UNITED STATES

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION

WASHINGTON, D. C. 20549

FORM 10-Q

For the quarterly period ended March 31, 2015 

OR

For the transition period from                             to                             

Commission File Number 001-33982

LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION

(Exact name of Registrant as specified in its charter)

 

 

Registrant's telephone number, including area code: (720) 875-5300

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 ☒   No 

Indicate by check mark whether the registrant has submitted electronically and posted on its corporate Web site, if any, every Interactive Data File required to be submitted and posted pursuant to Rule 405 of Regulation S-T (§232.405 of this chapter) during the preceding 12 months (or for such shorter period that the registrant was required to submit and post such files). Yes ☒    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.

 

 

Indicate by check mark whether the Registrant is a shell company as defined in Rule 12b-2 of the Exchange Act. Yes     No ☒

The number of outstanding shares of Liberty Interactive Corporation's common stock as of April 30, 2015 was:

 

 

 

 

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Table of Contents

 

 

 

 

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LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets

(unaudited)

 

 

 

(continued)

 

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

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LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Continued)

(unaudited)

 

 

 

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

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LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

Condensed Consolidated Statements Of Operations

(unaudited)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

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LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

Condensed Consolidated Statements Of Operations (Continued)

(unaudited)

 

 

 

 

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

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LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

Condensed Consolidated Statements Of Comprehensive Earnings (Loss)

(unaudited)

 

 

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

 

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See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

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LIBERTY INTERACTIVE CORPORATION AND SUBSIDIARIES

Condensed Consolidated Statement Of Equity

(unaudited)

Three months ended March 31, 2015

 

 

See accompanying notes to condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

 

 

 

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(1)   Basis of Presentation

The accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Liberty Interactive Corporation and its controlled subsidiaries (collectively, "Liberty" or the "Company" unless the context otherwise requires). All significant intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Liberty, through its ownership of interests in subsidiaries and other companies, is primarily engaged in the video and on-line commerce industries in North America, Europe and Asia.

The accompanying (a) condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2014, which has been derived from audited financial statements, and (b) the interim unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP") for interim financial information and the instructions to Form 10-Q and Article 10 of Regulation S-X as promulgated by the Securities and Exchange Commission. Accordingly, they do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. In the opinion of management, all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring accruals) considered necessary for a fair presentation of the results for such periods have been included. Additionally, certain prior period amounts have been reclassified for comparability with current period presentation. These condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and notes thereto contained in Liberty's Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Liberty considers (i) fair value measurement, (ii) accounting for income taxes, (iii) assessments of other-than-temporary declines in fair value of its investments and (iv) estimates of retail-related adjustments and allowances to be its most significant estimates.

In May 2014, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued new accounting guidance on revenue from contracts with customers.  The new guidance requires an entity to recognize the amount of revenue to which it expects to be entitled for the transfer of promised goods or services to customers. The updated guidance will replace most existing revenue recognition guidance in GAAP when it becomes effective and permits the use of either a retrospective or cumulative effect transition method. This guidance is effective for fiscal years, and interim periods within those fiscal years, beginning after December 15, 2016 but a proposal has been issued to extend the effective date to those fiscal years beginning after December 31, 2017.  The Company has not yet selected a transition method and is currently evaluating the effect that the updated standard will have on its revenue recognition but does not believe that the standard will significantly impact its financial statements and related disclosures.

In April 2015, the FASB issued new accounting guidance on the presentation of debt issuance costs,  which requires debt issuance costs related to a recognized debt liability to be presented on the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the debt liability. The new guidance intends to simplify the presentation of debt issuance costs. This standard will more closely align the presentation of debt issuance costs under GAAP with the presentation under comparable International Financial Reporting Standards. The new standard is effective for the Company on January 1, 2016. Early application is permitted. The standard requires the use of the retrospective transition method. The Company is evaluating the effect that the new guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements and related disclosures. The Company has not yet determined the effect of the standard on its ongoing financial reporting.

As a result of the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off (defined in note 3) and repurchases of Series A Liberty Interactive common stock, the Company’s additional paid-in capital balance was in a deficit position as of March 31, 2015. In order to maintain a zero balance in the additional paid-in capital account, we reclassified the amount of the deficit ($87 million) to retained earnings as of March 31, 2015.

Liberty holds investments that are accounted for using the equity method. Liberty does not control the decision making process or business management practices of these affiliates. Accordingly, Liberty relies on management of these

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affiliates to provide it with accurate financial information prepared in accordance with GAAP that Liberty uses in the application of the equity method. In addition, Liberty relies on audit reports that are provided by the affiliates' independent auditors on the financial statements of such affiliates. The Company is not aware, however, of any errors in or possible misstatements of the financial information provided by its equity affiliates that would have a material effect on Liberty's condensed consolidated financial statements.

Liberty has entered into certain agreements with Liberty Media Corporation ("LMC"), a separate publicly traded company, neither of which has any stock ownership, beneficial or otherwise, in the other, in order to govern relationships between the companies. These agreements include a Reorganization Agreement, Services Agreement, Facilities Sharing Agreement and Tax Sharing Agreement.

The Reorganization Agreement provides for, among other things, provisions governing the relationship between Liberty and LMC, including certain cross-indemnities. Pursuant to the Services Agreement, LMC provides Liberty with certain general and administrative services including legal, tax, accounting, treasury and investor relations support. Liberty reimburses LMC for direct, out-of-pocket expenses incurred by LMC in providing these services and for Liberty's allocable portion of costs associated with any shared services or personnel based on an estimated percentage of time spent providing services to Liberty. Under the Facilities Sharing Agreement, LMC shares office space and related amenities at its corporate headquarters with Liberty. Under these various agreements, approximately $3 million was reimbursable to LMC for each of the three months ended March 31, 2015 and 2014.  Additionally, the Tax Sharing Agreement provides for the allocation and indemnification of tax liabilities and benefits between Liberty and LMC and other agreements related to tax matters.

 

(2)   Tracking Stocks

A tracking stock is a type of common stock that the issuing company intends to reflect or "track" the economic performance of a particular business or "group," rather than the economic performance of the company as a whole. Liberty has two tracking stocks—Liberty Interactive common stock and Liberty Ventures common stock, which are intended to track and reflect the economic performance of the QVC Group and the Ventures Group, respectively.

While the QVC Group and the Ventures Group have separate collections of businesses, assets and liabilities attributed to them, no group is a separate legal entity and therefore cannot own assets, issue securities or enter into legally binding agreements. Holders of tracking stock have no direct claim to the group's stock or assets and are not represented by separate boards of directors. Instead, holders of tracking stock are stockholders of the parent corporation, with a single board of directors and subject to all of the risks and liabilities of the parent corporation.

On October 3, 2014, Liberty announced that its board of directors approved the change in attribution from the QVC Group (referred to as the “Interactive Group” prior to the reattribution) to the Ventures Group of certain of its Digital Commerce companies (defined below) and cash, which was provided by QVC, Inc. (“QVC”) as a result of a draw-down of QVC’s credit facility. In return, holders of Liberty Interactive common stock received a dividend of approximately 67.7 million shares of Liberty Ventures common stock, or 0.14217 of a Liberty Ventures share for each share of Liberty Interactive common stock outstanding on October 13, 2014, the record date of the dividend. The distribution date for the dividend was October 20, 2014, and the Liberty Interactive common stock began trading ex-dividend on October 15, 2014. The reattributed Digital Commerce companies were comprised of Liberty’s consolidated subsidiaries Backcountry.com, Bodybuilding.com, LLC, Provide Commerce, Inc. (“Provide”), CommerceHub, Evite, Inc. and LMC Right Start, Inc. (collectively, the “Digital Commerce” companies). The reattribution of the Digital Commerce companies is presented on a prospective basis from the date of the reattribution in Liberty’s condensed consolidated financial statements and attributed financial information, with October 1, 2014 used as a proxy for the date of the reattribution. In connection with the reattribution, the Liberty Interactive tracking stock trading symbol “LINTA” was changed to "QVCA" and the "LINTB" trading symbol was changed to "QVCB," effective October 7, 2014. Other than the issuance of Liberty Ventures shares in the fourth quarter of 2014, the reattribution of tracking stock groups had no consolidated impact on Liberty.

Provide was included in the Digital Commerce companies prior to the sale of Provide to FTD Companies, Inc. (“FTD”) on December 31, 2014 in exchange for cash and shares of FTD common stock representing approximately 35% of the combined company (see note 8 for additional information related to this transaction). Subsequent to this transaction,

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the Company’s interest in FTD, accounted for under the equity method, is included in the Digital Commerce companies. Given Liberty’s significant continuing involvement with FTD, Provide is not presented as a discontinued operation in the Company’s condensed consolidated financial statements.

The term "QVC Group" does not represent a separate legal entity, rather it represents those businesses, assets and liabilities that have been attributed to that group. Following the reattribution, the QVC Group is primarily comprised of our merchandise-focused televised-shopping programs, Internet and mobile application businesses and has attributed to it our wholly-owned subsidiary QVC and our approximate 38% interest in HSN, Inc., along with cash and certain liabilities that reside with QVC as well as certain liabilities related to our corporate indebtedness (see note 10) and certain deferred tax liabilities. As of March 31, 2015, the QVC Group has cash and cash equivalents of approximately $530 million, which includes subsidiary cash.  

The term "Ventures Group" does not represent a separate legal entity, rather it represents those businesses, assets and liabilities that have been attributed to that group. Following the reattribution, the Ventures Group is primarily comprised of our Digital Commerce businesses and interests in Expedia, Inc., Interval Leisure Group, Inc. and LendingTree, Inc., available-for-sale securities in Time Warner Inc. and Time Warner Cable Inc., as well as cash and cash equivalents of approximately $1,820 million at March 31, 2015. The Ventures Group also has attributed to it certain liabilities related to our Exchangeable Debentures (see note 10) and certain deferred tax liabilities. The Ventures Group is primarily focused on the maximization of the value of these investments and investing in new business opportunities. 

See Exhibit 99.1 to this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q for unaudited attributed financial information for Liberty's tracking stock groups.

(3) Discontinued Operations

On August 27, 2014, Liberty completed the spin-off to holders of its Liberty Ventures common stock shares of its former wholly-owned subsidiary, Liberty TripAdvisor Holdings, Inc. (“TripAdvisor Holdings”) (the “TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off”). TripAdvisor Holdings is comprised of Liberty’s former 22% economic and 57% voting interest in TripAdvisor, Inc. as well as BuySeasons, Inc.,  Liberty’s former wholly-owned subsidiary, and a corporate level net debt balance of $350 million. In connection with the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off during August 2014, TripAdvisor Holdings drew down $400 million in margin loans and distributed approximately $350 million to Liberty. This transaction has been recorded at historical cost due to the pro rata nature of the distribution. Following the completion of the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off, Liberty and TripAdvisor Holdings operate as separate, publicly traded companies, and neither has any stock ownership, beneficial or otherwise, in the other. The condensed consolidated financial statements of Liberty have been prepared to reflect TripAdvisor Holdings as discontinued operations. Accordingly, the revenue, costs and expenses, and cash flows of the businesses, assets and liabilities owned by TripAdvisor Holdings at the time of the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off have been excluded from the respective captions in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations, comprehensive earnings and cash flows in such condensed consolidated financial statements. Additionally, TripAdvisor, Inc. and BuySeasons, Inc. are no longer reflected in the segment financial information for all periods presented.

 

In connection with the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-off, Liberty and TripAdvisor Holdings entered into a tax sharing agreement (the “Tax Sharing Agreement”).  The Tax Sharing Agreement provides for the allocation and indemnification of tax liabilities and benefits between Liberty and TripAdvisor Holdings and other agreements related to tax matters.  Among other things, pursuant to the Tax Sharing Agreement, TripAdvisor Holdings has agreed to indemnify Liberty, subject to certain limited exceptions, for losses and taxes resulting from the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off to the extent such losses or taxes result primarily from, individually or in the aggregate, the breach of certain restrictive covenants made by TripAdvisor Holdings (applicable to actions or failures to act by TripAdvisor Holdings and its subsidiaries following the completion of the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off).

 

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In October 2014, the IRS completed its examination of the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off and notified Liberty that it agreed with the nontaxable characterization of the transaction.  Liberty expects to execute a closing agreement with the IRS documenting this conclusion during 2015.

 

Certain combined financial information for TripAdvisor Holdings, which is included in earnings (loss) from discontinued operations, is as follows (amounts in millions, except per share amounts):

 

 

Earnings per share of discontinued operations

 

The combined impact from discontinued operations, discussed above, is as follows:

 

 

The assets and liabilities included in the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off, and their resulting impacts on the attributed statements of operations, were included in discontinued operations based on which group owned the assets at the time of the TripAdvisor Holdings Spin-Off.

 

(4)   Stock-Based Compensation

The Company has granted to certain of its directors, employees and employees of its subsidiaries, stock appreciation rights ("SARs"), restricted stock, performance-based restricted stock units and options to purchase shares of Liberty common stock (collectively, "Awards"). The Company measures the cost of employee services received in exchange for an equity classified Award (such as stock options and restricted stock) based on the grant-date fair value of the Award, and recognizes that cost over the period during which the employee is required to provide service (usually the vesting period of the Award). The Company measures the cost of employee services received in exchange for a liability classified Award (such as SARs that will be settled in cash) based on the current fair value of the Award, and remeasures the fair value of the Award at each reporting date.

Included in selling, general and administrative expenses in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations are $15 million and $25 million of stock-based compensation during the three months ended March 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively.

 

During the three months ended March 31, 2015, Liberty granted 1.9 million options to QVC employees to purchase shares of Series A Liberty Interactive common stock.  Such options had a weighted average grant-date fair value of $11.92 per share and vest semi-annually over 4 years.

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Also during the three months ended March 31, 2015, Liberty granted to Liberty employees 1.1 million and 308 thousand options to purchase shares of Series A Liberty Interactive common stock and Series A Liberty Ventures common stock, respectively.  Such options had a weighted average grant-date fair value of $12.20 and $17.65 per share, respectively, and each grant contains options that vest over two different periods, annually over three years and 50% on each of December 31, 2019 and 2020.

In connection with our CEO’s employment agreement, Liberty also granted 132 thousand and 135 thousand performance-based options of Series B Liberty Interactive common stock and Series B Liberty Ventures common stock, respectively, and 182 thousand and 13 thousand performance-based restricted stock units of Series B Liberty Interactive common stock and Series B Liberty Ventures common stock, respectively.  Such options had a weighted average grant-date fair value of $10.10 per share and $17.16 per share, respectively. The restricted stock units had a weighted average grant-date fair value of $29.41 per share and $42.33 per share, respectively. The options and restricted stock units cliff vest in one year, subject to satisfaction of certain performance objectives.

The Company has calculated the grant-date fair value for all of its equity classified Awards and any subsequent remeasurement of its liability classified Awards using the Black-Scholes Model. The Company estimates the expected term of the Awards based on historical exercise and forfeiture data. The volatility used in the calculation for Awards is based on the historical volatility of Liberty's stock and the implied volatility of publicly traded Liberty options. The Company uses a zero dividend rate and the risk-free rate for Treasury Bonds with a term similar to that of the subject options.

Liberty—Outstanding Awards

The following tables present the number and weighted average exercise price ("WAEP") of the Awards to purchase Liberty Interactive and Liberty Ventures common stock granted to certain officers, employees and directors of the Company.

 

 

 

 

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As of March 31, 2015, the total unrecognized compensation cost related to unvested Awards was approximately $107 million, including compensation associated with the option exchange that occurred in December 2012. Such amount will be recognized in the Company's consolidated statements of operations over a weighted average period of approximately 2.4 years.

Other

Certain of the Company's other subsidiaries have stock based compensation plans under which employees and non-employees are granted options or similar stock based awards. Awards made under these plans vest and become exercisable over various terms. The awards and compensation recorded, if any, under these plans is not significant to Liberty.

 

 

(5)   Earnings (Loss) Per Common Share

Basic earnings (loss) per common share ("EPS") is computed by dividing net earnings (loss) by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding for the period. Diluted EPS presents the dilutive effect on a per share basis of potential common shares as if they had been converted at the beginning of the periods presented.

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Series A and Series B Liberty Interactive Common Stock

Excluded from diluted EPS, for the three months ended March 31, 2015 and 2014, are 4 million and 2 million potential common shares, respectively, because their inclusion would be antidilutive.

 

 

 

 

Series A and Series B Liberty Ventures Common Stock

 

As discussed in note 11, Liberty completed a two for one stock split on April 11, 2014 on its Series A and Series B Liberty Ventures common stock. Therefore, all prior period outstanding share amounts have been retroactively adjusted for comparability.  Excluded from diluted EPS, for all periods presented, are less than a million potential common shares because their inclusion would be antidilutive.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(6)   Assets and Liabilities Measured at Fair Value

For assets and liabilities required to be reported at fair value, GAAP provides a hierarchy that prioritizes inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value into three broad levels. Level 1 inputs are quoted market prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities that the reporting entity has the ability to access at the measurement date. Level 2 inputs are inputs, other than quoted market prices included within Level 1, that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly or indirectly. Level 3 inputs are unobservable inputs for the asset or liability.

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The Company's assets and liabilities measured at fair value are as follows:

 

 

The majority of the Company's Level 2 financial assets and liabilities are debt instruments with quoted market prices that are not considered to be traded on "active markets," as defined in GAAP. The fair values for such instruments are derived from a typical model using observable market data as the significant inputs. 

Realized and Unrealized Gains (Losses) on Financial Instruments

Realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments are comprised of changes in the fair value of the following:

 

 

 

 

 

(7)   Investments in Available-for-Sale Securities and Other Cost Investments

All marketable equity and debt securities held by the Company are classified as available-for-sale ("AFS") and are carried at fair value based on quoted market prices. GAAP permits entities to choose to measure many financial instruments, such as AFS securities, and certain other items at fair value and to recognize the changes in fair value of such instruments in the entity's statement of operations (the "fair value option"). In prior years, Liberty has historically entered into economic hedges for certain of its non-strategic AFS securities (although such instruments were not accounted for as fair value hedges by the Company). Changes in the fair value of these economic hedges were reflected in Liberty's statements of operations as unrealized gains (losses). In order to better match the changes in fair value of the subject AFS securities and the changes in fair value of the corresponding economic hedges in the Company's financial statements, Liberty elected the fair value option for those of its AFS securities which it considered to be non-strategic ("Fair Value Option Securities"). Accordingly, changes in the fair value of Fair Value Option Securities, as determined by quoted market prices, are reported in realized and unrealized gains (losses) on financial instruments in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations.

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Investments in AFS securities, the majority of which are considered Fair Value Option Securities, and other cost investments are summarized as follows:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

(8)   Investments in Affiliates Accounted for Using the Equity Method

 

Liberty has various investments accounted for using the equity method. The following table includes Liberty's carrying amount, fair value, and percentage ownership of the more significant investments in affiliates at March 31, 2015 and the carrying amount at December 31, 2014:

 

 

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The following table presents Liberty's share of earnings (losses) of affiliates:

 

 

 

 

 

(9)   Intangible Assets

Goodwill

Changes in the carrying amount of goodwill are as follows:

 

 

Intangible Assets Subject to Amortization

Amortization expense for intangible assets with finite useful lives was $129 million and $124 million for the three months ended March 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Based on its amortizable intangible assets as of March 31, 2015, Liberty expects that amortization expense will be as follows for the next five years (amounts in millions):

 

 

 

 

 

 

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(10)   Long-Term Debt

Debt is summarized as follows:

 

 

QVC Senior Secured Notes

QVC was in compliance with all of its debt covenants related to its outstanding senior secured notes at March 31, 2015. 

QVC Bank Credit Facilities

On March 9, 2015, QVC entered into a second amended and restated senior secured credit agreement (the “Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement”) which is a multi-currency facility that provides for a $2.25 billion revolving credit facility with a $250 million sub-limit for standby letters of credit and $1.5 billion of uncommitted incremental revolving loan commitments or incremental term loans. QVC may elect that the loans extended under the senior secured credit facility bear interest at a rate per annum equal to the ABR Rate or LIBOR, as each is defined in the senior secured credit facility agreement, plus a margin of 0.25% to 1.75% depending on various factors. Each loan may be prepaid in whole or in part without penalty other than customary breakage costs. Any amounts prepaid on the revolving facility may

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be reborrowed. Payment of the loans may be accelerated following certain customary events of default. The senior secured credit facility is secured by the capital stock of QVC. The purpose of the amendment was to, among other things, extend the maturity of QVC’s senior secured credit facility to March 9, 2020 and lower the interest rate on borrowings.

 

The interest rate on borrowings outstanding under the QVC Bank Credit Facilities was 1.6% at March 31, 2015. Availability under the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement at March 31, 2015 was $1.8 billion.

 

The Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement contains certain affirmative and negative covenants, including certain restrictions on QVC and each of its restricted subsidiaries (subject to certain exceptions) with respect to, among other things: incurring additional indebtedness; creating liens on property or assets; making certain loans or investments; selling or disposing of assets; paying certain dividends and other restricted payments; dissolving, consolidating or merging; entering into certain transactions with affiliates; entering into sale or leaseback transactions; restricting subsidiary distributions; and limiting QVC’s consolidated leverage ratio. QVC was in compliance with all debt covenants related to the Second Amended and Restated Credit Agreement at March 31, 2015.

 

Exchangeable Senior Debentures

Liberty has elected to account for the exchangeable senior debentures using the fair value option. Accordingly, changes in the fair value of these instruments are recognized as unrealized gains (losses) in the statements of operations.  Liberty reviews the terms of the debentures on a quarterly basis to determine whether a triggering event has occurred to require current classification of the exchangeables upon a call event.  As of March 31, 2015 the balance of the 4% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2029, the 3.75% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2030 and the 3.5% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2031 have been classified as current.

 

As discussed in note 8, HSNi declared a special dividend during January 2015 of $10 per share from which Liberty received approximately $200 million in cash during February 2015.  Pursuant to the terms of the 1% Exchangeable Senior Debentures due 2043 (the “HSNi Exchangeables”), a portion of the special dividend was passed through to the holders of the notes ($54 million) and the outstanding principal balance of the HSNi Exchangeables was reduced during March 2015. Additionally, the portion of the quarterly dividend in excess of the regular cash dividend of $0.18 per share was passed through to bondholders during the three months ended March 31, 2015.

Other Subsidiary Debt

Other subsidiary debt at March 31, 2015 is comprised of capitalized satellite transponder lease obligations and bank debt of certain subsidiaries.

Fair Value of Debt

Liberty estimates the fair value of its debt based on the quoted market prices for the same or similar issues or on the current rate offered to Liberty for debt of the same remaining maturities (Level 2). The fair value of Liberty's publicly traded debt securities that are not reported at fair value in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet at March 31, 2015 are as follows (amounts in millions):

 

 

Due to the variable rate nature, Liberty believes that the carrying amount of its other debt, not discussed above, approximated fair value at March 31, 2015.

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(11)   Stockholders' Equity

As of March 31, 2015, Liberty reserved for issuance upon exercise of outstanding stock options approximately 25.6 million shares of Series A Liberty Interactive common stock, 778 thousand shares of Series B Liberty Interactive common stock, 4.1 million shares of Series A Liberty Ventures common stock and 1.5 million shares of Series B Liberty Ventures common stock.

In addition to the Series A and Series B Liberty Interactive and Liberty Ventures common stock there are 4 billion shares of Series C Liberty Interactive and 200 million shares of Series C Liberty Ventures common stock authorized for issuance. As of March 31, 2015,  no shares of any Series C Liberty Interactive or Liberty Ventures common stock were issued or outstanding. 

On February 27, 2014, Liberty's board approved a two for one stock split of Series A and Series B Liberty Ventures common stock, effected by means of a dividend. The stock split was done in order to bring Liberty into compliance with a Nasdaq listing requirement regarding the minimum number of publicly held shares of the Series B Liberty Ventures common stock. In the stock split, a dividend was paid on April 11, 2014 of one share of Series A or Series B Liberty Ventures common stock to holders of each share of Series A or Series B Liberty Ventures common stock, respectively, held by them as of 5:00 pm, New York City time, on April 4, 2014.  The stock split has been recorded retroactively for all periods presented for comparability purposes.

 

Additionally, as discussed in note 2, on October 3, 2014, Liberty attributed from the QVC Group to the Ventures Group its Digital Commerce companies.  Holders of Liberty Interactive common shares received 0.14217 of a Liberty Ventures share for each share of Liberty Interactive common shares held, as of the record date.  The shares issued and subsequently distributed to Liberty Interactive common stock shareholders in the form of a dividend did not require retroactive treatment. 

 

(12)   Commitments and Contingencies

Litigation

Liberty has contingent liabilities related to legal and tax proceedings and other matters arising in the ordinary course of business. Although it is reasonably possible Liberty may incur losses upon conclusion of such matters, an estimate of any loss or range of loss cannot be made. In the opinion of management, it is expected that amounts, if any, which may be required to satisfy such contingencies will not be material in relation to the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements.

 

 

(13)   Information About Liberty's Operating Segments

Liberty, through its ownership interests in subsidiaries and other companies, is primarily engaged in the video and on-line commerce industries. Liberty identifies its reportable segments as (A) those consolidated subsidiaries that represent 10% or more of its consolidated annual revenue, annual Adjusted OIBDA or total assets and (B) those equity method affiliates whose share of earnings represent 10% or more of Liberty's annual pre-tax earnings.

Liberty evaluates performance and makes decisions about allocating resources to its operating segments based on financial measures such as revenue, Adjusted OIBDA, gross margin, average sales price per unit, number of units shipped and revenue or sales per customer equivalent. In addition, Liberty reviews nonfinancial measures such as unique website visitors, conversion rates and active customers, as appropriate.

Liberty defines Adjusted OIBDA as revenue less cost of sales, operating expenses, and selling, general and administrative expenses excluding all stock-based compensation. Liberty believes this measure is an important indicator of the operational strength and performance of its businesses, including each business's ability to service debt and fund capital expenditures. In addition, this measure allows management to view operating results and perform analytical

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comparisons and benchmarking between businesses and identify strategies to improve performance. This measure of performance excludes depreciation and amortization, stock-based compensation and restructuring and impairment charges that are included in the measurement of operating income pursuant to GAAP. Accordingly, Adjusted OIBDA should be considered in addition to, but not as a substitute for, operating income, net income, cash flow provided by operating activities and other measures of financial performance prepared in accordance with GAAP. Liberty generally accounts for intersegment sales and transfers as if the sales or transfers were to third parties, that is, at current prices.

For the three months ended March 31, 2015, Liberty has identified the following consolidated subsidiary as its reportable segment:

Additionally, for presentation purposes, Liberty is providing financial information of the Digital Commerce businesses on an aggregated basis. The consolidated Digital Commerce businesses do not contribute significantly to the overall operations of Liberty on an individual basis; however, Liberty believes that on an aggregated basis they provide relevant information for users of these financial statements.  While these businesses may not meet the aggregation criteria under relevant accounting literature Liberty believes the information is relevant and helpful for a more complete understanding of the consolidated results.

Liberty's operating segments are strategic business units that offer different products and services. They are managed separately because each segment requires different technologies, distribution channels and marketing strategies.  The accounting policies of the segments are the same as those described in the Company's summary of significant accounting policies in the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2014.

Performance Measures

 

 

 

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Other Information

 

 

The following table provides a reconciliation of segment Adjusted OIBDA to earnings (loss) before income taxes: