Bridges July '98 Corporate Update With Q2 Financial Statements.KELOWNA, British Columbia--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 7, 1998--Q3 sales and re-billing are off to great start. Bridges (Alberta Stock Exchange Alberta Stock Exchange See Canadian Venture Exchange (CDNX). :BIT.) has virtually reached its Q3 sale targets of 200 new sites -- only one month into the quarter. June Brings $485,000 In Invoices A one-month record of 186 new site sales in June has generated over $250,000 in invoicing in·voice n. 1. A detailed list of goods shipped or services rendered, with an account of all costs; an itemized bill. 2. The goods or services itemized in an invoice. tr.v. . Over 200 sites have also re-subscribed or been re-billed, with invoices of more than $235,000. The impressive sales performance brings the total number of new sites sold in fiscal 1998 to 1004. Trading Symbol Trading symbol See: Ticker symbol BIT Stock Exchange ASE (Adaptive Server Enterprise) A relational DBMS from Sybase that runs on Windows NT/2000, Linux and a variety of Unix platforms. ASE is a comprehensive and robust data management product with a long history dating back to the late 1980s. 30 Day High $0.69/share 30 Day Low $0.49/share June 30, 98 close $0.53/share Recent Accomplishments: -- Q3 Sales Follow Great Second Quarter Over 300 new sales were completed in Q2, also exceeding projections. Total invoices for the first six months of fiscal 1998 topped $1,113,000 -- almost equaling fiscal 1997 total sales of $1,308,000. -- Re-Subscriptions Strong In Q3 Bridges has streamlined its re-billing policy -- most sites will now re-subscribe or be re-billed during the first and third quarters. Re-billings during the month of June totalled $235,000, representing approximately one-third of projected re-billings for the quarter. -- Bridges Invoices Exceed All Of 1997 Invoices for the first seven months of fiscal 1998 totaled $1,500,000. This exceeds the $1,308,000 in revenue declared for all of 1997. Bridges is on track to achieve its 1998 revenue goals. Emerging Events and Opportunities: -- Bridges has made its regional pricing system Noun 1. pricing system - a system for setting prices on goods or services system - a procedure or process for obtaining an objective; "they had to devise a system that did not depend on cooperation" more flexible in order to target states and provinces who can't afford full-service pricing. The new "bronze," "silver" and "gold" pricing levels are effective July. -- Recent sales illustrate the wide distribution of CX-98 in the United States United States, officially United States of America, republic (2005 est. pop. 295,734,000), 3,539,227 sq mi (9,166,598 sq km), North America. The United States is the world's third largest country in population and the fourth largest country in area. . New sales were in Arizona Arizona (âr'əzō`nə), state in the southwestern United States. It is bordered by Utah (N), New Mexico (E), Mexico (S), and, across the Colorado R., Nevada and California (W). , Arkansas Arkansas, river, United States Arkansas (ärkăn`zəs, är`kənsô'), river, c.1,450 mi (2,330 km) long, rising in the Rocky Mts., central Colo. , California California (kăl'ĭfôr`nyə), most populous state in the United States, located in the Far West; bordered by Oregon (N), Nevada and, across the Colorado River, Arizona (E), Mexico (S), and the Pacific Ocean (W). , Florida, Idaho, Illinois Illinois, river, United States Illinois, river, 273 mi (439 km) long, formed by the confluence of the Des Plaines and Kankakee rivers, NE Ill., and flowing SW to the Mississippi at Grafton, Ill. It is an important commercial and recreational waterway. , Iowa, Kansas, Michigan Michigan (mĭsh`ĭgən), upper midwestern state of the United States. It consists of two peninsulas thrusting into the Great Lakes and has borders with Ohio and Indiana (S), Wisconsin (W), and the Canadian province of Ontario (N,E). , Missouri Missouri, state, United States Missouri (mĭz  r`ē, –ə), one of the midwestern states of the United States. , New Mexico New Mexico, state in the SW United States. At its northwestern corner are the so-called Four Corners, where Colorado, New Mexico, Arizona, and Utah meet at right angles; New Mexico is also bordered by Oklahoma (NE), Texas (E, S), and Mexico (S). , New York New York, state, United StatesNew York, Middle Atlantic state of the United States. It is bordered by Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut, and the Atlantic Ocean (E), New Jersey and Pennsylvania (S), Lakes Erie and Ontario and the Canadian province of , North Dakota North Dakota, state in the N central United States. It is bordered by Minnesota, across the Red River of the North (E), South Dakota (S), Montana (W), and the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba (N). , South Dakota South Dakota (dəkō`tə), state in the N central United States. It is bordered by North Dakota (N), Minnesota and Iowa (E), Nebraska (S), and Wyoming and Montana (W). , Tennessee Tennessee, state, United States Tennessee (tĕn`əsē', tĕn'əsē`), state in the south-central United States. , Texas, Utah, Vermont Vermont (vərmŏnt`) [Fr.,=green mountain], New England state of the NE United States. It is bordered by New Hampshire, across the Connecticut R. , Virginia Virginia, state, United States Virginia, state of the south-central United States. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean (E), North Carolina and Tennessee (S), Kentucky and West Virginia (W), and Maryland and the District of Columbia (N and NE). , West Virginia West Virginia, E central state of the United States. It is bordered by Pennsylvania and Maryland (N), Virginia (E and S), and Kentucky and, across the Ohio R., Ohio (W). Facts and Figures Area, 24,181 sq mi (62,629 sq km). Pop. , Washington and Wisconsin Wisconsin, state, United States Wisconsin (wĭskŏn`sən, –sĭn), upper midwestern state of the United States. It is bounded by Lake Superior and the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, from which it is divided by the Menominee . CX-98 readers are now in 47 states. -- Enclosed en·close also in·close tr.v. en·closed, en·clos·ing, en·clos·es 1. To surround on all sides; close in. 2. To fence in so as to prevent common use: enclosed the pasture. are the Q2 Financial Statements. The second quarter financial report has been mailed to registered shareholders. Those interested in obtaining a copy can contact Norm Thompson Norman Jack Thompson (born March 5, 1945) is a National Football League cornerback who played with the St. Louis Cardinals and the Baltimore Colts. He became in 1977 the first free agent in NFL history to sign with another team, when he went to the Colts from the Cardinals. at 250/862-8722. -0-
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1998 1997
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Sites Accessing as of June 1,942 684
Total Pages Viewed In June 627,256 134,617
Total Hits In June 2,442,782 NA
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THE BRIDGES INITIATIVES INC.
Balance Sheet
(Unaudited)
May 31, 1998 and 1997
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1998 1997
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Assets
Current assets
Cash $ 310,083 $ 39,409
Accounts receivable 547,921 581,722
Prepaid expenses 54,998 11,910
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913,002 633,041
Capital assets 126,965 157,772
Deferred development costs 601,663 604,628
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$ 1,641,630 $ 1,395,441
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Liabilities and Shareholders' Equity
Current liabilities
Accounts payable and accrued
Liabilities $ 27,322 $ 109,795
Deferred revenue 166,377 79,537
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193,699 189,332
Shareholders' equity
Share capital 2,329,928 1,941,401
Deficit (881,997) (735,292)
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1,447,931 1,206,109
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$ 1,641,630 $ 1,395,441
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THE BRIDGES INITIATIVES INC.
Statement of Income & Deficit
(Unaudited)
For the six months ended May 31, 1998 and 1997
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1998 1997
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Revenue
On-line services $ 930,440 $ 506,101
Other services 103,600 237,871
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1,034,040 743,972
Interest income 2,714 -
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1,036,754 743,972
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Expenses
Content development and delivery 281,222 177,054
General, selling and administrative 566,641 342,167
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847,863 519,221
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Income before amortization 188,891 224,751
Amortization of deferred
development costs 154,464 145,425
Amortization of capital assets 20,359 28,799
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174,823 174,224
Net income for the period $ 14,068 $ 50,527
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-----------------------
Deficit, beginning of period $ 896,065 $ 785,819
Net income for the period 14,068 50,527
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Deficit, end of period $ 881,997 $ 735,292
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THE BRIDGES INITIATIVES INC.
Statement of Changes in Financial Position
(Unaudited)
For the six months ended May 31, 1998 and 1997
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1998 1997
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Cash provided by (used in):
Operations:
Income for the period $ 14,068 $ 50,527
Items not involving cash
Amortization of deferred
development costs 154,464 145,425
Amortization of capital assets 20,359 28,799
-----------------------
188,891 224,751
Change in non-cash working capital (120,238) (385,573)
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68,653 (160,822)
Financing:
Issuance of common shares - 146,022
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- 146,022
Investments:
Expenditures on capital assets 11,635 7,471
Expenditures on deferred
development costs 66,744 25,645
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78,379 33,116
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Increase (decrease) in cash position (9,726) (47,916)
Cash position, beginning of period 319,809 87,325
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Cash position, end of period $ 310,083 $ 39,409
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-0- CEO's Message For the first six months ending May 31, 1998, The Bridges Initiatives Inc. reported a net income of $14,000. Revenues of $1,036,000 were recognized, with expenditures of $847,000 and amortization of $175,000. This compares to a reported net loss of $50,500 and revenues of $743,000 in the first six months of 1997. Bridges' Q2 revenues were significantly impacted by a change in corporate billing policy. Previously, re-subscriptions were billed monthly, resulting in re-subscription revenues in all 12 months. The re-billing procedure has been streamlined to feature only two re-billing dates -- January 1 and August 1. This change in policy removes re-subscription revenues from Q2 and Q4 and reports the re-subscription revenues in Q1 and Q3 of each year. As a result, the re-subscription revenues traditionally reported in the second quarter will instead be reported in Q3. Bridges' second quarter featured the following developments: Bridges continues to capture more of the school market, with 267 new site sales realized in the quarter. This compares to 182 new sales in the second quarter of 1997. Bridges now has 1,717 subscribing sites, representing approximately 4.7 percent of the middle and secondary school market in North America North America, third largest continent (1990 est. pop. 365,000,000), c.9,400,000 sq mi (24,346,000 sq km), the northern of the two continents of the Western Hemisphere. . A strategy for taking the Career Explorer resource to the emerging public library market was developed and all sales staff were trained. Bridges seven regional sales representatives will use the summer months to aggressively promote CX into this new market. During Q2 578 sites were contacted to confirm their re-subscription for the 1998/99 school year. Feedback was very positive with strong signs that Bridges 90+ percent rate of re-subscription will be maintained. In addition, all 351 new sites in Manitoba have now been registered. Bridges initiated the Youth Employment Exchange project, trained several educators and have received approximately 500 resumes into the electronic labor exchange. The portfolio component of this project has proven so successful, it will be incorporated into the Career Explorer resource. Outlook Bridges will focus on four corporate goals during the third quarter of 1998: -- New Library Market Sales Even though many school sales are finalized See finalization. in June and July, the summer months are traditionally slow for the generating of new sales to the school market. As a result, the sales team will aggressively market Career Explorer to main and branch libraries in their U.S. and Canadian Canadian (kənā`dēən), river, 906 mi (1,458 km) long, rising in NE New Mexico. and flowing E across N Texas and central Oklahoma into the Arkansas River in E Oklahoma. regions. Two hundred new sales are projected from schools and libraries during the quarter. -- High Rates of Re-subscription More than 550 sites will be re-billed in the quarter, generating more than $600,000 in revenue. The service and administrative teams will be working specifically on this project to secure 90+ percent rates of re-subscription. -- Career Explorer Upgrade The Career Explorer resource is constantly being improved and upgraded. This is one key to our high rate of re-subscription. This summer, the content, technical and graphics teams will be working on many enhancements to the on-line service, including a new Professional Services (job) professional services - A department of a supplier providing consultancy and programming manpower for the supplier's products. section, a new portfolio system and the introduction of information services See Information Systems. for scholarships and bursaries. -- Special Projects Bridges will continue to seek development partners on various special projects. The corporate team will actively seek to develop at least one more regional version of Career Explorer. In addition, Bridges continues to work on the development of French and adult versions of Career Explorer, as well as seeking a publishing partner to develop paper-based support materials for Career Explorer. The Alberta Stock Exchange has neither approved nor disapproved the information contained herein.
CONTACT: The Bridges Initiatives Inc.
Norm Thompson, 250/862-8722
info@bridges.com
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