Note 2 - Basis of Presentation

6 Months Ended

Jun. 30, 2015

Disclosure Text Block [Abstract]

Basis of Accounting [Text Block]

2. BASIS OF PRESENTATION:

The accompanying unaudited interim consolidated balance sheets, and the related consolidated statements of operations and comprehensive income and cash flows reflect all adjustments, consisting of normal recurring adjustments, that are, in the opinion of management, necessary for a fair presentation of the financial position of Tucows and its subsidiaries as at June 30, 2015 and the results of operations and cash flows for the interim periods ended June 30, 2015 and 2014. The results of operations presented in this Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations that may be expected for future periods.

The accompanying unaudited interim consolidated financial statements have been prepared by Tucows in accordance with the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”). Certain information and footnote disclosure normally included in the Company's annual audited consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes have been condensed or omitted. These interim consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes follow the same accounting policies and methods of application used in the annual financial statements and should be read in conjunction with the Company's audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto for the year ended December 31, 2014 included in Tucows' 2014 Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the SEC on March 11, 2015.

There have been no material changes to our significant accounting policies during the three months ended June 30, 2015 as compared to the significant accounting policies described in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2014.

For purposes of clarification, significant accounting policies regarding revenue recognition, property and equipment and derivative financial instruments are included below:

(a) Revenue recognition

The Company derives revenues from the provisioning of mobile phone and fixed Internet access services through its Ting website. These revenues are recognized once services have been provided. Revenues for wireless services are billed based on the actual amount of monthly services utilized by each customer during their billing cycle on a postpaid basis. The Company’s billing cycle for each customer is computed based on the customer’s activation date. As a result, the Company estimates the amount of revenues earned but not billed from the end of each billing cycle to the end of each reporting period. In addition, revenues associated with the sale of wireless devices and accessories to subscribers is recognized when title and risk of loss is transferred to the subscriber and shipment has occurred. Incentive marketing credits given to customers are recorded as a reduction of revenue.

The Company’s revenues are also derived from domain name registration fees on both a wholesale and retail basis, the sale of domain names, the provisioning of other Internet services, advertising, and other revenue. Amounts received in advance of meeting the revenue recognition criteria described below are recorded as deferred revenue.

The Company earns registration fees in connection with each new, renewed and transferred-in registration and from provisioning other Internet services to resellers and registrars on a monthly basis. Service has been provided in connection with registration fees once the Company has confirmed that the requested domain name has been appropriately recorded in the registry under contractual performance standards.

Domain names are generally purchased for terms of one to ten years. Registration fees charged for domain name registration and provisioning services are recognized on a straight-line basis over the life of the contracted term. Other Internet services that are provisioned for annual periods or longer, are recognized on a straight-line basis over the life of the contracted term. Other Internet services that are provisioned on a monthly basis are recognized as services are provided.

Revenue generated from the sale of domain names, earned from transferring the rights to domain names under the Company’s control, are recognized once the rights have been transferred and payment has been received in full.

For arrangements with multiple deliverables, the Company allocates revenue to each deliverable if the delivered item(s) has value to the customer on a standalone basis and, if the arrangement includes a general right of return relative to the delivered item, delivery or performance of the undelivered item(s) is considered probable and substantially in the control of the Company. The fair value of the selling price for a deliverable is determined using a hierarchy of (1) Company specific objective and reliable evidence, then (2) third-party evidence, then (3) best estimate of selling price. The Company allocates any arrangement fee to each of the elements based on their relative selling prices.

In those cases where payment is not received at the time of sale, additional conditions for recognition of revenue are that the collection of the related accounts receivable is reasonably assured and the Company has no further performance obligations. The Company records costs that reflect expected refunds, rebates and credit card charge-backs as a reduction of revenues at the time of the sale based on historical experiences and current expectations.

The Company establishes provisions for possible uncollectible accounts receivable and other contingent liabilities which may arise in the normal course of business. Historically, credit losses have been within the Company’s expectations and the provisions the Company has established have been appropriate. However, the Company has, on occasion, experienced issues which have led to accounts receivable not being fully collected. Should these issues occur more frequently, additional provisions may be required.

(b) Property and equipment

Property and equipment are stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is provided on a straight-line basis so as to depreciate the cost of depreciable assets over their estimated useful lives at the following rates:

Asset	Rate
Computer equipment		30	%
Computer software		100	%
Furniture and equipment		20	%
Vehicles and tools		20	%
Fiber network (years)		15
Customer equipment and installations (years)		3
Leasehold improvements	Over term of lease

The Company reviews the carrying values of its property and equipment for potential impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset may not be recoverable. If the estimated undiscounted future cash flows expected to result from the use of the group of assets and its eventual disposition is less than its carrying amount, it is considered to be impaired. The amount of the impairment loss recognized is measured as the amount by which the carrying value of the asset exceeds the fair value of the asset, with fair value being determined based upon discounted cash flows or appraised values, depending on the nature of the assets.

Additions to the fiber network are recorded at cost, including all material, labor, vehicle and installation and construction costs and certain indirect costs associated with the construction of cable transmission and distribution facilities. While the Company’s capitalization is based on specific activities, once capitalized, costs are tracked by fixed asset category at the fiber network level and not on a specific asset basis. For assets that are retired, the estimated historical cost and related accumulated depreciation is removed.

(c) Derivative Financial Instruments

During the three and six months ended June 30, 2015 and the year ended December 31, 2014 ("Fiscal 2014"), we used derivative financial instruments to manage foreign currency exchange risk. We account for these instruments in accordance with Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") Accounting Standards Codification ("ASC") Topic 815, “Derivatives and Hedging” ("Topic 815"), which requires that every derivative instrument be recorded on the balance sheet as either an asset or liability measured at its fair value as of the reporting date. Topic 815 also requires that changes in our derivative financial instruments’ fair values be recognized in earnings, unless specific hedge accounting and documentation criteria are met (i.e. the instruments are accounted for as hedges). We recorded the effective portions of the gain or loss on derivative financial instruments that were designated as cash flow hedges in accumulated other comprehensive income in our accompanying Consolidated Balance Sheets. Any ineffective or excluded portion of a designated cash flow hedge, if applicable, is recognized in net income.

For certain contracts, the Company has not complied with the documentation standards required for its forward foreign exchange contracts to be accounted for as hedges and has, therefore, accounted for such forward foreign exchange contracts at their fair values with the changes in fair value recorded in net income.

The fair value of the forward exchange contracts are determined using an estimated credit adjusted mark-to-market valuation which takes into consideration the Company's and the counterparty's credit risk. The valuation technique used to measure the fair values of the derivative instruments is a discounted cash flow technique, with all significant inputs derived from or corroborated by observable market data, as no quoted market prices exist for the derivative instruments. Our discounted cash flow techniques use observable market inputs, such as foreign currency spot and forward rates.