Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Total revenue increased by 11% year-on-year, reaching $195 million, exceeding expectations by $4 million [27][28] - Non-GAAP operating income rose by 34%, amounting to $36 million, surpassing guidance by $3 million [27][34] - GAAP operating margin expanded by seven points to a record high of 10% [34] - Free cash flow outlook improved significantly due to recent tax legislation [27][34] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Subscription revenue grew by 10% to $148 million, with subscription usage revenue up approximately 40% [28][29] - Marketplace and other revenue increased by 13% to $46 million, with Data Marketplace accounting for 76% of this revenue [32] - Total RPO (contracted backlog) rose by 29% to $690 million, while current RPO increased by 14% to $451 million [29] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The selling environment was characterized as generally positive, with strong sales momentum and several million-dollar deals [30][31] - Average deal cycle decreased to nine months, with a higher conversion rate of pipeline into bookings [30] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is modernizing its pricing model to offer greater flexibility and align costs with usage, which is expected to enhance upsell opportunities and attract new clients [14][15] - Focus on AI's transformative potential in digital advertising, positioning the company as a critical partner for clients' AI ambitions [22][23] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed optimism about the future, citing a robust new business pipeline and good sales momentum across several solutions [4][5] - The company anticipates continued growth in commerce media and CTV, with strong customer interest in its cleanroom strategy [11][12][23] Other Important Information - The company repurchased $30 million in stock during the first quarter, maintaining a strong balance sheet with approximately $370 million in cash and no debt [34] - The company expects to deploy a substantial portion of higher free cash flow towards share repurchases [39][42] Q&A Session Summary Question: Can you elaborate on the assumptions behind the revenue growth for Q2? - Management indicated that while Q1 exceeded expectations, they are conservatively guiding Q2 subscription usage growth to be flat year-on-year due to timing-related factors [46][47] Question: What gives confidence that the strength in Commerce Media Networks can continue? - Management highlighted strong customer engagement and the expansion of partnerships across various industries, indicating a growing network effect [51][55] Question: Can you provide balance on the momentum across Clean Room, CMI, and Commerce Media? - Management acknowledged some churn events impacting million-dollar customers but expressed confidence in a rebound due to strong sales momentum in Q2 [63][66] Question: How are pricing changes impacting new deals? - Management noted that the new pricing model is viewed favorably, reducing friction in the new business process and allowing for a more flexible entry point for clients [77][78] Question: What is LiveRamp's right to win in the rapidly changing AI environment? - Management emphasized that the company is not an AI company but an enabler, focusing on integrating proprietary data to enhance AI performance for clients [83][86]

Financial Data and Key Metrics Changes - Total revenue increased by 11% year-on-year, reaching $195 million, exceeding expectations by $4 million [27][28] - Non-GAAP operating income rose by 34%, amounting to $36 million, surpassing guidance by $3 million [27][33] - GAAP operating margin expanded by seven points to a record high of 10% [33] - Free cash flow outlook improved significantly due to recent tax legislation [27][39] Business Line Data and Key Metrics Changes - Subscription revenue grew by 10% to $148 million, with subscription usage revenue up approximately 40% [28][29] - Marketplace and other revenue increased by 13% to $46 million, with Data Marketplace accounting for 76% of this revenue [32] - Total contracted backlog (RPO) rose by 29% to $690 million, while current RPO increased by 14% to $451 million [29] Market Data and Key Metrics Changes - The selling environment was characterized as generally positive, with strong sales momentum and several million-dollar deals [30][31] - Average deal cycle decreased to nine months, with a higher conversion rate of pipeline into bookings [30] Company Strategy and Development Direction - The company is modernizing its pricing model to offer greater flexibility and align costs with usage, which is expected to enhance growth [13][15] - Focus on AI's transformative potential in digital advertising, positioning the company as a critical partner for clients' AI ambitions [20][22] - Continued investment in the data collaboration platform to support AI-driven advertising and enhance data connectivity [24][25] Management's Comments on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed optimism about the future, citing a robust new business pipeline and good sales momentum across several solutions [4][5] - The company anticipates continued growth in commerce media and CTV, driven by strong customer demand and successful integrations [12][52] - Increased confidence in achieving higher revenue growth in the latter half of the fiscal year [46] Other Important Information - The company repurchased $30 million in stock during the first quarter, with $226 million remaining under the current authorization [34] - The balance sheet remains strong with approximately $370 million in cash and short-term investments and zero debt [34] Q&A Session Summary Question: Can you elaborate on the assumptions behind the revenue growth for the second quarter? - Management noted that while Q1 outperformed expectations, they are conservatively guiding Q2 subscription usage growth to be flat year-on-year [45][46] Question: What gives confidence that the strength in Commerce Media Networks can continue? - Management highlighted the extensive customer networks and partnerships being developed, which are expected to fuel ongoing growth [48][52] Question: Can you provide balance on the momentum across Clean Room, CMI, and Commerce Media? - Management acknowledged some churn events impacting the million-dollar customer count but expressed confidence in a rebound due to strong sales momentum [61][63] Question: What is the leverage seen from offshoring and automation initiatives? - Management indicated that offshoring and smart cost management are driving low double-digit millions in cost savings, allowing for continued investment in growth areas [68][70] Question: How are pricing changes impacting new deals? - Management reported that the new pricing model is viewed favorably, reducing friction in the new business process and attracting new clients [75][78] Question: What is LiveRamp's right to win in the AI-driven marketing environment? - Management emphasized that the company is an enabler of AI, providing the necessary infrastructure for clients to leverage their proprietary data effectively [81][84]

Financial Performance - The company reported strong financial performance in Q4, beating expectations on both revenue and operating income, with revenue of $189 million, up 10% year-over-year [28][29] - Operating income was $23 million, reflecting a 43% increase, and operating margin expanded by three points to 12% [28][11] - For FY 2025, the company achieved 13% revenue growth, marking the third consecutive year of hitting the 10% to 15% growth target [6][7] - Free cash flow reached a record $153 million, a 51% year-over-year increase, demonstrating improved working capital management [11][37] Business Line Performance - Subscription revenue grew by 9% to $145 million, while marketplace and other revenue increased by 14% to $44 million [29][33] - The company added 13,100 subscription customers during the year, with significant growth in the $1 million plus customer cohort [7][9] - The reduction in contraction rate contributed to revenue growth, achieving the lowest level of dollar churn and downsell ever [10] Market Performance - The data marketplace, which accounted for 77% of marketplace revenue, grew by 13%, reflecting continued strength in U.S. digital ad spending [33] - The company did not detect any change in customer behavior due to macroeconomic conditions in Q4 or April [33] Strategic Direction and Industry Competition - The company aims to achieve the "Rule of 40" by FY 2028, targeting 10% to 15% revenue growth and 25% to 30% operating margin [12][25] - Key initiatives include enhancing the data collaboration network and launching cross media intelligence solutions to improve advertising measurement [14][18] - The company is focused on expanding its clean room solutions, which have shown to significantly increase annual recurring revenue (ARR) for customers [23][89] Management Commentary on Operating Environment and Future Outlook - Management expressed optimism about FY 2026, highlighting strong demand signals and a robust sales pipeline despite macroeconomic uncertainties [32][39] - The company anticipates revenue for FY 2026 to be between $787 million and $817 million, reflecting growth of 6% to 10% [39] - Management noted that the macro environment is a key swing factor in revenue guidance, with a stable economy assumed for the high end of the range [39][41] Other Important Information - The company successfully renewed 20 multimillion-dollar annual contract value (ACV) contracts, with over half being multi-year contracts [9][100] - The balance sheet remains strong with zero debt and cash and short-term investments totaling $421 million [37] Q&A Session Summary Question: Customer reaction to cross media intelligence - Management expressed optimism about the cross media intelligence solution, noting strong early feedback and increased customer conversations [52][54] Question: Key factors impacting revenue guidance - Management indicated that the macro environment is the primary swing factor between the low and high ends of the revenue guidance range [57][59] Question: New customer acquisition strategies - Management highlighted that the decline in customer count was primarily due to smaller customers, while the million-dollar plus customer count continued to grow [66][68] Question: Impact of Google’s cookie announcement - Management stated that the announcement was largely a non-event for customers, as the industry has been moving away from cookies for years [71][72] Question: Sales pipeline and customer hesitation - Management noted some customer hesitation in Q4 but reported that many deals that slipped have already closed in early Q1 [76][78] Question: Clean room adoption and customer segmentation - Management indicated that clean room adoption is primarily a function of time and execution, with larger companies leading the way [86][88] Question: Net retention rate outlook - Management expects net retention to stabilize between 100% and 105% in the near term, with potential for improvement as new strategies are executed [93][94]