Goodwill and Intangible Assets

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2017

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price of acquired businesses over the estimated fair values of the tangible and identifiable intangible net assets acquired. The evaluation of the recoverability of goodwill is performed in accordance with FASB ASC Topic 350, which requires an annual assessment of potential goodwill impairment at the reporting unit level and whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of goodwill may not be recoverable. The annual assessment of the recoverability of recorded goodwill can be based on either a qualitative or quantitative assessment or a combination of the two. Both methods utilize estimates which, in turn, require judgments and assumptions regarding future trends and events. As a result, both the precision and reliability of the resulting estimates are subject to uncertainty. In connection with its most recent annual impairment test of goodwill performed during the quarter ended September 30, 2016, the Company utilized the qualitative approach in assessing the fair values of its reporting units relative to their respective carrying values, which indicated no impairment of recorded goodwill.

The following table presents changes to the carrying amount of goodwill by reportable segment during the three months ended March 31, 2017 (in thousands):



	Research		Consulting		Events		Total
Balance, December 31, 2016 (1)	$	595,450	$	96,480	$	46,523	$	738,453
Additions due to acquisitions (2)	114,222		—		—		114,222
Foreign currency translation adjustments	2,376		197		82		2,655
Balance, March 31, 2017	$	712,048	$	96,677	$	46,605	$	855,330


(1)	The Company does not have any accumulated goodwill impairment losses.


(2)	The addition to goodwill was due to the acquisition of L2 in March 2017.

Finite-Lived Intangible Assets

The following tables present reconciliations of the carrying amounts of the Company's finite-lived intangible assets as of the dates indicated (in thousands):



March 31, 2017	Trade Names			Customer Relationships			Content			Software			Non-Compete			Total
Gross cost	$	4,337		$	63,369		$	3,728		$	16,025		$	29,308		$	116,767
Additions due to acquisition (1)	500			9,000			—			1,000			—			10,500
Foreign currency translation impact	20			190			37			42			25			314
Gross cost	4,857			72,559			3,765			17,067			29,333			127,581
Accumulated amortization (2), (3)	(2,046		)	(19,469		)	(2,521		)	(10,266		)	(12,070		)	(46,372		)
Balance, March 31, 2017	$	2,811		$	53,090		$	1,244		$	6,801		$	17,263		$	81,209



December 31, 2016	Trade Names			Customer Relationships			Content			Software			Non-Compete			Total
Gross cost	$	4,337		$	63,369		$	3,728		$	16,025		$	29,308		$	116,767
Accumulated amortization (2), (3)	(1,737		)	(16,744		)	(2,033		)	(8,904		)	(10,548		)	(39,966		)
Balance, December 31, 2016	$	2,600		$	46,625		$	1,695		$	7,121		$	18,760		$	76,801

(1) The additions are due to the acquisition of L2 in March 2017.

(2) Intangible assets are amortized against earnings over the following periods: Trade names—2 to 4 years; Customer relationships—4 to 8 years; Content—1.5 to 2 years; Software—3 years; Non-compete—3 to 5 years.

(3) Aggregate amortization expense related to intangible assets was $6.3 million and $6.2 million for the three months ended March 31, 2017 and 2016, respectively.

The estimated future amortization expense by year from finite-lived intangibles will be as follows (in thousands):



2017 (remaining nine months)	$	18,508
2018	21,836
2019	16,624
2020	14,116
2021	6,533
Thereafter	3,592
	$	81,209

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

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