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Intangible Assets
9 Months Ended
Sep. 28, 2017
Goodwill And Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]  
Intangible Assets

3.  INTANGIBLE ASSETS

Intangible assets consist of contractual rights to provide the Company’s services within the theaters of the founding members and network affiliates and are stated at cost, net of accumulated amortization.  The Company’s intangible assets with its founding members are recorded at the fair market value of NCM, Inc.’s publicly traded stock as of the date on which the common membership units were issued.  The NCM LLC common membership units are fully convertible into NCM, Inc.’s common stock. In addition, the Company records intangible assets for up-front fees paid to network affiliates upon commencement of a network affiliate agreement. The Company’s intangible assets have a finite useful life and the Company amortizes the assets over the remaining useful life corresponding with the ESAs or the term of the network affiliate agreement.  

Common Unit Adjustments—In accordance with NCM LLC’s Common Unit Adjustment Agreement with its founding members, on an annual basis NCM LLC determines the amount of common membership units to be issued to or returned by the founding members based on theater additions or dispositions during the previous year.  In addition, NCM LLC’s Common Unit Adjustment Agreement requires that a Common Unit Adjustment occur for a specific founding member if its acquisition or disposition of theaters, in a single transaction or cumulatively since the most recent Common Unit Adjustment, results in an attendance increase or decrease in excess of two percent of the annual total attendance at the prior adjustment date.  

During the first quarter of 2017, NCM LLC issued 2,351,029 common membership units to its founding members for the rights to exclusive access to the theater screens and attendees added, net of dispositions by the founding members to NCM LLC’s network during the 2016 fiscal year.  Also during the first quarter of 2017, NCM, Inc. and NCM LLC entered into a binding Memorandum of Understanding (“MOU”) with AMC to effectuate aspects of a final judgment (the “Final Judgment”) entered into by the Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) in connection with AMC’s acquisition of Carmike Cinemas, Inc. (“Carmike”).  Pursuant to the MOU, the Company issued 18,425,423 NCM LLC common membership units to AMC in respect of the annual attendance at such Carmike theaters in accordance with the Common Unit Adjustment Agreement during the first quarter of 2017.  AMC’s acquisition of Carmike meets the criteria for a Common Unit Adjustment because it resulted in an extraordinary attendance increase of approximately 9.5%.  Further, the Final Judgment required AMC to transfer advertising rights to 17 theaters from NCM LLC to another advertising provider.  Pursuant to the MOU, AMC surrendered 4,657,673 NCM LLC common membership units in respect of such theaters.  The 4,657,673 NCM LLC common membership units were comprised of (i) 2,850,453 NCM LLC common membership units pursuant to the adjustment for divested theaters in the Common Unit Adjustment Agreement and (ii) an additional 1,807,220 NCM LLC common membership units valued at $25.0 million to compensate for NCM LLC’s lost operating income for these theaters during the 10-year term of the Final Judgment.  To facilitate the theater transfers, during the first quarter of 2017, AMC and Regal entered into an amendment of its ESA with NCM LLC and Cinemark entered into a waiver of certain rights under its ESA.  NCM LLC recorded a net intangible asset of $201.8 million during the first quarter of 2017 related to these transactions.  

During the first quarter of 2016, NCM LLC issued 1,416,515 common membership units to its founding members for the rights to exclusive access to the theater screens and attendees added, net of dispositions by the founding members to NCM LLC’s network during the 2015 fiscal year and NCM LLC recorded a net intangible asset of $21.1 million during the first quarter of 2016 as a result of the Common Unit Adjustment.

Integration Payments and Other Encumbered Theater Payments—If an existing on-screen advertising agreement with an alternative provider is in place with respect to any acquired theaters, the founding members may elect to receive common membership units related to those encumbered theaters in connection with the Common Unit Adjustment.  If the founding members make this election, then they are required to make payments on a quarterly basis in arrears in accordance with certain run-out provisions pursuant to the ESAs (“integration payments”). Because the Carmike theaters are subject to an existing on-screen advertising agreement with an alternative provider, AMC will make integration payments to NCM LLC. The integration payments will continue until the earlier of (i) the date the theaters are transferred to NCM LLC’s network or (ii) the expiration of the ESA. Integration payments are calculated based upon the advertising cash flow that the Company would have generated if it had exclusive access to sell advertising in the theaters with pre-existing advertising agreements. The ESA additionally entitles NCM LLC to payments related to the founding members’ on-screen advertising commitments under their beverage concessionaire agreements for encumbered theaters. These payments are also accounted for as a reduction to the intangible asset. During the three and nine months ended September 28, 2017 and September 29, 2016, the Company recorded a reduction to net intangible assets of $6.9 million, $0.7 million, $11.6 million and $1.5 million, respectively, related to integration and other encumbered theater payments. These payments received from AMC related to their acquisitions of theaters from Carmike and Rave Cinemas and from Cinemark related to their acquisition of theaters from Rave Cinemas. During the three and nine months ended September 28, 2017 and September 29, 2016, AMC and Cinemark paid a total of $4.6 million, $0.7 million, $6.1 million and $1.7 million, respectively, in integration and other encumbered theater payments (as payments are made one quarter and one month in arrears, respectively). If common membership units are issued to a founding member for newly acquired theaters that are subject to an existing on-screen advertising agreement with an alternative provider, the amortization of the intangible asset commences after the existing agreement expires and NCM LLC can utilize the theaters for all of its services.