replace_table_token_32_th blackbaud , inc. 2. drive sales effectiveness we are making investments to increase the effectiveness of our sales organization , with a focus on enabling our expanding sales teams with the talent , processes and tools to accelerate our revenue growth and improve effectiveness . in 2017 , we created a new senior vice president of global sales position to lead sales effectiveness across the organization . we continued to make investments in our sales , marketing and customer success organizations and improved our market coverage by deploying these resources into key markets , while bifurcating sales to focus on either finding new customers or cultivating existing customers . in addition , we are continuing to optimize our go-to-market sales strategies such as offering solutions and services tailored to the needs of customers operating within vertical markets including k-12 private schools , foundations , higher education and healthcare institutions , among others . our sales teams are now fully running and managed on a common sales operating model . this includes common procedures , training , key operating metrics , compensation plans and reporting , which is driving increased productivity . 3. expand tam into near adjacencies with acquisitions and product investments we will continue to evaluate compelling opportunities to acquire companies and acquire or build technologies and services . we will be guided by our acquisition criteria for considering attractive assets that expand our total addressable market ( `` tam `` ) , provide entry into new and near adjacencies , accelerate our shift to the cloud , accelerate revenue growth , are accretive to margins and present synergistic opportunities . in 2017 , we launched blackbaud labs as a means to incubate new ideas and foster our strong culture of innovation and creativity , with the sole focus of bringing new capabilities to market organically . we also announced the promotion of our new senior vice president of corporate strategy and business development , who led the effort for many of our acquisitions , including our 2017 acquisitions , academicworks and justgiving . academicworks is the market leader in scholarship management for higher education and k-12 institutions , foundations , and grant-making institutions . their cloud platform enables students to apply for all awards at an institution using one intuitive and streamlined process , while offering schools and awarding institutions a common platform for improved awarding , reporting , compliance , communication and stewardship of those awards . justgiving is the united kingdom-based online fundraising services provider , whose online social giving platform has played a powerful role in the growth of peer-to-peer fundraising . the acquisition enhances our capability to serve both individual donors and nonprofits , expanding the peer-to-peer fundraising capabilities we currently offer today through teamraiser and everydayhero , which are used by leading nonprofit organizations to connect their causes to the individuals who support them . justgiving also adds personal crowdfunding to our portfolio , which is an offering we did not previously provide and a fast-growing segment of charitable giving . additional details regarding our acquisitions of academicworks and justgiving are provided in note 3 to our consolidated financial statements in this report . both academicworks and justgiving meet the acquisition criteria discussed above . we remain active in the evaluation of acquisition opportunities to broaden our portfolio , provide better integrated solutions for our customers , differentiate ourselves from the competition and improve our financial performance . 4. improve operating efficiency we have largely completed the installations of best-in-breed back-office solutions that consolidate and standardize our business operations utilizing scalable tools and systems . our focus is now shifting towards optimizing those systems , as well as operational excellence and quality initiatives focused on streamlining processes to gain efficiency and scalability . our organizational model , which we have evolved over the last few years , is largely complete and allows us to gain efficiency and consistency in how we execute . we have centralized our operations , including marketing , sustained engineering , product management , finance , customer support , customer success and professional services , which allows us to better manage the entire customer experience . during 2017 , in an effort to improve operating efficiency and further our organizational objectives , we also initiated a plan to relocate some of our existing offices to highly modern and more collaborative workspaces with short-term financial commitments . these workspaces are also more centrally located for our employees and closer to our customers . replace_table_token_33_th blackbaud , inc. replace_table_token_34_th total revenue increased by $ 57.5 million during 2017 , which was primarily driven by growth in subscriptions revenue as our business model continues to shift towards providing predominantly cloud-based subscription solutions . subscriptions revenue also grew as a result of increases in the number of customers and the volume of transactions for which we process payments . services and other revenue , as well as maintenance revenue , declined during 2017 from our continued shift in focus towards selling cloud-based subscription solutions . in general , our nxt and other cloud-based solutions require less implementation services , which we expect to continue to negatively impact services and other revenue over time . in addition , we have also used promotions and discounts for our consulting services as incentives to accelerate the migration of our existing customer base from on-premises solutions toward our cloud-based subscriptions . in the near-term , the transition to subscription-based solutions negatively impacts total revenue growth , as time-based license revenue from subscription arrangements is deferred and recognized ratably over the subscription period , typically three years at contract inception , whereas on-premises license revenue from arrangements that include perpetual licenses is recognized up-front . story_separator_special_tag operating expenses replace_table_token_45_th sales , marketing and customer success expense includes compensation costs , variable sales commissions , travel-related expenses , advertising and marketing materials , public relations costs and allocated depreciation , facilities and it support costs . 2017 vs. 2016 we continue to make investments to drive sales effectiveness , which is a component of our four-point growth strategy to accelerate revenue growth . we also continue investing in our customer success organization to drive customer loyalty , retention and referrals . the increases in sales , marketing and customer success expense in dollars and as a percentage of total revenue during 2017 , when compared to 2016 , was primarily due to an increase in compensation costs of $ 12.8 million . also contributing to the increase in sales , marketing and customer success expense was an increase in commissions expense of $ 2.0 million . compensation costs increased primarily due to incremental headcount associated with the increase in direct sales , marketing , and customer success efforts of our growing operations . the increase in commissions expense was primarily driven by an increase in commissionable sales . 2016 vs. 2015 the increases in sales , marketing and customer success expense in dollars and as a percentage of total revenue during 2016 , when compared to 2015 , was primarily due to increases in compensation costs of $ 21.5 million and commissions expense of $ 5.6 million . compensation costs increased primarily due to incremental headcount to support the increase in direct sales , marketing , and customer success efforts of our growing operations . the expansion of our customer success program is targeted to ensure our customers are fully realizing the value of our solutions , which we believe will drive customer loyalty and retention and will also result in increased customer referrals . the increases in commission expense were primarily driven by increases in commissionable revenue during 2016 when compared to 2015. the inclusion of smart tuition for the full year in 2016 also contributed to the increases in compensation costs and commissions expense . replace_table_token_46_th blackbaud , inc. replace_table_token_47_th ( 1 ) not included in research and development expense for 2017 , 2016 and 2015 were $ 28.0 million , $ 26.2 million , and $ 15.5 million , respectively , of qualifying costs associated with development activities that are required to be capitalized under the internal-use software accounting guidance such as those related to development of our next generation cloud-based solutions , as well as development costs associated with acquired companies . qualifying capitalized software development costs associated with our cloud-based solutions are subsequently amortized to cost of subscriptions revenue over the related asset 's estimated useful life , which generally range from three to seven years . research and development expense includes compensation costs for engineering and product management personnel , third-party contractor expenses , software development tools and other expenses related to researching and developing new solutions , upgrading and enhancing existing solutions , and allocated depreciation , facilities and it support costs . 2017 vs. 2016 we continue to make investments to deliver integrated and open solutions in the cloud , which is a component of our four-point growth strategy to accelerate revenue growth . research and development expense remained unchanged during 2017 , when compared to 2016. during 2017 , an increase in compensation costs of $ 1.3 million associated with our addition of specialized engineering resources to help drive our solution development efforts was offset primarily by an increase in the amount of software development costs that were capitalized of $ 1.9 million . as discussed above , the increases in the amounts capitalized were a result of incurring more qualifying costs associated with development activities that are required to be capitalized under the internal-use software guidance . we expect that the amount of software development costs capitalized will continue to increase modestly in the near-term as we make investments in innovation , quality and the integration of our solutions , which we believe will drive long-term revenue growth . research and development expense decreased as a percentage of total revenue during 2017 , when compared to 2016 , primarily due to productivity gains , which have allowed us to scale our business . the increases in the amounts of software development costs capitalized as discussed above also contributed to the decreases in research and development expense as a percentage of total revenue . 2016 vs. 2015 the increase in research and development expense during 2016 , when compared to 2015 , was primarily due to an increase in compensation costs of $ 13.0 million . we have added engineering headcount to drive our solution development efforts , and the inclusion of smart tuition added to the increases in compensation costs . also contributing to the increase in research and development expense during 2016 was an increase in third-party contractor expenses of $ 1.8 million , to assist in our solution development efforts . partially offsetting these increases during 2016 was an increase of $ 10.7 million in the amount of software development costs that were capitalized . as discussed above , the increase in the amount capitalized was a result of incurring more qualifying costs associated with development activities that are required to be capitalized under the internal-use software accounting guidance . research and development expense decreased as a percentage of total revenue during 2016 , when compared to 2015 , primarily due to the increase in the amount of software development costs capitalized as discussed above . replace_table_token_48_th blackbaud , inc. replace_table_token_49_th general and administrative expense consists primarily of compensation costs for general corporate functions , including senior management , finance , accounting , legal , human resources and corporate development , third-party professional fees , insurance , data security costs , allocated depreciation , facilities and it support costs , acquisition-related expense and other administrative expenses . 2017 vs. 2016 the increase in general and

net cash used in investing activities of $ 184.9 million increased by $ 137.5 million during 2017 , when compared to 2016. during 2017 , we used net cash of $ 146.8 million for the acquisitions of academicworks and justgiving compared to $ 3.4 million spent on investments in acquired companies in 2016. we used $ 28.3 million of cash for software development costs , which was up modestly from cash spent during 2016 , as we continue to make investments in innovation , quality and the integration of our solutions cloud-based solutions . we also spent $ 10.2 million of cash for purchases of property and equipment during 2017 , which was down $ 7.5 million from cash spent in 2016. the decrease in cash outlays for property and equipment was primarily driven by a shift toward leasing certain equipment that we have historically purchased . cash outlays for operating leases are presented in operating cash flows . 2016 vs. 2015 net cash used in investing activities of $ 47.4 million decreased by $ 93.9 million during 2016 , when compared to 2015. during 2016 , we used $ 26.4 million of cash for software development costs , which was up $ 10.9 million from cash spent during 2015. the increase in cash outlays for software development costs was primarily driven by development activities related to our next generation nxt and luminate cloud-based solutions . we spent $ 17.7 million of cash for purchases of property and equipment during 2016 , which was relatively consistent with the amount spent in 2015 , as we continued to invest in our information technology platforms and infrastructure used in the delivery of our solutions to customers as well as various facilities upgrades .


 Write a concise suspicious activity report of the following text delimited by triple backquotes. Return your response as a formal report which covers the key points highlighting the location,dates,entity names and account holder information in chronological order of the text.
     ```net cash used in investing activities of $ 184.9 million increased by $ 137.5 million during 2017 , when compared to 2016. during 2017 , we used net cash of $ 146.8 million for the acquisitions of academicworks and justgiving compared to $ 3.4 million spent on investments in acquired companies in 2016. we used $ 28.3 million of cash for software development costs , which was up modestly from cash spent during 2016 , as we continue to make investments in innovation , quality and the integration of our solutions cloud-based solutions . we also spent $ 10.2 million of cash for purchases of property and equipment during 2017 , which was down $ 7.5 million from cash spent in 2016. the decrease in cash outlays for property and equipment was primarily driven by a shift toward leasing certain equipment that we have historically purchased . cash outlays for operating leases are presented in operating cash flows . 2016 vs. 2015 net cash used in investing activities of $ 47.4 million decreased by $ 93.9 million during 2016 , when compared to 2015. during 2016 , we used $ 26.4 million of cash for software development costs , which was up $ 10.9 million from cash spent during 2015. the increase in cash outlays for software development costs was primarily driven by development activities related to our next generation nxt and luminate cloud-based solutions . we spent $ 17.7 million of cash for purchases of property and equipment during 2016 , which was relatively consistent with the amount spent in 2015 , as we continued to invest in our information technology platforms and infrastructure used in the delivery of our solutions to customers as well as various facilities upgrades .
```    
 Suspicious Activity Report : replace_table_token_32_th blackbaud , inc. 2. drive sales effectiveness we are making investments to increase the effectiveness of our sales organization , with a focus on enabling our expanding sales teams with the talent , processes and tools to accelerate our revenue growth and improve effectiveness . in 2017 , we created a new senior vice president of global sales position to lead sales effectiveness across the organization . we continued to make investments in our sales , marketing and customer success organizations and improved our market coverage by deploying these resources into key markets , while bifurcating sales to focus on either finding new customers or cultivating existing customers . in addition , we are continuing to optimize our go-to-market sales strategies such as offering solutions and services tailored to the needs of customers operating within vertical markets including k-12 private schools , foundations , higher education and healthcare institutions , among others . our sales teams are now fully running and managed on a common sales operating model . this includes common procedures , training , key operating metrics , compensation plans and reporting , which is driving increased productivity . 3. expand tam into near adjacencies with acquisitions and product investments we will continue to evaluate compelling opportunities to acquire companies and acquire or build technologies and services . we will be guided by our acquisition criteria for considering attractive assets that expand our total addressable market ( `` tam `` ) , provide entry into new and near adjacencies , accelerate our shift to the cloud , accelerate revenue growth , are accretive to margins and present synergistic opportunities . in 2017 , we launched blackbaud labs as a means to incubate new ideas and foster our strong culture of innovation and creativity , with the sole focus of bringing new capabilities to market organically . we also announced the promotion of our new senior vice president of corporate strategy and business development , who led the effort for many of our acquisitions , including our 2017 acquisitions , academicworks and justgiving . academicworks is the market leader in scholarship management for higher education and k-12 institutions , foundations , and grant-making institutions . their cloud platform enables students to apply for all awards at an institution using one intuitive and streamlined process , while offering schools and awarding institutions a common platform for improved awarding , reporting , compliance , communication and stewardship of those awards . justgiving is the united kingdom-based online fundraising services provider , whose online social giving platform has played a powerful role in the growth of peer-to-peer fundraising . the acquisition enhances our capability to serve both individual donors and nonprofits , expanding the peer-to-peer fundraising capabilities we currently offer today through teamraiser and everydayhero , which are used by leading nonprofit organizations to connect their causes to the individuals who support them . justgiving also adds personal crowdfunding to our portfolio , which is an offering we did not previously provide and a fast-growing segment of charitable giving . additional details regarding our acquisitions of academicworks and justgiving are provided in note 3 to our consolidated financial statements in this report . both academicworks and justgiving meet the acquisition criteria discussed above . we remain active in the evaluation of acquisition opportunities to broaden our portfolio , provide better integrated solutions for our customers , differentiate ourselves from the competition and improve our financial performance . 4. improve operating efficiency we have largely completed the installations of best-in-breed back-office solutions that consolidate and standardize our business operations utilizing scalable tools and systems . our focus is now shifting towards optimizing those systems , as well as operational excellence and quality initiatives focused on streamlining processes to gain efficiency and scalability . our organizational model , which we have evolved over the last few years , is largely complete and allows us to gain efficiency and consistency in how we execute . we have centralized our operations , including marketing , sustained engineering , product management , finance , customer support , customer success and professional services , which allows us to better manage the entire customer experience . during 2017 , in an effort to improve operating efficiency and further our organizational objectives , we also initiated a plan to relocate some of our existing offices to highly modern and more collaborative workspaces with short-term financial commitments . these workspaces are also more centrally located for our employees and closer to our customers . replace_table_token_33_th blackbaud , inc. replace_table_token_34_th total revenue increased by $ 57.5 million during 2017 , which was primarily driven by growth in subscriptions revenue as our business model continues to shift towards providing predominantly cloud-based subscription solutions . subscriptions revenue also grew as a result of increases in the number of customers and the volume of transactions for which we process payments . services and other revenue , as well as maintenance revenue , declined during 2017 from our continued shift in focus towards selling cloud-based subscription solutions . in general , our nxt and other cloud-based solutions require less implementation services , which we expect to continue to negatively impact services and other revenue over time . in addition , we have also used promotions and discounts for our consulting services as incentives to accelerate the migration of our existing customer base from on-premises solutions toward our cloud-based subscriptions . in the near-term , the transition to subscription-based solutions negatively impacts total revenue growth , as time-based license revenue from subscription arrangements is deferred and recognized ratably over the subscription period , typically three years at contract inception , whereas on-premises license revenue from arrangements that include perpetual licenses is recognized up-front . story_separator_special_tag operating expenses replace_table_token_45_th sales , marketing and customer success expense includes compensation costs , variable sales commissions , travel-related expenses , advertising and marketing materials , public relations costs and allocated depreciation , facilities and it support costs . 2017 vs. 2016 we continue to make investments to drive sales effectiveness , which is a component of our four-point growth strategy to accelerate revenue growth . we also continue investing in our customer success organization to drive customer loyalty , retention and referrals . the increases in sales , marketing and customer success expense in dollars and as a percentage of total revenue during 2017 , when compared to 2016 , was primarily due to an increase in compensation costs of $ 12.8 million . also contributing to the increase in sales , marketing and customer success expense was an increase in commissions expense of $ 2.0 million . compensation costs increased primarily due to incremental headcount associated with the increase in direct sales , marketing , and customer success efforts of our growing operations . the increase in commissions expense was primarily driven by an increase in commissionable sales . 2016 vs. 2015 the increases in sales , marketing and customer success expense in dollars and as a percentage of total revenue during 2016 , when compared to 2015 , was primarily due to increases in compensation costs of $ 21.5 million and commissions expense of $ 5.6 million . compensation costs increased primarily due to incremental headcount to support the increase in direct sales , marketing , and customer success efforts of our growing operations . the expansion of our customer success program is targeted to ensure our customers are fully realizing the value of our solutions , which we believe will drive customer loyalty and retention and will also result in increased customer referrals . the increases in commission expense were primarily driven by increases in commissionable revenue during 2016 when compared to 2015. the inclusion of smart tuition for the full year in 2016 also contributed to the increases in compensation costs and commissions expense . replace_table_token_46_th blackbaud , inc. replace_table_token_47_th ( 1 ) not included in research and development expense for 2017 , 2016 and 2015 were $ 28.0 million , $ 26.2 million , and $ 15.5 million , respectively , of qualifying costs associated with development activities that are required to be capitalized under the internal-use software accounting guidance such as those related to development of our next generation cloud-based solutions , as well as development costs associated with acquired companies . qualifying capitalized software development costs associated with our cloud-based solutions are subsequently amortized to cost of subscriptions revenue over the related asset 's estimated useful life , which generally range from three to seven years . research and development expense includes compensation costs for engineering and product management personnel , third-party contractor expenses , software development tools and other expenses related to researching and developing new solutions , upgrading and enhancing existing solutions , and allocated depreciation , facilities and it support costs . 2017 vs. 2016 we continue to make investments to deliver integrated and open solutions in the cloud , which is a component of our four-point growth strategy to accelerate revenue growth . research and development expense remained unchanged during 2017 , when compared to 2016. during 2017 , an increase in compensation costs of $ 1.3 million associated with our addition of specialized engineering resources to help drive our solution development efforts was offset primarily by an increase in the amount of software development costs that were capitalized of $ 1.9 million . as discussed above , the increases in the amounts capitalized were a result of incurring more qualifying costs associated with development activities that are required to be capitalized under the internal-use software guidance . we expect that the amount of software development costs capitalized will continue to increase modestly in the near-term as we make investments in innovation , quality and the integration of our solutions , which we believe will drive long-term revenue growth . research and development expense decreased as a percentage of total revenue during 2017 , when compared to 2016 , primarily due to productivity gains , which have allowed us to scale our business . the increases in the amounts of software development costs capitalized as discussed above also contributed to the decreases in research and development expense as a percentage of total revenue . 2016 vs. 2015 the increase in research and development expense during 2016 , when compared to 2015 , was primarily due to an increase in compensation costs of $ 13.0 million . we have added engineering headcount to drive our solution development efforts , and the inclusion of smart tuition added to the increases in compensation costs . also contributing to the increase in research and development expense during 2016 was an increase in third-party contractor expenses of $ 1.8 million , to assist in our solution development efforts . partially offsetting these increases during 2016 was an increase of $ 10.7 million in the amount of software development costs that were capitalized . as discussed above , the increase in the amount capitalized was a result of incurring more qualifying costs associated with development activities that are required to be capitalized under the internal-use software accounting guidance . research and development expense decreased as a percentage of total revenue during 2016 , when compared to 2015 , primarily due to the increase in the amount of software development costs capitalized as discussed above . replace_table_token_48_th blackbaud , inc. replace_table_token_49_th general and administrative expense consists primarily of compensation costs for general corporate functions , including senior management , finance , accounting , legal , human resources and corporate development , third-party professional fees , insurance , data security costs , allocated depreciation , facilities and it support costs , acquisition-related expense and other administrative expenses . 2017 vs. 2016 the increase in general and

