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9
Intangible assets
Chapter learning objectives
Upon completion of this chapter you will be able to:
• explain the nature of internallygenerated and purchased
intangibles
• explain the accounting treatment of internallygenerated and
purchased intangibles
• distinguish between goodwill and other intangible assets
• describe the criteria for the initial recognition of intangible assets
• describe the criteria for the initial measurement of intangible
assets
• explain the subsequent accounting treatment of goodwill
• explain the principle of impairment tests in relation to goodwill
• explain why the value of the purchase consideration for an
investment may be less than the value of the acquired net assets
• explain how this difference should be accounted for
• define research expenditure and development expenditure
according to IAS 38
• explain the accounting requirements of IAS 38 for research
expenditure and development expenditure
• account for research expenditure and development expenditure.
145
Intangible assets
1 Intangible assets
Introduction
Many businesses invest significant amounts with the intention of obtaining
future value on areas such as:
• scientific/technical knowledge
• design of new processes and systems
• licences and quotas
• intellectual property, e.g. patents and copyrights
• market knowledge, e.g. customer lists, relationships and loyalty
• trade marks.
All of these expenses may result in future benefits to the business, but not all
can be recognised as assets.
The objective of IAS 38 is to prescribe the specific criteria that must be met
before an intangible asset can be recognised in the accounts.
Definition
An intangible asset is an identifiable nonmonetary asset without physical
substance.
To meet the definition the asset must be identifiable, i.e. separable from the
rest of the business or arising from legal rights.
It must also meet the normal definition of an asset:
• controlled by the entity as a result of past events (normally by
enforceable legal rights)
• a resource from which future economic benefits are expected to flow
(either from revenue or cost saving).
Recognition
To be recognised in the financial statements, an intangible asset must:
• meet the definition of an intangible asset, and
• meet the recognition criteria of the framework:
– it is probable that future economic benefits attributable to the asset
will flow to the entity
– the cost of the asset can be measured reliably.
If these criteria are met, the asset should be initially recognised at cost.
Internallygenerated intangibles
The following internallygenerated items may never be recognised:
• goodwill
• brands
• mastheads
• publishing titles
• customer lists.
• A publishing title acquired as part of a subsidiary company.
• A licence purchased in order to market a new product.
There is a choice between:
• the cost model
• the revaluation model.
Features of an active market are that:
– the items traded within the market are homogeneous
– willing buyers and sellers can normally be found at any time
– prices are available to the public.
In practice such markets are rare.
Amortisation
• should not be amortised
• should be tested for impairment annually, and more often if there is an
actual indication of possible impairment.
Key disclosures
The financial statements should disclose the following for each class of
intangible assets, distinguishing between internallygenerated intangible
assets and other intangible assets:
• whether the useful lives are finite or indefinite
• the useful lives or the amortisation rates used for assets with finite lives
• the amortisation methods used for assets with finite lives.
2 Goodwill
Goodwill is the difference between the value of a business as a whole and
the aggregate of the fair values of its separable net assets.
Fair value is the amount at which an asset or liability could be exchanged in
an arm’s length transaction between informed and willing parties, other than
in a forced or liquidation sale.
Goodwill may exist because of any combination of a number of possible
factors:
• reputation for quality or service
• technical expertise
• possession of favourable contracts
• good management and staff.
Purchased goodwill:
• arises when one business acquires another as a going concern
• includes goodwill arising on the consolidation of a subsidiary or
associated company
• will be recognised in the financial statements as its value at a particular
point in time is certain.
Nonpurchased goodwill:
• is also known as inherent goodwill
• has no identifiable value
• is not recognised in the financial statements.
IFRS 3 revised governs accounting for all business combinations and deals
with the accounting treatment of goodwill.
Goodwill is defined in IFRS 3 as an asset representing the future economic
benefits arising from assets acquired in a business combination that are not
individually identified and separately recognised.
Goodwill is calculated at the acquisition date as:
$
Fair value of consideration paid (shares issued plus cash paid plus X
direct costs)
Noncontrolling interest X
(valued either at fair value or as a proportion of net assets) ___
X
Fair value of net assets of acquiree (X)
___
X
Purchased goodwill:
• should be capitalised as an intangible noncurrent asset
• should not be amortised
• must be tested for impairment annually in accordance with IAS 36, or
more frequently if circumstances indicate that it might be impaired.
An entity acquires 75% of the share capital of another entity, JKL. The
consideration for the purchase was shares with a fair value of $800,000
and cash of $200,000. There were direct costs involved in the takeover
of $20,000 .The noncontrolling interest is valued using the proportion of
net assets method.The carrying amounts and fair values of JKL assets
and liabilities at the date of acquisition were as follows:
Research is original and planned investigation undertaken with the
prospect of gaining new scientific knowledge and understanding.
Development is the application of research findings or other knowledge to
a plan or design for the production of new or substantially improved
materials, devices, products, processes, systems or services before the
start of commercial production or use.
Accounting treatment
Research expenditure: write off as incurred to the income statement
Development expenditure: recognise as an intangible asset if, and only if,
an entity can demonstrate all of the following:
• the technical feasibility of completing the intangible asset so that it will
be available for use or sale
• its intention to complete the intangible asset and use or sell it
• its ability to use or sell the intangible asset
• how the intangible asset will generate probable future economic
benefits. Among other things, the entity should demonstrate the
existence of a market for the output of the intangible asset or the
intangible asset itself or, if it is to be used internally, the usefulness of
the intangible asset
• the availability of adequate technical, financial and other resources to
complete the development and to use or sell the intangible asset
• its ability to reliably measure the expenditure attributable to the
intangible asset during its development.
Expandable text
An entity has incurred the following expenditure during the current year:
(a) $100,000 spent on the design of a new product it is anticipated
that this design will be taken forward over the next two year period to
be developed and tested with a view to production in three years
time.
(b) $500,000 spent on the testing of a new production system which
has been designed internally and which will be in operation during
the following accounting year. This new system should reduce the
costs of production by 20%.
Amortisation
Development expenditure should be amortised over its useful life.
Improve has deferred development expenditure of $600,000 relating to
the development of New Miracle Brand X. It is expected that the demand
for the product will stay at a high level for the next three years. Annual
sales of 400,000, 300,000 and 200,000 units respectively are expected
over this period. Brand X sells for $10.
How should the development expenditure be amortised?
Disclosure
The key disclosures required for development costs are:
• the useful lives or the amortisation rates used for assets with finite lives
• the amortisation methods used for assets with finite lives
• the gross carrying amount and the accumulated amortisation
(aggregated with accumulated impairment losses) at the beginning and
end of the period.
D&E are both development projects. Both projects are anticipated to be
successful. They have clearlydefined parameters. The project
expenditure is carefully controlled. The prototypes proved successful.
The budgets show sales well in excess of total costs. Finance is readily
available. Project D has commenced production and the revenues have
started to flow in.
Project Project
D E
$000 $000
Costs accumulated to 1.1.X5 (and meeting 400 350
capitalisation criteria)
Costs incurred during the year 600 250
Total anticipated net revenues 30,000 15,000
Net revenues during the year 6,000 nil
The company has also invested $340,000 in development project F but
the tests are at present inconclusive.
Chapter summary
• The answer depends on whether the asset can be valued reliably. If
this is possible, the title will be recognised at its fair value, otherwise
it will be treated as part of goodwill on acquisition of the subsidiary.
• As the licence has been purchased separately from a business, it
should be capitalised at cost.
An intangible asset with an indefinite useful life:
• should not be amortised
• should be tested for impairment annually, and more often if there is
an actual indication of possible impairment.
$000
Fair value of consideration
Shares 800
Cash 200
–––––
1,000
Noncontrolling interest (1,100 x 25%) 275
–––––
1,275
Net assets of acquiree (1,100)
Goodwill 175
–––––
Note: IFRS 3 revised requires acquisition costs to be expensed as
incurred. They do not form part of the cost of acquisition.
Characteristics
• It is a ‘balancing figure’. Goodwill itself is not valued but a
comparison is made between the fair value of the whole business
and the fair value of the separable net assets of the business. It
cannot be valued on its own.
• Goodwill cannot be disposed of as a separate asset.
• The factors contributing to the value of goodwill cannot be valued,
e.g. how can one value the benefit of an experienced workforce?
• The value of goodwill is volatile – it can only be given a numerical
value at the time of acquisition of the whole business.
(a) These are research costs as they are only in the early design stage
and therefore should be written off as part of profit and loss for the
period.
(b) These would appear to be development stage costs as the new
production system is due to be in place fairly soon and will produce
economic benefits in the shape of reduced costs. Therefore these
should be capitalised as development costs.
As tests are inconclusive in project F, its costs must be expensed to the
income statement.
Projects D and E are both examples of development spend which meets
the capitalisation critera and as such the relevant costs are shown as
assets on the statement of financial position.
Project D has commenced production and so requires amortisation.
10
Impairment of assets
Chapter learning objectives
Upon completion of this chapter you will be able to:
• define an impairment loss
• list the circumstances which may indicate impairments to assets
• describe a cash generating unit (CGU)
• explain the basis on which impairment losses should be
allocated
• allocate an impairment loss to the assets of a CGU.
159
Impairment of assets
The objective is to set rules to ensure that the assets of an entity are carried
at no more than their recoverable amount (i.e. value to the business).
Impairment
An asset is impaired if its recoverable amount is below the value currently
shown on the statement of financial position – the asset’s current carrying
value (CV).
Recoverable amount is taken as the higher of:
• fair value less costs to sell (net selling price), and
• value in use.
An impairment exists if:
Recoverable amount
A company owns a car that was involved in an accident at the year end.
It is barely useable, so the value in use is estimated at $1,000. However,
the car is a classic and there is a demand for the parts. This results in a
net realisable value of $3,000. The opening carrying value was $8,000
and the car was estimated to have a life of eight years from the start of
the year.
Identify the recoverable amount of the car.
The following information relates to three assets:
A B C
$000 $000 $000
Carrying value 100 150 120
Net realisable value 110 125 100
Value in use 120 130 90
Indications of impairment
IAS 36 requires that at each reporting date, an entity must assess whether
there are indications of impairment.
Indications may be derived from within the entity itself (internal sources) or
the external market (external sources).
Where there is an indication of impairment, an impairment review should be
carried out:
• the recoverable amount should be calculated
• the asset should be written down to recoverable amount and
• the impairment loss should be immediately recognised in the income
statement.
The only exception to this is if the impairment reverses a previous gain
taken to the revaluation reserve.
In this case, the impairment will be taken first to the revaluation reserve (and
so disclosed as other comprehensive income) until the revaluation gain is
reversed and then to the income statement.
An entity owns a property which was originally purchased for $300,000.
The property has been revalued to $500,000 with the revaluation of
$200,000 being recognised as other comprehensive income and
recorded in the revaluation reserve. The property has a current carrying
value of $460,000 but the recoverable amount of the property has just
been estimated at only $200,000.
When assessing the impairment of assets it will not always be possible to
base the impairment review on individual assets.
• The value in use calculation will be impossible on a single asset
because the asset does not generate distinguishable cash flows.
• In this case, the impairment calculation should be based on a CGU.
Definition of a CGU
A CGU is defined as the smallest identifiable group of assets which
generates cash inflows independent of those of other assets.
The impairment calculation is done by:
• assuming the cash generating unit is one asset
• comparing the carrying value of the CGU to the recoverable amount of
the CGU.
As previously, an impairment exists where the carrying value exceeds the
recoverable amount.
Impairment of a CGU
If a CGU is impaired the assets must be written down in a strict order:
(1) any obviously impaired asset
(2) goodwill allocated to the CGU (both recognised goodwill and , where
the proportion of net assets method is used to value the NCI, notional
goodwill attributed to the NCI)
(3) other assets (pro rata according to carrying value).
Note: No individual asset should be written down below recoverable
amount.
A company runs a unit that suffers a massive drop in income due to the
failure of its technology on 1 January 20X8. The following carrying values
were recorded in the books immediately prior to the impairment:
$m
Goodwill 20
Technology 5
Brands 10
Land 50
Buildings 30
Other net assets 40
The recoverable value of the unit is estimated at $85 million. The
technology is worthless, following its complete failure. The other net
assets include inventory, receivables and payables. It is considered that
the book value of other net assets is a reasonable representation of its
net realisable value.
Chapter summary
The recoverable amounts for each asset are as follows:
A: $120,000
B: $130,000
C: $100,000
The impairment loss for each asset is as follows:
A: Nil
B: $20,000
C: $20,000
Impairment = $460,000 – 200,000 = $260,000
Of this $200,000 is debited to the revaluation reserve to reverse the
previous upwards revaluation (and recorded as other comprehensive
income) and the remaining $60,000 is charged to the income statement.
• Carrying value is $155 million.
• Recoverable value is $85 million.
• Therefore an impairment of $70 million is required.
Working
$m
Total impairment: 70
Allocated – Goodwill (20)
– Technology (5)
–––
Remaining 45
Prorate based on carrying value:
Brands 45 × 10/(10 + 50 + 30) = 5
Land 45 × 50/(10 + 50 + 30) = 25
Buildings 45 × 30/(10 + 50 + 30) = 15