Intangible Assets

As an independent multi-discipline appraisal firm, Enterprise Appraisal Company is dedicated to providing outstanding professional service. Our intangible asset valuation services provide the defensible, reliable and independent appraisals our clients require. Examples of the most widely contracted services include:

Intangible Assets (IA) are an increasingly important economic resource for many business entities, and have become recognized as a growing proportion of the assets acquired in many transactions. There are a few terms which are used to describe such resources. IAs can broadly be described as the assets of a company that are saleable but not material or physical. The term Intellectual Property (IP), in general, delineates that there are legal rights which are resultant from intellectual activity, be it in the industrial, scientific, literary or artistic fields. IP assets are a subset of IAs which pertains to those assets that may be protected by formal legislation, such as patents, trademarks, or copyrights. Additionally, IP includes separable intangible assets that provide a business with information or ability which gives them an advantage over their competitors, such as proprietary process or technical know-how, and trade secrets.

Some analysts who bring the sum of an organization's ideas together and refer to this as the Intellectual Capital (IC) of a business, that is, IC being all the innovation and knowledge that can be converted into profit, be it patents, trademarks, proprietary process, customer relationships, designs, etc.

Today, Intangible Assets are depreciated according to their respective life expectancy. These assets have either an identifiable or indefinite useful life. Intangible Assets with identifiable useful lives are amortized over their economic or legal life, whichever is shorter. Examples of those assets with identifiable useful lives include patents and copyrights. Intangible Assets with indefinite useful lives, however, are reassessed each year for impairment. Goodwill and certain Trademarks are examples of intangible assets with indefinite lives. If impairment has occurred, then a loss must be recognized.  Impairment loss is determined by subtracting the asset’s fair value from the asset’s book/carrying value. Enterprise Appraisal Co. has a long and successful history working extensively with major accounting firms to assist our clients, and welcome the opportunity to serve you.