Goodwill and other intangible assets

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2020

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

The following table displays goodwill, indefinite-lived intangible assets, and amortizable intangible assets as of September 30, 2020 and December 31, 2019 (in thousands):


	Sept. 30, 2020				Dec. 31, 2019
	Gross		Accumulated Amortization		Gross		Accumulated Amortization

Goodwill	$	2,968,693	$	—	$	2,950,587	$	—

Indefinite-lived intangibles:
Television and radio station FCC broadcast licenses	2,104,167		—		2,090,732		—
Amortizable intangible assets:
Retransmission agreements	235,215		(130,236)		256,533		(105,212)
Network affiliation agreements	309,503		(66,569)		309,496		(48,174)
Other	70,610		(21,663)		73,305		(15,066)
Total indefinite-lived and amortizable intangible assets	$	2,719,495	$	(218,468)	$	2,730,066	$	(168,452)

Our retransmission agreements and network affiliation agreements are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives. Other intangibles primarily include distribution agreements and brand names from our Justice & Quest acquisition, which are also amortized on a straight-line basis over their useful lives.

In the second quarter of 2020, we recognized a $2.1 million impairment charge in connection with eliminating the use of the Justice Network brand name and re-establishing the business under a new brand name called True Crime Network. The impairment was recorded in the “Spectrum repacking reimbursements and other, net” line item of the Consolidated Statements of Income.

Interim impairment assessment

We review our goodwill and intangible assets for impairment at least annually and also when events or changes in circumstances occur that indicate the fair value may be below its carrying amount. As discussed in Note 2, during 2019 we acquired 15 television stations and as such, the indefinite-lived FCC licenses recently acquired have limited valuation headroom as they were recorded at fair value upon acquisition. As a result of the negative effects we expect COVID-19 to have on our future AMS revenue and operating cash flows, we assessed whether it was more likely than not that our FCC licenses, including those that were recently acquired, were impaired.

In performing this assessment, we analyzed the significant inputs used in the fair value determination of the recently acquired FCC license assets. This included reviewing the impact of estimated changes in trends in market revenues and changes in the discount rate on the fair value of our licenses. Based on the analysis performed, we concluded that none of our FCC licenses were more likely than not impaired as of September 30, 2020. However, a sustained economic decline resulting from COVID-19 could result in future non-cash impairment charges of our recently acquired FCC licenses, and any related impairment could have a material adverse impact on our results of operations.