Note 8 - Goodwill and Intangible Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Text Block]

8. Goodwill and Intangible Assets

The changes in the carrying amount of goodwill for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014 are as follows:

	Year Ended December 31, 2015								Year Ended December 31, 2014
	Gross		Accumulated Impairment			Net			Gross		Accumulated Impairment			Net
Balance at beginning of year	$	1,138,758	$	(503,193	)	$	635,565		$	1,111,480	$	(503,193	)	$	608,287
Acquisitions of businesses, net		38,765		-		$	38,765			27,278		-		$	27,278
Impairment		-		(4,611	)		(4,611	)		-		-			-
Balance at end of year	$	1,177,523	$	(507,804	)	$	669,719		$	1,138,758	$	(503,193	)	$	635,565

See Note 3, “Acquisitions,” to the consolidated financial statements for further information regarding the Company’s acquisitions and Note 2, “Significant Accounting Policies – Goodwill and Other Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets,” to the consolidated financial statements for further information regarding the Company’s 2015 goodwill impairment charge.

The following table summarizes intangible assets by major category as of December 31, 2015 and 2014:

	Weighted Average		December 31, 2015							December 31, 2014
	Amortization Years		Cost		Accumulated Amortization			Amortized Cost		Cost		Accumulated Amortization			Amortized Cost
Finite-lived intangible assets:
Tradenames		7	$	43,252	$	(10,516	)	$	32,736	$	8,775	$	(8,775	)	$	-
Customer lists		9		314,600		(275,287	)		39,313		304,180		(263,178	)		41,002
Patents		14		126,491		(72,719	)		53,772		121,341		(64,447	)		56,894
Unpatented technology		15		13,169		(11,628	)		1,541		13,169		(10,435	)		2,734
Software		9		1,046		(1,042	)		4		1,046		(1,037	)		9
Non-compete/other		9		1,731		(508	)		1,223		1,961		(406	)		1,555
Total finite-lived intangible assets			$	500,289	$	(371,700	)	$	128,589	$	450,472	$	(348,278	)	$	102,194
Indefinite-lived tradenames				128,321		-			128,321		182,684		-			182,684
Total intangible assets			$	628,610	$	(371,700	)	$	256,910	$	633,156	$	(348,278	)	$	284,878

See Note 2, “Significant Accounting Policies – Goodwill and Other Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets,” to the consolidated financial statements for further information regarding the Company’s 2015 brand strategy change and resulting tradename impairment charge.

Amortization of intangible assets was $23,591, $21,024 and $25,819 in 2015, 2014 and 2013, respectively. Excluding the impact of any future acquisitions, the Company estimates amortization expense for the next five years will be as follows: 2016 - $29,184; 2017 - $25,832; 2018 - $15,535; 2019 - $13,835; 2020 - $13,762.

- 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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