BASIS OF PRESENTATION (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2018

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the instructions to Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q and do not include all of the information and note disclosures required by generally accepted accounting principles in the United States of America (“US GAAP”). Amounts as of December 31, 2017 included in the unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been derived from audited consolidated financial statements as of that date. The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on February 8, 2018. Our significant accounting policies have not changed since December 31, 2017, except as noted below.

In the opinion of management, the accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all adjustments, consisting only of normal recurring items and changes in US GAAP, necessary for their fair presentation in conformity with US GAAP for complete financial statements. The results of operations for interim periods are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for a full year.

Revenue Recognition, Policy [Policy Text Block]

Revenue Recognition

Revenues are recognized when control of the promised goods or services is transferred to our customers, in an amount that reflects the consideration to which we expect to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services, net of taxes assessed by a government authority that are both imposed on and concurrent with the specific revenue-producing transaction and collected from the customer. Timing of revenue recognition may differ from the timing of invoicing to customers. We defer the recognition of revenues when cash payments are received or due in advance of our performance, including amounts which are refundable. We record a receivable when revenue is recognized prior to invoicing, or deferred revenue when revenue is recognized subsequent to invoicing. Invoicing typically occurs on a monthly basis and customers are obliged to pay within 30 to 60 days of issuance. For certain services and customer types, we require payment before the services are provided.

In instances where the timing of revenue recognition differs from the timing of invoicing, we have determined our contracts generally do not include a significant financing component. The primary purpose of our invoicing terms is to provide customers with simplified and predictable ways of purchasing our products and services, not to receive financing from our customers or to provide customers with financing.

Our principal revenue streams and their respective accounting treatments are discussed below:

Television advertising revenues primarily result from the sale of advertising time. Television advertising revenues are earned as the commercials are aired. In many countries, we commit to provide advertisers with certain rating levels in connection with their advertising. Revenue is recorded based on a charge per Gross Rating Point ("GRP") ordered during the month net of estimated shortfalls. Discounts and agency commissions on television advertising revenue are recognized at the point when the advertising is broadcast and are reflected as a reduction to gross revenue. These amounts are known in advance or can be reasonably estimated based on historical practice.

Carriage fees and subscription revenues includes revenues from cable operators and direct-to-home broadcasters and fees from subscriptions to our channels as well as subscriptions to our streaming services. Revenues from cable operators and direct-to-home broadcasters are recognized as revenue over the period for which the channels are provided and to which the fees relate. A portion of this fee revenue is based on the number of subscribers to our channels and recognized during the period, based upon the number of subscribers. The impacts of future changes in subscriber levels are recognized when they occur as estimates of future subscribers are constrained. Revenues from subscriptions to our streaming services are recognized over the period of the subscription.

Other revenues primarily includes revenues from our internet display advertising, as well as revenues from the licensing of our content. Internet display advertising revenues are recognized on a cost-per-impression basis based on the number of times a customer's advertisement is displayed on our websites. Revenues from the licensing of our content are recognized over the license period beginning from delivery or reasonable access to the content.

Our revenue streams involve significant judgment with respect to the discounts and agency commissions we provide to certain customers based on the amount of advertising purchased. Such discounts are based on estimates of the total amount expected to be earned and reduce revenue based on a systematic and rational allocation of the cost of honoring the discounts earned and claimed to each of the underlying revenue transactions that result in progress by the customer towards earning the discount. Due to timing of the information provided by the rating agencies, significant judgment may be necessary to estimate the total volume of GRPs delivered within the contract period.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with US GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements and the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting periods. Actual results could differ from those estimates and assumptions.

Discontinued Operations and Assets Held for Sale

We present our results of operations, financial position and cash flows of operations that have either been sold or that meet the criteria for "held-for-sale accounting" as discontinued operations if the disposal represents a strategic shift that will have a major effect on our operations and financial results. At the time an operation qualifies for held-for-sale accounting, the operation is evaluated to determine whether or not the carrying amount exceeds its fair value less cost to sell. Any loss as a result of carrying amounts in excess of fair value less cost to sell is recorded in the period the operation qualifies for held-for-sale accounting. Management judgment is required to (1) assess the criteria required to qualify for held-for-sale accounting, and (2) estimate fair value. Our Croatia and Slovenia operations are classified as discontinued operations and assets held for sale for all periods presented. See Note 3, "Discontinued Operations and Assets Held for Sale".

Basis of Consolidation

The unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements include the accounts of CME Ltd. and our subsidiaries, after the elimination of intercompany accounts and transactions. Entities in which we hold less than a majority voting interest but over which we have the ability to exercise significant influence are accounted for using the equity method. Other investments are accounted for using the cost method.

Seasonality

We experience seasonality, with advertising sales tending to be lowest during the third quarter of each calendar year due to the summer holiday period (typically July and August), and highest during the fourth quarter of each calendar year due to the holiday season.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements

Accounting Pronouncements Adopted

On January 1, 2018, we adopted Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") Accounting Standards Codification Topic 606, Revenue from Contracts with Customers ("ASC 606") using the modified retrospective method applied to those contracts which were not completed as of the adoption date. Results for reporting periods beginning after January 1, 2018 are presented under ASC 606, while prior period amounts are not adjusted and continue to be reported in accordance with our historic accounting under legacy guidance. Based on our assessment of the guidance in ASC 606, our method of recognizing revenue did not change. Furthermore, we did not record an adjustment to opening retained earnings as of January 1, 2018 and there was no impact to revenues for the three months ended March 31, 2018.

In August 2016, the FASB issued guidance which is intended to reduce the existing diversity in practice related to specific cash flow issues. As applicable to us, the guidance requires that cash flows at the settlement of zero-coupon debt instruments or debt instruments with coupon interest rates that are insignificant in relation to the effective interest rate of the borrowing be bifurcated between cash outflows for operating activities for the portion attributable to accrued interest, and cash outflows for financing activities for the portion attributable to the principal. We adopted this guidance as of January 1, 2018 which did not impact our net cash flows generated from continuing operating activities in 2017 or 2018.

Recent Accounting Pronouncements Issued

In February 2016, the FASB issued guidance to increase transparency and comparability among organizations by recognizing leasing assets and liabilities on the balance sheet and requiring additional disclosures about an entity's leasing arrangements. The guidance requires that a lessee recognize a liability to make lease payments and a right-of-use asset, with an available exception for leases shorter than twelve months. The guidance is effective for our fiscal year beginning January 1, 2019. We are currently in the process of evaluating the impact of the adoption of this guidance on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

In June 2016, the FASB issued new guidance to provide financial statement users with more information about the expected credit losses on financial instruments and other commitments to extend credit held by a reporting entity at each reporting date. The amendments replace the incurred loss impairment methodology in the current guidance with a methodology that reflects expected credit losses and requires consideration of a broader range of reasonable and supportable information to inform credit loss estimates. The guidance is effective for our fiscal year beginning January 1, 2020 with early adoption permitted for our fiscal year beginning January 1, 2019. We are in the process of assessing the potential impacts of this guidance.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments Policy

ASC 820, “Fair Value Measurements and Disclosure”, establishes a hierarchy that prioritizes the inputs to those valuation techniques used to measure fair value. The hierarchy gives the highest priority to unadjusted quoted prices in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1 measurements) and the lowest priority to unobservable inputs (Level 3 measurements). The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are:

Basis of Fair Value Measurement


Level 1	Unadjusted quoted prices in active markets that are accessible at the measurement date for identical, unrestricted instruments.


Level 2	Quoted prices in markets that are not considered to be active or financial instruments for which all significant inputs are observable, either directly or indirectly.


Level 3	Prices or valuations that require inputs that are both significant to the fair value measurement and unobservable.

A financial instrument’s level within the fair value hierarchy is based on the lowest level of any input that is significant to the fair value measurement.

We evaluate the position of each financial instrument measured at fair value in the hierarchy individually based on the valuation methodology we apply. The carrying amount of financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, and accounts payable and accrued liabilities, approximate their fair value due to the short-term nature of these items. The fair value of our long-term debt is included in Note 5, "Long-term Debt and Other Financing Arrangements".