Annual Report (10-k)

ITEM 1A. RISK FACTORS.

Investing in our securities involves a high degree of risk. Before making an investment in our securities, you should carefully consider the following risks and the other information contained in this prospectus, including our consolidated financial statements and related notes and “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” The risks described below are those that we believe are the material risks we face. Any of the risks described below, and others that we did not anticipate, could significantly and adversely affect our business, prospects, financial condition, results of operations, and liquidity. As a result, the trading price of our securities could decline, and you may lose all or part of your investment.

Risks Related to Our Business

Because we have a limited operating history, you may not be able to accurately evaluate our operations.

We have had limited operations to date and have generated only a small amount of revenue. Therefore, we have a limited operating history upon which to evaluate the merits of investing in our company. Because we are in the early stages of operating our business, we are subject to many of the same risks inherent in the operation of a business with a limited operating history, including the potential inability to continue as a going concern.

Although we have a large customer base, currently the Company is dependent on only one of its divisions for a significant amount of its revenues.

For the year ended December 31, 2018, the collectibles division accounted for over 82% of total revenues. For the twelve months ended December 31, 2017, the collectibles division accounted for over 72% of total revenues. Management has instituted aggressive direct-to-consumer marketing and implemented programs with third-party re-sellers, brick and mortars and online retailers. We have also begun to enhance and market our licensing division, Globe Photos LLC. Additionally, we have invested considerable time and monies in the development of software to more efficiently process images and push them through to our retail and licensing channels, which is expected to help scale each division considerably. Despite these efforts, there is no certainty regarding how or if the market for our products will continue to develop, or whether such market will decline. Our ability to attract and retain customers will depend in part on our ability to sign up a significant number of galleries, third party websites, interior decorators and charities that will market to their clients, and our ability to drive business to our website. Moreover, the market for our products is comprised primarily of collectors, which market is limited and subject to changes in popular trends, demographics, disposable income, and overall interest in such products. There can be no guarantee that the market for our products will grow or that demand for our products will continue. If it does not, our business could be significantly and adversely impacted.

If we are unable to compete in our industry, our business could be significantly and adversely impacted.

The photographic art industry is and has been intensely competitive, and we expect competition to intensify in the future. We expect competition to increase because of changes in the media industry, changing advertising practices, technological advances leading to relatively inexpensive creation, marketing and distribution of visual content, and a lack of substantial barriers to entry. Our competitors range in size from significant media companies to individual visual content and digital media content producers. While we believe the breadth of our businesses and product and service portfolio offers benefits to our customers that are a competitive advantage, our current or potential competitors may develop products, licensing models, technology or services comparable or superior to those that we develop or may adapt more quickly than we do to new or emerging technologies or evolving industry trends. Increased competition or more effective competitors could result in lost market share, require us to reduce prices or otherwise reduce our revenue, lower margins, increase capital expenditures, or otherwise negatively impact our operating results. There can be no assurance that we will be able to compete successfully against current and future competitors.

Unless we increase market awareness of our brand and our existing and new products and services, our revenue may not continue to grow.

We believe that the development of our brand identity will have a significant impact on the success of our products and services and that our ability to attract and retain new customers and contributors depends in large part on our ability to increase our brand awareness. We plan to expend significant resources on advertising, marketing, and other brand-building efforts to preserve and enhance customer and contributor awareness of our brands, products and services. Our competitors may be able to achieve and maintain brand awareness and market share more quickly and effectively than we can.

Our brands may be impaired by a number of factors, including the effectiveness of our marketing campaigns, disruptions in service due to technology, data privacy and security issues, and exploitation of our trademarks and other intellectual property by others without our permission. Maintaining and enhancing our brands will depend largely on our ability to develop a leading e-commerce platform for high-quality digital content and to continue to provide a user experience that anticipates our customers’ needs. Additionally, our marketing campaigns or other efforts to increase our brand awareness may not succeed in bringing new visitors to our platform or converting such visitors to paying customers and may not be cost-effective. It is possible that, as our industry becomes increasingly competitive, maintaining and enhancing our brands may become increasingly difficult and expensive and our efforts may not be successful.

Our success is dependent in part on obtaining, maintaining and enforcing our intellectual property rights and our ability to avoid infringing on the intellectual property rights of others.

Our intellectual property rights are very important to our business. We rely on a combination of copyright, trade secret, trademark, and other rights in the United States and other jurisdictions, as well as on contractual restrictive covenants such as confidentiality, to protect our intellectual property. As most of our assets relate to photographs, we deal primarily in copyrights, which do not necessarily have to be registered rights until enforced.

Despite our efforts to protect our proprietary rights, third parties may, in an unauthorized manner, attempt to use, copy or otherwise obtain and market or distribute our intellectual property rights. Misappropriation, piracy, or infringement of our intellectual property and proprietary rights could impair our competitive position. Policing unauthorized use of our proprietary rights is difficult and nearly impossible on a worldwide basis. We cannot ensure that the steps we have taken or will take in the future will prevent misappropriation of our products and intellectual rights or that the agreements entered into for that purpose will be enforceable. Effective trademark, service mark, patent, copyright and trade secret protection may not be available where our products and services are made available on-line. In addition, litigation may be necessary to enforce or protect our intellectual property rights or to defend against claims of infringement or invalidity. Litigation, even if successful, could result in substantial costs and diversion of resources and management attention and could materially and adversely affect our business, results of operations and financial condition and may not always be successful.

Moreover, in the event a competitor or other party successfully challenges our intellectual property or claims that we have infringed upon their intellectual property, we could incur substantial litigation costs defending against such claims, be required to pay royalties, license fees or other damages or be barred from using the intellectual property at issue, any of which could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.

If we are unable to manage our growth and expand our operations successfully, our business and operating results will be harmed and our reputation may be damaged.

We have expanded our operations significantly since inception and anticipate that further significant expansion will be required to achieve our business objectives. The growth and expansion of our business and product offerings places a continuous and significant strain on our management, operational and financial resources. Any such future growth would also add complexity to and require effective coordination throughout our organization. To manage any future growth effectively, we must continue to improve and expand our information technology and financial infrastructure, our operating and administrative systems and controls, and our ability to manage headcount, capital and processes in an efficient manner. We may not be able to successfully implement improvements to these systems and processes in a timely or efficient manner, which could result in additional operating inefficiencies and could cause our costs to increase more than planned. If we do increase our operating expenses in anticipation of the growth of our business and this growth does not meet our expectations, our operating results may be negatively impacted. If we are unable to manage future expansion, our ability to provide high quality products and services could be harmed, which could damage our reputation and brand and may have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.

Our growth strategy requires us to expand our website which can expose us to data security breaches.

The risk of a data security breach caused by computer hackers and cyber criminals has increased as the frequency, intensity and sophistication of attempted attacks and intrusions from around the world have increased. Such risk also increases as we expand our presence on the web and increase on-line sales. Our systems have not been, but may in the future be, the target of various forms of cyber-attacks. Our cybersecurity measures and the cybersecurity measures taken by our third-party hosting facilities may be unable to anticipate, detect or prevent all attempts to compromise our systems. Any security breach, whether successful or not, could harm our reputation, subject us to lawsuits and other potential liabilities and ultimately could result in the loss of customers and loss of revenue.

Technological interruptions that impair access to our website could damage our reputation and brand and adversely affect our results of operations.

The satisfactory performance, reliability and availability of our websites and our network infrastructure are critical to our reputation, our ability to attract and retain customers and contributors to our platform and our ability to maintain adequate customer service levels. Any system interruptions that result in the unavailability of our websites could result in negative publicity, damage our reputation and brand or adversely affect our results of operations. Even a disruption as brief as a few minutes could have a negative impact on our operations and could result in a loss of revenue. Because some of the causes of system interruptions may be outside of our control, we may not be able to remedy such interruptions in a timely manner, or at all.

If we do not successfully make, integrate and maintain acquisitions and investments, our business could be adversely impacted.

We have acquired, invested in and entered into strategic relationships with companies, and we may acquire, invest in or enter into strategic relationships with additional companies to complement our existing business and the breadth of our offerings. These transactions are inherently risky and expose us to risks which include:

Future acquisitions or investments could also result in potential dilutive issuances of equity securities, use of significant cash balances or the incurrence of debt, any of which could adversely affect our stock price, financial condition and results of operations.  

We cannot make assurances that our investments will be successful. If we fail to effectively integrate the companies we acquire, invest in or enter into strategic relationships with, we may not realize the benefits expected from the transaction and our business may be harmed.

If we fail to attract and retain qualified senior executive and key technical personnel, our business will not be able to expand.

We are dependent on the continued availability of the services of our employees, many of whom are individually key to our future success, and the availability of new employees to implement our business plans. We rely heavily on the experience of our officers and directors in overseeing and implementing our business plan. As we move forward we will need to engage professionals with various specific experience. We will need individuals experienced in design, photo editing and creativity. We will also need to identify sales and marketing professionals with specific experience in selling into certain channels of distribution.

The market for skilled employees is highly competitive, especially for employees in technical fields. There can be no assurance that we will be able to retain the services of all our key employees or a sufficient number to execute our plans, nor can there be any assurance we will be able to continue to attract new employees as required.

Our personnel may voluntarily terminate their relationship with us at any time, and competition for qualified personnel, is intense. The process of locating additional personnel with the combination of skills and attributes required to carry out our strategy could be lengthy, costly and disruptive.

If we lose the services of key personnel, or fail to replace the services of key personnel who depart, we could experience a severe negative effect on our financial results and stock price. In addition, there is intense competition for highly qualified industry specific and business savvy personnel in the locations where we principally operate. The failure to acquire the services of any key design, marketing or other personnel or our failure to attract, integrate, motivate and retain additional key employees could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating and financial results and stock price.

Our business, operating results and growth rates may be adversely affected by current or future unfavorable economic and market conditions.

Our business depends on the economic health and general willingness of our current and prospective end-customers to make those capital commitments necessary to purchase our products. If the conditions in the U.S. and global economies remain uncertain or continue to be volatile, or if they deteriorate, our business, operating results and financial condition may be materially adversely affected. Economic weakness, end-customer financial difficulties, limited availability of credit and constrained capital spending have at times in the past resulted, and may in the future result, in challenging and delayed sales cycles, slower adoption of new technologies and increased price competition, and could negatively affect our ability to forecast future periods, which could result in an inability to satisfy demand for our products and a loss of market share.

Because we have material weaknesses in our internal control procedures, our stock price could decline significantly.

Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires annual management assessments of the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting and a report by our independent auditors addressing these assessments. We have documented material weaknesses in our internal controls. Because of these material weaknesses, our management believes that, as of December 31, 2018, our internal controls over financial reporting were not effective and investors could lose confidence in our Company and result in a decline in our stock price and consequently affect our financial condition. In addition, if we fail to achieve and maintain the adequacy of our internal controls, we may not be able to ensure that we can conclude on an ongoing basis that we have effective internal controls over financial reporting in accordance with Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Moreover, effective internal controls, particularly those related to revenue recognition, are necessary for us to produce reliable financial reports and are important to helping prevent financial fraud. If we cannot provide reliable financial reports or prevent fraud, our business and operating results could be harmed, investors could lose confidence in our reported financial information, and the trading price of our common stock could drop significantly. In addition, we cannot be certain that additional material weaknesses or significant deficiencies in our internal controls will not be discovered in the future. Furthermore, if our efforts to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act fail, we or our officers may be subject to civil or criminal penalties that could have a material adverse effect on our business, operating results and financial condition.

Any future litigation could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations, financial condition and liquidity.

From time to time we may be subject to litigation, including potential stockholder derivative actions. Risks associated with legal liability are difficult to assess and quantify, and their existence and magnitude can remain unknown for significant periods of time. We have acquired (“D&O”) liability insurance to cover such risk exposure for our directors and officers. In addition, the Company is increasing its general liability insurance and acquiring errors and omissions coverage (“E&O”). The Company also carries Fine Art Commercial, employee health and workman’s compensation policies. Despite the measures taken, such policies may not cover future litigation or the damages claimed may exceed our coverage. The amounts we would have to pay to indemnify our officers and directors should they be subject to legal action or any other action that we are exposed to could have a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations and liquidity.

Government regulation of the Internet and e-commerce is evolving, and unfavorable changes or failure by us to comply with these regulations could substantially harm our business and results of operations.

We are subject to general business regulations and laws as well as regulations and laws specifically governing the Internet and e-commerce. Existing and future laws and regulations may impede the growth of the Internet or other online services. These regulations and laws may cover taxation, user privacy, data protection, rights of publicity and rights of privacy, pricing, content, copyrights, distribution, electronic contracts and other communications, consumer protection, the provision of online payment services, broadband residential Internet access and the characteristics and quality of products and services. It is not clear how existing laws governing issues such as property use and ownership, sales and other taxes, fraud, libel and personal privacy and the rights of publicity apply to the Internet and e-commerce as the vast majority of these laws were adopted prior to the advent of the Internet and do not contemplate or address the unique issues raised by the Internet or e-commerce. Those laws that do reference the Internet continue to be interpreted by the courts and their applicability and reach are therefore uncertain.

The costs of compliance with these and other regulations may increase in the future as a result of changes in the regulations or the interpretation of them. Further, any failures on our part to comply with these regulations may subject us to significant liabilities. Those current and future laws and regulations or unfavorable resolution of these issues may substantially harm our business and results of operations.

Risks Related to Our Securities

There is no active market for our securities, and we do not know if one will develop to provide you with adequate liquidity.

Our common stock is currently quoted on the OTCQB under the symbol “GBPT.” In connection with our proposed underwritten offering on Form S-1, we have applied to list certain of our securities, including our common stock, on the Nasdaq Capital Market. There is no guarantee our application is accepted or that an active trading market for our securities may develop or be sustained . If an active market for our securities does not develop, it may be difficult for you to sell your securities without depressing the market price for those securities or at all. Even if we do obtain such a listing, there can be no assurance that we will be able to maintain such listing in the future. As a result, investors may find it difficult to buy or sell or obtain accurate quotations for our securities, and the liquidity of our securities may be limited. These factors may have an adverse impact on the trading and price of our securities.

Penny stock regulations may impose certain restrictions on marketability of our securities.

The SEC has adopted regulations which generally define a “penny stock” to be any equity security that has a market price of less than $5.00 per share or an exercise price of less than $5.00 per share, subject to certain exceptions. A security listed on a national securities exchange is exempt from the definition of a penny stock. Our Common Stock is not currently listed on a national security exchange. Our Common Stock is therefore subject to rules that impose additional sales practice requirements on broker-dealers who sell such securities to persons other than established customers and accredited investors (generally those with assets in excess of $1,000,000 or annual income exceeding $200,000, or $300,000 together with their spouse). For transactions covered by such rules, the broker-dealer must make a special suitability determination for the purchase of such securities and have received the purchaser’s written consent to the transaction prior to the purchase.

Additionally, for any transaction involving a penny stock, unless exempt, the rules require the delivery, prior to the transaction, of a risk disclosure document mandated by the SEC relating to the penny stock market. The broker-dealer must also disclose the commission payable to both the broker-dealer and the registered representative, current quotations for the securities and, if the broker-dealer is the sole market maker, the broker dealer must disclose this fact and the broker-dealer’s presumed control over the market. Finally, monthly statements must be sent disclosing recent price information for the penny stock held in the account and information on the limited market in penny stocks. Broker-dealers must wait two business days after providing buyers with disclosure materials regarding a security before effecting a transaction in such security. Consequently, the “penny stock” rules restrict the ability of broker-dealers to sell our securities and affect the ability of investors to sell our securities in the secondary market and the price at which such purchasers can sell any such securities, thereby affecting the liquidity of the market for our Common Stock.

In addition, the stock market can at times, and for extended periods of time, experience extreme price and volume fluctuations. This volatility has a significant impact on the market price of securities issued by many companies, including companies in our industry. The changes frequently appear to occur without regard to the operating performance of these companies. The price of our securities could fluctuate based upon factors that have little or nothing to do with our company, and these fluctuations could materially reduce our stock price.

As an emerging growth company within the meaning of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended (the “Securities Act”), we will utilize certain modified disclosure requirements, and we cannot be certain whether these reduced requirements will make our securities less attractive to investors .

We are an emerging growth company within the meaning of the rules under the Securities Act. We have in this prospectus utilized, and we plan in future filings with the SEC to continue to utilize, the modified disclosure requirements available to emerging growth companies, including reduced disclosure about our executive compensation and omission of compensation discussion and analysis, and an exemption from the requirement of holding a nonbinding advisory vote on executive compensation. In addition, we will not be subject to certain requirements of Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, including the additional testing of our internal control over financial reporting as may occur when outside auditors attest as to our internal control over financial reporting. As a result, our stockholders may not have access to certain information they may deem important.

We could remain an “emerging growth company” for up to five years, or until the earliest of (i) the last day of the first fiscal year in which our annual gross revenue exceed $1 billion, (ii) the date that we become a ‘‘large accelerated filer’’ as defined in Rule 12b-2 under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (the “Exchange Act”), which would occur if the market value of our common stock that is held by non-affiliates exceeds $700 million as of the last business day of our most recently completed second fiscal quarter or (iii) the date on which we have issued more than $1 billion in non-convertible debt during the preceding three-year period.

We are a “smaller reporting company,” and we cannot be certain if the reduced disclosure requirements applicable to smaller reporting companies will make our common stock less attractive to investors.

We are currently a “smaller reporting company”, meaning that we are not an investment company, an asset- backed issuer, or a majority-owned subsidiary of a parent company that is not a smaller reporting company and have a non-affiliated public float of less than $250.0 million or annual revenues of less than $100.0 million and a non-affiliated public float of less than $700.0 million as of the end of the second quarter of our most recently completed fiscal year. In the event that we are still considered a “smaller reporting company,” at such time as we cease being an “emerging growth company,” we will be required to provide additional disclosure in our SEC filings. However, similar to an “emerging growth companies”, “smaller reporting companies” are able to provide simplified executive compensation disclosures in their filings; are exempt from the provisions of Section 404(b) of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requiring that independent registered public accounting firms provide an attestation report on the effectiveness of internal control over financial reporting; and have certain other decreased disclosure obligations in their SEC filings, including, among other things, only being required to provide two years of audited financial statements in annual reports. Decreased disclosures in our SEC filings due to our status as a “smaller reporting company” may make it harder for investors to analyze our results of operations and financial prospects.

Provisions in our charter documents and the Delaware General Corporation Law could make it more difficult for a third party to acquire us and could discourage a takeover and adversely affect existing stockholders.

Anti-takeover provisions in our certificate of incorporation and bylaws, and in the Delaware General Corporation Law, could diminish the opportunity for stockholders to participate in acquisition proposals at a price above the then-current market price of our common stock. For example, while we have no present plans to issue any preferred stock, our board of directors, without further stockholder approval, will be able to issue shares of undesignated preferred stock and fix the designation, powers, preferences, and rights and any qualifications, limitations, and restrictions of such class or series, which could adversely affect the voting power of your Shares. In addition, our bylaws will provide for an advance notice procedure for nomination of candidates to our board of directors that could have the effect of delaying, deterring, or preventing a change in control. Further, as a Delaware corporation, we are subject to provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law regarding “business combinations,” which can deter attempted takeovers in certain situations. We may, in the future, consider adopting additional anti-takeover measures. The authority of our board of directors to issue undesignated preferred or other capital stock and the anti-takeover provisions of the Delaware General Corporation Law, as well as other current and any future anti-takeover measures adopted by us, may, in certain circumstances, delay, deter, or prevent takeover attempts and other changes in control of our company not approved by our board of directors. See “Description of Capital Stock” for further information.

We currently do not intend to pay dividends on our shares of common stock and, consequently, your only opportunity to achieve a return on your investment is if the price of our shares appreciates.

We do not expect to pay dividends on our shares of common stock in the foreseeable future and intend to use cash to grow our business. The payment of cash dividends in the future, if any, will be at the discretion of our board of directors and will depend upon such factors as the extent to which our financing arrangements permit the payment of dividends, earnings levels, capital requirements, our overall financial condition, and any other factors deemed relevant by our board of directors. Consequently, your only opportunity to achieve a return on your investment in us will be if the market price of our securities appreciates.

Our inability to raise additional capital on acceptable terms in the future may limit our ability to develop and commercialize new solutions and technologies and expand our operations.

If our available cash balances and anticipated cash flow from operations are insufficient to satisfy our liquidity requirements, including because of lower demand for our products as a result of other risks described in this “Risk Factors” section, we may seek to raise additional capital through equity offerings, debt financings, collaborations or licensing arrangements. We may also consider raising additional capital in the future to expand our business, pursue strategic investments, take advantage of financing opportunities, or other reasons.

Additional funding may not be available to us on acceptable terms, or at all. If we raise funds by issuing equity securities, dilution to our stockholders could result. Any equity securities issued also may provide for rights, preferences or privileges senior to those of holders of our common stock. The terms of debt securities issued or borrowings could impose significant restrictions on our operations. The incurrence of indebtedness or the issuance of certain equity securities could result in increased fixed payment obligations and could also result in restrictive covenants, such as limitations on our ability to incur additional debt or issue additional equity, limitations on our ability to acquire or license intellectual property rights, and other operating restrictions that could adversely affect our ability to conduct our business. In addition, the issuance of additional equity securities by us, or the possibility of such issuance, may cause the market price of our common stock to decline. If we do not have, or are not able to obtain, sufficient funds, we may have to delay development or commercialization of our products or license to third parties the rights to commercialize products or technologies that we would otherwise seek to commercialize. If we raise additional funds through collaboration and licensing arrangements with third parties, it may be necessary to relinquish some rights to our products, or to grant licenses on terms that are not favorable to us. If we are unable to raise adequate funds, we may have to liquidate some or all of our assets, or delay, reduce the scope of or eliminate some or all of our development programs. We also may have to reduce marketing, customer support or other resources devoted to our products or cease operations. Any of these actions could harm our business, operating results and financial condition.

We will incur significant increased costs as a result of operating as a public company, and our management will be required to devote substantial time to comply with the laws and regulations affecting public companies, particularly after we are no longer an emerging growth company. 

As a public company, particularly after we complete an “uplisting” to the Nasdaq Capital Market, we will incur significant legal, accounting and other expenses, including costs associated with public company reporting and corporate governance requirements, to comply with the rules and regulations imposed by the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and the Dodd-Frank Act, as well as rules implemented by the SEC and Nasdaq, most of which are continually changing and evolving. Our management and other personnel will need to devote a substantial amount of time to these compliance initiatives and our legal and accounting compliance costs will increase. We also expect these new rules and regulations may make it more difficult and expensive for us to obtain director and officer liability insurance, and we may be required to accept reduced policy limits and coverage or incur substantially higher costs to obtain the same or similar coverage. As a result, it may be more difficult for us to attract and retain qualified individuals to serve on our board of directors or as executive officers. We are evaluating and monitoring developments regarding these rules, and we cannot predict or estimate the amount of additional costs we may incur or the timing of such costs.

For example, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act requires, among other things, that we maintain effective internal controls over financial reporting and disclosure controls and procedures. In particular, as a public company, we are required to perform system and process evaluations and testing of our internal control over financial reporting to allow management to report on the effectiveness of our internal controls over financial reporting, as required by Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act. As described above, as an emerging growth company, we will not need to comply with the auditor attestation provisions of Section 404 for several years. Our testing, or the subsequent testing by our independent registered public accounting firm, may reveal deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses. Our compliance with Section 404 will require that we incur substantial accounting expense and management time on compliance-related issues. Moreover, if we are not able to comply with the requirements of Section 404 in a timely manner, or if we or our independent registered public accounting firm identify deficiencies in our internal control over financial reporting that are deemed to be material weaknesses, we could lose investor confidence in the accuracy and completeness of our financial reports, which could cause our stock price to decline.

When the available exemptions under the JOBS Act, as described above, cease to apply, we expect to incur additional expenses and devote increased management effort toward ensuring compliance with them. We cannot predict or estimate the amount of additional costs we may incur as a result of becoming a public company or the timing of such costs.