Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2013

The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of XO Group Inc. and all 100% and majority owned subsidiaries, prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles ("U.S. GAAP"). All intercompany transactions and balances are eliminated in consolidation. Investments in which the Company has at least a 20%, but not more than a 50% interest are generally accounted for under the equity method. Investment interests below 20% are generally accounted for under the cost method, except if the Company could exercise significant influence, the investment would be accounted for under the equity method. The Company has investment interests below 20% which are accounted for under the equity method (see Note 6).

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. 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 as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period.

Significant estimates and assumptions made by management include the determination of fair value of equity awards issued, fair value of the Company's reporting unit, valuation of intangible assets (and their related useful lives), certain components of the income tax provisions, including valuation allowances on the Company's deferred tax assets, compensation accruals, allowances for bad debts, inventory obsolescence reserves and reserves for future returns. The Company bases its estimates and assumptions on historical experience and on various other factors that it believes to be reasonable under the circumstances. The Company evaluates its estimates and assumptions on an ongoing basis. The level of uncertainty in estimates and assumptions increases with the length of time until the underlying transactions are completed. Actual results could differ from estimates in amounts that may be material to the financial statements.

Comparative Data

Certain prior year financial statement line items and disclosures have been reclassified to conform to the current year's presentation.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

The Company considers all highly liquid investments with an original maturity of three months or less at the date of purchase to be cash equivalents. Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash on deposit with banks and money market funds. The market value of the Company’s cash equivalents approximates their cost plus accrued interest.

Fair Value of Financial Instruments

The carrying amounts of the Company's financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, accounts payable and accrued expenses, approximate fair value as of December 31, 2013 and 2012 due to the short-term nature of these instruments.

Inventory

Inventory consists of finished goods and raw materials. Inventory costs are determined principally by using the average cost method and are stated at the lower of cost or net realizable value.

Deferred Production and Marketing Costs

Deferred production and marketing costs include certain magazine and online video production costs and prepaid sales commissions, which are deferred and expensed as the related revenue is recognized.

Property and Equipment

Property and equipment are stated at cost, less accumulated depreciation and amortization. Depreciation is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets, which range from three to seven years. Leasehold improvements are depreciated over the shorter of their estimated useful lives or the remaining term of the related lease agreement. The Company capitalizes qualifying computer software costs incurred during the application development stage and amortizes these costs over the estimated useful life of the software, ranging from one to three years, on a straight-line basis, beginning when the software is ready for its intended use. Maintenance and repair costs are expensed as incurred while expenditures for major renewals and improvements are capitalized. Upon the disposition of property and equipment, the cost and related accumulated depreciation are removed from the accounts.

Goodwill, Other Intangible and Long-Lived Assets

Goodwill is the excess of purchase price over the fair value of identified net assets of businesses acquired. Goodwill and intangible assets deemed to have indefinite lives are not amortized but are subject to annual impairment tests. In addition to the annual impairment tests for goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets, the Company tests for impairment at any point where indicators of impairment exist.

The Company's intangible assets deemed to have definite lives are amortized over their estimated useful lives, on a straight-line basis as follows:



Customer and advertiser relationships	6 to 10 years
Developed technology and patents	5 to 20 years
Trademarks and tradenames	1 to 3 years
Service contracts and other	10 years

The Company's long-lived assets primarily consist of software, leasehold improvements, computer and office equipment and furniture and fixtures, which are subject to depreciation over the useful life of the asset. Long-lived assets, including definite-lived intangible assets, are evaluated for recoverability whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value of the asset may be impaired. In evaluating an asset for recoverability, the Company estimates the future cash flow expected to result from the use of the asset and eventual disposition. If the expected future undiscounted cash flow is less than the carrying amount of the asset, an impairment loss, equal to the excess of the carrying amount over the fair value of the asset, is recognized.

The Company performs impairment evaluations annually as of October 1, or more often if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be recoverable. For the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, the Company recorded impairments of certain intangible assets of $1.4 million and $1.0 million, respectively. See Note 5 for additional details on the impairments recorded during the year. The Company recorded impairments of $0.7 million for the year ended December 31, 2011.

Income Taxes

The Company accounts for income taxes using the asset and liability method as required by the accounting standard for income taxes. Under this method, deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases, as well as net operating loss and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred taxes are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred taxes of a change in tax rates is recognized in results of operations in the period that includes the enactment date.

Each reporting period, the Company assesses whether its deferred tax assets are more-likely-than-not realizable, in determining whether it is necessary to record a valuation allowance. This includes evaluating both positive (e.g., sources of taxable income) and negative (e.g., recent historical losses) evidence that could impact the realizability of the Company's deferred tax assets.

The Company records interest and penalties related to income taxes as a component of income tax expense.

The Company recognizes the impact of an uncertain tax position in its financial statements if, in management's judgment, the position is more-likely-then-not sustainable upon audit based on the position's technical merits. This involves the identification of potential uncertain tax positions, the evaluation of applicable tax laws and measurement of the amount of each uncertain tax position that is more-likely-than-not sustainable.

Revenue Recognition

The Company recognizes revenue primarily from the sale of online sponsorship and advertising programs, commissions earned in connection with the sale of gift registry products, the sale of merchandise and the publication of magazines, provided that there is persuasive evidence of an arrangement, the service has been provided or the product has been shipped, selling price is fixed or determinable, collection is reasonably assured and the Company has no significant remaining obligation.

Online sponsorship programs are designed to integrate advertising with online editorial content. Sponsors can purchase the exclusive right to promote products or services on a specific online editorial area and can purchase a special feature on the Company’s sites. These arrangements commonly include banner advertisements and direct e-mail marketing. Sponsors can also promote their services and products within the programming on the Company’s streaming video channels, The Knot TV, The Nest TV and The Bump TV.

Online advertising includes online banner advertisements and direct e-mail marketing, as well as placement in the Company’s online search tools. This category also includes online listings, including preferred placement and other premium programs in the local area of the Company’s websites for local wedding and other vendors. Local vendors may purchase online listings through fixed term contracts or open-ended subscriptions.

Certain elements of online sponsorship and advertising contracts provide for the delivery of a minimum number of impressions. Impressions are the featuring of a sponsor’s advertisement, banner, link or other form of content on the Company’s sites. The Company recognizes online sponsorship and advertising revenue over the duration of the contracts on a straight-line basis when delivery of impressions is in excess of minimum guarantees. To the extent that minimum guaranteed impressions are not met, the Company is often obligated to extend the period of the contract until the guaranteed impressions are achieved. If this occurs, the Company defers and recognizes the corresponding revenue over the extended period based on impressions delivered.

Registry services revenue primarily represents commissions from retailers who participate in WeddingChannel.com’s registry aggregation service, which offers couples and their guests the opportunity to view multiple registries in one location and for guests to order gifts off of these registries. After the retail partners fulfill and ship the sales orders, the related commissions are contractually earned by us and recognized as revenue. Product returns or exchanges do not materially impact the commissions earned by us. The Company only records net commissions, and not gross revenue and cost of revenue associated with these products, since the Company is not primarily obligated in these transactions, it is not subject to inventory risk and amounts earned are determined using a fixed percentage.

Merchandise revenue generally includes the selling price of wedding supplies through the Company’s websites, as well as related outbound shipping and handling charges since the Company is the primary party obligated in a transaction, is subject to inventory risk and establishes its own pricing and selection of suppliers. Merchandise revenue is recognized when products are shipped to customers, reduced by discounts as well as an allowance for estimated sales returns. Merchandise revenue excludes related sales taxes collected.

Publishing revenue primarily includes print advertising revenue derived from the publication of national and regional magazines. This revenue is recognized upon the publication of the related magazines, at which time all material services related to the magazine have been performed. Additionally, publishing revenue is derived from the sale of magazines on newsstands and in bookstores, and from author royalties received related to book publishing contracts. Revenue from the sale of magazines is recognized when the magazines are shipped, reduced by an allowance for estimated sales returns. Author royalties, to date, have been derived primarily from publisher royalty advances that are recognized as revenue when all the Company’s contractual obligations have been met, which is typically upon the delivery to, and acceptance by, the publisher of the final manuscript.

Multiple deliverables included in an arrangement, primarily online and print advertising sales, are separated into different units of accounting and the arrangement consideration is allocated to the identified separate units based on their relative selling prices. Selling prices for deliverables that qualify as separate units of accounting are determined using a hierarchy of: (a) vendor-specific objective evidence of selling price, (2) third-party evidence, and (3) best estimate of selling price. The Company uses best estimate of selling price of its deliverables in allocating consideration to each deliverable since deliverables are typically priced with a wide range of discounts. The Company's best estimate of selling price is intended to represent the price at which it would sell the deliverable if the Company were to sell the item regularly on a stand-alone basis. The amount of revenue allocated to delivered items is limited to contingent revenue, if any.

Deferred Revenue

Deferred revenue represents payments received or billings in excess of revenue recognized, which are primarily related to online and print advertising contracts.

Advertising Costs

Advertising costs are expensed as incurred. Advertising expense totaled $0.7 million, $0.5 million and $0.6 million for the years ended December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

Shipping and Handling Charges

Merchandise revenues included outbound shipping and handling charges of $2.6 million, $3.0 million and $3.7 million for the years ended December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively.

Concentration of Credit Risk

Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist principally of cash, cash equivalents and investments, and accounts receivable. Although the Company deposits its cash with more than one major financial institution, its deposits, at times, may exceed federally insured limits. The Company has not experienced any losses on cash and cash equivalent accounts to date and the Company believes it is not exposed to any significant credit risk related to cash.

The Company has operations in the United States and China, with less than 1% of total revenues generated from customers located in China. No individual foreign country accounted for more than 10% of the Company's revenue during the years ended December 31, 2013, 2012 or 2011. No individual foreign country accounted for more than 10% of the Company's accounts receivable during the years ended December 31, 2013 or 2012. The Company holds fixed assets in the United States and China. No country outside of the United States holds greater than 10% of the Company's fixed assets.

For the years ended December 31, 2013, 2012 and 2011, no individual customer represented more than 10% of net revenue. At December 31, 2013 and December 31, 2012, no individual customer accounted for more than 10% of accounts receivable. The Company’s customers are concentrated in the United States. The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations, generally does not require collateral, and establishes an allowance for doubtful accounts based upon factors surrounding the credit risk of customers, historical trends and other information.

Stock-Based Compensation

The Company measures the cost of employee services received in exchange for an award of equity instruments based on the measurement-date fair value of the award. The fair value of restricted stock awarded under the 2009 Stock Incentive Plan is determined using the intrinsic value of the stock at the time of grant.

The fair value of the stock options granted in 2013 from the 2009 Stock Incentive Plan was determined using the Black-Scholes option pricing model (see Note 4 for further details). Using this model, fair value was calculated based on assumptions with respect to (i) expected volatility of the Company's stock price, (ii) the expected term of the award, (iii) expected dividend yield on the Company's stock, and (iv) a risk-free interest rate, which is based on quoted U.S. Treasury rates for securities with maturities approximating the expected term. Specifically, the expected term of the options granted during 2013 was determined using the "simplified method" as prescribed by Staff Accounting Bulletin ("SAB") Topic 14D.2, which is presumed to be the midpoint between the vesting date and the end of the contractual term. The simplified method was used to determine the expected term of the options, due to the extended period of time that has lapsed since the Company last granted options, as well as differences in the contractual terms of the option awards compared to options granted in prior periods, such that the Company's historical share option experience does not provide a reasonable basis to estimate the expected term. The Company intends to continue to consistently apply the simplified method until a sufficient amount of historical information regarding exercise data becomes available. The Company did not grant any stock options during the years ended December 31, 2012 or 2011.

The fair value of the Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”) rights granted from the 2009 Employee Stock Purchase Plan is estimated on the date of grant using the Black-Scholes option-pricing model (see Note 4 for further details). Using this model, fair value is calculated based on assumptions with respect to (i) expected volatility of the Company's stock price, (ii) the expected life of the award, which for ESPP rights is the period of time between the offering date and the exercise date (as defined in Note 4), (iii) expected dividend yield on the Company's stock, and (iv) a risk-free interest rate, which is based on quoted U.S. Treasury rates for securities with maturities approximating the expected term. Expected volatility is calculated using historical prices for the Company's stock. The expected dividend yield is zero, as the Company has never paid dividends and currently intends to retain future earnings, if any, to finance the expansion of the business.

For grants of restricted stock and stock options, the Company records compensation expense based on the fair value of the shares on the grant date over the requisite service period, less estimated forfeitures. Compensation expense for ESPP rights is recorded in line with each respective offering period.

Forfeitures of equity awards are estimated at the grant date and reduce the compensation recognized. The Company considers several factors when estimating future forfeitures, including types of awards, employee level and historical experience. Actual forfeitures may differ from current estimates.

Earnings per Share

Basic net income per share is calculated by dividing net income by the weighted-average number of shares outstanding during the period. Diluted net income per share is calculated similarly but includes potential dilution from the exercise of stock options, vesting of restricted stock awards (using the treasury stock method) and outstanding ESPP rights. Common equivalent shares are excluded from the diluted computation if their effect is anti-dilutive.

Segment Information

The Company operates in one reportable segment, as it is organized around its online and offline media and e-commerce service lines. These service lines do not have operating managers who report to the chief operating decision maker. In addition, there is a substantial amount of costs that benefit all service lines, but are not allocated to individual cost of revenue categories. The chief operating decision maker reviews financial information at a consolidated result of operations level but does review revenue and cost of revenue results of the individual service lines.

Comprehensive Income

Other comprehensive loss includes changes in stockholders' equity that are excluded from net income, specifically, cumulative foreign currency translation adjustments. Comprehensive loss is disclosed in a separate statement that immediately follows the Consolidated Statements of Operations in this Annual Report on Form 10-K.

Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements

In July 2012, the accounting standard relating to indefinite-lived intangible assets was updated to reduce the cost and complexity of performing an impairment test on such assets. The amendment to the standard allows an entity to first assess the qualitative factors to determine if the indefinite-lived intangible asset is impaired as a basis to determine whether or not to perform the quantitative impairment test. This updated standard is effective for annual and interim impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginning after September 15, 2012. The adoption of this updated standard did not result in a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

In February 2013, the accounting standard relating to comprehensive income was updated to require entities to report the effect of significant reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income on the respective line items in net income if the amount being reclassified is required under U.S. GAAP to be reclassified in its entirety to net income. For other amounts that are not required under U.S. GAAP to be reclassified in their entirety to net income in the same reporting period, an entity is required to cross-reference other disclosures required under U.S. GAAP that provide additional detail about those amounts. This updated standard is effective for annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2012. The adoption of this updated standard did not result in a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.

Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements

In July 2013, the accounting standard relating to an unrecognized tax benefit when a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward exists was updated to clarify the balance sheet presentation.The updated standard is effective for annual and interim reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2013. This standard is not expected to have a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements.