Results
Curiositystream Inc.
11/07/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 11/07/2024 15:14
Quarterly Report for Quarter Ending September 30, 2024 (Form 10-Q)
curi-20240930
Table of Contents
UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
_____________________
FORM 10-Q
_____________________
(MARK ONE)
| x | QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the quarter ended September 30, 2024
| o | 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: 001-39139
_____________________
CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
(Exact Name of Registrant as Specified in Its Charter)
_____________________
| Delaware | 84-1797523 |
|
(State or other jurisdiction of
incorporation or organization)
|
(I.R.S. Employer
Identification No.)
|
8484 Georgia Ave., Suite 700
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
(Address of principal executive offices)
(301) 755-2050
(Issuer's telephone number)
_____________________
Securities registered pursuant to Section 12(b) of the Act:
| Title of each class |
Trading
Symbol(s)
|
Name of each exchange
on which registered
|
| Common Stock, par value $0.0001 | CURI | NASDAQ |
| Warrants, each exercisable for one share of Common Stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share | CURIW | NASDAQ |
Check whether the issuer (1) filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Exchange Act during the past 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No o
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically every Interactive Data File required to be submitted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit such files). Yes x No o
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 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 ☒
As of October 31, 2024, 55,479,190 shares of Common Stock of the registrant were issued and outstanding.
Table of Contents
CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
QUARTERLY REPORT ON FORM 10-Q
Table of Contents
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Part I. Financial Information
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Item 1. Financial Statements (unaudited)
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Consolidated Balance Sheets
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2
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Consolidated Statements of Operations
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3
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Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Loss
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4
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Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity
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5
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Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows
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7
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Notes to Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements
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8
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Item 2. Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations
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23
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Item 3. Quantitative and Qualitative Disclosures Regarding Market Risk
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32
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Item 4. Controls and Procedures
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33
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Part II. Other Information
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Item 1. Legal Proceedings
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34
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Item 1A. Risk Factors
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34
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Item 6. Exhibits
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35
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Part III. Signatures
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36
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Table of Contents
PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION
ITEM 1. FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
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Table of Contents
CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
|
(in thousands, except par value)
|
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
||
|
(Unaudited)
|
||||
| Assets | ||||
| Current assets | ||||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 9,588 | $ | 37,715 |
| Restricted cash | 125 | 500 | ||
| Short-term investments in debt securities | 23,621 | - | ||
| Accounts receivable | 4,500 | 4,760 | ||
| Other current assets | 1,260 | 2,315 | ||
| Total current assets | 39,094 | 45,290 | ||
| Investments in debt securities | 6,513 | - | ||
| Investments in equity method investees | 4,179 | 6,354 | ||
| Property and equipment, net | 492 | 727 | ||
| Content assets, net | 33,885 | 44,943 | ||
| Operating lease right-of-use assets | 3,137 | 3,350 | ||
| Other assets | 267 | 358 | ||
| Total assets | $ | 87,567 | $ | 101,022 |
| Liabilities and stockholders' equity | ||||
| Current liabilities | ||||
| Content liabilities | $ | 499 | $ | 407 |
| Accounts payable | 3,842 | 4,765 | ||
| Accrued expenses and other liabilities | 4,873 | 3,705 | ||
| Deferred revenue | 11,347 | 14,521 | ||
| Total current liabilities | 20,561 | 23,398 | ||
| Warrant liability | 110 | 44 | ||
| Non-current operating lease liabilities | 3,990 | 4,283 | ||
| Other liabilities | 691 | 651 | ||
| Total liabilities | 25,352 | 28,376 | ||
| Stockholders' equity | ||||
|
Common stock, $0.0001 par value - 125,000 shares authorized as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023; 55,670 shares issued as of September 30, 2024, including 195 treasury shares; 53,287 issued and outstanding as of December 31, 2023; 55,475 shares outstanding as of September 30, 2024.
|
5 | 5 | ||
| Treasury stock | (218) | - | ||
| Additional paid-in capital | 366,614 | 362,636 | ||
| Accumulated deficit | (304,186) | (289,995) | ||
| Total stockholders' equity | 62,215 | 72,646 | ||
| Total liabilities and stockholders' equity | $ | 87,567 | $ | 101,022 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(unaudited and in thousands except per share amounts)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
| Revenues | $ | 12,604 | $ | 15,630 | $ | 37,000 | $ | 42,114 |
| Operating expenses | ||||||||
| Cost of revenues | 5,840 | 8,494 | 18,592 | 27,428 | ||||
| Advertising and marketing | 3,590 | 5,106 | 9,676 | 12,424 | ||||
| General and administrative | 6,426 | 6,959 | 18,187 | 22,998 | ||||
| Impairment of content assets | - | 18,970 | - | 18,970 | ||||
| 15,856 | 39,529 | 46,455 | 81,820 | |||||
| Operating loss | (3,252) | (23,899) | (9,455) | (39,706) | ||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liability | (36) | 74 | (66) | 184 | ||||
| Interest and other income | 538 | 31 | 1,702 | 856 | ||||
| Equity method investment loss | (267) | (2,638) | (2,175) | (5,092) | ||||
| Loss before income taxes | (3,017) | (26,432) | (9,994) | (43,758) | ||||
| Provision for income taxes | 45 | 133 | 134 | 479 | ||||
| Net loss | $ | (3,062) | $ | (26,565) | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,237) |
| Net loss per share | ||||||||
| Basic | $ | (0.06) | $ | (0.50) | $ | (0.19) | $ | (0.83) |
| Diluted | $ | (0.06) | $ | (0.50) | $ | (0.19) | $ | (0.83) |
| Weighted average number of common shares outstanding | ||||||||
| Basic | 54,850 | 53,040 | 53,920 | 52,999 | ||||
| Diluted | 54,850 | 53,040 | 53,920 | 52,999 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE LOSS
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(unaudited and in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
| Net loss | $ | (3,062) | $ | (26,565) | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,237) |
| Other comprehensive income (loss): | ||||||||
| Unrealized gain on available for sale securities | - | - | - | 40 | ||||
| Total comprehensive loss | $ | (3,062) | $ | (26,565) | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,197) |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
|
(unaudited and in thousands)
|
Common Stock
|
Treasury Stock |
Additional Paid-in Capital |
Accumulated Deficit |
Total Stockholders' Equity |
|||||||
| Shares | Amount | Shares | Amount | |||||||||
| Balance at December 31, 2023 | 53,287 | $ | 5 | - | $ | - | $ | 362,636 | $ | (289,995) | $ | 72,646 |
| Net loss | - | - | - | - | - | (5,035) | (5,035) | |||||
| Dividends declared | - | - | - | - | - | (1,333) | (1,333) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation, net | 19 | - | - | - | 683 | - | 683 | |||||
| Balance at March 31, 2024 | 53,306 | $ | 5 | - | $ | - | $ | 363,319 | $ | (296,363) | $ | 66,961 |
| Net loss | $ | (2,031) | $ | (2,031) | ||||||||
| Dividends declared | - | - | - | - | - | (1,343) | (1,343) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation, net | 439 | - | - | - | 1,263 | - | 1,263 | |||||
| Buyback of shares | - | - | 22 | (26) | - | - | (26) | |||||
| Balance at June 30, 2024 | 53,745 | $ | 5 | 22 | $ | (26) | $ | 364,582 | $ | (299,737) | $ | 64,824 |
| Net loss | $ | (3,062) | $ | (3,062) | ||||||||
| Dividends declared | - | - | - | - | - | (1,387) | (1,387) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation, net | 1,730 | - | - | - | 2,032 | - | 2,032 | |||||
| Buyback of shares | - | - | 173 | (192) | - | - | (192) | |||||
| Balance at September 30, 2024 | 55,475 | $ | 5 | 195 | $ | (218) | $ | 366,614 | $ | (304,186) | $ | 62,215 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
|
(unaudited and in thousands)
|
Common Stock
|
Additional Paid-in Capital |
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) |
Accumulated Deficit |
Total Stockholders' Equity |
||||||
| Shares | Amount | ||||||||||
| Balance at December 31, 2022 | 52,853 | $ | 5 | $ | 358,760 | $ | (40) | $ | (241,099) | $ | 117,626 |
| Net loss | - | - | - | - | (7,751) | (7,751) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation, net | 108 | - | 1,242 | - | - | 1,242 | |||||
| Other comprehensive income | - | - | - | 40 | - | 40 | |||||
| Balance at March 31, 2023 | 52,961 | $ | 5 | $ | 360,002 | $ | - | $ | (248,850) | $ | 111,157 |
| Net loss | - | - | - | - | (9,921) | (9,921) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation, net | 65 | - | 1,390 | - | - | 1,390 | |||||
| Balance at June 30, 2023 | 53,026 | $ | 5 | $ | 361,392 | $ | - | $ | (258,771) | $ | 102,626 |
| Net loss | - | - | - | - | (26,565) | (26,565) | |||||
| Stock-based compensation, net | 45 | - | 878 | - | - | 878 | |||||
| Balance at September 30, 2023 | 53,071 | $ | 5 | $ | 362,270 | $ | - | $ | (285,336) | $ | 76,939 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
||||
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(unaudited and in thousands)
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2024 | 2023 | ||
| Cash flows from operating activities | ||||
| Net loss | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,237) |
| Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities | ||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liability | 66 | (183) | ||
| Additions to content assets | (3,412) | (14,074) | ||
| Change in content liabilities | 92 | (2,734) | ||
| Amortization of content assets | 14,470 | 17,707 | ||
| Depreciation and amortization expenses | 285 | 370 | ||
| Impairment of content assets | - | 18,970 | ||
| Amortization of premiums and accretion of discounts associated with investments in debt securities, net | (166) | 26 | ||
| Stock-based compensation | 4,734 | 3,586 | ||
| Equity method investment loss | 2,175 | 5,092 | ||
| Other non-cash items | 359 | 362 | ||
| Changes in operating assets and liabilities | ||||
| Accounts receivable | 260 | 4,022 | ||
| Other assets | 1,096 | 1,737 | ||
| Accounts payable | (728) | 903 | ||
| Accrued expenses and other liabilities | (658) | (3,947) | ||
| Deferred revenue | (3,329) | (1,230) | ||
| Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities | 5,116 | (13,630) | ||
| Cash flows from investing activities | ||||
| Purchases of property and equipment | - | (5) | ||
| Investment in equity method investees | - | (992) | ||
| Maturities of investments in debt securities | - | 15,000 | ||
| Purchases of investments in debt securities | (29,968) | - | ||
| Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities | (29,968) | 14,003 | ||
| Cash flows from financing activities | ||||
| Repurchases of common stock | (218) | - | ||
| Dividends paid | (2,676) | - | ||
| Payments related to tax withholding | (756) | (76) | ||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (3,650) | (76) | ||
| Net increase in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash | (28,502) | 297 | ||
| Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, beginning of period | 38,215 | 40,507 | ||
| Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash, end of period | $ | 9,713 | $ | 40,804 |
| Supplemental disclosure: | ||||
| Cash paid for taxes | $ | 71 | $ | 144 |
| Cash paid for operating leases | $ | 416 | $ | 360 |
The accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements.
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CURIOSITYSTREAM INC.
UNAUDITED NOTES TO INTERIM CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
NOTE 1 - ORGANIZATION AND BUSINESS
On October 14, 2020, Software Acquisition Group Inc., a special purpose acquisition company and a Delaware corporation ("SAQN"), consummated a reverse merger pursuant to that certain Agreement and Plan of Merger, dated August 10, 2020 (the "Business Combination"). Upon the consummation of the Business Combination, CuriosityStream Operating Inc., a Delaware corporation ("Legacy CuriosityStream") became a wholly owned subsidiary of SAQN, and the registrant changed its name from "Software Acquisition Group Inc." to "CuriosityStream Inc." Following the consummation of the Business Combination, Legacy CuriosityStream changed its name from "CuriosityStream Operating Inc." to "Curiosity Inc."
The principal business of CuriosityStream Inc. (the "Company" or "CuriosityStream") is providing customers with access to high quality factual content via a direct subscription video on-demand (SVOD) platform accessible by internet connected devices, or indirectly via distribution partners who deliver CuriosityStream content via the distributor's platform or system. The Company's online library available for streaming spans the entire category of factual entertainment including science, history, society, nature, lifestyle, and technology. The library is composed of thousands of accessible on-demand and ad-free productions and includes shows and series from leading nonfiction producers.
The Company's content assets are available for consuming directly through its owned and operated website ("O&O Consumer Service"), mobile applications developed for iOS and Android operating systems ("App Services"), and via the platforms and systems of third-party partners in exchange for license fees. The Company offers subscribers a monthly or annual subscription. The price for a subscription varies depending on the location of the subscriber, the content included (e.g., Direct Service or Smart Bundle service) and the length of the subscription (e.g., monthly or annual) selected by the customer. As an additional part of the Company's App Services, it has built applications to make its service accessible on almost every major customer device, including streaming media players like Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV and major smart TV brands (e.g., LG, Vizio, Samsung). In addition, CuriosityStream has affiliate agreement relationships with, and its content assets are available through, certain multichannel video programming distributors ("MVPDs") and virtual MVPDs ("vMVPDs"). The Company also has distribution agreements which grant other media companies certain distribution rights to the Company's programs, referred to as content licensing arrangements. The Company also sells selected rights to content created before production begins.
NOTE 2 - BASIS OF PRESENTATION AND SUMMARY OF SIGNIFICANT ACCOUNTING POLICIES
BASIS OF PRESENTATION
The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements are prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("U.S. GAAP") and are consistent in all material respects with those applied in the Company's consolidated financial statements as of and for the year ended December 31, 2023.
In the opinion of management, the unaudited consolidated financial statements include all adjustments of a normal recurring nature necessary for the fair presentation of the Company's financial position, results of operations, and cash flows. The unaudited consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and related notes and Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations included in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023. The results of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2024.
USE OF ESTIMATES
The preparation of consolidated financial statements in conformity with U.S. GAAP and the rules and regulations of the U.S Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC") requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Significant items subject to such estimates include the content asset amortization, the assessment of the recoverability of content assets and equity method investments, and the determination of fair value estimates related to non-monetary transactions, share-based awards and liability classified warrants.
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Concentration of Risk
Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentration of credit risk consist principally of cash, cash equivalents, investments, and accounts receivable. The Company maintains its cash and cash equivalents with high credit quality financial institutions. At times, cash balances with the financial institutions may exceed the applicable FDIC-insured limits.
Investments in debt securities are held with reputable institutions and are monitored to manage credit risk exposure.
Accounts receivable, net are typically unsecured and are derived from revenues earned from customers, the majority of which are located in the United States.
Investments in Debt Securities
The Company classifies its investments in debt securities as held-to-maturity ""HTM" under ASC "Accounting Standards Codification" 320, "Investments-Debt and Equity Securities." HTM investments represent securities for which the Company has the positive intent and ability to hold to maturity, and they are reported at amortized cost.
Investments with original maturities of three months or less from the date of purchase are classified as cash equivalents. Investments with longer maturities are classified as short-term or long-term investments based on the remaining maturity at each balance sheet date and the Company's intent to hold the security. Interest income earned from HTM investments is recognized in the income statement as "Interest and other Income" under non-operating income.
Fair Value Measurement of Financial Instruments
Fair value is defined as the exit price, or the amount that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants as of the measurement date. The applicable accounting guidance establishes a hierarchy for inputs used in measuring fair value that maximizes the use of observable inputs and minimizes the use of unobservable inputs by requiring that the most observable inputs be used when available. Observable inputs are those that market participants would use in valuing the asset or liability and are developed based on market data obtained from sources independent of the Company. Unobservable inputs are inputs that reflect the Company's assumptions about the factors market participants would use in valuing the asset or liability. The accounting guidance establishes three levels of inputs that may be used to measure fair value:
•Level 1:Quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities.
•Level 2: Inputs other than Level 1 that are observable, either directly or indirectly, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities; quoted prices in markets that are not active; or other inputs that are observable or can be corroborated by observable market data for substantially the full term of the assets or liabilities.
•Level 3: Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.
Assets and liabilities are classified in their entirety based on the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurements. The Company reviews the fair value hierarchy classification at each reporting period. Changes in the observability of valuation inputs may result in a reclassification of levels for certain securities within the fair value hierarchy.
The Company's assets measured at fair value on a recurring basis have included its investments in money market funds, U.S. government securities, corporate debt securities, municipal debt securities and certificates of deposit. Level 1 inputs were derived by using unadjusted quoted prices for identical assets in active markets and were used to value the Company's investments in money market funds, U.S. government debt securities and certificate of deposit. Level 2 inputs were derived using prices for similar investments and were used to value the Company's investments in corporate and municipal debt securities.
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The Company's liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis include its private placement warrants issued to Software Acquisition Holdings LLC, the Company's former sponsor, in a private placement offering (the "Private Placement Warrants"). The fair value of the Private Placement Warrants is considered a Level 3 valuation and is determined using the Black-Scholes valuation model. Refer to Note 6 - Stockholders' Equityfor significant assumptions which the Company used in the fair value model for the Private Placement Warrants.
Certain assets are measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis and are subject to fair value adjustments only in certain circumstances, e.g., when there is evidence of impairment indicators.
The Company's remaining financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and accrued expenses and other liabilities, are carried at cost, which approximates fair value because of the short-term maturity of these instruments.
RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS
The Jumpstart Our Business Startups Act ("JOBS Act") allows the Company, as an emerging growth company ("EGC"), to delay adoption of new or revised accounting pronouncements applicable to public companies until such pronouncements are applicable to private companies. The Company has elected to use this extended transition period under the JOBS Act until such time as the Company is no longer considered to be an EGC.
In November 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-07 ("ASU 2023-07"), Segment Reporting (Topic 280): Improvements to Reportable Segment Disclosures,which requires public entities to disclose information about their reportable segments' significant expenses and other segment items on an interim and annual basis. Public entities with a single reportable segment are required to apply the disclosure requirements in ASU 2023-07, as well as all existing segment disclosures and reconciliation requirements in ASC 280 on an interim and annual basis. ASU 2023-07 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2023, and for interim periods within fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2023-07.
In December 2023, the FASB issued ASU No. 2023-09 ("ASU 2023-09"), Income Taxes (Topic 740): Improvements to Income Tax Disclosures, which requires public entities, on an annual basis, to provide disclosure of specific categories in the rate reconciliation, as well as disclosure of income taxes paid disaggregated by jurisdiction. ASU 2023-09 is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2024, with early adoption permitted. The Company is currently evaluating the impact of adopting ASU 2023-09.
NOTE 3 - EQUITY INVESTMENTS
The Company holds equity investments in Spiegel TV Geschichte und Wissen GmbH & Co. KG (the "Spiegel Venture") and Watch Nebula LLC ("Nebula"). The Company accounts for these investments under the equity method of accounting. The Company's carrying values for its equity method investments as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, were as follows:
|
(in thousands)
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Spiegel
Venture
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Nebula
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Total
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|||
| Balance at December 31, 2023 | $ | 1,736 | $ | 4,618 | $ | 6,354 |
| Equity method investment loss | (1,553) | (622) | (2,175) | |||
| Balance at September 30, 2024 | $ | 183 | $ | 3,996 | $ | 4,179 |
SPIEGEL VENTURE
In July 2021, the Company acquired a 32% ownership in the Spiegel Venture for an initial investment of $3.3 million. The Spiegel Venture, which prior to the Company's equity purchase, was jointly owned and operated by Spiegel TV GmbH ("Spiegel TV") and Autentic GmbH ("Autentic"), operates two documentary channels, together with an SVOD service as well as a free advertising-supported streaming television (FAST) channel, which provide factual content to pay television audiences in Germany and certain German-speaking regions of other countries. The Company has not received any dividends from the Spiegel Venture as of September 30, 2024.
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Per the Share Purchase Agreement (as amended in early 2023, the "SPA"), in the event the Spiegel Venture achieved certain financial targets during its 2022 fiscal period, the Company was required to make an additional payment related to its 32% equity ownership to both Spiegel TV and Autentic (the "Holdback Payment"). During the three months ended June 30, 2023, the Company determined the Spiegel Venture had achieved such financial targets, resulting in the Company paying a Holdback Payment in the amount of $0.9 million to the Spiegel TV and Autentic during July 2023. This payment has been recorded as an equity investment in the balance sheet.
The Company has a call option that permits it to require Spiegel TV and Autentic to sell their respective ownership interests in the Spiegel Venture (the "Call Option") to the Company. The Call Option, exercisable at a value based on a determinable calculation in the SPA, is initially exercisable only during the period that is the later of (i) 30 business days following the adoption of the Spiegel Venture's audited financial statements for the fiscal year 2025, and (ii) the period between March 1, 2026, and March 31, 2026.
Together with the Call Option, each of Spiegel TV and Autentic has a put option that permits it to require the Company to purchase their interest (the "Put Option") at a value based on a determinable calculation outlined in the SPA. The Put Option is only exercisable during the period that is the later of (i) 60 business days following the adoption of the Spiegel Venture's audited financial statements for the fiscal year 2025, and (ii) the period between April 1, 2026, and April 30, 2026.
In the event that neither the Call Option nor the Put Option is exercised, both options will continue to be available to each respective party in perpetuity beginning in the following year, with its exercise limited to the applicable date range outlined above.
NEBULA
Nebula is an SVOD technology platform built for and by a group of independent content creators. Prior to the Company's investment, Nebula was a wholly owned subsidiary of Standard Broadcast LLC ("Standard"). On August 23, 2021, the Company purchased a 12% ownership interest in Nebula for $6.0 million. Upon its initial investment, the Company obtained 25% representation on Nebula's Board of Directors.
Since the time of its original investment, the Company purchased additional incremental ownership interests, each for a payment of $0.8 million and representing 1.625% of equity ownership, if Nebula met certain quarterly targets. The Company made three subsequent incremental purchases, bringing its total ownership interest in Nebula to 16.875% as of September 30, 2024. The opportunity or obligation to make additional purchases ended as of September 30, 2023. Because the Company did not purchase at least two consecutive ownership interests in Nebula, effective December 15, 2023, Standard removed the Company's seat on the Nebula Board of Directors. The Company has not received dividends from Nebula as of September 30, 2024.
Beginning August 2021, the Company included access to Nebula's SVOD service as a part of a combined CuriosityStream/ Watch Nebulasubscription offer and as part of the Company's Smart Bundle subscription package. As part of this arrangement, the Company shared revenue with Nebula, based on certain metrics, and paid monthly. On September 26, 2023, Nebula provided the Company with a notice of non-renewal, resulting in the expiration of the revenue share agreement at the end of 2023. Nebula was required to make its service available to subscribers of these offerings through the end of the term of any such subscription that existed as of December 31, 2023.
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NOTE 4 - BALANCE SHEET COMPONENTS
CASH, CASH EQUIVALENTS, RESTRICTED CASH AND SHORT-TERM INVESTMENTS
A reconciliation of the Company's cash and cash equivalents in the consolidated balance sheets to cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash in the consolidated statements of cash flows is as follows:
|
(in thousands)
|
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
||
| Cash and cash equivalents | $ | 9,588 | $ | 37,715 |
|
Restricted cash1
|
125 | 500 | ||
| Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash | $ | 9,713 | $ | 38,215 |
|
1Restricted cash included cash deposits required by a bank as collateral related to corporate credit card agreements.
|
The Company's investments in debt securities at fair value based on unadjusted quoted market prices (Level 1) and quoted prices for comparable assets (Level 2) are:
| As of September 30, 2024 | As of December 31, 2023 | |||||||||||
| (in thousands) |
Cash and
Cash
Equivalents
|
Short-Term
Investments
|
Investments (Non-Current)
|
Total |
Cash and
Cash
Equivalents
|
Total | ||||||
| Level 1 securities: | ||||||||||||
| Money market funds | $ | 4,883 | $ | - | $ | - | $ | 4,883 | $ | 36,072 | $ | 36,072 |
| Certificate of deposit | 1,500 | 11,000 | - | 12,500 | - | - | ||||||
| U.S. government securities | 300 | 988 | - | 1,288 | - | - | ||||||
| Total Level 1 securities | $ | 6,683 | $ | 11,988 | $ | - | $ | 18,671 | $ | 36,072 | $ | 36,072 |
| Level 2 securities: | ||||||||||||
| Corporate debt securities | 2,446 | 11,633 | 6,513 | 20,592 | - | $ | - | |||||
| Total Level 2 securities | 2,446 | 11,633 | 6,513 | 20,592 | - | $ | - | |||||
| Total | $ | 9,129 | 23,621 | 6,513 | $ | 39,263 | $ | 36,072 | $ | 36,072 |
The following table provides the amortized cost and estimated fair value of investments with fixed maturities as of September 30, 2024:
| As of September 30, 2024 | ||||
| (in thousands) | Amortized Cost | Estimated Fair Value | ||
| Fixed maturities: | ||||
| Certificate of deposit | $ | 12,500 | $ | 12,500 |
| Corporate debt securities | 20,592 | 20,592 | ||
| U.S. government securities | 1,288 | 1,288 | ||
| Total | $ | 34,380 | $ | 34,380 |
The Company recorded no material realized gains or losses during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023.
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The following table provides the amortized cost and estimated fair value of investments with fixed maturities as of September 30, 2024:
| As of September 30, 2024 | ||||
| (in thousands) | Amortized Cost | Estimated Fair Value | ||
| Due in one year or less | $ | 27,867 | $ | 27,867 |
| Due after one year through five years | 6,513 | 6,513 | ||
| Total | $ | 34,380 | $ | 34,380 |
CONTENT ASSETS
Content assets consisted of the following as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023:
|
(in thousands)
|
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
||
| Licensed content, net: | ||||
|
Released, less amortization and impairment
|
$ | 10,286 | $ | 8,271 |
| Prepaid and unreleased | 3,249 | 8,357 | ||
| Total Licensed content, net | 13,535 | 16,628 | ||
| Produced content, net: | ||||
|
Released, less amortization and impairment
|
19,932 | 22,880 | ||
| In production | 418 | 5,435 | ||
|
Total produced content, net
|
20,350 | 28,315 | ||
|
Total content assets
|
$ | 33,885 | $ | 44,943 |
Of the $10.3 million unamortized cost of licensed content that had been released as of September 30, 2024, the Company expects that $5.1 million, $3.3 million and $1.0 million will be amortized in each of the next three years. Of the $19.9 million unamortized cost of produced content that had been released as of September 30, 2024, the Company expects that $7.4 million, $6.0 million and $4.1 million will be amortized in each of the next three years.
Impairment Assessment
The Company's primary business model is subscription-based as opposed to a model based on generating revenues at a specific title level. Content assets are predominantly monetized as a group and therefore are reviewed in aggregate at a group level when an event or change in circumstances indicates a change in the expected usefulness of the content or that the fair value may be less than unamortized cost. If such changes are identified, the aggregated content library will be stated at the lower of unamortized cost or fair value. In addition, unamortized costs are written off for content assets that have been, or are expected to be abandoned.
Amortization
In accordance with its accounting policy for content assets, the Company amortizes licensed content costs and produced content costs, which is included within cost of revenues in the Company's unaudited consolidated statements of operations. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, content amortization was as follows:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
| Licensed content | $ | 2,165 | $ | 1,728 | $ | 5,846 | $ | 5,478 |
| Produced content | 2,404 | 3,661 | 8,624 | 12,229 | ||||
| Total | $ | 4,569 | $ | 5,389 | $ | 14,470 | $ | 17,707 |
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ACCRUED EXPENSES AND OTHER LIABILITIES
Accrued expenses and other liabilities consisted of the following as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023:
| (in thousands) |
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
||
| Accrued payroll and benefits | 1,396 | 1,254 | ||
| Dividends payable | 1,387 | - | ||
| Sales & income tax liabilities | 947 | 1,095 | ||
| Other | 1,143 | 1,356 | ||
| Total | $ | 4,873 | $ | 3,705 |
WARRANT LIABILITY
As described in Note 6 - Stockholders' Equity, the Private Placement Warrants are classified as a non-current liability and reported at fair value at each reporting period. As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the fair value of the Private Placement Warrants, as determined using Level 3 inputs, was as follows:
|
(in thousands)
|
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
||
| Private Placement Warrants | $ | 110 | $ | 44 |
NOTE 5 - REVENUE
The following table sets forth the Company's disaggregated revenues for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, as well as the relative percentage to total revenue:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||
|
Direct Business:
|
||||||||||||
|
Direct-to-Consumer
|
7,750 | 61 | % | 7,399 | 47 | % | 23,853 | 64 | % | 22,126 | 53 | % |
|
Partner Direct
|
1,983 | 16 | % | 1,177 | 8 | % | 5,199 | 14 | % | 3,361 | 8 | % |
| Enterprise | 52 | 1 | % | 86 | 1 | % | 186 | 1 | % | 280 | 1 | % |
| Total Direct Business | 9,785 | 78 | % | 8,662 | 55 | % | 29,238 | 79 | % | 25,767 | 61 | % |
|
Content Licensing:
|
||||||||||||
|
Library sales
|
1,657 | 13 | % | 5,082 | 33 | % | 3,696 | 10 | % | 9,001 | 21 | % |
| Presales | - | - | % | - | - | % | 441 | 1 | % | 1,715 | 4 | % |
| Total Content Licensing | 1,657 | 13 | % | 5,082 | 33 | % | 4,137 | 11 | % | 10,716 | 25 | % |
| Bundled Distribution | 973 | 8 | % | 1,452 | 9 | % | 3,198 | 9 | % | 4,321 | 10 | % |
| Other | 189 | 1 | % | 434 | 3 | % | 427 | 1 | % | 1,310 | 3 | % |
|
Total revenues
|
$ | 12,604 | $ | 15,630 | $ | 37,000 | $ | 42,114 | ||||
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REMAINING PERFORMANCE OBLIGATIONS
As of September 30, 2024, the Company expects to recognize revenues in the future related to performance obligations that were unsatisfied as follows:
|
Remainder of Year Ending December 31, 2024 |
Year Ended December 31, | |||||||||||
|
(in thousands)
|
2025 | 2026 | 2027 | Thereafter | Total | |||||||
| Remaining performance obligations | $ | 352 | $ | 1,195 | $ | 434 | $ | 155 | $ | 187 | $ | 2,323 |
These amounts include only fixed consideration or minimum guarantees and do not include amounts related to (a) contracts with an original expected term of one year or less or (b) licenses of content that are solely based on sales or usage-based royalties.
DEFERRED REVENUE
Contract liabilities (i.e., deferred revenue) consist of subscriber and affiliate license fees billed that have not been recognized, amounts contractually billed or collected for content licensing sales in advance of the related content being made available to the customer, and unredeemed gift cards and other prepaid subscriptions that have not been redeemed. Total deferred revenues were $11.8 million and $15.2 million as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively. The non-current portions of $0.5 million and $0.6 million as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, respectively, are included in other liabilities in the consolidated balance sheets.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company recognized revenues of $13.4 million related to amounts deferred as of December 31, 2023.
TRADE AND BARTER TRANSACTIONS
In the second quarter of 2023, the Company began entering into trade and barter transactions primarily for the purpose of exchanging content assets through licensing agreements with media counterparties. Certain transactions may also include the exchange of advertising, whereby the Company and its counterparty exchange media campaigns or other promotional services.
For content acquired through trade and barter transactions, the Company records the acquired assets in the consolidated balance sheet and amortizes those assets over the term of the content license, in accordance with the Company's content and amortization policies. For other products and services received through trade and barter transactions, the Company records operating expenses upon receipt of such products and services, as applicable.
The transaction price for these contracts is measured at the estimated fair value of the non-cash consideration received unless this is not reasonably estimable; in which case, the consideration is measured based on the standalone selling price of the services provided. For an exchange of content, the performance obligation is satisfied at the time the content is made available for the counterparty to use, which represents the point in time that control is transferred. For advertising, the performance obligation is satisfied upon the Company's delivery of the media campaign or other service to the counterparty.
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For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, trade and barter revenues were as follows:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
|
Trade and barter license fees: Content Licensing
|
$ | 1,416 | $ | 4,949 | $ | 2,504 | $ | 7,416 |
|
Other trade and barter revenue*
|
- | 250 | - | 774 | ||||
| Total trade and barter revenues | $ | 1,416 | $ | 5,199 | $ | 2,504 | $ | 8,190 |
|
* Other revenue primarily relates to other marketing services
|
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, trade and barter advertising and marketing expenses were as follows:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
|
Trade and barter advertising and marketing
|
$ | - | $ | 648 | $ | - | $ | 1,172 |
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, additions to content assets resulting from trade and barter transactions were as follows:
|
Three Months Ended
June 30,
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
|
Trade and barter additions to content assets
|
$ | 1,416 | $ | 4,657 | $ | 2,504 | $ | 7,124 |
NOTE 6 - STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
COMMON STOCK
As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the Company had authorized the issuance of 126,000,000 shares of capital stock, par value of $0.0001 per share, consisting of (a) 125,000,000 shares of common stock, and (b) 1,000,000 shares of preferred stock.
TREASURY STOCK
On June 10, 2024, the Company's Board of Directors authorized and approved a share repurchase program for up to $4 million of the then-outstanding shares of the Company's common stock. Under the stock repurchase program, the Company may repurchase shares through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, block purchases, or otherwise in accordance with applicable federal securities laws.
As of September 30, 2024, the Company had repurchased 195,190 shares of its common stock at an average price of $1.12per share. The total cost of the repurchase was $0.2 million, which has been recorded as treasury stock in the equity section of the Company's consolidated balance sheet.
WARRANTS
As of September 30, 2024, the Company had 3,054,203 publicly traded warrants outstanding that were sold as part of the units of SAQN in its initial public offering on November 22, 2019, and that were issued to the PIPE Investors in connection with the Business Combination on October 14, 2020 (the "Public Warrants" and, together with the Private Placement Warrants, the "Warrants") and 3,676,000 Private Placement Warrants outstanding. The Private Placement Warrants are liability-classified, and the Public Warrants are equity-classified.
Each whole warrant entitles the registered holder to purchase one share of the Company's Common Stock at an exercise price of $11.50 per share. All Warrants expire on October 14, 2025.
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The Company has the right to redeem the outstanding Public Warrants in whole and not in part at a price of $0.01 per warrant upon a minimum of 30 days' prior written notice of redemption, if and only if the last sale price of the Company's Common Stock matched or exceeded $18.00 per share for any 20 trading days within a 30-trading day period ending on the third trading day prior to the date on which the Company sent the notice of redemption to the warrant holders.
The Private Placement Warrants are identical to the Public Warrants except that, so long as they are held by Software Acquisition Holdings LLC or its permitted transferees: (i) they will not be redeemable by the Company; (ii) they may be exercised by the holders on a cashless basis; and (iii) they are subject to registration rights.
There were no exercises of warrants during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024.
The warrant liability related to the Private Placement Warrants is recorded at fair value as of each reporting date with the change in fair value reported within other income (expense) in the accompanying unaudited consolidated statements of operations as "Change in fair value of warrant liability" until the warrants are exercised, expired or other facts and circumstances lead the warrant liability to be reclassified to stockholders' equity (deficit).
The fair value of the warrant liability for the Private Placement Warrants was estimated using a Black-Scholes pricing model using Level 3 inputs. The significant assumptions used in preparing the Black-Scholes option pricing model to determine fair value as of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, were as follows:
|
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
|||
| Exercise price | $ | 11.50 | $ | 11.50 |
| Stock price (CURI) | $ | 1.91 | $ | 0.54 |
| Expected volatility | 86.40 | % | 100.00 | % |
| Expected warrant term (years) | 1.0 | 1.8 | ||
| Risk-free interest rate | 3.94 | % | 4.23 | % |
| Dividend yield | 1.3 | % | 0 | % |
| Fair Value per Private Placement Warrant | $ | 0.03 | $ | 0.01 |
NOTE 7 - EARNINGS (LOSS) PER SHARE
Basic and diluted earnings (loss) per share are calculated on the basis of the weighted average number of shares of the Company's Common Stock outstanding during the respective periods. Diluted earnings (loss) per share give effect to all dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period using the treasury stock method for stock options and other potentially dilutive securities. In computing diluted earnings (loss) per share, the average fair value of the Company's Common Stock for the period is used to determine the number of shares assumed to be purchased from the exercise price of the options. Purchases of treasury stock reduce the outstanding shares commencing on the date that the stock is purchased. Common stock equivalents are excluded from the calculation when a loss is incurred as their effect would be anti-dilutive.
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, the components of basic and diluted net loss per share were as follows:
|
(in thousands except per share amounts)
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||
| Numerator - basic and diluted EPS: | ||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (3,062) | $ | (26,565) | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,237) |
| Denominator - basic and diluted EPS: | ||||||||
| Weighted-average shares | 54,850 | 53,040 | 53,920 | 52,999 | ||||
| Net loss per share - basic and diluted | $ | (0.06) | $ | (0.50) | $ | (0.19) | $ | (0.83) |
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Common shares issuable for warrants, options, and restricted stock units ("RSU") represent the total amount of outstanding warrants, stock options, and restricted stock units at September 30, 2024, and 2023. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, the following share equivalents were excluded from the calculation of diluted net loss per share as the inclusion of such shares would have been anti-dilutive.
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 |
| Options | 27 | 33 | 27 | 33 |
| Restricted stock units | 2,864 | 2,430 | 2,864 | 2,430 |
| Warrants | 6,730 | 6,730 | 6,730 | 6,730 |
|
Total
|
9,621 | 9,193 | 9,621 | 9,193 |
NOTE 8 - STOCK-BASED COMPENSATION
The Company measures the cost of employee services received in exchange for an award of equity instruments based on the grant date fair value of the award. The fair value is recognized in earnings over the period during which an employee is required to provide the service. The Company accounts for forfeitures as they occur.
In October 2020, the Company's Board of Directors adopted the CuriosityStream 2020 Omnibus Plan (the "2020 Plan"). The 2020 Plan became effective upon consummation of the Business Combination and succeeds the Legacy CuriosityStream Stock Option Plan. Upon adoption of the 2020 Plan, a total of 7,725,000 shares were approved to be issued as stock options, share appreciation rights, restricted stock units and restricted stock.
The following table summarizes stock option and RSU activity, prices, and values for the nine months ended September 30, 2024:
|
Number of
Shares
Available
for
Issuance
Under the
Plan
|
Stock Options | Restricted Stock Units | |||||
|
(in thousands except share price and fair value amounts)
|
Number of
Shares
|
Weighted- Average Exercise Price |
Number of
Shares
|
Weighted- Average Grant Date Fair Value |
|||
| Balance at December 31, 2023 | 4,762 | 32 | $ | 5.79 | 2,058 | $ | 2.57 |
| Granted | (4,024) | - | - | 4,024 | - | ||
| RSUs vested | 655 | - | - | (3,038) | 0.39 | ||
| Forfeited or expired | 185 | (6) | 7.15 | (180) | 1.06 | ||
| Balance at September 30, 2024 | 1,578 | 26 | $ | 5.00 | 2,864 | $ | 1.64 |
There were no options exercised during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023.
Stock options and RSU awards generally vest on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis over a period of oneto four yearsfrom the grant date. When options are exercised, the Company issues previously unissued shares of Common Stock to satisfy share option exercises. Upon vesting and distribution of RSUs, the Company issues previously unissued shares of Common Stock to satisfy RSUs vested, net of shares withheld for taxes if elected by the RSU holder.
The fair value of stock option awards is estimated using the Black-Scholes option pricing model, which includes a number of assumptions including the Company's estimates of stock price volatility, employee stock option exercise behaviors, future dividend payments, and risk-free interest rates.
The expected term of options granted is the estimated period of time from the beginning of the vesting period to the date of expected exercise or other settlement, based on historical exercises and post-vesting terminations. The Company generally estimates expected term based on the midpoint between the vesting date and the end of the contractual term, also known as the simplified method, given the lack of historical exercise behavior.
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On April 28, 2023, the Company's Board of Directors authorized, and on June 14, 2023, the Company's shareholders approved, a stock option exchange program (the "Exchange") that permitted certain current employees and executive officers to exchange certain outstanding stock options with exercise prices substantially above the current market price of the Company's Common Stock for RSUs of an equivalent fair value. The Exchange was completed in July 2023. For options that had already vested at the time of the Exchange, the resulting RSUs vested in July 2024. Otherwise, the vesting schedules for unvested options at the time of the Exchange remained the same for the resulting RSUs. As a result of the Exchange, 4.6 million of outstanding eligible stock options were exchanged for 1.6 million new RSUs, with a fair value of $0.99 per share on the date of the Exchange. There was no incremental compensation expense recorded by the Company as a result of the Exchange.
The Company uses its own historical volatility as well as the historical volatility of similar public companies for estimating volatility. The risk-free interest rate is estimated using the rate of return on U.S. Treasury securities with maturities that approximate the expected term of the option.
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, stock-based compensation expense was as follows:
|
(in thousands)
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
||||||
| 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | |||||
| Stock-based compensation - Options | $ | - | $ | 5 | $ | 6 | $ | 1,553 |
| Stock-based compensation - RSUs | $ | 2,720 | $ | 892 | $ | 4,728 | $ | 2,033 |
|
Total stock-based compensation
|
$ | 2,720 | $ | 897 | $ | 4,734 | $ | 3,586 |
Stock-based compensation is measured at the grant date, based on the fair value of the award, and is recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period.
NOTE 9 - SEGMENT AND GEOGRAPHIC INFORMATION
The Company operates as one reporting segment. The Company's chief operating decision maker is its chief executive officer, who reviews financial information presented on an entity-wide basis for purposes of making operating decisions, assessing financial performance and allocating resources.
All long-lived tangible assets are located in the United States. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, revenue by geographic location based on customer location was as follows:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||||||||||
| United States | $ | 7,531 | 60 | % | $ | 8,973 | 57 | % | $ | 22,572 | 61 | % | $ | 23,595 | 56 | % |
| International: | ||||||||||||||||
|
Canada
|
1,104 | 9 | % | 1,674 | 11 | % | 2,087 | 6 | % | 2,566 | 6 | % | ||||
|
Netherlands
|
958 | 8 | % | 1,566 | 10 | % | 2,234 | 6 | % | 3,216 | 8 | % | ||||
|
Other
|
3,011 | 24 | % | 3,417 | 22 | % | 10,107 | 27 | % | 12,737 | 30 | % | ||||
| Total International | 5,073 | 40 | % | 6,657 | 43 | % | 14,428 | 39 | % | 18,519 | 44 | % | ||||
| Total revenue | $ | 12,604 | 100 | % | $ | 15,630 | 100 | % | $ | 37,000 | 100 | % | $ | 42,114 | 100 | % |
Revenue from two foreign countries, Canada and Netherlands, each comprised 10% or greater of total revenue for one or more of the periods presented.
NOTE 10 - RELATED-PARTY TRANSACTIONS
EQUITY INVESTMENTS
For the three and ninemonths ended September 30, 2024, the Company recognized $0.1 millionand $0.2 million, respectively. of revenue related to license fees from the Spiegel Venture. No revenue was recognized from Nebula during these periods.
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As of September 30, 2024, and December 31, 2023, the impacts of the arrangements with the Spiegel Venture and Nebula on the Company's consolidated balance sheets were as follows:
|
(in thousands)
|
September 30, 2024 |
December 31, 2023 |
||
| Accounts receivable | $ | 265 | $ | 811 |
| Accounts payable | $ | 10 | $ | 374 |
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, the impacts of arrangements with the Spiegel Venture and Nebula on the Company's consolidated statements of operations were as follows:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
| Revenues | $ | 112 | $ | - | $ | 223 | $ | 1,084 |
| Cost of revenues | $ | 15 | $ | 1,142 | $ | 45 | $ | 3,508 |
OPERATING LEASE
The Company sublets a portion of its office space to Hendricks Investment Holdings, LLC, which is considered a related party as it is managed by various members of the Company's Board of Directors. The Company accounts for the arrangement as an operating lease. Refer to Note 11 - Leasesfor additional information.
NOTE 11 - LEASES
COMPANY AS LESSEE
The Company is a party to a non-cancellable operating lease agreement for office space, which expires in 2033. The Company's operating lease for this office space includes fixed rent payments and variable lease payments, which are primarily related to common area maintenance and utility charges. The Company elected not to separate lease and non-lease components, and as such, all amounts paid under the lease are classified as either fixed or variable lease payments. The Company has determined that no renewal clauses are reasonably certain of being exercised and therefore has not included any renewal periods within the lease term for this lease.
As of September 30, 2024, the Company held operating lease ROU assets of $3.1 million. Current lease liabilities were $0.4 million, and are included within accrued expenses and other liabilities on the consolidated balance sheets. Non-current lease liabilities were $4.0 million. In measuring these operating lease liabilities, the Company used a weighted average discount rate of 4.4% as of September 30, 2024. The weighted average remaining lease term as of September 30, 2024, was 8.4 years years.
Components of Lease Cost
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company's total operating lease cost was comprised of the following:
|
Three Months Ended September 30, |
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
|||||||
|
(in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | 2024 | 2023 | ||||
| Operating lease cost | $ | 120 | $ | 120 | $ | 358 | $ | 362 |
| Short-term lease cost | - | - | - | (16) | ||||
| Variable lease cost | 14 | 13 | 37 | 38 | ||||
| Total lease cost | $ | 134 | $ | 133 | $ | 395 | $ | 384 |
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Maturity of Lease Liabilities
As of September 30, 2024, maturities of the Company's operating lease liabilities, which do not include short-term leases and variable lease payments, were as follows:
|
(In thousands)
|
||
| Three remaining months of 2024 | $ | 141 |
| 2025 | 571 | |
| 2026 | 585 | |
| 2027 | 600 | |
| 2028 | 615 | |
| Thereafter | 2,731 | |
| Total lease payments | $ | 5,243 |
| Less: imputed interest | (865) | |
| Present value of total lease liabilities | $ | 4,378 |
COMPANY AS LESSOR
The Company subleases a portion of its office space to a related party and accounts for the arrangement as an operating lease. Related party sublease rental income is recognized on a straight-line basis and is included in Interest and other income (expense) in the accompanying consolidated statements of operations. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, operating lease income from the Company's sublet was less than $0.1 million. As of September 30, 2024, total remaining future minimum lease payments receivable on the Company's sublet were $0.2 million.
NOTE 12 - COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES
CONTENT COMMITMENTS
As of September 30, 2024, the Company's content obligations amounted to $0.7 million, including $0.2 million recorded within content liabilities in the accompanying unaudited consolidated balance sheets, and $0.5 million of obligations not yet recorded as they did not yet meet the asset recognition criteria for content assets. These obligations are expected to be paid by December 31, 2024.
As of December 31, 2023, the Company's content obligations amounted to $1.1 million, including $0.4 million recorded within current content liabilities in the accompanying unaudited consolidated balance sheets and $0.7 million of obligations not yet recorded as they did not yet meet the asset recognition criteria for content assets.
Content obligations include amounts related to licensed, commissioned and internally produced streaming content. An obligation for the production of content includes non-cancelable commitments under creative talent and employment agreements. An obligation for the licensed and commissioned content is incurred at the time the Company enters into an agreement to obtain future titles. Once a title becomes available, a content liability is generally recorded. Certain agreements include the obligation to license rights for unknown future titles, the ultimate quantity and/or fees for which are not yet determinable as of the reporting date.
ADVERTISING COMMITMENTS
The Company periodically enters into agreements to receive future advertising and marketing services as part of various licensee arrangements, and the Company reports commitments when the applicable agreements provide for specific committed amounts. As of September 30, 2024, the Company's future advertising commitments totaled $2.7 million, all of which the Company expects to pay during the year ending December 31, 2024.
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NOTE 13 - INCOME TAXES
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, Income tax expense was $0.1 million. For the comparative periods in 2023, the provision for income taxes was $0.1 millionand $0.5 million, respectively. The Company's provision for income taxes differs from the federal statutory rate primarily due to the Company being in a full valuation allowance position and not recognizing a tax benefit attributable to generated losses for either federal or state income tax purposes.
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ITEM 2. MANAGEMENT'S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The following discussion and analysis provides information that management believes is relevant to an assessment and understanding of our results of operations and financial condition. The following discussion should be read in conjunction with the Company's unaudited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto included elsewhere in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q. Unless the context otherwise requires, references in this "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" to "we," "us," "our," and "the Company" are intended to mean the business and operations of CuriosityStream Inc.
CAUTIONARY NOTE REGARDING FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS
This Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q contains certain statements that are, or may deemed to be, "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, regarding the Company's plans, expectations, thoughts, beliefs, estimates, goals and outlook for the future that are intended to be covered by the protections provided under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
All statements other than statements of historical fact included in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q including, without limitation, statements under this "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" regarding the Company's financial position, business strategy and the plans and objectives of management for future operations, such as subscription plan price increases, the development of integrated digital brand partnerships with advertisers and our dividend plans, are forward-looking statements. When used in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, words such as "anticipate," "attribute," "believe," "continue," "hope," "estimate," "expect," "intend," "may," "might," "potential," "seek," "should," "will" and "would," and similar expressions, as they relate to us or the Company's management, identify forward-looking statements. Such forward-looking statements are based on the beliefs of management, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company's management. Actual results could differ materially from those contemplated by the forward-looking statements as a result of certain factors detailed in our filings with the SEC. All subsequent written or oral forward-looking statements attributable to us or persons acting on the Company's behalf are qualified in their entirety by this paragraph. These forward-looking statements are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results and events to differ materially from those included inforward-looking statements. Factors that might cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2023, filed with the SEC on March 25, 2024(the "Annual Report") and any other subsequent periodic reports and future periodic reports. We assume no obligation to revise or publicly release any revision to any forward-looking statements contained in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q, unless required by law.
OVERVIEW
Founded by John Hendricks, former Chairman of Discovery Communications and founder of the Discovery Channel, CuriosityStream is a media and entertainment company that offers premium video and audio programming across the principal categories of factual entertainment, including science, history, society, nature, lifestyle and technology. Our mission is to provide premium factual entertainment that informs, enchants and inspires.
We seek to meet demand for high-quality factual entertainment via subscription video on-demand ("SVOD") platforms, content licensing, bundled content licenses for SVOD and linear offerings, talks and courses and partner bulk sales.
The main sources of our revenue are:
1.Subscription and license fees earned from our Direct-to-Consumer business and Partner Direct subscribers ("Direct Business"),
2.License fees from content licensing arrangements ("Content Licensing"),
3.Bundled license fees from distribution affiliates ("Bundled Distribution"), and
4.Other revenue, including advertising and sponsorships ("Other").
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We operate our business as a single operating segment that provides premium streaming content through multiple channels, including the use of various applications, partnerships and affiliate relationships.
CuriosityStream's award-winning content library features more than 15,000 programs that explore topics ranging from space engineering to ancient history to the rise of Wall Street, and includes shows and series from leading nonfiction producers. Each week we launch new video titles, which are available on-demand in high- or ultra-high definition. Through new and long-standing international partnerships, substantial portions of our video library have been localized from English into eleven different languages.
RESULTS OF OPERATIONS
The financial data in the following table sets forth selected financial information derived from our unaudited consolidated financial statements for the three and ninemonths ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, and includes our results of operations as a percentage of revenue or as a percentage of costs, as applicable, for the periods indicated:
| Three Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
|||||||||||||
|
(unaudited and in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
||||||||
| Revenues | ||||||||||||||||
| Direct Business | $ | 9,785 | $ | 8,662 | $ | 1,123 | 13 | % | $ | 29,238 | $ | 25,767 | $ | 3,471 | 13 | % |
| Content Licensing | 1,657 | 5,082 | (3,425) | (67 | %) | 4,137 | 10,716 | (6,579) | (61 | %) | ||||||
| Bundled Distribution | 973 | 1,452 | (479) | (33 | %) | 3,198 | 4,321 | (1,123) | (26 | %) | ||||||
| Other | 189 | 434 | (245) | (56 | %) | 427 | 1,310 | (883) | (67 | %) | ||||||
|
Total revenue
|
12,604 | 15,630 | (3,026) | (19 | %) | 37,000 | 42,114 | (5,114) | (12 | %) | ||||||
| Operating expenses | ||||||||||||||||
| Cost of revenues | 5,840 | 8,494 | (2,654) | (31 | %) | 18,592 | 27,428 | (8,836) | (32 | %) | ||||||
| Advertising and marketing | 3,590 | 5,106 | (1,516) | (30 | %) | 9,676 | 12,424 | (2,748) | (22 | %) | ||||||
| General and administrative | 6,426 | 6,959 | (533) | (8 | %) | 18,187 | 22,998 | (4,811) | (21 | %) | ||||||
|
Impairment of content assets
|
- | 18,970 | (18,970) | 100 | % | - | 18,970 | (18,970) | 100 | % | ||||||
| Total operating expenses | 15,856 | 39,529 | (23,673) | (60 | %) | 46,455 | 81,820 | (35,365) | (43 | %) | ||||||
| Operating loss | (3,252) | (23,899) | 20,647 | (86 | %) | (9,455) | (39,706) | 30,251 | (76 | %) | ||||||
| Other income (expense) | ||||||||||||||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liability | (36) | 74 | (110) | n/m | (66) | 184 | (250) | n/m | ||||||||
|
Interest and other income
|
538 | 31 | 507 | 1635 | % | 1,702 | 856 | 846 | 99 | % | ||||||
| Equity method investment loss | (267) | (2,638) | 2,371 | (90 | %) | (2,175) | (5,092) | 2,917 | (57 | %) | ||||||
| Loss before income taxes | $ | (3,017) | $ | (26,432) | $ | 23,415 | (89 | %) | $ | (9,994) | $ | (43,758) | 33,764 | (77 | %) | |
| Provision for income taxes | 45 | 133 | (88) | n/m | 134 | 479 | (345) | n/m | ||||||||
| Net loss | $ | (3,062) | $ | (26,565) | $ | 23,503 | (88 | %) | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,237) | 34,109 | (77 | %) | |
|
* n/m = percentage not meaningful
|
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, operating loss was $3.3 million and $23.9 million, respectively. The decline in operating loss of $20.6 million, or 86%, primarily resulted from the decreases in our operating expenses of $23.7 million, or 60%, which more than offset the decline in revenues of $3.0 million, or 19%, compared to the three months ended September 30, 2023. This significant decrease in operating expenses was mainly due to the absence of prior-year impairment charges recorded in relation to our content assets, as discussed in the section below.
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, net loss was $3.1 million and $26.6 million, respectively, a decrease in net loss of $23.5 million, or 88%.
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For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, operating loss was $9.5 million and $39.7 million, respectively. The decline in operating loss of $30.3 million, or 76%, primarily resulted from the decreases in our operating expenses of $35.4 million, or 43%, which more than offset the decline in revenues of $5.1 million, or 12%, compared to the nine months ended September 30, 2023. This significant decrease in operating expenses was mainly due to the absence of prior-year impairment charges recorded in relation to our content assets, as discussed in the section below.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, net loss was $10.1 million and $44.2 million, respectively, a decrease in net loss of $34.1 million, or 77%.
Our future operating results and cash flows are dependent upon a number of opportunities, challenges, and other factors, including our ability to efficiently grow our subscriber base, increase our prices and expand our service offerings to maximize subscriber lifetime value.
Revenue
Since the Company was founded in 2015, we have generated the majority of our revenues from consumers directly accessing our content in the form of monthly or annual subscription plans.
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, revenues totaled $12.6 million and $15.6 million, respectively, a decrease of $3.0 million, or 19%. This decline was primarily driven by declines in Content Licensing and Bundled Distribution of $3.4 million and $0.5 million, respectively, while our Direct Business revenue increased by $1.1 million.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, revenues totaled $37.0 million and $42.1 million, respectively, a decrease of $5.1 million, or 12%. This decline was primarily driven by declines in Content Licensing and Bundled Distribution of $6.6 million and $1.1 million, respectively, while our Direct Business revenue increased by $3.5 million, or 13%.
Direct Business
Our Direct Business revenue is derived from consumers subscribing directly through our owned and operated website ("O&O Consumer Service"), mobile applications developed for iOS and Android operating systems ("App Services") and through Partner Direct relationships. Our O&O Consumer Service is available in more than 175 countries to any household with a broadband connection. Our App Services enable access to CuriosityStream on almost every major consumer device, including streaming media players like Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV, major smart TV brands (e.g., LG, Vizio, Samsung) and gaming consoles.
We began implementing a price increase for legacy subscribers in March 2023, starting with English-speaking countries, and it has now been applied globally across all markets. This adjustment impacts the majority of our Direct Business revenue. Alongside our standard subscription, we continue to offer the Smart Bundle service, which includes access to Tastemade, Kidstream, SommTV, and Curiosity University, with its current pricing unchanged. Future adjustments to these subscription plans may be considered to further enhance revenue from this segment.
The multichannel video programming distributors ("MVPDs"), virtual MVPDs ("vMVPDs") and digital distributor partners making up our Partner Direct pay us a license fee for sales to individuals who subscribe to CuriosityStream via the partners' respective platforms. We have affiliate agreement relationships with, and our service is available directly from major MVPDs that include Comcast, Cox, and Dish, and vMVPDs and digital distributors that include Amazon Prime Video Channels, Apple Channel, Roku Channel, Sling TV and YouTube TV.
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The following table details our Direct Business for the three and ninemonths ended September 30, 2024, and 2023:
| Three Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
|||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
||||||||
|
Direct-to-Consumer
|
$ | 7,750 | $ | 7,399 | $ | 351 | 5 | % | $ | 23,853 | $ | 22,126 | $ | 1,727 | 8 | % |
|
Partner Direct
|
1,983 | $ | 1,177 | 806 | 68 | % | 5,199 | 3,361 | 1,838 | 55 | % | |||||
| Enterprise | 52 | 86 | (34) | n/m | 186 | 280 | (94) | n/m | ||||||||
|
Total Direct Business
|
$ | 9,785 | $ | 8,662 | $ | 1,123 | 13 | % | $ | 29,238 | $ | 25,767 | $ | 3,471 | 13 | % |
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, our Direct-to-Consumer revenue increased by $0.4 million, or 5%, compared to 2023. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, our Direct-to-Consumer (or DTC) revenue increased by $1.7 million, or 8%, compared to 2023. Although our overall DTC subscriber count declined, this was more than offset by the higher pricing we began rolling out in 2023. Additionally, our Partner Direct primarily benefited from continued subscriber growth as well as the price increase.
Content Licensing
Through our Content Licensing business, we license to certain media companies a collection of existing titles from our content library. We also pre-sell selected rights (such as in territories or on platforms that are lower priority for us) to content we create before we even begin production. This latter model reduces risk in our content development decisions and creates content licensing revenue.
The following table details our Content Licensing results for the three and ninemonths ended September 30, 2024, and 2023:
| Three Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
|||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
||||||||
| Library sales | $ | 1,657 | $ | 5,082 | $ | (3,425) | (67 | %) | $ | 3,696 | $ | 9,001 | $ | (5,305) | (59 | %) |
|
Presales
|
- | - | - | - | % | 441 | 1,715 | (1,274) | (74 | %) | ||||||
|
Total Content Licensing
|
1,657 | 5,082 | (3,425) | (67 | %) | 4,137 | 10,716 | (6,579) | (61 | %) | ||||||
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 2023, Library sales decreased by 67%. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to 2023, Library sales decreased by 59%, while presales declined by 74%.
The decrease in Library sales for both periods is primarily due to a higher volume of trade and barter deals in the comparable periods of the prior year, which did not recur at the same level in the reported periods. Content licensing, including barter activity, may vary from period to period based on our content needs as well as those of our partners. Within our content licensing business, our primary focus is on transactions that yield a positive gross margin, particularly those related to our library. However, we may continue to enter into presale arrangements with certain partners for strategic purposes.
Bundled Distribution
Our Bundled Distribution business includes affiliate relationships with our Bundled MVPD and vMVPD partners, which are broadband and wireless companies in the U.S. and international territories to whom we can offer a broad scope of rights, including 24/7 "linear" channels, our video-on-demand content library, mobile rights and pricing and packaging flexibility, in exchange for an annual fixed fee or fee per subscriber.
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For the three months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, our Bundled Distribution revenue was $1.0 million and $1.5 million, respectively, reflecting a 33% decline. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, our Bundled Distribution revenue was $3.2 million and $4.3 million, respectively, reflecting a 26% decline. In both periods, the decrease was primarily the result of revised affiliate agreements and the non-renewal of certain partnerships. Bundled Distribution remains a challenging business given the ongoing disruption in the linear pay television business worldwide.
Other
We provide advertising and sponsorships services through developing integrated digital brand partnerships designed to offer the chance to be associated with CuriosityStream content in a variety of forms, including short- and long-form program integration; branded social media promotional videos; broadcast advertising spots in our video and audio programs that are made available on our linear programming channels or in front of the paywall; and our increasing focus on digital display ads while delivering our content through advertising-based video-on-demand (AVOD), transactional video-on-demand (TVOD), free advertising-supported streaming television (FAST), YouTube and other similar distribution channels.
In the future, we hope to continue developing integrated digital brand partnerships with advertisers. These sponsorship campaigns offer companies the chance to be associated with CuriosityStream content in the forms described above. We believe the impressions accumulated in these multi-faceted campaigns would result in verifiable metrics for the clients.
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, Other revenue was $0.2 million, a decline of $0.2 million, or 56%, from the same period in 2023. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, Other revenue was $0.4 million, a decline of $0.9 million, or 67%, from the same period in 2023. These declines were largely due to certain short-term marketing partnerships that we entered into during the early part of 2023, including a campaign that we provided through a trade and barter arrangement that was not renewed in 2024.
Operating Expenses
Our primary operating costs relate to the cost of producing and acquiring our content, the costs of advertising and marketing our service, personnel costs, and distribution fees.
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, our operating expenses were $15.9 million and $39.5 million, respectively, a decrease of $23.7 million, or 60%.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023, our operating expenses were $46.5 million and $81.8 million, respectively, a decrease of $35.4 million, or 43%.
Cost of Revenues
Cost of revenues encompasses content amortization, distribution fees, revenue sharing arrangements, hosting and streaming delivery costs, payment processing costs, commission costs, and subtitling and broadcast costs. Producing and co-producing content and commissioned content is generally more costly than content acquired through licenses.
Distribution fees include payment processing fees and revenue share arrangements with Smart Bundle and digital distributor partners, as well as fees owed to the Spiegel Venture related to JV's streaming service. We pay a fixed percentage distribution fee to our partners for subscribers accessing our platform via App Services to compensate these partners for access to their customer and subscriber bases. The MVPD, vMVPD and digital distributor partners making up our Partner Direct business pay us a license fee, and host and stream our content to their customers via their own platforms, such as set top boxes in the case of most MVPDs. We do not incur billing, streaming or backend costs associated with content distribution through our MVPD, vMVPD and digital distributor partners.
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The following table details cost of revenues for the three and ninemonths ended September 30, 2024, and 2023:
| Three Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
|||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
||||||||
|
Content amortization
|
$ | 4,569 | $ | 5,389 | $ | (820) | (15 | %) | $ | 14,470 | $ | 17,706 | $ | (3,236) | (18 | %) |
|
Other1
|
1,271 | 3,105 | (1,834) | (59 | %) | 4,122 | 9,722 | (5,600) | (58 | %) | ||||||
|
Total cost of revenues
|
$ | 5,840 | $ | 8,494 | $ | (2,654) | (31 | %) | 18,592 | 27,428 | (8,836) | (32 | %) | |||
|
1 Includes commissions, distribution fees, production and broadcast, promotions and sponsorships, and other expenses.
|
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, cost of revenues decreased to $5.8 million from $8.5 million, a 31% reduction. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, cost of revenues decreased to $18.6 million from $27.4 million, a 32% reduction. These decreases were primarily driven by declines in content amortization of 15% for the three months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in 2023, and of 18% for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, compared to the same period in 2023, primarily due to fewer new productions, a reduction in content acquisitions and releases during the year and the content impairment recorded in the third quarter of 2023. Additionally, other costs of revenues declined mainly due to a reduction in revenue share arrangements, including our arrangement with Nebula that expired at the end of 2023.
Advertising and Marketing
Our advertising and marketing expenditures are a primary operating cost for our business. While these costs may fluctuate based on advertising and marketing objectives, we generally focus marketing dollars on efficient customer acquisition methods. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, advertising and marketing expenses decreased by $1.5 million and $2.7 million, respectively compared to the same period in 2023. This decrease reflects our efforts to optimize spending while maintaining our market presence and continuing to invest in strategic initiatives aimed at driving growth.
General and Administrative
Our general and administrative costs are associated with certain administrative functions, including corporate governance, executive management, information technology, finance and human resources. These costs consist largely of compensation expense, subscriptions that support our business, professional services, licenses and rent. While personnel levels may fluctuate based on our needs, we tend to focus on hiring and retaining revenue-generating personnel, such as sales staff and roles that support the improvement, maintenance and marketing of our different revenue streams.
The following table details general and administrative costs for the three and ninemonths ended September 30, 2024, and 2023:
| Three Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
Change
|
||||||||||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
2024 | 2023 |
Total
|
%
|
|||||||
| Payroll and related | $ | 2,077 | $ | 3,087 | $ | (1,010) | (33 | %) | $ | 7,233 | $ | 10,277 | (3,044) | (30 | %) |
| Professional services | 660 | 1,480 | (820) | (55 | %) | 2,500 | $ | 4,801 | (2,301) | (48 | %) | ||||
| Stock-based compensation | 2,720 | 897 | 1,823 | 203 | % | 4,734 | 3,586 | 1,148 | 32 | % | |||||
|
Technology and subscriptions
|
289 | 375 | (86) | (23 | %) | 971 | 1,247 | (276) | (22 | %) | |||||
|
Other1
|
680 | 1,120 | (440) | (39 | %) | 2,749 | 3,087 | (338) | (11 | %) | |||||
|
Total general and administrative
|
$ | 6,426 | $ | 6,959 | $ | (533) | (8 | %) | 18,187 | 22,998 | (4,811) | (21 | %) | ||
|
1Includes facilities costs, depreciation and amortization, insurance, travel and other expenses.
|
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Table of Contents
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, general and administrative expenses decreased to $6.4 million from $7.0 million in the same period in 2023. This decrease of $0.5 million, or 8%, was primarily the result of lower payroll and related costs and professional services, which declined by $1.0 million and $0.8 million, respectively. The reduction in payroll costs was mainly driven by a smaller average workforce size and reduced incentive compensation. Additionally, professional services costs decreased by 55% as we streamlined various external services and brought certain finance and operations functions in-house. Stock-based compensation increased by $1.8 million, reflecting performance-based RSUs granted during the period.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, general and administrative expenses decreased to $18.2 million from $23.0 million in the same period in 2023. This decrease of $4.8 million, or 21%, was primarily the result of lower payroll and related costs and professional services, which declined by $3.0 million and $2.3 million, respectively. The reduction in payroll costs was mainly driven by a smaller average workforce size and reduced incentive compensation. Additionally, professional services costs decreased by 48% as we streamlined various external services and brought certain finance and operations functions in-house. Stock-based compensation increased by $1.1 million, reflecting performance-based RSUs granted during the nine-month period.
Impairment of Content Assets
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, no impairment charges were recorded related to our content assets. In comparison, we incurred an impairment charge of $19.0 millionfor the same periods in 2023. For a more detailed discussion of the 2023 impairment charge and the underlying factors contributing to it, refer to Note 4 - Balance Sheet Components in the Notes to Unaudited Consolidated Financial Statements.
Other Income (Expense)
Change in Fair Value of Warrant Liability
The fair value of our warrant liability is estimated using the Black-Scholes valuation model that takes into account a number of economic assumptions, including the market price of our Common Stock and its expected volatility. Changes in these inputs from period to period may significantly affect changes in fair values.
Interest and Other Income
Interest and other income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, was $0.5 million and $1.7 million, respectively, compared to a de minimis amount and $0.9 million for the same periods in 2023, respectively. The increase in 2024 was primarily due to the absence of certain non-recurring items recorded in 2023.
Equity Method Investment Loss
For the three months ended September 30, 2024, the Company recorded a loss of $0.3 million compared to a loss of $2.6 million for the same period in 2023. For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company recorded a loss of $2.2 million compared to a loss of $5.1 million for the same period in 2023 related to its investments in the Spiegel Venture and Nebula. The decrease in losses is primarily due to the $2.0 million impairment charge recorded by the Company to its investment in Spiegel Venture during the nine months ended September 30, 2023.
Income Taxes
For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024, income tax expense was $0.1 million. For the comparative periods in 2023, the provision for income taxes was 0.1 million and 0.5 million, respectively, primarily due to losses generated before income taxes. Our provision for income taxes differs from the federal statutory rate primarily due to the Company being in a full valuation allowance position and not recognizing a tax benefit attributable to generated losses for either federal or state income tax purposes.
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Table of Contents
LIQUIDITY AND CAPITAL RESOURCES
Liquidity
As of September 30, 2024, the Company's cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash totaled $9.7 million, with an additional $30.1 million million held in investments in debt securities that can be readily converted to cash to support ongoing operating cash flow needs.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, the Company incurred a net loss of $10.1 million, primarily due to non-cash expenses, while generating $5.1 million of net cash from operating activities. Additionally, the Company used $30.1 millionin net cash for investing activities, entirely related to purchases of debt securities and $3.7 million of net cash for financing activities.
As of September 30, 2024, our cash and cash equivalents mainly consist of investments and short-term deposits held at major global financial institutions. We regularly monitor the creditworthiness of the financial institutions and money market fund asset managers with whom we invest our funds, and we maintain a level of liquidity sufficient to allow us to meet our cash needs in both the short term and long term.
We believe that our current cash levels, including investments that are readily convertible to cash, will be adequate to support our ongoing operations, capital expenditures, dividend payments and working capital for at least the next twelve months. We believe that we have access to additional funds in the short term and the long term, if needed, through the capital markets to obtain further financing.
We use cash principally to acquire content, promote our service through advertising and marketing, and provide for working capital to operate our business. We have experienced significant net losses since our inception, and while we are cash flow positive, we anticipate that we will continue to incur net losses due to the investments needed to support our business plan.
As previously discussed, we began entering into trade and barter transactions in the second quarter of 2023 primarily for the purpose of exchanging content assets through licensing agreements with media counterparties. Our use of these transactions has enabled us to acquire quality content that we can monetize through various distribution channels while preserving our liquidity.
The following table provides details of the dividends declared and paid as of September 30, 2024.
| Declaration Date | Record Date | Payment Date | Per Share | Aggregate Amount |
| March 13, 2024 | April 12, 2024 | April 30, 2024 | $0.025 | $1.3 million |
| May 6, 2024 | July 12, 2024 | July 31, 2024 | $0.025 | $1.3 million |
| August 12, 2024 | October 12, 2024 | October 31, 2024 | $0.025 | $1.4 million |
Our Board of Directors has declared the next cash dividend of $0.025 per share to be paid on March 28, 2025, for an expected aggregate amount of $1.3 million. Subject to future declaration by our Board of Directors, we intend to continue to pay regular quarterly cash dividends.
On June 10, 2024, our Board of Directors authorized and approved a share repurchase program for up to $4 million of the then-outstanding shares of our common stock. Under the stock repurchase program, we may repurchase shares through open market purchases, privately negotiated transactions, block purchases, or otherwise in accordance with applicable federal securities laws. As of September 30, 2024, we had repurchased $218 thousand of Common Stock under this program.
We cannot predict when or if we will repurchase any additional shares of common stock as this stock repurchase program will depend on a number of factors, including constraints imposed by applicable federal securities laws, price, general business and market conditions, and alternative investment opportunities. This program does not obligate us to acquire any particular amount of common stock. The program has no expiration date and may be modified, suspended or discontinued at any time at our discretion.
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Cash Flow Analysis
The following table presents our cash flows from operating, investing and financing activities for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, and 2023:
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
||||
|
(unaudited and in thousands)
|
2024 | 2023 | ||
| Net cash used in operating activities | $ | 5,116 | $ | (13,630) |
| Net cash provided by investing activities | (29,968) | 14,003 | ||
| Net cash used in financing activities | (3,650) | (76) | ||
| Net increase in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash | $ | (28,502) | $ | 297 |
Operating Activities
Cash flows from operating activities primarily consist of net losses, changes to our content assets (including additions and amortization), and other working capital items.
|
Nine Months Ended September 30, |
||||
| (in thousands) | 2024 | 2023 | ||
| Net loss | $ | (10,128) | $ | (44,237) |
|
Adjustments to reconcile net loss to net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
|
||||
| Change in fair value of warrant liability | 66 | (183) | ||
| Additions to content assets | (3,412) | (14,074) | ||
| Change in content liabilities | 92 | (2,734) | ||
| Amortization of content assets | 14,470 | 17,707 | ||
| Stock-based compensation | 4,734 | 3,586 | ||
| Equity interests loss | 2,175 | 5,092 | ||
|
Other depreciation, amortization and non-cash items
|
478 | 758 | ||
| Changes in operating assets and liabilities | (3,359) | 1,485 | ||
|
Net cash provided by (used in) operating activities
|
$ | 5,116 | $ | (13,630) |
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, our net cash inflow from operating activities was $5.1 million compared to net cash used in operating activities of $13.6 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023, an increase in operating cash outflow of $18.7 million.
Although we reported a net loss of $10.1 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2024, this amount reflected noncash items such as amortization of content assets, stock-based compensation and equity method investment loss of $14.5 million, $4.7 million, and $2.2 million, respectively. Cash used during the quarter included a $3.4 million change in operating assets and liabilities and additions to content assets and change of content liabilities of $3.4 million and $0.1 million, respectively.
For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we reported a net loss of $44.2 million. This amount reflected noncash items such as amortization of content assets, stock-based compensation and equity method investment loss of $17.7 million, $3.6 million and $5.1 million, respectively. Cash used during the quarter included additions to content assets and changes in content liabilities of $14.1 million and $2.7 million, respectively, and changes in operating assets and liabilities of $1.5 million.
Investing Activities
Cash flow from investing activities consists of purchases, sales and maturities of investments, business acquisitions and equity investments and purchases of property and equipment.
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For the nine months ended September 30, 2024, we recorded a net cash outflow used in investing activities of $30 million. The net cash outflow used in investing activities was solely due to purchases of investments in debt securities. In contrast, for the same period in 2023, our cash inflows were primarily due to maturities of investments in debt securities.
Financing Activities
For the nine months ended September 30, 2024 and 2023, net cash used in financing activities was $3.7 million and $0.1 million, respectively, an increase of $3.6 million primarily due to dividends paid and tax withholding.
Capital Expenditures
Going forward, we expect to continue making expenditures for additions to our content assets and purchases of property and equipment, although at a slower rate than in previous periods. The amount, timing and allocation of capital expenditures are largely discretionary and within management's control. Depending on market conditions, we may choose to defer a portion of our budgeted expenditures until later periods to achieve the desired balance between sources and uses of liquidity and prioritize capital projects that we believe have the highest expected returns and potential to generate cash flow. Subject to financing alternatives, we may also increase our capital expenditures significantly to take advantage of opportunities we consider to be attractive.
OFF BALANCE SHEET ARRANGEMENTS
As of September 30, 2024, we had no off-balance sheet arrangements.
CRITICAL ACCOUNTING POLICIES AND ESTIMATES
Our discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operation is based upon our financial statements, which have been prepared in accordance with U.S. GAAP. Certain amounts included in or affecting the financial statements presented in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and related disclosures must be estimated, requiring management to make assumptions with respect to values or conditions which cannot be known with certainty at the time the financial statements are prepared. Management believes that the accounting policies set forth below comprise the most important "critical accounting policies" for the Company. A critical accounting policy is one which is both important to the portrayal of a company's financial condition and results of operations and requires management's most difficult, subjective or complex judgments, often as a result of the need to make estimates about the effect of matters that are inherently uncertain. Management evaluates such policies on an ongoing basis, based upon historical results and experience, consultation with experts and other methods that management considers reasonable in the particular circumstances under which the judgments and estimates are made, as well as management's forecasts as to the manner in which such circumstances may change in the future.
For more detailed information on our critical accounting policies, including those related to content assets, revenue recognition and trade and barter transactions, refer to the "Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" section in the Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on March 25, 2024. This comprehensive discussion helps to ensure that stakeholders have a complete understanding of the accounting methodologies and principles that influence the financial statements presented herein.
RECENT ACCOUNTING PRONOUNCEMENTS
The information set forth in Note 2- Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policiesin the Unaudited Notes to Interim Consolidated Financial Statements is incorporated herein by reference.
ITEM 3. QUANTITATIVE AND QUALITATIVE DISCLOSURES REGARDING MARKET RISK
Not applicable.
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ITEM 4. CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
DISCLOSURE CONTROLS AND PROCEDURES
We maintain disclosure controls and procedures designed to provide reasonable assurance that information required to be disclosed in our reports that we file or submit under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the "Exchange Act") are recorded, processed, summarized and reported within the specified time periods in the rules and forms of the SEC, and that such information is accumulated and communicated to the Company's management, including its Chief Executive Officer ("CEO") and Chief Financial Officer ("CFO"), as appropriate, to allow timely decisions regarding required disclosure.
Our management, with the participation of the CEO and the CFO, evaluated the effectiveness of our disclosure controls and procedures (as defined in Rule 13a-15(e) or 15d-15(e) promulgated under the Exchange Act) as of September 30, 2024. Based on these evaluations, our CEO and CFO concluded that our disclosure controls and procedures were effective as of September 30, 2024.
CHANGES IN INTERNAL CONTROL OVER FINANCIAL REPORTING
Our management is required to evaluate, with the participation of our CEO and our CFO, any changes in internal control over financial reporting (as defined in Rules 13a-15(f) and 15d-15(f) under the Exchange Act) that occurred during each fiscal quarter that materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting. There were no changes in our internal control over financial reporting during the quarter ended September 30, 2024, that have materially affected, or are reasonably likely to materially affect, our internal control over financial reporting.
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PART II - OTHER INFORMATION
ITEM 1. LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
From time to time, we may become involved in legal proceedings arising in the ordinary course of our business. We are not presently a party to any legal proceedings that, if determined adversely to us, we believe would individually or in the aggregate have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations, financial condition or cash flows.
ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS
Factors that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are any of the risks described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 25, 2024. Any of these factors could result in a significant or material adverse effect on our results of operations or financial condition. Additional risk factors not presently known to us or that we currently deem immaterial may also impair our business or results of operations.
There have been no material changes from the risk factors previously disclosed under the heading "Risk Factors" in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 25, 2024.
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ITEM 6. EXHIBITS
The following exhibits are filed as part of, or incorporated by reference into, this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q.
| Incorporated By Reference | ||||||
| Exhibit No. | Description | Form | File No. | Exhibit | Filing Date |
Filed/Furnished Herewith |
| 3.1 |
8-K
|
001-39139
|
3.1
|
August 13, 2024
|
||
| 31.1 |
Certification of the Chief Executive Officer Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
|
X | ||||
| 31.2 |
Certification of Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to Section 302 of the Sarbanes- Oxley Act of 2002
|
X | ||||
| 32.1* |
Certification of the Chief Executive Officer and Chief Financial Officer Pursuant to Section 906 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002
|
X | ||||
| 101. INS** | Inline XBRL Instance Document | X | ||||
| 101. SCH | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Schema Document | X | ||||
| 101. CAL | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Calculation Linkbase Document | X | ||||
| 101. LAB | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Label Linkbase Document | X | ||||
| 101. PRE | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Presentation Linkbase Document | X | ||||
| 101. DEF | Inline XBRL Taxonomy Extension Definition Linkbase Document | X | ||||
| 104 | Cover Page Interactive Data File (as formatted as Inline XBRL and contained in Exhibit 101) | X |
*This document is being furnished with this Form 10-Q. This certification is deemed not filed for purposes of Section 18 of the Exchange Act, or otherwise subject to the liability of that section, nor shall it be deemed incorporated by reference into any filing under the Securities Act, or the Exchange Act.
**The instance document does not appear in the Interactive Data File because its XBRL tags are embedded within the Inline XBRL document.
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PART III. SIGNATURES
In accordance with the requirements of the Exchange Act, the registrant caused this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q to be signed on its behalf by the undersigned, thereunto duly authorized.
| CURIOSITYSTREAM INC. | ||
|
Date: November 7, 2024
|
By: | /s/ Clint Stinchcomb |
| Name: | Clint Stinchcomb | |
|
Title:
|
President and Chief Executive Officer (Principal Executive Officer) |
|
|
Date: November 7, 2024
|
By: |
/s/ P. Brady Hayden
|
| Name: |
P. Brady Hayden
|
|
|
Title:
|
Chief Financial Officer and Treasurer (Principal Financial and Accounting Officer) |
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