v3.21.1
Summary of significant accounting policies (Policies)
3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2021
Summary of significant accounting policies  
Basis of presentation

Basis of presentation

The accompanying interim condensed consolidated financial statements and related notes for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020 are unaudited. The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial information has been prepared in accordance with the rules and regulations of the SEC for interim financial information. Accordingly, they do not include all information and footnotes required by generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”) in the United States of America (“U.S.”) for complete financial statements. These financial statements should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes for the year ended December 31, 2020 contained in our annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 1, 2021, as amended through the Form 10-K/A filed with the SEC on April 28, 2021. The unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the annual consolidated financial statements and in the opinion of management, reflect all adjustments, consisting of normal recurring adjustments, necessary for a fair statement of our results of operations for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, our cash flows for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, and our financial position as of March 31, 2021. The year-end balance sheet data was derived from audited consolidated financial statements but does not include all disclosures required by GAAP. Interim results are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for an entire year or any other future year or interim period.

In August 2020, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued Accounting Standards Update (“ASU”) 2020-06, Debt — Debt with Conversion and Other Options (Subtopic 470-20) and Derivatives and Hedging Contracts in Entity’s Own Equity (Subtopic 815-40), which eliminates the beneficial conversion and cash conversion accounting models for convertible instruments, amends the accounting for certain contracts in an entity’s own equity that are currently accounted for as derivatives because of specific settlement provisions, and modifies how particular convertible instruments and certain contracts that may be settled in cash or shares impact the diluted EPS calculation. The standard is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2021, and interim periods within those reporting periods. Early adoption is permitted, but no earlier than fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2020, including interim periods within those reporting periods. The standard can be adopted under the modified retrospective method or the full retrospective method. We adopted ASU 2020-06 on January 1, 2021 under the modified retrospective method. Results for reporting periods beginning on January 1, 2021 are presented under ASU 2020-06, while prior period amounts are not adjusted.

Adoption of ASU 2020-06 required us to record a cumulative effect adjustment, net of tax, to accumulated deficit of $6,566 on January 1, 2021. In addition, the adoption of the standard resulted in the following changes to the consolidated balance sheet as of January 1, 2021:

    

January 1, 2021

    

Adjustment for

    

January 1, 2021

(Unadjusted)

Adoption

(Adjusted)

Property and equipment, net

$

406,328

$

(6,076)

$

400,252

Long-term debt

$

171,695

$

27,279

$

198,974

Additional paid-in capital

$

241,868

$

(39,921)

$

201,947

The changes to the consolidated balance sheet as of January 1, 2021 were primarily due to the following factors: (i) reclassification of the equity component of our Convertible Notes related to the cash conversion feature to a liability thereby eliminating the debt discount; (ii) reclassification of the debt issuance costs for the equity component of our Convertible Notes to a liability; (iii) adjustment of the amount of interest expense capitalized as part of our property and equipment; and (iv) reversal of $5,686 of income tax benefit related to the equity component of the Convertible Notes that was recorded as additional paid-in capital.

On January 1, 2021, we also reversed $27,949 of gross deferred tax liabilities related to the equity component of our Convertible Notes. The adoption of ASU 2020-06 did not have any impact on our net deferred tax as of January 1, 2021 due to the valuation allowance. Effective January 1, 2021, we calculate the dilutive effect of the Convertible Notes on our diluted EPS using the if-converted method.

In December 2019, the FASB issued ASU 2019-12, Income Taxes (Topic 740): Simplifying the Accounting for Income Taxes, which simplifies the accounting for income taxes. The standard removes certain ASC 740 exceptions to reduce the cost and complexity of its application including: i) the exception to the “with-and-without” approach for intraperiod tax allocation when there was a loss from continuing operations and income or a gain from other items such as discontinued operations of other comprehensive income; ii) two exceptions with respect to accounting for outside basis differences of equity method investments and foreign subsidiaries; and iii) the exception to limit the income tax benefit recognized in the interim period in cases where the year-to-date loss exceeded the anticipated loss for the year. The standard also clarified and amended existing guidance including, but not limited to: i) when a step-up in the tax basis of goodwill should be considered part of the business combination in which the book goodwill was originally recognized and when it should be considered a separate transaction; and ii) accounting for tax effects, both deferred and current, in the interim period that includes the enactment date. The standard is effective for annual periods beginning after December 15, 2020, and interim periods within those reporting periods. Early adoption is permitted with any adjustments reflected as of the beginning of the fiscal year of adoption. We adopted ASU 2019-12 on January 1, 2020 and the adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

In August 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-15, Intangibles—Goodwill and Other —Internal Use Software (Subtopic 350-40): Customer’s Accounting for Implementation Costs Incurred in a Cloud Computing Arrangement That Is a Service Contract, which requires customers to apply the same criteria for capitalizing implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement that is hosted by the vendor as they would for an arrangement that has a software license. The standard is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2019 and early adoption is permitted. The standard can be adopted prospectively or retrospectively. We adopted ASU 2018-15 on January 1, 2020 on a prospective basis for any new implementation costs incurred in a cloud computing arrangement that is hosted by the vendor. The adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

In June 2016, the FASB issued ASU 2016-13, Financial Instruments —Credit Losses (Topic 326), which replaces the incurred loss methodology with an expected loss methodology that is referred to as the current expected credit loss (“CECL”) methodology. The measurement of expected credit losses under the CECL methodology is applicable to financial assets measured at amortized cost, including loan receivables and held-to-maturity debt securities. It also applies to off-balance sheet credit exposures not accounted for as insurance (loan commitments, standby letters of credit, financial guarantees, and other similar investments) and net investments in leases recognized by the lessor in accordance with ASC 842 on leases. In addition, the standard made changes to the accounting for available-for-sale debt securities. One such change is to require credit losses to be presented as an allowance rather than as a write-down on available-for-sale debt securities. Available-for-sale accounting recognizes that values may be realized either through collection of contractual cash flows or through the sale of the security. Therefore the amendments limit the amount of the allowance for credit losses to the amount by which fair value is below amortized cost because the classification as available-for-sale is premised on an investment strategy that recognizes that the investment could be sold at fair value, if cash collection would result in the realization of an amount less than fair value. The standard is effective for interim and annual periods beginning after December 15, 2019 and early adoption is permitted. The standard will be adopted under the modified-retrospective approach with the prospective transition approach required for debt securities for which an other-than-temporary impairment had been recognized before the effective date. We adopted ASU 2016-13 on January 1, 2020 and the adoption of this standard did not have a material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

Principles of consolidation

Principles of consolidation

The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include our accounts and the accounts of our majority owned subsidiaries. We consolidate our 70% ownership of Chicago Concourse Development Group, LLC and our 75% ownership of Boingo Holding Participacoes Ltda. in accordance with ASC 810, Consolidation. Other parties’ interests in consolidated entities are reported as non-controlling interests. All intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation.

Marketable securities

Marketable securities

Our marketable securities consist of available-for-sale securities with original maturities exceeding three months. According to ASC 320, Investments—Debt and Equity Securities, we have classified securities, which have readily determinable fair values and are highly liquid, as short-term because such securities are expected to be realized within a one-year period. At March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, we had $0 and $4,565, respectively, in marketable securities.

Marketable securities are reported at fair value with the related unrealized gains and losses reported as other comprehensive income (loss) until realized or until a determination is made that an other-than-temporary decline in market value has occurred. No significant unrealized gains and losses have been reported during the periods presented. Factors considered by us in assessing whether an other-than-temporary impairment has occurred include the nature of the investment, whether the decline in fair value is attributable to specific adverse conditions affecting the investment, the financial condition of the investee, the severity and the duration of the impairment and whether we have the ability to hold the investment to maturity. When it is determined that an other-than-temporary impairment has occurred, the investment is written down to its market value at the end of the period in which it is determined that an other-than-temporary decline has occurred. The cost of marketable securities sold is based upon the specific identification method. Any realized gains or losses on the sale of investments are reflected as a component of interest income and other expense, net.

For the three months ended March 31, 2021, we had no material realized gains or losses from investments in marketable securities classified as available-for-sale. As of December 31, 2020, we had $1 of cumulative unrealized gain, net of tax, which was $0 as of December 31, 2020 due to the full valuation allowance established against our deferred tax assets, in accumulated other comprehensive loss.

Segment and geographic information

Segment and geographic information

In October 2020, we completed our restructuring activities, which were initiated in December 2019. Prior to the completion of the restructuring activities, we operated as one reportable segment—a service provider of wireless connectivity solutions across our managed and operated network and aggregated network for mobile devices such as laptops, smartphones, tablets and other wireless-enabled consumer devices. This single segment is consistent with the internal organizational structure and the manner in which operations are reviewed and managed by our Chief Executive Officer, the chief operating decision maker.

We currently have five reportable and operating segments: (i) carrier services for the provision of wireless and cellular services to our wireless customers (“Carrier Services”); (ii) military for the provision of wireless services on military bases (“Military”); (iii) private networks and emerging technologies for the provision of licensed, unlicensed, and shared spectrum services for our venue partners and non-telecom customers (“Private Networks and Emerging Technologies”); (iv) multifamily for the provision of wireless services for our multifamily property owners (“Multifamily”); and (v) legacy for the provision of our other services such as retail, advertising, and wholesale Wi-Fi services to enterprise customers (“Legacy”). Prior period segment results have been recast to conform to the current presentation.

We evaluate reportable and operating segment performance primarily based on revenues and income (loss) from operations, which is our segment operating performance measure. The income (loss) from operations of each reportable and operating segment include only those costs which are specifically related to each reportable and operating segment, which consist primarily of cost of sales, sales and marketing, depreciation, and the direct costs of employees within those reportable and operating segments. We do not allocate corporate overhead costs or non-operating income and expenses to reportable and operating segments, which include unallocable overhead costs associated with our corporate offices, certain executive compensation including stock compensation, costs related to our accounting, finance, legal, engineering, marketing, and human resources departments, among others.

Segment information under the new five reportable segment basis, with a reconciliation to the unaudited condensed consolidated statements of operations, is summarized as follows:

Three Months Ended

March 31, 

    

2021

    

2020

Revenue:

Carrier services

$

26,883

$

26,848

Military

20,645

18,002

Multifamily

5,304

5,224

Legacy

6,204

9,302

Private networks and emerging technologies

893

510

Total revenue

$

59,929

$

59,886

Three Months Ended

March 31, 

    

2021

    

2020

Income (loss) from operations:

Carrier services

$

2,621

$

5,866

Military

7,265

4,800

Multifamily

(1,680)

(1,930)

Legacy

(307)

603

Private networks and emerging technologies

71

441

Unallocated overhead costs

(13,828)

(12,365)

Total loss from operations

(5,858)

(2,585)

Interest expense and amortization of debt discount

(657)

(2,349)

Interest income and other expense, net

(2)

254

Loss before income taxes

$

(6,517)

$

(4,680)

Assets allocated to each reportable and operating segment include property and equipment, net, goodwill, and intangible assets, net that are specifically identifiable for one of our reportable and operating segments. Our reportable and operating segments also present reporting units for goodwill impairment testing purposes. Unallocated assets are those assets not directly related to a specific reportable and operating segment. There have been no material changes to our assets allocated to each reportable and operating segment from the amount disclosed as of December 31, 2020 as contained in our annual report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 1, 2021, as amended through the Form 10-K/A filed with the SEC on April 28, 2021.

All significant long-lived tangible assets are held in the United States of America. We do not disclose sales by geographic area because it would be impracticable to do so.

Leases

Leases

We determine if an arrangement is a lease at inception. Operating leases are included in operating lease right-of-use assets, current portion of operating leases, and long-term portion of operating leases in our condensed consolidated balance sheets. Finance leases are included in property and equipment, net, current portion of finance leases, and long-term portion of finance leases in our condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Operating and finance lease right-of-use (“ROU”) assets and ROU liabilities are recognized based on the present value of the future minimum lease payments over the lease term at the commencement date. As most of our leases for which we are lessee do not provide an implicit rate, we use our incremental borrowing rate based on the information available at the commencement date in determining the present value of future payments. The ROU asset also includes any lease payments made and excludes lease incentives and initial direct costs incurred. Our lease terms may include options to extend or terminate the lease when it is reasonably certain that we will exercise that option. Lease expense for minimum lease payments is recognized on a straight-line basis over the lease term. We have lease agreements with lease and non-lease components, which are accounted for separately for the asset classes maintained. We exclude short-term leases with a lease term of 12 months or less at the commencement date from our condensed consolidated balance sheets.

Income taxes

Income taxes

We calculate our interim income tax provision in accordance with ASC 270, Interim Reporting, and ASC 740, Accounting for Income Taxes. At the end of each interim period, we estimate the annual effective tax rate and apply that rate to our ordinary quarterly earnings. The tax expense or benefit related to significant, unusual, or extraordinary items is recognized in the interim period in which those items occur. In addition, the effect of changes in enacted tax laws, rates, or tax status is recognized in the interim period in which the change occurs. Excess windfall tax benefits and tax deficiencies related to our stock option exercises and RSU vestings are recognized as an income tax benefit or expense in our condensed consolidated statements of operations in the period they are deducted on the income tax return. Excess windfall tax benefits and tax deficiencies are therefore not anticipated when determining the annual effective tax rate and are instead recognized in the interim period in which those items occur.

The computation of the annual estimated effective tax rate at each interim period requires certain estimates and significant judgment, including the expected operating income (loss) for the year, projections of the proportion of income (loss) earned and taxed in various states, permanent and temporary differences as a result of differences between amounts measured and recognized in accordance with tax laws and financial accounting standards, and the likelihood of recovering deferred tax assets generated in the current year. The accounting estimates used to compute the provision for income taxes may change as new events occur, additional information is obtained, or as the tax environment changes.

As of March 31, 2021, we were in a net tested loss position in our subsidiaries located outside of the U.S. In the event that we generate earnings in these subsidiaries, our intention is to indefinitely reinvest these earnings outside the U.S. If we were to remit our foreign earnings, we would be subject to state income taxes or withholding taxes imposed on actual distributions, or currency transaction gains (losses) that would result in taxation upon remittance. However, the amounts of any such tax liabilities resulting from the repatriation of foreign earnings are not material.

Foreign currency translation

Foreign currency translation

Our Brazilian subsidiary uses the Brazilian Real as its functional currency. Assets and liabilities of our Brazilian subsidiary are translated to U.S. dollars at period-end rates of exchange, and revenues and expenses are translated at average exchange rates prevailing for each month. The resulting translation adjustments are made directly to a separate component of other comprehensive loss, which is reflected in stockholders’ equity in our condensed consolidated balance sheets. As of March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, the Company had $(2,742) and $(2,280), respectively, of cumulative foreign currency translation adjustments, net of tax, which was $0 as of March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 due to the full valuation allowance established against our deferred tax assets, in accumulated other comprehensive loss.

The functional currency for our other foreign subsidiaries is the U.S. dollar. Gains and losses from the revaluation of foreign currency transactions and monetary assets and liabilities are included in the condensed consolidated statements of operations.

Use of estimates

Use of estimates

The preparation of accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires us to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the dates of the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenue and

expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from those estimates. Assets and liabilities which are subject to significant judgment and the use of estimates include the allowance for doubtful accounts, recoverability of goodwill and long-lived assets, valuation allowances with respect to deferred tax assets, useful lives associated with property and equipment, valuation of ROU assets and ROU liabilities, valuation and useful lives of intangible assets, contract assets and contract liabilities including estimates of variable consideration, and the valuation and assumptions underlying stock-based compensation and other equity instruments. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates compared to historical experience and trends, which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of assets and liabilities.

Fair value of financial instruments

Fair value of financial instruments

Fair value is defined as the price that would be received from selling an asset, or paid to transfer a liability, in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. When determining the fair value measurements for assets and liabilities required or permitted to be recorded at fair value, we consider the principal or most advantageous market in which it would transact, and we consider assumptions that market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability.

The accounting guidance for fair value measurement also requires an entity to maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when measuring fair value. The standard establishes a fair value hierarchy based on the level of independent, objective evidence surrounding the inputs used to measure fair value. A financial instrument’s categorization within the fair value hierarchy is based upon the lowest level of input that is significant to the fair value measurement. The fair value hierarchy is as follows:

Level 1—Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets that are accessible at the measurement date for identical, unrestricted assets or liabilities.
Level 2—Quoted prices for identical assets and liabilities in markets that are not active, quoted prices for similar assets and liabilities in active markets or financial instruments for which significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly.
Level 3—Unobservable inputs that are supported by little or no market activity and that are significant to the fair value of the assets or liabilities.

The carrying amount reflected in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets for cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable, and accrued expenses and other liabilities approximates fair value due to the short duration and nature of these financial instruments.