Deferred Compensation

9 Months Ended

Oct. 31, 2019

Deferred Compensation Arrangements [Abstract]

Deferred Compensation

Deferred Compensation

At October 31, 2019, Autodesk had marketable securities totaling $68.3 million, all of which related to investments in debt and equity securities that are held in a rabbi trust under non-qualified deferred compensation plans. Of the $68.3 million related to the deferred compensation liability at October 31, 2019, $5.9 million was classified as current and $62.4 million was classified as non-current liabilities. Of the $60.3 million related to the deferred compensation liability at January 31, 2019, $5.0 million was classified as current and $55.3 million was classified as non-current liabilities. The securities are recorded in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets under the current portion of "Marketable securities." The current and non-current portions of the liability are recorded in the Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets under “Accrued compensation” and “Other liabilities,” respectively.

Costs to obtain a contract with a customer

Sales commissions earned by our internal sales personnel and our reseller partners are considered incremental and recoverable costs of obtaining a contract with a customer. The commission costs are capitalized and included in "Prepaid expenses and other current assets" and "Other assets" on our Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets. The deferred costs are then amortized over the period of benefit. Autodesk determined that sales commissions earned by internal sales personnel that are related to contract renewals are commensurate with sales commissions earned on the initial contracts, and we determined the period of benefit to be the term of the respective customer contract. Commissions paid to our reseller partners that are related to contract renewals are not commensurate with commissions earned on the initial contract, and we determined the estimated period of benefit by taking into consideration customer retention data, customer contracts, our technology and other factors. Deferred costs are periodically reviewed for impairment. Amortization expense is included in sales and marketing expenses in the Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations.

The ending balance of assets recognized from costs to obtain a contract with a customer was $75.9 million as of October 31, 2019 and $93.0 million as of January 31, 2019. Amortization expense related to assets recognized from costs to obtain a contract with a customer was $25.2 million and $75.4 million during the three and nine months ended October 31, 2019, respectively. Amortization expense related to assets recognized from costs to obtain a contract with a customer was $26.9 million and $80.0 million during the three and nine months ended October 31, 2018, respectively. Autodesk did not recognize any contract cost impairment losses during the nine months ended October 31, 2019 and 2018.