UNITED STATES
SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
Washington, D.C. 20549
FORM 10-Q
(Mark One)
| x | QUARTERLY REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2008
OR
| ¨ | TRANSITION REPORT PURSUANT TO SECTION 13 OR 15(d) OF THE SECURITIES EXCHANGE ACT OF 1934 |
For the transition period from to
Commission file number: 000-50726
Google Inc.
(Exact name of registrant as specified in its charter)
| Delaware | 77-0493581 | |
| (State or other jurisdiction of incorporation or organization) |
(I.R.S. Employer Identification Number) |
1600 Amphitheatre Parkway
Mountain View, CA 94043
(Address of principal executive offices)
(Zip Code)
(650) 253-0000
(Registrant’s telephone number, including area code)
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant: (1) has filed all reports required to be filed by Section 13 or 15(d) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to file such reports), and (2) has been subject to such filing requirements for the past 90 days. Yes x No ¨
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a large accelerated filer, an accelerated filer, a non-accelerated filer, or a smaller reporting company. See the definitions of “large accelerated filer,” “accelerated filer,” and “smaller reporting company” in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. (Check one):
Large accelerated filer x Accelerated filer ¨
Non-accelerated filer (Do not check if a smaller reporting company) ¨ Smaller reporting company ¨
Indicate by check mark whether the registrant is a shell company (as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act). Yes ¨ No x
At April 30, 2008, there were 238,581,338 shares of Google’s Class A common stock outstanding and 75,511,505 shares of Google’s Class B common stock outstanding.
GOOGLE INC.
| Page No. | ||||
| PART I. FINANCIAL INFORMATION | ||||
|
Item 1 |
||||
|
Consolidated Balance Sheets—December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008 (unaudited) |
3 | |||
|
Consolidated Statements of Income—Three Months Ended March 31, 2007 and 2008 (unaudited) |
4 | |||
|
Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows—Three Months Ended March 31, 2007 and 2008 (unaudited) |
5 | |||
| 6 | ||||
|
Item 2 |
Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations |
20 | ||
|
Item 3 |
34 | |||
|
Item 4 |
35 | |||
| PART II. OTHER INFORMATION | ||||
|
Item 1 |
36 | |||
|
Item 1A |
36 | |||
|
Item 2 |
47 | |||
|
Item 6 |
48 | |||
| 49 | ||||
| 50 | ||||
|
Certifications |
||||
2
| ITEM 1. | FINANCIAL STATEMENTS |
CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS
(In thousands, except par value per share)
| As of December 31, 2007 |
As of March 31, 2008 |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Assets |
||||||
|
Current assets: |
||||||
|
Cash and cash equivalents |
$ | 6,081,593 | $ | 6,519,749 | ||
|
Marketable securities |
8,137,020 | 5,614,759 | ||||
|
Accounts receivable, net of allowance of $32,887 and $50,278 |
2,162,521 | 2,560,909 | ||||
|
Deferred income taxes, net |
68,538 | 71,722 | ||||
|
Income taxes receivable |
145,253 | — | ||||
|
Prepaid revenue share, expenses and other assets |
694,213 | 697,792 | ||||
|
Total current assets |
17,289,138 | 15,464,931 | ||||
|
Prepaid revenue share, expenses and other assets, non-current |
168,530 | 190,402 | ||||
|
Deferred income taxes, net, non-current |
33,219 | 155,588 | ||||
|
Non-marketable equity securities |
1,059,694 | 1,056,966 | ||||
|
Property and equipment, net |
4,039,261 | 4,741,724 | ||||
|
Intangible assets, net |
446,596 | 1,203,972 | ||||
|
Goodwill |
2,299,368 | 4,791,399 | ||||
|
Total assets |
$ | 25,335,806 | $ | 27,604,982 | ||
|
Liabilities and Stockholders’ Equity |
||||||
|
Current liabilities: |
||||||
|
Accounts payable |
$ | 282,106 | $ | 358,122 | ||
|
Accrued compensation and benefits |
588,390 | 458,188 | ||||
|
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities |
465,032 | 746,905 | ||||
|
Accrued revenue share |
522,001 | 525,764 | ||||
|
Deferred revenue |
178,073 | 194,066 | ||||
|
Income taxes payable |
— | 177,430 | ||||
|
Total current liabilities |
2,035,602 | 2,460,475 | ||||
|
Deferred revenue, non-current |
30,249 | 31,748 | ||||
|
Income taxes payable, non-current |
478,372 | 633,022 | ||||
|
Other long-term liabilities |
101,904 | 142,202 | ||||
|
Commitments and contingencies |
||||||
|
Stockholders’ equity: |
||||||
|
Convertible preferred stock, $0.001 par value, 100,000 shares authorized; no shares issued and outstanding |
— | — | ||||
|
Class A and Class B common stock, $0.001 par value: 9,000,000 shares authorized; 312,917 (Class A 236,097, Class B 76,820) and par value of $313 (Class A $236, Class B $77) and 313,724 (Class A 238,142, Class B 75,582) and par value of $314 (Class A $238, Class B $76) shares issued and outstanding, excluding 361 (Class A 336, Class B 25) and 228 (Class A 215, Class B 13) shares subject to repurchase at December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008 |
313 | 314 | ||||
|
Additional paid-in capital |
13,241,221 | 13,561,948 | ||||
|
Accumulated other comprehensive income |
113,373 | 133,415 | ||||
|
Retained earnings |
9,334,772 | 10,641,858 | ||||
|
Total stockholders’ equity |
22,689,679 | 24,337,535 | ||||
|
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity |
$ | 25,335,806 | $ | 27,604,982 | ||
See accompanying notes.
3
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF INCOME
(In thousands, except per share amounts)
| Three Months Ended March 31, |
||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Revenues |
$ | 3,663,971 | $ | 5,186,043 | ||
|
Costs and expenses: |
||||||
|
Cost of revenues (including stock-based compensation expense of $4,389 and $9,148) |
1,470,426 | 2,110,536 | ||||
|
Research and development (including stock-based compensation expense of $120,787 and $193,800) |
408,384 | 673,069 | ||||
|
Sales and marketing (including stock-based compensation expense of $27,250 and $42,576) |
302,552 | 446,898 | ||||
|
General and administrative (including stock-based compensation expense of $31,440 and $35,255) |
261,400 | 409,305 | ||||
|
Total costs and expenses |
2,442,762 | 3,639,808 | ||||
|
Income from operations |
1,221,209 | 1,546,235 | ||||
|
Interest income and other, net |
130,728 | 167,343 | ||||
|
Income before income taxes |
1,351,937 | 1,713,578 | ||||
|
Provision for income taxes |
349,775 | 406,492 | ||||
|
Net income |
$ | 1,002,162 | $ | 1,307,086 | ||
|
Net income per share of Class A and Class B common stock: |
||||||
|
Basic |
$ | 3.24 | $ | 4.17 | ||
|
Diluted |
$ | 3.18 | $ | 4.12 | ||
See accompanying notes.
4
CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS
(In thousands)
| Three Months Ended March 31, |
||||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||
|
Operating activities |
||||||||
|
Net income |
$ | 1,002,162 | $ | 1,307,086 | ||||
|
Adjustments: |
||||||||
|
Depreciation and amortization of property and equipment |
170,289 | 280,564 | ||||||
|
Amortization of intangibles and other |
34,703 | 55,960 | ||||||
|
Stock-based compensation |
183,866 | 280,779 | ||||||
|
Excess tax benefits from stock-based award activity |
(74,084 | ) | (51,101 | ) | ||||
|
Deferred income taxes |
(61,402 | ) | (38,214 | ) | ||||
|
Other, net |
(6,386 | ) | (44,903 | ) | ||||
|
Changes in assets and liabilities, net of effects of acquisitions: |
||||||||
|
Accounts receivable |
(153,562 | ) | (223,493 | ) | ||||
|
Income taxes, net |
399,104 | 438,175 | ||||||
|
Prepaid revenue share, expenses and other assets |
(185,478 | ) | (41,584 | ) | ||||
|
Accounts payable |
(29,256 | ) | 53,784 | |||||
|
Accrued expenses and other liabilities |
(139,886 | ) | (234,277 | ) | ||||
|
Accrued revenue share |
77,864 | (10,124 | ) | |||||
|
Deferred revenue |
1,659 | 6,794 | ||||||
|
Net cash provided by operating activities |
1,219,593 | 1,779,446 | ||||||
|
Investing activities |
||||||||
|
Purchases of property and equipment |
(596,893 | ) | (841,597 | ) | ||||
|
Purchases of marketable securities |
(5,225,160 | ) | (2,819,512 | ) | ||||
|
Maturities and sales of marketable securities |
5,079,364 | 5,379,228 | ||||||
|
Acquisitions, net of cash acquired, and purchases of intangible and other assets |
(34,441 | ) | (3,125,113 | ) | ||||
|
Net cash used in investing activities |
(777,130 | ) | (1,406,994 | ) | ||||
|
Financing activities |
||||||||
|
Net proceeds (payments) related to stock-based award activity |
14,426 | (22,445 | ) | |||||
|
Excess tax benefits from stock-based award activity |
74,084 | 51,101 | ||||||
|
Net cash provided by financing activities |
88,510 | 28,656 | ||||||
|
Effect of exchange rate changes on cash and cash equivalents |
5,696 | 37,048 | ||||||
|
Net increase in cash and cash equivalents |
536,669 | 438,156 | ||||||
|
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year |
3,544,671 | 6,081,593 | ||||||
|
Cash and cash equivalents at end of period |
$ | 4,081,340 | $ | 6,519,749 | ||||
|
Supplemental disclosures of cash flow information |
||||||||
|
Cash paid for interest |
$ | 342 | $ | 387 | ||||
|
Cash paid for income taxes |
$ | 12,774 | $ | 12,091 | ||||
See accompanying notes.
5
NOTES TO CONSOLIDATED FINANCIAL STATEMENTS
(Unaudited)
Note 1. Google Inc. and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
Nature of Operations
We were incorporated in California in September 1998. We were re-incorporated in the State of Delaware in August 2003. We provide highly targeted advertising and global internet search solutions as well as intranet solutions via an enterprise search appliance.
Basis of Consolidation
The Consolidated Financial Statements include the accounts of Google and our wholly-owned subsidiaries. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated.
Unaudited Interim Financial Information
The accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheet as of March 31, 2008, the Consolidated Statements of Income for the three months ended March 31, 2007 and 2008, and the Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows for the three months ended March 31, 2007 and 2008 are unaudited. These unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles. In our opinion, the unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements include all adjustments of a normal recurring nature necessary for the fair presentation of our financial position as of March 31, 2008, our results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2007 and 2008, and our cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2007 and 2008. The results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2008 are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the year ending December 31, 2008.
These unaudited interim Consolidated Financial Statements should be read in conjunction with the Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes included in our 2007 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed on February 15, 2008.
Use of Estimates
The preparation of interim Consolidated Financial Statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported and disclosed in the financial statements and the accompanying notes. Actual results could differ materially from these estimates. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates, including those related to accounts receivable, bad debt and sales allowances, fair values of marketable and non-marketable securities, fair values of prepaid revenue share, intangible assets and goodwill, useful lives of intangible assets and property and equipment, fair values of options to purchase our common stock, and income taxes, among others. We base our estimates on historical experience and on various other assumptions that are believed to be reasonable, the results of which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying values of assets and liabilities.
Effect of Recent Accounting Pronouncements
In December 2007, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards (“SFAS”) No. 141 (revised 2007), Business Combinations (“SFAS 141R”). SFAS 141R establishes principles and requirements for how an acquirer recognizes and measures in its financial statements the identifiable assets acquired, the liabilities assumed, any noncontrolling interest in the acquiree and the goodwill acquired. SFAS 141R also establishes disclosure requirements to enable the evaluation of the nature and financial effects of the business combination. This statement is effective for us beginning January 1, 2009. We are currently evaluating the potential impact of the adoption of SFAS 141R on our consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows.
In December 2007, the FASB issued SFAS No. 160, Noncontrolling Interests in Consolidated Financial Statements—an amendment of Accounting Research Bulletin No. 51 (“SFAS 160”). SFAS 160 establishes accounting and reporting standards for ownership interests in subsidiaries held by parties other than the parent, the amount of consolidated net income attributable to the parent and to the noncontrolling interest, changes in a parent’s ownership interest, and the valuation of retained noncontrolling equity investments when a subsidiary is deconsolidated. SFAS 160 also establishes disclosure requirements that clearly identify and distinguish between the interests of the parent and the interests of the noncontrolling owners. This statement is effective for us beginning January 1, 2009. We are currently evaluating the potential impact of the adoption of SFAS 160 on our consolidated financial position, results of operations and cash flows.
6
In February 2008, the FASB issued Financial Staff Positions (“FSP”) FAS 157-2, Effective Date of FASB Statement No. 157 (“FSP FAS 157-2”), which delays the effective date of SFAS No. 157, Fair Value Measurement (“SFAS 157”), for all nonfinancial assets and nonfinancial liabilities, except those that are recognized or disclosed at fair value in the financial statements on a recurring basis (at least annually). SFAS 157 establishes a framework for measuring fair value and expands disclosures about fair value measurements. FSP FAS 157-2 partially defers the effective date of SFAS 157 to fiscal years beginning after November 15, 2008, and interim periods within those fiscal years for items within the scope of this FSP. FSP FAS 157-2 is effective for us beginning January 1, 2009. We are currently evaluating the potential impact of the adoption of those provisions of SFAS 157, for which effectiveness was delayed by FSP SFAS 157-2, on our consolidated financial position and results of operations.
7
Note 2. Net Income per Share of Class A and Class B common stock
The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted net income per share of Class A and Class B common stock (in thousands, except per share amounts, unaudited):
| For the Three Months Ended March 31, |
||||||||||||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||||||
| Class A | Class B | Class A | Class B | |||||||||||||
|
Basic net income per share: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Numerator: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Allocation of undistributed earnings |
$ | 740,449 | $ | 261,713 | $ | 989,006 | $ | 318,080 | ||||||||
|
Denominator: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Weighted average common shares outstanding |
229,432 | 80,994 | 237,185 | 76,219 | ||||||||||||
|
Less: Weighted average unvested common shares subject to repurchase or cancellation |
(894 | ) | (217 | ) | (256 | ) | (19 | ) | ||||||||
|
Number of shares used in per share computations |
228,538 | 80,777 | 236,929 | 76,200 | ||||||||||||
|
Basic net income per share |
$ | 3.24 | $ | 3.24 | $ | 4.17 | $ | 4.17 | ||||||||
|
Diluted net income per share: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Numerator: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Allocation of undistributed earnings for basic computation |
$ | 740,449 | $ | 261,713 | $ | 989,006 | $ | 318,080 | ||||||||
|
Reallocation of undistributed earnings as a result of conversion of Class B to Class A shares |
261,713 | — | 318,080 | — | ||||||||||||
|
Reallocation of undistributed earnings to Class B shares |
— | (1,330 | ) | — | (2,868 | ) | ||||||||||
|
Allocation of undistributed earnings |
$ | 1,002,162 | $ | 260,383 | $ | 1,307,086 | $ | 315,212 | ||||||||
|
Denominator: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Number of shares used in basic computation |
228,538 | 80,777 | 236,929 | 76,200 | ||||||||||||
|
Weighted average effect of dilutive securities |
||||||||||||||||
|
Add: |
||||||||||||||||
|
Conversion of Class B to Class A common shares outstanding |
80,777 | — | 76,200 | — | ||||||||||||
|
Unvested common shares subject to repurchase or cancellation |
399 | 217 | 275 | 19 | ||||||||||||
|
Employee stock options including warrants issued under TSO program |
4,314 | 816 | 3,244 | 322 | ||||||||||||
|
Restricted shares and restricted stock units |
842 | — | 744 | — | ||||||||||||
|
Number of shares used in per share computations |
314,870 | 81,810 | 317,392 | 76,541 | ||||||||||||
|
Diluted net income per share |
$ | 3.18 | $ | 3.18 | $ | 4.12 | $ | 4.12 | ||||||||
8
The net income per share amounts are the same for Class A and Class B because the holders of each class are legally entitled to equal per share distributions whether through dividends or in liquidation.
Note 3. Cash, Cash Equivalents and Marketable Securities
Cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities consists of the following (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 |
As of March 31, 2008 |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Cash and cash equivalents: |
||||||
|
Cash |
$ | 2,869,528 | $ | 2,775,402 | ||
|
Cash equivalents: |
||||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
110,272 | 576,870 | ||||
|
Municipal securities |
232,278 | 87,391 | ||||
|
Time deposits |
500,000 | 500,000 | ||||
|
Money market mutual funds |
2,369,515 | 2,580,086 | ||||
|
Total cash and cash equivalents |
6,081,593 | 6,519,749 | ||||
|
Marketable securities: |
||||||
|
U.S. government notes |
475,781 | 86,679 | ||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
2,120,972 | 516,753 | ||||
|
Municipal securities |
4,991,564 | 4,491,167 | ||||
|
Time deposits |
500,000 | 500,000 | ||||
|
Auction rate preferred securities |
48,703 | 20,160 | ||||
|
Total marketable securities |
8,137,020 | 5,614,759 | ||||
|
Total cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities |
$ | 14,218,613 | $ | 12,134,508 | ||
The following table summarizes unrealized gains and losses related to our investments in marketable securities designated as available-for-sale (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 | |||||||||||||
| Adjusted Cost |
Gross Unrealized Gains |
Gross Unrealized Losses |
Fair Value | ||||||||||
|
U.S. government notes |
$ | 472,040 | $ | 3,745 | $ | (4 | ) | $ | 475,781 | ||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
2,102,710 | 18,306 | (44 | ) | 2,120,972 | ||||||||
|
Municipal securities |
4,975,587 | 16,308 | (331 | ) | 4,991,564 | ||||||||
|
Time deposits |
500,000 | — | — | 500,000 | |||||||||
|
Auction rate preferred securities |
48,703 | — | — | 48,703 | |||||||||
|
Total marketable securities |
$ | 8,099,040 | $ | 38,359 | $ | (379 | ) | $ | 8,137,020 | ||||
| As of March 31, 2008 | |||||||||||||
| Adjusted Cost |
Gross Unrealized Gains |
Gross Unrealized Losses |
Fair Value | ||||||||||
| (unaudited) | |||||||||||||
|
U.S. government notes |
$ | 86,712 | $ | 87 | $ | (120 | ) | $ | 86,679 | ||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
515,597 | 1,307 | (151 | ) | 516,753 | ||||||||
|
Municipal securities |
4,462,630 | 42,422 | (13,885 | ) | 4,491,167 | ||||||||
|
Time deposits |
500,000 | — | — | 500,000 | |||||||||
|
Auction rate preferred securities |
21,000 | — | (840 | ) | 20,160 | ||||||||
|
Total marketable securities |
$ | 5,585,939 | $ | 43,816 | $ | (14,996 | ) | $ | 5,614,759 | ||||
9
Bank time deposits were held by institutions outside the U.S. at December 31, 2007 and at March 31, 2008.
Gross unrealized gains and losses on cash equivalents were not material at December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008. We recognized gross realized gains of $50.8 million and losses of $4.2 million on our marketable securities during the three months ended March 31, 2008. Gross realized gains and losses were not material in the three months ended March 31, 2007. There were no other-than-temporary impairments to our marketable securities in the three months ended March 31, 2007 and 2008. Realized gains and losses are included in interest income and other, net in our accompanying Consolidated Statements of Income.
The following table summarizes the estimated fair value of our investments in marketable debt securities designated as available-for-sale classified by the contractual maturity date of the security (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 |
As of March 31, 2008 |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Due within 1 year |
$ | 1,964,325 | $ | 1,216,282 | ||
|
Due in 1 to 5 years |
3,359,472 | 2,591,340 | ||||
|
Due in 5 to 10 years |
310,332 | 202,496 | ||||
|
Due after 10 years |
2,454,188 | 1,584,481 | ||||
|
Total marketable debt securities |
$ | 8,088,317 | $ | 5,594,599 | ||
In accordance with EITF 03-1, The Meaning of Other-Than-Temporary Impairment and Its Application to Certain Investments, the following table shows gross unrealized losses and fair value for those investments that were in an unrealized loss position as of December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008, aggregated by investment category and the length of time that individual securities have been in a continuous loss position (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Less than 12 Months | 12 Months or Greater | Total | |||||||||||||||||||
|
Security Description |
Fair Value | Unrealized Loss |
Fair Value |
Unrealized Loss |
Fair Value | Unrealized Loss |
|||||||||||||||
|
U.S. government notes |
$ | 30,525 | $ | (4 | ) | $ | — | $ | — | $ | 30,525 | $ | (4 | ) | |||||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
98,682 | (41 | ) | 19,993 | (3 | ) | 118,675 | (44 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
Municipal securities |
270,708 | (227 | ) | 54,832 | (104 | ) | 325,540 | (331 | ) | ||||||||||||
|
Total |
$ | 399,915 | $ | (272 | ) | $ | 74,825 | $ | (107 | ) | $ | 474,740 | $ | (379 | ) | ||||||
| As of March 31, 2008 | ||||||||||||||
| Less than 12 Months | Total | |||||||||||||
|
Security Description |
Fair Value | Unrealized Loss |
Fair Value | Unrealized Loss |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||||
|
U.S. government notes |
$ | 50,407 | $ | (120 | ) | $ | 50,407 | $ | (120 | ) | ||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
97,468 | (151 | ) | 97,468 | (151 | ) | ||||||||
|
Municipal securities |
930,934 | (13,885 | ) | 930,934 | (13,885 | ) | ||||||||
|
Auction rate preferred securities |
20,160 | (840 | ) | 20,160 | (840 | ) | ||||||||
|
Total |
$ | 1,098,969 | $ | (14,996 | ) | $ | 1,098,969 | $ | (14,996 | ) | ||||
As of March 31, 2008, we did not have any investments in marketable securities that were in an unrealized loss position for 12 months or greater.
Auction Rate Securities
At March 31, 2008, we held $259.6 million of auction rate securities which are included under municipal securities and auction rate preferred securities in the above table. The assets underlying these investments are primarily student loans which are
10
substantially guaranteed by the U.S. government. Historically, these securities have provided liquidity through a Dutch auction at pre-determined intervals every 7 to 49 days. However, these auctions began to fail in February 2008. As a result, these securities do not have a readily determinable market value and are not liquid. To determine their estimated fair values at March 31, 2008, we used a discounted cash flow model based on estimated interest rates over the period of time we expect to hold these securities. Based on this analysis, we recorded a temporary impairment of $10.8 million to accumulated other comprehensive income on the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheet at March 31, 2008 (see Note 5).
To the extent we determine that any impairment is other-than-temporary, we would record a charge to earnings. Also, if we ever determine that it is likely that the auctions for the auction rate securities we hold will continue to fail over the next 12 months or more, we would then reclassify those securities to long-term assets from current assets on our Consolidated Balance Sheets.
Note 4. Derivative Financial Instruments
We enter into foreign currency contracts with financial institutions to reduce the risk that our cash flows and earnings will be adversely affected by foreign currency exchange rate fluctuations. Our program is not designated for trading or speculative purposes.
In accordance with SFAS No. 133, Accounting for Derivative Instruments and Hedging Activities (“SFAS 133”), we recognize derivative instruments as either assets or liabilities on the balance sheet at fair value. Changes in the fair value (i.e., gains or losses) of the derivatives are recorded in the accompanying Consolidated Statement of Income as interest income and other, net, or as part of revenues, or on the accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets as accumulated other comprehensive income.
Cash Flow Hedges
We use a combination of forward contracts and options designated as cash flow hedges to hedge certain forecasted revenue transactions denominated in currencies other than the U.S. dollar. The gain or loss on the effective portion of a cash flow hedge is initially reported as a component of accumulated other comprehensive income and subsequently reclassified into revenues when the hedged exposure affects revenues or as interest income and other, net if the hedged transaction becomes probable of not occurring. Any gain or loss after a hedge is de-designated because it is no longer probable of occurring or related to an ineffective portion of a hedge, as well as any amount excluded from our assessment of hedge effectiveness, is recognized as interest income and other, net, immediately. These net gains or losses were not material in the quarter ended March 31, 2008.
The notional principal and fair value of foreign exchange contracts to purchase U.S. dollars with Canadian dollars were 154.5 million Canadian dollars (or approximately $151.4 million) and $3.0 million at March 31, 2008. These foreign exchange forward contracts and options have maturities of 18 months or less. There were no other foreign exchange contracts designated as cash flow hedges.
Other Derivatives
Other derivatives not designated as hedging instruments under SFAS 133 consist primarily of forward contracts which we use to hedge intercompany balances and other monetary assets or liabilities denominated in currencies other than the local currency of a subsidiary. Gains and losses on these contracts are included in interest income and other, net, along with those of the related hedged items. Neither the cost nor the fair value of these foreign exchange contracts was material at March 31, 2008. The notional principal of foreign exchange contracts to purchase U.S. dollars with foreign currencies was $1.5 billion and $2.3 billion at December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008. The notional principal of foreign exchange contracts to purchase Euros with other currencies was €296.5 million (or approximately $433.4 million) and €411.4 million (or approximately $651.1 million) at December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008. The notional principal of foreign exchange contracts to sell Euros for Taiwanese dollars was €18.7 million (or approximately $29.6 million) at March 31, 2008.
Note 5. Fair Value Measurements
Effective January 1, 2008, we adopted SFAS 157, except as it applies to the nonfinancial assets and nonfinancial liabilities subject to FSP SFAS 157-2. SFAS 157 clarifies that fair value is an exit price, representing the amount that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants. As such, fair value is a market-based measurement that should be determined based on assumptions that market participants would use in pricing an asset or a liability. As a basis for considering such assumptions, SFAS 157 establishes a three-tier value hierarchy, which prioritizes the inputs used in the valuation methodologies in measuring fair value:
11
Level 1 - Observable inputs that reflect quoted prices (unadjusted) for identical assets or liabilities in active markets.
Level 2 - Include other inputs that are directly or indirectly observable in the marketplace.
Level 3 - Unobservable inputs which are supported by little or no market activity.
The fair value hierarchy also requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value.
In accordance with SFAS 157, we measure our cash equivalents, marketable securities and foreign currency derivative contracts at fair value. Our cash equivalents and marketable securities are primarily classified within Level 1 or Level 2, with the exception of our investments in auction rate securities. This is because our cash equivalents and marketable securities are valued primarily using quoted market prices or alternative pricing sources and models utilizing market observable inputs. Our investments in auction rate securities are classified within Level 3 because they are valued using a discounted cash flow model (see Note 3). Some of the inputs to this model are unobservable in the market and are significant. Our foreign currency derivative contracts are classified within Level 2 as the valuation inputs are based on quoted prices and market observable data of similar instruments in inactive markets.
Assets and liabilities measured at fair value are summarized below (unaudited, in thousands):
| Fair value measurement at reporting date using | ||||||||||||
|
Description |
March, 31 2008 |
Quoted Prices in Active Markets for Identical Assets (Level 1) |
Significant Other Observable Inputs (Level 2) |
Significant Unobservable Inputs (Level 3) |
||||||||
|
Assets |
||||||||||||
|
Cash equivalents: |
||||||||||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
$ | 576,870 | $ | — | $ | 576,870 | $ | — | ||||
|
Municipal securities |
87,391 | — | 87,391 | — | ||||||||
|
Time deposits |
500,000 | — | 500,000 | — | ||||||||
|
Money market mutual funds |
2,580,086 | 2,580,086 | — | — | ||||||||
|
Marketable securities: |
||||||||||||
|
U.S. government notes |
86,679 | — | 86,679 | — | ||||||||
|
U.S. government agencies |
516,753 | — | 516,753 | — | ||||||||
|
Municipal securities |
4,491,167 | — | 4,251,767 | 239,400 | ||||||||
|
Time deposits |
500,000 | — | 500,000 | — | ||||||||
|
Auction rate preferred securities |
20,160 | — | — | 20,160 | ||||||||
|
Foreign currency derivative contracts |
10,007 | — | 10,007 | — | ||||||||
|
Total assets |
$ | 9,369,113 | $ | 2,580,086 | $ | 6,529,467 | $ | 259,560 | ||||
|
Liabilities |
||||||||||||
|
Foreign currency derivative contracts |
$ | 6,727 | $ | — | $ | 6,727 | $ | — | ||||
|
Total liabilities |
$ | 6,727 | $ | — | $ | 6,727 | $ | — | ||||
The following table presents our assets measured at fair value using significant unobservable inputs (Level 3) as defined in SFAS 157 at March 31, 2008 (unaudited, in thousands):
| Level 3 | ||||
|
Balance at December 31, 2007 |
$ | — | ||
|
Transfers to Level 3 |
311,225 | |||
|
Unrealized loss included in other comprehensive income |
(10,815 | ) | ||
|
Net settlements |
(40,850 | ) | ||
|
Balance at March 31, 2008 |
$ | 259,560 | ||
12
Effective January 1, 2008, we also adopted SFAS 159, The Fair Value Option for Financial Assets and Financial Liabilities – including an Amendment of FASB Statement No. 115, which allows an entity to choose to measure certain financial instruments and liabilities at fair value on a contract-by-contract basis. Subsequent fair value measurement for the financial instruments and liabilities an entity chooses to measure will be recognized in earnings. As of March 31, 2008, we did not elect such option for our financial instruments and liabilities.
Note 6. Property and Equipment
Property and equipment consist of the following (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 |
As of March 31, 2008 |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Information technology assets |
$ | 2,734,916 | $ | 3,090,650 | ||
|
Construction in process |
1,364,651 | 1,810,637 | ||||
|
Land and buildings |
951,334 | 1,014,044 | ||||
|
Leasehold improvements |
416,884 | 455,410 | ||||
|
Furniture and fixtures |
52,127 | 60,112 | ||||
|
Total |
5,519,912 | 6,430,853 | ||||
|
Less accumulated depreciation and amortization |
1,480,651 | 1,689,129 | ||||
|
Property and equipment, net |
$ | 4,039,261 | $ | 4,741,724 | ||
Note 7. Acquisitions
In March 2008, we completed our acquisition of Click Holding Corp. (“DoubleClick”), a company that offers online ad serving and management technology to advertisers, ad agencies and web site publishers. We acquired DoubleClick primarily for their customer relationships, as well as patents and developed technology. This transaction was accounted for as a business combination. The total purchase price was $3.2 billion paid in cash, including transaction costs of $52.1 million. In addition, we issued unvested options to purchase 127,320 shares of Class A common stock valued at $50.6 million which will be recognized as stock-based compensation as the awards vest over the related vesting periods of up to 47 months. These unvested awards are earned contingent upon each individual’s continued employment with us.
The preliminary allocation of the purchase price was based upon a preliminary valuation and our estimates and assumptions are subject to change. The primary areas of the purchase price allocation that are not yet finalized are related to restructuring costs, income taxes and residual goodwill. The following table summarizes the preliminary allocation of the purchase price of DoubleClick (unaudited, in thousands):
|
Goodwill |
$ | 2,312,589 | ||
|
Customer relationships |
637,200 | |||
|
Patents and developed technology |
143,400 | |||
|
Tradenames and other |
28,300 | |||
|
Net assets acquired |
78,868 | |||
|
Deferred tax assets |
312,202 | |||
|
Deferred tax liabilities |
(309,137 | ) | ||
|
Total |
$ | 3,203,422 | ||
Goodwill is not deductible for tax purposes.
Customer relationships have a weighted-average useful life of 6.7 years. Patents and developed technology have a weighted-average useful life of 5.0 years. Tradenames and other have a weighted-average useful life of 5.5 years. The majority of these assets are not deductible for tax purposes.
13
Supplemental information on an unaudited pro forma basis, as if the DoubleClick acquisition had been consummated at the beginning of each of the periods presented, is as follows (in millions, except per share amounts):
| Three Months Ended March 31, |
||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Revenues |
$ | 3,739.4 | $ | 5,255.3 | ||
|
Net income |
$ | 983.3 | $ | 1,269.5 | ||
|
Net income per share of Class A and Class B common stock - diluted |
$ | 3.12 | $ | 4.00 | ||
The unaudited pro forma supplemental information is based on estimates and assumptions, which we believe are reasonable. It is not necessarily indicative of our consolidated financial position or results of income in future periods or the results that actually would have been realized had we been a combined company as of the beginning of the periods presented. The unaudited pro forma supplemental information includes incremental intangible asset amortization and other charges as a result of the acquisition, net of the related tax effects.
In connection with certain acquisitions in the prior periods, we are obligated to make additional cash payments if certain criteria are met. As of March 31, 2008, our remaining contingent obligations related to these acquisitions was approximately $591 million. Since these contingent payments are based on the achievement of performance targets, actual payments may be substantially lower.
Note 8. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill for the three months ended March 31, 2008, are as follows (in thousands):
|
Balance as of December 31, 2007 |
$ | 2,299,368 | |
|
Goodwill acquired |
2,313,623 | ||
|
Goodwill adjustment |
178,408 | ||
|
Balance as of March 31, 2008 |
$ | 4,791,399 | |
The goodwill adjustment of $178.4 million was primarily a result of contingent payments earned upon the achievement of certain performance targets.
Information regarding our acquisition-related intangible assets that are being amortized is as follows (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 | |||||||||
| Gross Carrying Amount |
Accumulated Amortization |
Net Carrying Value |
|||||||
|
Patents and developed technology |
$ | 364,937 | $ | 179,102 | $ | 185,835 | |||
|
Customer relationships |
171,876 | 37,738 | 134,138 | ||||||
|
Tradenames and other |
196,392 | 69,769 | 126,623 | ||||||
|
Total |
$ | 733,205 | $ | 286,609 | $ | 446,596 | |||
| As of March 31, 2008 | |||||||||
| Gross Carrying Amount |
Accumulated Amortization |
Net Carrying Value |
|||||||
| (unaudited) | |||||||||
|
Patents and developed technology |
$ | 511,494 | $ | 205,359 | $ | 306,135 | |||
|
Customer relationships |
809,076 | 55,169 | 753,907 | ||||||
|
Tradenames and other |
225,148 | 81,218 | 143,930 | ||||||
|
Total |
$ | 1,545,718 | $ | 341,746 | $ | 1,203,972 | |||
14
Amortization expense of acquisition-related intangible assets for the three months ended March 31, 2007 and 2008 was $36.3 million and $55.0 million. Expected amortization expense for acquisition-related intangible assets on our March 31, 2008 Consolidated Balance Sheet for the remainder of 2008 and each of the next five years and thereafter is as follows (unaudited, in thousands):
|
Remainder of 2008 |
$ | 222,220 | |
|
2009 |
246,775 | ||
|
2010 |
215,871 | ||
|
2011 |
167,016 | ||
|
2012 |
129,730 | ||
|
2013 |
103,671 | ||
|
Thereafter |
110,589 | ||
| $ | 1,195,872 | ||
Note 9. Interest Income and Other, Net
The components of interest income and other, net were as follows (in thousands):
| Three Months Ended March 31, |
||||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||
|
Interest income |
$ | 130,475 | $ | 122,003 | ||||
|
Interest expense |
(342 | ) | (387 | ) | ||||
|
Realized gains on marketable securities, net |
8,053 | 46,571 | ||||||
|
Other |
(7,458 | ) | (844 | ) | ||||
|
Interest income and other, net |
$ | 130,728 | $ | 167,343 | ||||
Note 10. Comprehensive Income
The changes in the components of other comprehensive income, net of taxes, were as follows (in thousands):
| Three Months Ended March 31, |
|||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | ||||||
| (unaudited) | |||||||
|
Net income |
$ | 1,002,162 | $ | 1,307,086 | |||
|
Change in unrealized gains (losses) on marketable securities, net |
881 | (9,809 | ) | ||||
|
Change in cumulative translation adjustment and other |
12,749 | 29,851 | |||||
|
Comprehensive income |
$ | 1,015,792 | $ | 1,327,128 | |||
The components of accumulated other comprehensive income, net of taxes, were as follows (in thousands):
| As of December 31, 2007 |
As of March 31, 2008 |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Unrealized gains on marketable securities, net |
$ | 90,872 | $ | 12,692 | ||
|
Cumulative translation adjustment and other |
22,501 | 120,723 | ||||
|
Accumulated other comprehensive income |
$ | 113,373 | $ | 133,415 | ||
Note 11. Contingencies
Legal Matters
Companies have filed trademark infringement and related claims against us over the display of ads in response to user queries that include trademark terms. The outcomes of these lawsuits have differed from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. Courts in France have held us liable for allowing advertisers to select certain trademarked terms as keywords. We are appealing those decisions. We were also subject to two lawsuits in Germany on similar matters where the courts held that we are not liable for the actions of our advertisers prior to notification of trademark rights. We are litigating or have recently litigated similar issues in other cases in the U.S., Australia, Austria, Brazil, China, France, Germany, Israel and Italy.
15
We have also had copyright claims filed against us alleging that features of certain of our products and services, including Google Web Search, Google News, Google Video, Google Image Search, Google Book Search and YouTube, infringe their rights. Adverse results in these lawsuits may include awards of substantial monetary damages, costly royalty or licensing agreements or orders preventing us from offering certain functionalities, and may also result in a change in our business practices, which could result in a loss of revenue for us or otherwise harm our business. In addition, any time one of our products or services links to or hosts material in which others allegedly own copyrights, we face the risk of being sued for copyright infringement or related claims. Because these products and services comprise the majority of our products and services, our business could be harmed in the event of an adverse result in any of these claims.
We have also experienced an increase in patent lawsuits filed against us alleging that certain of our products and services, including Google Web Search, Google AdWords, and Google AdSense, infringe another party’s patents. Adverse results in these lawsuits may include awards of substantial monetary damages, obligations to pay licensing fees and/or orders preventing us from offering certain features, functionalities, products or services, which could result in a loss of revenue for us or otherwise harm our business.
We are also a party to other litigation and subject to claims incident to the ordinary course of business, including intellectual property claims (in addition to the trademark and copyright matters noted above), labor and employment claims, breach of contract claims, tax and other matters.
Although the results of litigation and claims cannot be predicted with certainty, we believe that the final outcome of the matters discussed above will not have a material adverse effect on our business, consolidated financial position, results of operations or cash flows.
Income Taxes
We are currently under audit by the Internal Revenue Service and various other tax authorities. We have reserved for potential adjustments to our provision for income taxes that may result from examinations by, or any negotiated agreements with, these tax authorities, and we believe that the final outcome of these examinations or agreements will not have a material effect on our results of operations. If events occur which indicate payment of these amounts is unnecessary, the reversal of the liabilities would result in the recognition of tax benefits in the period we determine the liabilities are no longer necessary. If our estimates of the federal, state, and foreign income tax liabilities are less than the ultimate assessment, a further charge to expense would result.
Note 12. Stockholders’ Equity
The following table presents the weighted-average assumptions used to estimate the fair values of the stock options granted in the periods presented:
| Three Months Ended March 31, |
||||||||
| 2007 | 2008 | |||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||
|
Risk-free interest rate |
4.6 | % | 2.7 | % | ||||
|
Expected volatility |
30 | % | 35 | % | ||||
|
Expected life (in years) |
3.4 | 5.3 | ||||||
|
Dividend yield |
— | — | ||||||
|
Weighted-average estimated fair value of options granted during the period |
$ | 130.77 | $ | 269.79 | ||||
The following table summarizes the activity for our options for the three months ended March 31, 2008:
| Options Outstanding | |||||||||||
| Number of Shares |
Weighted- Average Exercise Price |
Weighted- Average Remaining Contractual Term (in years) |
Aggregate Intrinsic Value (in millions) (1) |
||||||||
| (unaudited) | |||||||||||
|
Balance at December 31, 2007 |
12,892,886 | $ | 333.62 | ||||||||
|
Options granted |
338,339 | $ | 346.11 | ||||||||
|
Exercised(2) |
(624,514 | ) | $ | 28.04 | |||||||
|
Canceled/forfeited |
(142,999 | ) | $ | 388.38 | |||||||
|
Balance at March 31, 2008 |
12,463,712 | $ | 345.49 | 7.3 | $ | 1,162.0 | |||||
|
Vested and exercisable as of March 31, 2008 |
4,902,442 | $ | 235.53 | 7.0 | $ | 1,004.7 | |||||
|
Vested and exercisable as of March 31, 2008 and expected to vest thereafter (3) |
11,761,690 | $ | 342.54 | 7.3 | $ | 1,151.8 | |||||
| (1) | The aggregate intrinsic value is calculated as the difference between the exercise price of the underlying awards and the closing stock price of $440.47 of our Class A common stock on March 31, 2008. |
16
| (2) | Includes options vested during the period that were early exercised. |
| (3) | Options expected to vest reflect an estimated forfeiture rate. |
The following table summarizes additional information regarding outstanding, exercisable and exercisable and vested stock options at March 31, 2008:
| Options Outstanding | Options Exercisable | Options Exercisable and Vested |
|||||||||||||||||||
|
Range of Exercise Prices |
Total Number of Shares |
Unvested Options Granted and Exercised Subsequent to March 21, 2002 |
Number of Shares |
Weighted- Average Remaining Life (Years) |
Weighted Average Exercise Price |
Number of Shares |
Weighted Average Exercise Price |
Number of Shares |
Weighted Average Exercise Price |
||||||||||||
|
$ 0.30–94.80 |
2,147,822 | 228,029 | 1,919,793 | 5.6 | $ | 21.12 | 1,757,476 | $ | 19.01 | 1,185,220 | $ | 18.46 | |||||||||
|
$117.84–$198.41 |
1,655,976 | 1,655,976 | 5.5 | $ | 176.43 | 1,100,627 | $ | 175.12 | 1,100,514 | $ | 175.12 | ||||||||||
|
$205.96–$298.91 |
1,380,939 | 1,380,939 | 6.2 | $ | 274.48 | 808,224 | $ | 274.09 | 808,170 | $ | 274.09 | ||||||||||
|
$300.97–$399.00 |
1,763,894 | 1,763,894 | 6.7 | $ | 329.63 | 930,789 | $ | 326.92 | 930,506 | $ | 326.90 | ||||||||||
|
$401.78–$499.07 |
1,543,774 | 1,543,774 | 8.3 | $ | 450.09 | 468,924 | $ | 440.47 | 468,783 | $ | 440.48 | ||||||||||
|
$500.00–594.05 |
3,710,417 | 3,710,417 | 9.1 | $ | 556.54 | 409,112 | $ | 507.95 | 409,112 | $ | 507.95 | ||||||||||
|
$615.95–$699.35 |
208,207 | 208,207 | 9.7 | $ | 655.41 | 95 | $ | 664.72 | 95 | $ | 664.72 | ||||||||||
|
$707.00–$732.94 |
52,683 | 52,683 | 9.6 | $ | 718.17 | 42 | $ | 707.00 | 42 | $ | 707.00 | ||||||||||
|
$ 0.30–$732.94 |
12,463,712 | 228,029 | 12,235,683 | 7.3 | $ | 345.49 | 5,475,289 | $ | 213.03 | 4,902,442 | $ | 235.53 | |||||||||
Options outstanding at March 31, 2008 in the above tables include 228,029 options granted and exercised subsequent to March 21, 2002 that are unvested at March 31, 2008, in accordance with EITF Issue No. 00-23, Issues Related to Accounting for Stock Compensation Under APB Opinion No. 25 and FASB Interpretation No. 44. However, the computations of the weighted-average exercise prices, weighted-average remaining contractual term and aggregate intrinsic value do not consider these unvested shares. Further, the above tables include 990,799 warrants held by financial institutions that were options purchased from employees under our TSO program.
The total grant date fair value of stock options vested during the three months ended March 31, 2008 was $161.0 million. The aggregate intrinsic value of all options exercised during the period was $228.3 million. These amounts do not include the aggregate sales price of options sold under the TSO program.
During the three months ended March 31, 2008, the number of shares underlying TSOs sold to selected financial institutions under the TSO program was 66,400 at a total value of $16.0 million, or an average of $241.26 per share, and an average premium of $41.52 per share. The premium is calculated as the difference between (a) the sale price of the TSO and (b) the intrinsic value of the TSO, which we define as the excess, if any, of the price of our Class A common stock at the time of the sale over the exercise price of the TSO. At March 31, 2008, the number of options eligible for participation under the TSO program was 8.7 million.
As of March 31, 2008, there was $1,078.5 million of unrecognized compensation cost related to outstanding employee stock options, net of forecasted forfeitures. This amount is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 2.8 years. To the extent the forfeiture rate is different from what we have anticipated, stock-based compensation related to these awards will be different from our expectations.
17
The following table summarizes the activity for our unvested restricted stock units and restricted shares for the three months ended March 31, 2008:
| Unvested Restricted Stock Units and Restricted Shares |
||||||
| Number of Shares |
Weighted-Average Grant-Date Fair Value |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Unvested at December 31, 2007 |
2,990,222 | $ | 526.92 | |||
|
Granted |
981,483 | $ | 467.42 | |||
|
Vested |
(187,113 | ) | $ | 417.49 | ||
|
Forfeited |
(125,709 | ) | $ | 508.93 | ||
|
Unvested at March 31, 2008 |
3,658,883 | $ | 516.34 | |||
|
Expected to vest after March 31, 2008 (1) |
3,421,056 | $ | 516.34 | |||
| (1) | Restricted stock units and restricted shares expected to vest reflect an estimated forfeiture rate. |
As of March 31, 2008, there was $1,586.3 million of unrecognized compensation cost related to employee unvested restricted stock units and restricted shares, net of forecasted forfeitures. This amount is expected to be recognized over a weighted average period of 3.4 years. To the extent the actual forfeiture rate is different from what we have anticipated, stock-based compensation related to these awards will be different from our expectations.
Note 13. Income Taxes
We are subject to income taxes in the U.S. and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgment is required in evaluating our uncertain tax positions and determining our provision for income taxes. Financial Standards Accounting Board Interpretation No. 48, Accounting for Uncertainty in Income Taxes (FIN 48) clarifies the accounting for uncertainty in income taxes recognized in an enterprise’s financial statements in accordance with SFAS No. 109, Accounting for Income Taxes, and prescribes a recognition threshold of more-likely-than-not to be sustained upon examination. Our total unrecognized tax benefits as of December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008 were $387.2 million and $524.5 million. Also, our total unrecognized tax benefits that, if recognized, would affect our effective tax rate were $283.5 million and $387.2 million as of December 31, 2007 and March 31, 2008, respectively. The increase in our unrecognized tax benefits during the three months ended March 31, 2008 was primarily related to uncertain tax positions on our international structure.
Note 14. Information about Geographic Areas
Our chief operating decision-makers (i.e., our chief executive officer, his direct reports and our presidents) review financial information presented on a consolidated basis, accompanied by disaggregated information about revenues by geographic region for purposes of allocating resources and evaluating financial performance. There are no segment managers who are held accountable by our chief operating decision-makers, or anyone else, for operations, operating results and planning for levels or components below the consolidated unit level. Accordingly, we consider ourselves to be in a single reporting segment and operating unit structure.
Revenues by geography are based on the billing addresses of the advertisers. The following table sets forth revenues and long-lived assets by geographic area (in thousands):
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
|||||||
| (Unaudited) | |||||||||
|
Revenues: |
|||||||||
|
United States |
$ | 1,958,382 | $ | 2,505,888 | $ | 2,535,474 | |||
|
United Kingdom |
578,359 | 692,027 | 802,973 | ||||||
|
Rest of the world |
1,127,230 | 1,628,764 | 1,847,596 | ||||||
|
Total revenues |
$ | 3,663,971 | $ | 4,826,679 | $ | 5,186,043 | |||
18
| As of December 31, 2007 |
As of March 31, 2008 |
|||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||
|
Long-lived assets: |
||||||
|
United States |
$ | 7,334,877 | $ | 11,231,085 | ||
|
International |
711,791 | 908,966 | ||||
|
Total long-lived assets |
$ | 8,046,668 | $ | 12,140,051 | ||
Note 15. Subsequent Event
In May 2008, Clearwire Corporation and Sprint Nextel Corporation agreed to combine certain businesses to form a wireless communication company, the new Clearwire. In addition, certain other companies have collectively agreed to contribute $3.2 billion in cash to the new Clearwire or its subsidiary, including $500 million from us. The completion of this transaction is subject to customary closing conditions. We expect the transaction to close during the second half of 2008.
This investment will be a marketable equity security and will be classified and accounted for as available for sale. As a result, it will be carried at fair value, with unrealized gains and losses, net of taxes, reported as a component of stockholders’ equity, except for unrealized losses determined to be other than temporary which will be recorded as interest income and other, net, in accordance with our policy and FSP Nos. FAS 115-1 and FAS 124-1, The Meaning of Other-Than-Temporary Impairment and its Application to Certain Investments.
19
| ITEM 2. | MANAGEMENT’S DISCUSSION AND ANALYSIS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION AND RESULTS OF OPERATIONS |
In addition to historical information, this report contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. These statements include, among other things, statements concerning our expectations:
| • |
regarding the growth and growth rate of our operations, business, revenues, operating margins, costs and expenses; |
| • |
that seasonal fluctuations in internet usage and traditional advertising seasonality are likely to affect our business; |
| • |
that growth in advertising revenues from our web sites will continue to exceed that from our Google Network members’ web sites; |
| • |
regarding our future stock-based compensation charges including charges related to our TSO program; |
| • |
regarding our dilution related to all equity grants to employees; |
| • |
regarding the steps we take to improve the relevance of the ads we deliver; |
| • |
regarding our actions to reduce the number of accidental clicks; |
| • |
that we will continue to make significant capital expenditure investments; |
| • |
that the growth rate of our costs and expenses may exceed the growth rate of our revenues; |
| • |
that our cost of revenues and traffic acquisition costs may increase in dollars and as a percentage of revenues; |
| • |
regarding the increase of research and development, sales and marketing and general and administrative expenses in the future; |
| • |
regarding quarterly fluctuations in paid clicks; |
| • |
that we will continue to make investments and acquisitions; |
| • |
regarding the sufficiency of our existing cash, cash equivalents, marketable securities and cash generated from operations; |
| • |
regarding quarterly fluctuations in our effective tax rate; |
| • |
regarding continued investments in international markets; |
| • |
regarding the expected closing date of our proposed investment in Clearwire; |
as well as other statements regarding our future operations, financial condition and prospects and business strategies. These forward-looking statements are subject to certain risks and uncertainties that could cause our actual results to differ materially from those reflected in the forward-looking statements. Factors that could cause or contribute to such differences include, but are not limited to, those discussed in this report, and in particular, the risks discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in Part II, Item 1A of this report and those discussed in other documents we file with the Securities and Exchange Commission. We undertake no obligation to revise or publicly release the results of any revision to these forward-looking statements. Given these risks and uncertainties, readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
The following discussion and analysis of our financial condition and results of operations should be read together with our Consolidated Financial Statements and related notes included elsewhere in this report.
Overview
Google is a global technology leader focused on improving the ways people connect with information. Our innovations in web search and advertising have made our web site a top internet destination and our brand one of the most recognized in the world. Our mission is to organize the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful. We serve three primary constituencies:
| • |
Users. We provide users with products and services that enable people to more quickly and easily find, create and organize information that is useful to them. |
| • |
Advertisers. We provide advertisers with cost-effective ways to deliver online ads, as well as ads on offline media such as TV, print and radio, to customers across Google sites and through the Google Network, which is the network of online and offline third parties that use our advertising programs to deliver relevant ads with their search results and content. These advertising programs provide advertisers with a cost-effective way to deliver ads to customers across Google sites and through the Google Network, which is the network of online and offline third parties that use our advertising programs to deliver relevant ads with the search results and content they provide. |
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| • |
Google Network Members and Other Content Providers. We provide the online and offline members of our Google Network with our Google AdSense programs. These include programs through which we distribute our advertisers’ AdWords ads for display on the web sites of our Google Network members as well as programs to deliver audio ads on radio broadcasts, print ads for display in newspapers and magazines, and ads on television. We share most of the fees these ads generate with our Google Network members, thereby creating an important revenue stream for them. In addition, we have entered into arrangements with other content providers under which we distribute or license their video and other content, and we may display ads next to or as part of this content on the pages of our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites. We share most of the fees these ads generate with these content providers and our Google Network members, thereby creating an important revenue stream for these partners. |
How We Generate Revenue
Advertising revenues made up 98% of our revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2008 and 99% for the three months ended March 31, 2007. We derive the balance of our revenues from the license of our web search technology, the license of our search solutions to enterprises and the sale and license of other products and services.
Google AdWords is our automated online program that enables advertisers to place targeted text-based and display ads on our web sites and the web sites of our Google Network members. Most of our AdWords customers pay us on a cost-per-click basis, which means that an advertiser pays us only when a user clicks on one of its ads. We also offer AdWords on a cost-per-impression basis that enables advertisers to pay us based on the number of times their ads appear on Google Network members’ sites specified by the advertiser. For advertisers using our AdWords cost-per-click pricing, we recognize as revenue the fees charged advertisers each time a user clicks on one of the ads that appears next to the search results on our web sites or next to the search results or content on Google Network members’ sites. For advertisers using our AdWords cost-per-impression pricing, we recognize as revenue the fees charged advertisers each time their ads are displayed on the Google Network members’ sites. Our AdWords agreements are generally terminable at any time by our advertisers.
Google AdSense refers to the online and offline programs through which we distribute our advertisers’ AdWords ads for display on the web sites of our Google Network members as well as programs to deliver audio ads on radio broadcasts, print ads for display in newspapers and magazines, and ads on television broadcasts. Our AdSense programs include AdSense for search and AdSense for content.
AdSense for search is our online service for distributing relevant ads from our advertisers for display with search results on our Google Network members’ sites. To use AdSense for search, most of our AdSense for search partners add Google search functionality to their web pages in the form of customizable Google search boxes. When visitors of these web sites search either the web site or the internet using these customizable search boxes, we display relevant ads on the search results pages, targeted to match user search queries. Ads shown through AdSense for search are generally text ads.
AdSense for content is our online service for distributing ads from our advertisers that are relevant to content on our Google Network members’ sites. Under this program, we use automated technology to analyze the meaning of the content on the web site and serve relevant ads based on the meaning of such content. For example, a web page on an automotive blog that contains an entry about vintage cars might display ads for vintage car parts or vintage car shows. These ads are displayed in spaces that our AdSense for content partners have set aside on their web sites for our AdWords content. AdSense for content allows a variety of ad types to be shown, including text ads, image ads, Google Video Ads, link units (which are sets of clickable links to topic pages related to page content), themed units (which are regular text ads with graphic treatments that change seasonally and by geography) and gadget ads (which are customized “mini-sites” that run as ads on AdSense publisher web sites).
For our online AdSense program, our advertisers pay us a fee each time a user clicks on one of our advertisers’ ads displayed on Google Network members’ web sites or, for those advertisers who choose our cost-per-impression pricing, as their ads are displayed. To date, we have paid most of these advertiser fees to the members of the Google Network, and we expect to continue doing so for the foreseeable future. We recognize these advertiser fees as revenue and the portion of the advertiser fee we pay to our Google Network members as traffic acquisition costs under cost of revenues. In some cases, we guarantee our Google Network members minimum revenue share payments based on their achieving defined performance terms, such as number of search queries or advertisements displayed. Members of the Google Network do not pay any fees associated with the use of our AdSense program on their web sites.
Our agreements with Google Network members consist largely of uniform online “click-wrap” agreements that members enter into by interacting with our registration web sites. The standard agreements have no stated term and are terminable at will. Agreements with our larger members are individually negotiated. Both the standard agreements and the negotiated agreements contain provisions requiring us to share with the Google Network member most of the advertiser fees generated by users clicking on ads on the Google Network member’s web site or, for advertisers who choose our cost-per-impression pricing, as the ads are displayed on the Google Network member’s web site.
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We have entered into arrangements with certain content providers under which we distribute or license their video and other content. In a number of these arrangements we display ads on the pages of our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites from which the content is viewed and share most of the fees these ads generate with the content providers and Google Network members. We recognize these advertiser fees as revenue and the portion of the advertiser fee we pay to our content providers as content acquisition costs under cost of revenues. In some cases, we guarantee our content providers minimum revenue share or other payments.
Our agreements with content providers are typically standard agreements with no stated term and are terminable at will. Agreements with our larger members are individually negotiated. Both the standard agreements and the negotiated agreements contain provisions requiring us to pay the content providers for the content we license or share, and the content providers receive most of the advertiser fees generated by ads displayed on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites.
We also distribute our advertisers’ ads for publication in print media through our Google Print Ads program, and we recognize as revenue the fees charged advertisers when their ads are published in print media. Additionally, we distribute advertisers’ audio ads for broadcast in radio programs through our Google Audio Ads program, and we recognize as revenue the fees charged advertisers each time an ad is broadcasted or a listener responds to that ad.
In the fourth quarter of 2006, we acquired YouTube, a consumer media company for people to watch and share videos worldwide through the web. We recognize as revenue the fees charged advertisers each time an ad or a promoted video is displayed on the YouTube site.
In the second quarter of 2007, we began delivering Google TV ads to viewers and helping advertisers, operators and programmers buy, schedule, deliver and measure ads on television. We recognize as revenue the fees charged advertisers each time an ad is displayed on TV in accordance with the terms of the related agreements.
We believe the factors that influence the success of our advertising programs include the following:
| • |
The relevance, objectivity and quality of our search results. |
| • |
The number and type of searches initiated at our web sites. |
| • |
The number and type of searches initiated at, as well as the number of visits to and the content of, our Google Network members’ web sites. |
| • |
The advertisers’ return on investment (ad cost per sale or cost per conversion) from advertising campaigns on our web sites or our Google Network members’ web sites or other media compared to other forms of advertising. |
| • |
The number of advertisers and the breadth of items advertised. |
| • |
The total and per click or per impression advertising spending budgets of each advertiser. |
| • |
The amount we ultimately pay our Google Network members and our content providers for traffic and content compared to the amount of revenue we generate. |
| • |
The monetization of (or generation of revenue from) traffic on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites. |
We believe that the monetization of traffic on our web sites, and our Google Network members’ web sites is affected by the following factors:
| • |
The relevance and quality of ads displayed with each search results page on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites, as well as with each content page on our Google Network members’ web sites, including the relevance and quality of an ad’s “landing page” or page a user views after an ad is clicked. |
| • |
The number and prominence of ads displayed, if any, with each search results page on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites, as well as with each content page on our Google Network members’ web sites. |
| • |
The rate at which our users and users of our Google Network members’ web sites click on advertisements. |
| • |
Our minimum fee per click. |
Trends in Our Business
Our business has grown rapidly since inception, resulting in substantially increased revenues, and we expect that our business will continue to grow. However, our revenue growth rate has generally declined over time, and we expect it will continue to do so as a result of increasing competition and the difficulty of maintaining growth rates as our revenues increase to higher levels. In addition, the main focus of our advertising programs is to provide relevant and useful advertising to our users, reflecting our commitment to constantly improve their overall web experience. As a result, we may continue to take steps to improve the relevance of the ads displayed on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites. These steps include removing ads that generate low click-
22
through rates or that send users to irrelevant or otherwise low quality sites and terminating Google Network members whose web sites do not meet our quality requirements. In addition, we may continue to take steps to reduce the number of accidental clicks. These steps could negatively affect our near-term advertising revenues.
Both seasonal fluctuations in internet usage and traditional retail seasonality have affected, and are likely to continue to affect, our business. Internet usage generally slows during the summer months, and commercial queries typically increase significantly in the fourth quarter of each year. These seasonal trends have caused and will likely continue to cause, fluctuations in our quarterly results, including fluctuations in sequential revenue and paid click growth rates.
From the inception of the Google Network in 2002 through the first quarter of 2004, the growth in advertising revenues from our Google Network members’ web sites exceeded that from our web sites, which had a negative impact on our operating margins. The operating margin we realize on revenues generated from ads placed on our Google Network members’ web sites through our AdSense program is significantly lower than the operating margin we realize from revenues generated from ads placed on our web sites because most of the advertiser fees from ads served on Google Network member web sites are shared with our Google Network members. However, beginning in the second quarter of 2004, growth in advertising revenues from our web sites has exceeded that from our Google Network members’ web sites. This trend has had a positive impact on our operating margins, and we expect that this will continue for the foreseeable future, although the relative rate of growth in revenues from our web sites compared to the rate of growth in revenues from our Google Network members’ web sites may vary over time.
We are heavily investing in building the necessary employee and systems infrastructures required to manage our growth and develop and promote our products and services, and this may cause our operating margins to decrease. We have experienced and expect to continue to experience substantial growth in our operations as we build our research and development programs, expand our base of users, advertisers, Google Network members and content providers and increase our presence in international markets. Also, we have acquired and expect to continue to acquire businesses and other assets from time to time. These acquisitions generally enhance the breadth and depth of our expertise in engineering and other functional areas, our technologies and our product offerings. In addition, we are incurring significant costs and expenses to support our Google Checkout product and promote its adoption by merchants and consumers, as well as promote the distribution of certain other products, including the Google Toolbar. Our full-time employee headcount has significantly increased over the last 12 months, growing from 12,238 at March 31, 2007 to 19,156 at March 31, 2008, including approximately 1,500 new employees as a result of our acquisition of DoubleClick. We also utilize a significant number of temporary employees. We also expect to continue to make significant capital expenditure investments in, among other things, information and technology infrastructure and corporate facilities. In April 2007, we launched our TSO program. We modified employee options at that time to allow them to participate in this program, and as a result we incurred a modification charge of approximately $104 million through March 31, 2008 related to vested options, and we expect to incur an additional modification charge of approximately $125 million related to unvested options over their remaining vesting periods through the second quarter of 2011. In addition, the fair value of each option granted under the TSO program will be greater than it would have been otherwise because of a longer expected life, resulting in more stock-based compensation per option. As a result of all of the above, the growth rate of our costs and expenses may exceed the growth rate of our revenues.
We expect our cost of revenues to continue to increase in dollars and may increase as a percentage of revenues in 2008 and in future periods, primarily as a result of forecasted increases in traffic acquisition costs, data center costs and credit card and other transaction fees, including transaction processing fees related to Google Checkout, as well as content acquisition costs. In particular, traffic acquisition costs as a percentage of advertising revenues may increase in the future if we are unable to continue to improve the monetization of traffic on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites, particularly with those members to whom we have guaranteed minimum revenue share payments.
Our international revenues grew as a percentage of our total revenues to 51% in the three months ended March 31, 2008 from 48% in the three months ended December 31, 2007 and from 47% in the three months ended March 31, 2007. This increase in the portion of our revenues derived from international markets results largely from increased acceptance of our advertising programs, increases in our direct sales resources and customer support operations and our continued progress in developing localized versions of our products in these international markets, as well as an increase in the value of the Euro, the British pound and other foreign currencies compared to the U.S. dollar over these periods. The increase in the proportion of international revenues derived from international markets increases our exposure to fluctuations in foreign currency to U.S. dollar exchange rates.
Results of Operations
The following table presents our historical operating results as a percentage of revenues for the periods indicated (unaudited):
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| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
|||||||
|
Consolidated Statements of Income Data: |
|||||||||
|
Revenues |
100.0 | % | 100.0 | % | 100.0 | % | |||
|
Costs and expenses: |
|||||||||
|
Cost of revenues |
40.1 | 40.5 | 40.7 | ||||||
|
Research and development |
11.1 | 13.1 | 13.0 | ||||||
|
Sales and marketing |
8.3 | 8.8 | 8.6 | ||||||
|
General and administrative |
7.2 | 7.8 | 7.9 | ||||||
|
Total costs and expenses |
66.7 | 70.2 | 70.2 | ||||||
|
Income from operations |
33.3 | 29.8 | 29.8 | ||||||
|
Interest income and other, net |
3.6 | 3.5 | 3.2 | ||||||
|
Income before income taxes |
36.9 | 33.3 | 33.0 | ||||||
|
Provision for income taxes |
9.5 | 8.3 | 7.8 | ||||||
|
Net income |
27.4 | % | 25.0 | % | 25.2 | % | |||
Revenues
The following table presents our revenues, by revenue source, for the periods presented (in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
|||||||
|
Advertising revenues: |
|||||||||
|
Google web sites |
$ | 2,282.1 | $ | 3,121.6 | $ | 3,400.4 | |||
|
Google Network web sites |
1,345.4 | 1,635.8 | 1,686.1 | ||||||
|
Total advertising revenues |
3,627.5 | 4,757.4 | 5,086.5 | ||||||
|
Licensing and other revenues |
36.5 | 69.3 | 99.5 | ||||||
|
Revenues |
$ | 3,664.0 | $ | 4,826.7 | $ | 5,186.0 | |||
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The following table presents our revenues, by revenue source, as a percentage of total revenues for the periods presented (unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December, 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
|||||||
|
Advertising revenues: |
|||||||||
|
Google web sites |
62 | % | 65 | % | 66 | % | |||
|
Google Network web sites |
37 | 34 | 32 | ||||||
|
Total advertising revenues |
99 | 99 | 98 | ||||||
|
Google web sites as % of advertising revenues |
63 | 66 | 67 | ||||||
|
Google Network web sites as % of advertising revenues |
37 | 34 | 33 | ||||||
|
Licensing and other revenues |
1 | % | 1 | % | 2 | % | |||
Growth in our revenues in the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to the three months ended December 31, 2007 resulted primarily from growth in advertising revenues for Google web sites, and to a lesser extent, Google Network web sites. Our advertising revenue growth for Google web sites and Google Network web sites resulted primarily from an increase in the total number of paid clicks and ads displayed through our programs, rather than from changes in the average fees paid by our advertisers. The increase in the number of paid clicks and ads displayed through our programs was due to an increase in aggregate traffic on our web sites, certain monetization improvements and the continued global expansion of our products, our advertiser base and our user base, as well as an increase in the number of Google Network members and distribution partners.
Growth in our revenues in the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2007 resulted primarily from growth in advertising revenues for Google web sites and Google Network web sites. Our advertising revenue growth for Google web sites and Google Network web sites resulted primarily from increases in the total number of paid clicks and ads displayed through our programs, rather than from changes in the average fees paid by our advertisers. The increase in the number of paid clicks and ads displayed through our programs was due to an increase in aggregate traffic on both our web sites and those of our Google Network members, certain improvements in the monetization of increased traffic on our web sites and our Google Network member sites, the continued global expansion of our products, our advertiser base and our user base, and an increase in the number of Google Network members and distribution partners.
Improvements in our ability to ultimately monetize this increased traffic primarily relate to enhancing the end user experience, including providing end users with ads that are more relevant to their search queries or to the content on the Google Network members’ sites they visit. These improvements have included, for instance, a change to the formula used to determine which ads appear at the top of our search results pages, a change to consider not only a user’s current search query, but also their immediately preceding query, to determine the ads displayed on our search results pages, and a change to the clickable area around our AdSense for content text-based ads to only the title and URL to reduce the number of accidental clicks.
Our sequential quarterly revenue growth rate decreased from 14.1% for the three months ended December 31, 2007, to 7.5% for the three months ended March 31, 2008.
The sequential quarterly revenue growth rate from Google web sites decreased from 14.1% for the three months ended December 31, 2007, to 8.9% for the three months ended March 31, 2008. The sequential quarterly revenue growth rate from our Google Network members’ web sites decreased from 12.5% for the three months ended December 31, 2007, to 3.1% for the three months ended March 31, 2008. These decreases in the sequential quarterly revenue growth rates are primarily the result of our higher revenue levels and seasonal slowdowns in internet usage and commercial queries. In addition, during the three months ended March 31, 2008, we terminated relationships with certain Google Network members who did not comply with our AdSense policies, which adversely affected our revenues. The sequential quarterly revenue growth from our web sites has been greater than that from our Google Network members’ web sites primarily as a result of a greater increase in the total number of paid clicks on our web sites, which was largely due to higher traffic growth and monetization improvements. We expect that our revenue growth rates will generally decline in the future as a result of increasing competition and the difficulty of maintaining growth rates as our revenues increase to higher levels.
Aggregate paid clicks on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites increased approximately 4% from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008, and increased approximately 20% from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. In general, the increase in paid clicks has historically correlated with increases in our revenues. However, the rate of increase in paid clicks, and its correlation with the rate of increase in revenues, may fluctuate from quarter to quarter based on various factors including seasonality, advertiser competition for keywords
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and the revenue growth rates on our web sites compared to those of our Google Network members. In addition, traffic growth in emerging markets compared to more mature markets and across various advertising verticals also contributes to these fluctuations.
We believe that the increase in the number of paid clicks and ads displayed through our programs is substantially the result of our commitment to improving the relevance and quality of both our search results and the advertisements displayed, which we believe results in a better user experience, which in turn results in more searches, advertisers, and Google Network members and other partners. Revenues realized through the Google Print Ads Program, Google Audio Ads, Google TV Ads, Google Checkout, YouTube, Postini and DoubleClick were not material in any of the periods presented.
Revenues by Geography
Domestic and international revenues as a percentage of consolidated revenues, determined based on the billing addresses of our advertisers, are set forth below (unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | |||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
|||||||
| (unaudited) | |||||||||
|
United States |
53 | % | 52 | % | 49 | % | |||
|
United Kingdom |
16 | % | 14 | % | 15 | % | |||
|
Rest of the world |
31 | % | 34 | % | 36 | % | |||
The growth in international revenues in the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to the three months ended December 31, 2007 and the three months ended March 31, 2007 resulted largely from increased acceptance of our advertising programs, increases in our direct sales resources and customer support operations in international markets and our continued progress in developing localized versions of our products for these international markets. Furthermore, the growth in international revenues from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008 resulted from seasonally stronger traffic and monetization in certain advertising verticals, such as travel and finance in the United Kingdom and certain other countries compared to the U.S.
In addition, the weakening of the U.S. dollar relative to other foreign currencies (primarily the Euro and the British pound) in the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to the three months ended December 31, 2007 had a favorable impact on our international revenues, which increased $329.8 million. Had foreign exchange rates remained constant in these periods, our total revenues would have been approximately $18.1 million, or 0.3%, lower. The weakening of the U.S. dollar relative to other foreign currencies (primarily the Euro and the British pound) in the three months ended March 31, 2008 compared to the three months ended March 31, 2007 had a favorable impact on our international revenues, which increased $945.0 million. Had foreign exchange rates remained constant in these periods, our total revenues would have been approximately $202.0 million, or 3.9%, lower.
Although we expect to continue to make investments in international markets, they may not result in an increase in our international revenues as a percentage of total revenues in 2008 or thereafter. See Note 14 of Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements included as part of this Form 10-Q for additional information about geographic areas.
Costs and Expenses
Cost of Revenues.
Cost of revenues consists primarily of traffic acquisition costs. Traffic acquisition costs consist of amounts ultimately paid to our Google Network members under AdSense arrangements and to certain other partners (our “distribution partners”) who distribute our toolbar and other products (collectively referred to as “access points”) or otherwise direct search queries to our web site (collectively referred to as “distribution arrangements”). These amounts are primarily based on the revenue share arrangements with our Google Network members and distribution partners. Certain distribution arrangements require us to pay our partners based on a fee per access point delivered and not exclusively—or at all—based on revenue share. The fees are paid when the access points are delivered or based on revenue share and are non-refundable. Further, the arrangements are terminable at will, although under the terms of certain contracts we or our distribution partners may be subject to penalties in the event of early termination. We recognize fees under these arrangements over the estimated useful lives of the access points (two years) to the extent we can reasonably estimate those lives and they are longer than one year, or based on any contractual revenue share, if greater. Otherwise, the fees are charged to expense as incurred. The estimated useful life of the access points is based on the historical average period of time they generate traffic and revenue.
In addition, certain AdSense agreements obligate us to make guaranteed minimum revenue share payments to Google Network members based on their achieving defined performance terms, such as number of search queries or advertisements displayed. These fees may be paid in advance or in arrears and are non-refundable but are subject to adjustment based on the achievement of the
26
defined performance terms. In addition, the arrangements are terminable at will, although under the terms of certain contracts we or our Google Network members may be subject to penalties in the event of early termination. To the extent we expect revenues generated under an arrangement to exceed the guaranteed minimum revenue share payments, we recognize traffic acquisition costs on a contractual revenue share basis or on a basis proportionate to forecasted revenues, whichever is greater. Otherwise, we recognize the guaranteed revenue share payments as traffic acquisition costs on a straight-line basis over the term of the related agreements. In addition, concurrent with the commencement of a small number of AdSense and other agreements, we have purchased certain items from, or provided other consideration to, our Google Network members and partners. We have determined that certain of these amounts are prepaid traffic acquisition costs and are amortized on a straight-line basis over the terms of the related agreements.
Cost of revenues also includes the expenses associated with the operation of our data centers, including depreciation, labor, energy and bandwidth costs, credit card and other transaction fees related to processing customer transactions as well as content acquisition costs. We have entered into arrangements with certain content providers under which we distribute or license their video and other content. In a number of these arrangements we display ads on the pages of our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites from which the content is viewed and share most of the fees these ads generate with the content providers and the Google Network members. To the extent we are obligated to make guaranteed minimum revenue share or other payments to our content providers, we recognize content acquisition costs equal to the greater of the following three amounts: the contractual revenue share amount, if any, based on the number of times the content is displayed, or on a straight-line basis over the terms of the agreements. The following tables present our cost of revenues and cost of revenues as a percentage of revenues, and our traffic acquisition costs and traffic acquisition costs as a percentage of advertising revenues for the periods presented (dollars in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||
|
Cost of revenues |
$ | 1,470.4 | $ | 1,955.8 | $ | 2,110.5 | ||||||
|
Cost of revenues as a percentage of revenues |
40.7 | % | 40.5 | % | 40.7 | % | ||||||
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
|
Traffic acquisition costs |
$ | 1,125.0 | $ | 1,439.8 | $ | 1,486.4 | ||||||
|
Traffic acquisition costs as a percentage of advertising revenues |
31.0 | % | 30.3 | % | 29.2 | % | ||||||
Cost of revenues increased $154.7 million from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. There was an increase in data center costs of $66.0 million primarily as a result of the depreciation of additional information technology assets and data center buildings as well as additional personnel required to manage the data centers. Over this same period there was an increase in traffic acquisition costs of $46.6 million, which includes an increase of $17.9 million in fees related to distribution arrangements. In addition, there was an increase in content acquisition costs of $27.0 million and an increase in amortization of intangible assets of $10.0 million primarily as a result of our acquisition of DoubleClick. The decrease in traffic acquisition costs as a percentage of advertising revenues was primarily due to an increase in the proportion of advertising revenues coming from our web sites rather than from our Google Network members’ web sites. The traffic acquisition costs associated with revenues generated from ads placed on our web sites is considerably lower than the traffic acquisition costs associated with revenues generated from ads placed on our Google Network members’ web sites.
Cost of revenues increased $640.1 million from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. Over the same period there was an increase in traffic acquisition costs of $361.4 million primarily resulting from more advertiser fees generated through our AdSense program, and to a lesser extent, an increase of $70.0 million in fees related to distribution arrangements, and an increase in data center costs of $196.8 million primarily resulting from the depreciation of additional information technology assets as well as additional labor required to manage the data centers. In addition, there was an increase in content acquisition costs of $31.7 million and an increase in the amortization of intangible assets of $24.3 million primarily resulting from acquisitions in the current and prior periods, and an increase in credit card and other transaction processing fees of $13.4 million resulting from more advertiser fees being generated through AdWords. The decrease in traffic acquisition costs as a percentage of advertising revenues was primarily due to an increase in the proportion of advertising revenues coming from our web sites rather than from our Google Network members’ web sites.
We expect cost of revenues to continue to increase in dollars and may increase as a percentage of revenues in 2008 and in future periods, primarily as a result of forecasted increases in traffic acquisition costs, data center costs, credit card and other transaction fees,
27
including transaction processing fees related to Google Checkout, content acquisition and other costs. Traffic acquisition costs as a percentage of advertising revenues may fluctuate in the future based on a number of factors, including:
| • |
the relative growth rates of revenues from our web sites and from our Google Network members’ web sites. |
| • |
whether we are able to enter into more AdSense arrangements that provide for lower revenue share obligations or whether increased competition for arrangements with existing and potential Google Network members results in less favorable revenue share arrangements, including arrangements with guaranteed minimum payments. |
| • |
whether we are able to continue to improve the monetization of traffic on our web sites and our Google Network members’ web sites, particularly with those members to whom we have guaranteed minimum revenue share payments. |
| • |
whether we share with existing and new partners proportionately more of the aggregate advertising fees that we earn from paid clicks derived from search queries these partners direct to our web sites. |
| • |
the relative growth rates of expenses associated with distribution arrangements and the related revenues generated. |
Research and Development.
The following table presents our research and development expenses, and research and development expenses as a percentage of revenues for the periods presented (dollars in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||
|
Research and development expenses |
$ | 408.4 | $ | 630.8 | $ | 673.1 | ||||||
|
Research and development expenses as a percentage of revenues |
11.1 | % | 13.1 | % | 13.0 | % | ||||||
Research and development expenses consist primarily of compensation and related costs for personnel responsible for the research and development of new products and services, as well as significant improvements to existing products and services. We expense research and development costs as they are incurred.
Research and development expenses increased $42.3 million from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to an increase in stock-based compensation of $32.4 million. In addition, labor and facilities related costs increased $20.7 million as a result of a 13% increase in research and development headcount which also includes the increased headcount resulting from our acquisition of DoubleClick.
Research and development expenses increased $264.7 million from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to an increase in labor and facilities related costs of $149.2 million as a result of a 60% increase in research and development headcount. In addition, there was an increase in stock-based compensation expense of $73.0 million, an increase in fees for professional services of $22.7 million and an increase in depreciation and related expenses of $11.4 million due to our increased capital expenditures.
We anticipate that research and development expenses will increase in dollar amount and may increase as a percentage of revenues in 2008 and future periods because we expect to hire more research and development personnel and build the infrastructure required to support the development of new, and improve existing, products and services.
Sales and Marketing.
The following table presents our sales and marketing expenses, and sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of revenues for the periods presented (dollars in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||
|
Sales and marketing expenses |
$ | 302.6 | $ | 422.3 | $ | 446.9 | ||||||
|
Sales and marketing expenses as a percentage of revenues |
8.3 | % | 8.8 | % | 8.6 | % | ||||||
Sales and marketing expenses consist primarily of compensation and related costs for personnel engaged in customer service and sales and sales support functions, as well as advertising and promotional expenditures.
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Sales and marketing expenses increased $24.6 million from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to an increase in labor and facilities related costs of $29.4 million mostly as a result of a 16% increase in sales and marketing headcount which also includes the increased headcount resulting from our acquisition of DoubleClick. This increase was partially offset by a decrease in advertising and promotional activities.
Sales and marketing expenses increased $144.3 million from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to an increase in labor and facilities related costs of $106.3 million mostly as a result of a 54% increase in sales and marketing headcount, as well as an increase in stock-based compensation expense of $15.3 million.
We anticipate sales and marketing expenses will continue to increase in dollar amount and may increase as a percentage of revenues in 2008 and future periods as we continue to expand our business on a worldwide basis. A significant portion of these increases relate to our plan to hire additional personnel and increase advertising and promotional expenditures to increase the level of service we provide to our advertisers and Google Network members. We also plan to add more international sales personnel to support our worldwide expansion.
General and Administrative.
The following table presents our general and administrative expenses, and general and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenues for the periods presented (dollars in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||
|
General and administrative expenses |
$ | 261.4 | $ | 377.0 | $ | 409.3 | ||||||
|
General and administrative expenses as a percentage of revenues |
7.2 | % | 7.8 | % | 7.9 | % | ||||||
General and administrative expenses consist primarily of compensation and related costs for personnel and facilities related to our finance, human resources, facilities, information technology and legal organizations, and fees for professional services. Professional services are principally comprised of outside legal, audit, information technology consulting and outsourcing services.
General and administrative expenses increased $32.3 million from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008, primarily due to an increase in bad debt expense of $21.2 million as a result of increased risk in this area. In addition, there was an increase in fees for professional services of $14.7 million.
General and administrative expenses increased $147.9 million from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. This increase was primarily due to an increase in labor and facilities related costs of $47.2 million primarily as a result of a 59% increase in headcount. In addition, there was an increase in fees for professional services of $40.3 million and an increase in depreciation related expense of $10.5 million.
As we expand our business and incur additional expenses, we believe general and administrative expenses will increase in dollar amount and may increase as a percentage of revenues in 2008 and future periods.
Stock-Based Compensation.
The following table presents our stock-based compensation, and stock-based compensation as a percentage of revenues for the periods presented (dollars in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||
|
Stock-based compensation |
$ | 183.9 | $ | 245.3 | $ | 280.8 | ||||||
|
Stock-based compensation as a percentage of revenues |
5.0 | % | 5.1 | % | 5.4 | % | ||||||
Stock-based compensation increased $35.5 million from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008, and $96.9 million from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008. These increases were primarily due to additional stock awards issued to existing and new employees.
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We expect stock-based compensation to be approximately $1.1 billion in 2008 and $1.9 billion thereafter. These amounts do not include stock-based compensation related to stock awards that have been and may be granted to employees and directors subsequent to March 31, 2008 and stock awards that have been or may be granted to non-employees. In addition, to the extent forfeiture rates are different from what we have anticipated, stock-based compensation related to these awards will be different from our expectations. We currently anticipate that dilution related to all equity grants to employees will be at or below 2% this year.
Interest Income and Other, Net
Interest income and other of $167.3 million in the three months ended March 31, 2008 primarily consisted of $122.0 million of interest income earned on our cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities balances. In addition, we recognized $46.6 million of realized gains on sales of marketable securities.
Interest income and other of $130.7 million in the three months ended March 31, 2007 primarily consisted of $130.5 million of interest income earned on our cash, cash equivalents and marketable securities balances.
Provision for Income Taxes
The following table presents our provision for income taxes, and effective tax rate for the periods presented (dollars in millions, unaudited):
| Three Months Ended | ||||||||||||
| March 31, 2007 |
December 31, 2007 |
March 31, 2008 |
||||||||||
| (unaudited) | ||||||||||||
|
Provision for income taxes |
$ | 349.8 | $ | 401.6 | $ | 406.5 | ||||||
|
Effective tax rate |
25.9 | % | 25.0 | % | 23.7 | % | ||||||
Our effective tax rate decreased from the three months ended December 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008, primarily as a result of proportionately more of our annual earnings expected to be realized in countries where we have lower statutory tax rates in 2008 compared to 2007.
Our provision for income taxes increased from the three months ended March 31, 2007 to the three months ended March 31, 2008, primarily as a result of increases in federal and state income taxes, driven by higher taxable income per