Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Commitments and Contingencies

v3.2.0.727
Commitments and Contingencies
6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2015
Commitments And Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]  
Commitments and Contingencies

(14)

Commitments and Contingencies

The following table summarizes our expected contractual cash commitments as of June 30, 2015:

 

 

 

2015

 

 

2016

 

 

2017

 

 

2018

 

 

2019

 

 

Thereafter

 

 

Total

 

Debt obligations

 

$

4,213

 

 

$

6,062

 

 

$

2,783

 

 

$

1,994

 

 

$

1,480

 

 

$

5,150,000

 

 

$

5,166,532

 

Cash interest payments

 

 

149,262

 

 

 

287,434

 

 

 

287,295

 

 

 

287,222

 

 

 

287,159

 

 

 

1,011,167

 

 

 

2,309,539

 

Satellite and transmission

 

 

11,323

 

 

 

7,927

 

 

 

3,655

 

 

 

4,106

 

 

 

4,120

 

 

 

12,588

 

 

 

43,719

 

Programming and content

 

 

117,321

 

 

 

121,620

 

 

 

90,915

 

 

 

71,275

 

 

 

54,683

 

 

 

60,000

 

 

 

515,814

 

Marketing and distribution

 

 

17,913

 

 

 

14,160

 

 

 

9,222

 

 

 

8,431

 

 

 

6,253

 

 

 

1,530

 

 

 

57,509

 

Satellite incentive payments

 

 

5,858

 

 

 

12,367

 

 

 

13,296

 

 

 

14,302

 

 

 

10,652

 

 

 

43,527

 

 

 

100,002

 

Operating lease obligations

 

 

21,727

 

 

 

46,712

 

 

 

40,358

 

 

 

38,858

 

 

 

34,326

 

 

 

210,340

 

 

 

392,321

 

Other

 

 

269,846

 

 

 

18,454

 

 

 

6,084

 

 

 

1,823

 

 

 

456

 

 

 

356

 

 

 

297,019

 

Total (1)

 

$

597,463

 

 

$

514,736

 

 

$

453,608

 

 

$

428,011

 

 

$

399,129

 

 

$

6,489,508

 

 

$

8,882,455

 

(1)

The table does not include our reserve for uncertain tax positions, which at June 30, 2015 totaled $1,432, as the specific timing of any cash payments cannot be projected with reasonable certainty.

Debt obligations.    Debt obligations include principal payments on outstanding debt and capital lease obligations.

Cash interest payments.    Cash interest payments include interest due on outstanding debt and capital lease payments through maturity.

Satellite and transmission.    We have entered into agreements with third parties to operate and maintain the off-site satellite telemetry, tracking and control facilities and certain components of our terrestrial repeater networks.

Programming and content.    We have entered into various programming agreements. Under the terms of these agreements, our obligations include fixed payments, advertising commitments and revenue sharing arrangements. Our future revenue sharing costs are dependent upon many factors and are difficult to estimate; therefore, they are not included in our minimum contractual cash commitments.

Marketing and distribution.    We have entered into various marketing, sponsorship and distribution agreements to promote our brand and are obligated to make payments to sponsors, retailers, automakers and radio manufacturers under these agreements. Certain programming and content agreements also require us to purchase advertising on properties owned or controlled by the licensors. We also reimburse automakers for certain engineering and development costs associated with the incorporation of satellite radios into new vehicles they manufacture. In addition, in the event certain new products are not shipped by a distributor to its customers within 90 days of the distributor’s receipt of goods, we have agreed to purchase and take title to the product.

Satellite incentive payments.    Boeing Satellite Systems International, Inc., the manufacturer of certain of our in-orbit satellites, may be entitled to future in-orbit performance payments with respect to XM-3 and XM-4 meeting their fifteen-year design life.  Boeing may also be entitled to additional incentive payments up to $10,000 if our XM-4 satellite continues to operate above baseline specifications during the five years beyond the satellite’s fifteen-year design life.

Space Systems/Loral, the manufacturer of certain of our in-orbit satellites, may be entitled to future in-orbit performance payments with respect to XM-5, FM-5 and FM-6 meeting their fifteen-year design life.

Operating lease obligations.    We have entered into both cancelable and non-cancelable operating leases for office space, equipment and terrestrial repeaters. These leases provide for minimum lease payments, additional operating expense charges, leasehold improvements and rent escalations that have initial terms ranging from one to fifteen years, and certain leases have options to renew. The effect of the rent holidays and rent concessions are recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term, including reasonably assured renewal periods.

Other.    We have entered into various agreements with third parties for general operating purposes. In addition to the minimum contractual cash commitments described above, we have entered into agreements with other variable cost arrangements. These future costs are dependent upon many factors and are difficult to anticipate; however, these costs may be substantial. We may enter into additional programming, distribution, marketing and other agreements that contain similar variable cost provisions.  The cost of our stock acquired from a third-party financial institution but not paid for as of June 30, 2015 is also included in this category.  The amount in this category for 2015 includes $210,000 that will be paid on or before July 31, 2015 related to the settlement of Capitol Records LLC et al. v. Sirius XM Radio Inc. for the use of pre-1972 sound recordings.

We do not have any other significant off-balance sheet financing arrangements that are reasonably likely to have a material effect on our financial condition, results of operations, liquidity, capital expenditures or capital resources.

Legal Proceedings

In the ordinary course of business, we are a defendant or party to various claims and lawsuits, including those discussed below.  These claims are at various stages of arbitration or adjudication.

We record a liability when we believe that it is both probable that a liability will be incurred, and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. We evaluate developments in legal matters that could affect the amount of liability that has been previously accrued and make adjustments as appropriate.  Significant judgment is required to determine both probability and the estimated amount of a loss or potential loss.  We may be unable to reasonably estimate the reasonably possible loss or range of loss for a particular legal contingency for various reasons, including, among others, because: (i) the damages sought are indeterminate; (ii) the proceedings are in the relative early stages; (iii)  there is uncertainty as to the outcome of pending proceedings (including motions and appeals); (iv) there is uncertainty as to the likelihood of settlement and the outcome of any negotiations with respect thereto; (v) there remain significant factual issues to be determined or resolved; (vi) the relevant law is unsettled; or (vii) the proceedings involve novel or untested legal theories.  In such instances, there may be considerable uncertainty regarding the ultimate resolution of such matters, including a possible eventual loss, if any.

Pre-1972 Sound Recording Matters. In August and September 2013, we were named as a defendant in three putative class action suits and one additional suit challenging our use and public performance via satellite radio and the Internet of sound recordings fixed prior to February 15, 1972 (“pre-1972 recordings”) under California, New York and/or Florida law.  The plaintiffs in the putative class action suits purport to seek in excess of $100,000 in compensatory damages along with unspecified punitive damages and injunctive relief.  The plaintiffs in the individual lawsuit seek unspecified compensatory damages, punitive damages, and injunctive relief.

These cases are titled Flo & Eddie Inc. v. Sirius XM Radio Inc., No. 2:13-cv-5693-PSG-RZ (C.D. Cal.), Flo & Eddie, Inc. v. Sirius XM Radio Inc., No. 1:13-cv-23182-DPG (S.D. Fla.), and Flo & Eddie, Inc. v. Sirius XM Radio Inc., No. 1:13-cv-5784-CM (S.D.N.Y.) (collectively, the “Flo & Eddie cases”), and Capitol Records LLC et al. v. Sirius XM Radio Inc., No. BC-520981 (Super. Ct. L.A. County) (the “Capitol Records case”). Additional information concerning each of these actions is publicly available in court filings under their docket numbers.

Each of these cases is at varying stages:

·

Flo & Eddie California Case.  In September 2014, the United States District Court for the Central District of California ruled that California Civil Code Section 980(a), which provides that the owner of a pre-1972 recording has “exclusive ownership” therein, includes the exclusive right to control public performances of that recording.  The Court granted Flo & Eddie’s motion for summary judgment on liability, holding that we were liable for unfair competition, misappropriation, and conversion under California law for publicly performing Flo & Eddie’s pre-1972 recordings without authorization. We intend to appeal that decision.  In May 2015, the Court granted Flo & Eddie’s motion for class certification and certified a class of owners of pre-1972 recordings that have been performed and used by us in California without authorization.  In June 2015, we filed a motion with the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit seeking interlocutory review of that class certification decision.  

·

Flo & Eddie New York Case.  In November 2014, the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York ruled that New York common law grants a public performance right to owners of pre-1972 recordings.  The Court denied our motion for summary judgment on liability.  In April 2015, the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit granted our petition for interlocutory review of that decision.  

·

Flo & Eddie Florida Case.  In June 2015, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida ruled that Florida common law does not grant a public performance right to owners of pre-1972 recordings.  In July 2015, Flo & Eddie filed a notice of appeal of that decision.

·

Capitol Records Case.  In October 2014, the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles adopted the Flo & Eddie California court’s interpretation of California law and granted plaintiffs’ motion for a jury instruction providing, in relevant part: “The owner of a sound recording ‘fixed’ (i.e., recorded) prior to February 15, 1972, possesses a property interest and exclusive ownership rights in that sound recording … [that] include[s] the exclusive right to publicly perform, or authorize others to publicly perform, the sound recording by means of digital transmission.”  The Court did not make any finding of liability.  In June 2015, we entered into a settlement agreement with the plaintiffs, Capitol Records LLC, Sony Music Entertainment, UMG Recordings, Inc., Warner Music Group Corp. and ABKCO Music & Records, Inc., to settle the case in its entirety.  Pursuant to the settlement agreement, we agreed to pay the plaintiffs, in the aggregate, $210,000 on or before July 31, 2015 and the plaintiffs will dismiss the case with prejudice.  The settlement resolves all past claims as to our use of pre-1972 recordings owned or controlled by the plaintiffs and enables us, without any additional payment, to reproduce, perform and broadcast such recordings in the United States through December 31, 2017.  As part of the settlement, we have the right, to be exercised before December 31, 2017, to enter into a license with each plaintiff to reproduce, perform and broadcast pre-1972 recordings owned or controlled by the plaintiffs from January 1, 2018 through December 31, 2022.  The royalty rate for each such license will be determined by negotiation or, if the parties are unable to agree, binding arbitration.  The plaintiffs have represented and warranted to us that in the United States they own, control or otherwise have the right to settle with respect to approximately 80% of the pre-1972 recordings we have historically played.  

 

Pursuant to this settlement, we recorded $210,000 to Accounts payable and accrued expenses within our unaudited consolidated balance sheets as of June 30, 2015 and recognized $107,658 to Revenue share and royalties within our unaudited statements of comprehensive income during the three and six months ended June 30, 2015 related to the period prior to June 30, 2015.  Of the remaining $102,342 of the settlement, $38,665 was recorded to Other current assets and $63,677 was recorded to Other long-term assets within our unaudited consolidated balance sheets as of June 30, 2015, which will be amortized to Revenue share and royalties within our unaudited statements of comprehensive income over the future service period of July 2015 through December 2017.  

At this point we cannot estimate the reasonably possible loss, or range of loss, which could be incurred if the plaintiff in the Flo & Eddie cases were to prevail in its allegations, but we believe we have substantial defenses to the claims asserted.  We are defending these actions vigorously.

In addition, in August 2013, SoundExchange, Inc. filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia alleging that we underpaid royalties for statutory licenses during the 2007-2012 rate period in violation of the regulations established by the Copyright Royalty Board for that period.  SoundExchange principally alleges that we improperly reduced our calculation of gross revenues, on which the royalty payments are based, by deducting non-recognized revenue attributable to pre-1972 recordings and Premier package revenue that is not “separately charged” as required by the regulations.  SoundExchange is seeking compensatory damages of not less than $50,000 and up to $100,000 or more, payment of late fees and interest, and attorneys’ fees and costs.

In August 2014, the United States District Court for the District of Columbia granted our motion to dismiss the complaint without prejudice on the grounds that the case properly should be pursued before the Copyright Royalty Board rather than the district court.  In December 2014, SoundExchange filed a petition with the Copyright Royalty Board requesting an order interpreting the applicable regulations.  At this point we cannot estimate the reasonably possible loss, or range of loss, which could be incurred if the plaintiffs were to prevail in the allegations, but we believe we have substantial defenses to the claims asserted.  We intend to defend this action vigorously.

This matter is titled SoundExchange, Inc. v. Sirius XM Radio, Inc.. No.13-cv-1290-RJL (D.D.C.), and Determination of Rates and Terms for Preexisting Subscription Services and Satellite Digital Audio Radio Services, United States Copyright Royalty Board, No. 2006-1 CRB DSTRA.  Additional information concerning each of these actions is publicly available in filings under their docket numbers.

Telephone Consumer Protection Act Suits.  We are a defendant in several purported class action suits, which were commenced in February 2012, January 2013, January 2015, April 2015 and July 2015, in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia, Newport News Division, the United States District Court for the Southern District of California, the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida that allege that we, or certain call center vendors acting on our behalf, made numerous calls which violate provisions of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act of 1991 (the “TCPA”).  The plaintiffs in these actions allege, among other things, that we called mobile phones using an automatic telephone dialing system without the consumer’s prior consent or, alternatively, after the consumer revoked their prior consent and, in one of the actions, that we violated the TCPA’s call time restrictions.  The plaintiffs in these suits are seeking various forms of relief, including statutory damages of five-hundred dollars for each violation of the TCPA or, in the alternative, treble damages of up to fifteen-hundred dollars for each knowing and willful violation of the TCPA, as well as payment of interest, attorneys’ fees and costs, and certain injunctive relief prohibiting violations of the TCPA in the future.  Plaintiffs in certain of these suits have filed a motion with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to transfer these purported class actions, and other allegedly related cases, to the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois for consolidated or coordinated pretrial proceedings.  We believe we have substantial defenses to the claims asserted in these actions, and we intend to defend them vigorously.

We have notified certain of our call center vendors of these actions and requested that they defend and indemnify us against these claims pursuant to the provisions of their existing or former agreements with us.  We believe we have valid contractual claims against certain call center vendors in connection with these claims and intend to preserve and pursue our rights to recover from these entities.

These purported class action cases are titled Erik Knutson v. Sirius XM Radio Inc., No. 12-cv-0418-AJB-NLS (S.D. Cal.), Francis W. Hooker v. Sirius XM Radio, Inc., No. 4:13-cv-3 (E.D. Va.), Brian Trenz v. Sirius XM Holdings, Inc. and Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc., No. 15-cv-0044L-BLM (S.D. Cal), Yefim Elikman v. Sirius XM Radio, Inc. and Career Horizons, Inc., No. 1:15-cv-02093 (N.D. Ill.) and Anthony Parker v. Sirius XM Radio, Inc., No. 8:15-cv-01710-JSM-EAJ (M.D. Fla).  Additional information concerning each of these actions is publicly available in court filings under their docket numbers.

With respect to certain matters described above under the captions “Pre-1972 Sound Recording Matters” and “Telephone Consumer Protection Act Suits”, we have determined, based on our current knowledge, that the amount of loss or range of loss, that is reasonably possible is not reasonably estimable.  However, these matters are inherently unpredictable and subject to significant uncertainties, many of which are beyond our control.  As such, there can be no assurance that the final outcome of these matters will not materially and adversely affect our business, financial condition, results of operations, or cash flows.

Other Matters.  In the ordinary course of business, we are a defendant in various other lawsuits and arbitration proceedings, including derivative actions; actions filed by subscribers, both on behalf of themselves and on a class action basis; former employees; parties to contracts or leases; and owners of patents, trademarks, copyrights or other intellectual property. None of these matters, in our opinion, is likely to have a material adverse effect on our business, financial condition or results of operations.