Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. 10-K

ITEM 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations You should read the following discussion together with our consolidated financial statements and the related notes included elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. This discussion contains forward-looking statements based upon current expectations that involve risks and uncertainties. Our actual results may differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, including those set forth under the section titled “ Risk Factors ” or in other parts of this Annual Report on Form 10-K. See “ – Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements ” below. Our historical results are not necessarily indicative of the results that may be expected for any period in the future. Cautionary Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws that are subject to certain risks, trends and uncertainties. We use words such as “could,” “would,” “may,” “might,” “will,” “expect,” “likely,” “believe,” “continue,” “anticipate,” “estimate,” “intend,” “plan,” “project” and other similar expressions to identify forward-looking statements, but not all forward-looking statements include these words. All of our forward-looking statements involve estimates and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, any such statements are qualified in their entirety by reference to the information described under the caption “ Risk Factors ” and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. The forward-looking statements contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K are based on assumptions that we have made in light of our industry experience and our perceptions of historical trends, current conditions, expected future developments and other factors we believe are appropriate under the circumstances. As you read and consider this Annual Report on Form 10-K, you should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve risks, uncertainties (many of which are beyond our control) and assumptions. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, you should be aware that many factors could affect our actual operating and financial performance and cause our performance to differ materially from the performance expressed in or implied by the forward-looking statements. We believe these factors include, but are not limited to, the following: ● the restrictions and covenants imposed upon us by our credit facilities; ● the substantial doubt about our ability to continue as a going concern, which may hinder our ability to obtain future financing; ● our ability to secure additional financing to meet our capital needs; ● ineligibility to file short-form registration statements on Form S-3, which may impair our ability to raise capital; ● failure to satisfy applicable listing standards of the Nasdaq Capital Market resulting in a potential delisting of our common stock; ● costs, risks and uncertainties related to the restatement of certain prior period financial statements; ● any significant fluctuations caused by our high customer concentration; ● risks related to non-payment by our clients; ● reputational and other harms caused by our failure to detect advertising fraud; 44 Table of Contents ● operational and performance issues with our platform, whether real or perceived, including a failure to respond to technological changes or to upgrade our technology systems; ● restrictions on the use of third-party “cookies,” mobile device IDs or other tracking technologies, which could diminish our platform’s effectiveness; ● unfavorable publicity and negative public perception about our industry, particularly concerns regarding data privacy and security relating to our industry’s technology and practices, and any perceived failure to comply with laws and industry self-regulation; ● our failure to manage our growth effectively; ● the difficulty in identifying and integrating any future acquisitions or strategic investments; ● any changes or developments in legislative, judicial, regulatory or cultural environments related to information collection, use and processing; ● challenges related to our buy-side clients that are destination marketing organizations and that operate as public/private partnerships; ● any strain on our resources or diversion of our management’s attention as a result of being a public company; ● the intense competition of the digital advertising industry and our ability to effectively compete against current and future competitors; ● any significant inadvertent disclosure or breach of confidential and/or personal information we hold, or of the security of our or our customers’, suppliers’ or other partners’ computer systems; ● as a holding company, we depend on distributions from Direct Digital Holdings, LLC (“DDH LLC”) to pay our taxes, expenses (including payments under the Tax Receivable Agreement) and any amount of any dividends we may pay to the holders of our common stock; ● the fact that DDH LLC is controlled by DDM, whose interest may differ from those of our public stockholders; ● any failure by us to maintain or implement effective internal controls or to detect fraud; and ● other factors and assumptions discussed in this Annual Report on Form 10-K under “ Risk Factors ,” and elsewhere in this Annual Report on Form 10-K. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties materialize, or should any of these assumptions prove to be incorrect, our actual operating and financial performance may vary in material respects from the performance projected in these forward-looking statements. Further, any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and except as required by law, we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement contained in this Annual Report on Form 10-K to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made or to reflect the occurrence of anticipated or unanticipated events or circumstances. New factors that could cause our business not to develop as we expect emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all of them. Further, we cannot assess the impact of each currently known or new factor on our results of operations or the extent to which any factor, or combination of factors, may cause actual results to differ materially from those contained in any forward-looking statements. 45 Table of Contents Overview Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. and its subsidiaries (collectively the “Company,” “DDH,” “we,” “us” and “our”), headquartered in Houston, Texas, is an end-to-end, full-service programmatic advertising platform primarily focused on providing advertising technology, data-driven campaign optimization and other solutions intended for underserved and less efficient markets on both the sell- and buy-side of the digital advertising ecosystem. Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. is the holding company that, since the completion of our initial public offering on February 15, 2022, owns certain common units, and serves as the manager of DDH LLC, which operates the business formed in 2018 through the acquisition of Colossus Media, LLC (“Colossus Media”), a sell-side marketing platform, and Huddled Masses, LLC (“Huddled Masses ® ” or “Huddled Masses”), a buy-side marketing platform. In late September 2020, DDH LLC acquired Orange142, LLC (“Orange 142”) to further bolster its overall programmatic buy-side advertising platform and to enhance its offerings across multiple industry verticals such as travel, education, healthcare, financial services, consumer products and other sectors with particular emphasis on small- and mid-sized businesses transitioning into digital with growing digital media budgets. The subsidiaries of Direct Digital Holdings, Inc. are as follows: ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Current % ​ Business ​ ​ ​ ​ Subsidiary Ownership Segment Date of Formation Date of Acquisition Colossus Media, LLC 100.0 % Sell-side ​ September 8, 2017 ​ June 21, 2018 Orange142, LLC 100.0 % Buy-side ​ March 6, 2013 ​ September 30, 2020 Huddled Masses, LLC 100.0 % Buy-side ​ November 13, 2012 ​ June 21, 2018 Direct Digital Holdings, LLC (1) ​ ​ N/A ​ June 21, 2018 ​ February 15, 2022 (1) DDH owns 100% of the voting interest in Direct Digital Holding, LLC. As of December 31, 2023, DDH owns 24.2% of the economic interest in Direct Digital Holdings, LLC. See further discussion of the Up-C structure in Note 6 of our consolidated financial statements. Colossus Media operates our proprietary sell-side programmatic platform operating under the trademarked banner of Colossus SSP™ (“Colossus SSP”). Colossus SSP is a stand-alone sell-side platform (“SSP”) intended to deliver targeted advertising to diverse and multicultural audiences, including African Americans, Latin Americans, Asian Americans and LGBTQIA+ customers, as well as general audiences. Both buy-side advertising businesses, Orange 142 and Huddled Masses, offer technology-enabled advertising solutions and consulting services to clients through demand side platforms (“DSPs”). Providing both the front-end, buy-side advertising businesses coupled with our proprietary sell-side operations enables us to curate the first through the last mile in the ad tech ecosystem execution process to drive higher results. Operating segments are components of an enterprise for which separate financial information is available and evaluated regularly by our chief operating decision maker (“CODM”) for purpose of allocating resources and assessing performance. Our CODM is our Chairman and Chief Executive Officer. We operate as two reportable segments: sell-side advertising, which includes the results of Colossus Media, and buy-side advertising, which includes the results of Orange 142 and Huddled Masses. All our revenues are attributable to the United States. 46 Table of Contents The table below summarizes the financial highlights of our business (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Year Ended December 31, ​ 2023 2022 Revenues ​ $ 157,110 ​ $ 89,360 (Loss) income from operations ​ $ (2,185) ​ $ 7,979 Net (loss) income ​ $ (6,844) ​ $ 4,167 Adjusted EBITDA (2) ​ $ 2,393 ​ $ 10,169 Net cash provided by operating activities ​ $ 2,558 ​ $ 2,064 (2) For a definition of Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, an explanation of our management’s use of this measure, and a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income, please see “ – Non-GAAP Financial Measures .” Recent Developments Nasdaq Rule Noncompliance. On April 17, 2024, May 21, 2024 and August 21, 2024, we received notices from the Listing Qualifications Department of Nasdaq regarding the Company’s failure to timely file its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended March 31, 2024 and its Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for the fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2024, respectively, with the SEC. The Company submitted a plan to Nasdaq to regain compliance with respect to the Delinquent Filings, and Nasdaq granted the Company an exception until October 14, 2024 to evidence compliance with the rule requiring filing of our periodic reports. Neither the notices from Nasdaq nor the Company’s non-compliance with the rule has an immediate effect on the listing or trading of the Company’s securities on Nasdaq, which currently continues to trade on The Nasdaq Capital Market under the symbol “DRCT.” The Company continues to work diligently to complete and file the remaining Delinquent Filings with the SEC and thereby regain compliance with the Rule as soon as practicable. Relationship with Sell-Side Customer . On May 10, 2024, the Company was the subject of a defamatory article / blog post which the Company believes was part of a coordinated misinformation campaign. In connection with this post, one of the Company’s sell-side customers paused its connection to the Company while the allegations were investigated. This customer reconnected the Company on May 22, 2024 and sell-side volumes have resumed but not yet at the levels experienced prior to the pause in May 2024. The Company is actively working with its partners to achieve prior volume levels. On May 14, 2024, the Company filed a lawsuit against the author of the defamatory article and is vigorously pursuing its rights. The Company cannot make any predictions about the final outcome of this litigation matter or the timing thereof. Key Factors Affecting Our Performance We believe our growth and financial performance are dependent on many factors, including those described below. Sell-side advertising business Increasing revenue from customers through increased advertising spend from buyers Colossus Media operates our proprietary sell-side programmatic platform operating under the trademarked banner of Colossus SSP. Our customers (or buyers) include ad exchanges, DSPs, agencies and individual advertisers. We have broad exposure to the ecosystem of buyers, reaching on average approximately 115,000 advertisers per month in 2023 compared to approximately 114,000 in 2022. As spending on programmatic advertising increasingly becomes a larger share of the overall ad spend, advertisers and agencies are seeking greater control of their digital advertising supply chains. To take advantage of this industry shift, we have entered into Supply Path Optimization agreements directly with customers which address acceptable advertisements and data usage. As part of these agreements, we provide advertisers and agencies with benefits ranging from custom data and workflow integrations, product features, volume-based business terms, and 47 Table of Contents visibility into campaign performance data and methodology. As a result of these direct relationships, our existing advertisers and agencies are incentivized to allocate an increasing percentage of their advertising budgets to our platform. We also strive to retain existing publishers and add new publishers. Establishing multiple header bidding integrations by leveraging our technology capabilities allows us to maximize our access to publishers’ ad formats, devices and various properties that a publisher may own. We may also up-sell additional products including our header bidding management, identity, and audience solutions. We enter into master service agreements with our publishers which, among other terms, set a fixed rate for content to be sold on Colossus SSP. Our strategy on the sell-side advertising business represents growth potential, and we believe we are well positioned to be able to bring underserved multicultural publishers into the advertising ecosystem, thereby increasing our value proposition across all customers, including large advertisers and agencies. Monetizing ad impressions for publishers and buyers We curate advertisers and increase access to publishers with valuable ad impressions. We focus on monetizing digital impressions by coordinating daily real-time auctions and bids. The publisher makes its ad inventory available on Colossus SSP and invites advertisers to bid based on the user’s data received. Each time the publisher’s web page loads, an ad request is sent to multiple ad exchanges and, in some cases, to the demand side platform directly from Colossus SSP. In case of real-time bidding (“RTB”) media buys, many DSPs would place bids to the impressions being offered by the publisher during the auction. The advertiser that bids a higher amount compared to other advertisers will win the bid and pay the second highest price for the winning impression to serve the ads. We continuously review our available inventory from existing publishers across every format (mobile, desktop, digital video, OTT, CTV, and rich media). The factors we consider when determining which impressions we process include transparency, viewability, and whether or not the impression is human sourced. By consistently applying these criteria, we believe the ad impressions we process will be valuable and marketable to advertisers. Enhancing ad inventory quality In the advertising industry, inventory quality is assessed in terms of invalid traffic (“IVT”) which can be impacted by fraud such as “fake eyeballs” generated by automated technologies set up to artificially inflate impression counts. Through our platform design and proactive IVT mitigation efforts, we address and minimize IVT on a number of fronts, including sophisticated technology, which detects and avoids IVT on the front end; direct publisher and inventory relationships, for supply path optimization; and ongoing campaign and inventory performance review, to ensure inventory quality and brand protection controls are in place. Growing access to valuable ad impressions Our recent growth has been driven by a variety of factors including increased access to mobile web (display and video) and mobile app (display and video) impressions and desktop video impressions. Our performance is affected by our ability to maintain and grow our access to valuable ad impressions from current publishers as well as through new relationships with publishers. For the year ended December 31, 2023, we processed approximately 7.9 trillion bid requests, up 134% from 2022 when we processed 3.4 trillion bid requests. Expanding and managing investments Each impression or transaction occurs in a fraction of a second. Given that most transactions take place in an auction/bidding format, we continue to make investments across the platform to further reduce the processing time. In addition to the robust infrastructure supporting our platform, it is also critical that we align with key industry partners in the digital supply chain. The Colossus SSP is agnostic to any specific demand side platform. We automate workflow processes whenever feasible to drive predictable and value-added outcomes for our customers and increase productivity of our organization. In the first half of 2023, we transitioned our server platform to HPE Greenlake, which provides increased capacity, faster response time, and expansion capabilities to align with growth in our business. 48 Table of Contents Managing industry dynamics We operate in the rapidly evolving digital advertising industry. Due to the scale and complexity of the digital advertising ecosystem, direct sales via manual, person-to-person processes are insufficient for delivering a real-time, personalized ad experience, creating the need for programmatic advertising. In turn, advances in programmatic technologies have enabled publishers to auction their ad inventory to more buyers, simultaneously, and in real time through a process referred to as header bidding. Header bidding has also provided advertisers with transparent access to ad impressions. As advertisers keep pace with ongoing changes in the way that consumers view and interact with digital media we anticipate further innovation and expect that header bidding will be extended into new areas such as OTT/CTV. We believe our focus on publishers and buyers has allowed us to understand their needs and our ongoing innovation has enabled us to quickly adapt to changes in the industry, develop new solutions and do so cost effectively. Our performance depends on our ability to keep pace with industry changes such as header bidding and the evolving needs of our publishers and buyers while continuing our cost efficiency. Seasonality In the advertising industry, companies commonly experience seasonal fluctuations in revenue. For example, in our sell-side advertising segment, many advertisers allocate the largest portion of their budgets to the fourth quarter of the calendar year in order to coincide with increased holiday purchasing. We expect our sell-side revenue to continue to fluctuate based on seasonal factors that affect the advertising industry as a whole. Buy-side advertising business New Customer Acquisitions On the buy-side of our business, our customers consist of purchasers of programmatic advertising inventory (ad space) looking to place their advertisements. We serve the needs of approximately 234 small and mid-sized clients, consisting of advertising space buyers, including small and mid-sized companies, large advertising holding companies (which may manage several agencies), independent advertising agencies and mid-market advertising service organizations. We serve a variety of customers across multiple industries including travel/tourism (including destination marketing organizations (“DMOs”)), education, energy, consumer packaged goods, healthcare, financial services (including cryptocurrency technologies) and other industries. We are focused on increasing the number of customers that use our buy-side advertising businesses as their advertising partner. Our long-term growth and results of operations will depend on our ability to attract more customers, including DMOs, across multiple geographies. Expand Sales to Existing Customers Our customers understand the independent nature of our platform and relentless focus on driving results based on return on investment (“ROI”). Our value proposition is complete alignment across our entire digital supply platform beginning with the first dollar in and last dollar out. We are technology, DSP and media agnostic, and we believe our clients trust us to provide the best opportunity for success of their brands and businesses. As a result, our clients have been loyal, with approximately 90% client retention amongst the clients that represent approximately 80% of our revenue during the year ended December 31, 2023. In addition, we cultivate client relationships through our pipeline of managed and moderate serve clients that conduct campaigns through our platform. The managed services delivery model allows us to combine our technology with a highly personalized offering to strategically design and manage advertising campaigns. Shift to Digital Advertising Media has increasingly become more digital as a result of three key ongoing developments: ● Advances in technology with more sophisticated digital content delivery across multiple platforms; 49 Table of Contents ● Changes in consumer behavior, including spending longer portions of the day using mobile and other devices; and ● Better audience segmentation with more efficient targeting and measurable results. The resulting shift has enabled a variety of options for advertisers to efficiently target and measure their advertising campaigns across nearly every media channel and device. These efforts have been led by big- budgeted, large, multi-national corporations incentivized to cast a broad advertising net to support national brands. Increased Adoption of Digital Advertising by Small-and Mid-Sized Companies Only recently have small and mid-sized businesses begun to leverage the power of digital media in meaningful ways, as emerging technologies have enabled advertising across multiple channels in a highly localized nature. Campaign efficiencies yielding measurable results and higher advertising ROI have prompted these companies to begin utilizing digital advertising on an accelerated pace. We believe this market is rapidly expanding, and that small-to-mid-sized advertisers will continue to increase their digital spend. Seasonality In the advertising industry, companies commonly experience seasonal fluctuations in revenue. Historically, for our buy-side advertising segment, the second and third quarters of the year reflect our highest levels of advertising activity and the first quarter reflects the lowest level of such activity. We expect our buy-side revenue to continue to fluctuate based on seasonal factors that affect the advertising industry as a whole. Components of Our Results of Operations Revenues For the sell-side advertising segment, we generate revenue by selling advertising inventory (digital ad units) that we purchase from publishers to advertisers through a process of monetizing ad impressions on our proprietary sell-side programmatic platform operating under the trademarked banner Colossus SSP. For the buy-side advertising segment, we generate revenue from customers that enter into agreements with us to provide managed advertising campaigns, which include digital marketing and media services to purchase digital advertising space, data and other add-on features. In connection with our analysis of principal vs agent considerations, we have evaluated the specified goods or services and we considered whether we control the goods or services before they are provided to the customer including the three indicators of control. Based upon this analysis and our specific facts and circumstances, we concluded that we are a principal for the goods or services sold through both our sell-side advertising segment and our buy-side segment because we control the specified good or service before it is transferred to the customer and we are the primary obligor in the agreement with the publisher (sell-side) or customer (buy-side). Therefore, we report revenue on a gross basis inclusive of all supplier costs. We pay suppliers for the cost of digital media, advertising inventory, data and any add-on services or features. Our revenue recognition policies are discussed in more detail under “Critical Accounting Estimates and Related Policies.” Cost of revenues For cost of revenues for our sell-side advertising segment, we pay publishers a fee, which is typically a percentage of the value of the ad impressions monetized through our platform. Cost of revenues consists primarily of publisher media fees and data center co-location costs. Media fees include the publishing and real time bidding costs to secure advertising space. For the buy-side advertising segment, cost of revenues consists primarily of digital media fees, third-party platform access fees, and other third-party fees associated with providing services to our customers. 50 Table of Contents Operating expenses Operating expenses consist of compensation expenses related to our executive, sales, finance and administrative personnel (including salaries, commissions, stock-based compensation, bonuses, benefits and taxes); general and administrative expenses (including rent expense, professional fees, independent contractor costs, selling and marketing fees, administrative and operating system subscription costs, insurance, and amortization expense related to our intangible assets); and other expense (including transactions that are unusual in nature or which are occurring infrequently). Other expense, net Other income. Other income includes income associated with recovery of receivables and other miscellaneous credit card rebates. Interest expense. Interest expense is mainly related to our debt as further described below in “ — Liquidity and Capital Resources .” In connection with the acquisition of Orange 142, we issued mandatorily redeemable non-participating preferred A and B units, and in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 480, Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity , the value of these units was classified as a liability, and the corresponding distributions were recognized as interest expense for the year ended December 31, 2022. The preferred A and B units were dully redeemed as of February 2022. Loss on early termination of line of credit. In January 2023, we entered into a Loan and Security Agreement (the “Loan Agreement”), by and among Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”), which provided for a revolving credit facility (the “Credit Facility”). In March 2023, we issued a notice of termination and recognized a loss on the write-off of the deferred financing fees. Loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units. In February 2022, we redeemed the non-participating Class B Preferred Units and recognized a loss on the redemption of $0.6 million in connection with the write-off of the fair value associated with the units. Forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program Loan. During the fiscal year ended December 31, 2021, we obtained loans pursuant to the Paycheck Protection Program (“PPP”), administered by the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”). Forgiveness of PPP loans is recognized as a gain in the period it is granted. In March 2021, DDH LLC received the proceeds of $0.3 million. On April 11, 2022, this balance was forgiven. ​ 51 Table of Contents Results of Operations Comparison of the Years Ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 The following tables set forth our consolidated results of operations for the periods presented (in thousands). The period-to-period comparison of results is not necessarily indicative of results for future periods. ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Year Ended December 31, ​ Change ​ ​ 2023 2022 Amount Percentage ​ Revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Sell-side advertising ​ $ 122,434 ​ $ 60,011 ​ $ 62,423 104 % Buy-side advertising ​ ​ 34,676 ​ ​ 29,349 ​ ​ 5,327 18 % Total revenues ​ 157,110 ​ 89,360 ​ 67,750 76 % ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Cost of revenues ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Sell-side advertising ​ 105,733 ​ 49,599 ​ 56,134 113 % Buy-side advertising ​ 13,803 ​ 10,439 ​ 3,364 32 % Total cost of revenues ​ 119,536 ​ ​ 60,038 ​ 59,498 99 % ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Gross profit ​ 37,574 ​ 29,322 ​ 8,252 28 % ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Operating expenses ​ 39,759 ​ 21,343 ​ 18,416 86 % (Loss) income from operations ​ (2,185) ​ 7,979 ​ (10,164) (127) % Other expense, net ​ ​ (4,091) ​ (3,486) ​ (605) 17 % (Loss) income before income taxes ​ ​ (6,276) ​ ​ 4,493 ​ ​ (10,769) ​ (240) % Income tax expense ​ 568 ​ 326 ​ 242 74 % Net (loss) income ​ $ (6,844) ​ $ 4,167 ​ $ (11,011) (264) % Adjusted EBITDA (1) ​ $ 2,393 ​ $ 10,169 ​ $ (7,776) (76) % (1) For a definition of Adjusted EBITDA, a non-GAAP financial measure, an explanation of our management’s use of this measure, and a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income see “ – Non-GAAP Financial Measures .” Revenues Our revenues of $157.1 million in 2023 increased by $67.8 million, or 76%, from $89.4 million in 2022. Sell-side advertising revenue increased $62.4 million, or 104%, while buy-side revenue increased $5.3 million, or 18%, over fiscal year 2022. The increase in our sell-side advertising revenue was primarily due to a continued increase in impression inventory, as well as increased publisher engagement across both general market and underrepresented publisher communities. This was partially offset by a short-pay notice we received from a customer, resulting in a reduction of our 2023 revenue to the reported amount of $157 million. The Company has not been provided with information as to the reason for the short pay, and therefore has disputed it. In conjunction with the short pay, the Company recorded a charge of $8.8 million for payments made to a few publishers, primarily because of the Company’s inability to charge back the publishers for the short pay given the lack of information and related documentation supporting such transaction. We do not expect these amounts to recur in any material fashion, although there is no assurance that customers will not take such action in the future. The Company sold approximately 4.2 billion average monthly impressions over the year ended December 31, 2023, an increase of 272% from the prior period. For the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company processed approximately 326 billion average monthly impressions through its sell-side advertising segment, an increase of 193% from the prior period. The increase in our buy-side advertising revenue was due to expanded spending from our existing customer base. 52 Table of Contents Cost of Revenues Consistent with the increase in gross sales across both platforms, cost of revenues of $119.5 million in 2023 increased by $59.5 million, or 99% from $60.0 million in 2022. Sell-side advertising cost of revenues increased $56.1 million, to $105.7 million, or 86% of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $49.6 million, or 83% of revenue, for the same period in 2022. The increase in costs was primarily due to the related increase in revenue, while the 3% increase as a percentage of revenue was due to an increase in fixed costs of approximately $1.6 million related to an increase in server capacity to support the growth as well as the mix and concentration of publishers and the related costs. We expect these higher costs to continue in future fiscal periods. Buy-side advertising cost of revenues increased $3.4 million, to $13.8 million, or 40% of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2023, compared to $10.4 million, or 36% of revenue, for the same period in 2022. Gross Profit Gross profit was $37.6 million in 2023, or 24% of revenue, compared to $29.3 million, or 33% of revenue, in 2022, reflecting an increase of $8.3 million or 28%. The change in margin for the year ended December 31, 2023 is attributable to the mix in revenue between our business segments as our faster-growing sell-side segment has higher cost of revenues compared to our buy-side segment, as well as the additional fixed costs related to an increase in server capacity. Sell-side advertising gross profit increased $6.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2023 as compared to prior year, primarily due to the increase in revenue. Sell-side advertising gross margin was 14% and 17% for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Sell-side gross margin in 2023 was negatively impacted by additional fixed costs of approximately $1.6 million incurred in the year ended December 31, 2023, related to an increase in server capacity to support our growth. About half of these incremental costs are expected to continue through March 2024. Buy-side advertising gross profit increased $2.0 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, as compared to the same period in the prior year, primarily due to the increase in revenue. Buy-side advertising gross margin was 60% and 64% for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Buy-side gross margin decreased in 2023 to a level the Company believes is sustainable reflecting strategic efforts by the Company to ensure customer retention and increase revenue per customer. Operating Expenses The following table sets forth the components of operating expenses for the periods presented (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Year Ended December 31, ​ Change ​ ​ 2023 2022 Amount Percentage ​ Compensation, taxes and benefits ​ $ 17,730 ​ $ 14,124 ​ $ 3,606 ​ 26 % General and administrative ​ ​ 13,199 ​ 7,219 ​ 5,980 83 % Other expense ​ ​ 8,830 ​ ​ — ​ ​ 8,830 ​ nm % Total operating expenses ​ $ 39,759 ​ $ 21,343 ​ $ 18,416 86 % ​ nm – not meaningful Compensation, taxes and benefits Compensation, taxes and benefits of $17.7 million, increased by $3.6 million in 2023, or 26%, from $14.1 million in 2022. The increase is due to headcount additions primarily in our operations area to support our growth as well as in our shared services to support our public company infrastructure, bonus expense and severance of $0.3 million. In connection with our initial public offering, the Company adopted the 2022 Omnibus Incentive Plan (“2022 Omnibus Plan”) to facilitate the grant of equity awards to our employees, consultants and non-employee directors. On June 10, 2022, March 20, 2023 and June 10, 2023, our board of directors granted stock options and restricted stock units (“RSUs”) to certain of our employees and non-employee directors. The increase in compensation, taxes and benefits expense related to stock options and RSUs granted was $2.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2023, including $1.4 million accrued but not 53 Table of Contents yet granted stock-based compensation associated with the 2023 bonus program. We expect to continue to invest in corporate infrastructure and incur additional expenses associated with our transition to and operation as a public company, including increased compensation associated with additional headcount to support our sales initiatives. General and administrative General and administrative (“G&A”) expenses of $13.2 million in 2023 increased from $7.2 million in 2022. G&A expenses as a percentage of revenue was 8% for both 2023 and 2022. The increase in G&A costs during the year ended December 31, 2023 was primarily due to costs associated with our transition to and operation as a public company beginning in February 2022. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we incurred higher professional fees, sales and marketing expenses and travel expenses. We also completed the transition of our servers for Colossus Media to HPE Greenlake and incurred higher consulting and transition costs for this one-time project. This project contributed to $0.3 million of the increase in G&A costs during the year ended December 31, 2023. We expect to continue to invest in and incur additional expenses associated with our transition to operating as a public company, including increased professional fees, investment in automation and compliance costs associated with developing the requisite infrastructure required for internal controls. Other expense The Company received a short pay notice from a sell-side customer in 2024 resulting in reduction of our 2023 revenue to the reported amount of $157 million. In conjunction with the short pay, the Company recorded a charge of $8.8 million for payments made to a few publishers. The Company has not been provided with information as to the reason for the short pay, and therefore has disputed the short pay. We do not expect these amounts to recur in any material fashion, although there is no assurance that customers will not take such action in the future. Other Expense, Net The following table sets forth the components of other expense, net for the periods presented (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Year Ended December 31, ​ Change ​ ​ 2023 2022 Amount Percentage ​ Interest expense ​ $ (4,378) ​ $ (3,231) ​ $ (1,147) ​ 35 % Loss on early termination of line of credit ​ ​ (300) ​ ​ — ​ ​ (300) ​ nm % Revaluation of tax receivable agreement liability ​ ​ 331 ​ ​ — ​ ​ 331 ​ nm % Loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units ​ ​ — ​ ​ (590) ​ ​ 590 ​ nm % Forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program loan ​ ​ — ​ ​ 287 ​ ​ (287) ​ nm % Other income ​ ​ 256 ​ ​ 48 ​ ​ 208 ​ 433 % Total other expense, net ​ $ (4,091) ​ $ (3,486) ​ $ (605) 17 % ​ nm – not meaningful Other expense, net for the year ended December 31, 2023 primarily consists of $4.4 million of interest expense and $0.3 million related to the loss on early termination of the line of credit with SVB, partially offset by the non-cash revaluation of the tax receivable agreement liability and other income. Other expense, net for the year ended December 31, 2022 is comprised of $3.2 million of interest expense and $0.6 million associated with the loss on the early redemption of DDH LLC’s previously outstanding Class B Preferred Units partially offset by forgiveness of the PPP loan and other income. Interest expense increased for the year ended December 31, 2023 to $4.4 million, compared to $3.2 million for the year ended December 31, 2022. The increase in interest expense in the period is due to additional net borrowings of $5.8 million in 2023 under the Company’s credit facilities, as well as higher interest rates. 54 Table of Contents Liquidity and Capital Resources Going Concern As discussed in Note 9 of our consolidated financial statements, on May 10, 2024, the Company was the subject of a defamatory article / blog post which the Company believes was part of a coordinated misinformation campaign. In connection with this post, one of the Company’s sell-side customers paused its connection to the Company for a couple of weeks in May 2024, which reduced sell-side sales volumes. As of the date of this report, sell-side volumes related to this customer have resumed but not yet at the levels experienced prior to the pause in May 2024 which has created significant disruption in the Company’s sell-side business. The Company is actively working with its partners to achieve prior volume levels. However, there can be no assurance that the Company will be able to achieve prior volume levels with its partners or on the timing of achieving such volume levels. Additionally, the Company (1) incurred a net loss of $6.8 million in 2023 primarily related to payments made to a few publishers of $8.8 million associated with a disputed short payment from a customer, (2) reported an accumulated deficit of $2.5 million as of December 31, 2023, (3) reported cash and cash equivalents of $5.1 million as of December 31, 2023, (4) has borrowed $3.0 million and $9.7 million as of December 31, 2023 and the date of this report, respectively, under the Credit Agreement which matures in July 2025, (5) was notified on April 17, 2024 that the Company’s auditor had resigned and (6) was unable to timely file its 2023 annual report and quarterly reports for the first two quarters of 2024. The delay in filing the Company’s annual and quarterly reports disrupted existing capital-raising efforts and created additional audit, legal and other expenses. These factors raise substantial doubt about the Company’s ability to continue as a going concern over the next twelve months. The Company anticipates sources of liquidity to include cash on hand and cash flow from operations and has taken several actions to address liquidity concerns. These actions include (1) a plan to reduce expenses through a staff reduction, a pause on hiring and cost savings measures that were executed on July 1, 2024, (2) working with lenders to provide temporary relief from debt covenants (see Note 3 – Long-Term Debt to the Company’s audited financial statements) while rebuilding sell-side volumes, (3) raising capital through arrangements with various providers, and (4) regaining compliance with respect to delinquent SEC filings which will allow the Company to access the capital markets as well as other financing sources. There can be no assurance that the Company’s actions will be successful or that additional financing will be available when needed or on acceptable terms. Sources of Liquidity The following table summarizes our cash and cash equivalents, working capital, and availability under our Credit Agreement (as defined below) on December 31, 2023 and 2022 (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ December 31, ​ 2023 2022 Cash and cash equivalents ​ $ 5,116 ​ $ 4,047 Working capital ​ $ 3,280 ​ $ 6,712 Availability under Credit Agreement ​ $ 7,000 ​ $ — ​ To fund our operations and service our debt thereafter and depending on our growth and results of operations, we may raise additional capital through the issuance of additional equity and/or debt, which could have the effect of diluting our stockholders. Any future equity or debt financings may be on terms which are not favorable to us. As our credit facilities become due, we will need to repay, extend or replace such indebtedness. Our ability to do so will be subject to future economic, financial, business and other factors, many of which are beyond our control. Credit Facilities Lafayette Square On December 3, 2021, the Company entered into the Term Loan and Security Agreement (the “2021 Credit Facility”) with Lafayette Square Loan Services, LLC (“Lafayette Square”) as administrative agent, and the various lenders thereto. The term loan under the 2021 Credit Facility initially provided for a term loan in the principal amount of up to $32.0 55 Table of Contents million, consisting of a $22.0 million closing date term loan (the “Term Loan”) and an up to $10.0 million delayed draw term loan (the “Delayed Draw Loan”). The loans under the 2021 Credit Facility originally bore interest at LIBOR plus the applicable margin minus any applicable impact discount. The applicable margin under the 2021 Credit Facility was determined based on the consolidated total net leverage ratio of the Company and its consolidated subsidiaries, at a rate of 6.50% per annum if the consolidated total net leverage ratio is less than 2.00 to 1.00 and up to 9.00% per annum if the consolidated total net leverage ratio was greater than 4.00 to 1.00. On June 1, 2023, as originally contemplated under the 2021 Credit Facility, the Company entered into an agreement with Lafayette Square to convert the existing LIBOR based rate to a Term Secured Overnight Financing Rate (“SOFR”) with a credit spread of 0.15% per annum for the interest periods of three months and providing for a credit spread adjustment of 0.10%, 0.15% or 0.25% per annum for interest periods of one month, three months or six months, respectively. The loans under the 2021 Credit Facility bear interest at SOFR plus the applicable credit spread adjustment plus the applicable margin minus any applicable impact discount. Prior to entering into the Fifth Amendment (as defined below), the applicable margin under the 2021 Credit Facility was based on the consolidated total net leverage ratio of the Company at a rate of 7.00% per annum if the consolidated total net leverage ratio was less than or equal to 1.00 to 1.00 with gradual increases as the ratio increased up to 10.00% per annum if the consolidated total net leverage ratio was greater than 3.50 to 1.00. The maturity date of the 2021 Credit Facility is December 3, 2026. On July 28, 2022, the Company entered into the Second Amendment and Joinder to Term Loan and Security Agreement and received proceeds of $4.3 million borrowed under the Delayed Draw Loan to pay the balance owed on the common unit redemption as well as costs associated with the transaction. Subsequently, on October 3, 2023, the Company entered into the Fourth Amendment to the 2021 Credit Facility (the “Fourth Amendment”) and received proceeds of $3.6 million borrowed under the Delayed Draw Loan to make payments in connection with the consummation of the 2023 warrant tender offer and fees and expenses incurred as described in Note 4 – Stockholders’ Equity and Stock-Based Compensation in the notes to the consolidated financial statements. In connection with the Fourth Amendment, the Company agreed it would not be permitted to request any additional funds under the Delayed Draw Loan, and Lafayette Square would not be obligated to fund any such requests. Quarterly installment payments on the Term Loan and the Delayed Draw Loan, due on the last day of each fiscal quarter, began March 31, 2022 with a final installment due December 3, 2026 for remaining balances outstanding under each loan. Each quarterly installment payment under the closing date term loan was $137,000 from January 1, 2022 through December 31, 2023, and each installment payment thereafter until maturity is $275,000. Each quarterly installment payment under the Delayed Draw Loan was 0.625% of the amount of the Delayed Draw Loan through December 31, 2023, and each installment payment thereafter until maturity is 1.25% of the amount of the Delayed Draw Loan. Under the 2021 Credit Facility, dividends and distributions by DDH LLC to the Company and any shareholders of the Company are permitted so long as (i) no default or event of default is continuing or would occur after giving pro forma effect to such dividends and distributions under the 2021 Credit Facility, (ii) the Company, on a pro forma basis, maintains a consolidated senior net leverage ratio of not greater than 1.5 to 1.0, and (iii) the Company, on a pro forma basis, maintains liquidity of not less than $15,000,000. The obligations under the 2021 Credit Facility are secured by senior, first-priority liens on all or substantially all assets of the Company. As of December 31, 2023, the Company owed a balance on the 2021 Credit Facility of $28.6 million. Additional deferred financing costs of less than $0.1 million and $0.5 million were incurred during the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Unamortized deferred financing costs as of December 31, 2023 and 2022 were $1.7 million and $2.1 million, respectively. Accrued and unpaid interest was $0 as of December 31, 2023 and 2022. The 2021 Credit Facility contains customary affirmative and negative covenants. Prior to entering into the Fifth Amendment, the Company was required to maintain a net leverage ratio of no more than 3.50 to 1.00 as of December 31, 2021 and the last day of each fiscal quarter through December 31, 2023, 3.25 to 1.00 as of March 31, 2024 and the last day of each fiscal quarter through March 31, 2025, 3.00 to 1.00 as of June 30, 2025 and September 30, 2025, with incremental tightening of the ratio to 2.50 to 1.00 as of June 30, 2026 and thereafter through maturity. Prior to entering to the Fifth Amendment, the 2021 Credit Facility also required the Company to maintain a fixed charge coverage ratio of not less than 1.50 to 1.00 as of the last day of each fiscal quarter, as well as restrictions on the ability to incur indebtedness, create certain liens, make certain investments, make certain dividends and other types of distributions, and enter into or undertake certain mergers, 56 Table of Contents consolidations, acquisitions and sales of certain assets and subsidiaries. The Company was in compliance with all the financial covenants under the 2021 Credit Facility as of December 31, 2023. With the Fifth Amendment, the Company expects to be in compliance with all amended covenants for at least one year from the balance sheet date in this annual report . On October 15, 2024, with an effective date of June 30, 2024, the Company and Lafayette Square entered into the Fifth Amendment to the Term Loan and Security Agreement (the “Fifth Amendment”) which among other things, (1) defers quarterly installment payments on the Term Loan and the Delayed Draw Loan for the periods from June 30, 2024 through December 31, 2025, (2) requires that the Company pay a commitment fee of 50 basis points or an amount of $0.1 million to Lafayette Square, (3) allows proceeds from future equity raises by the Company, if any, to cure potential financial covenant noncompliance, (4) provides for one-month and three-month interest periods, (5) replaces the calculation of the consolidated total net leverage ratio with a consolidated total leverage ratio for purposes of calculating the applicable margin and the financial covenant and (6) replaces the financial covenants under the 2021 Credit Facility (effective as of June 30, 2024) with the following: ​ As of Minimum TTM* EBITDA ($ in millions) Minimum Liquidity ($ in millions) Maximum Consolidated Total Leverage Ratio Minimum Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio June 30, 2024 n/a n/a n/a n/a September 30, 2024 $5.0 $1.5 n/a n/a December 31, 2024 $3.5 $1.5 n/a n/a March 31, 2025 $5.5 $2.0 n/a n/a June 30, 2025 $7.5 $2.0 n/a 1.50 to 1.00 September 30, 2025 n/a $2.0 4.25 to 1.0 1.50 to 1.00 December 31, 2025 n/a $2.0 4.00 to 1.0 1.50 to 1.00 March 31, 2026 n/a $2.0 3.75 to 1.0 1.50 to 1.00 June 30, 2026 n/a $2.0 3.50 to 1.0 1.50 to 1.00 September 30, 2026 n/a $2.0 3.25 to 1.0 1.50 to 1.00 ​ *TTM = Trailing Twelve Months ​ 2023 Revolving Line of Credit - East West Bank On July 7, 2023, the Company entered into a Credit Agreement (as amended, the “Credit Agreement”), with East West Bank (“EWB”), as lender. The Credit Agreement provides for a revolving credit facility in the principal amount of up to $10 million, subject to a borrowing base determined based on eligible accounts, and an up to $5 million uncommitted incremental revolving facility. Loans under the Credit Agreement mature on July 7, 2025 (the “Maturity Date”), unless the Credit Agreement is otherwise terminated pursuant to the terms of the Credit Agreement. Borrowings under the Credit Agreement bear interest at a rate per annum equal to the one-month Term SOFR rate and as determined by EWB on the first day of the applicable interest period, plus 0.10% (10 basis points), plus 3.00% per annum (the “Loan Rate”); provided, that, in no event shall the Loan Rate be less than 0.50% of the Loan Rate effective as of the date of the Credit Agreement nor more than the maximum rate of interest allowed under applicable law. Upon an event of default under the Credit Agreement, the outstanding principal amounts of any advances will accrue interest at a rate per annum equal to the Loan Rate plus five percent (5%), but in no event in excess of the maximum rate of interest allowed under applicable law. At the Company’s option, the Company may at any time prepay the outstanding principal balance of the Credit Agreement in whole or in part, without fee, penalty or premium. All accrued but unpaid interest on outstanding advances under the Credit Agreement are payable in monthly installments on the last day of each monthly interest period until the Maturity Date when the then-outstanding principal balance of the advances and all accrued but unpaid interest thereon 57 Table of Contents becomes due and payable. The obligations under the Credit Agreement are secured by all or substantially all of the borrowers’ assets. Prior to entering into the Third Amendment (as defined below), the Company was required to maintain compliance at all times with the following financial covenants on a consolidated basis: (i) a fixed charge coverage ratio of not less than 1.25 to 1.0, beginning with the fiscal quarter ended on June 30, 2023 and at the end of each fiscal quarter thereafter; (ii) a total funded debt-to-EBITDA ratio of no more than 3.50 to 1.00 as of June 30, 2023 and the last day of each fiscal quarter through December 31, 2023, 3.25 to 1.00 as of March 31, 2024 and the last day of each fiscal quarter through March 31, 2025 and 3.00 to 1.00 as of June 30, 2025 and thereafter through maturity; and (iii) a liquidity covenant requiring the Company to maintain minimum liquid assets at all times (calculated in the manner provided for in the Credit Agreement), in one or more accounts held with EWB plus Revolving Credit Availability in the amount of $1,000,000. Revolving Credit Availability is defined as an amount such that the ratio of the value of eligible accounts to the aggregate amount of all outstanding advances under the credit agreement at such time is not less than 2.0 to 1.0. The Company was in compliance with all the financial covenants under the Credit Agreement as of December 31, 2023. With the Third Amendment, the Company expects to be in compliance with all amended covenants for at least one year from the balance sheet date in this annual report. On October 15, 2024, with an effective date of June 30, 2024, the Company and EWB entered into the Third Amendment to the Credit Agreement (the “Third Amendment”) which, among other things, (1) provides that the Company will make prepayments of the outstanding principal balance of the Credit Agreement of $1.0 million upon execution of the Third Amendment, $1.0 million on or before January 15, 2025 and $2.0 million on or before April 15, 2025, (2) requires the Company to file a registration statement with the SEC to establish an equity line of credit offering on or before October 31, 2024 and to use commercially reasonable efforts to cause such registration statement to become effective, (3) requires the net proceeds of a potential equity line of credit to be applied to the outstanding principal balance under the Credit Agreement in an amount that would cause the ratio of the value of eligible accounts to the aggregate amount of revolving credit advances to be not less than 1.00 to 1.00, (4) requires the consent of EWB prior to the ability of the Company to make certain restricted payments, including cash dividends, (5) requires the Company to make additional prepayments in the amount by which the outstanding loans under the Credit Agreement exceed the borrowing base between the calendar months ending November 30, 2024 and April 15, 2025, and (6) replaces the financial covenants under the Credit Agreement, effective as of June 30, 2024, with the following: As of Minimum TTM (1) EBITDA ($ in millions) Minimum Liquid Assets ($ in millions) Maximum Total Funded Debt to EBITDA Leverage Ratio Minimum Fixed Charge Coverage Ratio Revolving Credit Availability (as of each month end) June 30, 2024 n/a $1.0 n/a n/a n/a September 30, 2024 $5.0 $1.5 n/a n/a n/a December 31, 2024 $3.5 $1.5 n/a n/a 1.0 to 1.0 (2) March 31, 2025 $5.5 $2.0 n/a n/a 1.5 to 1.0 (3) June 30, 2025 $7.5 $2.0 n/a 1.25 to 1.00 2.0 to 1.0 (4) ​ (1) TTM = Trailing Twelve Months (2) Beginning November 30, 2024 (3) Beginning January 31, 2025 (4) Beginning April 15, 2025 ​ The Credit Agreement contains customary representations and warranties and includes affirmative and negative covenants applicable to the borrowers and their respective subsidiaries. The affirmative covenants include, among others, covenants requiring the Company to maintain its legal existence and governmental compliance, deliver certain financial reports and maintain insurance coverage. The negative covenants include, among others, restrictions on indebtedness, liens, investments, mergers, dispositions, prepayment of other indebtedness and dividends and other distributions. 58 Table of Contents The Credit Agreement also includes customary events of default, including, among other things, non-payment defaults, covenant defaults, inaccuracy of representations and warranties, defaults under any of the loan documents, certain cross-defaults to other indebtedness, certain bankruptcy and insolvency events, invalidity of guarantees or grant of security interest, certain ERISA-related transactions and events, certain orders of forfeiture, change of control, certain undischarged attachments, sequestrations, or similar proceedings, and certain undischarged or non-stayed judgments, in certain cases subject to certain thresholds and grace periods. The occurrence of an event of default could result in the acceleration of the obligations under the Credit Agreement of the Company or other borrowers. During the year ended December 31, 2023, the Company incurred $0.3 million of deferred financing costs associated with the Credit Agreement. As of December 31, 2023, there was $3.0 million outstanding under the Credit Agreement. The collateral securing the obligations under the 2021 Credit Facility and the Credit Agreement is subject to intercreditor agreements between Lafayette Square and EWB. Historical Cash Flows: The following table sets forth our cash flows for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Year Ended December 31, ​ 2023 2022 Net cash provided by operating activities ​ $ 2,558 ​ $ 2,064 Net cash used in investing activities ​ ​ (178) ​ (688) Net cash used in financing activities ​ ​ (1,311) ​ (2,013) Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents ​ $ 1,069 ​ $ (637) ​ Our cash and cash equivalents at December 31, 2023 were held for working capital and general corporate purposes. The increase in cash and cash equivalents compared with December 31, 2022, primarily resulted from $2.6 million in cash flows from operating activities partially offset by $0.2 million in cash flows used for investing activities and $1.3 million in cash flows used for financing activities. Operating Activities Cash provided by operating activities has typically been generated from net income and by changes in our operating assets and liabilities, particularly in the areas of accounts receivable and accounts payable and accrued expenses, adjusted for certain non-cash and non-operating expense items such as depreciation, amortization, stock-based compensation and deferred income taxes. In 2023, net cash flows provided by operating activities were $2.6 million and consisted of net loss of $6.8 million, $4.7 million in adjustments for non-cash and non-operating items and $4.7 million of cash inflows from working capital. Adjustments for non-cash and non-operating items mainly consisted of depreciation and amortization expense of $3.0 million, stock-based compensation expense of $0.7 million and $0.6 million of deferred tax expense. The $4.7 million increase in cash resulting from changes in working capital primarily consisted of $16.2 million increase in accounts payable partially offset by an $11.3 million increase in accounts receivable. The increase in accounts receivable and accounts payable is mainly due to growth in the business as well as the $8.8 million non-recurring publisher payment recorded as accounts payable as of December 31, 2023. In 2022, net cash flows provided by operating activities were $2.1 million and consisted of net income of $4.2 million, $3.3 million in adjustments for noncash and non-operating items and $5.4 million of cash flows used for working capital. Adjustments for non-cash and non-operating items primarily consisted of depreciation and amortization expense of $2.7 million, stock-based compensation expense of $0.2 million, loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units of $0.6 million, partially offset by $0.3 million from forgiveness of PPP loan. The $5.2 million decrease in cash resulting from changes in working capital primarily consisted of a $18.5 million increase in accounts receivable partially offset by a $2.6 million increase in accrued expenses such as payroll and payroll 59 Table of Contents related expenses and $11.0 million increase in accounts payable. The increase in accounts receivable and accounts payable is mainly due to the growth in the business. Investing Activities Our investing activities to date have consisted primarily of purchases of software, office furniture and leasehold improvements. In 2023, net cash flows used in investing activities of $0.2 million were primarily related to development of internal-use software. In 2022, net cash flows used in investing activities of $0.7 million were primarily related to acquiring the license to the Company’s proprietary Colossus SSP platform (see Note 10 – Property, equipment and software, net). Financing Activities In 2023, net cash used in financing activities was $1.3 million mainly resulting from $3.2 million of distributions to holders of LLC Units, $3.5 million paid to acquire and redeem warrants, $0.7 million paid on term loan and $0.6 million deferred financing costs partially offset by $3.0 million net draws on the Credit Agreement and $3.6 million proceeds from 2021 Credit Facility utilized for the warrant redemption. In 2022, net cash used in financing activities was $2.0 million mainly resulting from: $1.7 million of distributions to holders of LLC Units, $7.0 million paid to redeem non-participating preferred units, $7.2 million paid to redeem common units, $1.0 million paid on term loan and line of credit partially offset by $11.1 million proceeds from issuance of common stock in the initial public offering and $4.3 million proceeds from the 2021 Credit Facility. Contractual Obligations and Future Cash Requirements As of December 31, 2023, our principal contractual obligations expected to give rise to material cash requirements consist of the 2021 Credit Facility, the Credit Agreement and non-cancelable leases for our various facilities. We anticipate that the future minimum payments related to our current indebtedness over the next five years will be $1.5 million in 2024, $4.5 million in 2025, $25.7 million in 2026, less than $0.1 million in 2027, less than $0.1 million in 2028, and $0.1 million thereafter, assuming we do not refinance our indebtedness, enter into a new revolving credit facility or make any further draws under the revolving facility. The leases will require minimum payments of $0.2 million in 2024, $0.2 million in 2025, $0.2 million in 2026, $0.2 million in 2027, $0.2 million in 2028 and $0.2 million thereafter. As of December 31, 2023, we had cash and cash equivalents of $5.1 million. Based on projections of revenue and operating results in the coming year, the available cash held by the Company and the amounts the Company may borrow under the Credit Agreement, the Company believes that it will have sufficient cash resources to finance its operations and service any maturing debt obligations for at least the next twelve months following the issuance of these financial statements. Non-GAAP Financial Measures In addition to our results determined in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”), including, in particular operating income, net cash provided by operating activities, and net income, we believe that earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, as adjusted for revaluation of tax receivable agreement liability, loss on early termination of line of credit, forgiveness of PPP loan, loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units, and stock-based compensation (“Adjusted EBITDA”), a non-GAAP measure, is useful in evaluating our operating performance. The most directly comparable GAAP measure to Adjusted EBITDA is net income. 60 Table of Contents The following table presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net income for each of the periods presented (in thousands): ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ ​ Year Ended December 31, ​ 2023 2022 Net (loss) income [1] ​ $ (6,844) ​ $ 4,167 Add back (deduct): ​ ​ Interest expense ​ 4,378 ​ 3,231 Amortization of intangible assets ​ 1,954 ​ 1,954 Stock-based compensation ​ ​ 706 ​ ​ 154 Stock-based compensation accrued but not yet granted ​ ​ 1,409 ​ ​ — Depreciation and amortization of property, equipment and software ​ ​ 253 ​ ​ 34 Loss on early termination of line of credit ​ ​ 300 ​ ​ — Income tax expense ​ ​ 568 ​ ​ 326 Revaluation of tax receivable agreement liability ​ ​ (331) ​ ​ — Forgiveness of Paycheck Protection Program loan ​ ​ — ​ ​ (287) Loss on redemption of non-participating preferred units ​ — ​ 590 Adjusted EBITDA ​ $ 2,393 ​ $ 10,169 __________________ [1] During the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, we recorded one-time severance charges of approximately $0.3 million and $0.7 million, respectively. During the year ended December 31, 2023, we recorded a charge in the amount of $8.8 million for payments made in 2024 to a few publishers for which the related sell-side revenue for 2023 was short paid by a sell-side customer. See further discussion in Note 9 – Commitments and Contingencies in the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements. ​ In addition to operating income and net income, we use Adjusted EBITDA as a measure of operational efficiency. We believe that this non-GAAP financial measure is useful to investors for period-to-period comparisons of our business and in understanding and evaluating our operating results for the following reasons: ● Adjusted EBITDA is widely used by investors and securities analysts to measure a company’s operating performance without regard to items such as depreciation and amortization, interest expense, provision for income taxes, stock-based compensation, revaluation of tax receivable agreement liability, and certain one-time items such as acquisition transaction costs, losses from early termination or redemption of credit agreements or preferred units and gains from settlements or loan forgiveness that can vary substantially from company to company depending upon their financing, capital structures and the method by which assets were acquired; ● Our management uses Adjusted EBITDA in conjunction with GAAP financial measures for planning purposes, including the preparation of our annual operating budget, as a measure of operating performance and the effectiveness of our business strategies and in communications with our board of directors concerning our financial performance; and ● Adjusted EBITDA provides consistency and comparability with our past financial performance, facilitates period-to-period comparisons of operations, and also facilitates comparisons with other peer companies, many of which use similar non-GAAP financial measures to supplement their GAAP results. Our use of this non-GAAP financial measure has limitations as an analytical tool, and you should not consider it in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our financial results as reported under GAAP. Critical Accounting Estimates and Related Policies The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities and disclosure of contingent liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from these estimates. The Company bases its estimates on past experiences, market conditions, and other 61 Table of Contents assumptions that the Company believes are reasonable under the circumstances, and the Company evaluates these estimates on an ongoing basis. The Company uses estimates to determine many reported amounts, including but not limited to gross vs net assessment in revenue recognition, recoverability of goodwill and long-lived assets, useful lives used in amortization of intangibles, income taxes and valuation allowances, stock-based compensation and fair values of assets and liabilities acquired in business combinations. Revenue recognition The Company recognizes revenue using the following five steps: 1) identification of a contract with a customer; 2) identification of the performance obligation(s) in the contract; 3) determination of the transaction price; 4) allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligation(s) in the contract; and 5) recognition of revenue when, or as, the performance obligation(s) are satisfied. The Company’s revenues are derived primarily from two sources: sell-side advertising and buy-side advertising. Thus, the Company disaggregates the revenue earned into these two segments. For additional segment disclosures, refer to Note 7 of our consolidated financial statements. The Company maintains agreements with its customers in the form of written service agreements, which set out the terms of the relationship, including payment terms (typically 30 to 90 days) and access to its platform. For the sell-side advertising segment, the Company generates revenue by selling advertising inventory (digital ad units) that the Company purchases from publishers to advertisers through a process of monetizing ad impressions on the Company’s proprietary sell-side programmatic platform operating under the trademarked banner Colossus SSP. For the buy-side advertising segment, the Company generates revenue from customers that enter into agreements with the Company to provide managed advertising campaigns, which include digital marketing and media services to purchase digital advertising space, data and other add-on features. In connection with the Company’s analysis of principal vs agent considerations, the Company has evaluated the specified goods or services and considered whether the Company controls the goods or services before they are provided to the customer, including the three indicators of control. Based upon this analysis and the Company’s specific facts and circumstances, the Company concluded that it is a principal for the goods or services sold through both the Company’s sell-side advertising segment and buy-side segment because the Company controls the specified good or service before it is transferred to the customer and the Company is the primary obligor in the agreement with customers. Therefore, the Company reports revenue on a gross basis inclusive of all supplier costs and pays suppliers for the cost of digital media, advertising inventory, data and any add-on services or features. Sell-side advertising The Company partners with publishers to sell advertising inventory to the Company’s Colossus Media-curated clients and the open markets (collectively referred to as “buyers”) seeking to access the general market as well as unique multi-cultural audiences. The Company generates revenue from the delivery of targeted digital media solutions, enabling advertisers to connect intelligently with their audiences across online display, video, social and mobile mediums using its proprietary programmatic SSP. The Company refers to its publishers, app developers, and channel partners collectively as its “publishers”. The Company generates revenue through the monetization of publisher ad impressions on its platform. The Company’s platform allows the Company to sell, in real time, ad impressions from publishers to buyers and provides automated inventory management and monetization tools to publishers across various device types and digital ad formats. The Company recognizes revenue at a point in time when an ad is delivered or displayed in response to a winning bid request from ad buyers. Buy-side advertising The Company purchases media based on the budget established by its customers with a focus on leveraging data services, customer branding, real-time market analysis and micro-location advertising. The Company offers its services on a fully managed basis, which is recognized over time using the output method when the performance obligation is fulfilled. An “impression” is delivered when an advertisement appears on pages viewed by users. The performance obligation is satisfied over time as the volume of impressions are delivered up to the contractual maximum. Many customers run several different campaigns throughout the year to capitalize on different seasons, special events and other 62 Table of Contents happenings at their respective regions and localities. The Company provides digital advertising and media buying capabilities with a focus on generating measurable digital and financial life for its customers. Revenue arrangements are evidenced by a fully executed insertion order (“IO”) and/or a master service agreement (“MSA”) covering a combination of marketing tactics. Generally, IOs specify the number and type of advertising impressions to be delivered over a specified time at an agreed upon price and performance objectives for an ad campaign. Performance objectives are generally a measure of targeting, as defined by the parties in advance, such as number of ads displayed, consumer clicks on ads or consumer actions (which may include qualified leads, registrations, downloads, inquiries or purchases). These payment models are commonly referred to as CPM (cost per impression), CPC (cost per click) and CPA (cost per action). The majority of the Company’s contracts are flat-rate, fee-based contracts. Cash payments received prior to the Company’s delivery of its services are recorded to deferred revenue until the performance obligation is satisfied. The Company recorded deferred revenue (contract liabilities) to account for billings in excess of revenue recognized, primarily related to contractual minimums billed in advance and customer prepayment, of $0.4 million and $0.5 million as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Revenue recognized during 2023 and 2022 from amounts included within the deferred revenue balances at the beginning of each respective period amounted to $0.5 million and $1.3 million, respectively. ASC 606 provides various optional practical expedients. The Company elected the use of the practical expedient relating to the disclosure of remaining performance obligations within a contract and will not disclose remaining performance obligations for contracts with an original expected duration of one year or less. Goodwill Goodwill is assessed for impairment at least annually (as of December 31) starting with a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit containing goodwill is less than its carrying value. This qualitative assessment may include, but is not limited to, reviewing factors such as macroeconomic conditions, industry and market considerations, cost factors, entity-specific financial performance and other events, such as changes in our management, strategy and primary user base. If the Company determines that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, then a quantitative goodwill impairment analysis is performed. Depending upon the results of the quantitative measurement, the recorded goodwill may be written down and an impairment expense is recorded in the consolidated statements of operations when the carrying amount of the reporting unit exceeds the fair value of the reporting unit. Goodwill is reviewed annually and tested for impairment upon the occurrence of a triggering event. The Company determined that there was no impairment of goodwill during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. Intangible assets, net Intangible assets consist of customer relationships, trademarks and non-compete agreements. Intangible assets are recorded at fair value at the time of their acquisition and are stated within the consolidated balance sheets net of accumulated amortization. Intangible assets are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives and recorded as amortization expense within general and administrative expenses in the consolidated statements of operations. The Company’s intangible assets are being amortized over their estimated useful lives, using the straight-line method with non-compete agreements over 5 years and other intangibles over 10 years. Impairment of long-lived assets The Company evaluates the recoverability of long-lived assets, including property, equipment and software costs and intangible assets if facts or circumstances indicate that any of those assets might be impaired. ASC 360-10-15 requires the Company to group assets and liabilities at the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities and evaluate the asset group against the sum of the undiscounted future cash flows to determine if a write-down to fair value is necessary. No impairment loss was recognized during the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. 63 Table of Contents Stock-based compensation Stock-based compensation cost for options and restricted stock units (“RSU”) awarded to employees and directors is measured at the grant date based on the calculated fair value of the award and is recognized as an expense over the requisite service period (generally the vesting period of the equity grant). Contingently issued awards with a requisite service period that precedes the grant date are measured and recognized at the start of the requisite service period and remeasured each reporting period until the grant date. The Company estimates the fair value of RSU’s based on the closing price of the Company’s common stock on the date of the grant. The Company estimates the fair value of stock options using the Black-Scholes valuation model. Key input assumptions used to estimate the fair value of stock options include the fair value of the Company’s common stock, as well as assumptions regarding the expected common stock price volatility over the term of the stock options, the expected term of the stock options, risk-free interest rates and the expected dividend yield. Given the Company’s short history as a public company, the expected volatility is determined based on the trading history of several unrelated public companies within the industry that the Company considers to be comparable and the expected term is determined based on a combination of terms of the stock options and peer data. The risk-free interest rate is derived using the U.S. Treasury yield curve in effect at date of grant. Other assumptions are based on historical experience and activity. The Company considers an estimated forfeiture rate for stock options based on historical experience and the anticipated forfeiture rates during the future contract life. Income taxes In February 2022, concurrent with its organizational transactions, the Company entered into a tax receivable agreement (“Tax Receivable Agreement” or “TRA”) with DDH LLC and Direct Digital Management, LLC (“DDM”). The TRA provides for certain income (loss) allocations between the Company and DDH LLC under the agreement. DDH LLC is a limited liability company, is treated as a partnership for federal income tax purposes and generally is not subject to any entity-level U.S. federal income tax and certain state and local income taxes. Any taxable income or loss generated by the Company is allocated to holders of LLC units (“LLC Units”) in accordance with the Second Amended and Restated Limited Liability Company Agreement (“LLC Agreement”), and distributions to the owners of LLC Units in an amount sufficient to fund their tax obligations. The Company is subject to U.S. federal income taxes, in addition to state and local income taxes with respect to its allocable share of any taxable income or loss under the LLC Agreement. Pursuant to the Company’s election under Section 754 of the Internal Revenue Code (the “Code”), the Company expects to obtain an increase in its share of the tax basis in the net assets of DDH, LLC when LLC Units are redeemed or exchanged by the members of DDH, LLC. The Company made an election under Section 754 of the Code for each taxable year in which a redemption or exchange of LLC interest occurred. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on differences between financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities and are measured using the enacted tax rates and laws that will be in effect when the differences are expected to reverse. A valuation allowance is established when it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. The establishment of a valuation allowance requires significant judgment and is impacted by various estimates. Both positive and negative evidence, as well as the objectivity and verifiability of that evidence, is considered in determining the appropriateness of recording a valuation allowance on deferred tax assets. Recent Accounting Pronouncements See Note 2 to our consolidated financial statements for accounting pronouncements recently adopted and accounting pronouncements not yet adopted.