Revenues

Digital Media

Digital Media revenues are earned primarily from the delivery of advertising services, from subscriptions to services, data and information, and from licensing.

Revenue is earned from the delivery of advertising services on the Company’s owned and operated websites and on those websites that are part of Digital Media’s advertising network. Depending on the individual contracts with the customer, revenue for these services are recognized over the contract period when any of the following performance obligations are satisfied: (i) when an advertisement is placed for viewing; (ii) when a qualified sales lead is delivered; (iii) when a visitor “clicks through” on an advertisement; or (iv) when commissions are earned upon the sale of an advertised product.

Revenue from subscriptions is earned through the granting of access to, or delivery of, data products or services to customers. Subscriptions cover video games and related content, health information, data and other copyrighted material. Revenues under such agreements are recognized over the contract term for use of the service. Revenues are also earned from listing fees, subscriptions to online publications, and from other sources. Subscription revenues are recognized over time.

j2 Global generates Digital Media revenues through the license of certain assets to clients. Assets are licensed for clients’ use in their own promotional materials or otherwise. Such assets may include logos, editorial reviews, or other copyrighted material. Revenues under such license agreements are recognized over the contract term for use of the asset. Technology assets are also licensed to clients. These assets are recognized over the term of the access period. The Digital Media business also generates revenue from other sources which includes marketing and production services. Such other revenues are generally recognized over the period in which the products or services are delivered. Revenues are no longer generated in 2018 from certain marketing and production services as a result of the sale of certain Digital Media assets during 2017.

j2 Global also generates Digital Media revenues from transactions involving the sale of perpetual software licenses, related software support and maintenance, hardware used in conjunction with its software, and other related services. Revenue is recognized for these software transactions with multiple performance obligations after (i) the Company has had an approved contract and is committed to perform the respective obligations and (ii) the Company can identify and quantify each obligation and its respective selling price. Once the respective performance obligations have been identified and quantified, revenue will be recognized when the obligations are met, either over time or at a point in time depending on the nature of the obligation.

Revenues from software license performance obligations are generally recognized upfront at the point in time that the software is made available to the customer to download and use. Revenues for related software support and maintenance performance obligations are related to technical support provided to customers as needed and unspecified software product upgrades, maintenance releases and patches during the term of the support period when they are available. The Company is obligated to make the support services available continuously throughout the contract period. Therefore, revenues for support contracts are generally recognized ratably over the contractual period the support services are provided. Hardware product and related software performance obligations, such as an operating system or firmware, are highly interdependent and interrelated and are accounted for as a bundled performance obligation. The revenues for this bundled performance obligation are generally recognized at the point in time that the hardware and software products are delivered and ownership is transferred to the customer. Other service revenues are generally recognized over time as the services are performed.

The Company records revenue on a gross basis with respect to revenue generated (i) by the Company serving online display and video advertising across its owned and operated web properties, on third-party sites or on unaffiliated advertising networks; (ii) through the Company’s lead-generation business; and (iii) through the Company’s subscriptions. The Company records revenue on a net basis with respect to revenue paid to the Company by certain third-party advertising networks who serve online display and video advertising across the Company’s owned-and-operated web properties and certain third-party sites.

Cloud Services

The Company’s Cloud Services revenues substantially consist of monthly recurring subscription and usage-based fees, which are primarily paid in advance by credit card. The Company defers the portions of monthly, quarterly, semi-annually and annually recurring subscription and usage-based fees collected in advance of the satisfaction of performance obligations and recognizes them in the period earned.

Along with our numerous proprietary Cloud Services solutions, the Company also generates revenues by reselling various third-party solutions, primarily through our security and online backup lines of business. These third-party solutions, along with our proprietary products, allow the Company to offer customers a variety of solutions to better meet their needs. The Company records revenue on a gross basis with respect to reseller revenue because the Company has control of the specified good or service prior to transferring control to the customer.

j2 Global’s Cloud Services also include patent license revenues generated under license agreements that provide for the payment of contractually determined fully paid-up or royalty-bearing license fees to j2 Global in exchange for the grant of non-exclusive, retroactive and future licenses to our intellectual property, including patented technology. Patent revenues may also consist of revenues generated from the sale of patents. Patent license arrangements are evaluated to determine if they grant the customer a right to access the Company’s intellectual property which is generally recognized over the life of the arrangement or a right to use the Company’s intellectual property which is generally recognized at the point in time the license is granted. With regard to royalty-bearing license arrangements, the Company recognizes revenues of license fees earned during the applicable period.

The Cloud Services business also generates revenues by licensing certain technology to third parties. Generally, revenue is recognized over time as the third party uses the licensed technology over the period.

The cumulative effect of the changes made to our consolidated balance sheet as of January 1, 2018 for the adoption of Topic 606 is as follows (in thousands):



	January 1, 2018		Adjustments due to ASU No. 2014-09			December 31, 2017
Balance Sheet
Assets
Accounts receivable, net	$	234,195	$	—		$	234,195

Liabilities
Deferred revenue, current	93,656		(1,599		)	95,255
Deferred revenue, noncurrent	47		—			47

Equity
Retained earnings	$	724,661	$	1,599		$	723,062

The following tables summarize the impact of adopting Topic 606 on the Company’s consolidated financial statements (in thousands):



	December 31, 2018
	As Reported		Adjustments			Balances Without Adoption of ASC 606
Balance Sheet
Assets
Accounts receivable, net	$	221,615	$	—		$	221,615

Liabilities
Deferred revenue, current	127,568		(5,455		)	122,113
Deferred revenue, noncurrent	13,200		—			13,200

Equity
Retained earnings	$	769,575	$	5,455		$	775,030



	2018
	As Reported		Adjustments		Amounts Without Adoption of ASC 606
Statement of Income
Revenues
Total revenues	$	1,207,295	$	7,054	$	1,214,349
Expenses
Total expenses	1,078,608		—		1,078,608

Net income	$	128,687	$	7,054	$	135,741
Diluted EPS impact	$	2.59	$	0.14	$	2.73

Revenues from external customers classified by revenue source are as follows (in thousands):



	Years Ended December 31,
Digital Media	2018			2017			2016
Advertising	$	468,325		$	455,647		$	274,763
Subscription	138,689			70,794			32,700
Other	2,360			12,498			—
Total Digital Media revenues	$	609,374		$	538,939		$	307,463

Cloud Services
Subscription	$	597,281		$	574,197		$	562,345
Other	694			4,759			4,593
Total Cloud Services revenues	$	597,975		$	578,956		$	566,938

Corporate	$	6		$	—		$	—
Elimination of inter-business revenues	(60		)	(57		)	(146		)
Total Revenues	$	1,207,295		$	1,117,838		$	874,255

Timing of revenue recognition
Point in time	$	4,752		$	22,559		$	14,459
Over time	1,202,543			1,095,279			859,796
Total	$	1,207,295		$	1,117,838		$	874,255

The Company has recorded $80.0 million of revenue for the year ended December 31, 2018 which was previously included in the contract liability balance as of the adoption date.

As of December 31, 2018, the Company acquired $37.1 million of deferred revenue in connection with the Company’s business acquisitions (see Note 4 - Business Acquisitions) which are subject to purchase accounting adjustments.

Performance Obligations

The Company’s contracts with customers may include multiple performance obligations. For such arrangements, revenues are allocated to each performance obligation based on its relative standalone selling price.

The Company satisfies its performance obligations within the Digital Media business upon delivery of services to its customers. In addition, the Company provides content to its advertising partners which the Company sells to its partners’ customer base and receives a revenue share based on the terms of the agreement.

The Company satisfies its performance obligations within the Cloud Services business upon delivery of services to its customers. Payment terms vary by type and location of our customers and the services offered. The term between invoicing and when payment is due is not significant. Due to the nature of the services provided, there are no obligations for returns.

Significant Judgments

In determining whether products and services are considered distinct performance obligations that should be accounted for separately versus together may require significant judgment. Judgment is also required to determine the standalone selling price for each distinct performance obligation.

Performance Obligations Satisfied Over Time

The Company’s Digital Media business consists primarily of performance obligations that are satisfied over time. This was determined based on a review of the contracts and the nature of the services offered, where the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefit of the services provided. Satisfaction of these performance obligations is evidenced in the following ways:

Advertising


•	Website reporting by the Company, the customer, or a third-party contains the delivery evidence needed to satisfy the performance obligations within the advertising contract


•	Successfully delivered leads are evidenced by either delivery reports from the Company’s internal lead management systems or through e-mail communication and/or other evidence of delivery showing acceptance of leads by the customer


•	Commission is evidenced by direct site reporting from the affiliate or via direct confirmation from the customer

Subscription


•	Evidence of delivery is contained in the Company’s systems or from correspondence with the customer which tracks when a customer accepts delivery of any product, digital keys or download links

The Company has concluded revenue is recognized based on delivery of services over the contract period for advertising and on a straight-line basis over the contract period for subscriptions. The Company believes that the methods described are a faithful depiction of the transfer of goods and services.

The Company’s Cloud Services business consists primarily of performance obligations that are satisfied over time. This has been determined based on the fact that the nature of services offered are subscription based and include fax, voice, backup, security and email marketing products where the customer simultaneously receives and consumes the benefit of the services provided regardless of whether the customer uses the services or not. Depending on the individual contracts with the customer, revenue for these services are recognized over the contract period when any of the following materially distinct performance obligations are satisfied:


•	Faxing capabilities are provided


•	Voice services are delivered


•	Email Marketing services are delivered


•	Security solutions, including email and endpoint are provided


•	Online data Backup capabilities are provided

The Company has concluded that the best measure of progress toward the complete satisfaction of the performance obligation over time is a time-based measure. The Company recognizes revenue on a straight-line basis throughout the subscription period and believes that the method used is a faithful depiction of the transfer of goods and services.

Performance Obligations Satisfied at a Point in Time

The Company’s Digital Media business has technology subscriptions that have standalone functionality. As a result, they are considered to be functional intellectual property where the performance obligations are satisfied at a point in time. This is evidenced once a digital key is delivered to the customer. Once the key is delivered to the customer, the customer has full control of the technology and the Company has no further performance obligations. The Company has concluded that revenue is recognized once the digital key is delivered. The Company believes that this method is a faithful depiction of the transfer of goods and services.

Practical Expedients

Existence of a Significant Financing Component in a Contract

As a practical expedient, the Company has not assessed whether a contract has a significant financing component because the Company expects at contract inception that the period between payment by the customer and the transfer of promised goods or services by the Company to the customer will be one year or less. In addition, the Company has determined that the payment terms that the Company provides to its customers are structured primarily for reasons other than the provision of finance to the Company. The Company typically charges a single upfront amount for the services because other payment terms would affect the nature of the risk assumed by the Company to provide service given the costs of the customer acquisition and the highly competitive and commoditized nature of the business we operate which allows customers to easily move from one provider to another. This additional risk may make it uneconomical to provide the service.

Costs to Fulfill a Contract

The Company’s revenues are primarily generated from customer contracts that are for one year or less. Costs primarily consist of incentive compensation paid based on the achievements of sales targets in a given period for related revenue streams and are recognized in the month when the revenue is earned. Incentive compensation is paid on the issuance or renewal of the customer contract. As a practical expedient, for amortization periods which are determined to be one year or less, the Company expenses any incremental costs of obtaining the contract with a customer when incurred. For those customer contracts greater than one year, the Company capitalizes and amortizes the expenses over the period of benefit.

Revenues Invoiced

The Company has applied the practical expedient for certain revenue streams to exclude the value of remaining performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected term of one year or less or (ii) contracts for which the Company recognizes revenue in proportion to the amount it has the right to invoice for services performed.