Sonic Foundry posts explosive growth, though still operating at a loss

Madison, Wis. — Sonic Foundry reported revenue up 86 percent and a narrowed net loss for its fiscal year. The company makes multimedia presentation hardware and software for business, government and education.

Revenue for 2005 was $8.3 million, compared to last year's $4.4 million. The company still had a $4.2 million net loss, a slight improvement over last year's $5.4 million loss.

All of this is the effect of the firm's growth phase, which also involved increasing sales, marketing and customer service staff by half.

Sonic Foundry said it now has 433 customers across a wide range of industries. Its front-line product, Mediasite, incorporates a video recording box and a means of delivering online presentations with synchronized video and slides, title cards or images.

Its boosted revenue comes from both units sold and customer support. Company officials want to increase gross margins even further from their 2005 level of 67 percent. That will take increased presence in high-margin areas such as support, consulting and hosted services.