On April 12, 2019, Verb completed its previously announced acquisition of Verb Direct through a two-step merger, consisting of merging Merger Sub 1 with and into Sound Concepts, with Sound Concepts surviving the “first step” of the merger as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Verb (and the separate corporate existence of Merger Sub 1 then having ceased) and, immediately thereafter, merging Sound Concepts (as of the closing of the first step, then known as Verb Direct, Inc.) with and into Merger Sub 2, with Merger Sub 2 surviving the “second step” of the merger, such that, upon the conclusion of the “second step” of the merger, the separate corporate existence of Verb Direct, Inc. (formerly Sound Concepts) then having ceased and Merger Sub 2 continued its limited liability company existence under Utah law as the surviving entity and as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Verb, then known as Verb Direct. On the terms and subject to the conditions set forth in the Merger Agreement, at the effective time of the merger, each share of Sound Concepts Capital Stock issued and outstanding immediately prior to the effective time, was cancelled in exchange for cash payment by Verb of an aggregate of $15,000,000, and the issuance of an aggregate of 3,327,791 restricted shares of Verb’s Common Stock. The Acquisition Cash Payment was paid using a portion of the net proceeds Verb received as a result of the public offering of the units. Pursuant to the requirements of current accounting guidance, Verb valued the acquisition shares at $7,820,000, the fair value of the shares at the closing date of the transaction.

The acquisition was intended to augment and diversify Verb’s internet and SaaS business. Key factors that contributed to the recorded goodwill and intangible assets in the aggregate of $22,677,000 were the opportunity to consolidate and complement existing operations of Verb, certain software and customer list, and the opportunity to generate future synergies within the internet and SaaS business.

The allocation of the purchase price was determined with the assistance of a valuation specialist. The following table summarizes the assets acquired, liabilities assumed and purchase price allocation:

The goodwill recognized in connection with the acquisition is primarily attributable to anticipated synergies from future growth and is not expected to be deductible for tax purposes. Goodwill is not amortized but will be tested for impairment on an annual basis.

The intangible assets, which consist mostly of developed technology of $4,700,000 are being amortized over 5-years, customer relationships of $1,200,000 are being amortized on an accelerated basis over its estimated useful life of 5 years and domain names of $440,000 are determined to have infinite lives but will be tested for impairment on an annual basis.

b.       ACQUISITION OF ASCEND CERTIFICATION

On September 4, 2020, Verb Acquisition Co., LLC (“Verb Acquisition”), a subsidiary of the Company, entered into a Membership Interest Purchase Agreement (the “Purchase Agreement”) with Ascend Certification, LLC, dba SoloFire (“SoloFire”), the sellers party thereto (collectively, the “Sellers”), and Steve Deverall, solely in his capacity as the seller representative, under which Sellers agreed to sell their entire interest in SoloFire, representing all of the outstanding limited liability company membership interests of SoloFire, to Verb Acquisition for a base purchase price of $5,700,000, subject to certain post-closing adjustments totaling $750,000 for an adjusted purchase price of $4,950,000. As a result, Verb Acquisition issued to the Sellers an amended promissory note of $1,885,000 and 2,642,159 Class B Units of Verb Acquisition which are exchangeable for 2,642,159 shares of Verb’s Common Stock with an estimated fair value of $3,065,000 (see Note 16) for a total purchase price of $4,950,000. The promissory note is unsecured, bears interest at a rate of 0.14% per annum and will mature in October 2020. The amended promissory note was paid in full on October 1, 2020.

The acquisition was intended to augment and diversify Verb’s SaaS business. Key factors that contributed to the recorded provisional goodwill and intangible assets in the aggregate of $4,845,000 were the opportunity to consolidate and complement existing operations of Verb, certain software and customer list, and the opportunity to generate future synergies within the SaaS business.

Verb is required to allocate the purchase price to the acquired tangible assets, identifiable intangible assets, and assumed liabilities based on their fair values. As of December 31, 2020, management has not yet finalized the purchase price allocation. The fair values of the assets acquired, as set forth below, are considered provisional and subject to adjustment as additional information is obtained through the purchase price measurement period (a period of up to one year from the closing date). Any prospective adjustments would change the fair value allocation as of the acquisition date. The Company is still in the process of reviewing underlying models, assumptions and discount rates used in the valuation of provisional goodwill and intangible assets. The following table summarizes the provisional fair value of the assets assumed and liabilities acquired and the provisional purchase price allocation on the date of acquisition:

The provisional goodwill recognized in connection with the acquisition is primarily attributable to anticipated synergies from future growth and is not expected to be deductible for tax purposes. Goodwill is not amortized but will be tested for impairment on an annual basis.

The provisional intangible assets, which consist of developed technology of $1,000,000 are being amortized over 5-years, customer relationships of $70,000 are being amortized over 3 years, non-competition clause of $50,000 is being amortized over 3 years, and domain names of $2,000 are determined to have infinite lives but will be tested for impairment on an annual basis.

During the year ended December 31, 2020 and 2019, the Company recorded amortization expense of $1,335,000 and $975,000, respectively, related to the intangibles discussed above. The following table summarizes the amortization expense for both Verb Direct and Ascend to be recorded in future periods for intangible assets that are subject to amortization and excludes intangible assets with infinite life (i.e. domain names) of $442,000:

The following unaudited pro forma statements of operations present the Company’s pro forma results of operations after giving effect to the purchase of Verb Direct and Verb Acquisition based on the historical financial statements of the Company, Verb Direct, and Verb Acquisition. The unaudited pro forma statements of operations for the year ended December 31, 2020 and 2019 give effect to the transaction as if they had occurred on January 1, 2019.

Pursuant to the provisions of ASC 805, the following results of operations of Verb Direct and Verb Acquisition subsequent to the acquisitions are as follows:

These amounts were included in the accompany Consolidated Statement of Operations.