Liberty Media Corporation Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Annual report pursuant to Section 13 and 15(d)

Intangible Assets

Intangible Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

(8)Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

Changes in the carrying amount of goodwill are as follows:


	SIRIUS XM		Other	Total
Balance at January 1, 2014	$	14,165	200	14,365
Acquisitions (a)		—	24	24
Broadband Spin-Off		—	(46)	(46)
Other		—	2	2
Balance at December 31, 2014		14,165	180	14,345
Other		—	—	—
Balance at December 31, 2015	$	14,165	180	14,345

(a)

TruePosition made an acquisition during the year ended December 31, 2014.

Other intangible assets not subject to amortization, not separately disclosed, are tradenames ($930 million) at December 31, 2015 and 2014 and franchise rights owned by Braves Holdings ($143 million) as of December 31, 2015 and 2014. We identified these assets as indefinite life intangible assets after considering the expected use of the assets, the regulatory and economic environment within which they are used and the effects of obsolescence on their use. SIRIUS XM's FCC licenses are currently scheduled to expire in 2017, 2018, 2021 and 2022. Prior to expiration, SIRIUS XM is required to apply for a renewal of its FCC licenses. The renewal and extension of its licenses is reasonably certain at minimal cost, which is expensed as incurred. Each of the FCC licenses authorizes SIRIUS XM to use the broadcast spectrum, which is a renewable, reusable resource that does not deplete or exhaust over time.

Intangible Assets Subject to Amortization

Intangible assets subject to amortization are comprised of the following:


	December 31, 2015				December 31, 2014
	Gross			Net	Gross		Net
	carrying		Accumulated	carrying	carrying	Accumulated	carrying
	amount		amortization	amount	amount	amortization	amount
	amounts in millions
Customer relationships	$	838	(179)	659	838	(122)	716
Licensing agreements		316	(81)	235	316	(52)	264
Other		609	(406)	203	532	(346)	186
Total	$	1,763	(666)	1,097	1,686	(520)	1,166

Customer relationships are amortized over 10-15 years and licensing agreements are amortized over 15 years. Amortization expense was $155 million, $150 million and $115 million for the years ended December 31, 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. Based on its amortizable intangible assets as of December 31, 2015, Liberty expects that amortization expense will be as follows for the next five years (amounts in millions):


2016	$	158
2017	$	148
2018	$	122
2019	$	99
2020	$	95

- Definition

The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss.

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