Minds + Machines Share Discussion Threads

[hjb1] 10/4/2017 09:35

Embargoed until 07.00 on 21 March 2017



Minds + Machines Group Limited

("mmx" or the "Company")



Business Update and Notice of Results



Minds + Machines Group Limited (AIM: MMX), one of the world's leading owners and operators of Internet Top-Level Domains ("TLDs"), reports significant continued operational progress across a number of business activities since its trading update announced earlier this year in January 2017.



Update on .vip and Asian Expansion Strategy

In May 2016 mmx successfully launched .vip into the Chinese market. Today it has over 586,000 registrations making it a leading gTLD in China as well as one of the top 10 new gTLD's worldwide. Following .vip's success in China, the Company is now looking to target other territories within Asia and is pleased to announce that Japan's leading registrar group, GMO, has commenced marketing .vip into Japan.



GMO accounts for approximately 90% of gTLD registrations in the Japanese market and is an important strategic partner for the Company. Alongside .vip, GMO is also marketing .work, another gTLD in the mmx portfolio.



Given the interest received by mmx from certain new distribution partners in South East Asia and India for certain TLDs within its portfolio, the Company is additionally reviewing its options for extending its retail distribution footprint more widely into these regions.



Within China, the Company is pleased to report that it is participating directly in the auctions of .vip premium names currently being held by eName, one of the leading registrars in China. Within the first five days of the auction, gross sales of .vip premium inventory released by mmx through the auction has reached CNY1.1 million (approx. US$160,000). The eName auctions will run through to the end of March 2017 and continue to evidence the underlying asset value and popularity of .vip in China.



The Board is targeting global registrations of .vip to surpass one million by the end of 2017.



mmx is additionally progressing submissions to MIIT, China's regulatory body for the Internet, on up to a further eight of its wholly owned TLDs, which (if approved) will allow mmx to target the growing Chinese SME market with its extensions. China currently accounts for over 46% of new generic top-level domains ("new gTLDs") and remains a growing and important market.



Positive Pricing Changes in US and Europe and Launch of .boston

In the US, mmx continues to strengthen its distribution and sales channels team with the appointment of a highly experienced new business development director who will focus on further monetisation of mmx's premium inventory across its portfolio of TLDs in North America.



This strategic appointment follows the Company's announcement of its revised premium inventory renewal pricing policy to the industry in January this year; and an extensive re-pricing exercise the Company is currently completing across all of its premium inventory which will result in improved premium pricing being released to its retail partners in the second and third quarters of the current financial year. The Board believes this should lead to further margin enhancement.



Separately, .boston, an important Company asset, is scheduled to be released for 'general availability' in September 2017. The Company is working together with its distribution and retail partners to implement a strategy to support the launch.



In relation to the Company's geographic TLDs, mmx is also pleased to report that Heads of Terms have been signed with a distribution partner which the Directors believe should lead to a material increase of registrations in two of the Company's geographic gTLDs over the next twelve months.



Notice of Results

mmx will announce its Final Results for the year ended 31 December 2016 on Tuesday 25 April 2017. A meeting for analysts will be held on the day at the offices of the Company's broker finnCap, 60 New Broad Street, London, EC2M 1JJ at 10.30 a.m. Analysts wishing to attend should contact Belvedere Communications on the details below.



Toby Hall, CEO of MMX, commented:

"Following the positive progress of 2016 reported in January, I'm delighted that the momentum has continued into 2017. Significant progress is being made on a range of initiatives that should deliver meaningful standard name registration growth and awareness across a number of our TLDs in 2017, as well as premium inventory sales which typically benefits the profile of our top-line billings. We are well placed for further future growth and, with operating expenses under control, we look forward to the rest of 2017 and 2018 with confidence."

[hjb1] 10/4/2017 09:34

MMX ..a profitable company. one of the best on AIM



Trading update,

Minds + Machines Group Limited (AIM:MMX), the publicly quoted owner and operator of Internet top-level domains ("TLDs"), is pleased to report topline billings growth of 100% for the year ended 31st December 2016. Total billings of $15.8million were achieved for FY 2016 compared to $7.9million for FY 2015, with the strong performance of H1 2016 continuing into H2 where billings were up 30% at $7.7million compared to the same period last year.



Net of partner payments, billings for the year increased over 115% to $13.9million as a result of the improved contribution from the Group's wholly-owned TLDs in 2016.



Importantly, renewal billings increased year-on-year by 116% to $3.8million (2015: $1.75million) with standard name renewals accounting for 57% of the renewal billings in 2016. In 2017, the Directors anticipate the renewal billings continuing to grow with the contribution from standard names increasing in both quantum and percentage terms.



2016 has also seen MMX significantly reduce the costs for the Group's ongoing operations with operating expenditures cut by over 40% to approximately $6.8million in 2016 (2015: $12.2million). Encouragingly, the figure for 2016 includes approximately $1.0million of non re-occurring costs so the Group's ongoing operating expenditures for 2017 are already below the $6.0million run-rate previously set for the year. The Directors are also pleased to report that cost of goods ("COG") in 2016 were contained to $2.5million (2015: $1.3million) in spite of a near threefold increase of domains under management to 821,136 at 31 December 2016 from 288,831 twelve months earlier.



In 2017 management will focus on further reducing the cost income ratio, with the goal of achieving a key cross-over point in the next 18 months where the renewal billing run-rate will be greater than that of the Group's operating expenditures. This will effectively mean that new sales, net of COGs, can immediately drop to the bottom-line.



It should be noted that billings from new registration sales grew to just under $12million in 2016 from $3.7million in 2015. Management believes there is significant continued scope for further substantial topline growth given over 80% of the Group's premium inventory remains unsold and there is effectively an unlimited stock of standard name inventory across MMX's portfolio.



As a result of the topline growth, operating EBITDA, before restructuring costs, as defined in the Interims, is expected to be over $3.5million for the full year ended 31 December 2016, compared to a $12.1million loss in 2015 (2015: gross profit of $101,000 less $12.2million of operating expenses).



Ongoing profitable growth

The management team is also pleased to report that the one-time restructuring of the Company has been completed on time and on budget. Similarly, burdensome contract obligations entered into by previous management have now been addressed. Whilst reported figures will be impacted by one-off costs associated with these items, the business has now been restructured to deliver ongoing profitable growth.



Toby Hall, CEO of MMX, commented:

"We now have an organisational structure in place that will allow the Group to continue growing profitably. This is particularly exciting given the phenomenal growth we are seeing in what is still effectively a nascent industry - a nascent industry that saw a net growth of over 16million registrations during 2016 - broadly in line with that of .com and all the country codes combined. As we look forward into 2017, our focus will be to continue monetising our portfolio both in terms of new registrations and renewals across our three main regions of focus - Asia, particularly China, Europe and the US, with a natural emphasis towards those markets showing greatest growth."



Geographic split

In 2016, MMX successfully penetrated the China market through the highly successful launch of .vip in May which was followed by the domain receiving government MIIT approval in December. As a result, the split of gross TLD billings across three regions of focus in 2016 was approximately: China 59%, US 24%, Europe 17%. During the year, year-on-year billings for the Group's US facing TLDs grew by approximately 22%, greatly helped by billings growth in .law and certain vertical strings such as .fit and .wedding as well as the generics .work and .casa. It is worth noting that a year-on-year drop in top-line registration numbers in a domain, as reported by sites such as ntldstats.org, does not necessarily signify a decline in billings. For example, in 2016 .work generated $392,000 off 81,000 registrations compared to $206,000 off 102,000 registrations in 2015 reflecting the use of a promotional initiative to drive registrations that year. In 2017, MMX's focus will be to continue developing gross billings, as well as domains under management, from each of the regions through its growing network of registrar and distribution partners.



Premium sales

In May 2016, MMX's management team piloted a new premium pricing policy during the launch of .vip which it believes has contributed greatly to the domain's initial success. As of January 6, 2017, a similar premium pricing policy has been introduced across all of MMX's wholly owned domains, a six month notice period having to be given to the channel to effect this change. This marks the first step in a broader business development drive which is being supported by the hiring of new staff to support this initiative. MMX's management team will be closely monitoring the progress of this activity.



New gTLD launches and geographic expansion

In 2016 the Company deliberately focused on launching one top-level domain well rather than following the approach of the previous year where multiple TLDs were introduced many of which with little business development support. During 2017, the MMX management team will follow the same approach as 2016 looking to launch no more than two domains onto the market in the year, one of which will be .boston.



The Company will also continue to explore the opportunities to introduce TLDs from one geographic region into another.



Michael Salazar, COO of MMX, commented:

"After a transformational twelve months in terms of building revenues and cutting costs, we are now beginning to see the real benefits of being a portfolio player as we start to leverage the experiences and insights gained across the portfolio."

[hotaimstocks] 10/4/2017 07:01

www.skylinewebcams.com

[hotaimstocks] 10/4/2017 05:32

Surely this time next year mmx will get far less revenue due to deletes from our other names and very worrying for us is that vip will have dropped the expensive renewals on premium names sold ... in other words .VIP will only have a premium for the first year ? so we will receive far far less income next year and thats without the unknown vip deletes and other names deletes .. a name sold for $10,000 for example will be sold next year for $39 peanuts ..... so names sold for $1,0000 to £30,0000 will be now only $39 less expensise and costs ... still very risky IMHO early days .. could explain the selling

[hotaimstocks] 10/4/2017 03:58

its suspended pending update FB

[hotaimstocks] 10/4/2017 02:45

NOBODY WANTS TO PURCHASE SHARES AT THIS PRICE ?.. NOT EVEN MANAGEMENT ..UNBELIEVABLE ..WHERE WOULD THE SHARE PRICE BE WITHOUT VIP .. £1 .. IF THE PERSISTENT SELLERS KEEPS SELLING THIS WEEK I WILL HAVE TO SCALE DOWN MY SEVERN FIGURE INVESTMENT OR WAIT ANOTHER 10 YEARS FOR A PROFIT

[hotaimstocks] 10/4/2017 01:45

There is a well connected poster over on LSE board names Dweill he knows the full story re domains and our low share price .. we only know a fraction of what this company are doing and some believe without a buyer we could go bust ... this share is low for a reason .... in 18 more months the company has a goal to cross over into profit ? can we believe them this time .. nobody knows .. ask yourself why the share price is near the years low ? also large sells on friday...

[hotaimstocks] 10/4/2017 01:35

the share price is a early indication problems ahead .. vip is in a bubble and when it pops it be game over ... also we can expect large selling in the run up to finals as this share always gets marked down on any news and seller bail .. would not trust a word of T HALL .. he is a con man

[hjb1] 10/4/2017 01:19

MMX ..a profitable company. one of the best on AIM



Trading update,

Minds + Machines Group Limited (AIM:MMX), the publicly quoted owner and operator of Internet top-level domains ("TLDs"), is pleased to report topline billings growth of 100% for the year ended 31st December 2016. Total billings of $15.8million were achieved for FY 2016 compared to $7.9million for FY 2015, with the strong performance of H1 2016 continuing into H2 where billings were up 30% at $7.7million compared to the same period last year.



Net of partner payments, billings for the year increased over 115% to $13.9million as a result of the improved contribution from the Group's wholly-owned TLDs in 2016.



Importantly, renewal billings increased year-on-year by 116% to $3.8million (2015: $1.75million) with standard name renewals accounting for 57% of the renewal billings in 2016. In 2017, the Directors anticipate the renewal billings continuing to grow with the contribution from standard names increasing in both quantum and percentage terms.



2016 has also seen MMX significantly reduce the costs for the Group's ongoing operations with operating expenditures cut by over 40% to approximately $6.8million in 2016 (2015: $12.2million). Encouragingly, the figure for 2016 includes approximately $1.0million of non re-occurring costs so the Group's ongoing operating expenditures for 2017 are already below the $6.0million run-rate previously set for the year. The Directors are also pleased to report that cost of goods ("COG") in 2016 were contained to $2.5million (2015: $1.3million) in spite of a near threefold increase of domains under management to 821,136 at 31 December 2016 from 288,831 twelve months earlier.



In 2017 management will focus on further reducing the cost income ratio, with the goal of achieving a key cross-over point in the next 18 months where the renewal billing run-rate will be greater than that of the Group's operating expenditures. This will effectively mean that new sales, net of COGs, can immediately drop to the bottom-line.



It should be noted that billings from new registration sales grew to just under $12million in 2016 from $3.7million in 2015. Management believes there is significant continued scope for further substantial topline growth given over 80% of the Group's premium inventory remains unsold and there is effectively an unlimited stock of standard name inventory across MMX's portfolio.



As a result of the topline growth, operating EBITDA, before restructuring costs, as defined in the Interims, is expected to be over $3.5million for the full year ended 31 December 2016, compared to a $12.1million loss in 2015 (2015: gross profit of $101,000 less $12.2million of operating expenses).



Ongoing profitable growth

The management team is also pleased to report that the one-time restructuring of the Company has been completed on time and on budget. Similarly, burdensome contract obligations entered into by previous management have now been addressed. Whilst reported figures will be impacted by one-off costs associated with these items, the business has now been restructured to deliver ongoing profitable growth.



Toby Hall, CEO of MMX, commented:

"We now have an organisational structure in place that will allow the Group to continue growing profitably. This is particularly exciting given the phenomenal growth we are seeing in what is still effectively a nascent industry - a nascent industry that saw a net growth of over 16million registrations during 2016 - broadly in line with that of .com and all the country codes combined. As we look forward into 2017, our focus will be to continue monetising our portfolio both in terms of new registrations and renewals across our three main regions of focus - Asia, particularly China, Europe and the US, with a natural emphasis towards those markets showing greatest growth."



Geographic split

In 2016, MMX successfully penetrated the China market through the highly successful launch of .vip in May which was followed by the domain receiving government MIIT approval in December. As a result, the split of gross TLD billings across three regions of focus in 2016 was approximately: China 59%, US 24%, Europe 17%. During the year, year-on-year billings for the Group's US facing TLDs grew by approximately 22%, greatly helped by billings growth in .law and certain vertical strings such as .fit and .wedding as well as the generics .work and .casa. It is worth noting that a year-on-year drop in top-line registration numbers in a domain, as reported by sites such as ntldstats.org, does not necessarily signify a decline in billings. For example, in 2016 .work generated $392,000 off 81,000 registrations compared to $206,000 off 102,000 registrations in 2015 reflecting the use of a promotional initiative to drive registrations that year. In 2017, MMX's focus will be to continue developing gross billings, as well as domains under management, from each of the regions through its growing network of registrar and distribution partners.



Premium sales

In May 2016, MMX's management team piloted a new premium pricing policy during the launch of .vip which it believes has contributed greatly to the domain's initial success. As of January 6, 2017, a similar premium pricing policy has been introduced across all of MMX's wholly owned domains, a six month notice period having to be given to the channel to effect this change. This marks the first step in a broader business development drive which is being supported by the hiring of new staff to support this initiative. MMX's management team will be closely monitoring the progress of this activity.



New gTLD launches and geographic expansion

In 2016 the Company deliberately focused on launching one top-level domain well rather than following the approach of the previous year where multiple TLDs were introduced many of which with little business development support. During 2017, the MMX management team will follow the same approach as 2016 looking to launch no more than two domains onto the market in the year, one of which will be .boston.



The Company will also continue to explore the opportunities to introduce TLDs from one geographic region into another.



Michael Salazar, COO of MMX, commented:

"After a transformational twelve months in terms of building revenues and cutting costs, we are now beginning to see the real benefits of being a portfolio player as we start to leverage the experiences and insights gained across the portfolio."

[hotaimstocks] 09/4/2017 09:36

i think i will give it until 2027 ... 10 more years to see if its 9p? or 5p many years .... ... we need some good news and fast !!!!!!!!!! .. The truth is nobody knows

[hotaimstocks] 09/4/2017 07:03

i will report you if u be rude again ?? I'm actually lost for words and mmx has its profits report on 25th April so not sure why sellers are selling in the run up to it? am still in the opinion we are going back below 9p as there are a number of people offloading so any rise is being sold into ? .... i am also told this is worth 20p plus lol .. will anyone be using domain names in 10 years as thats the big gamble ?? maybe ..

[transhoneyqueens] 08/4/2017 13:06

hots patience needed , ducky i been stuck in the mmx hole for 2.5years,its like a sausage that never seems to grow

[hotaimstocks] 08/4/2017 11:44

The management are clear on billings!...well, that's very nice for them - but as an investor, ie one who part owns the company, I would like a bit of clarity! Profit/loss? When do we become cash +ve? Cash left? Cash burn?

I know you have to spend and it takes investment for a business to grow, but they are not telling us the basic info that anyone needs in order to decide whether or not to invest. I've got a fair wedge (for me) tied up in this, and am sitting on a rather embarrassing paper loss, which is generally getting bigger. I would really quite like some clear info to decide whether to bail out at this loss or stick it out, or even pump some more money in.

Why the silence from the co. on the really important figures? sill investors are selling into any rise and share price is stuck in the 9p / 9.75p trading range.this will tank to a years low without the divi announcement soon

[hjb1] 08/4/2017 08:36

treble..take no notice of the idiot! he copied it from someone called Trident on the SRT forum...this individual is a loony!...everyone has left this thread and he just posts to himself and copies and pastes other people posts then deletes them a few minutes later..as I said nobody here..better off on LSE...

[treble in 1999] 08/4/2017 08:16

Interesting. Where do you get 16m costs from.

I think income is currently in excess of 10m.

The results will show apportioned earnings on an accruals basis, but we'll also get a feel for annualised billings.

Wait and see.

[hotaimstocks] 07/4/2017 15:13

MMX forecasts are sales $8m and $16m costs ........................Way to go .

Shares in issue in 2010 284m , 2017 792m .

Dividends paid from 2010 to date , none paid .

It's a device for transferring wealth from shareholders to the company . at which it is becoming increasingly effective .

Domaine names are irrelevant now ? Google has seen to that .

One for the dreamers .
10 year from now
Ask yourself why the share price is where it is 🙏