YPPN YAPPN Corporation (CE)

Item 1A. Risk Factors.

The following risk factors should be considered carefully in addition to the other information contained in this report. This report contains forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements relate to future events or our future financial performance. We generally identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “will,” “should,” “expects,” “plans,” “anticipates,” “could,” “intends,” “target,” “projects,” “contemplates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other similar words. These statements are only predictions. The outcome of the events described in these forward-looking statements is subject to known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors that may cause our customers’ or our industry’s actual results, levels of activity, performance or achievements expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements, to differ. “Risk Factors,” “Management’s Discussion and Analysis” and “Business,” as well as other sections in this report, discuss some of the factors that could contribute to these differences.

The forward-looking statements made in this report relate only to events as of the date on which the statements are made. We undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which the statement is made or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events

Investing in our common stock involves a high degree of risk. Before investing in our common stock you should carefully consider the following risks, together with the financial and other information contained in this report. If any of the following risks actually occurs, our business, prospects, financial condition and results of operations could be adversely affected. In that case, the trading price of our common stock would likely decline and you may lose all or a part of your investment.

SHOULD ONE OR MORE OF THE FOREGOING RISKS OR UNCERTAINTIES MATERIALIZE, OR SHOULD THE UNDERLYING ASSUMPTIONS PROVE INCORRECT, ACTUAL RESULTS MAY DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THOSE ANTICIPATED, BELIEVED, ESTIMATED, EXPECTED, INTENDED, OR PLANNED.

Risks Relating to Our Business

Our limited operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our current business and future prospects .

We are transitioning from a development stage company to a growth company and have generated relatively limited revenue to date. We have, prior to the purchase of the Yappn assets, as further described herein, been involved in unrelated businesses. We have limited history in executing our business model which includes, among other things, implementing and completing alpha and beta testing programs, attracting and engaging clients, customers and users, developing methods for providing clients, customers and users with access to our services platform. Our limited operating history makes it difficult to evaluate our current business model and future prospects. 

In light of the costs, uncertainties, delays and difficulties frequently encountered by companies in the early stages of development with limited operating history, there is a significant risk that we will not be able to implement or execute our current business plan, or demonstrate that our business plan is sound; and/or raise sufficient funds in the capital markets to effectuate our business plan. If we cannot execute any one of the foregoing or similar matters relating to our operations, our business may fail.

Competition presents an ongoing threat to the success of our business.

We may face significant competition in our business, including from companies that provide translation, tools to facilitate the sharing of information, companies that enable marketers to display advertising and companies that provide development platforms for applications developers. We may compete with companies that attempt to or offer products that replicate services we provide.

Many of our potential competitors may have significantly greater resources or better competitive positions in certain product segments, geographic regions or user demographics than we do. These factors may allow our competitors to respond more effectively than us to new or emerging technologies and changes in market conditions. We believe that some of our potential users are aware of and actively engaging with other products and services similar to, or as a substitute for, Yappn. In the event that our users increasingly engage with other products and services, we may experience a decline in our business prospects. 

Our competitors may develop products, features, or services that are similar to ours or that achieve greater acceptance, may undertake more far-reaching and successful product development efforts or marketing campaigns, or may adopt more aggressive pricing policies. Certain competitors could use strong or dominant positions in one or more market areas not serviced by Yappn to gain competitive advantage against us in areas where we operate. As a result, our competitors may acquire and engage clients at the expense of the growth or engagement, which may negatively affect our business and financial results. We believe that our ability to compete effectively will depend upon many factors both within and beyond our control, including:

If we are not able to compete effectively, our customer base and level of user engagement may decrease, which could make us less attractive to marketers and materially and adversely affect our revenue and results of operations.

As previously explained, implementation of our business plan will require debt or equity financing until we are out of the developmental stage and can generate sufficient cash flows from operations. Competition may require increased needs for operating cash to meet such challenges. 

Our new products and changes to existing products could fail to generate revenue.

Our ability to retain, increase, and engage our customer base and to escalate our revenue will depend heavily on our ability to enhance our current products and create successful new products. We may introduce significant changes to our existing products or develop and introduce new and unproven products, including using technologies with which we have little or no prior development or operating experience. If new or enhanced products fail to engage clients, we may fail to attract or retain clients or to generate sufficient revenue, operating margin, or other value to justify our investments, and our business may be adversely affected. In the future, we may invest in new products and initiatives to generate revenue, but there is no guarantee these approaches will be successful. If we are not successful with new approaches to monetization, we may not be able to maintain or grow our revenue as anticipated or recover any associated development costs, and our financial results could be adversely affected.

One customer has accounted for a significant portion of our business.

We have derived, in recent history, a significant portion of our revenues from one customer. For example, this customer accounted for a total of 83% of our revenues for the year ended May 31, 2016 (90% - May 31, 2015). As part of a recent acquisition of this customer’s technology, there are no further billings to this customer. The loss of this customer and the related non-payment of outstanding amounts due to our company from this customer could materially and adversely affect our results of operations, financial position and liquidity. 

Our costs are continuing to grow, which could harm our business model and profitability.

Developing the Yappn platform has been a costly undertaking and we expect our expenses to continue to increase in the future as we implement and complete continued rollout of our services and platform, build up our client base and develop and implement new product features. We expect that we will incur increasing costs to support our anticipated future growth. In addition, our costs may increase as we hire additional employees, particularly as a result of the significant competition that we face to attract and retain technical talent. Our expenses may continue to grow faster than our revenue over time. Our expenses may be greater than we anticipate, and our investments may not be successful. In addition, we may increase marketing, sales, and other operating expenses in order to grow and expand our operations and to remain competitive. Increases in our costs may adversely affect our business and profitability.

Our business is subject to complex and evolving U.S. and foreign laws and regulations regarding privacy, data protection, and other matters. Many of these laws and regulations are subject to change and uncertain interpretation and could result in claims, monetary penalties, increased cost of operations, or declines in user growth or engagement, or otherwise harm our new business model.

We are subject to a variety of laws and regulations in the United States and abroad that involve matters central to our business, including user privacy, rights of publicity, data protection, content, intellectual property, distribution, electronic contracts and other communications, competition, protection of minors, consumer protection, taxation, securities law compliance, and online payment services. The introduction of new products may subject us to additional laws and regulations. In addition, foreign data protection, privacy, and other laws and regulations are often more restrictive than those in the United States. These U.S. federal and state as well as foreign laws and regulations, which can be enforced by private parties or government entities, are constantly evolving and can be subject to significant change. In addition, the application and interpretation of these laws and regulations are often uncertain, particularly in the new and rapidly evolving industry in which we operate. For example, the interpretation of some laws and regulations that govern the use of names and likenesses in connection with advertising and marketing activities is unsettled and developments in this area could affect the manner in which we design our products, as well as our terms of use. A number of proposals are pending before federal, state, and foreign legislative and regulatory bodies that could significantly affect our business. For example, a revision to the 1995 European Union Data Protection Directive is currently being considered by European legislative bodies that may include more stringent operational requirements for data processors and significant penalties for non-compliance. Similarly, there have been a number of recent legislative proposals in the United States, at both the federal and state level, that would impose new obligations in areas such as privacy and liability for copyright infringement by third parties. These existing and proposed laws and regulations can be costly to comply with and can delay or impede the development of new products, result in negative publicity, increase our operating costs, require significant management time and attention, and subject us to inquiries or investigations, claims or other remedies, including fines or demands that we modify or cease existing business practices.

Because from time to time we hold a portion of our cash reserves in Canadian dollars and have a portion of our operating expenses in Canadian dollars, we may experience losses due to foreign exchange translations.  

From time to time we hold a portion of our cash reserves in Canadian dollars. Due to foreign exchange rate fluctuations, the value of these Canadian dollar reserves can result in translation gains or losses in U.S. dollar terms. If there was a significant decline in the Canadian dollar versus the U.S. dollar, our converted Canadian dollar cash balances presented in U.S. dollars on our balance sheet would significantly decline. If the US dollar significantly declines relative to the Canadian dollar our quoted US dollar cash position would significantly decline as it would be more expensive in US dollar terms to pay Canadian dollar expenses. We have not entered into derivative instruments to offset the impact of foreign exchange fluctuations. Such foreign exchange declines could cause us to experience losses.

If we are unable to protect our intellectual property, the value of our brand and other intangible assets may be diminished, and our business may be adversely affected.

We rely and expect to continue to rely on a combination of confidentiality and license agreements with our employees, consultants, and third parties with whom we have relationships, as well as trademark, copyright, patent, trade secret, and domain name protection laws, to protect our proprietary rights. In the future we may acquire additional patents or patent portfolios, which could require significant cash expenditures. Third parties may knowingly or unknowingly infringe our proprietary rights, third parties may challenge proprietary rights held by us, and pending and future trademark and patent applications may not be approved. In addition, effective intellectual property protection may not be available in every country in which we operate or intend to operate our business. In any or all of these cases, we may be required to expend significant time and expense in order to prevent infringement or to enforce our rights. Although we have taken measures to protect our proprietary rights, there can be no assurance that others will not offer products or concepts that are substantially similar to ours and compete with our business.

In addition, from time to time, we may contribute software source code under open source licenses and make other technology we develop available under other open licenses, and include open source software in our products. As a result of any open source contributions and the use of open source in our products, we may license or be required to license innovations that turn out to be material to our business and may also be exposed to increased litigation risk. If the protection of our proprietary rights is inadequate to prevent unauthorized use or appropriation by third parties, the value of our brand and other intangible assets may be diminished and competitors may be able to more effectively mimic our service and methods of operations. Any of these events could have an adverse effect on our business and financial results.

Our business will be dependent on our ability to maintain and scale our technical infrastructure, and any significant disruption in our service could damage our reputation, result in a potential loss of customers, and adversely affect our financial results.

Our reputation and ability to attract, retain, and serve our users may be dependent upon the reliable performance of the Yappn platform and our underlying technical infrastructure. Performance delays or outages could be harmful to our business. If Yappn’s technology is unavailable when customers attempt to access it, or if it does not load as quickly as they expect, customers may not return to our service in the future, or cancel service with us. As Yappn continues to grow, we will need an increasing amount of technical infrastructure, including network capacity, and computing power, to continue to satisfy the needs of our customers. It is possible that we may fail to effectively scale and grow our technical infrastructure to accommodate these increased demands. In addition, our business is subject to interruptions, delays, or failures resulting from our cloud services provider and / or factors beyond the normal control of Yappn.

We believe that a substantial portion of our network infrastructure will be provided by third parties. Any disruption or failure in the services we receive from these providers could harm our ability to handle existing or increased traffic and could significantly harm our business. Any financial or other difficulties these providers face may adversely affect our business, and we exercise little control over these providers, which increases our vulnerability to problems with the services they provide.

We are exposed to general economic conditions, which could have a materially adverse impact on our business, operating results and financial condition.

Recently there have been adverse conditions and uncertainty in the global economy as the result of unstable global financial and credit markets, inflation, and recession. These unfavorable economic conditions and the weakness of the credit market may continue to have an impact on our Company’s business and financial condition. The current global macroeconomic environment may affect our Company’s ability to access the capital markets and may be severely restricted at a time when our Company wishes or needs to access such markets, which could have a materially adverse impact on our Company’s flexibility to react to changing economic and business conditions or to carry on our operations.

We could experience unforeseen difficulties in building and operating key portions of our technical infrastructure.

We intend to design and build software that will rely upon cloud computing infrastructure and we may also develop our own data centers and technical infrastructure through which we intend to service our products. These undertakings are complex, and unanticipated delays in the completion of these projects or availability of components may lead to increased project costs, operational inefficiencies, or interruptions in the delivery or degradation of the quality of our products. In addition, there may be issues related to this infrastructure that are not identified during the testing phases of design and implementation, which may only become evident after we have started to fully utilize the underlying equipment, that could further degrade the customer experience or increase our costs. 

Our software is highly technical, and if it contains undetected errors, our business could be adversely affected.

Our products incorporate software that is highly technical and complex. Our software has contained, and may now or in the future contain, undetected errors, bugs, or vulnerabilities. Some errors in our software code may only be discovered after the code has been released. Any errors, bugs, or vulnerabilities discovered in our code after release could result in damage to our reputation, loss of users, loss of revenue, or liability for damages, any of which could adversely affect our business and financial results.

Our business may be impacted by information technology system failures or network disruptions.

We may be subject to information technology system failures and network disruptions. These may be caused by natural disasters, accidents, power disruptions, telecommunications failures, acts of terrorism or war, computer viruses, physical or electronic break-ins, or other events or disruptions. Such failures or disruptions could, among other things, prevent access to our services, compromise our delivery of services or customer data, and result in delayed or cancelled use of our services. Such failures or disruptions can have materially adverse impact on the Company’s financial condition and operating results.

The loss of one or more of our key personnel, or our failure to attract and retain other highly qualified personnel in the future, could harm our business.

We currently depend on the continued services and performance of Edward Karthaus, Craig McCannell, Anthony R. Pearlman, and Steven Taylor, our Chief Executive Officer and a director, Chief Financial Officer, Chief Technology Officer, and Chief Sales Officer, respectively.

As we continue to grow, we cannot guarantee we will be able to attract the personnel we need to achieve a competitive position. In particular, we intend to hire technical and sales personnel in fiscal 2017, and we expect to face significant competition from other companies in hiring such personnel. As we mature, the incentives to attract, retain, and motivate employees provided by our equity awards or by future arrangements may not be as effective as in the past, and if we issue significant equity to attract additional employees, the ownership of our existing stockholders may be further diluted. If we do not succeed in attracting, hiring, and integrating excellent personnel, or retaining and motivating existing personnel, we may be unable to grow effectively.

Risks Relating to our Organization and our Common Stock

Difficulties we may encounter managing our growth could adversely affect our results of operations.

If we experience a period of rapid and substantial growth, and if such growth continues, we will continue to place a strain on our limited administrative infrastructure. As our needs expand, we may need to hire a significant number of employees. This expansion could place a significant strain on our managerial and financial resources. To manage the possible growth of our operations and personnel, we will be required to:

We may not be able to install adequate management information and control systems in an efficient and timely manner, and our current or planned personnel, systems, procedures and controls may not be adequate to support our future operations. If we are unable to manage growth effectively, our business would be seriously harmed.

Failure to achieve and maintain effective internal controls in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act could have a material adverse effect on our business and operating results.

It may be time consuming, difficult and costly for us to develop and implement the additional internal controls, processes and reporting procedures required by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. We may need to hire additional financial reporting, internal auditing and other finance staff in order to develop and implement appropriate additional internal controls, processes and reporting procedures.

If we fail to comply in a timely manner with the requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act regarding internal control over financial reporting or to remedy any material weaknesses in our internal controls that we may identify, such failure could result in material misstatements in our financial statements, cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information and have a negative effect on the trading price of our common stock.

Although management does not anticipate having to fully comply with section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act in the next fiscal year, it is important to note, pursuant to Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and current SEC regulations, if we do meet the requirements to fully comply with section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act we are required to prepare assessments regarding internal controls over financial reporting and, furnish a report by our management on our internal control over financial reporting. Failure to achieve and maintain an effective internal control environment or complete our Section 404 certifications could have a materially adverse effect on our stock price.

In addition, in connection with a future possible assessment of the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting, we may discover “material weaknesses” in our internal controls as defined in standards established by the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or the PCAOB. A material weakness is a significant deficiency, or combination of significant deficiencies, that results in more than a remote likelihood that a material misstatement of the annual or interim financial statements will not be prevented or detected. The PCAOB defines “significant deficiency” as a deficiency that results in more than a remote likelihood that a misstatement of the financial statements that is more than inconsequential will not be prevented or detected.

In the event that a material weakness is identified in the future, we will employ qualified personnel and adopt and implement policies and procedures to address any material weaknesses that we identify. However, the process of designing and implementing effective internal controls is a continuous effort that would require us to anticipate and react to changes in our business and the economic and regulatory environments and to expend significant resources to maintain a system of internal controls that is adequate to satisfy our reporting obligations as a public company. We cannot assure you that the measures we will take will remediate any material weaknesses that we may identify or that we will implement and maintain adequate controls over our financial process and reporting in the future.

If applicable in the future, any failure to complete our assessment of our internal control over financial reporting, to remediate any material weaknesses that we may identify or to implement new or improved controls, or difficulties encountered in their implementation, could harm our operating results, cause us to fail to meet our reporting obligations or result in material misstatements in our financial statements. Any such failure could also adversely affect the results of the periodic management evaluations of our internal controls and, in the case of a failure to remediate any material weaknesses that we may identify, it would adversely affect the annual auditor attestation reports regarding the effectiveness of our internal control over financial reporting that are required under Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Inadequate internal controls could also cause investors to lose confidence in our reported financial information, which could have a negative effect on the trading price of our common stock. 

Our stock price may be volatile.

The stock market in general has experienced volatility that often has been unrelated to the operating performance of any specific public company. The market price of our common stock is likely to be highly volatile and could fluctuate widely in price in response to various factors, many of which are beyond our control, including the following:

In addition, the securities markets have from time to time experienced significant price and volume fluctuations that are unrelated to the operating performance of particular companies. These market fluctuations may also materially and adversely affect the market price of our common stock.

The market for our common shares is characterized by significant price volatility when compared to seasoned issuers and we expect that our share price will continue to be more volatile than a seasoned issuer for the indefinite future. The volatility in our share price is attributable to a number of factors. First, as noted above, our common shares are sporadically and thinly traded. As a consequence of this lack of liquidity, the trading of relatively small quantities of shares by our shareholders may disproportionately influence the price of those shares in either direction. The price for our shares could, for example, decline precipitously in the event that a large number of our common shares are sold on the market without commensurate demand, as compared to a seasoned issuer which could better absorb those sales without adverse impact on its share price. Secondly, we are a speculative or “risky” investment due to our limited operating history and lack of profits to date and uncertainty of future market acceptance for our potential products. As a consequence of this enhanced risk, more risk-adverse investors may, under the fear of losing all or most of their investment in the event of negative news or lack of progress, be more inclined to sell their shares on the market more quickly and at greater discounts than would be the case with the stock of a seasoned issuer. Many of these factors are beyond our control and may decrease the market price of our common shares, regardless of our operating performance. We cannot make any predictions or projections as to what the prevailing market price for our common shares will be at any time, including as to whether our common shares will sustain their current market prices, or as to what effect that the sale of shares or the availability of common shares for sale at any time will have on the prevailing market price.

Shareholders should be aware that, according to SEC Release No. 34-29093, the market for penny stocks has suffered in recent years from patterns of fraud and abuse. Such patterns include (1) control of the market for the security by one or a few broker-dealers that are often related to the promoter or issuer; (2) manipulation of prices through prearranged matching of purchases and sales and false and misleading press releases; (3) boiler room practices involving high-pressure sales tactics and unrealistic price projections by inexperienced sales persons; (4) excessive and undisclosed bid-ask differential and markups by selling broker-dealers; and (5) the wholesale dumping of the same securities by promoters and broker-dealers after prices have been manipulated to a desired level, along with the resulting inevitable collapse of those prices and with consequent investor losses. Our management is aware of the abuses that have occurred historically in the penny stock market. Although we do not expect to be in a position to dictate the behavior of the market or of broker-dealers who participate in the market, management will strive within the confines of practical limitations to prevent the described patterns from being established with respect to our securities. The occurrence of these patterns or practices could increase the volatility of our share price.

Volatility in our common share price may subject us to securities litigation, thereby diverting our resources that may have a material effect on our profitability and results of operations.

As discussed in the preceding risk factors, the market for our common shares is characterized by significant price volatility when compared to seasoned issuers, and we expect that our share price will continue to be more volatile than a seasoned issuer for the indefinite future. In the past, plaintiffs have often initiated securities class action litigation against a company following periods of volatility in the market price of its securities. We may in the future be the target of similar litigation. Securities litigation could result in substantial costs and liabilities and could divert management’s attention and resources.

We have not paid dividends in the past and do not expect to pay dividends in the future. Any return on investment may be limited to the value of our common stock.

We have never paid cash dividends on our common stock and do not anticipate doing so in the foreseeable future. The payment of dividends on our common stock will depend on earnings, financial condition and other business and economic factors affecting us at such time as our board of directors may consider relevant. If we do not pay dividends, our common stock may be less valuable because a return on investment will only occur if our stock price appreciates.

Our common stock may be considered a “penny stock,” and thereby be subject to additional sale and trading regulations that may make it more difficult to sell.

Our common stock is considered to be a “penny stock.” It does not qualify for one of the exemptions from the definition of “penny stock” under Section 3a51-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, or the Exchange Act. Our common stock is a “penny stock” because it meets one or more of the following conditions (i) the stock trades at a price less than $5.00 per share; (ii) it is not traded on a “recognized” national exchange, or (iii) it is not quoted on the NASDAQ Global Market. The principal result or effect of being designated a “penny stock” is that securities broker-dealers participating in sales of our common stock are subject to the “penny stock” regulations set forth in Rules 15-2 through 15g-9 promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act. For example, Rule 15g-2 requires broker-dealers dealing in penny stocks to provide potential investors with a document disclosing the risks of penny stocks and to obtain a manually signed and dated written receipt of the document at least two business days before effecting any transaction in a penny stock for the investor's account. Moreover, Rule 15g-9 requires broker-dealers in penny stocks to approve the account of any investor for transactions in such stocks before selling any penny stock to that investor. This procedure requires the broker-dealer to (i) obtain from the investor information concerning his or her financial situation, investment experience and investment objectives; (ii) reasonably determine, based on that information, that transactions in penny stocks are suitable for the investor and that the investor has sufficient knowledge and experience as to be reasonably capable of evaluating the risks of penny stock transactions; (iii) provide the investor with a written statement setting forth the basis on which the broker-dealer made the determination in (ii) above; and (iv) receive a signed and dated copy of such statement from the investor, confirming that it accurately reflects the investor's financial situation, investment experience and investment objectives. Compliance with these requirements may make it more difficult and time consuming for holders of our common stock to resell their shares to third parties or to otherwise dispose of them in the market or otherwise.

FINRA sales practice requirements may also limit a stockholder's ability to buy and sell our stock.

In addition to the “penny stock” rules described above, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has adopted rules that require that in recommending an investment to a customer, a broker-dealer must have reasonable grounds for believing that the investment is suitable for that customer. Prior to recommending speculative low priced securities to their non-institutional customers, broker-dealers must make reasonable efforts to obtain information about the customer's financial status, tax status, investment objectives and other information. Under interpretations of these rules, FINRA believes that there is a high probability that speculative low priced securities will not be suitable for at least some customers. FINRA requirements make it more difficult for broker-dealers to recommend that their customers buy our common stock, which may limit your ability to buy and sell our stock and have an adverse effect on the market for our shares.

Offers or availability for sale of a substantial number of shares of our common stock may cause the price of our common stock to decline.

If our stockholders sell substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market upon the expiration of any statutory holding period, under Rule 144, expiration of any lock-up agreements, or issued upon the exercise of outstanding options or warrants, it could create a circumstance commonly referred to as an “overhang” and in anticipation of which the market price of our common stock could fall. The existence of an overhang, whether or not sales have occurred or are occurring, also could make more difficult our ability to raise additional financing through the sale of equity or equity-related securities in the future at a time and price that we deem reasonable or appropriate.

Exercise of options, warrants, and converting any debt may have a dilutive effect on our common stock.

If the price per share of our common stock at the time of exercise of any warrants, options or any other convertible securities is in excess of the various exercise or conversion prices of such convertible securities, exercise or conversion of such convertible securities would have a dilutive effect on our common stock. Further, any additional financing that we secure may require the granting of rights, preferences or privileges senior to those of our common stock and which could result in additional dilution of the existing ownership interests of our common stockholders.

Investor relations activities, nominal “float” and supply and demand (limited supply) factors may affect the price of our common stock.

We expect to utilize various techniques such as non-deal road shows and investor relations campaigns in order to create investor awareness for our company. These campaigns may include personal, video and telephone conferences with investors and prospective investors in which our business model is described, as well as newsletters, emails, mailings and/or video or print distributions that describe our business model. We may provide compensation to investor relations firms and pay for newsletters, websites, mailings and email campaigns that are produced by third-parties based upon publicly-available information concerning us. We will not be responsible for the content of analyst reports and other writings and communications by investor relations firms not authored by us or from publicly available information. We do not intend to review or approve the content of such analysts’ reports or other materials based upon analysts’ own research or methods. Investor relations firms should generally disclose when they are compensated for their efforts, but whether such disclosure is made or complete is not under our control. Our investors may be willing, from time to time, to encourage investor awareness through similar activities. Investor awareness activities may also be suspended or discontinued which may impact the trading market of our common stock.

The SEC and FINRA enforce various statutes and regulations intended to prevent manipulative or deceptive devices in connection with the purchase or sale of any security and carefully scrutinize trading patterns and company news and other communications for false or misleading information, particularly in cases where the hallmarks of “pump and dump” activities may exist, such as rapid share price increases or decreases. We and our shareholders may be subjected to enhanced regulatory scrutiny due to the small number of holders who initially will own the registered shares of our common stock publicly available for resale, and the limited trading markets in which such shares may be offered or sold which have often been associated with improper activities concerning penny-stocks, such as the OTC Bulletin Board or the OTCQB Marketplace (Pink OTC) or pink sheets. Until such time as the restricted shares of the Company are registered or available for resale under Rule 144, there will continue to be a small percentage of shares held by a small number of investors, many of whom acquired such shares in privately negotiated purchase and sale transactions at prices that may be significantly lower than the current market price, that will constitute the entire available trading market. The Supreme Court has stated that manipulative action is a term of art connoting intentional or willful conduct designed to deceive or defraud investors by controlling or artificially affecting the price of securities. Often times, manipulation is associated by regulators with forces that upset the supply and demand factors that would normally determine trading prices. A small percentage of our outstanding common stock will initially be available for trading, held by a small number of individuals or entities. Accordingly, the supply of common stock for sale will be extremely limited for an indeterminate amount of time, which could result in higher bids, asks or sales prices than would otherwise exist. Securities regulators have often cited thinly-traded markets, small numbers of holders, and awareness campaigns as components of their claims of price manipulation and other violations of law when combined with manipulative trading, such as wash sales, matched orders or other manipulative trading timed to coincide with false or touting press releases. There can be no assurance that our or third-parties’ activities, or the small number of potential sellers or small percentage of stock in the “float,” or determinations by purchasers or holders as to when or under what circumstances or at what prices they may be willing to buy or sell stock, will not artificially impact (or would be claimed by regulators to have affected) the normal supply and demand factors that determine the price of stock. Our market price should not be relied upon as a valid indicator of our value until such time as a sustained and established market has been established for our common stock.

Our certificate of incorporation allows for our board to create new series of preferred stock without further approval by our stockholders, which could adversely affect the rights of the holders of our common stock.

Our board of directors has the authority to fix and determine the relative rights and preferences of preferred stock. Our board of directors also has the authority to issue preferred stock without further stockholder approval. As a result, our board of directors could authorize the issuance of a series of preferred stock that would grant to holders the preferred right to our assets upon liquidation, the right to receive dividend payments before dividends are distributed to the holders of common stock and the right to the redemption of the shares, together with a premium, prior to the redemption of our common stock. In addition, our board of directors could authorize the issuance of a series of preferred stock that has greater voting power than our common stock or that is convertible into our common stock, which could decrease the relative voting power of our common stock or result in dilution to our existing stockholders.

Public disclosure requirements and compliance with changing regulation of corporate governance pose challenges for our management team and result in additional expenses and costs which may reduce the focus of management and the profitability of our company.

Changing laws, regulations and standards relating to corporate governance and public disclosure, including the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act and the rules and regulations promulgated thereunder, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and SEC regulations, have created uncertainty for public companies and significantly increased the costs and risks associated with accessing the U.S. public markets. Our management team will need to devote significant time and financial resources to comply with both existing and evolving standards for public companies, which will lead to increased general and administrative expenses and a diversion of management time and attention from revenue generating activities to compliance activities.

SHOULD ONE OR MORE OF THE FOREGOING RISKS OR UNCERTAINTIES MATERIALIZE, OR SHOULD THE UNDERLYING ASSUMPTIONS PROVE INCORRECT, ACTUAL RESULTS MAY DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THOSE ANTICIPATED, BELIEVED, ESTIMATED, EXPECTED, INTENDED OR PLANNED