Description Of The Business And Significant Accounting Policies	6 Months Ended
Jan. 31, 2012
Description Of The Business And Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Description Of The Business And Significant Accounting Policies	1. Description of the Business and Significant Accounting Policies Description of the Business ARI Network Services, Inc. ("ARI" or the "Company") is a leader in creating, marketing, and supporting solutions that enhance revenue and reduce costs for our customers. Our innovative, technology-enabled solutions connect the community of consumers, dealers, distributors, and manufacturers to help our customers efficiently service and sell more whole goods, parts, garments, and accessories ("PG&A") worldwide in selected vertical markets that include power sports, outdoor power equipment, marine, and white goods. We estimate that approximately 18,000 equipment dealers, 125 manufacturers, and 150 distributors worldwide leverage our technology to drive revenue, gain efficiencies and increase customer satisfaction. Our suite of software products, data as a service ("DaaS") and software as a service ("SaaS") solutions are designed to facilitate our customers' operations by increasing sales through additional foot and website traffic, more effective lead management, and greater conversion rates on those leads. To achieve this, our solutions allow our customers to: (i) efficiently market to their customers and prospects in order to drive increased traffic to their location and website; (ii) manage and nurture customers and prospects; (iii) increase revenue by selling PG&A online; (iv) increase revenue by generating leads for whole goods; and (v) increase revenue and reduce costs of our dealer customers by enhancing the productivity of our customers' support operations, specifically with respect to the sale of manufacturers' parts. We were incorporated in Wisconsin in 1981. Our principal executive office and headquarters is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The office address is 10850 West Park Place, Suite 1200, Milwaukee, WI 53224, and our telephone number at that location is (414) 973-4300. Our principal website address is www.arinet.com. Basis of Presentation These consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of ARI and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. We eliminated all significant intercompany balances and transactions in consolidation. Any adjustments deemed necessary by management for a fair presentation of all periods presented have been reflected as required by Regulation S-X, Rule 10-01, in the normal course of business. Significant Accounting Policies Our accounting policies are fully described in the footnotes to our Consolidated Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2011, which appear in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 31, 2011. There were no changes to our accounting policies during the three and six months ended January 31, 2012. Revenue Recognition Revenue from software licenses, annual or periodic maintenance fees and catalog subscription fees, which are included in multiple element arrangements, are all recognized ratably over the contractual term of the arrangement, as vendor specific objective evidence does not exist for these elements. ARI considers all arrangements with payment terms extending beyond twelve months not to be fixed or determinable and evaluates other arrangements with payment terms longer than normal to determine whether the arrangement is fixed or determinable. If the fee is not fixed or determinable, revenue is recognized as payments become due from the customer. Arrangements that include acceptance terms beyond the standard terms are not recognized until acceptance has occurred. If collectability is not considered probable, revenue is recognized when the fee is collected. Revenue for use of the network and for information services is recognized on a straight-line basis over the period of the contract. Arrangements that include professional services are evaluated to determine whether those services are essential to the functionality of other elements of the arrangement. Types of services that are considered essential to software license arrangements include customizing complex features and functionality in a product's base software code or developing complex interfaces within a customer's environment. When professional services are considered essential to software license arrangements, the professional service revenue is recognized pursuant to contract accounting using the percentage-of-completion method with progress-to-completion measured based upon labor hours incurred. Professional services revenue for set-up and integration of hosted websites, or other services considered essential to the functionality of other elements of this type of arrangement, is amortized over the term of the contract. When professional services are not considered essential, the revenue allocable to the professional services is recognized as the services are performed. When the current estimates of total contract revenue and contract cost indicate a loss, a provision for the entire loss on the contract is made in the period the amount is determined. Revenue for variable transaction fees, primarily for use of the shopping cart feature of our websites, is recognized as it is earned. Amounts invoiced to customers prior to recognition as revenue, as discussed above, are reflected in the accompanying balance sheets as deferred revenue. Amounts received from shipping and handling fees are reflected in revenue. Costs incurred for shipping and handling are reported in cost of revenue. Trade Receivables, Credit Policy and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Trade receivables are uncollateralized customer obligations due on normal trade terms, most of which require payment within thirty (30) days from the invoice date. Payments of trade receivables are allocated to the specific invoices identified on the customer's remittance advice or, if unspecified, are applied to the earliest unpaid invoices. The carrying amount of trade receivables is reduced by an allowance that reflects management's best estimate of the amounts that will not be collected. Management individually reviews all receivable balances that exceed ninety (90) days from the invoice date and, based on an assessment of current creditworthiness, estimates the portion of the balance that will not be collected. The allowance for potential doubtful accounts is reflected as an offset to trade receivables in the accompanying balance sheets. Capitalized and Purchased Software Product Costs Certain software development and acquisition costs are capitalized when incurred. Capitalization of these costs begins upon the establishment of technological feasibility. The establishment of technological feasibility and the on-going assessment of recoverability of software costs require considerable judgment by management with respect to certain external factors, including, but not limited to, the determination of technological feasibility, anticipated future gross revenue, estimated economic life and changes in software and hardware technologies. The annual amortization of software products is the greater of the amount computed using: (a) the ratio that current gross revenue for the network or a software product bear to the total of current and anticipated future gross revenue for the network or a software product, or (b) the straight-line method over the estimated economic life of the product which currently runs from three to five years. Amortization starts when the product is available for general release to customers. All other software development and support expenditures are charged to expense in the period incurred. Advertising Costs Advertising costs, which are included in sales and marketing expense on the statement of income, are expensed as incurred. Total advertising costs were $27,000 and $15,000 for the three months ended January 31, 2012 and 2011 and $52,000 and $43,000 for the six months ended January 31, 2012 and 2011. Legal Provisions ARI is periodically involved in legal proceedings arising from contracts, patents or other matters in the normal course of business. We reserve for any material estimated losses if the outcome is probable, in accordance with GAAP. We had no legal provisions for the three or six months ended January 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

1. Description of the Business and Significant Accounting Policies

Description of the Business

ARI Network Services, Inc. ("ARI" or the "Company") is a leader in creating, marketing, and supporting solutions that enhance revenue and reduce costs for our customers. Our innovative, technology-enabled solutions connect the community of consumers, dealers, distributors, and manufacturers to help our customers efficiently service and sell more whole goods, parts, garments, and accessories ("PG&A") worldwide in selected vertical markets that include power sports, outdoor power equipment, marine, and white goods. We estimate that approximately 18,000 equipment dealers, 125 manufacturers, and 150 distributors worldwide leverage our technology to drive revenue, gain efficiencies and increase customer satisfaction.

Our suite of software products, data as a service ("DaaS") and software as a service ("SaaS") solutions are designed to facilitate our customers' operations by increasing sales through additional foot and website traffic, more effective lead management, and greater conversion rates on those leads. To achieve this, our solutions allow our customers to: (i) efficiently market to their customers and prospects in order to drive increased traffic to their location and website; (ii) manage and nurture customers and prospects; (iii) increase revenue by selling PG&A online; (iv) increase revenue by generating leads for whole goods; and (v) increase revenue and reduce costs of our dealer customers by enhancing the productivity of our customers' support operations, specifically with respect to the sale of manufacturers' parts.

We were incorporated in Wisconsin in 1981. Our principal executive office and headquarters is located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The office address is 10850 West Park Place, Suite 1200, Milwaukee, WI 53224, and our telephone number at that location is (414) 973-4300. Our principal website address is www.arinet.com.

Basis of Presentation

These consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of ARI and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. We eliminated all significant intercompany balances and transactions in consolidation. Any adjustments deemed necessary by management for a fair presentation of all periods presented have been reflected as required by Regulation S-X, Rule 10-01, in the normal course of business.

Significant Accounting Policies

Our accounting policies are fully described in the footnotes to our Consolidated Financial Statements for the fiscal year ended July 31, 2011, which appear in our Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on October 31, 2011. There were no changes to our accounting policies during the three and six months ended January 31, 2012.

Revenue Recognition

Revenue from software licenses, annual or periodic maintenance fees and catalog subscription fees, which are included in multiple element arrangements, are all recognized ratably over the contractual term of the arrangement, as vendor specific objective evidence does not exist for these elements. ARI considers all arrangements with payment terms extending beyond twelve months not to be fixed or determinable and evaluates other arrangements with payment terms longer than normal to determine whether the arrangement is fixed or determinable. If the fee is not fixed or determinable, revenue is recognized as payments become due from the customer. Arrangements that include acceptance terms beyond the standard terms are not recognized until acceptance has occurred. If collectability is not considered probable, revenue is recognized when the fee is collected.

Revenue for use of the network and for information services is recognized on a straight-line basis over the period of the contract.

Arrangements that include professional services are evaluated to determine whether those services are essential to the functionality of other elements of the arrangement. Types of services that are considered essential to software license arrangements include customizing complex features and functionality in a product's base software code or developing complex interfaces within a customer's environment. When professional services are considered essential to software license arrangements, the professional service revenue is recognized pursuant to contract accounting using the percentage-of-completion method with progress-to-completion measured based upon labor hours incurred. Professional services revenue for set-up and integration of hosted websites, or other services considered essential to the functionality of other elements of this type of arrangement, is amortized over the term of the contract. When professional services are not considered essential, the revenue allocable to the professional services is recognized as the services are performed. When the current estimates of total contract revenue and contract cost indicate a loss, a provision for the entire loss on the contract is made in the period the amount is determined.

Revenue for variable transaction fees, primarily for use of the shopping cart feature of our websites, is recognized as it is earned.

Amounts invoiced to customers prior to recognition as revenue, as discussed above, are reflected in the accompanying balance sheets as deferred revenue.

Amounts received from shipping and handling fees are reflected in revenue. Costs incurred for shipping and handling are reported in cost of revenue.

Trade Receivables, Credit Policy and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

Trade receivables are uncollateralized customer obligations due on normal trade terms, most of which require payment within thirty (30) days from the invoice date. Payments of trade receivables are allocated to the specific invoices identified on the customer's remittance advice or, if unspecified, are applied to the earliest unpaid invoices.

The carrying amount of trade receivables is reduced by an allowance that reflects management's best estimate of the amounts that will not be collected. Management individually reviews all receivable balances that exceed ninety (90) days from the invoice date and, based on an assessment of current creditworthiness, estimates the portion of the balance that will not be collected. The allowance for potential doubtful accounts is reflected as an offset to trade receivables in the accompanying balance sheets.

Capitalized and Purchased Software Product Costs

Certain software development and acquisition costs are capitalized when incurred. Capitalization of these costs begins upon the establishment of technological feasibility. The establishment of technological feasibility and the on-going assessment of recoverability of software costs require considerable judgment by management with respect to certain external factors, including, but not limited to, the determination of technological feasibility, anticipated future gross revenue, estimated economic life and changes in software and hardware technologies.

The annual amortization of software products is the greater of the amount computed using: (a) the ratio that current gross revenue for the network or a software product bear to the total of current and anticipated future gross revenue for the network or a software product, or (b) the straight-line method over the estimated economic life of the product which currently runs from three to five years. Amortization starts when the product is available for general release to customers. All other software development and support expenditures are charged to expense in the period incurred.

Advertising Costs

Advertising costs, which are included in sales and marketing expense on the statement of income, are expensed as incurred. Total advertising costs were $27,000 and $15,000 for the three months ended January 31, 2012 and 2011 and $52,000 and $43,000 for the six months ended January 31, 2012 and 2011.

Legal Provisions

ARI is periodically involved in legal proceedings arising from contracts, patents or other matters in the normal course of business. We reserve for any material estimated losses if the outcome is probable, in accordance with GAAP. We had no legal provisions for the three or six months ended January 31, 2012 and 2011, respectively.