LIVEPERSON INC - Annual Report: 2006 (Form 10-K)
UNITED
STATES
SECURITIES
AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
WASHINGTON,
D.C. 20549
FORM 10-K
x |
ANNUAL
REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE
ACT OF
1934
|
For
the fiscal year ended December 31, 2006
Commission File Number 000-30141
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
DELAWARE
(State
of incorporation)
|
13-3861628
(I.R.S.
employer identification number)
|
462
SEVENTH AVENUE, 3rd FLOOR
|
10018
|
NEW
YORK, NEW YORK
|
|
(Address
of principal executive offices)
|
(Zip
Code)
|
(212)
609-4200
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
Title
of each class
|
Name
of each exchange on which registered
|
Common
Stock, par value $0.001 per share
|
The
Nasdaq Stock Market LLC
|
Securities
registered pursuant to Section 12(g) of the Act: None
Indicate
by check mark if the registrant is a well-known seasoned issuer, as defined
in
Rule 405 of the Securities Act. Yes
o
No
x
Indicate
by check mark if the registrant is not required to file reports pursuant to
Section 13 or Section 15(d) of the Act. Yes
o
No
x
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to
be
filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during
the
preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required
to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements
for
the past 90 days. Yes
x
No
o
Indicate
by check mark if disclosure of delinquent filers pursuant to Item 405 of
Regulation S-K is not contained herein, and will not be contained, to the best
of registrant’s knowledge, in definitive proxy or information statements
incorporated by reference in Part III of this Form 10-K or any amendment to
this
Form 10-K. o
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an
accelerated filer, or a non-accelerated filer. See definition of åaccelerated
filer and large accelerated fileræ in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check
one).
Large
accelerated filer o
|
Accelerated
filer x
|
Non-accelerated filer o |
Indicate
by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule
12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes
o
No
x
The
aggregate market value of the voting common stock held by non-affiliates of
the
registrant as of June 30, 2006 (the last business day of the registrant’s most
recently completed second fiscal quarter) was approximately $157,481,624
(computed by reference to the last reported sale price on The Nasdaq Capital
Market on that date). The registrant does not have any non-voting common stock
outstanding.
On
March
2, 2007, 41,471,290 shares of the registrant’s common stock were
outstanding.
DOCUMENTS
INCORPORATED BY REFERENCE
Portions
of the registrant’s definitive proxy statement for the 2007 Annual Meeting of
Stockholders, to be filed not later than April 30, 2007, are incorporated by
reference into Items 10, 11, 12, 13 and 14 of Part III of this Form
10-K.
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
2006
ANNUAL REPORT ON FORM 10-K
TABLE
OF CONTENTS
Page
PART
I
|
2
|
|
Item
1.
|
BUSINESS
|
2
|
Item
1A.
|
RISK
FACTORS
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11
|
Item
1B.
|
UNRESOLVED
STAFF COMMENTS
|
24
|
Item
2.
|
PROPERTIES
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24
|
Item
3.
|
LEGAL
PROCEEDINGS
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25
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Item
4.
|
SUBMISSION
OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY HOLDERS
|
25
|
PART
II
|
26
|
|
Item
5.
|
MARKET
FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER
PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
|
26
|
Item
6.
|
SELECTED
CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL DATA
|
28
|
Item
7.
|
MANAGEMENT’S
DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF
OPERATIONS
|
30
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Item
7A.
|
QUANTITATIVE
AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET RISK
|
41
|
Item
8.
|
CONSOLIDATED
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY DATA
|
43
|
Item
9.
|
CHANGES
IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL
DISCLOSURE
|
71
|
Item
9A.
|
CONTROLS
AND PROCEDURES
|
71
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Item
9B.
|
OTHER
INFORMATION
|
74
|
|
||
PART
III
|
74
|
|
Item
10.
|
DIRECTORS,
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
|
74
|
Item
11.
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EXECUTIVE
COMPENSATION
|
74
|
Item
12.
|
SECURITY
OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED
STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
|
74
|
Item
13.
|
CERTAIN
RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS, AND DIRECTOR
INDEPENDENCE
|
75
|
Item
14.
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PRINCIPAL
ACCOUNTANT FEES AND SERVICES
|
75
|
|
||
PART
IV
|
75
|
|
Item
15.
|
EXHIBITS
AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT SCHEDULES
|
75
|
i
FORWARD-LOOKING
STATEMENTS
STATEMENTS
IN THIS REPORT ABOUT LIVEPERSON, INC. THAT ARE NOT HISTORICAL FACTS ARE
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS BASED ON OUR CURRENT EXPECTATIONS, ASSUMPTIONS,
ESTIMATES AND PROJECTIONS ABOUT LIVEPERSON AND OUR INDUSTRY. THESE
FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS ARE SUBJECT TO RISKS AND UNCERTAINTIES THAT
COULD
CAUSE ACTUAL FUTURE EVENTS OR RESULTS TO DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM SUCH
STATEMENTS.
ANY SUCH FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS ARE MADE PURSUANT TO THE SAFE HARBOR
PROVISIONS OF THE PRIVATE SECURITIES LITIGATION REFORM ACT OF 1995. IT
IS
ROUTINE FOR OUR INTERNAL PROJECTIONS AND EXPECTATIONS TO CHANGE AS THE
YEAR OR
EACH QUARTER IN THE YEAR PROGRESS, AND THEREFORE IT SHOULD BE CLEARLY
UNDERSTOOD
THAT THE INTERNAL PROJECTIONS AND BELIEFS UPON WHICH WE BASE OUR EXPECTATIONS
MAY CHANGE PRIOR TO THE END OF EACH QUARTER OR THE YEAR. ALTHOUGH THESE
EXPECTATIONS MAY CHANGE, WE ARE UNDER NO OBLIGATION TO INFORM YOU IF
THEY DO.
OUR COMPANY POLICY IS GENERALLY TO PROVIDE OUR EXPECTATIONS ONLY ONCE
PER
QUARTER, AND NOT TO UPDATE THAT INFORMATION UNTIL THE NEXT QUARTER. ACTUAL
EVENTS OR RESULTS MAY DIFFER MATERIALLY FROM THOSE CONTAINED IN THE PROJECTIONS
OR FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS. FACTORS THAT COULD CAUSE OR CONTRIBUTE
TO SUCH
DIFFERENCES INCLUDE THOSE DISCUSSED IN ITEM 1A., “RISK FACTORS.”
PART
I
ITEM 1. |
BUSINESS
|
Overview
LivePerson
helps to maximize the business impact of the online channel as a provider
of
hosted software that enables customers to proactively assist their online
visitors. Our proprietary tools and methodology have been proven to increase
sales, customer satisfaction and loyalty while reducing customer service
costs.
Our
fully-integrated multi-channel communications platform, Timpani, facilitates
real-time sales, marketing and customer service. Our technology supports
and
manages key online interactions — via chat, voice, email and
self-service/knowledgebase — in a cost-effective and secure
environment.
Since
launching its first product in 1998, LivePerson’s hosted interactions between
potential buyers and sellers have grown to more than four million per
month.
This has put LivePerson in a unique position to gain insights into consumer
behavior and develop technology enhancements and best practices which
together
result in a higher rate of conversion of visitors to buyers.
Bridging
the gap between visitor traffic and successful online conversions, our
solutions
deliver measurable return on investment by enabling clients to:
·
|
improve
online conversion rates and reduce abandonment rates by providing
customer
assistance, including live help on
demand;
|
·
|
acquire
and retain customers across multiple online
channels;
|
·
|
utilize
a more cost-effective means of providing sales assistance and
customer
service; and
|
·
|
increase
customer satisfaction, retention and loyalty by offering real-time
help
online.
|
More
than
5,000 companies, including EarthLink, Hewlett-Packard, Microsoft, Qwest
and
Verizon, have implemented our solutions to maximize the return on their
marketing and E-commerce investments.
As
a
Software as a Service (SaaS) provider, LivePerson provides solutions
on a hosted
basis, which offers benefits including low up-front costs; fast implementation;
low total cost of ownership (TCO); scalability; cost predictability and
relatively effortless upgrades. Fully hosted and maintained by LivePerson,
our
modular applications can be implemented with little or no client investment
in
server infrastructure or IT resources.
LivePerson
was incorporated in the State of Delaware in November 1995 and the LivePerson
service was initially introduced in November 1998.
Market
Opportunity
According
to Forrester Research, online sales have experienced a compound annual
growth
rate (CAGR) of 33 percent since 2002, and online retail will continue to
experience double-digit growth in the near term, with online
business-to-consumer sales expected to exceed $200 billion in 2009 and
grow to
more than $270 billion in 2011.
2
Enabled
by greater access to broadband connections, shoppers have transformed
online
retail into a mainstream channel, co-existing with and supporting traditional
brick-and-mortar operations. According to Forrester, consumers have a
higher
comfort level with technology than ever before, spending more time with
their
PCs than with other mediums, including television, radio and magazines
combined. Forrester also reports that more than 70 percent of consumers
find shopping online easier than through other channels.
These
trends continue to draw attention from marketers, who currently spend
more than
$14 billion online and are expected to increase this spending by 25 percent
annually according to Forrester Research. Forrester also states that
online
advertising is now projected to total $26 billion by 2010. A 2006 study
published by Shop.org states that online retailers in the U.S. are converting
browsers to buyers at a rate of 2.4 percent - a figure that has remained
largely
unchanged for several years.
Improving
the online shopping experience and increasing conversion rates represents
a
significant market opportunity. Businesses are realizing the value in
adopting
solutions that drive customer interaction quality in both pre- and post-sales
environments. Forrester reports that Internet and E-commerce initiatives
represent the highest priority in spending and that more than 60 percent
of
retailers surveyed expect their overall technology budgets to increase
in
2007.
LivePerson
offers a comprehensive Engagement Marketing platform - including chat,
voice,
and marketing and selling tools - enabled by channel matching technology,
rules-based intelligence, advanced analytics, routing and reporting mechanisms.
Our solutions enable businesses to identify and engage targeted categories
of
online visitors, directly influencing consumer buying behavior, improving
online
conversion rates and driving desired outcomes.
Our
technology is complemented by more than eight years of experience in
helping
companies develop and refine their online engagement strategies. Our
products
and services also promote prompt first contact resolution, convert service
interactions into sales opportunities and reduce call center operating
costs.
Our growing suite of online conversion solutions, as well as an established
base
of customers in the financial services, retail, telecommunications, computer
software/hardware, automotive and travel/leisure industries, positions
us well
for continued growth.
The
LivePerson Strategy
Our
objective is to strengthen our current position as a provider of online
conversion solutions. Continuing to develop and refine our engagement
marketing
platform, which supports real-time sales, marketing and customer service,
will
enable us to enhance our status and recognition in the marketplace. The
key
elements of our strategy include:
Strengthening
Our Position in Target Markets and Growing Our Recurring Revenue
Base.
LivePerson intends to extend its market position by significantly increasing
its
installed client base. We plan to continue to focus primarily on the
financial
services, retail, telecommunications, computer software/hardware, automotive
and
travel/leisure industries, as well as the small and midsize business
(SMB)
sector, as our key target markets. As the online community is increasingly
exposed to the benefits and functionality of our solutions, we intend
to
capitalize on our growing base of existing clients by collaborating with
them to
optimize our added value and effectiveness. Broadening our client base
will
enable us to continue to expand our recurring revenue stream. We also
believe
that greater exposure of Internet users to our services will create additional
demand for real-time sales, marketing and customer service
solutions.
3
Increasing
the Value of our Service to our Clients.
We
regularly add new features and functionality to our services to further
enhance
value to our clients. Because we manage the server infrastructure, we
can make
new features available to our clients immediately upon release, without
client
or end-user installation of software or hardware. We currently offer
a suite of
reporting, analysis and administrative tools as part of our overall portfolio
of
services. We will continue to develop more comprehensive tools for appropriate
sectors of our client base, while adding further interactive capabilities.
We
recently added voice capabilities to our platform to extend our value
proposition across additional communication channels. With this new voice
offering, customers can bridge the gap between their online channel and
their
call center. We also intend to continue to enhance our ability to capture,
analyze and report on the substantial amount of online activity data
we collect
on behalf of our clients to further our clients’ online strategies. We will also
continue to refine additional service offerings that will provide value
to our
clients, such as more robust consulting and advisory services that enable
improved reporting capabilities, data storage and bridges to existing
client
systems. Our clients may use these capabilities to increase productivity,
manage
call center staffing, develop one-to-one marketing tactics and pinpoint
sales
opportunities. Through these and other initiatives, we intend to reinforce
our
value proposition to clients, which we believe will result in additional
revenue
from new and existing clients over time.
Continuing
to Build Strong Brand Recognition.
As a
pioneer in online communications and conversion solutions, LivePerson
enjoys
strong brand recognition and credibility. By strategically targeting
decision
makers and influencers within key vertical markets, our goal is to generate
increased awareness and demand for our broad range of online sales, marketing
and service tools. In addition, we have developed relationships with
the media
and analyst community to reinforce our position and status within the
industry.
Our brand name is also highly visible to both business users and consumers.
When
a visitor engages in a text-based chat on a website that offers our real-time
technology, our brand name is usually displayed on the LivePerson dialogue
window. We believe that this high-visibility placement will continue
to create
brand awareness and increased demand for our solutions.
Maintaining
our Technological Leadership Position.
We are
focused on the development of tightly integrated software design and
network
architecture that is both reliable and scalable. We continue to devote
significant resources to technological innovation. Specifically, we plan
to
continue to expand the features and functionality of our existing services,
develop broader applications for our services and create new products
and
services that will benefit our expanding client base. We evaluate emerging
technologies and industry standards and continually update our technology
in
order to retain our leadership position in the real-time customer service
industry. We regularly monitor legal and technological developments in
the area
of information security and confidentiality to ensure our policies and
procedures meet or exceed the demands of the world’s largest and most demanding
corporations. We believe that these efforts will allow us to effectively
anticipate changing client and end-user requirements in our rapidly evolving
industry.
Evaluating
Strategic Alliances and Acquisitions where Appropriate.
We
continue to seek opportunities to form strategic alliances with or to
acquire
other companies that can accelerate our growth or broaden our product
offerings.
We have successfully integrated several acquisitions over the last seven
years.
In October 2000, we acquired HumanClick Ltd., an Israeli-based provider
of
real-time, online customer service applications to small businesses.
In July
2002, we acquired the customer contracts and associated rights of NewChannel,
Inc., a provider of proactive online sales services. In December 2003,
we
acquired certain identifiable assets of Island Data Corporation, a provider
of
knowledgebase services to large corporate clients. In July 2004, we acquired
certain identifiable assets of FaceTime Communications, Inc., a provider
of
real-time communications solutions. In July 2006, we acquired Proficient
Systems, Inc., an Atlanta-based provider of hosted proactive chat solutions
that
help companies generate revenue on their websites.
4
We
have
no commitments with respect to any acquisitions or strategic alliances
and we
are not currently engaged in any material negotiations with respect to
these
types of opportunities.
Expanding
our International Presence.
We have
translated the user interface for LivePerson services into eighteen languages,
including French, German, Italian, Chinese, Japanese and Korean. To strengthen
our expansion initiatives in Western Europe, we have established a sales,
marketing and client support presence — as well as a local hosting capability —
in the United Kingdom. We are evaluating strategies to pursue further
international expansion in both Western Europe and the Asia/Pacific
region.
Products
and Services
LivePerson’s
suite of products support and manage all online customer interactions
— chat,
email and self-service/knowledgebase — from a single, unified agent desktop. By
supplying a complete, unified customer history, our solutions enable
businesses
to deliver a relevant, timely, personalized and seamless customer experience.
In
addition to product offerings, LivePerson provides professional services
to
support the complete deployment of our enterprise solutions.
Timpani
Sales and Marketing
Timpani
Sales and Marketing combines online site traffic monitoring software
with a
sophisticated rules engine to enable LivePerson clients to proactively
engage
website visitors. The product enables clients to maximize online revenue
opportunities, improve conversion rates and reduce shopping cart abandonment
by
proactively engaging the right visitor, using the right channel, at the
right
time. The intelligent and proactive solution identifies website visitors
who
demonstrate the highest propensity to buy and engages them, in real time
with
relevant content and offers, helping to achieve the online outcomes desired
by
our clients.
Timpani
Contact Center
Timpani
Contact Center provides online customer support capability via a unified,
multi-channel interface comprised of chat, voice, email and self-service
knowledgebase. The product enables clients to improve service quality,
increase
agent productivity and facilitate first-contact resolution by streamlining
customer interactions across all online channels, while reducing service
costs.
By integrating all interactions, this comprehensive solution supplies
a unified
customer history, enabling organizations to deliver service consistency
and
continuity to customers. Timpani Contact Center is comprised of Timpani
Chat,
Timpani Voice, Timpani Email and Timpani Self-Service:
·
|
Timpani
Chat.
Timpani Chat enhances customer service with live support, while
reducing
interaction costs and churn. A real-time service, it strengthens
customer
loyalty and increases satisfaction levels while improving agent
productivity and lowering service costs. The solution’s single agent
desktop promotes multi-tasking and includes productivity tools
that speed
time to resolution.
|
·
|
Timpani
Voice.
Timpani Voice is an enterprise click-to-talk solution that
helps
E-commerce organizations proactively address consumer buying
concerns and
increase conversions from website visitors. Leveraging real-time
analytics
and business rules, Timpani Voice identifies targeted visitor
segments
while those visitors are online and establishes an immediate
connection
with telephone agents, bypassing conventional voice recognition
and
automated phone menu options.
|
5
·
|
Timpani
Email.
Timpani Email efficiently manages inbound email traffic and
Web form
queries while improving customer satisfaction and increasing
agent
productivity. This extensive email management solution funnels
all
messages through an automated process that evaluates the business
requirement and triggers a related action — such as generating an
auto-response, routing to an agent queue, deleting spam or
escalating to
another channel — for each message.
|
·
|
Timpani
Self-Service.
Timpani Self-Service delivers relevant and immediate answers
to website
visitors searching for information while optimizing the user
experience
and lowering support costs. The sophisticated knowledgebase
learns
dynamically and automatically updates based on visitor searches
and
behavior. It also allows issues that require further attention
to be
escalated to other communication channels, such as live chat,
email or
telephone.
|
LivePerson
Pro
LivePerson
Pro enables SMBs to increase online sales and improve customer service
with live
chat. This economical solution supplies both real-time monitoring tools,
which
are used to determine the effectiveness of online marketing campaigns
and to
identify visitors who are responding, and geolocation, which facilitates
cross-sell/up-sell opportunities and prevents fraud.
LivePerson
Contact Center
LivePerson
Contact Center enables SMBs to improve agent productivity, lower service
costs
and increase customer satisfaction. Developed for SMBs, the solution
manages all
communications, including live chat, voice, email, self-service and telephone
logs, from an easy-to-use, all-in-one platform.
Professional
Services
Our
Professional Services team uses a comprehensive, customer-focused methodology
to
develop high-quality solutions, delivering significant results and providing
a
competitive advantage to our enterprise clients. Dedicated members of
the
Professional Services team work hand-in-hand with client teams to analyze
online
Web processes, develop an optimal deployment strategy, train contact
center
agents and implement ongoing performance management systems to deliver
desired
business results.
As
part
of these value-added professional services offerings, we recently launched
the
LivePerson Center of Excellence (CoE). The CoE captures best practices
from over
250 large enterprise deployments and turns them into valuable insight
for all
clients and team members to leverage. In addition to establishing a central
repository for critical information assets — including performance benchmarks,
knowledge, deployment methodology, training materials and industry vertical
best
practices — the CoE streamlines application rollout, accelerates implementation
and creates a scalable, replicable production environment to improve
the
performance of online sales and service initiatives.
Clients
Our
client base includes Fortune 1000 companies, dedicated Internet businesses
and a
broad range of online merchants. Our solutions benefit organizations
of all
sizes conducting business or communicating with customers online. We
plan to
continue to focus primarily on the financial services, retail,
telecommunications, computer software/hardware, automotive and travel/leisure
industries, as well as the SMB sector, as our key target markets.
6
The
following is a representative list of clients among those generating
at least
$100,000 in revenue during 2006:
Apple
|
EarthLink
|
NETELLER
|
AT&T
|
eLuxury.com
|
Overstock.com
|
Bank
of America
|
FXCM
(Forex Capital Markets)
|
QVC
|
Bell
Canada
|
Hewlett-Packard
|
Qwest
|
Bell
South
|
Intel
|
Rackspace
|
Cingular
Wireless
|
Kaplan
Education
|
SunTrust
Banks
|
Citibank
Home Equity
|
Maersk
|
Verizon
|
Computer
Associates
|
Microsoft
|
Washington
Mutual
|
Sales
and Marketing
Sales
We
sell
our products and services by leveraging a common methodology through
both direct
and indirect sales channels:
·
|
Direct
Sales.
Our sales process focuses on how our solutions and domain
expertise
deliver financial and operational value that support our
clients’
strategic initiatives. The Timpani Sales and Marketing value
proposition
is targeted to business executives whose primary responsibility
is to
maximize online customer acquisition. These executives have
a vested
interest in improving conversion rates, increasing application
completion
rates and increasing average order value. The value proposition
for
Timpani Contact Center is designed to appeal to professionals
who hold
top- and bottom-line responsibility for customer service
and technical
support functions within their organization. Timpani Contact
Center,
primarily our Proactive Service Chat solution, enables these
organizations
to provide effective customer service using the online channel
while
deflecting costly phone calls and shifting service interactions
to more
cost efficient channels. Whether we typically engage with
individuals or
teams responsible for online sales or service, LivePerson’s Timpani
platform supports any organization with a companywide strategic
initiative
to improve the overall online customer
experience.
|
Our
sales
methodology begins with in-depth research and discovery meetings that
enable us
to develop a deep understanding of the value drivers and key performance
metrics
of a prospective client. We then present an analytical review detailing
how our
solutions and industry expertise can impact these value drivers and
metrics.
Once we validate solution capabilities and prove financial return on
investment
(ROI), we transition to an account management program that enables
ongoing
client success.
·
|
Indirect
Sales.
Our New Markets sales organization is focused on developing
partnerships
with call centers and industry vertical channels to generate
revenues
outside the focus of the direct sales team. This organization
also
provides leverage to the direct team with strategic partnerships
that
allow us to extend our core solution offering and increase
our value
proposition. By maximizing market coverage via partners who
provide
complementary products and services, we believe this channel
will increase
our revenue opportunities and accelerate market penetration
without
incurring the traditional costs associated with direct
sales.
|
7
Client
Support
Our
Professional Services group provides deployment support to enterprise
clients
and maintains involvement throughout the engagement lifecycle. All
LivePerson
clients have access to 24/7 help desk services through chat, email
and phone,
while larger clients are assigned account managers for ongoing support
and
process improvement.
Marketing
Our
marketing efforts are organized around the needs, trends and characteristics
of
our existing and prospective client base. Our deep relationship with
existing
clients fosters continuous feedback, thereby allowing us to develop
and refine
marketing programs for specific industry segments. We market our products
and
services to executives with profit and loss (P&L) responsibility for the
online sales channel and customer service operations with a focus on
the
financial services, retail, telecommunications, computer software/hardware,
automotive and travel/leisure industries, as well as SMBs. Our integrated
marketing strategy includes lead generation campaigns to reach potential
and
existing clients using mediums such as online initiatives, advertising,
direct
mail, and industry- and category-specific tradeshows and events.
Our
marketing strategy also encompasses public relations programs. As a
result of
relationships developed with the media and analyst community, we gain
positive
press and editorial coverage. Other initiatives include securing speaking
opportunities and bylined articles featuring key executives, which
helps raise
LivePerson’s profile and reinforce our position as an industry
leader.
Competition
The
market for online sales, marketing and customer service technology
is intensely
competitive and characterized by aggressive marketing, evolving industry
standards, rapid technology developments and frequent new product introductions.
Although few technological barriers to enter this market exist, we
believe that
our long-standing relationships with clients, particularly at the enterprise
level, differentiates us from new entrants into the market. This differentiation
is comprised mainly of our depth of experience in data analysis, agent
training
and online marketing optimization. Additional barriers to entry include
the
ability to design and build scalable software and, with respect to
outsourced
solution providers, the ability to design, build and manage a scalable
network
infrastructure.
LivePerson
competes directly with companies focused on technology that facilitates
real-time sales, email management, searchable knowledgebase applications
and
customer service interaction. These markets remain fairly saturated
with small
companies that compete on price and features. LivePerson faces significant
competition from online interaction solution providers, including Software
as a
Service providers RightNow Technologies, Art Technology Group and Instant
Service. While the online conversion market that Timpani Sales and
Marketing
addresses is fragmented, LivePerson faces potential competition from
Web
analytics and online marketing service providers such as WebSideStory
and
Omniture. The most significant barriers to entry in this market are
knowledge
of:
·
|
online
consumer purchasing habits;
|
·
|
methodologies
to correctly engage customers;
|
·
|
metrics
proving return on investment; and
|
·
|
technology
innovation opportunities.
|
8
LivePerson
also faces potential competition from larger enterprise software companies
such
as Oracle. In addition, established technology companies such as Microsoft,
Yahoo and Google may leverage their existing relationships and capabilities
to
offer real-time sales, marketing and customer service applications.
Finally,
LivePerson competes with clients and potential clients that choose
to provide a
real-time sales, marketing and customer service solution in-house as
well as, to
a lesser extent, traditional offline customer service solutions, such
as
telephone call centers.
LivePerson
believes that competition will increase as our current competitors
increase the
sophistication of their offerings and as new participants enter the
market. As
compared to LivePerson, some of our larger current and potential competitors
have:
·
|
greater
brand recognition;
|
·
|
more
diversified lines of products and services;
and
|
·
|
significantly
greater financial, marketing and research and development
resources.
|
Additionally,
some competitors may enter into strategic or commercial relationships
with
larger, more established and better-financed companies, enabling them
to:
·
|
undertake
more extensive marketing campaigns;
|
·
|
adopt
more aggressive pricing policies;
and
|
·
|
make
more attractive offers to businesses to induce them to use
their products
or services.
|
Technology
Three
key
technological features distinguish the LivePerson services:
·
|
Our
clients are supported by a secure, scalable server infrastructure.
In
North America, our primary servers are hosted in a fully-secured,
third-party server center in the Eastern United States and
are supported
by a backup server facility located in the Southwestern United
States. In
Europe, our primary servers are hosted in a fully-secured,
third-party
server center in London.
|
·
|
Our
network, hardware and software are designed to accommodate
our clients’
demand for secure, high-quality 24-hours per day/seven-days
per week
service.
|
·
|
As
a hosted service, we are able to add additional capacity
and new features
quickly and efficiently. This has enabled us to immediately
provide these
benefits simultaneously to our entire client base. In addition,
it allows
us to maintain a relatively short development and implementation
cycle.
|
As
a
Software as a Service provider, we focus on the development of tightly
integrated software
design
and network architecture. We dedicate significant resources to designing
our
software and network architecture based on the fundamental principles
of
security, reliability and scalability.
9
Software
Design.
Our
software design is based on client-server architecture. As a Software
as a
Service provider, our clients install only the LivePerson software
client
(Windows or Java-based) on their operators’ workstations. Visitors to our
clients’ websites require only a standard Web browser and do not need to
download software from LivePerson in order to interact with our clients’
operators or to use the LivePerson services.
Our
software design is also based on open standards. These standard protocols
facilitate integration with our clients’ legacy and third-party systems, and
include:
·
|
Java
|
·
|
XML
(Extensible Mark-up Language)
|
·
|
HTML
(Hypertext Mark-up Language)
|
·
|
SQL
(Structured Query Language)
|
·
|
HTTP
(Hypertext Transfer Protocol)
|
Network
Architecture.
The
software underlying our services is integrated with scalable and reliable
network architecture. Our network is scalable; we do not need to add
new
hardware or network capacity for each new LivePerson client. This network
architecture is hosted in a third party server center with redundant
network
connections, servers and other infrastructure, ensuring minimal downtime.
Our
backup server infrastructure housed at a remote location provides each
primary
hosting facility with effective disaster recovery capability. For increased
security, we use advanced firewall architecture and industry encryption
standards. We also enable our clients to further encrypt their sensitive
data
using industry standard encryption algorithms.
Government
Regulation
We
are
subject to federal, state and local regulation, and laws of jurisdictions
outside of the United States, including laws and regulations applicable
to
computer software and access to or commerce over the Internet. Due
to the
increasing use of the Internet and various online services, it is likely
that
new laws and regulations will be adopted with respect to the Internet
or online
services related to issues including user privacy, freedom of expression,
pricing, content, quality of products and services, taxation, advertising,
intellectual property rights and information security. The nature of
such
legislation and the manner in which it may be interpreted and enforced
cannot be
fully determined and, therefore, such legislation could subject us
and/or our
clients or Internet users to potential liability, which in turn could
have a
material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and
financial
condition.
Intellectual
Property and Proprietary Rights
We
rely
on a combination of patent, copyright, trade secret, trademark and
other common
law in the United States and other jurisdictions, as well as confidentiality
procedures and contractual provisions, to protect our proprietary technology,
processes and other intellectual property. However, we believe that
factors such
as the technological and creative skills of our personnel, new service
developments, frequent enhancements and reliable maintenance are more
essential
to establishing and maintaining a competitive advantage. Others may
develop
technologies that are similar or superior to our technology. We enter
into
confidentiality and other written agreements with our employees, consultants,
clients, potential clients and strategic partners, and through these
and other
written agreements, we attempt to control access to and distribution
of our
software, documentation and other proprietary information. Despite
our efforts
to protect our proprietary rights, third parties may, in an unauthorized
manner,
attempt to use, copy or otherwise obtain and market or distribute our
intellectual property rights or technology or otherwise develop a service
with
the same functionality as our services. Policing unauthorized use of
our
services and intellectual property rights is difficult, and we cannot
be certain
that the steps we have taken will prevent misappropriation of our technology
or
intellectual property rights, particularly in foreign countries where
we do
business, where our services are sold or used, where the laws may not
protect
proprietary rights as fully as do the laws of the United States or
where
enforcement of laws protecting proprietary rights is not common or
effective.
10
Substantial
litigation regarding intellectual property rights exists in the software
industry. In the ordinary course of our business, our services may
be
increasingly subject to third-party infringement claims as the number
of
competitors in our industry segment grows and the functionality of
services in
different industry segments overlaps. Some of our competitors in the
market for
real-time sales, marketing and customer service solutions or other
third parties
may have filed or may intend to file patent applications covering aspects
of
their technology. Any claims alleging infringement of third-party intellectual
property rights could require us to spend significant amounts in litigation
(even if the claim is invalid), distract management from other tasks
of
operating our business, pay substantial damage awards, prevent us from
selling
our products, delay delivery of the LivePerson services, develop non-infringing
software, technology, business processes, systems or other intellectual
property
(none of which might be successful), or limit our ability to use the
intellectual property that is the subject of any of these claims, unless
we
enter into license agreements with the third parties (which may be
costly,
unavailable on commercially reasonable terms, or not available at all).
Therefore, such claims could have a material adverse effect on our
business,
results of operations and financial condition.
Employees
As
of
March 5, 2007, we had 178 full-time employees. Our employees are not
covered by
collective bargaining agreements. We believe our relations with our
employees
are satisfactory.
Website
Access to Reports
We
make
available, free of charge, on our website (www.liveperson.com), our
annual
reports on Form 10-K, our quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and our current
reports
on Form 8-K and amendments to those reports filed or furnished pursuant
to
Sections 13(a) or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 as soon
as
reasonably practicable after we have electronically filed such material
with, or
furnished it to, the Securities and Exchange Commission.
ITEM
1A. RISK
FACTORS
Risks
Related to Our Business
We
have a history of losses, we had an accumulated deficit of $99.2 million
as of
December 31, 2006 and we may incur losses in the
future.
Although
we have achieved profitability in each three-month period from and
including the
period ended September 30, 2003, we may, in the future, incur losses and
experience negative cash flow, either or both of which may be significant.
We
recorded net losses of $6.8 million for the year ended December 31, 2002
and $816,000 for the year ended December 31, 2003. We recorded net income
of $2.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2004, $2.5 million for the
year ended December 31, 2005 and $2.2 million for the year ended December
31, 2006. As of December 31, 2006, our accumulated deficit was
approximately $99.2 million. We cannot assure you that we can sustain
or
increase profitability on a quarterly or annual basis in the future.
Failure to
maintain profitability may materially and adversely affect the market
price of
our common stock.
11
Our
quarterly revenue and operating results are subject to significant
fluctuations,
which may adversely affect the trading price of our common
stock.
Our
quarterly revenue and operating results may fluctuate significantly
in the
future due to a variety of factors, including the following factors
which are in
part within our control, and in part outside of our control:
·
|
continued
adoption by companies doing business online of real-time sales,
marketing and customer service
solutions;
|
·
|
our
clients’ business success;
|
·
|
our
clients’ demand for our services;
|
·
|
our
ability to attract and retain
clients;
|
·
|
the
amount and timing of capital expenditures and other costs
relating to the
expansion of our operations, including those related to
acquisitions;
|
·
|
the
introduction of new services by us or our competitors;
and
|
·
|
changes
in our pricing policies or the pricing policies of our
competitors.
|
Our
revenue and results may also fluctuate significantly in the future
due to the
following factors that are entirely outside of our control:
·
|
economic
conditions specific to the Internet, electronic commerce
and online media;
and
|
·
|
general
economic and political conditions.
|
Period-to-period
comparisons of our operating results may not be meaningful because
of these
factors. You should not rely upon these comparisons as indicators of
our future
performance.
Due
to
the foregoing factors, it is possible that our results of operations
in one or
more future quarters may fall below the expectations of securities
analysts and
investors. If this occurs, the trading price of our common stock could
decline.
We
may be unable to respond to the rapid technological change and changing
client
preferences in the online sales, marketing and customer service industry
and
this may harm our business.
If
we are
unable, for technological, legal, financial or other reasons, to adapt
in a
timely manner to changing market conditions in the online sales, marketing
and
customer service industry or our clients’ or Internet users’ requirements, our
business, results of operations and financial condition would be materially
and
adversely affected. Business on the Internet is characterized by rapid
technological change. In addition, the market for online sales, marketing
and
customer service solutions is relatively new. Sudden changes in client
and
Internet user requirements and preferences, frequent new product and
service
introductions embodying new technologies, such as broadband communications,
and
the emergence of new industry standards and practices could render
the
LivePerson services and our proprietary technology and systems obsolete.
The
rapid evolution of these products and services will require that we
continually
improve the performance, features and reliability of our services.
Our success
will depend, in part, on our ability to:
12
·
|
enhance
the features and performance of the LivePerson
services;
|
·
|
develop
and offer new services that are valuable to companies doing
business
online and Internet users; and
|
·
|
respond
to technological advances and emerging industry standards
and practices in
a cost-effective and timely manner.
|
If
any of
our new services, including upgrades to our current services, do not
meet our
clients’ or Internet users’ expectations, our business may be harmed. Updating
our technology may require significant additional capital expenditures
and could
materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations
and
financial condition.
If
new
services require us to grow rapidly, this could place a significant
strain on
our managerial, operational, technical and financial resources. In
order to
manage our growth, we could be required to implement new or upgraded
operating
and financial systems, procedures and controls. Our failure to expand
our
operations in an efficient manner could cause our expenses to grow,
our revenue
to decline or grow more slowly than expected and could otherwise have
a material
adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial
condition.
If
we are not competitive in the market for real-time sales, marketing
and customer
service solutions, our business could be harmed.
The
market for online sales, marketing and customer service technology
is intensely
competitive and characterized by aggressive marketing, evolving industry
standards, rapid technology developments and frequent new product introductions.
Although we believe that our long-standing relationships with clients,
particularly at the enterprise level, differentiates us from new entrants
into
the market, established or new entities may enter this market in the
near
future, including those that provide real-time interaction online,
with or
without the user’s request.
We
compete directly with companies focused on technology that facilitates
real-time
sales, email management, searchable knowledgebase applications and
customer
service interaction. These markets remain fairly saturated with small
companies
that compete on price and features. We face significant competition
from online
interaction solution providers, including Software as a Service providers
RightNow Technologies, Art Technology Group and Instant Service. While
the
online conversion market that Timpani Sales and Marketing addresses
is
fragmented, we face potential competition from Web analytics and online
marketing service providers such as WebSideStory and Omniture. The
most
significant barriers to entry in this market are knowledge of:
·
|
online
consumer purchasing habits;
|
·
|
methodologies
to correctly engage customers;
|
·
|
metrics
proving return on investment; and
|
·
|
technology
innovation opportunities.
|
13
Furthermore,
many of our competitors offer a broader range of customer relationship
management products and services than we currently offer. We may be
disadvantaged and our business may be harmed if companies doing business
online
choose real-time sales, marketing and customer service solutions from
such
providers.
We
also
face potential competition from larger enterprise software companies
such as
Oracle. In addition, established technology companies such as Microsoft,
Yahoo
and Google may leverage their existing relationships and capabilities
to offer
real-time sales, marketing and customer service applications.
Finally,
we compete with clients and potential clients that choose to provide
a real-time
sales, marketing and customer service solution in-house as well as,
to a lesser
extent, traditional offline customer service solutions, such as telephone
call
centers.
We
believe that competition will increase as our current competitors increase
the
sophistication of their offerings and as new participants enter the
market. As
compared to LivePerson, some of our larger current and potential competitors
have:
·
|
greater
brand recognition;
|
·
|
more
diversified lines of products and services;
and
|
·
|
significantly
greater financial, marketing and research and development
resources.
|
Additionally,
some competitors may enter into strategic or commercial relationships
with
larger, more established and better-financed companies. These competitors
may be
able to:
·
|
undertake
more extensive marketing campaigns;
|
·
|
adopt
more aggressive pricing policies;
and
|
·
|
make
more attractive offers to businesses to induce them to use
their products
or services.
|
Any
delay
in the general market acceptance of the real-time sales, marketing
and customer
service solution business model would likely harm our competitive position.
Delays would allow our competitors additional time to improve their
service or
product offerings, and would also provide time for new competitors
to develop
real-time sales, marketing, customer service and Web analytics applications
and
solicit prospective clients within our target markets. Increased competition
could result in pricing pressures, reduced operating margins and loss
of market
share.
The
success of our business is dependent on the retention of existing clients
and
their purchase of additional LivePerson services.
Our
LivePerson services agreements typically have twelve month terms and
are
terminable upon 30 to 90 days’ notice without penalty. If a significant number
of our clients, or any one client to whom we provide a significant
amount of
services, were to terminate these services agreements, or reduce the
amount of
services purchased or fail to purchase additional services, our results
of
operations may be negatively and materially affected. Dissatisfaction
with the
nature or quality of our services could also lead clients to terminate
our
service. We depend on monthly fees from the LivePerson services for
substantially all of our revenue. If our retention rate declines, our
revenue
could decline unless we are able to obtain additional clients or alternate
revenue sources. Further, because of the historically small amount
of services
sold in initial orders, we depend on sales to new clients and sales
of
additional services to our existing clients.
14
We
are dependent on technology systems that are beyond our
control.
The
success of the LivePerson services depends in part on our clients’ online
services as well as the Internet connections of visitors to their websites,
both
of which are outside of our control. As a result, it may be difficult
to
identify the source of problems if they occur. In the past, we have
experienced
problems related to connectivity which have resulted in slower than
normal
response times to Internet user chat requests and messages and interruptions
in
service. The LivePerson services rely both on the Internet and on our
connectivity vendors for data transmission. Therefore, even when connectivity
problems are not caused by the LivePerson services, our clients or
Internet
users may attribute the problem to us. This could diminish our brand
and harm
our business, divert the attention of our technical personnel from
our product
development efforts or cause significant client relations problems.
In
addition, we rely on two third-party Web hosting service providers
for Internet
connectivity and network infrastructure hosting, security and maintenance.
These
providers have, in the past, experienced problems that have resulted
in slower
than normal response times and interruptions in service. If we are
unable to
continue utilizing the services of our existing Web hosting providers
or if our
Web hosting services experience interruptions or delays, it is possible
that our
business could be harmed.
Our
service also depends on third parties for hardware and software, which
products
could contain defects. Problems arising from our use of such hardware
or
software could require us to incur significant costs or divert the
attention of
our technical personnel from our product development efforts. To the
extent any
such problems require us to replace such hardware or software, we may
not be
able to do so on acceptable terms, if at all.
Technological
defects could disrupt our services, which could harm our business and
reputation.
We
face
risks related to the technological capabilities of the LivePerson services.
We
expect the number of interactions between our clients’ operators and Internet
users over our system to increase significantly as we expand our client
base.
Our network hardware and software may not be able to accommodate this
additional
volume. Additionally, we must continually upgrade our software to improve
the
features and functionality of the LivePerson services in order to be
competitive
in our market. If future versions of our software contain undetected
errors, our
business could be harmed. As a result of major software upgrades at
LivePerson,
our client sites have, from time to time, experienced slower than normal
response times and interruptions in service. If we experience system
failures or
degraded response times, our reputation and brand could be harmed.
We may also
experience technical problems in the process of installing and initiating
the
LivePerson services on new Web hosting services. These problems, if
unremedied,
could harm our business.
The
LivePerson services also depend on complex software which may contain
defects,
particularly when we introduce new versions onto our servers. We may
not
discover software defects that affect our new or current services or
enhancements until after they are deployed. It is possible that, despite
testing
by us, defects may occur in the software. These defects could result
in:
·
|
damage
to our reputation;
|
·
|
lost
sales;
|
15
·
|
delays
in or loss of market acceptance of our products;
and
|
·
|
unexpected
expenses and diversion of resources to remedy
errors.
|
Failure
to license necessary third party software for use in our products and
services,
or failure to successfully integrate third party software, could cause
delays or
reductions in our sales, or errors or failures of our
service.
We
license third party software that we plan to incorporate into our products
and
services. In the future, we might need to license other software to
enhance our
products and meet evolving customer requirements. These licenses may
not
continue to be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all.
Some of
this technology could be difficult to replace once integrated. The
loss of, or
inability to obtain, these licenses could result in delays or reductions
of our
applications until we identify, license and integrate or develop equivalent
software, and new licenses could require us to pay higher royalties.
If we are
unable to successfully license and integrate third party technology,
we could
experience a reduction in functionality and/or errors or failures of
our
products, which may reduce demand for our products and services.
Third-party
licenses may expose us to increased risks, including risks associated
with the
integration of new technology, the impact of new technology integration
on our
existing technology, the diversion of resources from the development
of our own
proprietary technology, and our inability to generate revenue from
new
technology sufficient to offset associated acquisition and maintenance
costs.
Our
clients may experience adverse business conditions that could adversely
affect
our business.
Some
of
our clients may experience difficulty in supporting their current operations
and
implementing their business plans. These clients may reduce their spending
on
our services, or may not be able to discharge their payment and other
obligations to us. These circumstances are influenced by general economic
and
industry-specific conditions, and could have a material adverse impact
on our
business, financial condition and results of operations. In addition,
as a
result of these conditions, our clients, in particular our Internet-related
clients that may experience (or that anticipate experiencing) difficulty
raising
capital, may elect to scale back the resources they devote to customer
service
technology, including services such as ours. If the current environment
for our
clients, including, in particular, our Internet-related clients, does
not
improve, our business, results of operations and financial condition
could be
materially adversely affected. In addition, the non-payment or late
payment of
amounts due to us from a significant number of clients would negatively
impact
our financial condition. During 2006, we increased our allowance for
doubtful
accounts by $38,000 to approximately $105,000, principally due to an
increase in
accounts receivable as a result of increased sales. We did not write
off any
accounts during 2006. During 2005, we increased our allowance for doubtful
accounts by $30,000 to approximately $84,000, principally due to an
increase in
accounts receivable as a result of increased sales, and we wrote off
approximately $17,000 of previously reserved accounts, leaving a net
allowance
of $67,000 at December 31, 2005.
Our
business is significantly dependent on our ability to retain our current
key
personnel, to attract new personnel, and to manage staff
attrition.
Our
future success depends to a significant extent on the continued services
of our
senior management team, including Robert P. LoCascio, our founder and Chief
Executive Officer. The loss of the services of any member of our senior
management team, in particular Mr. LoCascio, could have a material and
adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial
condition.
We cannot assure you that we would be able to successfully integrate
newly-hired
senior managers who would work together successfully with our existing
management team.
16
We
may be
unable to attract, integrate or retain other highly qualified employees
in the
future. If our retention efforts are ineffective, employee turnover
could
increase and our ability to provide services to our clients would be
materially
and adversely affected. Furthermore, the new requirement to expense
stock
options may discourage us from granting the size or type of stock option
awards
that job candidates may require to join our company.
Any
staff
attrition we experience, whether initiated by the departing employees
or by us,
could place a significant strain on our managerial, operational, financial
and
other resources. To the extent that we do not initiate or seek any
staff
attrition that occurs, there can be no assurance that we will be able
to
identify and hire adequate replacement staff promptly, if at all, and
even that
if such staff is replaced, we will be successful in integrating these
employees.
In addition, we may not be able to outsource certain functions. We
expect to
evaluate our needs and the performance of our staff on a periodic basis,
and may
choose to make adjustments in the future. If the size of our staff
is
significantly reduced, either by our choice or otherwise, it may become
more
difficult for us to manage existing, or establish new, relationships
with
clients and other counter-parties, or to expand and improve our service
offerings. It may also become more difficult for us to implement changes
to our
business plan or to respond promptly to opportunities in the marketplace.
Further, it may become more difficult for us to devote personnel resources
necessary to maintain or improve existing systems, including our financial
and
managerial controls, billing systems, reporting systems and procedures.
Thus,
any significant amount of staff attrition could cause our business
and financial
results to suffer.
We
believe our reported financial results may be adversely affected by
changes in
accounting principles generally accepted in the United
States.
Generally
accepted accounting principles in the United States are subject to
interpretation by the FASB, the American Institute of Certified Public
Accountants, the SEC, and various bodies formed to promulgate and interpret
appropriate accounting principles. A change in these principles or
interpretations could have a significant effect on our reported financial
results, and could affect the reporting of transactions completed before
the
announcement of a change.
For
example, as of January 1, 2006 we were required to adopt the provisions
of SFAS
No. 123 (revised 2004), “Share Based Payment,” causing us to expense employee
stock options. This change decreased our net income per share by $0.05
for the
full year 2006 and we expect that it will decrease our net income per
share by
$0.08 and $0.02, for the full year 2007 and the first quarter of 2007,
respectively. This impact may change based upon additional stock option
grants,
if any, methodology refinement or other factors.
We
cannot predict our future capital needs to execute our business strategy
and we
may not be able to secure additional financing.
We
believe that our current cash and cash equivalents and cash generated
from
operations, if any, will be sufficient to fund our working capital
and capital
expenditure requirements for at least the next twelve months. To the
extent that
we require additional funds to support our operations or the expansion
of our
business, or to pay for acquisitions, we may need to sell additional
equity,
issue debt or convertible securities or obtain credit facilities through
financial institutions. In the past, we have obtained financing principally
through the sale of preferred stock, common stock and warrants. If
additional
funds are raised through the issuance of debt or preferred equity securities,
these securities could have rights, preferences and privileges senior
to holders
of common stock, and could have terms that impose restrictions on our
operations. If additional funds are raised through the issuance of
additional
equity or convertible securities, our stockholders could suffer dilution.
We
cannot assure you that additional funding, if required, will be available
to us
in amounts or on terms acceptable to us. If sufficient funds are not
available
or are not available on acceptable terms, our ability to fund any potential
expansion, take advantage of acquisition opportunities, develop or
enhance our
services or products, or otherwise respond to competitive pressures
would be
significantly limited. Those limitations would materially and adversely
affect
our business, results of operations and financial condition.
17
If
we do not successfully integrate potential future acquisitions, our
business
could be harmed.
In
the
future, we may acquire or invest in complementary companies, products
or
technologies. Acquisitions and investments involve numerous risks to
us,
including:
·
|
difficulties
in integrating operations, technologies, products and personnel
with
LivePerson;
|
·
|
diversion
of financial and management resources from efforts related
to the
LivePerson services or other then-existing operations; risks
of entering
new markets beyond providing real-time sales, marketing and
customer
service solutions for companies doing business
online;
|
·
|
potential
loss of either our existing key employees or key employees
of any
companies we acquire; and
|
·
|
our
inability to generate sufficient revenue to offset acquisition
or
investment costs.
|
These
difficulties could disrupt our ongoing business, distract our management
and
employees, increase our expenses and adversely affect our results of
operations.
Furthermore, we may incur debt or issue equity securities to pay for
any future
acquisitions. The issuance of equity securities could be dilutive to
our
existing stockholders.
If
our goodwill becomes impaired, we may be required to record a significant
charge
to earnings.
Under
generally accepted accounting principles, we review our goodwill for
impairment
when events or changes in circumstances indicate the carrying value
may not be
recoverable. Goodwill is required to be tested for impairment at least
annually.
Factors that may be considered a change in circumstances indicating
that the
carrying value of our goodwill may not be recoverable include a decline
in stock
price and market capitalization, reduced future cash flow estimates,
and slower
growth rates in our industry. We may be required to record a significant
charge
to earnings in our financial statements during the period in which
any
impairment of our goodwill is determined, negatively impacting our
results of
operations.
We
could face additional regulatory requirements, tax liabilities and
other risks
as we expand internationally.
In
October 2000, we acquired HumanClick, an Israeli-based provider of
real-time
online customer service applications. In addition, we have recently
established
a sales, marketing and client support presence in the United Kingdom
in support
of expansion efforts into Western Europe, and have integrated the United
Kingdom
operations of Proficient Systems into that office. There are risks
related to
doing business in international markets, such as changes in regulatory
requirements, tariffs and other trade barriers, fluctuations in currency
exchange rates, more stringent rules relating to the privacy of Internet
users
and adverse tax consequences. In addition, there are likely to be different
consumer preferences and requirements in specific international markets.
Furthermore, we may face difficulties in staffing and managing any
foreign
operations. One or more of these factors could harm any future international
operations.
18
Our
reputation depends, in part, on factors which are entirely outside
of our
control.
Our
services typically appear as a LivePerson-branded, Timpani-branded
or a
custom-created icon on our clients’ websites. The customer service operators who
respond to the inquiries of our clients’ Internet users are employees or agents
of our clients; they are not our employees. As a result, we have no
way of
controlling the actions of these operators. In addition, an Internet
user may
not know that the operator is an employee or agent of our client, rather
than a
LivePerson employee. If an Internet user were to have a negative experience
in a
LivePerson-powered real-time dialogue, it is possible that this experience
could
be attributed to us, which could diminish our brand and harm our business.
Finally, we believe the success of our services depend on the prominent
placement of the icon on the client’s website, over which we also have no
control.
Our
business and prospects would suffer if we are unable to protect and
enforce our
intellectual property rights.
Our
success and ability to compete depend, in part, upon the protection
of our
intellectual property rights relating to the technology underlying
the
LivePerson services. It is possible that:
·
|
any
issued patent or patents issued in the future may not be
broad enough to
protect our intellectual property
rights;
|
·
|
any
issued patent or any patents issued in the future could be
successfully
challenged by one or more third parties, which could result
in our loss of
the right to prevent others from exploiting the inventions
claimed in the
patents;
|
·
|
current
and future competitors may independently develop similar
technologies,
duplicate our services or design around any patents we may
have;
and
|
·
|
effective
patent protection may not be available in every country in
which we do
business, where our services are sold or used, where the
laws may not
protect proprietary rights as fully as do the laws of the
U.S. or where
enforcement of laws protecting proprietary rights is not
common or
effective.
|
Further,
to the extent that the invention described in any U.S. patent was made
public
prior to the filing of the patent application, we may not be able to
obtain
patent protection in certain foreign countries. We also rely upon copyright,
trade secret, trademark and other common law in the U.S. and other
jurisdictions, as well as confidentiality procedures and contractual
provisions,
to protect our proprietary technology, processes and other intellectual
property. Any steps we might take may not be adequate to protect against
infringement and misappropriation of our intellectual property by third
parties.
Similarly, third parties may be able to independently develop similar
or
superior technology, processes or other intellectual property. Policing
unauthorized use of our services and intellectual property rights is
difficult,
and we cannot be certain that the steps we have taken will prevent
misappropriation of our technology or intellectual property rights,
particularly
in foreign countries where we do business, where our services are sold
or used,
where the laws may not protect proprietary rights as fully as do the
laws of the
United States or where enforcement of laws protecting proprietary rights
is not
common or effective. The unauthorized reproduction or other misappropriation
of
our intellectual property rights could enable third parties to benefit
from our
technology without paying us for it. If this occurs, our business,
results of
operations and financial condition could be materially and adversely
affected.
In addition, disputes concerning the ownership or rights to use intellectual
property could be costly and time-consuming to litigate, may distract
management
from operating our business and may result in our loss of significant
rights.
19
Our
products and services may infringe upon intellectual property rights
of third
parties and any infringement could require us to incur substantial
costs and may
distract our management.
We
are
subject to the risk of claims alleging infringement of third-party
proprietary
rights. Substantial litigation regarding intellectual property rights
exists in
the software industry. In the ordinary course of our business, our
services may
be increasingly subject to third-party infringement claims as the number
of
competitors in our industry segment grows and the functionality of
services in
different industry segments overlaps. Some of our competitors in the
market for
real-time sales, marketing and customer service solutions or other
third parties
may have filed or may intend to file patent applications covering aspects
of
their technology. Any claims alleging infringement of third-party intellectual
property rights could require us to spend significant amounts in litigation
(even if the claim is invalid), distract management from other tasks
of
operating our business, pay substantial damage awards, prevent us from
selling
our products, delay delivery of the LivePerson services, develop non-infringing
software, technology, business processes, systems or other intellectual
property
(none of which might be successful), or limit our ability to use the
intellectual property that is the subject of any of these claims, unless
we
enter into license agreements with the third parties (which may be
costly,
unavailable on commercially reasonable terms, or not available at all).
Therefore, such claims could have a material adverse effect on our
business,
results of operations and financial condition.
We
may be liable if third parties misappropriate personal information
belonging to
our clients’ Internet users.
We
maintain dialogue transcripts of the text-based chats and email interactions
between our clients and Internet users and store on our servers information
supplied voluntarily by these Internet users in surveys. We provide
this
information to our clients to allow them to perform Internet user analyses
and
monitor the effectiveness of our services. Some of the information
we collect
may include personal information, such as contact and demographic information.
If third parties were able to penetrate our network security or otherwise
misappropriate personal information relating to our clients’ Internet users or
the text of customer service inquiries, we could be subject to liability.
We
could be subject to negligence claims or claims for misuse of personal
information. These claims could result in litigation, which could have
a
material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and
financial
condition. We may incur significant costs to protect against the threat
of
security breaches or to alleviate problems caused by such breaches.
The
need
to physically secure and securely transmit confidential information
online has
been a significant barrier to electronic commerce and online communications.
Any
well-publicized compromise of security could deter people from using
online
services such as the ones we offer, or from using them to conduct transactions,
which involve transmitting confidential information. Because our success
depends
on the general acceptance of our services and electronic commerce,
we may incur
significant costs to protect against the threat of security breaches
or to
alleviate problems caused by these breaches.
20
Political,
economic and military conditions in Israel could negatively impact
our Israeli
operations.
Our
product development staff, help desk and online sales personnel are
located in
Israel. As of December 31, 2006, we had 80 full-time employees in Israel.
Although substantially all of our sales to date have been made to customers
outside Israel, we are directly influenced by the political, economic
and
military conditions affecting Israel. Since the establishment of the
State of
Israel in 1948, a number of armed conflicts have taken place between
Israel and
its Arab neighbors. A state of hostility, varying in degree and intensity,
has
caused security and economic problems in Israel. Since September 2000,
there has
been a marked increase in violence, civil unrest and hostility, including
armed
clashes, between the State of Israel and the Palestinians, primarily
but not
exclusively in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, and negotiations between
the State
of Israel and Palestinian representatives have effectively ceased.
The election
of representatives of the Hamas movement to a majority of seats in
the
Palestinian Legislative Council in January 2006 created additional
unrest and
uncertainty. In July and August of 2006, Israel was involved in a full-scale
armed conflict with Hezbollah, a Lebanese Islamist Shiite militia group
and
political party, in southern Lebanon, which involved missile strikes
against
civilian targets in northern Israel that resulted in economic losses.
Continued
hostilities between Israel and its neighbors and any failure to settle
the
conflict could adversely affect our operations in Israel and our business.
Further deterioration of the situation might require more widespread
military
reserve service by some of our Israeli employees and might result in
a
significant downturn in the economic or financial condition of Israel,
either of
which could have a material adverse effect on our operations in Israel
and our
business. In addition, several Arab countries still restrict business
with
Israeli companies. Our operations in Israel could be adversely affected
by
restrictive laws or policies directed towards Israel and Israeli
businesses.
Risks
Related to Our Industry
We
are dependent on the continued use of the Internet as a medium for
commerce.
We
cannot
be sure that a sufficiently broad base of consumers will continue to
use the
Internet as a medium for commerce. Convincing our clients to offer
real-time
sales, marketing and customer service technology may be difficult.
The
continuation of the Internet as a viable commercial marketplace is
subject to a
number of factors, including:
·
|
continued
growth in the number of users;
|
·
|
concerns
about transaction security;
|
·
|
continued
development of the necessary technological
infrastructure;
|
·
|
development
of enabling technologies;
|
·
|
uncertain
and increasing government regulation;
and
|
·
|
the
development of complementary services and
products.
|
We
depend on the continued viability of the infrastructure of the
Internet.
To
the
extent that the Internet continues to experience growth in the number
of users
and frequency of use by consumers resulting in increased bandwidth
demands, we
cannot assure you that the infrastructure for the Internet will be
able to
support the demands placed upon it. The Internet has experienced outages
and
delays as a result of damage to portions of its infrastructure. Outages
or
delays could adversely affect online sites, email and the level of
traffic on
the Internet. We also depend on Internet service providers that provide
our
clients and Internet users with access to the LivePerson services.
In the past,
users have experienced difficulties due to system failures unrelated
to our
service. In addition, the Internet could lose its viability due to
delays in the
adoption of new standards and protocols required to handle increased
levels of
Internet activity. Insufficient availability of telecommunications
services to
support the Internet also could result in slower response times and
negatively
impact use of the Internet generally, and our clients’ sites (including the
LivePerson dialogue windows) in particular. If the use of the Internet
fails to
grow or grows more slowly than expected, if the infrastructure for
the Internet
does not effectively support growth that may occur or if the Internet
does not
become a viable commercial marketplace, we may not maintain profitability
and
our business, results of operations and financial condition will
suffer.
21
We
may become subject to burdensome government regulation and legal
uncertainties.
We
are
subject to federal, state and local regulation, and laws of jurisdictions
outside of the United States, including laws and regulations applicable
to
computer software and access to or commerce over the Internet. Due
to the
increasing popularity and use of the Internet and various other online
services,
it is likely that a number of new laws and regulations will be adopted
with
respect to the Internet or other online services covering issues such
as user
privacy, freedom of expression, pricing, content and quality of products
and
services, taxation, advertising, intellectual property rights and information
security. The nature of such legislation and the manner in which it
may be
interpreted and enforced cannot be fully determined and, therefore,
such
legislation could subject us and/or our clients or Internet users to
potential
liability, which in turn could have a material adverse effect on our
business,
results of operations and financial condition.
As
a
result of collecting data from live online Internet user dialogues,
our clients
may be able to analyze the commercial habits of Internet users. Privacy
concerns
may cause Internet users to avoid online sites that collect such behavioral
information and even the perception of security and privacy concerns,
whether or
not valid, may indirectly inhibit market acceptance of our services.
In
addition, we or our clients may be harmed by any laws or regulations
that
restrict the ability to collect or use this data. The European Union
and many
countries within the E.U. have adopted privacy directives or laws that
strictly
regulate the collection and use of personally identifiable information
of
Internet users. The United States has adopted legislation which governs
the
collection and use of certain personal information. The U.S. Federal
Trade
Commission has also taken action against website operators who do not
comply
with their stated privacy policies. Furthermore, other foreign jurisdictions
have adopted legislation governing the collection and use of personal
information. These and other governmental efforts may limit our clients’ ability
to collect and use information about their Internet users through our
services.
As a result, such laws and efforts could create uncertainty in the
marketplace
that could reduce demand for our services or increase the cost of doing
business
as a result of litigation costs or increased service delivery costs,
or could in
some other manner have a material adverse effect on our business, results
of
operations and financial condition.
For
example, the LivePerson services allow our clients to capture and save
information about Internet users, possibly without their knowledge.
Additionally, our service uses a tool, commonly referred to as a “cookie,” to
uniquely identify each of our clients’ Internet users. To the extent that
additional legislation regarding Internet user privacy is enacted,
such as
legislation governing the collection and use of information regarding
Internet
users through the use of cookies, the effectiveness of the LivePerson
services
could be impaired by restricting us from collecting information which
may be
valuable to our clients. The foregoing could have a material adverse
effect our
business, results of operations and financial condition.
22
In
addition to privacy legislation, any new legislation or regulation
regarding the
Internet, or the application of existing laws and regulations to the
Internet,
could harm us. Additionally, as we operate outside the U.S., the international
regulatory environment relating to the Internet could have a material
adverse
effect on our business, results of operations and financial
condition.
Security
concerns could hinder commerce on the Internet.
User
concerns about the security of confidential information online has
been a
significant barrier to commerce on the Internet and online communications.
Any
well-publicized compromise of security could deter people from using
the
Internet or other online services or from using them to conduct transactions
that involve the transmission of confidential information. If Internet
commerce
is inhibited as a result of such security concerns, our business would
be
harmed.
Other
Risks
Our
stockholders who each own greater than five percent of the outstanding
common
stock, and our executive officers and directors, will be able to influence
matters requiring a stockholder vote.
Our
stockholders who each own greater than five percent of the outstanding
common
stock and their affiliates, and our executive officers and directors,
in the
aggregate, beneficially own approximately 35.6% of our outstanding
common stock.
As a result, these stockholders, if acting together, will be able to
significantly influence all matters requiring approval by our stockholders,
including the election of directors and approval of significant corporate
transactions. This concentration of ownership could also have the effect
of
delaying or preventing a change in control.
The
future sale of shares of our common stock may negatively affect our
stock
price.
If
our
stockholders sell substantial amounts of our common stock, including
shares
issuable upon the exercise of outstanding options and warrants in the
public
market, or if our stockholders are perceived by the market as intending
to sell
substantial amounts of our common stock, the market price of our common
stock
could fall. These sales also might make it more difficult for us to
sell equity
securities in the future at a time and price that we deem appropriate.
The
number of shares of common stock subject to the registration statement
we filed
in January 2004, registering our issuance and sale from time to time
of up to
4,000,000 shares of common stock, is much greater than the average
weekly
trading volume for our shares. No prediction can be made as to the
effect, if
any, that market sales of these or other shares of our common stock
will have on
the market price of our common stock.
Our
stock price has been highly volatile and may experience extreme price
and volume
fluctuations in the future, which could reduce the value of your investment
and
subject us to litigation.
Fluctuations
in market price and volume are particularly common among securities
of Internet
and other technology companies. The market price of our common stock
has
fluctuated significantly in the past and may continue to be highly
volatile,
with extreme price and volume fluctuations, in response to the following
factors, some of which are beyond our control:
·
|
variations
in our quarterly operating results;
|
·
|
changes
in market valuations of publicly-traded companies in general
and Internet
and other technology companies in
particular;
|
23
·
|
our
announcements of significant client contracts, acquisitions
and our
ability to integrate these acquisitions, strategic partnerships,
joint
ventures or capital commitments;
|
·
|
our
failure to complete significant
sales;
|
·
|
additions
or departures of key personnel;
|
·
|
future
sales of our common stock;
|
·
|
changes
in financial estimates by securities analysts;
and
|
·
|
terrorist
attacks against the United States or in Israel, the engagement
in
hostilities or an escalation of hostilities by or against
the United
States or Israel, or the declaration of war or national emergency
by the
United States or Israel.
|
In
the
past, companies that have experienced volatility in the market price
of their
stock have been the subject of securities class action litigation.
We may in the
future be the target of similar litigation, which could result in substantial
costs and distract management from other important aspects of operating
our
business.
Anti-takeover
provisions in our charter documents and Delaware law may make it difficult
for a
third party to acquire us.
Provisions
of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation, such as our
staggered
Board of Directors, the manner in which director vacancies may be filled
and
provisions regarding the calling of stockholder meetings, could make
it more
difficult for a third party to acquire us, even if doing so might be
beneficial
to our stockholders. In addition, provisions of our amended and restated
bylaws,
such as advance notice requirements for stockholder proposals, and
applicable
provisions of Delaware law, such as the application of business combination
limitations, could impose similar difficulties. Further, provisions
of our
amended and restated certificate of incorporation relating to directors,
stockholder meetings, limitation of director liability, indemnification
and
amendment of the certificate of incorporation and bylaws may not be
amended
without the affirmative vote of not less than 66.67% of the outstanding
shares
of our capital stock entitled to vote generally in the election of
directors
(considered for this purpose as a single class) cast at a meeting of
our
stockholders called for that purpose. Our amended and restated bylaws
may not be
amended without the affirmative vote of at least 66.67% of our Board
of
Directors or without the affirmative vote of not less than 66.67% of
the
outstanding shares of our capital stock entitled to vote generally
in the
election of directors (considered for this purpose as a single class)
cast at a
meeting of our stockholders called for that purpose.
ITEM 1B. |
UNRESOLVED
STAFF COMMENTS
|
None.
ITEM 2. |
PROPERTIES
|
We
currently lease approximately 17,000 square feet at our headquarters
location in
New York City, under a lease expiring in October 2011.
Our
wholly-owned subsidiary, HumanClick Ltd., maintains offices in Raanana,
Israel
of approximately 20,000 square feet, under leases expiring in October
2009.
24
Our
wholly-owned subsidiary, Proficient Systems, Inc. maintains offices
in Atlanta,
Georgia of approximately 6,000 square feet, under a lease expiring
in April
2010.
ITEM 3. |
LEGAL
PROCEEDINGS
|
In
May
2006, a former employee filed a complaint in the Supreme Court of
New York State
against us and two of our executive officers containing claims related
to
improper termination of employment. The claim seeks damages of approximately
$50
million. We believe the claims are without merit, and intend to vigorously
defend against such claims. However, we cannot assure you that our
defenses will
be successful and, if they are not, that our ultimate liability in
connection
with these claims will not have a material adverse effect on our
results of
operations, financial condition or cash flows. We have not accrued
for this
contingency as of December 31, 2006, because the amount of loss,
if any, cannot
be reasonably estimated at this time. We carry appropriate levels
of insurance
for employment related claims but we cannot guarantee that any damages
arising
from this claim will be covered by this policy.
We
are
not currently party to any other legal proceedings. From time to
time, we may be
subject to various claims and legal actions arising in the ordinary
course of
business.
ITEM 4. |
SUBMISSION
OF MATTERS TO A VOTE OF SECURITY
HOLDERS
|
No
matters were submitted to a vote of stockholders through the solicitation
of
proxies or otherwise during the fourth quarter of the fiscal year
ended
December 31, 2006.
25
PART
II
ITEM 5. |
MARKET
FOR REGISTRANT’S COMMON EQUITY, RELATED STOCKHOLDER MATTERS AND ISSUER
PURCHASES OF EQUITY
SECURITIES
|
PRICE
RANGE OF COMMON STOCK
Our
common stock is traded on The Nasdaq Capital Market tier (known as
The Nasdaq
SmallCap Market until September 27, 2005) of The Nasdaq Stock Market under
the symbol LPSN. The Nasdaq Stock Market became operational as a
stock exchange
on August 1, 2006. The following table sets forth, for each full
quarterly
period within the two most recent fiscal years, the high and low
sales prices
(in dollars per share) of our common stock as reported or quoted
on The Nasdaq
Capital Market or The Nasdaq SmallCap Market:
High
|
Low
|
||||||
Year
ended December 31, 2005:
|
|||||||
First
Quarter
|
$
|
3.23
|
$
|
2.29
|
|||
Second
Quarter
|
$
|
3.30
|
$
|
2.24
|
|||
Third
Quarter
|
$
|
4.10
|
$
|
2.83
|
|||
Fourth
Quarter
|
$
|
5.71
|
$
|
3.79
|
|||
Year
ended December 31, 2006:
|
|||||||
First
Quarter
|
$
|
7.42
|
$
|
5.13
|
|||
Second
Quarter
|
$
|
7.84
|
$
|
4.05
|
|||
Third
Quarter
|
$
|
6.00
|
$
|
3.70
|
|||
Fourth
Quarter
|
$
|
6.00
|
$
|
4.27
|
HOLDERS
As
of
March 5, 2007, there were approximately 154 holders of record of our common
stock.
DIVIDEND
POLICY
We
have
not declared or paid any cash dividends on our capital stock since
our
inception. We intend to retain earnings, if any, to finance the operation
and
expansion of our business and do not anticipate paying any cash dividends
in the
foreseeable future.
ISSUER
PURCHASES OF EQUITY SECURITIES
We
did
not repurchase any of our securities during any month within the
quarter ended
December 31, 2006.
STOCK
PERFORMANCE GRAPH
The
graph
depicted below compares the annual percentage changes in the LivePerson’s
cumulative total stockholder return with the cumulative total return
of the
Standard & Poor’s SmallCap 600 Index and the Standard & Poor’s
Information Technology Index.
26
Notes:
(1)
The
graph covers the period from December 31, 2001 to December 31,
2006.
(2)
The
graph assumes that $100 was invested at the market close on December
31, 2001 in
LivePerson’s Common Stock, in the Standard & Poor’s SmallCap 600 Index and
in the Standard & Poor’s Information Technology Index, and that all
dividends were reinvested. No cash dividends have been declared on
LivePerson’s
Common Stock.
(3)
Stockholder returns over the indicated period should not be considered
indicative of future stockholder returns.
Notwithstanding
anything to the contrary set forth in any of our previous or future
filings
under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Exchange
Act of
1934, as amended, that might incorporate by reference this Annual
Report on Form
10-K or future filings made by the Company under those statutes,
the Stock
Performance Graph is not deemed filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission, is not deemed soliciting material and shall not be deemed
incorporated by reference into any of those prior filings or into
any future
filings made by the Company under those statutes, except to the extent
that the
Company specifically incorporates such information by reference into
a previous
or future filing, or specifically requests that such information
be treated as
soliciting material, in each case under those statutes.
27
ITEM 6. |
SELECTED
CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL
DATA
|
The
selected consolidated financial data with respect to our consolidated
balance
sheets as of December 31, 2006 and 2005 and the related consolidated
statements of operations for the years ended December 31, 2006, 2005 and
2004 have been derived from our audited consolidated financial statements
which
are included herein. The selected financial data with respect to
our balance
sheets as of December 31, 2004, 2003 and 2002 and the related statements of
operations for the years ended December 31, 2003 and 2002 have been derived
from our audited financial statements which are not included herein.
The
following selected consolidated financial data should be read in
conjunction
with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto
and the
information contained in Item 7, “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of
Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”
Year
Ended December 31,
|
||||||||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
2003
|
2002
|
||||||||||||
(in
thousands, except share and per share data)
|
||||||||||||||||
Consolidated
Statement of Operations Data:
|
||||||||||||||||
Revenue
|
$
|
33,521
|
$
|
22,277
|
$
|
17,392
|
$
|
12,023
|
$
|
8,234
|
||||||
Operating
expenses:
|
||||||||||||||||
Cost
of revenue (1)
|
7,621
|
4,297
|
2,888
|
2,028
|
1,604
|
|||||||||||
Product
development (1)
|
5,062
|
2,699
|
2,000
|
1,641
|
1,283
|
|||||||||||
Sales
and marketing (1)
|
11,864
|
6,975
|
5,183
|
3,555
|
2,177
|
|||||||||||
General
and administrative (1)
|
6,542
|
4,458
|
4,456
|
3,610
|
3,176
|
|||||||||||
Amortization
of goodwill and intangibles
|
1,383
|
931
|
792
|
1,014
|
357
|
|||||||||||
Restructuring
and impairment charges
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
1,024
|
1,186
|
|||||||||||
Total
operating expenses
|
32,472
|
19,360
|
15,319
|
12,872
|
9,783
|
|||||||||||
Income
(loss) from operations
|
1,049
|
2,917
|
2,073
|
(849
|
)
|
(1,549
|
)
|
|||||||||
Other
income (expense):
|
||||||||||||||||
Other
expense
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
(8
|
)
|
—
|
||||||||||
Interest
income
|
715
|
300
|
77
|
41
|
126
|
|||||||||||
Interest
expense
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
(10
|
)
|
||||||||||
Total
other income, net
|
715
|
300
|
77
|
33
|
116
|
|||||||||||
Income
(loss) before cumulative effect of accounting change
|
1,764
|
3,217
|
2,150
|
(816
|
)
|
(1,433
|
)
|
|||||||||
Cumulative
effect of accounting change (2)
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
(5,338
|
)
|
||||||||||
Income
(loss) before provision for income taxes
|
1,764
|
3,217
|
2,150
|
(816
|
)
|
(6,771
|
)
|
|||||||||
(Benefit
from) provision for income taxes
|
(438
|
)
|
675
|
58
|
—
|
—
|
||||||||||
Net
income (loss) attributable to common stockholders
|
$
|
2,202
|
$
|
2,542
|
$
|
2,092
|
$
|
(816
|
)
|
$
|
(6,771
|
)
|
||||
Basic
net income (loss) per common share:
|
||||||||||||||||
Income
(loss) before cumulative effect of accounting change
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.07
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
(0.02
|
)
|
$
|
(0.04
|
)
|
||||
Cumulative
effect of accounting change
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
(0.16
|
)
|
||||||||||
Net
income (loss)
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.07
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
(0.02
|
)
|
$
|
(0.20
|
)
|
||||
Diluted
net income (loss) per common share:
|
||||||||||||||||
Income
(loss) before cumulative effect of accounting change
|
$
|
0.05
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.05
|
$
|
(0.02
|
)
|
$
|
(0.04
|
)
|
||||
Cumulative
effect of accounting change
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
(0.16
|
)
|
||||||||||
Net
income (loss)
|
$
|
0.05
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.05
|
$
|
(0.02
|
)
|
$
|
(0.20
|
)
|
||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding used in basic net income (loss)
per common
share calculation
|
39,680,182
|
37,557,722
|
37,263,378
|
34,854,802
|
34,028,702
|
|||||||||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding used in diluted net income (loss)
per common
share calculation
|
43,345,232
|
39,885,328
|
39,680,304
|
34,854,802
|
34,028,702
|
(1)
|
For
the year ended December 31, 2006, includes stock-based
compensation
expense related to the adoption of SFAS No.
123(R).
|
(2) |
Cumulative
effect of accounting change relates to the impairment of
the carrying
value of goodwill.
|
28
December
31,
|
||||||||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
2003
|
2002
|
||||||||||||
(in
thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Consolidated
Balance Sheet Data:
|
||||||||||||||||
Cash
and cash equivalents
|
$
|
21,729
|
$
|
17,117
|
$
|
12,425
|
$
|
10,898
|
$
|
8,004
|
||||||
Working
capital
|
19,233
|
15,668
|
11,283
|
8,486
|
6,137
|
|||||||||||
Total
assets
|
43,315
|
21,426
|
17,150
|
13,537
|
10,837
|
|||||||||||
Total
stockholders’ equity
|
34,549
|
17,213
|
13,554
|
9,336
|
7,888
|
29
ITEM
7.
|
MANAGEMENT’S
DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS
OF
OPERATIONS
|
Critical
Accounting Policies and Estimates
General
Our
discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results
of operations are
based upon our consolidated financial statements, which are prepared
in
conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the
United States of
America. As such, we are required to make certain estimates, judgments
and
assumptions that management believes are reasonable based upon
the information
available. We base these estimates on our historical experience,
future
expectations and various other assumptions that we believe to be
reasonable
under the circumstances, the results of which form the basis for
our judgments
that may not be readily apparent from other sources. These estimates
and
assumptions affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities
and the
disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the dates of
the consolidated
financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses
during the
reporting periods. These estimates and assumptions relate to estimates
of
collectibility of accounts receivable, the expected term of a client
relationship, accruals and other factors. We evaluate these estimates
on an
ongoing basis. Actual results could differ from those estimates
under different
assumptions or conditions, and any differences could be material.
The
significant accounting policies which we believe are the most critical
to aid in
fully understanding and evaluating the reported consolidated financial
results
include the following:
Revenue
Recognition
LivePerson
helps to maximize the business impact of the online channel as
a provider of
hosted software that enables customers to proactively assist their
online
visitors. Our proprietary tools and methodology have been proven
to increase
sales, customer satisfaction and loyalty while reducing customer
service
costs.
Our
fully-integrated multi-channel communications platform, Timpani,
facilitates
real-time sales, marketing and customer service. Our technology
supports and
manages key online interactions — via chat, voice, email and
self-service/knowledgebase — in a cost-effective and secure
environment.
We
charge
a monthly fee, which varies by service and client usage. The majority
of our
larger clients also pay us a professional services fee related
to
implementation. We may also charge professional service fees related
to
additional training, business consulting and analysis in support
of the
LivePerson services. The proportion of our new clients that are
large
corporations is increasing. These companies typically have more
significant
implementation requirements and more stringent data security standards.
As a
result, our professional services revenue has begun to increase.
Such clients
also have more sophisticated data analysis and performance reporting
requirements, and are more likely to engage our professional services
organization to provide such analysis and reporting on a recurring
basis. As a
result, it is likely that a greater proportion of our future revenue
will be
generated from such ongoing professional services work.
We
also
sell certain of the LivePerson services directly via Internet download.
These
services are marketed as LivePerson Pro and LivePerson Contact
Center for small
and mid-sized businesses (“SMBs”), and are paid for almost exclusively by credit
card. Credit card payments accelerate cash flow and reduce our
collection risk,
subject to the merchant bank’s right to hold back cash pending settlement of the
transactions. Sales of LivePerson Pro and LivePerson Contact Center
may occur
with or without the assistance of an online sales representative,
rather than
through face-to-face or telephone contact that is typically required
for
traditional direct sales.
30
We
record
revenue based upon the monthly fee charged for the LivePerson services,
provided
that no significant Company obligations remain and collection of
the resulting
receivable is probable. We recognize monthly service fees as services
are
provided. Our service agreements typically have twelve month terms
and are
terminable upon 30 to 90 days’ notice without penalty. We recognize professional
service fees upon completion and customer acceptance of key milestones
within
each professional services engagement. Professional services to
date have not
been significant.
In
the
past, certain of our larger clients, who required more sophisticated
implementation and training, may have paid an initial non-refundable
set-up fee.
This fee was intended to recover certain costs (principally customer
service,
training and other administrative costs) prior to deployment of
the LivePerson
services. As of December 31, 2006, we had approximately $3,000
of unamortized
deferred set-up fees which are expected to be recognized ratably
through March
2007.
Stock-based
Compensation
On
January 1, 2006, we adopted Statement of Financial Accounting Standards
(“SFAS”)
No. 123 (revised 2004), “Share-Based Payment,” which addresses the accounting
for transactions in which an entity exchanges its equity instruments
for goods
or services, with a primary focus on transactions in which an entity
obtains
employee services in share-based payment transactions. SFAS No.
123(R) is a
revision to SFAS No. 123, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation,” and
supersedes Accounting Principles Board (“APB”) Opinion No. 25, “Accounting for
Stock Issued to Employees,” and its related implementation guidance. SFAS No.
123(R) requires measurement of the cost of employee services received
in
exchange for an award of equity instruments based on the grant-date
fair value
of the award (with limited exceptions). Incremental compensation
costs arising
from subsequent modifications of awards after the grant date must
be
recognized.
We
adopted SFAS No. 123(R) using the modified prospective transition
method, which
requires the application of the accounting standard as of January
1, 2006, the
first day of our fiscal year. Our Consolidated Financial Statements
as of and
for the year ended December 31, 2006 reflect the impact of SFAS
No. 123(R). In
accordance with the modified prospective transition method, our
Consolidated
Financial Statements for prior periods have not been restated to
reflect, and do
not include, the impact of SFAS No. 123(R).
SFAS
No.
123(R) requires companies to estimate the fair value of share-based
payment
awards on the date of grant using an option-pricing model. The
value of the
portion of the award that is ultimately expected to vest is recognized
as
expense over the requisite service periods in our Consolidated
Statements of
Income. Stock-based compensation recognized in our Consolidated
Statement of
Income for the year December 31, 2006 includes compensation expense
for
share-based awards granted prior to, but not fully vested as of
January 1, 2006
based on the grant date fair value estimated in accordance with
SFAS No. 123 as
well as compensation expense for share-based awards granted subsequent
to
January 1, 2006 in accordance with SFAS No. 123(R). We currently
use the
Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine grant date fair
value.
As
of
December 31, 2006, there was approximately $5.5 million of total
unrecognized
compensation cost related to nonvested share-based compensation
arrangements.
That cost is expected to be recognized over a weighted average
period of
approximately 3.33 years.
31
Accounts
Receivable
Our
customers are primarily concentrated in the United States. We perform
ongoing
credit evaluations of our customers’ financial condition (except for customers
who purchase the LivePerson services by credit card via Internet
download) and
have established an allowance for doubtful accounts based upon
factors
surrounding the credit risk of customers, historical trends and
other
information that we believe to be reasonable, although they may
change in the
future. If there is a deterioration of a customer’s credit worthiness or actual
write-offs are higher than our historical experience, our estimates
of
recoverability for these receivables could be adversely affected.
Our
concentration of credit risk is limited due to the large number
of customers. No
single customer accounted for or exceeded 10% of our total revenue
in 2006, 2005
and 2004. No single customer accounted for or exceeded 10% of accounts
receivable at December 31, 2006 or 2005. Accounts receivable at December
31, 2006 increased by approximately 136%, net of the Proficient
acquisition,
compared to December 31, 2005, due primarily to
an
increase in the proportion of receivables due from larger corporate
clients that
typically have longer payment practices. This increase and the
acquisition of
Proficient resulted in an increase in our allowance for doubtful
accounts of
$38,000 in the year ended December 31, 2006.
Goodwill
In
accordance with SFAS No. 142, “Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets,” goodwill
and indefinite-lived intangible assets are not amortized, but reviewed
for
impairment upon the occurrence of events or changes in circumstances
that would
reduce the fair value below its carrying amount. Goodwill is required
to be
tested for impairment at least annually. Determining the fair value
of a
reporting unit under the first step of the goodwill impairment
test and
determining the fair value of individual assets and liabilities
of a reporting
unit (including unrecognized intangible assets) under the second
step of the
goodwill impairment test is judgmental in nature and often involves
the use of
significant estimates and assumptions. Similarly, estimates and
assumptions are
used in determining the fair value of other intangible assets.
These estimates
and assumptions could have a significant impact on whether or not
an impairment
charge is recognized and also the magnitude of any such charge.
To
assist
in the process of determining goodwill impairment, we will obtain
appraisals
from an independent valuation firm. In addition to the use of an
independent
valuation firm, we will perform internal valuation analyses and
consider other
market information that is publicly available. Estimates of fair
value are
primarily determined using discounted cash flows and market comparisons.
These
approaches use significant estimates and assumptions including
projected future
cash flows (including timing), discount rates reflecting the risk
inherent in
future cash flows, perpetual growth rates, determination of appropriate
market
comparables and the determination of whether a premium or discount
should be
applied to comparables.
Impairment
of Long-Lived Assets
In
accordance with SFAS No. 144, “Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal of
Long-lived Assets,” long-lived assets, such as property, plant and equipment and
purchased intangibles subject to amortization are reviewed for
impairment
whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying
value of
an asset may not be recoverable. Recoverability of assets to be
held and used is
measured by a comparison of the carrying value of an asset to estimated
undiscounted future cash flows expected to be generated by the
asset. If the
carrying value of an asset exceeds its estimated future cash flows,
an
impairment charge is recognized in the amount by which the carrying
value of the
asset exceeds the fair value of the asset. Assets to be disposed
of would be
separately presented in the balance sheet and reported at the lower
of the
carrying value or the fair value less costs to sell, and are no
longer
depreciated. The assets and liabilities of a disposed group classified
as held
for sale would be presented separately in the appropriate asset
and liability
sections of the balance sheet.
32
Use
of Estimates
The
preparation of our consolidated financial statements in accordance
with
generally accepted accounting principles requires our management
to make a
number of estimates and assumptions relating to the reported amounts
of assets
and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities
at the date
of the consolidated financial statements, and the reported amounts
of revenue
and expenses during the period. Significant items subject to such
estimates and
assumptions include the carrying amount of goodwill, intangibles,
stock-based
compensation, valuation allowances for deferred income tax assets,
accounts
receivable, the expected term of a client relationship, accruals
and other
factors. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Recently
Issued Accounting Pronouncements
In
July
2006, FASB Interpretation (FIN) No. 48, “Accounting for Uncertainty in Income
Taxes - An Interpretation of FASB Statement No. 109,” was issued. FIN No. 48
clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized
in an
enterprise's financial statements in accordance with SFAS No. 109,
“Accounting
for Income Taxes.” FIN No. 48 also prescribes a recognition threshold and
measurement attribute for the financial statement recognition and
measurement of
a tax position taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. The
new FASB
standard also provides guidance on derecognition, classification,
interest and
penalties, accounting in interim periods, disclosure, and transition.
The
adoption of FIN No. 48 is not expected to have a material impact
on our
financial position, cash flows and results of operations.
Overview
LivePerson
helps to maximize the business impact of the online channel as
a provider of
hosted software that enables customers to proactively assist their
online
visitors. Our proprietary tools and methodology have been proven
to increase
sales, customer satisfaction and loyalty while reducing customer
service
costs.
Our
fully-integrated multi-channel communications platform, Timpani,
facilitates
real-time sales, marketing and customer service. Our technology
supports and
manages key online interactions — via chat, voice, email and
self-service/knowledgebase — in a cost-effective and secure
environment.
We
were
incorporated in the State of Delaware in November 1995 and the
LivePerson
service was introduced initially in November 1998.
In
July
2002, we acquired all of the existing customer contracts of NewChannel,
Inc. and
associated rights. The purchase price was based, in part, on projected
revenue
from each of the former NewChannel clients at the time of their
successful
conversion to the LivePerson software platform. The total acquisition
costs were
approximately $1.4 million. The total acquisition cost has been
allocated to
customer contracts and was amortized ratably over a period of 18
months,
representing the then expected term of the client relationships.
As of
December 31, 2003, the total purchase had been completely
amortized.
33
In
December 2003, we acquired certain identifiable assets of Island
Data
Corporation. The purchase price was based on projected revenue
from the acquired
customer contracts at the time of their assignment to us. We paid
approximately
$370,000 in cash, and issued 370,894 shares of our common stock,
in connection
with the acquisition. The total acquisition costs were approximately
$2.1
million. Of the total purchase price, we have allocated approximately
$65,000 to
non-compete agreements which was amortized over a period of 24
months,
representing the terms of the agreements. The remainder of the
purchase price
has been allocated to customer contracts and was amortized over
a period of 36
months, representing our current estimate of the term of the acquired
client
relationships. The net acquisition costs of $0 and $685,000 are
included in
“Assets - Intangibles, net” on our December 31, 2006 and December 31, 2005
balance sheets, respectively.
In
January 2004, we filed a registration statement with the Securities
and Exchange
Commission to register the resale of up to 500,000 shares of our
common stock by
Island Data. Our registration of the resale of the shares was required
by our
agreement with Island Data. The shares registered for resale on
the registration
statement, but not actually issued to Island Data pursuant to the
agreement,
were deregistered. We did not receive any proceeds from the sale
of the shares
of common stock covered by the Island Data registration statement.
In
January 2004, we filed a shelf registration statement with the
Securities and
Exchange Commission relating to 4,000,000 shares of our common
stock that we may
issue from time to time. We have no immediate plans to offer or
sell any shares
under this shelf registration. We presently intend to use the net
proceeds from
any sale of the registered shares for general corporate purposes
and working
capital. We would announce the terms of any issuance in a filing
with the
Securities and Exchange Commission at the time we offer or sell
the
shares.
In
July
2004, we acquired certain identifiable assets of FaceTime Communications,
Inc.
The transaction transferred certain existing customer contracts
of FaceTime to
us. The purchase price was based in part on future revenue generated
by us from
the former FaceTime client base. The total acquisition costs were
approximately
$394,000. The total acquisition cost was amortized ratably over
a period of 24
months, representing our estimate of the term of the acquired client
relationships. The net acquisition costs of $0 and $105,000 are
included in
“Assets - Intangibles, net” on our December 31, 2006 and December 31, 2005
balance sheets, respectively.
On
June
30, 2006, we acquired the customer list of Base Europe, a former
reseller of our
services. The purchase price was $233,000. The agreement gives
us the exclusive
right to exploit a specific list of deal referrals from Base Europe.
The entire
purchase price will be amortized ratably over a period of 24 months.
The net
acquisition costs of $175,000 and $0 are included in “Assets - Intangibles, net”
on our December 31, 2006 and December 31, 2005 balance sheets,
respectively.
On
July
18, 2006, we acquired Proficient Systems, Inc., a provider of hosted
proactive
chat solutions that help companies generate revenue on their websites.
Under the
terms of the agreement, we acquired all of the outstanding capital
stock of
Proficient in exchange for 2 million shares of LivePerson common
stock paid at
closing, and up to an additional 2.05 million shares based on the
achievement of
certain revenue targets as of March 31, 2007.
In
August
2006, we filed a registration statement with the Securities and
Exchange
Commission that included the registration of the resale of up to
4,050,000
shares of our common stock by the former shareholders of Proficient
Systems,
Inc. Our registration of the resale of the shares by the Proficient
Systems
shareholders was required by our agreement with Proficient Systems.
The shares
registered for resale on the registration statement, but not actually
issued to
Proficient Systems shareholders pursuant to the agreement, are
expected to be
deregistered. We will not receive any proceeds from the sale of
the shares of
common stock covered by the August 2006 registration statement.
34
Revenue
Our
clients pay us a monthly fee, which varies by service and client
usage. The
majority of our larger clients also pay a professional services
fee related to
implementation. The proportion of our new clients that are large
corporations is
increasing. These companies typically have more significant implementation
requirements and more stringent data security standards. As a result,
our
professional services revenue has begun to increase. Such clients
also have more
sophisticated data analysis and performance reporting requirements,
and are more
likely to engage our professional services organization to provide
such analysis
and reporting on a recurring basis. As a result, it is likely that
a greater
proportion of our future revenue will be generated from such ongoing
professional services work.
Revenue
attributable to our monthly service fee accounted for 95%, 95%
and 96% of total
LivePerson services revenue for the years ended December 31, 2006,
2005 and
2004, respectively. Our service agreements typically have twelve
month terms and
are terminable upon 30 to 90 days’ notice without penalty. We recognize monthly
service fees and professional service fees as services are provided.
Professional service fees consist of additional training and business
consulting
and analysis provided to customers, both at the initial launch
and over the term
of the contract. Given the time required to schedule training for
our clients’
operators and our clients’ resource constraints, we have historically
experienced a lag between signing a client contract and recognizing
revenue from
that client. This lag has recently ranged from 30 to 90 days.
We
also
sell certain of the LivePerson services directly via Internet download.
These
services are marketed as LivePerson Pro and LivePerson Contact
Center for SMBs,
and are paid for almost exclusively by credit card. Credit card
payments
accelerate cash flow and reduce our collection risk, subject to
the merchant
bank’s right to hold back cash pending settlement of the transactions.
Sales of
LivePerson Pro and LivePerson Contact Center may occur with or
without the
assistance of an online sales representative, rather than through
face-to-face
or telephone contact which is typically required for traditional
direct sales.
We recognize monthly service fees from the sale of LivePerson Pro
and LivePerson
Contact Center during the month in which services are provided.
There is no lag
for sales generated via Internet download, because our services
are immediately
available and fully functional upon download.
We
also
have entered into contractual arrangements that complement our
direct sales
force and online sales efforts. These are primarily with Web hosting
and call
center service companies, pursuant to which LivePerson is paid
a commission
based on revenue generated by these service companies from our
referrals. To
date, revenue from such commissions has not been material.
Operating
Expenses
Our
cost
of revenue has principally been associated with the LivePerson
services and has
consisted of:
· |
compensation
costs relating to employees who provide customer support
and
implementation services to our
clients;
|
· |
compensation
costs relating to our network support
staff;
|
· |
allocated
occupancy costs and related overhead;
and
|
· |
the
cost of supporting our infrastructure, including expenses
related to
server leases, infrastructure support costs and Internet
connectivity, as
well as depreciation of certain hardware and
software.
|
35
Our
product development expenses consist primarily of compensation
and related
expenses for product development personnel, allocated occupancy
costs and
related overhead, outsourced labor and expenses for testing new
versions of our
software. Product development expenses are charged to operations
as
incurred.
Our
sales
and marketing expenses consist of compensation and related expenses
for sales
personnel and marketing personnel, allocated occupancy costs and
related
overhead, advertising, sales commissions, marketing programs, public
relations,
promotional materials, travel expenses and trade show exhibit
expenses.
Our
general and administrative expenses consist primarily of compensation
and
related expenses for executive, accounting and human resources
personnel,
allocated occupancy costs and related overhead, professional fees,
provision for
doubtful accounts and other general corporate expenses.
During
2006, we increased our allowance for doubtful accounts by $38,000
to
approximately $105,000, principally due to an increase in accounts
receivable as
a result of increased sales. During 2005, we increased our allowance
for
doubtful accounts by $30,000 to approximately $84,000, principally
due to an
increase in accounts receivable as a result of increased sales,
and we wrote off
approximately $17,000 of previously reserved accounts, leaving
a net allowance
of $67,000 at December 31, 2005. We base our allowance for doubtful
accounts on specifically identified credit risks of customers,
historical trends
and other information that we believe to be reasonable. We adjust
our allowance
for doubtful accounts when accounts previously reserved have been
collected.
Non-cash
Compensation Expense
The
net
non-cash compensation amounts for the years ended December 31, 2006, 2005
and 2004 consist of:
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
|
(in
thousands)
|
|||||||||
Stock-based
compensation expense related to SFAS No. 123(R)
|
$
|
2,180
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
—
|
||||
May
2004 warrant granted for investor relations services
(discussed
below)
|
—
|
—
|
246
|
|||||||
Total
|
$
|
2,180
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
246
|
In
December 2002, we issued a warrant to purchase up to 150,000 shares
of common
stock at $0.69 per share to Genesis Select Corp. in exchange for
investor
relations services. The warrant vested such that 12,500 shares
became
exercisable on each monthly anniversary of the warrant issuance
date for the
first 12 months of the warrant’s five-year term. Some or all of the exercise
price may be paid by canceling a portion of the warrant. As of
December 31,
2006, the warrant was fully vested and remained outstanding to
purchase up to
124,500 shares of common stock.
In
May
2004, we issued a warrant to purchase up to 75,000 shares of common
stock at
$3.25 per share to Genesis Select Corp. in exchange for investor
relations
services. The warrant vested such that the shares underlying the
warrant could
not be sold until after December 31, 2004. Some or all of the exercise
price may be paid by canceling a portion of the warrant. As of
December 31,
2006, the warrant was fully vested and remained outstanding to
purchase 63,750
shares of common stock. We recorded non-cash compensation expense
of $246,000
related to this warrant during 2004.
36
Results
of Operations
Due
to
our acquisition of Proficient in July 2006, certain identifiable
assets of
FaceTime in July 2004, our acquisition of certain identifiable
assets of Island
Data in December 2003, and our limited operating history, we believe
that
comparisons of our 2006, 2005 and 2004 operating results with each
other, or
with those of prior periods, are not meaningful and that our historical
operating results should not be relied upon as indicative of future
performance.
Comparison
of Fiscal Years Ended December 31, 2006 and 2005
Revenue.
Total
revenue increased by 50% to $33.5 million for the year ended December 31,
2006, from $22.3 million for the year ended December 31, 2005. This
increase is primarily attributable to revenue from new clients,
including
Proficient clients, of approximately $8.1 million, and, to a lesser
extent, to
increased revenue from existing clients in the amount of approximately
$3.0
million and an increase in professional services revenue of approximately
$618,000.
Cost
of Revenue.
Cost of
revenue consists of compensation costs relating to employees who
provide
customer service to our clients, compensation costs relating to
our network
support staff, the cost of supporting our infrastructure, including
expenses
related to server leases and Internet connectivity, as well as
depreciation of
certain hardware and software, and allocated occupancy costs and
related
overhead. Cost of revenue increased by 77% to $7.6 million in 2006,
from $4.3
million in 2005. This increase is primarily attributable to costs
related to
additional account management and network operations personnel
to support
increased client activity from existing clients, the addition of
new clients and
the Proficient acquisition in the amount of approximately $1.7
million and to
increased spending for primary and backup server facilities of
approximately
$663,000. The increase is also attributable to stock-based compensation
associated with the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) in the amount of
$228,000. As a
result, our gross margin in the year ended December 31, 2006 decreased
to 77% as
compared to 81% in the year ended December 31, 2005. Though our
cost of revenue
increased materially in the year ended December 31, 2006, a significant
portion
of this impact was driven by the Proficient acquisition. This impact
on gross
margin is expected to decrease as we continue to integrate Proficient.
The
proportion of our new clients that are large corporations is increasing.
These
companies typically have more significant implementation requirements
and more
stringent data security standards. As a result, we have invested
additional
resources to support this change in the customer base and in anticipation
of a
continuation of this trend, which has increased our cost of revenue
and
decreased our gross margin.
Product
Development.
Our
product development expenses consist primarily of compensation
and related
expenses for product development personnel as well as allocated
occupancy costs
and related overhead. Product development costs increased by 88%
to $5.1 million
in 2006, from $2.7 million in 2005. This increase is primarily
attributable to
costs related to additional product development personnel to support
the
continuing development of our product line as we broaden the range
of services
we offer to include a fully integrated, multi-channel software
platform and to
the Proficient acquisition in the amount of approximately $1.6
million. The
increase is also attributable to stock-based compensation associated
with the
adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) in the amount of $537,000. Though our
product
development costs increased materially in the year ended December
31, 2006, a
significant portion of this impact was driven by the Proficient
acquisition.
This impact is expected to decrease as we continue to integrate
Proficient.
Sales
and Marketing.
Our
sales and marketing expenses consist of compensation and related
expenses for
sales and marketing personnel, as well as advertising, public relations
and
trade show exhibit expenses. Sales and marketing expenses increased
by 70% to
$11.9 million in 2006, from $7.0 million in 2005. This increase
is primarily
attributable to an increase in costs related to additional sales
and marketing
personnel of approximately $3.4 million related to our continued
efforts to
enhance our brand recognition and increase sales lead activity
as well as the
Proficient acquisition, and to a lesser extent, to increases in
travel and
related expenses for our sales personnel in the amount of approximately
$484,000. The increase is also attributable to stock-based compensation
associated with the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) in the amount of
$680,000.
Though our sales and marketing costs increased materially in the
year ended
December 31, 2006, a significant portion of this impact was driven
by the
Proficient acquisition. This impact is expected to decrease as
we continue to
integrate Proficient.
37
General
and Administrative.
Our
general and administrative expenses consist primarily of compensation
and
related expenses for executive, accounting, human resources and
administrative
personnel. General and administrative expenses increased by 47%
to $6.5 million
in 2006, from $4.5 million in 2005. This increase is primarily
attributable to
increases in compensation expense in the amount of $556,000 and
to stock-based
compensation associated with the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) in
the amount of
$735,000. The increase is also related to increases in legal, recruiting,
insurance and occupancy and related expenses in the amount of $810,000,
which
was partially offset by a decrease in accounting expenses related
to the audit
of our internal control over financial reporting as required by
the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the amount of approximately $298,000. Though
our general
and administrative costs increased materially in the year ended
December 31,
2006, a significant portion of this impact was driven by the Proficient
acquisition. This impact is expected to decrease as we continue
to integrate
Proficient.
Amortization
of Intangibles.
Amortization expense was $1.4 million and $931,000 in the years
ended
December 31, 2006 and 2005, respectively. Amortization expense in 2006
relates to acquisition costs recorded as a result of our acquisition
of certain
identifiable assets of Island Data, FaceTime and Proficient in
December 2003,
July 2004 and July 2006, respectively. Amortization expense in
2005 relates to
acquisition costs recorded as a result of our acquisition of certain
identifiable assets of Island Data and FaceTime in December 2003
and July 2004,
respectively.
Other
Income.
Interest income was $715,000 and $300,000 in 2006 and 2005, respectively,
and
consists of interest earned on cash and cash equivalents generated
by the
receipt of proceeds from our initial public offering in 2000 and
preferred stock
issuances in 2000 and 1999 and to a lesser extent, cash provided
by operating
activities. This increase is primarily attributable to increases
in short-term
interest rates and larger balances in interest bearing accounts
as a result of
generating positive cash flows from operations.
Benefit
from (Provision for) Income Taxes.
Benefit
from income taxes was $438,000 in 2006 and income tax expense was
$675,000 in
2005. In 2006, we released a portion of our valuation allowance
against deferred
tax assets resulting in a benefit of approximately $538,000 which
was partially
offset by foreign income tax expense of $100,000. At December 31,
2005, we had
recorded a full valuation allowance against deferred tax assets.
Our income tax
expense in 2005 was primarily attributable to the fact that our
federal net
operating loss carryforward available for 2005 was related to the
exercise of
employee stock options. Accordingly, the resulting tax benefit
was recorded as
an increase in Additional paid-in capital and not as a reduction
in income tax
expense.
Net
Income.
We had
net income of $2.2 million in 2006 compared to net income of $2.5
million in
2005. Though net income was lower in year ended December 31, 2006
compared to
2005, revenue was up $11.2 million and operating expenses were
up $13.1 million,
including stock-based compensation expense of $2.2 million related
to the
adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) in the year ended December 31, 2006
compared to
2005. This decrease in income from operations was partially offset
by an
increase in interest income and a decrease in income tax expense.
38
Comparison
of Fiscal Years Ended December 31, 2005 and 2004
Revenue.
Total
revenue increased by 28% to $22.3 million for the year ended December 31,
2005, from $17.4 million for the year ended December 31, 2004. This
increase is primarily attributable to revenue from new clients
of approximately
$3.9 million as well as increased revenue from existing clients
of approximately
$0.5 million and an increase in professional services revenue of
approximately
$0.4 million.
Cost
of Revenue.
Cost of
revenue consists of compensation costs relating to employees who
provide
customer service to our clients, compensation costs relating to
our network
support staff, the cost of supporting our infrastructure, including
expenses
related to server leases and Internet connectivity, as well as
depreciation of
certain hardware and software, and allocated occupancy costs and
related
overhead. Cost of revenue increased by 49% to $4.3 million in 2005,
from $2.9
million in 2004. This increase is attributable to costs related
to additional
account management personnel to support increased client activity
from existing
clients and the addition of new clients in the amount of approximately
$662,000
and to increased spending for primary and backup server facilities
of
approximately $498,000. As a result, our gross margin in 2005 decreased
as
compared to 2004. The proportion of our new clients that are large
corporations
is increasing. These companies typically have more significant
implementation
requirements and more stringent data security standards. As a result,
we have
invested additional resources to support this change in the customer
base and in
anticipation of a continuation of this trend, which has increased
our cost of
revenue and decreased our gross margin.
Product
Development.
Our
product development expenses consist primarily of compensation
and related
expenses for product development personnel as well as allocated
occupancy costs
and related overhead. Product development costs increased by 35%
to $2.7 million
in 2005, from $2.0 million in 2004. This increase is primarily
attributable to
an increase in the number of LivePerson product development personnel,
at a cost
of approximately $489,000, to support both the launch of a significant
new
release of the LivePerson services under the Timpani brand name
and to the
continuing development of our product line as we broaden the range
of services
we offer to include a fully integrated, multi-channel software
platform.
Sales
and Marketing.
Our
sales and marketing expenses consist of compensation and related
expenses for
sales and marketing personnel, as well as advertising, public relations
and
trade show exhibit expenses. Sales and marketing expenses increased
by 35% to
$7.0 million in 2005, from $5.2 million in 2004. This increase
is primarily
attributable to an increase in costs related to additional sales
and marketing
personnel of approximately $1.0 million, and to a lesser extent,
an increase in
advertising and trade show expenses of approximately $321,000 related
to our
efforts to enhance our brand recognition and increase sales lead
activity. A
significant portion of this increase is driven by our recent move
to increase
our internal marketing resources and external market presence,
through an
increased focus on public relations and press activity, trade show
participation
and promotional and advertising efforts designed to increase the
inbound sales
lead flow to our direct sales force.
General
and Administrative.
Our
general and administrative expenses consist primarily of compensation
and
related expenses for executive, accounting, human resources and
administrative
personnel. General and administrative expenses, at $4.5 million,
remained flat
in 2005 compared to 2004. In 2005, personnel and related costs
increased
approximately $281,000 and accounting fees increased approximately
$227,000 due
primarily to an increase in accounting expenses related to the
audit of our
internal control over financial reporting as required by the Sarbanes-Oxley
Act.
Legal fees decreased in 2005 by approximately $480,000 due primarily
to the
settlement of a previously disclosed legal matter in 2004.
39
Amortization
of Intangibles.
Amortization expense was $931,000 and $792,000 in the years ended
December 31, 2005 and 2004, respectively, and relates to acquisition costs
recorded as a result of our acquisition of certain identifiable
assets of Island
Data and FaceTime in December 2003 and July 2004, respectively.
Other
Income.
Interest income was $300,000 and $77,000 in 2005 and 2004, respectively,
and
consists of interest earned on cash and cash equivalents generated
by the
receipt of proceeds from our initial public offering in 2000 and
preferred stock
issuances in 2000 and 1999 and to a lesser extent, cash provided
by operating
activities. This increase is primarily attributable to increases
in short-term
interest rates.
Provision
for Income Taxes.
Income
tax expense was $675,000 and $58,000 in 2005 and 2004, respectively.
This
increase is primarily attributable to the fact that our federal
net operating
loss carryforward available for 2005 is related to the exercise
of employee
stock options. Accordingly, the resulting tax benefit was recorded
as an
increase in Additional paid-in capital and not as a reduction in
income tax
expense.
Net
Income.
We had
net income of $2.5 million in 2005 compared to net income of $2.1
million in
2004.
Liquidity
And Capital Resources
As
of
December 31, 2006, we had $21.7 million in cash and cash equivalents, an
increase of $4.6 million from December 31, 2005. This increase is primarily
attributable to net cash provided by operating activities and,
to a lesser
extent, to proceeds from the issuance of common stock in connection
with the
exercise of stock options by employees, offset in part by net cash
used in
investing activities. We regularly invest excess funds in short-term
money
market funds.
Net
cash
provided by operating activities was $4.6 million in the year ended
December 31, 2006 and consisted of net income and non-cash expenses related
to the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) and to the amortization of intangibles
and an
increase in deferred revenue, partially offset by increases in
accounts
receivable and prepaid expenses. Net cash provided by operating
activities was
$4.6 million in the year ended December 31, 2005 and consisted of net
income and non-cash expenses related to the amortization of intangibles,
depreciation and income taxes partially offset by increases in
accounts
receivable and prepaid expenses.
Net
cash
used in investing activities was $1.0 million in the year ended
December 31, 2006 and was due to the purchase of fixed assets and our
acquisitions of the Base Europe customer list and Proficient. Net
cash used in
investing activities was $362,000 in the year ended December 31, 2005 and
was due to the purchase of fixed assets.
Net
cash
provided by financing activities was $989,000 in the year ended
December 31, 2006 and was attributable to proceeds from the issuance of
common stock in connection with the exercise of stock options by
employees. Net
cash provided by financing activities was $451,000 in the year
ended
December 31, 2005 and was attributable to proceeds from the issuance of
common stock in connection with the exercise of stock options by
employees.
We
have
incurred significant costs to develop our technology and services,
to hire
employees in our customer service, sales, marketing and administration
departments, and for the amortization of intangible assets, as
well as non-cash
compensation costs. Historically, we incurred significant quarterly
net losses
from inception through June 30, 2003, significant negative cash
flows from
operations in our quarterly periods from inception through December
31, 2002 and
negative cash flows from operations of $124,000 in the three month
period ended
March 31, 2004. As of December 31, 2006, we had an accumulated
deficit of
approximately $99.2 million. These losses have been funded primarily
through the
issuance of common stock in our initial public offering and, prior
to the
initial public offering, the issuance of convertible preferred
stock.
40
We
anticipate that our current cash and cash equivalents will be sufficient
to
satisfy our working capital and capital requirements for at least
the next 12
months. However, we cannot assure you that we will not require
additional funds
prior to such time, and we would then seek to sell additional equity
or debt
securities through public financings, or seek alternative sources
of financing.
We cannot assure you that additional funding will be available
on favorable
terms, when needed, if at all. If we are unable to obtain any necessary
additional financing, we may be required to further reduce the
scope of our
planned sales and marketing and product development efforts, which
could
materially adversely affect our business, financial condition and
operating
results. In addition, we may require additional funds in order
to fund more
rapid expansion, to develop new or enhanced services or products
or to invest in
complementary businesses, technologies, services or products.
Contractual
Obligations and Commitments
We
do not
have any special purposes entities, and other than operating leases,
which are
described below, we do not engage in off-balance sheet financing
arrangements.
We
lease
facilities and certain equipment under agreements accounted for
as operating
leases. These leases generally require us to pay all executory
costs such as
maintenance and insurance. Rental expense for operating leases
for the years
ended December 31, 2006 and 2005 was approximately $1.1 million and
$658,000, respectively.
As
of
December 31, 2006, our principal commitments were approximately $4.8
million under various operating leases, of which approximately
$1.4 million is
due in 2007. We do not currently expect that our principal commitments
for the
year ending December 31, 2007 will exceed $2.0 million in the aggregate.
Our capital expenditures are not currently expected to exceed $1.0
million in
2007. Our contractual obligations at December 31, 2006 are summarized as
follows:
Payments
due by period
|
||||||||||||||||
(in
thousands)
|
||||||||||||||||
Contractual
Obligations
|
Total
|
Less
than 1
year
|
1-3
years
|
3-5
years
|
More
than
5
years
|
|||||||||||
Operating
leases
|
$
|
4,818
|
$
|
1,441
|
$
|
3,044
|
$
|
333
|
$
|
—
|
||||||
Total
|
$
|
4,818
|
$
|
1,441
|
$
|
3,044
|
$
|
333
|
$
|
—
|
ITEM 7A. |
QUANTITATIVE
AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES ABOUT MARKET
RISK
|
Currency
Rate Fluctuations
Through
December 31, 2006, our results of operations, financial condition and cash
flows have not been materially affected by changes in the relative
values of
non-U.S. currencies to the U.S. dollar. The functional currency
of our
wholly-owned Israeli subsidiary, HumanClick Ltd., is the U.S. dollar
and the
functional currency of our operations in the United Kingdom is
the U.K. pound
(sterling). We do not use derivative financial instruments to limit
our foreign
currency risk exposure.
41
Collection
Risk
Our
accounts receivable are subject, in the normal course of business,
to collection
risks. We regularly assess these risks and have established policies
and
business practices to protect against the adverse effects of collection
risks.
During 2006, we increased our allowance for doubtful accounts by
$38,000 to
approximately $105,000, principally due to an increase in accounts
receivable as
a result of increased sales. We did note write off any accounts
during 2006.
During 2005, we increased our allowance for doubtful accounts by
$30,000 to
approximately $84,000, principally due to an increase in accounts
receivable as
a result of increased sales, and we wrote off approximately $17,000
of
previously reserved accounts, leaving a net allowance of $67,000
at
December 31, 2005.
Interest
Rate Risk
Our
investments consist of cash and cash equivalents. Therefore, changes
in the
market’s interest rates do not affect in any material respect the value
of the
investments as recorded by us.
42
ITEM 8. |
CONSOLIDATED
FINANCIAL STATEMENTS AND SUPPLEMENTARY
DATA
|
INDEX
Report
of BDO Seidman, LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting
Firm
|
42
|
Report
of KPMG LLP, Independent Registered Public Accounting
Firm
|
43
|
Consolidated
Balance Sheets as of December 31, 2006 and 2005
|
44
|
Consolidated
Statements of Income for the years ended December 31,
2006, 2005 and
2004
|
45
|
Consolidated
Statements of Stockholders’ Equity for the years ended December 31, 2006,
2005 and 2004
|
46
|
Consolidated
Statements of Cash Flows for the years ended December
31, 2006, 2005 and
2004
|
47
|
Notes
to Consolidated Financial Statements
|
48
|
43
Report
of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
To
the
Board of Directors and Stockholders
LivePerson,
Inc.
New
York,
NY
We
have
audited the accompanying consolidated balance sheets of LivePerson,
Inc. and
subsidiaries (“LivePerson, Inc.”) as of December 31, 2006 and 2005 and the
related consolidated statements of income, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows
for the years then ended. These financial statements are the
responsibility of
the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an opinion on
these
financial statements based on our audits.
We
conducted our audits in accordance with the standards of the
Public Company
Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require
that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether
the financial
statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes
examining, on a
test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in
the financial
statements, assessing the accounting principles used and significant
estimates
made by management, as well as evaluating the overall financial
statement
presentation. We believe that our audits provide a reasonable
basis for our
opinion.
In
our
opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above
present fairly,
in all material respects, the financial position of LivePerson,
Inc. at December
31, 2006 and 2005, and the results of their operations and their
cash flows for
the years then ended, in conformity with accounting principles
generally
accepted in the United States of America.
As
discussed in Note 1(l) to the consolidated financial statements,
effective
January 1, 2006, LivePerson, Inc. adopted the provisions of
SFAS No. 123(R),
“Share-Based Payment”, as revised.
We
also
have audited, in accordance with the standards of the Public
Company Accounting
Oversight Board (United States), the effectiveness of LivePerson,
Inc.’s
internal control over financial reporting as of December 31,
2006, based on
criteria established in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the
Committee of Sponsoring Organizations of the Treadway Commission
(“COSO”) and
our report dated March 16, 2007 expressed an unqualified opinion
thereon.
/s/
BDO
Seidman, LLP
New
York,
New York
March
16,
2007
44
Report
of Independent Registered Public Accounting Firm
The
Board
of Directors and Stockholders
LivePerson,
Inc.:
We
have
audited the accompanying consolidated statements of operations,
stockholders’
equity, and cash flows of LivePerson, Inc. and subsidiaries for
the year ended
December 31, 2004. These consolidated financial statements are the
responsibility of the Company’s management. Our responsibility is to express an
opinion on these consolidated financial statements based on our
audit.
We
conducted our audit in accordance with the standards of the Public
Company
Accounting Oversight Board (United States). Those standards require
that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable assurance about whether
the financial
statements are free of material misstatement. An audit includes
examining, on a
test basis, evidence supporting the amounts and disclosures in
the financial
statements. An audit also includes assessing the accounting principles
used and
significant estimates made by management, as well as evaluating
the overall
financial statement presentation. We believe that our audit provides
a
reasonable basis for our opinion.
In
our
opinion, the consolidated financial statements referred to above
present fairly,
in all material respects, LivePerson, Inc. and subsidiaries’ results of their
operations and their cash flows for the year ended December 31, 2004, in
conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles.
/s/
KPMG LLP
|
New
York,
New York
March
16,
2005
45
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
CONSOLIDATED
BALANCE SHEETS
(In
thousands, except share and per share data)
December
31,
|
|||||||
2006
|
2005
|
||||||
ASSETS
|
|||||||
Current
assets:
|
|||||||
Cash
and cash equivalents
|
$
|
21,729
|
$
|
17,117
|
|||
Accounts
receivable, less allowance for doubtful accounts
of $105 and $67, in 2006
and 2005, respectively
|
4,269
|
1,727
|
|||||
Prepaid
expenses and other current assets
|
1,317
|
591
|
|||||
Total
current assets
|
27,315
|
19,435
|
|||||
Property
and equipment, net
|
1,124
|
575
|
|||||
Intangibles,
net
|
2,640
|
790
|
|||||
Goodwill
|
9,673
|
—
|
|||||
Deferred
tax assets, net
|
1,580
|
—
|
|||||
Security
deposits
|
299
|
180
|
|||||
Other
assets
|
684
|
446
|
|||||
Total
assets
|
$
|
43,315
|
$
|
21,426
|
|||
LIABILITIES
AND STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
|
|||||||
Current
liabilities:
|
|||||||
Accounts
payable
|
$
|
813
|
$
|
346
|
|||
Accrued
expenses
|
3,754
|
1,803
|
|||||
Deferred
revenue
|
3,256
|
1,618
|
|||||
Deferred
tax liabilities, net
|
259
|
—
|
|||||
Total
current liabilities
|
8,082
|
3,767
|
|||||
Other
liabilities
|
684
|
446
|
|||||
Commitments
and contingencies
|
|||||||
Stockholders’
equity:
|
|||||||
Preferred
stock, $.001 par value per share; 5,000,000 shares
authorized, 0 issued
and outstanding at December 31, 2006 and 2005
|
—
|
—
|
|||||
Common
stock, $.001 par value per share; 100,000,000 shares
authorized,
41,078,156 shares issued and outstanding at December
31, 2006; 37,979,271
shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2005
|
41
|
38
|
|||||
Additional
paid-in capital
|
133,693
|
118,556
|
|||||
Accumulated
deficit
|
(99,179
|
)
|
(101,381
|
)
|
|||
Accumulated
other comprehensive loss
|
(6
|
)
|
—
|
||||
Total
stockholders’ equity
|
34,549
|
17,213
|
|||||
Total
liabilities and stockholders’ equity
|
$
|
43,315
|
$
|
21,426
|
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
46
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(In
thousands, except share and per share data)
Year
Ended December 31,
|
||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
Revenue
|
$
|
33,521
|
$
|
22,277
|
$
|
17,392
|
||||
Operating
expenses:
|
||||||||||
Cost
of revenue
|
7,621
|
4,297
|
2,888
|
|||||||
Product
development
|
5,062
|
2,699
|
2,000
|
|||||||
Sales
and marketing
|
11,864
|
6,975
|
5,183
|
|||||||
General
and administrative
|
6,542
|
4,458
|
4,456
|
|||||||
Amortization
of intangibles
|
1,383
|
931
|
792
|
|||||||
Total
operating expenses
|
32,472
|
19,360
|
15,319
|
|||||||
Income
from operations
|
1,049
|
2,917
|
2,073
|
|||||||
Interest
income
|
715
|
300
|
77
|
|||||||
Income
before provision for income taxes
|
1,764
|
3,217
|
2,150
|
|||||||
Benefit
from (provision for) income taxes
|
438
|
(675
|
)
|
(58
|
)
|
|||||
Net
income
|
2,202
|
2,542
|
2,092
|
|||||||
Basic
net income per common share
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.07
|
$
|
0.06
|
||||
Diluted
net income per common share
|
$
|
0.05
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.05
|
||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding used in basic
net income per common share
calculation
|
39,680,182
|
37,557,722
|
37,263,378
|
|||||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding used in diluted
net income per common share
calculation
|
43,345,232
|
39,885,328
|
39,680,304
|
Net
income for the year ended December 31, 2006 includes
stock-based compensation
expense related to the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R)
in the amount of $2,180.
There was no stock-based compensation in the years
ended December 31, 2005 and
2004 because the Company was not required to adopt
SFAS No. 123(R) until January
1, 2006. Pro forma net income including stock-based
compensation expense as
disclosed in the notes to the Consolidated Financial
Statements for the years
ended December 31, 2005 and 2004 was $487 and $784,
respectively, and $0.01 and
$0.02 per diluted common share, respectively. See
note 1(l).
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
47
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS’ EQUITY
(In
thousands, except share data)
Common
Stock
|
Additional
Paid-in
Capital
|
Deferred
Compensation
|
Accumulated
Deficit
|
Accumulated
Other
Comprehensive
loss
|
Total
|
|||||||||||||||||
Shares
|
Amount
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2003
|
36,816,415
|
$
|
36
|
$
|
115,315
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
(106,015
|
)
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
9,336
|
||||||||
Issuance
of common stock upon exercise of stock
options and
warrants
|
193,423
|
—
|
122
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
122
|
|||||||||||||||
Issuance
of common stock related to asset acquisition
|
370,894
|
1
|
1,749
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
1,750
|
|||||||||||||||
Deferred
stock based compensation
|
—
|
—
|
246
|
(246
|
)
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
||||||||||||||
Amortization
of deferred compensation
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
246
|
—
|
—
|
246
|
|||||||||||||||
Tax
benefit from exercise of employee stock
options
|
—
|
—
|
8
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
8
|
|||||||||||||||
Net
income
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
2,092
|
—
|
2,092
|
|||||||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2004
|
37,380,732
|
37
|
117,440
|
—
|
(103,923
|
)
|
—
|
13,554
|
||||||||||||||
Issuance
of common stock upon exercise of stock
options and
warrants
|
598,539
|
1
|
450
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
451
|
|||||||||||||||
Tax
benefit from exercise of employee stock
options
|
—
|
—
|
666
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
666
|
|||||||||||||||
Net
income
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
2,542
|
—
|
2,542
|
|||||||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2005
|
37,979,271
|
38
|
118,556
|
—
|
(101,381
|
)
|
—
|
17,213
|
||||||||||||||
Issuance
of common stock in connection with Proficient
acquisition
|
1,960,711
|
2
|
9,927
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
9,929
|
|||||||||||||||
Issuance
of common stock upon exercise of stock
options and
warrants
|
1,138,174
|
1
|
988
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
989
|
|||||||||||||||
Stock-based
compensation
|
—
|
—
|
2,180
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
2,180
|
|||||||||||||||
Tax
benefit from exercise of employee stock
options
|
—
|
—
|
2,042
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
2,042
|
|||||||||||||||
Net
income
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
2,202
|
—
|
2,202
|
|||||||||||||||
Other
comprehensive loss
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
(6
|
)
|
(6
|
)
|
|||||||||||||
Comprehensive
income
|
2,196
|
|||||||||||||||||||||
Balance
at December 31, 2006
|
41,078,156
|
$
|
41
|
$
|
133,693
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
(99,179
|
)
|
$
|
(6
|
)
|
$
|
34,549
|
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial
statements.
48
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In
thousands, except share data)
Year
Ended December 31,
|
||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
Cash
flows from operating activities:
|
||||||||||
Net
income
|
$
|
2,202
|
$
|
2,542
|
$
|
2,092
|
||||
Adjustments
to reconcile net income to net cash provided
by operating
activities:
|
||||||||||
Non-cash
compensation expense, net
|
2,180
|
—
|
246
|
|||||||
Depreciation
|
555
|
171
|
217
|
|||||||
Loss
on disposal of fixed assets
|
111
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||
Amortization
of intangibles
|
1,383
|
931
|
792
|
|||||||
Provision
for doubtful accounts, net
|
38
|
30
|
30
|
|||||||
Deferred
income taxes
|
(2,581
|
)
|
666
|
8
|
||||||
Changes
in operating assets and liabilities,
net of
acquisition:
|
||||||||||
Accounts
receivable
|
(2,329
|
)
|
(116
|
)
|
(432
|
)
|
||||
Prepaid
expenses and other current assets
|
(629
|
)
|
(116
|
)
|
(157
|
)
|
||||
Security
deposits
|
(54
|
)
|
(14
|
)
|
(37
|
)
|
||||
Other
assets and liabilities
|
—
|
—
|
19
|
|||||||
Accounts
payable
|
293
|
84
|
146
|
|||||||
Accrued
expenses
|
665
|
137
|
(911
|
)
|
||||||
Deferred
revenue
|
771
|
288
|
54
|
|||||||
Net
cash provided by operating activities
|
2,605
|
4,603
|
2,067
|
|||||||
Cash
flows from investing activities:
|
||||||||||
Purchases
of property and equipment, including
capitalized software
|
(652
|
)
|
(362
|
)
|
(260
|
)
|
||||
Acquisition
of Base Europe customer list
|
(233
|
)
|
—
|
(8
|
)
|
|||||
Acquisition
of Proficient, net of cash acquired
|
(133
|
)
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
Acquisition
of FaceTime customer contracts
|
—
|
—
|
(394
|
)
|
||||||
Net
cash used in investing activities
|
(1,018
|
)
|
(362
|
)
|
(662
|
)
|
||||
Cash
flows from financing activities:
|
||||||||||
Excess
tax benefit from the exercise of employee
stock options
|
2,042
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||
Proceeds
from issuance of common stock in connection
with the exercise of options
and warrants
|
989
|
451
|
122
|
|||||||
Net
cash provided by financing activities
|
3,031
|
451
|
122
|
|||||||
Effect
of foreign exchange rate changes on cash
and cash
equivalents
|
(6
|
)
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
Net
increase in cash and cash equivalents
|
4,612
|
4,692
|
1,527
|
|||||||
Cash
and cash equivalents at the beginning
of the year
|
17,117
|
12,425
|
10,898
|
|||||||
Cash
and cash equivalents at the end of the
year
|
$
|
21,729
|
$
|
17,117
|
$
|
12,425
|
||||
Supplemental
disclosures:
|
||||||||||
Cash
paid during the year for income taxes:
|
—
|
18
|
88
|
|||||||
Supplemental
disclosure of non-cash investing and financing
activities:
During
the year ended December 31, 2006, 1,960,711 shares of common stock, valued
at $9,929, were issued in connection with the acquisition
of Proficient Systems,
Inc. on July 18, 2006.
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial statements.
49
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
CONSOLIDATED
STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In
thousands, except share data)
During
the year ended December 31, 2005, 3,632 shares of common stock were
issued
in connection with the cashless exercise of
warrants.
During
the year ended December 31, 2004, 22,198 shares of common stock were
issued
in connection with the cashless exercise of
warrants.
During
the year ended December 31, 2004, the Company issued 370,894 shares
of
common stock in connection with the acquisition
of certain identifiable assets
of Island Data Corporation.
See
accompanying notes to consolidated financial
statements.
50
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(In
thousands, except share and per share data)
(1)
|
Summary
of Operations and Significant
Accounting
Policies
|
(a)
|
Summary
of Operations
|
LivePerson,
Inc. (the “Company” or “LivePerson”) was incorporated in the State of Delaware
in 1995. The Company commenced operations
in 1996. LivePerson helps to maximize
the business impact of the online channel
as a provider of hosted software that
enables customers to proactively assist
their online visitors. The Company’s
proprietary tools and methodology have
been proven to increase sales, customer
satisfaction and loyalty while reducing
customer service costs.
The
Company’s fully-integrated multi-channel communications
platform, Timpani,
facilitates real-time sales, marketing
and customer service. The Company’s
technology supports and manages key online
interactions — via chat, voice, email
and self-service/knowledgebase — in a cost-effective and secure
environment.
The
Company’s primary revenue source is from the
sale of the LivePerson services
under the brand names Timpani and LivePerson,
which is conducted within one
operating segment. Headquartered in New
York City, the Company’s product
development staff, help desk and online
sales support are located in Israel.
The
Company also maintains satellite sales
offices in Atlanta and the United
Kingdom.
(b)
|
Principles
of Consolidation
|
The
consolidated financial statements reflect
the operations of LivePerson and its
wholly-owned subsidiaries. All significant
intercompany balances and
transactions have been eliminated in
consolidation.
(c)
|
Use
of Estimates
|
The
preparation of the consolidated financial
statements in accordance with
generally accepted accounting principles
requires the Company’s management to
make a number of estimates and assumptions
relating to the reported amounts of
assets and liabilities, the disclosure
of contingent assets and liabilities
at
the date of the consolidated financial
statements, and the reported amounts
of
revenue and expenses during the period.
Significant items subject to such
estimates and assumptions include the
carrying amount of goodwill, intangibles,
stock-based compensation, valuation allowances
for deferred income tax assets,
accounts receivable, the expected term
of a client relationship, accruals and
other factors. Actual results could differ
from those estimates.
(d)
|
Cash
and Cash Equivalents
|
The
Company considers all highly liquid securities
with original maturities of three
months or less when acquired to be cash
equivalents.
(e)
|
Property
and Equipment
|
Property
and equipment are stated at cost, net
of accumulated depreciation and
amortization. Depreciation is calculated
using the straight-line method over the
estimated useful lives of the related
assets, generally three to five years
for
equipment and software. Leasehold improvements
are amortized using the
straight-line method over the shorter
of the lease term or the estimated useful
life of the asset. Total depreciation
for the years ended December 31,
2006, 2005 and 2004 was $555, $171, and
$217, respectively, and was recorded
in
Cost of revenue and General and administrative
expense for each
year.
51
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
(f)
|
Impairment
of Long-Lived Assets
|
In
accordance with Statement of Financial
Accounting Standards (“SFAS”)
No. 144, “Accounting for the Impairment or Disposal
of Long-lived Assets,”
long-lived assets, such as property,
plant and equipment and purchased
intangibles subject to amortization are
reviewed for impairment whenever events
or changes in circumstances indicate
that the carrying value of an asset may
not
be recoverable. Recoverability of assets
to be held and used is measured by a
comparison of the carrying value of an
asset to estimated undiscounted future
cash flows expected to be generated by
the asset. If the carrying value of an
asset exceeds its estimated future cash
flows, an impairment charge is
recognized in the amount by which the
carrying value of the asset exceeds the
fair value of the asset. Assets to be
disposed of would be separately presented
in the balance sheet and reported at
the lower of the carrying value or the
fair
value less costs to sell, and are no
longer depreciated. The assets and
liabilities of a disposed group classified
as held for sale would be presented
separately in the appropriate asset and
liability sections of the balance
sheet.
(g)
|
Accounts
Receivable
|
Accounts
receivable are recorded at the invoiced
amount and do not bear interest. The
allowance for doubtful accounts is the
Company’s best estimate of the amount of
probable credit losses in the Company’s existing accounts receivable. The
Company determines the allowance based
on historical write-off experience. The
Company reviews its allowance for doubtful
accounts monthly. Past due balances
over 90 days and over a specified amount
are reviewed individually for
collectibility. All other balances are
reviewed on a pooled basis. Account
balances are charged off against the
allowance after all means of collection
have been exhausted and the potential
for recovery is considered remote. The
Company does not have any off-balance
sheet credit exposure related to its
customers.
(h)
|
Revenue
Recognition
|
The
Company charges a monthly fee, which
varies by service and client usage. The
majority of the Company’s larger clients also pay a professional
services fee
related to implementation. The Company
may also charge professional service
fees
related to additional training, business
consulting and analysis in support of
the LivePerson services.
The
Company also sells certain of the LivePerson
services directly via Internet
download. These services are marketed
as LivePerson Pro and LivePerson Contact
Center for small and mid-sized businesses
(“SMBs”), and are paid for almost
exclusively by credit card. Credit card
payments accelerate cash flow and reduce
the Company’s collection risk, subject to the merchant
bank’s right to hold back
cash pending settlement of the transactions.
Sales of LivePerson Pro and
LivePerson Contact Center may occur with
or without the assistance of an online
sales representative, rather than through
face-to-face or telephone contact that
is typically required for traditional
direct sales.
The
Company records revenue based upon the
monthly fee charged for the LivePerson
services, provided that no significant
Company obligations remain and collection
of the resulting receivable is probable.
The Company recognizes monthly service
fees as services are provided. The Company’s service agreements typically have
twelve month terms and are terminable
upon 30 to 90 days’ notice without
penalty. The Company recognizes professional
service fees upon completion and
customer acceptance of key milestones
within each the professional services
engagement. Professional
services to date have not been significant.
52
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
In
the
past, certain of the Company’s larger clients, who required more sophisticated
implementation and training, may have
paid an initial non-refundable set-up
fee.
This fee was intended to recover certain
costs (principally customer service,
training and other administrative costs)
prior to deployment of the LivePerson
services. As of December 31, 2006, we
had approximately $3 of unamortized
deferred set-up fees which are expected
to be recognized ratably through March
2007.
(i)
|
Income
Taxes
|
Income
taxes are accounted for under the asset
and liability method. Under this method,
deferred tax assets and liabilities are
recognized for the future tax
consequences attributable to differences
between the financial statement
carrying amounts of existing assets and
liabilities and their respective tax
bases and operating loss and tax credit
carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and
liabilities are measured using enacted
tax rates expected to apply to taxable
income in the years in which those temporary
differences are expected to be
recovered or settled. The effect on deferred
tax assets and liabilities of a
change in tax rates is recognized in
results of operations in the period that
the tax change occurs. Valuation allowances
are established, when necessary, to
reduce deferred tax assets to the amount
expected to be realized.
(j)
|
Advertising
Costs
|
The
Company expenses the cost of advertising
and promoting its services as incurred.
Such costs totaled approximately $1,093,
$1,223, and $902 for the years ended
December 31, 2006, 2005 and 2004, respectively.
(k)
|
Financial
Instruments and Concentration
of Credit
Risk
|
The
Company’s business is characterized by rapid
technological change, new product
development and evolving industry standards.
Inherent in the Company’s business
are various risks and uncertainties,
including its limited operating history,
unproven business model and the limited
history of commerce on the Internet.
The
Company’s success may depend, in part, upon the
emergence of the Internet as a
commerce medium, prospective product
development efforts and the acceptance
of
the Company’s solutions by the marketplace.
Financial
instruments that potentially subject
the Company to significant concentrations
of credit risk consist primarily of cash
and cash equivalents and accounts
receivable which approximate fair value
at December 31, 2006 because of the
short-term nature of these instruments.
The Company invests its cash and cash
equivalents with financial institutions
that it believes are of high quality,
and performs periodic evaluations of
these instruments and the relative credit
standings of the institutions with which
it invests. At certain times, the
Company’s cash balances with any one financial
institution may exceed Federal
Deposit Insurance Corporation insurance
limits. The Company believes it
mitigates its risk by depositing its
cash balances with high credit, quality
financial institutions.
The
Company’s customers are primarily concentrated
in the United States. The Company
performs ongoing credit evaluations of
its customers’ financial condition
(except for customers who purchase the
LivePerson services by credit card via
Internet download) and has established
an allowance for doubtful accounts based
upon factors surrounding the credit risk
of customers, historical trends and
other information. Concentration of credit
risk is limited due to the Company’s
large number of customers. No single
customer accounted for or exceeded 10%
of
revenue in 2006, 2005 or 2004. No single
customer accounted for or exceeded 10%
of accounts receivable at December 31, 2006 or 2005.
53
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
(l)
|
Stock-based
Compensation
|
On
January 1, 2006, the Company adopted
SFAS No. 123 (revised 2004),
“Share-Based Payment,” which addresses the accounting for transactions
in which
an entity exchanges its equity instruments
for goods or services, with a primary
focus on transactions in which an entity
obtains employee services in
share-based payment transactions. SFAS
No. 123(R) is a revision to SFAS
No. 123, “Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation,” and supersedes
Accounting Principles Board (“APB”) Opinion No. 25, “Accounting for Stock
Issued to Employees,” and its related implementation guidance.
SFAS
No. 123(R) requires measurement of the cost
of employee services received
in exchange for an award of equity instruments
based on the grant-date fair
value of the award (with limited exceptions).
Incremental compensation costs
arising from subsequent modifications
of awards after the grant date must be
recognized.
The
Company adopted SFAS No. 123(R) using
the modified prospective transition
method, which requires the application
of the accounting standard as of January
1, 2006, the first day of the Company’s fiscal year. The Company’s Consolidated
Financial Statements as of and for the
year ended December 31, 2006 reflect
the
impact of SFAS No. 123(R). In accordance
with the modified prospective
transition method, the Company’s Consolidated Financial Statements for
prior
periods have not been restated to reflect,
and do not include, the impact of
SFAS No. 123(R).
SFAS
No.
123(R) requires companies to estimate
the fair value of share-based payment
awards on the date of grant using an
option-pricing model. The value of the
portion of the award that is ultimately
expected to vest is recognized as
expense over the requisite service periods
in the Company’s Consolidated
Statements of Income. Stock-based compensation
recognized in the Company’s
Consolidated Statement of Income for
the year ended December 31, 2006 includes
compensation expense for share-based
awards granted prior to, but not fully
vested as of January 1, 2006 based on
the grant date fair value estimated in
accordance with SFAS No. 123 as well
as compensation expense for share-based
awards granted subsequent to January
1, 2006 in accordance with SFAS No. 123(R).
The Company currently uses the Black-Scholes
option pricing model to determine
grant date fair value.
The
following table summarizes stock-based
compensation expense related to employee
stock options under SFAS No. 123(R) included
in Company’s Statement of Income
for the year ended December 31, 2006:
December
31, 2006
|
||||
Cost
of revenue
|
$
|
228
|
||
Product
development expense
|
537
|
|||
Sales
and marketing expense
|
680
|
|||
General
and administrative expense
|
735
|
|||
Total
stock based compensation included
in operating expenses
|
$
|
2,180
|
54
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
The
per
share weighted average fair value of
stock options granted during the year
ended
December 31, 2006 was $3.21. The fair
value of each option grant is estimated
on
the date of grant using the Black-Scholes
option-pricing model with the
following weighted average assumptions:
December
31, 2006
|
||||
Dividend
yield
|
0.0
|
%
|
||
Risk-free
interest rate
|
4.8
|
%
|
||
Expected
life (in years)
|
4
|
|||
Historical
volatility
|
77.0
|
%
|
Prior
to
the adoption of SFAS No. 123(R) on January
1, 2006, the Company applied the
intrinsic value-based method of accounting
prescribed by APB Opinion No. 25 and
related interpretations including Financial
Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”)
Interpretation No. 44, “Accounting for Certain Transactions Involving
Stock
Compensation: An Interpretation of APB
Opinion No. 25” (issued in March 2000),
to account for its fixed plan stock options.
Under this method, compensation
expense was recorded on the date of grant
only if the current market price of
the underlying stock exceeded the exercise
price. SFAS No. 123 and SFAS No. 148,
“Accounting for Stock-Based Compensation
- Transition and Disclosure” (an
amendment to SFAS No. 123), established
accounting and disclosure requirements
using a fair value-based method of accounting
for stock-based employee
compensation plans. As permitted by the
accounting standards, the Company had
elected to continue to apply the intrinsic
value-based method of accounting
described above, and had adopted the
disclosure requirements of SFAS No. 123,
as
amended by SFAS No. 148. The Company
amortized deferred compensation on a
graded
vesting methodology in accordance with
FASB Interpretation No. 28, “Accounting
for Stock Appreciation Rights and Other
Variable Stock Award
Plans.”
The
Company applied APB Opinion No. 25 and
related interpretations in accounting
for
its stock option grants to employees.
Accordingly, except as mentioned below
for
2005 and 2004, no compensation expense
had been recognized relating to these
stock option grants in the consolidated
financial statements. Had compensation
cost for the Company’s stock option grants been determined
based on the fair
value at the grant date for awards consistent
with the method of SFAS No. 123,
the Company’s net income attributable to common stockholders
for the years ended
December 31, 2005 and 2004 would have
decreased to the pro forma amount
presented below. The Company did not
have any employee stock options outstanding
prior to January 1, 1998.
Year
Ended December 31,
|
|||||||
2005
|
2004
|
||||||
Net
income as reported
|
$
|
2,542
|
$
|
2,092
|
|||
Add:
Stock-based compensation expense
included in net income as
reported
|
—
|
—
|
|||||
Deduct:
Pro forma stock-based compensation
cost
|
(2,055
|
)
|
(1,308
|
)
|
|||
Pro
forma net income
|
$
|
487
|
$
|
784
|
|||
Basic
net income per common share:
|
|||||||
As
reported
|
$
|
0.07
|
$
|
0.06
|
|||
Pro
forma
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.02
|
|||
Diluted
net income per common share:
|
|||||||
As
reported
|
$
|
0.06
|
$
|
0.05
|
|||
Pro
forma
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.02
|
55
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
The
per
share weighted average fair value of
stock options granted during 2005 and
2004,
was $2.25 and $2.04, respectively. The
fair value of each option grant is
estimated on the date of grant using
the Black-Scholes option-pricing model
with
the following weighted average assumptions
used for grants in 2005 and 2004:
dividend yield of zero percent for all
years; risk-free interest rates of 4.3%
and 4.6%, respectively; and expected
life of five years for all years. During
2005 and 2004, the Company used a volatility
factor of 82% and 89%,
respectively.
During
1998, the Company established the Stock
Option and Restricted Stock Purchase
Plan (the “1998 Plan”). Under the 1998 Plan, the Board of
Directors could issue
incentive stock options or nonqualified
stock options to purchase up to
5,850,000 shares of common stock.
The
Company established a successor to the
1998 Plan, the 2000 Stock Incentive Plan
(the “2000 Plan”). Under the 2000 Plan, the options which
had been outstanding
under the 1998 Plan were incorporated
into the 2000 Plan and the Company
increased the number of shares available
for issuance under the plan by
approximately 4,150,000, thereby reserving
for issuance 10,000,000 shares of
common stock in the aggregate. Options
to acquire common stock granted
thereunder have ten-year terms. Pursuant
to the provisions of the 2000 Plan, the
number of shares of common stock available
for issuance thereunder automatically
increases on the first trading day in
each calendar year by an amount equal
to
three percent (3%) of the total number
of shares of the Company’s common stock
outstanding on the last trading day of
the immediately preceding calendar year,
but in no event shall such annual increase
exceed 1,500,000 shares. As of
December 31, 2006, approximately 11,759,000
shares of common stock were reserved
for issuance under the 2000 Plan (taking
into account all option exercises
through December 31, 2006).
A
summary
of the Company’s stock option activity and weighted
average exercise prices is
as follows:
Options
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
||||||
Options
outstanding at December 31,
2005
|
8,300,053
|
$
|
2.16
|
||||
Options
granted
|
1,238,000
|
$
|
5.26
|
||||
Options
exercised
|
(1,138,174
|
)
|
$
|
0.88
|
|||
Options
cancelled
|
(384,375
|
)
|
$
|
2.65
|
|||
Options
outstanding at December 31,
2006
|
8,015,504
|
$
|
2.78
|
||||
Options
exercisable at December 31,
2006
|
4,754,754
|
$
|
2.07
|
The
total
intrinsic value of stock options exercised
during the year ended December 31,
2006 was approximately $5.3 million.
The total intrinsic value of options
exercisable at December 31, 2006 was
approximately $15.0 million. The total
intrinsic value of options expected to
vest is approximately $4.6
million.
56
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
A
summary
of the status of the Company’s nonvested shares as of December 31,
2005, and
changes during the year ended December
31, 2006 is as follows:
Shares
|
Weighted
Average
Grant-Date
Fair
Value
|
||||||
Nonvested
Shares at January 1, 2006
|
3,827,250
|
$
|
1.65
|
||||
Granted
|
1,238,000
|
$
|
5.26
|
||||
Vested
|
(1,532,625
|
)
|
$
|
2.25
|
|||
Cancelled
|
(271,875
|
)
|
$
|
3.24
|
|||
Nonvested
Shares at December 31, 2006
|
3,260,750
|
$
|
3.81
|
As
of
December 31, 2006, there was approximately
$5.5 million of total unrecognized
compensation cost related to nonvested
share-based compensation arrangements.
That cost is expected to be recognized
over a weighted average period of
approximately 3.33 years.
(m)
|
Basic
and Diluted Net Income Per
Share
|
The
Company calculates earnings per share
in accordance with the provisions of
SFAS
No. 128, “Earnings Per Share (“EPS”),” and the guidance of the Securities
and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) Staff Accounting Bulletin (“SAB”) No. 98. Under
SFAS No. 128, basic EPS excludes dilution for
common stock equivalents and
is computed by dividing net income or
loss attributable to common shareholders
by the weighted average number of common
shares outstanding for the period. All
options, warrants or other potentially
dilutive instruments issued for nominal
consideration are required to be included
in the calculation of basic and
diluted net income attributable to common
stockholders. Diluted EPS is
calculated using the treasury stock method
and reflects the potential dilution
that could occur if securities or other
contracts to issue common stock were
exercised or converted into common stock
and resulted in the issuance of common
stock.
Diluted
net income per common share for the year
ended December 31, 2006 includes
the effect of options to purchase 6,052,379
shares of common stock with a
weighted average exercise price of $1.91
and warrants to purchase 188,250 shares
of common stock with a weighted average
exercise price of $1.56. Diluted net
income per common share for the year
ended December 31, 2006 does not include
the effect of options to purchase 1,963,125
shares of common stock. Diluted net
income per common share for the year
ended December 31, 2005 includes the
effect of options to purchase 7,255,292
shares of common stock with a weighted
average exercise price of $1.51 and warrants
to purchase 188,250 shares of
common stock with a weighted average
exercise price of $1.56. Diluted net
income
per common share for the year ended December
31, 2005 does not include the
effect of options to purchase 1,044,761
shares of common stock. Diluted net
income per common share for the year
ended December 31, 2004 includes the
effect of options to purchase 6,491,025
shares of common stock with a weighted
average exercise price of $1.30 and warrants
to purchase 202,802 shares of
common stock with a weighted average
exercise price of $1.65. Diluted net
income
per common share for the year ended December
31, 2004 does not include the
effect of options to purchase 895,250
shares of common stock. A reconciliation
of shares used in calculating basic and
diluted earnings per share
follows:
Year
Ended December 31,
|
||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
Basic
|
39,680,182
|
37,557,722
|
37,263,378
|
|||||||
Effect
of assumed exercised options
|
3,665,050
|
2,327,606
|
2,416,926
|
|||||||
Diluted
|
43,345,232
|
39,885,328
|
39,680,304
|
57
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
(n)
|
Segment
Reporting
|
The
Company accounts for its segment information
in accordance with the provisions
of SFAS No. 131, “Disclosures About Segments of an Enterprise
and Related
Information.” SFAS No. 131 establishes annual and interim reporting
standards for operating segments of a
company. SFAS No. 131 requires
disclosures of selected segment-related
financial information about products,
major customers, and geographic areas.
The Company is organized in a single
operating segment for purposes of making
operating decisions and assessing
performance. The chief operating decision-maker
evaluates performance, makes
operating decisions, and allocates resources
based on financial data consistent
with the presentation in the accompanying
consolidated financial statements. The
Company’s revenue has been earned primarily from
customers in the United States.
The Company’s foreign long-lived assets are insignificant
for all periods
presented.
(o)
|
Comprehensive
Loss
|
SFAS
No. 130, “Reporting Comprehensive Income,” requires the Company to report
in its consolidated financial statements,
in addition to its net income,
comprehensive loss, which includes all
changes in equity during a period from
non-owner sources including, as applicable,
foreign currency items, minimum
pension liability adjustments and unrealized
gains and losses on certain
investments in debt and equity securities.
The Company’s comprehensive loss for
all periods presented is related to the
effect of foreign translation losses.
(p)
|
Computer
Software
|
In
April
1998, the American Institute of Certified
Public Accountants issued Statement of
Position 98-1, “Accounting for the Costs of Computer
Software Developed or
Obtained for Internal Use.” SOP 98-1 provides guidance for determining
whether
computer software is internal-use software
and on accounting for the proceeds of
computer software originally developed
or obtained for internal use and then
subsequently sold to the public. It also
provides guidance on capitalization of
the costs incurred for computer software
developed or obtained for internal use.
The Company capitalized $1,363 as of
December 31, 2006 and $1,047 as of
December 31, 2005. Software costs are included
in “Property and equipment,
net” on the Company’s December 31, 2006 and 2005 balance
sheets,
respectively.
(q)
|
Goodwill
and Intangible Assets
|
The
Company adopted the provisions of SFAS
No. 142, “Goodwill and Other
Intangible Assets,” on January 1, 2002. Pursuant to SFAS No. 142,
goodwill and intangible assets acquired
in a purchase business combination and
determined to have an indefinite useful
life are not amortized, but instead
tested for impairment at least annually.
SFAS No. 142 also requires that
intangible assets with estimatable useful
lives be amortized over their
respective estimated useful lives to
their estimated residual values, and
reviewed for impairment in accordance
with SFAS No. 144, “Accounting for
Impairment or Disposal of Long-Lived
Assets.”
Intangible
assets are stated net of accumulated
amortization of $2,640 and $1,723 as
of
December 31, 2006 and 2005, respectively. Intangible
assets relate to the
acquisition of Proficient Systems, Inc.
in July 2006, the customer list of Base
Europe in June 2006, certain identifiable
assets of FaceTime in July 2004 and
the acquisition of the Island Data customer
contracts in 2003, and are being
amortized over the expected periods of
benefit of 36 months, 24 months, 24
months and 36 months, respectively (see
Note 2).
58
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
(r)
|
Deferred
Rent
|
The
Company records rent expense on a straight-line
basis over the term of the
related lease. The difference between
the rent expense recognized for financial
reporting purposes and the actual payments
made in accordance with the lease
agreement is recognized as deferred rent
liability and included in “Accrued
expenses” on the Company’s December 31, 2006 and 2005 balance
sheets,
respectively.
(s)
|
Product
Development Costs
|
The
Company accounts for product development
costs in accordance with SFAS
No. 86, “Accounting for the Costs of Computer
Software to be Sold, Leased,
or Otherwise Marketed,” under which certain software development
costs incurred
subsequent to the establishment of technological
feasibility are capitalized and
amortized over the estimated lives of
the related products. Technological
feasibility is established upon completion
of a working model. To date,
completion of a working model of the
Company’s products and general release have
substantially coincided. As a result,
the Company has not capitalized any
software development costs and such costs
have not been significant. Through
December 31, 2006, all development costs have
been charged to product
development expense in the accompanying
consolidated statements of
operations.
(t)
|
Foreign
Currency Translation
|
Assets
and liabilities in foreign functional
currencies are translated at the exchange
rate as of the balance sheet date. Translation
adjustments are recorded as a
separate component of stockholders’ equity. Revenue, costs and expenses
denominated in foreign functional currencies
are translated at the weighted
average exchange rate for the period.
The translation adjustment of $6 for
the
year ended December 31, 2006 is related
to our wholly-owned United Kingdom
subsidiary. The Company had no translation
adjustment for the years ended
December 31, 2005 and 2004. The functional currency
of our wholly-owned
Israeli subsidiary is the U.S. dollar.
(u)
|
Recently
Issued Accounting
Pronouncements
|
In
July
2006, FASB Interpretation (FIN) No. 48,
“Accounting for Uncertainty in Income
Taxes - An Interpretation of FASB Statement
No. 109,” was issued. FIN No. 48
clarifies the accounting for uncertainty
in income taxes recognized in an
enterprise's financial statements in
accordance with SFAS No. 109, “Accounting
for Income Taxes.” FIN No. 48 also prescribes a recognition
threshold and
measurement attribute for the financial
statement recognition and measurement
of
a tax position taken or expected to be
taken in a tax return. The new FASB
standard also provides guidance on derecognition,
classification, interest and
penalties, accounting in interim periods,
disclosure, and transition. The
adoption of FIN No. 48 is not expected
to have a material impact on the
Company’s financial position, cash flows and
results of operations.
(v)
|
Fair
Value of Financial
Instruments
|
The
fair
value of a financial instrument is the
amount at which the instrument could
be
exchanged in a current transaction between
willing parties. Cash and cash
equivalents, accounts receivable, security
deposits, and accounts payable,
accrued expenses and deferred revenue
carrying amounts approximate fair value
because of the short maturity of these
instruments.
59
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
(w)
|
Intangible
Assets
|
Amortization
of intangible assets is summarized as
follows (see Note 2):
Acquired
Intangible Assets
As
of December 31, 2006
|
||||||||||
Gross
Carrying
Amount
|
Weighted
Average
Amortization
Period
|
Accumulated
Amortization
|
||||||||
Amortizing
intangible assets:
|
||||||||||
Proficient
Systems
|
$
|
3,000
|
2.7
years
|
$
|
535
|
|||||
Customer
list of Base Europe
|
233
|
2.0
years
|
58
|
|||||||
Certain
identifiable assets of Island
Data
|
2,119
|
3.0
years
|
2,119
|
|||||||
Certain
identifiable assets of FaceTime
|
394
|
2.0
years
|
394
|
|||||||
Total
|
$
|
5,746
|
$
|
3,106
|
As
of December 31, 2005
|
||||||||||
Gross
Carrying
Amount
|
Weighted
Average
Amortization
Period
|
Accumulated
Amortization
|
||||||||
Amortizing
intangible assets:
|
||||||||||
Certain
identifiable assets of Island
Data
|
$
|
2,119
|
3.0
years
|
$
|
1,434
|
|||||
Certain
identifiable assets of FaceTime
|
394
|
2.0
years
|
289
|
|||||||
Total
|
$
|
2,513
|
$
|
1,723
|
Amortization
expense is calculated on a straight-line
basis over the estimated useful life
of
the asset. Aggregate amortization expense
for intangible assets was $1,383 and
$931 for the years ended December 31, 2006 and 2005, respectively.
Estimated amortization expense for the
next five years is: $1,300 in 2007, $901
in 2008, $439 in 2009, $0 in 2010 and
$0 in 2011.
(2)
|
Asset
Acquisitions
|
Island
Data
In
December 2003, the Company acquired certain
identifiable assets of Island Data
Corporation. The purchase price was based
on projected revenue from the acquired
customer contracts at the time of their
assignment to the Company. The Company
paid approximately $370 in cash, and
issued 370,894 shares of its common stock,
in connection with the acquisition. The
total acquisition costs were
approximately $2,119. Of the total purchase
price, the Company has allocated
approximately $65 to non-compete agreements
which were amortized over a period
of 24 months, representing the terms
of the agreements. The remainder of the
purchase has been allocated to customer
contracts and was amortized over a
period of 36 months, representing the
current estimate of the term of the
acquired client relationships. The net
acquisition costs of $0 and $685 are
included in “Assets - Intangibles, net” on The Company’s December 31, 2006
and 2005 balance sheets, respectively.
60
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
FaceTime
In
July
2004, the Company acquired certain identifiable
assets of FaceTime
Communications, Inc. The transaction
transferred certain existing customer
contracts of FaceTime to the Company.
The purchase price was based in part
on
future revenue generated from the former
FaceTime client base. The total
acquisition costs were approximately
$394. The total acquisition cost was
amortized ratably over a period of 24
months, representing the current estimate
of the term of the acquired client relationships.
The net acquisition costs of
$0 and $320 are included in “Assets - Intangibles, net” on the Company’s
December 31, 2006 and 2005 balance sheets, respectively.
Base
Europe
On
June
30, 2006 the Company acquired the customer
list of Base Europe, a former
reseller of its services. The purchase
price was $233. The agreement gives the
Company the exclusive right to exploit
a specific list of deal referrals from
Base Europe. The entire purchase price
will amortized ratably over a period
of
24 months. The net acquisition costs
of $175 and $0 are included in “Assets -
Intangibles, net” on the Company’s December 31, 2006 and 2005 balance
sheets,
respectively.
Proficient
Systems
On
July
18, 2006, the Company acquired Proficient
Systems, Inc. (“Proficient”), a
provider of hosted proactive chat solutions
that help companies generate revenue
on their web sites. This transaction
was accounted for under the purchase
method
of accounting and, accordingly, the operating
results of Proficient were
included in the Company’s consolidated results of operations
from the date of
acquisition.
The
purchase price was $10,445, which included
the issuance of 1,960,711 shares of
the Company’s stock valued at $9,929, based on the
quoted market price of the
Company’s common stock for the three days before
and after the date of the
announcement, a cash payment of $3 and
acquisition costs of approximately $513.
The Company initially calculated the
purchase price using the quoted market
price of it’s common stock on the date of the closing.
After additional review,
the Company determined it should have
used the quoted market price of it’s
common stock for the three days before
and after the date of the announcement.
Accordingly, the Company recorded a $1.8
million increase to goodwill with a
corresponding increase to additional
paid-in capital. The acquisition added
several U.K.-based financial services
clients and provided an innovative product
marketing team. All 1,960,711 shares
are included in the weighted average
shares
outstanding used in basic and diluted
net income per common share as of the
acquisition date. Of the total purchase
price, $413 was allocated to the net
book values of the acquired assets and
assumed liabilities. The historical
carrying amounts of such assets and liabilities
approximated their fair values.
The purchase price in excess of the fair
value of the net book values of the
acquired assets and assumed liabilities
was allocated to goodwill and intangible
assets which are being amortized over
their expected period of benefit. Based
on
the achievement of certain revenue targets
as of March 31, 2007, LivePerson is
contingently required to issue up to
an additional 2,050,000 shares of common
stock. The maximum additional share issuance
will be achieved if incremental
annualized revenue from a predefined
customer list exceeds approximately $2.0
million. The value of shares issued,
if any, will be allocated to goodwill
at
the time of their issuance. The Company
currently expects to issue approximately
1.7 million shares of common stock related
to this contingency.
The
Company has initiated a restructuring
plan to eliminate redundant facilities,
personnel and service providers in connection
with the Proficient acquisition.
These costs were recognized as liabilities
in connection with the acquisition
and have been recorded as an increase
in goodwill as of the acquisition
date.
61
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
Management’s
preliminary allocation of the purchase
price in connection with the Proficient
acquisition is as follows:
Cash
|
$
|
382
|
||
Accounts
receivable
|
250
|
|||
Other
currents assets
|
97
|
|||
Property
and equipment
|
563
|
|||
Other
assets
|
66
|
|||
Intangible
assets
|
3,000
|
|||
Goodwill
|
9,673
|
|||
14,031
|
||||
Liabilities
assumed
|
(548
|
)
|
||
Deferred
revenue
|
(867
|
)
|
||
Restructuring
liability
|
(911
|
)
|
||
Deferred
tax liability
|
(1,260
|
)
|
||
Total
purchase price consideration
|
$
|
10,445
|
The
above
purchase price allocation is subject
to revision. Potential revisions may
arise
from the finalization of direct acquisition
costs, accrued liabilities and
valuation of acquired net operating losses.
Net deferred tax assets arising from
the acquisition are reserved in full
by a valuation allowance. None of the
goodwill recorded as part of the Proficient
acquisition will be deductible for
U.S. federal income tax purposes.
The
balance of the accrued restructuring
liability listed in the above table as
of
December 31, 2006 is as follows:
Balance
as of
January
1, 2006
|
Provision
for
the
year ended
December
31, 2006
|
Net
utilization
during
the year ended
December
31, 2006
|
Balance
as of
December
31, 2006
|
||||||||||
Severance
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
741
|
$
|
(573
|
)
|
$
|
168
|
||||
Contract
terminations
|
—
|
170
|
(21
|
)
|
149
|
||||||||
Total
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
911
|
$
|
(594
|
)
|
$
|
317
|
The
components of the intangible assets listed
in the above table are as
follows:
Weighted
Average
Useful
Life
(months)
|
Amount
|
||||||
Customer
relationships
|
36
|
$
|
2,400,000
|
||||
Technology
|
18
|
500,000
|
|||||
Non-compete
agreements
|
24
|
100,000
|
|||||
$
|
3,000,000
|
The
net
intangible asset of $2,465 and $0 are
included in “Assets - Intangibles, net” on
the Company’s December 31, 2006 and 2005 balance
sheets,
respectively.
The
following unaudited pro forma consolidated
financial information gives effect to
the acquisition of Proficient as if the
acquisition occurred on January 1, 2005,
by consolidating the results of operations
of Proficient with the results of the
Company for the year ended December 31,
2006 and 2005. The unaudited pro forma
consolidated financial information is
not necessarily indicative of the
consolidated results that would have
occurred, nor is it necessarily indicative
of results that may occur in the future.
62
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
Year
Ended December 31,
|
|||||||
2006
|
2005
|
||||||
Revenue
|
$
|
35,506
|
$
|
24,470
|
|||
Net
loss
|
$
|
(921
|
)
|
$
|
(3,007
|
)
|
|
Basic
and diluted net loss per common
share
|
$
|
(0.02
|
)
|
$
|
(0.08
|
)
|
|
Weighted
average shares outstanding
- basic and diluted
|
40,979,501
|
39,513,061
|
(3)
|
Balance
Sheet Components
|
Property
and Equipment
Property
and equipment is summarized as follows:
December
31,
|
|||||||
2006
|
2005
|
||||||
Computer
equipment and software
|
$
|
2,794
|
$
|
1,936
|
|||
Furniture,
equipment and building improvements
|
393
|
182
|
|||||
3,187
|
2,118
|
||||||
Less
accumulated depreciation
|
2,063
|
1,543
|
|||||
Total
|
$
|
1,124
|
$
|
575
|
Accrued
Expenses
Accrued
expenses consist of the following:
December
31,
|
|||||||
2006
|
2005
|
||||||
Payroll
and related costs
|
$
|
2,455
|
$
|
1,182
|
|||
Professional
services and consulting fees
|
432
|
461
|
|||||
Sales
commissions
|
440
|
99
|
|||||
Restructuring
(see note 2)
|
317
|
—
|
|||||
Other
|
110
|
61
|
|||||
Total
|
$
|
3,754
|
$
|
1,803
|
(4)
|
Capitalization
|
In
December 2002, the Company issued a warrant
to purchase up to 150,000 shares of
common stock at $0.69 per share to Genesis
Select Corp. in exchange for investor
relations services. The warrant vested
such that 12,500 shares became
exercisable on each monthly anniversary
of the warrant issuance date for the
first 12 months of the warrant’s five-year term. Some or all of the
exercise
price may be paid by canceling a portion
of the warrant. The Company recorded
non-cash compensation expense of $298
related to this warrant during 2003.
The
Company accounted for this warrant in
accordance with EITF Abstract
No. 96-18, “Accounting for Equity Instruments That
are Issued to Other Than
Employees for Acquiring, or in Conjunction
with Selling, Goods or Services.”
Pursuant to EITF No. 96-18, the Company values the warrant
at each balance
sheet date using a Black-Scholes pricing
model. During the year ended
December 31, 2004, the Company issued an aggregate
of 22,198 shares of
common stock upon the partial exercise
of the warrant, in consideration of the
termination of the right to purchase
an additional 3,302 shares of common
stock
in the aggregate, pursuant to the warrant’s net exercise provisions. As of
December 31, 2006, the warrant was fully vested
and remained outstanding to
purchase up to 124,500 shares of common
stock.
63
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
During
the year ended December 31, 2003, the Company issued an aggregate
of
276,910 shares of common stock upon the
exercise of warrants issued in 1999,
in
consideration of the termination of the
right to purchase an additional 180,910
shares of common stock in the aggregate,
pursuant to the warrants’ net exercise
provisions.
In
January 2004, the Company filed a registration
statement with the SEC to
register the resale of up to 500,000
shares of its common stock by Island
Data.
The registration of the resale of the
shares was required by the Company’s
agreement with Island Data. The shares
registered for resale on the registration
statement, but not actually issued to
Island Data pursuant to the agreement,
were deregistered. The Company did not
receive any proceeds from the sale of
the
shares of common stock covered by the
Island Data registration
statement.
In
January 2004, the Company filed a shelf
registration statement with the SEC
relating to 4,000,000 shares of its common
stock that the Company may issue from
time to time. The Company has no immediate
plans to offer or sell any shares
under this shelf registration. The Company
presently intends to use the net
proceeds from any sale of the registered
shares for general corporate purposes
and working capital. The Company would
announce the terms of any issuance in
a
filing with the SEC at the time the Company
offers or sells the
shares.
In
May
2004, the Company issued a warrant to
purchase up to 75,000 shares of common
stock at $3.25 per share to Genesis Select
Corp. in exchange for investor
relations services. The warrant vested
such that the shares underlying the
warrant could not be sold until after
December 31, 2004. The warrant
expires in May 2009. Some or all of the
exercise price may be paid by canceling
a portion of the warrant. The Company
recorded non-cash compensation expense
of
$246 related to this warrant during 2004.
The Company accounted for this warrant
in accordance with EITF Abstract No. 96-18. During the year ended December
31, 2005, the Company issued an aggregate
of 3,632 shares of common stock upon
the partial exercise of the warrant,
in consideration of the termination of
the
right to purchase an additional 7,618
shares of common stock in the aggregate,
pursuant to the warrant’s net exercise provisions. As of December
31, 2006, the
warrant was fully vested and remained
outstanding to purchase up to 63,750
shares of common stock.
On
July
18, 2006, the Company acquired Proficient.
Under the terms of the agreement, the
Company acquired all of the outstanding
capital stock of Proficient in exchange
for 1,960,711 shares of the Company’s common stock paid at closing, and up
to an
additional 2,050,000 million shares based
on the achievement of certain revenue
targets as of March 31, 2007.
In
August
2006, the Company filed a registration
statement with the Securities and
Exchange Commission that included the
registration of the resale of up to
4,050,000 shares of the Company’s common stock by the former shareholders
of
Proficient Systems, Inc. The Company’s registration of the resale of the shares
by the Proficient Systems shareholders
was required by the Company’s agreement
with Proficient Systems. The shares registered
for resale on the registration
statement, but not actually issued to
Proficient Systems shareholders pursuant
to the agreement, are expected to be
deregistered. The Company will not receive
any proceeds from the sale of the shares
of common stock covered by the August
2006 registration statement.
64
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
(5)
|
Stock
Options and Employee Stock
Purchase
Plan
|
During
1998, the Company established the Stock
Option and Restricted Stock Purchase
Plan (the “1998 Plan”). Under the 1998 Plan, the Board of
Directors could issue
incentive stock options or nonqualified
stock options to purchase up to
5,850,000 shares of common stock.
The
Company established a successor to the
1998 Plan, the 2000 Stock Incentive Plan
(the “2000 Plan”). Under the 2000 Plan, the options which
had been outstanding
under the 1998 Plan were incorporated
into the 2000 Plan and the Company
increased the number of shares available
for issuance under the plan by
approximately 4,150,000, thereby reserving
for issuance 10,000,000 shares of
common stock in the aggregate. Options
to acquire common stock granted
thereunder have ten-year terms. Pursuant
to the provisions of the 2000 Plan, the
number of shares of common stock available
for issuance thereunder automatically
increases on the first trading day in
each calendar year by an amount equal
to
three percent (3%) of the total number
of shares of the Company’s common stock
outstanding on the last trading day of
the immediately preceding calendar year,
but in no event shall such annual increase
exceed 1,500,000 shares. As of
December 31, 2006, approximately 11,759,000 shares
of common stock were
reserved for issuance under the 2000
Plan (taking into account all option
exercises through December 31, 2006). On the first trading day in
January
2007, approximately 1,232,000 additional
shares of common stock were reserved
for issuance under the 2000 Plan pursuant
to its automatic increase
provisions.
In
March
2000, the Company adopted the 2000 Employee
Stock Purchase Plan with 450,000
shares of common stock initially reserved
for issuance. Pursuant to the
provisions of the Employee Stock Purchase
Plan, the number of shares of common
stock available for issuance thereunder
automatically increases on the first
trading day in each calendar year by
an amount equal to one-half of one percent
(0.5%) of the total number of shares
of the Company’s common stock outstanding
on the last trading day of the immediately
preceding calendar year, but in no
event shall such annual increase exceed
150,000 shares. As of December 31,
2006, approximately 1,320,000 shares
of common stock were reserved for issuance
under the Employee Stock Purchase Plan
(taking into account all share purchases
through December 31, 2006). On the first trading day in
January 2007,
150,000 additional shares of common stock
were reserved for issuance under the
Employee Stock Purchase Plan pursuant
to its automatic increase provisions.
Effective October 2001, the Company suspended
the Employee Stock Purchase Plan
until further notice.
65
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
A
summary
of the Company’s stock option activity and weighted
average exercise prices is
as follows:
Options
|
Weighted
Average
Exercise
Price
|
||
Options
outstanding at December 31,
2003
|
5,723,000
|
$1.46
|
|
Options
granted
|
2,090,000
|
$2.80
|
|
Options
exercised
|
(171,225)
|
$0.71
|
|
Options
cancelled
|
(255,500)
|
$2.25
|
|
Options
outstanding at December 31,
2004
|
7,386,275
|
$1.83
|
|
Options
granted
|
2,178,000
|
$3.19
|
|
Options
exercised
|
(603,277)
|
$0.78
|
|
Options
cancelled
|
(660,945)
|
$3.20
|
|
Options
outstanding at December 31,
2005
|
8,300,053
|
$2.16
|
|
Options
granted
|
1,238,000
|
$5.26
|
|
Options
exercised
|
(1,138,174)
|
$0.88
|
|
Options
cancelled
|
(384,375)
|
$2.65
|
|
Options
outstanding at December 31,
2006
|
8,015,504
|
$2.78
|
|
Options
exercisable at December 31,
2004
|
3,710,795
|
$1.79
|
|
Options
exercisable at December 31,
2005
|
4,472,803
|
$1.72
|
|
Options
exercisable at December 31,
2006
|
4,754,754
|
$2.07
|
The
net
non-cash compensation amounts for the
years ended December 31, 2006, 2005
and 2004 consist of:
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
Stock-based
compensation expense related
to SFAS No. 123(R)
|
$
|
2,180
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
—
|
||||
May
2004 warrant granted for investor
relations services
|
—
|
—
|
246
|
|||||||
Total
|
$
|
2,180
|
$
|
—
|
$
|
246
|
(6)
|
Valuation
and Qualifying Accounts
|
Balance
at
Beginning
of
Period
|
Additions
Charged
to
Costs
and
Expenses
|
Deductions/
Write-offs
|
Balance
at
End
of
Period
|
||||||||||
For
the year ended December 31,
2006
Allowance
for doubtful accounts
|
$
|
67
|
$
|
38
|
$
|
--
|
$
|
105
|
|||||
For
the year ended December 31,
2005
Allowance
for doubtful accounts
|
$
|
54
|
$
|
30
|
$
|
(17
|
)
|
$
|
67
|
||||
For
the year ended December 31,
2004
Allowance
for doubtful accounts
|
$
|
64
|
$
|
30
|
$
|
(40
|
)
|
$
|
54
|
(7)
|
Income
Taxes
|
Income
taxes are accounted for under the asset
and liability method. Under this method,
deferred tax assets and liabilities are
recognized for the future tax
consequences attributable to differences
between the financial statement
carrying amounts of existing assets and
liabilities and their respective tax
bases and operating loss and tax credit
carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and
liabilities are measured using enacted
tax rates expected to apply to taxable
income in the years in which those temporary
differences are expected to be
recovered or settled. In assessing the
realizability of deferred tax assets,
management considers whether it is more
likely than not that some portion or
all
of the deferred tax assets will be realized.
The ultimate realization of
deferred tax assets is dependent upon
the generation of future taxable income
during the periods in which those temporary
differences are expected to become
deductible. Management considers the
scheduled reversal of deferred tax
liabilities, projected future taxable
income and tax planning strategies in
making this assessment.
66
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
Under
Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code
of 1986, as amended, the Company’s use
of its federal net operating loss (“NOL”) carryforwards may be limited if the
Company has experienced an ownership
change, as defined in Section 382. The
Company completed its previously disclosed
Section 382 analysis during 2004 and
determined that an ownership change had
occurred as of December 7, 2001. As a
result, there is a material limitation
on the Company’s use of its federal NOL
carryforwards. As of December 31, 2006
and 2005, the Company had approximately
$8,169 and $7,955, respectively, of federal
NOL carryforwards available to
offset future taxable income after considering
the Section 382 limitation. In
addition, as a result of the acquisition
of Proficient Systems, Inc. in 2006,
the Company has added an additional $21,343
of federal NOL. These NOL
carryforwards are also subject to Section
382 limitation. The Company has not
yet performed a Section 382 analysis
for Proficient to determine the limitations
on the NOL as a result of the ownership
change. These carryforwards expire in
various years through 2023.
In
order
to fully realize the deferred tax assets,
inclusive of the NOL acquired in the
Proficient acquisition, the Company will
need to generate future taxable income
of approximately $22,000 prior to 2023.
If the entire deferred tax asset at
December 31, 2006 is realized, approximately
$2,703 will be allocated to
Additional paid-in capital with the remainder
reducing income tax expense. At
December 31, 2005, based upon the level
of historical taxable losses and after
considering projections for future taxable
income over the periods in which the
deferred tax assets are expected to be
deductible, management believed it was
more likely than not that the Company
would not realize the benefits of these
deductible differences. Accordingly,
the Company recorded a full valuation
allowance against its deferred tax assets.
At December 31, 2006, based on a
three year forecast, management determined
that it is more likely than not that
the Company would realize a portion of
the benefits of these deductible
differences. Accordingly, the Company
reduced its valuation allowance and
recorded a deferred tax benefit in the
amount of $2,356 for the year ended
December 31, 2006. In addition, excess
tax deductions resulting from stock
option exercises reduced the Company’s taxes payable by $2,042 in 2006. The
related tax benefit has been recorded
as an increase in Additional paid-in
capital. Management will continue to
assess the remaining valuation allowance.
To the extent it is determined that the
valuation allowance is no longer
required with respect to certain deferred
tax assets, the tax benefit, if any,
of such deferred tax assets will be recognized
in the future.
67
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
The
domestic and foreign components of income
(loss) before (benefit
from) provision for income taxes consists of the
following:
Year
Ended December 31,
|
||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
United
States
|
$
|
1,577
|
|
$
|
2,973
|
|
$
|
1,955
|
||
Foreign
|
187
|
|
244
|
|
195
|
|
||||
$
|
1,764
|
$
|
3,217
|
$
|
2,150
|
Foreign
income is net of a management fee charged
each year. No provision has been made
for U.S. income taxes on
the undistributed earnings of its
subsidiaries as such earnings have
been taxed in the U.S. Accumulated
earnings
of the Company’s
foreign
subsidiaries are immaterial through
December 31, 2006.
The
(benefit from) provision for income taxes
consist of the following:
Year
Ended December 31,
|
||||||||||
2006
|
2005
|
2004
|
||||||||
Current
income taxes:
|
||||||||||
U.S.
Federal
|
$
|
1,697
|
$
|
675
|
$
|
58
|
||||
State
and local
|
346
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||
Foreign
|
100
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||
Total
current income taxes
|
2,143
|
675
|
58
|
|||||||
Deferred
income taxes:
|
||||||||||
U.S.
Federal
|
(2,132
|
)
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
State
and local
|
(449
|
)
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
Foreign
|
—
|
—
|
—
|
|||||||
Total
deferred income taxes
|
(2,581
|
)
|
—
|
—
|
||||||
Total
income taxes
|
$
|
(438
|
)
|
$
|
675
|
$
|
58
|
The
difference between the total income taxes
computed at the federal statutory rate
and the (benefit from) provision for
income taxes consists of the
following:
Year
Ended December 31,
|
|||||||
2006
|
2005
|
||||||
Federal
Statutory rate
|
34.00
|
%
|
34.00
|
%
|
|||
State
taxes, net of federal benefit
|
15.31
|
%
|
11.27
|
%
|
|||
Non-deductible
expenses - ISO
|
23.73
|
%
|
0.00
|
%
|
|||
Non-deductible
expenses - Other
|
8.56
|
%
|
4.31
|
%
|
|||
Change
in state effective rate
|
23.45
|
%
|
(7.21
|
)%
|
|||
Release
of valuation allowance
|
(133.59
|
)%
|
(21.39
|
)%
|
|||
Foreign
Taxes
|
5.67
|
%
|
0.00
|
%
|
|||
Other
|
(1.97
|
)%
|
0.00
|
%
|
|||
Total
(benefit) provision
|
(24.84
|
)%
|
20.98
|
%
|
The
difference between the statutory federal
income tax rate and the Company’s
effective tax rate is principally due
to the partial release of the Company’s
valuation allowance against deferred
tax assets. In 2006, the release of the
valuation allowance resulted in a deferred
tax benefit from income taxes in the
amount of $2,356. In 2005, the release
of the valuation allowance was related
to
the utilization of federal and state
net operating loss carryforwards generated
as a result of the Company incurring
net operating losses for which no tax
benefit was recorded for the years ended
December 31, 2005 and December 31,
2004, respectively. Because a portion
of the federal and state net operating
losses are related to the exercise of
employee stock options, the resulting
tax
benefit is recorded as an increase in
Additional paid-in capital and not a
reduction in income tax expense for the
year ended December 31,
2005.
68
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share
data)
The
effects of temporary differences and
tax loss carryforwards that give rise
to
significant portions of federal deferred
tax assets and deferred tax liabilities
at December 31, 2006 and 2005 are presented below:
2006
|
2005
|
||||||
Deferred
tax assets:
|
|||||||
Net
operating loss carryforwards
|
$
|
12,395
|
$
|
3,500
|
|||
Accounts
payable and accrued expenses
|
86
|
90
|
|||||
Non-cash
compensation
|
2,390
|
2,059
|
|||||
Goodwill
and intangibles amortization
|
3,269
|
3,431
|
|||||
Allowance
for doubtful accounts
|
55
|
30
|
|||||
Plant
and equipment, principally
due to differences in
depreciation
|
22
|
—
|
|||||
Other
|
75
|
76
|
|||||
Total
deferred tax assets
|
18,292
|
9,186
|
|||||
Less:
valuation allowance
|
(15,936
|
)
|
(9,163
|
)
|
|||
Net
deferred tax assets
|
2,356
|
23
|
|||||
Deferred
tax liabilities:
|
|||||||
Intangibles
related to the Proficient acquisition
|
(1,035
|
)
|
—
|
||||
Plant
and equipment, principally
due to differences in
depreciation
|
—
|
(23
|
)
|
||||
Total
deferred tax liabilities
|
(1,035
|
)
|
(23
|
)
|
|||
Net
deferred assets
|
$
|
1,321
|
$
|
—
|
(8)
|
Commitments
and Contingencies
|
The
Company leases facilities and certain
equipment under agreements accounted
for
as operating leases. These leases generally
require the Company to pay all
executory costs such as maintenance
and insurance. Rental expense for operating
leases for the years ended December 31, 2006, 2005 and 2004 was
approximately $1,081, $658 and $502,
respectively.
In
May
2006, our wholly-owned subsidiary,
HumanClick Ltd., entered into a new
lease and
relocated its offices. The new lease
is effective for the period October
1, 2006
through September 30, 2009.
Future
minimum lease payments under non-cancelable
operating leases (with an initial or
remaining lease terms in excess of
one year) are as follows:
Year
ending December 31,
|
Operating
Leases
|
|||
2007
|
$
|
1,441
|
||
2008
|
1,337
|
|||
2009
|
1,109
|
|||
2010
|
598
|
|||
2011
|
333
|
|||
Thereafter
|
—
|
|||
Total
minimum lease payments
|
$
|
4,818
|
(9)
|
Legal
Matters
|
In
May
2006, a former employee filed a complaint
in the Supreme Court of New York State
against the Company and two of its
executive officers containing claims
related
to improper termination of employment. The claim seeks damages
of approximately $50,000. The Company
believes the claims are without
merit, and intends to vigorously defend
against such claims. However, the
Company cannot assure you that its
defenses will be successful and, if
they are
not, that its ultimate liability in
connection with these claims will not
have a
material adverse effect on its results
of operations, financial condition
or
cash flows. The Company has not accrued
for this contingency as of December
31,
2006, because the amount of loss, if
any, cannot be reasonably estimated
at this
time. The
Company carries appropriate levels
of insurance for employment related
claims
but cannot guarantee that any damages
arising from this claim will be covered
by
this policy.
The
Company is not currently party to
any other legal proceedings. From
time to
time, the Company may be subject
to various claims and legal actions
arising in
the ordinary course of business.
69
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per
share data)
(10)
|
Unaudited
Supplementary Financial Information
- Quarterly Results of
Operations
|
The
following table sets forth, for the
periods indicated, the Company’s financial
information for the eight most recent
quarters ended December 31, 2006. In
the
Company’s opinion, this unaudited information
has been prepared on a basis
consistent with the annual consolidated
financial statements and includes all
adjustments, consisting only of normal
recurring adjustments, necessary for
a
fair presentation of the unaudited
information for the periods presented.
This
information should be read in conjunction
with the consolidated financial
statements, including the related notes,
included herein.
Quarter
Ended
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Dec.
31,
2006
|
Sept.
30,
2006
|
June
30,
2006
|
Mar.
31,
2006
|
Dec.
31,
2005
|
Sept.
30,
2005
|
June
30,
2005
|
Mar.
31,
2005
|
||||||||||||||||||
Revenue
|
$
|
10,347
|
$
|
8,881
|
$
|
7,416
|
$
|
6,877
|
$
|
6,316
|
$
|
5,724
|
$
|
5,283
|
$
|
4,954
|
|||||||||
Operating
expenses:
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Cost
of revenue
|
2,375
|
2,142
|
1,642
|
1,462
|
1,300
|
1,114
|
1,019
|
863
|
|||||||||||||||||
Product
development
|
1,783
|
1,381
|
1,018
|
880
|
672
|
663
|
688
|
675
|
|||||||||||||||||
Sales
and marketing
|
3,258
|
3,104
|
2,856
|
2,646
|
2,086
|
1,715
|
1,690
|
1,485
|
|||||||||||||||||
General
and administrative
|
1,854
|
1,750
|
1,437
|
1,501
|
1,058
|
1,034
|
1,096
|
1,271
|
|||||||||||||||||
Amortization
of intangibles
|
472
|
447
|
232
|
232
|
232
|
232
|
232
|
235
|
|||||||||||||||||
Total
operating expenses
|
9,742
|
8,824
|
7,185
|
6,721
|
5,348
|
4,758
|
4,725
|
4,529
|
|||||||||||||||||
Income
from operations
|
605
|
57
|
231
|
156
|
968
|
966
|
558
|
425
|
|||||||||||||||||
Other
income (expense), net:
|
|||||||||||||||||||||||||
Interest
income
|
202
|
200
|
170
|
143
|
117
|
81
|
59
|
43
|
|||||||||||||||||
Total
other income, net
|
202
|
200
|
170
|
143
|
117
|
81
|
59
|
43
|
|||||||||||||||||
Income
before (benefit from) provision
for income taxes
|
807
|
257
|
401
|
299
|
1,085
|
1,047
|
617
|
468
|
|||||||||||||||||
(Benefit
from) provision for income
taxes
|
(438
|
)
|
--
|
--
|
--
|
(63
|
)
|
358
|
216
|
164
|
|||||||||||||||
Net
income
|
$
|
1,245
|
$
|
257
|
$
|
401
|
$
|
299
|
$
|
1,148
|
$
|
689
|
$
|
401
|
$
|
304
|
|||||||||
Basic
net income per common
share
|
$
|
0.03
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.03
|
$
|
0.02
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.01
|
|||||||||
Diluted
net income per common
share
|
$
|
0.03
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.03
|
$
|
0.02
|
$
|
0.01
|
$
|
0.01
|
|||||||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding
used in basic net income
per common share
calculation
|
40,979,922
|
40,547,309
|
38,900,328
|
38,253,681
|
37,750,875
|
37,555,696
|
37,487,015
|
37,433,446
|
|||||||||||||||||
Weighted
average shares outstanding
used in diluted net income
per common share
calculation
|
44,591,617
|
43,854,202
|
42,818,687
|
40,504,248
|
40,616,738
|
39,839,001
|
39,400,983
|
39,448,922
|
In
the
fourth quarter of 2006 and 2005, the Company partially released its
valuation allowance against deferred
tax assets resulting in a net benefit
from
income taxes of $438 and $63, respectively.
70
LIVEPERSON,
INC.
NOTES
TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS (Continued)
(In
thousands, except share and per share data)
ITEM 9. |
CHANGES
IN AND DISAGREEMENTS WITH ACCOUNTANTS
ON ACCOUNTING AND FINANCIAL
DISCLOSURE
|
None.
ITEM 9A. |
CONTROLS
AND PROCEDURES
|
Management’s
Annual Report on Internal Control over
Financial Reporting
Our
management is responsible for establishing
and maintaining adequate internal
control over financial reporting, as that
term is defined in Rule 13a-15(f)
promulgated under the Exchange Act. Our
management, including the Chief
Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer,
evaluated the effectiveness of
our internal control over financial reporting
as of December 31, 2006 based
on the framework established in “Internal Control—Integrated Framework,” issued
by the Committee of Sponsoring Organizations
of the Treadway Commission (COSO).
Our management’s
assessment of and conclusion on the effectiveness
of internal control over
financial reporting did not include the
internal controls of Proficient Systems,
Inc., which was acquired on July 18, 2006,
and which is included in our
consolidated balance sheet as of December
31, 2006, and the related consolidated
statements of income, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the year then
ended. Proficient Systems, Inc. constituted
2% of total assets as of December
31, 2006, and 6% of revenues for the year
then ended. Our management did not
assess the effectiveness of internal control
over financial reporting of
Proficient Systems, Inc. because of the
timing of the acquisition, which was
completed on July 18, 2006. Based
on
management’s evaluation described above, our management
concluded that our
internal control over financial reporting
was effective as of December 31,
2006.
Our
management’s assessment of the effectiveness of our
internal control over
financial reporting as of December 31, 2006 has been audited by BDO
Seidman, LLP, an independent registered
public accounting firm, as stated in
that firm’s report, which is included herein.
Changes
in Internal Control over Financial Reporting
There
were no changes in our internal control
over financial reporting during the
quarter ended December 31, 2006 identified in connection with
the
evaluation thereof by our management, including
the Chief Executive Officer and
Chief Financial Officer, that have materially
affected, or are reasonably likely
to materially affect, our internal control
over financial
reporting.
Evaluation
of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our
management, including the Chief Executive
Officer and Chief Financial Officer,
evaluated the effectiveness of our “disclosure controls and procedures,” as that
term is defined in Rule 13a-15(e) promulgated
under the Exchange Act, as of
December 31, 2006. Based on that evaluation, the
Chief Executive Officer
and Chief Financial Officer concluded that
our disclosure controls and
procedures were effective as of December 31, 2006 to ensure that the
information we are required to disclose
in the reports that we file or submit
under the Exchange Act is recorded, processed,
summarized and reported, within
the time periods specified in the Securities
and Exchange Commission’s rules and
forms, and to ensure that such information
is accumulated and communicated to
our management, including the Chief Executive
Officer and Chief Financial
Officer, as appropriate to allow timely
decisions regarding required
disclosure.
71
Report
of Independent Registered Public Accounting
Firm
To
the
Board of Directors and Stockholders
LivePerson,
Inc.
New
York,
NY
We
have
audited management’s assessment, included in the accompanying
Management’s
Annual Report on Internal Control over
Financial Reporting, that LivePerson,
Inc. and subsidiaries (the “Company”) maintained effective internal control
over
financial reporting as of December 31,
2006, based on the criteria established
in Internal Control—Integrated Framework issued by the Committee
of Sponsoring
Organizations of the Treadway Commission
( “COSO”). The Company’s management is
responsible for maintaining effective internal
control over financial reporting
and for its assessment of the effectiveness
of internal control over financial
reporting. Our responsibility is to express
an opinion on management’s
assessment and an opinion on the effectiveness
of the Company’s internal control
over financial reporting based on our audit.
We
conducted our audit in accordance with
the standards of the Public Company
Accounting Oversight Board (United States).
Those standards require that we plan
and perform the audit to obtain reasonable
assurance about whether effective
internal control over financial reporting
was maintained in all material
respects. Our audit included obtaining
an understanding of internal control over
financial reporting, evaluating management’s assessment, testing and evaluating
the design and operating effectiveness
of internal control, and performing such
other procedures as we considered necessary
in the circumstances. We believe
that our audit provides a reasonable basis
for our opinion.
A
company’s internal control over financial reporting
is a process designed to
provide reasonable assurance regarding
the reliability of financial reporting
and the preparation of financial statements
for external purposes in accordance
with generally accepted accounting principles.
A company’s internal control over
financial reporting includes those policies
and procedures that (1) pertain to
the maintenance of records that, in reasonable
detail, accurately and fairly
reflect the transactions and dispositions
of the assets of the company; (2)
provide reasonable assurance that transactions
are recorded as necessary to
permit preparation of financial statements
in accordance with generally accepted
accounting principles, and that receipts
and expenditures of the company are
being made only in accordance with authorizations
of management and directors of
the company; and (3) provide reasonable
assurance regarding prevention or timely
detection of unauthorized acquisition,
use, or disposition of the company’s
assets that could have a material effect
on the financial
statements.
Because
of its inherent limitations, internal control
over financial reporting may not
prevent or detect misstatements. Also,
projections of any evaluation of
effectiveness to future periods are subject
to the risk that controls may become
inadequate because of changes in conditions,
or that the degree of compliance
with the policies or procedures may deteriorate.
As
indicated in the accompanying Management’s Annual Report on Internal Control
over Financial Reporting, management’s assessment of and conclusion on the
effectiveness of internal control over
financial reporting did not include the
internal controls of Proficient Systems,
Inc., which was acquired on July 18,
2006, and which is included in the consolidated
balance sheet of the Company as
of December 31, 2006, and the related consolidated
statements of income,
stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the year then
ended. Proficient
Systems, Inc. constituted 2% of total assets
as of December 31, 2006, and 6% of
revenues for the year then ended. Management
did not assess the effectiveness of
internal control over financial reporting
of Proficient Systems, Inc. because of
the timing of the acquisition, which was
completed on July 18, 2006. Our audit
of internal control over financial reporting
of the Company also did not include
an evaluation of the internal control over
financial reporting of Proficient
Systems, Inc.
72
In
our
opinion, management’s assessment that the Company maintained
effective internal
control over financial reporting as of
December 31, 2006, is fairly stated, in
all material respects, based on the criteria
established in Internal
Control—Integrated Framework issued by COSO. Also
in our opinion, the Company
maintained, in all material respects, effective
internal control over financial
reporting as of December 31, 2006, based
on the criteria established in Internal
Control—Integrated Framework issued by COSO.
We
have
also audited, in accordance with the standards
of the Public Company Accounting
Oversight Board (United States), the consolidated
balance sheets of the Company
as of December 31, 2006 and 2005 and the
related consolidated statements of
income, stockholders’ equity, and cash flows for the years then
ended and our
report dated March 16, 2007 expressed an
unqualified opinion.
/s/
BDO
Seidman, LLP
New
York,
New York
March
16,
2007
73
ITEM
9B.
|
OTHER
INFORMATION
|
None.
PART
III
ITEM 10. |
DIRECTORS,
EXECUTIVE OFFICERS
AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE
|
The
information required by this Item 10 with respect to “Election of
Directors,” “Executive Officers,” “Board Committees and Meetings - Audit
Committee,” “Corporate Governance Documents” and “Section 16(a) Beneficial
Ownership Reporting Compliance” in the definitive proxy statement for our
2007
Annual Meeting of Stockholders.
There
have been no changes to the procedures
by which stockholders may recommend
nominees to our Board of Directors since
our last disclosure of such procedures,
which appeared in the definitive proxy
statement for our 2006 Annual Meeting of
Stockholders.
ITEM 11. |
EXECUTIVE
COMPENSATION
|
The
information required by this Item 11 is incorporated by reference to the
sections captioned “Compensation Discussion and Analysis”, “Compensation
Committee Report” (which information shall be deemed furnished
in this Annual
Report on Form 10-K), “Executive and Director Compensation” and “Compensation
Committee Interlocks and Insider Participation” in the definitive proxy
statement for our 2007 Annual Meeting of
Stockholders.
ITEM 12. |
SECURITY
OWNERSHIP OF CERTAIN BENEFICIAL
OWNERS AND MANAGEMENT AND RELATED
STOCKHOLDER MATTERS
|
The
information required by this Item 12 with respect to the security ownership
of certain beneficial owners and management
is incorporated by reference to the
section captioned “Ownership of Securities” in the definitive proxy statement
for our 2007 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.
The
following table provides certain information
regarding the common stock
authorized for issuance under our equity
compensation plans, as of
December 31, 2006.
Plan
Category
|
Number
of Securities to be Issued Upon
Exercise
of Outstanding
Options,
Warrants and Rights
(a)
|
Weighted-Average
Exercise Price of Outstanding
Options, Warrants and
Rights
(b)
|
Number
of Securities Remaining Available
for Future Issuance Under
Equity
Compensation
Plans (3)
(c)
|
|||||||
Equity
compensation plans approved by
stockholders (1)
|
8,079,254
|
$
|
2.78
|
5,000,083
|
||||||
Equity
compensation plans not approved
by stockholders (2)
|
124,500
|
$
|
0.69
|
—
|
||||||
Total
|
8,203,754
|
$
|
2.75
|
5,000,083
|
(1)
|
Our
equity compensation plans which
were approved by our stockholders
are the
2000 Stock Incentive Plan, as
amended and restated, and the
Employee Stock
Purchase Plan.
|
74
(2) |
On
December 11, 2002, we issued
a warrant to purchase 150,000
shares of
common stock at $0.69 per share
to Genesis Select Corp. in exchange
for
investor relations services.
Because approval was not required
at the
time, our stockholders did not
approve the issuance of the
warrant.
|
(3) |
Excludes
securities reflected in column
(a). The number of shares of
common stock
available for issuance under
the 2000 Stock Incentive Plan
automatically
increases on the first trading
day in each calendar year by
an amount
equal to three percent (3%) of
the total number of shares of
our common
stock outstanding on the last
trading day of the immediately
preceding
calendar year, but in no event
shall such annual increase exceed
1,500,000
shares. The number of shares
of common stock available for
issuance under
our Employee Stock Purchase Plan
automatically increases on the
first
trading day in each calendar
year by an amount equal to one-half
of one
percent (0.5%) of the total number
of shares of our common stock
outstanding on the last trading
day of the immediately preceding
calendar
year, but in no event shall such
annual increase exceed 150,000
shares.
Effective October 2001, we suspended
our Employee Stock Purchase Plan
until further notice. Also see
Note 5 to our consolidated financial
statements.
|
ITEM 13. |
CERTAIN
RELATIONSHIPS AND RELATED TRANSACTIONS,
AND DIRECTOR INDEPENDENCE
|
The
information required by this Item 13 is incorporated by reference to the
sections captioned “Certain Relationships and Related Transactions” and
“Director Independence” in the definitive proxy statement for our
2007 Annual
Meeting of Stockholders.
ITEM 14. |
PRINCIPAL
ACCOUNTANT FEES AND
SERVICES
|
The
information required by this Item 14 is incorporated by reference to the
section captioned “Independent Registered Public Accounting
Firm Fees and
Pre-Approval Policies and Procedures” in the definitive proxy statement for our
2007 Annual Meeting of Stockholders.
PART
IV
ITEM 15. |
EXHIBITS
AND FINANCIAL STATEMENT
SCHEDULES
|
The
following documents are filed as part of
this Annual Report on Form
10-K:
1. |
Financial
Statements.
|
Incorporated
by reference to the index of consolidated
financial statements included in Item
8 of this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
2. |
Financial
Statement Schedules.
|
None.
3. |
Exhibits.
|
Incorporated
by reference to the Exhibit Index immediately
preceding the exhibits attached to
this Annual Report on Form 10-K.
75
SIGNATURES
Pursuant
to the requirements of Section 13 or 15(d)
of the Securities Exchange Act of
1934, as amended, the Registrant has duly
caused this report to be signed on its
behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly
authorized, on March 19,
2007.
LIVEPERSON, INC. | ||
|
|
|
By: | /s/ ROBERT P. LOCASCIO | |
Name: Robert P. LoCascio |
||
Title: Chief Executive Officer |
Pursuant
to the requirements of the Securities Exchange
Act of 1934, as amended, this
report has been signed below by the following
persons on behalf of the
Registrant and in the capacities indicated
on March 16, 2007.
Signature
|
Title(s)
|
/s/
ROBERT P. LOCASCIO
Robert
P. LoCascio
|
Chief
Executive Officer and Chairman
of the Board of Directors (principal
executive officer)
|
/s/
TIMOTHY E. BIXBY
Timothy
E. Bixby
|
President,
Chief Financial Officer, Secretary
and Director (principal financial
and
accounting officer)
|
/s/
STEVEN BERNS
Steven
Berns
|
Director
|
/s/
EMMANUEL GILL
Emmanuel
Gill
|
Director
|
/s/
KEVIN C. LAVAN
Kevin
C. Lavan
|
Director
|
/s/
WILLIAM G. WESEMANN
William
G. Wesemann
|
Director
|
EXHIBIT
INDEX
Number
|
Description
|
2.1
|
Agreement
and Plan of Merger, dated as
of June 22, 2006, among LivePerson,
Inc.,
Soho Acquisition Corp., Proficient
Systems, Inc. and Gregg Freishtat
as
Shareholders’ Representative (incorporated
by reference to the identically
numbered exhibit in the Current
Report on Form 8-K filed on June
22,
2006)
|
3.1
|
Fourth
Amended and Restated Certificate
of Incorporation (incorporated
by
reference to the identically-numbered
exhibit to LivePerson’s Annual
Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal
year ended December 31, 2000 and
filed March 30, 2001 (the “2000 Form 10-K”))
|
3.2
|
Second
Amended and Restated Bylaws,
as amended (incorporated by reference
to the
identically-numbered exhibit
to the 2000 Form 10-K)
|
4.1
|
Specimen
common stock certificate (incorporated
by reference to the
identically-numbered exhibit
to LivePerson’s Registration Statement on
Form S-1, as amended (Registration
No. 333-96689) (“Registration
No. 333-96689”))
|
4.2
|
Second
Amended and Restated Registration
Rights Agreement, dated as of
January 27, 2000, by and among LivePerson,
the several persons and
entities named on the signature
pages thereto as Investors, and
Robert
LoCascio (incorporated by reference
to the identically-numbered exhibit
to
Registration No. 333-96689)
|
4.3
|
See
Exhibits 3.1 and 3.2 for further
provisions defining the rights
of holders
of common stock of LivePerson
|
10.1
|
Employment
Agreement between LivePerson
and Robert P. LoCascio, dated
as of
January 1, 1999 (incorporated by reference
to the
identically-numbered exhibit
to Registration
No. 333-96689)*
|
10.2
|
Employment
Agreement between LivePerson
and Timothy E. Bixby, dated as
of June 23,
1999 (incorporated by reference
to Exhibit 10.3 to Registration
No. 333-96689)*
|
10.2.1
|
Modification
to Employment Agreement between
LivePerson, Inc. and Timothy
E. Bixby,
dated as of April 1, 2003 (incorporated
by reference to the
identically-numbered exhibit
to LivePerson’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
for the quarter ended June 30,
2003 and filed August 13,
2003)*
|
10.3
|
Amended
and Restated 2000 Stock Incentive
Plan, amended as of April 21,
2005
(incorporated by reference to
the identically-numbered exhibit
to
LivePerson’s Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q
for the quarter ended June 30,
2005 and filed August 8, 2005)*
|
10.4
|
Employee
Stock Purchase Plan (incorporated
by reference to the identically-numbered
exhibit to the 2000 Form 10-K)*
|
21.1
|
Subsidiaries
|
23.1
|
Consent
of BDO Seidman, LLP
|
23.2
|
Consent
of KPMG LLP
|
31.1
|
Certification
by Chief Executive Officer pursuant
to Exchange Act Rule 13a-14(a),
as
adopted pursuant to Section 302
of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
|
31.2
|
Certification
by Chief Financial Officer pursuant
to Exchange Act Rule 13a-14(a),
as
adopted pursuant to Section 302
of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
|
32.1
|
Certification
by Chief Executive Officer pursuant
to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as
adopted
pursuant to Section 906 of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
|
32.2
|
Certification
by Chief Financial Officer pursuant
to 18 U.S.C. Section 1350, as
adopted
pursuant to Section 906 of the
Sarbanes-Oxley Act of
2002
|
* Management
contract or compensatory plan or arrangement