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Summary of significant accounting policies | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 30, 2012
Accounting Policies [Abstract] |
Summary of significant accounting policies | Summary of significant accounting policies Fiscal year: The company’s fiscal year ends on the last Sunday of the calendar year. The company’s 2012 fiscal year ended on Dec. 30, 2012, and encompassed a 53-week period. The company’s 2011 and 2010 fiscal years encompassed 52-week periods. Consolidation: The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the company and its wholly and majority-owned subsidiaries after elimination of all significant intercompany transactions and profits. Investments in entities for which the company does not have control, but has the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies, are accounted for under the equity method. Accordingly, the company’s share of net earnings and losses from these ventures is included in “Equity income in unconsolidated investees, net” in the Consolidated Statements of Income. Segment presentation: The Digital Segment includes results from CareerBuilder, PointRoll, ShopLocal and Reviewed.com. The Digital Segment and the digital revenues lines do not include online/digital revenues generated by digital platforms that are associated with the company’s publishing and broadcasting operating properties. Such amounts are reflected within those segments and are included as part of publishing revenues and broadcasting revenues in the Consolidated Statements of Income. Noncontrolling interests presentation: Noncontrolling interests are presented as a component of equity on the Consolidated Balance Sheet. This balance primarily relates to the noncontrolling owners of CareerBuilder, LLC (CareerBuilder) for which Gannett’s ownership percentage is at 52.9%. Net income in the Consolidated Statements of Income reflects 100% of CareerBuilder results as the company holds the controlling interest. Net income is subsequently adjusted to remove the noncontrolling interest to arrive at Net income attributable to Gannett Co., Inc. On Aug. 31, 2012, CareerBuilder acquired 74% of Economic Modeling Specialists Intl. (EMSI), a software firm that specializes in employment data and labor market analytics. Shareholders for the remaining 26% of ownership hold put rights that permit them to put their equity interest to CareerBuilder. Since redemption of the noncontrolling interest is outside of the Company’s control, their equity interest is presented on the consolidated balance sheet in the caption “Redeemable noncontrolling interest”. Operating agencies: The company’s publishing subsidiary in Detroit participates in a joint operating agency. The joint operating agency performs the production, sales and distribution functions for the subsidiary and another publishing company under a joint operating agreement. Operating results for the Detroit joint operating agency are fully consolidated along with a charge for the noncontrolling partner’s share of profits. Cash and cash equivalents: Cash and cash equivalents consist of cash and investments with maturities of three months or less. Trade receivables and allowances for doubtful accounts: Trade receivables are recorded at invoiced amounts and generally do not bear interest. The allowance for doubtful accounts reflects the company’s estimate of credit exposure, determined principally on the basis of its collection experience, aging of its receivables and significant individual account credit risk. Inventories: Inventories, consisting principally of newsprint, printing ink and plate material for the company’s publishing operations, are valued primarily at the lower of cost (first-in, first-out) or market. At certain U.S. publishing operations however, newsprint inventory is carried on a last-in, first-out basis. Valuation of long-lived assets: In accordance with the requirements included within ASC Topic 350, “Intangibles—Goodwill and Other” (ASC Topic 350) and Topic 360, “Property, Plant, and Equipment” (ASC Topic 360), the company evaluates the carrying value of long-lived assets (mostly property, plant and equipment and definite-lived intangible assets) to be held and used whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. The carrying value of a long-lived asset group is considered impaired when the projected undiscounted future cash flows are less than its carrying value. The company measures impairment based on the amount by which the carrying value exceeds the fair value. Fair value is determined primarily using the projected future cash flows, discounted at a rate commensurate with the risk involved. Losses on long-lived assets to be disposed of are determined in a similar manner, except that fair values are reduced for the cost to dispose. Property and depreciation: Property, plant and equipment is recorded at cost, and depreciation is provided generally on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives of the assets. The principal estimated useful lives are: buildings and improvements, 10 to 40 years; and machinery, equipment and fixtures, 3 to 30 years. Changes in the estimated useful life of an asset, which could happen as a result of facility consolidations, can affect depreciation expense and net income. Major renewals and improvements and interest incurred during the construction period of major additions are capitalized. Expenditures for maintenance, repairs and minor renewals are charged to expense as incurred. Goodwill and other intangible assets: Goodwill represents the excess of acquisition cost over the fair value of assets acquired, including identifiable intangible assets, net of liabilities assumed. In accordance with the impairment testing provisions included in ASC Topic 350, goodwill is tested for impairment on an annual basis or between annual tests if events occur or circumstances change that would more likely than not reduce the fair value of a reporting unit below its carrying amount. During the quarter ended Dec. 30, 2012, the company voluntarily changed the date of its annual goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets impairment testing from the last day of the fourth quarter to the first day of the fourth quarter. This change is preferable as it provides the company with additional time to complete its annual goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible asset impairment testing in advance of its year-end reporting and results in better alignment with the company’s strategic planning and forecasting process. In accordance with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles, the company will continue to perform interim impairment testing should circumstances requiring it arise. The company believes that this accounting change is appropriate and does not result in the delay, acceleration or avoidance of an impairment charge. This change is not applied retrospectively as it is impracticable to do so because retrospective application would require application of significant estimates and assumptions with the use of hindsight. Accordingly, the change will be applied prospectively. Under recent guidance, prior to performing the annual two-step goodwill impairment test, the company is first permitted to perform a qualitative assessment to determine if the two-step quantitative test must be completed. The qualitative assessment considers events and circumstances such as macroeconomic conditions, industry and market conditions, cost factors and overall financial performance, as well as company and specific reporting unit specifications. If after performing this assessment, the company concludes it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, then it is required to perform a two-step quantitative test. Otherwise, the two-step test is not required. In the first step of the quantitative test, the company is required to determine the fair value of each reporting unit and compare it to the carrying amount of the reporting unit. Fair value of the reporting unit is determined using various techniques, including multiple of earnings and discounted cash flow valuation techniques. If the carrying amount of the reporting unit exceeds the fair value of the reporting unit, the company performs the second step of the impairment test, as this is an indication that the reporting unit goodwill may be impaired. In the second step of the impairment test, the company determines the implied fair value of the reporting unit’s goodwill. If the carrying value of a reporting unit’s goodwill exceeds its implied fair value, then an impairment of goodwill has occurred and the company must recognize an impairment loss for the difference between the carrying amount and the implied fair value of goodwill. In determining the reporting units, the company considers the way it manages its businesses and the nature of those businesses. The company has established its reporting units for publishing at or one level below the segment level. These reporting units therefore consist principally of U.S. Community Publishing, the USA TODAY group, the U.K. group, and certain individual stand-alone publishing businesses. For Digital, the reporting units are the stand-alone digital businesses. For Broadcasting, goodwill is accounted for at the segment level. The company performs an impairment test annually, or more often if circumstances dictate, of its indefinite-lived intangible assets. Intangible assets that have finite useful lives are amortized over those useful lives and are evaluated for impairment in accordance with ASC Topic 350 as described above. Investments and other assets: Investments where the company does have significant influence are recorded under the equity method of accounting. The company recognized impairment charges each year from 2010-2012 related to such investments. See Note 3 for additional information. Investments in non-public businesses in which the company does not have control or does not exert significant influence are carried at cost and losses resulting from periodic evaluations of the carrying value of these investments are included as a non-operating expense. At Dec. 30, 2012 and Dec. 25, 2011, such investments totaled approximately $2 million. See Note 3 for additional information. The company’s television stations are parties to program broadcast contracts. These contracts are recorded at the gross amount of the related liability when the programs are available for telecasting. The related assets are recorded at the lower of cost or estimated net realizable value. Program assets are classified as current (as a prepaid expense) or noncurrent (as an other asset) in the Consolidated Balance Sheets, based upon the expected use of the programs in succeeding years. The amount charged to expense appropriately matches the cost of the programs with the revenues associated with them. The liability for these contracts is classified as current or noncurrent in accordance with the payment terms of the contracts. The payment period generally coincides with the period of telecast for the programs, but may be shorter. Revenue recognition: The company’s revenues include amounts charged to customers for space purchased in the company’s newspapers, digital ads placed on its digital platforms, advertising and marketing service fees, commercial printing and advertising broadcast on the company’s television stations. Publishing revenues also include circulation revenues for newspapers, both print and digital, purchased by readers or distributors, reduced by the amount of any discounts taken. Broadcast revenues include revenues from the retransmission of the company’s television signals on satellite and cable networks. Advertising revenues are recognized, net of agency commissions, in the period when advertising is printed or placed on digital platforms or broadcast. Revenues for marketing services are generally recognized as ads or services are delivered. Commercial printing revenues are recognized when the product is delivered to the customer. Circulation revenues are recognized when purchased newspapers are distributed or made available on the company’s digital platforms. Amounts received from customers in advance of revenue recognition are deferred as liabilities. Broadcasting retransmission fees are recognized over the contract period based on a negotiated fee per subscriber. Retirement plans: Pension and other postretirement benefit costs under the company’s retirement plans are actuarially determined. The company recognizes the cost of postretirement benefits including pension, medical and life insurance benefits on an accrual basis over the working lives of employees expected to receive such benefits. Stock-based employee compensation: The company’s stock option awards generally have graded vesting terms and the company recognizes compensation expense for these options on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period for the entire award (generally four years). The company also grants restricted stock or restricted stock units as well as performance shares to employees as a form of compensation. The expense for such awards is based on the grant date fair value of the award and is recognized on a straight-line basis over the requisite service period, which is generally the four-year incentive period for restricted stock and the three-year incentive period for performance shares. Expense for performance share awards for participants meeting certain retirement eligible criteria as defined in the plan are recognized using the accelerated attribution method. See Note 11 for further discussion. Income taxes: The company accounts for certain income and expense items differently for financial reporting purposes than for income tax reporting purposes. Deferred income taxes are provided in recognition of these temporary differences. See Note 10 for further discussion. Per share amounts: The company reports earnings per share on two bases, basic and diluted. All basic income per share amounts are based on the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the year. The calculation of diluted earnings per share also considers the assumed dilution from the exercise of stock options and from performance share and restricted stock units. Foreign currency translation: The income statements of foreign operations have been translated to U.S. dollars using the average currency exchange rates in effect during the relevant period. The balance sheets have been translated using the currency exchange rate as of the end of the accounting period. The impact of currency exchange rate changes on the translation of the balance sheets are included in other comprehensive income (loss) in the Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income and are classified as accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) in the Consolidated Balance Sheet and Statement of Equity. Loss contingencies: The company is subject to various legal proceedings, claims and regulatory matters, the outcomes of which are subject to significant uncertainty. The company determines whether to disclose or accrue for loss contingencies based on an assessment of whether the risk of loss is remote, reasonably possible or probable, and whether it can be reasonably estimated. The company accrues for loss contingencies when such amounts are probable and reasonably estimable. If a contingent liability is only reasonably possible, the company will disclose the potential range of the loss, if material and estimable. New accounting pronouncements: In July 2012, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued Accounting Standards Update (ASU) 2012-02, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other: Testing Indefinite-Lived Intangible Assets for Impairment. ASU 2012-02 permits an entity to first assess qualitative factors to determine whether it is necessary to perform the quantitative impairment test in accordance with Subtopic 350-30, Intangibles – Goodwill and Other – General Intangibles Other than Goodwill. This guidance is effective for annual and interim impairment tests performed for fiscal years beginning after Sept. 15, 2012. The company does not expect the adoption of this update to have a material impact on its financial statements. In June 2011, the FASB issued ASU 2011-05, Presentation of Comprehensive Income. ASU 2011-05 revises the manner in which entities present comprehensive income in their financial statements. The recent guidance removes the presentation options in Accounting Standards Codification 220 and requires entities to report components of comprehensive income in either (1) a continuous statement of comprehensive income or (2) two separate but consecutive statements. ASU 2011-05 did not change the items that must be reported in other comprehensive income. The company adopted the provisions of ASU 2011-05 in the first quarter of 2012 and elected the second option.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for all significant accounting policies of the reporting entity. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 235 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 6 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6367646&loc=d3e18861-107790 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 235 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6367646&loc=d3e18743-107790 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 235 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6367646&loc=d3e18780-107790 Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 235 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 5 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6367646&loc=d3e18854-107790 Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 235 -SubTopic 10 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6367646&loc=d3e18726-107790 Reference 6: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher AICPA -Name Accounting Principles Board Opinion (APB) -Number 22 -Paragraph 8 -LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy. + Details
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