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LEGAL PROCEEDINGS
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We are not a party to any material pending or
threatened litigation.
Risks Related to Our Business
We have a history of net losses, and we may not be able to achieve profitability even if we are able to generate significant revenues.
We have incurred net losses of $10.7 million, $11.4 million and $13.6 million for the fiscal years ended June 30, 2005, 2006 and 2007, respectively, and, as of
September 30, 2007, we had an accumulated deficit of approximately $50.9 million. We have financed our operations primarily through private placements of equity securities and have devoted substantially all of our resources to research and
development of our products and the commercialization of Radiesse and our other products. We expect our operating expenses to increase as we:
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expand our worldwide sales and marketing operations in support of Radiesse and our future products;
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develop and conduct clinical studies in support of new products and new indications;
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seek regulatory approvals for new products;
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prepare for the commercialization of future product candidates; and
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incur additional expenses associated with being a public company.
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We cannot assure you that we will be able to achieve or sustain profitability even if we are able to generate significant revenues. Our failure to achieve and sustain profitability would negatively impact the market
price of our common stock and require us to seek additional funding, if such funding is then available to us on terms acceptable to us or at all.
We
have a limited operating history, and we expect our financial condition and operating results to fluctuate on a quarterly and annual basis in potentially unpredictable ways.
We were incorporated in 1999 and commenced operations in 2000. From 2001 to 2003, we received certain U.S. and international regulatory approvals for, and engaged in commercial sales of, Radiesse and Coaptite. We
obtained FDA pre-market approval, or PMA, for our key commercial application of Radiesse, the correction of moderate to severe facial wrinkles and folds, in December 2006. Accordingly, we have a limited history of operations upon which you can
evaluate our business. Our operating results may fluctuate significantly in the future as a result of a variety of factors, many of which are outside of our control. Factors relating to our business that may contribute to quarterly and annual
fluctuations include the following factors:
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the rate of market adoption of Radiesse and other future products that we may offer;
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the success of competitive products to Radiesse that are now available or that may become commercially available in the future;
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the timing of regulatory clearances or approvals and success of the introduction of new products;
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the effectiveness of promotional and marketing campaigns by us or our competitors;
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seasonal variations in demand;
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changes in general economic conditions and the related impact on discretionary spending on elective procedures; and
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the performance of our independent distributors, partners and suppliers.
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The success of our business also depends on consumer trends favoring medical aesthetic procedures, which could change
quickly or gradually over time. We may be unable to reduce our expenditures in a timely manner to compensate for any unexpected shortfall in revenues. Accordingly, a significant shortfall in demand for our products could have an immediate and
material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. Due to the various factors mentioned above, and others, the results of any prior quarterly or annual periods, or guidance regarding expectations of future
results, should not be relied upon as an indication of our future operating performance.
If Radiesse and our other products fail to compete effectively
and gain greater market adoption, our business will suffer.
Radiesse currently is our primary product, and we expect it to remain so for the next
several years. Radiesse competes against products that are more established and accepted within our target markets.
Our largest direct competitors in the
key U.S. market include Allergan and Medicis, and there are many other companies that compete directly or indirectly with us or that are likely to compete with us in the near future, both in the United States and internationally. Many of these
competitors have significantly greater financial resources, reputation and experience in the aesthetics market than we do, as well as broader aesthetic product offerings. Competing effectively will require us to distinguish our company and Radiesse
from our competitors and their products, which will be dependent on factors such as:
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the safety, effectiveness and ease of use of Radiesse and duration of cosmetic benefit;
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patient and physician satisfaction with Radiesse compared to other injectable aesthetic products and alternative treatments;
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the cost of Radiesse to our physician customers relative to alternative products and the price that those physicians, in turn, charge for the corresponding
procedure;
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the effectiveness of our sales and marketing efforts;
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our ability to obtain additional regulatory approvals and promote Radiesse;
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our ability to co-promote our filler along with complementary products that we may seek to introduce;
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our ability to establish a strong and widely-recognized reputation;
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the results and publication in prominent journals of clinical studies that may be conducted by us or our competitors comparing Radiesse with competing products;
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intellectual property protection; and
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the overall size and rate of growth of the dermal filler market.
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Our other current products are, and contemplated future products, including Aethoxysklerol and BioGlue, will be, subject to similar competitive risks as Radiesse. If we are unable to effectively distinguish Radiesse,
or any of our other current or future products, from those of our competitors, we are unlikely to gain significant market share and our prospects for growth would be harmed.
Our largest competitors enjoy sales and marketing advantages that could make it difficult for us to compete effectively and which could result in our future performance not meeting our expectations.
Our largest competitors enjoy sales and marketing advantages that could influence patients and physicians to choose their products over ours, regardless of relative
safety and effectiveness of the products. For example, our largest competitors have implemented expensive national direct-to-consumer marketing campaigns to promote their dermal filler products. These campaigns may lead consumers to develop a strong
brand preference for an alternate product even before their initial visit with a physician.
Competitors have, in the past, influenced physician practice
through aggressive promotional campaigns that offer significant discounts to physicians who choose their products over competing products. Some competitors also have the ability to influence a physicians practice by co-promoting, or bundling,
the sale of two different but related products, such as a dermal filler and a botulinum toxin. Bundling of complementary products may permit these companies to enjoy efficiencies with respect to their marketing efforts, may permit unique discounting
and cross-selling opportunities, and reinforce company and brand loyalty. If competitors sales and marketing programs and promotions are able to convince physicians to use and recommend their products over Radiesse, we may be unable to
generate expected sales and our financial performance will suffer.
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Competition in the aesthetics market is characterized by frequent product introductions, and products not yet
available could result in significant additional competition.
Our current and future competitors will introduce new products or new formulations of
existing products that will result in near-term and long-term increased competition. While there are a number of competing dermal fillers in the United States, there are many others available internationally. Some of the dermal fillers available
domestically and internationally claim to have benefits that may be perceived as equivalent or better than other leading dermal fillers, including Radiesse, based upon such factors as durability, cost, comfort, scope of approved marketing claims or
ease of treatment. If dermal fillers are perceived to offer benefits that are equivalent to or better than Radiesse, demand for, and revenue derived from, Radiesse could be harmed. The frequent introduction of dermal fillers may create market
confusion that may make it more difficult to differentiate the benefits of Radiesse over competing products. In addition, the entry of multiple products and new competitors may lead some of our competitors to elect pricing strategies that could
adversely impact pricing in the filler marketplace generally.
The failure of Radiesse to meet physicians or patients expectations could
reduce demand for
Radiesse and negatively impact our financial performance.
Most procedures performed using Radiesse are elective procedures, the cost of which must be borne by the patient and are not reimbursable through government or private health insurance. The decision to undergo a
Radiesse procedure is thus driven by patient demand for an aesthetics procedure, and patients often play a central role in the selection of the dermal filler to be used.
Our future success depends upon patients having a positive experience with Radiesse. We believe that patients who have a positive experience with Radiesse may be more likely to return for additional treatments and
refer new patients, which we believe would increase physician demand for Radiesse. However, results obtained from a Radiesse procedure will vary depending on the experience and technique of the treating physician, the volume of dermal filler
injected, the patients expectations of the results that will be achieved and the duration of the results. Patients may be dissatisfied with their Radiesse treatment experience if immediate or long-term results do not match their expectations,
if they find the procedure too painful, or if they find that the temporary side-effects of treatment such as swelling and bruising outweigh the benefit received. Additionally, we believe that patient demand for Radiesse is, in many cases, influenced
by price. Treatment with a single syringe of Radiesse may cost a patient more than treatment with a single syringe of many other dermal fillers. If a Radiesse treatment produces results that do not meet physicians and patients
expectations, or if physicians and patients generally believe it is too expensive for the results obtained, our reputation, repeat sales, word of mouth referral opportunities and future sales could suffer.
Negative perception regarding Radiesse, even if unfounded, may inhibit adoption.
There are many dermal filler products and alternate treatments from which to choose for facial aesthetic applications. Practitioners must believe that Radiesse presents an attractive alternative before they will
recommend it to their patients. The rate of physician adoption of Radiesse may be adversely affected by negative perception of the product, even if such perception is unfounded. Practitioners may be influenced by the negative comments of another
practitioner, which may lead them not to adopt the product.
Moreover, because we cannot control how practitioners use Radiesse, there is a risk that
practitioners or patients could develop negative perceptions regarding Radiesse on the basis of treatments for which Radiesse is not suitable and has not received regulatory approval. For instance, there have been published reports of lumpiness
associated with the use of Radiesse injected into the lips, a type of treatment for which Radiesse has not been approved. Competitors have in the past promoted their dermal filler products by criticizing Radiesse, and we expect that means of
competition to continue into the future. If practitioners believe that Radiesse is unsafe, ineffective, unsatisfactory, too expensive, difficult to use or inappropriate for certain applications, they may not adopt it, which could result in our
future sales not meeting our expectations.
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If the recent expansion of our sales organization in the United States and in Europe is not as successful as we
expect, our revenue may be lower than expected.
Our ability to achieve significant growth in revenues depends, in large part, on our success in
recruiting, training and retaining experienced and productive direct sales personnel. During the first quarter of fiscal 2008, we substantially increased the size and scope of our sales organization to support commercialization of Radiesse in the
United States and in Europe, expanding from 56 to 80 our U.S. sales representatives and from 15 to 23 our European sales representatives. If new sales representatives take longer than expected to reach anticipated productivity, or if they fail to
meet our expectations at all, we may not achieve our revenue goals. We anticipate a corresponding and proportionate increase in sales and marketing expense that will be attributable to this expansion.
Additionally, as we expand our sales organization, the size of the territories assigned to sales representatives may be reduced, as occurred in the case of our recent
sales force expansion in the United States. Reduced territory sizes may lead sales representatives to believe that they are losing potential compensation associated with larger territories or that their sales goals are more difficult to achieve,
which in turn may result in productive and experienced sales employees seeking alternate employment.
Our failure to retain our sales representatives could
have a material adverse effect on our sales, causing our revenue to be lower than expected and harming our results of operations.
To successfully
market and sell Radiesse internationally, we must address additional risks associated with operations in foreign countries.
International sales
accounted for 17% of our revenue in the first quarter of fiscal 2007 and 13% of our revenue in the first fiscal quarter of 2008. We believe that a significant portion of our business will continue to come from international sales through increased
penetration in countries where we currently sell Radiesse, combined with expansion into new international markets. In several countries in Europe, we have a direct sales organization. We principally rely on third party distributors to sell our
products outside of Europe. Our success internationally is subject to a number of risks, including:
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difficulties in penetrating markets in which our competitors products are more established;
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intense competition, including with products that are not available in the United States that may claim to offer benefits similar to or better than Radiesse;
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maintaining existing and obtaining new foreign certification and regulatory clearances and approvals;
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difficulties in managing international operations;
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difficulties identifying effective distributors and managing distributor relationships;
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export restrictions, trade regulations and foreign tax laws;
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reduced or no protection for intellectual property rights in some countries;
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fluctuating foreign currency exchange rates; and
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political and economic instability.
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Our other
current products are, and contemplated future products will be, subject to similar international risks as Radiesse. If we are unable to effectively manage the risks associated with international operations, we may be unable to effectively sell
Radiesse outside of the United States, causing our revenue to be lower than expected and harming our results of operations.
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We depend on single manufacturer relationships for supply of our CaHA particles. Any disruption of these relationships
could affect our ability to supply product and could harm our business.
We currently depend on a single contract manufacturer, Tulsa Dental
Specialties, for the small CaHA particles used in Radiesse and a single contract manufacturer, CAM Implants, for the larger CaHA particles used in Coaptite, our CaHA bulking agent for the treatment of female stress urinary incontinence. Our
agreement with Tulsa Dental Specialties runs through May 2010 and then renews for an additional two-year term, unless terminated pursuant to its terms. Our agreement with CAM Implants runs through November 2008 and renews each year for a further
year unless terminated pursuant to its terms. Neither agreement is terminable at will by either party. Each of these manufacturers operates out of a single location. Our reliance on these manufacturers subjects us to several unpredictable risks, the
occurrence of any of which could lead to a disruption of our operations, including:
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delays in production of CaHA particles that meet our specifications or failure to meet rigorous regulatory requirements;
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fluctuation in production quantity or quality due to changes in demand from us or their other customers;
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the inability to meet our production needs, if demand for Radiesse or Coaptite increases significantly;
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our CaHA manufacturers failure to comply with the terms of the contracts, or the termination thereof pursuant to the terms of the contracts;
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damage to, or other interruption of, operations at a particular facility; and
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increases to the price that we pay for the production of CaHA.
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Efforts that we may undertake to negotiate terms of supply in the future or to reduce our reliance on these manufacturers could harm our relationships with them. Obtaining alternate manufacturers would be an expensive
and lengthy process and would require additional regulatory approvals, which may not be obtained. We could experience production delays related to the evaluation and testing of CaHA particles from alternate manufacturers and obtaining corresponding
regulatory qualifications. Any interruption in the supply of CaHA or our inability to obtain CaHA from alternate sources at acceptable prices, in a timely manner, could impair our ability to meet the demand of our customers, which would have an
adverse effect on our business.
We depend on Boston Scientific to market and sell Coaptite, and if Boston Scientific is not successful or reduces its
efforts to sell Coaptite, our revenues will be harmed.
We currently depend on Boston Scientific to sell Coaptite, the sales of which constituted less
than 10% of our revenues for fiscal 2007 and the first three months of fiscal 2008. Boston Scientific is a very large corporation. While we believe our relationship with Boston Scientific is in good standing, Coaptite represents an immaterial amount
of Boston Scientifics overall revenue and Boston Scientific may in the future determine that resources currently directed to selling Coaptite should be redirected to higher priority projects or they may lack motivation to grow sales of
Coaptite. If this were to occur, our expectations of future Coaptite revenues would be harmed.
If we are unable to commercialize Aethoxysklerol, which
is an investigational sclerotherapy drug currently in a Phase III clinical trial, our expectation of future growth would be harmed.
An important part
of our strategy includes the successful introduction to the U.S. market of Aethoxysklerol, an injectable sclerosing drug for the treatment of varicose veins. We have acquired the exclusive U.S. distribution rights to Aethoxysklerol from its German
manufacturer, Kreussler. Although Aethoxysklerol has been used internationally for decades, it is not currently approved for sale in the United States. We cannot sell Aethoxysklerol in the United States before a new drug application, or NDA, is
submitted to and approved by the FDA. The development and regulatory approval of a new drug is subject to a number of risks and is never certain. In order to support the NDA submission, the manufacturer of Aethoxysklerol has enrolled patients in a
Phase III clinical trial for the use of Aethoxysklerol in treating spider and reticular veins. This clinical trial is subject to a number of risks, including:
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the trial has been designed by and is being conducted by Kreussler, a third party, so decisions that could affect the success of the trial are outside of our
control;
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Kreussler has limited experience conducting clinical trials pursuant to FDA requirements and obtaining FDA approvals;
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the trial could produce negative or ambiguous results regarding the effectiveness of Aethoxysklerol;
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undesirable side effects or safety issues might arise that might delay or adversely effect future approval;
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the trial may fail to meet its primary or secondary endpoints for effectiveness or may otherwise not meet the rigorous statistical criteria established with FDA in
the special protocol assessment process;
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Kreussler, or the contract clinical research organization managing the study, may fail to follow proper protocols or may otherwise fail to fully and properly
execute the clinical study; and
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the trial may be delayed, suspended or terminated.
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The current clinical trial is being conducted based on a design that Kreussler believes will be acceptable to the FDA based on its communication with the FDA and a special protocol assessment, or SPA.
Although we believe, based on the SPA with the FDA, that positive data from Kreusslers on-going Phase III clinical trial will be sufficient to establish the safety
and effectiveness data required for FDA approval, the FDA may disagree. Any delays or unexpected results in the current trial, or need to conduct further trials, would delay U.S. introduction of the product and harm our expected future operations.
We are in an early stage of development of BioGlue for aesthetics applications, and we cannot provide assurance that we will be successful in our goal
of commercializing the product candidate.
We have acquired exclusive U.S., Canadian and European distribution rights for aesthetics applications of
BioGlue, a surgical adhesive Class III medical device, from CryoLife. Although the FDA cleared BioGlue in 2001 as an adjunct to sutures and staples for use in open surgical repair of large vessels, these clearances may not be used to promote
aesthetic applications. We intend to seek FDA clearance for the use of BioGlue for aesthetic applications, but we are at an early stage in our development efforts. We only recently began to enroll patients in a feasibility study to evaluate the
safety and effectiveness of BioGlue as a method for tissue fixation in patients undergoing browplasty, and enrollment is ongoing.
Even if we are able to
obtain FDA clearance for tissue fixation in browplasty or any other application for which we might seek approval, the commercialization effort may be difficult. The use of a surgical adhesive in aesthetics applications will be novel, and would
require physicians to migrate from existing and well-accepted surgical methods. If we are not successful at any stage of our efforts, clinical, regulatory or commercial, BioGlue will not develop into a meaningful component of our business.
We have increased the size of our company significantly, and difficulties managing our growth could adversely affect our business, operating results
and financial condition.
We have experienced rapid growth in a relatively short period of time and expect to continue to experience similar growth in
the future, as we continue to support Radiesse and other commercially available products and actively pursue product candidates. Our growth has placed, and will continue to place, a strain on our management team, finance department, information
systems and other resources. To manage growth effectively, we must:
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continue to enhance our operational, financial and other systems and resources;
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maintain and improve our internal controls and procedures; and
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expand, train and manage our employee base.
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We may not be able to effectively manage this expansion in any one or more of these areas, and any failure to do so could
significantly harm our business. In addition, our management, personnel and facilities currently in place may not be adequate to support this future growth. Our rapid growth also makes it difficult for us to adequately predict the expenditures we
will need to make in the future. If we do not make the necessary expenditures to accommodate our future growth, we may not be successful in executing our growth strategy, and our results of operations would suffer. Alternatively, necessary
expenditures to continue our growth could exceed our current expectations, which would affect our ability to achieve and sustain profitability.
If we
are unable to hire and retain key employees, our ability to manage and expand our business will be harmed.
Our success largely depends on the skills,
experience and efforts of our officers and other key employees, including Steve Basta, our Chief Executive Officer, Derek Bertocci, our Chief Financial Officer, Dennis Condon, our President and Chief Business Officer, and Jeff Wells, our Senior Vice
President, Product Development, along with our ability to retain these employees and to hire new employees to fill significant needs as we grow our business. We may not be able to attract or retain qualified management, sales, finance and technology
personnel in the future due to intense competition for hiring experienced personnel. Additionally, any of our officers and other employees may terminate their employment at any time. The loss of any of our senior management team members could weaken
our management expertise and harm our business.
Government regulations restricting the export of goods expose us to potential sanctions and penalties.
United States laws prohibit United States companies and foreign companies that sell U.S. origin items from engaging in commercial transactions with
specified countries, individuals and organizations. We have learned that a distributor of Radiesse in the United Arab Emirates shipped our product to physicians in Syria, a prohibited country. We have also learned that our European subsidiary, which
manages this distributor, was aware that some shipments might go to Syria, but was not aware that shipments to Syria without a specific export license violated U.S. law. Upon learning of this situation, we informed the distributor to cease all
shipments to Syria and filed a voluntary self disclosure of this situation with the U.S. Department of Commerce. Persons who violate U.S. export control laws can be subject to monetary fines and other sanctions, including possible criminal
penalties. We do not expect the fines or penalties imposed on us, if any, to be material, but we cannot assure you that the actual amount of the fines or penalties, if any, will not have an adverse effect on our financial condition or reputation.
We may acquire additional products or product candidates in the future and any costs associated with the acquisition or any difficulty integrating
operations could reduce our revenues, increase our costs and harm our operating results.
We have acquired or in-licensed several of our current
products and product candidates. In order to grow our business, we intend to acquire or in-license additional products and product candidates that we believe have significant commercial potential and that complement our existing products and
products under development. Any growth through acquisitions or in-licensing will be dependent upon the continued availability of suitable acquisition or in-license product candidates at favorable prices and upon advantageous terms and conditions.
Integrating any newly-acquired product or product candidate could be expensive and time-consuming. Other companies, many of which may have substantially greater resources and reputation, compete with us for the right to acquire and in-license
products or product candidates. Any cash acquisition we pursue would diminish the resources available to us for other uses, and any stock acquisition would dilute our stockholders ownership. Our future product development efforts also could
result in large and immediate write-offs, incurrence of debt and contingent liabilities or amortization of expenses related to intangible assets, any of which could increase our expenses and adversely affect our results of operations and financial
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We could become involved in product liability suits, which could result in expensive and time consuming litigation,
payment of substantial damages and an increase in our insurance rates.
Product liability litigation in the medical device industry is common, and from
time to time, we may receive complaints or be named in lawsuits claiming that our products failed to provide the desired outcome or were in some manner associated with an adverse outcome for the patient. These claims could divert managements
attention from our core business, be expensive to defend and result in sizable damage awards against us. We maintain product liability insurance with liability coverage limits that we believe are adequate and customary for the nature of our business
we and submit these claims to our insurance carrier. However, we may not have sufficient insurance coverage for all future claims, and we may not be able to obtain additional or expanded insurance in amounts or scope sufficient to provide us with
adequate coverage against all potential liabilities. Any product liability claims brought against us, with or without merit, could increase our product liability insurance rates or prevent us from securing continuing coverage, could harm our
reputation in the industry and reduce product sales. Product liability claims in excess of our insurance coverage would be paid out of cash reserves, harming our financial condition and reducing our operating results.
Risks Related to Regulatory Matters
If we fail to maintain
necessary FDA approvals for Radiesse or if we fail to comply with applicable federal and state regulations, we could be subject to enforcement action and our commercial operations would be harmed.
We have obtained FDA PMA approvals and 510(k) clearances for Radiesse and for Coaptite for several indications. However, our approvals and clearances could be revoked if
safety concerns arise. The FDA and state authorities have broad enforcement powers. Our failure to comply with applicable regulatory requirements could result in enforcement action by the FDA or state agencies, which may include any of the following
actions:
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warning letters, adverse publicity, fines, injunctions, consent decrees and civil penalties;
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repair, replacement, refunds, recall or seizure of our product;
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operating restrictions or partial suspension or total shutdown of production;
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refusing our requests for 510(k) clearance or pre-market approval of new products, new intended uses or modifications to our existing product;
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withdrawing 510(k) clearance or premarket approvals that have already been granted; and
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Additionally, administration
of Radiesse by healthcare professionals is subject to regulations that vary by state. For example, federal regulations allow Radiesse to be sold to, or on the order of, licensed practitioners, as determined on a state-by-state basis. As
a result, in some states, non-physicians may legally administer Radiesse. However, a state could change its regulations at any time, disallowing sales to particular types of healthcare professionals. If we sell our products to practitioners who are
not permitted by state regulation to perform the treatment, we could be subject to enforcement action.
If we want to expand our marketing claims, we
will need to obtain additional FDA clearances or approvals, which may not be granted.
We are developing additional formulations of our CaHA technology.
Before a new use of or claim for a product can be marketed in the United States, it must first receive FDA approval. The marketing of a product for an indication or application that has not received approval will be viewed as off-label
promotion and could subject us to an FDA enforcement action, including the issuance of a warning letter and adverse publicity. In addition, any modifications that we may make to Radiesses formulation or manufacturing that would
significantly affect its safety or effectiveness or that would constitute a major change in its intended use will require a new FDA approval. The FDA may require us to conduct clinical trials to support new indications or formulations, such trials
may be time-consuming and expensive, and may produce results that do not result in approval of our FDA application. Delays in obtaining future
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approvals would adversely affect our ability to introduce new or enhanced products in a timely manner, which in turn would harm our revenue and potential
future profitability. In the event that we do not obtain additional FDA approvals for future indications or uses, our ability to promote Radiesse in the United States and to grow our revenue could be limited.
If we or our third-party manufacturers fail to comply with the FDAs Quality System Regulation, our business would suffer.
We and our third-party manufacturers are required to demonstrate and maintain compliance with the FDAs Quality System Regulation, or QSR. The QSR is a complex
regulatory scheme that covers the methods and documentation of the design, testing, control, manufacturing, labeling, quality assurance, packaging, storage and shipping of our product. The FDA enforces the QSR through periodic unannounced
inspections. We and our third-party manufacturers have been, and in the future will be, subject to such inspections. Our failure, or the failure of our third-party manufacturers, to take prompt and satisfactory corrective action in response to an
adverse QSR inspection could result in enforcement actions, including a public warning letter, a shutdown of our manufacturing operations, a recall of our product, civil or criminal penalties or other sanctions, which would cause our sales and
business to suffer.
We may not be able to obtain or maintain international regulatory qualifications or approvals for our products, which could harm
our business.
Sales of our products outside the United States are subject to foreign regulatory requirements that vary widely from country to country.
The foreign regulatory approval process may include all of the risks associated with obtaining FDA clearance or approval, in addition to other risks. Complying with international regulatory requirements can be an expensive and time consuming
process, and approval is not certain. The time required to obtain foreign clearances or approvals may exceed the time required for FDA clearance or approval, and requirements for such clearances or approvals may differ significantly from FDA
requirements. Foreign regulatory authorities may not clear or approve our product for the same uses cleared or approved by the FDA. Although we have obtained approval to affix the CE Mark to Radiesse for use in the European Union, we may not be able
to maintain such approval.
We may not be able to obtain permission to affix the CE Mark to new products or to modifications of Radiesse. In addition, we
may fail to obtain any additional regulatory qualifications, clearances or approvals or to comply with additional legal obligations required by the individual member countries of the European Union or other countries in which we seek to market our
products. The FDA also regulates the export of drugs and medical devices from the United States. If we are not successful in obtaining and maintaining foreign regulatory approvals or complying with United States export regulations, our business will
be harmed.
Foreign regulatory agencies periodically inspect manufacturing facilities both in the United States and abroad. We may fail to pass inspections
of our facilities by applicable regulatory authorities or entities both in the United States and in other countries. Delays in receiving necessary qualifications, clearances or approvals to market our products outside the United States, or the
failure to receive those qualifications, approvals, or to comply with other foreign regulatory requirements, could limit or prevent us from marketing our products or enhancements in international markets. Additionally, the imposition of new
requirements could significantly affect our business and our product, and we might not be able to adjust to such new requirements. If we fail to comply with applicable foreign regulations, we could face substantial penalties and our business,
operations and financial condition could be adversely affected.
Risks Related to Our Intellectual Property
Intellectual property rights provide us with only limited protection against competition.
While we attempt to protect our products through patents and other intellectual property rights, there are few barriers to entry that would prevent new entrants or existing competitors from developing products that
compete directly with ours. For example, while we believe our CaHA-based dermal filler technology
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maintains a strong intellectual property position, there are companies employing competing technologies that claim to have a similar clinical effect to ours
which are not CaHA-based. In addition, our patents covering the core technologies used in Radiesse and Coaptite expire in the United States beginning in 2012, and internationally beginning in 2013, with the last to expire U.S. patent expiring in
2020. Expired patents will not prevent competitors from legally introducing products based on this technology. As a result, we believe that we will have to continually innovate and improve our products and technologies and file new patent
applications and obtain new patents relating to such innovations and technologies to maintain intellectual property protection and to compete successfully.
Patent applications may not issue as patents or, if issued, may not issue in a form that will be advantageous to us. Any patents we obtain may be challenged, invalidated or legally circumvented by third parties. We may not be able to
prevent the unauthorized disclosure or use of our technical knowledge or other trade secrets by consultants, vendors, former employees or current employees, despite the existence generally of confidentiality agreements, security measures and other
contractual restrictions.
Monitoring unauthorized uses and disclosures of our intellectual property is difficult, and we do not know whether the steps we
have taken to protect our intellectual property will be effective. In addition, third parties may independently develop similar technologies. Moreover, we do not have patent rights in all foreign countries in which a market may exist, and where we
have applied for foreign patent rights, the laws of many foreign countries will not protect our intellectual property rights to the same extent as the laws of the United States.
We may be involved in future costly intellectual property litigation, which could impact our future business and financial performance.
Our industry has been characterized by frequent intellectual property litigation. For example, we were involved in litigation with one of our competitors, Artes Medical, over rights to intellectual property underlying
both of our companies lead products, which resulted in the execution of a settlement and license agreement with Artes Medical. Our competitors or other patent holders may in the future assert that Radiesse and the methods we employ are covered
by their patents. If our products are found to infringe, we could be prevented from marketing them or have to pay substantial license fees or royalties to a third party. We may also initiate litigation against third parties to protect our own
intellectual property. Companies may market products for competing purposes in a direct challenge to our intellectual property position, and we may be required to initiate litigation in order to stop them. The unauthorized use of our intellectual
property could reduce or eliminate any competitive advantage we have, cause us to lose sales, or otherwise harm our business. Our intellectual property has not been fully tested in court. If we initiate litigation to protect our rights, we run the
risk of having our patents invalidated, which would undermine our competitive position.
Litigation related to infringement and other intellectual property
claims, with or without merit, is unpredictable, can be expensive and time-consuming and could divert managements attention from our core business. If we lose this kind of litigation, a court could require us to pay substantial damages and
prohibit us from using technologies essential to Radiesse, any of which would have a material adverse effect on our business, results of operations and financial condition. We do not know whether necessary licenses would be available to us at all or
on satisfactory terms, or whether we could redesign Radiesse or processes to avoid infringement.
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Risks Related to Our Common Stock and Being a Public Company
We expect that the price of our common stock will fluctuate substantially.
The market price of our common stock is likely to be highly volatile and may fluctuate substantially due to many factors, including:
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volume and timing of Radiesse sales;
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the introduction of new products or product enhancements by us or our competitors;
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disputes or other developments with respect to our intellectual property rights or the intellectual property rights of others;
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product liability claims or other litigation;
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quarterly variations in our or our competitors results of operations;
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sales of large blocks of our common stock, including sales by our executive officers and directors;
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developments in our industry;
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changes in governmental regulations or in the status of our regulatory approvals or applications;
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changes in earnings estimates or recommendations by securities analysts; and
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general market conditions and other factors, including factors unrelated to our operating performance or the operating performance of our competitors.
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These and other factors may make the price of our stock volatile and subject to unexpected fluctuation.
If our public guidance or our future operating performance does not meet investor expectations, our stock price could decline.
If our actual results do not meet our public guidance, or our guidance or actual results do not meet the expectations of third-party financial analysts, our stock price
could decline significantly. Our business typically has a short sales cycle, so that we do not have significant backlog of orders at the start of a quarter, and our ability to sell Radiesse successfully is subject to many uncertainties, as discussed
in this prospectus. In light of these factors, it is difficult for us to estimate with accuracy our future results. Our expectations regarding these results will be subject to numerous risks and uncertainties that could make actual results differ
materially from those anticipated.
Our financial and disclosure controls and procedures are expensive to implement and may not be sufficient to ensure
timely and reliable reporting of financial information, which could materially harm our stock price and NASDAQ listing.
We are required to comply with
the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, or Sarbanes-Oxley Act, and the related rules and regulations of the SEC, including the requirements that we maintain disclosure controls and procedures and adequate internal control over financial reporting. We are
also required to comply with marketplace rules and corporate governance standards of NASDAQ. Compliance with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act and other SEC and NASDAQ requirements is expensive and requires significant management resources. We recently have
begun upgrading our procedures and controls and will need to continue to implement additional procedures and controls as we grow our business and organization and to satisfy these reporting requirements. The effectiveness of our controls and
procedures implemented to comply with these requirements may in the future be limited by a variety of factors, including:
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faulty human judgment and simple errors, omissions or mistakes;
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fraudulent action of an individual or collusion of two or more people;
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inappropriate management override of procedures; and
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the possibility that any enhancements to controls and procedures may still not be adequate to assure timely and accurate financial information.
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If we are unable to complete the required assessment as to the adequacy of our internal control over financial reporting, as required by
Section 404 of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act or if we fail to maintain internal control over financial reporting, our ability to produce timely, accurate and reliable periodic financial statements could be impaired and we could be subject to NASDAQ
delisting, SEC investigation and civil or criminal sanctions. Additionally, our ability to obtain additional financing could be impaired. A lack of investor confidence in the reliability and accuracy of our public reporting could cause our stock
price to decline.
A sale of a substantial number of shares of our common stock may cause the price of our common stock to decline.
More than 95.0% of the privately-issued shares sold prior to our initial public offering are subject to lock-up agreements with us or the underwriters, which will expire
180 days from the date of our initial public offering (subject to extension upon the occurrence of specified events). We have agreed with the underwriters not to waive lock-up agreements with us without the consent of J.P. Morgan Securities Inc. and
Piper Jaffray & Co. Our managing underwriters, however, may, in their sole discretion, permit our officers, directors and other current stockholders who are subject to contractual lock-up agreements to sell shares before the lock-up
agreements expire. After the lock-up agreements expire, the shares subject to the lock-up agreements will be eligible for sale in the public market. Of these shares, 30,059,368 shares are held by directors, executive officers and other affiliates
and will be subject to volume limitations under Rule 144 under the Securities Act. In addition, shares of common stock that are either subject to outstanding options or reserved for future issuance under our employee benefit plans will become
eligible for sale in the public market to the extent permitted by the provisions of various vesting agreements, the lock-up agreements and Rule 144 and Rule 701 under the Securities Act.
If our stockholders sell substantial amounts of our common stock in the public market, including shares issued upon the exercise of outstanding options or warrants, the market price of our common stock could decline.
These sales also might make it more difficult for us to sell equity or equity related securities in the future at a time and price that we deem reasonable or appropriate.
Our directors, officers and principal stockholders have significant voting power and may take actions that may not be in the best interests of our other stockholders.
Our officers, directors and principal stockholders each holding more than 5% of our common stock collectively control more than a majority of our outstanding common
stock. As a result, these stockholders, if they act together, will be able to control the management and affairs of our company and most matters requiring stockholder approval, including the election of directors and approval of significant
corporate transactions. This concentration of ownership may have the effect of delaying or preventing a change in control and might adversely affect the market price of our common stock. This concentration of ownership may not be in the best
interests of our other stockholders.
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Anti-takeover provisions in our Amended and Restated Certificate of Incorporation and Bylaws, and Delaware law,
contain provisions that could discourage a takeover or frustrate any attempt by stockholders to change the directors or management of our company.
Our
amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws, and Delaware law, contain provisions that might enable our management to resist a takeover, and might make it more difficult for an investor to acquire a substantial block of our common
stock to cause changes in our management team or corporate strategy. These provisions include:
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a classified board of directors;
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advance notice requirements to stockholders for matters to be brought at stockholder meetings;
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a supermajority stockholder vote requirement for amending certain provisions of our amended and restated certificate of incorporation and bylaws;
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limitations on stockholder actions by written consent;
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provisions permitting the issuance of blank check preferred shares without stockholder consent; and;
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the right to issue preferred stock without stockholder approval, which could be used to dilute the stock ownership of a potential hostile acquirer.
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We are also subject to the provisions of Section 203 of the Delaware General Corporation Law that, in general, prohibit any
business combination or merger with a beneficial owner of 15% or more of our common stock unless the holders acquisition of our stock was approved in advance by our board of directors. These provisions might discourage, delay or prevent a
change in control of our company or a change in our management. The applicability of these provisions could adversely affect the voting power of holders of common stock and limit the price that investors might be willing to pay in the future for
shares of our common stock.
We have a large number of authorized but unissued shares of stock.
Our certificate of incorporation provides for 100,000,000 shares of authorized common stock. The issuance of additional shares of common stock may have a dilutive effect
on earnings per share and relative voting power. There are no current plans to issue any additional shares of common stock, other than increases from time to time in the number of shares that are reserved for issuance under our equity incentive
plans. However, we could use the shares of common stock that are available for future issuance in dilutive equity financing transactions, or to oppose a hostile takeover attempt or delay or prevent changes in control or changes in or removal of
management, including transactions that are favored by a majority of the stockholders or in which the stockholders might otherwise receive a premium for their shares over then-current market prices or benefit in some other manner.
In addition, our certificate of incorporation provides for 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock, all of which are available for future issuance. Although there are
currently no plans to do so, our board of directors may, without further stockholder approval, issue up to 10,000,000 shares of preferred stock with such rights, preferences and privileges as our board may determine. These rights, preferences and
privileges may include dividend rights, conversion rights, voting rights and liquidation rights that may be greater than the rights of our common stock. As a result, the rights of holders of our common stock are subject to, and could be adversely
affected by, the rights of holders of any preferred stock that may be issued in the future.
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We have not paid dividends in the past and do not expect to pay dividends in the future, and any return on investment
may be limited to the value of our stock.
We have never paid cash dividends on our common stock and do not anticipate paying cash dividends on our
common stock in the foreseeable future. The payment of dividends on our common stock will depend on our 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 stock may be less valuable because a return on your investment will only occur if our stock price appreciates.
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