| Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies | Note 2— Basis of Presentation and Significant Accounting Policies (a) Principles of consolidation: The accompanying consolidated financial statements of the Company have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”). The accompanying consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Zeta and its wholly owned subsidiaries. All intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. The Company’s management considers events or transactions that occur after the balance sheet date but before the financial statements are issued to provide additional evidence relative to certain estimates or to identify matters that require additional disclosure. Subsequent events have been evaluated through the date of issuance of these financial statements. (b) Use of estimates: The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect reported amounts of assets and liabilities, disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. In these consolidated financial statements, accounts receivable, free standing and embedded financial instruments, acquired assets and liabilities (including goodwill and intangible assets) and their useful lives, website and software development costs, acquisition-related liabilities including contingent purchase price payable and holdback payable, stock-based compensation, impairment of indefinite and long-lived assets, and valuation allowance on income taxes involve reliance on management’s estimates. Estimates are based on management judgment and the best available information, as such actual results could differ from those estimates. (c) Net loss per share attributable to common stockholders: Basic net loss per share attributable to common stockholders is calculated by dividing the net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted-average number of shares of common stock outstanding during the period, without consideration of potentially dilutive securities. The Company’s diluted net loss per common share is the same as basic net loss per common share for all periods presented, since the effect of potentially dilutive securities is anti-dilutive. Refer to Note 20 for further discussion. (d) Revenue recognition: Revenues arise primarily from the Company’s technology platform via subscription fees, volume-based utilization fees and fees for professional services designed to maximize the customers usage of the technology. Revenues are recognized when control of these services is transferred to the customers, in an amount that reflects the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for those services. Sales and other taxes collected by the Company concurrent with revenue-producing activities are excluded from revenues. The Company determines revenue recognition through the following steps: (i) Identification of the contract, or contracts, with a customer. (ii) Identification of the performance obligations in the contract. (iii) Determination of the transaction price. (iv) Allocation of the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract. (v) Recognition of revenue when, or as, we satisfy a performance obligation. At contract inception, the Company assesses the services promised in the contracts with customers and identifies a performance obligation for each promise to transfer to the customer a service (or bundle of services) that is distinct. To identify the performance obligations, the Company considers all the services promised in the contract regardless of whether they are explicitly stated or are implied by customary business practices. The transaction price is the amount of consideration that the Company is entitled to in exchange for transferring services to a customer. Certain customer contracts give rise to variable consideration, including rebates and allowances that generally decrease the transaction price and therefore reduce revenues. These variable amounts are generally credited to the customer, based on achieving certain levels of activity. Variable consideration is estimated and included in the transaction price to the extent it is probable that a significant reversal of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur when the uncertainty associated with the variable consideration is resolved. Variable consideration is estimated based upon historical experience and known trends. Further, for the contracts having multiple performance obligations, the total transaction price for a contract is allocated amongst the various performance obligations based on their relative stand-alone selling prices. The relative standalone selling price (“SSP”) is determined based on the terms of the contract and requires judgment. Typically, the best estimate of SSP is the contractual price of each obligation. The transaction price for a contract excludes any amounts collected on behalf of third parties, in cases where the Company acts as an agent. Payment terms are typically 30 to 90 days. As such, the Company does not have any significant financing components. Generally, the Company’s contracts contain a series of separately identifiable and distinct services that represent performance obligations that are satisfied over time, revenue for such contracts is recognized using the right to invoice practical expedient because the right to invoice corresponds directly with the value transferred to the customer. The Company also derives revenues from subscription fees for the use of its platforms. The Company recognizes the corresponding revenues over time on a ratable basis over the customer agreement term. When the Company enters into multiple contracts with a single counterparty, the Company will combine contracts and account for them as a single contract when one or more of the following criteria are met: (i) the contracts are negotiated with a single commercial objective, (ii) consideration to be paid in one contract depends on the terms of the other contract, and (iii) services promised are a single performance obligation. When the Company enters into contracts with third parties in which the Company is acting as both a vendor and a customer, the Company performs an assessment of the services transferred to determine the independent nature of both the transactions. The Company presents the revenue and expense based on the fair value of the services provided or received. Principal vs. Agent In substantially all its businesses, the Company incurs third-party costs on behalf of customers, including direct costs and incidental costs. Third-party direct costs incurred in connection with the delivery of advertising or marketing services include, among others: purchased media, data, cost of physical mailers, and procurement cost of Internet Protocol Addresses (“IPs”), used in the emailing services. However, the inclusion of billings related to third-party direct costs in revenues depends on whether the Company acts as a principal or as an agent in the customer arrangement. In certain businesses the Company may act as a principal when contracting for third-party services on behalf of its customers because it controls the specified goods or services before they are transferred to the customer and the Company is responsible for providing the specified goods or services, or it is responsible for directing and integrating third-party vendors to fulfil its performance obligation at the agreed upon contractual price. In such arrangements, the Company also takes pricing risk under the terms of the customer contract. In certain media buying businesses, the Company acts as a principal when it controls the buying process for the purchase of the media and contracts directly with the media vendor. In these arrangements, it assumes the pricing risk under the terms of the customer contract. In such cases, the Company includes billable amounts related to third-party costs in the transaction price and record revenues at the gross amount billed, consistent with the manner that revenues are recognized for the underlying services contract. In certain arrangements the Company may act as an agent of the customers when contracting for third-party services on behalf of its customers because the Company does not control the specified goods or services before they are transferred to the customer. In these contracts with customers, the Company provides access to its software platform available through different pricing options to tailor to multiple customer types and customer needs. These options consist of a percentage of spend, a subscription fee or a fixed cost per impression. In such arrangements, any direct costs incurred on behalf of the customers are netted down from the revenues and revenue is recognized on net basis. Contract assets and liabilities Contract assets represent revenue recognized for contracts that have not been invoiced to customers. Total contract assets were $ 5,346 and $ 2,325 as of December 31, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and are included in the account receivables, net, in the consolidated balance sheets. Contract liabilities consists of deferred revenues that represents amounts billed to the customers in excess of the revenue recognized. Deferred revenues are subsequently recorded as revenues when earned in accordance with the Company’s revenue recognition policies. During the years ended on December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company billed and collected $ 5,243 and $ 10,572 in advance, respectively, and recognized $ 4,170 and $ 15,210 , respectively, as revenues. As of the years ended on December 31, 2023 and 2022, the deferred revenues are $ 3,301 and $ 2,228 , respectively. Practical expedients and exemptions The Company applies the optional exemptions and does not disclose: a) transaction price allocated to unsatisfied performance obligations for which variable consideration is allocated entirely to a wholly unsatisfied performance obligation or to a wholly unsatisfied promise to transfer a distinct good or service that forms part of a single performance obligation in accordance with the series guidance; b) Further, in certain contracts, the Company utilizes the right to invoice practical expedient because the right to invoice corresponds directly with the value transferred to the customer. Significant judgments The recognition of revenues requires the Company to make judgments, estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of revenues, expenses, contract assets and contract liabilities. (a) Revenues from certain contracts with customers are subject to variability due to cash incentives and credit notes, therefore, revenues are recognized but subject to the constraint on the variable consideration, i.e. only to the extent that it is probable that a significant reversal in the amount of cumulative revenue recognized will not occur when the uncertainty associated with the variable consideration is subsequently resolved. (b) When revenue arrangements include components of third-party goods and services, for example in transactions which involve resale, fulfillment or providing advertising impressions to the end customer, the Company evaluates whether it is a principal, and reports revenues on a gross basis, or an agent, and reports revenues on a net basis. In this assessment, it is considered if the control of the specified goods or services is obtained before they are transferred to the customer by evaluating indicators such as which party is primarily responsible for fulfilling the promise to provide the goods or services, which party has discretion in establishing price and the underlying terms and conditions between the parties to the transaction. (c) Contracts with customers may include multiple services. Determining whether those services are distinct from each other, and therefore performance obligations to be accounted for separately, or not distinct from each other, and therefore part of a single performance obligation, may require significant judgment. (d) Contracts with the Company’s vendors that involve both the purchase and sale of services with a single counterparty. Assessing each contract to determine if the revenue and expense should be presented gross or net, may require significant judgement. (e) Determining the standalone selling price for various performance obligations in the customer contracts requires significant judgement. Remaining Performance Obligations Remaining performance obligations represents contractual obligations that are not yet fulfilled. Revenues for such contractual obligations will be recognized in future periods. The remaining performance obligations are influenced by several factors, including seasonality, the timing of renewals, average contract terms and foreign currency exchange rates. The remaining performance obligations are subject to future economic risks including counterparty risks, bankruptcies, regulatory changes and other market factors. As of December 31, 2023, the Company's remaining performance obligations for the next twelve months and thereafter were approximately $ 98,400 and $ 116,200 , respectively. Disaggregation of revenues from contract with customers The Company reports disaggregation of revenues based on primary geographical markets and delivery channels / platforms. Revenues by delivery channels / platforms are based on whether the customer requirements necessitate integration with platforms or delivery channels owned by the Company. When the Company generates revenues entirely through the Company platform, the Company considers it Direct Platform Revenue. When the Company generates revenue by leveraging its platform’s integration with third parties, it is considered Integrated Platform Revenue. The following table summarizes disaggregation for the years ended December 31, 2023, December 31, 2022 and December 31, 2021:
Year ended December 31,
2023 2022 2021
Direct Platform Revenue 72 % 77 % 76 %
Integrated Platform Revenue 28 % 23 % 24 % Refer to the Company’s accounting policy on “Segments” below for more information about disaggregation based on primary geographical markets. (e) Operating expenses: Operating expenses including cost of revenues (excluding depreciation and amortization), general and administrative expenses, selling and marketing expenses and research and development expenses, are recognized as these costs are incurred. Depreciation and amortization: The Company records depreciation and amortization using a straight-line method over the estimated useful life of the assets. Acquisition-related expenses: Acquisition-related costs primarily consist of legal fees associated with certain business combinations. Restructuring expenses: Restructuring costs consists primarily of employee termination costs due to internal restructuring. The Company recognizes these costs as they are incurred. There are no incomplete restructuring plans as of December 31, 2023 and 2022. (f) Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash: Highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less when purchased are considered to be cash equivalents. The Company maintains cash balances with banks which at times may be in excess of Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC") insurance limits. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, approximately 0.4 % and 0.9 % of cash and cash equivalents, respectively, was held in accounts outside the United States and not protected by FDIC insurance. As of December 31, 2023 and 2022, the Company did no t have any amounts in restricted cash. (g) Accounts receivable and allowance for doubtful accounts: Accounts receivable are carried at original invoice amount less an allowance for doubtful accounts. Allowances for doubtful accounts are established through an evaluation of accounts receivable aging and prior collection experience to estimate the ultimate collectability of receivables. Management considers the following factors when determining the collectability of specific customer accounts: past transaction history with the customers, current economic industry trends, and changes in customer payment terms. If the financial conditions of the Company’s customers were to deteriorate, adversely affecting their ability to make payments, additional allowances would be required. Past due balances over 90 days and over a specified amount are reviewed individually for collectability. Account balances are charged off against the allowance after all means of collection have been exhausted and the potential for recovery is considered remote. The Company does not have any off-balance-sheet credit exposure related to its customers. The following table reconciles the changes in the allowance for doubtful accounts for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022:
Balance as of January 1, 2022 $ 1,295
Bad debt expense 650
Write offs ( 63 )
Balance as of December 31, 2022 $ 1,882
Bad debt expense 2,272
Write offs ( 590 )
Balance as of December 31, 2023 $ 3,564 Accounts receivable includes unbilled accounts receivable which represent revenues on contracts to be billed, in subsequent periods, as per the terms of the related contracts. As of December 31, 2023, and 2022, the Company had $ 5,346 and $ 2,325 of unbilled accounts receivable, respectively. (h) Property and equipment, net: Property and equipment are carried at cost less accumulated depreciation. Expenditures for maintenance and repairs are expensed when incurred, while renewals and betterments that materially extend the life of an asset are capitalized. The cost of assets sold, retired, or otherwise disposed of, and the related accumulated depreciation, are eliminated from the accounts, and any resulting gain or loss is recognized. Depreciation is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of assets, which are as follows:
Estimated Useful Life
Computer equipment 3 - 6
Office equipment and furniture 5 - 7
Purchased software 3 - 5
Leasehold improvements Shorter of useful life and The Company reviews the carrying value of property and equipment for impairment whenever events and circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable. The factors considered by management in performing this assessment include current operating results, trends and prospects, the manner in which the property and equipment are used, and the effects of obsolescence, demand, competition and other economic factors. Based on this assessment, no impairment for assets held and used was recorded for the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022. (i) Website and software development costs, net: The Company capitalizes the cost of internally developed software that has a useful life in excess of one year. These costs consist of the salaries, bonuses, stock-based compensation and other employee benefits costs of employees working on such software development. Capitalization begins during the application development stage, following completion of the preliminary project stage. If a project constitutes an enhancement to previously developed software, it is assessed whether the enhancement creates additional functionality to the software, thus qualifying the work incurred for capitalization. Once the project is available for general release, capitalization ceases, and the Company estimates the useful life of the asset and begins amortization using the straight-line method. The estimated useful life of the Company’s website and software development costs is three years. The Company annually assesses whether triggering events are present to review developed software for impairment. Based on this assessment, there was no event during the year ended December 31, 2023 that required the Company to perform such impairment analysis. (j) Intangible assets, net: Intangible assets are recorded at cost less accumulated amortization. Cost of intangible assets acquired through business combinations represents their fair market value at the date of acquisition. Amortization is calculated using the straight-line method which is consistent with the realization of cash flows over the weighted average useful lives of the intangible assets, which are as follows:
Estimated Useful Life
Tradenames 4 - 5
Data supply relationships 2 - 5
Completed technologies 3 - 10
Customer relationships 3 - 12 The Company purchases and licenses data content from multiple data providers to develop the proprietary databases of information for client use. This data content sometime consists of consumer information like name, address, phone numbers, zip codes, gender, age group, etc. and it may also consist of business information industry, sales volume, physical address, financial information, credit score, etc. License agreement terms vary by vendor. In some instances, the Company retains perpetual rights to this information after the contract ends; in other instances, the information and data are licensed only during the fixed term of the agreement. Additionally, certain data license agreements provide for uneven payment amounts throughout the life of the contract term. The Company capitalizes the intangible assets as the data contents are received from the third parties, as it expects those assets to provide future economic benefit via the generation of Company’s revenue and margins. These intangibles assets are amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the data asset. The Company evaluates data content contracts for potential capitalization at the inception of the arrangement as well as each time periodic payments to third parties are made. The amortization period for the capitalized purchased content is based on the Company’s best estimate of the useful life of the asset, which ranges from two to five years . The determination of the useful life includes consideration of a variety of factors including, but not limited to, assessment of the expected use of the asset and contractual provisions that may limit the useful life, as well as an assessment of when the data is expected to become obsolete based on the Company’s estimates of the diminishing value of the data over time. Under certain other data agreements, the underlying data is obtained on a subscription basis with consistent monthly recurring payment terms over the contractual period. Upon the expiration of such arrangements, the Company no longer has the right to access the related data, and therefore, the costs incurred under such contracts are not capitalized and are expensed as payments are made. The Company will immediately lose rights to data under these arrangements if it cancels the subscription and/or cease making payments under the subscription arrangements. The Company reviews the carrying value of its definite-lived intangible assets for impairment whenever events and circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable from the estimated future cash flows expected to result from its use and eventual disposition. If these future undiscounted cash flows are less than the carrying value of the asset, then the carrying amount of the asset is written down to its fair value, based on the related estimated discounted future cash flows. Factors considered by management in performing this assessment include current operating results, trends and prospects, the manner in which the intangible assets are used, and the effects of obsolescence, demand, competition and other economic factors. For the year ended December 31, 2023 and 2022, no such events and circumstances were noticed that would trigger such assessment and therefore no impairment was recorded. (k) Goodwill: Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price in a business combination over the fair value of net assets acquired. Goodwill is not amortized but rather tested for impairment at least annually or more often if and when circumstances indicate that goodwill may not be recoverable. The Company performs an annual goodwill impairment test on October 1 of every year at a reporting unit level based on the financial statements as of September 30. A reporting unit is an operating segment or one level below an operating segment (referred to as a component) to which goodwill is assigned when initially recorded. As of December 31, 2023, the Company has four reporting units. The Company assesses qualitative factors to determine whether it is necessary to perform a more detailed quantitative impairment test for goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets. It may also elect to bypass the qualitative assessment and proceed directly to the quantitative test for any reporting units. Qualitative factors that are considered as part of this assessment include a change in the Company’s equity valuation and its implied impact on reporting unit fair value, a change in its weighted average cost of capital, industry and market conditions, macroeconomic conditions, trends in product costs and financial performance of the businesses. For the quantitative test, the Company generally uses a discounted cash flow method to estimate fair value. The discounted cash flow method is based on the present value of projected cash flows. Assumptions used in these cash flow projections are generally consistent with the Company’s internal forecasts. The estimated cash flows are discounted using a rate that represents its weighted average cost of capital. The weighted average cost of capital is based on a number of variables, including the equity-risk premium and risk-free interest rate. If the carrying amount of a reporting unit exceeds its fair value, an impairment loss is recognized to the extent the carrying amount of the reporting unit’s goodwill exceeds the implied fair value of the goodwill. For the years ended December 31, 2023 and 2022 annual goodwill impairment test, the Company elected to bypass the qualitative assessment for its four reporting units and proceeded directly to the quantitative impairment test using a discounted cash flow method to estimate the fair value of the reporting units. As a result of this assessment, it was concluded that there was no impairment loss because the fair value of the reporting units significantly exceeded their respective carrying value as of each of the dates. Specifically, for the year ended December 31, 2023, the difference between the fair value and the book value of the reporting units was in the range of $ 51,770 -$ 785,079 . (l) Income taxes: The Company accounts for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740, Income Taxes, which requires an asset and liability approach for the financial accounting and reporting of income taxes. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on temporary differences between the financial statement and tax basis of assets and liabilities using enacted tax rates in effect for the year in which the differences are expected to reverse. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax laws is recognized in the Consolidated Statements of Operations and Comprehensive Loss in the period that includes the enactment date. A valuation allowance is established when management determines that it is more likely than not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. Income taxes are more fully discussed in Note 18. From time to time, the Company engages in transactions in which the tax consequences may be subject to uncertainty. Significant judgment is required in assessing and estimating the tax consequences of these transactions including determining the Company’s uncertain tax position. The Company recognizes tax benefits from uncertain tax positions only if it believes that it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities based on the technical merits of the position. Although the Company believes that it has adequately reserved for its uncertain tax positions, it can provide no assurance that the final tax outcome of these matters will not be materially different. The Company’s policy is to recognize, when applicable, interest and penalties on uncertain tax positions as part of income tax expense. The Company’s policy is to account for income taxes for global intangible low taxed income (“GILTI”) as a period cost when incurred. (m) Foreign currency translations: The Company operates in multiple countries through its legal entities and it performs the functional currency assessment for these entities periodically to determine whether the respective local country currency or United States Dollars ("USD") is their functional currency. Once this determination is made, transactions in foreign currencies are initially recorded into functional currency at the rates of exchange prevailing on the date of the transaction. Monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies are remeasured into functional currency at the rates of exchange prevailing at the balance sheet date. Non-monetary assets and liabilities are remeasured to the functional currency at exchange rates that prevailed on the date of inception of the transaction. All foreign exchange gains and losses arising on re-measurement are recorded in the Company’s consolidated statement of operations and comprehensive loss . The assets and liabilities of the subsidiaries for which the functional currency is other than the U.S. dollar are translated into U.S. dollars, the reporting currency, at the rate of exchange prevailing on the balance sheet date. Revenues and expenses are translated into U.S. dollars at the exchange rates prevailing on the last business day of each month, which approximates the average monthly exchange rate. Share capital and other equity items are translated at exchange rates that prevailed on the date of inception of the transaction. Resulting translation adjustments are included in “Accumulated other comprehensive loss” in the consolidated balance sheets. (n) Financial instruments: The Company’s financial instruments consist of cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable, accrued expenses, warrants and derivative liabilities, acquisition-related liabilities, which are primarily denominated in U.S. dollars. The carrying amounts of some of these instruments approximate their fair values principally due to the short-term nature of these items. The Company uses a third-party valuation firm to determine the fair value of warrants and derivative and acquisition related liabilities periodically and such valuations are calculated using a variety of methods including market multiples, comparable market transactions and discounted cash flows. Unless otherwise noted, it is management’s opinion that the Company is not exposed to significant interest rate, currency or credit risk arising from these financial instruments. With respect to accounts receivable, the Company is exposed to credit risk arising from the potential for counterparties to default on their contractual obligations to the Company. The Company generally does not require collateral to support accounts receivable. The Company establishes an allowance for doubtful accounts that corresponds with the specific credit risk of its customers, historical trends, and economic circumstances. Fair value is the price that would be received from the sale of an asset or paid to transfer a liability assuming an orderly transaction in the most advantageous market at the measurement date. U.S. GAAP establishes a hierarchical disclosure framework which prioritizes and ranks the level of observability of inputs used in measuring fair value. These tiers include: Level 1 is defined as observable inputs such as quoted prices in active markets for identical assets; Level 2 is defined as observable inputs other than Level 1 prices such as quoted prices for similar assets; 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; and Level 3 is defined as unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists, therefore requiring an entity to develop its own assumptions. See Note 16 for additional information regarding fair value. (o) Redeemable convertible preferred stock: The redeemable convertible preferred stock as of December 31, 2020 were converted into Class A common stock upon the IPO and as such there were no such redeemable convertible preferred stock as of December |
