Snap Inc - Quarter Report: 2023 March (Form 10-Q)
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
______________________________________
FORM 10-Q
______________________________________
(Mark One)
| ☒ | QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | ||||
For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2023
or
| ☐ | TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 | ||||
For the transition period from ________to________
Commission File Number: 001-38017
______________________________________
SNAP INC.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
______________________________________
| Delaware | 45-5452795 | ||||
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organizations) | (I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) | ||||
3000 31st Street
Santa Monica, California 90405
(Address of principal executive offices, including zip code)
(310) 399-3339
(Registrant's telephone, including area code)
______________________________________
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class | Trading Symbol(s) | Name of each exchange on which registered | ||||||
| Class A Common Stock, par value $0.00001 per share | SNAP | New York Stock Exchange | ||||||
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 (Exchange Act) 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 ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes ☒ No ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, a smaller reporting company, or an emerging growth company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” “smaller reporting company,” and “emerging growth company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act.
☒ | Large accelerated filer | ☐ | Accelerated filer | ||||||||
☐ | Non-accelerated filer | ☐ | Smaller reporting company | ||||||||
☐ | Emerging growth company | ||||||||||
If an emerging growth company, indicate by check mark if the registrant has elected not to use the extended transition period for complying with any new or revised financial accounting standards provided pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. ☐
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ☐ No ☒
Indicate the number of shares outstanding of each of the issuer's classes of common stock, as of the latest practicable date.
| Class | Number of Shares Outstanding | ||||
| Class A common stock, $0.00001 par value | 1,347,620,319 shares outstanding as of April 25, 2023 | ||||
| Class B common stock, $0.00001 par value | 22,521,887 shares outstanding as of April 25, 2023 | ||||
| Class C common stock, $0.00001 par value | 231,626,943 shares outstanding as of April 25, 2023 | ||||
TABLE OF CONTENTS
| Page | ||||||||
Snap Inc., “Snapchat,” and our other registered and common-law trade names, trademarks, and service marks appearing in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are the property of Snap Inc. or our subsidiaries.
2
NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, or the Securities Act, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act, about us and our industry that involve substantial risks and uncertainties. All statements other than statements of historical facts contained in this report, including statements regarding guidance, our future results of operations or financial condition, our future stock repurchase programs or stock dividends, business strategy and plans, user growth and engagement, product initiatives, objectives of management for future operations, and advertiser and partner offerings, are forward-looking statements. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements because they contain words such as “anticipate,” “believe,” “contemplate,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “going to,” “intend,” “may,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “target,” “will,” or “would” or the negative of these words or other similar terms or expressions. We caution you that the foregoing may not include all of the forward-looking statements made in this report.
You should not rely on forward-looking statements as predictions of future events. We have based the forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q primarily on our current expectations and projections about future events and trends, including our financial outlook, macroeconomic uncertainty, geo-political conflicts, and the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, that we believe may continue to affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, and prospects. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and other factors described in “Risk Factors” and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including among other things:
•our financial performance, including our revenues, cost of revenues, operating expenses, and our ability to attain and sustain profitability;
•our ability to generate and sustain positive cash flow;
•our ability to attract and retain users and partners;
•our ability to attract and retain advertisers;
•our ability to compete effectively with existing competitors and new market entrants;
•our ability to effectively manage our growth and future expenses;
•our ability to comply with modified or new laws, regulations, and executive actions applying to our business;
•our ability to maintain, protect, and enhance our intellectual property;
•our ability to successfully expand in our existing market segments and penetrate new market segments;
•our ability to attract and retain qualified team members and key personnel;
•our ability to repay outstanding debt;
•future acquisitions of or investments in complementary companies, products, services, or technologies; and
•the potential adverse impact of climate change, natural disasters, health epidemics, including the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, macroeconomic conditions, and war or other armed conflict, including the conflict in Ukraine, on our business, operations, and the markets and communities in which we and our partners, advertisers, and users operate.
Moreover, we operate in a very competitive and rapidly changing environment. New risks and uncertainties emerge from time to time, and it is not possible for us to predict all risks and uncertainties that could have an impact on the forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. The results, events, and circumstances reflected in the forward-looking statements may not be achieved or occur, and actual results, events, or circumstances could differ materially from those described in the forward-looking statements.
In addition, statements that “we believe” and similar statements reflect our beliefs and opinions on the relevant subject. These statements are based on information available to us as of the date of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. And while we believe that information provides a reasonable basis for these statements, that information may be limited or incomplete. Our statements should not be read to indicate that we have conducted an exhaustive inquiry into, or review of, all relevant information. These statements are inherently uncertain, and investors are cautioned not to unduly rely on these statements.
3
The forward-looking statements made in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statements made in this report to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this report or to reflect new information or the occurrence of unanticipated events, including future developments related to geo-political conflicts, the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, and macroeconomic conditions, except as required by law. We may not actually achieve the plans, intentions, or expectations disclosed in our forward-looking statements, and you should not place undue reliance on our forward-looking statements. Our forward-looking statements do not reflect the potential impact of any future acquisitions, dispositions, joint ventures, restructurings, legal settlements, or investments.
Investors and others should note that we may announce material business and financial information to our investors using our websites (including investor.snap.com), filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, webcasts, press releases, and conference calls. We use these mediums, including Snapchat and our website, to communicate with our members and the public about our company, our products, and other issues. It is possible that the information that we make available may be deemed to be material information. We therefore encourage investors and others interested in our company to review the information that we make available on our websites.
4
NOTE REGARDING USER METRICS AND OTHER DATA
We define a Daily Active User, or DAU, as a registered Snapchat user who opens the Snapchat application at least once during a defined 24-hour period. We calculate average DAUs for a particular quarter by adding the number of DAUs on each day of that quarter and dividing that sum by the number of days in that quarter. DAUs are broken out by geography because markets have different characteristics. We define average revenue per user, or ARPU, as quarterly revenue divided by the average DAUs. For purposes of calculating ARPU, revenue by user geography is apportioned to each region based on our determination of the geographic location in which advertising impressions are delivered, as this approximates revenue based on user activity. This allocation differs from our components of revenue disclosure in the notes to our consolidated financial statements, where revenue is based on the billing address of the advertising customer. For information concerning these metrics as measured by us, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.”
Unless otherwise stated, statistical information regarding our users and their activities is determined by calculating the daily average of the selected activity for the most recently completed quarter included in this report.
While these metrics are determined based on what we believe to be reasonable estimates of our user base for the applicable period of measurement, there are inherent challenges in measuring how our products are used across large populations globally. For example, there may be individuals who have unauthorized or multiple Snapchat accounts, even though we forbid that in our Terms of Service and implement measures to detect and suppress that behavior. We have not determined the number of such multiple accounts.
Changes in our products, infrastructure, mobile operating systems, or metric tracking system, or the introduction of new products, may impact our ability to accurately determine active users or other metrics and we may not determine such inaccuracies promptly. We also believe that we don’t capture all data regarding each of our active users. Technical issues may result in data not being recorded from every user’s application. For example, because some Snapchat features can be used without internet connectivity, we may not count a DAU because we don’t receive timely notice that a user has opened the Snapchat application. This undercounting may increase as we grow in Rest of World markets where users may have poor connectivity. We do not adjust our reported metrics to reflect this underreporting. We believe that we have adequate controls to collect user metrics, however, there is no uniform industry standard. We continually seek to identify these technical issues and improve both our accuracy and precision, including ensuring that our investors and others can understand the factors impacting our business, but these technical issues and new issues may continue in the future, including if there continues to be no uniform industry standard.
Some of our demographic data may be incomplete or inaccurate. For example, because users self-report their dates of birth, our age-demographic data may differ from our users’ actual ages. And because users who signed up for Snapchat before June 2013 were not asked to supply their date of birth, we may exclude those users from our age demographics or estimate their ages based on a sample of the self-reported ages that we do have. If our active users provide us with incorrect or incomplete information regarding their age or other attributes, then our estimates may prove inaccurate and fail to meet investor expectations.
We count a DAU only when a user opens the application and only once per user per day. We believe this methodology more accurately measures our user engagement. We have multiple pipelines of user data that we use to determine whether a user has opened the application during a particular day, and becoming a DAU. This provides redundancy in the event one pipeline of data were to become unavailable for technical reasons, and also gives us redundant data to help measure how users interact with our application.
If we fail to maintain an effective analytics platform, our metrics calculations may be inaccurate. We regularly review, have adjusted in the past, and are likely in the future to adjust our processes for calculating our internal metrics to improve their accuracy. As a result of such adjustments, our DAUs or other metrics may not be comparable to those in prior periods. Our measures of DAUs may differ from estimates published by third parties or from similarly titled metrics of our competitors due to differences in methodology or data used.
5
PART I - FINANCIAL INFORMATION
ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
Snap Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
(in thousands)
(unaudited)
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| Cash flows from operating activities | |||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
| Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities: | |||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 35,220 | 38,100 | |||||||||
| Stock-based compensation | 314,931 | 275,444 | |||||||||
| Amortization of debt issuance costs | 1,836 | 1,413 | |||||||||
| Losses (gains) on debt and equity securities, net | (10,833) | 79,127 | |||||||||
| Other | (10,396) | 1,125 | |||||||||
| Change in operating assets and liabilities, net of effect of acquisitions: | |||||||||||
| Accounts receivable, net of allowance | 288,373 | 126,027 | |||||||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | (13,204) | (27,178) | |||||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 17,658 | 16,984 | |||||||||
| Other assets | 850 | (308) | |||||||||
| Accounts payable | (36,972) | 54,980 | |||||||||
| Accrued expenses and other current liabilities | (90,191) | (62,828) | |||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | (18,550) | (17,816) | |||||||||
| Other liabilities | 1,054 | 2,013 | |||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities | 151,102 | 127,459 | |||||||||
| Cash flows from investing activities | |||||||||||
| Purchases of property and equipment | (47,630) | (21,175) | |||||||||
| Purchases of strategic investments | (4,480) | (150) | |||||||||
| Cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired | — | (788) | |||||||||
| Purchases of marketable securities | (874,053) | (1,342,381) | |||||||||
| Sales of marketable securities | 5,351 | 9,777 | |||||||||
| Maturities of marketable securities | 924,323 | 342,545 | |||||||||
| Other | 2,327 | (5,493) | |||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities | 5,838 | (1,017,665) | |||||||||
| Cash flows from financing activities | |||||||||||
| Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes, net of issuance costs | — | 1,483,500 | |||||||||
| Purchase of capped calls | — | (177,000) | |||||||||
| Proceeds from the exercise of stock options | 29 | 2,266 | |||||||||
| Deferred payments for acquisitions | (2,028) | — | |||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities | (1,999) | 1,308,766 | |||||||||
| Change in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash | 154,941 | 418,560 | |||||||||
| Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, beginning of period | 1,423,776 | 1,994,723 | |||||||||
| Cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash, end of period | $ | 1,578,717 | $ | 2,413,283 | |||||||
| Supplemental disclosures | |||||||||||
| Cash paid for income taxes, net | $ | 17,003 | $ | 2,636 | |||||||
| Cash paid for interest | $ | 4,421 | $ | 3,454 | |||||||
See Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
6
Snap Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Operations
(in thousands, except per share amounts)
(unaudited)
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 988,608 | $ | 1,062,727 | |||||||
| Costs and expenses: | |||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | 439,986 | 420,897 | |||||||||
| Research and development | 455,112 | 455,563 | |||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 268,433 | 241,886 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 190,341 | 215,908 | |||||||||
| Total costs and expenses | 1,353,872 | 1,334,254 | |||||||||
| Operating loss | (365,264) | (271,527) | |||||||||
| Interest income | 37,948 | 3,123 | |||||||||
| Interest expense | (5,885) | (5,173) | |||||||||
| Other income (expense), net | 11,372 | (77,537) | |||||||||
| Loss before income taxes | (321,829) | (351,114) | |||||||||
| Income tax benefit (expense) | (6,845) | (8,510) | |||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
| Net loss per share attributable to Class A, Class B, and Class C common stockholders (Note 3): | |||||||||||
| Basic | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.22) | |||||||
| Diluted | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.22) | |||||||
| Weighted average shares used in computation of net loss per share: | |||||||||||
| Basic | 1,581,370 | 1,619,113 | |||||||||
| Diluted | 1,581,370 | 1,619,113 | |||||||||
See Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
7
Snap Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss)
(in thousands)
(unaudited)
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
| Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax | |||||||||||
| Unrealized gain (loss) on marketable securities, net of tax | 9,395 | (6,692) | |||||||||
| Foreign currency translation | 2,915 | (2,842) | |||||||||
| Total other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax | 12,310 | (9,534) | |||||||||
| Total comprehensive loss | $ | (316,364) | $ | (369,158) | |||||||
See Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
8
Snap Inc.
Consolidated Balance Sheets
(in thousands, except par value)
| March 31, 2023 | December 31, 2022 | ||||||||||
| (unaudited) | |||||||||||
| Assets | |||||||||||
| Current assets | |||||||||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 1,578,528 | $ | 1,423,121 | |||||||
| Marketable securities | 2,524,904 | 2,516,003 | |||||||||
| Accounts receivable, net of allowance | 892,511 | 1,183,092 | |||||||||
| Prepaid expenses and other current assets | 146,973 | 134,431 | |||||||||
| Total current assets | 5,142,916 | 5,256,647 | |||||||||
| Property and equipment, net | 303,022 | 271,777 | |||||||||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 355,062 | 370,952 | |||||||||
| Intangible assets, net | 186,724 | 204,480 | |||||||||
| Goodwill | 1,649,097 | 1,646,120 | |||||||||
| Other assets | 251,569 | 279,562 | |||||||||
| Total assets | $ | 7,888,390 | $ | 8,029,538 | |||||||
| Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity | |||||||||||
| Current liabilities | |||||||||||
| Accounts payable | $ | 141,800 | $ | 181,774 | |||||||
| Operating lease liabilities | 50,787 | 46,485 | |||||||||
| Accrued expenses and other current liabilities | 898,897 | 987,340 | |||||||||
| Total current liabilities | 1,091,484 | 1,215,599 | |||||||||
| Convertible senior notes, net | 3,744,237 | 3,742,520 | |||||||||
| Operating lease liabilities, noncurrent | 368,526 | 386,271 | |||||||||
| Other liabilities | 105,703 | 104,450 | |||||||||
| Total liabilities | 5,309,950 | 5,448,840 | |||||||||
| Commitments and contingencies (Note 8) | |||||||||||
| Stockholders’ equity | |||||||||||
Class A non-voting common stock, $0.00001 par value. 3,000,000 shares authorized, 1,391,998 shares issued, 1,341,056 shares outstanding at March 31, 2023, and 3,000,000 shares authorized, 1,371,242 shares issued, 1,319,930 shares outstanding at December 31, 2022. | 13 | 13 | |||||||||
Class B voting common stock, $0.00001 par value. 700,000 shares authorized, 22,522 shares issued and outstanding at March 31, 2023, and 700,000 shares authorized, 22,529 shares issued and outstanding at December 31, 2022. | — | — | |||||||||
Class C voting common stock, $0.00001 par value. 260,888 shares authorized, 231,627 shares issued and outstanding at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022. | 2 | 2 | |||||||||
Treasury stock, at cost. 50,942 and 51,312 shares of Class A non-voting common stock at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. | (496,906) | (500,514) | |||||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | 13,620,326 | 13,309,828 | |||||||||
| Accumulated deficit | (10,543,331) | (10,214,657) | |||||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) | (1,664) | (13,974) | |||||||||
| Total stockholders’ equity | 2,578,440 | 2,580,698 | |||||||||
| Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity | $ | 7,888,390 | $ | 8,029,538 | |||||||
See Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
9
Snap Inc.
Consolidated Statements of Stockholders’ Equity
(in thousands)
(unaudited)
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Shares | Amount | Shares | Amount | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Class A non-voting common stock | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | 1,319,930 | $ | 13 | 1,364,887 | $ | 14 | |||||||||||||||||
| Shares issued in connection with exercise of stock options under stock-based compensation plans | 3 | — | 160 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of Class A non-voting common stock in connection with acquisitions | — | — | 1,118 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of Class A non-voting common stock for vesting of restricted stock units and restricted stock awards, net | 20,745 | — | 11,996 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Conversion of Class B voting common stock to Class A non-voting common stock | 8 | — | 98 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reissuances of Class A non-voting common stock for vesting of restricted stock units | 370 | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | 1,341,056 | 13 | 1,378,259 | 14 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Class B voting common stock | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | 22,529 | — | 22,769 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Shares issued in connection with exercise of stock options under stock-based compensation plans | 1 | — | 6 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Conversion of Class B voting common stock to Class A non-voting common stock | (8) | — | (98) | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | 22,522 | — | 22,677 | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Class C voting common stock | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | 231,627 | 2 | 231,627 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of Class C voting common stock for settlement of restricted stock units, net | — | — | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | 231,627 | 2 | 231,627 | 2 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Treasury stock | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | 51,312 | (500,514) | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reissuances of Class A non-voting common stock for vesting of restricted stock units | (370) | 3,608 | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | 50,942 | (496,906) | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Additional paid-in capital | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | — | 13,309,828 | — | 12,069,097 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | — | 314,077 | — | 272,720 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Shares issued in connection with exercise of stock options under stock-based compensation plans | — | 29 | — | 2,267 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Issuance of Class A non-voting common stock in connection with acquisitions | — | — | — | 44,039 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Purchase of capped calls | — | — | — | (177,000) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Reissuances of Class A non-voting common stock for vesting of restricted stock units | — | (3,608) | — | — | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | — | 13,620,326 | — | 12,211,123 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Accumulated deficit | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | — | (10,214,657) | — | (8,284,466) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | — | (328,674) | — | (359,624) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | — | (10,543,331) | — | (8,644,090) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, beginning of period | — | (13,974) | — | 5,521 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax | — | 12,310 | — | (9,534) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Balance, end of period | — | (1,664) | — | (4,013) | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total stockholders’ equity | 1,646,147 | $ | 2,578,440 | 1,632,563 | $ | 3,563,036 | |||||||||||||||||
See Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements.
10
Snap Inc.
Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements
1. Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Snap Inc. is a technology company.
Snap Inc. (“we,” “our,” or “us”), a Delaware corporation, is headquartered in Santa Monica, California. Our flagship product, Snapchat, is a visual messaging application that was created to help people communicate through short videos and images called “Snaps.”
Basis of Presentation
The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) for interim financial information. Our consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Snap Inc. and our wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation. Our fiscal year ends on December 31. These unaudited interim consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and related notes included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, as filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) in February 2023 (the “Annual Report”).
In our opinion, the unaudited interim consolidated financial statements include all adjustments of a normal recurring nature necessary for the fair presentation of our financial position, results of operations, and cash flows. The results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2023 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2023.
There have been no changes to our significant accounting policies described in our Annual Report that have had a material impact on our consolidated financial statements and related notes.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of our consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts in the consolidated financial statements. Management’s estimates are based on historical information available as of the date of the consolidated financial statements and various other assumptions that we believe are reasonable under the circumstances. Actual results could differ from those estimates.
Key estimates relate primarily to determining the fair value of assets and liabilities assumed in business combinations, evaluation of contingencies, uncertain tax positions, and the fair value of strategic investments. On an ongoing basis, management evaluates our estimates compared to historical experience and trends, which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities.
Future Stock Split to be Effected in the Form of a Stock Dividend
In July 2022, our board of directors determined that it was advisable and in our best interest to approve a stock split to be effected in the form of a special dividend of one share of Class A common stock on each outstanding share of our common stock at a future date (the “Future Stock Split”). In connection with the Future Stock Split, we entered into certain agreements (the “Co-Founder Agreements”) with Evan Spiegel and Robert Murphy, our co-founders, and certain of their respective affiliates requiring them, among other things, to convert shares of Class B common stock and Class C common stock into Class A common stock under certain circumstances.
The Future Stock Split will not be declared and paid until the later of (i) June 30, 2023 and (ii) the first business day following the date on which the average of the volume weighted average price per share of Class A common stock equals or exceeds $40 per share for 65 consecutive trading days. If this does not occur by July 21, 2032, the Future Stock Split will not be declared and paid, and the Co-Founder Agreements will terminate. No adjustments have been made to share or per share amounts for Class A common stock in the accompanying consolidated financial statements for the effects of the Future Stock Split as these triggering conditions have not been met.
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2. Revenue
We determine revenue recognition by first identifying the contract or contracts with a customer, identifying the performance obligations in the contract, determining the transaction price, allocating the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract, and recognizing revenue when, or as, we satisfy a performance obligation.
Revenue is recognized when control of the promised goods or services is transferred to our customers, in an amount that reflects the consideration we expect to receive in exchange for those goods or services. We determine collectability by performing ongoing credit evaluations and monitoring customer accounts receivable balances. Sales tax, including value added tax, is excluded from reported revenue.
We generate substantially all of our revenues by offering various advertising products on Snapchat, which include Snap Ads and AR Ads, referred to as advertising revenue. AR Ads include Sponsored Lenses, which allow users to interact with an advertiser’s brand by enabling branded augmented reality experiences, and Sponsored Filters, which allow users to interact with an advertiser’s brand by enabling stylized brand artwork to be overlaid on a Snap.
The substantial majority of advertising revenue is generated from the display of advertisements on Snapchat through contractual agreements that are either on a fixed fee basis over a period of time or based on the number of advertising impressions delivered. Revenue related to agreements based on the number of impressions delivered is recognized when the advertisement is served. Revenue related to fixed fee arrangements is recognized ratably over the service period, typically less than 30 days in duration, and such arrangements do not contain minimum impression guarantees.
In arrangements where another party is involved in providing specified services to a customer, we evaluate whether we are the principal or agent. In this evaluation, we consider if we obtain control of the specified goods or services before they are transferred to the customer, as well as other indicators such as the party primarily responsible for fulfillment, inventory risk, and discretion in establishing price. For advertising revenue arrangements where we are not the principal, we recognize revenue on a net basis. For the periods presented, revenue for arrangements where we are the agent was not material.
We also generate revenue from subscriptions and sales of hardware products. For the periods presented, all such revenue was not material.
The following table represents our revenue disaggregated by geography based on the billing address of the advertising customer:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Revenue: | |||||||||||
North America (1) (2) | $ | 632,560 | $ | 749,243 | |||||||
Europe (3) | 155,615 | 159,076 | |||||||||
| Rest of world | 200,433 | 154,408 | |||||||||
| Total revenue | $ | 988,608 | $ | 1,062,727 | |||||||
(1)North America includes Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.
(2)United States revenue was $612.4 million and $727.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
(3)Europe includes Russia and Turkey. Effective March 2022, we halted advertising sales to Russian and Belarusian entities.
3. Net Loss per Share
We compute net loss per share using the two-class method required for multiple classes of common stock. We have three classes of authorized common stock for which voting rights differ by class.
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Basic net loss per share is computed by dividing net loss attributable to each class of stockholders by the weighted-average number of shares of stock outstanding during the period, adjusted for restricted stock awards (“RSAs”) for which the risk of forfeiture has not yet lapsed.
For the calculation of diluted net loss per share, net loss per share attributable to common stockholders for basic net loss per share is adjusted by the effect of dilutive securities, including awards under our equity compensation plans. Diluted net loss per share attributable to common stockholders is computed by dividing the resulting net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted-average number of fully diluted common shares outstanding. We use the if‑converted method for calculating any potential dilutive effect of the convertible senior notes due in 2025, 2026, 2027, and 2028 (collectively, the “Convertible Notes”) on diluted net loss per share. The Convertible Notes would have a dilutive impact on net income per share when the average market price of Class A common stock for a given period exceeds the respective conversion price of the Convertible Notes. For the periods presented, our potentially dilutive shares relating to stock options, restricted stock units (“RSUs”), RSAs, and Convertible Notes were not included in the computation of diluted net loss per share as the effect of including these shares in the calculation would have been anti-dilutive.
The numerators and denominators of the basic and diluted net loss per share computations for our common stock are calculated as follows for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands, except per share data) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Class A | Class B | Class C | Class A | Class B | Class C | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Numerator: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (275,851) | $ | (4,681) | $ | (48,142) | $ | (303,132) | $ | (5,045) | $ | (51,447) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss attributable to common stockholders | $ | (275,851) | $ | (4,681) | $ | (48,142) | $ | (303,132) | $ | (5,045) | $ | (51,447) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Denominator: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Basic shares: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weighted-average common shares - Basic | 1,327,221 | 22,522 | 231,627 | 1,364,772 | 22,714 | 231,627 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Diluted shares: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weighted-average common shares - Diluted | 1,327,221 | 22,522 | 231,627 | 1,364,772 | 22,714 | 231,627 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Net loss per share attributable to common stockholders: | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Basic | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.22) | $ | (0.22) | $ | (0.22) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Diluted | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.21) | $ | (0.22) | $ | (0.22) | $ | (0.22) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
The following potentially dilutive shares were excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share because their effect would have been anti-dilutive for the periods presented:
Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Stock options | 3,155 | 4,132 | |||||||||
| Unvested RSUs and RSAs | 128,086 | 77,793 | |||||||||
| Convertible Notes (if-converted) | 89,379 | 89,379 | |||||||||
4. Stockholders’ Equity
We maintain three share-based employee compensation plans: the 2017 Equity Incentive Plan (“2017 Plan”), the 2014 Equity Incentive Plan (“2014 Plan”), and the 2012 Equity Incentive Plan (“2012 Plan”, and collectively with the 2017 Plan and the 2014 Plan, the “Stock Plans”). The 2017 Plan serves as the successor to the 2014 Plan and 2012 Plan and provides for the grant of incentive stock options to employees, including employees of any parent or subsidiary, and for the grant of nonstatutory stock options, stock appreciation rights, RSAs, RSUs, performance stock awards, performance cash awards, and other forms of stock awards to employees, directors, and consultants, including employees and consultants of our affiliates.
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Restricted Stock Units and Restricted Stock Awards
The following table summarizes the RSU and RSA activity during the three months ended March 31, 2023:
| Class A Number of Shares | Weighted- Average Grant Date Fair Value | ||||||||||
| (in thousands, except per share data) | |||||||||||
| Unvested at December 31, 2022 | 132,392 | $ | 18.28 | ||||||||
| Granted | 23,045 | $ | 10.51 | ||||||||
| Vested | (21,926) | $ | 16.70 | ||||||||
| Forfeited | (5,425) | $ | 20.93 | ||||||||
| Unvested at March 31, 2023 | 128,086 | $ | 17.04 | ||||||||
All RSUs and RSAs vest on the satisfaction of a service-based condition. Total unrecognized compensation cost related to outstanding RSUs and RSAs was $1.8 billion as of March 31, 2023 and is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.9 years. The service condition for RSUs and RSAs is generally satisfied in equal monthly or quarterly installments over to four years.
Stock Options
The following table summarizes the stock option award activity under the Stock Plans during the three months ended March 31, 2023:
| Class A Number of Shares | Class B Number of Shares | Weighted- Average Exercise Price | Weighted- Average Remaining Contractual Term (in years) | Aggregate Intrinsic Value (1) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands, except per share data) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Outstanding at December 31, 2022 | 2,589 | 570 | $ | 9.68 | 4.05 | $ | 9,669 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Granted | — | — | $ | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exercised | (3) | (1) | $ | 7.66 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Forfeited | — | — | $ | — | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Outstanding at March 31, 2023 | 2,586 | 569 | $ | 9.68 | 3.73 | $ | 12,359 | ||||||||||||||||||||||
(1)The aggregate intrinsic value is calculated as the difference between the exercise price of the underlying stock option awards and the closing market price of our Class A common stock as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.
Total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested stock options was $0.5 million as of March 31, 2023 and is expected to be recognized over a weighted-average period of 1.2 years.
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Stock-Based Compensation Expense by Function
Total stock-based compensation expense by function was as follows:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | $ | 1,885 | $ | 2,446 | |||||||
| Research and development | 219,850 | 182,866 | |||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 54,939 | 42,071 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 38,257 | 48,061 | |||||||||
| Total | $ | 314,931 | $ | 275,444 | |||||||
5. Business Acquisitions
For the year ended December 31, 2022, we completed acquisitions to enhance our existing platform, technology, and workforce. The aggregate purchase consideration was $120.5 million, which included $17.7 million in cash, $44.0 million in shares of our Class A common stock, and $58.8 million recorded in other liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. Of the aggregate purchase consideration, $69.3 million was allocated to goodwill and the remainder primarily to identifiable intangible assets. The goodwill amount represents synergies related to our existing platform expected to be realized from the business acquisitions and assembled workforces. Of the acquired goodwill and intangible assets, $101.7 million is deductible for tax purposes.
6. Goodwill and Intangible Assets
The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill for the three months ended March 31, 2023 were as follows:
| Goodwill | |||||
| (in thousands) | |||||
| Balance as of December 31, 2022 | $ | 1,646,120 | |||
| Goodwill acquired | — | ||||
| Foreign currency translation | 2,977 | ||||
| Balance as of March 31, 2023 | $ | 1,649,097 | |||
Intangible assets consisted of the following:
| As of March 31, 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weighted- Average Remaining Useful Life - Years | Gross Carrying Amount | Accumulated Amortization | Net | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands, except years) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domain names | 3.8 | $ | 745 | $ | (497) | $ | 248 | ||||||||||||||||
| Trademarks | 1.0 | 800 | (544) | 256 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Technology | 2.9 | 308,745 | (161,642) | 147,103 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Customer relationships | 5.7 | 21,000 | (7,672) | 13,328 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Patents | 9.0 | 39,373 | (15,958) | 23,415 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Other | 0.8 | 6,000 | (3,626) | 2,374 | |||||||||||||||||||
| $ | 376,663 | $ | (189,939) | $ | 186,724 | ||||||||||||||||||
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| As of December 31, 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Weighted- Average Remaining Useful Life - Years | Gross Carrying Amount | Accumulated Amortization | Net | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands, except years) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Domain names | 4.0 | $ | 954 | $ | (690) | $ | 264 | ||||||||||||||||
| Trademarks | 1.2 | 800 | (478) | 322 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Technology | 3.1 | 340,375 | (178,427) | 161,948 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Customer relationships | 5.7 | 21,000 | (6,641) | 14,359 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Patents | 9.1 | 39,373 | (14,912) | 24,461 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Other | 1.0 | $ | 6,000 | $ | (2,874) | $ | 3,126 | ||||||||||||||||
| $ | 408,502 | $ | (204,022) | $ | 204,480 | ||||||||||||||||||
Amortization of intangible assets was $17.8 million and $22.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
As of March 31, 2023, the estimated intangible asset amortization expense for the next five years and thereafter is as follows:
| Estimated Amortization | |||||
| (in thousands) | |||||
| Remainder of 2023 | $ | 52,363 | |||
| 2024 | 57,177 | ||||
| 2025 | 41,102 | ||||
| 2026 | 16,673 | ||||
| 2027 | 7,293 | ||||
| Thereafter | 12,116 | ||||
| Total | $ | 186,724 | |||
7. Long-Term Debt
Convertible Notes
2028 Notes
In February 2022, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.50 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2028 (the “2028 Notes”) in a private offering to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”). The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2028 Notes were $1.31 billion, net of debt issuance costs and cash used to purchase the capped call transactions (“2028 Capped Call Transactions”) discussed below. The debt issuance costs are amortized to interest expense using the effective interest rate method.
The 2028 Notes are unsecured and unsubordinated obligations. Interest is payable in cash semi-annually in arrears beginning on September 1, 2022 at a rate of 0.125% per year. The 2028 Notes mature on March 1, 2028 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date.
The 2028 Notes are convertible into cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, at our election, at an initial conversion rate of 17.7494 shares of Class A common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2028 Notes, which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $56.34 per share of our Class A common stock. We may redeem for cash all or any portion of the 2028 Notes, at our option, on or after March 5, 2025 based on certain circumstances.
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2027 Notes
In April 2021, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.15 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2027 (the “2027 Notes”) in a private offering to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2027 Notes were $1.05 billion, net of debt issuance costs and cash used to purchase the capped call transactions (the “2027 Capped Call Transactions”) discussed below. The debt issuance costs are amortized to interest expense using the effective interest rate method.
The 2027 Notes are unsecured and unsubordinated obligations which do not bear regular interest and for which the principal balance will not accrete. The 2027 Notes will mature on May 1, 2027 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date.
The 2027 Notes are convertible into cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, at our election, at an initial conversion rate of 11.2042 shares of Class A common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2027 Notes, which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $89.25 per share of our Class A common stock. We may redeem for cash all or portions of the 2027 Notes, at our option, on or after May 5, 2024 based on certain circumstances.
2025 Notes
In April 2020, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.0 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2025 (the “2025 Notes”) in a private offering to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2025 Notes were $888.6 million, net of debt issuance costs and cash used to purchase the capped call transactions (the “2025 Capped Call Transactions”) discussed below. The debt issuance costs are amortized to interest expense using the effective interest rate method.
The 2025 Notes are unsecured and unsubordinated obligations. Interest is payable in cash semi-annually in arrears beginning on November 1, 2020 at a rate of 0.25% per year. The 2025 Notes mature on May 1, 2025 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date.
The 2025 Notes are convertible into cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, at our election, at an initial conversion rate of 46.1233 shares of Class A common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2025 Notes, which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $21.68 per share of our Class A common stock. We may redeem for cash all or portions of the 2025 Notes, at our option, on or after May 6, 2023 based on certain circumstances.
2026 Notes
In August 2019, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.265 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2026 (the “2026 Notes”) in a private offering to qualified institutional buyers pursuant to Rule 144A under the Securities Act. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2026 Notes were $1.15 billion, net of debt issuance costs and cash used to purchase the capped call transactions (the “2026 Capped Call Transactions”) discussed below. The debt issuance costs are amortized to interest expense using the effective interest rate method.
The 2026 Notes are unsecured and unsubordinated obligations. Interest is payable in cash semi-annually in arrears beginning on February 1, 2020 at a rate of 0.75% per year. The 2026 Notes mature on August 1, 2026 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with the terms prior to such date.
The 2026 Notes are convertible into cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, at our election, at an initial conversion rate of 43.8481 shares of Class A common stock per $1,000 principal amount of 2026 Notes, which is equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $22.81 per share of our Class A common stock. We may redeem for cash all or portions of the 2026 Notes, at our option, on or after August 6, 2023 based on certain circumstances.
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The Convertible Notes consisted of the following:
| As of March 31, 2023 | As of December 31, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Principal | Unamortized Debt Issuance Costs | Net Carrying Amount | Principal | Unamortized Debt Issuance Costs | Net Carrying Amount | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2025 Notes | $ | 284,105 | $ | (1,360) | $ | 282,745 | $ | 284,105 | $ | (1,521) | $ | 282,584 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2026 Notes | 838,482 | (4,375) | 834,107 | 838,482 | (4,698) | 833,784 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2027 Notes | 1,150,000 | (8,708) | 1,141,292 | 1,150,000 | (9,239) | 1,140,761 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 2028 Notes | 1,500,000 | (13,907) | 1,486,093 | 1,500,000 | (14,609) | 1,485,391 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | 3,772,587 | $ | (28,350) | $ | 3,744,237 | $ | 3,772,587 | $ | (30,067) | $ | 3,742,520 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
As of March 31, 2023, the debt issuance costs on the 2025 Notes, 2026 Notes, 2027 Notes, and 2028 Notes will be amortized over the remaining period of approximately 2.1 years, 3.3 years, 4.1 years, and 4.9 years, respectively.
Interest expense related to the amortization of debt issuance costs was $1.7 million and $1.4 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. Contractual interest expense was $2.2 million and $2.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
As of March 31, 2023, the if-converted value of the Convertible Notes did not exceed the principal amount. The sale price for conversion was not satisfied as of March 31, 2023 for the Convertible Notes, and as a result, the Convertible Notes will not be eligible for optional conversion during the fourth quarter of 2023. No sinking fund is provided for the Convertible Notes, which means that we are not required to redeem or retire them periodically.
Refer to Note 7 in our consolidated financial statements in the Annual Report for additional details.
Capped Call Transactions
In connection with the pricing of the 2025 Notes, the 2026 Notes, the 2027 Notes, and the 2028 Notes, we entered into the 2025 Capped Call Transactions, the 2026 Capped Call Transactions, the 2027 Capped Call Transactions, and the 2028 Capped Call Transactions (collectively, the “Capped Call Transactions”), respectively, with certain counterparties at a net cost of $100.0 million, $102.1 million, $86.8 million, and $177.0 million, respectively. The cap price of the 2025 Capped Call Transactions, the 2026 Capped Call Transactions, the 2027 Capped Call Transactions, and the 2028 Capped Call Transactions is initially $32.12, $32.58, $121.02, and $93.90 per share of our Class A common stock, respectively. All are subject to certain adjustments under the terms of the Capped Call Transactions. Conditions that cause adjustments to the initial strike price of the Capped Call Transactions mirror conditions that result in corresponding adjustments for the Convertible Notes.
The Capped Call Transactions are intended to reduce potential dilution to holders of our Class A common stock beyond the conversion prices up to the cap prices on any conversion of the Convertible Notes or offset any cash payments we are required to make in excess of the principal amount, as the case may be, with such reduction or offset subject to a cap. The cost of the Capped Call Transactions was recorded as a reduction of our additional paid-in capital in our consolidated balance sheets. The Capped Call Transactions will not be remeasured as long as they continue to meet the conditions for equity classification. As of March 31, 2023, the Capped Call Transactions were out-of-the-money.
Credit Facility
In May 2022, we entered into a five-year senior unsecured revolving credit facility (“Credit Facility”) with certain lenders that allows us to borrow up to $1.05 billion to fund working capital and general corporate-purpose expenditures. Loans bear interest, at our option, at a rate equal to (i) a term secured overnight financing rate (“SOFR”) plus 0.75% or the base rate, if selected by us, for loans made in U.S. dollars, (ii) the Sterling overnight index average plus 0.7826% for loans made in Sterling, and (iii) foreign indices as stated in the credit agreement plus 0.75% for loans made in other permitted foreign currencies. The base rate is defined as the greatest of (i) the Wall Street Journal prime rate, (ii) the greater of the (a) federal funds rate and (b) the overnight bank funding rate, plus 0.50%, and (iii) the applicable SOFR for a period of one month (but not less than zero) plus 1.00. The Credit Facility also contains an annual commitment fee of 0.10% on the daily
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undrawn balance of the facility. As of March 31, 2023, we had $32.1 million in the form of outstanding standby letters of credit, with no amounts outstanding under the Credit Facility.
8. Commitments and Contingencies
Commitments
We have non-cancelable contractual agreements primarily related to the hosting of our data processing, storage, and other computing services, as well as lease, content and developer partner, and other commitments. We had $3.5 billion in commitments as of March 31, 2023, primarily due within three years. For additional discussion on leases, see Note 9 to our consolidated financial statements.
Contingencies
We record a loss contingency when it is probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. We also disclose material contingencies when we believe a loss is not probable but reasonably possible. Accounting for contingencies requires us to use judgment related to both the likelihood of a loss and the estimate of the amount or range of loss. Many legal and tax contingencies can take years to be resolved.
Pending Matters
In November 2021, we and certain of our officers and directors, were named as defendants in a securities class action lawsuit purportedly brought on behalf of purchasers of our Class A common stock, alleging that we and certain of our officers made false or misleading statements and omissions concerning the impact that Apple’s App Tracking Transparency framework would have on our business. We believe we have meritorious defenses to this lawsuit, and continue to defend the lawsuit vigorously. Based on the preliminary nature of the proceedings in this case, the outcome of this matter remains uncertain.
The outcomes of our legal proceedings are inherently unpredictable, subject to significant uncertainties, and could be material to our financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows for a particular period. For the pending matter described above, it is not possible to estimate the reasonably possible loss or range of loss.
We are subject to various other legal proceedings and claims in the ordinary course of business, including certain patent, trademark, privacy, regulatory, and employment matters. Although occasional adverse decisions or settlements may occur, we do not believe that the final disposition of any of our other pending matters will seriously harm our business, financial condition, results of operations, and cash flows.
Indemnifications
In the ordinary course of business, we may provide indemnifications of varying scope and terms to customers, vendors, lessors, investors, directors, officers, employees, and other parties with respect to certain matters. Indemnification may include losses from our breach of such agreements, services we provide, or third party intellectual property infringement claims. These indemnifications may survive termination of the underlying agreement and the maximum potential amount of future indemnification payments may not be subject to a cap. We have not incurred material costs to defend lawsuits or settle claims related to these indemnifications as of March 31, 2023. We believe the fair value of these liabilities is immaterial and accordingly have no liabilities recorded for these agreements at March 31, 2023.
9. Leases
The components of lease cost were as follows:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Operating lease expense | $ | 25,003 | $ | 23,626 | |||||||
| Sublease income | (222) | (673) | |||||||||
| Total net lease costs | $ | 24,781 | $ | 22,953 | |||||||
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The weighted-average remaining lease term (in years) and discount rate related to the operating leases were as follows:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| Weighted-average remaining lease term | 6.3 | 7.0 | |||||||||
| Weighted-average discount rate | 4.8 | % | 4.9 | % | |||||||
The maturities of our operating lease liabilities as of March 31, 2023 were as follows:
| Operating Leases | |||||
| (in thousands) | |||||
| Remainder of 2023 | $ | 43,363 | |||
| 2024 | 103,048 | ||||
| 2025 | 99,141 | ||||
| 2026 | 52,311 | ||||
| 2027 | 37,418 | ||||
| Thereafter | 169,496 | ||||
| Total lease payments | $ | 504,777 | |||
| Less: Imputed interest | (85,464) | ||||
| Present value of lease liabilities | $ | 419,313 | |||
As of March 31, 2023, we had additional operating leases that have not yet commenced for facilities with lease obligations of $42.5 million. These operating leases will commence between 2023 and 2024 with lease terms of approximately 1 year to 10 years.
Cash payments included in the measurement of our operating lease liabilities were $24.2 million and $23.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
Lease liabilities arising from obtaining operating lease right-of-use assets were $1.7 million and $122.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
10. Strategic Investments
We hold strategic investments primarily in privately held companies with a carrying value of $223.3 million and $252.3 million as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, which consist primarily of equity securities, and to a lesser extent, debt securities. These strategic investments are primarily recorded at fair value on a non-recurring basis. The estimation of fair value for these privately held strategic investments requires the use of significant unobservable inputs, such as the issuance of new equity by the company, and as a result, we deem these assets as Level 3 financial instruments within the fair value measurement framework.
Gains and losses recognized during the periods presented were as follows:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Unrealized gains (losses) on investments in privately held companies still held at the reporting date, net | $ | 1,079 | $ | 13,255 | |||||||
Gains and losses on all strategic investments are included within other income (expense), net on our consolidated statements of operations and included as an adjustment to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities in our consolidated statements of cash flows. Strategic investments are included within other assets on our consolidated balance sheets.
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All strategic investments are reviewed periodically for impairment. Impairment expense recorded for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, was not material.
11. Fair Value Measurements
Assets and liabilities measured at fair value are classified into the following categories:
•Level 1: Quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.
•Level 2: Observable market-based inputs or unobservable inputs that are corroborated by market data.
•Level 3: Unobservable inputs reflecting the reporting entity’s own assumptions or external inputs from inactive markets.
We classify our cash equivalents and marketable securities within Level 1 or Level 2 because we use quoted market prices or alternative pricing sources and models utilizing market observable inputs to determine their fair value.
The following tables set forth our financial assets that are measured at fair value on a recurring basis, excluding publicly traded equity securities, as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022:
| March 31, 2023 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cost or Amortized Cost | Gross Unrealized Gains | Gross Unrealized Losses | Total Estimated Fair Value | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cash | $ | 1,447,925 | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 1,447,925 | |||||||||||||||
| Level 1 securities: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| U.S. government securities | 1,688,325 | 3,860 | (5,149) | 1,687,036 | |||||||||||||||||||
| U.S. government agency securities | 266,944 | 299 | (104) | 267,139 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Level 2 securities: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Corporate debt securities | 246,814 | 309 | (789) | 246,334 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Commercial paper | 203,080 | — | (6) | 203,074 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Certificates of deposit | 150,446 | — | — | 150,446 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | 4,003,534 | $ | 4,468 | $ | (6,048) | $ | 4,001,954 | |||||||||||||||
| December 31, 2022 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cost or Amortized Cost | Gross Unrealized Gains | Gross Unrealized Losses | Total Estimated Fair Value | ||||||||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Cash | $ | 1,325,946 | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 1,325,946 | |||||||||||||||
| Level 1 securities: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| U.S. government securities | 1,630,224 | 109 | (9,484) | 1,620,849 | |||||||||||||||||||
| U.S. government agency securities | 175,269 | 19 | (188) | 175,100 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Level 2 securities: | |||||||||||||||||||||||
| Corporate debt securities | 309,942 | 32 | (1,462) | 308,512 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Commercial paper | 290,589 | — | — | 290,589 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Certificates of deposit | 157,965 | — | (1) | 157,964 | |||||||||||||||||||
| Total | $ | 3,889,935 | $ | 160 | $ | (11,135) | $ | 3,878,960 | |||||||||||||||
We hold investments in publicly traded companies with an aggregate carrying value of $101.5 million and $91.5 million as of March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, primarily recorded as marketable securities. We classify these publicly traded equity securities within Level 1 because we use quoted market prices to determine their fair value. Gains and losses recognized during the periods presented, which are included within other income (expense), net on our consolidated statements of operations, were as follows:
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| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Gains (losses) recognized on publicly traded equity securities sold during the period, net | $ | 137 | $ | — | |||||||
| Unrealized gains (losses) on publicly traded equity securities still held at the reporting date, net | 10,594 | (92,140) | |||||||||
| Gains (losses) on publicly traded equity securities, net | $ | 10,731 | $ | (92,140) | |||||||
Gross unrealized losses on marketable debt securities were not material for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively. As of March 31, 2023, we considered any decreases in fair value on our marketable debt securities to be driven by factors other than credit risk, including market risk. As of March 31, 2023, $795.9 million of our total $2.4 billion in marketable debt securities have contractual maturities between and five years. All other marketable debt securities have contractual maturities less than one year.
We carry the Convertible Notes at face value less the unamortized debt issuance costs on our consolidated balance sheets and present the fair value for disclosure purposes only. As of March 31, 2023, the fair value of the 2025 Notes, the 2026 Notes, the 2027 Notes, and the 2028 Notes was $268.0 million, $768.6 million, $839.1 million, and $1.1 billion, respectively. As of December 31, 2022, the fair value of the 2025 Notes, the 2026 Notes, the 2027 Notes, and the 2028 Notes was $257.0 million, $711.9 million, $796.2 million, and $1.0 billion, respectively. The estimated fair value of the Convertible Notes, which are classified as Level 2 financial instruments, was determined based on the estimated or actual bid prices of the Convertible Notes in an over-the-counter market on the last business day of the period.
12. Income Taxes
Our tax provision for interim periods is determined using an estimate of our annual effective tax rate, adjusted for discrete items arising in that quarter. Our effective tax rate differs from the U.S. statutory tax rate primarily due to valuation allowances on our deferred tax assets as it is more likely than not that some or all of our deferred tax assets will not be realized. Income tax expense was $6.8 million and $8.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively.
13. Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)
The table below presents the changes in accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (“AOCI”) by component and the reclassifications out of AOCI:
| Changes in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) by Component | |||||||||||||||||
| Marketable Securities | Foreign Currency Translation | Total | |||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||||||||
| Balance at December 31, 2022 | $ | (11,129) | $ | (2,845) | $ | (13,974) | |||||||||||
| OCI before reclassifications | 9,393 | 2,915 | 12,308 | ||||||||||||||
Amounts reclassified from AOCI (1) | 2 | — | 2 | ||||||||||||||
| Net current period OCI | 9,395 | 2,915 | 12,310 | ||||||||||||||
| Balance at March 31, 2023 | $ | (1,734) | $ | 70 | $ | (1,664) | |||||||||||
(1)Realized gains and losses on marketable securities are reclassified from AOCI into other income (expense), net in our consolidated statements of operations.
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14. Property and Equipment, Net
The following table lists property and equipment, net by geographic area:
| As of March 31, 2023 | As of December 31, 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Property and equipment, net: | |||||||||||
| United States | $ | 224,601 | $ | 214,857 | |||||||
| United Kingdom | 54,914 | 36,774 | |||||||||
Rest of world (1) | 23,507 | 20,146 | |||||||||
| Total property and equipment, net | $ | 303,022 | $ | 271,777 | |||||||
(1)No individual country exceeded 10% of our total property and equipment, net for any period presented.
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Item 2. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements and related notes included elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and with our audited consolidated financial statements included in our Annual Report. In addition to historical consolidated financial information, the following discussion contains forward-looking statements that reflect our plans, estimates, and beliefs that involve significant risks and uncertainties. Our actual results could differ materially from those discussed in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to those differences include those discussed below and elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, particularly in “Risk Factors,” “Note Regarding Forward-Looking Statements,” and “Note Regarding User Metrics and Other Data.”
Overview of First Quarter 2023 Results
Our key user metrics and financial results for the first quarter of 2023 were as follows:
User Metrics
•Daily Active Users, or DAUs, increased 15% year-over-year to 383 million in Q1 2023.
•Average revenue per user, or ARPU, was $2.58 in Q1 2023, compared to $3.20 in Q1 2022.
Financial Results
•Revenue was $988.6 million in Q1 2023, compared to $1,062.7 million in Q1 2022.
•Total costs and expenses were $1,353.9 million in Q1 2023, compared to $1,334.3 million in Q1 2022.
•Net loss was $328.7 million in Q1 2023, compared to $359.6 million in Q1 2022.
•Diluted net loss per share was $(0.21) in Q1 2023, compared to $(0.22) in Q1 2022.
•Adjusted EBITDA was $0.8 million in Q1 2023, compared to $64.5 million in Q1 2022.
•Cash provided by operating activities was $151.1 million in Q1 2023, compared to $127.5 million in Q1 2022.
•Free Cash Flow was $103.5 million in Q1 2023, compared to $106.3 million in Q1 2022.
•Cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $4.1 billion as of March 31, 2023.
Business and Macroeconomic Conditions
In 2022 we realigned our priorities and we expect to continue to focus on our three strategic priorities: growing our community and deepening their engagement with our products, accelerating and diversifying our revenue growth, and investing in the future of augmented reality. We believe that we can be successful in our current operating environment, with various macroeconomic factors impacting our business, by rigorously prioritizing our investments and continuing to engage our community with our products while driving success for our advertising partners. However, the impact of this strategic reprioritization is difficult to predict.
Macroeconomic factors such as labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, inflation, changes in interest and foreign currency exchange rates, banking instability, and other risks and uncertainties, including the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and the conflict in Ukraine, continue to cause logistical challenges, increased input costs, and inventory constraints for our advertisers, which in turn may cause our advertisers to halt or decrease advertising spending on our platform. Such macroeconomic factors may also negatively impact, in the short-term or long-term, the global economy, advertising ecosystem, our customers and their budgets with us, user engagement, other user metrics, and our business, financial condition, and results of operations.
In addition, competition for advertising dollars has increased and demand growth on our advertising platform has slowed. We expect to continue to experience increased competition, which may result in reduced advertising demand, and could adversely affect our revenue growth, pricing, business, financial condition, and results of operations. Demand has also been disrupted by recent changes we made to our advertising platform, and, in the future, we may continue to experience adverse impacts to our revenue growth as a result of these changes.
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Our revenue, particularly in North America, has further been impacted by platform policy changes and restrictions that affected our targeting, measurement, and optimization capabilities, and in turn our ability to measure the effectiveness of advertisements on our services. This has resulted in, and in the future is likely to continue to result in, reduced advertising revenue, especially if we are unable to mitigate these developments.
We compete with other companies in every aspect of our business. We must compete effectively for users and advertisers to grow our business and increase our revenue. These and other risks and uncertainties are further described in the section titled “Risk Factors” in Part II, Item 1A of this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Trends in User Metrics
We define a DAU as a registered Snapchat user who opens the Snapchat application at least once during a defined 24-hour period. We define ARPU as quarterly revenue divided by the average DAUs. We assess the health of our business by measuring DAUs and ARPU because we believe that these metrics are important ways for both management and investors to understand engagement and monitor the performance of our platform. We also measure ARPU because we believe that this metric helps our management and investors to assess the extent to which we are monetizing our service.
User Engagement
We calculate average DAUs for a particular quarter by adding the number of DAUs on each day of that quarter and dividing that sum by the number of days in that quarter. DAUs are broken out by geography because markets have different characteristics. We had 383 million DAUs on average in the first quarter of 2023, an increase of 51 million, or 15%, from the first quarter of 2022.
Quarterly Average Daily Active Users (in millions) | ||||||||
| Global | ||||||||
| YOY growth: | 20% | 17% | 18% | 22% | 22% | 23% | 23% | 20% | 18% | 18% | 19% | 17% | 15% | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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North America (1) | Europe (2) | |||||||||||||
| YOY growth: | 10% | 9% | 7% | 6% | 5% | 6% | 7% | 6% | 5% | 4% | 4% | 3% | 3% | 14% | 12% | 10% | 10% | 9% | 10% | 11% | 11% | 10% | 10% | 11% | 12% | 10% | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
(1)North America includes Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.
(2)Europe includes Russia and Turkey.
| Rest of World | ||||||||
| YOY growth: | 45 | % | 37 | % | 43 | % | 55 | % | 57 | % | 55 | % | 49 | % | 41 | % | 36 | % | 35 | % | 34 | % | 31 | % | 27 | % | ||||||||||||||||||
Monetization
We recorded revenue of $988.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, compared to revenue of $1,062.7 million for the same period in 2022, a decrease of 7% year-over-year. We monetize our business primarily through advertising. Our advertising products include Snap Ads and AR Ads.
We measure our business using ARPU because it helps us understand the rate at which we are monetizing our daily user base. ARPU was $2.58 in the first quarter of 2023, compared to $3.20 in the first quarter of 2022. For purposes of calculating ARPU, revenue by user geography is apportioned to each region based on a determination of the geographic location in which advertising impressions are delivered, as this approximates revenue based on user activity. This differs from the presentation of our revenue by geography in the notes to our consolidated financial statements, where revenue is based on the billing address of the advertising customer.
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Quarterly Average Revenue per User | ||||||||
| Global | ||||||||
North America (1) | Europe (2) | |||||||||||||
(1)North America includes Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central America.
(2)Europe includes Russia and Turkey. Effective March 2022, we halted advertising sales to Russian and Belarusian entities.
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| Rest of World | ||||||||
Results of Operations
The following table summarizes certain selected historical financial results:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 988,608 | $ | 1,062,727 | |||||||
| Operating loss | $ | (365,264) | $ | (271,527) | |||||||
| Net loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
Adjusted EBITDA (1) | $ | 813 | $ | 64,468 | |||||||
(1)For information on how we define and calculate Adjusted EBITDA, and a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA, see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”
Components of Results of Operations
Revenue
We generate substantially all of our revenue through the sale of our advertising products, which primarily include Snap Ads and AR Ads, referred to as advertising revenue. Snap Ads may be subject to revenue sharing arrangements between us and the media partner. We also generate revenue from sales of hardware products. This revenue is reported net of allowances for returns.
Cost of Revenue
Cost of revenue consists of payments to third-party infrastructure partners for hosting our products, which include expenses related to storage, computing, and bandwidth costs, and payments for content, developer, and advertiser partner costs. In addition, cost of revenue includes third-party selling costs and personnel-related costs, including salaries, benefits, and stock-based compensation expenses. Cost of revenue also includes facilities and other supporting overhead costs, including depreciation and amortization, and inventory costs.
Research and Development Expenses
Research and development expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs, including salaries, benefits, and stock-based compensation expense for our engineers, designers, and other employees engaged in the research and development of our products. In addition, research and development expenses include facilities and other supporting overhead costs, including depreciation and amortization. Research and development costs are expensed as incurred.
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Sales and Marketing Expenses
Sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs, including salaries, benefits, commissions, and stock-based compensation expense for our employees engaged in sales and sales support, business development, media, marketing, corporate partnerships, and customer service functions. Sales and marketing expenses also include costs incurred for advertising, market research, tradeshows, branding, marketing, promotional expense, and public relations, as well as facilities and other supporting overhead costs, including depreciation and amortization.
General and Administrative Expenses
General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel-related costs, including salaries, benefits, and stock-based compensation expense for our finance, legal, information technology, human resources, and other administrative teams. General and administrative expenses also include facilities and supporting overhead costs, including depreciation and amortization, and external professional services.
Interest Income
Interest income consists primarily of interest earned on our cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities.
Interest Expense
Interest expense consists primarily of interest expense associated with convertible notes and commitment fees related to our revolving credit facility.
Other Income (Expense), Net
Other income (expense), net primarily consists of gains and losses on strategic investments, marketable securities, and foreign currency transactions.
Income Tax Benefit (Expense)
We are subject to income taxes in the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. These foreign jurisdictions have different statutory tax rates than the United States. Additionally, certain of our foreign earnings may also be taxable in the United States. Accordingly, our effective tax rates will vary depending on the relative proportion of foreign to domestic income, use of tax credits, changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, and changes in tax laws.
Adjusted EBITDA
We define Adjusted EBITDA as net income (loss), excluding interest income; interest expense; other income (expense), net; income tax benefit (expense); depreciation and amortization; stock-based compensation expense; payroll and other tax expense related to stock-based compensation; and certain other non-cash or non-recurring items impacting net income (loss) from time to time. We consider the exclusion of certain non-cash and non-recurring expenses in calculating Adjusted EBITDA to provide a useful measure for period-to-period comparisons of our business and for investors and others to evaluate our operating results in the same manner as does our management. See “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for additional information and a reconciliation of net loss to Adjusted EBITDA.
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Discussion of Results of Operations
The following table sets forth our consolidated statements of operations data:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Consolidated Statements of Operations Data: | |||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 988,608 | $ | 1,062,727 | |||||||
Costs and expenses (1) (2): | |||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | 439,986 | 420,897 | |||||||||
| Research and development | 455,112 | 455,563 | |||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 268,433 | 241,886 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 190,341 | 215,908 | |||||||||
| Total costs and expenses | 1,353,872 | 1,334,254 | |||||||||
| Operating loss | (365,264) | (271,527) | |||||||||
| Interest income | 37,948 | 3,123 | |||||||||
| Interest expense | (5,885) | (5,173) | |||||||||
| Other income (expense), net | 11,372 | (77,537) | |||||||||
| Loss before income taxes | (321,829) | (351,114) | |||||||||
| Income tax benefit (expense) | (6,845) | (8,510) | |||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
Adjusted EBITDA (3) | $ | 813 | $ | 64,468 | |||||||
(1)Stock-based compensation expense included in the above line items:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Stock-based compensation expense: | |||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | $ | 1,885 | $ | 2,446 | |||||||
| Research and development | 219,850 | 182,866 | |||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 54,939 | 42,071 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 38,257 | 48,061 | |||||||||
| Total | $ | 314,931 | $ | 275,444 | |||||||
(2)Depreciation and amortization expense included in the above line items:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization expense: | |||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | $ | 3,226 | $ | 5,512 | |||||||
| Research and development | 24,139 | 22,123 | |||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 5,073 | 7,392 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 2,782 | 3,073 | |||||||||
| Total | $ | 35,220 | $ | 38,100 | |||||||
(3)See “Non-GAAP Financial Measures” for more information and for a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net loss, the most directly comparable financial measure calculated and presented in accordance with GAAP.
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The following table sets forth the components of our consolidated statements of operations data for each of the periods presented as a percentage of revenue:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| Consolidated Statements of Operations Data: | |||||||||||
| Revenue | 100 | % | 100 | % | |||||||
| Costs and expenses: | |||||||||||
| Cost of revenue | 45 | 40 | |||||||||
| Research and development | 46 | 43 | |||||||||
| Sales and marketing | 27 | 23 | |||||||||
| General and administrative | 19 | 20 | |||||||||
| Total costs and expenses | 137 | 126 | |||||||||
| Operating loss | (37) | (26) | |||||||||
| Interest income | 4 | — | |||||||||
| Interest expense | — | — | |||||||||
| Other income (expense), net | 1 | (7) | |||||||||
| Loss before income taxes | (32) | (33) | |||||||||
| Income tax benefit (expense) | (1) | (1) | |||||||||
| Net loss | (33) | % | (34) | % | |||||||
Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and 2022
Revenue
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Revenue | $ | 988,608 | $ | 1,062,727 | |||||||
| Revenue as a dollar change | $ | (74,119) | |||||||||
| Revenue as a percentage change | (7) | % | |||||||||
Revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2023 decreased $74.1 million compared to the same period in 2022. Revenue decreased due to a reduction in advertiser spend and auction-based advertising demand.
Cost of Revenue
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Cost of Revenue | $ | 439,986 | $ | 420,897 | |||||||
| Cost of Revenue as a dollar change | $ | 19,089 | |||||||||
| Cost of Revenue as a percentage change | 5 | % | |||||||||
Cost of revenue for the three months ended March 31, 2023 increased $19.1 million compared to the same period in 2022. The increase was primarily driven by the growth in revenue share due to the higher mix of revenue subject to revenue share and increased infrastructure costs attributable to DAU growth. The increase was partially offset by infrastructure cost efficiencies and lower content, advertising partner, and other costs.
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Research and Development Expenses
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Research and Development Expenses | $ | 455,112 | $ | 455,563 | |||||||
| Research and Development Expenses as a dollar change | $ | (451) | |||||||||
| Research and Development Expenses as a percentage change | — | % | |||||||||
Research and development expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2023 decreased $0.5 million compared to the same period in 2022. The decrease was primarily driven by lower cash-based compensation expenses due to decreased headcount compared to the prior period, offset by higher stock-based compensation expenses.
Sales and Marketing Expenses
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Sales and Marketing Expenses | $ | 268,433 | $ | 241,886 | |||||||
| Sales and Marketing Expenses as a dollar change | $ | 26,547 | |||||||||
| Sales and Marketing Expenses as a percentage change | 11 | % | |||||||||
Sales and marketing expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2023 increased $26.5 million compared to the same period in 2022. The increase was primarily driven by marketing investments and higher stock-based compensation expenses, partially offset by lower cash-based compensation expenses due to decreased headcount compared to the prior period.
General and Administrative Expenses
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| General and Administrative Expenses | $ | 190,341 | $ | 215,908 | |||||||
| General and Administrative Expenses as a dollar change | $ | (25,567) | |||||||||
| General and Administrative Expenses as a percentage change | (12) | % | |||||||||
General and administrative expenses for the three months ended March 31, 2023 decreased $25.6 million compared to the same period in 2022. The decrease was primarily driven by lower personnel expenses due to decreased headcount, including lower cash- and stock-based compensation expense.
Interest Income
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| (NM = Not Meaningful) | |||||||||||
| Interest Income | $ | 37,948 | $ | 3,123 | |||||||
| Interest Income as a dollar change | $ | 34,825 | |||||||||
| Interest Income as a percentage change | NM | ||||||||||
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Interest income for the three months ended March 31, 2023 increased $34.8 million compared to the same period in 2022. The increase was primarily a result of higher interest rates on U.S. government-backed securities, offset by a lower overall invested cash balance.
Interest Expense
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Interest Expense | $ | (5,885) | $ | (5,173) | |||||||
| Interest Expense as a dollar change | $ | (712) | |||||||||
| Interest Expense as a percentage change | 14 | % | |||||||||
Interest expense for the three months ended March 31, 2023 increased $0.7 million compared to the same period in 2022, primarily due to increases in amortization of debt issuance costs and contractual interest expense.
Other Income (Expense), Net
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Other Income (Expense), Net | $ | 11,372 | $ | (77,537) | |||||||
| Other Income (Expense), Net as a dollar change | $ | 88,909 | |||||||||
| Other Income (Expense), Net as a percentage change | 115 | % | |||||||||
Other income, net for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $11.4 million compared to other expense, net of $77.5 million in the same period in 2022. Other income, net for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was primarily a result of $10.7 million total gains on publicly traded securities classified as marketable securities and $1.1 million unrealized gains on strategic investments. Other expense, net for the three months ended March 31, 2022 was primarily a result of a $92.1 million unrealized loss on publicly traded securities classified as marketable securities, offset by a $13.3 million unrealized gain on strategic investments.
Income Tax Benefit (Expense)
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Income Tax Benefit (Expense) | $ | (6,845) | $ | (8,510) | |||||||
| Income Tax Benefit (Expense) as a dollar change | $ | 1,665 | |||||||||
| Income Tax Benefit (Expense) as a percentage change | 20 | % | |||||||||
| Effective Tax Rate | (2.1) | % | (2.4) | % | |||||||
Income tax expense for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $6.8 million compared to $8.5 million for the same period in 2022. Our effective tax rate differs from the U.S. statutory tax rate primarily due to valuation allowances on our deferred tax assets as it is more likely than not that some or all of our deferred tax assets will not be realized.
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Net Loss and Adjusted EBITDA
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (dollars in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Net Loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
| Net Loss as a dollar change | $ | 30,950 | |||||||||
| Net Loss as a percentage change | 9 | % | |||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 813 | $ | 64,468 | |||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA as a dollar change | $ | (63,655) | |||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA as a percentage change | (99) | % | |||||||||
Net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $328.7 million compared to $359.6 million for the same period in 2022. Adjusted EBITDA for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was $0.8 million compared to $64.5 million for the same period in 2022. The decrease in Adjusted EBITDA was attributable to decreased revenues and increased cost of revenue and sales and marketing expenses, partially offset by decreased research and development expenses and general and administrative expenses.
For a discussion of the limitations associated with using Adjusted EBITDA rather than GAAP measures and a reconciliation of this measure to net loss, see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”
Liquidity and Capital Resources
Cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities were $4.1 billion as of March 31, 2023, primarily consisting of cash on deposit with banks and highly liquid investments in U.S. government and agency securities, publicly traded equity securities, corporate debt securities, certificates of deposit, and commercial paper. Our primary source of liquidity is cash generated through financing activities. Our primary uses of cash include operating costs such as personnel-related costs and the infrastructure costs of the Snapchat application, facility-related capital spending, and acquisitions and investments. There are no known material subsequent events that could have a material impact on our cash or liquidity. We may contemplate and engage in merger and acquisition activity that could materially impact our liquidity and capital resource position.
Deferred purchase consideration of $238.4 million for our 2021 acquisition of Wave Optics Limited is due in May 2023 and is included in accrued expenses and other current liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. The payment is due in either cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, at our election. We currently intend to make this payment in cash.
In May 2022, we entered into a five-year senior unsecured revolving credit facility, or Credit Facility, with certain lenders that allows us to borrow up to $1.05 billion to fund working capital and general corporate-purpose expenditures. Loans bear interest, at our option, at a rate equal to (i) a term secured overnight financing rate, or SOFR, plus 0.75% or the base rate, if selected by us, for loans made in U.S. dollars, (ii) the Sterling overnight index average plus 0.7826% for loans made in Sterling, and (iii) foreign indices as stated in the credit agreement plus 0.75% for loans made in other permitted foreign currencies. The base rate is defined as the greatest of (i) the Wall Street Journal prime rate, (ii) the greater of the (a) federal funds rate and (b) the overnight bank funding rate, plus 0.50%, and (iii) the applicable SOFR for a period of one month (but not less than zero) plus 1.00. The Credit Facility also contains an annual commitment fee of 0.10% on the daily undrawn balance of the facility. As of March 31, 2023, we had $32.1 million in the form of outstanding standby letters of credit, with no amounts outstanding under the Credit Facility.
In February 2022, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.5 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2028. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2028 Notes were $1.31 billion, net of debt issuance costs and the 2028 Capped Call Transactions discussed further in Note 7. The 2028 Notes mature on March 1, 2028 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date. The sale price requirement for conversion was not satisfied as of March 31, 2023 and as a result, the 2028 Notes will not be eligible for optional conversion during the second quarter of 2023.
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In April 2021, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.15 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2027. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2027 Notes were $1.05 billion, net of debt issuance costs and the 2027 Capped Call Transactions discussed further in Note 7. The 2027 Notes mature on May 1, 2027 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date. The sale price requirement for conversion was not satisfied as of March 31, 2023 and as a result, the 2027 Notes will not be eligible for optional conversion during the second quarter of 2023.
In April 2020, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.0 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2025. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2025 Notes were $888.6 million, net of debt issuance costs and the 2025 Capped Call Transactions discussed further in Note 7. The 2025 Notes mature on May 1, 2025 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date. The sale price requirement for conversion was not satisfied as of March 31, 2023 and as a result, the 2025 Notes will not be eligible for optional conversion during the second quarter of 2023.
In August 2019, we entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of an aggregate of $1.265 billion principal amount of convertible senior notes due in 2026. The net proceeds from the issuance of the 2026 Notes were $1.15 billion, net of debt issuance costs and the 2026 Capped Call Transactions discussed further in Note 7. The 2026 Notes mature on August 1, 2026 unless repurchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with their terms prior to such date. The sale price requirement for conversion was not satisfied as of March 31, 2023 and as a result, the 2026 Notes will not be eligible for optional conversion during the second quarter of 2023.
We believe our existing cash balance is sufficient to fund our ongoing working capital, investing, and financing requirements for at least the next 12 months. Our future capital requirements will depend on many factors including our growth rate, headcount, sales and marketing activities, research and development efforts, the introduction of new features, products, and acquisitions, and continued user engagement. We continually evaluate opportunities to issue or repurchase equity or debt securities, obtain, retire, or restructure credit facilities or financing arrangements, or declare dividends for strategic reasons or to further strengthen our financial position.
As of March 31, 2023, approximately 5% of our cash, cash equivalents, and marketable securities was held outside the United States. These amounts were primarily held in the United Kingdom and are utilized to fund our foreign operations. Cash held outside the United States may be repatriated, subject to certain limitations, and would be available to be used to fund our domestic operations. However, repatriation of funds may result in additional tax liabilities. We believe our existing cash balance in the United States is sufficient to fund our working capital needs.
The following table sets forth the major components of our consolidated statements of cash flows for the periods presented:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities | $ | 151,102 | $ | 127,459 | |||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) investing activities | 5,838 | (1,017,665) | |||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) financing activities | (1,999) | 1,308,766 | |||||||||
| Change in cash, cash equivalents, and restricted cash | $ | 154,941 | $ | 418,560 | |||||||
Free Cash Flow (1) | $ | 103,472 | $ | 106,284 | |||||||
(1)For information on how we define and calculate Free Cash Flow and a reconciliation to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities to Free Cash Flow, see “Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”
Three Months Ended March 31, 2023 and 2022
Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Operating Activities
Net cash provided by operating activities was $151.1 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, compared to $127.5 million for the same period in 2022, resulting primarily from our net loss, adjusted for non-cash items, including stock-based compensation expense of $314.9 million. Net cash provided by operating activities for the three months ended March 31, 2023 was also driven by a decrease in the accounts receivable balance of $288.4 million due to
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higher collections and a reduction in billings in the period, partially offset by a $90.2 million decrease in accrued expenses and other current liabilities, primarily due to the timing of payments.
Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Investing Activities
Net cash provided by investing activities was $5.8 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, compared to net cash used in investing activities of $1.0 billion for the same period in 2022. Our investing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2023 primarily consisted of maturities of marketable securities of $924.3 million, partially offset by purchases of marketable securities of $874.1 million. Net cash used in investing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2022 consisted mainly of the purchase of marketable securities of $1.3 billion, partially offset by maturities of marketable securities of $342.5 million.
Net Cash Provided by (Used in) Financing Activities
Net cash used in financing activities was $2.0 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to net cash provided by financing activities of $1.3 billion for the same period in 2022. Our financing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2023 were not material. Our financing activities for the three months ended March 31, 2022 consisted primarily of net proceeds of $1.5 billion from the issuance of the 2028 Notes, offset by the purchase of the 2028 Capped Call Transactions of $177.0 million.
Free Cash Flow
Free Cash Flow was $103.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023, compared to $106.3 million for the same period in 2022, and was composed of net cash provided by (used in) operating activities, resulting primarily from net loss, adjusted for non-cash items and changes in working capital. Free Cash Flow also included purchases of property and equipment of $47.6 million for the three months ended March 31, 2023 compared to $21.2 million for the same period in 2022. See “Non-GAAP Financial Measures.”
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
To supplement our consolidated financial statements, which are prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP, we use certain non-GAAP financial measures, as described below, to understand and evaluate our core operating performance. These non-GAAP financial measures, which may be different than similarly titled measures used by other companies, are presented to enhance investors’ overall understanding of our financial performance and should not be considered a substitute for, or superior to, the financial information prepared and presented in accordance with GAAP.
We use the non-GAAP financial measure of Free Cash Flow, which is defined as net cash provided by (used in) operating activities, reduced by purchases of property and equipment. We believe Free Cash Flow is an important liquidity measure of the cash that is available, after capital expenditures, for operational expenses and investment in our business and is a key financial indicator used by management. Additionally, we believe that Free Cash Flow is an important measure since we use third-party infrastructure partners to host our services and therefore we do not incur significant capital expenditures to support revenue generating activities. Free Cash Flow is useful to investors as a liquidity measure because it measures our ability to generate or use cash. Once our business needs and obligations are met, cash can be used to maintain a strong balance sheet and invest in future growth.
We use the non-GAAP financial measure of Adjusted EBITDA, which is defined as net income (loss); excluding interest income; interest expense; other income (expense), net; income tax benefit (expense); depreciation and amortization; stock-based compensation expense; payroll and other tax expense related to stock-based compensation; and certain other non-cash or non-recurring items impacting net income (loss) from time to time. We believe that Adjusted EBITDA helps identify underlying trends in our business that could otherwise be masked by the effect of the expenses that we exclude in Adjusted EBITDA.
We believe that both Free Cash Flow and Adjusted EBITDA provide useful information about our financial performance, enhance the overall understanding of our past performance and future prospects, and allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics used by our management for financial and operational decision-making. We are presenting the non-GAAP measures of Free Cash Flow and Adjusted EBITDA to assist investors in seeing our financial performance through the eyes of management, and because we believe that these measures provide an additional tool for investors to use in comparing our core financial performance over multiple periods with other companies in our industry.
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These non-GAAP financial measures should not be considered in isolation from, or as substitutes for, financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP. There are a number of limitations related to the use of these non-GAAP financial measures compared to the closest comparable GAAP measure. Some of these limitations are that:
•Free Cash Flow does not reflect our future contractual commitments.
•Adjusted EBITDA excludes certain recurring, non-cash charges such as depreciation of fixed assets and amortization of acquired intangible assets and, although these are non-cash charges, the assets being depreciated and amortized may have to be replaced in the future;
•Adjusted EBITDA excludes stock-based compensation expense and payroll and other tax expense related to stock-based compensation, which have been, and will continue to be for the foreseeable future, significant recurring expenses in our business and an important part of our compensation strategy; and
•Adjusted EBITDA excludes income tax benefit (expense).
The following table presents a reconciliation of Free Cash Flow to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities, the most comparable GAAP financial measure, for each of the periods presented:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Free Cash Flow reconciliation: | |||||||||||
| Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities | $ | 151,102 | $ | 127,459 | |||||||
| Less: | |||||||||||
| Purchases of property and equipment | (47,630) | (21,175) | |||||||||
| Free Cash Flow | $ | 103,472 | $ | 106,284 | |||||||
The following table presents a reconciliation of Adjusted EBITDA to net loss, the most comparable GAAP financial measure, for each of the periods presented:
| Three Months Ended March 31, | |||||||||||
| 2023 | 2022 | ||||||||||
| (in thousands) | |||||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA reconciliation: | |||||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (328,674) | $ | (359,624) | |||||||
| Add (deduct): | |||||||||||
| Interest income | (37,948) | (3,123) | |||||||||
| Interest expense | 5,885 | 5,173 | |||||||||
| Other (income) expense, net | (11,372) | 77,537 | |||||||||
| Income tax (benefit) expense | 6,845 | 8,510 | |||||||||
| Depreciation and amortization | 35,220 | 38,100 | |||||||||
| Stock-based compensation expense | 314,931 | 275,444 | |||||||||
| Payroll and other tax expense related to stock-based compensation | 15,926 | 22,451 | |||||||||
| Adjusted EBITDA | $ | 813 | $ | 64,468 | |||||||
Contingencies
We are involved in claims, lawsuits, tax matters, government investigations, and proceedings arising in the ordinary course of our business. We record a provision for a liability when we believe that it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount can be reasonably estimated. We also disclose material contingencies when we believe that a loss is not probable but reasonably possible. Significant judgment is required to determine both probability and the estimated amount. Such claims, suits, and proceedings are inherently unpredictable and subject to significant uncertainties, some of which are beyond our control. Many of these legal and tax contingencies can take years to resolve. Should any of
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these estimates and assumptions change or prove to be incorrect, it could have a material impact on our results of operations, financial position, and cash flows.
Commitments
We have non-cancelable contractual agreements primarily related to the hosting of our data processing, storage, and other computing services, as well as lease, content and developer partner, and other commitments. We had $3.5 billion in commitments, as of March 31, 2023, primarily due within three years. For additional discussion on our leases see Note 9 to our consolidated financial statements included elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
We prepare our financial statements in accordance with GAAP. Preparing these financial statements requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenue, expenses, and related disclosures. We evaluate our estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. Our estimates are based on historical experience and various other assumptions that we believe to be reasonable under the circumstances. Our actual results could differ from these estimates.
The critical accounting estimates, assumptions, and judgments that we believe to have the most significant impact on our consolidated financial statements are revenue recognition, stock-based compensation, business combinations and valuation of goodwill and other acquired intangible assets, loss contingencies, and income taxes.
There have been no material changes to our critical accounting policies and estimates as described in our Annual Report.
Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures About Market Risk
We are exposed to market risks in the ordinary course of our business. These risks primarily include interest rate risk and foreign currency risk as follows:
Interest Rate Risk
We had cash and cash equivalents totaling $1.6 billion and $1.4 billion at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. We had marketable securities totaling $2.5 billion and $2.5 billion at March 31, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. Our cash and cash equivalents consist of cash in bank accounts and marketable securities consisting of U.S. government debt and agency securities, publicly traded equity securities, corporate debt securities, certificates of deposit, and commercial paper. The primary objectives of our investment activities are to preserve principal and provide liquidity without significantly increasing risk. We do not enter into investments for trading or speculative purposes. Due to the relatively short-term nature of our investment portfolio, a hypothetical 100 basis point change in interest rates would not have a material effect on the fair value of our portfolio for the periods presented.
In February 2022, we issued the 2028 Notes with an aggregate principal amount of $1.5 billion, the full amount of which is outstanding as of March 31, 2023. We carry the 2028 Notes at face value less the unamortized debt issuance costs on our consolidated balance sheets. The 2028 Notes have a fixed interest rate; therefore, we have no financial statement risk associated with changes in interest rates with respect to the 2028 Notes. The fair value of the 2028 Notes changes when the market price of our stock fluctuates or market interest rates change.
In April 2021, we issued the 2027 Notes with an aggregate principal amount of $1.15 billion, the full amount of which is outstanding as of March 31, 2023. We carry the 2027 Notes at face value less the unamortized debt issuance costs on our consolidated balance sheets. The 2027 Notes do not bear regular interest; therefore, we have no financial statement risk associated with changes in interest rates with respect to the 2027 Notes. The fair value of the 2027 Notes changes when the market price of our stock fluctuates or market interest rates change.
In April 2020, we issued the 2025 Notes with an aggregate principal amount of $1.0 billion, of which $284.1 million remains outstanding as of March 31, 2023. We carry the 2025 Notes at face value less the unamortized debt issuance costs on our consolidated balance sheets. The 2025 Notes have a fixed interest rate; therefore, we have no financial statement risk associated with changes in interest rates with respect to the 2025 Notes. The fair value of the 2025 Notes changes when the market price of our stock fluctuates or market interest rates change.
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In August 2019, we issued the 2026 Notes with an aggregate principal amount of $1.265 billion, of which $838.5 million remains outstanding as of March 31, 2023. We carry the 2026 Notes at face value less the unamortized debt issuance costs on our consolidated balance sheets. The 2026 Notes have a fixed interest rate; therefore, we have no financial statement risk associated with changes in interest rates with respect to the 2026 Notes. The fair value of the 2026 Notes changes when the market price of our stock fluctuates or market interest rates change.
Foreign Currency Risk
For all periods presented, our revenue and operating expenses were predominately denominated in U.S. dollars. We therefore have not had material foreign currency risk associated with revenue and cost-based activities. However, due to fluctuations in exchange rates, we have, and may in the future experience negative impacts to our revenue and operating expenses denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. The functional currency of our material operating entities is the U.S. dollar.
For the periods presented, we believe the exposure to foreign currency fluctuation from operating expenses is immaterial as the related costs do not constitute a significant portion of our total expenses. As we grow operations, our exposure to foreign currency risk will likely become more significant.
For the periods presented, we did not enter into any foreign currency exchange contracts. We may, however, enter into foreign currency exchange contracts for purposes of hedging foreign exchange rate fluctuations on our business operations in future operating periods as our exposures are deemed to be material. For additional discussion on foreign currency risk, see “Risk Factors” elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
Item 4. Controls and Procedures
Evaluation of Disclosure Controls and Procedures
Our management, with the participation of our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, has evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rules 13a-15(e) and 15d-15(e) under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended), as of the end of the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Based on such evaluation, our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer have concluded that, as of March 31, 2023, our disclosure controls and procedures were effective to provide reasonable assurance that the information required to be disclosed by us in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q was (a) reported within the time periods specified by SEC rules and regulations, and (b) communicated to our management, including our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer, to allow timely decisions regarding any required disclosure.
Changes in Internal Control
There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting identified in management’s evaluation pursuant to Rules 13a-15(d) or 15d-15(d) of the Exchange Act during the period covered by this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
Limitations on Effectiveness of Controls and Procedures
In designing and evaluating the disclosure controls and procedures, management recognizes that any controls and procedures, no matter how well designed and operated, can provide only reasonable assurance of achieving the desired control objectives. In addition, the design of disclosure controls and procedures must reflect the fact that there are resource constraints and that management is required to apply judgment in evaluating the benefits of possible controls and procedures relative to their costs.
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PART II - OTHER INFORMATION
Item 1. Legal Proceedings
On November 11, 2021, we, and certain of our officers, were named as defendants in a federal securities class action lawsuit filed in the U.S. District Court Central District of California. The lawsuit was purportedly brought on behalf of purchasers of our Class A common stock. The lawsuit alleges that we and certain of our officers made false or misleading statements and omissions concerning the impact that Apple’s App Tracking Transparency framework would have on our business. Defendants seek monetary damages and other relief.
On August 2, 2022, we, and certain of our directors, were named as defendants in a class action lawsuit in Delaware Chancery Court purportedly brought on behalf of Class A stockholders, alleging that a transaction between our co-founders and us, in which our co-founders agreed to employment agreements and we agreed to amend our certificate of incorporation and issue a stock dividend if certain conditions were met, was not advantageous to the stockholders, constituted a breach of fiduciary duty, and should have been put to a vote of the Class A stockholders. Defendants seek monetary damages and other relief.
We believe we have meritorious defenses to these lawsuits, and continue to defend the lawsuits vigorously, but litigation is inherently uncertain and an unfavorable outcome could seriously harm our business.
We are currently involved in, and may in the future be involved in, legal proceedings, claims, inquiries, and investigations in the ordinary course of our business, including claims for infringing intellectual property rights related to our products and the content contributed by our users and partners. Although the results of these proceedings, claims, inquiries, and investigations cannot be predicted with certainty, we do not believe that the final outcome of these matters is reasonably likely to have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition, or results of operations. Regardless of final outcomes, however, any such proceedings, claims, inquiries, and investigations may nonetheless impose a significant burden on management and employees and may come with costly defense costs or unfavorable preliminary and interim rulings.
Item 1A. Risk Factors
You should carefully consider the risks and uncertainties described below, together with all the other information in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, including “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations” and the consolidated financial statements and the related notes. If any of the following risks actually occurs (or if any of those discussed elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q occurs), our business, reputation, financial condition, results of operations, revenue, and future prospects could be seriously harmed. The risks and uncertainties described below are not the only ones we face. Additional risks and uncertainties that we are unaware of, or that we currently believe are not material, may also become important factors that adversely affect our business. Unless otherwise indicated, references to our business being seriously harmed in these risk factors will include harm to our business, reputation, financial condition, results of operations, revenue, and future prospects. In that event, the market price of our Class A common stock could decline, and you could lose part or all of your investment.
Risk Factor Summary
Our business is subject to significant risks and uncertainties that make an investment in us speculative and risky. Below we summarize what we believe are the principal risk factors but these risks are not the only ones we face, and you should carefully review and consider the full discussion of our risk factors in the section titled “Risk Factors”, together with the other information in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
1. Our Strategy and Advertising Business
We operate in a highly competitive and rapidly changing environment so we must continually innovate our products and evolve our business model for us to succeed.
We emphasize rapid innovation and prioritize long-term user engagement over short-term financial conditions or results if we believe that it will benefit the aggregate user experience and improve our financial performance over the long term. Although we have achieved profitability in certain periods, we have a history of operating losses and, as a result of our long-term focus, we may prioritize investments and expenses we believe are necessary for our long-term growth over
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achieving short-term profitability. Investments in our future, including through new products or acquisitions, are inherently risky and may not pay off, which would adversely affect our ability to settle the principal and interest payments on our outstanding convertible senior notes or other indebtedness when due, and further delay or hinder our ability to sustain profitability. This in turn would hinder our ability to secure additional financing to meet our current and future financial needs on favorable terms, or at all.
We generate substantially all of our revenue from advertising. Our advertising business is most effective when our advertisers succeed. Driving their success requires continual investment in our advertising products and may be hindered by competitive challenges and various legal, regulatory, and operating system changes that make it more difficult for us to achieve and demonstrate a meaningful return for our advertisers. For example, on-going changes to privacy laws and mobile operating systems continue to present issues for us in measuring the effectiveness of advertisements on our services. Additionally, individuals are becoming increasingly resistant to the processing of personal data to deliver behavioral, interest-based, or targeted advertisements, and regulators are likewise scrutinizing such data processing activities, which could reduce the demand for our products and services and threaten our primary revenue stream. Alternative methods, to the extent we can develop such methods in compliance with current or future privacy laws, mobile operating system requirements, and other requirements, may take time to develop and be adopted by our advertisers, and may not be as effective as prior methods.
We believe that this impact on our targeting, measurement, and optimization capabilities has negatively affected and may continue to negatively affect our operating results. In addition, our advertising business is seasonal, volatile, and cyclical, which could result in fluctuations in our quarterly revenues and operating results, including the expectations of our business prospects.
Our business and operations have been, and could in the future be, adversely affected by events beyond our control, such as health epidemics, including the COVID-19 pandemic, and geo-political events, including the conflict in Ukraine. In addition, macroeconomic factors like labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, banking instability, and inflation continue to cause logistical challenges, increased input costs, and inventory constraints for our advertisers, which in turn may also halt or decrease advertising spending, and harm our business.
2. Our Community and Competition
We need to continually innovate and create new products, and enhance our existing products, to attract, retain, and grow our global community. Products that we create may fail to attract or retain users, or to generate meaningful revenue, if at all. In addition, we have and expect to continue to expand organically and through acquisitions, including in international markets, which we may not be able to effectively manage or scale. If our community does not see the value in our products or brand, or if competitors offer better alternatives, our community could easily switch to other services. Although we have experienced rapid growth in our community over the last few years, we have also experienced declines and there can be no assurance that won’t happen again.
Many of our competitors have significantly more resources and larger market shares than we do, each of which gives them advantages over us that can make it more difficult for us to succeed.
3. Our Partners
We primarily rely on Google, Apple, and Amazon to provide their mobile operating systems and other services for our applications and other core services, including our platform. If these partners do not provide their services as we expect, terminate their services, or change or interpret the terms of our agreements, or change the functionality of their mobile operating systems in ways that are adverse to us, our service may be interrupted and our product experience could be degraded, and these may harm our reputation, increase our costs, or make it harder for us to sustain profitability. Many other parts of our business depend on partners, including content partners and advertising partners, so our success depends on our ability to attract and retain these partners.
4. Our Technology and Regulation
Our business is complex and success depends on our ability to rapidly innovate, the interoperability of our service on many different smartphones and mobile operating systems, and our ability to handle sensitive user data with the care our users expect. Because our systems and our products are constantly changing, we are susceptible to data breaches, cyber attacks, security incidents, bugs, and other vulnerabilities and errors in how our products work and are measured. We may
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also fail to maintain effective processes that report our metrics or financial results. Given the complexity of the systems involved and the rapidly changing nature of mobile devices and operating systems, we expect to encounter issues, particularly if we continue to expand in parts of the world where mobile data systems and connections are less stable.
We are also subject to complex and evolving federal, state, local, and foreign laws and regulations regarding privacy, data protection, biometric processing, content, taxes, and other matters, which are subject to change and have uncertain interpretations. Given the nature of our business, we are particularly susceptible to changes in such laws regarding privacy and data protection, which may require us to change our products and may impact our revenue stream. Any actual or perceived failure to comply with such legal and regulatory obligations, including in connection with our consent decree with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission, may lead to costly litigation or otherwise adversely impact our business.
We also must actively protect our intellectual property. We are subject to various legal proceedings, claims, class actions, inquiries, and investigations related to our intellectual property, which may be costly or distract management. We also rely on a variety of statutory and common-law frameworks for the content we provide our users, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Communications Decency Act, and the fair-use doctrine, each of which has been subject to adverse judicial, political, and regulatory scrutiny in recent times.
5. Our Team and Capital Structure
We need to attract and retain a high caliber team to maintain our competitive position. We may incur significant costs and expenses in maintaining and growing our team, and may lose valuable members of our team as we compete globally, including with our competitors, for key talent. A substantial portion of our employment costs is paid in our common stock, the price of which has been volatile, and our ability to attract and retain talent may be adversely affected if our shares decline in value.
Our two co-founders, who serve as our Chief Executive Officer and Chief Technology Officer, control over 99% of the voting power of our outstanding capital stock, which means they control substantially all outcomes submitted to stockholders. Class A common stockholders have no voting rights, unless required by Delaware law. This concentrated control may result in our co-founders voting their shares in their best interest, which might not always be in the interest of our stockholders generally.
Risk Factors
Risks Related to Our Business and Industry
Our ecosystem of users, advertisers, and partners depends on the engagement of our user base. Our user base growth rate has declined in the past and it may do so again in the future. If we fail to retain current users or add new users, or if our users engage less with Snapchat, our business would be seriously harmed.
We had 383 million daily active users, or DAUs, on average in the quarter ended March 31, 2023. We view DAUs as a critical measure of our user engagement, and adding, maintaining, and engaging DAUs have been and will continue to be necessary. Our DAUs and DAU growth rate have declined in the past and they may decline in the future due to various factors, including as the size of our active user base increases, as we achieve higher market penetration rates, as we face continued competition for our users and their time, or if there are performance issues with our service. For example, in 2018, we believe our DAUs declined primarily due to changes in the design of our application and continued performance issues with the Android version of our application. In addition, as we achieve maximum market penetration rates among younger users in developed markets, future growth in DAUs will need to come from older users in those markets, developing markets, or users with Android mobile operating systems, which may not be possible or may be more difficult or time-consuming for us to achieve. While we may experience periods when our DAUs increase due to products and services with short-term popularity, or due to a lack of other events that compete for our users’ attention, we may not always be able to attract new users, retain existing users, or maintain or increase the frequency and duration of their engagement if current or potential new users do not perceive our products to be fun, engaging, and useful. In addition, because our products typically require high bandwidth data capabilities for users to benefit from all of the features and capabilities of our application, many of our users live in countries with high-end mobile device penetration and high bandwidth capacity cellular networks with large coverage areas. We therefore do not expect to experience rapid user growth or engagement in regions with either low smartphone penetration or a lack of well-established and high bandwidth capacity cellular networks. If our DAU growth rate slows or becomes stagnant, or we have a decline in DAUs, our
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financial performance will increasingly depend on our ability to elevate user activity or increase the monetization of our users.
Snapchat is free and easy to join, the barrier to entry for new entrants in our business is low, and the switching costs to another platform are also low. Moreover, the majority of our users are 18-34 years old. This demographic may be less brand loyal and more likely to follow trends, including viral trends, than other demographics. These factors may lead users to switch to another product, which would negatively affect our user retention, growth, and engagement. Snapchat also may not be able to penetrate other demographics in a meaningful manner. Falling user retention, growth, or engagement could make Snapchat less attractive to advertisers and partners, which may seriously harm our business. In addition, we continue to compete with other companies to attract and retain our users’ attention. We calculate average DAUs for a particular quarter by adding the number of DAUs on each day of that quarter and dividing that sum by the number of days in that quarter. This calculation may mask any individual days or months within the quarter that are significantly higher or lower than the quarterly average. There are many factors that could negatively affect user retention, growth, and engagement, including if:
•users engage more with competing products instead of ours;
•our competitors continue to mimic our products or improve on them;
•we fail to introduce new and exciting products and services or those we introduce or modify are poorly received;
•our products fail to operate effectively or compatibly on the iOS or Android mobile operating systems;
•we are unable to continue to develop products that work with a variety of mobile operating systems, networks, and smartphones;
•we do not provide a compelling user experience because of the decisions we make regarding the type and frequency of advertisements that we display or the structure and design of our products;
•we are unable to combat spam, bad actors, or other hostile or inappropriate usage on our products;
•there are changes in user sentiment about the quality or usefulness of our products in the short-term, long-term, or both;
•there are concerns about the privacy implications, safety, or security of our products and our processing of personal data;
•our content partners do not create content that is engaging, useful, or relevant to users;
•our content partners decide not to renew agreements or devote the resources to create engaging content, or do not provide content exclusively to us;
•advertisers and partners display ads that are untrue, offensive, or otherwise fail to follow our guidelines;
•our products are subject to increased regulatory scrutiny or approvals, including from international privacy regulators (particularly in the EEA/UK), or there are changes in our products that are mandated or prompted by legislation, regulatory authorities, executive actions, or litigation, including settlements or consent decrees, that adversely affect the user experience;
•technical or other problems frustrate the user experience, including by providers that host our platforms, particularly if those problems prevent us from delivering our product experience in a fast and reliable manner;
•we fail to provide adequate service to users, advertisers, or partners;
•we do not provide a compelling user experience to entice users to use the Snapchat application on a daily basis, or our users don’t have the ability to make new friends to maximize the user experience;
•we, our partners, or other companies in our industry segment are the subject of adverse media reports or other negative publicity, some of which may be inaccurate or include confidential information that we are unable to correct or retract;
•we do not maintain our brand image or our reputation is damaged; or
•our current or future products reduce user activity on Snapchat by making it easier for our users to interact directly with our partners.
Any decrease to user retention, growth, or engagement could render our products less attractive to users, advertisers, or partners, and would seriously harm our business.
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Snapchat depends on effectively operating with mobile operating systems, hardware, networks, regulations, and standards that we do not control. Changes in our products or to those mobile operating systems, hardware, networks, regulations, or standards may seriously harm our user retention, growth, and engagement.
Because Snapchat is used primarily on mobile devices, the application must remain interoperable with popular mobile operating systems, primarily Android and iOS, application stores, and related hardware, including mobile-device cameras. The owners and operators of such mobile operating systems and application stores, primarily Google and Apple, each have approval authority over our core products and provide consumers with other products that compete with ours, and there is no guarantee that any approval will not be rescinded in the future. Additionally, mobile devices and mobile-device cameras are manufactured by a wide array of companies. Those companies have no obligation to test the interoperability of new mobile devices, mobile-device cameras, or related devices with Snapchat, and may produce new products that are incompatible with or not optimal for Snapchat. We have no control over these mobile operating systems, application stores, or hardware, and any changes may degrade our products’ functionality, or give preferential treatment to competitive products. Actions by government authorities may also impact our access to these systems or hardware and could seriously harm Snapchat usage. Our competitors that control the mobile operating systems and related hardware could make interoperability of our products more difficult or display their competitive offerings more prominently than ours. Additionally, our competitors that control the standards for the application stores could make Snapchat, or certain features of Snapchat, inaccessible for a potentially significant period of time or require us to make changes to maintain access. We plan to continue to introduce new products and features regularly, including some features that may only work on the latest systems and hardware, and have experienced that it takes time to optimize new products and features to function with the variety of existing mobile operating systems, hardware, and standards, impacting the popularity of such products, and we expect this trend to continue.
Moreover, our products require high-bandwidth data capabilities. If the costs of data usage increase or access to cellular networks is limited, our user retention, growth, and engagement may be seriously harmed. Additionally, to deliver high-quality video and other content over mobile cellular networks, our products must work well with a range of mobile technologies, systems, networks, regulations, and standards that we do not control and which may be subject to future changes. In addition, the proposal or adoption of any laws, regulations, or initiatives that adversely affect the growth, popularity, or use of the internet, including laws governing internet neutrality, could decrease the demand for our products and increase our cost of doing business.
For example, in January 2018, the Federal Communications Commission, or FCC, issued an order that repealed the “open internet rules,” which prohibit mobile providers in the United States from impeding access to most content, or otherwise unfairly discriminating against content providers like us and also prohibit mobile providers from entering into arrangements with specific content providers for faster or better access over their data networks. The FCC order repealing the open internet rules went into effect in June 2018. The core aspects of that order have been upheld by the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, but a number of states have adopted or are considering legislation or executive actions to impose state-level open internet rules, and those actions have been or can be expected to be challenged in court. More recently, U.S. President Biden issued an executive order encouraging the FCC to restore the open internet rules. We cannot predict whether the FCC order or state initiatives regulating providers will ultimately be upheld, modified, overturned, or vacated by further legal action, federal legislation, or the FCC, or the degree to which such outcomes would adversely affect our business, if at all. Similarly, the European Union requires equal access to internet content, but as part of certain initiatives and reviews (including recent modifications to the European Electronic Communications Code and proposals to expand the scope and nature of the EU Network and Information Security Directive), the European Union may impose additional obligations, including network security requirements, reporting and transparency obligations, disability access, or 911-like obligations on certain “over-the-top” services or those that qualify as “electronic communication services.” If we are considered to be in the scope of such service definition, our costs of doing business could increase and our business could be seriously harmed. The European Union’s highest court has also issued rulings that may limit our ability to engage in certain practices, such as “zero rating.” If the FCC’s repeal of the open internet rules is maintained, state initiatives are modified, overturned, or vacated, or the European Union modifies these open internet rules or limits commercial practices, mobile and internet providers may be able to limit our users’ ability to access Snapchat or make Snapchat a less attractive alternative to our competitors’ applications. Were that to happen, our ability to retain existing users or attract new users may be impaired, and our business would be seriously harmed.
We may not successfully cultivate relationships with key industry participants or develop products that operate effectively with these technologies, systems, networks, regulations, or standards. If it becomes more difficult for our users to access and use Snapchat, if our users choose not to access or use Snapchat, or if our users choose to use products that do not offer access to Snapchat, our business and user retention, growth, and engagement could be seriously harmed.
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We rely on Google Cloud and Amazon Web Services, or AWS, for the vast majority of our computing, storage, bandwidth, and other services. Any disruption of or interference with our use of either platform would negatively affect our operations and seriously harm our business.
Google and Amazon provide distributed computing infrastructure platforms for business operations, commonly referred to as a “cloud” computing service. We currently run the vast majority of our computing on Google Cloud and AWS, have built our software and computer systems to use computing, storage capabilities, bandwidth, and other services provided by Google and AWS, and our systems are not fully redundant on the two platforms. Any transition of the cloud services currently provided by either Google Cloud or AWS to the other platform or to another cloud provider would be difficult to implement and would cause us to incur significant time and expense. Given this, any significant disruption of or interference with Google Cloud or AWS, whether temporary, regular, or prolonged, would negatively impact our operations and our business would be seriously harmed. If our users or partners are not able to access Snapchat or specific Snapchat features, or encounter difficulties in doing so, due to issues or disruptions with Google Cloud or AWS, we may lose users, partners, or advertising revenue. The level of service provided by Google Cloud and AWS or similar providers may also impact our users’, advertisers’, and partners’ usage of and satisfaction with Snapchat and could seriously harm our business and reputation if the level of service decreases. Hosting costs also have and will continue to increase as our user base and user engagement grows and may seriously harm our business if we are unable to grow our revenues faster than the cost of utilizing the services of Google Cloud, AWS, or similar providers.
In addition, Google or Amazon may take actions beyond our control that could seriously harm our business, including:
•discontinuing or limiting our access to its cloud platform;
•increasing pricing terms;
•terminating or seeking to terminate our contractual relationship altogether;
•establishing more favorable relationships or pricing terms with one or more of our competitors; or
•modifying or interpreting its terms of service or other policies in a manner that impacts our ability to run our business and operations.
We generate substantially all of our revenue from advertising. The failure to attract new advertisers, the loss of advertisers, or a reduction in how much they spend could seriously harm our business.
Substantially all of our revenue is generated from third parties advertising on Snapchat. For the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021, and 2020, advertising revenue accounted for approximately 99%, 99%, and 99% of total revenue, respectively. Even though we have introduced other revenue streams, including a subscription model, we still expect this trend to continue for the foreseeable future. Although we try to establish longer-term advertising commitments with advertisers, most advertisers do not have long-term advertising commitments with us, and our efforts to establish long-term commitments may not succeed.
Our advertising customers vary from small businesses to well-known brands. Many of our customers only recently started working with our advertising solutions and spend a relatively small portion of their overall advertising budget with us, but some customers have devoted meaningful budgets that contribute to our total revenue. In addition, advertisers may view some of our advertising solutions as experimental and unproven, or prefer certain of our products over others. Advertisers, including our customers who have devoted meaningful advertising budgets to our product, will not continue to do business with us if we do not deliver advertisements in an effective manner, or if they do not believe that their investment in advertising with us will generate a competitive return relative to other alternatives. As our business continues to develop, there may be new or existing advertisers or resellers, or advertisers or resellers from different geographic regions that contribute more significantly to our total revenue. Any economic or political instability, whether as a result of the macroeconomic climate, persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, the conflict in Ukraine, or otherwise, in a specific country or region may negatively impact the global or local economy, advertising ecosystem, our customers and their budgets with us, or our ability to forecast our advertising revenue, and our business would be seriously harmed.
Moreover, we rely heavily on our ability to collect and disclose data, and metrics to our advertisers so we can attract new advertisers and retain existing advertisers. Any restriction or inability, whether by law, regulation, policy, or other reason, to collect and disclose data and metrics which our advertisers find useful would impede our ability to attract and retain advertisers. Regulators around the world are increasingly scrutinizing and regulating the collection, use, and
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sharing of personal data related to advertising, which could materially impact our revenue and seriously harm our business. For example, the European Union’s General Data Protection Regulation, or EU GDPR, and the United Kingdom’s GDPR, or UK GDPR, expanded the rights of individuals to control how their personal data is collected and processed, and placed restrictions on the use of personal data of younger minors. The processing of personal data for personalized advertising under GDPR continues to be under increased scrutiny from European regulators, which includes ongoing regulatory action against large technology companies like ours, the outcomes of which may be uncertain and subject to appeal. The upcoming European Digital Services Act, or DSA, which is expected to go into effect between July and September of 2023, prohibits targeted advertising to minors based on the profiling of personal information in the European Union. Other European legislative proposals and present laws and regulations may also apply to our or our advertisers’ activities and require significant operational changes to our business. For example, it is anticipated that the ePrivacy Regulation and national implementing laws will replace the current national laws implementing the ePrivacy Directive, which could have a material impact on the availability of data we rely on to improve and personalize our products and features. Outside of Europe, other laws further regulate behavioral, interest-based, or targeted advertising, making certain online advertising activities more difficult and subject to additional scrutiny. For example, in the United States, the California Consumer Privacy Act, or CCPA, and the California Privacy Rights Act of 2020, or CPRA, place additional requirements on the handling of personal data for us, our partners, and our advertisers, such as granting California residents the right to opt-out of a company’s sharing of personal data for certain advertising purposes in exchange for money or other valuable consideration. Other states have passed or are considering similar legislation. Moreover, individuals are also becoming increasingly aware of and resistant to the collection, use, and sharing of personal data in connection with advertising. Individuals are becoming more aware of options related to consent and other options to opt-out of such data processing, including through media attention about privacy and data protection. Some users have opted out of allowing Snap to join data from third party apps and websites with data from Snapchat for advertising purposes, which has negatively impacted our ability to collect certain user data and our advertising partners’ ability to deliver relevant content, all of which could negatively impact our business.
Furthermore, in April 2021, Apple issued an iOS update that imposes heightened restrictions on our access and use of user data by allowing users to more easily opt-out of tracking of activity across devices. Additionally, Google has announced that it will implement similar changes with respect to its Android operating system and major web browsers, like Firefox, Safari, and Chrome, have or plan to make similar changes as well. The implemented changes have had, and the announced or planned changes likely will have, an adverse effect on our targeting, measurement, and optimization capabilities, and in turn our ability to target advertisements and measure the effectiveness of advertisements on our services. This has resulted in, and in the future is likely to continue to result in, reduced demand and pricing for our advertising products and could seriously harm our business. The longer-term impact of these changes on the overall mobile advertising ecosystem, our competitors, our business, and the developers, partners, and advertisers within our community remains uncertain, and depending on how we, our competitors, and the overall mobile advertising ecosystem adjusts, and how our partners, advertisers, and users respond, our business could be seriously harmed. Any alternative solutions we implement are subject to rules and standards set by the owners of such mobile operating systems which may be unclear, change, or be interpreted in a manner adverse to us and require us to halt or change our solutions, any of which could seriously harm our business. In addition, if we are unable to mitigate these and future developments, and alternative solutions do not become widely adopted by our advertisers, then our targeting, measurement, and optimization capabilities will be materially and adversely affected, which would in turn continue to negatively impact our advertising revenue. Our advertising revenue could also be seriously harmed by many other factors, including:
•diminished or stagnant growth, or a decline, in the total and regional number of DAUs on Snapchat;
•our inability to deliver advertisements to all of our users due to hardware, software, or network limitations;
•a decrease in the amount of time spent on Snapchat, a decrease in the amount of content that our users share, or decreases in usage of our Camera, Visual Messaging, Map, Stories, and Spotlight platforms;
•our inability to create new products that sustain or increase the value of our advertisements;
•changes in our user demographics that make us less attractive to advertisers;
•lack of ad creative availability by our advertising partners;
•a decline in our available content, including if our content partners do not renew agreements, devote the resources to create engaging content, or provide content exclusively to us;
•decreases in the perceived quantity, quality, usefulness, or relevance of the content provided by us, our community, or partners;
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•increases in resistance by users to our collecting, using, and sharing their personal data for advertising-related purposes;
•changes in our analytics and measurement solutions, including what we are permitted to collect and disclose under the terms of Apple’s and Google’s mobile operating systems, that demonstrate the value of our advertisements and other commercial content;
•competitive developments or advertiser perception of the value of our products that change the rates we can charge for advertising or the volume of advertising on Snapchat;
•product changes or advertising inventory management decisions we may make that change the type, size, or frequency of advertisements displayed on Snapchat or the method used by advertisers to purchase advertisements;
•adverse legal developments relating to advertising, including changes mandated or prompted by legislation, regulation, executive actions, or litigation regarding the collection, use, and sharing of personal data for certain advertising-related purposes;
•adverse media reports or other negative publicity involving us, our founders, our partners, or other companies in our industry segment;
•advertiser or user perception that content published by us, our users, or our partners is objectionable;
•the degree to which users skip advertisements and therefore diminish the value of those advertisements to advertisers;
•changes in the way advertising is priced or its effectiveness is measured;
•our inability, or perceived inability, to measure the effectiveness of our advertising or target the appropriate audience for advertisements;
•our inability to collect and disclose data or access a user’s personal data, including identifier for advertising or similar deterministic identifiers that new and existing advertisers may find useful;
•difficulty and frustration from advertisers who may need to reformat or change their advertisements to comply with our guidelines;
•volatility in the equity markets, which may reduce our advertisers’ capacity or desire for aggressive advertising spending towards growth; and
•the political, economic, and macroeconomic climate and the status of the advertising industry in general, including impacts related to labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, inflation, and as a result of war, terrorism, or armed conflict, including the conflict in Ukraine.
These and other factors could reduce demand for our advertising products, which may lower the prices we receive, or cause advertisers to stop advertising with us altogether. Either of these would seriously harm our business.
Our two co-founders have control over all stockholder decisions because they control a substantial majority of our voting stock.
Our two co-founders, Evan Spiegel and Robert Murphy, control over 99% of the voting power of our outstanding capital stock as of March 31, 2023, and Mr. Spiegel alone can exercise voting control over a majority of our outstanding capital stock. As a result, Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy, or in many instances Mr. Spiegel acting alone, have the ability to control the outcome of all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval, including the election, removal, and replacement of our directors and any merger, consolidation, or sale of all or substantially all of our assets.
If Mr. Spiegel’s or Mr. Murphy’s employment with us is terminated, they will continue to have the ability to exercise the same significant voting power and potentially control the outcome of all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval. Either of our co-founders’ shares of Class C common stock will automatically convert into Class B common stock, on a one-to-one basis, nine months following his death or on the date on which the number of outstanding shares of Class C common stock held by such holder represents less than 30% of the Class C common stock held by such holder on the closing of our IPO, or 32,383,178 shares of Class C common stock. Should either of our co-founders’ Class C common stock be converted to Class B common stock, the remaining co-founder will be able to exercise voting control over our outstanding capital stock. Moreover, Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy have entered into a proxy agreement under which each has granted to the other a voting proxy with respect to all shares of our Class B common stock and Class C common stock that each may beneficially own from time to time or have voting control over. The proxy would become effective on either
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founder’s death or disability. Accordingly, on the death or incapacity of either Mr. Spiegel or Mr. Murphy, the other could individually control nearly all of the voting power of our outstanding capital stock.
In addition, in October 2016, we issued a dividend of one share of non-voting Class A common stock to all our equity holders, which will prolong our co-founders’ voting control because our co-founders are able to liquidate their holdings of non-voting Class A common stock without diminishing their voting control. Furthermore, in July 2022, our board of directors approved the future declaration and payment of a special dividend of one share of Class A Common stock on each outstanding share of Snap’s common stock, subject to certain triggering conditions. In the future, our board of directors may, from time to time, decide to issue additional special or regular stock dividends in the form of Class A common stock, and if we do so our co-founders’ control could be further prolonged. This concentrated control could delay, defer, or prevent a change of control, merger, consolidation, or sale of all or substantially all of our assets that our other stockholders support. Conversely, this concentrated control could allow our co-founders to consummate such a transaction that our other stockholders do not support. In addition, our co-founders may make long-term strategic investment decisions and take risks that may not be successful and may seriously harm our business.
As our Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Spiegel has control over our day-to-day management and the implementation of major strategic investments of our company, subject to authorization and oversight by our board of directors. As board members and officers, Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy owe a fiduciary duty to our stockholders and must act in good faith in a manner they reasonably believe to be in the best interests of our stockholders. As stockholders, even controlling stockholders, Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy are entitled to vote their shares, and shares over which they have voting control, in their own interests, which may not always be in the interests of our stockholders generally. We have not elected to take advantage of the “controlled company” exemption to the corporate governance rules for companies listed on the New York Stock Exchange, or NYSE.
Macroeconomic uncertainties, including labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, inflation, banking instability, recession risks, and the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic have in the past and may continue to adversely impact our business.
Global economic and business activities continue to face widespread macroeconomic uncertainties, including labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, banking instability, inflation, as well as recession risks, which may continue for an extended period, and some of which have adversely impacted, and may continue to adversely impact, many aspects of our business.
As some of our advertisers experienced downturns or uncertainty in their own business operations and revenue, they halted or decreased or may halt, decrease, or continue to decrease, temporarily or permanently, their advertising spending or may focus their advertising spending more on other platforms, all of which may result in decreased advertising revenue. Labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, inflation, and banking instability continue to cause logistical challenges, increased input costs, inventory constraints, and liquidity uncertainty for our advertisers, which in turn may also halt or decrease advertising spending. In addition, the unpredictability of the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and other macroeconomic uncertainties may make it difficult to forecast our advertising revenue. Any decline in advertising revenue or the collectability of our receivables could seriously harm our business.
As a result of macroeconomic uncertainties and the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, our partners and community who provide content or services to us may experience delays or interruptions in their ability to create content or provide services, if they are able to do so at all. Members of our community may also alter their usage of our products and services, particularly relative to prior periods, as COVID-19 mitigations are removed. A decrease in the amount or quality of content available on Snapchat, or an interruption in the services provided to us, could lead to a decline in user engagement, which could seriously harm our business.
To the extent that macroeconomic uncertainties and COVID-19 continue to impact our business, many of the other risks described in these risk factors may be exacerbated.
Exposure to geo-political conflicts and events, including the conflict in Ukraine, could put our employees and partners at substantial risk, interrupt our operations, increase costs, create additional regulatory burdens, and have significant negative macroeconomic effects, any of which could seriously harm our business.
Significant geo-political conflicts and events, such as the conflict in Ukraine, have had, and will likely continue to have, a substantial effect on our business and operations. We have team members and their families in Ukraine who face
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substantial personal risk, unprecedented disruption of their lives, and uncertainty as to the future. We have been providing emergency assistance and support to these team members and their families, including helping team members to safely relocate when possible. We expect to continue this support in the future. In addition, we have offices, hardware, and other assets in Ukraine that may be at risk of destruction or theft. We have incurred, and will likely continue to incur, costs to support our team members and reorganize our operations to address these ongoing challenges. In addition, our management has spent significant time and attention on these and related events. The ongoing disruptions to our team members, our management, and our operations could seriously harm our business.
We believe Snapchat remains an important communication tool for family and friends in the region. However, in March 2022, we stopped all advertising running in Russia, Belarus, and Ukraine and halted advertising sales to all Russian and Belarusian entities. Many countries have placed sanctions and other restrictions on doing business with Russian or Belarusian businesses and certain individuals. In response, Russia and Belarus have enacted restrictions and sanctions of their own. These new laws, regulations, and sanctions are rapidly evolving and may conflict with each other, leading to uncertainty and possible mistakes in compliance. Should we violate such existing or similar future sanctions or regulations, we may be subject to substantial monetary fines and other penalties that could seriously harm our business. In addition, we may be restricted from offering our products or services in these countries, and any reduction in availability or use could negatively impact our DAU, revenue, or operations.
Generally, during times of war and other major conflicts, we, the third parties on which we rely, and our partners may be vulnerable to a heightened risk of cyberattacks, including retaliatory cyberattacks, that could seriously disrupt our business. We have experienced an increase in attempted cyberattacks on our products, systems, and networks, which we believe are related to the conflict. We may also face retaliatory attacks by governments, entities, or individuals who do not agree with our public expressions of support for Ukraine and our Ukrainian team members. Any such attack could cause disruption to our platform, systems, and networks, result in security breaches or data loss, damage our brand, or reduce demand for our services or advertising products. In addition, we may face significant costs (including legal and litigation costs) to prevent, correct, or remediate any such breaches. We may also be forced to expend additional resources monitoring our platform for evidence of disinformation or misuse in connection with the ongoing conflict.
The situation in Ukraine continues to evolve and we will monitor the situation closely. It is unclear how long the conflict will last and the long-term outcome and impact. On a macroeconomic level, the conflict in Ukraine has further disrupted trade, intensified problems in the global supply chain, and contributed to inflationary pressures. All of these factors may negatively impact the demand for advertising as companies face limited product availability, restricted sales opportunities, and condensed margins. Any pause or reduction in advertising spending in connection with the conflict in Ukraine could negatively impact our revenue and harm our business.
If we do not develop successful new products or improve existing ones, our business will suffer. We may also invest in new lines of business that could fail to attract or retain users or generate revenue.
Our ability to engage, retain, and increase our user base and to increase our revenue will depend heavily on our ability to successfully create new products, both independently and together with third parties. We may introduce significant changes to our existing products or develop and introduce new and unproven products and services, including technologies with which we have little or no prior development or operating experience. These new products and updates may fail to increase the engagement of our users, advertisers, or partners, may subject us to increased regulatory requirements or scrutiny, and may even result in short-term or long-term decreases in such engagement by disrupting existing user, advertiser, or partner behavior or by introducing performance and quality issues. For example, beginning in 2017, we started transitioning our advertising sales to a self-serve platform, which decreased average advertising prices. In 2018, we believe our DAUs declined primarily due to changes in the design of our application and continued performance issues with the Android version of our application. In August 2022, we announced a strategic reprioritization in which we substantially reduced or eliminated, and may continue to reduce or eliminate, investments not directly connected to our top priorities of community growth, revenue growth, and augmented reality. The short- and long-term impact of any major change, like our 2018 application redesign, the rewrite of our application for Android users in 2019, and our strategic reprioritization in 2022, or even a less significant change such as a refresh of the application or a feature change, is difficult to predict. Although we believe that these decisions will benefit the aggregate user experience and improve our financial performance over the long term, we may experience disruptions or declines in our DAUs or user activity broadly or concentrated on certain portions of our application. Product innovation is inherently volatile, and if new or enhanced products fail to engage our users, advertisers, or partners, or if we fail to give our users meaningful reasons to return to our application, we may fail to attract or retain users or to generate sufficient revenue, operating margin, or other value to justify our investments, any of which may seriously harm our business in the short-term, long-term, or both.
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Because our products created new ways of communicating, they have often required users to learn new behaviors to use our products, or to use our products repeatedly to receive the most benefit. These new behaviors, such as swiping and tapping in the Snapchat application, are not always intuitive to users. This can create a lag in adoption of new products and new user additions related to new products. We believe this has not hindered our user growth or engagement, but that may be the result of a large portion of our user base being in a younger demographic and more willing to invest the time to learn to use our products most effectively. To the extent that future users, including those in older demographics, are less willing to invest the time to learn to use our products, and if we are unable to make our products easier to learn to use, our user growth or engagement could be affected, and our business could be harmed. We may also develop new products or initiatives that increase user engagement and costs without increasing revenue. For example, in 2016, we introduced Memories, our cloud storage service for Snaps, which increases our storage costs but does not currently generate revenue.
In addition, we have invested, and expect to continue to invest, in new lines of business, new products, and other initiatives to increase our user base and user activity, and attempt to monetize the platform. For example, in 2020, we launched Spotlight, a new entertainment platform for user-generated content within Snapchat, in June 2022, we launched Snapchat+, a subscription product that gives subscribers access to exclusive, experimental, and pre-release features, in July 2022, we launched Snapchat for Web, a browser-based product that brings Snapchat’s signature calling and ephemeral messaging capabilities to the web, and in February 2023, we launched My AI, an artificial intelligence powered chatbot. Such new lines of business, new products, and other initiatives may be costly, difficult to operate and monetize, increase product liability and litigation risk, and divert management’s attention, and there is no guarantee that they will be positively received by our community or provide positive returns on our investment. We frequently launch new products and the products that we launch may have technical issues that diminish the performance of our application. These performance issues or issues that we encounter in the future could impact our user engagement. In addition, new products or features that we launch may ultimately prove unsuccessful and may be eliminated in the future. In certain cases, new products that we develop may require regulatory approval prior to launch or may require us to comply with additional regulations or legislation, including laws that are rapidly changing. There is no guarantee that we will be able to obtain such regulatory approval, and our efforts to comply with these laws and regulations could be costly and divert management’s time and effort and may still not guarantee compliance. If we do not successfully develop new approaches to monetization or meet the expectations of our users or partners, we may not be able to maintain or grow our revenue as anticipated or recover any associated development costs, and our business could be seriously harmed.
Our business is highly competitive. We face significant competition that we anticipate will continue to intensify. If we are not able to maintain or improve our market share, our business could suffer.
We face significant competition in almost every aspect of our business both domestically and internationally, especially because our products and services operate across a broad list of categories, including camera, visual messaging, content, and augmented reality. Our competitors range from smaller or newer companies to larger, more established companies such as Alphabet (including Google and YouTube), Apple, ByteDance (including TikTok), Kakao, LINE, Meta (including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp), Naver (including Snow), Pinterest, Tencent, and Twitter. Our competitors also include platforms that offer, or will offer, a variety of products, services, content, and online advertising offerings that compete or may compete with Snapchat features or offerings. For example, Instagram, a competing application owned by Meta, has incorporated many of our features, including a “stories” feature that largely mimics our Stories feature and may be directly competitive. Meta has introduced, and likely will continue to introduce, more private ephemeral products into its various platforms which mimic other aspects of Snapchat’s core use case. We also compete for users and their time, so we may lose users or their attention not only to companies that offer products and services that specifically compete with Snapchat features or offerings, but to companies with products or services that target or otherwise appeal to certain demographics, such as Discord or Roblox. Moreover, in emerging international markets, where mobile devices often lack large storage capabilities, we may compete with other applications for the limited space available on a user’s mobile device. We also face competition from traditional and online media businesses for advertising budgets. We compete broadly with the social media offerings of Alphabet, Apple, ByteDance, Meta, Pinterest, and Twitter, and with other, largely regional, social media platforms that have strong positions in particular countries. As we introduce new products, as our existing products evolve, or as other companies introduce new products and services, we may become subject to additional competition.
Many of our current and potential competitors have significantly greater resources and broader global recognition and occupy stronger competitive positions in certain market segments than we do. These factors may allow our competitors to respond to new or emerging technologies and changes in market requirements better than we can, undertake more far-reaching and successful product development efforts or marketing campaigns, or adopt more aggressive pricing policies. In addition, ongoing changes to privacy laws and mobile operating systems have made it more difficult for us to target and
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measure advertisements effectively, and advertisers may prioritize the solutions of larger, more established companies. As a result, our competitors may, and in some cases will, acquire and engage users or generate advertising or other revenue at the expense of our own efforts, which would negatively affect our business. Advertisers may use information that our users share through Snapchat to develop or work with competitors to develop products or features that compete with us. Certain competitors, including Alphabet, Apple, and Meta, could use strong or dominant positions in one or more market segments to gain competitive advantages against us in areas where we operate, including by:
•integrating competing social media platforms or features into products they control such as search engines, web browsers, advertising networks, or mobile operating systems;
•making acquisitions for similar or complementary products or services; or
•impeding Snapchat’s accessibility and usability by modifying existing hardware and software on which the Snapchat application operates.
Certain acquisitions by our competitors may result in reduced functionality of our products and services, provide our competitors with valuable insight into the performance of our and our partners’ businesses, and provide our competitors with a pipeline of future acquisitions to maintain a dominant position. As a result, our competitors may acquire and engage users at the expense of our user base, growth, or engagement, which may seriously harm our business.
We believe that our ability to compete effectively depends on many factors, many of which are beyond our control, including:
•the usefulness, novelty, performance, and reliability of our products compared to our competitors’ products;
•the number and demographics of our DAUs;
•the timing and market acceptance of our products, including developments and enhancements of our competitors’ products;
•our ability to monetize our products;
•the availability of our products to users;
•the effectiveness of our advertising and sales teams;
•the effectiveness of our advertising products;
•our ability to establish and maintain advertisers’ and partners’ interest in using Snapchat;
•the frequency, relative prominence, and type of advertisements displayed on our application or by our competitors;
•the effectiveness of our customer service and support efforts;
•the effectiveness of our marketing activities;
•changes as a result of actual or proposed legislation, regulation, executive actions, or litigation, including settlements and consent decrees, some of which may have a disproportionate effect on us;
•acquisitions or consolidation within our industry segment;
•our ability to attract, retain, and motivate talented team members, particularly engineers, designers, and sales personnel;
•our ability to successfully acquire and integrate companies and assets;
•our ability to cost-effectively manage and scale our operations; and
•our reputation and brand strength relative to our competitors.
If we cannot effectively compete, our user engagement may decrease, which could make us less attractive to users, advertisers, and partners and seriously harm our business.
We have incurred operating losses in the past, and may not be able to attain and sustain profitability.
We began commercial operations in 2011 and we have historically experienced net losses and negative cash flows from operations. As of March 31, 2023, we had an accumulated deficit of $10.5 billion and for the three months ended
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March 31, 2023, we had a net loss of $328.7 million. We expect our operating expenses to increase in the future as we expand our operations. We may incur significant losses in the future for many reasons, including due to the other risks and uncertainties described in this report. Additionally, we may encounter unforeseen expenses, operating delays, or other unknown factors that may result in losses in future periods. If our revenue does not grow at a greater rate than our expenses, our business may be seriously harmed and we may not be able to attain and sustain profitability.
The loss of one or more of our key personnel, or our failure to attract and retain other highly qualified personnel in the future, could seriously harm our business.
We depend on the continued services and performance of our key personnel, including Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy. Although we have entered into employment agreements with Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy, the agreements are at-will, which means that they may resign or could be terminated for any reason at any time. Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy are high profile individuals who have received threats in the past and are likely to continue to receive threats in the future. Mr. Spiegel, as Chief Executive Officer, has been responsible for our company’s strategic vision and Mr. Murphy, as Chief Technology Officer, developed the Snapchat application’s technical foundation. Should either of them stop working for us for any reason, it is unlikely that the other co-founder would be able to fulfill all of the responsibilities of the departing co-founder nor is it likely that we would be able to immediately find a suitable replacement. The loss of key personnel, including members of management and key engineering, product development, marketing, and sales personnel, could disrupt our operations, adversely impact employee retention and morale, and seriously harm our business.
As we continue to grow, we cannot guarantee we will continue to attract and retain the personnel we need to maintain our competitive position. We face significant competition in hiring and attracting qualified engineers, designers, and sales personnel, and the change by companies to offer a remote or hybrid work environment may increase the competition for such employees from employers outside of our traditional office locations. In February 2023, we implemented our return to office plan that still encompasses a hybrid approach, but requires greater in-office attendance. While we intend to continue offering flexible work arrangements based on the different needs of teams across our company on a case-by-case basis, we may face difficulty in hiring and retaining our workforce as a result of this shift to have greater in-office attendance. Further, labor is subject to external factors that are beyond our control, including our industry’s highly competitive market for skilled workers and leaders, inflation, the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic and other macroeconomic uncertainties, and workforce participation rates. In addition, if our reputation were to be harmed, whether as a result of our strategic reprioritization in 2022, media, legislative, or regulatory scrutiny or otherwise, it could make it more difficult to attract and retain personnel that are critical to the success of our business.
As we mature, or if our stock price declines, our equity awards may not be as effective an incentive to attract, retain, and motivate team members. Stock price declines may also cause us to offer additional equity awards to our existing team members to aid in retention. Conversely, many of our current team members received substantial amounts of our capital stock, giving them a substantial amount of personal wealth, which can lead to an increase in attrition. As a result, it may be difficult for us to continue to retain and motivate these team members, and this wealth could affect their decision about whether they continue to work for us. Furthermore, if we issue significant equity to attract and retain team members, we would incur substantial additional stock-based compensation expense and the ownership of our existing stockholders would be further diluted. If we do not succeed in attracting, hiring, and integrating excellent personnel, or retaining and motivating existing personnel, we may be unable to grow effectively and our business could be seriously harmed.
We have a continually evolving business model, which makes it difficult to evaluate our prospects and future financial results and increases the risk that we will not be successful.
We began commercial operations in 2011 and began meaningfully monetizing Snapchat in 2015. We started transitioning our advertising sales to a self-serve platform in 2017. In June 2022, we launched Snapchat+, a paid subscription product. We have a continually evolving business model, based on using the camera to improve the way that people live and communicate, which makes it difficult to effectively assess our future prospects. Accordingly, we believe that investors’ future perceptions and expectations, which can be idiosyncratic and vary widely, and which we do not control, will affect our stock price. For example, investors may believe our timing and path to increased monetization will be faster or more effective than our current plans or than actually takes place. You should consider our business and prospects in light of the many challenges we face, including the ones discussed in this report.
If the security of our information technology systems or data is compromised or if our platform is subjected to attacks that frustrate or thwart our users’ ability to access our products and services, our users, advertisers, and partners may cut back on or stop using our products and services altogether, which could seriously harm our business.
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In the ordinary course of business, we collect, store, use, and share personal data and other sensitive information, including proprietary and confidential business data, trade secrets, third party sensitive information, and intellectual property (collectively, sensitive information). Our efforts to protect our sensitive information, including information that our users, advertisers, and partners have shared with us, may be unsuccessful due to the actions of third parties, software bugs or other technical malfunctions, employee error or malfeasance, or other factors. We and the third parties on which we rely may be subject to a variety of evolving threats, including social-engineering attacks (for example by fraudulently inducing employees, users, or advertisers to disclose information to gain access to our sensitive information, including data or our users’ or advertisers’ data), malware, viruses, hacking, and other threats. While certain of these threats have occurred in the past, they have become more prevalent and sophisticated in our industry, and may occur in the future. Because of our prominence and value of our sensitive data, we believe that we are an attractive target for these sorts of attacks.
In particular, severe ransomware attacks are becoming increasingly prevalent. To alleviate the financial, operational, and reputational impact of these attacks, it may be preferable to make extortion payments, but we may be unwilling or unable to do so, including, for example, if applicable laws or regulations prohibit such payments. And, even if we make such payments, cyber threat actors may still disclose data, engage in further extortion, or otherwise harm our systems or data. Moreover, we permit a hybrid work environment, which has increased risks to our information technology systems and data, as our employees utilize network connections, computers, and devices outside our premises or network, including working at home, while in transit and in public locations.
In addition, cyber threat actors have also increased the complexity of their attempts to compromise user accounts, despite our defenses and detection mechanisms to prevent these account takeovers. User credentials may be obtained through breaches of third party platforms and services, password stealing malware, social engineering, or other tactics and techniques, and used to launch coordinated attacks. Some of these attacks may be hard to detect at scale and may result in cyber threat actors using our service to spam or abuse other users, access user personal data, further compromise additional user accounts, or to compromise employee account credentials or social engineer employees into granting further access to systems.
We may rely on third-party service providers and technologies to operate critical business systems to process sensitive information in a variety of contexts, including cloud-based infrastructure, data center facilities, encryption and authentication technology, employee email, content delivery, and other functions. We may also rely on third-party service providers to provide other products or services to operate our business. Additionally, some advertisers and partners may store sensitive information that we share with them. Our ability to monitor these third parties’ information security practices is limited, and these third parties may not have adequate information security measures in place despite their contractual representations to implement such measures and our third party service provider vetting process. If these third parties fail to implement adequate data security practices or fail to comply with our terms and policies, our sensitive data may be improperly accessed or disclosed, and we may experience adverse consequences. And even if these third parties take all of these steps, their networks may still suffer a breach, which could compromise our sensitive data. While we may be entitled to damages if our third-party service providers fail to satisfy their privacy or security-related obligations to us, any award may be insufficient to cover our damages, or we may be unable to recover such award.
Moreover, supply chain attacks have increased in frequency and severity, and we cannot guarantee that third parties in our supply chain have not been compromised or that their systems or networks are free from exploitable defects or bugs that could result in a breach of or disruption to our platform, systems, and networks or the systems and networks of third parties that support us and our services. We are also reliant on third party and open source software that may contain bugs, vulnerabilities, or errors that could be exploited or disclosed before a patch or fix is available.
If any of these or similar events occur, our or our third party partners’ sensitive information and information technology systems could be accessed, acquired, modified, destroyed, lost, altered, encrypted, or disclosed in an unauthorized, unlawful, accidental, or other improper manner, resulting in a security incident or other interruption.
We may expend significant resources or modify our business activities to adopt additional measures designed to protect against security incidents. Certain data privacy and security obligations may require us to implement and maintain specific security measures or industry-standard or reasonable security measures to protect our systems and sensitive information. While we have implemented security measures designed to protect against security incidents, there can be no assurance that these measures will be effective. Additionally, we may be unable to detect vulnerabilities in other parts of our systems, including in our products, because such threats and techniques change frequently, are often sophisticated in nature, and may not be detected until after a security incident has occurred.
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Any security incident experienced by us or our third party partners could damage our reputation and our brand, and diminish our competitive position. Applicable privacy and security obligations may require us to notify relevant stakeholders of security incidents. Such disclosures are costly and the failure to comply with these legal requirements could lead to adverse consequences. Governments and regulatory agencies may also enact new disclosure requirements for cybersecurity events. In addition, affected users or government authorities could initiate legal or regulatory action against us, including class-action claims, investigations, penalties, and audits, which could be time-consuming and cause us to incur significant expense and liability or result in orders or consent decrees forcing us to modify our business practices. We could also experience loss of user or advertiser confidence in the security of our platform, additional reporting requirements or oversight, restrictions on processing sensitive information, claims by our partners or other relevant parties that we have failed to comply with contractual obligations or our policies, and indemnification obligations. We could also spend material resources to investigate or correct the incident and to prevent future incidents. Maintaining the trust of our users is important to sustain our growth, retention, and user engagement. Concerns over our privacy and security practices, whether actual or unfounded, could damage our reputation and brand and deter users, advertisers, and partners from using our products and services. Any of these occurrences could seriously harm our business.
Our contracts may not contain limitations of liability, and even where they do, there can be no assurance that limitations of liability in our contracts are sufficient to protect us from liabilities, damages, or claims related to our data privacy and security obligations. We cannot be sure that our insurance coverage will be adequate or sufficient to protect us from or to mitigate liabilities arising out of our privacy and security practices, that such coverage will continue to be available on commercially reasonable terms or at all, or that such coverage will pay future claims.
We have previously suffered the loss of sensitive information related to employee error and vendor breaches.
Our user metrics and other estimates are subject to inherent challenges in measurement, and real or perceived inaccuracies in those metrics may seriously harm and negatively affect our reputation and our business.
We regularly review and share metrics, including our DAUs and ARPU metrics, with our investors, advertisers, and partners to evaluate growth trends, measure our performance, and make strategic decisions. These metrics are calculated using internal company data gathered on an analytics platform that we developed and operate and our methodology has not been validated by an independent third party. While these metrics are based on what we believe to be reasonable estimates for the applicable period of measurement, there are inherent challenges in measuring how our products are used across large populations globally that may require significant judgment and are subject to technical errors. For example, there may be individuals who have multiple Snapchat accounts, even though we forbid that in our Terms of Service and implement measures to detect and suppress that behavior. Our user metrics are also affected by technology on certain mobile devices that automatically runs in the background of our Snapchat application when another phone function is used, and this activity can cause our system to miscount the user metrics associated with such account.
Some of our demographic data may be incomplete or inaccurate. For example, because users self-report their dates of birth, our age-demographic data may differ from our users’ actual ages. And because users who signed up for Snapchat before June 2013 were not asked to supply their date of birth, we may exclude those users from age demographics or estimate their ages based on a sample of the self-reported ages we do have. If our users provide us with incorrect or incomplete information regarding their age or other attributes, then our estimates may prove inaccurate and fail to meet investor or advertiser expectations.
Errors or inaccuracies in our metrics or data could also result in incorrect business decisions and inefficiencies. For instance, if a significant understatement or overstatement of active users were to occur, we may expend resources to implement unnecessary business measures or fail to take required actions to attract a sufficient number of users to satisfy our growth strategies. We count a DAU when a user opens the application, but only once per user per day. We have multiple pipelines of user data that we use to determine whether a user has opened the application during a particular day, becoming a DAU. This provides redundancy in the event one pipeline of data were to become unavailable for technical reasons, and also gives us redundant data to help measure how users interact with our application. However, we believe that we do not capture all data regarding our active users, which may result in understated metrics. This generally occurs because of technical issues, for instance when our systems do not record data from a user’s application or when a user opens the Snapchat application and contacts our servers but is not recorded as an active user. We continually seek to address these technical issues and improve our accuracy, such as comparing our active users and other metrics with data received from other pipelines, including data recorded by our servers and systems. But given the complexity of the systems involved and the rapidly changing nature of mobile devices and systems, we expect these issues to continue, particularly if we continue to expand in parts of the world where mobile data systems and connections are less stable. If advertisers,
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partners, or investors do not perceive our user, geographic, other demographic metrics, or measurements of advertising effectiveness to be accurate, or if we discover material inaccuracies in our metrics, our reputation may be seriously harmed. Our advertisers and partners may also be less willing to allocate their budgets or resources to Snapchat, which could seriously harm our business. In addition, we calculate average DAUs for a particular quarter by adding the number of DAUs on each day of that quarter and dividing that sum by the number of days in that quarter. This calculation may mask any individual days or months within the quarter that are significantly higher or lower than the quarterly average.
Improper or illegal use of Snapchat could seriously harm our business and reputation.
We cannot be certain that the technologies that we have developed to repel spamming attacks will be able to eliminate all spam messages from our products. Spammers attempt to use our products to send targeted and untargeted spam messages to users, which may embarrass or annoy users and make our products less user friendly. Our actions to combat spam may also divert significant time and focus from improving our products. As a result of spamming activities, our users may use our products less or stop using them altogether, and result in continuing operational cost to us.
Similarly, terrorists, criminals, and other bad actors may use our products to promote their goals and encourage users to engage in terror and other illegal activities discussed in our Transparency Report. We expect that as more people use our products, these bad actors will increasingly seek to misuse our products. Although we invest resources to combat these activities, including by suspending or terminating accounts we believe are violating our Terms of Service and Community Guidelines, we expect these bad actors will continue to seek ways to act inappropriately and illegally on Snapchat. Combating these bad actors requires our teams to divert significant time and focus from improving our products. In addition, we may not be able to control or stop Snapchat from becoming the preferred application of use by these bad actors, which may become public knowledge and seriously harm our reputation or lead to lawsuits or attention from regulators. If these activities increase on Snapchat, our reputation, user growth and user engagement, and operational cost structure could be seriously harmed.
Because we store, process, and use data, some of which contains personal data, we are subject to complex and evolving federal, state, local and foreign laws, regulations, executive actions, rules, contractual obligations, policies, and other obligations regarding privacy, data protection, content, and other matters. Many of these obligations are subject to change and uncertain interpretation, and our actual or perceived failure to comply with such obligations could result in investigations, claims, changes to our business practices, increased cost of operations, and declines in user growth, retention, or engagement, or other adverse consequences, any of which could seriously harm our business.
In the ordinary course of business, we collect, store, use, and share personal data and other sensitive information, including proprietary and confidential business data, trade secrets, third party sensitive information, and intellectual property. Accordingly, we are subject to a variety of laws, regulations, industry standards, policies, contractual requirements, executive actions, and other obligations relating to privacy, security, and data protection. We also are or may in the future be subject to many federal, state, local, and foreign laws and regulations, including those related to privacy, rights of publicity, content, data protection, intellectual property, health and safety, competition, protection of minors, consumer protection, employment, money transmission, import and export restrictions, gift cards, electronic funds transfers, anti-money laundering, advertising, algorithms, encryption, and taxation.
In Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, all of our major markets have laws, regulations, and regulatory/industry standards that govern privacy, security, online safety and data protection.
For example, in Europe, under GDPR or similar laws, companies may face temporary or definitive bans on data processing and other corrective actions, fines of up to 20 million Euros or 4% of annual global revenue, whichever is greater, or private litigation related to processing of personal data brought by classes of data subjects or consumer protection organizations authorized at law to represent their interests. Additionally, the transfer of personal data from Europe and other jurisdictions to the United States, has recently also been under increased regulatory pressure and scrutiny. In particular, the European Economic Area, or EEA, and the UK have significantly limited the lawful basis on which personal data can be transferred to the United States (and other countries they believe provide inadequate privacy protections) and increased the assessments required to do so. Other jurisdictions may adopt similarly stringent interpretations of their data localization and cross-border transfer laws, or adopt similar laws. We have attempted to structure our operations in a manner designed to help us partially avoid some of these concerns (e.g., Snap Inc. receives Snapchat consumer data directly from European consumers and is directly subject to GDPR; a structure designed to seek to avoid any requirement for additional transfer protections under the GDPR in this context); however, we still transfer some data from the EEA and UK to the United States using currently legal mechanisms. Some of these mechanisms are subject
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to legal challenges, and there is no assurance that we can satisfy or rely on these measures to lawfully transfer personal data to the United States. If there is no lawful manner for us to transfer personal data from the EEA, the UK or other jurisdictions to the United States, or if the requirements for a legally-compliant transfer are too onerous, we could face significant adverse consequences, including the interruption or degradation of our operations, the need to relocate part of or all of our business or data processing activities to other jurisdictions at significant expense, increased exposure to regulatory actions, substantial fines and penalties, the inability to transfer data and work with partners, vendors and other third parties, and injunctions against our processing or transferring of personal data necessary to operate our business. Some European regulators have sought to restrict some companies’ data processing activities, including our competitors, from transferring certain personal data out of Europe for allegedly violating the GDPR’s cross-border data transfer limitations, which would materially impact such companies’ and, if subject to similar restrictions, our, operations and revenues. Additionally, companies like us that transfer personal data outside of the EU to other jurisdictions, particularly to the United States, are subject to increased scrutiny from regulators, individual litigants and activist groups.
Additionally, in Europe, the European Union has new legislative initiatives, such as the DSA, which requires further change to our products, policies, and procedures. We expect to be designated as one of the “providers of very large online platforms” in 2023 and are therefore likely to be subject to significant compliance deadlines starting in the second half of 2023. Current national laws that implement the ePrivacy Directive are likely to be replaced or updated when the ePrivacy Regulation enters into force, which will significantly increase fines for non-compliance once in effect and could also have a material impact on the availability of data we rely on to improve and personalize our products and features. Moreover, the United Kingdom’s Age Appropriate Design Code, or UK AADC, and incoming Online Safety Bill focus on online safety and protection of children’s privacy online, both of which require us to change our services and incur costs to do so. Furthermore, the proposed EU AI Act related to artificial intelligence, or AI, could, if adopted, impose onerous obligations related to the use of AI-related systems and may require us to change our business practices to comply with such obligations. Moreover, in the EEA, the Collective Redress Directive (effective June 2023) will allow collective actions to be brought by a representative body against businesses if they breach legislation intended to protect EU consumers, including for data protection matters, which could increase our costs and liability in the EEA market.
In Asia-Pacific, or APAC, our major markets are following closely behind Europe in introducing or updating their laws and regulations governing privacy, security, online safety and data protection, which will increase the complexity of compliance and our costs and liabilities in these jurisdictions. India’s IT Rules, introduced in 2021, require large technology companies like ours to appropriately moderate online content and provide government agencies with access, and have ultimately led to a ban of certain platforms. India has also introduced a new comprehensive privacy and data protection law (Digital Personal Data Protection Bill) under which we will be required to meet GDPR style obligations for Indian consumer data. Australia’s recent Online Safety Act and existing Assistance and Access Act have similarly placed significant focus on appropriate moderation, take down and government access. Australia is working on updates to its Privacy Act 1988 and a new Privacy Legislation Amendment (Enhancing Online Privacy and Other Measures (Bill) 2021 (Online Privacy Bill) that will impose more stringent obligations on us and other social / technology companies. Other APAC countries also have privacy laws that apply to our operations, such as South Korea’s Personal Information Protection Law, Japan’s Act on the Protection of Personal Information, and Singapore’s Personal Data Protection Act. Other foreign legislative and regulatory bodies in the Americas have enacted or may enact (or update) similar legislation regarding the handling of personal data, or conduct additional investigations into specific companies or the industry as a whole that could alter the existing regulatory environment in a manner that would be adverse to us. For example, these legislative updates or investigations could arise from Canada’s Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act, and various related provincial laws, Canada’s Anti-Spam Legislation, and Brazil’s General Personal Data Protection Law, or LGPD.
In the United States, federal, state, and local governments have enacted numerous privacy, security, and data protection laws, including data breach notification laws, personal data privacy laws, consumer protection laws (e.g., Section 5 of the Federal Trade Commission Act), and other similar laws. For example, the CCPA went into effect in January 2020 and the CPRA, which expands the requirements for handling personal data of California residents, went into effect in January 2023. The CCPA and CPRA also provide for civil penalties for violations, as well as a private right of action for data breaches, which may increase the likelihood and cost of data breach litigation. In 2022, Virginia, Colorado, Connecticut, and Utah passed comprehensive privacy laws that have gone into effect or will go into effect later in 2023. In 2023, Iowa also passed a comprehensive privacy law that goes into effect in 2025. The privacy of children’s personal data collected online, and use of "social media" platforms, generally, are also becoming increasingly scrutinized. In addition to the federal Children’s Online Privacy Protection Act, or COPPA, California’s Age-Appropriate Design Code Act, which is modeled after the UK AADC, goes into effect in 2024. In addition, in April 2023, Utah passed a law limiting the use of social media platforms by teens under 18, including a prohibition on showing them ads, and Arkansas passed a law
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requiring age verification and parental consent for use of certain social media by teens under 18. Other states have proposed similar restrictions, and there are increasingly divergent state and local legislation, regulation, and enforcement with respect to our industry. These developments may further complicate compliance efforts, lead to fragmentation of the service, and may increase legal risk and compliance costs for us and our third party partners.
Additionally, several states and localities have enacted statutes banning or restricting the collection of biometric information. For example, the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act, or BIPA, regulates the collection, use, safeguarding, and storage of biometric information. BIPA provides for substantial penalties and statutory damages and has generated significant class action activity. In November 2020, a putative class filed an action against us in Illinois, alleging that we violated BIPA. Other legal proceedings alleging similar claims followed. Although we maintain the position that our technologies implicated by these proceedings do not collect any biometric information, we have settled these disputes to avoid potentially costly litigation and have implemented a BIPA consent flow in Snapchat in an abundance of caution. Additionally, several states and localities have enacted measures related to the use of AI and machine learning in products and services.
In addition, privacy advocates and industry groups have proposed, and may propose in the future, standards with which we are legally or contractually obligated to comply. Moreover, we may also be bound by contractual obligations related to data privacy and security, and our efforts to comply with such obligations may not be successful. We may also publish privacy policies, marketing materials and other statements, such as compliance with certain certifications or self-regulatory principles, regarding data privacy and security. If these policies, materials, or statements are found to be deficient, lacking in transparency, deceptive, unfair, or misrepresentative of our practices, we may be subject to investigation, enforcement actions by regulators or other adverse consequences.
Many of these obligations are becoming increasingly stringent and subject to rapid change and uncertain interpretation. Preparing for and complying with these obligations requires us to devote significant resources. These obligations may necessitate changes to our services, information technologies, systems, and practices and to those of any third parties that process personal data on our behalf. In addition, these obligations may require us to change our business model. Our business model materially depends on our ability to process personal data, particularly in connection with our advertising offerings, so we are particularly exposed to the risks associated with the rapidly changing legal landscape regarding privacy, security, and data protection. For example, privacy regulators have targeted some of our competitors, including by investigating their data processing activities and issuing large fines. Such enforcement actions may cause us to revise our business plans and operations. Moreover, we believe a number of investigations into other technology companies are currently being conducted by federal, state, and foreign legislative and regulatory bodies. We therefore may be at heightened risk of regulatory scrutiny, as regulators focus their attention on data processing activities of companies like us, and any changes in the regulatory framework or enforcement actions – whether against us or our competitors – could require us to fundamentally change our business model.
We may at times fail, or be perceived to have failed, in our efforts to comply with our privacy, security, and data protection obligations. Moreover, despite our efforts, our personnel or third parties on whom we rely may fail to comply with such obligations, which could negatively impact our business operations. If we or the third parties upon which we rely fail, or are perceived to have failed, to address or comply with applicable privacy, security, or data protection obligations, we could face significant consequences, including but not limited to: government enforcement actions (such as investigations, claims, audits, penalties, etc.), litigation (including class action litigation), additional reporting requirements or oversight, bans on processing personal data, and orders to destroy or not use personal data. Any of these events could have a material adverse effect on our business, including loss of users and advertisers, inability to process personal data or operate in certain jurisdictions, changes to our business practices, increased cost of operations, and declines in user growth, retention, or engagement, any of which could seriously harm our business.
We have in the past been subject to enforcement actions, investigations, proceedings, orders, or various government inquiries regarding our data privacy and security practices and processing. For example, in December 2014, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission resolved an investigation into some of our early practices by issuing a final order. That order requires, among other things, that we establish a robust privacy program to govern how we treat user data. During the 20-year term of the order, we must complete biennial independent privacy audits. In addition, in June 2014, we entered into a 10-year assurance of discontinuance with the Attorney General of Maryland implementing similar practices, including measures to prevent minors under the age of 13 from creating accounts and providing annual compliance reports. Violating existing or future regulatory orders or consent decrees could subject us to substantial monetary fines and other penalties that could seriously harm our business.
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Our financial condition and results of operations will fluctuate from quarter to quarter, which makes them difficult to predict.
Our quarterly results of operations have fluctuated in the past and will fluctuate in the future. Additionally, we have a limited operating history with the current scale of our business, which makes it difficult to forecast our future results. As a result, you should not rely on our past quarterly results of operations as indicators of future performance. You should take into account the risks and uncertainties frequently encountered by companies in rapidly evolving market segments. Our financial condition and results of operations in any given quarter can be influenced by numerous factors, many of which we are unable to predict or are outside of our control, including:
•our ability to maintain and grow our user base and user engagement;
•the development and introduction of new or redesigned products or services by us or our competitors;
•the ability of our cloud service providers to scale effectively and timely provide the necessary technical infrastructure to offer our service;
•our ability to attract and retain advertisers in a particular period;
•seasonal or other fluctuations in spending by our advertisers and product usage by our users, each of which may change as our product offerings evolve or as our business grows or as a result of unpredictable events such as inflationary pressures, labor shortages, supply chain disruptions, banking instability, the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, or the conflict in Ukraine;
•restructuring or other charges and unexpected costs or other operating expenses;
•the number of advertisements shown to users;
•the pricing of our advertisements and other products;
•our ability to demonstrate to advertisers the effectiveness of our advertisements;
•the diversification and growth of revenue sources beyond current advertising;
•increases in marketing, sales, and other operating expenses that we may incur to grow and expand our operations and to remain competitive;
•our ability to maintain operating margins, cash provided by operating activities, and Free Cash Flow;
•our ability to accurately forecast consumer demand for our physical products and adequately manage inventory;
•system failures or security incidents, and the costs associated with such incidents and remediations;
•inaccessibility of Snapchat, or certain features within Snapchat, due to third-party or governmental actions;
•stock-based compensation expense;
•our ability to effectively incentivize our workforce;
•adverse litigation judgments, settlements, or other litigation-related costs, or product recalls;
•changes in the legislative or regulatory environment, including with respect to privacy, rights of publicity, content, data protection, intellectual property, health and safety, competition, protection of minors, consumer protection, employment, money transmission, import and export restrictions, gift cards, electronic funds transfers, anti-money laundering, advertising, algorithms, encryption, and taxation, enforcement by government regulators, including fines, orders, sanctions, or consent decrees, or the issuance of executive orders or other similar executive actions that may adversely affect our revenues or restrict our business;
•new privacy, data protection, and security laws and other obligations and increased regulatory scrutiny on our or our competitors’ data processing activities and privacy and information security practices, which some of our competitors have already experienced, including through enforcement actions potentially resulting in large penalties or other severe sanctions and increased restrictions on the data processing activities and personal data transfers critical to the operation of our current business model;
•fluctuations in currency exchange rates and changes in the proportion of our revenue and expenses denominated in foreign currencies;
•fluctuations in the market values of our portfolio investments and interest rates or impairments of any assets on our consolidated balance sheet;
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•changes in our effective tax rate;
•announcements by competitors of significant new products, licenses, or acquisitions;
•our ability to make accurate accounting estimates and appropriately recognize revenue for our products for which there are no relevant comparable products;
•our ability to meet minimum spending commitments in agreements with our infrastructure providers;
•changes in accounting standards, policies, guidance, interpretations, or principles;
•the effect of war or other armed conflict on our workforce, operations, or the global economy; and
•changes in domestic and global business or macroeconomic conditions, including as a result of inflationary pressures, banking instability, war, armed conflict, including the conflict in Ukraine, incidents of terrorism, the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, or responses to these events.
If we are unable to continue to successfully grow our user base and further monetize our products, our business will suffer.
We have made, and are continuing to make, investments to enable users, partners, and advertisers to create compelling content and deliver advertising to our users. Existing and prospective Snapchat users and advertisers may not be successful in creating content that leads to and maintains user engagement. We are continuously seeking to balance the objectives of our users and advertisers with our desire to provide an optimal user experience. We do not seek to monetize all of our products nor do we solely focus our efforts on users with higher ARPU, and we may not be successful in achieving a balance that continues to attract and retain users and advertisers. We focus on growing engagement across our service, and from time to time our efforts may reduce user activity with certain monetizable products in favor of other products we do not currently monetize. If we are not successful in our efforts to grow or effectively and timely monetize our user base, or if we are unable to build and maintain good relations with our advertisers, our user growth and user engagement and our business may be seriously harmed. In addition, we may expend significant resources to launch new products that we are unable to monetize, which may seriously harm our business.
Additionally, we may not succeed in further monetizing Snapchat. We currently monetize Snapchat by displaying advertisements sold by us and our partners. As a result, our financial performance and ability to grow revenue could be seriously harmed if:
•we fail to increase or maintain DAUs;
•our user growth outpaces our ability to monetize our users, including if we don’t attract sufficient advertisers or if our user growth occurs in markets that are not as monetizable;
•we fail to increase or maintain the amount of time spent on Snapchat, the amount of content that our users share, or the usage of our Camera, Visual Messaging, Map, Stories, and Spotlight platforms;
•partners do not create sufficient engaging content for users or renew their agreements with us;
•we fail to attract sufficient advertisers to utilize our self-serve platform to make the best use of our advertising inventory;
•advertisers do not continue to introduce engaging advertisements;
•advertisers reduce their advertising on Snapchat;
•we fail to maintain good relationships with advertisers or attract new advertisers, or demonstrate to advertisers the effectiveness of advertising on Snapchat; or
•the content on Snapchat does not maintain or gain popularity.
We cannot assure you that we will effectively manage our growth.
The growth and expansion of our business, headcount, and products create significant challenges for our management, including managing multiple relationships with users, advertisers, partners, and other third parties, and constrain operational and financial resources. If our operations or the number of third-party relationships continues to grow, our information-technology systems and our internal controls and procedures may not adequately support our operations. In addition, some members of our management do not have significant experience managing large global business operations, so our management may not be able to manage such growth effectively. To effectively manage our
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growth, we must continue to improve our operational, financial, and management processes and systems and effectively expand, train, and manage our employee base. However, the actions we take to achieve such improvements may not have the intended effect and may instead result in disruptions, employee turnover, declines in revenue, and other adverse effects.
As our organization continues to mature and we are required to implement more complex organizational management structures, we may also find it increasingly difficult to maintain the benefits of our corporate culture, including our ability to quickly develop and launch new and innovative products. This could negatively affect our business performance and seriously harm our business.
In August 2022, we announced a plan to reduce our global employee headcount by approximately 20%. The headcount reduction is part of a broader strategic reprioritization to focus on our top priorities, improve cost efficiencies, and drive toward profitability and positive free cash flow. As a result of the strategic reprioritization, in the year ended December 31, 2022, we incurred pre-tax charges of $188.9 million, primarily consisting of severance and related charges, stock-based compensation expense, lease exit and related charges, impairment charges, contract termination charges, and intangible asset amortization. This headcount reduction and strategic reprioritization could disrupt our operations, adversely impact employee retention and morale, adversely impact our reputation as an employer, which could make it more difficult for us to retain existing employees and hire new employees in the future, distract management, and seriously harm our business.
Our costs may increase faster than our revenue, which could seriously harm our business or increase our losses.
Providing our products to our users is costly, and we expect our expenses, including those related to people and hosting, to grow in the future. This expense growth will continue as we broaden our user base, as users increase the number of connections and amount of content they consume and share, as we develop and implement new product features that require more computing infrastructure, and as we grow our business. Historically, our costs have increased each year due to these factors, and we expect to continue to incur increasing costs. Our costs are based on development and release of new products and the addition of users and may not be offset by a corresponding growth in our revenue. We will continue to invest in our global infrastructure to provide our products quickly and reliably to all users around the world, including in countries where we do not expect significant short-term monetization, if any. Our expenses may be greater than we anticipate, and our investments to make our business and our technical infrastructure more efficient may not succeed and may outpace monetization efforts. In addition, we expect to increase marketing, sales, and other operating expenses to grow and expand our operations and to remain competitive. Increases in our costs without a corresponding increase in our revenue would increase our losses and could seriously harm our business and financial performance.
Our business depends on our ability to maintain and scale our technology infrastructure. Any significant disruption to our service could damage our reputation, result in a potential loss of users and decrease in user engagement, and seriously harm our business.
Our reputation and ability to attract, retain, and serve users depends on the reliable performance of Snapchat and our underlying technology infrastructure. We have in the past experienced, and may in the future experience, interruptions in the availability or performance of our products and services from time to time. Our systems may not be adequately designed with the necessary reliability and redundancy to avoid performance delays or outages that could seriously harm our business. If Snapchat is unavailable when users attempt to access it, or if it does not load as quickly as they expect, users may not return to Snapchat as often in the future, or at all. As our user base and the volume and types of information shared on Snapchat grow, we will need an increasing amount of technology infrastructure, including network capacity and computing power, to continue to satisfy our users’ needs. It is possible that we may fail to effectively scale and grow our technology infrastructure to accommodate these increased demands. In addition, our business is subject to interruptions, delays, and failures resulting from earthquakes, other natural disasters, geo-political conflicts, terrorism, pandemics, and other catastrophic events. Global climate change could also result in natural disasters occurring more frequently or with more intense effects, which could cause business interruptions. Wars or other armed conflicts, including the conflict in Ukraine, could damage or diminish our access to our technology infrastructure or regional networks, disrupting our services which could seriously harm our business and financial performance.
As discussed in these risk factors, substantially all of our network infrastructure is provided by third parties, including Google Cloud and AWS. Any disruption or failure in the services we receive from these providers could harm our ability to handle existing or increased traffic and could seriously harm our business. Any financial or other difficulties these providers face may seriously harm our business. And because we exercise little control over these providers, we are vulnerable to problems with the services they provide.
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We periodically augment and enhance our financial systems and we may experience difficulties in managing our systems and processes, which could disrupt our operations, the management of our finances, and the reporting of our financial results, which in turn, may result in our inability to manage the growth of our business and to accurately forecast and report our results, each of which could seriously harm our business.
Our business emphasizes rapid innovation and prioritizes long-term user engagement over short-term financial condition or results of operations. That strategy may yield results that sometimes don’t align with the market’s expectations. If that happens, our stock price may be negatively affected.
Our business is growing and becoming more complex, and our success depends on our ability to quickly develop and launch new and innovative products. We believe our culture fosters this goal. Our focus on innovations and quick reactions could result in unintended outcomes or decisions that are poorly received by our users, advertisers, or partners. We have made, and expect to continue to make, significant investments to develop and launch new products and services and we cannot assure you that users will purchase or use such new products and services in the future. We will also continue to attempt to find effective ways to show our community new and existing products and alert them to events, holidays, relevant content, and meaningful opportunities to connect with their friends. These methods may provide temporary increases in engagement that may ultimately fail to attract and retain users. Our culture also prioritizes our long-term user engagement over short-term financial condition or results of operations. We frequently make decisions that may reduce our short-term revenue or profitability if we believe that the decisions benefit the aggregate user experience and improve our financial performance over the long term. For example, we monitor how advertising on Snapchat affects our users’ experiences to ensure we do not deliver too many advertisements to our users, and we may decide to decrease the number of advertisements to ensure our users’ satisfaction in the product. In addition, we improve Snapchat based on feedback provided by our users, advertisers, and partners. These decisions may not produce the long-term benefits that we expect, in which case our user growth and engagement on our service or on certain platforms, our relationships with advertisers and partners, and our business could be seriously harmed.
If we are unable to protect our intellectual property, the value of our brand and other intangible assets may be diminished, and our business may be seriously harmed. If we need to license or acquire new intellectual property, we may incur substantial costs.
We aim to protect our confidential proprietary information, in part, by entering into confidentiality agreements and invention assignment agreements with our employees, consultants, advisors, and third parties who access or contribute to our proprietary know-how, information, or technology. We, however, cannot assure you that these agreements will be effective in controlling access to, or preventing unauthorized distribution, use, misuse, misappropriation, reverse engineering, or disclosure of our proprietary information, know-how, and trade secrets. Further, these agreements do not prevent our competitors or partners from independently developing offerings that are substantially equivalent or superior to ours. These agreements may be breached, and we may not have adequate remedies for any such breach. Enforcing a claim that a party illegally disclosed or misappropriated a trade secret or know-how can be difficult, expensive, and time-consuming, and the outcome can be unpredictable.
We also rely on trademark, copyright, patent, trade secret, and domain-name protection laws to protect our proprietary rights. In the United States and internationally, we have filed various applications to protect aspects of our intellectual property, and we currently hold a number of issued patents, trademarks, and copyrights in multiple jurisdictions. In the future, we may acquire additional patents or patent portfolios, which could require significant cash expenditures. However, third parties may knowingly or unknowingly infringe our proprietary rights, third parties may challenge proprietary rights held by us, third parties may design around our proprietary rights or independently develop competing technology, and pending and future trademark, copyright, and patent applications may not be approved. Moreover, we cannot ensure that the claims of any granted patents will be sufficiently broad to protect our technology or platform and provide us with competitive advantages. Additionally, failure to comply with applicable procedural, documentary, fee payment, and other similar requirements could result in abandonment or lapse of the affected patent, trademark, or copyright application or registration.
Moreover, a portion of our intellectual property has been acquired or licensed from one or more third parties. While we have conducted diligence with respect to such acquisitions and licenses, because we did not participate in the development or prosecution of much of the acquired intellectual property, we cannot guarantee that our diligence efforts identified and remedied all issues related to such intellectual property, including potential ownership errors, potential errors during prosecution of such intellectual property, and potential encumbrances that could limit our ability to enforce such intellectual property rights.
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Further, the laws of certain foreign countries do not provide the same level of protection of corporate proprietary information and assets such as intellectual property, trade secrets, know-how, and records as the laws of the United States. For instance, the legal systems of certain countries, particularly certain developing countries, do not favor the enforcement of patents and other intellectual property protection. As a result, we may be exposed to material risks of theft of our proprietary information and other intellectual property, including technical data, manufacturing processes, data sets, or other sensitive information, and we may also encounter significant problems in protecting and defending our intellectual property or proprietary rights abroad. In any of these cases, we may be required to expend significant time and expense to prevent infringement or to enforce our rights. Our efforts to enforce our intellectual property rights may be met with defenses, counterclaims, and countersuits attacking the validity and enforceability of our intellectual property rights, and, if such defenses, counterclaims, and countersuits are successful, we could lose valuable intellectual property rights. Our inability to protect our proprietary technology against unauthorized copying or use, as well as any costly litigation or diversion of our management’s attention and resources, could impair the functionality of our platform, delay introductions of enhancements to our platform, result in our substituting inferior or more costly technologies into our platform, or harm our reputation and brand. In addition, we may be required to license additional technology from third parties to develop and market new platform features, which may not be on commercially reasonable terms, or at all, and would adversely affect our ability to compete. Although we have taken measures to protect our proprietary rights, there can be no assurance that others will not offer products, brands, content, or concepts that are substantially similar to ours and compete with our business. If we are unable to protect our proprietary rights or prevent unauthorized use or appropriation by third parties, the value of our brand and other intangible assets may be diminished, and competitors may be able to more effectively mimic our service and methods of operations. Any of these events could seriously harm our business.
Some of our software and systems contain open source software, which may pose particular risks to our proprietary applications.
We use software licensed to us by third-party developers under “open source” licenses in connection with the development or deployment of our products and expect to continue to use open source software in the future. Some open source licenses contain express requirements or impose conditions, which may be triggered under certain circumstances, with respect to the exploitation of proprietary source code or other intellectual property by users of open source software. While we employ practices designed to monitor our compliance with the licenses of third-party open source software and to avoid using the open source software in a manner that would put our valuable proprietary source code at risk, there is a risk that we could have used, or may in the future use, open source software in a manner which could require us to release our proprietary source code to users of our software or to the public, require us to license our proprietary software for purposes of making modifications or derivative works, or prohibit us from charging fees for the use of our proprietary software. This could result in loss of revenue, and allow our competitors to create similar offerings with lower development costs, and ultimately could result in a loss of our competitive advantages. Furthermore, there is an increasing number of open source software license types, almost none of which have been tested in a court of law, resulting in guidance regarding the proper legal interpretation of such licenses and there is a risk that these licenses could be construed in a way that could impose unanticipated conditions or restrictions on our ability to provide or distribute our products. If we were to receive a claim of non-compliance with the terms of any of our open source licenses, we may be required to publicly release certain portions of our proprietary source code or expend substantial time and resources to re-engineer some or all of our software, which may divert resources away from our product development efforts and, as a result, adversely affect our business. In addition, we could be required to seek licenses from third parties to continue offering our products for certain uses, or cease offering the products associated with such software, which may be costly.
In addition, our use of open source software may present greater risks than use of other third-party commercial software, as open source licensors generally do not provide support, warranties, indemnification or other contractual protections regarding infringement claims or the quality of the code. To the extent that our e-commerce capabilities and other business operations depend on the successful and secure operation of open source software, any undetected errors or defects in open source software that we use could prevent the deployment or impair the functionality of our systems and injure our reputation. In addition, the public availability of such software may make it easier for others to compromise our systems. Any of these risks could be difficult to eliminate or manage and, if not addressed, could have an adverse effect on our business.
If our users do not continue to contribute content or their contributions are not perceived as valuable to other users, we may experience a decline in user growth, retention, and engagement on Snapchat, which could result in the loss of advertisers and revenue.
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Our success depends on our ability to provide Snapchat users with engaging content, which in part depends on the content contributed by our users. If users, including influential users such as world leaders, government officials, celebrities, athletes, journalists, sports teams, media outlets, and brands, do not continue to contribute engaging content to Snapchat, our user growth, retention, and engagement may decline. That, in turn, may impair our ability to maintain good relationships with our advertisers or attract new advertisers, which may seriously harm our business.
Differing government initiatives and restrictions in regions in which our products and services are offered could seriously harm our business.
Foreign data protection, privacy, consumer protection, content regulation, and other laws and regulations are often more restrictive than those in the United States. In addition, federal, state and local governments in the United States have taken increasingly divergent approaches to legislating, regulating, and taking enforcement action with respect to technologies that are related to our products and services, including considering or passing laws and regulations that are different than those applicable to other regions in the United States. Foreign governments may censor Snapchat in their countries, restrict access to Snapchat from their countries entirely, impose other restrictions that may affect their citizens’ ability to access Snapchat for an extended period of time or even indefinitely, require data localization, or impose other laws or regulations that we cannot comply with, would be difficult for us to comply with, or would require us to rebuild our products or the infrastructure for our products. Federal, state, or local governments in the United States may take, or attempt, similar steps. Such restrictions may also be implemented or lifted selectively to target or benefit other companies or products, which may result in sudden or unexpected fluctuations in competition in regions where we operate. In addition, geo-political disputes, including the conflict in Ukraine, may cause countries to target and restrict our operations, or to promote other companies’ products in place of ours. Any restriction on access to Snapchat due to government actions or initiatives, or any withdrawal by us from certain countries or regions because of such actions or initiatives, or any increased competition due to actions and initiatives of governments would adversely affect our DAUs, including by giving our competitors an opportunity to penetrate geographic markets that we cannot access or to which they previously did not have access. As a result, our user growth, retention, and engagement may be seriously harmed, and we may not be able to maintain or grow our revenue as anticipated and our business could be seriously harmed.
Our users may increasingly engage directly with our partners and advertisers instead of through Snapchat, which may negatively affect our revenue and seriously harm our business.
Using our products, some partners and advertisers not only can interact directly with our users but can also direct our users to content with third-party websites and products and downloads of third-party applications. In addition, our users may generate content by using Snapchat features, but then share, use, or post it on a different platform. The more our users engage with third-party websites and applications, the less engagement we may get from them, which would adversely affect the revenue we could earn from them. Although we believe that Snapchat reaps significant long-term benefits from increased user engagement with content on Snapchat provided by our partners, these benefits may not offset the possible loss of advertising revenue, in which case our business could be seriously harmed.
If events occur that damage our brand or reputation, our business may be seriously harmed.
We have developed a brand that we believe has contributed to our success. We also believe that maintaining and enhancing our brand is critical to expanding our user base, advertisers, and partners. Because many of our users join Snapchat on the invitation or recommendation of a friend or family member, one of our primary focuses is on ensuring that our users continue to view Snapchat and our brand favorably so that these referrals continue. Maintaining and enhancing our brand will depend largely on our ability to continue to provide useful, novel, fun, reliable, trustworthy, and innovative products, which we may not do successfully. We may introduce new products, make changes to existing products and services, or require our users to agree to new terms of service related to new and existing products that users do not like, which may negatively affect our brand in the short-term, long-term, or both. Additionally, our partners’ actions may affect our brand if users do not appreciate what those partners do on Snapchat. We may also fail to adequately support the needs of our users, advertisers, or partners, which could erode confidence in our brand. Maintaining and enhancing our brand may require us to make substantial investments and these investments may not be successful. If we fail to successfully promote and maintain our brand or if we incur excessive expenses in this effort, our business may be seriously harmed.
In the past, we have experienced, and we expect that we will continue to experience, media, legislative, and regulatory scrutiny. Unfavorable publicity regarding us, our privacy or security practices, product changes, product quality, illicit use of our product, litigation, employee matters, or regulatory activity, or regarding the actions of our founders, our partners, our users, or other companies in our industry, could seriously harm our reputation and brand. Negative publicity
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and scrutiny could also adversely affect the size, demographics, engagement, and loyalty of our user base and result in decreased revenue, fewer app installs (or increased app un-installs), or declining user base or growth rates, any of which could seriously harm our business.
Expanding and operating in international markets requires significant resources and management attention. If we are not successful in expanding and operating our business in international markets, we may incur significant costs, damage our brand, or need to lay off team members in those markets, any of which may seriously harm our business.
We have expanded to new international markets and are growing our operations in existing international markets, which may have very different cultures and commercial, legal, and regulatory systems than where we predominantly operate. In connection with our international expansion and growth, we have also hired new team members in many of these markets. This international expansion may:
•impede our ability to continuously monitor the performance of all of our team members;
•result in hiring of team members who may not yet fully understand our business, products, and culture; or
•cause us to expand in markets that may lack the culture and infrastructure needed to adopt our products.
These issues may eventually lead to turnover or layoffs of team members in these markets and may harm our ability to grow our business in these markets. In addition, scaling our business to international markets imposes complexity on our business, and requires additional financial, legal, and management resources. We may not be able to manage growth and expansion effectively, which could damage our brand, result in significant costs, and seriously harm our business. For example, in August 2022, we announced a plan to reduce our global employee headcount by approximately 20%. The headcount reduction is part of a broader strategic reprioritization by the company to focus on our top priorities, improve cost efficiencies, and drive toward profitability and positive free cash flow. As a result of the strategic reprioritization, in the year ended December 31, 2022, we incurred pre-tax charges of $188.9 million, primarily consisting of severance and related charges, stock-based compensation expense, lease exit and related charges, impairment charges, contract termination charges, and intangible asset amortization. This headcount reduction and strategic reprioritization could disrupt our operations, adversely impact employee retention and morale, adversely impact our reputation as an employer, which could make it more difficult for us to retain existing employees and hire new employees in the future, distract management, and seriously harm our business.
Additionally, because we have team members internationally, we are exposed to political, social, and economic instability in additional countries and regions. For example, we have team members in Ukraine, and the current conflict and instability in the region has disrupted our operations and negatively impacted our team members and our business.
Our products are highly technical and may contain undetected software bugs or hardware errors, which could manifest in ways that could seriously harm our reputation and our business.
Our products are highly technical and complex. Snapchat, our other products, or products we may introduce in the future, may contain undetected software bugs, hardware errors, and other vulnerabilities. These bugs and errors can manifest in any number of ways in our products, including through diminished performance, security vulnerabilities, malfunctions, or even permanently disabled products. We have a practice of rapidly updating our products and some errors in our products may be discovered only after a product has been released or shipped and used by users, and may in some cases be detected only under certain circumstances or after extended use. While we maintain an application security program designed to detect bugs and vulnerabilities in our products prior to their launch and a bug bounty program to allow security researchers to assist us in identifying vulnerabilities in our products before they are exploited by malicious threat actors, there is no guarantee that we will be able to discover every vulnerability or threat to our products. We may be unable to detect bugs, vulnerabilities or threats because no testing can reveal all bugs and vulnerabilities in highly technical and complex products that are constantly evolving, cyber threat actors are developing sophisticated and often undisclosed exploit development tools and techniques, and vulnerabilities in open source and third party software that may be included in our products are disclosed daily. Any errors, bugs, or vulnerabilities discovered in our products or code after release could damage our reputation, result in a security incident (and all the attendant risks), drive away users, lower revenue, and expose us to claims or regulatory investigations, any of which could seriously harm our business.
Spectacles, as an eyewear product, is regulated by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, or the FDA, and may malfunction in a way that results in physical harm to a user or others around the user. We offer a limited one-year warranty in the United States and a limited two-year warranty in Europe, and any such defects discovered in our products after commercial release could result in a loss of sales and users, which could seriously harm our business.
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We could also face claims for product liability, tort, or breach of warranty. In addition, our product contracts with users contain provisions relating to warranty disclaimers and liability limitations, which may not be upheld. Defending a lawsuit, regardless of its merit, is costly and may divert management’s attention and seriously harm our reputation and our business. In addition, if our liability insurance coverage proves inadequate or future coverage is unavailable on acceptable terms or at all, our business could be seriously harmed.
We have been, are currently, and may in the future be subject to regulatory inquiries, investigations, and proceedings in the future, which could cause us to incur substantial costs or require us to change our business practices in a way that could seriously harm our business.
We have been, are currently, and may in the future be subject to inquiries, investigations, and proceedings instituted by government entities. We regularly report information about our business to federal, state, and foreign regulators in the ordinary course of operations. For example, many companies in our industry have received additional information requests from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and companies with operations in California, including us, have received additional information requests and notices of cause from the California Civil Rights Department (formerly the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing) regarding employment practices, including pay equity. These actions, including any potential unfavorable outcomes, and our compliance with any associated regulatory orders, consent decrees, or settlements, may require us to change our policies or practices, subject us to substantial monetary fines or other penalties or sanctions, result in increased operating costs, divert management’s attention, harm our reputation, and require us to incur significant legal and other expenses, any of which could seriously harm our business.
We are currently, and expect to be in the future, party to patent lawsuits and other intellectual property claims that are expensive and time-consuming. If resolved adversely, these lawsuits and claims could seriously harm our business.
Companies in the mobile, camera, communication, media, internet, and other technology-related industries own large numbers of patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and other intellectual property rights, and frequently enter into litigation based on allegations of infringement, misappropriation, or other violations of intellectual property or other rights. In addition, various “non-practicing entities” and other entities that own patents, copyrights, trademarks, trade secrets, and other intellectual property rights often attempt to aggressively assert their rights to extract value from technology companies. Furthermore, from time to time we may introduce new products or make other business changes, including in areas where we currently do not compete, which could increase our exposure to patent, copyright, trademark, trade secret, and other intellectual property rights claims from competitors and non-practicing entities. We have been subject to, and expect to continue to be subject to, claims and legal proceedings from holders of patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and other intellectual property rights alleging that some of our products or content infringe their rights. For example, in January 2020, You Map, Inc. filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware against us, our subsidiary Zenly, and certain of our respective employees alleging that we misappropriated various trade secrets regarding map technology used in Snapchat’s and Zenly’s map products and that the Snapchat and Zenly applications infringe a You Map patent. While we believe we have meritorious defenses to these claims, an unfavorable outcome in these and other similar lawsuits could seriously harm our business. If these or other matters continue in the future or we need to enter into licensing arrangements, which may not be available to us or on terms favorable to us, it may increase our costs and decrease the value of our products, and our business could be seriously harmed. If a third party does not offer us a license to its intellectual property on commercially reasonable terms, or at all, we may be required to develop, acquire or license alternative, non-infringing technology, which could require significant time, effort, and expense, and may ultimately not be successful. Any of these events would adversely affect our business.
Moreover, we may not be aware if our platform is infringing, misappropriating, or otherwise violating third-party intellectual property rights, and third parties may bring claims alleging such infringement, misappropriation, or violation. Because patent applications can take years to issue and are often afforded confidentiality for some period of time, there may currently be pending applications, unknown to us, that later result in issued patents that could cover one or more of our products and there is also a risk that we could adopt a technology without knowledge of a pending patent application, which technology would infringe a third-party patent once that patent is issued. Moreover, the law continues to evolve and be applied and interpreted by courts in novel ways that we may not be able to adequately anticipate, and such changes may subject us to additional claims and liabilities. In a patent infringement claim against us, we may assert, as a defense, that we do not infringe the relevant patent claims, that the patent is invalid or both. The strength of our defenses will depend on the patents asserted, the interpretation of these patents and our ability to invalidate the asserted patents. However, we could be unsuccessful in advancing non-infringement or invalidity arguments in our defense. In the United States, issued patents enjoy a presumption of validity, and the party challenging the validity of a patent claim must present clear and convincing
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evidence of invalidity, which is a high burden of proof. Conversely, the patent owner need only prove infringement by a preponderance of the evidence, which is a lower burden of proof. Intellectual property claims, whether or not successful, could divert management time and attention away from our business and harm our reputation and financial condition. Moreover, there could be public announcements of the results of hearings, motions or other interim proceedings or developments and if securities analysts or investors perceive these results to be negative, it could have a substantial adverse effect on our business.
We rely on a variety of statutory and common-law frameworks for the content we host and provide our users, including the Digital Millennium Copyright Act, the Communications Decency Act, or CDA, and the fair-use doctrine. However, each of these statutes and doctrines is subject to uncertain judicial interpretation and regulatory and legislative amendments. For example, the U.S. Congress amended the CDA in 2018 in ways that could expose some Internet platforms to an increased risk of litigation. In addition, the U.S. Congress and the Executive branch have proposed further changes or amendments each year since 2019 including, among other things, proposals that would narrow the CDA immunity, expand government enforcement power relating to content moderation concerns, or repeal the CDA altogether. Some U.S. states have also enacted or proposed legislation that would undercut, or conflict with, the CDA’s protections. Although such state laws have been or can be expected to be challenged in court, if these laws were upheld or if additional similar laws or the changes or amendments to the CDA proposed by the U.S. Congress and the Executive branch were enacted, such changes may decrease the protections provided by the CDA and expose us to lawsuits, penalties, and additional compliance obligations. If courts begin to interpret the CDA more narrowly than they have historically done, this could expose us to additional lawsuits and potential judgments and seriously harm our business. A case concerning the scope of CDA protection is currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court; an eventual ruling in that case might narrow the judicial interpretation of the statute, exposing us to additional lawsuits and potential judgments that could seriously harm our business. Moreover, some of these statutes and doctrines that we rely on provide protection only or primarily in the United States. If the rules around these doctrines change, if international jurisdictions refuse to apply similar protections, or if a court were to disagree with our application of those rules to our service, we could incur liability or be required to make significant changes to our products, business practices, or operations, and our business could be seriously harmed.
From time to time, we are involved in class-action lawsuits and other litigation matters that are expensive and time-consuming and could seriously harm our business.
We are involved in numerous lawsuits, including putative class-action lawsuits brought by users and investors, some of which may claim statutory damages. We anticipate that we will continue to be a target for lawsuits in the future. Because we have millions of users, class-action lawsuits against us that are purportedly filed by or on behalf of users typically claim enormous monetary damages in the aggregate even if the alleged per-user harm is small or non-existent. For example, in November 2020, a putative class filed an action against us in Illinois, alleging that we violated an Illinois statute concerning the handling of biometric data, which we settled. Other plaintiffs have chosen to pursue a strategy of joining with other plaintiffs to bring a large number of individual claims, rather than pursuing a class action. For example, a sizable number of plaintiffs have sued us and other technology companies alleging that social platforms are addictive and harmful to minor users' mental health. Other plaintiffs have argued that we should be legally responsible for fentanyl overdoses or poisoning, if communications about a drug transaction occurred on our platform.
Similarly, because we have a large number of stockholders, class-action lawsuits on securities theories typically claim enormous monetary damages in the aggregate even if the alleged loss per stockholder is small. For example, in November 2021, we, and certain of our officers, were named as defendants in a securities class action lawsuit in federal court purportedly brought on behalf of purchasers of our Class A common stock. The lawsuit alleges that we and certain of our officers made false or misleading statements and omissions concerning the impact that Apple’s App Tracking Transparency, or ATT, framework would have on our business. In August 2022, we, and certain of our directors, were named as defendants in a class action lawsuit in Delaware Chancery Court purportedly brought on behalf of Class A stockholders, alleging that a transaction between the company’s co-founders and the company, in which the co-founders agreed to employment agreements and we agreed to amend our certificate of incorporation and issue a stock dividend if certain conditions were met, was not advantageous to the stockholders and constituted a breach of fiduciary duty.
We believe we have meritorious defenses to these lawsuits, but litigation is inherently uncertain and an unfavorable outcome could seriously harm our business. Any litigation to which we are a party may result in an onerous or unfavorable judgment that might not be reversed on appeal, or we may decide to settle lawsuits on adverse terms. Any such negative outcome could result in payments of substantial monetary damages or fines, or changes to our products or business practices, and seriously harm our business. Even if the outcome of any such litigation or claim is favorable,
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defending against such lawsuits is costly and can impose a significant burden on management and employees. We may also receive unfavorable preliminary, interim, or final rulings in the course of litigation.
We may face lawsuits, incur liability, or need to seek licenses based on information posted to our products.
We have faced, currently face, and will continue to face claims relating to information that is published or made available on our products, including Snapchat. In particular, the nature of our business exposes us to claims related to defamation, intellectual property rights, rights of publicity and privacy, and personal injury torts. For example, we do not monitor or edit the vast majority of content that is communicated through Snapchat, and such content has, and may in the future, expose us to lawsuits. Specifically, we are currently facing several lawsuits alleging that we are liable for allowing users to communicate with each other, and that those communications sometimes result in harm. In addition, other lawsuits allege that the design of our platform and those of our competitors is addictive and harmful to minor users’ mental health. We believe we have meritorious defenses to these lawsuits, but litigation is inherently uncertain and unfavorable outcomes could seriously harm our business.
This risk is enhanced in certain jurisdictions outside the United States where our protection from liability for third-party actions may be less than the protection that exists in the United States. For example, in April 2019, the European Union passed a directive expanding online platform liability for copyright infringement and regulating certain uses of news content online, which member states were required to implement by June 2021. In addition, legislation in Germany may impose significant fines for failure to comply with certain content removal and disclosure obligations. Numerous other countries in Europe, the Middle East, Asia-Pacific, and Latin America are considering or have implemented similar legislation imposing penalties for failure to remove certain types of content or follow certain processes.
In the United States, there have been various Congressional and Executive branch efforts to remove or restrict the scope of the protections available to online platforms under Section 230 of the CDA, and some U.S. states have also enacted or proposed legislation that would undercut, or conflict with, the CDA’s protections. For example, the CDA was amended in 2018, and the U.S. Congress and the Executive branch have proposed further changes or amendments each year since 2019, including among other things proposals that would narrow CDA immunity, expand government enforcement power relating to content moderation concerns, or repeal the CDA altogether. A case concerning the scope of CDA protection is currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court; an eventual ruling in that case might narrow the judicial interpretation of the statute, exposing us to additional lawsuits and potential judgments that could seriously harm our business. Such changes could decrease or change our protections from liability for third-party content in the United States.
We could incur significant costs investigating and defending such claims and, if we are found liable, significant damages, or license costs. We could also face fines or orders restricting or blocking our services in particular geographies as a result of content hosted on our services. If any of these events occur, we may incur significant costs or be required to make significant changes to our products, business practices, or operations and our business could be seriously harmed.
We plan to continue expanding our international operations where we have limited operating experience and may be subject to increased business and economic risks that could seriously harm our business.
We plan to continue expanding our business operations abroad and translating our products into other languages. Snapchat is currently available in more than 40 languages, and we have offices in more than 15 countries. We plan to enter new international markets and expand our operations in existing international markets, where we have limited or no experience in marketing, selling, and deploying our products and advertisements. Our limited experience and infrastructure in such markets, or the lack of a critical mass of users in such markets, may make it more difficult for us to effectively monetize any increase in DAUs in those markets, and may increase our costs without a corresponding increase in revenue. If we fail to deploy or manage our operations in international markets successfully, our business may suffer. We do not currently enter into foreign currency exchange contracts, which means our business, financial condition, and operating results may be impacted by fluctuations in the exchange rates of the currencies in which we do business. In the future, as our international operations increase, or more of our revenue agreements or operating expenses are denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar, these impacts may become material. In addition, as our international operations and sales continue to grow, we are subject to a variety of risks inherent in doing business internationally, including:
•political, social, and economic instability, including war and other armed conflicts;
•risks related to the legal and regulatory environment in foreign jurisdictions, including with respect to privacy, rights of publicity, content, data protection, intellectual property, health and safety, competition, protection of
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minors, consumer protection, employment, money transmission, import and export restrictions, gift cards, electronic funds transfers, anti-money laundering, advertising, algorithms, encryption, and taxation, and unexpected changes in laws, regulatory requirements, and enforcement;
•potential damage to our brand and reputation due to compliance with local laws, including potential censorship and requirements to provide user information to local authorities;
•fluctuations in currency exchange rates;
•higher levels of credit risk and payment fraud;
•complying with tax requirements of multiple jurisdictions;
•enhanced difficulties of integrating any foreign acquisitions;
•complying with a variety of foreign laws, including certain employment laws requiring national collective bargaining agreements that set minimum salaries, benefits, working conditions, and termination requirements;
•reduced protection for intellectual-property rights in some countries;
•difficulties in staffing and managing global operations and the increased travel, infrastructure, and compliance costs associated with multiple international locations;
•regulations that might add difficulties in repatriating cash earned outside the United States and otherwise preventing us from freely moving cash;
•import and export restrictions and changes in trade regulation;
•complying with statutory equity requirements;
•complying with the U.S. Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, the U.K. Bribery Act, and similar laws in other jurisdictions; and
•export controls and economic sanctions administered by the Department of Commerce Bureau of Industry and Security, the Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control, or other similar foreign regulatory bodies.
If we are unable to expand internationally and manage the complexity of our global operations successfully, our business could be seriously harmed.
Exposure to United Kingdom political developments, including the effect of its withdrawal from the European Union, could be costly and difficult to comply with and could harm our business.
We have based a significant portion of our European operations in the United Kingdom and have licensed a portion of our intellectual property to one of our United Kingdom subsidiaries. These operations continue to face risks and potential disruptions related to the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union, commonly referred to as “Brexit.” Although the United Kingdom and the European Union have entered into a trade and cooperation agreement, the long-term nature of the United Kingdom’s relationship with the European Union remains unclear. For example, Brexit could lead to potentially divergent laws and regulations, such as with respect to data protection and data transfer laws, that could be costly and complicate compliance efforts. While we continue to monitor these developments, the full effect of Brexit on our operations is uncertain and our business could be harmed by trade disputes or political differences between the United Kingdom and the European Union in the future.
We plan to continue to make acquisitions and strategic investments in other companies, which could require significant management attention, disrupt our business, dilute our stockholders, and seriously harm our business.
As part of our business strategy, we have made and intend to make acquisitions to add specialized team members and complementary companies, products, and technologies, as well as investments in public and private companies in furtherance of our strategic objectives. Our ability to acquire and successfully integrate larger or more complex companies, products, and technologies is unproven. In the future, we may not be able to find other suitable acquisition or investment candidates, and we may not be able to complete acquisitions or investments on favorable terms, if at all. Our previous and future acquisitions and investments may not achieve our goals, and any future acquisitions or investments we complete could be viewed negatively by users, advertisers, partners, or investors. In addition, if we fail to successfully close transactions, integrate new teams, or integrate the products and technologies associated with these acquisitions into our company, our business could be seriously harmed. Any integration process may require significant time and resources, and we may not be able to manage the process successfully. For example, future or past business transactions could expose us
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to additional cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities, as our systems could be negatively affected by vulnerabilities present in acquired or integrated entities’ systems and technologies. We may not successfully evaluate or use the acquired products, technology, and personnel, or accurately forecast the financial impact of an acquisition or investment transaction, including accounting charges. We may also incur unanticipated liabilities and litigation exposure that we assume as a result of acquiring companies. We may have to pay cash, incur debt, or issue equity securities to pay for any acquisition or investment, any of which could seriously harm our business. Selling or issuing equity to finance or carry out any such acquisition or investment would also dilute our existing stockholders. Incurring debt would increase our fixed obligations and could also include covenants or other restrictions that would impede our ability to manage our operations.
In addition, it generally takes several months after the closing of an acquisition to finalize the purchase price allocation. Therefore, it is possible that our valuation of an acquisition may change and result in unanticipated write-offs or charges, impairment of our goodwill, or a material change to the fair value of the assets and liabilities associated with a particular acquisition, any of which could seriously harm our business.
The strategic investments we make in public and private companies around the world range from early-stage companies still defining their strategic direction to mature companies with established revenue streams and business models. Many of the instruments in which we invest are non-marketable and illiquid at the time of our initial investment, and we are not always able to achieve a return in a timely fashion, if at all. Our ability to realize a return on our investment in a private company, if any, is typically dependent on the company participating in a liquidity event, such as a public offering or acquisition. To the extent any of the companies in which we invest are not successful, which can include failures to achieve business objectives as well as bankruptcy, we could recognize an impairment or lose all or part of our investment.
Our acquisition and investment strategy may not succeed if we are unable to remain attractive to target companies or expeditiously close transactions. For example, if we develop a reputation for being a difficult acquirer or having an unfavorable work environment, or target companies view our non-voting Class A common stock unfavorably, we may be unable to source and close acquisition targets. In addition, members of the U.S. administration and Congress have proposed new legislation that could limit, hinder, or delay the acquisition process and target opportunities. If we are unable to consummate key acquisition transactions essential to our corporate strategy, it may limit our ability to grow or compete effectively and our business may be seriously harmed.
If our goodwill or intangible assets become impaired, we may be required to record a significant charge to earnings, which could seriously harm our business.
Under U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, or GAAP, we review our intangible assets 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. As of March 31, 2023, we had recorded a total of $1.8 billion of goodwill and intangible assets, net related to our acquisitions. An adverse change in market conditions, particularly if such change has the effect of changing one of our critical assumptions or estimates, could result in a change to the estimation of fair value that could result in an impairment charge to our goodwill or intangible assets. Any such material charges may seriously harm our business.
We have spent and may continue to spend substantial funds in connection with the tax liabilities on the settlement of equity awards. The manner in which we fund these tax liabilities may cause us to spend substantial funds or dilute stockholders, either of which may have an adverse effect on our financial condition.
When our employee equity awards vest, we withhold taxes and remit them, along with any employee and employer social security contributions, to relevant taxing authorities on behalf of team members and, where applicable, their employers. To fund the withholding and remittance obligations for equity awards, we have either used our existing cash or sold a portion of vested equity awards on behalf of our team members near the applicable settlement dates in an amount that is substantially equivalent to the number of shares of common stock that we would withhold in connection with these settlements. In the future, we may also sell equity on our behalf and use the proceeds to fund the withholding and remittance obligations for equity awards. Any of these methods may have an adverse effect on our financial condition.
If we sell shares on behalf of our team members, although those newly issued shares should not be dilutive, such sales to the market could result in a decline to our stock price. If we use our existing cash, or if our cash reserves are not sufficient, we may choose to issue equity securities or borrow funds under our revolving credit facility. In such an event, we cannot assure you that we will be able to successfully match the proceeds of any such equity financing to the then
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applicable tax liability, and any such equity financing could result in a decline in our stock price and be dilutive to existing stockholders. If we elect to satisfy tax withholding and remittance obligations in whole or in part by drawing on our revolving credit facility, our interest expense and principal repayment requirements could increase significantly, which could seriously harm our business.
There are numerous risks associated with our internal and contract manufacturing of our physical products and components. If we encounter problems with either our internal or contract manufacturing, we may not deliver our products within specifications or on time, which may seriously harm our business.
Manufacturing processes are highly complex, require advanced and costly equipment, and must be continuously modified to improve yields and performance. We rely on suppliers and contract manufacturers in connection with the production of our own physical products and components. We and our contract manufacturers are all vulnerable to capacity constraints and reduced component availability, and have limited control over delivery schedules, manufacturing yields, and costs, particularly when components are in short supply, or if we introduce a new product or feature. In addition, we have limited control over our suppliers’ and manufacturers’ quality systems and controls, and therefore must rely on them to meet our quality and performance standards and specifications. Delays, component shortages, including custom components that are manufactured for us at our direction, global trade conditions and agreements, and other manufacturing and supply problems could impair the distribution of our products and ultimately our brand. For example, the United States has threatened tougher trade terms with China and other countries, leading to the imposition, or potential future imposition, of substantially higher U.S. Section 301 tariffs on certain imports from China, which may adversely affect our products and seriously harm our business.
Furthermore, any adverse change in our suppliers’ or contract manufacturers’ financial or business condition or our relationship with them could disrupt our ability to supply our products. If we change our suppliers or contract manufacturers, or shift to more internal manufacturing operations, we may lose revenue, incur increased costs, and damage our reputation and brand. Qualifying and commencing operations with a new supplier or contract manufacturer is expensive and time-consuming. In addition, if we experience increased demand for our products, we may need to increase our material or component purchases, internal or contract-manufacturing capacity, and internal test and quality functions. The inability of our suppliers or contract manufacturers to provide us with adequate high-quality materials and products could delay our order fulfillment, and may require us to change the design of our products to meet this increased demand. Any redesign may require us to re-qualify our products with any applicable regulatory bodies or customers, which would be costly and time-consuming. This may lead to unsatisfied customers and users and increase costs to us, which could seriously harm our business. As we increase or acquire additional manufacturing capacity, we are subject to many complex and evolving environmental, health, and safety laws, regulations, and rules in each jurisdiction in which we operate. If we fail to comply with any such laws and regulations, then we could incur regulatory penalties, fines, and legal liabilities, suspension of production, significant compliance requirements, alteration of our manufacturing processes, or restrictions on our ability to modify or expand our facilities, any of which could seriously harm our business.
In addition, any errors or defects in any parts or technology incorporated into our products could result in product failures that could seriously harm our business. Further, any defect in manufacturing, design, or other could cause our products to fail or render them permanently inoperable. For example, the typical means by which our Spectacles product connects to mobile devices is by way of a Bluetooth transceiver located in the Spectacles product. If the Bluetooth transceiver in our Spectacles product were to fail, it would not be able to connect to a user’s mobile device and Spectacles would not be able to deliver any content to the mobile device and the Snapchat application. As a result, we may have to replace these products at our sole cost and expense, face litigation, or be subject to other liabilities. Should we have a widespread problem of this kind, the reputational damage and the cost of replacing these products, or other liabilities, could seriously harm our business.
Some of our products are in regulated industries. Clearances to market regulated products can be costly and time-consuming, and we may not be able to obtain these clearances or approvals on a timely basis, or at all, for future products.
The FDA and other state and foreign regulatory agencies regulate Spectacles. We may develop future products that are regulated as medical devices by the FDA or regulated by other governmental agencies. Government authorities, primarily the FDA and corresponding regulatory agencies, regulate the medical device industry. Unless there is an exemption, we must obtain regulatory approval from the FDA and corresponding agencies, or other applicable governmental authorities, before we can market or sell a new regulated product or make a significant modification to an existing product. Obtaining regulatory clearances to market a medical device or other regulated products can be costly and
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time-consuming, and we may not be able to obtain these clearances or approvals on a timely basis, or at all, for future products. Any delay in, or failure to receive or maintain, clearance or approval for any products under development could prevent us from launching new products. We could seriously harm our business and the ability to sell our products if we experience any product problems requiring reporting to governmental authorities, if we fail to comply with applicable federal, state, or foreign agency regulations, or if we are subject to enforcement actions such as fines, civil penalties, injunctions, product recalls, or failure to obtain regulatory clearances or approvals.
We have faced inventory risk with respect to our physical products.
We have been and may in the future be exposed to inventory risks related to our physical products as a result of rapid changes in product cycles and pricing, defective merchandise, changes in consumer demand and consumer spending patterns, changes in consumer tastes with respect to our products, and other factors. We try to accurately predict these trends and avoid overstocking or understocking inventory. Demand for products, however, can change significantly between the time inventory or components are ordered and the date of sale. The acquisition of certain types of inventory or components may require significant lead-time and prepayment and they may not be returnable. Failure to manage our inventory, supplier commitments, or customer expectations could seriously harm our business.
Risks Related to Credit and Financing
We have offered and may continue to offer credit to our partners to stay competitive, and as a result we may be exposed to credit risk of some of our partners, which may seriously harm our business.
We engage in business with some of our partners on an open credit basis. While we attempt to monitor individual partner payment capability when we grant open credit arrangements and maintain allowances we believe are adequate to cover exposure for doubtful accounts, we cannot assure investors these programs will be effective in managing our credit risks in the future. This may be especially true as our business grows and expands, we engage with partners that have limited operating history, or we engage with partners that we may not be familiar with. If we are unable to adequately control these risks, our business could be seriously harmed.
Operating our business requires a significant amount of cash, and we may not have sufficient cash flow from our business to pay the Convertible Notes, and any other debt when due, which may seriously harm our business.
Our ability to make principal or interest payments on, or to refinance, the Convertible Notes or other indebtedness depends on our future performance, which is subject to many factors beyond our control. Our business may not generate sufficient cash flow from operations in the future to service our debt and business. If we are unable to generate such cash flow, we may be required to adopt one or more alternatives, such as selling assets, restructuring debt, obtaining additional debt financing, or issuing additional equity securities, any of which may be on terms that are not favorable to us or, in the case of equity securities, highly dilutive to our stockholders. Our ability to refinance the Convertible Notes or our other indebtedness will depend on various factors, including the available capital markets, our business, and our financial condition at such time. We may not be able to engage in any of these activities or on desirable terms, which could result in a default on our debt obligations. In addition, our existing and future debt agreements, including the Convertible Notes and Credit Facility, may contain restrictive covenants that may prohibit us from adopting any of these alternatives. Our failure to comply with these covenants could result in an event of default which, if not cured or waived, could result in the acceleration of our debt, and would seriously harm our business.
In addition, holders of the Convertible Notes have the right to require us to repurchase all or a portion of the Convertible Notes on the occurrence of a fundamental change at a repurchase price equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Convertible Notes to be repurchased, plus accrued and unpaid interest, if any, to, but excluding, the fundamental change repurchase date. Further, if a make-whole fundamental change as defined in each of the indentures governing the Convertible Notes, or the Indentures, occurs prior to the maturity date of the Convertible Notes, we will in some cases be required to increase the conversion rate for a holder that elects to convert its Convertible Notes in connection with such make-whole fundamental change. On the conversion of the Convertible Notes, unless we elect to deliver solely shares of our Class A common stock to settle such conversion (other than paying cash in lieu of delivering any fractional share), we will be required to make cash payments for the Convertible Notes being converted. However, we may not have enough available cash or be able to obtain financing at the time we are required to make such repurchases of the Convertible Notes surrendered or pay cash with respect to the Convertible Notes being converted.
If we default on our credit obligations, our operations may be interrupted and our business could be seriously harmed.
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We have a Credit Facility that we may draw on to finance our operations, acquisitions, and other corporate purposes. If we default on these credit obligations, our lenders may:
•require repayment of any outstanding amounts drawn on our Credit Facility;
•terminate our Credit Facility; or
•require us to pay significant damages.
If any of these events occur, our operations may be interrupted and our ability to fund our operations or obligations, as well as our business, could be seriously harmed. In addition, our Credit Facility contains operating covenants, including customary limitations on the incurrence of certain indebtedness and liens, restrictions on certain intercompany transactions, and limitations on the amount of dividends and stock repurchases. Our ability to comply with these covenants may be affected by events beyond our control, and breaches of these covenants could result in a default under the Credit Facility and any future financial agreements into which we may enter. If not waived, defaults could cause our outstanding indebtedness under our outstanding Convertible Notes or our Credit Facility, including any future financing agreements that we may enter into, to become immediately due and payable. For more information on our Credit Facility, see “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations—Liquidity and Capital Resources.”
We cannot be certain that additional financing will be available on reasonable terms when needed, or at all, which could seriously harm our business.
We have historically incurred net losses and negative cash flow from operations, and we may not attain and sustain profitability in future periods. As a result, we may need additional financing. Our ability to obtain additional financing, if and when required, will depend on investor demand, our operating performance, our credit rating, the condition of the capital markets, and other factors. To the extent we use available funds or draw on our Credit Facility, we may need to raise additional funds and we cannot assure investors that additional financing will be available to us on favorable terms when required, or at all. If we raise additional funds through the issuance of equity, equity-linked, or debt securities, those securities may have rights, preferences, or privileges senior to the rights of our Class A common stock, and our existing stockholders may experience dilution. In the event that we are unable to obtain additional financing on favorable terms, our interest expense and principal repayment requirements could increase significantly, which could seriously harm our business. In addition, our ability to draw on our Credit Facility relies on our lenders under that facility's continued operation and ability to fund.
Risks Related to Taxes
New legislation that would change U.S. or foreign taxation of business activities, including the imposition of tax based on gross revenue, could seriously harm our business, or the financial markets and the market price of our Class A common stock.
Reforming the taxation of international businesses has been a priority for politicians at a global level, and a wide variety of changes have been proposed or enacted. Due to the large and expanding scale of our international business activities, any changes in the taxation of such activities may increase our tax expense, the amount of taxes we pay, or both, and seriously harm our business. For example, legislation commonly referred to as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which was enacted in December 2017, significantly reformed the U.S. Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, or the Code. The Tax Cuts and Jobs Act lowered U.S. federal corporate income tax rates, changed the utilization of future net operating loss carryforwards, allowed for the expensing of certain capital expenditures, eliminated the option to currently deduct research and development expenditures and requires taxpayers to capitalize and amortize U.S.-based and non-U.S.-based research and development expenditures over five and fifteen years, respectively, and put into effect significant changes to U.S. taxation of international business activities. In August 2022, the Inflation Reduction Act, or the IRA, was enacted, the provisions of which include a minimum tax equal to 15% of the adjusted financial statement income of certain large corporations, as well as a 1% excise tax on certain share buybacks by public corporations that would be imposed on such corporations. It is possible that changes under the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the IRA or other tax legislation could increase our future tax liability, which could in turn adversely impact our business and future profitability.
In addition, many jurisdictions and intergovernmental organizations have been discussing or are in the process of implementing proposals that may change various aspects of the existing framework under which our tax obligations are determined in many of the jurisdictions in which we do business and in which our users are located. Some jurisdictions have enacted, and others have proposed, in each case potentially on a temporary basis pending the implementation of the
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“two-pillar solution” described below, taxes based on gross receipts applicable to digital services regardless of profitability. In addition, the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, or the OECD, has led international efforts to devise, and to implement on a permanent basis, a two-pillar solution to address the tax challenges arising from the digitalization of the economy. Pillar One focuses on nexus and profit allocation, and Pillar Two provides for a global minimum effective corporate tax rate of 15%. Pillar One would apply to multinational enterprises with annual global revenue above 20 billion euros and profitability above 10%, with the revenue threshold potentially reduced to 10 billion euros in the future. Based on these thresholds, we currently expect to be outside the scope of the Pillar One proposals, though we anticipate that we will be subject to Pillar One in the future if our global revenue exceeds the Pillar One thresholds. In December 2021, the OECD published detailed rules that define the scope of the Pillar Two global minimum effective tax rate proposal. A number of countries, including the United Kingdom, are currently proposing or have enacted legislation to implement core elements of the Pillar Two proposal by the start of 2024, and the European Union has adopted a Council Directive which requires certain Pillar Two rules to be transposed into member states’ national laws from such time. Based on our current understanding of the minimum revenue thresholds contained in the proposed Pillar Two rules, we expect that we may be within their scope and so their implementation could impact the amount of tax we have to pay.
We continue to examine the impact these and other tax reforms may have on our business. The impact of these and other tax reforms is uncertain and one or more of these or similar measures could seriously harm our business.
We may have exposure to greater-than-anticipated tax liabilities, which could seriously harm our business.
Our income tax obligations are based on our corporate operating structure and third-party and intercompany arrangements, including the manner in which we develop, value, and use our intellectual property and the valuations of our intercompany transactions. The tax laws applicable to our international business activities, including the laws of the United States and other jurisdictions, are subject to change and uncertain interpretation. The taxing authorities of the jurisdictions in which we operate may challenge our methodologies for valuing developed technology, intercompany arrangements, or transfer pricing, which could increase our worldwide effective tax rate and the amount of taxes we pay and seriously harm our business. Taxing authorities may also determine that the manner in which we operate our business is not consistent with how we report our income, which could increase our effective tax rate and the amount of taxes we pay and seriously harm our business. In addition, our future income taxes could fluctuate because of earnings being lower than anticipated in jurisdictions that have lower statutory tax rates and higher than anticipated in jurisdictions that have higher statutory tax rates, by changes in the valuation of our deferred tax assets and liabilities, or by changes in tax laws, regulations, or accounting principles. We are subject to regular review and audit by U.S. federal and state and foreign tax authorities. Any adverse outcome from a review or audit could seriously harm our business. In addition, determining our worldwide provision for income taxes and other tax liabilities requires significant judgment by management, and there are many transactions where the ultimate tax determination is uncertain. Although we believe that our estimates are reasonable, the ultimate tax outcome may differ from the amounts recorded in our financial statements for such periods and may seriously harm our business.
Our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and certain other tax attributes may be limited, each of which could seriously harm our business.
As of December 31, 2022, we had U.S. federal net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $7.4 billion and state net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $4.6 billion, as well as U.K. net operating loss carryforwards of approximately $3.6 billion. We also accumulated U.S. federal and state research tax credits of $691.5 million and $430.7 million, respectively, as of December 31, 2022. Under Sections 382 and 383 of the Code, if a corporation undergoes an “ownership change,” the corporation’s ability to use its pre-change net operating loss carryforwards and other pre-change tax attributes, such as research tax credits, to offset its post-change income and taxes may be limited. In general, an “ownership change” occurs if there is a cumulative change in our ownership by “5% shareholders” that exceeds 50 percentage points over a rolling three-year period. Similar rules may apply under state tax laws. In the event that we experience one or more ownership changes as a result of transactions in our stock, then we may be limited in our ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and other tax assets to reduce taxes owed on the net taxable income that we earn.
For U.S. federal income tax purposes, net operating losses arising in tax years beginning before January 1, 2018 can be carried forward to the earlier of the next subsequent twenty tax years or until such losses are fully utilized; net operating losses arising in tax years beginning after December 31, 2017 are not subject to the twenty-year limitation. In addition, for tax years beginning after December 31, 2020, our use of net operating losses arising in tax years beginning after December 31, 2017, may not exceed 80% of such year's taxable income. U.S. federal research tax credits can be carried forward to the earlier of the next subsequent twenty tax years or until such credits are fully utilized, and use of those
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credits generally cannot exceed 75% of the net income tax liability for any given tax year. In the U.K., net operating loss carryforwards can be carried forward indefinitely; however, use of such carryforwards in a given year is generally limited to 50% of such year’s taxable income and may be subject to ownership change rules that restrict the use of net operating loss carryforwards.
Any limitations on the ability to use our net operating loss carryforwards and other tax assets, as well as the timing of any such use, could seriously harm our business.
Our operating results may be negatively affected if we are required to pay additional sales and use tax, value added tax, or other transaction taxes, and we could be subject to liability with respect to all or a portion of past or future sales.
We currently collect and remit sales and use, value added and other transaction taxes in certain of the jurisdictions where we do business based on our assessment of the amount of taxes owed by us in such jurisdictions. However, in some jurisdictions in which we do business, we do not believe that we owe such taxes, and therefore we currently do not collect and remit such taxes in those jurisdictions or record contingent tax liabilities in respect of those jurisdictions. A successful assertion that we are required to pay additional taxes in connection with sales of our products and solutions, or the imposition of new laws or regulations or the interpretation of existing laws and regulations requiring the payment of additional taxes, would result in increased costs and administrative burdens for us. If we are subject to additional taxes and determine to offset such increased costs by collecting and remitting such taxes from our customers, or otherwise passing those costs through to our customers, companies may be discouraged from purchasing our products and solutions. Any increased tax burden may decrease our ability or willingness to compete in relatively burdensome tax jurisdictions, result in substantial tax liabilities related to past or future sales or otherwise seriously harm our business.
Risks Related to Ownership of Our Class A Common Stock
Holders of Class A common stock have no voting rights. As a result, holders of Class A common stock will not have any ability to influence stockholder decisions.
Class A common stockholders have no voting rights, unless required by Delaware law. As a result, all matters submitted to stockholders will be decided by the vote of holders of Class B common stock and Class C common stock. As of March 31, 2023, Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy control over 99% of the voting power of our capital stock, and Mr. Spiegel alone may exercise voting control over our outstanding capital stock. Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy voting together, or in many instances, Mr. Spiegel acting alone, will have control over all matters submitted to our stockholders for approval. In addition, because our Class A common stock carries no voting rights (except as required by Delaware law), the issuance of the Class A common stock in future offerings, in future stock-based acquisition transactions, or to fund employee equity incentive programs could prolong the duration of Mr. Spiegel’s and Mr. Murphy’s current relative ownership of our voting power and their ability to elect certain directors and to determine the outcome of all matters submitted to a vote of our stockholders. This concentrated control eliminates other stockholders’ ability to influence corporate matters and, as a result, we may take actions that our stockholders do not view as beneficial. As a result, the market price of our Class A common stock could be adversely affected.
We cannot predict the impact our capital structure and the concentrated control by our founders may have on our stock price or our business.
Although other U.S.-based companies have publicly traded classes of non-voting stock, to our knowledge, we were the first company to only list non-voting stock on a U.S. stock exchange. We cannot predict whether this structure, combined with the concentrated control by Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy, will result in a lower trading price or greater fluctuations in the trading price of our Class A common stock, or will result in adverse publicity or other adverse consequences. In addition, some indexes have indicated they will exclude non-voting stock, like our Class A common stock, from their membership. For example, FTSE Russell, a provider of widely followed stock indexes, requires new constituents of its indexes to have at least five percent of their voting rights in the hands of public stockholders. The S&P Dow Jones, another provider of widely followed stock indexes, previously excluded companies with multiple share classes, but recently reversed course to remove that exclusion. As a result, our Class A common stock is not eligible for stock indexes with these or similar restrictions. We cannot assure you that other stock indexes will not take a similar approach to FTSE Russell in the future. Exclusion from indexes could make our Class A common stock less attractive to investors and, as a result, the market price of our Class A common stock could be adversely affected. Additionally, the exclusion of our Class A common stock from these indexes may limit the types of investors who invest in our Class A common stock and could make the trading price of our Class A common stock more volatile.
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Because our Class A common stock is non-voting, we and our stockholders are exempt from certain provisions of U.S. securities laws. This may limit the information available to holders of our Class A common stock.
Because our Class A common stock is non-voting, significant holders of our common stock are exempt from the obligation to file reports under Sections 13(d), 13(g), and 16 of the Exchange Act. These provisions generally require periodic reporting of beneficial ownership by significant stockholders, including changes in that ownership. For example, we believe that Tencent Holdings Limited, together with its affiliates, holds greater than 10% of our Class A common stock based in part on Tencent Holdings Limited’s public reporting. As a result of our capital structure, holders are not obligated to disclose changes in ownership of our Class A common stock, so there can be no assurance that you, or we, will be notified of any such changes. Our directors and officers are required to file reports under Section 16 of the Exchange Act. Our significant stockholders, other than directors and officers, are exempt from the “short-swing” profit recovery provisions of Section 16 of the Exchange Act and related rules with respect to their purchases and sales of our securities. As such, stockholders will be unable to bring derivative claims for disgorgement of profits for trades by significant stockholders under Section 16(b) of the Exchange Act unless the significant stockholders are also directors or officers.
Since our Class A common stock is our only class of stock registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act and that class is non-voting, we are not required to file proxy statements or information statements under Section 14 of the Exchange Act, unless a vote of the Class A common stock is required by applicable law. Accordingly, legal causes of action and remedies under Section 14 of the Exchange Act for inadequate or misleading information in proxy statements may not be available to holders of our Class A common stock. If we do not deliver any proxy statements, information statements, annual reports, and other information and reports to the holders of our Class B common stock and Class C common stock, then we will similarly not provide any of this information to holders of our Class A common stock. Because we are not required to file proxy statements or information statements under Section 14 of the Exchange Act, any proxy statement, information statement, or notice of our annual meeting may not include all information under Section 14 of the Exchange Act that a public company with voting securities registered under Section 12 of the Exchange Act would be required to provide to its stockholders. Most of that information, however, will be reported in other public filings. For example, any disclosures required by Part III of Form 10-K as well as disclosures required by the NYSE for the year ended December 31, 2022 that are customarily included in a proxy statement are instead included in our Annual Report. But some information required in a proxy statement or information statement is not required in any other public filing. For example, we will not be required to comply with the proxy access rules or the “pay versus performance” disclosure rules under Section 14 of the Exchange Act. If we take any action in an extraordinary meeting of stockholders where the holders of Class A common stock are not entitled to vote, we will not be required to provide the information required under Section 14 of the Exchange Act. Nor will we be required to file a preliminary proxy statement under Section 14 of the Exchange Act. Since that information is also not required in a Form 10-K, holders of Class A common stock may not receive the information required under Section 14 of the Exchange Act with respect to extraordinary meetings of stockholders. In addition, we are not subject to the “say-on-pay” and “say-on-frequency” provisions of the Dodd–Frank Act. As a result, our stockholders do not have an opportunity to provide a non-binding vote on the compensation of our executive officers. Moreover, holders of our Class A common stock will be unable to bring matters before our annual meeting of stockholders or nominate directors at such meeting, nor can they submit stockholder proposals under Rule 14a-8 of the Exchange Act.
The trading price of our Class A common stock has been and will likely continue to be volatile.
The trading price of our Class A common stock has been and is likely to continue to be volatile. From April 1, 2021 to March 31, 2023, the trading price of our Class A common stock ranged from $7.33 to $83.34. Declines or volatility in our trading price, including during the current economic downturn, could make it more difficult to attract and retain talent, adversely impact employee retention and morale, and has required, and may continue to require, us to issue more equity to incentivize team members which is likely to dilute stockholders. The market price of our Class A common stock may fluctuate or decline significantly in response to numerous factors, many of which are beyond our control, including:
•actual or anticipated fluctuations in our user growth, retention, engagement, revenue, or other operating results;
•variations between our actual operating results and the expectations of investors and the financial community;
•the accuracy of our financial guidance or projections;
•any forward-looking financial or operating information we may provide, any changes in this information, or our failure to meet expectations based on this information;
•actions of investors who initiate or maintain coverage of us, changes in financial estimates by any investors who follow our company, or our failure to meet these estimates or the expectations of investors;
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•whether our capital structure is viewed unfavorably, particularly our non-voting Class A common stock and the significant voting control of our co-founders;
•additional shares of our common stock being sold into the market by us or our existing stockholders, or the anticipation of such sales, including if we issue shares to satisfy equity-related tax obligations;
•stock repurchase programs undertaken by us;
•announcements by us or our competitors of significant products or features, technical innovations, acquisitions, strategic partnerships, joint ventures, or capital commitments;
•announcements by us or estimates by third parties of actual or anticipated changes in the size of our user base or the level of user engagement;
•changes in operating performance and stock market valuations of technology companies in our industry segment, including our partners and competitors;
•price and volume fluctuations in the overall stock market, including as a result of trends in the economy as a whole, inflationary pressures, banking instability, war, armed conflict, including the conflict in Ukraine, incidents of terrorism, the persisting effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, or responses to these events;
•lawsuits threatened or filed against us;
•developments in new legislation and pending lawsuits, executive actions, or regulatory actions, including interim or final rulings by judicial or regulatory bodies, whether such developments may impact us or our competitors; and
•other events or factors, including those resulting from war, incidents of terrorism, pandemics, or responses to these events.
In addition, extreme price and volume fluctuations in the stock markets have affected and continue to affect many technology companies’ stock prices, including ours. Often, their stock prices have fluctuated in ways unrelated or disproportionate to the companies’ operating performance. In the past, stockholders have filed securities class-action litigation following periods of market volatility. For example, in November 2021, we, and certain of our officers, were named as defendants in a securities class action lawsuit in federal court purportedly brought on behalf of purchasers of our Class A common stock. The lawsuit alleges that we and certain of our officers made false or misleading statements and omissions concerning the impact that Apple’s ATT framework would have on our business. We believe we have meritorious defenses to this lawsuit, but an unfavorable outcome could seriously harm our business. Any litigation could subject us to substantial costs, divert resources and the attention of management from our business, and seriously harm our business.
We may not realize the anticipated long-term stockholder value of any stock repurchase program undertaken by us and any failure to repurchase our Class A common stock after we have announced our intention to do so may negatively impact our stock price.
Our board of directors has in the past and may from time to time in the future authorize stock repurchase programs, pursuant to which repurchases of Class A common stock may be made either through open market transactions (including pre-set trading plans) or through other transactions in accordance with applicable securities laws. Any repurchase programs may be modified, suspended, or terminated at any time. Any failure to repurchase stock after we have announced our intention to do so may negatively impact our reputation and investor confidence in us and may negatively impact our stock price.
The existence of a stock repurchase program could cause our stock price to trade higher than it otherwise would be and could potentially reduce the market liquidity for our stock. Although stock repurchase programs are intended to enhance long-term stockholder value, there is no assurance they will do so because the market price of our Class A common stock may decline below the levels at which we repurchased shares and short-term stock price fluctuations could reduce the effectiveness of any such program.
Repurchasing our Class A common stock reduces the amount of cash we have available to fund working capital, capital expenditures, strategic acquisitions or business opportunities, and other general corporate purposes, and we may fail to realize the anticipated long-term stockholder value of any stock repurchase program.
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Conversions or exchanges of the Convertible Notes may dilute the ownership interest of our stockholders or may otherwise affect the market price of our Class A common stock.
The conversion of some or all of the Convertible Notes may dilute the ownership interests of our stockholders. On conversion of the Convertible Notes, we have the option to pay or deliver, as the case may be, cash, shares of our Class A common stock, or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock. If we elect to settle our conversion obligation in shares of our Class A common stock or a combination of cash and shares of our Class A common stock, any sales in the public market of our Class A common stock issuable on such conversion could adversely affect prevailing market prices of our Class A common stock. In addition, the existence of the Convertible Notes may encourage short selling by market participants because the conversion of the Convertible Notes could be used to satisfy short positions, or anticipated conversion of the Convertible Notes into shares of our Class A common stock, any of which could depress the market price of our Class A common stock.
We may also engage in exchanges, repurchase, or induce conversions, of the Convertible Notes in the future. Holders of the Convertible Notes that participate in any of these exchanges, repurchases, or induced conversions may enter into or unwind various derivatives with respect to our Class A common stock or sell shares of our Class A common stock in the open market to hedge their exposure in connection with these transactions. These activities could decrease (or reduce the size of any increase in) the market price of our Class A common stock or the Convertible Notes, or dilute the ownership interests of our stockholders. In addition, the market price of our Class A common stock is likely to be affected by short sales of our Class A common stock or the entry into or unwind of economically equivalent derivative transactions with respect to our Class A common stock by investors that do not participate in the exchange transactions and by the hedging activity of the counterparties to our Capped Call Transactions or their respective affiliates.
We may still incur substantially more debt or take other actions that would diminish our ability to make payments on the Convertible Notes when due. Our ability to repay our debt depends on our future performance, which is subject to economic, financial, competitive, and other factors beyond our control.
We and our subsidiaries may incur substantial additional debt in the future, subject to the restrictions contained in our current and future debt instruments. We are not restricted under the terms of the Indentures governing the Convertible Notes from incurring additional debt, securing existing or future debt, repurchasing our stock, making investments, paying dividends, recapitalizing our debt, or taking a number of other actions that could have the effect of diminishing our ability to make payments on the Convertible Notes when due.
Our ability to pay our debt when due or to refinance our indebtedness, including the Convertible Notes, depends on our financial condition at such time, the condition of capital markets, and our future performance, which is subject to economic, financial, competitive, and other factors beyond our control.
The conditional conversion feature of the Convertible Notes, if triggered, may adversely affect our financial condition and operating results.
The Convertible Notes are convertible at the option of the holder. In the event the conditions for optional conversion of the 2025 Notes, 2026 Notes, 2027 Notes, or 2028 Notes by holders are met before the close of business on the business day immediately preceding February 1, 2025, May 1, 2026, February 1, 2027, or December 1, 2027, respectively, holders of the applicable Convertible Notes will be entitled to convert the Convertible Notes at any time during specified periods at their option. If one or more holders elect to convert their Convertible Notes, unless we elect to satisfy our conversion obligation by delivering solely shares of our Class A common stock (other than paying cash in lieu of delivering any fractional share), we may settle all or a portion of our conversion obligation in cash, which could adversely affect our liquidity. In addition, even if holders do not elect to convert their Convertible Notes, we could be required under applicable accounting rules to reclassify all or a portion of the outstanding principal of the Convertible Notes as a current rather than long-term liability, which would result in a material reduction of our net working capital and may seriously harm our business.
We entered into certain hedging positions that may affect the value of the Convertible Notes and the volatility and value of our Class A common stock.
In connection with the issuance of the Convertible Notes, we entered into certain hedging positions with certain financial institutions. These hedging positions are expected generally to reduce potential dilution of our Class A common stock on any conversion of the Convertible Notes or offset any cash payments we are required to make in excess of the principal amount of such converted Convertible Notes, as the case may be, with such reduction or offset subject to a cap.
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The counterparties to these hedging positions or their respective affiliates may modify their hedge positions by entering into or unwinding various derivatives with respect to our Class A common stock or purchasing or selling our Class A common stock in secondary market transactions prior to the maturity of the Convertible Notes (and are likely to do so during any observation period related to a conversion of Convertible Notes or following any repurchase of Convertible Notes by us on any fundamental change repurchase date or otherwise). This activity could cause or avoid an increase or a decrease in the market price of our Class A common stock or the Convertible Notes. In addition, if any such hedging positions fail to become effective, the counterparties to these hedging positions or their respective affiliates may unwind their hedge positions, which could adversely affect the value of our Class A common stock.
Delaware law and provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, as well as our Indentures, could make a merger, tender offer, or proxy contest difficult or more expensive, thereby depressing the trading price of our Class A common stock.
Our certificate of incorporation and bylaws contain provisions that could depress the trading price of our Class A common stock by acting to discourage, delay, or prevent a change of control of our company or changes in our management that the stockholders of our company may deem advantageous. These provisions include the following:
•our certificate of incorporation provides for a tri-class capital structure. As a result of this structure, Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy control all stockholder decisions, and Mr. Spiegel alone may exercise voting control over our outstanding capital stock. This includes the election of directors and significant corporate transactions, such as a merger or other sale of our company or our assets. This concentrated control could discourage others from initiating any potential merger, takeover, or other change-of-control transaction that other stockholders may view as beneficial. As noted above, the issuance of the Class A common stock dividend, and any future issuances of Class A common stock dividends, could have the effect of prolonging the influence of Mr. Spiegel and Mr. Murphy on the company;
•our board of directors has the right to elect directors to fill a vacancy created by the expansion of our board of directors or the resignation, death, or removal of a director, which prevents stockholders from being able to fill vacancies on our board of directors;
•our certificate of incorporation prohibits cumulative voting in the election of directors. This limits the ability of minority stockholders to elect directors; and
•our board of directors may issue, without stockholder approval, shares of undesignated preferred stock. The ability to issue undesignated preferred stock makes it possible for our board of directors to issue preferred stock with voting or other rights or preferences that could impede the success of any attempt to acquire us.
Any provision of our certificate of incorporation, bylaws, or Delaware law that has the effect of delaying or deterring a change in control could limit the opportunity for our stockholders to receive a premium for their shares of our common stock, and could also affect the price that some investors are willing to pay for our Class A common stock.
Furthermore, certain provisions in the Indentures governing the Convertible Notes may make it more difficult or expensive for a third party to acquire us. For example, the Indentures require us, at the holders’ election, to repurchase the Convertible Notes for cash on the occurrence of a fundamental change and, in certain circumstances, to increase the conversion rate for a holder that converts its Convertible Notes in connection with a make-whole fundamental change. A takeover of us may trigger the requirement that we repurchase the Convertible Notes or increase the conversion rate, which could make it more costly for a third party to acquire us. The Indentures also prohibit us from engaging in a merger or acquisition unless, among other things, the surviving entity assumes our obligations under the Convertible Notes and the Indentures. These and other provisions in the Indentures could deter or prevent a third party from acquiring us even when the acquisition may be favorable to holders of the Convertible Notes or our stockholders.
Future sales of shares by existing stockholders could cause our stock price to decline.
If our existing stockholders, including employees and service providers who obtain equity, sell, or indicate an intention to sell, substantial amounts of our Class A common stock in the public market, the trading price of our Class A common stock could decline. As of March 31, 2023, we had outstanding a total of 1.3 billion shares of Class A common stock, 22.5 million shares of Class B common stock, and 231.6 million shares of Class C common stock. In addition, as of March 31, 2023, 127.6 million shares of Class A common stock and 0.6 million shares of Class B common stock were subject to outstanding stock options and RSUs. As a result of our capital structure, holders who are not required to file reports under Section 16 of the Exchange Act are not obligated to disclose changes in ownership of our Class A common
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stock, so there can be no assurance that you, or we, will be notified of any such changes. All of our outstanding shares are eligible for sale in the public market, except approximately 365.4 million shares (including options exercisable and RSAs subject to forfeiture as of March 31, 2023) held by directors, executive officers, and other affiliates that are subject to volume limitations under Rule 144 of the Securities Act. Our employees, other service providers, and directors are subject to our quarterly trading window closures. In addition, we have reserved shares for issuance under our equity incentive plans. We may also issue shares of our Class A common stock or securities convertible into our Class A common stock from time to time in connection with a financing, acquisition, investment, or otherwise. When these shares are issued and subsequently sold, it would be dilutive to existing stockholders and the trading price of our Class A common stock could decline.
If securities or industry analysts either do not publish research about us, or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about us, our business, or our market, or if they change their recommendations regarding our common stock adversely, the trading price or trading volume of our Class A common stock could decline.
The trading market for our Class A common stock is influenced in part by the research and reports that securities or industry analysts may publish about us, our business, our market, or our competitors. If one or more of the analysts initiate research with an unfavorable rating or downgrade our Class A common stock, provide a more favorable recommendation about our competitors, or publish inaccurate or unfavorable research about our business, our Class A common stock price would likely decline. If any analyst who may cover us were to cease coverage of us or fail to regularly publish reports on us, we could lose visibility in the financial markets, which in turn could cause the trading price or trading volume to decline. Since we provide only limited financial guidance, this may increase the probability that our financial results are perceived as not in line with analysts’ expectations, and could cause volatility to our Class A common stock price.
We do not intend to pay cash dividends for the foreseeable future.
We have never declared or paid cash dividends on our capital stock. We currently intend to retain any future earnings to finance the operation and expansion of our business, and we do not expect to declare or pay any cash dividends in the foreseeable future. As a result, you may only receive a return on your investment in our Class A common stock if the market price of our Class A common stock increases. In addition, our Credit Facility includes restrictions on our ability to pay cash dividends.
If we are unable to maintain effective internal control over financial reporting in the future, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, and the market price of our Class A common stock may be seriously harmed.
We are required to maintain adequate internal control over financial reporting, perform system and process evaluation and testing of those internal controls to allow management to report on their effectiveness, report any material weaknesses in such internal controls, and obtain an opinion from our independent registered public accounting firm regarding the effectiveness of such internal controls as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, all of which is time-consuming, costly, and complicated. If we are unable to comply with these requirements in a timely manner, if we assert that our internal control over financial reporting is ineffective, if we identify material weaknesses in our internal control over financial reporting, or if our independent registered public accounting firm is unable to express an opinion or expresses a qualified or adverse opinion about the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, investors may lose confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports and the market price of our Class A common stock could be negatively affected. In addition, we could become subject to investigations by the NYSE, the SEC, and other regulatory authorities, which could require additional financial and management resources.
The requirements of being a public company may strain our resources, result in more litigation, and divert management’s attention.
We are subject to the reporting requirements of the Exchange Act, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the Dodd-Frank Act, the listing requirements of the NYSE, and other applicable securities rules and regulations. Complying with these rules and regulations have caused and will continue to cause us to incur additional legal and financial compliance costs, make some activities more difficult, be time-consuming or costly, and continue to increase demand on our systems and resources. The Exchange Act requires, among other things, that we file annual, quarterly, and current reports with respect to our business and operating results, and that our independent registered public accounting firm provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting. Failure to comply with these rules might also make it more
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difficult for us to obtain certain types of insurance, including director and officer liability insurance, and we might be forced to accept reduced policy limits and coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain the same or similar coverage.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware and the federal district courts of the United States will be the exclusive forums for substantially all disputes between us and our stockholders, which could limit our stockholders’ ability to obtain a favorable judicial forum for disputes with us or our directors, officers, or employees.
Our certificate of incorporation provides that the Court of Chancery of the State of Delaware is the exclusive forum for:
•any derivative action or proceeding brought on our behalf;
•any action asserting a breach of fiduciary duty;
•any action asserting a claim against us arising under the Delaware General Corporation Law, our certificate of incorporation, or our bylaws; and
•any action asserting a claim against us that is governed by the internal-affairs doctrine.
This provision would not apply to actions brought to enforce a duty or liability created by the Exchange Act or any other claim for which the federal courts have exclusive jurisdiction. Furthermore, Section 22 of the Securities Act creates concurrent jurisdiction for federal and state courts over all Securities Act claims, which means both courts have jurisdiction to entertain such claims. To prevent having to litigate claims in multiple jurisdictions and the threat of inconsistent or contrary rulings by different courts, among other considerations, our certificate of incorporation provides that the federal district courts of the United States will be the exclusive forum for resolving any complaint asserting a cause of action arising under the Securities Act.
These exclusive forum provisions may limit a stockholder’s ability to bring an action in a judicial forum that it finds favorable for disputes with us or our directors, officers, or other employees, which may discourage lawsuits against us and our directors, officers, and other employees. While the Delaware courts have determined that such choice of forum provisions are facially valid, a stockholder may nevertheless seek to bring an action in a venue other than those designated in the exclusive forum provisions. In such an instance, we would expect to vigorously assert the validity and enforceability of our exclusive forum provisions, which may require significant additional costs associated with resolving such action in other jurisdictions, and there can be no assurance that the provisions will be enforced by a court in those other jurisdictions. If a court were to find either exclusive forum provision in our certificate of incorporation to be inapplicable or unenforceable in an action, we may incur further significant additional costs associated with resolving the dispute in other jurisdictions, all of which could seriously harm our business.
Item 2. Unregistered Sales of Equity Securities and Use of Proceeds
None.
Item 3. Defaults Upon Senior Securities
None.
Item 4. Mine Safety Disclosures
Not applicable.
Item 5. Other Information
Changes to Executive Officers Cash Compensation
In April 2023, the compensation committee of our board of directors analyzed market data for executive compensation using the most relevant published survey sources, information available from our peer group’s public filings, and input from our compensation consultants. After the review, on April 26, 2023, the compensation committee of our board of directors approved an annual base salary increase for each of Derek Andersen, Jerry Hunter, and Michael O’Sullivan from $500,000 to $1,000,000 and for Rebecca Morrow from $431,600 to $500,000, in each case retroactively
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effective from April 1, 2023. These changes are intended to bolster retention and ensure competitiveness with the market. We continue to maintain significant weight on equity compensation to ensure alignment of their long-term financial interests with those of stockholders.
2023 Discretionary Bonus Program
On April 26, 2023, the compensation committee of the board of directors approved the 2023 Bonus Program. The 2023 Bonus Program provides executive officers and other eligible employees the opportunity to earn bonuses for the period from January 1, 2023 through December 31, 2023. Bonuses will be based on the achievement of certain company-wide priorities and objectives and the contributions and efforts of the eligible participants, in each case as determined by the compensation committee.
After December 31, 2023, we will evaluate the level of achievement of certain company-wide priorities and objectives, and the contributions and efforts of the eligible participants, for review and final approval by the compensation committee. Each eligible participant in the 2023 Bonus Program may receive a bonus in an amount up to 50% of such participant’s annual base salary as at December 31, 2023. The compensation committee may pay all or any portion of an earned bonus in shares of Class A common stock granted under the Snap Inc. 2017 Equity Incentive Plan. The compensation committee also has the right to adjust the bonus target of any participant upward in the event of over-achievement of the corporate objectives and key results.
There is no set formula for determining the bonus amount under the 2023 Bonus Program. Rather, the compensation committee will exercise its discretion in determining the bonus amount actually earned by each participant. Awards under the 2023 Bonus Program are expected to occur in the first quarter of 2024. A participant must remain an employee on the payment date under the 2023 Bonus Program to be eligible to earn a bonus.
The description of the 2023 Bonus Program does not purport to be complete and is qualified in its entirety by reference to the 2023 Bonus Program, a copy of which is attached as Exhibit 10.1 and incorporated by reference.
Bonus Award
Ms. Morrow, who is not a participant in the 2023 Bonus Program, is eligible to earn a bonus under our performance award program. These bonuses are paid out at our discretion following a review of Ms. Morrow’s performance in a given year. On April 26, 2023, the compensation committee of the board of directors approved an amount of $215,800 to be paid to Ms. Morrow.
Departure of Director
On April 26, 2023, Stanley Meresman notified us that he will not stand for re-election as a director at the 2023 annual meeting of stockholders. Mr. Meresman’s decision was not based on any disagreement with Snap Inc. or management. Mr. Meresman chose to announce his decision at this time to allow our board of directors ample opportunity to consider his replacement. Mr. Meresman will remain a director and a member of the audit committee of the board of directors until the 2023 annual meeting of stockholders. Snap Inc. greatly appreciates Mr. Meresman's long and dedicated service as a director and wishes him the best.
We are including these disclosures in Item 5 of this Form 10-Q rather than filing a Form 8-K under Item 5.02 at a later date.
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Item 6. Exhibits
| Incorporated by Reference | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Exhibit Number | Description | Schedule / Form | File Number | Exhibit | Filing Date | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.1 | S-1 | 333-215866 | 3.2 | February 2, 2017 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.2 | 8-K | 001-38017 | 3.1 | July 21, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.3 | 8-K/A | 001-38017 | 3.1 | August 8, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 3.4 | 8-K | 001-38017 | 3.1 | August 26, 2022 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 10.2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 31.2 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 32.1* | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.INS | Inline XBRL Instance Document. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.SCH | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.CAL | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.DEF | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Definition Linkbase Document. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.LAB | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Labels Linkbase Document. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 101.PRE | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (formatted as inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101). | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
*The certifications furnished in Exhibit 32.1 hereto are deemed to accompany this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and will not be deemed “filed” for purposes of Section 18 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, except to the extent that the registrant specifically incorporates it by reference.
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SIGNATURES
Pursuant to the requirements of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the registrant has duly caused this report to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| SNAP INC. | |||||
Date: April 27, 2023 | /s/ Derek Andersen | ||||
| Derek Andersen | |||||
| Chief Financial Officer | |||||
| (Principal Financial Officer) | |||||
Date: April 27, 2023 | /s/ Rebecca Morrow | ||||
| Rebecca Morrow | |||||
| Chief Accounting Officer | |||||
| (Principal Accounting Officer) | |||||
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