Income Taxes	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2016
Income Taxes
Income Taxes	9. Income Taxes At September 30, 2016 and December 31, 2015, the Company had a net deferred tax liability balance of $120.2 million and $107.9 million, respectively, within its condensed consolidated balance sheets. The Company accounts for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740 “Income Taxes”. Under ASC 740, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the differences between the financial statement carrying amount and the tax bases of existing assets and liabilities and are measured at the prevailing enacted tax rates that will be in effect when these differences are settled or realized. ASC 740 also requires that deferred tax assets be reduced by a valuation allowance if it is more-likely-than-not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. In the fourth quarter of 2013, the Company concluded that as a result of the failed spin-off-leaseback accounting treatment which resulted in a significant increase to its deferred tax assets, a valuation allowance should be recorded on the Company’s deferred tax assets given the significant negative evidence associated with being in or expecting to be in a three year cumulative pre-tax loss position and the insufficient objectively verifiable positive evidence to support the realization of the Company’s deferred tax assets. As of September 30, 2016 and December 31, 2015, we have a valuation allowance which totaled $817.9 million and $844.3 million, respectively, only on the portion of the deferred tax assets that are more likely than not to be unrealized as a result of the negative objective evidence of being in a three year cumulative loss. The Company calculates the provision for income taxes during interim reporting periods by applying an estimate of the annual effective tax rate (“ETR”) to the full year projected pretax book income or loss excluding certain discrete items. The Company’s ETR (income taxes as a percentage of income from operations before income taxes) including discrete items was (25.56)% and 8.00% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016, as compared to 87.84% and 86.41% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015, primarily due to a year-over-year reduction to our federal and state valuation allowance coupled with an increase to earnings before income taxes. Additionally, in the third quarter of 2016, we had an income tax benefit of $12.0 million due to the recording of net deferred tax liabilities associated with intangible assets from our Rocket Games acquisition which reduced our valuation allowance need. Finally, the Company reached a tax settlement on our ongoing U.S. and Canadian Competent Authority case during the three months ended September 30, 2016 which resulted in a $9.8 million tax benefit.

9. Income Taxes

At September 30, 2016 and December 31, 2015, the Company had a net deferred tax liability balance of $120.2 million and $107.9 million, respectively, within its condensed consolidated balance sheets. The Company accounts for income taxes in accordance with ASC 740 “Income Taxes”. Under ASC 740, deferred tax assets and liabilities are determined based on the differences between the financial statement carrying amount and the tax bases of existing assets and liabilities and are measured at the prevailing enacted tax rates that will be in effect when these differences are settled or realized. ASC 740 also requires that deferred tax assets be reduced by a valuation allowance if it is more-likely-than-not that some portion or all of the deferred tax assets will not be realized. In the fourth quarter of 2013, the Company concluded that as a result of the failed spin-off-leaseback accounting treatment which resulted in a significant increase to its deferred tax assets, a valuation allowance should be recorded on the Company’s deferred tax assets given the significant negative evidence associated with being in or expecting to be in a three year cumulative pre-tax loss position and the insufficient objectively verifiable positive evidence to support the realization of the Company’s deferred tax assets. As of September 30, 2016 and December 31, 2015, we have a valuation allowance which totaled $817.9 million and $844.3 million, respectively, only on the portion of the deferred tax assets that are more likely than not to be unrealized as a result of the negative objective evidence of being in a three year cumulative loss.

The Company calculates the provision for income taxes during interim reporting periods by applying an estimate of the annual effective tax rate (“ETR”) to the full year projected pretax book income or loss excluding certain discrete items. The Company’s ETR (income taxes as a percentage of income from operations before income taxes) including discrete items was (25.56)% and 8.00% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2016, as compared to 87.84% and 86.41% for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2015, primarily due to a year-over-year reduction to our federal and state valuation allowance coupled with an increase to earnings before income taxes. Additionally, in the third quarter of 2016, we had an income tax benefit of $12.0 million due to the recording of net deferred tax liabilities associated with intangible assets from our Rocket Games acquisition which reduced our valuation allowance need. Finally, the Company reached a tax settlement on our ongoing U.S. and Canadian Competent Authority case during the three months ended September 30, 2016 which resulted in a $9.8 million tax benefit.