Note 2. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies

Basis of Presentation

The accompanying consolidated financial statements include Zillow Group, Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiaries. All significant intercompany balances and transactions have been eliminated in consolidation. These consolidated financial statements have been prepared in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles (“GAAP”).

Effective February 17, 2015, Zillow Group acquired Trulia, and each of Zillow and Trulia became wholly owned subsidiaries of Zillow Group. For financial reporting and accounting purposes, Zillow was the acquirer of Trulia. The results presented in the Consolidated Financial Statements and the Notes to Consolidated Financial Statements reflect those of Zillow prior to the completion of the acquisition of Trulia on February 17, 2015, and Trulia’s results of operations have been included prospectively after February 17, 2015. Market Leader revenue is included in our results of operations from February 17, 2015 through the date of divestiture of September 30, 2015.

We have given retroactive effect to prior period share and per share amounts in our consolidated financial statements for the effect of the August 2015 distribution of shares of our Class C capital stock as a dividend to our Class A and Class B common stock shareholders so that prior periods are comparable to current period presentation.

Use of Estimates

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make certain estimates, judgments and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the related disclosures at the date of the financial statements, as well as the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the periods presented. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates, including those related to revenue recognition, website development costs, recoverability of long-lived assets and intangible assets with definite lives, share-based compensation, income taxes, business combinations and goodwill, among others. To the extent there are material differences between these estimates, judgments, or assumptions and actual results, our financial statements will be affected.

Reclassifications

Certain immaterial reclassifications have been made in the consolidated balance sheets and statements of cash flows to conform data for prior periods to the current format.

Concentrations of Credit Risk

Financial instruments, which potentially subject us to concentrations of credit risk, consist primarily of cash and cash equivalents, investments and accounts receivable. We place cash and cash equivalents and investments with major financial institutions, which management assesses to be of high credit quality, in order to limit exposure of our investments.

Credit risk with respect to accounts receivable is dispersed due to the large number of customers. Further, our credit risk on accounts receivable is mitigated by the relatively short payment terms that we offer. Collateral is not required for accounts receivable. We maintain an allowance for doubtful accounts such that receivables are stated at net realizable value.

Cash and Cash Equivalents

Cash includes demand deposits with banks or financial institutions. Cash equivalents include short-term, highly liquid investments that are both readily convertible to known amounts of cash, and so near their maturity that they present minimal risk of changes in value because of changes in interest rates. Our cash equivalents include only investments with original maturities of three months or less. We regularly maintain cash in excess of federally insured limits at financial institutions.

Restricted Cash

Restricted cash consists of certificates of deposit held as collateral in our name at a financial institution related to certain of our operating leases.

Investments

Our investments consist of fixed income securities, which include U.S. and foreign government agency securities, corporate notes and bonds, municipal securities, commercial paper and certificates of deposit, and are classified as available-for-sale securities beginning on January 1, 2015. As the investments are available to support current operations, our available-for-sale securities are classified as short-term investments. Available-for-sale securities are carried at fair value with unrealized gains and losses reported as a component of accumulated other comprehensive loss in shareholders’ equity, while realized gains and losses and other-than-temporary impairments are reported as a component of net loss based on specific identification. An impairment charge is recorded in the consolidated statements of operations for declines in fair value below the cost of an individual investment that are deemed to be other than temporary. We assess whether a decline in value is temporary based on the length of time that the fair market value has been below cost, the severity of the decline and the intent and ability to hold or sell the investment. We did not identify any investments as other-than-temporarily impaired as of December 31, 2016 or 2015.

Prior to January 1, 2015 our investments were classified as held-to-maturity and were recorded at amortized cost (see Note 4).

Accounts Receivable and Allowance for Doubtful Accounts

Accounts receivable are generally due within 30 days and are recorded net of the allowance for doubtful accounts. We consider accounts outstanding longer than the contractual terms past due. We review accounts receivable on a regular basis and estimate an amount of losses for uncollectible accounts based on our historical collections experience, age of the receivable, knowledge of the customer and the condition of the general economy and industry as a whole. We record changes in our estimate to the allowance for doubtful accounts through bad debt expense and relieve the allowance when accounts are ultimately determined to be uncollectible. Bad debt expense is included in general and administrative expenses.

Property and Equipment

Property and equipment is recorded at cost and depreciated using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the related assets. The useful lives are as follows:


Computer equipment		3 years
Office equipment, furniture and fixtures		5 to 7 years
Leasehold improvements		Shorter of expected useful life or lease term

Maintenance and repair costs are charged to expense as incurred. Major improvements, which extend the useful life of the related asset, are capitalized. Upon disposal of a fixed asset, we record a gain or loss based on the differences between the proceeds received and the net book value of the disposed asset.

Website and Software Development Costs

The costs incurred in the preliminary stages of development are expensed as incurred. Once an application has reached the development stage, internal and external costs, if direct and incremental and deemed by management to be significant, are capitalized in property and equipment and amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives. Maintenance and enhancement costs, including those costs in the post-implementation stages, are typically expensed as incurred, unless such costs relate to substantial upgrades and enhancements to the website or software that result in added functionality, in which case the costs are capitalized and amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives. Amortization expense related to capitalized website and software development costs is included in technology and development expense.

Capitalized development activities placed in service are amortized over the expected useful lives of those releases, currently estimated at one year. The estimated useful lives of website and software development activities are reviewed frequently and adjusted as appropriate to reflect upcoming development activities that may include significant upgrades and/or enhancements to the existing functionality.

Goodwill

Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of an acquired business over the fair value of the assets acquired at the date of acquisition. We assess the impairment of goodwill on an annual basis, in our fourth quarter, or whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that goodwill may be impaired.

We assess goodwill for possible impairment by first performing a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is more likely than not that the fair value of our reporting unit is less than its carrying amount. If we determine that it is not more likely than not that the fair value of our reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, then the first and second steps of the goodwill impairment test are unnecessary. If we determine that it is more likely than not that the fair value of our reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, we perform the two-step goodwill impairment test. The first step of the goodwill impairment test identifies if there is potential goodwill impairment. If step one indicates that an impairment may exist, a second step is performed to measure the amount of the goodwill impairment, if any. Goodwill impairment exists when the estimated fair value of goodwill is less than its carrying value. If impairment exists, the carrying value of the goodwill is reduced to fair value through an impairment charge recorded in our statements of operations.

Intangible Assets

We purchase and license data content from multiple data providers. This data content consists of U.S. county data about home details (e.g., the number of bedrooms, bathrooms, square footage) and other information relating to the purchase price of homes, both current and historical, as well as imagery, mapping and parcel data that is displayed on our mobile applications and websites. Our home details data not only provides information about a home and its related transactions which is displayed on our mobile applications and websites, but is also used in our proprietary valuation algorithms to produce Zestimates, Rent Zestimates and Zillow Home Value Indexes. License agreement terms vary by vendor. In some instances, we retain perpetual rights to this information after the contract ends; in other instances, the information and data are licensed only during the fixed term of the agreement. Additionally, certain data license agreements provide for uneven payment amounts throughout the life of the contract term.

We capitalize payments made to third parties for data licenses that we expect to provide future economic benefit through the recovery of the costs of these arrangements via the generation of our revenue and margins. For data license contracts that include uneven payment amounts, we capitalize the payments as they are made as an intangible asset and amortize the total contract value over the estimated useful life. For contracts in which we have perpetual rights to the data, the total contract value is amortized on a straight-line basis over the life of the contract plus two years, which is equivalent to the estimated useful life of the asset. For contracts in which we do not have access to the data beyond the contractual term, the total contract value is amortized on a straight line basis over the term of the contract. We evaluate data content contracts for potential capitalization at the inception of the arrangement as well as each time periodic payments to third parties are made.

The amortization period for the capitalized purchased content is based on our best estimate of the useful life of the asset, which ranges from approximately 4.5 to nine years. The determination of the useful life includes consideration of a variety of factors including, but not limited to, our assessment of the expected use of the asset and contractual provisions that may limit the useful life, as well as an assessment of when the data is expected to become obsolete based on our estimates of the diminishing value of the data over time. We evaluate the useful life of the capitalized purchased data content each reporting period to determine whether events and circumstances warrant a revision to the remaining useful life. If we determine the estimate of the asset’s useful life requires modification, the carrying amount of the asset is amortized prospectively over the revised useful life. The capitalized purchased data content is amortized on a straight-line basis as the pattern of delivery of the economic benefits of the data cannot reliably be determined because we do not have the ability to reliably predict future traffic to our websites and mobile applications.

Under certain other data agreements, the underlying data is obtained on a subscription basis with consistent monthly or quarterly recurring payment terms over the contractual period. Upon the expiration of such arrangements, we no longer have the right to access the related data, and therefore, the costs incurred under such contracts are not capitalized and are expensed as payments are made. We would immediately lose rights to data under these arrangements if we were to cancel the subscription and/or cease making payments under the subscription arrangements.

We also capitalize costs related to the license of certain internal-use software from third parties, including certain licenses of software in cloud computing arrangements. Additionally, we capitalize costs incurred during the application development stage related to the development of internal-use software and enterprise cloud computing services. We expense costs as incurred related to the planning and post-implementation phases of development. Capitalized internal-use software costs are amortized over the estimated useful life of the asset, which is currently three years, on a straight-line basis.

We also have intangible assets for developed technology, customer relationships, trade names and trademarks, advertising relationships and MLS home data feeds which we recorded in connection with acquisitions. Purchased intangible assets with a determinable economic life are carried at cost, less accumulated amortization. These intangible assets are amortized over the estimated useful life of the asset on a straight-line basis.

Recoverability of Intangible Assets with Definite Lives and Other Long-Lived Assets

We evaluate intangible assets and other long-lived assets for impairment whenever events or circumstances indicate that they may not be recoverable. Recoverability is measured by comparing the carrying amount of an asset group to future undiscounted net cash flows expected to be generated. We group assets for purposes of such review at the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows of the asset group are largely independent of the cash flows of the other groups of assets and liabilities. If this comparison indicates impairment, the amount of impairment to be recognized is calculated as the difference between the carrying value and the fair value of the asset group.

Deferred Revenue

Deferred revenue consists of prepaid advertising fees received or billed in advance of the delivery or completion of the services, prepaid but unrecognized subscription revenue, and for amounts received in instances when revenue recognition criteria have not been met. Deferred revenue is recognized when the services are provided and all revenue recognition criteria have been met.

Deferred Rent

For our operating leases, we recognize rent expense on a straight-line basis over the terms of the leases and, accordingly, we record the difference between cash rent payments and the recognition of rent expense as a deferred rent liability. For office space under an operating lease that is subleased to a third party for which we intend to reoccupy the space at a future date, rent expense is recognized net of sublease income. Landlord-funded leasehold improvements are also recorded as deferred rent liabilities and are amortized as a reduction of rent expense over the non-cancelable term of the related operating lease.

Business Combinations

We recognize identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed at their acquisition date fair values. Goodwill as of the acquisition date is measured as the excess of consideration transferred over the net of the acquisition date fair values of the assets acquired and the liabilities assumed. While we use our best estimates and assumptions for the purchase price allocation process to value assets acquired and liabilities assumed at the acquisition date, our estimates are inherently uncertain and subject to refinement. As a result, during the measurement period, which may be up to one year from the acquisition date, we record adjustments to the assets acquired and liabilities assumed, with the corresponding offset to goodwill to the extent that we identify adjustments to the preliminary purchase price allocation. Upon the conclusion of the measurement period or final determination of the values of assets acquired or liabilities assumed, whichever comes first, any subsequent adjustments are recorded to our consolidated statements of operations. We recognize adjustments to provisional amounts that are identified during the measurement period in the reporting period in which the adjustment amounts are determined.

Revenue Recognition

In general, we recognize revenue when (i) persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, (ii) delivery has occurred or services have been rendered to the customer, (iii) the fee is fixed or determinable, and (iv) collectability is reasonably assured. We consider a signed agreement, a binding insertion order or other similar documentation reflecting the terms and conditions under which products or services will be provided to be persuasive evidence of an arrangement. Collectability is assessed based on a number of factors, including payment history and the creditworthiness of a customer. If it is determined that collection is not reasonably assured, revenue is not recognized until collection becomes reasonably assured, which is generally upon receipt of cash.

We generate revenue from the sale of advertising services and our suite of tools to businesses and professionals primarily associated with the real estate and mortgage industries. These professionals include local real estate professionals, mortgage professionals and brand advertisers. Our two revenue categories are marketplace revenue and display revenue. Incremental direct costs incurred related to the acquisition or origination of a customer contract in a transaction that results in the deferral of revenue are expensed as incurred.

Marketplace Revenue. Marketplace revenue for the year ended December 31, 2016 consisted of Premier Agent revenue, other real estate revenue and mortgages revenue. Market Leader revenue is included in our results of operations from February 17, 2015 through the date of divestiture of September 30, 2015.

Premier Agent revenue is derived from our Premier Agent program. Our Premier Agent program offers a suite of marketing and business technology products and services to help real estate achieve their advertising needs, which growing their businesses and personal brands. All Premier Agents receive access to a dashboard portal on our website that provides individualized program performance analytics and our free customer relationship management, or CRM, tool that captures detailed information about each contact made with a Premier Agent through our mobile and web platforms.

From 2012 through the end of the third quarter of 2016, we had primarily charged customers for our Premier Agent product based on the number of impressions delivered on our buyer’s agent list in zip codes purchased and a contracted maximum cost per impression. Our Premier Agent product includes multiple deliverables which are accounted for as a single unit of accounting, as the delivery or performance of the undelivered elements is based on traffic to our mobile applications and websites. With this pricing method, we recognized revenue related to our impression-based Premier Agent product based on the lesser of (i) the actual number of impressions delivered on our buyer’s agent list during the period multiplied by the contracted maximum cost per impression, or (ii) the contractual maximum spend on a straight-line basis during the contractual period over which the services are delivered, typically over a period of six months or twelve months and then month-to-month thereafter.

In 2016, we began testing and implementation of a new auction-based pricing method for our Premier Agent product by which we determine the cost per impression delivered in each zip code based upon the total amount spent by Premier Agents to purchase impressions in the zip code during the month. The cost per impression that we charge is dynamic—as demand for impressions in a zip code increases or decreases, the cost per impression in that zip code may be increased or decreased. This new auction-based pricing method complements our self-serve account interface, which we introduced to Premier Agents over the course of 2016. The interface includes account management tools that allow agent advertisers to independently control their budgets, impression buys, and the duration of their advertising commitment. We began testing this auction-based pricing method for our Premier Agent product to better align our revenue opportunities with increasing traffic levels to our mobile and web platforms and leveraging increasing demand by real estate agents for access to home shoppers who use our mobile applications and websites. In the fourth quarter of 2016, we applied this method broadly to our existing agent advertisers. With this auction-based pricing method, we recognize revenue related to our dynamic impression-based Premier Agent product based on the contractual maximum spend on a straight-line basis during the contractual period over which the services are delivered. We are unable to predict whether this change to our pricing method will have a material impact on net sales, revenue, or other results of operations. In our history of building our real estate and other marketplaces and product offerings, we have continually evaluated and utilized various pricing and value delivery strategies in order to better align our revenue opportunities with the growth in usage of our mobile and web platforms.

We continue to support some legacy Trulia Premier Agent products, which are primarily sold on a fixed fee subscription basis for periods that generally range from six months to 12 months, and include Trulia Seller Ads, which enable real estate professionals to generate leads from consumers interested in selling their homes. Subscription advertising revenue for Trulia’s products included in Premier Agent revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis during the contractual period over which the services are delivered.

Other real estate revenue primarily includes revenue generated by Zillow Group Rentals, which includes our rentals marketplace and suite of tools for rental professionals, as well as revenue from the sale of various other marketing products and a suite of tools to real estate professionals. Rentals revenue primarily includes advertising sold to property managers and other rental professionals on a cost per lead and cost per lease generated basis. We recognize revenue as leads are delivered to rental professionals or as qualified leases are confirmed.

Mortgages revenue primarily includes marketing products sold to mortgage professionals on a cost per lead basis, including our Long Form and Custom Quote services. Mortgages revenue also includes revenue generated by Mortech, which provides subscription-based mortgage related software solutions, including a product and pricing engine and lead management platform, for which we recognize revenue on a straight-line basis during the contractual period over which the services are delivered. For our Long Form and Custom Quote cost per lead mortgage marketing products, generally participating qualified mortgage professionals make a prepayment to gain access to consumers interested in connecting with mortgage professionals. Through Long Form, consumers answer a series of questions to find a local lender, and mortgage professionals receive consumer contact information. Consumers who request rates for mortgage loans in Custom Quotes are presented with customized quotes from participating mortgage professionals. We only charge mortgage professionals a fee when users contact mortgage professionals through Long Form or when users contact mortgage professionals for more information regarding a mortgage loan quote in Custom Quotes. Mortgage professionals who exhaust their initial prepayment can then prepay additional funds to continue to participate in the marketplace. We recognize revenue when a user contacts a mortgage professional through Zillow Group’s mortgages platform.

Market Leader revenue primarily includes revenue from the sale of a comprehensive premium software-as-a-service based marketing product typically sold to real estate professionals as a bundle of products under a fixed fee subscription. Market Leader became part of Zillow Group through Zillow Group’s February 2015 acquisition of Trulia and was divested as of September 30, 2015.

Display Revenue. Display revenue primarily consists of graphical mobile and web advertising sold on a cost per thousand impressions or cost-per-click basis to advertisers promoting their brands on our mobile applications and websites and our partner websites and mobile applications, primarily in the real estate industry, including real estate brokerages, multi-family rental professionals, home builders, mortgage professionals and home services providers. Our advertising customers also include telecommunications, automotive, insurance and consumer products companies. Impressions are the number of times an advertisement is loaded on a web page and clicks are the number of times users click on an advertisement. Pricing is primarily based on advertisement size and position on our mobile applications and websites or on our partner websites and mobile applications, and fees are generally billed monthly. We recognize display revenue as clicks occur or as impressions are delivered to users interacting with our mobile applications or websites. Growth in display revenue depends on continuing growth in traffic to our mobile applications and websites, continuing growth in traffic to our partner websites and mobile applications and migration of advertising spend online from traditional broadcast and print media.

There were no customers that generated 10% or more of our total revenue in the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 or 2014.

Cost of Revenue

Our cost of revenue consists of expenses related to operating our mobile applications and websites, including associated headcount expenses, such as salaries and benefits and share-based compensation expense and bonuses, as well as credit card fees, ad serving costs paid to third parties, revenue-sharing costs related to our commercial business relationships, multiple listing services fees and costs associated with the operation of our data center and customer websites.

Technology and Development

Research and development costs are expensed as incurred and are recorded in technology and development expenses. These costs consist primarily of technology and development headcount expenses, including salaries, bonuses, benefits and share-based compensation expense for employees engaged in the design, development and testing of our mobile applications and websites. For the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014, expenses attributable to research and development for our business totaled $224.7 million, $163.8 million and $72.9 million, respectively. Technology and development expenses also include amortization costs related to capitalized website and development activities, amortization of certain intangibles and other data agreement costs related to the purchase of data used to populate our mobile applications and websites, and amortization of intangible assets recorded in connection with acquisitions.

Share-Based Compensation

We measure compensation expense for all share-based awards at fair value on the date of grant and recognize compensation expense over the service period on a straight-line basis for awards expected to vest.

We use the Black-Scholes-Merton option-pricing model to determine the fair value for option awards. In valuing our option awards, we make assumptions about risk-free interest rates, dividend yields, volatility, and weighted-average expected lives, including estimated forfeiture rates. Risk-free interest rates are derived from U.S. Treasury securities as of the option award grant date. Expected dividend yield is based on our historical cash dividend payments, which have been zero to date. The expected volatility for our Class A common stock and Class C capital stock is estimated using our historical volatility. The weighted-average expected life of the option awards is estimated based on our historical exercise data. Forfeiture rates are estimated using historical actual forfeiture trends as well as our judgment of future forfeitures. These rates are evaluated at least quarterly and any change in share-based compensation expense is recognized in the period of the change. The estimation of option awards that will ultimately vest requires judgment, and to the extent actual results or updated estimates differ from our current estimates, such amounts will be recorded as a cumulative adjustment in the period the estimates are revised. We consider many factors when estimating expected forfeitures, including employee class and historical experience. Actual results, and future changes in estimates, may differ substantially from management’s current estimates.

For issuances of restricted stock awards, restricted stock units and restricted units, we determine the fair value of the award based on the market value of our Class A common stock or Class C capital stock, as applicable, at the date of grant.

Advertising Costs

Advertising costs are expensed as incurred. For the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014, expenses attributable to advertising totaled $120.2 million, $103.4 million, and $73.1 million, respectively. Advertising costs are recorded in sales and marketing expenses.

Income Taxes

We use the asset and liability approach for accounting and reporting income taxes, which requires the recognition of deferred tax assets and liabilities for the expected future tax consequences of temporary differences between the financial statement and tax bases of assets and liabilities at the applicable enacted tax rates. A valuation allowance against deferred tax assets would be established if, based on the weight of available evidence, it is more likely than not (a likelihood of more than 50%) that some or all of the deferred tax assets are not expected to be realized.

We establish reserves for tax-related uncertainties based on estimates of whether, and the extent to which, additional taxes will be due. We adjust these reserves in light of changing facts and circumstances, such as the closing of a tax audit, new tax legislation or the change of an estimate. To the extent that the final tax outcome of these matters is different than the amounts recorded, such differences will affect the provision for income taxes in the period in which such determination is made. Interest and penalties related to unrecognized tax benefits are recorded as income tax expense.

Recently Issued Accounting Standards

In January 2017, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued guidance simplifying the test for goodwill impairment. This standard eliminates Step 2 from the goodwill impairment test, instead requiring an entity to recognize a goodwill impairment charge for the amount by which the goodwill carrying amount exceeds the reporting unit’s fair value. This guidance is effective for interim and annual goodwill impairment tests in fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2019, and early adoption is permitted. This guidance must be applied on a prospective basis. We expect to adopt this guidance for interim and annual goodwill impairment tests performed on testing dates after January 1, 2017. We do not expect the adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In December 2016, the FASB issued amendments to address various technical corrections and improvements. Most of the amendments are effective upon issuance, while six of the amendments require transition guidance. The amendments applicable to our business have been adopted for the year ended December 31, 2016. The adoption of these amendments did not have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In December 2016, the FASB issued guidance to narrow the definition of a business. This standard provides guidance to assist entities with evaluating when a set of transferred assets and activities is a business. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and early adoption is permitted. This guidance must be applied prospectively to transactions occurring within the period of adoption. We expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2018. We do not expect the adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In November 2016, the FASB issued guidance on the classification and presentation of changes in restricted cash on the statement of cash flows. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and early adoption is permitted. The adoption of this guidance requires a retrospective transition method to each period presented. We expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2018. We do not expect the adoption of this guidance to have a material impact on our statements of cash flows.

In August 2016, the FASB issued guidance on the classification of certain cash receipts and cash payments in the statement of cash flows. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and early adoption is permitted. The adoption of this guidance requires a retrospective transition method to each period presented. We adopted this guidance in the interim period ending on September 30, 2016. The adoption of this guidance did not have any impact on our statements of cash flows. In connection with the December 2016 partial repurchase of the 2020 Notes (see Note 11), payments related to the debt extinguishment costs have been classified as a cash outflow for financing activities.

In June 2016, the FASB issued guidance on the measurement of credit losses on financial instruments. This standard requires the use of an expected loss impairment model for instruments measured at amortized cost. For available-for-sale debt securities, an entity is required to recognize an allowance for credit losses rather than as a write-down. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2019, and early adoption is permitted for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018. The adoption of this guidance requires a cumulative-effect adjustment to retained earnings as of the beginning of the first reporting period in which the guidance is effective. We expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2020. We have not yet determined the impact the adoption of this guidance will have on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In March 2016, the FASB issued guidance on contingent put and call options in debt instruments. This standard clarifies that the assessment of whether an embedded contingent put or call option is clearly and closely related to the debt host only requires an analysis of the four-step decision sequence and does not require an entity to separately assess whether the contingency itself is indexed only to interest rates or the credit risk of the entity. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2016, and early adoption is permitted. The adoption of this guidance requires a modified retrospective transition method. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2017. The adoption of this guidance did not have any impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In March 2016, the FASB issued guidance on several aspects of the accounting for share-based payment transactions, including the income tax consequences, impact of forfeitures, classification of awards as either equity or liabilities and classification on the statement of cash flows. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2016, and early adoption is permitted. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2017 using the modified retrospective approach through a cumulative-effect adjustment to beginning accumulated deficit, and we have elected to account for forfeitures as they occur beginning on January 1, 2017. The adoption of this guidance did not have a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In February 2016, the FASB issued guidance on leases. This standard requires the recognition of a right-of-use asset and lease liability on the balance sheet for all leases. This standard also requires more detailed disclosures to enable users of financial statements to understand the amount, timing, and uncertainty of cash flows arising from leases. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2018 and should be applied through a modified retrospective transition approach for leases existing at, or entered into after, the beginning of the earliest comparative period presented in the financial statements, and early adoption is permitted. We expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2019. We anticipate this standard will have a material impact on our financial position, primarily due to our office space operating leases, as we will be required to recognize lease assets and lease liabilities on our consolidated balance sheet. We continue to assess the potential impacts of this standard, including the impact the adoption of this guidance will have on our results of operations or cash flows, if any.

In January 2016, the FASB issued guidance on the recognition and measurement of financial instruments. This standard requires equity investments, except those accounted for under the equity method of accounting or those that result in consolidation of the investee, to be measured at fair value with changes in fair value recognized in net income. This standard also requires the separate presentation of financial assets and financial liabilities by measurement category and form of financial asset on the balance sheet or the accompanying notes to the financial statements. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, early adoption is permitted, and the guidance must be applied prospectively to equity investments that exist as of the adoption date. We expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2018. We have not yet determined our approach to adoption or the impact the adoption of this guidance will have on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In April 2015, the FASB issued guidance related to a customer’s accounting for fees paid in a cloud computing arrangement. This standard provides guidance to customers about whether a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license. If a cloud computing arrangement includes a software license, then the customer should account for the software license element of the arrangement consistent with the acquisition of other software licenses. If a cloud computing arrangement does not include a software license, the customer should account for the arrangement as a service contract. This guidance is effective for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2015, and early adoption is permitted. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2016. The adoption of this guidance has not had a material impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In April 2015, the FASB issued guidance related to the presentation of debt issuance costs. This standard requires debt issuance costs to be presented as a direct deduction from the related debt liability rather than as an asset. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2016. The adoption of this guidance impacted our presentation of the debt issuance costs associated with our Convertible Senior Notes due in 2021 issued in December 2016. For additional information regarding the Convertible Senior Notes due in 2021, see Note 11 to our consolidated financial statements.

In February 2015, the FASB issued guidance relating to the consolidation analysis that a reporting entity must perform to determine whether it should consolidate certain types of legal entities. This standard affects both the variable interest entity and voting interest entity consolidation models. All legal entities are subject to reevaluation under the revised consolidation model. We adopted this guidance on January 1, 2016. The adoption of this guidance has not had any impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In August 2014, the FASB issued guidance on the disclosure of uncertainties about an entity’s ability to continue as a going concern. This standard provides guidance about management’s responsibility to evaluate whether there is substantial doubt about an entity’s ability to continue as a going concern and to provide related footnote disclosures. The guidance is effective for annual reporting periods ending after December 15, 2016, and early adoption is permitted. We adopted this guidance for the year ended December 31, 2016. The adoption of this guidance has not had any impact on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

In May 2014, the FASB issued guidance on revenue recognition. This guidance provides that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. This guidance also requires more detailed disclosures to enable users of financial statements to understand the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from contracts with customers. The original effective date of this guidance was for interim and annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2016, early adoption is not permitted, and the guidance must be applied retrospectively or modified retrospectively. In July 2015, the FASB approved an optional one-year deferral of the effective date. As a result, we expect to adopt this guidance on January 1, 2018. We currently plan to adopt this guidance using the modified retrospective transition approach, which would result in an adjustment to accumulated deficit for the cumulative effect, if any, of applying this standard to contracts in process as of the adoption date. Under this approach, we would not restate the prior financial statements presented. This guidance requires us to provide additional disclosures of the amount by which each financial statement line item is affected in the current reporting period during 2018 as compared to the guidance that was in effect before the change, and an explanation of the reasons for significant changes, if any. While we continue to assess all potential impacts of this new standard, we currently expect a significant impact related to the accounting for the cost of sales commissions. Under this new guidance, the cost of sales commissions will be recorded as an asset and recognized as an operating expense over the period that we expect to recover the costs. Currently we expense the cost of sales commissions as incurred. We continue to assess the impact the adoption of this guidance will have on our financial position, results of operations and cash flows.