ZIFF DAVIS, INC. 10-K

Item 9A. Controls and Procedures Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures The Company maintains disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) under the Exchange Act) that are designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed in the Company’s reports under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized, and reported within the time periods specified in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s rules and forms, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company’s management, including the principal executive officer and the principal financial officer, as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. The Company’s management, with the participation of the Company’s Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, evaluated the effectiveness of the Company’s disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Exchange Act) at the end of the period covered by this Annual Report. Based on that evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer concluded that, as of December 31, 2023, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective. Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting Ziff Davis’ management is responsible for establishing and maintaining adequate internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) for Ziff Davis. In order to evaluate the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, under the supervision and with the participation of our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, we conducted an evaluation of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting using the criteria in Internal Control – Integrated Framework, issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission (“COSO”) using the 2013 framework. Our system of internal control over financial reporting is designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. Based on our evaluation, management concluded that Ziff Davis’s internal control over financial reporting was effective as of December 31, 2023. Our internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2023 have been audited by KPMG LLP, the Company’s independent registered public accounting firm, as stated in their audit report which is included herein. Changes in Internal Control Over Financial Reporting During the quarter ended March 31, 2023, we migrated our Digital Media reportable segment onto the Company’s existing Enterprise Resource Planning (“ERP”) system. Consequently, certain business process controls have been modified to incorporate the controls contained within the ERP system. We do not believe this implementation has had or will have a material adverse effect on our internal control over financial reporting. There have been no changes in our internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rule 13a-15(f) under the Exchange Act) which occurred during the fourth quarter of our fiscal year ended December 31, 2023 that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting. -113- (d) Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm REPORT OF INDEPENDENT REGISTERED PUBLIC ACCOUNTING FIRM To the Stockholders and Board of Directors Ziff Davis, Inc.: Opinion on Internal Control over Financial Reporting We have audited Ziff Davis, Inc. and subsidiaries' (the Company) internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2023, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. In our opinion, the Company maintained, in all material respects, effective internal control over financial reporting as of December 31, 2023, based on criteria established in Internal Control - Integrated Framework (2013) issued by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission. We also have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (United States) (PCAOB), the consolidated balance sheet of the Company as of December 31, 2023, the related consolidated statement of operations, comprehensive income, cash flows, and stockholders' equity for the year then ended, and the related notes (collectively, the consolidated financial statements), and our report dated February 26, 2024 expressed an unqualified opinion on those consolidated financial statements. Basis for Opinion The Company’s management is responsible for maintaining effective internal control over financial reporting and for its assessment of the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting, included in the accompanying Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control over Financial Reporting. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on the Company’s internal control over financial reporting based on our audit. We are a public accounting firm registered with the PCAOB and are required to be independent with respect to the Company in accordance with the U.S. federal securities laws and the applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the PCAOB. We conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the PCAOB. Those standards require that we plan and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether effective internal control over financial reporting was maintained in all material respects. Our audit of internal control over financial reporting included obtaining an understanding of internal control over financial reporting, assessing the risk that a material weakness exists, and testing and evaluating the design and operating effectiveness of internal control based on the assessed risk. Our audit also included performing such other procedures as we considered necessary in the circumstances. We believe that our audit provides a reasonable basis for our opinion. Definition and Limitations of Internal Control Over Financial Reporting A company’s internal control over financial reporting is a process designed to provide reasonable assurance regarding the reliability of financial reporting and the preparation of financial statements for external purposes in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles. A company’s internal control over financial reporting includes those policies and procedures that (1) pertain to the maintenance of records that, in reasonable detail, accurately and fairly reflect the transactions and dispositions of the assets of the company; (2) provide reasonable assurance that transactions are recorded as necessary to permit preparation of financial statements in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles, and that receipts and expenditures of the company are being made only in accordance with authorizations of management and directors of the company; and (3) provide reasonable assurance regarding prevention or timely detection of unauthorized acquisition, use, or disposition of the company’s assets that could have a material effect on the financial statements. Because of its inherent limitations, internal control over financial reporting may not prevent or detect misstatements. Also, projections of any evaluation of effectiveness to future periods are subject to the risk that controls may become inadequate because of changes in conditions, or that the degree of compliance with the policies or procedures may deteriorate. /s/ KPMG, LLP New York, New York February 26, 2024 -114- Item 9B. Other Information During the quarter ended December 31, 2023, no director or officer of the Company adopted or terminated a “Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement” or “non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangement”, as each term is defined in Item 408(a) of Regulation S-K. Certain of our officers have made elections to participate in, and are participating in, our employee stock purchase plan and 401(k) plan and have made, and may from time to time make, elections to have shares withheld to cover withholding taxes or pay the exercise price of options, which may be designed to satisfy the affirmative defense conditions of Rule 10b5-1 under the Exchange Act or may constitute non-Rule 10b5-1 trading arrangements (as defined in Item 408(c) of Regulation S-K). Item 9C. Disclosure Regarding Foreign Jurisdictions that Prevent Inspections Not applicable. PART III Items 10-14 Information required under Item 10., Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance, Item 11., Executive Compensation, Item 12., Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related Stockholder Matters, Item 13., Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence and Item 14., Principal Accountant Fees and Services, is hereby incorporated by reference to the information to be set forth in our definitive proxy statement for the 2024 annual meeting of stockholders to be filed with the SEC within 120 days after the end of our fiscal year ended December 31, 2023. PART IV Item 15. Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules (a) (1) Financial Statements . The following financial statements are filed as a part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K: Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (BDO USA, P.C.; Los Angeles, California; PCAOB ID # 243 ) Report of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm (KPMG, LLP; New York, New York; PCAOB ID # 185 ) Consolidated Balance Sheets Consolidated Statements of Operations Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements (a) (2) Financial Statement Schedules. Financial statement schedules are omitted because they are not required or the required information is shown in the financial statements or notes thereto. (a) (3) Exhibits. The following exhibits are filed with this Annual Report on Form 10-K or are incorporated herein by reference as indicated below (numbered in accordance with Item 601 of Regulation S-K). We shall furnish copies of exhibits for a reasonable fee (covering the expense of furnishing copies) upon request. Exhibit No. Exhibit Title 2.1 Separation and Distribution Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2021, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 2.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 3.1 Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of J2 Global, Inc., dated as of June 10, 2014 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 10, 2014 (File No. 0-25965)) 3.2 Amendment to the Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of J2 Global, Inc., dated as of September 5, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Commission on November 1, 2019 (File 0-25965)) -115- 3.3 Certificate of Amendment to Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation of Ziff Davis, Inc. dated as of October 7, 2021 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 3.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 3.4 S ixth Amended and Restated By-Laws 4.1 Specimen of Common Stock Certificate (Incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1.2 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on December 7, 2011 (File No. 0-25965)) 4.2 Indenture, dated as of June 10, 2014 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to Ziff Davis’ Registration Statement on Form S-3ASR filed on June 10, 2014, Registration No. 333-196640 (File No. 0-25965)) 4.4 First Supplemental Indenture, dated as of June 17, 2014 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.2 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 17, 2014 (File No. 0-25965)) 4. 5 Indenture, dated as of November 15, 2019 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on November 15, 2019 (File No. 0-25965)) 4.6 Description of Registered Securities (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.5 to Ziff Davis’ Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 2, 2020 (File No. 0-25965)) 4.7 Indenture, dated as of October 7, 2020 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 4.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 7, 2020 (File No. 0-25965)) 4.8 Form of Waiver Regarding Restricted Stock Agreements (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 10-Q filed on August 10, 2020 (File No. 0-25965) 10. 1 J2 Global, Inc. 2015 Stock Option Plan (incorporated by reference to Annex A to Ziff Davis’ Definitive Proxy Statement on Schedule 14A filed on March 26, 2015 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 2 Form of Restricted Stock Agreement Pursuant to J2 Global, Inc. 2015 Stock Option Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on May 10, 2021 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 3 Form of Restricted Stock Unit Agreement Pursuant to J2 Global, Inc. 2015 Stock Option Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on May 10, 2021 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 4 Form of Performance Stock Unit Agreement Pursuant to J2 Global, Inc. 2015 Stock Option Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on May 10, 2021 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 5 Amended and Restated J2 Global, Inc. 2001 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (incorporated by reference to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed with the Commission on May 3, 2006 File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 6 Amendment to Amended and Restated J2 Global, Inc. 2001 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on February 8, 2018 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 7 Employment Agreement between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Vivek Shah, effective as of June 13, 2022 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 15, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10. 8 Employment Agreement between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Bret Richter, effective as of June 13, 2022 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 15, 2022 (File No. 0-25965))* 10. 9 Employment Agreement between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Jeremy D. Rossen, effective as of June 13, 2022 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on June 15, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10.1 0 Employment Agreement between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Layth Taki, effective as of September 27, 2022 (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on From 10-Q filed on November 9, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) * 10.1 1 Second Amended and Restated Limited Partnership Agreement, dated as of January 19, 2018, by and among OCV I GP, LLC and J2 Global, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.9 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 10-K filed on March 1, 2018 (File No. 0-25965)) 10.1 2 Credit Agreement, dated as of April 7, 2021, among J2 Global, Inc., the Lenders from time to time party thereto and MUFG Union Bank, N.A., as Administrative Agent and Collateral Agent (incorporated by r eference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on August 9, 2021 (File No. 0-25965)) 10.1 3 First Amendment to Credit Agreement, dated as of June 2, 2021, by and among J2 Global, Inc., the subsidiaries of J2 Global, Inc. party thereto as guarantors, Citicorp North America Inc. and MUFG (4) Union Bank, N.A., as lenders, and MUFG Union Bank, N.A., as administrative agent for the lenders (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on August 9, 2021 (File No. 0-25965)) -116- 10.1 4 Second, Third and Fourth Amendments to Credit Agreement by and among J2 Global, Inc., the subsidiaries of J2 Global, Inc. party thereto as guarantors, Citicorp North America Inc. and MUFG Union Bank, N.A., as lenders, and MUFG Union Bank, N.A., as administrative agent for the lenders. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on September 22, 2021 (File No. 0-25965)) 10.1 5 Fifth Amendment to the Credit Agreement, dated as of June 10, 2022, among Ziff Davis, Inc., the Guarantors, the lenders party to Amendment constituting Required Lender and all of the Term Lenders and MUFG UNION BANK, N.A. as administrative agent for the Lenders (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on August 9, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) 10.1 6 Sixth Amendment to Credit Agreement, dated as of September 15, 2022, among Ziff Davis, Inc., the Guarantors, the lenders party to Amendment constituting Required Lenders and all of the Term Loan Two Lenders and MUFG UNION BANK, N. A., as administrative agent for the Lenders (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to Ziff Davis’ Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q filed on November 9, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) 10.1 7 Transition Services Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2021, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 10. 1 8 First Amendment to Transition Services Agreement, dated as of October 6, 2022, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, In c . (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10. 20 to Ziff Davis’ Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 1 , 202 3 (File No. 0-25965) ) 10. 19 Second Amendment to Transition Services Agreement, dated as of January 3, 2023, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 1 to Ziff Davis’ Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 1, 2023 (File No. 0-25965)) 10.2 0 Tax Matters Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2021, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.2 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 10.2 1 Employee Matters Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2021, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.3 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 10. 2 2 Intellectual Property License Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2021, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.4 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 10. 2 3 Stockholder and Registration Rights Agreement, dated as of October 7, 2021, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Consensus Cloud Solutions, Inc. (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.5 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on October 8, 2021. (File No. 0-25965)) 10. 2 4 Stipulation of Settlement and Amendment No. 1 to the Second Amended and Restated Limited Partnership Agreement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.15 to Ziff Davis’ Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 15, 2022 (File No. 0-25965) ) 10. 2 5 Order Approving Stipulated Settlement (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.16 to Ziff Davis’ Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on March 15, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) 10. 2 6 Termination Agreement, dated April 25, 2022, by and between Ziff Davis, Inc. and Orchard Capital Corporation (incorporated by reference to Exhibit 10.1 to Ziff Davis’ Current Report on Form 8-K filed on April 25, 2022 (File No. 0-25965)) 21.1 List of subsidiaries of Ziff Davis, Inc. 23.1 Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm – KPMG , LLP 23. 2 Consent of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm – BDO USA, P. C. 31.1 Certification by Principal Executive Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 31.2 Certification by Principal Financial Officer pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 32.1 Certification of Principal Executive Officer and Principal Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 9 7.1 Ziff Davis, Inc. Clawback Policy 101.INS XBRL Instance Document 101.SCH XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document 101.CAL XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document 101.DEF XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document 101.LAB XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document 101.PRE XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document 104 Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101) -117- * A management or compensatory plan or arrangement required to be filed as an exhibit to this report pursuant to Item 15(b) of Form 10-K. ** This instance document does not appear in the interactive data file because its XBRL tags are embedded within the inline XBRL document. Item 16. Form 10-K Summary None. -118- SIGNATURE Pursuant to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized, on February 26, 2024. Ziff Davis, Inc. By: /s/ VIVEK SHAH Vivek Shah Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, this report has been signed below by the following persons on behalf of the Registrant and in the capacities and on the dates indicated. Signature Title Date /s/ VIVEK SHAH Chief Executive Officer and a Director February 26, 2024 Vivek Shah (Principal Executive Officer) /s/ BRET RICHTER Chief Financial Officer February 26, 2024 Bret Richter (Principal Financial Officer) /s/ LAYTH TAKI Chief Accounting Officer February 26, 2024 Layth Taki /s/ SARAH FAY Director February 26, 2024 Sarah Fay /s/ JANA BARSTEN Director February 26, 2024 Jana Barsten /s/ TRACE HARRIS Director February 26, 2024 Trace Harris /s/ WILLIAM B. KRETZMER Director February 26, 2024 William B. Kretzmer /s/ KIRK MCDONALD Director February 26, 2024 Kirk McDonald /s/ SCOTT C. TAYLOR Director February 26, 2024 Scott C. Taylor /s/ NEVILLE R. RAY Director February 26, 2024 Neville R. Ray -119-