intangible assets

Information about intangible assets

Intangible assets are defined as those non-monetary assets that cannot be seen, touched or physically measured and which are created through time and/or effort. There are two primary forms of intangibles - legal intangibles (such as trade secrets (e.g., customer lists), copyrights, patents, trademarks, and goodwill) and competitive intangibles (such as knowledge activities (know-how,knowledge), collaboration activities, leverage activities, and structural activities). Legal intangibles generate legal property rights defensible in a court of law. Competitive intangibles, whilst legally non-ownable, directly impact effectiveness, productivity, wastage, and opportunity costs within an organization - and therefore costs, revenues, customer service, satisfaction, market value, and share price. Human capital is the primary source of competitive intangibles for organizations today. Competitive intangibles are the source from which competitive advantage flows, or is destroyed.

The Uniform Commercial Code (Section 9-102(a)(42)) defines "general intangibles" as

"any personal property...other than accounts, chattel paper, commercial tort claims, deposit accounts, documents, goods, instruments, investment property, letter of credit rights, letters of credit, money, and oil, gas, or other minerals before extraction. The term includes payment intangibles and software."

Research & Development

Millions are spent each year by corporations to research and develop new intangible assets. To protect their research and development (R&D) efforts, corporations generally rely on intellectual property law.

Financial accounting

General standards

The Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) offers some guidance as to how intangible assets should be accounted for in financial statements. In general, legal intangibles that are developed internally are not recognized and legal intangibles that are purchased from third-parties are recognized.

Expense recognition

Intangible assets are typically expensed according to their respective life expectancy.[1] Intangible assets have either an identifiable or indefinite useful life. Intangible assets with identifiable useful lives are amortized on a straight-line basis over their economic or legal life, whichever is shorter. Examples of intangible assets with identifiable useful lives include copyrights and patents. Intangible assets with indefinite useful lives are reassessed each year for impairment. If an impairment has occurred, then a loss must be recognized. An impairment loss is determined by subtracting the asset's fair value from the asset's book/carrying value. This impairment loss may only be reversed under certain circumstances. Trademarks and goodwill are examples of intangible assets with indefinite useful lives.

References

See also

asset is meant probable future economic benefits controlled by an entity as a result of past transactions or events and from which future economic benefits may be obtained.
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trade secret is a formula, practice, process, design, instrument, pattern, or compilation of information used by a business to obtain an advantage over competitors or customers. In some jurisdictions, such secrets are referred to as "confidential information".
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worldwide view of the subject.
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Not to be confused with copywriting.

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patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a patentee for a fixed period of time in exchange for a disclosure of an invention.

The procedure for granting patents, the requirements placed on the patentee and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely
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trademark or trade mark[1] is a distinctive sign or indicator of some kind which is used by an individual, business organization or other legal entity to uniquely identify the source of its products and/or services to consumers, and to distinguish its products or
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For other uses, see Goodwill.


Goodwill is a concept used to refer to an individual or a business's ability to exert influence within a community, club, market or another type of group, without having to resort to the use of an asset, such as money
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IP)', know-how (or knowhow as it is sometimes written) is an important component in the transfer of technology in national and international environments, co-existing with or separate from other IP rights such as patents, trademarks and copyright and is an economic
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Knowledge is defined (Oxford English Dictionary) variously as (i) expertise, and skills acquired by a person through experience or education; the theoretical or practical understanding of a subject, (ii) what is known in a particular field or in total; facts and information or
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Human capital refers to the stock of productive skills and technical knowledge embodied in labor. Many early economic theories refer to it simply as labor, one of three factors of production, and consider it to be a fungible resource -- homogeneous and easily interchangeable.
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This article or section is written like a personal reflection or and may require .
Please [ improve this article] by rewriting this article or section in an . (, talk)
Competitive advantage (CA) is a position that a firm occupies in its competitive landscape.
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The Uniform Commercial Code (UCC or the Code) is one of a number of uniform acts that have been promulgated in conjunction with efforts to harmonize the law of sales and other commercial transactions in all 50 states within the United States of America.
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Property law
Part of the common law series
Acquisition of property
Gift  · Adverse possession  · Deed
Lost, mislaid, and abandoned property
Alienation  · Bailment  · License
Estates in land
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Computer software is a general term used to describe a collection of computer programs, procedures and documentation that perform some task on a computer system. [1]
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The phrase research and development (also R and D or, more often, R&D), according to the Organization of Economic Cooperation and Development, refers to "creative work undertaken on a systematic basis in order to increase the stock of knowledge, including knowledge of
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intellectual property (IP) is an umbrella term for various legal entitlements which attach to certain names, written and recorded media, and inventions. The holders of these legal entitlements may exercise various exclusive rights in relation to the subject matter of the IP.
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Financial Accounting Standards Board

Founded 1973
Headquarters Norwalk, Connecticut
Slogan Serving the investment public through transparent information resulting from high-quality financial reporting standards, developed in an independent, private-sector, open due
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Financial statements (or financial reports) are formal records of a business' financial activities. These statements provide an overview of a business' profitability and financial condition in both short and long term.
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Amortization or amortisation is the process of decreasing or accounting for an amount over a period of time. Particular instances of the term include:
  • Amortization (business), the allocation of a lump sum amount to different time periods, particularly for loans and

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Loss may refer to:

In accountancy:
  • a negative difference between retail price and cost of production
In fiction:
  • Lord Loss (character), the Demon Lord from Darren Shan's 10 book series The Demonata

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Intellectual Capital was a pioneer webzine opinion and discussion forum begun in 1996 by Pete duPont. After several years it was bought by Speak Out and subsumed into its portfolio of web offerings.

External links

  • An Inside Look At...IntellectualCapital.

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intellectual property (IP) is an umbrella term for various legal entitlements which attach to certain names, written and recorded media, and inventions. The holders of these legal entitlements may exercise various exclusive rights in relation to the subject matter of the IP.
..... Click the link for more information.
worldwide view of the subject.
Please [ improve this article] or discuss the issue on the talk page.


Not to be confused with copywriting.

..... Click the link for more information.
patent is a set of exclusive rights granted by a state to a patentee for a fixed period of time in exchange for a disclosure of an invention.

The procedure for granting patents, the requirements placed on the patentee and the extent of the exclusive rights vary widely
..... Click the link for more information.
trademark or trade mark[1] is a distinctive sign or indicator of some kind which is used by an individual, business organization or other legal entity to uniquely identify the source of its products and/or services to consumers, and to distinguish its products or
..... Click the link for more information.
trade secret is a formula, practice, process, design, instrument, pattern, or compilation of information used by a business to obtain an advantage over competitors or customers. In some jurisdictions, such secrets are referred to as "confidential information".
..... Click the link for more information.
Goodwill may refer to:
  • Goodwill Industries, a non-profit organization providing job training and employment services to people with disabilities.
  • Goodwill (business), an individual or a business's ability to exert influence within a group without having to resort to the

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