Wright Method 3
299 Ms Wright explained this method as follows in her first report:
6.1.2. … Method 3 is a market method based on the 'Relief from royalty', based on benchmarking the assumed payment for Intellectual Property to comparable market rates. This is a method commonly referred to in the International Valuation Standards.
6.1.3. In my experience, the relief from royalty method is a common method to value Intellectual Property such as brands, trademarks, trade names, patents, technology and know-how. I use this method as guidance in researching market comparable royalty rates to determine a reasonable range of royalty rates that could be applicable to SAPL. This method starts from the assumption that a component of the Payments does represent a royalty payment.
6.1.4. Under this method, third party royalty or license agreements are analysed as obtained from public sources. Generally, the net revenue generated by the Intellectual Property is multiplied by the selected benchmark royalty rate. The selected licencing agreements should therefore reflect similar risks and characteristics to the subject Intellectual Property. Accordingly, depending on the terms of the selected comparable licensing agreements, the observed royalty rates may need to be adjusted to make them comparable to the subject Intellectual Property as necessary.
300 Essentially, Wright Method 3 involves a search for comparable agreements in order to find a benchmark for a royalty. In order to look for benchmarks, Ms Wright searched a database called Royalty Range. This was the database that her firm in Australia had a licence to. Ms Wright accepted during cross-examination that there are other databases that include licence agreements that could be relevant. She said she did not search them as she did not have access to them.
301 Ms Wright outlined the steps involved as follows in her first report:
6.2.1. Below are the steps I would perform under this method:
(a) Step 1: Search Royalty Range database, an intellectual property royalty rate database for comparable licensing and royalty agreements in the food and beverage industry. The database consists of royalty rate reports that contain manually gathered and analysed data. The Royalty Range database is funded by the European Union's Structural Funds and has been featured in publications by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, World Bank Group, International Monetary Fund and United Nations;
(b) Step 2: Identify agreements where the licensee produces, manufactures, distributes and sells food and beverage products;
(c) Step 3: Of the identified agreements, analyse the fees paid (license/royalties) to the licensor for the use of intellectual property and conclude on a typical range of royalty rates (calculated as a percentage of earnings, assuming the earnings to be on the same basis as for SAPL) charged for the intellectual property associated with the production, manufacturing, distribution and sale of food and beverage products; and
(d) Step 4: Calculate a royalty payment as a royalty rate (generally expressed as a percentage) multiplied by a level of earnings (revenue, profit).
(Footnotes omitted.)
302 Ms Wright explained at [6.3.1]-[6.3.4] the information that she did, and did not, have access to (at that stage).
303 Ms Wright's detailed reasoning in relation to this method in her first report included:
6.4.1. Assuming the Payments were, to an extent, for Intellectual Property owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, and in the absence of the SAPL financial statements, I have prepared an estimate of a royalty payment based on the information I have been provided and been able to obtain from my market research.
6.4.2. My calculations are based on
(a) a range of royalty rates I have identified in my market research (refer to Range of royalty rates section below and Annexure D); and
(b) my estimate of revenue using publicly available comparable company information (refer to the Estimate of revenue using publicly available comparable company information section below and Annexure E).
Range of royalty rates
6.4.3. Assuming the Payments were, to an extent, for Intellectual Property owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, I have undertaken research to identify relationships that reflect similar characteristics to those that I have identified in Section 3.4. This includes identifying arrangements representing the manufacturing and distribution of the finished products and does not encompass sharing any proprietary information (such as trade secrets) with the licensee. Accordingly, I have only considered agreements where no proprietary manufacturing related intangible assets are licensed to the licensee. In my view, this is consistent with the EBAs as PepsiCo/SVC does not transfer any Intellectual Property related to the Concentrate to SAPL. In selecting these agreements, I have:
(a) searched the Royalty Range database for agreements with entities involved in the food and beverage industry where the licensee distributes or sells food and beverage products;
(b) excluded agreements where the licensor does not own food or beverage brands;
(c) excluded agreements where manufacturing related intangible assets such as recipes, formulae or similar know-how were transferred to the licensee;
(d) selected royalty agreements that calculate the royalty rate as a percentage of net sales; and
(e) narrowed the search to a list of eight agreements as my final set of comparable royalty agreements.
6.4.4. Set out at Annexure D is my review of royalty agreements and the royalty rates I have considered based on market data. The intangible assets licensed to the licensee as part of these agreements includes the license to manufacture and distribute, as well as marketing related intangible assets such as trademarks, trade names and brands.
6.4.5. Based on my research in relation to the royalty agreements:
(a) net sales appear to be the most common base for expressing a royalty rate percentage;
(b) the royalty rates range from 1.0% to 7.0% of net sales;
(c) the median for the low and high royalty rates are 2.0% and 3.0% of net sales, respectively; and
(d) the average for the low and high royalty rates are 2.3% and 3.5% of net sales, respectively.
6.4.6. However, as discussed at paragraph 4.3.4, there are a number of bottling and distribution arrangements that are royalty free, which appears to be common practice in the industry. As such, I have not identified such agreements in the Royalty Range data base as the licensee does not pay a licensor for the use of intangible assets. Additionally, my analysis for method 1 (refer to Section 4) indicates that the portion or extent of the Payments that would be for the Intellectual Property items would be de-minimis. Accordingly, I consider the lower end of the royalty rate range to be 0%.
(Footnote omitted; emphasis added.)
304 In her first report, after a filtering process, Ms Wright considered eight licence agreements under her Method 3. Those agreements were set out in Annexure D to her first report.
305 The next section dealt with the estimate of SAPL's net revenue. This part of the first report has been overtaken by Ms Wright's reply report, which is based on SAPL's actual net revenue from sales of the relevant products.
306 In her first report, Ms Wright stated at [6.4.11]
6.4.11. Assuming that the Payments were, to an extent, for Intellectual Property owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, I have estimated a royalty payment based on:
(a) a 2.5% royalty rate, based on the median for the low and high royalty rates of 2.0% and 3.0% of net sales; and
(b) my estimate of revenue calculated from publicly available comparable company information as described in paragraphs 6.4.7 and 6.4.10.
6.4.12. Assuming that the Payments were, to an extent, for Intellectual Property owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, and assuming a 2.5% royalty of revenue, the extent of the Payments that relate to Intellectual Property is approximately $9.7 million in FY18, and approximately $10.5 million in FY19 …
(Emphasis added.)
I note that the dollar figures appearing in the above extract were updated in Ms Wright's reply report (discussed below).
307 Ms Wright then conducted a sensitivity analysis to examine the impact of varying the assumed royalty rate between 0% and 5%.
308 Ms Wright's conclusions in relation to her Method 3 as set out in her first report were:
6.5.1. For the reasons discussed above, assuming that the Payments were, to an extent, for Intellectual Property owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, and based on the information I was provided and market research I have obtained in the absence SAPL financial statements, it is my opinion that the extent of the Payments related to the Intellectual Property would be in the range of 0.0% to 5.0%, with a mid-point of 2.5% (consistent with the median for the low and high royalty rates are 2.0% and 3.0% of net sales I have identified from market research), being approximately $9.7 million in FY18, and approximately $10.5 million in FY19, or 8.3% of the Payments.
6.5.2. My opinion is based on the information I was provided and market research I have obtained in the absence of the SAPL financial statements. If I am provided with SAPL financial statements, then my opinion may change.
(Footnote omitted.)
Again, I note that the dollar figures appearing in the above extract were updated in the reply report (see below).
309 For the purposes of her reply report, Ms Wright excluded four of the licence agreements she had considered for her first report and included five licence agreements that were drawn from Mr Malackowski's set of agreements. This produced a set of nine licence agreements. These were identified at [5.2.7] and Table 11 of her reply report. Ms Wright then stated in her reply report:
5.2.8. As set out above, the median for the low and high royalty rates is 2.0% and 3.0%, respectively. The average of these is 2.5% and is the same as the royalty used in the Wright Report [i.e. her first report].
5.2.9. Of the nine licensing agreements, the four beverage related licensing agreements have a median low rate of 2.5% and a median high rate of 4.0%. In my view, this subset cannot be used as it comprises only four agreements. All of these licensing agreements are less comparable to the EBAs compared to the royalty-free bottling agreements identified in the Wright Report and the Additional Bottling Agreements.
5.2.10. To supplement these four agreements, I have also considered an additional five licensing agreements that relate to snack foods as opposed to beverages. All of these licensing agreements were also selected by Mr Malackowski, and they have a median low rate of 2.0% and a median high rate of 3.0%. Mr Malackowski has considered additional snack food related licensing agreements; however, I have excluded them from my analysis for reasons including inappropriate sources and brands related to basic ingredients, as detailed at Annexure E.
5.2.11. In the Wright Report, I performed a sensitivity analysis from 0% (based on the royalty-free licences) to 5% for the reasons set out at 6.4 of the Wright Report. Based on the new information provided to me and analysis undertaken, my opinion as to the range of royalties for the sensitivity calculations remains unchanged. The median royalty rate for the subset of four beverage agreements, the subset of five snack food licensing agreements and the collective set of nine agreements all fall within the 0.0% to 5.0% royalty rate range I adopted for sensitivity analysis in the Wright Report. That is, the median royalty rates range between 2% to 4%, within the 0.0% to 5.0%.
(Emphasis added.)
310 In her reply report, Ms Wright provided the following updated royalty payment under her Method 3:
5.2.12. Assuming that an extent of the Payments was for Relevant Items owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, I have estimated a royalty payment based on:
(a) a 2.5% royalty rate, based on the median for the low and high royalty rates of 2.0% and 3.0% of net sales; and
(b) the sales information provided at Tab 125A of the Malackowski Report.
5.2.13. Assuming that an extent of the Payments was for the Relevant Items owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, and assuming a 2.5% royalty of revenue, the extent of the Payments that relate to Intellectual Property is approximately $9.9 million in FY18, and approximately $10.5 million in FY19 as summarised in the table below.
311 After setting out the above, Ms Wright referred to her revised sensitivity analysis. This was set out at [5.2.14]-[5.2.17] and Table 13.
312 Ms Wright's ultimate opinion in her reply report in relation to her Method 3 was:
5.2.18 For the reasons discussed above, assuming that an extent of the Payments was for Intellectual Property owned by PepsiCo/SVC and used by SAPL, it is my opinion that the extent of the Payments related to the Intellectual Property would be 2.5% (consistent with the median for the low and high royalty rates of 2.0% and 3.0% of net sales I have identified from market research), being approximately $9.9 million in FY18, and approximately $10.5 million in FY19.
(Footnote omitted; emphasis added.)
313 Two agreements that Ms Wright included in her revised set of comparable agreements were excluded by Mr Malackowski for the purposes of his Method 1 - Part 1 (which is substantially the same as Wright Method 3). These agreements were identified in Ms Wright's reply report at Annexure E, section 1.3, and were: (a) MD Enterprises Inc/Bravo! Food International Corp; and (b) Del Monte Corporation/Coffee Holding Co. Mr Malackowski excluded these agreements because he considered that the brand that was the subject of the licence was considerably weaker than the Pepsi brand. In relation to the first agreement, Ms Wright's view was that the licensed product (flavoured milk - Moon Pie snack) was comparable to the products produced by SAPL and PepsiCo/SVC because it was beverage-related; she considered it more comparable than many of the other licence agreements selected by Mr Malackowski. During cross-examination, Ms Wright accepted that the agreement concerned a trademark for Moon Pie. She said she understood this to be a kind of snack food available in the United States, and that the agreement concerned the use of the Moon Pie trademark on a flavoured milk product. During cross-examination, Ms Wright said that she had been unable to verify what Mr Malackowski had said about the differences in brand strength. She expressed the view that brand strength "will be taken into account in the volumes and pricing" as referred to earlier during cross-examination. In relation to the comparability of the agreement relating to Moon Pie, Ms Wright said during cross-examination that all the trademarks are different; none of them are perfectly comparable. She accepted that she would prefer it to be more comparable, but maintained her position that it was appropriate to include the agreement.
314 In relation to the second agreement that Ms Wright included but Mr Malackowski excluded (namely Del Monte Corporation/Coffee Holding Co), Mr Malackowski rejected that agreement on the basis of brand strength, and Ms Wright expressed the view in her reply report (Annexure E, section 1.3) that the licensed product and brand relate to coffee, which is (in her view) comparable to the beverage-related brands and products under the EBAs. During cross-examination, Ms Wright said the agreement was not as comparable as she would prefer, but she had included beverages to expand the set. She said she had not undertaken any analysis of the strength of the brand that was the subject of the licence.
315 In Ms Wright's reply report at Annexure E, section 1.4, she discussed agreements that were included by Mr Malackowski (in his set of comparable agreements for the purposes of his Method 1 - Part 1) that Ms Wright had excluded. One of the agreements Ms Wright excluded was the MasterFoods USA/Bravo! Foods International Corp agreement. Ms Wright's explanation for excluding this agreement included: "These developments and associated recipes are owned by the licensor. Hence, the licensor's intellectual property is shared with and further developed by the licensee. As the formula for the concentrate is not shared with SAPL, this agreement should be excluded." During cross-examination, Ms Wright was taken to the agreement and it was put to her that, in fact, the licensee was coming up with the recipe and providing it to the brand owner, which then owned the intellectual property. Ms Wright maintained that it was a different relationship than the relationship with SAPL.
316 Another agreement that Mr Malackowski included and Ms Wright excluded was Celestial Seasonings, Inc/The Perrier Group of America, Inc. The reason Ms Wright excluded this was because she was unable to locate the licensing agreement. She was taken to a document (CB tab 241) that was said to be the agreement. Ms Wright said that the agreement had not been drawn to her attention.
317 Two of the agreements that were included by Mr Malackowski and excluded by Ms Wright involved Land O'Lakes Inc as licensor. In relation to the first of these agreements, Ms Wright stated that the licensor's brand related to butter and manufactured products such as sour cream and instant formula. In relation to the other agreement, she stated that it was similar to the first agreement. Ms Wright stated that these agreements were not comparable to the EBAs. During cross-examination, Ms Wright said that it was a different relationship to that involving SAPL. She said that both the product and the function of the licensee were different.
318 Another agreement that was included by Mr Malackowski and excluded by Ms Wright was Chiquita Brands, Inc/Delicious Cookie Company, Inc. Ms Wright stated in her reply report (in Annexure E, section 1.4.) that the licensor was a producer and distributor of bananas and other produce, and the agreement was not comparable and should be excluded. During cross-examination, Ms Wright said that her understanding was that the Chiquita trademark was being applied to banana and chocolate chip cookies. She said that the relevant difference was that the licensee "has its own recipe, its own IP, its own value added to that and the relative value of the banana to the cookie is different than the relative value of the concentrate to … what SAPL is doing, which is blending it with water, bottling and distributing".
319 Another agreement that was included by Mr Malackowski and excluded by Ms Wright was The Mrs Fields' Brand, Inc/Nonni's Food Company, Inc. Ms Wright stated in her reply report (in Annexure E, section 1.4.) that the licensing agreement should be excluded because it relates to a licensor that is a franchisor, and its franchisees sell snack foods through retail stores. She also stated that the brand was associated with a restaurant chain rather than any specific beverage or snack food products. During cross-examination, Ms Wright maintained that in her opinion it was a different relationship and not comparable.
320 In her reply report, Ms Wright was critical of Mr Malackowski's approach (in the context of his Method 1 - Part 1) in relation to certain non-exclusive licence agreements. As discussed below, Mr Malackowski made an adjustment for exclusivity that involved doubling the royalty rate. Ms Wright considered this arbitrary. Ms Wright also expressed the view that the non-exclusive character was already taken into account. During cross-examination she said that the only way it would be justified to make this kind of adjustment would be "if you knew all else was equal". She also said that "the comparison of them isn't precise enough to adjust any of them for any one feature over another".
321 Another criticism made by Ms Wright in her reply report was Mr Malackowski's inclusion of settlement agreements as comparables. During cross-examination, Ms Wright was taken to one of the comparables she included in her revised set, namely the Sara Lee Global Finance, LLC/Championlyte, Inc agreement, effective 1 April 2003 (CB tab 213). She was also taken to a settlement agreement between the same parties dated 1 April 2003 (SCB tab 358). Ms Wright said that if the licence agreement was the result of the settlement agreement, then she should have excluded it.
322 I will give further consideration to Wright Method 3 in the section of these reasons headed "Determination of royalty rate".