Heritage Global Inc. - Quarter Report: 2009 March (Form 10-Q)
UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE
COMMISSION
WASHINGTON, D.C.
20549
FORM 10-Q
x QUARTERLY REPORT UNDER SECTION
13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
|
For the quarterly period ended March
31, 2009
OR
o TRANSITION REPORT UNDER SECTION
13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF
1934
|
For the transition period from
to
Commission file number:
0-17973
C2
Global Technologies Inc.
(Exact
name of registrant as specified in its charter)
FLORIDA
(State
or other jurisdiction of
Incorporation
or Organization)
|
59-2291344
(I.R.S.
Employer Identification No.)
|
40
King St. West, Suite 3200, Toronto, ON M5H 3Y2
(Address
of Principal Executive Offices)
(416) 866-3000
(Registrant’s
Telephone Number)
N/A
(Registrant’s
Former Name)
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 and Exchange Act of 1934
during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter time 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 R No o
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 o No o
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an
accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer (as defined in Exchange Act Rule
12b-2).
Large
Accelerated Filer £
|
Accelerated
Filer £
|
Non-Accelerated
Filer R
|
Smaller
reporting company £
|
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule
12b-2 of the Exchange Act).
Yes £ No R
As of May
5, 2009, there were 22,718,309 shares of common stock, $0.01 par value,
outstanding.
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Part I.
|
Financial
Information
|
|
Item 1.
|
Financial
Statements
|
|
Unaudited Condensed Consolidated Balance
Sheets as of
March 31, 2009 and
December 31, 2008
|
3
|
|
Unaudited
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations for the three months ended
March 31, 2009 and 2008
|
4
|
|
Unaudited
Condensed Consolidated Statement of Changes in Stockholders’ Equity for
the period ended March 31, 2009
|
5
|
|
Unaudited
Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the three months ended
March 31, 2009 and 2008
|
6
|
|
Notes to Unaudited Condensed
Consolidated Financial Statements
|
7
|
|
Item 2.
|
Management’s Discussion and
Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations
|
21
|
Item 3.
|
Quantitative and Qualitative
Disclosures About Market Risk
|
31
|
Item 4T.
|
Controls and
Procedures
|
31
|
Part II.
|
Other
Information
|
|
Item 1.
|
Legal
Proceedings
|
32
|
Item
1A.
|
Risk
Factors
|
32
|
Item
2.
|
Unregistered
Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
|
32
|
Item
3.
|
Defaults
Upon Senior Securities
|
32
|
Item
4.
|
Submission
of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders
|
32
|
Item
5.
|
Other
Information
|
32
|
Item 6.
|
Exhibits
|
33
|
2
PART I – FINANCIAL
INFORMATION
Item 1 – Financial
Statements.
C2
GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONDENSED
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(unaudited)
March 31,
|
December 31,
|
|||||||
(In thousands of US dollars, except share and per share amounts)
|
2009
|
2008
|
||||||
ASSETS
|
||||||||
Current
assets:
|
||||||||
Cash
|
$ | 3,425 | $ | 4,076 | ||||
Deferred
income tax assets (Note 9)
|
974 | 875 | ||||||
Other
current assets
|
92 | 77 | ||||||
Total
current assets
|
4,491 | 5,028 | ||||||
Other
assets:
|
||||||||
Goodwill
(Note 5)
|
173 | 173 | ||||||
Investments
(Note 6)
|
242 | 242 | ||||||
Total
assets
|
$ | 4,906 | $ | 5,443 | ||||
LIABILITIES
AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
|
||||||||
Current
liabilities:
|
||||||||
Accounts
payable and accrued liabilities (Note 5)
|
$ | 438 | $ | 472 | ||||
Total
liabilities
|
438 | 472 | ||||||
Commitments
and contingencies (Note 11)
|
||||||||
Stockholders’
equity:
|
||||||||
Preferred
stock, $10.00 par value, convertible, non-redeemable, authorized
10,000,000 shares, issued and
outstanding
594 Class N shares at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008; liquidation
preference of
$594
at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008
|
6 | 6 | ||||||
Common
stock, $0.01 par value, authorized 300,000,000 shares, issued and
outstanding 22,718,309
shares
at March
31, 2009
and 22,745,530 shares at December 31, 2008
|
227 | 227 | ||||||
Additional
paid-in capital
|
274,654 | 274,761 | ||||||
Accumulated
deficit
|
(270,365 | ) | (270,023 | ) | ||||
Stockholders’
equity before non-controlling interest
|
4,522 | 4,971 | ||||||
Non-controlling
interest in subsidiary
|
(54 | ) | — | |||||
Total
equity
|
4,468 | 4,971 | ||||||
Total
liabilities and stockholders’ equity
|
$ | 4,906 | $ | 5,443 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated
financial statements.
3
C2
GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONDENSED
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
AND
COMPREHENSIVE INCOME
(unaudited)
Three months ended
|
||||||||
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
|
March 31,
|
|||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Revenue:
|
||||||||
Patent
licensing
|
$ | — | $ | 6,225 | ||||
Operating
costs and expenses:
|
||||||||
Patent
licensing
|
1 | 3,184 | ||||||
Selling,
general and administrative
|
387 | 276 | ||||||
Depreciation
and amortization
|
— | 5 | ||||||
Total
operating costs and expenses
|
388 | 3,465 | ||||||
Operating
income (loss)
|
(388 | ) | 2,760 | |||||
Other
income (expense):
|
||||||||
Other
income (expense)
|
1 | — | ||||||
Interest
expense – related party (Note 7)
|
— | (43 | ) | |||||
Total
other income (expense)
|
1 | (43 | ) | |||||
Income
(loss) from continuing operations before the undernoted
|
(387 | ) | 2,717 | |||||
Income
tax expense (recovery) (Note 9)
|
(7 | ) | 921 | |||||
Earnings
(loss) of equity accounted investments (net of $0
tax) (Note 6)
|
1 | (1 | ) | |||||
Income
(loss) from continuing operations
|
(379 | ) | 1,795 | |||||
Income
(loss) from discontinued operations
|
— | — | ||||||
Net
income (loss) and comprehensive income (loss) before non-controlling
interest
|
(379 | ) | 1,795 | |||||
Net
(income) loss and comprehensive (income) loss attributable to
non-controlling interest
|
37 | — | ||||||
Net
income (loss) and comprehensive income (loss)
|
$ | (342 | ) | $ | 1,795 | |||
Weighted
average common shares outstanding
|
22,739 | 23,095 | ||||||
Weighted
average preferred shares outstanding
|
1 | 1 | ||||||
Net
income (loss) per share – basic and diluted: (Note 2)
|
||||||||
Income
(loss) from continuing operations and net income
|
||||||||
Common
shares
|
$ | (0.02 | ) | $ | 0.08 | |||
Preferred
shares
|
$ | N/A | $ | 3.11 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated
financial statements.
4
C2
GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONDENSED
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
For
the period ended March 31, 2009
(in
thousands of US dollars, except share amounts)
(unaudited)
C2 Global Technologies Inc. Shareholders
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Preferred stock
|
Common stock
|
Additional
paid-in
|
Accumulated
Equity
|
Non-
controlling
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Shares
|
Amount
|
Shares
|
Amount
|
capital
|
(Deficit)
|
interest
|
Total
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2007
|
607 | $ | 6 | 23,095,010 | $ | 231 | $ | 274,672 | $ | (275,850 | ) | $ | — | $ | (941 | ) | ||||||||||||||||
Conversion
of Class N preferred stock to common stock
|
(13 | ) | — | 520 | — | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Cancellation
of common stock (Note 11)
|
— | — | (350,000 | ) | (4 | ) | 4 | — | — | — | ||||||||||||||||||||||
Compensation
cost related to stock options
|
— | — | — | — | 85 | — | — | 85 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Net
income
|
— | — | — | — | — | 5,827 | — | 5,827 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2008
|
594 | 6 | 22,745,530 | 227 | 274,761 | (270,023 | ) | — | 4,971 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Purchase
and cancellation of common stock (Note 11)
|
— | — | (27,221 | ) | — | (125 | ) | — | — | (125 | ) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Compensation
cost related to stock options
|
— | — | — | — | 18 | — | — | 18 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
Share
issue costs
|
(17 | ) | (17 | ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Net
loss
|
— | — | — | — | — | (342 | ) | (37 | ) | (379 | ) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Balance
at March 31, 2009
|
594 | $ | 6 | 22,718,309 | $ | 227 | $ | 274,654 | $ | (270,365 | ) | $ | (54 | ) | $ | 4,468 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated
financial statements.
5
C2
GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES INC. AND SUBSIDIARIES
CONDENSED
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(unaudited)
Three
months ended
March
31,
|
||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Cash
flows from operating activities:
|
||||||||
Net
income (loss) from continuing operations
|
$ | (379 | ) | $ | 1,795 | |||
Adjustments
to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by (used in) operating
activities:
|
||||||||
Stock-based
compensation expense
|
18 | 23 | ||||||
Equity
interests in significantly influenced companies
|
(1 | ) | 1 | |||||
Depreciation
and amortization
|
— | 5 | ||||||
Changes
in operating assets and liabilities:
|
||||||||
Decrease
(increase) in other assets
|
(15 | ) | (238 | ) | ||||
Decrease
(increase) in deferred income tax assets
|
(99 | ) | 921 | |||||
Increase
(decrease) in accounts payable and accrued liabilities
|
(34 | ) | 232 | |||||
Net
cash provided by (used in) operating activities by continuing and
discontinued operations
|
(510 | ) | 2,739 | |||||
Cash
flows from investing activities:
|
||||||||
Cash
distributions from portfolio investments
|
1 | — | ||||||
Net
cash provided by investing activities of continuing and discontinued
operations
|
1 | — | ||||||
Cash
flows from financing activities:
|
||||||||
Purchase
and cancellation of common shares
|
(125 | ) | — | |||||
Non-controlling
interest
|
(17 | ) | — | |||||
Repayment
of notes payable to a related party
|
— | (2,335 | ) | |||||
Net
cash provided by (used in) financing activities
|
(142 | ) | (2,335 | ) | ||||
Increase
(decrease) in cash
|
(651 | ) | 404 | |||||
Cash
at beginning of period
|
4,076 | 67 | ||||||
Cash
at end of period
|
$ | 3,425 | $ | 471 | ||||
Supplemental
cash flow information:
|
||||||||
Taxes
paid
|
92 | — | ||||||
Interest
paid
|
— | 43 |
The
accompanying notes are an integral part of these condensed consolidated
financial statements.
6
C2 GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES INC. AND
SUBSIDIARIES
NOTES
TO UNAUDITED CONDENSED CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(in
thousands, except share and per share data)
Note 1 – Description of Business and
Principles of Consolidation
These
unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of C2
Global Technologies Inc. together with its subsidiaries, including C2
Communications Technologies Inc., C2 Investments Inc. and Counsel RB Capital
LLC. These entities, on a combined basis, are referred to as “C2”,
the “Company”, “we” or “our” in these financial statements. Our
unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements were prepared in
conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of
America (“GAAP”) and include the assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses of
all majority-owned subsidiaries over which C2 exercises control. All
significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated upon
consolidation.
C2 owns
certain patents, including two foundational patents in voice over internet
protocol (“VoIP”) technology – U.S. Patent Nos. 6,243,373 (the “VoIP Patent”)
and 6,438,124 (the “C2 Patent”) (together the “VoIP Patent Portfolio”), which it
licenses. The VoIP Patent, including a corresponding foreign patent
and related international patent applications, was acquired from a third party
in 2003. At the time of acquisition, the vendor of the VoIP Patent
was granted a first priority security interest in the patent in order to secure
C2’s obligations under the associated purchase agreement, as discussed in Note
8. The C2 Patent was developed by the Company.
Licensing
of intellectual property constitutes the primary business of the
Company. C2’s target market consists of carriers, equipment
manufacturers, service providers and end users in the internet protocol (“IP”)
telephone market who are using C2’s patented VoIP technologies by deploying VoIP
networks for phone-to-phone communications. The Company has engaged,
and intends to continue to engage, in licensing agreements with third parties
domestically and internationally. At present, no ongoing royalties
are being paid to the Company. The Company plans to obtain ongoing
licensing and royalty revenue from the target market for its patents, with the
assistance of outside counsel, in order to realize value from its intellectual
property. In 2008, the Company entered into settlement and license
agreements with six telecommunications companies and one associated
supplier.
In 2007,
the Company began investing in Internet-based e-commerce businesses through its
acquisition of minority positions in MyTrade.com, Inc. (sold in the fourth
quarter of 2007), Buddy Media, Inc., LIMOS.com LLC (sold in the fourth quarter
of 2008), and Knight’s Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No. I GP
LLC. These investments are discussed in more detail in Note
6.
In
February 2009 the Company established Counsel RB Capital LLC (“Counsel
RB”). Counsel RB is owned 75% by the Company and 25% by its
Co-CEO’s. It specializes in the acquisition and disposition of
distressed and surplus assets throughout the United States and Canada, including
industrial machinery and equipment, real estate, inventories, accounts
receivable and distressed debt. In addition to purchasing various
types of assets, Counsel RB also arranges traditional asset disposition services
such as on-site and webcast auctions, liquidations and negotiated
sales. Although Counsel RB has just commenced operations, C2’s
management anticipates that the Company’s investment in Counsel RB will allow C2
to diversify into a new operating segment. Share issue costs incurred
by Counsel RB are approximately $70, of which $52 (75%) have been classified as
deferred costs to be amortized over the twelve months beginning April 1, 2009;
the remainder have been allocated to the non-controlling interest in Counsel
RB.
We have
prepared the condensed financial statements included herein, without audit,
pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission
(SEC). In our opinion, these financial statements reflect all
adjustments that are necessary to present fairly the results for interim
periods. Certain information and footnote disclosures normally
included in financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been
condensed or omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations; however, we believe
that the disclosures are appropriate. We recommend that these
unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements be read in conjunction
with the Company’s annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31,
2008, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
7
The
results of operations for the three-month period ended March 31, 2009 are not
necessarily indicative of those to be expected for the entire year ending
December 31, 2009.
Note
2 – Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Use of estimates
The
preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management
to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and
liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date
of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenues and
expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ
from those estimates.
Significant
estimates include revenue recognition, purchase accounting (including the
ultimate recoverability of intangibles and other long-lived assets), valuation
of goodwill and intangibles, valuation of deferred income tax assets,
liabilities, contingencies surrounding litigation, and stock-based
compensation. These estimates have the potential to significantly
impact our consolidated financial statements, either because of the significance
of the financial statement item to which they relate, or because they require
judgment and estimation due to the uncertainty involved in measuring, at a
specific point in time, events that are continuous in nature.
Cash
and cash equivalents
The
Company considers all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of
three months or less to be cash equivalents. The Company maintains
its cash and cash equivalents primarily with financial institutions in Toronto,
Canada. These accounts may from time to time exceed federally insured
limits. The Company has not experienced any losses on such
accounts.
Intangible assets and
goodwill
The
Company accounts for intangible assets in accordance with Statement of Financial
Accounting Standards (“SFAS”) No. 141(R), Business Combinations, SFAS
No. 142, Goodwill and Other
Intangible Assets, and Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”)
Staff Position No. 142-3, Determination of the Useful Life of
Intangible Assets. All business combinations are accounted for
using the purchase method. Goodwill and intangible assets with
indefinite useful lives are not amortized, but are tested for impairment at
least annually. Intangible assets are recorded based on estimates of
fair value at the time of the acquisition.
The
Company assesses the fair value of its intangible assets and its goodwill based
upon the fair value of the Company as a consolidated
entity. Beginning in 2005, the Company’s valuation was based upon its
market capitalization. Management believed this to be the most
reasonable method at the time, given the absence of a predictable revenue stream
and the corresponding inability to use an alternative valuation method for the
Company’s patents, such as a discounted cash flow analysis. For the
year ended December 31, 2008, given the success that the Company had realized
with respect to its patent litigation, the Company was able to use a discounted
cash flow analysis to value its patents. If the carrying amount of
the Company’s net assets exceeds the Company’s estimated fair value, intangible
asset and/or goodwill impairment may be present. The Company measures
the goodwill impairment loss based upon the fair value of the underlying assets
and liabilities, including any unrecognized intangible assets, and estimates the
implied fair value of goodwill. An impairment loss is recognized to
the extent that the Company’s recorded goodwill exceeds its implied fair
value.
Goodwill,
in addition to being tested for impairment annually, is tested for impairment
between annual tests if an event occurs or circumstances change such that it is
more likely than not that the carrying amount of goodwill may be
impaired. No impairment was present upon the performance of these
tests at December 31, 2008 and 2007, and no events have occurred during 2009 to
suggest that the carrying amount of goodwill may be impaired. We
cannot predict the occurrence of future events that might adversely affect the
reported value of goodwill. Such events may include, but are not
limited to, strategic decisions made in response to economic and competitive
conditions and judgments on the validity of the Company’s VoIP Patent Portfolio,
or other factors not known to management at this time.
8
Investments
Equity
securities that do not have a readily determinable fair value, and equity
securities having underlying common stock that also does not have a readily
determinable fair value, are accounted for under the cost method when the
Company’s ownership interests do not allow it to exercise significant influence
over the entities in which it has invested. When the Company’s
ownership interests do allow it to exercise significant influence, the
investments are accounted for under the equity method.
The
Company monitors all of its investments for impairment by considering factors
such as the economic environment and market conditions, as well as the
operational performance of, and other specific factors relating to, the
businesses underlying the investments. The fair values of the
securities are estimated quarterly using the best available information as of
the evaluation date, including data such as the quoted market prices of
comparable public companies, market price of the common stock underlying the
preferred stock, recent financing rounds of the investee, and other
investee-specific information. The Company will record an other than
temporary impairment in the carrying value of the investments should the Company
conclude that such a decline in value has occurred.
Impairments,
equity pick-ups, dividends and realized gains and losses on equity securities
are reported separately in the condensed consolidated statements of
operations. See Note 6 for further discussion of the Company’s
investments.
Fair
value of financial instruments
The fair
value of financial instruments is the amount at which the instruments could be
exchanged in a current transaction between willing parties, other than in a
forced sale or liquidation. At March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008
the carrying values of the Company’s financial instruments, which include cash,
accounts payable and accrued liabilities, approximate fair value, due to their
short-term nature.
Although
the Company does not employ fair value accounting for any of its assets or
liabilities, in assessing the fair values of its financial instruments, the
Company applies the principals of SFAS No. 157, Fair Value Measurements
(“SFAS No. 157”), SFAS No. 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial
Assets and Financial Liabilities, Including an Amendment of FASB Statement No.
115 (“SFAS No. 159”), and FSP FAS 157-3, Determining the Fair Value of a
Financial Asset When the Market for That Asset is Not Active (“FSP FAS
157-3”).
Liabilities
The
Company is involved from time to time in various legal matters arising out of
its operations in the normal course of business. On a case by case
basis, the Company evaluates the likelihood of possible outcomes for this
litigation. Based on this evaluation, the Company determines whether
a liability accrual is appropriate. If the likelihood of a negative
outcome is probable, and the amount is estimable, the Company accounts for the
liability in the current period.
Net earnings (loss) per
share
The
Company is required, in periods in which it has net income, to calculate basic
earnings per share (basic “EPS”) using the two-class method described in EITF
Issue No. 03-6, Participating
Securities and the Two-Class Method under SFAS Statement No.
128. The two-class method is required because the Company’s
Class N preferred shares, each of which is convertible to 40 common shares, have
the right to receive dividends or dividend equivalents should the Company
declare dividends on its common stock. Under the two-class method,
earnings for the period, net of any deductions for contractual preferred stock
dividends and any earnings actually distributed during the period, are allocated
on a pro-rata basis to the common and preferred stockholders. The
weighted-average number of common and preferred shares outstanding during the
period is then used to calculate basic EPS for each class of
shares.
In
periods in which the Company has a net loss, basic loss per share is calculated
by dividing the loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted-average
number of common shares outstanding during the period. The two-class
method is not used, because the preferred stock does not participate in
losses.
9
Options,
warrants and convertible debt are included in the calculation of diluted
earnings (loss) per share, since they are assumed to be exercised or converted,
except when their effect would be anti-dilutive. At March 31, 2009
and 2008, the net effect of including the Company’s potential common shares is
anti-dilutive, and therefore diluted EPS is not presented in these condensed
consolidated unaudited financial statements.
Potential
common shares are as follows:
March 31,
|
||||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Assumed
conversion of Class N preferred stock
|
23,760 | 24,120 | ||||||
Assumed
exercise of options and warrant to purchase shares of common
stock
|
2,004,027 | 2,014,499 | ||||||
2,027,787 | 2,038,619 |
Stock-Based
Compensation
The
Company calculates stock-based compensation in accordance with SFAS No. 123,
Accounting for Stock-Based
Compensation, as revised December 2004 (“SFAS No.
123(R)”). The provisions of the Company’s stock-based compensation
plans do not require the Company to settle any options by transferring cash or
other assets, and therefore the Company classifies the awards as
equity. See Note 4 for further discussion of the Company’s
stock-based compensation.
Income
taxes
The
Company records deferred taxes in accordance with SFAS No. 109, Accounting for Income Taxes
(“SFAS 109”). This statement requires recognition of deferred tax assets
and liabilities for temporary differences between the tax bases of assets and
liabilities and the amounts at which they are carried in the financial
statements, based upon the enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the
differences are expected to reverse. The Company establishes a valuation
allowance when necessary to reduce deferred tax assets to the amount expected to
be realized.
The
Company periodically assesses the value of its deferred tax assets, which have
been generated by a history of net operating and net capital losses, and
determines the necessity for a valuation allowance. The Company
evaluates which portion, if any, will more likely than not be realized by
offsetting future taxable income, taking into consideration any limitations that
may exist on its use of its net operating and net capital loss
carryforwards.
In July
2006, the FASB issued FASB Interpretation No. 48, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income
Taxes – an Interpretation of FASB Statement No. 109 ("FIN
48"). FIN 48 clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes
recognized in a company's financial statements in accordance with SFAS 109, and
prescribes a recognition threshold and measurement attributes for the financial
statement recognition and measurement of a tax position taken or expected to be
taken in a tax return. FIN 48 also provides guidance on
de-recognition, classification, interest and penalties, accounting in interim
periods, disclosure and transition. The Company adopted the
provisions of FIN 48 effective January 1, 2007. See Note 9 for
further discussion of the Company’s income taxes.
In the
first quarter of 2006, the Company adopted SFAS No. 123(R). Effective
December 31, 2006, as provided in FASB Staff Position (FSP) No. FAS 123(R)-3,
Transition Election Related to
Accounting for the Tax Effects of Share-Based Payment Awards (“FSP
123(R)-3”), the Company elected to apply “the short cut method”, as outlined in
FSP 123(R)-3, as the methodology for recognizing any related windfall tax
benefits as a credit to additional paid-in capital. The adoption of
SFAS No. 123(R) and “the short cut method” had no immediate impact from an
income tax perspective, since SFAS No. 123(R) specifically prohibits the
recognition of any windfall tax benefits that have not been realized in cash or
in the form of a reduction of income taxes payable. The Company, to
date, has not realized such benefits either in cash or in the form a of a
reduction in income taxes payable due to the continued availability of net
operating tax loss carryforwards. The adoption of the “short cut
method” will therefore only have application in the event of the Company
incurring an income tax liability at a future date.
10
Segment
reporting
The
Company currently operates in a single business segment, patent
licensing. Management anticipates that the Company’s recent
establishment of Counsel RB will constitute a new operating segment once Counsel
RB begins active operations.
Recent
Accounting Pronouncements
In
December 2007, the FASB issued SFAS No. 141(R), Business Combinations (“SFAS
No. 141(R)”) and SFAS No. 160, Noncontrolling Interests in
Consolidated Financial Statements (“SFAS No. 160”). SFAS No.
141(R) replaces SFAS No. 141 and SFAS No. 160 amends Accounting Research
Bulletin No. 51, Consolidated
Financial Statements. Together, SFAS No. 141(R) and SFAS No.
160 substantially increase the use of fair value and make significant changes to
the way companies account for business combinations and noncontrolling
interests. Some of the more significant requirements are that they
will require more assets acquired and liabilities assumed to be measured at fair
value as of the acquisition date, liabilities related to contingent
consideration to be remeasured at fair value in each subsequent reporting
period, acquisition-related costs to be expensed, and noncontrolling interests
in subsidiaries to be initially measured at fair value and classified as a
separate component of equity. SFAS No. 141(R) and SFAS No. 160 are
effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008, with early
adoption prohibited. They are to be applied prospectively, with one
exception relating to income taxes. The Company was required to adopt
SFAS No. 141(R) and SFAS No. 160 effective January 1, 2009.
In April
2009, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FSP FAS 141(R)-1, Accounting for Assets Acquired and
Liabilities Assumed in a Business Combination That Arise from
Contingencies (“FSP FAS 141(R)-1”). FSP FAS 141(R)-1 amends
and clarifies SFAS No. 141(R) to address application
issues with respect to initial recognition and measurement, subsequent
measurement and accounting, and disclosure of assets and liabilities arising
from contingencies in a business combination. The FSP is effective
for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008. The Company was
required to adopt FSP FAS 141(R)-1 effective January 1, 2009.
As the
Company did not acquire any businesses during the first quarter of 2009, the
adoption of SFAS No. 141(R) and FSP FAS 141(R)-1 had no impact on the Company’s
consolidated statements. In April 2009, the Company finalized its
investment in Counsel RB. The Company founded Counsel RB in the first
quarter of 2009, and during the first quarter of 2009 the Company made
preliminary investments in Counsel RB. Because the Company holds 75%
of Counsel RB, the Company has consolidated Counsel RB in these condensed
consolidated financial statements for the first quarter of 2009. As a
result, the Company’s financial statements report amounts related to the 25%
noncontrolling interest, calculated as required by SFAS No. 160.
In March
2008, the FASB issued SFAS No. 161, Disclosures about Derivative
Instruments and Hedging Activities—an amendment of FASB Statement No. 133
(“SFAS No. 161”). SFAS No. 161 does not change FASB Statement No.
133’s scope or accounting, but does require expanded disclosures about an
entity’s derivative instruments and hedging activities. The required
disclosures include: how and why an entity is using a derivative
instrument or hedging activity, how the entity accounts for derivative
instruments and hedged items under FASB Statement No. 133, and how the entity’s
financial position, financial performance and cash flows are affected by
derivative instruments. SFAS No. 161 also amends SFAS No. 107, Disclosures about Fair Value of
Financial Instruments (“SFAS No. 107”) to clarify that derivative
instruments are subject to SFAS No. 107’s concentration-of-credit-risk
disclosures. SFAS No. 161 is effective for fiscal years and interim
periods beginning after November 15, 2008, with early adoption
permitted. The Company was required to adopt SFAS No. 161 effective
January 1, 2009; its adoption had no impact on the Company’s financial
statements.
In April
2008, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FSP FAS 142-3, Determination of the Useful Life of
Intangible Assets (“FSP FAS 142-3”). FSP FAS 142-3 amends the
list of factors that an entity should consider in developing renewal or
extension assumptions used in determining the useful life of recognized
intangible assets under SFAS No. 142, both those acquired individually or as
part of a group of other assets, and those acquired in business combinations or
asset acquisitions. The FSP also expands the disclosure requirements
of SFAS No. 142. The FSP is effective for financial statements issued
for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2008, and interim periods within
those fiscal years. Although the guidance regarding an intangible
asset’s useful life is to be applied prospectively only to intangible assets
acquired after FSP FAS 142-3’s effective date, the disclosure requirements must
be applied prospectively to all intangible assets recognized as of the effective
date. The Company was required to adopt FSP FAS 142-3 effective
January 1, 2009. As the Company did not acquire any intangible assets
during the first quarter of 2009, its adoption had no impact on its operations
or cash flows.
11
In May
2008, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FSP APB 14-1, Accounting for Convertible Debt
Instruments That May Be Settled in Cash upon Conversion (Including Partial Cash
Settlement) (“FSP APB 14-1”). FSP APB 14-1 addresses the
accounting for convertible debt securities that, upon conversion, may be settled
by the issuer fully or partially in cash. It does not change the
accounting for traditional types of convertible debt securities that do not have
a cash settlement feature, and does not apply if, under existing GAAP for
derivatives, the embedded conversion feature must be accounted for separately
from the rest of the instrument. FSP APB 14-1 became effective for
fiscal years and interim periods beginning after December 15,
2008. It is to be applied retrospectively to all past periods
presented, even if the convertible debt security has matured, been converted or
otherwise extinguished as of the FSP’s effective date. The Company
was required to adopt FSP APB 14-1 effective January 1, 2009; its adoption had
no impact on the Company’s financial statements.
On June
25, 2008, the FASB ratified Emerging Issues Task Force Issue 07-5, Determining Whether an Instrument
(or an Embedded Feature) Is Indexed to an Entity’s Own Stock (“EITF
07-5”). The Task Force reached a consensus on how an entity should
evaluate whether an instrument (or an embedded feature) is indexed to its own
stock, how the currency in which the instrument is denominated affects the
determination of whether the instrument is indexed to a company’s own stock, and
how an issuer should account for market-based employee stock option valuation
instruments. EITF 07-5 became effective for fiscal years and interim
periods beginning after December 31, 2008, and must be applied to outstanding
instruments as of the beginning of the fiscal year of adoption, with a
cumulative-effect adjustment to the opening balance of retained
earnings. Early adoption was not permitted. The Company
was required to adopt EITF 07-5 effective January 1, 2009; its adoption had no
impact on the Company’s financial statements.
Future
accounting pronouncements
In April
2009, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FSP FAS 107-1 and APB 28-1,
Interim Disclosures about Fair
Value of Financial Instruments (“FSP FAS 107-1”). FSP FAS
107-1 amends SFAS No. 107, Disclosures about Fair Value of
Financial Instruments, to require publicly traded companies to make
disclosures about fair value of financial instruments for interim reporting
periods as well as in annual financial statements. FSP FAS 107-1 also
amends APB Opinion No. 28, Interim Financial Reporting,
to require those disclosures in summarized financial information at interim
reporting periods. The FSP is effective for financial statements
issued after June 15, 2009, with early application permitted. The
Company is currently evaluating the impact that FSP FAS 107-1 will have on its
disclosures upon the Company’s adoption of the FSP for the quarter ending June
30, 2009.
In April
2009, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FSP FAS 115-2 and FAS 124-2,
Recognition and Presentation
of Other-Than-Temporary Impairments (“FSP FAS 115-2”). FSP
115-2 amends existing guidance for determining whether an other than temporary
impairment of debt securities has occurred. The FSP is effective for
financial statements issued after June 15, 2009. As the Company does
not currently hold any debt securities, the Company does not expect that the
adoption of FSP FAS 115-2 will have an impact on its financial
statements.
In April
2009, the FASB issued FASB Staff Position No. FSP FAS 157-4, Determining Fair Value When the
Volume and Level of Activity for the Asset or Liability Have Significantly
Decreased and Identifying Transactions That Are Not Orderly (“FSP FAS
157-4”). FSP FAS 157-4 provides additional guidance on the
application of SFAS No. 157 in determining when a market is not active and
whether a transaction is not orderly. FSP FAS 157-4 also amends SFAS
No. 157 to require disclosures in interim and annual periods of the inputs and
valuation techniques used to measure fair value and a discussion of changes in
valuation techniques and related inputs, if any, during the
period. The FSP is effective for financial statements issued after
June 15, 2009, with early application permitted. The Company is
currently evaluating the impact that FSP FAS 157-4 will have on its financial
statements upon the Company’s adoption of the FSP for the quarter ending June
30, 2009.
12
The FASB,
the EITF and the SEC have issued other accounting pronouncements and regulations
during 2008 and 2009 that will become effective in subsequent
periods. The Company’s management does not believe that these
pronouncements will have a significant impact on the Company’s financial
statements at the time they become effective.
Note 3 – Liquidity and Capital
Resources
At March
31, 2009 the Company’s working capital was $4,053, as compared to $4,556 at
December 31, 2008. Cash decreased by $651, from $4,076 at December
31, 2008 to $3,425 at March 31, 2009. During the first quarter of
2009, the Company recognized no revenue from patent licensing, and received only
minimal amounts of cash as interest on its bank deposits or as a distribution
from its equity investment in Knight’s Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No.
I GP LLC. During the same period, the Company advanced approximately
$170 in connection with its investment in Counsel RB, repurchased common shares
for cancellation for $125, as discussed in Note 11, and remitted $139 relating
to a patent participation fee that was outstanding at December 31,
2008. The remainder of the cash disbursements during the quarter
related to recurring operating expenses.
The
Company’s liabilities at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, of $438 and $472,
respectively, consisted solely of accounts payable and accrued
liabilities. This resulted in net free cash holdings of $2,987 and
$3,604 at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, respectively. The
Company had no commitments at March 31, 2009 or December 31, 2008, and no off
balance sheet arrangements at either date.
The
Company’s ongoing objective is to continue to enter into licensing and royalty
agreements with respect to its patents. Even if the Company does not
enter into such agreements, it has sufficient cash resources to cover its
currently estimated annual cash operating expenses of approximately $1,200 (not
including the operations of Counsel RB). At the current time, the
Company has no available credit facilities, nor does it have any guarantees from
related parties. The Company’s other assets, consisting primarily of
a deferred tax asset, investments in private companies, and goodwill, are not
readily convertible to cash.
Ownership
Structure and Capital Resources
|
·
|
At
March 31, 2009 the Company had stockholders’ equity attributable to the
Company’s common shareholders of $4,522, as compared to $4,971 at December
31, 2008.
|
|
·
|
The
Company is 90.9% owned by Counsel Corporation (together with its
subsidiaries, “Counsel”). The remaining 9.1% is owned by public
stockholders.
|
|
·
|
Beginning
in 2001, Counsel invested over $100,000 in C2 to fund the development of
C2’s technology and its Telecommunications business, and at December 29,
2006 C2 owed $83,582 to Counsel, including accrued and unpaid
interest. On December 30, 2006 Counsel converted $3,386 of this
debt into 3,847,475 common shares of C2, and forgave the balance of
$80,196. Counsel subsequently provided net advances of $2,151
through December 31, 2007, all of which were repaid, together with accrued
interest, in the first quarter of
2008.
|
Note
4 – Stock-Based Compensation
At March
31, 2009, the Company had five stock-based compensation plans, which are
described more fully in Note 16 to the audited consolidated financial statements
contained in the most recently filed Annual Report on Form 10-K.
The
Company’s total compensation cost related to stock options for the three months
ended March 31, 2009 is $18, as compared to $23 for the same period in
2008. The fair value compensation costs of unvested stock options in
the first three months of 2009 and 2008 were determined using the Black-Scholes
Option Pricing Model for grant dates between 2004 and
2009. Historical inputs to the model for this period included
expected volatility between 79% and 229%, risk-free interest rates between 1.37%
and 5.07%, expected terms of 4.75 years, and an expected dividend yield of
zero.
13
No tax
benefit from stock-based compensation was recognized in the first three months
of either 2009 or 2008, as no options were exercised. The Company’s
stock-based compensation had no effect on its cash flows during either
period.
On March
31, 2009, 40,000 options, having an exercise price and fair value of $0.15, were
granted to the Company’s independent directors in accordance with their
compensation plan, which includes a grant of 10,000 options annually to each
independent director on March 31 or the next business day. These
options are part of the 2003 Stock Options and Appreciation Rights
Plan. The inputs to the Black-Scholes Option Pricing Model were an
expected volatility of 229%, a risk-free interest rate of 1.37%, an expected
term of 4.75 years, and an expected dividend yield of zero. A similar
grant of 40,000 options was made during the first three months of
2008.
The
following summarizes the changes in common stock options for the three months
ending March 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively:
Options
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
|||||||
Outstanding
at December 31, 2008
|
979,027 | $ | 7.73 | |||||
Granted
|
40,000 | $ | 0.15 | |||||
Expired
|
(15,000 | ) | $ | 58.23 | ||||
Outstanding
at March 31, 2009
|
1,004,027 | $ | 6.67 | |||||
Options
exercisable at March 31, 2009
|
676,527 | $ | 9.55 |
Options
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
|||||||
Outstanding
at December 31, 2007
|
975,749 | $ | 9.88 | |||||
Granted
|
40,000 | $ | 0.90 | |||||
Expired
|
(1,250 | ) | $ | 78.00 | ||||
Outstanding
at March 31, 2008
|
1,014,499 | $ | 9.44 | |||||
Options
exercisable at March 31, 2008
|
549,499 | $ | 16.73 |
As of
March 31, 2009, the total unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related
to unvested stock options was $115, which is expected to be recognized over a
weighted average period of approximately 12 months.
As of
March 31, 2009, the aggregate intrinsic value of options outstanding was $0,
based on the Company’s closing stock price of $0.15 on March 31,
2009. Intrinsic value is the amount by which the fair value of the
underlying stock exceeds the exercise price of the options. At March
31, 2009, all of the outstanding options had exercise prices equal to or greater
than $0.15.
The
following summarizes the changes in unvested common stock options for the three
months ending March 31, 2009 and 2008, respectively:
Options
|
Weighted
Average
Grant Date
Fair Value
|
|||||||
Unvested
at December 31, 2008
|
297,500 | $ | 0.54 | |||||
Granted
|
40,000 | $ | 0.15 | |||||
Vested
|
(10,000 | ) | $ | 0.87 | ||||
Forfeited
|
— | — | ||||||
Unvested
at March 31, 2009
|
327,500 | $ | 0.48 |
14
Options
|
Weighted
Average
Grant Date
Fair Value
|
|||||||
Unvested
at December 31, 2007
|
425,813 | $ | 0.51 | |||||
Granted
|
40,000 | $ | 0.56 | |||||
Vested
|
(813 | ) | $ | 1.43 | ||||
Forfeited
|
— | — | ||||||
Unvested
at March 31, 2008
|
465,000 | $ | 0.51 |
The total
fair value of options vesting during the three months ending March 31, 2009 and
2008 was $9 and $1, respectively. The unvested options have no
associated performance conditions. Therefore, the Company expects
that, barring the departure of individual directors or employees, all of the
unvested options will vest according to the standard timetable.
The
following summarizes information regarding all stock options outstanding at
March 31, 2009 and 2008:
March 31, 2009
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Exercise price
|
Options
Outstanding
|
Weighted
Average
Remaining
Life (years)
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
Number
Exercisable
|
Weighted
Average
Remaining
Life (years)
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
||||||||||||||||||
$ 0.15
to $ 1.39
|
750,000 | 4.03 | $ | 0.83 | 422,500 | 3.42 | $ | 0.90 | ||||||||||||||||
$ 1.40
to $ 3.00
|
159,448 | 1.42 | $ | 2.94 | 159,448 | 1.42 | $ | 2.94 | ||||||||||||||||
$ 6.88
to $ 15.62
|
2,965 | 1.77 | $ | 14.99 | 2,965 | 1.77 | $ | 14.99 | ||||||||||||||||
$48.76
to $ 71.26
|
88,083 | 0.74 | $ | 58.70 | 88,083 | 0.74 | $ | 58.70 | ||||||||||||||||
$78.00
to $127.50
|
3,531 | 1.31 | $ | 111.46 | 3,531 | 1.31 | $ | 111.46 | ||||||||||||||||
1,004,027 | 3.31 | $ | 6.67 | 676,527 | 2.58 | $ | 9.55 |
March 31, 2008
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||
Exercise price
|
Options
Outstanding
|
Weighted
Average
Remaining
Life (years)
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
Number
Exercisable
|
Weighted
Average
Remaining
Life (years)
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
||||||||||||||||||
$ 0.51
to $ 1.39
|
710,000 | 4.86 | $ | 0.87 | 245,000 | 4.10 | $ | 0.93 | ||||||||||||||||
$ 1.40
to $ 3.00
|
159,448 | 2.42 | $ | 2.94 | 159,448 | 2.42 | $ | 2.94 | ||||||||||||||||
$ 6.88
to $ 15.62
|
2,965 | 2.77 | $ | 14.99 | 2,965 | 2.77 | $ | 14.99 | ||||||||||||||||
$48.76
to $ 71.26
|
138,555 | 1.35 | $ | 58.16 | 138,555 | 1.35 | $ | 58.16 | ||||||||||||||||
$78.00
to $127.50
|
3,531 | 2.31 | $ | 111.46 | 3,531 | 2.31 | $ | 111.46 | ||||||||||||||||
1,014,499 | 3.98 | $ | 9.44 | 549,499 | 2.90 | $ | 16.73 |
Note
5 – Composition of Certain Financial Statements Captions
The
Company’s goodwill of $173 relates to an investment in a subsidiary company that
holds certain of the Company’s patent rights.
In
December 2003, the Company acquired patent rights associated with the VoIP
Patent. The $100 cost of the patent rights was recorded as an
intangible asset in the Company’s financial statements, and was amortized on a
straight-line basis over the five years ending December 31,
2008. Equivalent patent rights have been granted or validated in
Australia, Canada, China, Europe and Hong Kong, the earliest of which expires in
2015.
15
Accounts
payable and accrued liabilities consisted of the following:
March 31,
2009
|
December 31,
2008
|
|||||||
Regulatory
and legal fees
|
$ | 111 | $ | 51 | ||||
Accounting,
auditing and tax consulting
|
101 | 95 | ||||||
Patent
licensing costs
|
— | 135 | ||||||
Sales
and other taxes
|
62 | 62 | ||||||
Remuneration
and benefits
|
118 | 87 | ||||||
Other
|
46 | 42 | ||||||
Total
accounts payable and accrued liabilities
|
$ | 438 | $ | 472 |
Note 6 –
Investments
The
Company’s investments as at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008 consisted of
the following:
March
31,
|
December
31,
|
|||||||
2009
|
2008
|
|||||||
Buddy
Media, Inc.
|
$ | 224 | $ | 224 | ||||
Knight’s
Bridge Capital Partners Internet
Fund No. 1 GP LLC
|
18 | 18 | ||||||
Total
investments
|
$ | 242 | $ | 242 |
Buddy
Media, Inc.
On
September 12, 2007, the Company acquired 303,030 shares of convertible Series A
Preferred Stock of Buddy Media, Inc. (“Buddy Media”), a private company, for a
total purchase price of $100. Buddy Media is a leading developer of
applications for emerging new media platforms, such as Facebook, MySpace and
other social media sites. The Company’s investment was less than 5%
of Buddy Media on an as-converted basis. The Series A preferred
shares vote on an as-converted basis with the common stock.
On April
15, 2008, the Company acquired 140,636 shares of convertible Series B Preferred
Stock of Buddy Media for a total purchase price of $124. The Series B
preferred shares are senior to the Series A preferred shares described above,
but otherwise have substantially equivalent terms and
conditions. Following the purchase, the Company’s investment remains
less than 5% of Buddy Media on an as-converted basis.
The
Company accounts for its investment under the cost method. At each
balance sheet date, the Company estimates the fair value of the securities using
the best available information. Because Buddy Media’s shares are not
traded on an open market, their valuation must be based primarily on
investee-specific information, which is a Level 3 input as defined by SFAS No.
157. The Company will record an other than temporary impairment of
the investment in the event the Company concludes that such impairment has
occurred.
Based on
the Company’s analysis of Buddy Media’s financial statements and projections as
at March 31, 2009, the Company concluded that there has been no impairment in
the fair value of its investment.
16
Knight’s
Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No. 1 GP LLC
The
Company acquired a one-third interest in Knight’s Bridge Capital Partners
Internet Fund No. 1 GP LLC (“Knight’s Bridge GP”), a private company, effective
December 7, 2007, for a total purchase price of $20. The additional
two-thirds interest in Knight’s Bridge GP was acquired by parties affiliated
with Counsel. Knight’s Bridge GP is the general partner of Knight’s
Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No. 1 LP (the “Fund”). The Fund
holds investments in several Internet-based e-commerce businesses. As
the general partner of the Fund, Knight’s Bridge GP manages the Fund, in return
for which it earns a 2% per annum management fee with respect to the Fund’s
invested capital. Knight’s Bridge GP also has a 20% carried interest
on any incremental realized gains from the Fund’s investments.
The
Company accounts for its investment under the equity method. During
2008, the Company invested an additional $1 in Knight’s Bridge GP, recorded $5
as its share of Knight’s Bridge GP’s earnings, and received cash distributions
of $8. During the first quarter of 2009, the Company recorded $1 as
its share of Knight’s Bridge GP’s earnings and received cash distributions of
$1.
At each
balance sheet date, the Company estimates the fair value of its investment using
the best available information as of the evaluation date. Because
Knight’s Bridge GP is a closely-held, non-public entity, this valuation must be
based primarily on investee-specific information, which is a Level 3 input as
defined by SFAS No. 157. Knight’s Bridge GP’s value is directly
linked to the value of the Fund, which is also a non-public
entity. The Company will record an other than temporary impairment of
its equity investment in Knight’s Bridge GP in the event the Company concludes
that such impairment has occurred.
Based on
the Company’s analysis of Knight’s Bridge GP’s and the Fund’s financial
statements and projections as at March 31, 2009, the Company concluded that
there has been no impairment in the fair value of its investment.
Note
7 – Debt
At March
31, 2009 the Company’s debt consisted solely of the accounts payable and accrued
liabilities detailed in Note 5. At December 31, 2007, the Company was
indebted to Counsel in the aggregate amount of $2,335, consisting of $2,151
principal and $184 accumulated interest. This debt was repaid in full
in March 2008, including $43 of interest accrued during the first quarter of
2008.
For
further discussion of the related party notes and other transactions with
Counsel, see Note 3 and Note 10.
Warrant to purchase common
stock
On
October 14, 2004, the Company issued a note (the “Note”) to a third party
lender, in the principal amount of $5,000, which was repaid in full in January
2007. In addition to the Note, the Company issued a common stock
purchase warrant (the “Warrant”) to the third party lender, entitling the lender
to purchase up to one million shares of common stock, subject to
adjustment. The Warrant entitles the holder to purchase the stock
through the earlier of (i) October 13, 2009 or (ii) the date on
which the average closing price for any consecutive ten trading dates shall
equal or exceed 15 times the exercise price. The exercise price is
$1.00 per share as to the first 250,000 shares, $1.08 per share for the next
250,000 shares and $1.20 per share for the remaining 500,000
shares. The exercise price is 125%, 135% and 150% of the average
closing price for the ten trading days immediately prior to the issue date of
the Warrant, respectively.
The
Company accounts for the Warrant in accordance with EITF 00-19, Accounting for Derivative Financial
Instruments Indexed to, and Potentially Settled in, a Company’s Own
Stock, and FASB Staff Position No. EITF 00-19-2, Accounting for Registration Payment
Arrangements. Accordingly, the Warrant is classified in equity
in the Company’s financial statements. At each financial statement
date, the Company assesses whether there are any contingent obligations with
respect to the Warrant’s registration payment arrangement. At every
assessment date, up to and including March 31, 2009, the Company’s assessment
has been that payments relating to the registration payment arrangement are not
probable, and therefore the Company has not recorded any liability in connection
with such a payment.
17
Note
8 – Patent Participation Fee
In the
fourth quarter of 2003, C2 acquired the VoIP Patent from a third
party. Consideration provided was $100 plus a 35% residual payable to
the third party relating to the net proceeds from future licensing and/or
enforcement actions from the C2 VoIP Patent Portfolio. Net proceeds
are defined as amounts collected from third parties net of the direct costs
associated with putting the licensing or enforcement in place and related
collection costs. In 2008, as a result of entering into four
settlement and license agreements, the Company incurred $2,630 of patent
residual expense. No expense was incurred during the first three
months of 2009, compared to $349 during the first quarter of 2008.
Note
9 – Income Taxes
In the
first quarter of 2009, the Company recognized a current income tax expense of
$92 and a net deferred income tax recovery of $99. The net recovery
in the quarter is primarily due to a change in estimate of the tax effect of
available tax loss carryforwards expected to be utilized in the 2009
year. The Company recognized no current income tax expense, and $921
of deferred income tax expense, in the three months ended March 31,
2008. The deferred income tax expense of $921 was a result of the
utilization of substantially all of the available tax losses previously
recognized as a deferred tax asset as at December 31, 2007.
As of
March 31, 2009 the unrecognized tax benefit determined pursuant to FIN 48 is
$13,138. As of December 31, 2007, such determined unrecognized tax
benefit was $13,167. Due to the Company’s historic policy of applying
a valuation allowance against its deferred tax assets, the effect of the above
is an offsetting reduction in the Company’s valuation
allowance. Accordingly, the above reduction had no net impact on the
Company’s financial position, operations or cash flow.
In the
event that these tax benefits are recognized in the future, there should be no
impact on the Company’s effective tax rate, unless recognition occurs at a time
when all of the Company’s historic tax loss carryforwards have been utilized
and/or the associated valuation allowance against the Company’s deferred tax
assets has been reversed. In such circumstances, the amount
recognized at that time should result in a reduction in the Company’s effective
tax rate.
The
Company’s policy is to recognize accrued interest and penalties related to
unrecognized tax benefits in income tax expense. Because the Company
has tax loss carryforwards in excess of the unrecognized tax benefits, the
Company did not accrue for interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax
benefits either upon the adoption of FIN 48 or in the current
period.
It is
reasonably possible that the total amount of the Company’s unrecognized tax
benefits will significantly increase or decrease within the next 12
months. These changes may be the result of future audits, the
application of “change in ownership” rules leading to further restrictions in
tax losses arising from changes in the capital structure of the Company and/or
that of its parent company Counsel, reductions in available tax loss
carryforwards through future merger, acquisition and/or disposition
transactions, failure to continue a significant level of business activity, or
other circumstances not known to management at this time. Any such
additional limitations could require the Company to pay income taxes on its
future earnings and record an income tax expense to the extent of such
liability, despite the existence of tax loss carryforwards. At this
time, an estimate of the range of reasonably possible outcomes cannot be
made.
Prior to
2008, the Company had a history, since 1991, of generating annual tax
losses. All loss taxation years remain open for audit pending their
application against income in a subsequent taxation year. In general,
the statute of limitations expires three years from the date that a company
files a tax return applying prior year tax loss carryforwards against income for
tax purposes in the later year. The Company applied historic tax loss
carryforwards to offset debt forgiveness in 2006 and income for tax purposes in
2008, respectively. The 2005 through 2008 taxation years remain open
for audit.
The
Company’s estimated remaining federal tax loss carryforwards at the end of March
31, 2009 were comprised of approximately $53,500 of unrestricted net operating
tax losses, $30,400 of restricted net operating tax losses subject to an annual
usage restriction of $2,500 per annum until 2008 and $1,700 per annum
thereafter, and $34,300 of unrestricted capital losses.
18
The
Company historically has been subject to state income tax in multiple
jurisdictions. While the Company had net operating loss carryforwards for state
income tax purposes in certain states where it previously conducted business,
its available state tax loss carryforwards may differ substantially by
jurisdiction and, in general, are subject to the same or similar restrictions as
to expiry and usage described above. In addition, in certain states the
Company’s state tax loss carryforwards that were attributable to certain legacy
businesses sold in recent years ceased to be available to the Company following
their sale. It is possible that in the future the Company may not
have tax loss carryforwards available to shield income earned for state tax
purposes, and which is attributable to a particular state, from being subject to
tax in that particular state.
Note
10 – Related Party Transactions
During
the first quarter of 2008, the Company repaid the $2,335 owing to Counsel at
December 31, 2007, as well as $43 in interest accrued during that
quarter. No additional advances were made by Counsel during 2008 or
the first quarter of 2009.
The Chief
Executive Officer (“CEO”) of C2 is an employee of Counsel. As CEO of
C2, he is entitled to an annual salary of $138, plus a discretionary bonus of up
to 100% of the base salary. A bonus of $138 was paid for the year
ended December 31, 2008.
Since
December 2004, C2 and Counsel have entered into successive annual management
services agreements (the “Agreement”). Under the terms of the
Agreement, C2 agrees to make payment to Counsel for ongoing services provided to
C2 by certain Counsel personnel. The basis for such services charged
is an allocation, based on time incurred, of the cost of the base compensation
paid by Counsel to those employees providing services to C2. For the
year ended December 31, 2008, the cost was $360. The amounts due
under the Agreement are payable within 30 days following the respective year
end, subject to applicable restrictions. Any unpaid fee amounts bear
interest at 10% per annum commencing on the day after such year
end. In the event of a change of control, merger or similar event of
C2, all amounts owing, including fees incurred up to the date of the event, will
become due and payable immediately upon the occurrence of such
event. Counsel continued to provide these services during the first
three months of 2009 on the same cost basis as 2008.
Note 11 – Commitments and
Contingencies
Legal
Proceedings
At our
Adjourned Meeting of Stockholders held on December 30, 2003, our stockholders,
among other things, approved an amendment to our Articles of Incorporation,
deleting Article VI thereof (regarding liquidations, reorganizations, mergers
and the like). Stockholders who were entitled to vote at the meeting
and advised us in writing, prior to the vote on the amendment, that they
dissented and intended to demand payment for their shares if the amendment was
effectuated, were entitled to exercise their appraisal rights and obtain payment
in cash for their shares under Sections 607.1301 – 607.1333 of the Florida
Business Corporation Act (the “Florida Act”), provided their shares were not
voted in favor of the amendment. In January 2004, we sent appraisal
notices in compliance with Florida corporate statutes to all stockholders who
had advised us of their intention to exercise their appraisal
rights. The appraisal notices included our estimate of fair value of
our shares, at $4.00 per share on a post-split basis. Approximately
33 stockholders holding approximately 74,000 shares of our stock returned
completed appraisal notices. A stockholder of 20 shares notified us
of his acceptance of our offer of $4.00 per share, while the stockholders of the
remaining shares did not accept our offer. Stockholders who did not
accept our offer were required to indicate their own estimate of fair value, and
if we do not agree with such estimates, the parties are required to go to court
for an appraisal proceeding on an individual basis, in order to establish fair
value. Because we did not agree with the estimates submitted by most
of the dissenting stockholders, we have sought a judicial determination of the
fair value of the common stock held by the dissenting
stockholders. On June 24, 2004, we filed suit against the dissenting
stockholders seeking a declaratory judgment, appraisal and other relief in the
Circuit Court for the 17th
Judicial District in Broward County, Florida. On February 4, 2005,
the declaratory judgment action was stayed pending the resolution of direct and
derivative lawsuits filed in California. This decision was made by
the judge in the Florida declaratory judgment action due to the similar nature
of certain allegations brought by the defendants in the declaratory judgment
matter and the California lawsuits. As a result of the June 2008
settlement of the derivative and securities lawsuits in California, the stay of
the Florida declaratory judgment action is expected to be lifted
shortly. In the first quarter of 2009, the Company completed an
agreement with the holders of 27,221 of the 27,536 shares held by the remaining
dissenting stockholders, whereby the stockholders agreed to accept $4.60 per
share in full payment for their respective shares, for cancellation by the
Company, and a release of any other claims that they may have against the
Company and Counsel. When the declaratory judgment action resumes
with respect to the remaining dissenting stockholders, who exercised their
appraisal rights with respect to the remaining 315 shares, the Company provides
no assurance that this matter will be resolved in our favor; however, the
Company’s management does not believe that an unfavorable outcome of this matter
would have a material adverse impact on our business, results of operations,
financial position or liquidity.
19
The
Company is involved in various other legal matters arising out of its operations
in the normal course of business, none of which are expected, individually or in
the aggregate, to have a material adverse effect on the Company.
Commitments
At March
31, 2009, the Company had no commitments other than its accounts payable and
accrued liabilities, as detailed in Note 5.
Note
12 – Subsequent Events
Subsequent
to the date of these financial statements, on May 7, 2009, C2 invested
approximately $2,590 to acquire an approximately 5% interest in the brand,
inventory, intellectual property and other assets of Polaroid Corporation,
pursuant to a Chapter 11 reorganization in a U.S. bankruptcy
court. C2’s interest will be managed by Knight’s Bridge Capital
Management L.P., an affiliate of C2’s parent, Counsel.
20
Item 2. Management’s
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of
Operations.
(All
dollar amounts are presented in thousands of U.S. dollars, unless otherwise
indicated, except per share amounts)
The
following discussion and analysis should be read in conjunction with the
information contained in the unaudited condensed consolidated financial
statements of the Company and the related notes thereto, appearing elsewhere
herein, and in conjunction with the Management’s Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations set forth in the Company’s Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, filed with the
Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).
Forward Looking
Information
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
(the “Report”) contains certain “forward-looking statements” within the meaning
of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the
Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, that are based on management’s exercise of
business judgment as well as assumptions made by, and information currently
available to, management. When used in this document, the words
“may”, "will”,
“anticipate”, “believe”, “estimate”, “expect”, “intend”, and words of similar
import, are intended to identify any forward-looking statements. You
should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking
statements. These statements reflect our current view of future
events and are subject to certain risks and uncertainties, as noted in the
Company’s Annual Report on Form 10-K, filed with the SEC, and as noted
below. Should one or more of these risks or uncertainties
materialize, or should underlying assumptions prove incorrect, our actual
results could differ materially from those anticipated in these forward-looking
statements. We undertake no obligation, and do not intend, to update,
revise or otherwise publicly release any revisions to these forward-looking
statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof, or to
reflect the occurrence of any unanticipated events. Although we
believe that our expectations are based on reasonable assumptions, we can give
no assurance that our expectations will materialize.
Overview
and Recent Developments
C2 Global
Technologies Inc. (“C2”, “we” or the “Company”) was incorporated in the State of
Florida in 1983 under the name “MedCross, Inc.” which was changed to “I-Link
Incorporated” in 1997, to “Acceris Communications Inc.” in 2003, and to “C2
Global Technologies Inc.” in 2005. The most recent name change
reflects a change in the strategic direction of the Company following the
disposition of its Telecommunications business in the third quarter of
2005. In the second quarter of 2006, the Company opened an office in
Texas.
C2 owns
certain patents, detailed below under “Company History” and “Intellectual
Property”, including two foundational patents in voice over internet protocol
(“VoIP”) technology – U.S. Patent Nos. 6,243,373 and 6,438,124 (together the
“VoIP Patent Portfolio”), which it licenses. Subsequent to the
disposition of its Telecommunications business, licensing of intellectual
property constitutes the primary business of the Company. C2’s target
market consists of carriers, equipment manufacturers, service providers and end
users in the internet protocol (“IP”) telephone market who are using C2’s
patented VoIP technologies by deploying VoIP networks for phone-to-phone
communications. The Company has engaged, and intends to continue to
engage, in licensing agreements with third parties domestically and
internationally. At present, no ongoing royalties are being paid to
the Company.
The
Company’s objective is to obtain licensing and royalty revenue from the target
market for its patents. In this regard, in the third quarter of 2005,
the Company retained legal counsel with expertise in the enforcement of
intellectual property rights, and on June 15, 2006, C2 Communications
Technologies Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, filed a patent
infringement lawsuit against seven major U.S. telecommunications carriers, which
alleged that these companies’ VoIP services and systems infringe C2’s U.S.
Patent No. 6,243,373, entitled “Method and Apparatus for
Implementing a Computer Network/Internet Telephone System” (the “VoIP
Patent”). The complaint sought an injunction, monetary damages, and
costs. The litigation resulted in the Company entering into
settlement and license agreements in 2008, for which C2 was paid $17,625 in
aggregate, whereby C2 granted the defendants non-exclusive, perpetual,
worldwide, fully paid up, royalty free licenses under any of C2’s present
patents and patent applications, including the VoIP Patent, to make, use, sell
or otherwise dispose of any goods and services based on such
patents.
21
In the
third quarter of 2007, the Company began investing in Internet-based e-commerce
businesses, when it acquired minority positions in MyTrade.com, Inc., Buddy
Media, Inc. (“Buddy Media”) and LIMOS.com LLC (“LIMOS.com”). Its
investment in MyTrade.com, Inc. was sold in the fourth quarter of 2007. In the fourth quarter of
2007 the Company acquired a one-third interest in Knight’s Bridge Capital
Partners Internet Fund No. 1 GP LLC (“Knight’s Bridge GP”). The
additional two-thirds interest in Knight’s Bridge GP was acquired by parties
affiliated with the Company’s majority stockholder, Counsel Corporation
(together with its subsidiaries, “Counsel”). Knight’s Bridge GP was
formed to acquire the general partner interests in 2007 Fund 1 LLP (the “Fund”,
subsequently renamed Knight’s Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No. 1
LP). The Fund holds investments in several Internet-based e-commerce
businesses. As the general partner of the Fund, Knight’s Bridge GP
manages the Fund, in return for which it earns a 2% per annum management fee
with respect to the Fund’s invested capital. Knight’s Bridge GP also
has a 20% carried interest on any incremental realized gains from the Fund’s
investments. In the second quarter of 2008, the Company increased its
investment in Buddy Media. Following the purchase, the Company’s
investment in Buddy Media remains less than 5% on an as-converted
basis. The Company’s investment in LIMOS.com was sold in the fourth
quarter of 2008.
The
Company did not make any additional investments in Internet-based e-commerce
businesses during the first three months of 2009.
In
February 2009 the Company established Counsel RB Capital LLC (“Counsel
RB”). Counsel RB is owned 75% by the Company and 25% by its
Co-CEO’s. It specializes in the acquisition and disposition of
distressed and surplus assets throughout the United States and Canada, including
industrial machinery and equipment, real estate, inventories, accounts
receivable and distressed debt. In addition to purchasing various
types of assets, Counsel RB also arranges traditional asset disposition services
such as on-site and webcast auctions, liquidations and negotiated
sales. Although Counsel RB has just commenced operations, C2’s
management anticipates that the Company’s investment in Counsel RB will allow C2
to diversify into a new operating segment.
Company
History
In 1994,
we began operating as an Internet service provider and quickly identified that
the emerging IP environment was a promising basis for enhanced service
delivery. We soon turned to designing and building an IP
telecommunications platform consisting of proprietary software and hardware, and
leased telecommunications lines. The goal was to create a platform
with the quality and reliability necessary for voice transmission.
In 1997,
we began offering enhanced services over a mixed IP-and-circuit-switched network
platform. These services offered a blend of traditional and enhanced
communication services and combined the inherent cost advantages of an IP-based
network with the reliability of the existing Public Switched Telephone Network
(“PSTN”).
In August
1997, we acquired MiBridge, Inc. (“MiBridge”), a communications technology
company engaged in the design, development, integration and marketing of a range
of software telecommunications products that support multimedia communications
over the PSTN, local area networks (“LANs”) and IP networks. The
acquisition of MiBridge permitted us to accelerate the development and
deployment of IP technology across our network platform.
In 1998,
we first deployed our real-time IP communications network
platform. With this new platform, all core operating functions such
as switching, routing and media control became software-driven. This
new platform represented the first nationwide, commercially viable VoIP platform
of its kind. Following the launch of our software-defined VoIP
platform in 1998, we continued to refine and enhance the platform to make it
even more efficient and capable for our partners and customers.
Commencing
in 2001, the Company entered the Telecommunications business. The
assets of the Company’s Telecommunications segment were owned through a
wholly-owned subsidiary, Acceris Communications Corp. (name changed to WXC Corp.
(“WXCC”) in October 2005). This business was sold effective September
30, 2005.
22
In 2002,
the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued U.S. Patent No. 6,438,124 (the “C2
Patent”) for the Company’s Voice Internet Transmission System. Filed
in 1996, the C2 Patent reflects foundational thinking, application, and practice
in the VoIP services market. The C2 Patent encompasses the technology
that allows two parties to converse phone-to-phone, regardless of the distance,
by transmitting voice/sound via the Internet. No special telephone or
computer is required at either end of the call. The apparatus that
makes this technically possible is a system of Internet access nodes, or Voice
Engines, which provide digitized, compressed, and encrypted duplex or simplex
Internet voice/sound. The end result is a high-quality calling
experience whereby the Internet serves only as the transport medium and as such,
can lead to reduced toll charges. Shortly after the issuance of our
core C2 Patent, we disposed of our domestic U.S. VoIP network in a transaction
with Buyers United, Inc., which closed on May 1, 2003. The sale
included the physical assets required to operate our nationwide network using
our patented VoIP technology (constituting the core business of the I-Link
Communications Inc. (“ILC”) business) and included a fully paid non-exclusive
perpetual license to our proprietary software-based network convergence solution
for voice and data. The sale of the ILC business removed essentially
all operations that did not pertain to our proprietary software-based
convergence solution for voice and data. As part of the sale, we
retained all of our intellectual property rights and patents.
In 2003,
we added to our VoIP patent holdings when we acquired the VoIP Patent, which
included a corresponding foreign patent and related international patent
applications. The vendor of the VoIP Patent was granted a first
priority security interest in the patent in order to secure C2’s obligations
under the associated purchase agreement. The VoIP Patent, together
with the existing C2 Patent and related international patents and patent
applications, form our international VoIP Patent Portfolio that covers the basic
process and technology that enable VoIP communication as it is used in the
market today. Telecommunications companies that enable their
customers to originate a phone call on a traditional handset, transmit any part
of that call via IP, and then terminate the call over the traditional telephone
network, are utilizing C2’s patented technology. The comprehensive
nature of the VoIP Patent is summarized in the patent’s abstract, which, in
pertinent part, describes the technology as follows: “A method and apparatus are provided
for communicating audio information over a computer network. A
standard telephone connected to the PSTN may be used to communicate with any
other PSTN-connected telephone, where a computer network, such as the Internet,
is the transmission facility instead of conventional telephone transmission
facilities.” As part of the consideration for the acquisition
of the VoIP Patent, the vendor is entitled to receive 35% of the net proceeds
from our VoIP Patent Portfolio.
Up to
December 31, 2004, revenue related to our intellectual property was based on the
sales and deployment of our VoIP solutions, which we ceased directly marketing
in 2005. No revenue was due to the receipt of licensing fees and
royalties. Revenue in 2008 was the result of entering into settlement
and license agreements with six major U.S. telecommunications carriers, as
described above. We expect to generate ongoing licensing and royalty
revenue in this business as we gain recognition of the underlying value in our
VoIP Patent Portfolio through the enforcement of our intellectual property
rights, as discussed above under “Overview and Recent
Developments”.
As
discussed above under “Overview and Recent Developments”, in the third quarter
of 2007, the Company began investing in Internet-based e-commerce businesses
through its acquisitions of minority positions in MyTrade.com, Inc. (sold in the
fourth quarter of 2007), Buddy Media, Inc. and LIMOS.com LLC (sold in the fourth
quarter of 2008). It continued its investment activities in the
fourth quarter of 2007 with the acquisition of a one-third interest in Knight’s
Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No. 1 GP LLC. At March 31, 2009
the Company’s investment in these businesses totaled $242. The
Company’s objective is to realize long-term capital appreciation as the value of
these businesses is developed and recognized.
23
Intellectual
Property
Below is
a summary of the Company’s patents:
Type
|
Title
|
Number
|
Status
|
|||
VoIP
Architecture
|
Computer
Network/Internet
Telephone
System (“VoIP Patent”)
|
U.S.
No. 6,243,373
|
Issued: June
5, 2001
Expires: November
1, 2015
|
|||
Australia
No. 716096
|
Issued: June
1, 2000
Expires: October
29, 2016
|
|||||
People’s
Republic of China
No.
ZL96199457.6
|
Issued: December
14, 2005
Expires: October
29, 2016
|
|||||
Canada
No. 2,238,867
|
Issued: October
18, 2005
|
|||||
Expires: October
29, 2016
|
||||||
Hong
Kong
|
Issued: August
11, 2006
|
|||||
No.
HK1018372
|
Expires: October
29, 2016
|
|||||
Europe
No. 0873637
|
Granted
March 21, 2007 1
|
|||||
Voice
Internet Transmission System
(“C2
Patent”)
|
U.S.
No. 6,438,124
|
Issued: August
20, 2002
Expires: July
22, 2018
|
||||
People’s
Republic of China
No.
ZL97192954.8
|
Issued: May
21, 2004
Expires: February
5, 2017
|
|||||
Canada
No. 2,245,815
|
Issued: October
10, 2006
|
|||||
Expires: February
5, 2017
|
||||||
South
Korea No. 847335
|
Issued: July
14, 2008
|
|||||
Expires: February
5, 2017
|
||||||
Private
IP Communication
Network
Architecture
|
U.S.
No. 7,215,663
|
Issued: May
8, 2007
Expires: June
12, 2017
|
||||
Conferencing
|
Delay
Synchronization in
Compressed
Audio System
|
U.S.
No. 5,754,534
|
Issued: May
19, 1998
Expires: May
6, 2016
|
|||
Volume
Control Arrangement for Compressed Information Signal
Delays
|
U.S.
No. 5,898,675
|
Issued: April
27, 1999
Expires: April
29, 2016
|
1 The
European patent has been validated in Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland,
France, Germany, Great Britain, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands,
Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.
In
addition to the C2 and VoIP Patents, which cover the foundation of any VoIP
system, our patent portfolio includes:
24
Private IP Communication Network
Architecture (U.S. Patent No. 7,215,663 granted May 8, 2007) – This invention relates
generally to multimedia communications networks. The patent’s
Internet Linked Network Architecture delivers telecommunication type services
across a network utilizing digital technology. The unique breadth and
flexibility of telecommunication services offered by the Internet Linked Network
Architecture flow directly from the network over which they are delivered and
the underlying design principles and architectural decisions employed during its
creation.
C2 also
owns intellectual property that solves teleconferencing problems:
Delay Synchronization in Compressed
Audio Systems (U.S. Patent No. 5,754,534 granted May 19, 1998) - This
invention eliminates popping and clicking when switching between parties in a
communications conferencing system employing signal compression techniques to
reduce bandwidth requirements.
Volume Control Arrangement for
Compressed Information Signals (U.S. Patent No. 5,898,675 granted April 27,
1999) - This invention allows for modifying amplitude, frequency or phase
characteristics of an audio or video signal in a compressed signal system
without altering the encoder or decoder employed by each conferee in a
conferencing setting, so that individuals on the conference call can each adjust
their own gain levels without signal degradation.
Industry
The
communications services industry continues to evolve, both domestically and
internationally, providing significant opportunities and risks to the
participants in these markets. Factors that have driven this change
include:
|
·
|
entry
of new competitors and investment of substantial capital in existing and
new services, resulting in significant price
competition
|
|
·
|
technological
advances resulting in a proliferation of new services and products and
rapid increases in network capacity
|
|
·
|
The
Telecommunications Act of 1996, as amended;
and
|
|
·
|
growing
deregulation of communications services markets in the United States and
in other countries around the world
|
Historically,
the communications services industry transmitted voice and data over separate
networks using different technologies. Traditional carriers have
typically built telephone networks based on circuit switching technology, which
establishes and maintains a dedicated path for each telephone call until the
call is terminated.
VoIP is a
technology that can replace the traditional telephone network. This
type of data network is more efficient than a dedicated circuit network because
the data network is not restricted by the one-call, one-line limitation of a
traditional telephone network. This improved efficiency creates cost
savings that can be either passed on to the consumer in the form of lower rates
or retained by the VoIP provider. In addition, VoIP technology
enables the provision of enhanced services such as unified
messaging.
Competition
We are
seeking to have telecommunications service providers (“TSPs”), equipment
suppliers (“ESs”) and end users license our patents. In this regard,
our competition is existing technology, outside the scope of our patents, which
allows TSPs and ESs to deliver communication services to their
customers.
VoIP has
become a widespread and accepted telecommunications technology, with a variety
of applications in the telecommunications and other industries. While
we and many others believe that we will see continued proliferation of this
technology in the coming years, and while we believe that this proliferation
will occur within the context of our patents, there is no certainty that this
will occur, and that it will occur in a manner that requires organizations to
license our patents.
25
Government
Regulation
Recent
legislation in the United States, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, has
increased regulatory and compliance costs as well as the scope and cost of work
provided to us by our independent registered public accountants and legal
advisors. The Company became subject to Section 404 reporting as of
December 31, 2007. As implementation guidelines continue to evolve,
we expect to continue to incur costs, which may or may not be material, in order
to comply with legislative requirements or rules, pronouncements and guidelines
by regulatory bodies.
Critical
Accounting Policies
Management’s
Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
discusses our unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements, which have
been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles
(“GAAP”) in the United States. This requires management to make
estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and
liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of
the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses
during the reporting period. Significant estimates required for the
preparation of the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements
included in Item 1 of this Report were those related to goodwill, investments,
deferred tax assets, liabilities, and contingencies surrounding
litigation. These estimates are considered significant because of the
significance of the financial statement item to which they relate, or because
they require judgment and estimation due to the uncertainty involved in
measuring, at a specific point in time, events that are continuous in
nature. Management bases its estimates and judgments on historical
experience and various other factors that are believed to be reasonable under
the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for making judgments
about the carrying value of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent
from other sources. On an on-going basis, management evaluates its
estimates and judgments, including those related to intangible assets,
contingencies, collectibility of receivables and litigation. Actual
results could differ from these estimates.
The
critical accounting policies used in the preparation of our consolidated
financial statements are discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the
year ended December 31, 2008. To aid in the understanding of our
financial reporting, a summary of these policies is provided in Note 2 of the
unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements included in Item 1 of this
Report.
26
Management’s
Discussion of Financial Condition
Liquidity
and Capital Resources
At March
31, 2009 the Company’s working capital was $4,053, as compared to $4,556 at
December 31, 2008. Cash decreased by $651, from $4,076 at December
31, 2008 to $3,425 at March 31, 2009. During the first quarter of
2009, the Company recognized no revenue from patent licensing, and received only
minimal amounts of cash as interest on its bank deposits or as a distribution
from its equity investment in Knight’s Bridge Capital Partners Internet Fund No.
I GP LLC. During the same period, the Company advanced approximately
$170 in connection with its investment in Counsel RB, repurchased common shares
for cancellation for $125, as discussed in Note 11 of the unaudited condensed
consolidated financial statements, and remitted $139 relating to a patent
participation fee that was outstanding at December 31, 2008. The
remainder of the cash disbursements during the quarter related to recurring
operating expenses.
The
Company’s liabilities at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, of $438 and $472,
respectively, consisted solely of accounts payable and accrued
liabilities. This resulted in net free cash holdings of $2,987 and
$3,604 at March 31, 2009 and December 31, 2008, respectively. The
Company had no commitments at March 31, 2009 or December 31, 2008, and no off
balance sheet arrangements at either date.
The
Company’s ongoing objective is to continue to enter into licensing and royalty
agreements with respect to its patents. Even if the Company does not
enter into such agreements, it has sufficient cash resources to cover its
currently estimated annual cash operating expenses of approximately $1,200 (not
including the operations of Counsel RB). At the current time, the
Company has no available credit facilities, nor does it have any guarantees from
related parties. The Company’s other assets, consisting primarily of
a deferred tax asset, investments in private companies, and goodwill, are not
readily convertible to cash.
Ownership
Structure and Capital Resources
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·
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At
March 31, 2009 the Company had stockholders’ equity attributable to the
Company’s common shareholders of $4,522, as compared to $4,971 at December
31, 2008.
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·
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The
Company is 90.9% owned by Counsel. The remaining 9.1% is owned
by public stockholders.
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·
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Beginning
in 2001, Counsel invested over $100,000 in C2 to fund the development of
C2’s technology and its Telecommunications business, and at December 29,
2006 C2 owed $83,582 to Counsel, including accrued and unpaid
interest. On December 30, 2006 Counsel converted $3,386 of this
debt into 3,847,475 common shares of C2, and forgave the balance of
$80,196. Counsel subsequently provided net advances of $2,151
through December 31, 2007, all of which were repaid, together with accrued
interest, in the first quarter of
2008.
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Cash
Position and Cash Flows
Cash at
March 31, 2009 was $3,425 as compared to $4,076 at December 31, 2008, a decrease
of $651.
Cash provided by
or used in operating activities Cash used in operating
activities during the three months ended March 31, 2009 was $510, as compared to
cash provided of $2,739 during the same period in 2008. As discussed
above, during the first three months of 2009 the Company recognized no revenue
and had only minimal cash receipts. As a result, during the first
three months of 2009 the Company had a net loss from continuing operations of
$379, as compared to net income of $1,795 for the first three months of
2008.
The use
of cash related to other assets was $15 in the first three months of 2009 as
compared to $238 of cash used in the first three months of 2008; this difference
was largely due to the Company’s 2008 prepayment of directors and officers
liability insurance. Accounts payable decreased by $34 in the first
three months of 2009, and increased by $232 in the first three months of
2008. This change was primarily due to costs associated with the Company’s
patent licensing revenue, particularly the first quarter patent participation
fee relating to revenue earned during the first quarter of 2008. No
fee was due for the first quarter of 2009. As well, during the first
quarter of 2009 the Company increased its deferred tax assets by $99, as
compared to a decrease of $921 during the first quarter of 2008, a net change of
$1,020. The large decrease in 2008 was associated with the Company’s
recognition of patent licensing revenue during the same period; there were no
similar transactions in 2009.
27
Cash flows from
investing activities There were minimal cash flows associated
with investing activities in the first quarter of both 2009 and
2008.
Cash flows used
in financing activities Financing activities used net cash of
$142 during the three months ended March 31, 2009, as compared to using $2,335
for the same period in 2008. In 2009, $125 of this resulted from the
Company’s purchase and cancellation of 27,221 of its common shares, and $17 from
the non-controlling interest in Counsel RB. The sole financing
activity in 2008 was the repayment of the debt owing to Counsel at December 31,
2007.
28
Management’s Discussion of Results of
Operations
Patent
licensing revenue is derived from licensing our intellectual
property. Our VoIP Patent Portfolio is an international patent
portfolio covering the basic process and technology that enables VoIP
communications. Our patented technology enables telecommunications
customers to originate a phone call on a traditional handset, transmit any part
of that call via the Internet, and then terminate the call over the traditional
telephone network. At present, no ongoing royalties are being paid to
the Company. The Company’s objective is to obtain licensing and
royalty revenue from the target market for its patents, both domestically and
internationally. In this regard, in the third quarter of 2005, the
Company retained legal counsel with expertise in the enforcement of intellectual
property rights, and on June 15, 2006 C2 Communications Technologies Inc., a
wholly-owned subsidiary of the Company, filed a patent infringement lawsuit
against seven telecommunications companies. During 2008 the Company
effectively concluded the litigation by entering into settlement and license
agreements with the defendants in such litigation.
We expect
to continue to generate licensing and royalty revenue in this business as we
gain recognition of the underlying value in our VoIP Patent Portfolio through
the enforcement of our intellectual property rights. In connection
with the 2003 acquisition of U.S. Patent No. 6,243,373, the Company agreed to
remit, to the former owner of the patent, 35% of the net proceeds from future
revenue derived from the licensing of the VoIP Patent Portfolio. Net
proceeds are defined as amounts collected from third parties net of the direct
costs associated with the maintenance, licensing and enforcement of the VoIP
Patent Portfolio.
Three-Month
Period Ended March 31, 2009 Compared to Three-Month Period Ended March 31,
2008
Patent licensing revenues were
$0 during the three months ended March 31, 2009 and $6,225 during the same
period in 2008. These revenues were from settlement and license
agreements entered into with AT&T and Verizon.
Patent licensing expense was
$1 during the three months ended March 31, 2009 and $3,184 during the same
period in 2008. This expense includes four components: disbursements
directly related to patent licensing, contingency fees earned by our legal
counsel, ongoing business expenses related to patent licensing, and the
participation fee of 35% payable to the vendor of the VoIP Patent.
Selling, general and administrative
expense was $387 during the three months ended March 31, 2009 as compared
to $276 for the three months ended March 31, 2008. The significant
items included:
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Compensation
expense was $184 in the first quarter of 2009, compared to $58 in the
first quarter of 2008. The quarterly salary earned by the CEO
of C2 remained unchanged at $34. Stock based compensation
decreased from $23 in 2008 to $18 in 2009. The net increase of
$126 from 2008 to 2009 is primarily due to $131 in salaries for Counsel RB
employees.
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·
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Legal
expense was $6 in the first quarter of 2009, compared to $11 in the first
quarter of 2008.
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·
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Accounting
and tax consulting expenses were $14 in the first quarter of 2009,
compared to $30 in the first quarter of
2008.
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·
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Directors’
fees were $32 in the first quarter of both 2009 and
2008.
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·
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Management
fees charged by our controlling stockholder, Counsel, were $90 in the
first quarter of both 2009 and
2008.
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·
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Directors
and officers liability insurance expense was $37 in the first quarter of
both 2009 and 2008.
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·
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Office
rent was $6 in the first quarter of 2009 as compared to $0 in the first
quarter of 2008. The 2009 cost relates to office space being
rented by Counsel RB.
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29
Depreciation and amortization
– This expense was $0 in the first quarter of 2009 as compared to $5 in the
first quarter of 2008. The 2008 expense relates to the amortization
of the cost of the VoIP Patent, which was fully amortized at December 31,
2008.
Interest expense – related
party – This expense was $0 in the first quarter of 2009 as compared to
$43 in the first quarter of 2008. The associated related party loan
was repaid in full in the first quarter of 2008 and the Company has incurred no
interest expense since that time.
Inflation. Inflation
did not have a significant impact on our results during the last fiscal
quarter.
Off-Balance Sheet
Transactions. We have not engaged in material off-balance sheet
transactions.
30
Item
3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures about Market Risk.
Our
exposure to market risk is limited to interest rate sensitivity, which is
affected by changes in the general level of interest rates. Due to
the fact that our cash and cash equivalents are deposited with major financial
institutions, we believe that we are not subject to any material interest rate
risk as it relates to interest income. As to interest expense, at
March 31, 2009 we had no variable or fixed rate debt instruments
outstanding.
We did
not have any foreign currency hedges or other derivative financial instruments
as of March 31, 2009. We do not enter into financial instruments for
trading or speculative purposes and do not currently utilize derivative
financial instruments. Our operations are conducted primarily in the
United States and as such are not subject to material foreign currency exchange
rate risk.
Item 4T. Controls and
Procedures.
As of the
end of the period covered by this Quarterly Report, our Chief Executive Officer
and Chief Financial Officer (the “Certifying Officers”) conducted evaluations of
our disclosure controls and procedures. As defined in Rules 13a-15(e)
and 15d-15(e) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange
Act”), the term “disclosure controls and procedures” means controls and other
procedures of an issuer that are designed to ensure that information required to
be disclosed by the issuer in the reports that it files or submits under the
Exchange Act is recorded, processed, summarized and reported, within the time
periods specified in the Commission’s rules and forms. Disclosure
controls and procedures include, without limitation, controls and procedures
designed to ensure that information required to be disclosed by an issuer in the
reports that it files or submits under the Exchange Act is accumulated and
communicated to the issuer’s management, including the Certifying Officers, to
allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure. Based on this
evaluation, the Certifying Officers have concluded that our disclosure controls
and procedures were effective.
Further,
there were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during
the first fiscal quarter of 2009 that have materially affected, or are
reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial
reporting.
31
PART
II – OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1.
Legal Proceedings
Please
see Note 11 of the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements, which
are included in Part I of this Report, and hereby incorporated by reference into
this Part II, for a discussion of the Company’s legal proceedings.
Item
1A. Risk Factors
There
have been no significant changes to the risk factors discussed in our Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2008, as filed with the SEC
on March 18, 2009.
Item
2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of
Proceeds.
None.
Item
3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities.
None.
Item
4. Submission of Matters to a Vote of Security Holders.
None.
Item
5. Other Information.
None.
32
Item 6. Exhibits.
(a) Exhibits
Exhibit No.
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Identification
of Exhibit
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31.1
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Certification
of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) and 15d-14(a)
as adopted under Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
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31.2
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Certification
of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to Rule 13a-14(a) and 15d-14(a)
as adopted under Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
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32.1
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Certification
of Chief Executive Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as
adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
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32.2
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Certification
of Chief Financial Officer pursuant to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350 as
adopted pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
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33
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Registrant has
duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned thereunder
duly authorized.
C2
Global Technologies Inc.
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Date:
May 11, 2009
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By:
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/s/ Allan C. Silber
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Allan
C. Silber
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Chairman
of the Board and Chief Executive Officer
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|||
By:
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/s/ Stephen A. Weintraub
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||
Stephen
A. Weintraub
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|||
Chief
Financial Officer and Corporate
Secretary
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34