| Summary of Operations and Significant Accounting Policies | Summary of Operations and Significant Accounting Policies Description of Business Shutterstock (the “Company” or “Shutterstock”) is a global creative platform for transformative brands and media companies. The Company’s platform brings together users and contributors of content by providing readily-searchable content that our customers pay to license and by compensating contributors as their content is licensed. Contributors upload their content to the Company’s web properties in exchange for royalty payments based on customer download activity. Beyond content, customers also leverage the Company’s platform to assist with the entire creative process from ideation through creative execution. The Company’s key content offerings include: • Images - consisting of photographs, vectors and illustrations. Images are typically used in visual communications, such as websites, digital and print marketing materials, corporate communications, books, publications and other similar uses. • Footage - consisting of video clips, premium footage filmed by industry experts and cinema grade video effects, available in HD and 4K formats. Footage is often integrated into websites, social media, marketing campaigns and cinematic productions. • Music - consisting of high-quality music tracks and sound effects, which are often used to complement images and footage. • 3 Dimensional (“3D”) Models - consisting of 3D models, used in a variety of industries such as advertising, media and video production, gaming, retail, education, design and architecture. On May 11, 2022, the Company completed its acquisition of Pond5, Inc. (“Pond5”), a video-first content marketplace which expands Shutterstock’s content offerings across footage, image and music. On May 28, 2022, Shutterstock acquired SCP 2020 Limited (“Splash News”), an entertainment news network for newsrooms and media companies, which offers image and video content across celebrity, red carpet and live events. See Note 3 Acquisitions. Principles of Consolidation and Basis of Presentation The consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) and include the accounts of the Company and its wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. Certain immaterial changes in presentation have been made to conform the prior period presentation to current period reporting. Use of Estimates The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported and disclosed in the financial statements. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Such estimates include, but are not limited to, the determination of the allowance for doubtful accounts, the volume of expected unused licenses for our subscription-based products, the assessment of recoverability of property and equipment, the fair value of acquired goodwill and intangible assets, the amount of non-cash equity-based compensation, the assessment of recoverability of deferred tax assets, the measurement of income tax and contingent non-income tax liabilities and the determination of the incremental borrowing rate used to calculate the lease liability. Concentration of Risk Financial instruments that are exposed to concentration of credit risk consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents and accounts receivable balances. Cash and cash equivalents are held with financial institutions of high quality. Balances may exceed the amount of insurance provided on such deposits. The majority of the Company’s revenues are derived from customers who license content using electronic payments at the time of a transaction. The Company’s accounts receivable are primarily from enterprise customers who require invoicing. The Company performs initial and ongoing credit reviews on these customers, which involve consideration of the customers’ financial information, their location, and other factors to assess the customers’ ability to pay. The Company also performs ongoing financial condition evaluations for its existing customers. As of December 31, 2022, one customer accounted for approximately 22% of the accounts receivable balance. No other customer accounted for or exceeded 10% of the accounts receivable balance. As of December 31, 2021, no single customer accounted for or exceeded 10% of accounts receivable. Additionally, no single customer accounted for or exceeded 10% of revenue for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 or 2020. Cash, Cash Equivalents and Restricted Cash As of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company’s cash and cash equivalents were $115.2 million and $314.0 million, respectively. The Company’s cash balance consist primarily of bank deposits. Cash equivalents consists primarily of money market accounts and are stated at cost, which approximates fair value. Fair Value Measurements The Company records its financial assets and liabilities at fair value. Fair value is determined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the reporting date. Fair value is estimated by applying inputs which are classified into the following levels of a three-tier hierarchy as follows: Level 1 - quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities; Level 2- inputs other than quoted prices included within Level 1 that are either directly or indirectly observable; and Level 3 - unobservable inputs in which little or no market activity exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions regarding what market participants would use in pricing. Accounts Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts The Company’s accounts receivable consists of customer obligations due under normal trade terms, carried at their face value less an allowance for doubtful accounts, if required. The Company determines its allowance for doubtful accounts based on an evaluation of (i) the aging of its accounts receivable considering historical receivables loss rates, (ii) on a customer-by-customer basis, where appropriate, and (iii) the economic environments in which the Company operates. Historically, the Company used an incurred loss model to calculate its allowance for doubtful accounts. Upon the adoption of ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments - Credit Losses (Topic 326): Measurement of Credit Losses of Financial Instruments (“ASU 2016-13”) on January 1, 2020, the Company shifted to a current expected credit loss model. The following table presents the changes in the Company’s allowance for doubtful accounts (in thousands): Year Ended December 31, 2022 2021 2020 Balance, beginning of period $ 1,910 $ 4,942 $ 3,579 Add: bad debt expense 3,697 137 2,580 Less: write-offs, net of recoveries and other adjustments 1 223 (3,169) (1,217) Balance, end of period $ 5,830 $ 1,910 $ 4,942 1 - Other adjustments includes the adoption of ASU 2016-13 on January 1, 2020, which increased the allowance for doubtful accounts by $0.3M. Chargeback and Sales Refund Allowance The Company establishes a chargeback allowance and sales refund reserve allowance based on factors surrounding historical credit card chargeback trends, historical sales refund trends and other information. As of December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021, the Company’s combined allowance for chargebacks and sales refunds was $0.4 million, which is included as a component of other current liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Property and Equipment Property and equipment are stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation and amortization is calculated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets. Generally, the useful lives are as follows: Equipment 3 years Furniture and fixtures 7 years Software 3 years Leasehold improvements Shorter of expected useful life or lease term Capitalized Internal Use Software The Company capitalizes the qualifying costs of computer software developed for internal use, which are incurred during the application development stage, and amortizes them over the software’s estimated useful life. Costs incurred in the preliminary and post-implementation stages of the Company’s products are expensed as incurred. The amounts capitalized include employee’s payroll and payroll-related costs directly associated with the development activities as well as external direct costs of services used in developing internal-use software. The Company’s policy is to amortize capitalized costs using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life, which is currently three years, beginning when the software is substantially complete and ready for its intended use. Impairment of Long-Lived Assets Long-lived assets, inclusive of definite-lived intangible assets, are reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable. Recoverability of assets to be held and used is measured by a comparison of the carrying value of an asset to estimated undiscounted future cash flows expected to be generated by the asset. If the carrying value of an asset exceeds its estimated undiscounted future cash flows, an impairment charge is recognized in the amount by which the carrying value of the asset exceeds the fair value of the asset. Assets to be disposed of would be separately presented in the balance sheet and reported at the lower of the carrying value or the fair value less costs to sell, and are no longer depreciated. The assets and liabilities of a disposed group classified as held for sale would be presented separately in the appropriate asset and liability sections of the balance sheet. In 2022, the Company recorded an impairment charge related to a portion of its right-of-use assets and property and equipment triggered by the Company’s decision to cease using certain office spaces. See Note 4, Property and Equipment and Note 15, Leasing for further discussion. There were no long-lived asset impairment charges in 2021 or 2020. Goodwill and Intangible Assets Goodwill and intangible assets acquired in a business combination and determined to have an indefinite useful life are not amortized, but instead tested for impairment at least annually on October 1 of each fiscal year or more frequently if events occur or circumstances exist that indicate that the fair value of a reporting unit may be below its carrying value. In 2022, the Company’s goodwill balance was allocated to a single reporting unit. Since inception through December 31, 2022, the Company has not had any impairment of goodwill. Revenue Recognition The majority of the Company’s revenue is earned from the license of content. Content licenses are generally purchased on a monthly or annual basis, whereby a customer pays for a predetermined quantity of content that may be downloaded over a specific period of time, or, on a transactional basis, whereby a customer pays for individual content licenses at the time of download. The Company also generates revenue from tools available through the Company’s platform. For contracts that contain multiple performance obligations, the Company allocates the transaction price to each performance obligation based on a relative standalone selling price. The standalone selling price is determined based on the price at which the performance obligation is sold separately, or if not observable through past transactions, is estimated taking into account available information including internally approved pricing guidelines and pricing information of comparable products. The Company recognizes revenue upon the satisfaction of performance obligations. The Company recognizes revenue on both its subscription-based and transaction-based products when content is downloaded by a customer, at which time the license is provided. In addition, the Company estimates expected unused licenses for subscription-based products and recognizes the revenue associated with the unused licenses as digital content is downloaded and licenses are obtained for such content by the customer during the subscription period. The estimate of unused licenses is based on historical download activity and future changes in the estimate could impact the timing of revenue recognition of the Company’s subscription products. For revenue associated with tools available through the Company’s platform, revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the subscription period. The Company expenses contract acquisition costs as incurred, to the extent that the amortization period would otherwise be one year or less. Collectability is reasonably assured at the time the electronic order or contract is entered. The majority of the Company’s customers purchase products by making electronic payments with a credit card at the time of the transaction. Customer payments received in advance of revenue recognition are contract liabilities and are recorded as deferred revenue. Customers that do not pay in advance are invoiced and are required to make payments under standard credit terms. Collectability for customers who pay on credit terms allowing for payment beyond the date at which service commences, is based on a credit evaluation for certain new customers and transaction history with existing customers. The Company recognizes revenue gross of contributor royalties because the Company is the principal in the transaction as it is the party responsible for the performance obligation and it controls the product or service before transferring it to the customer. The Company also licenses content to customers through third-party resellers. Third-party resellers sell the Company’s products directly to customers as the principal in those transactions. Accordingly, the Company recognizes revenue net of costs paid to resellers. Cost of Revenue The Company’s cost of revenue includes royalties paid to contributors, credit card processing fees, content reviewer costs, customer service expenses, infrastructure and hosting costs related to maintaining our creative platform and cloud-based software platform, depreciation and amortization of capitalized internal-use software, purchased content and acquisition-related intangible assets, allocated facility costs and other supporting overhead costs. Costs of revenue also includes employee compensation, including non-cash equity-based compensation, bonuses and benefits associated with the maintenance of the Company’s creative platform and cloud-based software platform. Contributor Royalties and Internal Sales Commissions The Company expenses contributor royalties in the period a customer download occurs and includes the corresponding contributor royalties in cost of revenue. Contributor royalties are generally paid monthly. The Company advances certain contributor royalties which are initially deferred and expensed based on the contractual royalty rate at the time of customer download or when the Company determines future recovery is not probable. For the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, the Company deferred $6.3 million, $7.2 million and $3.6 million, respectively, in royalty advances and amortized $7.1 million, $5.8 million and $5.5 million, respectively, in royalty advance expense which is included in cost of revenue. As of December 31, 2022 and 2021, the Company has deferred contributor royalties of $0.6 million and $1.4 million, respectively, which is included in prepaid expenses and other current assets in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Internal sales commissions are generally paid in the month following collection or invoicing of the commissioned receivable and is reported in sales and marketing expense on the Consolidated Statements of Operations. The Company expenses contract acquisition costs, including internal sales commissions, as incurred, to the extent that the amortization period would otherwise be one year or less. Product Development The Company expenses product development costs as incurred, except for costs that are capitalized for certain internal software development projects. Product development costs are primarily comprised of development personnel salaries, non-cash equity-based compensation, software and other IT equipment costs as well as allocated facility costs and related overhead. Advertising Costs The Company expenses the cost of advertising and promoting its products as incurred. Such costs totaled $97.2 million, $112.9 million and $81.2 million for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively, which are included in sales and marketing expense in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Leasing The Company records rent expense on a straight-line basis over the term of the related lease. At inception, the Company first determines if an arrangement contains a lease and the classification of that lease, if applicable. The Company recognizes right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and lease liabilities for its operating leases. For contracts with lease and non-lease components, the Company has elected not to allocate the contract consideration, and to account for the lease and non-lease components as a single lease component. The Company has also elected not to recognize a lease liability or ROU asset for leases with a term of 12 months or less, and recognize lease payments for those short-term leases on a straight-line basis over the lease term in the Consolidated Statements of Operations. Operating leases are included in ROU assets, other current liabilities and lease liabilities (net of current portion) on the Consolidated Balance Sheets. ROU assets represent the Company’s right to use an underlying asset for the lease term and lease liabilities represent the Company’s obligation to make lease payments under the lease. ROU assets and lease liabilities are recognized at the lease commencement date based on the present value of lease payments over the lease term. The implicit rate within the Company’s leases is generally not determinable and therefore the incremental borrowing rate at the lease commencement date is utilized to determine the present value of lease payments. The determination of the incremental borrowing rate requires judgment. Management determines the incremental borrowing rate for each lease using the Company’s estimated borrowing rate, adjusted for various factors including level of collateralization, term and currency to align with the terms of the lease. The ROU asset also includes any lease prepayments, offset by lease incentives. Certain of the Company’s leases include options to extend or terminate the lease. An option to extend the lease is considered in connection with determining the ROU asset and lease liability when the Company is reasonably certain that the option will be exercised. An option to terminate is considered unless the Company is reasonably certain the option will not be exercised. Equity-Based Compensation The Company grants Restricted Stock Units, Performance-based Restricted Stock Units (“PRSUs” and, collectively with Restricted Stock Units, “RSUs”) and Stock Options to directors and officers and certain other employees of the Company. Awards granted prior to June 1, 2022 were granted under the Company’s Amended and Restated 2012 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan (the “2012 Plan”). At the Annual Meeting held on June 2, 2022, the Company’s stockholders approved the 2022 Omnibus Equity Incentive Plan (the “2022 Plan”). Awards granted subsequent to June 2, 2022 were granted under the 2022 Plan. The Company measures and recognizes non-cash equity-based compensation expense for all stock-based awards granted to employees based on estimated fair values. The portion of the award that is ultimately expected to vest is recognized as expense over the requisite service period. Forfeitures are accounted for as they occur. For awards with a change of control condition, an evaluation is made at the grant date and future periods as to the likelihood of the condition being met. Compensation expense is adjusted in future periods for subsequent changes in the expected outcome of the change of control conditions until the vesting date. Compensation expense related to awards with a market condition is recognized over the requisite service period regardless of the achievement of the market condition. Compensation expense related to awards with a performance condition is recognized over the requisite service period based on the expected levels of achievement. To the extent that the expected levels of achievement change, stock-based compensation expense is adjusted and recorded in the Consolidated Statements of Operations and the remaining unrecognized stock-based compensation is recognized over the remaining requisite service period. The Company uses the closing price of the Company’s common stock on the date of grant to determine the fair value of RSUs. The Company uses the Black Scholes option pricing model, to determine the fair value of stock options on the date of grant. The Monte Carlo simulation model is used if the award has a market condition. The determination of the grant date fair value using an option-pricing model and simulation model requires judgment as well as assumptions regarding a number of other complex and subjective variables. These variables include the Company’s closing market price at the grant date, the expected stock price volatility over the expected term of the awards, awards’ exercise and cancellation behaviors, risk-free interest rates and expected dividends. The awards granted pursuant to the 2012 Plan and the 2022 Plan are subject to a time-based vesting requirement and certain award grants may also include market based or performance based vesting conditions. While each PRSU corresponds to one target share of the Company’s stock, the number of shares that may eventually vest will be between 0% and 150% of a recipient’s target shares, depending on both the recipient’s continued service with the Company and the extent to which performance goals will have been achieved. Awards generally vest over three Upon the vesting of RSUs, the Company has a practice of net share settlement, to cover any required withholding taxes by retaining the number of shares with a value equal to the amount of the tax and remitting an equal amount of cash to the appropriate taxing authorities. Employee Benefit Plans The Company offers a 401(k) defined contribution plan and provides for discretionary employer matching contributions. All matching contributions are recognized as an expense in the Statement of Operations, as incurred. The Company recorded employer matching contributions of $5.1 million, $4.4 million and $3.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2022, 2021 and 2020, respectively. Income Taxes The Company’s income tax expense includes U.S. (federal and state) and foreign income taxes. Deferred income tax balances reflect the effects of temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities and their tax basis, and are stated at enacted tax rates expected to be in effect when taxes are actually paid or recovered. The Company accounts for unrecognized tax benefits using a more-likely-than-not threshold for financial statement recognition and measurement of tax positions taken or expected to be taken in a tax return. The Company establishes reserves for tax-related uncertainties based on estimates of whether, and the extent to which, additional taxes may be due. The Company records an income tax liability for the difference, if any, between the benefit recognized and measured and the tax position taken or expected to be taken on the Company’s tax returns. To the extent that the assessment of such tax positions changes, the change in estimate is recorded in the period in which the determination is made. The reserves are adjusted in light of changing facts and circumstances, such as the outcomes of tax audits or lapses in statutes of limitations. Any reserve for uncertain tax provisions and related penalties and interest is included in the income tax provision. On a quarterly basis, the Company assesses the realizability of deferred tax assets, based on the available evidence including a history of taxable income, estimates of future taxable income and planning strategies and a valuation allowance is recorded to the extent that it is not more likely than not that the deferred tax assets will be realized. Significant management judgment is required in determining the provision for income taxes and deferred tax assets and liabilities. In the event that actual results differ from these estimates, the Company will adjust these estimates in future periods which may result in a change in the effective tax rate in a future period. The global intangible low-taxed income (“GILTI”) provisions of the TCJA impose a tax on foreign income in excess of a deemed return on tangible assets of foreign corporations. The Company has elected to treat any potential GILTI inclusions as a period cost. Other Non-income Taxes The Company is subject to certain non-income taxes, including value added taxes, sales taxes and royalty withholding taxes. Where appropriate, the Company has made accruals for these taxes, which are reflected in the Company’s consolidated financial statements. These accruals are subject to statute of limitations requirements and review by governmental authorities. Treasury Stock The Company accounts for treasury stock under the cost method and is included as a component of stockholders’ equity. Treasury stock held by the Company may be reissued in the future. The Company’s policy is to account for reissued shares as a reduction of Treasury stock on a first-in, first-out basis. Net Income Per Share Basic net income per share is computed by dividing the net income attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Any potential issuance of common shares, including those that are contingent and do not participate in dividends, is excluded from basic weighted average number of common shares outstanding. Diluted net income per share is computed by dividing the net income attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average common shares outstanding and all potential common shares, if they are dilutive. Reportable Segments For the year ended December 31, 2022, the Company has identified one operating segment, which has also been determined to be the Company’s primary reportable business segment. Operating segments are defined as components of an enterprise for which separate financial information is available and is evaluated regularly by the Company’s chief operating decision maker (“CODM”), or decision-making group, in deciding how to allocate resources and in assessing financial performance. Contingent Consideration The Company records a liability for contingent consideration at the date of a business combination and reassesses the fair value of the liability each period until it is settled. Upon settlement of these liabilities, the portion of the contingent consideration payment that is attributable to the initial amount recorded as part of the business combination is classified as a cash flow from financing activities and the portion of the settlement that is attributable to subsequent changes in the fair value of the contingent consideration is classified as a cash flow from operating activities in the Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows. Foreign Currency The functional currency of the Company’s foreign subsidiaries is generally the respective local currency. Monetary assets and liabilities that are denominated in currencies other than each entity’s functional currency are remeasured into the functional currency at the period-end exchange rates and result in transactional gains and losses. The net impact of foreign currency transactional gains and losses on the Company’s results of operations were losses of $3.1 million and $3.2 million in 2022 and 2021, respectively, and a gain of $2.4 million in 2020. Translation adjustments resulting from converting the foreign subsidiaries financial statements into U.S. dollars using the period-end exchange rates for balance sheet accounts and the period average exchange rate for the Statements of Operations are recorded as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income / (loss) within stockholders’ equity. Recently Adopted Accounting Standard Updates In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, which as amended, replaces the current incurred loss impairment methodology with a methodology that reflects expected credit losses. The ASU is intended to provide financial statement users with more decision-useful information about the expected credit losses on financial instruments and other commitments to extend credit held by a reporting entity at each reporting date. Adoption of this guidance was required, prospectively, for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2019, with early adoption permitted for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2018. The Company adopted ASU 2016-13, as amended, effective January 1, 2020 using the modified retrospective method and recorded a cumulative-effect adjustment of $0.2 million, net of tax, in retained earnings as of January 1, 2020. In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740), Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes (“ASU 2019-12”). ASU 2019-12 eliminates certain exceptions to the guidance in Topic 740 related to the approach for intra-period tax allocation, the methodology for calculating income taxes in an interim period and the recognition of deferred tax liabilities for outside basis differences. The new guidance also simplifies aspects of the accounting for franchise taxes, enacted changes in tax laws or rates and clarifies the accounting transactions that result in a step-up in the tax basis of goodwill. The guidance is effective for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020 and interim periods within those fiscal years. The Company adopted ASU 2019-12, effective January 1, 2021. The impact of adoption of this standard on the consolidated financial statements, including accounting policies, processes and systems, was not material. In October 2021, the FASB issued ASU No. 2021-08, Business Combinations (Topic 805), Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities from Contracts with Customers (“ASU 2021-08”). ASU 2021-08 addresses inconsistency related to the recognition and measurement of contract assets and contract liabilities acquired in a business combination. ASU 2021-08 requires that an acquirer recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities acquired in a business combination as if it had originated the contracts, in accordance with Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers |
