BBTV Announces Q1 2023 Financial Results

VANCOUVER, BC, May 12, 2023 /PRNewswire/ - BBTV Holdings Inc. (TSX: BBTV) (OTCQX: BBTVF) (the "Company"), a media tech company that uses technology enabled solutions to help content creators become more successful, today announced financial results for Q1 2023 for the period ended on March 31, 2023.

The Management Discussion and Analysis ("MD&A"), along with full financial statements are posted and available on SEDAR at www.sedar.com. All dollar amounts are expressed in thousands of Canadian dollars except where otherwise indicated.

"The first quarter saw early stages of YouTube Shorts monetization, which now represents about 46% of total views in the quarter. With more Shorts content coming online, total views in our Base Solutions business grew year-over-year by 8%, our first growth quarter since the end of the pandemic," said Shahrzad Rafati, Chairperson and CEO of BBTV. "Our outlook for our monetization opportunity for our Base Solutions increases substantially for the remainder of 2023 as a result of growing views. In the first quarter, we began deploying some of the largest Plus Solution contracts signed to date, which should positively impact performance for the remainder of fiscal year 2023. Our pipeline for Content Management solutions for the quarter continues to be the strongest ever and we expect that Plus Solutions revenue should continue to grow by 30% on an annualized basis."

KB Brinkley, CFO of BBTV commented "We extended our cost containment and optimization efforts by re-aligning operations towards Plus Solutions, and removing costs from our increasingly automated Base Solutions line of business. Our cost containment efforts resulted in a 22% decline in operating expenses compared to Q1 2022. Our liquidity remains adequate, allowing us to fulfill our strategic plans while accelerating our path to profitability and helping to create a buffer against potential macroeconomic risks and uncertainties."

Q1 2023 Financial and Operational Highlights:

Management believes the Company's current cash on hand, the sale of trade receivables pursuant to the receivables purchase agreement, available credit, expected debt financing, and ongoing cost optimization programs will provide sufficient liquidity to meet its working capital requirements as well as its financial obligations due.

BBTV ended Q1 2023 with $18.8 million in cash compared to $21.6 million in the previous year Q1. Its long-term debt balance was $69.5 million as of March 31, 2023 with maturities primarily in 2026 or 2027, which is up by $17.0 million from $52.5 million in the prior year first quarter. The increase of debt is primarily related to the $21.5 million MEP loan announced during the quarter, which was partially offset by a reduction in the Company's secured convertible promissory loan note by approximately $12.8 million.

In the past two quarters, and especially during the first quarter of 2023, the Company has worked to optimize margins generated from Base Solutions. In that effort, the Company has discontinued contracts with a number of creators for which margins were very low in comparison to our portfolio of thousands of creators, and to the market generally. These undertakings negatively impacted Base Solutions views, Base Solutions revenue, and total revenue in the short term, although gross margin on Base Solutions revenue should be positively impacted over the coming quarters. Initiatives to optimize gross margins will continue throughout the year. Notwithstanding these optimization efforts, total views for the quarter reached 113.2 billion, an 8% increase compared to the previous year quarter, and a 12% increase compared to Q4. The increase in views was driven by a 143% year-over-year increase in YouTube Shorts viewership to 51.8 billion views in Q1, which is approximately 46% of total views. For the first time since the end of the pandemic, year-over-year views grew organically, despite offsetting contract cancellations initiated by BBTV.

The Company continued efforts to optimize its cash cost base, to re-align operations for maximum performance, and to accelerate towards profitability. Combined with cost optimization completed last year, the Company has reduced cash expenses in the Base Solutions business. The Company continues to focus on operational efficiencies and alignment towards maximum performance, and the expense ratio in the Base Solutions business supports current strategies going forward.

Overall, BBTV's operating expenses of $12.1 million have declined by $3.3 million or 22% compared to the previous year Q1, and 6% compared sequentially to Q4 2022 due to staff reductions and operational realignment. The Company expects to continue to find ways to optimize operations in the coming months.

On February 1, 2023, YouTube began to share monetization with BBTV for YouTube Shorts. Although the first few months of YouTube Shorts monetization is modest, it is inline with internal forecasts and monetization growth is tracking as expected. Due to this early stage of monetization of Shorts content, Revenue Per Thousand Views (RPMs) declined by 36% to $0.53 compared to Q1 2022. Excluding Shorts, the monetization of 61.6 billion standard form content views remained steady near typical rates at $0.97, a 5% decline compared to $1.03 in Q1 2022. As YouTube Shorts RPMs track higher, notwithstanding typical seasonality, overall RPMs are expected to increase over time.

Plus Solutions, including popular solutions such as Content Management and Direct Advertising Sales, deliver higher margin monetization opportunities for BBTV. Overall, during Q1, Plus Solutions represented approximately 15% of total revenue and 35-40% of Adjusted Gross Profit compared to 13% and 30-35%, respectively, in Q1 2022. With a large pipeline of mostly global enterprise clients, Plus Solutions should continue to grow as a percentage of total revenue and Adjusted Gross Profit, even as Shorts monetization increases.

As of Q1, Content Management revenue is tracking as our strongest Plus Solution with solid visibility on pipeline conversion. During the quarter, the Company began deploying a major Content Management contract that has the potential to become the single largest Content Management revenue stream. As a result, management expects Plus Solutions revenue to grow by 30% on an annualized basis for fiscal 2023.

Overall, total revenue of $71.8 million declined by 27% compared to $98.8 million in Q1 2022 primarily due to a higher mix of YouTube Shorts views, which are at early stages of monetization, and some cancellations of unprofitable contracts. 

Outlook:

BBTV's monetization is closely tied to the performance of YouTube. Consumer preference has shifted from long-form content to micro-content across all major platforms, and while YouTube introduced YouTube Shorts a number of years ago to respond to consumer preferences, BBTV's monetization on YouTube Shorts only began on February 1, 2023. This format now represents about 46% of BBTV's viewership, up from 20% of viewership in Q1 2022. Once monetization of YouTube Short views matures across the Company's entire library, it could represent significant incremental revenue to BBTV depending upon the uptake. Google has stated publicly that, over time, it expects to close the monetization gap between YouTube Shorts and regular YouTube content.

Plus Solutions continue to represent significant revenue growth potential for the Company as well as viewership and valuable incremental revenue streams for content creators. Led by recent Content Management contract success and a growing overall pipeline for the solution, the Company expects to maintain a 30% annualized growth rate for Plus Solutions for this fiscal year. Additionally, Direct Advertising Sales should continue to grow.

Overall, the diversity of revenue streams, combined with improved liquidity and cost optimization programs, have positioned BBTV to weather future macro uncertainties while also accelerating towards sustained profitability.

Q1 2023 Financial Tables:

Q1 2023 Key Metrics:

Conference Call Details:
Friday, May 12, 2023 at 2:15pm Pacific Time / 5:15pm Eastern Time

Operator Assisted Dial-In:
Access Code: 630766
North America (Toll Free): 1 833 470 1428
North America (Local): 1 404 975 4839
Global Dial-In Numbers

Press *1 to ask a question, *2 to withdraw your question, or *0 for operator assistance.

Please connect at least 15 minutes prior to the conference call.

Links to SEDAR filings, conference call recordings and press releases are available on the investor website at: https://investors.bbtv.com/

Telephonic Replay:
Access Code: 761297
North America (Toll Free): 1 866 813 9403
North America: 1 929 458 6194
Replay Expiration Date: Wednesday, May 26th, 2023 at 11:59 PM PDT

Income Statement:

Non-GAAP Financial Measures and non-GAAP Ratios Reconciliation Tables:

Adjusted EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA Margin

BBTV Share, Adjusted Gross Profit, and Adjusted Gross Margin

BBTV Share and Adjusted Gross Profit are non-GAAP financial measures while Adjusted Gross Margin is a non-GAAP ratio. Further details on these measures are included in the "Key Metrics Definitions" section of this press release.

Free Cash Flow

Free Cash Flow is a non-GAAP financial measure. Further details on this measure is included in the "Key Metrics Definitions" section of this press release.

About BBTV
BBTV is a global media and technology company headquartered in Vancouver, Canada. The Company's mission is to help content creators become more successful. With creators ranging from individuals to global media brands, BBTV provides comprehensive, end-to-end Solutions to increase viewership and drive revenue powered by its innovative technology, while allowing creators to focus on their core competency – content creation. In December 2022, BBTV had the fourth most unique monthly viewers among digital platforms with more than 600 million globally, who consumed more than 30 billion minutes of video content [1]. (www.bbtv.com)

[1] Calculations and classifications made by BBTV based on data from Comscore's "Top 12 Countries = December 2022 comScore Video Metrix Media Trend – Multi-Platform – Top 100 Video Properties Report"; Top 12 countries represent ~50% of world's digital population.

Links to SEDAR filings, conference call recordings and press releases are available on the investor website at: https://investors.bbtv.com/

Key Metrics Definitions

The information presented within this press release includes certain financial measures such as non-GAAP financial measures, non-GAAP ratios, and supplementary financial measures, as well as a non-financial performance measure (collectively, "Key Metrics") to assist investors in assessing the overall operating performance of the Company. These measures are provided as additional information to complement IFRS measures by providing further understanding of our results of operations from management's perspective. Accordingly, these measures should not be considered in isolation nor as a substitute for analysis of our financial information reported under IFRS. They are not standardized measures under IFRS and do not have standardized meanings prescribed by IFRS, and might not be comparable to similar financial measures disclosed by other issuers. These Key Metrics are used to provide investors with supplemental information on our operating performance and thus highlight trends in our core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS measures. We also believe that securities analysts, investors and other interested parties frequently use Key Metrics in the evaluation of issuers. Our management also uses Key Metrics in order to facilitate operating performance comparisons from period to period, to prepare annual operating budgets and forecasts and to determine components of management compensation.

The numbers for the Company's Key Metrics and related information are calculated using external industry data sources and/or internal company data. These measures may be different from non-GAAP financial measures or ratios or other metrics used by other companies and may not be comparable to similar meanings prescribed by other companies, limiting their usefulness for comparison purposes. Moreover, some of these adjustments or measures are provided for period-over-period comparison purposes, and investors should be cautioned that the effect of the adjustments provided herein is not indicative of the actual effect on the Company's operating results.

Non-GAAP Ratios contained in this press release are:

"Adjusted Gross Margin" means Adjusted Gross Profit divided by BBTV Share; and

"Adjusted EBITDA Margin" means Adjusted EBITDA divided by revenue.

"Gross Margin Excluding PPA Amortization" means Adjusted Gross Profit divided by revenue.

Non-GAAP Financial Measures contained in this press release are:

"Adjusted EBITDA" means net earnings or loss, as applicable, before finance expenses, income tax expense (recovery), amortization and depreciation, share-based compensation, unrealized and realized gains or losses due to foreign exchange, transaction-related costs, and certain other items as set out in the reconciliation table;

"BBTV Share" means revenue less content creator and third-party platform fees;

"Adjusted Gross Profit" means gross profit plus amortization associated with intangible assets acquired as part of the Business Combination Transaction;

"Free Cash Flow" means cash flows from (used in) operating activities less purchases of property and equipment and purchase or development of intangible assets;

See the financial tables above for a reconciliation of the non-GAAP ratios and non-GAAP financial measures.

Supplementary Financial Measures contained in this press release are:

"Advertising Revenue" means the revenue generated from advertising sales from the Company's owned and licensed video on demand content across digital platforms, rights management revenue from advertising sales on video on demand content, and in-app advertising on Mobile Gaming Apps.

"RPMs" or "Revenue per one thousand video Views" means the Advertising Revenues for every thousand Views generated by the Company's owned and licensed digital content. The Company does not provide a reconciliation for RPMs as there are no directly comparable IFRS measures for the components that make up RPMs.

"Gross Margin" means gross profit divided by revenue.

We monitor Advertising Revenue and RPMs to help us evaluate our business, measure our performance, identify trends affecting our business, formulate business plans and make strategic decisions. These measures are also used to provide investors with supplemental measures of our operating performance and thus highlight trends in our core business that may not otherwise be apparent when relying solely on IFRS measures. Unless the context otherwise requires, the Company believes that readers should consider the applicable metrics to be indicative of engagement and monetization trends that are key factors that affect the Company's revenue. The Company may or may not update these metrics based on the Company's determination of applicability, circumstance, relevance or other considerations.

Non-Financial Performance Measures

Views are one of BBTV's non-financial performance measures and are defined as the number of views, in billions, of the Company's owned and licensed digital video content on various platforms, notably YouTube, for the stated period. The presentation of Views is reliant on certain third-party industry data and therefore is not comprehensive and may exclude views of the Company's content on certain platforms or in geographies whereby such data sources are unable to or do not track such information. Trends in Views affect revenue and financial results by influencing the Company's volume of salable media inventory, RPMs, as well as its product offerings, expenses and capital expenditures.

While Views are reported using reasonable judgments and estimates of the audience and its engagement with its content for the applicable period of measurement, there are certain challenges and limitations in measuring the usage of its content across its audience. Such challenges and limitations may also affect the Company's understanding of certain details of its business. For example, the methodologies used to measure the Company's Views and RPMs (see "Supplementary Financial Measures" above) may be susceptible to algorithm, calculation or other technical or human errors, and following an acquisition or strategic transaction, certain data may be, among other things, integrated, analyzed and reported differently by the Company than it was by the target or the strategic partner. Moreover, the Company's or its data provider's business intelligence tools may experience glitches or fail on a particular data backup or upload, which could lead to certain customer activity not being properly included in the calculation of Views and RPMs. Although the Company typically attempts to address and correct any such failures and inaccuracies relatively quickly, its reported Views and RPMs are still susceptible to the same and its estimations of such metrics may be lower or higher than the actual numbers.

Forward Looking Statements:

This press release contains "forward-looking information" and "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of applicable securities laws (collectively, "forward-looking information"). Forward-looking information is not information about historical facts but instead represents the Company's intentions, beliefs, plans, goals, objectives and strategies regarding future events and results, and includes certain financial outlooks. Financial outlooks are provided to aid in understanding management's goals and expectations regarding future financial matters, and, for all the reasons set out below, may not be achieved. Such financial outlooks may not be appropriate for other purposes. Forward-looking information contained in this press release includes statements that our outlook for our monetization opportunity for our Base Solutions increases substantially for the remainder of 2023 as a result of growing views; in the first quarter, we began deploying some of the largest Plus Solution contracts signed to date, which should positively impact performance for the remainder of fiscal year 2023; our liquidity remains adequate, allowing us to fulfill our strategic plans while accelerating our path to profitability and helping to create a buffer against potential macroeconomic risks and uncertainties; management believes the Company's current cash on hand, the sale of trade receivables pursuant to the receivables purchase agreement, available credit, expected debt financing, and ongoing cost optimization programs will provide sufficient liquidity to meet its working capital requirements as well as its financial obligations due; gross margin on Base Solutions revenue should be positively impacted over the coming quarters; initiatives to optimize gross margins will continue throughout the year; the Company continues to focus on operational efficiencies and alignment towards maximum performance, and the expense ratio in the Base Solutions business supports current strategies going forward; the Company expects to continue to find ways to optimize operations in the coming months; as YouTube Shorts RPMs track higher, notwithstanding typical seasonality, overall RPMs are expected to increase over time; with a large pipeline of mostly global enterprise clients, Plus Solutions should continue to grow as a percentage of total revenue and total gross profit, even as Shorts monetization increases; during the quarter, the Company began deploying a major Content Management contract that has the potential to become the single largest Content Management revenue stream; management expects Plus Solutions revenue to grow by 30% on an annualized basis for fiscal 2023; once monetization of YouTube Short views matures across the Company's entire library, it could represent significant incremental revenue to BBTV depending upon the uptake; Plus Solutions continue to represent significant revenue growth potential for the Company as well as viewership and valuable incremental revenue streams for content creators; Direct Advertising Sales should continue to grow; overall, the diversity of revenue streams, combined with improved liquidity and cost optimization programs, have positioned BBTV to weather future macro uncertainties while also accelerating towards sustained profitability. Forward-looking information is necessarily based on a number of estimates and assumptions that the Company considered appropriate and reasonable as of the date such information is given, including but not limited to the assumptions that growth trends in views and RPMs overall will improve and the Company's growth targets will not be adversely affected in any material respect; its internal financial forecasts and models, including its estimates of costs and revenue, are accurate; the monetization of YouTube Shorts will improve RPMs, views and revenue potential over time, with RPMs for YouTube Shorts having similar RPM rates to long-form video content over time; the Company will continue to acquire significant content management clients resulting in the Company's Plus Solutions revenue continuing to grow as expected and to show gross margins 3-4 times higher than its Base Solutions; that BBTV will continue to acquire new content partners of the same nature and type and at least at the same rate or better than it has historically; the Company's business will otherwise expand; the Company will continue to implement cost reductions; our content providers and our strategic and other partners will perform as contractually required; we will be able to seamlessly enter into new markets and diversify to new platforms; we will be able to increase our sales of advertising inventory as planned; we will be able to obtain and maintain financing on acceptable terms on a timely basis; our assumptions regarding foreign exchange rates and other matters are correct; and that there will be no changes in general industry, market and economic conditions adverse to the Company. Forward-looking information is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties, and other factors, many of which are beyond the Company's control, that may cause actual results, performance or achievements to be materially different from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking information, including but not limited to the risk that the Company's assumptions on which its forward-looking information is based may not be accurate; the effect of competition; that the Company has a history of losses and negative cash flow; the Company may not become profitable as anticipated by management or at all; the Company's need for additional capital on acceptable terms, which is not assured; the Company's significant reliance on its relationship with YouTube; the impact of the continuing COVID-19 pandemic and of economic uncertainty; the risks of potential claims of infringement by the Company or its content providers of third party intellectual property and other rights; changes in laws and regulations; future market, consumption patterns and other trends may fail to meet or exceed historical trends or current expectations; failure of the Company to realize significant distribution on new platforms or at all; as well as other factors discussed in the Company's Final Long Form Prospectus dated October 22, 2020, its Annual Information Form dated March 31, 2023 and in our MD&A dated May 12, 2023 each filed on sedar at www.sedar.com and in the Company's other filings with the Canadian securities regulatory authorities at www.sedar.com. The Company does not undertake any obligation to update any forward-looking information, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as expressly required by applicable law.

Contacts:

Media Relations
Mark Funston,
Head of Marketing and PR,
778-288-4950 
[email protected]

Investor Relations 
[email protected] Ron Shuttleworth
Partner 
Oak Hill Financial Inc
(647)-500-7371
[email protected]

BBTV-F

SOURCE BBTV Holdings Inc.