Revenue In-Line With Outlook and Operating Expenses Less Than Anticipated        Balance Sheet Strengthens With 20 Percent Increase in Cash and                         Equivalents to $24 Million 

NOVATO, Calif., Aug. 6, 2009 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Sonic Solutions(r) (Nasdaq:SNIC) today announced financial results for the first fiscal quarter ended June 30, 2009. On a GAAP basis, net revenue was $25.5 million, operating expenses were $19.1 million, and net loss was $1.8 million, or $0.07 per diluted share.

"Sonic had a solid quarter, in spite of a challenging economic environment, reflecting the strength of our business initiatives as well as our financial discipline," said Sonic Chief Executive Officer, Dave Habiger. "Moving forward, our goal is to continue to maximize the success of our Roxio consumer business while investing in strategic growth opportunities relating to the digital distribution of premium content."

                            Summary Financial Results                   (in thousands, except per share amounts)                                       Three Months Ended June 30,                              -----------------------------------------                                2009       2009       2008       2008                               (GAAP)   (Non-GAAP)   (GAAP)   (Non-GAAP)                              --------   --------   --------   --------  Net revenue                 $ 25,527   $ 25,527   $ 30,114   $ 30,114   Gross profit                $ 17,642   $ 17,755   $ 22,408   $ 23,594   Net income (loss)           $ (1,831)  $    (81)  $ (3,640)  $ (2,253)   Net income (loss) per   diluted share              $  (0.07)  $  (0.00)  $  (0.14)  $  (0.09) 

Non-GAAP Presentation

To supplement our consolidated financial statements, which are prepared and presented in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles ("GAAP"), we report the following non-GAAP financial measures in presenting results and giving guidance: non-GAAP gross profit, non-GAAP gross margin, non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP net income (loss) and non-GAAP net income (loss) per share. We also provide guidance regarding our projected earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, excluding impairment charges, restructuring expense, stock option review expense and share-based compensation ("Adjusted EBITDA"). Our non-GAAP financial measures are not meant to be considered in isolation or as a substitute for comparable GAAP measures, but should be considered in addition to and in conjunction with results presented in accordance with GAAP. The non-GAAP financial measures are intended to provide additional insight into our operations that, when viewed with our GAAP results and the accompanying reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures, offer a more complete understanding of factors and trends affecting our business. Our non-GAAP presentations should be read in conjunction with our consolidated financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP.

We believe these non-GAAP financial measures are useful to investors because (1) they allow for greater transparency with respect to key metrics we use in our financial and operational decision-making and (2) they are used by some of our investors and the analyst community to help them analyze our operating results and budget planning decisions. We use these non-GAAP measures internally to plan and forecast future periods, to establish operational goals, to compare with our business plan and individual operating budgets and to allocate resources. As illustrated by the above table, the effect of calculating these financial measures on a non-GAAP basis is to increase our gross profit and decrease our net loss and net loss per fully diluted share for the first quarters ended June 30, 2009 and 2008, respectively. Material limitations associated with the use of the non-GAAP financial measures versus the comparable GAAP measures and guidance are (a) the non-GAAP measures provide a view of our results that does not take into account certain GAAP expenses that would otherwise reduce our profits or increase our losses for the period in question, and (b) because other companies may not present non-GAAP results utilizing similar assumptions, it may be difficult or impossible to meaningfully compare our non-GAAP results with those of such other companies. We compensate for these limitations by providing full disclosure of the effects of our non-GAAP measures and guidance. Additionally, we present reconciliations between non-GAAP measures and their most directly comparable GAAP measures for non-GAAP historical information and, to the extent available without unreasonable efforts, for non-GAAP forward-looking information, so that investors can use the information to perform their own analysis.

Additional information regarding our non-GAAP financial measures and adjustments is as follows:

Restructuring Expense Adjustment. We have excluded the effect of our restructuring expense from our calculation of the following: non-GAAP operating expense, non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP net income (loss), non-GAAP net income (loss) per share and Adjusted EBITDA. These expenses are primarily associated with the restructuring actions commenced in June and October 2008, and January 2009. As these expenses are directly related to such restructurings, we believe that providing non-GAAP financial measures that exclude these expenses allows investors and analysts to make meaningful comparisons of our ongoing core business operating results over different periods of time.

Share-Based Compensation Expense Adjustment. We have excluded the effect of our share-based compensation expense from our calculation of the following: non-GAAP operating expense, non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP net income (loss), non-GAAP net income (loss) per share and Adjusted EBITDA, as this provides our management with an important tool for financial and operational decision-making and for evaluating our own recurring core business operating results over different periods of time. Because of varying available valuation methodologies, subjective assumptions and the variety of award types that companies may use under Statement of Financial Accounting Standards ("SFAS") No.123R "Share-Based Payment" (which becomes "ASC 718-10-10 et seq." under the new codification of accounting standards effective July 1, 2009), which governs the accounting treatment for share-based compensation, as well as the impact of non-operational factors such as our share price and events such as tender offers on the magnitude of this expense. We believe that providing non-GAAP financial measures that exclude share-based compensation expense allows investors and analysts to make meaningful comparisons between our ongoing core business operating results and those of other companies. Share-based compensation expense will recur in future periods for GAAP purposes.

Acquisition-Related Intangible Amortization. Under purchase accounting rules, some portion of an acquisition purchase price is generally allocated to intangibles, such as core and developed technology and customer contracts, which are then amortized over various periods of time. Our GAAP presentations include amortization on certain acquired intangibles from prior consummated transactions. We have excluded the effect of amortization of acquired intangibles from our calculation of the following: non-GAAP gross margin, non-GAAP gross profit, non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP net income (loss), non-GAAP net income (loss) per share and Adjusted EBITDA. Amortization of acquired intangible assets expense is inconsistent in amount and frequency and is significantly affected by the timing and size of our various acquisitions. Further, the amortization expense on acquired intangibles does not result in ongoing cash expenditures, and, in our view, does not otherwise have a material impact on our ongoing business operations. Investors should note that the use of acquired intangible assets contributed to revenues earned during the periods presented and will continue to contribute to future period revenues. This amortization expense will recur in future periods for GAAP purposes.

Stock Option Review Expense Adjustment. As we originally announced in February 2007, we conducted a voluntary review of our historical stock option grant practices and related accounting. We have excluded the effect of our stock option review expenses from our calculation of the following: non-GAAP operating expense, non-GAAP operating income, non-GAAP operating margin, non-GAAP net income (loss), non-GAAP net income (loss) per share and Adjusted EBITDA, as this provides our management with an important tool for financial and operations decision making and for evaluating our own recurring core business operating results over different periods of time. We believe that providing non-GAAP financial measures that exclude this stock option review expense allows investors and analysts to make meaningful comparisons of our ongoing core business operating results. We did not incur any option review expense during the first quarter ended June 30, 2009, but it is possible that certain option review expenses could be incurred in future periods as matters associated with the review are completed.

Adjusted EBITDA. We provide guidance regarding our Adjusted EBITDA. We believe this performance measure is useful to investors because (a) it corresponds closely to the cash operating income generated from our core operations by excluding significant non-cash operating expenses such as impairment charges, restructuring expenses, stock option review expenses and share-based compensation expenses, as well as certain other expenses, that do not arise out of our core ongoing operating activities, and (b) it provides greater insight into management decision-making, as Adjusted EBITDA is one of our primary internal metrics for evaluating the performance of our business.