;
●
developing, maintaining, and expanding relationships with Publisher
Partners and advertisers;
● innovating
and developing new solutions that are adopted by and meet the needs of Publisher Partners
and advertisers;
●
competing against companies with a larger user and customer
base or greater financial or technical resources;
●
changes in the pricing policies of Publisher Partners, advertisers
and competitors;
●
changes in our access to valuable user data;
●
costs to develop and upgrade the Platform to incorporate new
technologies;
● costs
related to the acquisition of businesses, talent, technologies, or intellectual property,
including potentially significant amortization costs and possible write-downs;
●
seasonality in our business;
●
the length and complexity of our sales cycles;
●
the timing of stock-based compensation expense;
●
potential costs to attract, onboard, retain and motivate qualified
personnel;
● responding
to evolving industry standards and government regulations that impact our business, particularly
in the areas of data protection and consumer privacy;
● changes
in demand as a result of changes in the macroeconomic environment, as a result of inflation,
changes in interest rates or foreign exchange rates, or otherwise; and
●
further expanding our business in other markets.
Any
one or more of the factors above may result in significant fluctuations in our results of operations. You should not rely on our past
results as an indicator of our future performance.
Because
many of our expenses are based upon forecast demand and may be difficult to reduce in the short term, volatility in quarterly revenue
could cause significant variations in quarterly results of operations. We may not forecast our revenue or expenses accurately, which
may cause our results of operations to diverge from our estimates or the expectations of securities analysts, and investors. If we fail
to meet or exceed such expectations for these or any other reasons, the trading price of our common stock could fall, and we could face
costly litigation, including securities class action lawsuits.
25
Any
future litigation against us could be costly and time-consuming to defend.
We
have in the past and may in the future become subject to legal proceedings and claims or regulatory inquiries or proceedings that arise
in the ordinary course of business, such as claims brought by our customers and partners in connection with commercial disputes, employment
claims made by our current or former employees, or claims for reimbursement following misappropriation of customer data. For example,
we could face claims relating to information that is published or made available on the Platform. In particular, the nature of our business
exposes us to claims related to defamation, intellectual property rights and rights of publicity and privacy. We might not be able to
monitor or edit a significant portion of the content that appears on the Platform. This risk is enhanced in certain jurisdictions outside
the United States where our protection from liability for third-party actions may be unclear and where we may be less protected under
local laws than we are in the United States. We could also face fines or orders restricting or blocking our services in particular geographies
as a result of content hosted on our services. If any of these events occur, our business could be seriously harmed. Further, our employees
are highly experienced, having worked in our industry for many years and. Prior employers may try to assert that our employees are breaching
restrictive covenants and other limitations imposed by past employment arrangements. We believe that all of our employees are free to
work for us in their various capacities and have not breached past employment arrangements. Notwithstanding our care in our employment
practices, a prior employer may assert a claim. Such claims will be costly to contest, highly disruptive to our work environment, and
may be detrimental to our operations.
Moreover,
insurance might not cover any such claims that rise in the ordinary course of business, might not provide sufficient payments to cover
all the costs to resolve one or more such claims, and might not continue to be available on terms acceptable to us. A claim brought against
us that is uninsured or underinsured could result in unanticipated costs, thereby reducing our results of operations and leading analysts
or potential investors to reduce their expectations of our performance, which could reduce the trading price of our common stock. Litigation
might result in substantial costs and may divert management’s attention and resources, which could adversely affect our business,
financial condition, results of operations, and prospects.
Our
ability to utilize our net operating loss carryforwards may be limited.
As
of December 31, 2022, we had federal net operating loss carryforwards, or NOLs, due to prior period losses of $190,070,
and the NOLs could expire before we generate sufficient taxable income to make use of our NOLs. Subject to certain limitations, NOLs
can be used to offset taxable income for U.S. federal income tax purposes. However, Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986,
as amended, may limit the NOLs we may use in any year for U.S. federal income tax purposes in the event of certain changes in ownership
of our Company. If an “ownership change” occurs, Section 382 would impose an annual limit on the amount of pre-ownership
change NOLs and other tax attributes we can use to reduce our taxable income, potentially increasing and accelerating our liability for
income taxes, and also potentially causing those tax attributes to expire unused. In addition, our ability to use our net operating losses
is dependent on our ability to generate taxable income, and the net operating losses could expire before we generate sufficient taxable
income to make use of our net operating losses.
RISKS
RELATED TO GOVERNANCE
We
are dependent on the continued services and on the performance of our key executive officers, management team, and other key personnel,
the loss of which could adversely affect our business.
Our
future success largely depends upon the continued services of our key executive officers, management team, and other key personnel. The
loss of the services of any of such key personnel could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results, and financial
condition. We depend on the continued services of our key personnel as they work closely with both our employees and our Publisher Partners.
Such key personnel are also responsible for our day-to-day operations. Although we have employment agreements with some of our key personnel,
these are at-will employment agreements, albeit with non-competition and confidentiality provisions and other rights typically associated
with employment agreements. We do not believe that any of our executive officers are planning to leave or retire in the near term; however,
we cannot ensure that our executive officers or members of our management team will remain with us. We also depend on our ability to
identify, attract, hire, train, retain, and motivate other highly skilled technical, managerial, sales, operational, business development,
and customer service personnel. Competition for such personnel is intense, and there can be no assurance that we will be able to successfully
attract, assimilate, or retain sufficiently qualified personnel. The loss or limitation of the services of any of our executive officers,
members of our management team, or key personnel, including our regional and country managers, or the inability to attract and retain
additional qualified key personnel, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations.
26
The
elimination of monetary liability against our directors, officers, and employees under Delaware law and the existence of indemnification
rights for our obligations to our directors, officers, and employees may result in substantial expenditures by us and may discourage
lawsuits against our directors, officers, and employees.
Our
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, as amended (our “Certificate of Incorporation”), and our Second Amended
and Restated Bylaws (our “Bylaws”) contain provisions permitting us to eliminate the personal liability of our directors
and officers to us and our stockholders for damages for the breach of a fiduciary duty as a director or officer to the extent provided
by Delaware law. We may also have contractual indemnification obligations under any future employment agreements with our officers. The
foregoing indemnification obligations could result in us incurring substantial expenditures to cover the cost of settlement or damage
awards against directors and officers, which we may be unable to recoup. These provisions and the resulting costs may also discourage
us from bringing a lawsuit against directors and officers for breaches of their fiduciary duties, and may similarly discourage the filing
of derivative litigation by our stockholders against our directors and officers even through such actions, if successful, might otherwise
benefit us and our stockholders.
Because
we are a “smaller reporting company,” we will not be required to comply with certain disclosure requirements that are applicable
to other public companies, and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies
will make our common stock less attractive to investors.
We
are a “smaller reporting company,” as defined in Item 10(f)(1) of Regulation S-K. As a smaller reporting company, we are
eligible for exemptions from various reporting requirements applicable to other public companies that are not smaller reporting companies,
including, but not limited to reduced disclosure obligations, including with respect to executive compensation, in our periodic reports,
proxy statements, and registration statements. We will continue to be a smaller reporting company if either (i) the market value of our
stock held by non-affiliates is less than $250 million as of the prior June 30, or (ii) our annual revenue is less than $100 million
during the most recently completed fiscal year and the market value of our stock held by non-affiliates is less than $700 million as
of the prior June 30. We cannot predict if investors will find our common stock less attractive because we may rely on these exemptions.
If some investors find our common stock less attractive as a result, there may be a less active trading market for our common stock and
our stock price may be more volatile.
Provisions
in our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws and Delaware law may discourage a takeover attempt even if a takeover might be beneficial
to our stockholders and limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors,
officers and employees.
Provisions
contained in our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us. Provisions in
our Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws impose various procedural and other requirements, which could make it more difficult for
stockholders to affect certain corporate actions. For example, our Certificate of Incorporation authorizes our Board to determine the
rights, preferences, privileges, and restrictions of unissued series of our Preferred Stock without any vote or action by our stockholders.
Thus, our Board can authorize and issue shares of our Preferred Stock with voting or conversion rights that could dilute the voting power
of holders of other series of our capital stock. These rights may have the effect of delaying or deterring a change of control of us.
Additionally, our Certificate of Incorporation or Bylaws establish limitations on the removal of directors and include advance notice
requirements for nominations for election to our Board and for proposing matters that can be acted upon at stockholder meetings.
27
In
addition, our Certificate of Incorporation provides that a state or federal court located within the state of Delaware will be the exclusive
forum for: any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf; any action asserting a breach of fiduciary duty; any action asserting
a claim against us arising pursuant to the DGCL, our Certificate of Incorporation, or our Bylaws; any action to interpret, apply, enforce,
or determine the validity of our Certificate of Incorporation or our Bylaws; or any action asserting a claim against us that is governed
by the internal affairs doctrine. This choice of forum provision may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring a claim in a judicial
forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or any of our directors, officers, or other employees, which may discourage lawsuits
with respect to such claims. Alternatively, if a court were to find the choice of forum provision contained in our restated certificate
of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur additional costs associated with resolving such action
in other jurisdictions, which could harm our business, operating results, and financial condition.
Moreover,
because we are incorporated in Delaware, we are governed by the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law (“DGCL”),
which prohibits an “interested stockholder” owning in excess of 15% of our outstanding voting stock from merging or combining
with us for a period of three years after the date of the transaction in which such stockholder acquired in excess of 15% of our outstanding
voting stock, unless the merger or combination is approved in a prescribed manner. These provisions could limit the price that certain
investors might be willing to pay in the future for shares of our common stock.
Claims
for indemnification by our directors and officers may reduce our available funds to satisfy successful third-party claims against us
and may reduce the amount of money available to us.
Our
Certificate of Incorporation provides that we will indemnify our directors and officers, in each case, to the fullest extent permitted
by Delaware law. In addition, Section 145 of the DGCL or our Certificate of Incorporation provides that:
● We
will indemnify our directors and officers for serving us in those capacities or for serving
other business enterprises at our request, to the fullest extent permitted by Delaware law.
Delaware law provides that a corporation may indemnify such person if such person acted in
good faith and in a manner such person reasonably believed to be in or not opposed to the
best interests of the corporation and, with respect to any criminal action or proceeding,
had no reasonable cause to believe such person’s conduct was unlawful.
● We
may, in our discretion, indemnify employees and agents in those circumstances where indemnification
is permitted by applicable law.
● We
are required to advance expenses, as incurred, to our directors and officers in connection
with defending a proceeding, except that such directors or officers shall undertake to repay
such advances if it is ultimately determined that such person is not entitled to indemnification.
● The
rights conferred in our Certificate of Incorporation are not exclusive, and we are authorized
to enter into indemnification agreements with our directors, officers, employees, and agents
and to obtain insurance to indemnify such persons.
● We
may not retroactively amend our Certificate of Incorporation or indemnification agreement,
if any, to reduce our indemnification obligations to directors, officers, employees, and
agents.
The
trading price of the shares of our common stock has been and may continue to be volatile and could subject us to litigation.
Stocks
of companies in the media and technology industries have historically experienced high levels of volatility. The trading price of our
common stock has fluctuated substantially and may continue to do so. These fluctuations could cause you to incur substantial losses,
including all of your investment in our common stock. Factors that could cause fluctuations in the trading price of our common stock,
some of which are beyond our control and may not be related to our operational or financial performance, include, among others, the following:
● price
and volume fluctuations in the overall stock market from time to time;
● announcements
of new products, solutions or technologies, commercial relationships, acquisitions, or other
events by us or our competitors;
● the
public’s reaction to our press releases, other public announcements, and filings with
the SEC;
28
● fluctuations
in the trading volume of our shares or the size of our public float, including in connection
with an acquisition;
● sales
of large blocks of our common stock;
● actual
or anticipated changes or fluctuations in our results of operations or financial projections;
● failure
of securities analysts to initiate or maintain coverage of us, changes in financial estimates
by any securities analysts who follow our company, or our failure to meet these estimates
or the expectations of investors;
● recruitment
or departures of key personnel;
● governmental
or regulatory developments or actions, or litigation involving us, our industry, or both
● general
economic conditions and trends, including inflation and fluctuating interest rates;
● general
political conditions and trends, political instability and acts of war or terrorism, including
the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine;
● public
health crises and related measures to protect the public health (such as the COVID-19 pandemic);
● major
catastrophic events in our domestic and foreign markets;
● changes
in accounting standards, policies, guidelines, interpretations, or principles; and
● “flash
crashes,” “freeze flashes,” or other glitches that disrupt trading on the
securities exchange on which we are listed.
In
addition, if the market for stock of media and technology companies or the stock market, in general, experiences a loss of investor confidence,
the trading price of our common stock could decline for reasons unrelated to our business, results of operations, or financial condition.
The trading price of our common stock might also decline in reaction to events that affect other companies in the media and technology
industries even if these events do not directly affect us. In the past, following periods of volatility in the market price of a company’s
securities, securities class action litigation has often been brought against that company. If litigation is instituted against us, it
could subject us to substantial costs, divert management’s attention and resources, and adversely affect our business.
Our
Board is authorized to issue additional shares of our common stock that would dilute existing stockholders and sales, distribution or
issuance of substantial amounts of our common stock could cause the market price of our common stock to decline.
Our
Board has the power to issue any or all authorized but unissued shares of our common stock at any price and, in respect of our preferred
stock, at any price and with any attributes our Board considers sufficient, without stockholder approval. The issuance of additional
shares of our common stock in the future will reduce the proportionate ownership and voting power of current stockholders and may negatively
impact the market price of our common stock. Moreover, the sale or distribution of a substantial number of shares of our common stock,
particularly sales by us or our directors, executive officers, and principal stockholders, or the perception that these sales or distributions
might occur in large quantities, could cause the market price of our common stock to decline. In addition, shares subject to outstanding
warrants as well as the shares of common stock subject to outstanding options and restricted stock unit awards under our equity incentive
plans, and the shares reserved for future issuance under our equity incentive plans, will become eligible for sale in the public market
upon issuance, subject to compliance with applicable securities laws. Further, we also may issue our capital stock or securities convertible
into our capital stock, from time to time in connection with financing, an acquisition, investments, or otherwise. Any of the aforementioned
activity, could result in substantial dilution to our existing stockholders and cause the market price of common stock to decline.
We
may issue additional securities with rights superior to those of our common stock, which could materially limit the ownership rights
of our stockholders.
We
may offer additional debt or equity securities in private or public offerings in order to raise working capital or to refinance our debt.
Our Board has the right to determine the terms and rights of any debt securities and preferred stock without obtaining the approval of
our stockholders. It is possible that any debt securities or preferred stock that we sell would have terms and rights superior to those
of our common stock and may be convertible into shares of our common stock. Any sale of securities could adversely affect the interests
or voting rights of the holders of our common stock, result in substantial dilution to existing stockholders, or adversely affect the
market price of our common stock.
29
Item
1B. Unresolved Staff Comments
Not
Applicable.
Item
2. Properties
As
of the end of fiscal 2022, we have leases in New Jersey and California. The space in Hoboken, New Jersey is occupied by The Spun. In
Santa Monica, California we have a leased space which we sublet and a lease for office space that we do not occupy in Carlsbad, California.
To the extent we need to lease physical properties in the future, we believe we would be able to find suitable properties at market rates.
Item
3. Legal Proceedings
From
time to time, we may be subject to claims and litigation arising in the ordinary course of business. We are not currently subject to
any pending or threatened legal proceedings that we believe would reasonably be expected to have a material adverse effect on our business,
financial condition, results of operations or cash flows.
Item
4. Mine Safety Disclosure
Not
applicable.
Part
II.
Item
5. Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases of Equity Securities
Market
Information
Our
common stock began trading on the NYSE American on February 9, 2022 under the symbol “AREN.” Before then, from September
21, 2021 until February 8, 2022, our common stock was quoted on the OTCM’s OTCQX trading under the symbol “MVEN.”
Holders
As
of March 21, 2023, there were approximately 186 holders of record of our common stock. Since many of our shares of common stock are held
by brokers and other institutions on behalf of stockholders, we are unable to estimate the total number of stockholders represented by
these record holders.
Dividends
We
have never paid cash dividends on our common stock, and our present policy is to retain any future earnings to support our operations
and finance the growth and development of our business. We do not intend to pay cash dividends on our common stock for the foreseeable
future. Any future determination related to our dividend policy will be made at the discretion of our Board.
Purchases
of Equity Securities by the Issuer and Affiliated Purchasers
None.
Recent
Sales of Unregistered Securities
None.
30
Use
of Proceeds
None.
Item
6. [Reserved]
Item
7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The
following discussion should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes to those statements that
are included elsewhere in this Annual Report. Our discussion includes forward-looking statements based upon current expectations that
involve risks and uncertainties, such as our plans, objectives, expectations, and intentions. Actual results and the timing of events
could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of a number of factors. We use words such
as “anticipate,” “estimate,” “plan,” “project,” “continuing,” “ongoing,”
“expect,” “believe,” “intend,” “may,” “will,” “should,” “could,”
and similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements. All dollar figures are presented in thousands unless otherwise stated.
Overview
For
an overview of the Company, see the information above presented under the section labeled “Item 1. Business,” which is in
“Part I” of this Annual Report.
Key
Operating Metrics
We
monitor and review the key operating metrics described below as we believe that these metrics are relevant for our industry and specifically
to us and to understanding our business. Moreover, they form the basis for trends informing certain predictions related to our financial
condition. Our key operating metrics focus primarily on our digital advertising revenue, which has experienced significant growth in
recent periods as indicated in the Results of Operations section below. Management monitors and reviews these metrics because
such metrics are readily measurable in real time and can provide valuable insight into the performance of and trends related to our digital
advertising revenue and our overall business. We consider only those key operating metrics described here to be material to our financial
condition, results of operations and future prospects.
Our
key operating metrics are identified below:
● Revenue
per page view (“RPM”) – represents the advertising revenue earned per 1,000
pageviews. It is calculated as our advertising revenue during a period divided by our total
page views during that period and multiplied by $1,000; and
● Monthly
average pageviews – represents the total number of pageviews in a given month or the
average of each month’s pageviews in a fiscal quarter or year, which is calculated
as the total number of page views recorded in a quarter or year divided by three months or
12 months, respectively.
For
pricing indicators, we focus on RPM as it is the pricing metric most closely aligned with monthly average pageviews. RPM is an indicator
of yield and pricing driven by both advertising density and demand from our advertisers.
Monthly
average pageviews are measured across all properties hosted on the Platform and provide us with insight into volume, engagement and effective
page management and are therefore our primary measure of traffic. We utilize a third-party source, Google Analytics, to confirm this
traffic data.
As
described above, these key operating metrics are critical for management as they provide insights into our digital advertising revenue
generation and overall business performance. This information also provides feedback on the content on our website and its ability to
attract and engage users, which allows us to make strategic business decisions designed to drive more users to read or view more of our
content and generate higher advertising revenue across all properties hosted on the Platform.
For
the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 our RPM was $17.24 and $15.24, respectively. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
our monthly average pageviews were 516,129,297 and 350,761,233, respectively.
31
Impact
of Current Global Economic Conditions
Uncertainty
in the global economy presents significant risks to our business. We are subject to continuing risks and uncertainties in connection
with the current macroeconomic environment, including inflation, rising interest rates and contraction in the availability of credit in the market place, geopolitical factors, including
the ongoing conflict between Russia and Ukraine and the responses thereto, and the remaining effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. We are
closely monitoring the impact of these factors on all aspects of our business, including the impacts on our users, customers, employees,
Publishers Partners, vendors and business partners.
In
particular, with the initial onset of COVID-19, we faced significant
change in our advertisers’ buying behavior. Since May 2020, there has been a steady recovery in the advertising market in both pricing
and volume, which coupled with the return of professional and college sports yielded steady growth in revenues. However, given that our
sports vertical business relies on sporting events to generate content and comprises a material portion of our revenues, our cash flows
and results of operations are susceptible to a widespread cancellation of sporting events or a general limitation of societal activity
akin to what occurred in the United States and elsewhere during 2020. Future widespread shutdowns of in-person economic activity could
have a material impact on our business. In addition, the COVID-19 pandemic has also caused supply chain inefficiencies, negatively impacting
our production and distribution costs in our print operations.
The
ultimate extent of the impact of global economic conditions on our business remains highly uncertain and will depend on future developments
and factors that continue to evolve. Most of these developments and factors are outside of our control and could exist for an extended
period of time. As a result, we are subject to continuing risks and uncertainties and continue to closely monitor the impact of the current
conditions on our business. For more information regarding these risks and uncertainties, see the section titled “Risk Factors”
in Part 1, Item 1A of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Liquidity
and Capital Resources
Cash
and Working Capital Facility
As
of December 31, 2022, our principal sources of liquidity consisted of cash of $13,871. In addition, as of December 31, 2022, we had $25,908
available for additional use, subject to eligible accounts receivable, under our working capital line of credit with SLR Digital Finance
LLC (formerly FPP Finance LLC) (“SLR”). As December 31, 2022, the outstanding balance of the SLR working capital line of credit was
$14,092. We also had accounts receivable, net of our advances from SLR of $19,858 as of December 31, 2022. Our cash balance as of the
issuance date of our accompanying consolidated financial statements is $8,203.
Our
accompanying consolidated financial statements have been presented on the basis that we are a going concern, which contemplates the realization
of assets and satisfaction of liabilities in the normal course of business. We had revenues of $220,935 during fiscal 2022 and have experienced
recurring net losses from operations and negative operating cash flows. Consequently, we were dependent upon continued access to funding
and capital resources from both new investors and related parties. If continued funding and capital resources are unavailable at reasonable
terms, we may not be able to implement our growth plan and plan of operations. These financings may include terms that may be highly
dilutive to existing stockholders.
We
continue to be focused on growing our existing operations and seeking accretive and complementary strategic acquisitions as part of our
growth strategy. We believe, that with additional sources of liquidity and the ability to raise additional capital or incur additional
indebtedness to supplement our internal projections, we will be able to execute our growth plan and finance our working capital requirements
both in the short-term and long-term.
32
Going
Concern
Management
performed an annual reporting period going concern assessment. We are required to assess our ability to continue as a going concern.
Our accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that we will continue as a going concern, which contemplates
the realization of assets and the liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business. Our accompanying consolidated financial
statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary if we are unable to continue as a going concern.
Most
recently, for the year ended December 31, 2022, we incurred a net loss from continuing operations of $67,388, had cash on hand
of $13,871 and a working capital deficit of $137,669. Our net loss from continuing operations and working capital deficit have
been evaluated by management to determine if the significance of those conditions or events would limit our ability to meet our
obligations when due. Furthermore, since our Bridge
Notes of $36,000, Senior Secured Notes of $62,691 and Delayed Draw Term Notes of $4,000, totaling $102,691 (collectively “our current debt”) are due by December 31, 2023 (see Note 19, Bridge Notes ,
and Note 20, Long-term Debt , in our accompanying consolidated financial statements), unless we are able to refinance or extend
our current debt beyond its current maturity, we may not be able to meet our obligations when due.
In
our evaluation, management determined there is substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern for a one-year period
following the financial statement issuance date, unless we are able to refinance or extend the maturities of our current debt.
We plan to refinance or extend the maturities of our current debt to alleviate the conditions that raise substantial doubt about our ability
to continue as a going concern.
33
Debt
Financings and Obligations
Net
proceeds from our debt financings (see Note 15, Line of Credit , Note 19, Bridge Notes and Note 20, Long-term Debt ,
in our accompanying consolidated financial statements for additional information) consisted of the following:
SLR
Credit Facility . We are party to a financing and security agreement with SLR, pursuant to which SLR extended a $25,000 line of credit
for working capital purposes secured by a first lien on all our cash and accounts receivable and a second lien on all other assets. On
December 15, 2022, pursuant to an amendment, the line of credit was increased to $40,000. Borrowings under the facility bear interest
at the prime rate plus 4% per annum of the amount advanced and have a maturity date of December 31, 2024; provided that the maturity
date will be December 31, 2023 if we have not refinanced, repaid or extended all of our Senior Secured Notes (as defined below) due December
31, 2023 by August 31, 2023, and provided further, that SLR will be entitled to accelerate the obligations if we have not refinanced,
repaid or extended all of our Senior Secured Notes due December 31, 2023 by September 30, 2023. In the event that our line of credit
is accelerated, we will be obligated to pay SLR a termination fee of $900. The amendment also permitted us to enter into the Bridge Notes
(as defined below). The aggregate principal amount outstanding, plus accrued and unpaid interest as of December 31, 2022 was $14,092.
Bridge
Notes . On December 15, 2022, we issued $36,000 aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes (the “Bridge Notes”)
pursuant to a Third A&R NPA with BRF Finance Co., LLC (“BRF Finance”), an affiliated entity of B. Riley Financial, Inc.
(“B. Riley”), in its capacity as agent for the purchasers and as purchaser. We received net proceeds of $34,728, after the
payment of $1,000 to B. Riley for an advisory fee and $272 for other legal costs, from the issuance of the Bridge Notes. Interest on
the Bridge Notes is payable in cash at a rate of 12% per annum quarterly in arrears on March 31, 2023, June 30, 2023, September 30, 2023 and December
31, 2023; provided that, on March 1, 2023, May 1, 2023 and July 1, 2023, the interest rate on the Bridge Notes will increase by 1.5%
per annum, with maturity on December 31, 2023. The Bridge Notes are subject to certain mandatory prepayment requirements, including,
but not limited to, a requirement that we apply the net proceeds from certain debt incurrences or equity offerings to repay the Bridge
Notes. We may elect to prepay the Bridge Notes, at any time, at our option at 100% of the principal amount. The Bridge Notes are secured
by liens on the same collateral that secures indebtedness under our outstanding Senior Secured Notes (as defined below) and are guaranteed
by our subsidiaries that guarantee the Third A&R NPA. The Note Purchase Agreement contains covenants and events of default substantially
similar to those contained in the note purchase agreement that governed the Third A&R NPA. The proceeds received were used for the
acquisition of Men’s Journal and to repay $5,928 of our existing Delayed Draw Term Notes (as defined below). The aggregate principal
amount outstanding under the Bridge Notes as of December
31, 2022 was $36,000.
Senior
Secured Notes . We are party to a third amended and restated note purchase agreement (the “Third A&R NPA”), with one
accredited investor, BRF Finance, an affiliated entity of B. Riley. The senior secured notes bears interest at a rate of 10% per annum.
Interest payments are payable at BRF Finance’s discretion either in cash quarterly in arrears on the last day of each quarter or
by adding the interest to the outstanding principal amount. The senior secured notes has a final maturity date of December 31, 2023,
at which time the outstanding principal and all accrued but unpaid interest will be due. The balance outstanding under our senior secured
notes as of December 31, 2022 was $62,691, which included
outstanding principal of $48,791 and payment of in-kind interest of $13,900 that we were permitted to add to the aggregate outstanding
principal balance.
Delayed
Draw Term Notes . Pursuant to the Third A&R NPA, we agreed to issue, at BRF Finance’s option, a delayed draw term notes
(the “Delayed Draw Term Notes”), in the aggregate principal amount of $12,000 to BRF Finance, of which $9,928 was outstanding
on December 31, 2021. The Delayed Draw Term Notes bear interest at a rate of 10% per annum. Interest payments are payable, at BRF Finance’s
discretion, either in cash quarterly in arrears on the last day of each fiscal quarter or in kind in arrears on the last day of each
fiscal quarter. The Delayed Draw Term Notes have a final maturity date of December 31, 2023, at which time the outstanding principal
and accrued but unpaid interest will be due. We paid $5,928 in principal that was due on December 31, 2022, with the remaining principal
balance due on December 31, 2023. The aggregate principal amount outstanding under the Bridge Notes as of December 31, 2022 was $4,000.
34
Acquisition
On
January 11, 2023, we entered into an asset purchase agreement with Teneology, Inc., pursuant to which we acquired certain assets
(consisting of the RoadFood media business, including digital and television assets; the
Moveable Feast media business, including digital and television assets; the
Fexy-branded content studio business; and the MonkeySee YouTube Channel media business), for a purchase price of $2,956. The
purchase price consisted of the following: (1) $500 cash paid at closing; (2) $75 cash payments due in three equal installments of
$25 on March 1, 2023, April 1, 2023 and May 1, 2023; (3) $200 deferred cash payment due on the first anniversary of the closing
date, subject to certain indemnity provisions; and (4) the issuance of 274,692 shares of our common stock, subject to certain
lock-up provisions, on the closing date with a fair value of $2,181 (fair value was determined based on our common stock trading
price of $7.94 per share on the closing date). The number of shares of our common stock issued was determined based on a $2,225
value using our common stock trading price on the day immediately preceding the January 11, 2023 closing date.
Off-Balance
Sheet Arrangements
As
of December 31, 2022, pursuant to our line of credit with SLR, as disclosed above, in the event that our line of credit is
accelerated, we will be obligated to pay SLR a termination fee of $900.
Material
Contractual Obligations
We
have material contractual obligations that arise in the normal course of business primarily consisting of employment contracts, consulting
agreements, leases, liquidated damages, debt and related interest payments. Purchase obligations consist of contracts primarily related
to merchandise, equipment, and third-party services, the majority of which are due in the next 12 months. See Note 8, Leases,
Note 16, Liquidated Damages Payable, Note 19 , Bridge Notes , and Note 20, Long-term Debt , in our accompanying consolidated
financial statements for amounts outstanding as of December 31, 2022, related to leases, liquidated damages, bridge financing and long-term
debt.
During
2022, we assumed the lease from Men’s Journal for office space in Carlsbad, California, that expires in March 2025, and we remain
responsible for $3,189 over the lease term. The lease provides for fixed payments of $89 for three months, $92 for twelve months and
$94 for twelve months, with an estimate of common expenses per month of $25 through the end of the lease term.
With
respect to leases, we subleased our office space in Santa Monica, California in November 2021 and remain responsible to the original
lessor for $948 through October 2024. Pursuant to the sublease, the sublessee will pay us an aggregate of $477 through October 2024.
During
2021, we entered into a termination agreement of our sublease agreement for a property located in New York, New York and remain responsible
for $8,000 in cash payments to the sublandlord through October 2024.
Working
Capital Deficit
We
have financed our working capital requirements since inception through issuances of equity securities and various debt financings. Our
working capital deficit as of December 31, 2022 and 2021 was as follows:
As
of December 31,
2022
2021
Current assets
$ 78,695
$ 77,671
Current liabilities
(216,364 )
(116,413 )
Working capital deficit
(137,669 )
(38,742 )
As
of December 31, 2022, we had a working capital deficit of $137,669, as compared to $38,742 as of December 31, 2021, consisting of $78,695
in total current assets and $216,364 in total current liabilities. As of December 31, 2021, our working capital deficit consisted of
$77,671 in total current assets and $116,413 in total current liabilities.
35
Our
cash flows during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 consisted of the following:
Years
Ended December 31,
2022
2021
Net cash used in operating activities
$ (11,304 )
$ (14,729 )
Net cash used in investing activities
(38,590 )
(13,146 )
Net cash provided by financing activities
54,416
28,191
Net (decrease) increase in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
$ 4,522
$ 316
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, end of year
$ 14,373
$ 9,851
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, net cash used in operating activities was $11,304, consisting primarily of $219,282 of cash paid to
employees, Publisher Partners, expert contributors, suppliers, and vendors, and for revenue share arrangements, advance of royalty fees
and professional services; and $9,528 of cash paid for interest, offset by $219,407 of cash received from customers. For the year ended
December 31, 2021, net cash used in operating activities was $14,729, consisting primarily of $184,932 of cash paid to employees, Publisher
Partners, expert contributors, suppliers, and vendors, and for revenue share arrangements, advance of royalty fees and professional services;
and $1,393 of cash paid for interest, offset by $171,596 of cash received from customers.
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, net cash used in investing activities was $38,590, consisting primarily of $35,331 for the acquisition
of a business; $5,179 for capitalized costs for our Platform; and $530 for property and equipment, offset by $2,450 from the sale of
an equity investment. For the year ended December 31, 2021, net cash used in investing activities was $13,146, consisting primarily of
$7,950 for the acquisition of businesses; $4,819 for capitalized costs for our Platform; and $377 for property and equipment.
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, net cash provided by financing activities was $54,416, consisting primarily of $30,490 (net of issuance
costs paid of $1,568) in net proceeds from a public offering of common stock; $28,800 (net of issuance costs paid of $1,272 and payments
of $5,928) in proceeds from long term-debt; $2,104 from advancements of our SLR line of credit; and $95 from exercises of common stock
options, offset by $4,468 for tax payments relating to the withholding of shares of common stock for certain employees; $2,152 related
to payments of restricted stock liabilities; and $453 payment for The Spun deferred cash payment. For the year ended December 31, 2021,
net cash provided by financing activities was $28,191 consisting primarily of $19,838 (net of issuance cost paid of $167) in net proceeds
from a private placement of common stock; $5,086 in proceeds from long term-debt; $4,809 from advancements of our SLR line of credit,
offset by $1,472 related to payments of restricted stock liabilities; and $70 for tax payments relating to the withholding of shares
of common stock for certain employees.
36
Results
of Operations
Comparison
of Fiscal 2022 to Fiscal 2021
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
$ 31,795
16.8 %
Cost of revenue
132,923
110,530
22,393
20.3 %
Gross profit
88,012
78,610
9,402
12.0 %
Operating expenses
Selling and marketing
72,489
81,929
(9,440 )
-11.5 %
General and administrative
53,499
55,612
(2,113 )
-3.8 %
Depreciation and amortization
17,650
16,345
1,305
8.0 %
Loss on disposition of assets
257
1,192
(935 )
-78.4 %
Loss on impairment of lease
-
466
(466 )
-100.0 %
Loss on termination of lease
-
7,345
(7,345 )
-100.0 %
Total operating expenses
143,895
162,889
(18,994 )
-11.7 %
Loss from operations
(55,883 )
(84,279 )
28,396
-33.7 %
Total other expenses
(12,568 )
(7,335 )
(5,233 )
71.3 %
Loss before income taxes
(68,451 )
(91,614 )
23,163
-25.3 %
Income tax benefit
1,063
1,674
(611 )
-36.5 %
Net loss from continuing operations
(67,388 )
(89,940 )
22,552
-25.1 %
Net loss from discontinued operations, net of tax
(3,470 )
-
(3,470 )
100.0 %
Net loss
$ (70,858 )
$ (89,940 )
$ 19,082
-21.2 %
Basic and diluted net loss per common share:
Continued operations
$ (3.82 )
$ (7.87 )
$ 4.05
-51.5 %
Discontinued operations
(0.20 )
-
(0.20 )
100.0 %
Basic and diluted net loss per common share
$ (4.02 )
$ (7.87 )
$ 3.85
-48.9 %
Weighted average number of shares outstanding – basic and diluted
17,625,619
11,429,740
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, the net loss was $70,858, as compared to $89,940 in the prior year which represents an improvement
of $19,082 or 21.2%. The primary reasons for the improvement in net loss are a $9,402 improvement in gross profit and a $18,994 reduction
in operating expenses. The increase in gross profit reflected a $31,795 increase in total revenues, which was principally driven by the
continuing growth of our digital advertising business which grew $46,452 or 73.9% in the year ended December 31, 2022 as compared to
the prior year.
Revenue
The
following table sets forth revenue, cost of revenue, and gross profit from continuing operations:
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
$ 31,795
16.8 %
Cost of revenue
132,923
110,530
22,393
20.3 %
Gross profit
$ 88,012
$ 78,610
$ 9,402
12.0 %
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, we had gross profit of $88,012, as compared to gross profit of $78,610 for year ended December 31,
2021.
37
The
following table sets forth revenue from continuing operations by category:
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Digital revenue:
Digital advertising
$ 109,317
$ 62,865
$ 46,452
73.9 %
Digital subscriptions
21,156
29,629
(8,473 )
-28.6 %
Licensing and syndication revenue
18,173
8,471
9,702
114.5 %
Other digital revenue
1,166
43
1,123
2611.6 %
Total digital revenue
149,812
101,008
48,804
48.3 %
Print revenue:
Print advertising
10,214
9,051
1,163
12.8 %
Print subscriptions
60,909
79,081
(18,172 )
-23.0 %
Total print revenue
71,123
88,132
(17,009 )
-19.3 %
Total revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
$ 31,795
16.8 %
For
the year ended December 31, 2022 we recognized revenue from continuing operations of $220,935, as compared to $189,140 for the year ended
December 31, 2021, which represents an increase of $31,795 or 16.8%. Our digital advertising revenue increased by $46,452 or 73.9%, primarily
due to a 47.1% increase in monthly average pageviews and a 13.1% increase in RPM for the year ended December 31, 2022, as compared to
the prior year with 76.0% of the total increase driven by organic growth. Licensing and syndication revenue increased by $9,702 or 114.5%
as we added new relationships during the year and expanded existing ones to leverage our content with increased monetization. Other digital
revenue, primarily consisting of e-commerce and sponsorship revenue, increased by $1,123 largely attributable to the expansion of our
e-commerce business. Our print subscriptions decreased by $18,172 or 23.0% principally related to our Sports Illustrated media business
which reflected our planned rate base reduction of 29.0% from 1.7 million fiscal 2021 to 1.2 million in fiscal 2022 to focus on more
profitable subscriptions.
Cost
of Revenue
The
following table sets forth cost of revenue from continuing operations by category:
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Publisher Partner revenue share payments
$ 20,108
$ 21,568
$ (1,460 )
-6.8 %
Technology, Platform and software licensing fees
18,294
9,970
8,324
83.5 %
Royalty fees
15,000
15,000
-
0.0 %
Content and editorial expenses
44,669
32,850
11,819
36.0 %
Printing, distribution and fulfillment costs
14,835
14,757
78
0.5 %
Amortization of developed technology and platform development
9,459
8,829
630
7.1 %
Stock-based compensation
10,235
7,478
2,757
36.9 %
Other cost of revenue
323
78
245
314.1 %
Total cost of revenue
$ 132,923
$ 110,530
$ 22,393
20.3 %
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, as referenced in the above table, we recognized cost of revenue from continuing operations of $132,923,
as compared to $110,530 for the year ended December 31, 2021, which represents an increase of $22,393 or 20.3% from the prior period.
Cost of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022 was impacted by increases in content and editorial expenses of $11,819; technology,
Platform and software licensing fees of $8,324, consisting of costs incurred for the Parade acquisition and other investments made to
our Platform; and stock-based compensation of $2,757; partially offset by a decrease in Publisher Partner revenue share payments of $1,460.
The increase in content and editorial expense was primarily due to significant investments made in the second half of fiscal 2021 to
expand our audience development and social media capabilities, in addition to the acquisition of Parade which occurred in the second
quarter of 2022. Publisher Partner revenue share payments have decreased despite a growth in our digital advertising revenue due primarily
to a favorable change in the terms of certain of our Publisher Partner agreements. This resulted in a more favorable revenue share structure
for us, especially as we continue to grow our premium programmatic and direct advertising revenue as a percentage of total digital revenue.
In addition, the decrease was also in part due to the expiration of our agreement with Jim Cramer in September 2021.
38
Operating
Expenses
Selling
and Marketing
The
following table sets forth selling and marketing expenses from continuing operations by category:
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Payroll and employee benefits of selling and marketing account management support teams
$ 14,467
$ 12,746
$ 1,721
13.5 %
Stock-based compensation
2,772
5,376
(2,604 )
-48.4 %
Professional marketing services
4,528
3,100
1,428
46.1 %
Circulation costs
5,006
4,144
862
20.8 %
Subscription acquisition costs
37,190
46,264
(9,074 )
-19.6 %
Advertising costs
5,987
6,962
(975 )
-14.0 %
Other selling and marketing expenses
2,539
3,337
(798 )
-23.9 %
Total selling and marketing
$ 72,489
$ 81,929
$ (9,440 )
-11.5 %
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, as referenced in the above table, we incurred selling and marketing expenses from continuing operations
of $72,489 as compared to $81,929 for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $9,440 or 11.5% from the prior period. The decrease
in selling and marketing expenses of $9,440 was primarily due to decreases in subscription acquisition costs of $9,074 and stock-based
compensation of $2,604. Partially offsetting these decreases, payroll and employee benefits of selling and marketing account management support
teams increased $1,721 and circulation costs grew by $862, both of which were a result of the addition of the Parade properties, which
were acquired in the second quarter of 2022. The decrease in subscription acquisition costs was due to the previously mentioned 29.0%
decrease in the Sports Illustrated rate base.
General
and Administrative
The
following table sets forth general and administrative expenses from continuing operations by category:
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Payroll and related expenses for executive and administrative personnel
$ 15,800
$ 17,521
$ (1,721 )
-9.8 %
Stock-based compensation
18,338
17,639
699
4.0 %
Professional services, including accounting, legal and insurance
13,364
13,548
(184 )
-1.4 %
Other general and administrative expenses
5,997
6,904
(907 )
-13.1 %
Total general and administrative
$ 53,499
$ 55,612
$ (2,113 )
-3.8 %
For
the year ended December 31, 2022, as referenced in the above table, we incurred general and administrative expenses from continuing operations
of $53,499 as compared to $55,612 for the year ended December 31, 2021, a decrease of $2,113 or 3.8% from the prior period. The decrease
is primarily related to $1,721 of payroll and related expenses which reflected a decrease in certain personnel costs offset by the acquisition
of Parade which occurred in the second quarter of 2022.
39
Other
(Expenses) Income
The
following table sets forth other (expenses) income:
Years Ended December 31,
2022 versus 2021
2022
2021
$ Change
% Change
Change in valuation of warrant derivative liabilities
$ -
$ 34
$ (34 )
-100.0 %
Interest expense, net
(11,428 )
(10,449 )
(979 )
9.4 %
Liquidated damages
(1,140 )
(2,637 )
1,497
-56.8 %
Gain upon debt extinguishment
-
5,717
(5,717 )
-100.0 %
Total other expenses
$ (12,568 )
$ (7,335 )
$ (5,233 )
71.3 %
Interest
Expense . We incurred interest expense, net of $11,428 for the year ended December 31, 2022, as compared to $10,449 for the year ended
December 31, 2021. The increase in interest expense of $979 was primarily from additional cash paid for interest from our debt.
Liquidated
Damages . We recorded liquidated damages of $1,140 for the year ended December
31, 2022, as compared to $2,637 for the year ended December 31, 2021. The liquidated damages recorded of $1,140 for the year ended December
31, 2022 primarily resulted from additional liquidated damages assessed under certain agreements as a result of filing a registration
statement outside of the agreed upon filing deadline and recording interest expense on the balance that remains outstanding.
Gain
Upon Debt Extinguishment . We recorded a gain upon debt extinguishment (including accrued interest) of $5,717 for the year ended December
31, 2021 pursuant to the forgiveness of the Payroll Protection Program Loan.
Income
Tax Benefit
Income
Tax Benefit . For the year ended December 31, 2022, we recorded a deferred income tax benefit of $1,063 primarily related
to our acquired deferred tax liabilities from an acquisition during the year and change in valuation allowance as of year-end that was,
in part, offset by the book to tax basis differences related to goodwill from certain prior year acquisitions. For the year ended December
31, 2021, we recorded a deferred income tax benefit of $1,674 primarily related to our acquired deferred tax liabilities from an acquisition
during the year and change in valuation allowance as of year-end that was, in part, offset by the book to tax basis differences related
to goodwill from certain prior year acquisitions.
For
further details refer to Note 25, Income Taxes , in our accompanying consolidated financial statements.
Use
of Non-GAAP Financial Measures
We
report our financial results in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America
(“GAAP”); however, management believes that certain non-GAAP financial measures provide users of our financial
information with useful supplemental information that enables a better comparison of our performance across periods. We believe
Adjusted EBITDA provides visibility to the underlying continuing operating performance by excluding the impact of certain items that
are noncash in nature or not related to our core business operations. We calculate Adjusted EBITDA as net loss as adjusted for loss
from discontinued operations, with additional adjustments for (i) interest expense (net), (ii) income taxes, (iii) depreciation and
amortization, (iv) stock-based compensation, (v) change in derivative valuations, (vi) liquidated damages, (vii) gain upon debt
extinguishment, (viii) loss on impairment of assets; (x) loss on impairment of lease, (ix) loss on lease termination, (xi)
professional and vendor fees, and (xii) employee restructuring payments.
40
Our
non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA may not be comparable to a similarly titled measure used by other companies, has limitations as an analytical
tool, and should not be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for analysis of our operating results as reported under GAAP. Additionally,
we do not consider our non-GAAP Adjusted EBITDA as superior to, or a substitute for, the equivalent measures calculated and presented
in accordance with GAAP. Some of the limitations is that Adjusted EBITDA:
● does
not reflect interest expense and financing fees, or the cash required to service our debt,
which reduces cash available to us;
● does
not reflect deferred income tax benefit or provision, which is a noncash income or expense;
● does
not reflect depreciation and amortization expense and, although this is a noncash expense,
the assets being depreciated may have to be replaced in the future, increasing our cash requirements;
● does not reflect stock-based compensation and, therefore, does not include all of our compensation costs;
● does
not reflect the change in derivative valuations and, although this is a noncash income or
expense, the change in the valuations each reporting period are not impacted by our actual
business operations but is instead strongly tied to the change in the market value of our
common stock;
● does
not reflect liquidated damages and, therefore, does not include future cash requirements
if we repay the liquidated damages in cash instead of shares of our common stock (which the
investor would need to agree to);
● does not reflect any gains upon debt extinguishment, which we do not consider in our evaluation of our business operations;
● does not reflect any losses from the impairment of assets, which is a noncash operating expense;
● does
not reflect any losses on impairment of leases, which is a noncash operating expense;
● does
not reflect any losses on termination of our leases, which is a noncash operating expense;
● does
not reflect the professional and vendor fees incurred by us for services provided by consultants,
accountants, lawyers, and other vendors, which services were related to certain types of
events that are not reflective of our business operations; and
● does
not reflect payments related to employee severance, which were a cash expense but are not reflective of our business operations.
The
following table presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net loss, which is the most directly comparable GAAP measure, for the
periods indicated:
Years Ended December 31,
2022
2021
Net loss
$ (70,858 )
$ (89,940 )
Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax
3,470
-
Loss from continuing operations
(67,388 )
(89,940 )
Add (deduct):
Interest expense, net (1)
11,428
10,449
Income tax benefit
(1,063 )
(1,674 )
Depreciation and amortization (2)
27,109
25,174
Stock-based compensation (3)
31,345
30,493
Change in derivative valuations
-
(34 )
Liquidated damages (4)
1,140
2,637
Gain upon debt extinguishment (5)
-
(5,717 )
Loss on impairment of assets (6)
257
1,192
Loss on impairment of lease (7)
-
466
Loss on lease termination (8)
-
7,345
Professional and vendor fees (9)
-
6,901
Employee restructuring payments (10)
273
645
Adjusted EBITDA
$ 3,101
$ (12,063 )
(1)
Interest expense is related to our capital structure and varies over time due to a variety of financing transactions.
Interest expense includes $1,581 and $2,106 for amortization of debt discounts for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021,
respectively, as presented in our condensed consolidated statements of cash flows, which are a noncash item. Investors should note
that interest expense will recur in future periods.
41
(2) Represents
depreciation and amortization related to our developed technology and Platform included within
cost of revenues of $9,459 and $8,829, for the years ending December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively,
and depreciation and amortization included within operating expenses of $17,650 and $16,345
for the years ending December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively. We believe (i) the amount
of depreciation and amortization expense in any specific period may not directly correlate
to the underlying performance of our business operations and (ii) such expenses can vary
significantly between periods as a result of new acquisitions and full amortization of previously
acquired tangible and intangible assets. Investors should note that the use of tangible and
intangible assets contributed to revenue in the periods presented and will contribute to
future revenue generation and should also note that such expense will recur in future periods.
(3) Represents
noncash costs arising from the grant of stock-based awards to employees, consultants and
directors. We believe that excluding the effect of stock-based compensation from Adjusted
EBITDA assists management and investors in making period-to-period comparisons in our operating
performance because (i) the amount of such expenses in any specific period may not directly
correlate to the underlying performance of our business operations, and (ii) such expenses
can vary significantly between periods as a result of the timing of grants of new stock-based
awards, including grants in connection with acquisitions. Additionally, we believe that excluding
stock-based compensation from Adjusted EBITDA assists management and investors in making
meaningful comparisons between our operating performance and the operating performance of
other companies that may use different forms of employee compensation or different valuation
methodologies for their stock-based compensation. Investors should note that stock-based
compensation is a key incentive offered to employees whose efforts contributed to the operating
results in the periods presented and are expected to contribute to operating results in future
periods. Investors should also note that such expenses will recur in the future.
(4) Represents
damages (or interest expense related to accrued liquidated damages) we owe to certain of
our investors in private placements offerings conducted in fiscal years 2018 through 2020,
pursuant to which we agreed to certain covenants in the respective securities purchase agreements
and registration rights agreements, including the filing of resale registration statements
and becoming current in our reporting obligations, which we were not able to timely meet.
(5) Represents
a gain upon extinguishment of the Paycheck Protection Program Loan.
(6) Represents our impairment of certain assets that are no longer useful.
(7) Represents
our impairment of certain leased property that is no longer being used.
(8) Represents
our loss related to the surrender and termination of our lease of office space located in
New York based on our decision to no longer lease office space.
(9) Represents
one-time, non-recurring third party professional and vendor fees recorded in connection with
services provided by consultants, accountants, lawyers, and other vendors (these fees are
collectively referred to as “Professional Fees”) related to (i) the preparation
of periodic reports in order for us to become current on our Exchange Act reporting obligations,
(ii) up-list to a national exchange, (iii) contemplated and completed acquisitions, (iv)
public and private offerings of our securities and other financings, and (v) stockholder
disputes and the implementation of our Rights Agreement (the Rights Agreement is further
described in Note 21, Preferred Stock, in our accompanying consolidated financial
statements).
42
The
table below summarizes the costs defined above that we incurred during fiscal 2022 and 2021:
Years Ended December 31,
Category
2022
2021
(i)
Catch-up periodic reports
$ -
$ 4,096
(ii)
Up-list
-
231
(iii)
Mergers and acquisitions
-
1,034
(iv)
Public and private offerings and other financings
-
444
(v)
Stockholder disputes and Rights Agreement
-
1,096
Totals
$ -
$ 6,901
(10) Represents
severance payments to our former Chief Executive
Officer for the years ending December 31, 2022 and 2021.
Critical
Accounting Policies and Estimates
The
preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported
amount of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses
during the reported periods. The more critical accounting estimates include estimates related to revenue recognition, platform development,
impairment of long-lived assets, and stock-based compensation. We also have other key accounting policies, which involve the use of estimates,
judgments and assumptions that are significant to understanding our results, which are described in Note 2, Summary of Significant
Accounting Policies , in our accompanying consolidated financial statements.
Our
discussion and analysis of the financial condition and results of operations is based upon our consolidated financial statements included
elsewhere in this Annual Report, which have been prepared in accordance with GAAP. We believe the following critical accounting policies
affect our more significant judgments and estimates used in the preparation of the financial statements. Actual results may differ from
these estimates under different assumptions or conditions.
Revenue
In
accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers , revenues are
recognized when control of the promised goods or services are transferred to our customers, in an amount that reflects the consideration
that we expect to receive in exchange for those goods or services. We generate all of our revenue from contracts with customers. We account
for revenue on a gross basis, as compared to a net basis, in our statement of operations. We have made this determination based on our
control of the advertising inventory and the ability to monetize the advertising inventory or publications before transfer to the customer
and because we are also the primary obligor responsible for providing the services to the customer. Cost of revenues is presented as
a separate line item in the statement of operations.
The
following is a description of the principal activities from which we generate revenue:
Advertising
Revenue
Digital
Advertising . We recognize revenue from digital advertisements at the point when each ad is viewed. The quantity of advertisements,
the impression bid prices, and revenue are reported on a real-time basis. We enter into contracts with advertising networks to serve
display or video advertisements on the digital media pages associated with its various channels. Although reported advertising transactions
are subject to adjustment by the advertising network partners, any such adjustments are known within a few days of month end. We owe
our independent Publisher Partners a revenue share of the advertising revenue earned, which is recorded as service costs in the same
period in which the associated advertising revenue is recognized.
Advertising
revenue that is comprised of fees charged for the placement of advertising on the websites that we own and operate, is recognized as
the advertising or sponsorship is displayed, provided that collection of the resulting receivable is reasonably assured.
Print
Advertising . Advertising related revenues for print advertisements are recognized when advertisements are published (defined as an
issue’s on-sale date), net of provisions for estimated rebates, rate adjustments, and discounts.
43
Subscription
Revenue
Digital
Subscriptions . We enter into contracts with internet users that subscribe to premium content on our owned and operated media channels
and facilitate such contracts between internet users and our Publisher Partners. These contracts provide internet users with a membership
subscription to access the premium content. For subscription revenue generated by our independent Publisher Partners’ content,
we owe our Publisher Partners a revenue share of the membership subscription revenue earned, which is initially deferred and recorded
as deferred contract costs. We recognize deferred contract costs over the membership subscription term in the same pattern that the associated
membership subscription revenue is recognized.
Digital
subscription revenue generated from our websites that we own and operate are charged to customers’ credit cards or are directly
billed to corporate subscribers, and are generally billed in advance on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis. We calculate net subscription
revenue by deducting from gross revenue an estimate of potential refunds from cancelled subscriptions as well as chargebacks of disputed
credit card charges. Net subscription revenue is recognized ratably over the subscription periods. Unearned revenue relates to payments
for subscription fees for which revenue has not been recognized because services have not yet been provided.
Print
Revenue
Print
revenue includes magazine subscriptions and single copy sales at newsstands.
Print
Subscriptions . Revenue from magazine subscriptions is deferred and recognized proportionately as products are distributed to subscribers.
Newsstand .
Single copy revenue is recognized on the publication’s on-sale date, net of provisions for estimated returns. We base our estimates
for returns on historical experience and current marketplace conditions.
Licensing
and Syndication Revenue
Content
licensing-based revenues and syndication revenues are accrued generally monthly or quarterly based on the specific mechanisms of each
contract. Generally, revenues are accrued based on estimated sales and adjusted as actual sales are reported by partners. These adjustments
are typically recorded within three months of the initial estimates and have not been material. Any minimum guarantees are typically
earned evenly over the fiscal year.
Contract
Modifications
We
occasionally enter into amendments to previously executed contracts that constitute contract modifications. We assess each of these contract
modifications to determine:
●
if
the additional services and goods are distinct from the services and goods in the original arrangement; and
●
if
the amount of consideration expected for the added services or goods reflects the stand-alone selling price of those services and
goods.
A
contract modification meeting both criteria is accounted for as a separate contract. A contract modification not meeting both criteria
is considered a change to the original contract and is accounted for on either a prospective basis as a termination of the existing contract
and the creation of a new contract, or a cumulative catch-up basis.
44
Platform
Development
For
the years presented, substantially all of our technology expenses are development costs for our Platform that were capitalized as intangible
costs. Technology costs are expensed as incurred or capitalized into property and equipment in accordance with the Financial Accounting
Standards Board (“FASB”) ASC Topic 350, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other . ASC Topic 350 requires that costs
incurred in the preliminary project and post-implementation stages of an internal use software project be expensed as incurred and that
certain costs incurred in the application development stage of a project be capitalized.
We
capitalize internal labor costs, including compensation, benefits and payroll taxes, incurred for certain capitalized platform development
projects. Our policy with respect to capitalized internal labor stipulates that labor costs for employees working on eligible internal
use capital projects are capitalized as part of the historical cost of the project when the impact, as compared to expensing such labor
costs, is material. Our Platform development capitalized during the application development stage of a project include:
● payroll
and related expenses for personnel; and
● stock-based
compensation of related personnel.
Business
Combinations
We
account for business combinations using the acquisition method of accounting. The acquisition method of accounting requires that the
purchase price, including the fair value of contingent consideration, of the acquisition be allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities
assumed using the estimated fair values determined by management as of the acquisition date. Goodwill is measured as the excess of consideration
transferred and the net fair values of the assets acquired, and the liabilities assumed at the date of acquisition. While we use best
estimates and assumptions as part of the purchase price allocation process to accurately value assets acquired and liabilities assumed
at the acquisition date, our estimates are inherently uncertain and subject to refinement. As a result, during the measurement period,
we record adjustments to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed, with the corresponding offset to goodwill to the extent we identified
adjustments to the preliminary purchase price allocation. Upon the conclusion of the measurement period, which may be up to one year
from the acquisition date, or final determination of the values of assets acquired or liabilities assumed, whichever comes first, any
subsequent adjustments are recorded to the consolidated statements of operations. Additionally, we identify acquisition-related contingent
payments and determine their respective fair values as of the acquisition date, which are recorded as accrued liabilities on the consolidated
balance sheets. Subsequent changes in fair value of contingent payments are recorded on the consolidated statements of operations. We
expense transaction costs related to the acquisition as incurred.
Goodwill
Goodwill
represents the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of the net tangible and intangible assets of businesses acquired in a
business combination. Goodwill is not amortized but rather is tested for impairment at least annually on December 31, or more frequently
if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of goodwill may not be recoverable. We adopted ASU 2017-04 (as
further described in Note 2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, in our accompanying consolidated financial statements)
during the first quarter of 2020 which eliminated Step 2 from the goodwill impairment test. We operate as one reporting unit, therefore,
the impairment test is performed at the consolidated entity level by comparing the estimated fair value of the Company to its carrying
value. We have elected to first assess the qualitative factors to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of
our single reporting unit is less than its carrying amount as a basis of determining whether it is necessary to perform the quantitative
goodwill impairment test. If we determine that it is more likely than not that our fair value is less than its carrying amount, then
the quantitative goodwill impairment test will be performed. The quantitative goodwill impairment test identifies goodwill impairment
and measures the amount of goodwill impairment loss to be recognized by comparing the fair value of our single reporting unit with its
carrying amount. If the fair value exceeds the carrying amount, no further analysis is required; otherwise, any excess of the goodwill
carrying amount over the implied fair value is recognized as an impairment loss, and the carrying value of goodwill is written down to
fair value.
45
Stock-Based
Compensation
We
provide stock-based compensation in the form of (a) stock awards to employees and directors, comprised of restricted stock awards and
restricted stock units, (b) stock option grants to employees, directors and consultants, (c) common stock warrants to Publisher Partners
(no warrants were issued during the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 or 2020) (as further described in Note 23, Stock-Based Compensation,
in our accompanying consolidated financial statements), and (d) common stock warrants to ABG (as further described in Note 23, Stock-Based
Compensation, in our accompanying consolidated financial statements).
We
accounts for stock awards and stock option grants to employees, directors and consultants, and non-employee awards to certain directors
and consultants by measuring the cost of services received in exchange for the stock-based payments as compensation expense our consolidated
financial statements. Stock awards and stock option grants to employees and non-employees which are time-vested, are measured at fair
value on the grant date, and charged to operations ratably over the vesting period. Stock awards and stock option grants to employees
and non-employees which are performance-vested, are measured at fair value on the grant date and charged to operations when the performance
condition is satisfied or over the service period.
The
fair value measurement of equity awards and grants used for stock-based compensation is as follows: (1) restricted stock awards and restricted
stock units which are time-vested, are determined using the quoted market price of our common stock at the grant date; (2) stock option
grants which are time-vested and performance-vested, are determined utilizing the Black-Scholes option-pricing model at the grant date;
(3) restricted stock units and stock option grants which provide for market-based vesting with a time-vesting overlay, are determined
through consultants with our independent valuation firm using the Monte Carlo model at the grant date; (4) Publisher Partner Warrants
are determined utilizing the Black-Scholes option-pricing model; and (5) ABG warrants are determined utilizing the Monte Carlo model
(as further described in Note 23, Stock-Based Compensation, in our accompanying consolidated financial statements).
Fair
value determined under the Black-Scholes option-pricing model and Monte Carlo model is affected by several variables, the most significant
of which are the life of the equity award, the exercise price of the stock option or warrants, as compared to the fair market value of
the common stock on the grant date, and the estimated volatility of the common stock over the term of the equity award. Estimated volatility,
prior to the Up-List (as described below), was based on the historical volatility of our common stock and is evaluated based upon market
comparisons, thereafter, by evaluating the average historical volatility of a group of peer companies that are publicly traded. The risk-free
interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The fair market value of common stock is determined
by reference to the quoted market price of our common stock.
Fair
value determined under the Black-Scholes option-pricing model and Monte Carlo model is affected by several variables, the most significant
of which are the life of the stock award, the exercise price of the stock option or warrants, as compared to the fair market value of
the common stock on the grant date, and the estimated volatility of the common stock over the term of the stock award. Estimated
volatility was determined under the (1) “Probability Weighted Scenarios” where one scenario assumes that our common stock
will be up-listed on a national stock exchange (the “Exchange”) on a certain listing date (the “Up-list”) where
the estimated volatility was based on evaluating the average historical volatility of a group of peer companies that are publicly traded
and the second scenario assumes our common stock is not up-listed on the Exchange prior to the final vesting date of the grants (the
“No Up-list”) where the historical volatility of our common stock was evaluated based upon market comparisons; and the (2)
“Up-list Scenario” where our estimated volatility is based on evaluating the average historical volatility of a group of
peer companies that are publicly traded after we up-listed to the NYSE American. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury
yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The fair market value of common stock is determined by reference to the quoted market price
of our common stock.
We have elected to recognize forfeitures as they occur and to recognize stock-based compensation cost on a straight-line
basis over the total requisite service period for awards with graded vesting. We
classify stock-based compensation cost on our consolidated statements of operations in the same manner in which the award recipient’s
cash compensation cost is classified.
Recently
Issued Accounting Pronouncements
Note
2, Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, in our accompanying consolidated financial statements appearing elsewhere in this
Annual Report includes Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements.
46
Item
7A. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk
We
are a smaller reporting company as defined by Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act and are not required to provide the information otherwise
required under this item.
Item
8. Financial Statements and Supplementary Data
All
information required by this item is listed in the Index to Financial Statements in Part IV, Item 15(a)(1) of this Annual Report.
Item
9. Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure
None.
Item
9A. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation
of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our
management is responsible for establishing and maintaining a system of disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e)
and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) that is designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by us in the reports we file
or submit under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported, within the time periods specified in the SEC’s
rules and forms. Disclosure controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures designed to ensure that information
required to be disclosed by an issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and communicated
to the issuer’s management, including its principal executive officer(s) and principal financial officer(s), or persons performing
similar functions, as appropriate to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
In
accordance with Exchange Act Rules 13a-15 and 15d-15, an evaluation was completed under the supervision and with the participation of
our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, of the effectiveness of the design and operation of
our disclosure controls and procedures as of and for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022. In
light of the material weaknesses described below, we performed additional analyses, reconciliations, and other post-closing procedures
to determine whether our consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles.
Based on that evaluation, our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, concluded that our
disclosure controls and procedures were effective in providing reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in our
reports filed or submitted under the Exchange Act was recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified
in the SEC’s rules and forms.
In
addition, as permitted by SEC guidance, management excluded from its assessment the operations of Parade, which was acquired on April
1, 2022 and accounted for approximately 13.1% of our consolidated total assets as of December 31, 2022 and approximately 6.0% of our
consolidated revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022, and
Men’s Journal which was acquired on December 15, 2022 and accounted for approximately 12.3% of our consolidated total assets as
of December 31, 2022 and approximately 0.2% of our consolidated revenue for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Management’s
Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
Our
management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f)
and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act). Internal control over financial reporting is a process, including policies and procedures, designed
to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external
reporting purposes in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. Our management assessed our internal control over
financial reporting based on the Internal Control—Integrated Framework (2013 Framework) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations
of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”). Our system of internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable
assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance
with GAAP.
Based
on our evaluation under the framework in COSO, our management concluded that our internal control over financial reporting was not effective
as of December 31, 2022 due to the material weaknesses described below.
A
material weakness is a deficiency, or a combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there is
a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of our annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected
on a timely basis. We have identified the following control deficiencies that constitute material weaknesses in our internal control
over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022: (i)
we had inadequate segregation of duties consistent with control objectives related to our information technology general controls (“ITGCs”),
specifically as it relates to change management; and (ii) there was insufficient validation of non-Google impression data provided by
certain third-party service providers. These material weaknesses continue and have not been remediated as of the date of filing of this
Annual Report on Form 10-K.
47
Management
is currently evaluating remedial actions to address the material weaknesses identified as of December 31, 2022. The
material weaknesses identified did not result in any misstatement of our financial statements.
Auditor’s
Report on Internal Control Over Financing Reporting
The
effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022 has been audited by Marcum
LLP , an independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their report included in Part
II, Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
Changes
in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There
have not been any changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as such term is defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f)
under the Exchange Act) that occurred during the last fiscal quarter that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially
affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
Inherent
Limitations on the Effectiveness of Controls
The
effectiveness of any system of internal control over financial reporting, including ours, is subject to inherent limitations, including
the exercise of judgment in designing, implementing, operating, and evaluating the controls and procedures, and the inability to eliminate
misconduct completely. Accordingly, in designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognizes that any
system of internal control over financial reporting, including ours, no matter how well designed and operated, can only provide reasonable,
not absolute assurance of achieving the desired control objectives. In addition, the design of disclosure controls and procedures must
reflect the fact that there are resource constraints, and that management is required to apply its judgment in evaluating the benefits
of possible controls and procedures relative to their costs. Projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject
to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies
or procedures may deteriorate. We intend to continue to monitor and upgrade our internal controls as necessary or appropriate for our
business but cannot assure you that such improvements will be sufficient to provide us with effective internal control over financial
reporting.
Item
9B. Other Information
None.
Item
9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections
Not
applicable.
Part
III
Item
10. Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance
The
information required under this item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for our 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
to be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after December 31, 2022.
Item
11. Executive Compensation
The
information required under this item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for our 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
to be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after December 31, 2022.
Item
12. Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters
The
information required under this item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for our 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
to be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after December 31, 2022, with the exception of those items listed below.
48
Securities
Authorized for Issuance Under Equity Compensation Plans
A
summary of our securities authorized for issuance under equity compensation plans as of December 31, 2022 is as follows:
Equity
Compensation Plan Information
Plan Category
(a)
Number of Securities to be Issued Upon Exercise of Outstanding Options, Warrants and Rights
(b)
Weighted Average Exercise Price of Outstanding
Options, Warrants and Rights
(c)
Number of Securities Remaining Available
for Future Issuance
Under Equity Compensation Plans
(Excluding Securities Reflected in Column (a))
Equity compensation plans approved by security holders
6,060,877
$ 9.77
504,782
Equity compensation plans not approved by security holders
1,142,338
11.25
119,756
Total
7,203,215
$ 10.01
624,538
Plans
Adopted Without Approval of Security Holders
Publisher
Partner Warrant Program
On
May 20, 2020, our Board approved the third Publisher Partner Warrant
Program, which superseded the second Publisher Partner Warrant Program and authorized us to grant Publisher Partner Warrants to purchase
up to 90,910 shares of our common stock. Such Publisher Partner Warrants granted under the third Publisher Partner Warrant Program were
to be issued with the same terms as under the second Publisher Partner Warrant Program that was terminated on March 10, 219, except that
any Publisher Partner Warrants issued under the third Publisher Partner Warrant Program are no longer subject to performance conditions.
Warrants issued under the second Publisher Partner Warrant Program were to be issued with the same terms as under the first Publisher
Partner Program, except that the shares of our common stock underlying the Publisher Partner Warrants under the second Publisher Partner
Warrant Program were to be earned and vest over three-years. Warrants issued prior to the third and second Publisher Partner Warrant Programs,
or under the first Publisher Partner Warrant Program that was approved by our Board on December 19, 2016, were exercisable over a three-year
vesting period once earned based on certain performance conditions within six-months issuance, on a cashless basis with a five-year term.
The issuance of the Publisher Partner Warrants is administered by management and approved by our Board. We have not granted any Publisher
Partner Warrants under any such program since fiscal 2018.
On
November 2, 2022, our Board approved a plan (the “Warrant Incentive Program”) to grant warrants to certain publishers
(the “New Publisher Partner Warrants”), that authorized us to grant New Publisher Partner Warrants to purchase up to
33,000 shares of our common stock. The New Publisher Partner Warrants granted under the Warrant Incentive Program will have the
following terms: (i) one-third will become exercisable and vest on the one-year anniversary of the issuance; (ii) the remaining
warrants will become exercisable and vest in a series of twenty-four (24) successive equal monthly installments following the first
anniversary of the issuance; and (iii) the New Publisher Partner Warrants will have a five-year term. Ross Levinsohn, our Chief
Executive Officer, has the authority granted by our Board, to issue up to 400 warrants at his discretion under the Warrant Incentive
Program to each Publisher Partner.
Outside
Options
During
fiscal 2018, our Board approved the granting of options outside of the 2016 Plan (the “Outside Options”) to certain officers,
directors, and employees to provide equity incentive in exchange for consideration in the form of services to us. The Outside Options
are exercisable for shares of our common stock. The Outside Options either vest upon the passage of time or are tied to the achievement
of certain performance targets. On January 8, 2021, our Board approved an amendment to the Outside Option award grants, which eliminated
the performance targets, therefore, the awards continue to vest solely on the time vesting conditions. Our Board approved a repricing
of our Outside Options for a certain employee on March 18, 2022 and our stockholders approved the repricing on June 2, 2022.
49
Warrants
On
June 14, 2019, we issued 999,540 warrants to acquire our common stock to ABG in connection with the Sports Illustrated Licensing Agreement,
expiring in ten years. Half the warrants have an exercise price of $9.24 per share (the “$9.24 Warrants”). The other half
of the warrants have an exercise price of $18.48 per share (the “$18.48 Warrants”). The warrants provide for the following:
(1) 40% of the $9.24 Warrants and 40% of the $18.48 Warrants vest in equal monthly increments over a period of two years beginning on
the one year anniversary of the date of issuance of the warrants (any unvested portion of such warrants to be forfeited by ABG upon certain
terminations by us of the Sports Illustrated Licensing Agreement) (the “Time-Based Warrants”); (2) 60% of the $9.24 Warrants
and 60% of the $18.48 Warrants vest based on the achievement of certain performance goals for the licensed brands in calendar years 2020,
2021, 2022, or 2023; (3) under certain circumstances we may require ABG to exercise all (and not less than all) of the warrants, in which
case all of the warrants will be vested; (4) all of the warrants automatically vest upon certain terminations of the Licensing Agreement
by ABG or upon a change of control of the Company (the “Performance-Based Warrants”); and (5) ABG has the right to participate,
on a pro-rata basis (including vested and unvested warrants, exercised or unexercised), in any future equity issuance (subject to customary
exceptions). In June 2021, the exercise price of fifty percent (50%) of the $18.48 Warrants was changed to $9.24 per share in exchange
for additional benefits under the Sports Illustrated Licensing Agreement.
On
October 26, 2020, we issued 5,681 warrants to AllHipHop, LLC (the “AllHipHop Warrants”) to acquire our common stock in
exchange for the surrender and termination of 6,819 previously issued Publisher Partner Warrants, with an exercise price of
$14.30.
Item
13. Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence
The
information required under this item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for our 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
to be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after December 31, 2022.
Item
14. Principal Accountant Fees and Services
The
information required under this item is incorporated herein by reference to our proxy statement for our 2023 Annual Meeting of Stockholders
to be filed with the SEC not later than 120 days after December 31, 2022.
Part
IV
Item
15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules
(a)
The
following documents are filed as part of this Annual Report:
1.
Index to Consolidated Financial Statements . Our consolidated financial statements and the Report of Marcum LLP, Independent Registered
Public Accounting Firms are included in Part IV of this Annual Report on the pages indicated:
Page
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
F-2
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-4
Consolidated Statements of Operations for the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-5
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Deficiency for the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-6
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-8
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
F-9
2.
Financial Statement Schedules . Reference is made to the Financial Statements filed under Item 8, Part II of this Annual Report.
50
Exhibit
Description
2.1
Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of March 13, 2018, by and among the Company, HP Acquisition Co., Inc., HubPages, Inc., and Paul Edmondson as the securityholder representative, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 19, 2018.
2.2
Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of April 25, 2018, by and among TheMaven, Inc., HP Acquisition Co., Inc., HubPages, Inc., and Paul Edmondson as the securityholder representative, which was filed as Exhibit 2.2 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on January 8, 2021.
2.3
Second Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of June 1, 2018, by and among TheMaven, Inc., HP Acquisition Co., Inc., HubPages, Inc., and Paul Edmondson as the securityholder representative, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K/A filed on June 4, 2018.
2.4
Third Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of May 31, 2019, by and among TheMaven, Inc., HP Acquisition Co., Inc., HubPages, Inc., and Paul Edmondson as the securityholder representative, which was filed as Exhibit 2.4 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on January 8, 2021.
2.5
Fourth Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of December 15, 2020, by and among TheMaven, Inc., HP Acquisition Co., Inc., HubPages, Inc., and Paul Edmondson as the securityholder representative, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 21, 2020.
2.6
Amended and Restated Asset Purchase Agreement, dated as of August 4, 2018, by and among the Company, Maven Coalition, Inc., and Say Media, Inc., which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on August 9, 2018.
2.7
Amendment to Amended and Restated Asset Purchase Agreement, dated as of August 24, 2018, by and among the Company, Maven Coalition, Inc., and Say Media, Inc., which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on August 29, 2018.
2.8
Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of October 12, 2018, by and among the Company, SM Acquisition Co., Inc., Say Media, Inc., and Matt Sanchez as the Securityholder Representative, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 17, 2018.
2.9
Amendment to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of October 17, 2018, by and among the Company, SM Acquisition Co., Inc., Say Media, Inc., and Matt Sanchez as the Securityholder Representative, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 17, 2018.
2.10
Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated as of June 11, 2019, by and among the Company, TST Acquisition Co., Inc., and TheStreet, Inc., which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 12, 2019.
2.11
Asset Purchase Agreement, dated December 7, 2022, by and among The Arena Media Brands, LLC, Weider Publications, LLC and A360 Media, LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 2.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 20, 2022.
3.1
Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of the Registrant, which was filed as Exhibit 3.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 13, 2021.
3.2
Second Amended and Restated Bylaws, which was filed as Exhibit 3.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 13, 2021.
3.3
Certificate of Elimination of Series F Convertible Preferred Stock as filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on September 7, 2021, which was filed as Exhibit 3.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed September 13, 2021.
3.4
Certificate of Elimination of Series I Convertible Preferred Stock as filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on September 7, 2021, which was filed as Exhibit 3.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed September 13, 2021.
3.5
Certificate of Elimination of Series J Convertible Preferred Stock as filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on September 7, 2021, which was filed as Exhibit 3.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed September 13, 2021.
3.6
Certificate of Elimination of Series K Convertible Preferred Stock as filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on September 7, 2021, which was filed as Exhibit 3.4 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed September 13, 2021.
3.7
Certificate of Amendment as filed with the Delaware Secretary of State on January 20, 2022, which was filed Exhibit 3.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed January 26, 2022.
3.8
Certificate of Correction of the Certificate of Amendment of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on January 26, 2022, which was filed as Exhibit 3.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed January 26, 2022.
51
3.9
Certificate of Correction of the Certificate of Amendment of the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation, filed with the Secretary of State of the State of Delaware on February 3, 2022, which was filed as Exhibit 3.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed February 9, 2022.
4.1
Specimen Common Stock Certificate, which was filed as Exhibit 4.3 to Amendment No. 1 to Registration Statement on Form SB-2/A (Registration No. 333-48040) on September 23, 1996.
4.2
Common Stock Purchase Warrant issued on June 6, 2018 to L2 Capital, LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 12, 2018.
4.3
Common Stock Purchase Warrant issued on June 15, 2018 to Strome Mezzanine Fund LP, which was filed as Exhibit 10.4 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 21, 2018.
4.4
Form of Common Stock Purchase Warrant issued on October 18, 2018, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 24, 2018.
4.5
Form of Warrant for Channel Partners Program, which was filed as Exhibit 4.3 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.
4.6
Form of MDB Warrant issued in connection with the Share Exchange Agreement, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K, filed on November 7, 2016.
4.7
Common Stock Purchase Warrant (exercise price $0.42 per share), dated June 14, 2019, issued to ABG-SI LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 4.16 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed on August 16, 2021.
4.8
Common Stock Purchase Warrant (exercise price $0.84 per share), dated June 14, 2019, issued to ABG-SI LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 4.17 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on January 8, 2021.
4.9
Form of 2019 Warrant for Channel Partners Program, which was filed as Exhibit 4.18 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
4.10
Form of 2020 Warrant for Channel Partners Program, which was filed as Exhibit 4.19 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
4.18
Form
of Bridge Notes. which was filed as Exhibit 4.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 20, 2022.
4.19*
Description of Securities.
10.1
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated January 4, 2018, by and between the Company and certain investors named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 5, 2018.
10.2
Registration Rights Agreement, dated January 4, 2018, by and between the Company and certain investors named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 5, 2018.
10.3
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated March 30, 2018, by and among the Company and certain investors named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.11 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on January 8, 2021.
10.4
Registration Rights Agreement, dated March 30, 2018, by and among the Company and certain investors named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.12 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on January 8, 2021.
10.5
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated June 15, 2018, between the Company and each purchaser named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 21, 2018.
10.6
Registration Rights Agreement, dated June 15, 2018, by and between the Company and each purchaser named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 21, 2018.
10.7
Form of Securities Purchase Agreement, dated as of August 9, 2018, by and between the Company and each purchaser named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on August 10, 2018.
10.8
Form of Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of August 9, 2018, by and between the Company and each purchaser named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on August 10, 2018.
10.9
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated October 18, 2018, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 24, 2018.
10.10
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated December 12, 2018, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 13, 2018.
10.11
Registration Rights Agreement, dated December 12, 2018, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 13, 2018.
10.12
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated March 18, 2019, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 22, 2019.
10.13
Registration Rights Agreement, dated March 18, 2019, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 22, 2019.
10.14
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated March 27, 2019, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 28, 2019.
52
10.15
Registration Rights Agreement, dated March 27, 2019, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 28, 2019.
10.16
Securities Purchase Agreement, dated April 8, 2019, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on April 12, 2019.
10.17
Registration Rights Agreement, dated April 8, 2019, by and between the Company and each investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on April 12, 2019.
10.18
Pledge and Security Agreement, dated June 10, 2019, by and among the Company, Maven Coalition, Inc., HubPages, Inc., Say Media, Inc., TST Acquisition Co., Inc., and the investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.5 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 12, 2019.
10.19
Confirmation and Ratification Agreement, dated June 14, 2019, by and among the Company, Maven Coalition, Inc., HubPages, Inc., Say Media, Inc., TST Acquisition Co., Inc., and the investor named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 19, 2019.
10.20
Form of Securities Purchase Agreement, dated as of June 28, 2019, by and among the Company and each of the several purchasers named thereto, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on July 3, 2019.
10.21
Form of Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of June 28, 2019, by and among the Company and each of the several purchasers named thereto, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on July 3, 2019.
10.22
Form of Second Amended and Restated Promissory Note due June 14, 2022, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on September 3, 2019.
10.23
Form of Securities Purchase Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2019, by and among the Company and each of the several purchasers named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 11, 2019.
10.24
Form of Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2019, by and among the Company and each of the several purchasers named therein, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 11, 2019.
10.25
Third Amended and Restated Note Purchase Agreement, dated December 15, 2022, by and among the Company, the subsidiary guarantors party thereto, BRF Finance Co., LLC, as agent and purchaser, and the other purchasers from time to time party thereto, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 20, 2022.
10.26
Sixth Amendment to Financing and Security Agreement, dated December 15, 2022, by and among the Company, the subsidiaries of the Company party thereto and SLR Digital Finance LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 20, 2022.
10.27
Form of 15% Delayed Draw Term Note, issued on March 24, 2020, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on March 30, 2020.
10.28
Form of Series H Securities Purchase Agreement, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on August 20, 2020.
10.29
Sublease, dated January 14, 2020, by and between Saks & Company LLC and Maven Coalition, Inc., which was filed as Exhibit 10.51 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.30
Office Lease Agreement, dated October 25, 2019, by and between Street Retail West I, LP and the Company, which was filed as Exhibit 10.54 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.31
Asset Purchase Agreement, dated March 9, 2020, by and among Maven Coalition, Inc., Petametrics Inc., doing business as LiftIgniter, and the Company, which was filed as Exhibit 10.59 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.32+
Form of Stock Option Award Agreement – 2016 Stock Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.62 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.33+
Form of Stock Option Award Agreement – 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.63 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.34+
Independent Director Agreement, effective as of September 3, 2018, by and between the Company and Todd D. Sims, which was filed as Exhibit 10.71 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.35+
First Amendment to the 2016 Stock Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.80 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.36+
Second Amendment to the 2016 Stock Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.81 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.37+
Form of Restricted Equity Award Grant Notice – 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.82 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.38+
Form of Restricted Stock Unit Grant Notice – 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.83 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
53
10.39+
Stock Option Award Agreement, dated March 11, 2019, by and between the Company and Douglas B. Smith, which was filed as Exhibit 10.84 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.40+
Stock Option Award Agreement, dated March 11, 2019, by and between the Company and Douglas B. Smith, which was filed as Exhibit 10.85 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on August 16, 2021.
10.41
Channel Partners Warrant Program adopted on May 20, 2020, which was filed as Exhibit 10.112 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.42+
Stock Option Award Agreement, dated January 16, 2019, by and between the Company and Andrew Q. Kraft, which was filed as Exhibit 10.119 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.43+
Stock Award Agreement, dated January 16, 2019, by and between the Company and Andrew Q. Kraft, which was filed as Exhibit 10.120 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.44+
Maven Executive Bonus Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 14, 2021.
10.45
Amendment No. 1 to Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated July 12, 2019, by and among the Company, TheStreet, Inc., and TST Acquisition Co., Inc., which was filed as Exhibit 10.122 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.46+
Executive Employment Agreement, effective January 1, 2021, by and between the Company and Paul Edmondson, which was filed as Exhibit 10.4 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 23, 2021.
10.47+
Amended and Restated Executive Employment Agreement, effective January 1, 2021, by and between the Company and Douglas B. Smith, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 23, 2021.
10.48+
Stock Option Grant Notice, dated April 10, 2019, by and between the Company and Paul Edmondson, which was filed as Exhibit 10.127 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.49+
Stock Option Grant Notice, dated April 10, 2019, by and between the Company and Douglas Smith, which was filed as Exhibit 10.130 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.50+
Form of Amendment to Stock Option Award Agreement, by and between the Company and certain grantees awarded stock options on April 10, 2019, which was filed as Exhibit 10.131 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on April 9, 2021.
10.51+
Executive Employment Agreement, effective as of February 18, 2021, by and between the Company and Robertson Barrett, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 23, 2021.
10.52
Services Agreement, dated as of December 22, 2020, by and between the Company and Whisper Advisors, LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.134 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K on April 9, 2021.
10.53+
Stock Option Award Agreement, dated September 14, 2018, by and between the Company and Paul Edmondson, which was filed as Exhibit 10.135 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K on April 9, 2021.
10.54+
Amended and Restated Executive Employment Agreement, effective January 1, 2021, by and between the Company and Andrew Kraft, which was filed as Exhibit 10.6 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 23, 2021.
10.55+
Second Amended and Restated Executive Employment Agreement, effective January 1, 2021, by and between the Company and Avi Zimak, which was filed as Exhibit 10.7 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 23, 2021.
10.56+
Second Amendment to theMaven, Inc.’s 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, dated February 18, 2021, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 24, 2021.
10.57+
First Amendment to theMaven, Inc.’s 2019 Equity Incentive Plan, dated March 16, 2020, which was filed as Exhibit 10.141 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K on April 9, 2021.
10.58+
2019 Equity Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 10.142 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K on April 9, 2021.
10.59
2016 Stock Incentive Plan, which was filed as Exhibit 4.4 to our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2016.
10.60
Financing and Security Agreement, dated February 2020, by and among Maven Coalition, Inc., theMaven, Inc., Maven Media Brands, LLC, TheStreet, Inc., and FPP Finance LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.8 to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on May 7, 2021.
10.61
First Amendment to Financing and Security Agreement, dated March 24, 2020, by and among Maven Coalition, Inc., theMaven, Inc., Maven Media Brands, LLC, TheStreet, Inc., and FPP Financing LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.9 to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on May 7, 2021.
10.62
Intercreditor Agreement, dated February 24, 2020, by and between FPP Finance LLC and BRF Finance Co., LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.10 to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on May 7, 2021.
54
10.63
Amendment No. 1 to Intercreditor Agreement, dated March 24, 2020, by and between FPP Finance LLC and BRF Finance Co., LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.11 to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on May 7, 2021.
10.64
Form of Securities Purchase Agreement among the Company and each of the several purchasers signatory thereto, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on May 25, 2021.
10.65
Form of Registration Rights Agreement among the Company and each of the several purchasers signatory thereto, which was filed as Exhibit 10.3 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on May 25, 2021.
10.66
Stock Purchase Agreement, dated June 4, 2021, by and among the Company, Maven Media Brands, LLC, College Spun Media Incorporated, Matthew Lombardi, Alyson Shontell Lombardi, Timothy Ray, Andrew Holleran, and the Representative, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 7, 2021.
10.67
Second Amended and Restated Executive Employment Agreement, effective August 26, 2020, by and between the Company and Ross Levinsohn, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K on February 23, 2021.
10.68
Third Amendment to Financing and Security Agreement, dated as of December 6, 2021, by and among theMaven, Inc., Maven Coalition, Inc., Maven Media Brands, LLC, TheStreet, Inc., College Spun Media Incorporated, and Fast Pay Partners LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 10, 2021.
10.69+
Amendment No. 1 to Second Amended & Restated Executive Employment Agreement, dated as of December 22, 2021, by and between the Company and Ross Levinsohn, which was filed as Exhibit 10.2 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 10, 2022.
10.70
Form of Stock Purchase Agreement by and between the Company and certain investors, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K filed on January 28, 2022.
10.71
Asset Purchase Agreement between the Company and Fulltime Fantasy Sports, LLC, dated July 15, 2021, which was filed as Exhibit 10.5 to our Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q on November 15, 2021.
10.72^
Amended Licensing Agreement by and between the Company and ABG-SI LLC, which was filed as Exhibit 10.1 to our Current Report on Form 8-K/A filed on November 29, 2022.
10.73*^
Amendment No. 5 to Licensing Agreement by and between the Company and ABG-SI LLC.
21.1*
Subsidiaries of the Arena Group Holdings, Inc.
23.1*
Consent of Marcum LLP, independent registered accounting firm.
24.1*
Power of Attorney (included in the signature pages hereto)
31.1*
Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
31.2*
Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended.
32.1*
Certification of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Section 1350 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
32.2*
Certification of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Section 1350 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002.
101.INS
Inline XBRL*
Instance
Document.
101.SCH
Inline XBRL*
Taxonomy
Extension Schema Document.
101.CAL
Inline XBRL*
Taxonomy
Extension Calculation Linkbase Document.
101.DEF
Inline XBRL*
Taxonomy
Extension Definition Linkbase Document.
101.LAB
Inline XBRL*
Taxonomy
Extension Label Linkbase Document.
101.PRE
Inline XBRL*
Taxonomy
Presentation Linkbase Document.
104*
Cover
Page Interactive Data (embedded within the Inline XBRL document and contained in Exhibit 101)
*
Filed
Herewith.
^
Registrant has omitted portions of the exhibit as permitted under
Item 601(b)(10) of Regulations S-K.
+
Indicates
a management or compensatory plan or arrangement in which directors or executive officers are eligible to participate.
The
certifications furnished in Exhibits 32.1 and 32.2 hereto are deemed to accompany this Annual Report on Form 10-K and are not deemed
“filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, or otherwise subject to the liability of that section, nor shall
they be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act of the Exchange Act.
(b)
Exhibits.
See Item 15(a) above.
Item
16. Form 10–K Summary
None.
55
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, the Registrant has caused this Annual
Report on Form 10-K to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
The
Arena Group Holdings, Inc.
Dated:
March 31, 2023
By:
/s/
ROSS LEVINSOHN
Ross
Levinsohn
Chief
Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board
(Principal
Executive Officer)
By:
/s/
DOUGLAS B. SMITH
Douglas
B. Smith
Chief
Financial Officer
(Principal
Financial Officer)
By:
/s/
SPIROS CHRISTOFORATOS
Spiros
Christoforatos
Chief
Accounting Officer
(Principal
Accounting Officer)
Power
of Attorney
KNOW
ALL PERSONS BY THESE PRESENTS, that each person whose signature appears below constitutes and appoints Ross Levinsohn and Douglas B.
Smith, jointly and severally, as his or her attorneys-in-fact, each with the power of substitution, for him or her in any and all capacities,
to sign any amendments to this Annual Report on Form 10-K, and to file the same, with exhibits thereto and other documents in connection
therewith, with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, hereby ratifying and confirming all that each of said attorneys-in-fact,
or his substitute or substitutes, may do or cause to be done by virtue hereof.
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, this Annual Report on Form 10-K has been signed below by the
following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities indicated and on the dates indicated.
Signature
Title
/s/
ROSS LEVINSOHN
Chief
Executive Officer and Chairman of the Board
Ross
Levinsohn
(Principal
Executive Officer)
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
DOUGLAS B. SMITH
Chief
Financial Officer
Douglas
B. Smith
(Principal
Financial Officer)
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
SPIROS CHRISTOFORATOS
Chief
Accounting Officer
Spiros
Christoforatos
(Principal
Accounting Officer)
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
H. HUNT ALLRED
Director
H. Hunt Allred
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
CARLO ZOLA
Director
Carlo
Zola
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
CHRISTOPHER PETZEL
Director
Christopher
Petzel
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
LAURA LEE
Director
B.
Laura Lee
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
DANIEL SHRIBMAN
Director
Daniel
Shribman
Date:
March 31, 2023
/s/
TODD D. SIMS
Director
Todd
D. Sims
Date:
March 31, 2023
56
The
Arena Group Holdings, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Index
to Consolidated Financial Statements
PAGE
Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (PCAOB ID NO: 688 )
F-2
Consolidated Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-4
Consolidated Statements of Operations for the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-5
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Deficiency for the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-6
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021
F-8
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
F-9
F- 1
REPORT
OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM
To
the Stockholders and Board of Directors of
The
Arena Group Holdings, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Opinion
on the Financial Statements
We
have audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of The Arena Group Holdings, Inc and Subsidiaries (the “Company”)
as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the related consolidated statements of operations, stockholders’ deficiency and cash flows for
each of the two years in the period ended December 31, 2022, and the related notes (collectively referred to as the “financial
statements”). In our opinion, the financial statements present fairly, in all material respects, the financial position of the
Company as of December 31, 2022 and 2021, and the results of its operations and its cash flows for each of the two years in the period
ended December 31, 2022, and 2021, in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America.
We
also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) ("PCAOB"),
the Company's internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022, based on the criteria established in Internal Control
- Integrated Framework issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (COSO) in 2013 and our report dated
March 31, 2023 , expressed an adverse opinion on the effectiveness of the Company’s internal control over financial reporting
because of the existence of material weaknesses.
Explanatory
Paragraph – Going Concern
The
accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a going concern. As more
fully described in Note 1, the Company has a significant working capital deficiency, has incurred significant losses and needs to raise
additional funds to meet its obligations and sustain its operations. These conditions raise substantial doubt about the Company's ability
to continue as a going concern. Management's plans in regard to these matters are also described in Note 1. The consolidated financial
statements do not include any adjustments that might result from the outcome of this uncertainty.
Basis
for Opinion
These
financial statements are the responsibility of the Company's management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company's
financial statements based on our audits. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent
with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities
and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB.
We
conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audits to obtain
reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements are free of material misstatement, whether due to error or fraud. Our audits
included performing procedures to assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements, whether due to error or fraud,
and performing procedures that respond to those risks. Such procedures included examining, on a test basis, evidence regarding the amounts
and disclosures in the financial statements. Our audits also included evaluating the accounting principles used and significant estimates
made by management, as well as evaluating the overall presentation of the financial statements. We believe that our audits provide a
reasonable basis for our opinion.
Critical
Audit Matters
The
critical audit matters communicated below are matters arising from the current period audit of the financial statements that were communicated
or required to be communicated to the audit committee and that: (1) relate to accounts or disclosures that are material to the financial
statements and (2) involved our especially challenging, subjective, or complex judgments. The communication of critical audit matters
does not alter in any way our opinion on the financial statements, taken as a whole, and we are not, by communicating the critical audit
matters below, providing separate opinions on the critical audit matters or on the accounts or disclosures to which they relate.
Evaluation
of acquisition-date fair value of acquired intangible assets
As
discussed in Note 4 to the consolidated financial statements, the Company acquired Athlon Holdings, Inc. (“Parade”) on April
1, 2022 for a purchase price of $15.9 million and A360 Media, LLC (“Men’s Journal”) on December 15, 2022 for a purchase
price of $25.0 million. In connection with these business combinations, the Company recorded intangible assets related to advertiser
relationships and trade names for $8.5 million and related to advertiser relationships and brand names for $13.0 million, respectively.
We
identified and evaluated the acquisition-date fair value of the intangible assets acquired in the transactions as critical audit matters.
These critical audit matters required a degree of subjectivity in calculating its fair value. A discounted cash flow model included internally-developed
assumptions with limited observable market information was used to calculate the value and was sensitive to possible changes to key assumptions,
including: (i) forecasted revenue growth rates, (ii) forecasted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA)
margins and (iii) weighted-average cost of capital (WACC), including the discount rate.
The
primary procedures we performed to address these critical audit matters included evaluating the Company’s forecasted revenue growth
rates for each acquisition to their respective historical results to assess Parade’s and Men’s Journal’s ability to
accurately forecast. In addition, we involved a valuation specialist to assist with (i) evaluating the valuation approach used by the
Company to calculate the fair value of the intangible assets and (ii) assessing the Company’s WACC calculation, by comparing it
against an independently estimated WACC.
/s/
Marcum llp
Marcum
LLP
We
have served as the Company’s auditor since 2019.
Los
Angeles, California
March
31, 2023
F- 2
REPORT
OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM ON INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING
To
the Stockholders and Board of Directors of
The
Arena Group Holdings, Inc. and Subsidiaries
Adverse
Opinion on Internal Control over Financial Reporting
We
have audited The Arena Group Holdings, Inc.’s (the "Company") internal control over financial reporting as of December
31, 2022, based on criteria established in Internal Control-Integrated Framework (2013) issued
by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. In our opinion, because of the effect of the material weaknesses
described in the following paragraph on the achievement of the objectives of the control criteria, the Company has not maintained effective
internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022, based on criteria established in Internal
Control-Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission.
A
material weakness is a control deficiency, or combination of deficiencies, in internal control over financial reporting, such that there
is a reasonable possibility that a material misstatement of the Company's annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented
or detected on a timely basis. The following material weaknesses have been identified and included in “Management's Annual Report
on Internal Control Over Financial Reporting”:
The
Company had inadequate segregation of duties consistent with control objectives related to our information technology general controls
(“ITGCs”), specifically as relates to change management; and there was insufficient validation of non-Google impression data
provided by certain third-party service providers. These material weaknesses continue and have not been remediated as of the date of
filing this Annual Report.
These
material weaknesses were considered in determining the nature, timing and extent of audit tests applied in our audit of the fiscal 2022
consolidated financial statements, and this report does not affect our report dated March 31, 2023 on those financial statements.
We
have also audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (“PCAOB”),
the consolidated balance sheets as of December 31, 2022 and the related consolidated statements of operations, shareholders’ deficiency,
and cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2022 of the Company and our report dated March 31, 2023 expressed an unqualified opinion
on those financial statements.
Explanatory
Paragraph – Excluded Subsidiaries
As
described in “Management Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting”, management has excluded its wholly-owned
subsidiaries, Athlon Holdings, Inc. (“Parade”) and A360 Media LLC (“Men’s Journal”), from its assessment
of internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2022 because these entities were acquired by the Company in purchase
business combinations during 2022. We have also excluded Parade and Men’s Journal from our audit of internal control over financial
reporting. These subsidiaries’ combined total assets and total revenues represent approximately 25.4% and 6.2%, respectively, of
the related consolidated financial statement amounts as of and for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Basis
for Opinion
The
Company's management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting, and for its assessment of the
effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in the accompanying "Management Annual Report on Internal Control
Over Financial Reporting". Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company's internal control over financial reporting
based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the
Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission
and the PCAOB.
We
conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain
reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit
of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing
the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based
on the assessed risk. Our audit also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe
that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion.
Definition
and Limitations of Internal Control over Financial Reporting
A
company's internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of
financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting
principles. A company's internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance
of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company;
(2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with
authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection
of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company's assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements.
Because
of the inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of
any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions,
or that degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
/s/
Marcum llp
Marcum
LLP
Los
Angeles, CA
March 31, 2023
F- 3
THE
ARENA GROUP HOLDINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED
BALANCE SHEETS
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
($ in thousands, except share data)
Assets
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents
$ 13,871
$ 9,349
Restricted cash
502
502
Accounts receivable, net
33,950
21,660
Subscription acquisition costs, current portion
25,931
30,162
Royalty fees
-
11,250
Prepayments and other current assets
4,441
4,748
Total current assets
78,695
77,671
Property and equipment, net
735
636
Operating lease right-of-use assets
372
528
Platform development, net
10,330
9,299
Subscription acquisition costs, net of current portion
14,133
8,235
Acquired and other intangible assets, net
58,970
57,356
Other long-term assets
1,140
639
Goodwill
39,344
19,619
Total assets
$ 203,719
$ 173,983
Liabilities, mezzanine equity and stockholders’ deficiency
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable
$ 12,863
$ 11,982
Accrued expenses and other
23,102
24,011
Line of credit
14,092
11,988
Unearned revenue
58,703
54,030
Subscription refund liability
845
3,087
Operating lease liabilities
427
374
Liquidated damages payable
5,843
5,197
Bridge notes
34,805
-
Current portion of long-term debt
65,684
5,744
Total current liabilities
216,364
116,413
Unearned revenue, net of current portion
19,701
15,277
Operating lease liabilities, net of current portion
358
785
Liquidating damages payable, net of current portion
494
7,008
Other long-term liabilities
5,307
7,556
Deferred tax liabilities
465
362
Long-term debt, net of current portion
-
64,373
Total liabilities
242,689
211,774
Commitments and contingencies (Note 28)
-
-
Mezzanine equity:
Series G redeemable and convertible preferred stock, $ 0.01 par value, $ 1,000 per share liquidation value and 1,800 shares designated; aggregate liquidation value: $ 168 ; Series G shares issued and outstanding: 168 ; common shares issuable upon conversion: 8,582 at December 31, 2022 and 2021
168
168
Series H convertible preferred stock, $ 0.01 par value, $ 1,000 per share liquidation value and 23,000 shares designated; aggregate liquidation value: $ 14,356 and $ 15,066 ; Series H shares issued and outstanding: 14,356 and 15,066 ; common shares issuable upon conversion: 1,981,128 and 2,075,200 at December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively
13,008
13,718
Total mezzanine equity
13,176
13,886
Stockholders’ deficiency:
Common stock, $ 0.01
par value, authorized 1,000,000,000
shares: issued and outstanding; 18,303,193
and 12,635,591
shares December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively
182
126
Common stock to be issued
-
-
Additional paid-in capital
270,743
200,410
Accumulated deficit
( 323,071 )
( 252,213 )
Total stockholders’ deficiency
( 52,146 )
( 51,677 )
Total liabilities, mezzanine equity and stockholders’ deficiency
$ 203,719
$ 173,983
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
F- 4
THE
ARENA GROUP HOLDINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
2022
2021
Years Ended December 31,
2022
2021
($ in thousands, except share data)
Revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
Cost of revenue (includes amortization for developed technology and platform development for 2022 and 2021 of $ 9,459 and $ 8,829 , respectively)
132,923
110,530
Gross profit
88,012
78,610
Operating expenses
Selling and marketing
72,489
81,929
General and administrative
53,499
55,612
Depreciation and amortization
17,650
16,345
Loss on impairment of assets
257
1,192
Loss on impairment of lease
-
466
Loss on termination of lease
-
7,345
Total operating expenses
143,895
162,889
Loss from operations
( 55,883 )
( 84,279 )
Other (expenses) income
Change in valuation of warrant derivative liabilities
-
34
Interest expense, net
( 11,428 )
( 10,449 )
Liquidated damages
( 1,140 )
( 2,637 )
Gain upon debt extinguishment
-
5,717
Total other expenses
( 12,568 )
( 7,335 )
Loss before income taxes
( 68,451 )
( 91,614 )
Income tax benefit
1,063
1,674
Loss from continuing operations
( 67,388 )
( 89,940 )
Loss from discontinued operations, net of tax
( 3,470 )
-
Net loss
$ ( 70,858 )
$ ( 89,940 )
Basic and diluted net loss per common share:
Continuing operations
$ ( 3.82 )
$ ( 7.87 )
Discontinued operations
( 0.20 )
-
Basic and diluted net loss per common share
$ ( 4.02 )
$ ( 7.87 )
Weighted average number of common shares outstanding – basic and diluted
17,625,619
11,429,740
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
F- 5
THE ARENA GROUP HOLDINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ DEFICIENCY
Year
Ended December 31, 2022
Shares
Par
Value
Shares
Par
Value
Paid-in
Capital
Accumulated
Deficit
Stockholders’
Deficiency
Common
Stock
Common
Stock to
be
Issued
Additional
Total
Shares
Par
Value
Shares
Par
Value
Paid-in
Capital
Accumulated
Deficit
Stockholders’
Deficiency
($ in thousands, except share data)
Balance
at January 1, 2022
12,635,591
$
126
49,134
$
-
$
200,410
$
( 252,213
)
$
( 51,677
)
Beginning
balance, value
12,635,591
$
126
49,134
$
-
$
200,410
$
( 252,213
)
$
( 51,677
)
Issuance
of common stock for restricted stock units
832,233
8
-
-
( 8
)
-
-
Common
stock withheld for taxes
( 373,394
)
( 4
)
-
-
( 4,464
)
-
( 4,468
)
Repurchase
of restricted stock awards classified as liabilities
( 26,214
)
-
-
-
-
-
-
Issuance
of common stock in connection with acquisitions
330,863
3
-
-
3,138
-
3,141
Issuance
of common stock in connection with merger
7,851
-
( 7,851
)
-
-
-
-
Issuance
of common stock in connection with professional services
14,617
-
-
-
184
-
184
Issuance
of common stock in connection with settlement of liquidated damages
505,655
5
-
-
6,680
-
6,685
Gain
upon issuance of common stock in connection with settlement of liquidated damages
-
-
-
-
323
-
323
Issuance
of common stock upon conversion of Series H convertible preferred stock
97,980
1
-
-
709
-
710
Issuance
of common stock in connection with public offering
4,181,603
42
-
-
30,448
-
30,490
Issuance
of common stock upon exercise of stock options
96,408
1
-
-
94
-
95
Stock-based
compensation
-
-
-
-
33,229
-
33,229
Net
loss
-
-
-
-
-
( 70,858
)
( 70,858
)
Ending
balance, value
18,303,193
$
182
41,283
$
-
$
270,743
$
( 323,071
)
$
( 52,146
)
Balance
at December 31, 2022
18,303,193
$
182
41,283
$
-
$
270,743
$
( 323,071
)
$
( 52,146
)
F- 6
Year
Ended December 31, 2021
Common Stock
Common Stock to be Issued
Additional
Total
Shares
Par
Value
Shares
Par
Value
Paid-in
Capital
Accumulated
Deficit
Stockholders’
Deficiency
($
in thousands, except share data)
Balance at January 1, 2021
10,415,618
$ 104
49,134
$ -
$ 141,856
$ ( 162,273 )
$ ( 20,313 )
Beginning balance, value
10,415,618
$ 104
49,134
$ -
$ 141,856
$ ( 162,273 )
$ ( 20,313 )
Issuance of restricted stock awards to the board of directors
48,856
-
-
-
-
-
-
Forfeiture of unvested restricted stock awards
( 6,844 )
-
-
-
-
-
-
Issuance of common stock for restricted stock units
34,395
-
-
-
-
-
-
Repurchase of restricted stock awards classified as liabilities
( 22,178 )
-
-
-
-
-
-
Reclassification of warrants to equity
-
-
-
-
1,113
-
1,113
Issuance of common stock in connection with professional services
14,205
-
-
-
125
-
125
Issuance of restricted stock in connection with an acquisition
228,898
2
-
-
500
-
502
Issuance of common stock upon exercise of stock options
3,858
-
-
-
-
-
-
Common stock withheld for taxes
( 4,355 )
-
-
-
( 70 )
-
( 70 )
Issuance of common stock in connection with private placement
1,299,027
13
-
-
19,825
-
19,838
Issuance of common stock upon conversion of Series H convertible preferred stock
624,111
7
-
-
4,523
-
4,530
Stock-based compensation
-
-
-
-
32,538
-
32,538
Net loss
-
-
-
-
-
( 89,940 )
( 89,940 )
Balance at December 31, 2021
12,635,591
$ 126
49,134
$ -
$ 200,410
$ ( 252,213 )
$ ( 51,677 )
Ending balance, value
12,635,591
$ 126
49,134
$ -
$ 200,410
$ ( 252,213 )
$ ( 51,677 )
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
F- 7
THE
ARENA GROUP HOLDINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
2022
2021
Years Ended December 31,
2022
2021
($ in thousands)
Cash flows from operating activities
Net loss
$ ( 70,858 )
$ ( 89,940 )
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash used in operating activities:
Depreciation of property and equipment
539
443
Amortization of platform development and intangible assets
26,570
24,731
Amortization of debt costs
1,581
2,106
Loss on impairment of assets
466
1,192
Loss on impairment of lease
-
466
Loss on termination of lease
-
7,345
Change in valuation of warrant derivative liabilities
-
( 34 )
Liquidated damages
1,140
2,637
Gain upon debt extinguishment
-
( 5,717 )
Accrued and noncash converted interest
320
6,956
Stock-based compensation
31,345
30,493
Deferred income taxes
( 1,200 )
( 1,674 )
Bad debt expense
658
499
Other
184
-
Change in operating assets and liabilities net of effect of acquisitions:
Accounts receivable
( 2,038 )
( 3,884 )
Subscription acquisition costs
( 1,667 )
3,108
Royalty fees
11,250
15,000
Prepayments and other current assets
2,280
49
Other long-term assets
( 285 )
692
Accounts payable
( 6,535 )
3,752
Accrued expenses and other
( 2,996 )
7,474
Unearned revenue
3,898
( 15,819 )
Subscription refund liability
( 2,379 )
( 949 )
Operating lease liabilities
( 218 )
( 2,489 )
Other long-term liabilities
( 3,359 )
( 1,166 )
Net cash used in operating activities
( 11,304 )
( 14,729 )
Cash flows from investing activities
Purchases of property and equipment
( 530 )
( 377 )
Capitalized platform development
( 5,179 )
( 4,819 )
Proceeds from sale of equity investment
2,450
-
Payments for acquisitions, net of cash
( 35,331 )
( 7,950 )
Net cash used in investing activities
( 38,590 )
( 13,146 )
Cash flows from financing activities
Proceeds from bridge notes, net of debt costs
34,728
-
Proceeds from long-term debt
-
5,086
Payments of long-term debt
( 5,928 )
-
Proceeds, net of repayments, under line of credit
2,104
4,809
Proceeds from common stock public offering, net of offering costs
32,058
-
Payments of issuance costs from common stock public offering
( 1,568 )
-
Proceeds from common stock private placement
-
20,005
Payments of issuance costs from common stock private placement
-
( 167 )
Proceeds from exercise of common stock options
95
-
Payment of deferred cash payment
( 453 )
-
Payment for taxes related to common stock withheld for taxes
( 4,468 )
( 70 )
Payment of restricted stock liabilities
( 2,152 )
( 1,472 )
Net cash provided by financing activities
54,416
28,191
Net increase in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
4,522
316
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash – beginning of year
9,851
9,535
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash – end of year
$ 14,373
$ 9,851
Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
Cash and cash equivalents
$ 13,871
$ 9,349
Restricted cash
502
502
Total cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
$ 14,373
$ 9,851
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information
Cash paid for interest
$ 9,528
$ 1,393
Cash paid for income taxes
-
-
Noncash investing and financing activities
Reclassification of stock-based compensation to platform development
$ 1,884
$ 2,045
Issuance of common stock in connection with professional services
-
125
Restricted stock issued in connection with an acquisition
-
502
Debt costs recorded in accrued expenses and other and in other long-term liabilities
441
509
Reclassification of warrants to equity
-
1,113
Issuance of common stock in connection with settlement of liquidated damages
7,008
-
Issuance of common stock in connection with an acquisition
3,141
-
Deferred cash payments recorded in connection with acquisitions
628
1,324
Assumption of liabilities in connection with acquisitions
17,100
85
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
F- 8
THE ARENA GROUP HOLDINGS, INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
($ in thousands, unless otherwise stated)
1. Organization and Basis of Presentation
Organization
The
Arena Holdings Group, Inc. (formerly known as TheMaven, Inc.) (“The Arena Group” or the “Company”), was incorporated
in Delaware on October 1, 1990. On October 11, 2016, the predecessor entity now known as The Arena Group exchanged its shares with another
entity that was incorporated in Delaware on July 22, 2016. On November 4, 2016, these entities consummated a recapitalization. This resulted
in The Arena Group becoming the parent entity, and the other Delaware entity becoming the wholly owned subsidiary. On December 19, 2019,
the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries The Arena Platform, Inc. (formerly known as Maven Coalition, Inc.), and HubPages, Inc.
(“HubPages”), a Delaware corporation that was acquired by the Company in a merger during 2018, were merged into another of
the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries, Say Media, Inc. (“Say Media”), a Delaware corporation that was acquired by
the Company in a merger during 2018, with Say Media as the surviving corporation. On January 6, 2020, Say Media changed its name to The
Arena Platform, Inc. (“Arena Platform”). As of December 31, 2022, the Company’s wholly owned subsidiaries consist of
The Arena Platform, The Arena Media Brands, LLC (“Arena Media”) (formerly known as Maven Media Brands, LLC) formed during
2019 as a wholly owned subsidiary of The Arena Group), TheStreet, Inc. (“TheStreet” acquired by the Company in a merger during
2019), College Spun Media Incorporated (“The Spun” acquired by the Company in a merger during 2021 as further described in
Note 4) and Athlon Holdings, Inc. (“Parade” acquired by the Company in a merger during 2022 as further described in Note
4).
The
Company changed its legal name to The Arena Group Holdings, Inc. from TheMaven, Inc. on February 8, 2022. The Company’s subsidiaries
changed their corporate names to The Arena Platform, Inc. from Maven Coalition, Inc. and to The Arena Media Brands, LLC from Maven Media
Brands, LLC on February 18, 2022.
Unless
the context indicates otherwise, The Arena Group, The Arena Platform, TheStreet, The Spun and Parade, are together hereinafter referred
to as the “Company.”
Reverse
Stock Split
On
February 8, 2022, the Company’s board of directors (the “Board”) approved a one-for-twenty-two (1-for-22) reverse stock
split of its outstanding shares of common stock that was effective February 8, 2022. The Company’s common stock began trading on
the NYSE American (the “NYSE American”) on February 9, 2022 (as further described below). At the effective time, every twenty-two
shares of issued and outstanding common stock were automatically combined into one issued and outstanding share of common stock, without
any change in the number of authorized shares. No fractional shares were issued as a result of the reverse stock split. Any fractional
shares that would otherwise have resulted from the reverse stock split were rounded up to the next whole number.
F- 9
The
accompanying financial statements and notes to the financial statements give effect to the reverse stock split for all periods presented.
The shares of common stock retained a par value of $ 0.01 per share. Accordingly, stockholders’ deficiency reflects the reverse
stock split by reclassifying from “common stock” to “additional paid-in capital” in an amount equal to the par
value of the decreased shares resulting from the reverse stock split. In connection with the reverse stock split, proportionate adjustments
were made to increase the per share exercise prices and decrease the number of shares of common stock issuable upon exercise of common
stock options and warrants whereby approximately the same aggregate price is required to be paid for such securities upon exercise as
had been payable immediately preceding the reverse stock split. Any fractional shares that would otherwise be issued as a result of the
reverse stock split were rounded up to the nearest whole share.
On
February 9, 2022, in connection with the Company’s legal name change and reverse stock split, the Company up-listed its common
stock to the NYSE American, which began trading on February 9, 2022 under the symbol “AREN.” The Company’s common
stock, prior to the up-list, was quoted on the OTC Markets Group Inc.’s (“OTCM”) OTCQX ® Best Market
(the “OTCQX”) under the symbol “MVEN.”
Business
Operations
The
Company is a tech-powered media
company that focuses on building deep content verticals powered by a best-in-class digital media platform (the “Platform”)
empowering premium publishers who impact, inform, educate, and entertain. The Company’s strategy is to focus on key verticals where
audiences are passionate about a topic category (e.g., sports and finance), and where it can leverage the strength of its core brands
to grow its audience and increase monetization both within its core brands as well as its media publishers (each, a “Publisher Partner”).
The Company’s focus is on leveraging its Platform and iconic brands in targeted verticals to maximize audience reach, improve engagement,
and optimize monetization of digital publishing assets for the benefit of its users, its advertiser clients, and its greater than 40 owned
and operated properties as well as properties it runs on behalf of independent Publisher Partners. The Company operates the media businesses
for Sports Illustrated (“Sports Illustrated”), owns and operates TheStreet and The Spun, Parade, and Men’s Journal and
powers more than 225 independent Publisher Partners, including History, and the many sports team sites that comprise FanNation, among
others. Each Publisher Partner joins the Platform by invitation only and is drawn from premium media brands and independent publishing
businesses with the objective of augmenting the Company’s position in key verticals and optimizing the performance of the Publisher
Partner. Publisher Partners incur the costs in content creation on their respective channels and receive a share of the revenue associated
with their content. Because of the state-of-the-art technology and large scale of the Platform and the Company’s expertise in search
engine optimization, social media, ad monetization and subscription marketing Publisher Partners continually benefit from the Company’s
ongoing technological advances and bespoke audience development expertise. Additionally, the Company believes the lead brand within each
vertical creates a halo benefit for all Publisher Partners in the vertical while each of them adds to the breadth and quality of content.
While they benefit from these critical performance improvements they also may save substantially in costs of technology, infrastructure,
advertising sales, and member marketing and management.
The
Company’s growth strategy is to continue to expand by adding new premium publishers with high quality brands and content either
as independent Publisher Partners or by acquiring publishers as owned and operated entities.
The
Company entered into a licensing agreement, as amended, (the “Sports Illustrated Licensing Agreement”) with ABG-SI LLC (“ABG”)
a brand development, marketing, and entertainment company, in October 2019. Since assuming management of the Sports Illustrated media
assets, the Company has implemented significant changes to rebuild the historic brand and beacon of sports journalism, to evolve and
expand the business, and to position it for growth and continued success going forward.
With
respect to Sports Illustrated Swim (“SI Swim”), the Company has transitioned to a female-focused lifestyle brand, with the
annual content release in May 2022. The Company’s fan-facing event to celebrate the 2022 annual content release and ongoing digital
sponsorships was held over several nights in May 2022 and the Company partnered with Hard Rock, Maybelline, Celsius, Frida Mom and others.
F- 10
SI
Sportsbook was launched in 2021 in Colorado and has expanded to several state through the end of fiscal 2022. The Company provides the
content for SI Sportsbook. Its partner, 888 Holdings PCC, one of the world’s leading online betting and gaming companies, provides
the gambling engine.
TheStreet
is a leading financial news and information provider to investors and institutions worldwide and has produced business news and market
analysis for individual investors. TheStreet brings its editorial tradition, strong subscription platform, and valuable membership base
to the Company, and benefits from its mobile-friendly CMS, social, video, and monetization technology.
The
Spun, founded in September 2012, and acquired by the Company in June 2021, is an online independent sports publication that brings readers
the most interesting athletic stories of the day. The Spun focuses on the social media aspect of the industry. The former chief executive officer of The Spun is now serving as the Company’s Senior Vice President of Growth.
The
Company acquired Parade, a premium-branded company in April 2022,
which helped to expand its digital audience reach. Parade has become the anchor of the Company’s new lifestyle vertical and Athlon
Sports, one of Parade’s premium brands, has expanded the Company’s sports vertical. In the fourth quarter of fiscal 2022,
the Company discontinued the Parade print business (as further described in Note 3).
The
Company acquired the digital assets of Men’s Journal from Weider Publications, a subsidiary of A360 Media, LLC in December 2022
to supplement its growing lifestyle vertical. This suite of digital assets provides its audience with access to premium active lifestyle
brands including Men’s Journal, Men’s Fitness, Surfer, Powder, Bike, SKATEboarding, Snowboarder and NewSchoolers.
HubPages
enhances the user’s experience by including content from individual creators to the HubPages network of premium content channels
that are owned and operated by the Company. These channels, such as PetHelpful, dengarden and Fashionista, act as an open community for
writers, explorers, knowledge seekers, and conversation starters to connect in an interactive and informative online space.
Seasonality
The
Company does experience seasonality during the year, as a result of advertising seasonality and sports seasons and major sporting events.
Advertising typically peaks in the fourth quarter of the Company’s fiscal year as advertisers concentrate their budgets during
the holiday season. This trend is magnified as it also includes the professional sports and college football seasons, which account for
a significant portion of the Company’s advertising revenue during that period of the year. Other sporting events such as the Super
Bowl, Winter and Summer Olympics, soccer’s World Cup, and major golf, tennis and cycling events create increased traffic surrounding
the respective events.
Going
Concern
The
Company performed an annual reporting period going concern assessment. Management is required to assess the Company’s ability to
continue as a going concern. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared assuming that the Company will continue as a
going concern, which contemplates the realization of assets and the liquidation of liabilities in the normal course of business. The
Company’s consolidated financial statements do not include any adjustments that might be necessary if it is unable to continue
as a going concern.
F- 11
Most
recently, for the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company incurred a net loss from continuing operations of $ 67,388 ,
had cash on hand of $ 13,871 and
a working capital deficit of $ 137,669 .
The Company’s net loss from continuing operations and working capital deficit have been evaluated by management to determine if
the significance of those conditions or events would limit its ability to meet our obligations when due. Furthermore, since the Company’s
Bridge Notes of $ 36,000 ,
Senior Secured Notes of $ 62,691
and Delayed Draw Term Notes of $ 4,000 ,
totaling $ 102,691
(collectively “its current debt”)
are due by December 31, 2023 (see Note 19, and Note 20), unless the Company is able to refinance or extend its current debt beyond its
current maturity, it may not be able to meet its obligations when due.
In its evaluation, management determined there
is substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern for a one-year period following the financial statement
issuance date, unless it is able to refinance or extend the maturities of its current debt.
The Company plans to refinance or extend the maturities of its current debt to alleviate the conditions that raise substantial doubt about
its ability to continue as a going concern.
Reclassifications
Certain
prior year amounts have been reclassified to conform to current period presentation. These reclassifications were immaterial, both individually
and in aggregate. These changes did not impact previously reported loss from operations or net loss.
F- 12
2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Principles
of Consolidation
The
accompanying consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted
in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and include the financial statements of The Arena Group and its wholly owned subsidiaries,
Arena Media, Arena Platform, TheStreet, The Spun and Parade. Intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.
Foreign
Currency
The
functional currency of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries is the local currencies (Canadian dollar), as it is the monetary
unit of account of the principal economic environment in which the Company’s foreign subsidiaries operate. All assets and
liabilities of the foreign subsidiaries are translated at the current exchange rate as of the end of the period, and revenue and
expenses are translated at average exchange rates in effect during the period. The gain or loss resulting from the process of
translating foreign currencies into U.S. dollars was immaterial for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, and therefore, a
foreign currency cumulative translation adjustment was not reported as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income (loss)
and the unrealized foreign exchange gain or loss was omitted from the consolidated statements of cash flows. Foreign currency
transaction gains and losses, if any, resulting from or expected to result from transactions denominated in a currency other than
the functional currency are recognized in other income on the consolidated statements of operations.
Use
of Estimates
The
preparation of the Company’s consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates
and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities as of
the date of the consolidated financial statements and the reported results of operations during the reporting period. Significant estimates
include: reserves for bad debt; capitalization of platform development and associated useful lives; goodwill and other acquired intangible
assets and associated useful lives; assumptions used in accruals for potential liabilities; revenue recognition and estimates of standalone
selling price of performance obligations for revenue contracts with multiple performance obligations; stock-based compensation and the
determination of the fair value; valuation allowances for deferred tax assets and uncertain tax positions; accounting for business combinations;
and assumptions used to calculate contingent liabilities. These estimates are based on information available as of the date of the consolidated
financial statements; therefore, actual results could differ from management’s estimates.
Risks
and Uncertainties
The
Company’s business and operations are sensitive to general business and economic conditions in the United States and worldwide.
These conditions include short-term and long-term interest rates, inflation, fluctuations in debt and equity capital markets and the
general condition of the United States and world economy. A host of factors beyond the Company’s control could cause fluctuations
in these conditions. Adverse developments in these general business and economic conditions could have a material adverse effect on the
Company’s financial condition and the results of its operations.
In
addition, the Company will compete with many companies that currently have extensive and well-funded projects, marketing and sales operations
as well as extensive human capital. The Company may be unable to compete successfully against these companies. The Company’s industry
is characterized by rapid changes in technology and market demands. As a result, the Company’s products, services, or expertise
may become obsolete or unmarketable. The Company’s future success will depend on its ability to adapt to technological advances,
anticipate customer and market demands, and enhance its current technology under development.
F- 13
The
Companies services, products and properties may be adversely impacted by uncertain economic conditions, including the impact of the ongoing
COVID-19 pandemic; the Ukraine – Russia conflict; adverse changes in interest rates, foreign currency exchange rates, tax laws
or tax rates; inflation; a recession; contraction in the availability of credit in the marketplace due to legislation or other economic
conditions, which may potentially impair its ability to access the capital markets on terms acceptable to it or at all; and the effects
of government initiatives to manage economic conditions. The Company cannot also predict how future economic conditions will affect its
users and Publisher Partners and any negative impact on its users or Publisher Partners may also have an adverse impact its results of
operations or financial condition. A severe or prolonged economic downturn, as result of a global pandemic such as the COVID-19 pandemic
or otherwise, could result in a variety of risks to the Company’s business, including weakened demand for its products and services
and its ability to raise additional capital when needed on favorable terms, if at all.
With
the initial onset of COVID-19 pandemic, the Company faced significant change in its advertisers’ buying behavior. Since May 2020,
there has been a steady recovery in the advertising market in both pricing and volume, which coupled with the return of professional
and college sports yielded steady growth in revenues. Given that the Company’s sports vertical relies on sporting events to generate
content and comprises a material portion of its revenues, the cash flows and results of operations are susceptible to a widespread cancellation
of sporting events or a general limitation of uncertain economic conditions, such as COVID-19 pandemic, that occurred during the 2020
calendar year. Future widespread shutdowns of in-person economic activity could have a material impact on the Company’s business.
As a result of the Company’s advertising revenue declining in early 2020 caused by the widespread cancellations of sporting events,
the Company is vulnerable to a risk of loss in the near term and it is at least reasonably possible that events or circumstances may
occur that could cause an impact in the near term as a result of uncertain economic conditions.
Since
August 2018, B. Riley FBR, Inc. (“B. Riley FBR”), a registered broker-dealer owned by B. Riley Financial, Inc., a diversified
publicly traded financial services company (“B. Riley”), has been instrumental in providing investment banking services to
the Company and in raising debt and equity capital for the Company. These services have included raising equity capital to support the
stock acquisition of Parade (as described in Note 4) and acquisition of certain assets of Men’s Journal (as described in Note 4).
B. Riley has also assisted in the raising of debt and equity capital for various acquisitions, refinancing and working capital purposes
including the Bridge Notes (as described in Note 19), Senior Secured Notes and Delayed
Draw Term Notes (as described in Note 20), Series H Preferred Stock (as described in Note 21), and Common
Stock Public Offering and Common Stock Private Placement (as described in Note 22).
Segment
Reporting
The
Company operates in one reportable segment which focuses on a publishing platform. The Company’s business offerings have similar
operating characteristics and similar long-term operating performance, including the types of customers, nature of product or services,
distribution methods and regulatory environment. The chief operating decision maker (the “CODM”) of the Company reviews specific
financial and operational data and other key metrics to make resource allocation decisions and assesses performance by review of profit
and loss information on a consolidated basis. The CODM does not review specific financial or operational data on a disaggregated basis
or by aggregating operating segments into one reportable segment. The consolidated financial statements reflect the financial results
of the Company’s one reportable segment.
Revenue
Recognition
In
accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers , revenues are
recognized when control of the promised goods or services are transferred to the Company’s customers, in an amount that reflects
the consideration that the Company expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. The Company generates all of its revenue
from contracts with customers. The Company accounts for revenue on a gross basis, as compared to a net basis, on its statements of operations.
The Company has made this determination based on its control of the advertising inventory and the ability to monetize the advertising
inventory or publications before transfer to the customer and because it is also the primary obligor responsible for providing the services
to the customer. Cost of revenues is presented as a separate line item on the statements of operations.
F- 14
The
following is a description of the principal activities from which the Company generates revenue:
Advertising
Revenue
Digital
Advertising – The Company recognizes revenue from digital advertisements at the point when each ad is viewed. The quantity
of advertisements, the impression bid prices and revenue are reported on a real-time basis. The Company enters into contracts with advertising
networks to serve display or video advertisements on the digital media pages associated with its various channels. Although reported
advertising transactions are subject to adjustment by the advertising network partners, any such adjustments are known within a few days
of month end. The Company owes its independent Publisher Partners a revenue share of the advertising revenue earned, which is recorded
as service costs in the same period in which the associated advertising revenue is recognized.
Advertising
revenue that is comprised of fees charged for the placement of advertising, on the Company’s flagship website, TheStreet.com,
is recognized as the advertising or sponsorship is displayed, if collection of the resulting receivable is reasonably assured.
Print
Advertising – Advertising related revenues for print advertisements are recognized when advertisements are published (defined
as an issue’s on-sale date), net of provisions for estimated rebates, rate adjustments, and discounts.
Subscription
Revenue
Digital
Subscriptions – The Company enters into contracts with internet users that subscribe to premium content on the owned and operated
media channels and facilitate such contracts between internet users and its Publisher Partners. These contracts provide internet users
with a membership subscription to access the premium content. The Company owes its independent Publisher Partners a revenue share of
the membership subscription revenue earned, which is initially deferred and recorded as deferred contract costs. The Company recognizes
deferred contract costs over the membership subscription term in the same pattern that the associated membership subscription revenue
is recognized.
Subscription
revenue generated from the Company’s flagship website TheStreet.com from institutional and retail customers is comprised
of subscriptions and license fees for access to securities investment information, stock market commentary, director and officer profiles,
relationship capital management services, and transactional information pertaining to mergers and acquisitions and other changes in the
corporate control environment. Subscriptions are charged to customers’ credit cards or are directly billed to corporate subscribers,
and are generally billed in advance on a monthly, quarterly or annual basis. The Company calculates net subscription revenue by deducting
from gross revenue an estimate of potential refunds from cancelled subscriptions as well as chargebacks of disputed credit card charges.
Net subscription revenue is recognized ratably over the subscription periods. Unearned revenue relates to payments for subscription fees
for which revenue has not been recognized because services have not yet been provided.
Print
Revenue
Print
revenue includes magazine subscriptions and single copy sales at newsstands.
Print
Subscriptions – Revenue from magazine subscriptions is deferred and recognized proportionately as products are distributed
to subscribers.
Newsstand
– Single copy revenue is recognized on the publication’s on-sale date, net of provisions for estimated returns. The Company
bases its estimates for returns on historical experience and current marketplace conditions.
Licensing
and Syndication Revenue
Content
licensing-based revenues and syndication revenues are accrued generally monthly or quarterly based on the specific mechanisms of each
contract. Generally, revenues are accrued based on estimated sales and adjusted as actual sales are reported by partners. These adjustments
are typically recorded within three months of the initial estimates and have not been material. Any minimum guarantees are typically
earned evenly over the fiscal year.
F- 15
Nature
of Performance Obligations
At
contract inception, the Company assesses the obligations promised in its contracts with customers and identifies a performance obligation
for each promise to transfer a good or service or bundle that is distinct. To identify the performance obligations, the Company considers
all the promises in the contract, whether explicitly stated or implied based on customary business practices. For a contract that has
more than one performance obligation, the Company allocates the total contract consideration to each distinct performance obligation
on a relative standalone selling price basis. Revenue is recognized when, or as, the performance obligations are satisfied, and control
is transferred to the customer.
Digital
Advertising – The Company sells digital advertising inventory on its websites directly to advertisers or through advertising
agencies. The Company’s performance obligations related to digital advertising are generally satisfied when the advertisement is
run on the Company’s platform. The price for direct digital advertising is determined in contracts with the advertisers. Revenue
from the sale of direct digital advertising is recognized when the advertisements are delivered based on the contract. The customer is
invoiced the agreed-upon price in the month following the month that the advertisements are delivered with normal trade terms. The agreed
upon price is adjusted for estimated provisions for rebates, rate adjustments, and discounts. As part of the Company’s customary
business practices, digital advertising contracts may include a guaranteed number of impressions and sales incentives to its customers
including volume discounts, rebates, value added impressions, etc. For all such contracts that include these types of variable consideration,
the Company estimates the variable consideration and factors in such an estimate when determining the transaction price.
Print
Advertising – The Company provides advertisement placements in print media directly to advertisers or through advertising
agencies. The Company’s performance obligations related to print advertising are satisfied when the magazine in which an advertisement
appears is published, which is defined as an issue’s on-sale date. The customer is invoiced the agreed-upon price when the advertisements
are published under normal industry trade terms. The agreed upon price is adjusted for estimated provisions for rebates, rate adjustments,
and discounts. As part of the Company’s customary business practices, print advertising contracts include guaranteed circulation
levels of magazines, referred to as rate base, and a number of sales incentives to its customers including volume discounts, rebates,
bonus pages, etc. For all such contracts that include these types of variable consideration, the Company estimates such when determining
the transaction price.
Digital
Subscriptions – The Company recognizes revenue from each membership subscription to access the premium content over time based
on a daily calculation of revenue during the reporting period, which is generally one year. Subscriber payments are initially recorded
as unearned revenue on the balance sheets. As the Company provides access to the premium content over the membership subscription term,
the Company recognizes revenue and proportionately reduces the unearned revenue balance.
Print
Subscriptions – The Company sells magazines to consumers through subscriptions. Each copy of a magazine is determined to be
a distinct performance obligation that is satisfied when the publication is sent to the customer. The majority of the Company’s
subscription sales are prepaid at the time of order. Subscriptions may be canceled at any time for a refund of the price paid for remaining
issues. As the contract may be canceled at any time for a full refund of the unserved copies, the contract term is determined to be on
an issue-to-issue basis as these contracts do not have substantive termination penalties. Revenues from subscriptions are deferred and
recognized proportionately as subscribers are served. Some magazine subscription offers contain more than one magazine title in a bundle.
The Company allocates the total contract consideration to each distinct performance obligation, or magazine title, based on a standalone-selling
price basis.
Newsstand
– The Company sells single copy magazines, or bundles of single copy magazines, to wholesalers for ultimate resale on newsstands
primarily at major retailers and grocery/drug stores, and in digital form on tablets and other electronic devices. Publications sold
to magazine wholesalers are sold with the right to receive credit from the Company for magazines returned to the wholesaler by retailers.
Revenue is recognized on the issue’s on-sale date as the date aligns most closely with the date that control is transferred to
the customer. The Company bases its estimates for returns on historical experience and current marketplace conditions.
Licensing
and Syndication – The Company has entered into various licensing and syndication agreements that provide third-party partners
with the right to utilize the Company’s content. Functional licenses in national media consist of content licensing.
F- 16
Timing
of Satisfaction of Performance Obligations
Point-in-Time
Performance Obligations – For performance obligations related to certain digital advertising space and sales of print advertisements,
the Company determines that the customer can direct the use of and obtain substantially all the benefits from the advertising products
as the digital impressions are served or on the issue’s on-sale date. For performance obligations related to sales of magazines
through subscriptions, the customer obtains control when each magazine issue is mailed to the customer on or before the issue’s
on-sale date. For sales of single copy magazines on newsstands, revenue is recognized on the issue’s on-sale date as the date aligns
most closely with the date that control is transferred to the customer. Revenues from functional licenses and syndication arrangements
are recognized at a point-in-time when access to the completed content is granted to the partner.
Over-Time
Performance Obligations – For performance obligations related to sales of certain digital advertising space, the Company
transfers control and recognizes revenue over time by measuring progress towards complete satisfaction using the most appropriate method.
For
performance obligations related to digital advertising, the Company satisfies its performance obligations on some flat-fee digital advertising
placements over time using a time-elapsed output method.
Determining
a measure of progress requires management to make judgments that affect the timing of revenue recognized. The Company has determined
that the above method provides a faithful depiction of the transfer of goods or services to the customer. For performance obligations
recognized using a time-elapsed output method, the Company’s efforts are expended evenly throughout the period.
Performance
obligations related to subscriptions to premium content on the digital media channels provides access for a given period of time, which
is generally one year. The Company recognizes revenue from each membership subscription over time based on a daily calculation of revenue
during the reporting period.
Transaction
Price and Amounts Allocated to Performance Obligations
Determining
the Transaction Price – Certain advertising contracts contain variable components of the transaction price, such as volume
discounts and rebates. The Company has sufficient historical data and has established processes to reliably estimate these variable components
of the transaction price.
Subscription
revenue generated from the flagship website TheStreet.com is subject to estimation and variability due to the fact that, in the
normal course of business, subscribers may for various reasons contact the Company or their credit card companies to request a refund
or other adjustment for a previously purchased subscription. With respect to many of the Company’s annual newsletter subscription
products, the Company offers the ability to receive a refund during the first 30 days but none thereafter. Accordingly, the Company maintains
a provision for estimated future revenue reductions resulting from expected refunds and chargebacks related to subscriptions for which
revenue was recognized in a prior period. The calculation of this provision is based upon historical trends and is reevaluated each quarter.
The
Company typically does not offer any type of variable consideration in standard magazine subscription contracts. For these contracts,
the transaction price is fixed upon establishment of the contract that contains the final terms of the sale including description, quantity
and price of each subscription purchased. Therefore, the Company does not estimate variable consideration or perform a constraint analysis
for these contracts.
A
right of return exists for newsstand contracts. The Company has sufficient historical data to estimate the final amount of returns and
reduces the transaction price at contract inception for the expected return reserve.
There
is no variable consideration related to functional licenses.
F- 17
Estimating
Standalone-Selling Prices – For contracts that contain multiple performance obligations, the Company allocates the transaction
price to each performance obligation on a relative standalone-selling price basis. The standalone-selling price is the price at which
the Company would sell a promised good or service separately to the customer. In situations in which an obligation is bundled with other
obligations and the total amount of consideration does not reflect the sum of individual observable prices, the Company allocates the
discount to (1) a single obligation if the discount is attributable to that obligation or (2) prorates across all obligations if the
discount relates to the bundle. When standalone-selling price is not directly observable, the Company estimates and considers all the
information that is reasonably available to the Company, including market conditions, entity specific factors, customer information,
etc. The Company maximizes the use of observable inputs and applies estimation methods consistently in similar circumstances.
Measuring
Obligations for Returns and Refunds – The Company accepts product returns in some cases. The Company establishes provisions
for estimated returns concurrently with the recognition of revenue. The provisions are established based upon consideration of a variety
of factors, including, among other things, recent and historical return rates for both specific products and distributors and the impact
of any new product releases and projected economic conditions.
As
of December 31, 2022 and 2021, a subscription refund liability of $ 845 and $ 3,087 , respectively, was recorded for the provision for the
estimated returns and refunds on the consolidated balance sheets.
Contract
Modifications
The
Company occasionally enters into amendments to previously executed contracts that constitute contract modifications. The Company assesses
each of these contract modifications to determine:
●
if
the additional services and goods are distinct from the services and goods in the original arrangement; and
●
if
the amount of consideration expected for the added services or goods reflects the stand-alone selling price of those services and
goods.
A
contract modification meeting both criteria is accounted for as a separate contract. A contract modification not meeting both criteria
is considered a change to the original contract and is accounted for on either a prospective basis as a termination of the existing contract
and the creation of a new contract, or a cumulative catch-up basis (further details are provided under the headings Contract Balances
and Subscription Acquisition Costs ).
F- 18
Disaggregation
of Revenue
The
following table provides information about disaggregated revenue by category, geographical market and timing of revenue recognition:
Schedule of Disaggregation of Revenue
2022
2021
Years
Ended December 31,
2022
2021
Revenue
by category:
Digital
revenue
Digital
advertising
$ 109,317
$ 62,865
Digital
subscriptions
21,156
29,629
Licensing
and syndication revenue
18,173
8,471
Other
digital revenue
1,166
43
Total
digital revenue
149,812
101,008
Print
revenue
Print
advertising
10,214
9,051
Print
subscriptions
60,909
79,081
Total
print revenue
71,123
88,132
Total
revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
Revenue
by geographical market:
United
States
$ 212,270
$ 182,706
Other
8,665
6,434
Total
revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
Revenue
by timing of recognition:
At
point in time
$ 138,870
$ 159,512
Over
time
82,065
29,628
Total
revenue
$ 220,935
$ 189,140
Cost
of Revenue
Cost
of revenue represents the cost of providing the Company’s digital media channels and advertising and membership services. The cost
of revenue that the Company has incurred in the periods presented primarily include: Publisher Partner guarantees and revenue share payments;
amortization of developed technology and platform development; royalty fees; hosting and bandwidth and software license fees; printing
and distribution costs; payroll and related expenses for customer support, technology maintenance;
fees paid for data analytics and to other outside service providers; and stock-based compensation of related personnel (as described in Note 23).
Contract
Balances
The
timing of the Company’s performance under its various contracts often differs from the timing of the customer’s payment,
which results in the recognition of a contract asset or a contract liability. A contract asset is recognized when a good or service is
transferred to a customer and the Company does not have the contractual right to bill for the related performance obligations. An asset
is recognized when certain costs incurred to obtain a contract meet the capitalization criteria ( further details are
provided under the heading Subscription Acquisition Costs ). A contract liability is recognized when
consideration is received from the customer prior to the transfer of goods or services.
F- 19
The
following table provides information about contract balances:
Schedule of Contract with Customer, Asset and Liability
2022
2021
As
of December 31,
2022
2021
Unearned
revenue (short-term contract liabilities):
Digital
revenue
$ 18,571
$ 14,693
Print
revenue
40,132
39,337
Total short-term contract
liabilities
$ 58,703
$ 54,030
Unearned
revenue (long-term contract liabilities):
Digital
revenue
$ 1,118
$ 1,446
Print
revenue
18,583
13,831
Total long-term contract
liabilities
$ 19,701
$ 15,277
Unearned
Revenue – Unearned revenue, also referred to as contract liabilities, include payments received in advance of performance under
the contracts and are recognized as revenue over time. The Company records contract liabilities as unearned revenue on the consolidated
balance sheets. Digital subscription and print subscription revenue of $ 50,813 was recognized during the year ended December 31, 2022
from unearned revenue at the beginning of the year.
During
January of 2020, February of 2020 and December of 2021, the Company modified certain digital and print subscription contracts that prospectively
changed the frequency of the related issues (or magazines) required to be delivered on a yearly basis (the “Contract Modifications”).
The Company determined that the remaining digital content and magazines to be delivered are distinct from the digital content or magazines
already provided under the original contract. As a result, the Company in effect established a new contract that included only the remaining
digital content or magazines. Accordingly, the Company allocated the remaining performance obligations in the contracts as consideration
from the original contract that has not yet been recognized as revenue. For the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company recognized
revenue of $ 2,986 and $ 2,821 , respectively, resulting from the Contract Modifications.
Cash,
Cash Equivalents, and Restricted Cash
The
Company maintains cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash at banks where amounts on deposit may exceed the Federal Deposit Insurance
Corporation limit during the year. Cash and cash equivalents represent cash and highly liquid investments with an original contractual
maturity at the date of purchase of three months. As of December 31, 2022 and 2021, cash and cash equivalents consist primarily of checking,
savings deposits and money market accounts. These deposits exceeded federally insured limits. The Company has not experienced any losses
in such accounts and believes it is not exposed to significant credit risk regarding its cash and cash equivalents.
The
following table reconciles total cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash:
Schedule of Cash and Restricted Cash
2022
2021
As
of December 31,
2022
2021
Cash
and cash equivalents
$ 13,871
$ 9,349
Restricted
cash
502
502
Total
cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash
$ 14,373
$ 9,851
As
of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company had restricted cash of $ 502 , which serves as collateral for certain credit card merchant accounts
with a bank.
F- 20
Accounts
Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts
The
Company receives payments from advertising customers based upon contractual payment terms; accounts receivable is recorded when the right
to consideration becomes unconditional and are generally collected within 90 days. The Company generally receives payments from digital
and print subscription customers at the time of sign up for each subscription; accounts receivable from merchant credit card processors
are recorded when the right to consideration becomes unconditional and are generally collected weekly. Accounts receivable are written
off when deemed uncollectible and collection of the receivable is no longer being actively pursued. Accounts receivable as of December
31, 2022 and 2021 of $ 33,950 and $ 21,660 , respectively, are presented net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $ 2,236 and $ 1,578 , respectively, on the consolidated balance sheets.
Subscription
Acquisition Costs
Subscription
acquisition costs include the incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer, paid to external parties, if the Company expects
to recover those costs. The Company has determined that sales commissions paid on all third-party agent sales of subscriptions are direct
and incremental costs of obtaining a contract with a customer and, therefore, meet the capitalization criteria. The Company has elected
to apply the practical expedient to amortize these costs at the portfolio level. The sales commissions paid to third-party agents are
amortized as the magazines are sent to the subscriber on an issue-by-issue basis. The Company determined that commissions paid for subscriber
renewal contracts to all third-party agents are not from a specifically anticipated future contract, therefore, the commissions paid
on renewals are amortized as the magazines are sent to the subscriber over the renewal term on an issue-by-issue basis. Direct mail costs
for renewal subscriptions are expensed as incurred since they do not meet the capitalization criteria.
Amortization
of subscription acquisition costs of $ 37,190 and $ 46,264 for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively, are included within
selling and marketing expenses on the consolidated statements of operations. No impairment losses have been recognized for subscription
acquisition costs for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.
The
Contract Modifications resulted in subscription acquisition costs to be recognized on a prospective basis in the same proportion as the
revenue that has not yet been recognized.
As
of December 31, 2022 and 2021, subscription acquisition costs were $ 40,064 (short-term of $ 25,931 and long-term of $ 14,133 ) and $ 38,397
(short-term of $ 30,162 and long-term of $ 8,235 ), respectively, on the consolidated balance sheets. Subscription acquisition cost as of December 31, 2022 presented as current
assets of $ 25,931 are expected to be amortized during the year ending December 31, 2023 and $ 14,133 presented as long-term assets are
expected to be amortized after the year ending December 31, 2024.
Concentrations
Significant
Customers – Concentration of credit risk with respect to accounts receivable is limited to customers to whom the Company makes
significant sales. While a reserve for the potential write-off of accounts receivable is maintained, the Company has not written off
any significant accounts to date. To control credit risk, the Company performs regular credit evaluations of its customers’ financial
condition.
Revenue
from significant customers as a percentage of the Company’s total revenue represent 13.9 % and 11.3 % from a customer for the years
ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, respectively.
Significant
accounts receivable balances as a percentage of the Company’s total accounts receivable represent 0.0 % and 10.7 % from a customer
for the years ended December 31, 2022, and 2021, respectively.
Significant
Vendors – Concentrations of risk with respect to third party vendors who provide products and services to the Company are limited.
If not limited, such concentrations could impact profitability if a vendor failed to fulfill their obligations or if a significant vendor
was unable to renew an existing contract and the Company was not able to replace the related product or service at the same cost.
Significant
accounts payable balances as a percentage of the Company’s total accounts payable represent 14.1 %, and 10.5 % from a vendor for
the years ended December 31, 2022, and 2021, respectively.
F- 21
Leases
The
Company has lease arrangements for certain equipment and its offices. Leases are recorded as an operating lease right-of-use assets and
operating lease liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets. Leases with an initial term of 12 months or less are not recorded on
the consolidated balance sheets. At inception, the Company determines whether an arrangement that provides control over the use of an
asset is a lease. When it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise the renewal period, the Company includes the impact of
the renewal in the lease term for purposes of determining total future lease payments. Rent expense is recognized on a straight-line
basis over the lease term.
Property
and Equipment
Property
and equipment is stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Maintenance
and repairs are charged to expense as incurred. Gains and losses from disposition of property and equipment are included on the statements
of operations when realized. Depreciation and amortization are provided using the straight-line method over the following estimated useful
lives:
Schedule of Depreciation and Amortization, Useful Lives of Assets
Office
equipment and computers
1
– 3 years
Furniture
and fixtures
1
– 5 years
Platform
Development
The
Company capitalizes platform development costs for internal use when planning and design efforts are successfully completed, and development
is ready to commence. The Company places capitalized platform development assets into service and commences amortization when the applicable
project or asset is substantially complete and ready for its intended use. Once placed into service, the Company capitalizes qualifying
costs of specified upgrades or enhancements to capitalized platform development assets when the upgrade or enhancement will result in
new or additional functionality.
The
Company capitalizes internal labor costs, including payroll-based and stock-based compensation, benefits and payroll taxes, that are
incurred for certain capitalized platform development projects related to the Company’s technology platform. The Company’s
policy with respect to capitalized internal labor stipulates that labor costs for employees working on eligible internal use capital
projects are capitalized as part of the historical cost of the project when the impact, as compared to expensing such labor costs, is
material.
Platform
development costs are amortized on a straight-line basis over three years, which is the estimated useful life of the related asset and
is recorded in cost of revenues on the consolidated statements of operations.
Business
Combinations
The
Company accounts for business combinations using the acquisition method of accounting. The acquisition method of accounting requires
that the purchase price, including the fair value of contingent consideration, of the acquisition be allocated to the assets acquired
and liabilities assumed using the estimated fair values determined by management as of the acquisition date. Goodwill is measured as
the excess of consideration transferred and the net fair values of the assets acquired, and the liabilities assumed at the date of acquisition.
While the Company uses its best estimates and assumptions as part of the purchase price allocation process to accurately value assets
acquired and liabilities assumed at the acquisition date, the Company’s estimates are inherently uncertain and subject to refinement.
As a result, during the measurement period, the Company records adjustments to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed, with the
corresponding offset to goodwill to the extent the Company identifies adjustments to the preliminary purchase price allocation. Upon
the conclusion of the measurement period, which may be up to one year from the acquisition date, or final determination of the values
of assets acquired or liabilities assumed, whichever comes first, any subsequent adjustments are recorded to the consolidated statements
of operations. Additionally, the Company identifies acquisition-related contingent payments and determines their respective fair values
as of the acquisition date, which are recorded as accrued liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets. Subsequent changes in fair
value of contingent payments are recorded on the consolidated statements of operations. The Company expenses transaction costs related
to the acquisition as incurred.
F- 22
Intangible
Assets
Intangible assets
with finite lives, consisting of developed technology and trade names, are amortized using the straight-line method over the estimated
economic lives of the assets. A finite lived intangible asset is tested for recoverability whenever events or changes in circumstances
indicate that its carrying amount may not be recoverable. Determination of recoverability is based on an estimate of undiscounted future
cash flows resulting from the use of the asset and its eventual disposition. Intangible assets with an indefinite useful life are not
amortized.
Long-Lived
Assets
The
Company periodically evaluates the carrying value of long-lived assets to be held and used when events or circumstances warrant such
a review. The carrying value of a long-lived asset to be held and used is considered impaired when the anticipated separately identifiable
undiscounted cash flows from such an asset are less than the carrying value of the asset. In that event, a loss is recognized based on
the amount by which the carrying value exceeds the fair value of the long-lived asset. Fair value is determined primarily by reference
to the anticipated cash flows discounted at a rate commensurate with the risk involved.
Goodwill
Goodwill
represents the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of the net tangible and intangible assets of businesses acquired in a
business combination. Goodwill is not amortized but rather is tested for impairment at least annually on December 31, or more frequently
if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of goodwill may not be recoverable. The Company operates as one
reporting unit, therefore, the impairment test is performed at the consolidated entity level. Recoverability of goodwill is determined
by comparing the fair value of Company’s reporting unit to the carrying value of the underlying net assets in the reporting unit.
If the fair value of the reporting unit is determined to be less than the carrying value of its net assets, goodwill is deemed impaired,
and an impairment loss is recognized to the extent that the carrying value of goodwill exceeds the difference between the fair value
of the reporting unit and the fair value of its other assets and liabilities.
Debt Costs
Debt costs
consist of cash and noncash consideration paid to lenders and third
parties with respect to debt and other financing transactions, including legal fees and placement fees. Such costs are deferred and amortized
over the term of the related debt. Upon the settlement of debt the pro rata portion of any related unamortized debt costs are charged
to operations.
Additional
consideration in the form of warrants and other derivative financial
instruments issued to lenders are accounted for at fair value utilizing information determined by consultants with the Company’s
independent valuation firm. The fair value of warrants and derivatives are recorded as a reduction to the carrying amount of the related
debt and amortized to interest expense over the term of such debt, with the initial offsetting entries recorded as a liability on the
balance sheet. Upon the settlement of the debt the pro rata portion of any related unamortized debt cost is charged to operations.
Liquidated
Damages
Liquidated
damages are incurred when: (i) a registration rights agreement provides for damages if the Company does not register the shares of the
Company’s common stock within the requisite time frame (the “Registration Rights Damages”), which, in general, provides
for a cash payment equal to 1.0% per month of the amount invested, on a daily pro rata basis for any portion of a month, as partial liquidated
damages per month, upon the occurrence of certain events, up to a maximum amount of 6.0% of the aggregate amount invested, subject to
interest at the rate of 1.0% per month until paid in full; and (ii) a securities purchase agreement provides for damages if the Company
fails for any reason to satisfy a public information requirement within the requisite time frame with the Securities and Exchange Commission
(“SEC”) (the “Public Information Failure Damages”), which, in general, provides for a cash payment equal to 1.0%
of the aggregate amount invested for each 30-day period, or pro rata portion thereof, as partial liquidated damages per month, up to
a maximum of 6 months, subject to interest at the rate of 1.0% per month until paid in full . Collectively, the Registration Rights Damages
and the Public Information Failure Damages are referred to as the “Liquidated Damages” on the consolidated balance sheets.
F- 23
Selling
and Marketing
Selling
and marketing expenses consist of compensation, employee benefits and stock-based compensation of selling and marketing, account
management support teams, as well as commissions, travel, trade show sponsorships and events, conferences and advertising costs. The
Company’s advertising expenses relate to direct-mail costs for magazine subscription acquisition efforts, and print and
digital advertising that are expensed when an advertisement takes place. During the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021,
the Company incurred advertising expenses of $ 5,987
and $ 6,962 ,
respectively, which are included within selling and marketing on the consolidated statements of operations.
General
and Administrative
General
and administrative expenses consist primarily of payroll for executive personnel, technology personnel incurred in developing conceptual
formulation and determination of existence of needed technology, and administrative personnel along with any related payroll costs; professional
services, including accounting, legal and insurance; facilities costs; conferences; other general corporate expenses; and stock-based
compensation of related personnel.
Derivative
Financial Instruments
The
Company accounted for freestanding contracts that were settled in
the Company’s equity securities, including common stock warrants, to be designated as an equity instrument, generally as a liability.
A contract so designated was carried at fair value on the consolidated balance sheets, with any changes in fair value recorded as a gain
or loss on the consolidated statements of operations.
The
Company recorded all derivatives on the consolidated balance sheets
at fair value, adjusted at the end of each reporting period to reflect any material changes in fair value, with any such changes classified
as changes in derivatives valuation in the consolidated statements of operations. The calculation of the fair value of derivatives utilized
highly subjective and theoretical assumptions that could have materially affected fair values from period to period. The recognition of
these derivative amounts did not have any impact on cash flows.
At
the date of settlement of a freestanding equity contract or common
stock warrants, the pro rata fair value of the related warrant liability and any embedded derivative liability was transferred to additional
paid-in capital.
Fair
Value of Financial Instruments
The
authoritative guidance with respect to fair value established a fair value hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to valuation techniques
used to measure fair value into three levels and requires that assets and liabilities carried at fair value be classified and disclosed
in one of three categories, as presented below. Disclosure as to transfers in and out of Levels 1 and 2, and activity in Level 3 fair
value measurements, is also required.
Level
1 . Observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets for an identical asset or liability that the Company has the ability
to access as of the measurement date. Financial assets and liabilities utilizing Level 1 inputs include active-exchange traded securities
and exchange-based derivatives.
F- 24
Level
2 . Inputs, other than quoted prices included within Level 1, which are directly observable for the asset or liability or indirectly
observable through corroboration with observable market data. Financial assets and liabilities utilizing Level 2 inputs include fixed
income securities, non-exchange-based derivatives, mutual funds, and fair-value hedges.
Level
3 . Unobservable inputs in which there is little or no market data for the asset or liability which requires the reporting entity
to develop its own assumptions. Financial assets and liabilities utilizing Level 3 inputs include infrequently traded non-exchange-based
derivatives and commingled investment funds and are measured using present value pricing models.
The
Company determines the level in the fair value hierarchy within which each fair value measurement falls in its entirety, based on the
lowest level input that is significant to the fair value measurement in its entirety. In determining the appropriate levels, the Company
performs an analysis of the assets and liabilities at each reporting period end.
The
carrying amount of the Company’s financial instruments comprising of cash, restricted cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable
and accrued expenses and other approximate fair value because of the short-term maturity of these instruments.
Preferred
Stock
Preferred
stock (the “Preferred Stock”) (as described in Note 21) is reported as a mezzanine obligation between liabilities and stockholders’
deficiency. If it becomes probable that the Preferred Stock will become redeemable, the Company will re-measure the Preferred Stock by
adjusting the carrying value to the redemption value of the Preferred Stock assuming each balance sheet date is a redemption date.
Stock-Based
Compensation
The
Company provides stock-based compensation in the form of (a) stock awards to employees and directors, comprised of restricted stock awards
and restricted stock units, (b) stock option grants to employees, directors and consultants, (c) common stock warrants to Publisher Partners
(no warrants were issued during the years ended December 31, 2022 or 2021) (further details are provided under the headings Publisher
Partner Warrants and New Publisher Partner Warrants in Note 23), and (d) common stock warrants to ABG (further details are provided
under the heading ABG Warrants in Note 23).
The
Company accounts for stock awards and stock option grants to employees, directors and consultants, and non-employee awards to certain
directors and consultants by measuring the cost of services received in exchange for the stock-based payments as compensation expense
in the Company’s consolidated financial statements. Stock awards and stock option grants to employees and non-employees which are
time-vested, are measured at fair value on the grant date, and charged to operations ratably over the vesting period. Stock awards and
stock option grants to employees and non-employees which are performance-vested, are measured at fair value on the grant date and charged
to operations when the performance condition is satisfied or over the service.
The
fair value measurement of stock awards and grants used for stock-based compensation is as follows: (1) restricted stock awards and restricted
stock units which are time-vested, are determined using the quoted market price of the Company’s common stock at the grant date;
(2) stock option grants which are time-vested and performance-vested, are determined utilizing the Black-Scholes option-pricing model
at the grant date; (3) restricted stock units and stock option grants which provide for market-based vesting with a time-vesting overlay,
are determined through consultants with the Company’s independent valuation firm using the Monte Carlo model at the grant date;
(4) Publisher Partner Warrants were determined utilizing the Black-Scholes option-pricing model; and (5) ABG warrants are determined
utilizing the Monte Carlo model (further details are provided in Note 23).
Fair value determined under the Black-Scholes
option-pricing model and Monte Carlo model is affected by several variables, the most significant of which are the life of the stock
award, the exercise price of the stock option or warrants, as compared to the fair market value of the common stock on the grant
date, and the estimated volatility of the common stock over the term of the stock award. Estimated volatility was determined under
the (1) “Probability Weighted Scenarios” where one scenario assumes that the Company’s common stock will be
up-listed on a national stock exchange (the “Exchange”) on a certain listing date (the “Up-list”) where the estimated
volatility was based on evaluating the average historical volatility of a group of peer companies that are publicly traded and the
second scenario assumes that the Company’s common stock is not up-listed on the Exchange prior to the final vesting date of
the grants (the “No Up-list”) where the historical volatility of the Company’s common stock was evaluated based
upon market comparisons; and the (2) “Up-list Scenario” where the Company estimated volatility based on evaluating the
average historical volatility of a group of peer companies that are publicly traded after the Company up-listed to the NYSE
American. The risk-free interest rate is based on the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at the time of grant. The fair market
value of common stock is determined by reference to the quoted market price of the Company’s common stock.
F- 25
The
Company has elected to recognize forfeitures as they occur and to recognize stock-based compensation cost on a straight-line basis
over the total requisite service period for awards with graded vesting. The
Company classifies stock-based compensation cost on its consolidated statements of operations in the same manner in which the award
recipient’s cash compensation cost is classified.
Income
Taxes
The
Company accounts for income taxes under the asset and liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future
tax consequences attributable to operating loss carryforwards and temporary differences between financial statement bases of existing
assets and liabilities and their respective income tax bases. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted income tax
rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled.
The effect of a change in the income tax rates on deferred tax asset and liability balances is recognized in income in the period that
includes the enactment date of such rate change. A valuation allowance is recorded for loss carryforwards and other deferred tax assets
when it is determined that it is more likely than not that such loss carryforwards and deferred tax assets will not be realized.
The
Company follows accounting guidance that sets forth a threshold for financial statement recognition, measurement, and disclosure of a
tax position taken or expected to be taken on a tax return. Such guidance requires the Company to determine whether a tax position of
the Company is more likely than not to be sustained upon examination by the applicable taxing authority, including resolution of any
related appeals or litigation processes, based on technical merits of the position.
Loss
per Common Share
Basic
loss per share is computed using the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period and excludes any dilutive
effects of common stock equivalent shares, such as stock options, restricted stock, and warrants. All restricted stock awards are considered
outstanding but are included in the computation of basic loss per common share only when the restrictions expire, the shares are no longer
forfeitable, and are thus vested. Restricted stock units are included in the computation of basic loss per common share only when the
restrictions expire, the shares are no longer forfeitable, and are thus vested. Contingently issuable shares are included in basic loss
per common share only when there are no circumstances under which those shares would not be issued. Diluted loss per common share is
computed using the weighted average number of common shares outstanding and common stock equivalent shares outstanding during the period
using the treasury stock method.
The
Company excluded the outstanding securities summarized below (capitalized terms are described herein), which entitle the holders thereof
to acquire shares of the Company’s common stock, from its calculation of net loss per common share, as their effect would have
been anti-dilutive. Common stock equivalent shares are excluded from the diluted calculations when a net loss is incurred as they would
be anti-dilutive.
F- 26
Schedule of Net Income (Loss) Per Common Share
As
of December 31,
2022
2021
Series
G Preferred Stock
8,582
8,582
Series
H Preferred Stock
1,981,128
2,075,200
Financing
Warrants
107,956
116,118
ABG
Warrants
999,540
999,540
AllHipHop
Warrants
5,681
5,681
Publisher
Partner Warrants
4,154
35,607
Restricted
stock awards
97,403
194,806
Restricted
stock units
994,766
1,636,111
Common
stock options
6,199,521
5,525,395
Total
10,398,731
10,597,040
Recent
Accounting Pronouncements
Recently
Adopted Accounting Standards
In
August 2020, the FASB issued ASU 2020-06, Debt – Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and
Hedging – Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40) , which updates various codification topics to simplify the
accounting guidance for certain financial instruments with characteristics of liabilities and equity, with a specific focus on convertible
instruments and the derivative scope exception for contracts in an entity’s own equity and amends the diluted earnings per share
computation for these instruments. On January 1, 2022, the Company adopted ASU 2020-06 with no material impact to its consolidated financial
position, results of operations or cash flows.
In
May 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-04, Earnings Per Share (Topic 260), Debt-Modifications and Extinguishments (Subtopic470-50), Compensation
(Topic 718), and Derivatives and Hedging-Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40): Issuer’s Accounting for Certain
Modifications or Exchanges of Freestanding Equity-Classified Written Call Options, a consensus of the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF),
to provide explicit guidance on accounting by issuers for modifications or exchanges of freestanding equity-classified written call
options that remain equity classified after the modification or exchange. On January 1, 2022, the Company adopted ASU 2021-04 with no
material impact to its consolidated financial position, results of operations, cash flows or disclosures.
In
October 2021, the FASB issued ASU 2021-08, Business Combinations (Topic 805), Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities
from Contracts with Customers , which requires an acquirer to account for revenue contracts acquired in a business combination in
accordance with Topic 606 as if it had originated the contracts. The acquirer may assess how the acquiree applied Topic 606 to determine
what to record for the acquired contracts. This update should lead to recognition and measurement consistent with what’s reported
in the acquiree’s financial statements, provided that the acquiree prepared financial statements in accordance with GAAP. The new
standard marks a change from current GAAP, under which assets and liabilities acquired in a business combination, including contract
assets and contract liabilities arising from revenue contracts, are generally recognized at fair value at the acquisition date. On January
1, 2022, the Company adopted ASU 2021-08 with no material impact to its consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash
flows. This new accounting standard will be applied prospectively to business combinations.
Recently
Issued Accounting Standards
In
March 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-02, Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings and Vintage
Disclosures, addressing areas identified by the FASB as part of its post-implementation review of its previously issued credit losses
standard (ASU 2016-13) that introduced the current expected credit losses (CECL) model. ASU 2022-02 eliminates the accounting guidance
for troubled debt restructurings by creditors that have adopted the CECL model and enhances disclosure requirements for certain loan
refinancings and restructurings made with borrowers experiencing financial difficulty. This update requires an entity to disclose current-period
gross write-offs for financing receivables and net investment in leases by year of origination in the vintage disclosures. As the Company
has already adopted ASU 2016-13, the new guidance is effective for the fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2022 and for interim
periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. The adoption of ASU 2022-02 is not expected to have a material impact
on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.
F- 27
In
June 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-03, Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to
Contractual Sale Restrictions , which clarifies that a contractual restriction on the sale of an equity security is not considered
part of the unit of account of the equity security and, therefore, is not considered in measuring fair value. This update also clarifies
that an entity cannot, as a separate unit of account, recognize and measure a contractual sale restriction and requires certain disclosures
for equity securities subject to contractual sale restrictions. ASU 2022-03 is effective for the Company in the fiscal year beginning
after December 15, 2023, and interim periods within the fiscal year. Early adoption is permitted for both interim and annual financial
statements that have not yet been issued or made available for issuance. The Company is currently evaluating the impact that the adoption
of this new accounting standard will have on its consolidated financial statements.
Management
does not believe that any other recently issued, but not yet effective, authoritative guidance, if currently adopted, would have a material
impact on the Company’s financial statement presentation or disclosures.
3. Discontinued Operations
The
Company, upon Board approval on September 15, 2022, discontinued (i.e., the “discontinued operations”) the Parade print business
(“Parade Print”) that was acquired on April 1, 2022 (as part of the Parade acquisition, as further described below in Note
4), on November 13, 2022 (the last date of any obligation to deliver issues of Parade Print).
The
table below sets forth the loss from discontinued operations for the period from April 1, 2022 to December 31, 2022:
Schedule
of Discontinued Operations
Revenue
$ 26,817
Cost of revenue
23,015
Gross profit
3,802
Operating expense
Selling and marketing
5,396
General and administrative
1,722
Loss on impairment of assets
209
Total operating expenses
7,327
Loss from discontinued operations
( 3,525 )
Income tax benefit
55
Net loss from discontinued operations
$ ( 3,470 )
The
discontinued operations of Parade Print also included Relish and Spry Living print products that were acquired as part of the Parade acquisition.
An existing purchase commitment for paper used in the production of Parade Print has been recognized as part of the discontinued operations.
During the year ended December 31, 2022, as part of the discontinued operations, the Company recognized $ 750 of severance and related
commissions for certain employees, where it identified a number of Parade employees who were primarily focused on Parade Print that departed
in a one-time restructuring.
During
the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company recorded depreciation and amortization of
$ 0 ; and operating and investing noncash items of $ 209 and $ 0 , respectively, as part of the discontinued operations.
F- 28
4. Acquisitions
The
Company uses the acquisition method of accounting, which is based on ASC, Business Combinations (Topic 805) , and uses the fair
value concepts which requires, among other things, that most assets acquired, and liabilities assumed be recognized at their fair values
as of the acquisition date.
2022
Acquisitions
Athlon
Holdings, Inc . - On April 1, 2022, the Company acquired 100 %
of the issued and outstanding capital stock of Athlon Holdings, Inc. (or Parade), a Tennessee corporation, for a purchase price of
$ 15,854 ,
as adjusted for the working capital adjustment as of the closing date of the transaction. The working capital adjustment is pending
acceptance by the sellers (further details are provided in Note 28). As a part of the closing consideration, the Company also
acquired cash of $ 1,840 ,
that was further adjusted post-closing for the working capital adjustment. The purchase price of $ 15,854 ,
as discounted, is comprised of (i) a cash portion of $ 12,827 ,
with $ 11,840
paid at closing and $ 987
estimated to be paid post-closing (as further described below) and (ii) the issuance of 314,103
shares of the Company’s common stock with a fair market value of $ 3,141 .
The number of shares of the Company’s common stock issued was determined based on a $ 3,000
value using the common stock trading price for the 10 trading days preceding the April 1, 2022 closing date. Certain of
Parade’s key employees entered into either advisory agreements or employment agreements with the Company. Parade operates in
the United States.
The
amount estimated to be paid post-closing of $987 will be or was paid as follows: (i) $742 is expected to be paid upon receipts of certain
tax refunds due to the sellers (consisting of $3,000 for the deferred cash payments, as discounted, less a $2,258 cash adjustment); and
(ii) $245 was paid within two business days from the date the Company received proceeds from the sale of the equity interest in Just
Like Falling Off a Bike, LLC that was held by Parade as of the closing date (paid on April 7, 2022) .
The
Company received a final valuation report from a third-party valuation firm after the preliminary purchase price was adjusted during
the quarterly period ended September 30, 2022. After considering the results of the final valuation report, the Company estimated that
the purchase consideration decreased by $321. The decrease in the purchase price was related to an increase in identifiable assets of
$54, an increase in deferred tax liabilities of $27, with a decrease in the working capital adjustment of $321, resulting in a decrease
in goodwill of $348 .
The
composition of the purchase price is as follows:
Schedule of Preliminary Purchase Price
Cash
$ 12,085
Common stock
3,141
Deferred cash payments, as discounted
628
Total purchase consideration
$ 15,854
The
Company incurred $ 200 in transaction costs related to the acquisition, which primarily consisted of legal and accounting expenses. The
acquisition-related expenses were recorded within general and administrative expense on the consolidated statements of operations.
F- 29
The
purchase price allocation resulted in the following amounts being allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing
date of the acquisition based upon their respective fair values as summarized below:
Summary of Price Allocation for Acquisition
Cash
$ 2,604
Accounts receivable
10,855
Other current assets
1,337
Equity investment
2,450
Fixed assets
108
Digital content
355
Advertiser relationships
6,202
Trade names
2,261
Goodwill
2,587
Accounts payable
( 7,416 )
Accrued expenses and other
( 2,440 )
Unearned revenue
( 1,203 )
Other long-term liabilities
( 543 )
Deferred tax liabilities
( 1,303 )
Net assets acquired
$ 15,854
The
Company utilized an independent appraisal firm to assist in the determination of the fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities
assumed, which required certain significant management assumptions and estimates. The fair value of the digital content was determined
using a cost approach. The fair values of the advertiser relationships were determined by projecting the acquired entity’s cash
flows, deducting notional contributory asset charges on supporting assets (working capital, tangible assets, trade names, and the assembled
workforce) to compute the excess cash flows associated with the advertiser relationships. The fair values of the trade names were determined
by projecting revenue associated with each trade name and applying a royalty rate to compute the amount of the royalty payments the company
is relieved from paying due to its ownership of the trade names. The estimated weighted average useful life is two years ( 2.00 years)
for digital content, eight point seventy-five years ( 8.75 years) for advertiser relationships, and fourteen point five years ( 14.50 years)
for trade names.
The
excess purchase price over the fair value amounts assigned to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed represents goodwill from
the acquisition. Goodwill is recorded as a non-current asset that is not amortized but is subject to an annual review for impairment.
No portion of the goodwill related to the acquisition will be deductible for tax purposes.
F- 30
Supplemental
Pro forma Information
The
following table summarizes the results of continuing operations of the Parade acquisition from the acquisition date included in the consolidated
results of continuing operations and the unaudited pro forma results of continuing operations of the combined entity had the date of
the acquisition been January 1, 2021:
Schedule
of Supplemental Proforma Information
2022
2021
Years Ended December 31,
2022
2021
Parade continuing operations from acquisition date of April 1, 2022 (unaudited):
Revenue
$ 13,253
$ -
Net loss
1,086
-
Combined entity continuing operations supplemental pro forma information had the acquisition date been January 1, 2021 (unaudited):
Revenue:
Parade
$ 17,522
$ 19,522
Arena
207,682
189,140
Total continuing operations supplemental pro forma revenue
$ 225,204
$ 208,662
Net income (loss):
Parade
$ 1,222
$ 2,872
Arena
( 68,474 )
( 89,940 )
Adjustments
( 1,967 )
( 49 )
Total continuing operations supplemental pro forma net loss
$ ( 69,219 )
$ ( 87,117 )
The
information presented above is for illustrative purposes only and is not necessarily indicative of results that would have been achieved
if the acquisition had occurred as of the beginning of the Company’s reporting period.
The
adjustments for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 of ($ 1,967 ) and ($ 49 ), respectively, represents adjustments: (1) to record
depreciation and amortization expense related to the fixed and intangible assets acquired from the acquisition of ($ 864 ) and ($ 1,152 );
(2) to record (reverse) the nonrecurring transaction cost related to the acquisition of $ 200 and ($ 200 ); and (3) to record the deferred
tax (benefit) provision related to the acquisition of ($ 1,303 ) and $ 1,303 , respectively.
Buffalo
Groupe, LLC – On September 27, 2022, the Company entered into an asset purchase agreement with Buffalo Groupe, LLC, doing business
as Morning Read, where it purchased certain intellectual properties, certain assumed contracts, and other certain rights related to the
intellectual properties (collectively, the “Morning Read Purchased Assets”) and assumed certain liabilities related to the
Morning Read Purchased Assets. The purchase consideration consisted of a cash payment of $850 at closing.
The
Company accounted for the acquisition as an asset acquisition in accordance with ASC 805-50, as substantially all of the fair value of
the gross assets acquired by the Company is concentrated in a group of similar identifiable assets.
The
purchase consideration totaled $ 850 , which was assigned to the brand name acquired on the closing date of the acquisition. The useful
life for the brand name is ten years ( 10.0 years).
A360
Media, LLC – On December 15, 2022 (the closing date), pursuant to an asset purchase agreement entered into December 7,
2022, the Company acquired certain assets and liabilities from Weider Publications, a subsidiary of A360 Media, LLC (or Men’s
Journal) related to the digital media operations of Men’s Journal and other men’s active lifestyle brands. The Company
paid $ 25,000
in cash for the acquisition consisting of: (i) $ 23,000
paid at closing; (ii) $ 1,000
deposited into an escrow account to be released in accordance with the terms of the agreement, subject to adjustments for any
indemnification payments; and (iii) $ 1,000
paid in November 2022. The Company also assumed certain liabilities consisting of: (i) $ 1,430 an
assumed lease obligation, as discounted (representing $ 3,189
in deferred payments over twenty-seven months (27) for the assumption of a lease obligation); and (ii) $ 4,078
in deferred revenue obligations to deliver certain publications to the subscribers of Men’s Journal ($ 3,941
in unearned revenue after consideration of an estimated subscription refund liability of $ 137 ).
In accordance with the practical expedients under ASU 2021-08, the Company has elected to apply (i) the practical expedient to the
modification of the subscriber contracts at the acquisition date to determine the performance obligations and transaction price; and
(ii) to use the estimated selling price of a subscriber contract as the standalone selling price of the replacement magazine based
on the number of magazines expected to be delivered to the Men’s Journal subscribers to satisfy the performance obligations.
The agreement contains customary representations, warranties and covenants. Men’s Journal operates in the United
States.
F- 31
The
Company accounted for the asset acquisition as a business combination in accordance with ASC 805 since the acquisition met the definition
of a business under the applicable guidance.
The
Company incurred $ 283 in transaction costs related to the acquisition, which primarily consisted of legal and accounting expenses. The
acquisition-related expenses were recorded within general and administrative expense on the consolidated statements of operations.
The
preliminary purchase price allocation resulted in the following amounts being allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed
at the closing date of the acquisition based upon their respective fair values as summarized below:
Schedule
of Preliminary Price Allocation
Lease deposit receivable
$ 420
Advertiser relationships
6,860
Brand names
6,090
Goodwill
17,138
Unearned revenue
( 3,941 )
Subscription refund liability
( 137 )
Assumed lease obligation
( 1,430 )
Net assets acquired
$ 25,000
The
Company utilized an independent appraisal firm to assist in the determination of the fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities
assumed, which required certain significant management assumptions and estimates. The fair value of the advertiser relationships were
determined by applying the multi-period earnings method of the income approach and the fair values of the brand names were determined
by applying the relief-from-royalty method. The estimated weighted average useful life is twelve and one-half years ( 12.5 years) for
the advertiser relationships and eleven years ( 11.0 years) for the brand names.
The
excess-of purchase price over the fair value amounts assigned to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed represents goodwill from
the acquisition. Goodwill is recorded as a non-current asset that is not amortized but is subject to an annual review for impairment.
A portion of the goodwill will be deductible for tax purposes.
Supplemental
Pro forma Information
The
pro forma disclosures have been deemed impracticable for this acquisition since after making reasonable efforts the Company is unable
to accept assumptions made by Men’s Journal. The Company has determined, based on the information provided by Men’s Journal
and made available to the Company, that the earnings from the prior periods could not be verified since the acquisition only included
certain activities of Men’s Journal and financial statements were not available. In this regard, the Company: (1) made reasonable
effort to obtain certain financial results of the certain activities but Men’s Journal was unable to apply the requirement; and
(2) the presentation of the pro forma results and the assumptions made by management were unable be independently substantiated.
2021
Acquisitions
College
Spun Media Incorporated – On June 4, 2021, the Company acquired all of the issued and outstanding shares of capital stock
of College Spun Media Incorporated, a New Jersey corporation (or The Spun), for an aggregate of $ 11,830
in cash and the issuance of an aggregate of 194,806
restricted shares of the Company’s common stock, with one-half of the shares vesting on the first anniversary of the closing
(vested on June 4, 2022) and the remaining one-half of the shares vesting on the second anniversary of the closing. The cash payment
consists of: (i) $ 10,830
paid at closing (of the cash paid at closing, $ 830
represents adjusted cash pursuant to working capital adjustments), and (ii) $ 500
to be paid on the first anniversary of the closing ($ 500
paid on June 4, 2022 consisted of principal of $ 453
and imputed interest of $ 47 )
and $ 500
to be paid on the second anniversary date of the closing. The vesting of one-half of the shares of the Company’s common stock
remain subject to the continued employment of certain selling employees. The Spun operates in the United States.
F- 32
The
composition of the purchase price is as follows:
Schedule of Preliminary Purchase Price
Cash
$ 10,830
Deferred cash payments, as discounted
905
Total purchase consideration
$ 11,735
The
Company incurred $ 128 in transaction costs related to the acquisition, which primarily consisted of legal and accounting. The acquisition-related
expenses were recorded within general and administrative expense on the consolidated statements of operations.
The
Company received a final valuation report from a third-party valuation firm after the preliminary purchase price was recorded for the
quarterly period ended June 30, 2021. After considering the results of that valuation report, the Company estimated the fair value for
the brand name of $ 5,175 , along with a decrease for working capital accounts of $ 1,932 (consisting of adjusted amounts for cash, accounts
receivable, accrued expenses and deferred tax liabilities) resulting in a corresponding decrease to goodwill of $ 3,977 .
The
purchase price allocation resulted in the following amounts being allocated to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the closing
date of the acquisition based upon their respective fair values as summarized below:
Summary of Price Allocation for Acquisition
Cash
$ 3,214
Accounts receivable
1,772
Other current assets
5
Brand name
5,175
Goodwill
3,479
Accrued expenses
( 85 )
Deferred tax liabilities
( 1,825 )
Net assets acquired
$ 11,735
The
Company utilized an independent appraisal to assist in the determination of the fair values of the assets acquired and liabilities assumed,
which required certain significant management assumptions and estimates. The fair value of the brand name was determined by projecting
the acquired entity’s cash flows, deducting notional contributory asset charges on supporting assets (working capital and the assembled
workforce) to compute the excess cash flows associated with the brand with a useful life of ten years ( 10.0 years).
The
excess-of purchase price over the fair value amounts assigned to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed represents goodwill from
the acquisition. Goodwill is recorded as a non-current asset that is not amortized but is subject to an annual review for impairment.
No portion of the goodwill will be deductible for tax purposes.
Fulltime
Fantasy Sports, LLC – On July 15, 2021, the Company entered into an asset purchase agreement with Fulltime Fantasy Sports,
LLC, where it purchased certain intellectual property, subscriber and customer records, and other certain
rights related to the intellectual property (collectively the “Fulltime Fantasy Purchased Assets”) and assumed certain liabilities
related to the Fulltime Fantasy Purchased Assets. The purchase price consisted of: (i) a cash payment of $ 335 (paid in advance), including
transaction related costs of $ 35 , (ii) the issuance of 34,092 shares the Company’s restricted common stock (subject to certain vesting
earn-out provisions and certain buy-back rights), with 11,364 shares of restricted common stock vested at closing, and (iii) a cash earn-out
payment of $ 450 ($ 225 paid in January 2022 and $ 225 paid June 2022) and 22,728 shares of restricted common stock ( 11,364 vested on December
31, 2021 and 11,364 vested on June 30, 2022).
The
Company accounted for the acquisition as an asset acquisition in accordance with ASC 805-50, as substantially all of the fair value of
the gross assets acquired by the Company is concentrated in a group of similar identifiable assets. All direct acquisition-related costs
of $ 35 are assigned to the assets in relation to the relative fair value of the acquired assets and recorded as part of the consideration
transferred.
F- 33
The
composition of the purchase price is as follows:
Schedule of Preliminary Purchase Price
Cash (including $ 35 of transaction related costs)
$ 335
Restricted stock
168
Deferred cash payments
419
Deferred restricted stock
335
Total purchase consideration
$ 1,257
The
purchase price resulted in $ 1,257 (including $ 35 of transaction related costs) being assigned to a database acquired at the closing date
of the acquisition. The useful life for the database is three years ( 3.0 years).
5 . Prepayments and Other Current Assets
Prepayments
and other current assets are summarized as follows:
Schedule of Prepayments and Other Current Assets
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Prepaid expenses
$ 2,321
$ 2,978
Prepaid supplies
927
487
Prepaid software license
-
129
Refundable income and franchise taxes
957
745
Unamortized debt costs
216
-
Other receivables
20
409
Total prepayments and other current assets
$ 4,441
$ 4,748
6. Royalty Fees
Royalty
fees represent royalties due to ABG in connection with the Sports Illustrated Licensing Agreement. The Company’s
guaranteed minimum annual royalties are $ 15,000 , subject to certain provisions, with payment to be made in advance on a quarterly basis. The royalty fee payments are amortized monthly. As of December 31, 2022 and 2021, $ 0 and $ 11,250 , respectively, were paid in advance
and reflected within current assets on the consolidated balance sheets.
7. Property and Equipment
Property
and equipment are summarized as follows:
Schedule of Property and Equipment
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Office equipment and computers
$ 1,744
$ 1,345
Furniture and fixtures
240
1
Property and equipment, Gross
1,984
1,346
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization
( 1,249 )
( 710 )
Net property and equipment
$ 735
$ 636
Depreciation
and amortization expense for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 was $ 539
and $ 443 ,
respectively. Impairment charges for property and equipment for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 of $ 0
and $ 425 ,
respectively, have been recorded on the consolidated statements of operations.
8. Leases
The
Company’s real estate lease for the use of office space was subleased during the year ended December 31, 2022. The Company determines
whether an arrangement contains a lease at inception. Lease assets and liabilities are recognized upon commencement of the lease based
on the present value of the future minimum lease payments over the lease term. The lease term includes options to extend the lease when
it is reasonably certain that the Company will exercise that option. The Company’s current lease is a long-term operating lease
with a remaining fixed payment term of 1.75 years.
F- 34
The
table below presents supplemental information related to operating leases:
Schedule
of Supplemental Information Related to Operating Leases
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Operating lease costs during the year (1)
$ 969
$ 2,500
Cash payments included in the measurement of operating lease liabilities during the year
469
2,787
Operating lease liabilities arising from obtaining lease right-of-use assets during the year
-
-
Weighted-average remaining lease term (in years) as of year-end
1.75
2.75
Weighted-average discount rate during the year
9.90 %
9.90 %
(1) Operating lease costs is presented net of sublease income that is not
material.
The
Company generally utilizes its incremental borrowing rate based on information available at the commencement of the lease in determining
the present value of future payments since the implicit rate for most of the Company’s leases is not readily determinable.
Variable
lease expense includes rental increases that are not fixed, such as those based on amounts paid to the lessor based on cost or consumption,
such as maintenance and utilities.
The
components of operating lease costs were follows:
Schedule
of Operating Lease Costs
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Operating lease costs:
Cost of revenue
$ -
$ 1,797
Selling and marketing
-
516
General and administrative
1,187
405
Total operating costs ( 1 )
1,187
2,718
Less sublease income
( 218 )
( 218 )
Total operating lease costs
$ 969
$ 2,500
(1)
Includes certain costs associated with a business membership agreement (see below) that permits access to certain office space for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 of $ 170 and $ 612 , respectively, and month-to-month lease arrangements for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 of $ 95 and $ 320 , respectively.
Maturities
of the operating lease liability as of December 31, 2022 are summarized as follows:
Summary
of Maturity of lease liabilities
Years Ending December 31,
2023
$ 486
2024
373
Minimum lease payments
859
Less imputed interest
( 74 )
Present value of operating lease liability
$ 785
Current portion of operating lease liability
$ 427
Long-term portion of operating lease liability
358
Total operating lease liability
$ 785
Sublease
Agreement – In November 2021, the Company entered into an agreement to sublease its leased office space for the duration of
its operating lease through September 2024, where it is entitled to receive sublease income of $ 637 . In connection with the sublease
agreement, the Company: (1) reduced the value of its right-of-use asset and lease liability by $ 1,002 based on a remeasurement of its
existing operating lease to exclude any renewal options in its lease liability; and (2) recognized a loss on impairment of the lease
for the year ended December 31, 2021 of $ 466 as reflected on the consolidated statements of operations. As of December 31, 2022, the Company
is entitled to receive total sublease income of $ 477 .
F- 35
Business
Membership – Effective October 1, 2021, the Company entered into a business membership agreement with York Factory LLC,
doing business as SaksWorks, that permits access to certain office space with furnishings, referred to as SaksWorks Memberships.
This membership provides a certain number of accounts that equate to the use of the space granted. Effective June 1, 2022, the
SaksWorks membership agreement was amended and assigned to Convene SW MSA Holdings, LLC (“Convene”). The term of the
agreement with Convene is for twenty-seven months from the initial effective date of October 1, 2021 with SaksWorks. The annual
membership fee with Convene is $ 500
payable in equal monthly installments. The agreement also provides for: (1) additional accounts at predetermined pricing; and (2)
renewal of agreement at the end on the term for a twelve-month period at the then-current market price and pricing structure on such
renewal date. As of December 31, 2022, the Company had $ 500
of remaining payments under the agreement with Convene.
Lease
Termination – Effective September 30, 2021, the Company terminated a certain lease arrangement for office space and as a result,
relinquished the space and derecognized a right-of-use asset of $ 15,673 , a lease liability of $ 17,935 and recorded a penalty upon termination
of $ 9,606 (as discounted since the amount of the liability and timing of the Cash Payments, as defined below, are fixed), resulting in
a net loss upon termination for the year ended December 31, 2021 of $ 7,345 (or loss upon lease termination), which has been reflected
on the consolidated statements of operations. In connection with the termination, the Company agreed to pay the landlord cash of $ 10,000
(the “Cash Payments”) and $ 1,475 in market rate advertising. The Cash Payments were paid or remain due as follows: $ 1,000
paid in December 2021; $ 1,000 paid in October 2022; $ 4,000 due on October 1, 2023; and $ 4,000 due on October 1, 2024.
9. Platform Development
Platform
development costs are summarized as follows:
Summary
of Platform Development Costs
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Platform development
$ 21,493
$ 21,997
Less accumulated amortization
( 11,163 )
( 12,698 )
Net platform development
$ 10,330
$ 9,299
A
summary of platform development activity is as follows:
Summary
of Platform Development Cost Activity
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Platform development beginning of year
$ 21,997
$ 16,029
Payroll-based costs capitalized
5,179
4,819
Less dispositions
( 7,357 )
( 460 )
Total capitalized payroll-based costs
19,819
20,388
Stock-based compensation
1,884
2,045
Impairments
( 210 )
( 436 )
Platform development end of year
$ 21,493
$ 21,997
Amortization
expense for platform development for the year ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 was $ 5,822
and $ 4,485 ,
respectively. Amortization expense for platform development is included in cost of revenues on the consolidated statements of
operations. Impairment charges for platform development for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 of $ 210
and $ 436 ,
respectively, have been recorded on the consolidated statements of operations.
F- 36
10. Intangible Assets
Intangible
assets subject to amortization consisted of the following:
Schedule
of Intangible Assets Subject to Amortization
Weighted Average
As of December 31, 2022
As of December 31, 2021
Useful Life
(in years)
Carrying Amount
Accumulated Amortization
Net Carrying Amount
Carrying Amount
Accumulated Amortization
Net Carrying Amount
Developed technology
5.0
$ 17,333
$ ( 14,883 )
$ 2,450
$ 17,579
$ ( 11,465 )
$ 6,114
Trade name
16.0
5,380
( 1,180 )
4,200
3,328
( 782 )
2,546
Brand name
9.5
12,115
( 908 )
11,207
5,175
( 298 )
4,877
Subscriber relationships
5.1
73,459
( 47,146 )
26,313
73,459
( 32,623 )
40,836
Advertiser relationships
9.8
15,302
( 1,368 )
13,934
2,240
( 570 )
1,670
Database
3.0
2,397
( 1,753 )
644
2,397
( 1,104 )
1,293
Digital content
2.0
355
( 133 )
222
-
-
-
Subtotal amortizable intangible assets
126,341
( 67,371 )
58,970
104,178
( 46,842 )
57,336
Website domain name
-
-
-
20
-
20
Total intangible assets
$ 126,341
$ ( 67,371 )
$ 58,970
$ 104,198
$ ( 46,842 )
$ 57,356
Developed
technology, trade name, brand name, subscriber relationships, advertiser relationships, and database intangible assets subject to
amortization were recorded as part of the Company’s business acquisitions. The website domain name was not being amortized and
was impaired during the year ended December 31, 2022. Amortization expense for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 was $ 20,748
and $ 20,246 ,
respectively. Impairment charges for intangible assets for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 of $ 47
and $ 331 ,
respectively, were recorded on the consolidated
statements of operations.
Estimated
total amortization expense for the next five years and thereafter related to the Company’s intangible assets subject to amortization
as of December 31, 2022 is as follows:
Schedule
of Future Estimated Amortization expense For Intangible Assets
Years Ending December 31,
2023
$ 20,959
2024
14,472
2025
3,394
2026
3,240
2027
3,240
Thereafter
13,665
Intangible assets ,net
$ 58,970
11. Other Assets
Other
assets are summarized as follows:
Summary
of Other Assets
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Security deposit
$ 420
$ 110
Prepaid insurance
504
529
Unamortized debt cost
216
-
Total o ther assets
$ 1,140
$ 639
F- 37
12. Goodwill
The
changes in carrying value of goodwill are as follows:
Schedule
of Changes in Carrying Value of Goodwil l
2022
2021
As of December 31,
2022
2021
Carrying value at beginning of year
$ 19,619
$ 16,140
Goodwill acquired in acquisition of The Spun
-
3,479
Goodwill acquired in acquisition of Parade
2,587
-
Goodwill acquired in acquisition of Men’s Journal
17,138
-
Carrying value at end of year
$ 39,344
$ 19,619
The
Company performs its annual impairment test at the reporting unit level, which is the operating segment or one level below the operating
segment. Management determined that the Company would be aggregated into a single reporting unit for purposes of performing the impairment
test for goodwill.
The
Company, as part of its annual impairment evaluation of goodwill of its one reporting unit, performs the goodwill impairment test in
accordance with applicable guidance. The guidance provides an entity with the option to first perform a qualitative assessment to
determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. If an entity
determines that this is the case, it is required to perform the goodwill impairment test to identify potential goodwill impairment
and measure the amount of goodwill impairment loss to be recognized for that reporting unit, if any. If an entity determines that
the fair value of a reporting unit is greater than its carrying amount, the goodwill impairment test is not required. The annual
impairment test was performed on December 31, 2022. No
impairment of goodwill has been identified during the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021.
13. Restricted Stock Liabilities
On
December 15, 2020, the Company entered into an amendment for certain restricted stock awards and units that were previously issued to
certain employees in connection with the HubPages merger. Pursuant to the amendment, the Company agreed to purchase the vested
restricted stock awards, at a price of $ 88.00 per share in 24 equal monthly installments on the second business day of each calendar month
beginning on January 4, 2021, subject to certain conditions.
The
following table presents the activity of the restricted stock liabilities:
Schedule
of Components of Restricted Stock liabilities
2022
2021
As of and for the Years Ended
December 31,
2022
2021
Restricted stock liabilities (before imputed interest)
$ 2,307
$ 3,801
Less imputed interest
( 155 )
( 177 )
Present value of restricted stock liabilities
2,152
3,624
Less payments during the years
( 2,152 )
( 1,472 )
Restricted stock liabilities at end of year (reflected in accrued expenses and other)
$ -
$ 2,152
During the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company recorded the repurchase of 26,214 and 22,178 shares of the Company’s restricted stock awards, respectively, on the consolidated
statements of stockholders’ deficiency. Effective April 4, 2022, there were no longer any shares of the Company’s common
stock subject to repurchase. During the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company paid $ 2,307 and
$ 1,419 in
cash for the repurchase, including interest of $ 155 and
$ 254 ,
respectively.
F- 38
14. Accrued Expenses and Othe r
Accrued
expenses and other are summarized as follows:
Schedule
of Accrued Expenses
As of December 31,
2022
2021
General accrued expenses
$ 6,339
$ 4,491
Accrued payroll and related taxes
5,221
7,124
Accrued publisher expenses
4,911
6,319
Deferred cash payments
1,123
656
Sales tax liability
645
779
Restricted stock liabilities
-
2,152
Lease termination liability
4,753
1,846
Other accrued expenses
110
644
Total accrued expenses and other
$ 23,102
$ 24,011
15. Line of Credit
SLR
Credit Facility – On December 15, 2022, the Company entered into an amendment to its financing and security agreement for its
line of credit with SLR Digital Finance LLC (formerly FPP Finance LLC) (“SLR”), that was previously amended on December 6, 2021,
pursuant to which (i) the maximum amount of advances available was increased to $ 40,000 (subject to certain limits and eighty-five ( 85 % )
of eligible accounts receivable ), (ii) the interest rate on the line of credit was amended to be the prime rate plus 4.0% per annum
of the amount advanced (subject to minimum utilization of at least 10% of the maximum amount of advances available) (as of December 31,
2022 the rate was 11.5%), and (iii) the maturity of the line of credit was extended to December 31, 2024; provided that the maturity
date will be December 31, 2023 if the Company has not refinanced, repaid or extended all of its Senior Secured Notes (as defined below)
due December 31, 2023 by August 31, 2023, and provided further, that SLR will be entitled to accelerate the obligations if the Company
has not refinanced, repaid or extended all of its Senior Secured Notes due December 31, 2023 by September 30, 2023 . In the event that
the line of credit is accelerated, the Company will be obligated to pay SLR a termination fee of $ 900 . The amendment also permitted the
Company to enter into the Bridge Notes (as defined below). The line of credit is for working capital purposes and is secured by a first
lien on all the Company’s cash and accounts receivable and a second lien on all other assets. In connection with the line of credit,
the Company incurred debt costs of $ 441 that are being amortized over the life of the line of credit with the unamortized balance reflected
in prepayment and other current assets of $ 216 and other long-term assets of $ 216 , as of December 31, 2022, respectively. As
of December 31, 2022, the effective interest rate on the line of credit was 12.7 % . As of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the balance outstanding
under the line of credit was $ 14,092 and $ 11,988 , respectively.
16. Liquidated Damages Payable
Liquidated
Damages payable are summarized as follows (capitalized terms are described herein):
Summary of Liquidated Damages
As of December 31, 2022
Registration
Rights
Damages
Public
Information
Failure
Damages
Accrued Interest
Balance
MDB common stock to be issued (1)
$ 15
$ -
$ -
$ 15
Series H Preferred Stock
618
626
570
1,814
Convertible debentures
-
704
280
984
Series J Preferred Stock
932
932
525
2,389
Series K Preferred Stock
437
478
220
1,135
Total
$ 2,002
$ 2,740
$ 1,595
$ 6,337
(1) Shares of common
stock issuable to MDB Capital Group, LLC (“MDB”).
F- 39
As
of December 31, 2022, the short-term and long-term liquidated damages payable were $ 5,843
and $ 494 ,
respectively, totaling $ 6,337 .
The long-term portion was converted into shares of the Company’s common stock (see Note 29 under the heading of Liquidated Damages ).
The Company will continue to accrue interest on the Liquidated Damages balance at 1% per month based on the balance outstanding until
paid. There is no scheduled date when the unpaid Liquidated Damages become due. The Series K Preferred Stock (as defined below) remains
subject to Registration Rights Damages and Public Information Failure Damages, which will accrue in certain circumstances, limited to
6 %
of the aggregate amount invested (see Note 16).
As of December 31, 2021
Registration Rights Damages
Public Information Failure Damages
Accrued Interest
Balance
MDB common stock to be issued (1)
$ 15
$ -
$ -
$ 15
Series H Preferred Stock
1,164
1,172
792
3,128
Convertible debentures
-
873
242
1,115
Series I Preferred Stock
1,386
1,386
613
3,385
Series J Preferred Stock
1,560
1,560
490
3,610
Series K Preferred Stock
180
722
50
952
Total
$ 4,305
$ 5,713
$ 2,187
$ 12,205
(1) Shares of common
stock issuable to MDB.
As
of December 31, 2021, the short-term and long-term liquidated damages payable were $ 5,197 and $ 7,008 , respectively, totaling $ 12,205 .
The long-term portion was converted into shares of the Company’s common stock on January 24, 2022 (see Note 22, under the heading
Common Stock for Liquidated Damages ).
Information
with respect to the Liquidated Damages recognized on the consolidated statements of operations is provided in Note 24.
17. Other Long-term Liabilities
Other
long-term liabilities consisted of the following:
Schedule
of Other long- term liabilities
2022
2021
As
of December 31,
2022
2021
Lease
termination liability
$ 3,621
$ 6,928
Other
lease liability
1,486
-
Deferred
cash payment liabilities
-
410
Other
200
218
Total
other long-term liabilities Other long -Term liabilities
$ 5,307
$ 7,556
F- 40
18. Fair Value Measurement
The
Company’s financial instruments consist of level 1, Level 2 and level 3 assets as of December 31, 2022 and 2021. As of December
31, 2022 and 2021, the Company’s cash and cash equivalents of $ 13,871 and $ 9,349 , respectively, were Level 1 assets and included
savings deposits, overnight investments, and other liquid funds with financial institutions.
Financial
instruments measured at fair value during the year consisted of the following:
Schedule
of Fair Value of Financial Instruments
As of December 31, 2022
Fair Value
Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets
(Level 1)
Significant Other Observable Inputs
(Level 2)
Significant Unobservable Inputs
(Level 3)
Senior Secured Notes
$ 61,787
$ -
$ 61,787
$ -
As of December 31, 2021
Fair Value
Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets
(Level 1)
Significant Other Observable Inputs
(Level 2)
Significant Unobservable Inputs
(Level 3)
Senior Secured Notes
$ 60,756
$ -
$ 60,756
$ -
Senior
Secured Notes – The carrying value of the Senior Secured Notes (as defined below) approximates fair value based on current
market interest rates for debt instruments of similar credit standing and, consequently, their fair values are based on Level 2 inputs.
The
quantitative information utilized in the fair value calculation of the Level 3 liabilities are as follows:
Unearned
Revenue – The fair value of unearned revenue remaining in connection with the 2019 acquisitions of Sports Illustrated Licensed
Brands, was determined with the following inputs: (1) projection of when unearned revenue will be earned; (2) expense necessary to fulfill
the subscriptions; (3) gross up of the fulfillment costs to include a market participant level of profitability; (4) slight premium to
the fulfillment-costs plus a reasonable profit metric; and (5) reduce projected future cash flows to present value using an appropriate
discount rate. The unearned revenue remaining from the acquisitions as of December 31, 2022 and 2021 was $ 1,154 and $ 4,855 , respectively.
The
changes in unearned revenue with inputs classified as Level 3 of the fair value hierarchy are reflected within revenue on the consolidated
statements of operations.
Warrant
Derivative Liabilities – The Company accounted for certain warrants issued in connection with previously
issued convertible debentures, as derivative liabilities, which required the Company carry such amounts on its consolidated balance sheets
as a liability at fair value, as adjusted at each reporting period end.
The
Company determined the fair value of the Strome Warrants and B. Riley
Warrants (as described in Note 22) utilizing the Black-Scholes valuation model as further described below. These warrants were classified
as Level 3 within the fair-value hierarchy prior to reclassification to equity (as described below). Inputs to the valuation model include
the Company’s publicly quoted stock price, the stock volatility, the risk-free interest rate, the remaining life of the warrants,
the exercise price or conversion price, and the dividend rate. The Company uses the closing stock price of its common stock over an appropriate
period of time to compute stock volatility.
These
assumptions are summarized as follows:
Strome
Warrants – 2021 assumptions upon reclassification to equity: Black-Scholes option-pricing; expected life: 1.54 years; risk-free
interest rate: 0.60 % ; volatility factor: 146.68 % ; dividend rate: 0.0 % ; transaction date closing market price: $ 0.62 ; exercise price:
$ 0.50 .
B.
Riley Warrants – 2021 assumptions upon reclassification to equity: Black-Scholes option-pricing; expected life: 3.88 years;
risk-free interest rate: 1.14 % ; volatility factor: 144.61 % ; dividend rate: 0.0 % ; transaction date closing market price: $ 0.62 ; exercise
price: $ 0.33 .
F- 41
The
following table represents the carrying amounts, change in valuation
for the Company’s warrants accounted for as a derivative liability and classified within Level 3 of the fair-value hierarchy and
fair value recorded upon reclassification to equity as of and during the year ended December 31, 2021:
Schedule
of Valuation Activity for the Embedded Conversion Feature Liability
Carrying Amount at Beginning of Year
Change in Valuation
Reclassification to Equity
Carrying Amount at End of Year
Strome Warrants
$ 704
$ ( 75 )
$ ( 629 )
$ -
B. Riley Warrants
443
41
( 484 )
-
Total
$ 1,147
$ ( 34 )
$ ( 1,113 )
$ -
For
the year ended December 31, 2021, the change in valuation of warrant derivative liabilities recognized within other income on the consolidated
statements of operations was $ 34 . The Strome Warrants and B. Riley Warrants were reclassified to equity upon filing an effective registration
statement during the year ended December 31, 2021, resulting in a $ 1,113 offset within additional paid-in capital on the consolidated
statements of stockholders’ deficiency.
19. Bridge Notes
On
December 15, 2022, the Company issued $ 36,000
aggregate principal amount of senior secured notes (the “Bridge Notes”) pursuant to a third amended and restated note
purchase agreement (as described below) with B. Riley, in its capacity as agent for the purchasers and as purchaser. The Company
received net proceeds of $ 34,728
from the issuance of the Bridge Notes. Interest on the Bridge Notes is payable in cash at a rate of 12 %
per annum quarterly in arrears on March 31, 2023, June 30, 2023, September 30, 2023, and December 31, 2023; provided that, on March
1, 2023, May 1, 2023, and July 1, 2023, the interest rate on the Bridge Notes will increase by 1.5 %
per annum, with maturity on December
31, 2023 . The Bridge Notes are subject to certain mandatory prepayment requirements, including, but not limited to, a
requirement that the Company apply the net proceeds from certain debt incurrences or equity offerings to repay the Bridge Notes. The
Company may elect to prepay the Bridge Notes, at any time, in whole or in part with no premium or penalty. The Bridge Notes are
secured by liens on the same collateral that secures indebtedness under the Company’s outstanding Senior Secured Notes (as
defined below) and are guaranteed by the Company’s subsidiaries that guarantee the Senior Secured Notes. The Bridge Notes
provide for certain covenants and event of default provisions similar to those contained in the Senior Secured Notes. In connection
with the Bridge Notes, the Company incurred debt costs of $ 1,272
that are being amortized over the expected life of the debt. As of December 31, 2022, the effective interest rate was 19.0 %.
As of December 31, 2022, the balance outstanding under the Bridge Notes was $ 34,805
($ 36,000 principal balance less unamortized debt costs of $ 1,195 ).
20. Long-term Debt
Senior
Secured Notes
As
of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company had an outstanding obligation
with B. Riley, in its capacity as agent for the purchasers and as purchaser, pursuant to a third amended and restated note purchase agreement
(the “Senior Secured Notes”) entered into on December 15, 2022, where it amended the second amended and restated note purchase
agreement issued on January 23, 2022.
The Senior Secured Notes, prior to and including the third amended
and restated note purchase agreement, provide for:
●
a
provision for the Company to enter into Delayed Draw Term Notes (as described below), in the aggregate principal amount of $ 9,928
as of December 31, 2021;
●
a
provision where the Company added $ 13,852 to the principal balance of the notes for interest payable on the notes on last day of
a fiscal quarter from September 30, 2020 to December 31, 2021 as payable in-kind;
F- 42
●
a
provision where the paid in-kind interest can be paid in shares of the Company’s common stock based upon the conversion rate
specified in the Certificate of Designation for the Series K Preferred Stock, subject to certain adjustments;
●
an
interest rate of 10.0 % per annum, subject to adjustment in the event of default, with a provision that within one (1) business day
after receipt of cash proceeds from any issuance of equity interests, the Company will prepay certain obligations in an amount equal
to such cash proceeds, net of underwriting discounts and commissions;
●
interest
on the notes will be payable after February 15, 2022, at the agent’s sole discretion, either (a) in cash quarterly in arrears
on the last day of each fiscal quarter or (b) by continuing to add such interest due on such payment dates to the principal amount
of the notes;
●
a
maturity date of December 31, 2023, subject to certain acceleration conditions;
●
all
borrowings under the notes to be collateralized by substantially all assets of the Company; and
●
the
Company to enter into the Bridge Notes for $ 36,000 and to increase the line of credit with SLR in an aggregate principal amount not
to exceed $ 40,000 .
Delayed
Draw Term Notes
As
of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company had an outstanding obligation
with B. Riley, in its capacity as agent for the purchasers and as purchaser, pursuant to a third amended and restated note purchase agreement
(the “Delayed Draw Term Notes”) entered into on December 15, 2022, where it amended the second amended and restated note purchase
agreement issued on January 23, 2022:
The Delayed Draw Term Notes, prior to and including the third amended
and restated note purchase agreement, provide for:
●
an
interest rate of 10.0 % per annum, subject to adjustment in the event of default;
●
a
drawdown of $ 5,086 ($ 4,578 net proceeds were received after payment of commitment and funding fees paid $ 509 ) on December 28, 2021;
and
●
interest
on the notes to be payable after February 15, 2022, at the agent’s sole discretion, either (a) in cash quarterly in arrears
on the last day of each fiscal quarter or (b) by continuing to add such interest due on such payment dates to the principal amount
of the notes;
a
maturity date on December 31, 2022 for $ 5,928 of principal due (repaid with the proceeds from the Bridge Notes) with the remaining
balance due of $ 4,000 on December 31, 2023, subject to certain acceleration terms; and
●
all
borrowings under the notes to be collateralized by substantially all assets of the Company.
F- 43
The
following table summarizes the long-term debt:
Schedule of Long Term Debt
As of December 31, 2022
As of December 31, 2021
Principal Balance
Unamortized Discount and Debt Issuance Costs
Carrying Value
Principal Balance
Unamortized Discount and Debt Issuance Costs
Carrying Value
Senior Secured Notes, as amended, matures December 31, 2023
$ 62,691
$ ( 904 )
$ 61,787
$ 62,691
$ ( 1,935 )
$ 60,756
Delayed Draw Term Notes, as amended, matures December 31, 2023
4,000
( 103 )
3,897
9,928
( 567 )
9,361
Total
$ 66,691
$ ( 1,007 )
$ 65,684
$ 72,619
$ ( 2,502 )
$ 70,117
Carrying value:
Current portion
$ 65,684
$ 5,744
Long-term portion
-
64,373
Total
$ 65,684
$ 70,117
As
of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company’s Delayed Draw Term Notes, as amended, carrying value of $ 3,897 and $ 9,361 , respectively,
was as follows: (1) $ 0 and $ 5,928 for the first draw (less unamortized discount and debt issuance costs of $ 0 and $ 180 ), respectively;
and (2) $ 4,000 and $ 4,000 for the second draw (less unamortized discount and debt issuance costs of $ 103 and $ 387 ), respectively. As
of December 31, 2022, the effective interest of the Senior Secured Notes and Delayed Draw Term Notes second draw was 11.4 % and 12.5 %,
respectively.
The
Company’s principal maturities of long-term debt are due December 31, 2023 in the amount of $ 66,691 .
Information
for the years ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 with respect to interest expense related to long-term debt is provided below.
F- 44
Interest
Expense
The
following table represents interest expense:
Summary of Interest Expense
Years Ended December 31,
2022
2021
Amortization of debt costs:
Senior Secured Notes
$ 1,031
$ 1,806
Delayed Draw Term Notes
464
300
Bridge Notes
77
-
Line of credit
9
-
Total amortization of debt costs
1,581
2,106
Accrued and noncash converted interest:
Senior Secured Notes
-
6,394
Delayed Draw Term Notes
-
548
Bridge Notes
204
-
Parade
116
-
Payroll Protection Program Loan
-
14
Total accrued and noncash converted interest
320
6,956
Cash paid interest:
Senior Secured Notes
6,356
-
Delayed Draw Term Notes
980
-
Line of credit
1,328
825
Other
864
568
Total cash paid interest
9,528
1,393
Total interest expense
$ 11,429
$ 10,455
Paycheck
Protection Program Loan
During the year ended December 31, 2021, the Company recorded a $ 5,717
(including accrued interest of $ 14 ) gain upon debt extinguishment that was recognized pursuant to a Paycheck Protection Program Loan that
was forgiven on June 22, 2021 that was entered into on April 6, 2020 with JPMorgan Chase Bank, N.A. under the enacted Coronavirus Aid,
Relief, and Economic Security Act administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration, in other income on the consolidated statements
of operations.
21. Preferred Stock
The
Company has the authority to issue 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock, $ 0.01 par value per share, consisting of authorized and/or outstanding
shares as of December 31, 2022 as follows:
● 2,000
authorized shares were designated as “Series F Convertible Preferred Stock”,
none of which were outstanding. The Series F Convertible Preferred Stock was eliminated on
September 7, 2021.
● 1,800
authorized shares designated as “Series G Convertible Preferred Stock” (as further
described below), of which 168.496 shares are outstanding.
● 23,000
authorized shares designated as “Series H Convertible Preferred Stock” (as further
described below), of which 14,356 shares are outstanding.
● 25,800
authorized shares were designated as “Series I Convertible Preferred Stock” (the “Series I Preferred Stock”)
on June 27, 2019, none of which were outstanding. The Series I Preferred Stock was
eliminated on September 7, 2021.
● 35,000
authorized shares were designated as “Series J Convertible Preferred Stock” (the “Series J Preferred Stock”)
on October 4, 2019, none of which were out
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