UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D.C. 20549

 

FORM 10-K

 

[X]          Annual report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015, or

[  ]           Transition report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934

                For the transition period from ________ to _________.

 

Commission File Number 1-32663

 

CLEAR CHANNEL OUTDOOR HOLDINGS, INC.

(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

(210) 832-3700

 (Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)

 

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:

  

Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act:  None

 

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined in Rule 405 of the Securities Act.  YES [  ]  NO  [X]

Indicate by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Exchange Act.  YES [ ]  NO [X]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. YES [X] NO [ ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files).YES [X] NO [  ]

Indicate by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to this Form 10-K.  [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company.  See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.  Large accelerated filer [  ] Accelerated filer [X] Non-accelerated filer [] Smaller reporting company [  ]

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Exchange Act Rule 12b-2).  YES [  ] NO [X]

As of June 30, 2015, the aggregate market value of the common stock beneficially held by non-affiliates of the registrant was approximately $425.4 million based on the closing sales price of the Class A common stock as reported on the New York Stock Exchange.

 

On February 22, 2016, there were 46,540,727 outstanding shares of Class A common stock (excluding 333,865 shares held in treasury) and 315,000,000 outstanding shares of Class B common stock.

 

DOCUMENTS INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE

Portions of our Definitive Proxy Statement for the 2016 Annual Meeting, expected to be filed within 120 days of our fiscal year end, are incorporated by reference into Part III.

CLEAR CHANNEL OUTDOOR HOLDINGS, INC.

INDEX TO FORM 10-K

Page

Number

PART I

 

Item 1.         Business....................................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

 

Item 1A.      Risk Factors.............................................................................................................................................................................................. 10

 

Item 1B.      Unresolved Staff Comments................................................................................................................................................................. 22

 

Item 2.         Properties................................................................................................................................................................................................... 22

 

Item 3.         Legal Proceedings.................................................................................................................................................................................... 22

 

Item 4.         Mine Safety Disclosures......................................................................................................................................................................... 22

 

PART II

 

Item 5.         Market for Registrant’s Common Equity, Related Stockholder Matters and Issuer Purchases  

                       of Equity Securities................................................................................................................................................................................. 25

 

Item 6.         Selected Financial Data.......................................................................................................................................................................... 27

 

Item 7.         Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations................................................... 29

 

Item 7A.      Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk ....................................................................................................... 54

 

Item 8.         Financial Statements and Supplementary Data ............................................................................................................................... 55

 

Item 9.         Changes in and Disagreements with Accountants on Accounting and Financial Disclosure.................................................... 96

 

Item 9A.      Controls and Procedures........................................................................................................................................................................ 96

 

Item 9B.      Other Information................................................................................................................................................................................... 98

 

PART III

 

Item 10.       Directors, Executive Officers and Corporate Governance............................................................................................................... 99

 

Item 11.       Executive Compensation.................................................................................................................................................................... 100

 

Item 12.       Security Ownership of Certain Beneficial Owners and Management and Related  

                       Stockholder Matters............................................................................................................................................................................. 101

 

Item 13.       Certain Relationships and Related Transactions, and Director Independence......................................................................... 102

 

Item 14.       Principal Accounting Fees and Services............................................................................................................................................ 103

 

PART IV

 

Item 15.       Exhibits and Financial Statement Schedules................................................................................................................................... 104

 

PART I

ITEM 1.  Business

The Company

Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. (“the Company”), a Delaware corporation, provides clients with advertising opportunities through billboards, street furniture displays, transit displays and other out-of-home advertising displays, such as wallscapes and spectaculars, which we own or operate in key markets worldwide.  Our business consists of two reportable operating segments:  Americas and International.  As of December 31, 2015, we owned or operated more than 650,000 advertising displays worldwide.  For the year ended December 31, 2015, we generated consolidated revenue of approximately $2.8 billion, with $1.3 billion and $1.5 billion from our Americas and International segments, respectively.

 

Our History

We were incorporated in August 1995 under the name “Eller Media Company.”  In 1997, Clear Channel Communications, Inc., now iHeartCommunications, Inc. (“iHeartCommunications”), our parent company, entered the outdoor advertising industry with its acquisition of Eller Media Company.  We changed our name to Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. in August 2005.

 

On November 11, 2005, we became a publicly traded company through an initial public offering, or IPO, in which we sold 10%, or 35.0 million shares, of our Class A common stock.  Prior to our IPO, we were an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of iHeartCommunications.  As of December 31, 2015, iHeartCommunications, through its subsidiaries, owned all of our outstanding shares of Class B common stock and 10,726,917 shares of our Class A common stock, collectively representing approximately 90% of the outstanding shares of our common stock and approximately 99% of the total voting power of our common stock.

 

Prior to or at the time of our IPO, we entered into agreements with iHeartCommunications that govern the relationship between iHeartCommunications and us and provide for, among other things, the provision of services by iHeartCommunications to us and the allocation of employee benefit, tax and other liabilities and obligations attributable to our operations.  These agreements include the Master Agreement, Corporate Services Agreement, Employee Matters Agreement, Tax Matters Agreement and Trademark License Agreement.  All of the agreements relating to our ongoing relationship with iHeartCommunications were made in the context of a parent-subsidiary relationship and the terms of these agreements may be more or less favorable to us than if they had been negotiated with unaffiliated third parties.

 

iHeartCommunications has the right to terminate these agreements in various circumstances.  As of the date of the filing of this report, no notice of termination of any of these agreements has been received from iHeartCommunications.

 

As long as iHeartCommunications continues to own shares of our common stock representing more than 50% of the total voting power of our common stock, it will have the ability to direct the election of all members of our Board of Directors and, therefore, to exercise a controlling influence over our business and affairs, including any determinations with respect to mergers or other business combinations, our acquisition or disposition of assets, our incurrence of indebtedness, our issuance of any additional common stock or other equity securities, our repurchase or redemption of common stock or any preferred stock, if applicable, and our payment of dividends in certain situations.  Similarly, iHeartCommunications will have the power to determine the outcome of matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders, including the power to prevent an acquisition or any other change in control, and to take other actions that might be favorable to iHeartCommunications.

 

On July 30, 2008, iHeartCommunications completed its merger with a subsidiary of CC Media Holdings, Inc., now iHeartMedia, Inc. (“iHeartMedia”), a company formed by a group of private equity funds sponsored by Bain Capital Partners, LLC and Thomas H. Lee Partners, L.P.  iHeartCommunications is now owned indirectly by iHeartMedia.

 

Our corporate headquarters are in San Antonio, Texas and we have executive offices in New York, New York. Our headquarters are located at 200 East Basse Road, Suite 100, San Antonio, Texas 78209 (telephone: 210-822-2828).

 

Our Business Segments

We have two reportable business segments, Americas outdoor advertising (“Americas”) and International outdoor advertising (“International”), which represented 48% and 52% of our 2015 revenue, respectively.

 

We are a leading global outdoor advertising company providing clients with advertising opportunities through billboards, street furniture displays, transit displays and other out-of-home advertising displays. Through our extensive display inventory, we have the ability to deliver innovative, effective marketing campaigns for advertisers and marketing, creative and strategic partners in  

communities across the Americas and internationally.

 

We focus on building the leadership position of our diverse global assets and maximizing our financial performance while serving our local communities.  We intend to continue to execute upon our long-standing outdoor advertising strategies, while closely managing expenses and focusing on achieving operating efficiencies throughout our businesses.  Part of our long-term strategy is to pursue the technology of digital displays, including flat screens, LCDs and LEDs, as additions to traditional methods of displaying our clients’ advertisements.  We are currently installing these technologies in certain markets, both domestically and internationally.

 

For more information about our revenue, gross profit and assets by segment and our revenue and long-lived assets by geographic area, see Note 12 to our Consolidated Financial Statements located in Item 8 of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

Americas Outdoor Advertising

We are one of the largest outdoor advertising companies in North America (based on revenues), which includes the United States, Canada and Latin America.  Approximately 90% of our revenue in our Americas segment was derived from the United States in each of the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013.  As of December 31, 2015, we owned or operated approximately 107,000 display structures in our Americas segment with operations in 44 of the 50 largest markets in the United States, including all of the 20 largest markets.

 

In the first quarter of 2016, Americas outdoor sold nine non-strategic outdoor markets including Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio, Des Moines, Iowa, Ft. Smith, Arkansas, Memphis, Tennessee, Portland, Oregon, Reno, Nevada, Seattle, Washington and Wichita, Kansas for approximately $602 million in cash and certain advertising assets in Florida.

 

Our Americas assets consist of traditional and digital billboards, street furniture and transit displays, airport displays, and wallscapes and other spectaculars, which we own or operate under lease management agreements. Our Americas business is focused on metropolitan areas with dense populations.

 

Strategy

We seek to capitalize on our Americas network and diversified product mix to maximize revenue. In addition, by sharing best practices among our business segments, we believe we can quickly and effectively replicate our successes in our other markets.  Our strategy focuses on pursuing the technology of digital displays, as well as leveraging our diversified product mix and long-standing presence in many of our existing markets, which provides us with the ability to launch new products and test new initiatives in a reliable and cost-effective manner.

 

Promote Outdoor Media Spending.  Given the attractive industry fundamentals of outdoor media and our depth and breadth of relationships with both local and national advertisers, we believe we can drive outdoor advertising's share of total media spending by using our dedicated national sales team to highlight the value of outdoor advertising relative to other media.  Outdoor advertising only represented 4% of total dollars spent on advertising in the United States in 2015. We have made and continue to make significant investments in research tools that enable our clients to better understand how our displays can successfully reach their target audiences and promote their advertising campaigns. Also, we are working closely with clients, advertising agencies and other diversified media companies to develop more sophisticated systems that will provide improved audience metrics for outdoor advertising.

 

Continue to Deploy Digital Displays.  Our long-term strategy for our outdoor advertising businesses includes pursuing the technology of digital displays, including flat screens, LCDs and LEDs, as additions to traditional methods of displaying our clients’ advertisements. Digital outdoor advertising provides significant advantages over traditional outdoor media. Our electronic displays are linked through centralized computer systems to instantaneously and simultaneously change advertising copy on a large number of displays, allowing us to sell more advertising opportunities to advertisers. The ability to change copy by time of day and quickly change messaging based on advertisers’ needs creates additional flexibility for our customers. Although digital displays require more capital to construct compared to traditional bulletins, the advantages of digital allow us to penetrate new accounts and categories of advertisers, as well as serve a broader set of needs for existing advertisers. Digital displays allow for high-frequency, 24-hour advertising changes in high-traffic locations and allow us to offer our clients optimal flexibility, distribution, circulation and visibility. We expect this trend to continue as we increase our quantity of digital inventory. As of December 31, 2015, we had deployed more than 1,200 digital billboards in 37 markets in the United States.

 

Sources of Revenue

Americas generated 48%, 46% and 47% of our revenue in 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.  Americas revenue is derived from the sale of advertising copy placed on our traditional and digital displays.  Our display inventory consists primarily of billboards,

street furniture displays and transit displays.  The margins on our billboard contracts, including those related to digital billboards, tend to be higher than those on contracts for other displays, due to their greater size, impact and location along major roadways that are highly trafficked.  Billboards comprise approximately two-thirds of our display revenues.  The following table shows the approximate percentage of revenue derived from each category for our Americas inventory:

 

 

Our Americas segment generates revenues from local and national sales.  Our advertising rates are based on a number of different factors including location, competition, size of display, illumination, market and gross ratings points.  Gross ratings points are the total number of impressions delivered, expressed as a percentage of a market population, of a display or group of displays.  The number of impressions delivered by a display is measured by the number of people passing the site during a defined period of time.  For all of our billboards in the United States, we use independent, third-party auditing companies to verify the number of impressions delivered by a display.

 

While location, price and availability of displays are important competitive factors, we believe that providing quality customer service and establishing strong client relationships are also critical components of sales.  In addition, we have long-standing relationships with a diversified group of advertising brands and agencies that allow us to diversify client accounts and establish continuing revenue streams.

 

Billboards

Our billboard inventory primarily includes bulletins and posters.

 

·         Bulletins.   Bulletins vary in size, with the most common size being 14 feet high by 48 feet wide.  Digital bulletins display static messages that resemble standard printed bulletins when viewed, but also allow advertisers to change messages throughout the course of a day, and may display advertisements for multiple customers.  Our electronic displays are linked through centralized computer systems to instantaneously and simultaneously change advertising copy as needed.  Because of their greater size, impact, high-frequency and 24-hour advertising changes, we typically receive our highest rates for digital bulletins.  Almost all of the advertising copy displayed on traditional bulletins is computer printed on vinyl and transported to the bulletin where it is secured to the display surface.  Bulletins generally are located along major expressways, primary commuting routes and main intersections that are highly visible and heavily trafficked.  Our clients may contract for individual bulletins or a network of bulletins, meaning the clients’ advertisements are rotated among bulletins to increase the reach of the campaign.  Our client contracts for bulletins, either traditional or digital, generally have terms ranging from four weeks to one year.

·         Posters.   Traditional posters are approximately 11 feet high by 23 feet wide, and the traditional junior posters are approximately 5 feet high by 11 feet wide.  Digital posters are available in addition to the traditional poster-size and junior poster-size.  Similar to digital bulletins, digital posters display static messages that resemble standard printed posters when viewed, and are linked through centralized computer systems to instantaneously and simultaneously change messages throughout the course of a day.  Advertising copy for traditional posters is digitally printed on a single piece of polyethylene material that is then transported and secured to the poster surfaces.  Advertising copy for traditional junior posters is printed using silk screen, lithographic or digital process to transfer the designs onto paper that is then transported and secured to the poster surfaces.  Posters generally are located in commercial areas on primary and secondary routes near point-of-purchase locations, facilitating advertising campaigns with greater demographic targeting than those displayed on bulletins.  Our poster rates typically are less than our bulletin rates, and our client contracts for posters generally have terms ranging from four weeks to one year.  Premiere displays, which consist of premiere panels and squares, are innovative hybrids between bulletins and posters that we developed to provide our clients with an

alternative for their targeted marketing campaigns.  The premiere displays use one or more poster panels, but with vinyl advertising stretched over the panels similar to bulletins.  Our intent is to combine the creative impact of bulletins with the additional reach and frequency of posters.

 

Street Furniture Displays

Our street furniture displays include advertising surfaces on bus shelters, information kiosks, freestanding units and other public structures, are available in both traditional and digital formats, and are primarily located in major metropolitan areas and along major commuting routes.  Generally, we are responsible for the construction and maintenance of street furniture structures.  Contracts for the right to place our street furniture displays in the public domain and sell advertising space on them are awarded by municipal and transit authorities in competitive bidding processes governed by local law.  Generally, these contracts have terms ranging from 10 to 20 years.  As compensation for the right to sell advertising space on our street furniture structures, we pay the municipality or transit authority a fee or revenue share that is either a fixed amount or a percentage of the revenue derived from the street furniture displays.  Typically, these revenue sharing arrangements include payments by us of minimum guaranteed amounts.  Client contracts for street furniture displays typically have terms ranging from four weeks to one year, and are typically for network packages of multiple street furniture displays.

 

Transit Displays

Our transit displays are advertising surfaces on various types of vehicles or within transit systems, including on the interior and exterior sides of buses, trains, trams, and within the common areas of rail stations and airports, and are available in both traditional and digital formats.  Similar to street furniture, contracts for the right to place our displays on such vehicles or within such transit systems and to sell advertising space on them generally are awarded by public transit authorities in competitive bidding processes or are negotiated with private transit operators.  Generally, these contracts have terms ranging from five to ten years.  Our client contracts for transit displays generally have terms ranging from four weeks to one year.

 

Other Displays

The balance of our display inventory consists of spectaculars and wallscapes.  Spectaculars are customized display structures that often incorporate video, multidimensional lettering and figures, mechanical devices and moving parts and other embellishments to create special effects.  The majority of our spectaculars are located in Los Angeles, San Francisco, Times Square in New York City and the Gardiner Expressway in Toronto.  Client contracts for spectaculars typically have terms of one year or longer.  A wallscape is a display that drapes over or is suspended from the sides of buildings or other structures.  Generally, wallscapes are located in high-profile areas where other types of outdoor advertising displays are limited or unavailable.  Clients typically contract for individual wallscapes for extended terms. 

 

Advertising Inventory and Markets

As of December 31, 2015, we owned or operated approximately 107,000 display structures in our Americas segment with operations in 44 of the 50 largest markets in the United States, including all of the 20 largest markets.  Therefore, no one property is material to our overall operations.  We believe that our properties are in good condition and suitable for our operations.

 

In the first quarter of 2016, we sold our business in nine non-strategic markets.

 

Our displays are located on owned land, leased land or land for which we have acquired permanent easements.  The majority of the advertising structures on which our displays are mounted require permits.  Permits are granted for the right to operate an advertising structure as long as the structure is used in compliance with the laws and regulations of the applicable jurisdiction.

 

Production

In a majority of our markets, our local production staff performs the full range of activities required to create and install advertising copy.  Production work includes creating the advertising copy design and layout, coordinating its printing and installing the copy on displays.  We provide creative services to smaller advertisers and to advertisers not represented by advertising agencies.  National advertisers often use preprinted designs that require only installation.  Our creative and production personnel typically develop new designs or adopt copy from other media for use on our inventory.  Our creative staff also can assist in the development of marketing presentations, demonstrations and strategies to attract new clients.

 

Construction and Operation

We typically own the physical structures on which our clients’ advertising copy is displayed.  We build some of the structures at our billboard fabrication business in Illinois and erect them on sites we either lease or own or for which we have acquired

permanent easements.  The site lease terms generally range from one to 20 years.  In addition to the site lease, we must obtain a permit to build the sign.  Permits are typically issued in perpetuity by the state or local government and typically are transferable or renewable for a minimal, or no, fee.  Traditional bulletin and poster advertising copy is either printed with computer generated graphics on a single sheet of vinyl or placed on lithographed or silk-screened paper sheets supplied by the advertiser.  These advertisements are then transported to the site and in the case of vinyl, wrapped around the face of the site, and in the case of paper, pasted and applied like wallpaper to the site.  The operational process also includes conducting visual inspections of the inventory for display defects and taking the necessary corrective action within a reasonable period of time.

 

Client Categories

In 2015, the top five client categories in our Americas segment were retail, business services, media, healthcare and medical, and banking and financial services.

 

Competition

The outdoor advertising industry in the Americas is fragmented, consisting of several large companies involved in outdoor advertising, such as OUTFRONT Media Inc. and Lamar Advertising Company, as well as  numerous smaller and local companies operating a limited number of displays in a single market or a few local markets.  We also compete with other advertising media in our respective markets, including broadcast and cable television, radio, print media, direct mail, online and other forms of advertisement. Outdoor advertising companies compete primarily based on ability to reach consumers, which is driven by location of the display.

 

International Outdoor Advertising

Our International segment includes our operations in Europe, Asia and Australia, with approximately 34%, 35% and 35% of our revenue in this segment derived from France and the United Kingdom for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013.  As of December 31, 2015, we owned or operated more than 540,000 displays across 22 countries.

 

Our International assets consist of street furniture and transit displays, billboards, mall displays, SmartBike programs, wallscapes and other spectaculars, which we own or operate under lease agreements.  Our International business is focused on densely populated metropolitan areas.

 

Strategy

Similar to our Americas business, we believe our International business has attractive industry fundamentals, including the ability to reach a broad audience and drive foot traffic to the point-of-sale, making outdoor a cost-effective medium for advertisers as measured by cost per thousand persons reached compared to other traditional media.  Our International business focuses on the following strategies:

 

Promote Overall Outdoor Media Spending.  Our strategy is to promote growth in outdoor advertising’s share of total media spending by demonstrating the strength of our medium.  As part of this effort, we are focusing on developing and implementing improved outdoor audience delivery measurement systems to provide advertisers with tools to plan their campaigns and determine how effectively their message is reaching the desired audience.

 

Differentiate on Sales and Marketing. Over the past five years, we have spent time and resources building commercial capabilities through a company wide sales force effectiveness program and an upgrade in our sales and marketing talent. These capabilities allow us to build and nurture relationships with our clients and their agencies as well as to offer packages and products that meet our clients’ advertising needs. Going forward, particular areas of focus include pricing, packaging and programmatic selling.

 

Capitalize on Product and Geographic Opportunities.  We are also focused on growing our relevance to our advertising customers by continuously optimizing our display portfolio and targeting investments in promising market segments. We have continued to innovate and introduce new products in our markets based on local demand. Our street furniture business generates the largest portion of our revenue and that is where we plan to focus much of our investment. We plan to continue to evaluate municipal contracts that may come up for bid and will make prudent investments where we believe we can generate attractive returns.

 

Continue to Deploy Digital Display Networks.  Our digital outdoor displays are a dynamic medium, which enables our customers to engage in real-time, tactical, topical and flexible advertising. We will continue our focused and dedicated digital strategy and remain committed to the development of digital out-of-home communication solutions. Through our digital brand, Clear Channel Play, we are able to offer networks of digital displays in multiple formats and multiple environments including bus shelters, billboards, airports, transit, malls and flagship locations. Part of our long-term strategy is to pursue the diversification of our product offering by introducing novel technologies, such as beacons, small cells, wayfinding stations and provision of wifi in our street furniture network,

as additions to traditional methods of displaying our clients’ advertisements. We are currently installing these technologies in some of our various markets. We seek to achieve greater consumer engagement and flexibility by delivering powerful, flexible and interactive campaigns that open up new possibilities for advertisers to engage with their target audiences. We had more than 6,600 digital displays in 19 countries across Europe, Asia and Australia as of December 31, 2015.

 

Sources of Revenue

Our International segment generated 52%, 54% and 53% of our revenue in 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.  Our International display inventory consists primarily of street furniture displays, billboards, transit displays and other out-of-home advertising displays. The following table shows the approximate percentage of revenue derived from each inventory category of our International segment:

 

 

⁽¹⁾     Includes advertising revenue from mall displays, other small displays, and non-advertising revenue from sales of street furniture equipment, cleaning and maintenance services, operation of SmartBike programs and production revenue.

  

 

Our International segment generates the majority of its revenue from the sale of advertising space on street furniture displays, billboards, retail displays and transit displays. Similar to our Americas business, advertising rates generally are based on the gross ratings points of a display or group of displays. In some of the countries where we have operations, the number of impressions delivered by a display is weighted to account for such factors as illumination, proximity to other displays and the speed and viewing angle of approaching traffic.

 

While location, price and availability of displays are important competitive factors, we believe that providing quality customer service and establishing strong client relationships are also critical components of sales.  Our entrepreneurial culture allows local management to operate their markets as separate profit centers, encouraging customer cultivation and service.

 

Street Furniture Displays

Our International street furniture displays, available in traditional and digital formats, are substantially similar to their Americas street furniture counterparts, and include bus shelters, freestanding units, various types of kiosks, benches and other public structures.  Internationally, contracts with municipal and transit authorities for the right to place our street furniture in the public domain and sell advertising on such street furniture typically provide for terms ranging from two to 15 years. The major difference between our International and Americas street furniture businesses is in the nature of the municipal contracts.  In our International outdoor business, these contracts typically require us to provide the municipality with a broader range of metropolitan amenities such as bus shelters with or without advertising panels, information kiosks and public wastebaskets, as well as space for the municipality to display maps or other public information.  In exchange for providing such metropolitan amenities and display space, we are authorized to sell advertising space on certain sections of the structures we erect in the public domain.  Our International street furniture is typically sold to clients as network packages of multiple street furniture displays, with contract terms ranging from one to two weeks.  Client contracts are also available for longer terms.

 

Billboards

The sizes of our International billboards are not standardized.  The billboards vary in both format and size across our networks, with the majority of our International billboards being similar in size to our posters used in our Americas business.

 

Our billboard inventory is primarily comprised of premium billboards and classic billboards and is available in traditional and digital formats.

·         Premium. Digital premium billboards typically display static messages that resemble standard printed billboards when viewed, but also allow advertisers to change messages throughout the course of a day, and may display advertisements for multiple customers. Our electronic displays are linked through centralized computer systems to instantaneously and simultaneously change advertising copy as needed. Because of their greater size, impact, high frequency and 24-hour advertising changes, digital premium billboards typically deliver our highest rates. Almost all of the advertising copy displayed on traditional premium billboards is digitally-printed and transported to the billboard where it is secured to the display surface. Premium billboards generally are located along major expressways, primary commuting routes and main intersections that are highly visible and heavily trafficked. Our clients may contract for individual billboards or a network of billboards.

·         Classic. Digital and traditional classic billboards are available in a variety of formats across our markets. Similar to digital premium billboards, classic digital billboards typically display static messages that resemble standard printed posters when viewed, and are linked through centralized computer systems to instantaneously and simultaneously change messages throughout the course of a day. Advertising copy for traditional classic billboards is digitally printed then transported and secured to the poster surfaces. Classic billboards generally are located in commercial areas on primary and secondary routes near point-of-purchase locations, facilitating advertising campaigns with greater demographic targeting than those displayed on premium billboards. Classic billboards typically deliver lower rates than our premium billboards. Our intent is to combine the creative impact of premium billboards with the additional reach and frequency of classic billboards.

Our billboards are primarily sold to clients as network packages with contract terms typically ranging from one to two weeks. Long-term client contracts are also available and typically have terms of up to one year. We lease the majority of our billboard sites from private landowners, usually for one to ten years.

 

Retail Displays

Our retail displays are mainly standalone advertising structures in or in close proximity to retail outlets such as malls and supermarkets. The right to place our displays in these locations and to sell advertising space on them generally is awarded by retail outlet operators such as large retailers or mall operators either through private tenders or bilateral negotiations. Upfront investment and ongoing maintenance costs vary across contracts. Contracts with mall operators and retailers have terms ranging from three to ten years. Our client contracts for retail displays, either traditional or digital, generally have terms ranging from one week to two weeks.

 

Transit Displays

Our International transit display contracts are substantially similar to their Americas transit display counterparts. They are advertising surfaces on various types of vehicles or within transit systems, including on the interior and exterior sides of buses, trains, trams and within the common areas of rail stations and airports, and are available in both traditional and digital formats. Similar to street furniture, contracts for the right to place our displays on such vehicles or within such transit systems and to sell advertising space on them generally are awarded by public transit authorities in competitive bidding processes or are negotiated with private transit operators. Our transit display contracts often require us to make only a minimal initial investment and few ongoing maintenance expenditures. Contracts with public transit authorities or private transit operators typically have terms ranging from two to five years. Our client contracts for transit displays, either traditional or digital, generally have terms ranging from one week to one year, or longer.

 

Other International Displays and Services

The balance of our revenue from our International segment consists primarily of advertising revenue from mall displays, other small displays and non-advertising revenue from sales of street furniture equipment, cleaning and maintenance services, and production and creative services revenue.  Our International inventory includes other small displays that are counted as separate displays since they form a substantial part of our network and International outdoor advertising revenue.  We also have a SmartBike bicycle rental program which provides bicycles for rent to the general public in several municipalities.  In exchange for operating these bike rental programs, we generally derive revenue from advertising rights to the bikes, bike stations, additional street furniture displays and/or a share of rental income from the local municipalities.  In several of our International markets, we sell equipment or provide cleaning and maintenance services as part of street furniture contracts with municipalities.

 

Advertising Inventory and Markets

As of December 31, 2015, we owned or operated more than 540,000 displays in our International segment, with operations across 22 countries.  Our International display count includes display faces, which may include multiple faces on a single structure, as well as small, individual displays.  As a result, our International display count is not comparable to our Americas display count, which

includes only unique displays.  No one property is material to our overall operations.  We believe that our properties are in good condition and suitable for our operations.

 

Production

The majority of our International clients are advertisers targeting national audiences whose business generally is placed with us through advertising agencies.  These agencies often provide our International clients creative services to design and produce both the advertising copy and the physical printed advertisement.  Traditional advertising copy, both paper and vinyl, is shipped to centralized warehouses operated by us.  The copy is then sorted and delivered to sites where it is installed on our displays.

 

Construction and Operation

The International manufacturing process largely consists of two elements: the manufacture and installation of advertising structures and the weekly preparation of advertising posters for distribution throughout our networks.  Generally, we outsource the manufacturing of advertising structures to third parties and regularly seek competitive bids.  We use a wide range of suppliers, located in each of our markets.  The design of street furniture structures (such as bus shelters, bicycle racks and kiosks) is typically done in conjunction with a third party design or architectural firm.  These street furniture designs then form the basis of a competitive bidding process to select a manufacturer.  Our street furniture sites are posted by our own employees or subcontractors who also clean and maintain the sites.  The decision to use our own employees or subcontractors is made on a market-by-market basis taking into consideration the mix of products in the market and local labor costs.

 

Client Categories

In 2015, the top five client categories in our International segment, based on International revenue derived from these categories, were retail, food and food products, entertainment, telecommunications and automotive, accessories and equipment.

 

Competition

The international outdoor advertising industry is competitive, consisting of several large companies involved in outdoor advertising, such as JCDecaux SA and ExterionMedia (UK) Limited, as well as  numerous smaller and local companies operating a limited number of displays in a single market or a few local markets.  We also compete with other advertising media in our respective markets, including broadcast and cable television, radio, print media, direct mail, online, mobile and other forms of advertisement.  Outdoor companies compete primarily based on ability to reach consumers, which is driven by location of the display.

 

Our business requires us to obtain and renew contracts with municipalities and other governmental entities, which frequently require us to participate in competitive bidding processes at each renewal. Many of these contracts typically have terms ranging from two to 15 years and have revenue share, capital expenditure requirements and/or fixed payment components. Competitive bidding processes are complex and sometimes lengthy.  Substantial costs may be incurred in connection with preparing bids for such processes. Our competitors, individually or through relationships with third parties, may be able to provide municipalities with different or greater capabilities or prices or benefits than we can provide. In the past we have not, and most likely in the future will not, be awarded all of the contracts on which we bid. There can be no assurance that we will win any particular bid, or that we will be able to replace any revenues lost upon expiration or completion of a contract. Our inability to renew existing contracts can also result in significant expenses from the removal of our displays. Furthermore, if and when we do obtain a contract, we are generally required to incur significant start-up expenses. The costs of bidding on contracts and the start-up costs associated with new contracts we may obtain may significantly reduce our cash flow and liquidity. The success of our business also depends generally on our ability to obtain and renew contracts with private landlords.

 

Employees

As of December 31, 2015, we had approximately 1,700 domestic employees and approximately 4,300 international employees, of which approximately 5,300 were in direct operations and 700 were in administrative or corporate related activities. Approximately 100 of our employees are subject to collective bargaining agreements in their respective countries. We are a party to numerous collective bargaining agreements, none of which represent a significant number of employees.  We believe that our relationship with our employees is good.

 

Seasonality

Required information is located within Item 7 of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

Regulation of our Business

The outdoor advertising industry in the United States is subject to governmental regulation at the federal, state and local levels. These regulations may include, among others, restrictions on the construction, repair, maintenance, lighting, upgrading, height, size, spacing and location and permitting of and, in some instances, content of advertising copy being displayed on outdoor advertising structures.  In addition, international regulations have a significant impact on the outdoor advertising industry.  International regulation of the outdoor advertising industry can vary by municipality, region and country, but generally limits the size, placement, nature and density of out-of-home displays. Other regulations may limit the subject matter and language of out-of-home displays.

 

From time to time, legislation has been introduced in both the United States and foreign jurisdictions attempting to impose taxes on revenue from outdoor advertising or for the right to use outdoor advertising assets. Several jurisdictions have imposed such taxes as a percentage of our outdoor advertising revenue generated in that jurisdiction.  In addition, some jurisdictions have taxed our personal property and leasehold interests in advertising locations using various valuation methodologies.  We expect U.S. and foreign jurisdictions to continue to try to impose such taxes as a way of increasing revenue.  In recent years, outdoor advertising also has become the subject of targeted taxes and fees.  These laws may affect prevailing competitive conditions in our markets in a variety of ways.  Such laws may reduce our expansion opportunities or may increase or reduce competitive pressure from other members of the outdoor advertising industry.  No assurance can be given that existing or future laws or regulations, and the enforcement thereof, will not materially and adversely affect the outdoor advertising industry.  However, we contest laws and regulations that we believe unlawfully restrict our constitutional or other legal rights and may adversely impact the growth of our outdoor advertising business.

 

In the United States, federal law, principally the Highway Beautification Act (“HBA”), regulates outdoor advertising on Federal-Aid Primary, Interstate and National Highway Systems roads within the United States (“controlled roads”). The HBA regulates the size and placement of billboards, requires the development of state standards, mandates a state’s compliance program, promotes the expeditious removal of illegal signs and requires just compensation for takings.

 

To satisfy the HBA’s requirements, all states have passed billboard control statutes and regulations that regulate, among other things, construction, repair, maintenance, lighting, height, size, spacing and the placement and permitting of outdoor advertising structures.  We are not aware of any state that has passed control statutes and regulations less restrictive than the prevailing federal requirements on the federal highway system, including the requirement that an owner remove any non-grandfathered, non-compliant signs along the controlled roads, at the owner’s expense and without compensation.  Local governments generally also include billboard control as part of their zoning laws and building codes regulating those items described above and include similar provisions regarding the removal of non-grandfathered structures that do not comply with certain of the local requirements.  Some local governments have initiated code enforcement and permit reviews of billboards within their jurisdiction. In some instances we have had to remove billboards as a result of such reviews.

 

As part of their billboard control laws, state and local governments regulate the construction of new signs.  Some jurisdictions prohibit new construction, some jurisdictions allow new construction only to replace or relocate existing structures and some jurisdictions allow new construction subject to the various restrictions discussed above.  In certain jurisdictions, restrictive regulations also limit our ability to relocate, rebuild, repair, maintain, upgrade, modify or replace existing legal non-conforming billboards.

 

U.S. federal law neither requires nor prohibits the removal of existing lawful billboards, but it does mandate the payment of compensation if a state or political subdivision compels the removal of a lawful billboard along the controlled roads.  In the past, state governments have purchased and removed existing lawful billboards for beautification purposes using federal funding for transportation enhancement programs, and these jurisdictions may continue to do so in the future. From time to time, state and local government authorities use the power of eminent domain and amortization to remove billboards.  Amortization is the required removal of legal non-conforming billboards (billboards which conformed with applicable laws and regulations when built, but which do not conform to current laws and regulations) or the commercial advertising placed on such billboards after a period of years. Pursuant to this concept, the governmental body asserts that just compensation is earned by continued operation of the billboard over that period of time. Although amortization is prohibited along all controlled roads, amortization has been upheld along non-controlled roads in limited instances where permitted by state and local law. Thus far, we have been able to obtain satisfactory compensation for, or relocation of, our billboards purchased or removed as a result of these types of governmental action, although there is no assurance that this will continue to be the case in the future.

 

We have introduced and intend to expand the deployment of digital billboards that display static digital advertising copy from various advertisers that change up to several times per minute. We have encountered some existing regulations in the U.S. and across some international jurisdictions that restrict or prohibit these types of digital displays.  However, since digital technology for changing static copy has only recently been developed and introduced into the market on a large scale, and is in the process of being introduced more broadly in our international markets, existing regulations that currently do not apply to digital technology by their terms could be

revised to impose greater restrictions. These regulations, or actions by third parties, may impose greater restrictions on digital billboards due to alleged concerns over aesthetics or driver safety.

 

Available Information

You can find more information about us at our Internet website located at www.clearchanneloutdoor.com. Our Annual Report on Form 10-K, our Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q, our Current Reports on Form 8-K and any amendments to those reports are available free of charge through our Internet website as soon as reasonably practicable after we electronically file such material with, or furnish such material to, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”). The contents of our website are not deemed to be part of this Annual Report on Form 10-K or any of our other filings with the SEC.

 

The SEC maintains an internet website that contains these reports at www.sec.gov. Any materials we file with the SEC may also be read or copied at the SEC’s Public Reference Room at 100 F Street, NE, Washington, DC 20549. Information concerning the operation of the Public Reference Room may be obtained by calling the SEC at (800) 732-0330.

 

ITEM 1A.  RISK FACTORS

Risks Related to Our Business

Our results have been in the past, and could be in the future, adversely affected by economic uncertainty or deteriorations in economic conditions

We derive revenues from the sale of advertising.  Expenditures by advertisers tend to be cyclical, reflecting economic conditions and budgeting and buying patterns.  Periods of a slowing economy or recession, or periods of economic uncertainty, may be accompanied by a decrease in advertising. For example, the global economic downturn that began in 2008 resulted in a decline in advertising and marketing by our customers, which resulted in a decline in advertising revenues across our businesses. This reduction in advertising revenues had an adverse effect on our revenue, profit margins, cash flow and liquidity. Global economic conditions have been slow to recover and remain uncertain.  If economic conditions do not continue to improve, economic uncertainty increases or economic conditions deteriorate again, global economic conditions may once again adversely impact our revenue, profit margins, cash flow and liquidity.  Furthermore, because a significant portion of our revenue is derived from local advertisers, our ability to generate revenues in specific markets is directly affected by local and regional conditions, and unfavorable regional economic conditions also may adversely impact our results.  In addition, even in the absence of a downturn in general economic conditions, an individual business sector or market may experience a downturn, causing it to reduce its advertising expenditures, which also may adversely impact our results.

 

To service our debt obligations and to fund our operations and our capital expenditures, we require a significant amount of cash to meet our needs, which depends on many factors beyond our control

Our ability to service our debt obligations and to fund our operations and our capital expenditures for display construction, renovation or maintenance requires a significant amount of cash.  Our primary sources of liquidity are cash on hand, cash flow from operations, the revolving promissory note with iHeartCommunications and our senior revolving credit facility.  Based on our current and anticipated levels of operations and conditions in our markets, we believe that cash on hand, cash flow from operations, borrowing capacity under the senior revolving credit facility and borrowing capacity under or repayment of amounts outstanding under the revolving promissory note with iHeartCommunications will enable us to meet our working capital, capital expenditure, debt service and other funding requirements for at least the next twelve months.  However, our ability to fund our working capital, capital expenditures, debt service and other obligations depends on our future operating performance and cash from operations, which are in turn subject to prevailing economic conditions and other factors, many of which are beyond our control. If our future operating performance does not meet our expectation or our plans materially change in an adverse manner or prove to be materially inaccurate, we may need additional financing.  In addition, the purchase price of possible acquisitions, capital expenditures for deployment of digital billboards and/or other strategic initiatives could require additional indebtedness or equity financing on our part.  Adverse securities and credit market conditions could significantly affect the availability of equity or debt financing. Consequently, there can be no assurance that such financing, if permitted under the terms of our financing agreements, will be available on terms acceptable to us or at all. The inability to obtain additional financing in such circumstances could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and on our ability to meet our obligations or pursue strategic initiatives. Additional indebtedness could increase our leverage and make us more vulnerable to economic downturns and may limit our ability to withstand competitive pressures.

 

We face intense competition in the outdoor advertising business

We operate in a highly competitive industry, and we may not be able to maintain or increase our current advertising revenues.  We compete for advertising revenue with other outdoor advertising businesses, as well as with other media, such as radio, newspapers, magazines, television, direct mail, mobile devices, satellite radio and Internet-based services, within their respective

markets.  Market shares are subject to change for various reasons including through consolidation of our competitors through processes such as mergers and acquisitions, which could have the effect of reducing our revenue in a specific market.  Our competitors may develop technology, services or advertising media that are equal or superior to those we provide or that achieve greater market acceptance and brand recognition than we achieve.  It also is possible that new competitors may emerge and rapidly acquire significant market share in any of our business segments.  An increased level of competition for advertising dollars may lead to lower advertising rates as we attempt to retain customers or may cause us to lose customers to our competitors who offer lower rates that we are unable or unwilling to match.

 

Our business is dependent on our management team and other key individuals

Our business is dependent upon the performance of our management team and other key individuals.  Although we have entered into agreements with some members of our management team and certain other key individuals, we can give no assurance that all or any of our management team and other key individuals will remain with us, or that we won’t continue to make changes to the composition of, and the roles and responsibilities of, our management team. Competition for these individuals is intense and many of our key employees are at-will employees who are under no legal obligation to remain with us, and may decide to leave for a variety of personal or other reasons beyond our control. If members of our management or key individuals decide to leave us in the future, if we decide to make further changes to the composition of, or the roles and responsibilities of, these individuals, or if we are not successful in attracting, motivating and retaining other key employees, our business could be adversely affected.

 

The success of our street furniture and transit products businesses is dependent on our obtaining key municipal concessions, which we may not be able to obtain on favorable terms

Our street furniture and transit products businesses require us to obtain and renew contracts with municipalities and transit authorities. Many of these contracts, which require us to participate in competitive bidding processes at each renewal, typically have terms ranging from 2 to 15 years and have revenue share, capital expenditure requirements and/or fixed payment components. Competitive bidding processes are complex and sometimes lengthy and substantial costs may be incurred in connection with preparing bids.

 

  Our competitors, individually or through relationships with third parties, may be able to provide different or greater capabilities or prices or benefits than we can provide. In the past we have not been, and most likely in the future will not be, awarded all of the contracts on which we bid. The success of our business also depends generally on our ability to obtain and renew contracts with private landlords. There can be no assurance that we will win any particular bid, be able to renew existing contracts or be able to replace any revenue lost upon expiration or completion of a contract. Our inability to renew existing contracts may also result in significant expenses from the removal of our displays. Furthermore, if and when we do obtain a contract, we are generally required to incur significant start-up expenses. The costs of bidding on contracts and the start-up costs associated with new contracts we may obtain may significantly reduce our cash flow and liquidity.

 

This competitive bidding process presents a number of risks, including the following:

 

·         we expend substantial cost and managerial time and effort to prepare bids and proposals for contracts that we may not win;

·         we may be unable to estimate accurately the revenue derived from and the resources and cost structure that will be required to service any contract we win; and

·         we may encounter expenses and delays if our competitors challenge awards of contracts to us in competitive bidding, and any such challenge could result in the resubmission of bids on modified specifications, or in the termination, reduction or modification of the awarded contract.

 

Our inability to successfully negotiate, renew or complete these contracts due to third-party or governmental demands and delay and the highly competitive bidding processes for these contracts could affect our ability to offer these products to our clients, or to offer them to our clients at rates that are competitive to other forms of advertising, without adversely affecting our financial results.

 

Our financial performance may be adversely affected by many factors beyond our control

Certain factors that could adversely affect our financial performance by, among other things, decreasing overall revenues, the numbers of advertising customers, advertising fees or profit margins include:

 

·         unfavorable fluctuations in operating costs, which we may be unwilling or unable to pass through to our customers;

·         our inability to successfully adopt or are late in adopting technological changes and innovations that offer more attractive advertising alternatives than what we offer, which could result in a loss of advertising customers or lower advertising rates, which could have a material adverse effect on our operating results and financial performance;

·         unfavorable shifts in population and other demographics, which may cause us to lose advertising customers as people migrate to markets where we have a smaller presence or which may cause advertisers to be willing to pay less in advertising fees if the general population shifts into a less desirable age or geographical demographic from an advertising perspective;

·         adverse political effects and acts or threats of terrorism or military conflicts; and

·         unfavorable changes in labor conditions, which may impair our ability to operate or require us to spend more to retain and attract key employees.

 

Future acquisitions, dispositions and other strategic transactions could pose risks

We frequently evaluate strategic opportunities both within and outside our existing lines of business. We expect from time to time to pursue strategic acquisitions and dispositions of certain businesses. These acquisitions or dispositions could be material. Our strategy involves numerous risks, including:

 

·         our acquisitions may prove unprofitable and fail to generate anticipated cash flows;

·         our dispositions may negatively impact revenues from our national, regional and other sales networks;

·         our dispositions may make it difficult to generate cash flows from operations sufficient to meet our anticipated cash requirements;

·         to successfully manage our large portfolio of outdoor advertising and other businesses, we may need to:

·         recruit additional senior management as we cannot be assured that senior management of acquired businesses will continue to work for us and we cannot be certain that our recruiting efforts will succeed, and

·         expand corporate infrastructure to facilitate the integration of our operations with those of acquired businesses, because failure to do so may cause us to lose the benefits of any expansion that we decide to undertake by leading to disruptions in our ongoing businesses or by distracting our management;

·         we may enter into markets and geographic areas where we have limited or no experience;

·         we may encounter difficulties in the integration of operations and systems; and

·         our management’s attention may be diverted from other business concerns.

 

Acquisitions and dispositions of outdoor advertising businesses may require antitrust review by U.S. federal antitrust agencies and may require review by foreign antitrust agencies under the antitrust laws of foreign jurisdictions. We can give no assurances that the DOJ, the FTC or foreign antitrust agencies will not seek to bar us from acquiring or disposing of outdoor advertising businesses or impose stringent undertaking on our business as a condition to the completion of an acquisition in any market where we already have a significant position.

 

Government regulation of outdoor advertising may restrict our outdoor advertising operations

U.S. federal, state and local regulations have a significant impact on the outdoor advertising industry and our business. One of the seminal laws is the HBA, which regulates outdoor advertising on controlled roads in the United States. The HBA regulates the size and location of billboards, mandates a state compliance program, requires the development of state standards, promotes the expeditious removal of illegal signs and requires just compensation for takings. Construction, repair, maintenance, lighting, upgrading, height, size, spacing, the location and permitting of billboards and the use of new technologies for changing displays, such as digital displays, are regulated by federal, state and local governments. From time to time, states and municipalities have prohibited or significantly limited the construction of new outdoor advertising structures.  Changes in laws and regulations affecting outdoor advertising, or changes in the interpretation of those laws and regulations, at any level of government, including the foreign jurisdictions in which we operate, could have a significant financial impact on us by requiring us to make significant expenditures or otherwise limiting or restricting some of our operations. Due to such regulations, it has become increasingly difficult to develop new outdoor advertising locations.

 

From time to time, certain state and local governments and third parties have attempted to force the removal of our displays under various state and local laws, including zoning ordinances, permit enforcement and condemnation. Similar risks also arise in certain of our international jurisdictions.  Certain zoning ordinances provide for amortization  which is the required removal of legal non-conforming billboards (billboards which conformed with applicable laws and regulations when built, but which do not conform to current laws and regulations) or the commercial advertising placed on such billboards after a period of years. Pursuant to this concept, the governmental body asserts that just compensation is earned by continued operation of the billboard over that period of time. Although amortization is prohibited along all controlled roads, amortization has been upheld along non-controlled roads in limited instances where permitted by state and local law. Other regulations limit our ability to rebuild, replace, repair, maintain and upgrade non-conforming displays. In addition, from time to time third parties or local governments assert that we own or operate displays that either are not properly permitted or otherwise are not in strict compliance with applicable law. If we are increasingly unable to resolve

such allegations or obtain acceptable arrangements in circumstances in which our displays are subject to removal, modification or amortization, or if there occurs an increase in such regulations or their enforcement, our operating results could suffer.

 

A number of state and local governments have implemented or initiated taxes, fees and registration requirements in an effort to decrease or restrict the number of outdoor signs and/or to raise revenue.  From time to time, legislation also has been introduced in international jurisdictions attempting to impose taxes on revenue from outdoor advertising or for the right to use outdoor advertising assets.  In addition, a number of jurisdictions have implemented legislation or interpreted existing legislation to restrict or prohibit the installation of digital billboards, and we expect these efforts to continue. The increased imposition of these measures, and our inability to overcome any such measures, could reduce our operating income if those outcomes require removal or restrictions on the use of preexisting displays or limit growth of digital displays.  In addition, if we are unable to pass on the cost of these items to our clients, our operating income could be adversely affected.

 

International regulation of the outdoor advertising industry can vary by municipality, region and country, but generally limits the size, placement, nature and density of out-of-home displays. Other regulations limit the subject matter, animation and language of out-of-home displays. Our failure to comply with these or any future international regulations could have an adverse impact on the effectiveness of our displays or their attractiveness to clients as an advertising medium and may require us to make significant expenditures to ensure compliance and avoid certain penalties or contractual breaches. As a result, we may experience a significant impact on our operations, revenue, international client base and overall financial condition.

 

Regulations and consumer concerns regarding privacy and data protection, or any failure to comply with these regulations, could hinder our operations

We collect and utilize demographic and other information, including personally identifiable information, from and about our consumers, business partners and advertisers.  We are subject to numerous federal, state and foreign laws and regulations relating to consumer protection, information security, data protection and privacy, among other things.  Many of these laws are still evolving, new laws may be enacted and any of these laws could be amended or interpreted in ways that could harm our business.  In addition, changes in consumer expectations and demands regarding privacy and data protection could restrict our ability to collect, use, disclose and derive economic value from demographic and other information related to our consumers, business partners and advertisers.  Such restrictions could limit our ability to offer targeted advertising opportunities to our business partners and advertisers.  Although we have implemented policies and procedures designed to comply with these laws and regulations, any failure or perceived failure by us to comply with our policies or applicable regulatory requirements related to consumer protection, information security, data protection and privacy could result in a loss of confidence in us, damage to our brands, the loss of consumers, business partners and advertisers, as well as proceedings against us by governmental authorities or others, which could hinder our operations and adversely affect our business.

 

If our security measures are breached, we could lose valuable information, suffer disruptions to our business, and incur expenses and liabilities including damages to our relationships with business partners and advertisers

Although we have implemented physical and electronic security measures to protect against the loss, misuse and alteration of our websites, digital assets and proprietary business information as well as, consumer, business partner and advertiser personally identifiable information, no security measures are perfect and impenetrable and we may be unable to anticipate or prevent unauthorized access.  A security breach could occur due to the actions of outside parties, employee error, malfeasance or a combination of these or other actions.  If an actual or perceived breach of our security occurs, we could lose competitively sensitive business information or suffer disruptions to our business operations, information processes or internal controls.  In addition, the public perception of the effectiveness of our security measures or services could be harmed; we could lose consumers, business partners and advertisers.  In the event of a security breach, we could suffer financial exposure in connection with penalties, remediation efforts, investigations and legal proceedings and changes in our security and system protection measures. Currently, not all of our systems are fully compliant with PCI-DSS standards and, as a result, we may face additional liability in the event of a security breach involving payment card information.

 

Restrictions on outdoor advertising of certain products may restrict the categories of clients that can advertise using our products

Out-of-court settlements between the major U.S. tobacco companies and all 50 states, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico and other U.S. territories include a ban on the outdoor advertising of tobacco products.  Other products and services may be targeted in the U.S. in the future, including alcohol products.  Most European Union countries, among other nations, also have banned outdoor advertisements for tobacco products and regulate alcohol advertising.  Regulations vary across the countries in which we conduct business.  Any significant reduction in advertising of products due to content-related restrictions could cause a reduction in our direct revenues from such advertisements and an increase in the available space on the existing inventory of billboards in the outdoor advertising industry.

 

Environmental, health, safety and land use laws and regulations may limit or restrict some of our operations

As the owner or operator of various real properties and facilities, we must comply with various foreign, federal, state and local environmental, health, safety and land use laws and regulations. We and our properties are subject to such laws and regulations relating to the use, storage, disposal, emission and release of hazardous and non-hazardous substances and employee health and safety as well as zoning restrictions. Historically, we have not incurred significant expenditures to comply with these laws. However, additional laws which may be passed in the future, or a finding of a violation of or liability under existing laws, could require us to make significant expenditures and otherwise limit or restrict some of our operations.

 

We are exposed to foreign currency exchange risks because a portion of our revenue is received in foreign currencies and translated to U.S. dollars for reporting purposes.

We generate a portion of our revenues in currencies other than U.S. dollars. Changes in economic or political conditions in any of the foreign countries in which we operate could result in exchange rate movement, new currency or exchange controls or other currency restrictions being imposed. Because we receive a portion of our revenues in currencies from the countries in which we operate, exchange rate fluctuations in any such currency could have an adverse effect on our profitability. A portion of our cash flows are generated in foreign currencies and translated to U.S. dollars for reporting purposes, and certain of the indebtedness held by our international subsidiaries is denominated in U.S. dollars, and, therefore, significant changes in the value of such foreign currencies relative to the U.S. dollar could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition and our ability to meet interest and principal payments on our indebtedness.

 

Given the volatility of exchange rates, we cannot assure you that we will be able to effectively manage our currency transaction and/or translation risks. It is possible that volatility in currency exchange rates will have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations. We expect to experience economic losses and gains and negative and positive impacts on our operating income as a result of foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations.

 

Doing business in foreign countries exposes us to certain risks not expected to occur when doing business in the United States

Doing business in foreign countries carries with it certain risks that are not found when doing business in the United States.  These risks could result in losses against which we are not insured.  Examples of these risks include:

 

·         potential adverse changes in the diplomatic relations of foreign countries with the United States;

·         hostility from local populations;

·         the adverse effect of foreign exchange controls;

·         government policies against businesses owned by foreigners;

·         investment restrictions or requirements;

·         expropriations of property without adequate compensation;

·         the potential instability of foreign governments;

·         the risk of insurrections;

·         risks of renegotiation or modification of existing agreements with governmental authorities;

·         difficulties collecting receivables and otherwise enforcing contracts with governmental agencies and others in some foreign legal systems;

·         withholding and other taxes on remittances and other payments by subsidiaries;

·         changes in tax structure and level; and

·         changes in laws or regulations or the interpretation or application of laws or regulations.

 

Our International operations involve contracts with, and regulation by, foreign governments.  We operate in many parts of the world that experience corruption to some degree.  Although we have policies and procedures in place that are designed to promote legal and regulatory compliance (including with respect to the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and the United Kingdom Bribery Act), our employees, subcontractors and agents could take actions that violate applicable anticorruption laws or regulations.  Violations of these laws, or allegations of such violations, could have a material adverse effect on our business, financial position and results of operations.

 

Risks Related to Our Relationship with iHeartCommunications

Because iHeartCommunications controls substantially all of the total voting power of our common stock, investors will not be able to affect the outcome of any stockholder vote

As of December 31, 2015, iHeartCommunications indirectly owned (1) all of our outstanding shares of Class B common stock and (2) 10,726,917 shares of our Class A common stock, collectively representing approximately 90% of the outstanding shares

of our common stock.  Each share of our Class B common stock entitles its holder to 20 votes and each share of our Class A common stock entitles its holder to one vote on all matters on which stockholders are entitled to vote.  As a result, as of December 31, 2015, iHeartCommunications controlled approximately 99% of the total voting power of our common stock.

 

As long as iHeartCommunications continues to own shares of our common stock representing more than 50% of the total voting power of our common stock, it will have the ability to direct the election of all members of our board of directors and, therefore, to exercise a controlling influence over our business and affairs, including any determinations with respect to mergers or other business combinations, our acquisition or disposition of assets, our incurrence of indebtedness, our issuance of any additional common stock or other equity securities, our repurchase or redemption of common stock or preferred stock, if applicable, and our payment of dividends in certain situations.  Similarly, iHeartCommunications will have the power to determine the outcome of matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders, including the power to prevent an acquisition or any other change in control.  Because iHeartCommunications’ interests as our controlling stockholder may differ from other stockholders’ interests, actions taken by iHeartCommunications with respect to us may not be favorable to all stockholders.

 

Our agreements with iHeartCommunications impose obligations on, and iHeartCommunications’ financing agreements effectively impose restrictions on, our ability to finance operations and capital needs, make acquisitions and engage in other business activities

We have entered into a Master Agreement, a Corporate Services Agreement, an Employee Matters Agreement, a Tax Matters Agreement, a Trademark License Agreement and a number of other agreements with iHeartCommunications setting forth various matters governing our relationship with iHeartCommunications while it remains a significant stockholder in us.  These agreements allow iHeartCommunications to retain control over many aspects of our operations.  We are not able to terminate these agreements or amend them in a manner we deem more favorable so long as iHeartCommunications continues to own shares of our common stock representing more than 50% of the total voting power of our common stock.  iHeartCommunications’ financing agreements also impose a number of restrictions on us.

 

Pursuant to the Corporate Services Agreement, we are obligated to use various corporate services provided by iHeartCommunications and its affiliates, including treasury, payroll and other financial services, certain executive officer services, human resources and employee benefit services, legal services, information systems and network services and procurement and sourcing support.  Also pursuant to the Corporate Services Agreement, substantially all of the cash generated from our domestic Americas operations is transferred daily into accounts of iHeartCommunications (after satisfying our controlled disbursement accounts and the funding requirements of the trustee accounts under the senior notes and the senior subordinated notes issued by Clear Channel Worldwide Holdings, Inc., an indirect, wholly-owned subsidiary of ours), where funds of ours and of iHeartCommunications are commingled, and recorded as “Due from/to iHeartCommunications” on the consolidated balance sheet.  Net amounts owed between us and iHeartCommunications are evidenced by revolving promissory notes.  We do not have any material committed external sources of capital independent from iHeartCommunications, and iHeartCommunications is not required to provide us with funds to finance our working capital or other cash requirements. In addition, we have no access to the cash transferred from us to iHeartCommunications other than our right to demand payment by iHeartCommunications of the amounts owed to us under the revolving promissory note. 

 

The “Due from iHeartCommunications” note previously was the subject of derivative litigation filed by our stockholders in the Delaware Court of Chancery.  Pursuant to the terms of the settlement, our board of directors established a committee for the specific purpose of monitoring the Due from iHeartCommunications note.  That committee has the non-exclusive authority to demand payments under the Due from iHeartCommunications note under certain specified circumstances tied to iHeartCommunications’ liquidity or the amount outstanding under the Due from iHeartCommunications note as long as our board of directors declares a simultaneous dividend equal to the amount so demanded.  Any future repayments and simultaneous dividends would further reduce the amount of the Due from iHeartCommunications note asset that is available to us as a source of liquidity for ongoing working capital, capital expenditure, debt service, special dividend and other funding requirements.

 

If iHeartCommunications were to become insolvent, we would be an unsecured creditor of iHeartCommunications.  In such event, we would be treated the same as other unsecured creditors of iHeartCommunications and, if we were not entitled to amounts outstanding under such note, or could not obtain such cash on a timely basis, we could experience a liquidity shortfall.  At December 31, 2015 and 2014, the asset recorded in “Due from iHeartCommunications” on the consolidated balance sheet was $930.8 million and $947.8 million, respectively. 

 

In addition, the Master Agreement and, in some cases, iHeartCommunications’ financing agreements, include restrictive covenants that, among other things, restrict our ability to:

 

·         issue any shares of capital stock or securities convertible into capital stock;

·         incur additional indebtedness;

·         make certain acquisitions and investments;

·         repurchase our stock;

·         dispose of certain assets; and

·         merge or consolidate.

 

The rights of iHeartCommunications under these agreements may allow iHeartCommunications to delay or prevent an acquisition of us that our other stockholders may consider favorable.  In addition, the restrictions contained in these agreements limit our ability to finance operations and capital needs, make acquisitions or engage in other business activities, including our ability to grow and increase our revenue or respond to competitive changes.

 

The terms of our arrangements with iHeartCommunications may be more or less favorable than we would be able to obtain from an unaffiliated third party, and we may be unable to replace the services iHeartCommunications provides us in a timely manner or on comparable terms

We negotiated our arrangements with iHeartCommunications in the context of a parent-subsidiary relationship prior to the initial public offering of our Class A common stock.  Although iHeartCommunications is contractually obligated to provide us with services during the term of the Corporate Services Agreement, we cannot assure you these services will be sustained at an appropriate level, or that we will be able to replace these services in a timely manner or on comparable terms.  In addition, we cannot provide assurance that the amount we pay iHeartCommunications for the services will be as favorable to us as that which may be available for comparable services provided by unrelated third parties.  Other agreements with iHeartCommunications also govern our relationship with iHeartCommunications and provide for the allocation of employee benefit, tax and other liabilities and obligations attributable to our operations.  The agreements also contain terms and provisions that may be more favorable than terms and provisions we might have obtained in arm’s length negotiations with unaffiliated third parties.  If iHeartCommunications ceases to provide services to us pursuant to those agreements, our costs of procuring those services from third parties may increase.

 

Conflicts of interest may arise between iHeartCommunications and us that could be resolved in a manner unfavorable to us

Questions relating to conflicts of interest may arise between iHeartCommunications and us in a number of areas relating to our past and ongoing relationships.  iHeartCommunications is owned indirectly by iHeartMedia. Two of our directors serve as directors of iHeartMedia. Three of our other directors are affiliated with iHeartMedia and its stockholders.  In addition, five of our executive officers serve as executive officers of iHeartMedia, including our CEO who also serves as the CEO of iHeartCommunications.

 

Areas in which conflicts of interest between iHeartCommunications and us could arise include, but are not limited to, the following:

 

·             Cross officerships, directorships and stock ownership.  The ownership interests of our directors or executive officers in the common stock of iHeartMedia or service as a director or officer of both iHeartMedia and us could create, or appear to create, conflicts of interest when directors and executive officers are faced with decisions that could have different implications for the two companies.  For example, these decisions could relate to: (1) the nature, quality and cost of services rendered to us by iHeartCommunications; (2) disagreement over the desirability of a potential acquisition opportunity; (3) employee retention or recruiting; or (4) our capital structure, including our level of indebtedness and our dividend policy.

·             Intercompany transactions.  From time to time, iHeartCommunications or its affiliates may enter into transactions with us or our subsidiaries or other affiliates.  Although the terms of any such transactions will be established based upon negotiations between employees of iHeartCommunications and us and, when appropriate, subject to the approval of the independent directors on our board or a committee of disinterested directors, there can be no assurance the terms of any such transactions will be as favorable to us or our subsidiaries or affiliates as may otherwise be obtained in arm’s length negotiations.

·             Intercompany agreements. We have entered into certain agreements with iHeartCommunications pursuant to which it provides us certain management, administrative, accounting, tax, legal and other services, for which we reimburse iHeartCommunications on a cost basis.  In addition, we entered into a number of intercompany agreements covering matters such as tax sharing and our responsibility for certain liabilities previously undertaken by iHeartCommunications for certain of our businesses.  Pursuant to the Corporate Services Agreement between iHeartCommunications and us, we are contractually obligated to utilize the services of certain executive officers of iHeartCommunications as our executive officers until iHeartCommunications owns shares of our common stock representing less than 50% of the total voting power of our common stock, or we provide iHeartCommunications with six months prior written notice of termination.  The terms of these agreements were established while we were a wholly

owned subsidiary of iHeartCommunications and were not the result of arm’s length negotiations.  In addition, conflicts could arise in the interpretation or any extension or renegotiation of these existing agreements.

·             Intercompany financing. iHeartCommunications may cause us to engage in transactions for the purpose of supporting its liquidity needs, such as financings or asset sales, which may negatively affect our business operations or our capital structure.  In its Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on February 25, 2016, iHeartCommunications stated that its ability to fund its ongoing capital needs depends on its future operating performance and cash from operations, as well as its ability to generate cash from liquidity-generating transactions, and that it is currently exploring, and expects to continue to explore, a variety of transactions to provide it with additional liquidity. These liquidity-generating transactions may involve us or our assets.

 

If iHeartCommunications engages in the same type of business we conduct or takes advantage of business opportunities that might be attractive to us, our ability to successfully operate and expand our business may be hampered

Our amended and restated certificate of incorporation provides that, subject to any contractual provision to the contrary, iHeartCommunications will have no obligation to refrain from:

 

·             engaging in the same or similar business activities or lines of business as us; or

·             doing business with any of our clients, customers or vendors.

 

In addition, the corporate opportunity policy set forth in our amended and restated certificate of incorporation addresses potential conflicts of interest between our company, on the one hand, and iHeartCommunications or iHeartMedia and its officers and directors who are officers or directors of our company, on the other hand.  The policy provides that if iHeartCommunications or iHeartMedia acquires knowledge of a potential transaction or matter which may be a corporate opportunity for both iHeartCommunications and us, we will have renounced our interest in the corporate opportunity.  It also provides that if one of our directors or officers who is also a director or officer of iHeartCommunications or iHeartMedia learns of a potential transaction or matter that may be a corporate opportunity for both iHeartCommunications and us, (1) we will have renounced our interest in the corporate opportunity, unless that opportunity is expressly offered to that person in writing solely in his or her capacity as our director or officer, and (2) the director or officer will have no duty to communicate or present that corporate opportunity to us and will not be liable to us or our stockholders for breach of fiduciary duty by reason of iHeartCommunications’ actions with respect to that corporate opportunity.

 

This policy could result in iHeartCommunications having rights to corporate opportunities in which both we and iHeartCommunications have an interest.

 

We are a “controlled company” within the meaning of the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) rules and, as a result, qualify for, and intend to rely on, exemptions from certain corporate governance requirements that may not provide as many protections as those afforded to stockholders of other companies

iHeartCommunications owns shares of our common stock representing more than 50% of the total voting power of our common stock and, as a result, we have elected to be treated as a “controlled company” under the NYSE corporate governance standards.  As a controlled company, we are exempt from the provisions of the NYSE’s corporate governance standards requiring that: (1) a majority of our board consists of independent directors; (2) we have a nominating and governance committee composed entirely of independent directors and governed by a written charter addressing the nominating and governance committee’s purpose and responsibilities; and (3) we have a compensation committee composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the compensation committee’s purpose and responsibilities.  Although we currently have a compensation committee composed entirely of independent directors with a written charter addressing the compensation committee’s purpose and responsibilities, we currently do not have a nominating and governance committee and a majority of our board of directors currently does not consist of independent directors.  We intend to continue using certain of these exemptions and, as a result: (1) we may not create or maintain a nominating and governance committee; (2) the nominating and governance committee (if one is created) and the compensation committee may not consist entirely of independent directors; and (3) our board of directors may not consist of a majority of independent directors.  Accordingly, you may not have the same protections afforded to stockholders of companies that are subject to all of the NYSE corporate governance requirements.

 

We do not have control over our tax decisions and could be liable for income taxes owed by iHeartCommunications

As long as iHeartCommunications continues to own shares of our common stock representing at least 80% of the total voting power and value of our common stock, we and certain of our subsidiaries will be included in iHeartCommunications’ consolidated group for U.S. federal income tax purposes for all pre-merger periods and iHeartMedia’s consolidated group for post-merger periods.  In addition, we or one or more of our subsidiaries may be included in the combined, consolidated or unitary tax returns of iHeartCommunications for pre-merger periods and iHeartMedia for post-merger periods or one or more of its subsidiaries for foreign,

state and local income tax purposes.  Under the Tax Matters Agreement, we pay to iHeartCommunications the amount of federal, foreign, state and local income taxes that we would be required to pay to the relevant taxing authorities if we and our subsidiaries filed combined, consolidated or unitary tax returns and were not included in the combined, consolidated or unitary tax returns of iHeartCommunications or its subsidiaries.  In addition, by virtue of its controlling ownership and the Tax Matters Agreement, iHeartCommunications effectively controls all of our tax decisions.  The Tax Matters Agreement provides that iHeartCommunications has the sole authority to respond to and conduct all tax proceedings (including tax audits) relating to us, to file all income tax returns on our behalf and to determine the amount of our liability to (or entitlement to payment from) iHeartCommunications under the Tax Matters Agreement.  This arrangement may result in conflicts of interest between iHeartCommunications and us.  For example, under the Tax Matters Agreement, iHeartCommunications is able to choose to contest, compromise, or settle any adjustment or deficiency proposed by the relevant taxing authority in a manner that may be beneficial to iHeartCommunications and detrimental to us.

 

Moreover, notwithstanding the Tax Matters Agreement, federal law provides that each member of a consolidated group is liable for the group’s entire tax obligation.  Thus, to the extent iHeartCommunications or other members of the group fail to make any United States federal income tax payments required by law, we would be liable for the shortfall.  Similar principles may apply for foreign, state and local income tax purposes where we file combined, consolidated or unitary returns with iHeartCommunications or its subsidiaries for federal, foreign, state and local income tax purposes.

 

If iHeartCommunications spins off our Class B common stock to the iHeartMedia stockholders, we have agreed in the Tax Matters Agreement to indemnify iHeartCommunications for its tax-related liabilities in certain circumstances

If iHeartCommunications spins off our Class B common stock to the iHeartMedia’s stockholders in a distribution intended to be tax-free under Section 355 of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, which we refer to herein as the Code, we have agreed in the Tax Matters Agreement to indemnify iHeartCommunications and its affiliates against any and all tax-related liabilities if such a spin-off fails to qualify as a tax-free distribution (including as a result of Section 355(e) of the Code) due to actions, events or transactions relating to our stock, assets or business, or a breach of the relevant representations or covenants made by us in the Tax Matters Agreement.  If neither we nor iHeartCommunications is responsible under the Tax Matters Agreement for any such spin-off not being tax-free under Section 355 of the Code, we and iHeartCommunications have agreed to each be responsible for 50% of the tax-related liabilities arising from the failure of such a spin-off to so qualify.

 

Risks Related to Our Class A Common Stock

Our stock ownership by iHeartCommunications, provisions in our agreements with iHeartCommunications and our corporate governance documents and Delaware law may delay or prevent an acquisition of us that our other stockholders may consider favorable, which could decrease the value of your shares of Class A common stock

As long as iHeartCommunications continues to own shares of our common stock representing more than 50% of the total voting power of our common stock, it will have the ability to control decisions regarding an acquisition of us by a third party.  As a controlled company, we are exempt from some of the corporate governance requirements of the NYSE, including the requirement that our board of directors consist of a majority of independent directors.  In addition, our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, bylaws and Delaware law contain provisions that could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us without the consent of our board of directors.  These provisions include restrictions on the ability of our stockholders to remove directors, supermajority voting requirements for stockholders to amend our organizational documents, restrictions on a classified board of directors and limitations on action by our stockholders by written consent.  Some of these provisions, such as the limitation on stockholder action by written consent, only become effective once iHeartCommunications no longer controls us.  In addition, our board of directors has the right to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval, which could be used to dilute the stock ownership of a potential hostile acquirer.  Delaware law also imposes certain restrictions on mergers and other business combinations between us and any holder of 15% or more of our outstanding voting stock.  These restrictions under Delaware law do not apply to iHeartCommunications while it retains at least 15% or more of our Class B common stock.  Although we believe these provisions protect our stockholders from coercive or otherwise unfair takeover tactics and thereby provide for an opportunity to receive a higher bid by requiring potential acquirers to negotiate with our board of directors, these provisions apply even if the offer may be considered beneficial by some stockholders.

 

If iHeartCommunications spins off our Class B common stock to the iHeartMedia stockholders and such shares do not convert into Class A common stock upon a sale or other transfer subsequent to such distribution, the voting rights of our Class A common stock will continue to be disproportionately lower than the voting rights of our Class B common stock

In connection with any distribution of shares of our Class B common stock to iHeartMedia’s common stockholders in a spin-off, iHeartCommunications may elect in its sole discretion whether our Class B common stock so distributed will automatically convert into shares of Class A common stock upon a transfer or sale by the recipient subsequent to the spin-off or whether the Class B common stock will continue as Class B common stock after the distribution.  In the event the Class B common stock does not convert

into Class A common stock upon a sale or transfer subsequent to a spin-off, the voting rights of Class A common stock will continue to be disproportionately lower than the voting rights of our Class B common stock.  Therefore, the holders of our Class B common stock will continue to be able to direct the election of all the members of our board of directors and exercise a controlling influence over our business and affairs.

 

An increase in the concentration of our stock ownership by iHeartCommunications could depress the market price for shares of our Class A common stock

As a result of the significant concentration of our stock ownership, we have a relatively small public float compared to the number of our shares outstanding, which may adversely affect the trading price for our Class A common stock because investors may perceive disadvantages in owning stock in companies with controlling stockholders.  On August 9, 2010, iHeartCommunications, our indirect parent entity, announced a stock purchase program under which iHeartCommunications or its subsidiaries may purchase up to an aggregate of $100 million of our Class A common stock and/or the Class A common stock of iHeartMedia.  As of December 31, 2014, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications had purchased 6,553,971 shares of our Class A common stock.  On January 7, 2015, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications purchased an additional 2,000,000 shares of our Class A common stock, and on April 2, 2015, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications purchased an additional 2,172,946 shares of our Class A common stock. As a result of this purchase, the stock purchase program concluded; however, future stock purchases would result in additional concentration of our stock ownership and further reduce our public float.  As of December 31, 2015, iHeartCommunications, through its subsidiaries, held approximately 90.1% of our outstanding shares of common stock.

 

Future sales or distributions of our shares by iHeartCommunications could depress the market price for shares of our Class A common stock

iHeartCommunications may sell all or part of the shares of our common stock it owns or distribute those shares to the iHeartMedia stockholders, including pursuant to demand registration rights described in the Registration Rights Agreement between us and iHeartCommunications. Sales or distributions by iHeartCommunications of substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market or to the iHeartMedia stockholders could adversely affect prevailing market prices for our Class A common stock.  iHeartCommunications has advised us it currently intends to continue to hold all of our common stock it owns.  However, iHeartCommunications is not subject to any contractual obligation that would prohibit it from selling, spinning off, splitting off or otherwise disposing of any shares of our common stock.  Consequently, we cannot assure you iHeartCommunications will maintain its ownership of our common stock.

 

We currently do not pay regularly-scheduled dividends on our Class A common stock

We paid a special dividend on March 15, 2012, a special dividend on November 8, 2013 in connection with the settlement of litigation, a special dividend on August 11, 2014, a special dividend on January 7, 2016 and a special dividend on February 4, 2016.  We do not pay regularly-scheduled dividends and are subject to restrictions on our ability to pay dividends should we seek to do so in the future.  We are a holding company with no independent operations and no significant assets other than the stock of our subsidiaries.  We, therefore, are dependent upon the receipt of dividends or other distributions from our subsidiaries to pay dividends.  In addition, Clear Channel Worldwide Holdings, Inc.’s (“CCWH”) senior notes and CCWH’s senior subordinated notes contain restrictions on our ability to pay dividends.  If we elect not to pay dividends in the future or are prevented from doing so, the price of our Class A common stock must appreciate in order to realize a gain on your investment.  This appreciation may not occur.

 

Risks Related to Our Indebtedness

We may not be able to generate sufficient cash to service all of our indebtedness and may be forced to take other actions to satisfy our obligations under our indebtedness, which may not be successful

We have a substantial amount of indebtedness.  At December 31, 2015, we had $5.2 billion of total indebtedness outstanding, including: (1) $2.7 billion aggregate principal amount of CCWH’s senior notes, net of unamortized discounts of $5.6 million, which mature in November 2022; (2) $2.2 billion aggregate principal amount of CCWH’s senior subordinated notes, which mature in March 2020; (3) $222.8 million aggregate principal amount outstanding of international subsidiary senior notes, net of unamortized discounts of $2.2 million, which mature in December 2020; and (4) $19.0 million of other debt. This large amount of indebtedness could have negative consequences for us, including, without limitation:

·         requiring us to dedicate a substantial portion of our cash flow to the payment of principal and interest on indebtedness, thereby reducing cash available for other purposes, including to fund operations and capital expenditures, invest in new technology and pursue other business opportunities;

·         limiting our liquidity and operational flexibility and limiting our ability to obtain additional financing for working capital, capital expenditures, debt service requirements, acquisitions and general corporate or other purposes;

·         limiting our ability to adjust to changing economic, business and competitive conditions;

·         requiring us to defer planned capital expenditures, reduce discretionary spending, sell assets, restructure existing indebtedness or defer acquisitions or other strategic opportunities;

·         limiting our ability to refinance any of the indebtedness or increasing the cost of any such financing;

·         making us more vulnerable to an increase in interest rates, a downturn in our operating performance, a decline in general economic or industry conditions or a disruption in the credit markets; and

·         making us more susceptible to negative changes in credit ratings, which could impact our ability to obtain financing in the future and increase the cost of such financing.

 

If compliance with the debt obligations materially hinders our ability to operate our business and adapt to changing industry conditions, we may lose market share, our revenue may decline and our operating results may suffer.

 

Our ability to make scheduled payments on our debt obligations depends on our financial condition and operating performance, which is subject to prevailing economic and competitive conditions and to certain financial, business and other factors beyond our control. We may not be able to maintain a level of cash flows from operating activities sufficient to permit us to pay the principal, premium, if any, and interest on our indebtedness.

 

If our cash flows and capital resources are insufficient to fund our debt service obligations, we may be forced to reduce or delay capital expenditures, sell assets or operations, seek additional capital or refinance our indebtedness.  We may not be able to take any of these actions, and these actions may not be successful or permit us to meet our scheduled debt service obligations.  Furthermore, these actions may not be permitted under the terms of our existing or future debt agreements.

 

Our ability to refinance our debt will depend on the condition of the capital markets and our financial condition at such time. Any refinancing of our debt could be at higher interest rates and increase our debt service obligations and may require us to comply with more onerous covenants, which could further restrict our business operations. The terms of existing or future debt instruments may restrict us from adopting some of these alternatives. These alternative measures may not be successful and may not permit us to meet our scheduled debt service obligations. If we cannot make scheduled payments on our indebtedness we will be in default under one or more of our debt agreements and, as a result we could be forced into bankruptcy or liquidation.

 

Because we derive a substantial portion of operating income from our subsidiaries, our ability to repay our debt depends upon the performance of our subsidiaries and their ability to dividend or distribute funds to us

We derive all of our operating income from our subsidiaries. As a result, our cash flow and the ability to service our indebtedness depend on the performance of our subsidiaries and the ability of those entities to distribute funds to us. We cannot assure you that our subsidiaries will be able to, or be permitted to, pay to us the amounts necessary to service our debt.

 

The documents governing our indebtedness and iHeartCommunications’ indebtedness contain restrictions that limit our flexibility in operating our business

Our material financing agreements and iHeartCommunications’ material financing agreements contain various covenants restricting, among other things, our ability to:

 

·         make acquisitions or investments;

·         make loans or otherwise extend credit to others;

·         incur indebtedness or issue shares or guarantees;

·         redeem, repurchase or retire our subordinated debt;

·         create liens;

·         enter into transactions with affiliates;

·         sell, lease, transfer or dispose of assets;

·         merge or consolidate with other companies; and

·         make a substantial change to the general nature of our business.

 

These restrictions could affect our ability to operate our business and may limit our ability to react to market conditions or take advantage of potential business opportunities as they arise.  For example, such restrictions could adversely affect our ability to finance our operations, make strategic acquisitions, investments or alliances, restructure our organization or finance our capital needs.  Additionally, our ability to comply with these covenants and restrictions may be affected by events beyond our control.  These include prevailing economic, financial and industry conditions.  If we breach any of these covenants or restrictions, we could be in default under the agreements governing our indebtedness and, as a result, we would be forced into bankruptcy or liquidation.

 

Downgrades in our and iHeartCommunications’ credit ratings may adversely affect our borrowing costs, limit our financing options, reduce our flexibility under future financings and adversely affect our liquidity, and also may adversely impact our business operations

Our and iHeartCommunications’ corporate credit ratings are speculative-grade. In December 2015, the corporate family rating for Clear Channel Worldwide Holdings, Inc. (“CCWH”) was revised downward by Moody’s Investors Service, Inc. and Fitch Ratings, Inc. downgraded its credit rating on CCWH’s 7.625% Senior Subordinated Notes due 2020. Furthermore, in January 2016, Standard & Poor’s Rating Services, Inc. lowered its corporate credit rating on iHeartCommunications. Any further reductions in our and iHeartCommunications’ credit ratings could increase our borrowing costs, reduce the availability of financing to us or increase the cost of doing business or otherwise negatively impact our business operations.

 

Cautionary Statement Concerning Forward-Looking Statements

The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 provides a safe harbor for forward-looking statements made by us or on our behalf.  Except for the historical information, this report contains various forward-looking statements which represent our current expectations or beliefs concerning future events, including, without limitation, our future operating and financial performance, our ability to comply with the covenants in the agreements governing our indebtedness and the availability of capital and the terms thereof.  Statements expressing expectations and projections with respect to future matters are forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.  We caution that these forward-looking statements involve a number of risks and uncertainties and are subject to many variables which could impact our future performance.  These statements are made on the basis of management’s views and assumptions, as of the time the statements are made, regarding future events and performance.  There can be no assurance, however, that management’s expectations will necessarily come to pass.  Actual future events and performance may differ materially from the expectations reflected in our forward-looking statements.  We do not intend, nor do we undertake any duty, to update any forward-looking statements.

 

A wide range of factors could materially affect future developments and performance, including but not limited to:

 

·         risks associated with weak or uncertain global economic conditions and their impact on the capital markets;

·         other general economic and political conditions in the United States and in other countries in which we currently do business, including those resulting from recessions, political events and acts or threats of terrorism or military conflicts;

·         industry conditions, including competition;

·         the level of expenditures on advertising;

·         legislative or regulatory requirements;

·         fluctuations in operating costs;

·         technological changes and innovations;

·         changes in labor conditions and management;

·         capital expenditure requirements;

·         risks of doing business in foreign countries;

·         fluctuations in exchange rates and currency values;

·         the outcome of pending and future litigation;

·         taxes and tax disputes;

·         changes in interest rates;

·         shifts in population and other demographics;

·         access to capital markets and borrowed indebtedness;

·         our ability to implement our business strategies;

·         the risk that we may not be able to integrate the operations of acquired businesses successfully;

·         the risk that our cost savings initiatives may not be entirely successful or that any cost savings achieved from those initiatives may not persist;

·         our ability to generate sufficient cash from operations or other liquidity-generating transactions and our need to allocate significant amounts of our cash to make payments on our indebtedness, which in turn could reduce our financial flexibility and ability to fund other activities;

·         the impact of our substantial indebtedness, including the effect of our leverage on our financial position and earnings;

·         the risk that our strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives may not be entirely successful or that any cost savings achieved from such strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives may not be sustained;

·         our relationship with iHeartCommunications, including its ability to elect all of the members of our board of directors and its ability as our controlling stockholder to determine the outcome of matters submitted to our stockholders and certain additional matters governed by intercompany agreements between us;

·         the impact of the above and similar factors on iHeartCommunications, our primary direct or indirect external source of capital, which could have a significant need for capital in the future; and

·         certain other factors set forth in our other filings with the SEC.

 

This list of factors that may affect future performance and the accuracy of forward-looking statements is illustrative and is not intended to be exhaustive.  Accordingly, all forward-looking statements should be evaluated with the understanding of their inherent uncertainty.

 

ITEM 1B.  UNRESOLVED STAFF COMMENTS

None.

 

ITEM 2.  PROPERTIES

Our worldwide corporate headquarters is in San Antonio, Texas, where iHeartCommunications leases space in an executive office building and a data and administrative service center.  The headquarters of our Americas operations is in New York, New York and the headquarters of our International operations is in London, England.  In addition, certain of our executive and other operations are located in New York, New York and London, England.

 

The types of properties  required to support each of our outdoor advertising branches include offices, production facilities and structure sites.  An outdoor branch and production facility is generally located in an industrial or warehouse district.

With respect to each of the Americas and International segments, we primarily lease our outdoor display sites and own or have acquired permanent easements for relatively few parcels of real property that serve as the sites for our outdoor displays.  Our leases generally range from month-to-month to year-to-year and can be for terms of 10 years or longer, and many provide for renewal options.

 

There is no significant concentration of displays under any one lease or subject to negotiation with any one landlord.  We believe that an important part of our management activity is to negotiate suitable lease renewals and extensions.  For additional information regarding our properties, see “Item 1. Business.”

 

ITEM 3.  LEGAL PROCEEDINGS

We currently are involved in certain legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business and, as required, have accrued an estimate of the probable costs for the resolution of those claims for which the occurrence of loss is probable and the amount can be reasonably estimated.  These estimates have been developed in consultation with counsel and are based upon an analysis of potential results, assuming a combination of litigation and settlement strategies.  It is possible, however, that future results of operations for any particular period could be materially affected by changes in our assumptions or the effectiveness of our strategies related to these proceedings.  Additionally, due to the inherent uncertainty of litigation, there can be no assurance that the resolution of any particular claim or proceeding would not have a material adverse effect on our financial condition or results of operations.

 

Although we are involved in a variety of legal proceedings in the ordinary course of business, a large portion of our litigation arises in the following contexts: commercial disputes; misappropriation of likeness and right of publicity claims; employment and benefits related claims; governmental fines; intellectual property claims; and tax disputes.

 

International Investigations

On April 21, 2015, inspections were conducted at our premises in Denmark and Sweden as part of an investigation by Danish competition authorities. On the same day, we received a communication from the U.K. competition authorities, also in connection with the investigation by Danish competition authorities. We are cooperating with the national competition authorities. At this time, the outcome of this investigation is uncertain.

 

ITEM 4.  MINE SAFETY DISCLOSURES

Not Applicable.

 

EXECUTIVE OFFICERS OF THE REGISTRANT

 

The following information with respect to our executive officers is presented as of February 25, 2016:

 

 

The officers named above serve until their respective successors are chosen and qualified, in each case unless the officer sooner dies, resigns, is removed or becomes disqualified.

 

Robert W. Pittman is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of iHeartMedia, iHeartCommunications and the Company and the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc.. Mr. Pittman was appointed as the Executive Chairman and a director of iHeartMedia and iHeartCommunications on October 2, 2011. He was appointed as Chairman of iHeartMedia and iHeartCommunications on May 17, 2013. He also was appointed as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer and a member of the board of managers of the Company on April 26, 2013. Prior to October 2, 2011, Mr. Pittman served as Chairman of Media and Entertainment Platforms for iHeartMedia and iHeartCommunications since November 2010. He has been a member of, and an investor in, Pilot Group, a private equity investment company, since April 2003. Mr. Pittman was formerly Chief Operating Officer of AOL Time Warner, Inc. from May 2002 to July 2002. He also served as Co-Chief Operating Officer of AOL Time Warner, Inc. from January 2001 to May 2002, and earlier, as President and Chief Operating Officer of America Online, Inc. from February 1998 to January 2001. Mr. Pittman serves on the boards of numerous charitable organizations, including the Alliance for Lupus Research, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation and the Robin Hood Foundation, where he has served as past Chairman. Mr. Pittman was selected to serve as a member of our Board because of his service as our Chief Executive Officer, as well as his extensive media experience gained through the course of his career.

 

Richard J. Bressler is the President, Chief Operating Officer, Chief Financial Officer and Director of iHeartMedia, the Company and iHeartCommuncations and the Chief Financial Officer of Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc..  Mr. Bressler was appointed as the Chief Financial Officer and President of iHeartMedia, the Company, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. on July 29, 2013 and as Chief Operating Officer of iHeartMedia, the Company and iHeartCommunications on February 18, 2015. Prior thereto, Mr. Bressler was a Managing Director at THL. Prior to joining THL, Mr. Bressler was the Senior Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Viacom, Inc. from 2001 through 2005. He also served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Time Warner Digital Media and, from 1995 to 1999, was Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer of Time Warner Inc. Prior to joining Time Inc. in 1988, Mr. Bressler was a partner with the accounting firm of Ernst & Young LLP since 1979. Mr. Bressler also currently is a director of iHeartMedia, iHeartCommunications and Gartner, Inc., a member of the board of managers of iHeartMedia Capital I, LLC and a board observer at Univision Communications Inc. Mr. Bressler previously served as a member of the board of directors of American Media Operations, Inc., Nielsen Holdings B.V. and Warner Music Group Corp. and as a member of the J.P. Morgan Chase National Advisory Board. Mr. Bressler holds a B.B.A. in Accounting from Adelphi University.

 

Scott R. Wells is the Chief Executive Officer of Clear Channel Outdoor Americas at each of the iHeartMedia, the Company, iHeartCommuncations and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. and was appointed to this position on March 3, 2015.  Previously, Mr. Wells served as an Operating Partner at Bain Capital since January 2011 and prior to that served as an Executive Vice President at Bain Capital since 2007. Mr. Wells also was one of the leaders of the firm’s operationally focused Portfolio Group. Prior to joining Bain Capital, he held several executive roles at Dell, Inc. (“Dell”) from 2004 to 2007, most recently as Vice President of Public Marketing and On-Line in the Americas. Prior to joining Dell, Mr. Wells was a Partner at Bain & Company, where he focused primarily on technology and consumer-oriented companies. Mr. Wells was a member of our Board from August 2008 until March 2015. He currently serves as a director of CRC Health Corporation. He has an M.B.A., with distinction, from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and a B.S. from Virginia Tech.

 

C. William Eccleshare is the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer- Clear Channel International at each of iHeartMedia, the Company, iHeartCommuncations and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. and was appointed to this position on March 2, 2015. Prior to such time, he served as Chief Executive Officer – Outdoor of iHeartMedia, iHeartCommuncations and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. since January 24, 2012 and as Chief Executive Officer—Outdoor of the Company on April 26, 2013.  Prior to January 24, 2012, he served as Chief Executive Officer—Clear Channel Outdoor—International of iHeartMedia and iHeartCommunications since February 17, 2011 and as Chief Executive Officer—International of Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. since September 1, 2009.  Previously, he was Chairman and CEO of BBDO EMEA from 2005 to 2009.  Prior thereto, he was Chairman and CEO of Young & Rubicam EMEA since 2002.

 

Steven J. Macri is the Senior Vice President-Corporate Finance of iHeartMedia, the Company, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. and was appointed to this position on September 9, 2014. Prior thereto, Mr. Macri served as the Chief Financial Officer of iHeartMedia’s iHeartMedia division from October 7, 2013 to September 2014. Prior to joining the company, Mr. Macri served as Chief Financial Officer for LogicSource Inc., from March 2012 to September 2013. Prior to joining LogicSource, Mr. Macri was Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at Warner Music Group Corp. from September 2008 to December 2011 and prior thereto served as Controller and Senior Vice President-Finance from February 2005 to August 2008.

 

Scott D. Hamilton is the Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer and Assistant Secretary of iHeartMedia, the Company, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc.. Mr. Hamilton was appointed Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer and Assistant Secretary of iHeartMedia, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. on April 26, 2010 and was appointed as Senior Vice President, Chief Accounting Officer and Assistant Secretary of the Company on April 26, 2013.  Prior to April 26, 2010, Mr. Hamilton served as Controller and Chief Accounting Officer of Avaya Inc. (“Avaya”), a multinational telecommunications company, from October 2008 to April 2010.  Prior thereto, Mr. Hamilton served in various accounting and finance positions at Avaya, beginning in October 2004.  Prior thereto, Mr. Hamilton was employed by PricewaterhouseCoopers from September 1992 until September 2004 in various roles including audit, transaction services and technical accounting consulting.

 

Robert H. Walls, Jr. is the Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of iHeartMedia, the Company, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc..  Mr. Walls was appointed the Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of iHeartMedia, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. on January 1, 2010 and was appointed as Executive Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary of the Company on April 26, 2013.  On March 31, 2011, Mr. Walls was appointed to serve in the newly-created Office of the Chief Executive Officer for us, iHeartCommunications and Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc., in addition to his existing offices.  Mr. Walls served in the Office of the Chief Executive Officer for us and iHeartCommunications until October 2, 2011, and served in the Office of the Chief Executive Officer for Clear Channel Outdoor Holdings, Inc. until January 24, 2012.  Mr. Walls was a founding partner of Post Oak Energy Capital, LP and served as Managing Director through December 31, 2009 and as an advisor to Post Oak Energy Capital, LP through December 31, 2013.

PART II

 

ITEM 5.  MARKET FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES

Market Information

Shares of our Class A common stock trade on the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) under the symbol “CCO.”  There were 74 stockholders of record as of February 22, 2016.  This figure does not include an estimate of the indeterminate number of beneficial holders whose shares may be held of record by brokerage firms and clearing agencies.  The following table sets forth, for the calendar quarters indicated, the reported high and low sales prices of our Class A common stock as reported on the NYSE:

 

 

There is no established public trading market for our Class B common stock.  There were 315,000,000 shares of our Class B common stock outstanding on February 22, 2016.  iHeartCommunications indirectly holds all of the shares of Class B common stock outstanding and 10,726,917 shares of Class A common stock, representing approximately 90% of the shares outstanding and approximately 99% of the voting power.  The holders of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock have identical rights, except holders of our Class A common stock are entitled to one vote per share while holders of Class B common stock are entitled to 20 votes per share.  The shares of Class B common stock are convertible, at the option of the holder at any time or upon any transfer, into shares of Class A common stock on a one-for-one basis, subject to certain limited exceptions.

 

Dividend Policy

On March 15, 2012, we paid a special dividend in an amount equal to $6.0832 per share to the holders of record of our Class A and Class B common stock at the close of business on March 12, 2012 and, on November 8, 2013, in connection with the settlement of the derivative litigation related to the Due from iHeartCommunications note, we paid a special dividend in an amount equal to $0.5578 per share to the holders of record of our Class A and Class B common stock at the close of business on November 5, 2013.  On August 11, 2014, we paid a special dividend in an amount equal to $0.4865 per share to the holders of record of our Class A and Class B common stock at the close of business on August 4, 2014.  On January 7, 2016, we paid a special dividend in an amount equal to $0.6026 per share to the holders of record of our Class A and Class B common stock at the close of business on January 4, 2016.  On February 4, 2016, we paid a special dividend in an amount equal to $1.4937 per share to the holders of record of our Class A and Class B common stock at the close of business on February 1, 2016. We do not pay regularly scheduled dividends, and our ability to pay dividends on our common stock is subject to restrictions should we seek to do so in the future.

 

We are a holding company with no independent operations and no significant assets other than the stock of our subsidiaries and the Due from iHeartCommunications note.  We, therefore, are dependent on the receipt of dividends or other distributions from our subsidiaries or repayment by iHeartCommunications of amounts outstanding under the Due from iHeartCommunications note to pay dividends.  On October 19, 2013, in accordance with the terms of the derivative litigation settlement, we established a committee of our board of directors for the specific purpose of monitoring the Due from iHeartCommunications note.  The committee has the non-exclusive authority pursuant to a committee charter to demand repayment under the Due from iHeartCommunications note under certain circumstances related to iHeartCommunications’ liquidity or the amount outstanding under the Due from iHeartCommunications note as long as our board of directors declares a simultaneous dividend equal to the amount so demanded.

 

In addition, the agreements governing our indebtedness contain restrictions on our ability to pay dividends.  If we were to declare and pay cash dividends in the future, holders of our Class A common stock and Class B common stock would share equally, on a per share basis, in any such cash dividend.  See “Item 7.  Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources—Sources of Capital” and Note 5 to the Consolidated Financial Statements in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

Sales of Unregistered Securities

We did not sell any equity securities during 2015 that were not registered under the Securities Act of 1933.

 

Purchases of Equity Securities

The following table sets forth the purchases made during the quarter ended December 31, 2015 by or on behalf of us or an affiliated purchaser of shares of our Class A common stock registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act:

 

 

⁽¹⁾             The shares indicated consist of shares of our Class A common stock tendered by employees to us during the three months ended December 31, 2015 to satisfy the employees’ tax withholding obligation in connection with the vesting and release of restricted shares, which are repurchased by us based on their fair market value on the date the relevant transaction occurs.  

 

⁽²⁾             On August 9, 2010, iHeartCommunications announced that its board of directors approved a stock purchase program under which iHeartCommunications or its subsidiaries may purchase up to an aggregate of $100.0 million of the Company’s Class A common stock and/or the Class A common stock of iHeartMedia, Inc. (“iHeartMedia”). The stock purchase program did not have a fixed expiration date and could be modified, suspended or terminated at any time at iHeartCommunications’ discretion.  As of December 31, 2014, an aggregate $34.2 million was available under this program.  In January 2015, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications purchased an additional 2,000,000 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock for $20.4 million.  On April 2, 2015, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications purchased an additional 2,172,946 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock for $22.2 million, increasing iHeartCommunications’ collective holdings to represent slightly more than 90% of the outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock on a fully-diluted basis, assuming the conversion of all of the Company’s Class B common stock into Class A common stock. As a result of this purchase, the stock purchase program concluded. The purchase of shares in excess of the amount available under the stock purchase program was separately approved by the iHeartCommunications’ board of directors.

  

ITEM 6.  Selected Financial Data

 

The following tables set forth our summary historical consolidated financial and other data as of the dates and for the periods indicated. The summary historical financial data are derived from our audited consolidated financial statements. Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform to the 2015 presentation.  Historical results are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for future periods.  Acquisitions and dispositions impact the comparability of the historical consolidated financial data reflected in this schedule of Selected Financial Data.

 

The summary historical consolidated financial and other data should be read in conjunction with “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and our consolidated financial statements and the related notes thereto located within Item 8 of Part II of  this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

 

⁽¹⁾         We recorded non-cash impairment charges of $21.6 million, $3.5 million, $13.2 million, $37.7 million and $7.6 million during 2015, 2014, 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively. Our impairment charges are discussed more fully in Item 8 of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

 

ITEM 7.  MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS

OVERVIEW

Format of Presentation

Management’s discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations (“MD&A”) should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related footnotes contained in Item 8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.  Our discussion is presented on both a consolidated and segment basis.  Our reportable operating segments are Americas outdoor advertising (“Americas”) and International outdoor advertising (“International”).  Our Americas and International segments provide outdoor advertising services in their respective geographic regions using various digital and traditional display types.

 

We manage our operating segments primarily focusing on their operating income, while Corporate expenses, Other operating income (expense), net, Interest expense, Interest income on Due from iHeartCommunications, Loss on marketable securities, Equity in earnings (loss) of nonconsolidated affiliates, Loss on extinguishment of debt, Gain (loss) on extinguishment of debt, Other income, net and Income tax benefit (expense) are managed on a total company basis and are, therefore, included only in our discussion of consolidated results.

 

Certain prior period amounts have been reclassified to conform to the 2015 presentation.

 

Description of Our Business

Our revenue is derived from selling advertising space on the displays we own or operate in key markets worldwide, consisting primarily of billboards, street furniture and transit displays.  Part of our long-term strategy is to pursue the technology of digital displays, including flat screens, LCDs and LEDs, as additions to traditional methods of displaying our clients’ advertisements. We are currently installing these technologies in certain markets, both domestically and internationally.

 

Management typically monitors our business by reviewing the average rates, average revenue per display, occupancy, and inventory levels of each of our display types by market.

 

We own the majority of our advertising displays, which typically are located on sites that we either lease or own or for which we have acquired permanent easements.  Our advertising contracts with clients typically outline the number of displays reserved, the duration of the advertising campaign and the unit price per display.

 

The significant expenses associated with our operations include direct production, maintenance and installation expenses as well as site lease expenses for land under our displays including revenue-sharing or minimum guaranteed amounts payable under our billboard, street furniture and transit display contracts.  Our direct production, maintenance and installation expenses include costs for printing, transporting and changing the advertising copy on our displays, the related labor costs, the vinyl and paper costs, electricity costs and the costs for cleaning and maintaining our displays.  Vinyl and paper costs vary according to the complexity of the advertising copy and the quantity of displays.  Our site lease expenses include lease payments for use of the land under our displays, as well as any revenue-sharing arrangements or minimum guaranteed amounts payable that we may have with the landlords.  The terms of our site leases and revenue-sharing or minimum guaranteed contracts generally range from one to 20 years.

 

Americas

Our advertising rates are based on a number of different factors including location, competition, type and size of display, illumination, market and gross ratings points.  Gross ratings points are the total number of impressions delivered by a display or group of displays, expressed as a percentage of a market population.  The number of impressions delivered by a display is measured by the number of people passing the site during a defined period of time.  For all of our billboards in the United States, we use independent, third-party auditing companies to verify the number of impressions delivered by a display.

 

Client contract terms typically range from four weeks to one year for the majority of our display inventory in the United States.  Generally, we own the street furniture structures and are responsible for their construction and maintenance.  Contracts for the right to place our street furniture and transit displays and sell advertising space on them are awarded by municipal and transit authorities in competitive bidding processes governed by local law or are negotiated with private transit operators.  Generally, these contracts have terms ranging from 10 to 20 years.

 

International

Similar to our Americas business, advertising rates generally are based on the gross ratings points of a display or group of displays. The number of impressions delivered by a display, in some countries, is weighted to account for such factors as illumination, proximity to other displays and the speed and viewing angle of approaching traffic.  In addition, because our International advertising operations are conducted in foreign markets, including Europe, Asia and Australia, management reviews the operating results from our foreign operations on a constant dollar basis.  A constant dollar basis allows for comparison of operations independent of foreign exchange movements.

 

Our International display inventory is typically sold to clients through network packages, with client contract terms typically ranging from one to two weeks with terms of up to one year available as well.  Internationally, contracts with municipal and transit authorities for the right to place our street furniture and transit displays typically provide for terms ranging from three to 15 years. The major difference between our International and Americas street furniture businesses is in the nature of the municipal contracts.  In our International business, these contracts typically require us to provide the municipality with a broader range of metropolitan amenities in exchange for which we are authorized to sell advertising space on certain sections of the structures we erect in the public domain.  A different regulatory environment for billboards and competitive bidding for street furniture and transit display contracts, which constitute a larger portion of our business internationally, may result in higher site lease costs in our International business.  As a result, our margins are typically lower in our International business than in our Americas business.

 

Macroeconomic Indicators

Our advertising revenue for our Americas and International segments is highly correlated to changes in gross domestic product (“GDP”) as advertising spending has historically trended in line with GDP, both domestically and internationally. According to the U.S. Department of Commerce, estimated U.S. GDP growth for 2015 was 2.4%. Internationally, our results are impacted by fluctuations in foreign currency exchange rates as well as the economic conditions in the foreign markets in which we have operations.

 

Relationship with iHeartCommunications

There are several agreements which govern our relationship with iHeartCommunications including the Master Agreement, Corporate Services Agreement, Employee Matters Agreement, Tax Matters Agreement and Trademark and License Agreement.  iHeartCommunications has the right to terminate these agreements in various circumstances.  As of the date of the filing of this Annual Report on Form 10-K, no notice of termination of any of these agreements has been received from iHeartCommunications.  Our agreements with iHeartCommunications continued under the same terms and conditions subsequent to iHeartCommunications’ merger.

 

In accordance with the Master Agreement, our branch managers follow a corporate policy allowing iHeartCommunications to use, without charge, Americas’ displays they believe would otherwise be unsold.  iHeartCommunications bears the cost of producing the advertising and we bear the costs of installing and removing this advertising.

 

Under the Corporate Services Agreement, iHeartCommunications provides management services to us.  These services are charged to us based on actual direct costs incurred or allocated by iHeartCommunications based on headcount, revenue or other factors on a pro rata basis.  For the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, we recorded approximately $30.1 million, $31.2 million and $35.4 million, respectively, as a component of corporate expenses for these services.

 

On August 9, 2010, iHeartCommunications announced that its board of directors approved a stock purchase program under which iHeartCommunications or its subsidiaries may purchase up to an aggregate of $100.0 million of our Class A common stock and/or the Class A common stock of iHeartMedia.  As of December 31, 2014, an aggregate $34.2 million was available under this program.  In January 2015, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications purchased an additional 2,000,000 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock for $20.4 million.  On April 2, 2015, a subsidiary of iHeartCommunications purchased an additional 2,172,946 shares of the Company’s Class A common stock for $22.2 million, increasing iHeartCommunications’ collective holdings to represent slightly more than 90% of the outstanding shares of the Company’s common stock on a fully-diluted basis, assuming the conversion of all of the Company’s Class B common stock into Class A common stock. As a result of this purchase, the stock purchase program concluded. The purchase of shares in excess of the amount available under the stock purchase program was separately approved by the iHeartCommunications’ board of directors.

 

Executive Summary

The key developments in our business for the year ended December 31, 2015 are summarized below:

·  Consolidated revenue decreased $155.1 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding a $229.0 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, consolidated revenue increased $73.9 million during 2015 compared to 2014.

·  We spent $20.3 million on strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives during 2015 to realign and improve our on-going business operations—a decrease of $10.0 million compared to 2014.

·  On December 16, 2015, Clear Channel International B.V. (“CCIBV”), our indirect wholly-owned subsidiary, issued $225.0 million in aggregate principal amount of 8.75% Senior Notes due 2020. We used the proceeds of the offering to fund a special cash dividend in an aggregate amount equal to approximately $217.8 million to our stockholders, which was paid on January 7, 2016.

 

Revenues and expenses “excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements” in this Management’s Discussion & Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations is presented because management believes that viewing certain financial results without the impact of fluctuations in foreign currency rates facilitates period to period comparisons of business performance and provides useful information to investors.  Revenues and expenses “excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements” are calculated by converting the current period’s revenues and expenses in local currency to U.S. dollars using average foreign exchange rates for the prior period. 

 

 

Consolidated Revenue

Consolidated revenue decreased $155.1 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding a $229.0 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, consolidated revenue increased $73.9 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Americas revenue decreased $1.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $23.4 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, Americas revenue increased $21.8 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily driven by higher revenues from digital billboards and our Spectacolor business. International revenue decreased $153.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $205.6 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, International revenue increased $52.2 million during 2015 compared to

2014 primarily driven by new contracts and the impact of sales initiatives.

 

Consolidated Direct Operating Expenses

Consolidated direct operating expenses decreased $102.0 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding an $146.6 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, consolidated direct operating expenses increased $44.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Americas direct operating expenses decreased $8.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $13.1 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, Americas direct operating expenses increased $4.7 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily due to higher variable site lease expenses related to the increase in revenues. International direct operating expenses decreased $93.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $133.5 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, International direct operating expenses increased $39.9 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily as a result of higher variable costs associated with higher revenue, as well as higher spending on strategic efficiency initiatives.

 

Consolidated Selling, General and Administrative (“SG&A”) Expenses

Consolidated SG&A expenses decreased $17.0 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding a $51.1 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, consolidated SG&A expenses increased $34.1 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Americas SG&A expenses decreased $0.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $6.0 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, Americas SG&A expenses increased $5.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily in Latin America. International SG&A expenses decreased $16.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $45.0 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, International SG&A expenses increased $28.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily due to higher compensation expense, including commissions in connection with higher revenues.

 

Corporate Expenses

Corporate expenses decreased $14.5 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $3.5 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, corporate expenses decreased $11.0 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Corporate expenses were primarily impacted by lower spending related to our strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives, partially offset by higher variable compensation expense.

 

Revenue and Efficiency Initiatives

Included in the amounts for direct operating expenses, SG&A and corporate expenses discussed above are expenses of $20.3 million incurred in 2015 in connection with our strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives. The costs were incurred to improve revenue growth, enhance yield, reduce costs, and organize each business to maximize performance and profitability.  These costs consist primarily of severance related to workforce initiatives, consolidation of locations and positions, consulting expenses and other costs incurred in connection with streamlining our businesses. These costs are expected to provide benefits in future periods as the initiative results are realized.  Of these costs for 2015, $9.2 million are reported within direct operating expenses, $4.3 million are reported within SG&A and $6.8 million are reported within corporate expense.  In 2014, such costs totaled $3.5 million, $6.7 million, and $20.0 million, respectively.

 

Depreciation and Amortization

Depreciation and amortization decreased $30.3 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily due to assets becoming fully depreciated or fully amortized as well as the impact of movements in foreign exchange rates.

 

Impairment Charges

Historically, we performed our annual impairment test on our goodwill, billboard permits, and other intangible assets as of October 1 of each year.  Beginning in the third quarter of 2015, we began performing our annual impairment test on July 1 of each year.  In addition, we test for impairment of property, plant and equipment whenever events and circumstances indicate that depreciable assets might be impaired.  As a result of these impairment tests, during 2015, we recorded impairment charges of $21.6 million during 2015 related to billboard permits in one Americas outdoor market.  During 2014, we recognized a $3.5 million other intangible assets impairment charge in our Americas segment primarily related to a decline in the estimated fair value of permanent easements in two markets.  Please see Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a further description of the impairment charges.

 

Other Operating Income (Expense), Net

Other operating expense, net of $4.8 million in 2015 primarily related to acquisition/disposition transaction costs.

 

Other operating income, net of $7.3 million in 2014 primarily related to the gain on the sale of certain outdoor assets in our Americas segment.

 

Interest Expense

Interest expense increased $2.4 million in 2015 compared to 2014.

 

Interest Income on Due From iHeartCommunications

Interest income increased $1.3 million during 2015 compared to 2014 due to the increase in the average outstanding balance on the Due from iHeartCommunications note.

 

Equity in Earnings (Loss) of Nonconsolidated Affiliates

Equity in loss of nonconsolidated affiliates of $0.3 million for 2015 included the loss from our equity investments in our Americas and International segments.

 

Equity in earnings of nonconsolidated affiliates of $3.8 million for 2014 included the earnings from our equity investments in our Americas and International segments.

 

Other Income (Expense), Net

Other income of $12.4 million and $15.2 million for 2015 and 2014, respectively, primarily related to foreign exchange gains on short-term intercompany accounts.

 

Income Tax Benefit (Expense)

Our operations are included in a consolidated income tax return filed by iHeartMedia.  However, for our financial statements, our provision for income taxes was computed as if we file separate consolidated federal income tax returns with our subsidiaries.

 

The effective tax rate for 2015 was (237.5%) and was primarily impacted by the $32.9 million valuation allowance recorded during the period as additional deferred tax expense. The valuation allowance was recorded against a portion of the U.S. Federal and State net operating losses due to the uncertainty of the ability to utilize those losses in future periods.  Additionally, the Company recorded additional taxes due to the inability to benefit from losses in certain foreign jurisdictions.

 

The effective tax rate for 2014 was (105.5%), primarily impacted by our benefits and charges from tax amounts associated with our foreign earnings that are taxed at rates different from the federal statutory rate and an inability to benefit from losses in certain foreign jurisdictions.  In addition, we recorded $20.0 million in net tax benefits associated with a decrease in unrecognized tax benefits resulting from the expiration of statutes of limitations to assess taxes in the United Kingdom and several state jurisdictions.   

 

  

 

 

Americas revenue decreased $1.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $23.4 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, Americas revenue increased $21.8 million during 2015 compared to 2014 driven primarily by an increase in revenues from digital billboards as a result of new deployments, as well as from our Spectacolor business, partially offset by lower advertising revenues from our static bulletins and posters, and our airports business.

 

Americas direct operating expenses decreased $8.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $13.1 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, Americas direct operating expenses increased $4.7 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily due to higher variable site lease expenses related to the increase in revenues. Americas SG&A expenses decreased $0.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $6.0 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, Americas SG&A expenses increased $5.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily due to higher expenses in Latin America.

 

 

International revenue decreased $153.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $205.6 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, International revenue increased $52.2 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily driven by new contracts along with higher occupancy and higher rates for our transit and street furniture products, particularly digital, in certain European countries, including Sweden, Norway, Italy and the UK, as well as from new contracts in Australia and China.

 

International direct operating expenses decreased $93.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $133.5 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, International direct operating expenses increased $39.9 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily as a result of higher variable costs associated with higher revenue, as well as site lease termination fees on lower-margin boards incurred in connection with strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives. International SG&A expenses decreased $16.6 million during 2015 compared to 2014. Excluding the $45.0 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, International SG&A expenses increased $28.4 million during 2015 compared to 2014 primarily due to higher compensation expense, including commissions in connection with higher revenues.

 

Depreciation and amortization decreased $32.1 million. Excluding the $19.5 million impact from movements in foreign exchange rates, depreciation and amortization decreased $12.6 million primarily due to assets becoming fully depreciated or fully amortized.

 

Also included in International Outdoor direct operating expenses and SG&A expenses are $8.2 million and $3.2 million, respectively, recorded in the fourth quarter of 2015 to correct for accounting errors included in the results for our Netherlands subsidiary reported in prior years. Such corrections are not considered to be material to the current year or prior year financial results.

 

 

Consolidated Revenue

Our consolidated revenue increased $15.1 million including a decrease of $22.7 million from movements in foreign exchange during 2014 compared to 2013. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, consolidated revenue increased $37.8 million. Americas revenue decreased $35.1 million compared to 2013, including negative movements in foreign exchange of $9.4 million. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, Americas revenue decreased $25.7 million primarily driven by lower revenues generated by national accounts and the nonrenewal of certain airport contracts, and lower revenues in our Los Angeles market as a result of the impact of litigation. Our International revenue increased $50.2 million compared to 2013, including negative movements in foreign exchange of $13.3 million. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, International revenue increased $63.5 million primarily driven by new contracts and from growth in Europe and emerging markets.

 

Consolidated Direct Operating Expenses

Consolidated direct operating expenses during 2014 increased $2.2 million including a decrease of $11.9 million from movements in foreign exchange compared to 2013. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, consolidated direct operating expenses increased $14.1 million. Direct operating expenses in our Americas segment decreased $4.9 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $6.0 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, direct operating expenses in our Americas segment increased $1.1 million. Direct operating expenses in our International segment increased $7.1 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $5.9 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, direct operating expenses in our International segment increased $13.0 million primarily as a result of higher variable costs associated with new contracts.

 

Consolidated SG&A Expenses

Consolidated SG&A expenses during 2014 increased $4.9 million including a decrease of $4.5 million from movements in foreign exchange compared to 2013. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, consolidated SG&A expenses increased $9.4 million. SG&A expenses decreased $9.8 million in our Americas segment including a decrease of $1.9 million from movements in foreign exchange compared to 2013. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, SG&A expenses in our Americas

segment decreased $7.9 million primarily due to lower commission expense in connection with lower revenues and property tax refunds. Our International SG&A expenses increased $14.7 million compared to 2013, including a $2.6 million decrease due to the effects of movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, SG&A expenses in our International segment increased $17.3 million primarily due to higher compensation expense, including commissions, in connection with higher revenues, as well as higher litigation expenses.

 

Corporate Expenses

Corporate expenses increased $6.5 million during 2014 compared to 2013 primarily due to higher spending on strategic revenue and efficiency costs.

 

Revenue and Efficiency Initiatives

Included in the amounts for direct operating expenses, SG&A and corporate expenses discussed above are expenses of $30.2 million incurred in connection with our strategic revenue and efficiency initiatives. The costs were incurred to improve revenue growth, enhance yield, reduce costs, and organize each business to maximize performance and profitability.  These costs consist primarily of consulting expenses, consolidation of locations and positions, severance related to workforce initiatives and other costs incurred in connection with streamlining our businesses. These costs are expected to provide benefits in future periods as the initiative results are realized.  Of these costs, $3.5 million are reported within direct operating expenses, $6.7 million are reported within SG&A and $20.0 million are reported within corporate expense.  In 2013, such costs totaled $12.5 million, $12.2 million, and $11.7 million, respectively.

 

Depreciation and Amortization

Depreciation and amortization increased $3.1 million during 2014 compared to 2013 primarily due to purchases of property, plant & equipment.

 

Impairment Charges

We performed our annual impairment tests as of October 1, 2014 and 2013 on our goodwill, billboard permits, and other intangible assets and recorded impairment charges of $3.5 million and $13.2 million, respectively.  During 2014, we recognized a $3.5 million other intangible assets impairment charge in our Americas segment primarily related to a decline in the estimated fair value of permanent easements in two markets.  During 2013, we recognized a $10.7 million goodwill impairment charge in our International segment related to a decline in the estimated fair value of one market.  Please see Note 2 to the consolidated financial statements included in Item 8 of Part II of this Annual Report on Form 10-K for a further description of the impairment charges.

 

Other Operating Income, Net

Other operating income, net of $7.3 million in 2014 primarily related to the gain on the sale of certain outdoor assets in our Americas segments.

Other operating income, net of $23.0 million in 2013 primarily related to the gain on the sale of certain outdoor assets in our Americas segment.

 

Interest Expense

Interest expense increased $0.5 million in 2014 compared to 2013.

 

Interest Income on Due From iHeartCommunications

Interest income increased $6.0 million during 2014 compared to 2013 due to the increase in the average outstanding balance.

 

Equity in Earnings (Loss) of Nonconsolidated Affiliates

Equity in earnings of nonconsolidated affiliates of $3.8 million for 2014 included the earnings from our equity investments in our Americas and International segments.

 

Equity in loss of nonconsolidated affiliates of $2.1 million for 2013 included the loss from our equity investments in our International segment.

 

Other Income, Net

Other income of $15.2 million for 2014 primarily related to foreign exchange gains on short-term intercompany accounts.

Other income of $1.0 million for 2013 primarily related to $1.7 million in foreign exchange gains on short-term intercompany accounts partially offset by miscellaneous expenses of $0.7 million.

 

Income Tax (Expense) Benefit

Our operations are included in a consolidated income tax return filed by iHeartMedia.  However, for our financial statements, our provision for income taxes was computed as if we file separate consolidated federal income tax returns with our subsidiaries.

The effective tax rate for 2014 was (105.5%), primarily impacted by our benefits and charges from tax amounts associated with our foreign earnings that are taxed at rates different from the federal statutory rate and an inability to benefit from losses in certain foreign jurisdictions.  In addition, we recorded $20.0 million in net tax benefits associated with a decrease in unrecognized tax benefits resulting from the expiration of statutes of limitations to assess taxes in the United Kingdom and several state jurisdictions. 

The effective tax rate for 2013 was (155.6%), primarily impacted by our benefits and charges from tax amounts associated with our foreign earnings that are taxed at rates different from the federal statutory rate and an inability to benefit from losses in certain foreign jurisdictions.  In addition, we recorded additional foreign deferred tax expense of $3.4 million on certain foreign earnings that are expected to be distributed in future periods from our Asia subsidiaries on which foreign withholding and other taxes have not previously been provided.

 

Americas Results of Operations

Our Americas operating results were as follows:

 

 

Our Americas outdoor revenue decreased $35.1 million compared to 2013, including negative movements in foreign exchange of $9.4 million. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, Americas outdoor revenue decreased $25.7 million driven primarily by lower spending by national accounts and the nonrenewal of certain airport contracts. Revenues were also lower in our Los Angeles market as a result of the impact of litigation as discussed further in Item 3 of Part I of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

 

Direct operating expenses decreased $4.9 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $6.0 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, direct operating expenses in our Americas outdoor segment increased $1.1 million. SG&A expenses decreased $9.8 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $1.9 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, SG&A expenses in our Americas outdoor segment decreased $7.9 million primarily due to lower commission expense in connection with lower revenues and property tax refunds.

 

International Advertising Results of Operations

Our International operating results were as follows:

 

 

International outdoor revenue increased $50.2 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $13.3 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of foreign exchange movements, revenues increased $63.5 million primarily driven by revenue growth in Europe including Italy, due to a new contract for the Rome airports, as well as Sweden, France, and the UK. Revenue in emerging markets also increased, particularly in China primarily as a result of new contracts.

 

Direct operating expenses increased $7.1 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $5.9 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of movements in foreign exchange, direct operating expenses increased $13.0 million primarily as a result of higher variable costs associated with new contracts, including the Rome airports contract in Italy. SG&A expenses increased $14.8 million compared to 2013, including a decrease of $2.7 million from movements in foreign exchange. Excluding the impact of movements in foreign exchange, SG&A expenses increased $17.5 million primarily due to higher compensation expense, including commissions, in connection with higher revenues, as well as higher litigation expenses.

 

Depreciation and amortization increased $3.7 million, primarily due to purchases of property, plant, & equipment.

  

 

 

Share-Based Compensation Expense

As of December 31, 2015, there was $17.8 million of unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested share-based compensation arrangements that will vest based on service conditions.  Based on the terms of the award agreements, this cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of approximately three years.  In addition, as of December 31, 2015, there was $0.6 million of unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested share-based compensation arrangements that will vest based on market, performance and service conditions.  This cost will be recognized when it becomes probable that the performance condition will be satisfied.

 

Share-based compensation expenses are recorded in corporate expenses and were $8.4 million, $7.7 million and $7.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively.