The Tangle of Intangible Assets and Business Combinations

[...]ASC 805-20-25-10 points out that an asset is separately identifiable if it meets either one of two criteria: * The intangible asset is separable-that is, capable of being separated or divided from the entity and sold, transferred, licensed, rented, or exchanged, regardless of whether the entity intends to do so.\n This project evaluates whether certain intangible assets should be subsumed into goodwill, with the focus on customer relationships and noncompetition agreements. More than a decade after SFAS 141 and 142 were initially issued, accounting treatment of intangible assets upon a business combination is taking shape; however, financial statement users have to keep in mind that fair value-based asset values are only estimates of probable future economic benefits.