Case 17-7 Mesmerizing Marketers

Mesmerizing Marketers (MM) is a marketing company that offers a variety of marketing offerings to its customers. Specifically:

MM will create a TV commercial for $1M, build an app for $500K, and build a Facebook page for $250K. These amounts represent MMs charges for these items when MM sells them separately to customers. The TV commercial, the app, and the Facebook page are not interrelated; that is, each functions independently of the other offerings.

If a customer purchases all aforementioned items together, the total amount owed to MM is $1.5M. Payment terms are 50 percent consideration due at contract signing, with the remaining 50 percent due over the rest of the development period (25 percent at mid-point, 25 percent at completion).

If the app is downloaded 500K times or more in the first month, there is a one-time bonus of $250K payable to MM.

Stone, a customer, approaches MM with the hopes of reinventing its image to a younger customer base. Stone has a verbal agreement with MM that is based on MMs unsigned quote to Stone on November 30, 20X5, for one TV commercial, one app, and a Facebook page for total consideration of $1.5M and payment terms noted above. The agreement creates enforceable rights and obligations pursuant to MMs customary business practices. None of these items can be redirected by MM to another customer. MM performed a credit check on Stone and has determined that Stone has the intention and ability to pay MM for fulfilling its portion of the contract. Stone is required to pay MM for performance completed to date if Stone cancels the contract with MM for reasons other than MMs failure to perform under the contract as promised.

Stone makes a payment on November 30, 20X5, in the amount of $750K (50% of total consideration of $1.5M) pursuant to the agreement. From the date of the quote, it takes MM six months to develop and produce the TV commercial, two weeks to complete the Facebook page, and three months to complete a fully functioning app. MM does not think that the app will be downloaded 500K times in the first month because Stones customer base does not quickly accept newly developed technology. On the basis of its experience with similar technology, MM has determined that it takes over three months for Stones users to begin to download its apps.

Required

MMs CFO is trying to understand the new revenue recognition model and has asked you to explain how MM would account for the above scenario under the new standard.

1. How should MM account for the above offering with Stone under the new revenue recognition model?

Case 17-7c: Mesmerizing Marketers Page 2

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Case 17-7c: Mesmerizing MarketersPage 2

2.How would your conclusions change if:

a.The app sold to Stoneis actuallydownloaded more than 500K timesin the first month?

b.MM believed at the outset that there isabout a75percentchance that the app willbe downloaded more than 500K timesand it is probablethat therewill not be asignificant reversal of revenue?

What FASB codifications answer these questions?