Cineverse Corp. 10-Q

ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS The following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with our historical Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this report. This report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These include statements about our expectations, beliefs, intentions or strategies for the future, which are indicated by words or phrases such as “believes,” “anticipates,” “expects,” “intends,” “plans,” “will,” “estimates,” and similar words. Forward-looking statements represent, as of the date of this report, our judgment relating to, among other things, future results of operations, growth plans, sales, capital requirements and general industry and business conditions applicable to us. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors, some of which are beyond our control that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Business Overview Cineverse Corp. (“Cineverse”, “us”, “our”, "we", and “Company” refers to Cineverse Corp. and its subsidiaries unless the context otherwise requires) was incorporated in Delaware on March 31, 2000. Since our inception, we have played a significant role in the digital distribution revolution that continues to transform the media and entertainment landscape. The Company has a long legacy in using technology to transform the entertainment industry and played a pioneering role in transitioning movie screens from traditional analog film prints to digital distribution. Over the past several years, Cineverse has transformed itself from being a digital cinema equipment and physical content distributor to a leading independent streaming company, and we continue to push the bounds of our industry with innovative technology offerings. Cineverse is a premier streaming technology and entertainment company with its core business operating as (i) a portfolio of owned and operated streaming channels with enthusiast fan bases; (ii) a large-scale global aggregator and full-service distributor of feature films and television programs; and (iii) a proprietary technology software-as-a-service platform for over-the-top (“OTT”) app development and content distribution through subscription video on demand ("SVOD"), dedicated ad-supported ("AVOD"), ad-supported streaming linear ("FAST") channels, social video streaming services, and audio podcasts. Our streaming channels reach audiences in several distinct ways: direct-to-consumer, through these major application platforms, and through third party distributors of content on platforms. The Company’s streaming technology platform, known as MatchpointTM, is a software-based streaming operating platform which provides clients with AVOD, SVOD, transactional video on demand ("TVOD") and linear capabilities, automates the distribution of content, and features a robust data analytics platform. We distribute products for major brands such as Hallmark, ITV, Nelvana, ZDF, Konami, NFL and Highlander, as well as leading international and domestic content creators, movie producers, television producers and other short-form digital content producers. We collaborate with producers, major brands and other content owners to market, source, curate and distribute quality content to targeted audiences through (i) existing and emerging digital home entertainment platforms, including but not limited to Apple iTunes, Amazon Prime, Netflix, Hulu, Xbox, Pluto, and Tubi, as well as (ii) physical goods, including DVD and Blu-ray Discs. Financial Condition and Liquidity As of June 30, 2024, the Company has an accumulated deficit of $507.3 million and a working capital deficit of $0.9 million. For the three months ended June 30, 2024, the Company had a net loss attributable to the Company's common stock, par value $0.001 per share (the "Common Stock") holders of $3.2 million. Net cash used in operating activities for the three months ended June 30, 2024 was $1.7 million, which included $2.0 million of incremental investment in our content portfolio via advances or minimum guarantee payouts. We may continue to generate net losses for the foreseeable future. The Company is party to a Loan, Guaranty, and Security Agreement, as amended to date, with East West Bank (“EWB”) providing for a revolving line of credit (the “Line of Credit Facility”) of $7.5 million, guaranteed by substantially all of our material subsidiaries and secured by substantially all of our and such subsidiaries’ assets. The Line of Credit Facility bears interest at a rate equal to 1.5% above the prime rate, equal to 10.00% as of June 30, 2024. The term of the Line of Credit 24 Facility has been extended to September 15, 2025. As of June 30, 2024, $4.8 million was outstanding on the Line of Credit Facility, gross of issuance costs of $127 thousand. On April 5, 2024, T3 Borrower, a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, entered into a Loan and Security Agreement with T3 Lender and the Company, as guarantor, to the T3 Loan Agreement. The T3 Loan Agreement provides for the T3 Loan with a principal amount not to exceed $3,666 thousand, and a maturity date of April 1, 2025, with a permitted extension of the term for 120 days under certain conditions. The T3 Loan bears no interest until the maturity date other than an interest advance equal to $576 thousand at the closing of the T3 Loan on April 5, 2024. The interest advance was recorded as a discount on the T3 Loan at inception and will be amortized to interest expense and increase the loan amount over its term. If the T3 Loan is extended as noted above, the T3 Loan will bear interest at a rate of 1.44% per month. T3 Borrower may prepay the obligations under the T3 Loan, in full or in part, without penalty or premium. The proceeds under the T3 Loan Agreement are being used for the funding under the Company’s distribution arrangements for the film titled Terrifier 3 (the “Film”). The T3 Loan Agreement contains customary covenants, representation and warranties and events of default. The T3 Loan is presented as current within the Company's Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets and has a balance of $3.1 million as of June 30, 2024. After the principal of the T3 Loan is paid in full, T3 Lender will be entitled to receive 15% of all royalties earned by the Company on the Film under its distribution agreements for the Film until T3 Lender has received 1.75 times the full commitment amount of $3,666 thousand, consisting of the principal amount plus interest and fees advanced to T3 Borrower, plus any extension interest. The T3 Loan is secured by a first priority interest in all of T3 Borrower’s rights and interest in the Film and the distribution agreements, including the proceeds to T3 Borrower from the distribution of the Film. In July 2020, we entered into an At-the-Market sales agreement (the “ATM Sales Agreement”) with A.G.P./Alliance Global Partners (“A.G.P.”) and B. Riley FBR, Inc. (“B. Riley” and, together with A.G.P., the “Sales Agents”), pursuant to which the Company was able to offer and sell, from time to time, through the Sales Agents, shares of Common Stock at the market prices prevailing on Nasdaq at the time of the sale of such shares. For the twelve months ended March 31, 2024, the Company sold 177 thousand shares for $1.1 million in net proceeds, respectively, after deduction of commissions and fees. The ATM Sales Agreement expired in fiscal year 2024 in accordance with its terms. On June 16, 2023, the Company closed on the sale of 2,150 thousand shares of Common Stock, 517 thousand pre-funded warrants, and warrants to purchase up to 2,667 thousand shares of Common Stock at a combined public offering price of $3.00 per share and accompanying warrant for aggregate gross proceeds of approximately $7.4 million, after deducting placement agent fees and other offering expenses in the amount of $0.6 million. The warrants had an exercise price of $3.00 per share, were exercisable immediately and will expire five years from the issuance. The Company received $2.999 per share for the pre-funded warrants, with the remaining $0.001 due at the time of exercise. All 517 thousand pre-funded warrants were subsequently exercised in July 2023 for total proceeds of $0.5 thousand. The Company will continue to invest in content development and acquisition, from which it believes it will obtain an appropriate return on its investment. As of June 30, 2024 and March 31, 2024, short term content advances were $12.2 million and $9.3 million, respectively, and content advances, net of current portion were, $1.7 million and $2.6 million, respectively. Our capital requirements will depend on many factors, and we may need to use existing capital resources and/or undertake equity or debt offerings, if necessary and opportunistically available, for further capital needs. We believe our cash and cash equivalent balances as of June 30, 2024 will be sufficient to support our operations for at least twelve months from the filing of this report. Critical Accounting Estimates Our financial statements are prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”). In connection with the preparation of our financial statements, we are required to make assumptions and estimates about future events and apply judgments that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue, expenses and the related disclosures. We base our assumptions, estimates and judgments on historical experience, current trends and other factors that management believes to be relevant at the time our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements are prepared. On a regular basis, management reviews the accounting policies, assumptions, estimates and judgments to ensure that our financial statements are presented fairly and in accordance with GAAP. However, because future events and their effects cannot be determined with certainty, actual results could differ from our assumptions and estimates, and such differences could be material. 25 Our significant accounting policies are discussed in Note 2 – Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies , of the Notes to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements, included in Item 1, Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements (Unaudited) , of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Management believes that these policies are the most critical to aid in fully understanding and evaluating our reported financial results, and they require management’s most difficult, subjective or complex judgments, resulting from the need to make estimates about the effect of matters that are inherently uncertain. Management has reviewed these critical accounting estimates and related disclosures with the Audit Committee of our Board of Directors. Results of Operations for the Three Months Ended June 30, 2024, and 2023 (in thousands): Revenues For the Three Months Ended June 30, As a % of Revenue 2024 2023 $ Change % Change 2024 2023 Streaming and digital $ 7,703 $ 10,114 $ (2,411 ) (24 )% 84 % 78 % Podcast and other 1,043 429 614 143 % 12 % 3 % Base distribution 351 1,158 (807 ) (70 )% 4 % 9 % Other non-recurring 30 1,279 (1,249 ) (98 )% 0 % 10 % Total Revenue $ 9,127 $ 12,980 $ (3,853 ) (30 )% 100 % 100 % For the three months ended June 30, 2024, total revenue declined by $3.9 million, or 30% as compared to three months ended June 30, 2023. During this time, Streaming and digital revenue for three months ended June 30, 2024, decreased by $2.4 million, driven by a $1.9 million decline in the Company's digital distribution revenue resulting from the impact of content release timing in the current quarter relative to the first quarter in fiscal 2024, as well as the recent change in and build-out of the Company's direct advertising sales team. This decrease was partially offset by a $0.2 million increase in SVOD revenue. Podcast and other revenue increased by $0.6 million, or 143%, due to the success of the Company's Bloody Disgusting podcast content. The Company's $0.8 million decline in Base distribution revenue for the three months ended June 30, 2024 as compared to the three months ended June 30, 2023 was primarily driven by a decline in DVD-related sales and related physical distribution revenue, as the Company's focus shifts away from physical sales. Other non-recurring revenue is related to the Company's legacy cinema equipment as its operations run-off. In the first quarter of fiscal 2024, the Company recognized $1.2 million in legacy digital cinema system sales and variable consideration; however, in the first quarter of fiscal year 2025, sales of legacy systems have decreased, and the Company anticipates this trend will continue. Direct Operating Expenses For the Three Months Ended June 30, As a % of Revenue 2024 2023 $ Change % Change 2024 2023 Direct operating expenses $ 4,479 $ 6,987 $ (2,508 ) (36 )% 49 % 54 % The $2.5 million decrease in Direct operating expenses for the three months ended June 30, 2024 was primarily driven by the variable costs associated with the decline in comparative quarterly revenue, including reduced licensing, royalty and participation expenses of $1.7 million; reduced manufacturing, freight, and fulfillment charges of $0.1 million related to the decline of physical sales, and the Company's reserve against advances provided to partners increased by $0.2 million relative to the three months ended June 30, 2023. 26 Selling, General and Administrative Expenses Three Months Ended June 30, As a % of Revenue 2024 2023 $ Change % Change 2024 2023 Compensation expense $ 4,051 $ 4,406 $ (355 ) (8 )% 44 % 34 % Corporate expenses 1,012 1,701 (689 ) (41 )% 11 % 13 % Share-based compensation 470 409 61 15 % 5 % 3 % Other operating expenses 1,030 1,372 (342 ) (25 )% 11 % 11 % Selling, General and Administrative $ 6,563 $ 7,888 $ (1,325 ) (17 )% 72 % 61 % Selling, general and administrative expenses for the three months ended June 30, 2024 decreased by $1.3 million. In comparison to the three months ended June 30, 2023, compensation expenses decreased by $0.4 million driven a change in the Company's employment mix, as a result of a greater investment in Cineverse Services India. Corporate expenses decreased by $0.7 million primarily related to a reduction of $0.3 million in other consulting service providers, $0.2 million in legal fees, and $0.1 million in public relations fees, as a result of the Company's savings initiatives. Other operating expenses decreased by $0.3 million, primarily driven by reductions in the provision for credit losses of $0.2 million and a decrease in advertising barter costs of $0.2 million. Depreciation and Amortization Expense For the Three Months Ended June 30, As a % of Revenue 2024 2023 $ Change % Change 2024 2023 Amortization of intangible assets $ 709 $ 698 $ 11 2 % 8 % 5 % Depreciation of property and equipment 154 124 30 24 % 2 % 1 % Depreciation and Amortization $ 863 $ 822 $ 41 5 % 9 % 6 % Amortization expense and depreciation expense have remained relatively consistent for three months ended June 30, 2024, compared to the three months ended June 30, 2023, as the Company's intangible focused investment mix has remained consistent over the past year. Interest expense, net For the three months ended June 30, 2024, interest expense increased by $0.1 million from $0.3 million to $0.4 million, primarily as a result of the Company's Terrifier 3 term loan interest of $0.1 million. 27 Adjusted EBITDA We define Adjusted EBITDA to be earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation expense, merger and acquisition costs, restructuring, transition and acquisitions expense, net, goodwill impairment and certain other items. Adjusted EBITDA is not a measurement of financial performance under GAAP and may not be comparable to other similarly titled measures of other companies. We use Adjusted EBITDA as a financial metric to measure the financial performance of the business because management believes it provides additional information with respect to the performance of its fundamental business activities. For this reason, we believe Adjusted EBITDA will also be useful to others, including our stockholders, as a valuable financial metric. We present Adjusted EBITDA because we believe that Adjusted EBITDA is a useful supplement to net income (loss) from continuing operations as an indicator of operating performance. We also believe that Adjusted EBITDA is a financial measure that is useful both to management and investors when evaluating our performance and comparing our performance with that of our competitors. We also use Adjusted EBITDA for planning purposes and to evaluate our financial performance because Adjusted EBITDA excludes certain incremental expenses or non-cash items, such as stock-based compensation charges, that we believe are not indicative of our ongoing operating performance. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA is a performance measure and not a liquidity measure, and therefore a reconciliation between net income (loss) from continuing operations and Adjusted EBITDA has been provided in the financial results. Adjusted EBITDA should not be considered as an alternative to net income (loss) from operations as an indicator of performance or as an alternative to cash flows from operating activities as an indicator of cash flows, in each case as determined in accordance with GAAP, or as a measure of liquidity. In addition, Adjusted EBITDA does not take into account changes in certain assets and liabilities as well as interest and income taxes that can affect cash flows. We do not intend the presentation of these non-GAAP measures to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for results prepared in accordance with GAAP. These non-GAAP measures should be read only in conjunction with our Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. Following is the reconciliation of our consolidated net (loss) income to Adjusted EBITDA (in thousands): For the Three Months Ended June 30, 2024 2023 Net loss $ (3,050 ) $ (3,536 ) Add Back: Income tax expense 7 20 Depreciation and amortization 863 822 Interest expense 431 295 Loss from equity investment in Metaverse 3 — Stock-based compensation 470 409 Other (income) expense, net (163 ) 36 Net income attributable to noncontrolling interest (23 ) (14 ) Transition-related costs 27 468 Adjusted EBITDA $ (1,435 ) $ (1,500 ) 28 Cash Flow Changes in our cash flows were as follows (in thousands): For the Three Months Ended June 30, 2024 2023 Net used in operating activities (1,714 ) (3,260 ) Net cash used in investing activities (423 ) (272 ) Net cash provided by financing activities 925 8,509 Net Change In Cash and Cash Equivalents $ (1,212 ) $ 4,977 For the three months ended June 30, 2024, net cash used in operating activities was primarily driven by loss from operations, excluding non-cash expenses such as depreciation, amortization and stock-based compensation, and other changes in working capital. Specifically, the adjustments are primarily driven by net cash outflows related to content advances made to partners for which initial expenditures are generally recovered within six to twelve months and operating prepayments, partially offset by a decrease in unbilled revenue, the collection of the Company's ERTC claim, and an increase in accounts payable and accrued expenses. Operating cash flows are typically seasonally lower during the first two fiscal quarters and higher during our fiscal third and fourth quarters, resulting from revenues earned during the holiday season. Cash used in investing activities was used in the expenditures towards long-lived intangible assets and fixed assets, as well as the receipt from the return of investment from the sale of equity securities. Cash provided by financing activities pertained to the receipt of funds from the Company's Terrifier 3-related term loan, repayment of the Company's line of credit, payment of deferred consideration, and payment of financing fees. For the three months ended June 30, 2023, net cash used in operating activities is primarily driven by loss from operations, excluding non-cash expenses such as depreciation, amortization, recovery for doubtful accounts and stock-based compensation, including capitalized content spend and other changes in working capital. Additionally, during the three months ended June 30, 2023, the Company decreased accounts payable by $4.7 million to vendors. Operating cash flows are typically seasonally lower during the first two fiscal quarters and higher during our fiscal third and fourth quarters, resulting from revenues earned during the holiday season. In addition, we made net advances of $2.2 million for the three months ended June 30, 2023, as part of the advances we make on theatrical releases and to certain home entertainment distribution clients for which initial expenditures are generally recovered within six to twelve months. Off-balance sheet arrangements We are not a party to any off-balance sheet arrangements other than as discussed in Note 2 – Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies, Basis of Presentation and Consolidation and Note 3 - Other Interests to the Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements included in Item 1 of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, we hold a 100% equity interest in CDF2 Holdings, which is an unconsolidated variable interest entity (“VIE”), which wholly owns Cinedigm Digital Funding 2, LLC; however, we are not the primary beneficiary of the VIE. 29