Pacard has it right.

Pretty simple concept - supply and demand.

I've always been a strong advocate of share buy-backs. Most recently I suggested an approach of taking net MMP money (after taxes, cost of ongoing operations, etc.) and doing a 50/50 split; half to buy-backs, half to dividends.

Supply: Buying back shares reduces the supply, so each remaining share in the float should have greater value. Coupled with dividends, as the float goes down, each share can receive a greater dividend.

For example, assuming 400M shares float and $4M in dividend money, each share gets a penny. 200M shares and that same $4M in dividend money gets you 2 cents a share.

Demand: Issuing dividends should create demand, especially if done consistently/somewhat predictably (i.e, you know more divvies are coming, regardless of how much or exactly when).

For example, say you have 20K to invest and the PPS is at .20 - you can buy 100K shares. OR, you could take that same $20K and plop it in a CD an get a whopping 1.5% interest. That CD will return $300/year. But the stock only need return .3 of a penny (dividend) to match that return, and it only need do that once on the last day of that one year window to match the return on that CD.

Now figure out how much money the MMP (net to PTSC, and after taxes, cost of ongoing operations, etc. AND after dedicating 50% of the net to share buy-back) must generate to the achieve that .3 of a penny per share. It works out to about $1.2M, I believe. Very roughly ~$12.5M in licensing fees.

[In very simple terms, purely for example purposes:

$12.5M minus $2.5M for PDS/Alliacense expenses = $10M

($2.5M to PDS/Alliacense is intentionally FAT)

$10M / 2 for split to PTSC and TPL/Moore = $5M

$5M / 2 for 50% to cover taxes, cost of ongoing operations, etc. = $2.5M

(50% is probably a bit THIN, but made up for above)

$2.5M / 2 for 50% going to share buy-back = $1.25M]

Do you think it's remotely possible for the MMP to GROSS (to PDS) $12.5M per year? Historically, how many licenses would it take, on average, to achieve this amount?

And remember, with the share buy-back happening at the same time, that Gross number, over time, need not be as much to allow that same .3 cents a share per year return.

Using the above example (very rough numbers), $12.5M would also go to share buy-back and, using that 20 cents PPS, would buy back 62.5M shares!

Would this be appealing to prospective buyers? More so than that CD? Would there be DEMAND?

Again, I'm being exceedingly simplistic, but hopefully it gets the point across.

The best words out of the AMS (besides MMP strength/infringing products) is that they may be headed in exactly this direction.

Now, if they would reduce BoD/management compensation significantly, and get out from under PDSG with minimal pain, most all of my wish list would be fulfilled.

IMO, with dividends flowing to our executives against their shares, compensation SHOULD be cut to near zero. The divvies would BE their compensation (they got their shares for free or at a discount).

FWIW,

SGE