Forward-Looking Statements
This report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of federal securities laws that involve risks and uncertainties, including statements regarding our preliminary financial and operating performance for the fourth quarter and full year 2020. There are a significant number of factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from statements made in this report, including changes to our preliminary financial estimated financial and other data due to the completion of financial closing procedures.
All forward-looking statements in this report are based on information available to us as of the date hereof, and we do not assume any obligation to update the forward-looking statements provided to reflect events that occur or circumstances that exist after the date on which they were made, except as required by law.
Key Business Metrics
Billings. Billings represents total revenue plus the change in deferred revenue in the period, as presented in our consolidated statements of cash flows, less the change in contract assets and unbilled accounts receivable in the period. Billings in any particular period represents amounts invoiced to customers and reflects subscription renewals and upsells to existing customers plus sales to new customers. We use billings to measure our ability to sell subscriptions to our platform to both new and existing customers. We use billings from business customers and our percentage of billings from business customers to measure and monitor our ability to sell subscriptions to our platform to business customers.
Non-GAAP Financial Measures
Pluralsight has provided financial information in this report that has not been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (GAAP). Pluralsight is presenting preliminary estimated ranges of results for the non-GAAP financial measures of adjusted pro forma net loss, adjusted pro forma net loss per share, and free cash flow for the three months ended December 31, 2020 and the year ended December 31, 2020 because it believes that the use of these metrics is useful to investors as an additional tool to evaluate ongoing operating results and trends and in comparing Pluralsight’s financial results with other companies in its industry, many of which present similar non-GAAP financial measures.
The presentation of these non-GAAP financial measures is not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for comparable GAAP financial measures and should be read only in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP. A reconciliation of our historical non-GAAP financial measures to their most directly comparable GAAP measures have been provided in the financial statement tables included in this report, and investors are encouraged to review these reconciliations.
Adjusted pro forma net loss and adjusted pro forma net loss per share. We define adjusted pro forma net loss as net loss attributable to Pluralsight, Inc. adjusted for the reallocation of loss attributable to non-controlling interests from the assumed exchange of LLC Units of Pluralsight Holdings for newly-issued shares of Class A common stock of Pluralsight, Inc. and further adjusted for equity-based compensation, amortization of acquired intangible assets, employer payroll taxes on employee stock transactions, amortization of debt discount and issuance costs, and, as applicable, other special items, including acquisition-related costs. We define adjusted pro forma net loss per share as adjusted pro forma net loss divided by the weighted-average shares of Class A common stock outstanding, assuming the full exchange of all outstanding LLC Units of Pluralsight Holdings for newly-issued shares of Class A common stock of Pluralsight, Inc.
Free cash flow. We define free cash flow as cash provided by (used in) operating activities less purchases of property and equipment and purchases of our content library.
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