Brightcove did not comment on its filing yesterday. US securities law severely restricts the information companies can release during the mandated “quiet period’’ after registering for an IPO.
But in its filing, Brightcove said that it is not yet profitable. It lost $17.8 million in 2010 and $9.7 million for the six-month period ended June 30. The company said the losses, which it expects to continue at least through 2012, are attributable to the expenses involved in building its products and services, expanding its business, and acquiring customers.
Revenue for 2010 was $43.7 million. For the six-month period ended June 30, Brightcove said its revenue was $28.4 million, up from $20.3 million for the comparable period in the previous year.
During one week earlier this month, when stocks were sinking, 10 companies decided to put off their IPOs until the markets quieted down. Boston-based online storage provider Carbonite Inc. has been one of the few companies recently to buck that trend, but it had to reduce its original asking price of $15 to $17 per share down to $10.
“It will be interesting to see the market’s reaction to an unprofitable technology company like Brightcove,’’ said Anand Sanwal, cofounder of CB Insights, a New York information services firm.
“The company has some big media brands as customers and so has seen success in that regard,’’ he said. “However, given the competitiveness of the video space, the speed at which the space is moving, and the company’s expected lack of profitability through 2012, it will be interesting to see what investor appetite is, especially if the market remains volatile.’’
Founded in 2004, Brightcove anticipated the growth of video on the Internet and has targeted its services, which include editing software and the hosting of online videos, to companies that are interested in adding video to their websites. Because creating and hosting online videos demands specialized technical expertise and the ability to store and serve large video files, many companies prefer to pay a company like Brightcove rather than host video on their own servers.
