Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

12 Months Ended

Dec. 28, 2011

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets [Abstract]

Note 6. Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets

The following table reflects the changes in carrying amounts of goodwill:

	December 28, 2011			December 29, 2010
	(In thousands)
Balance, beginning of year	$	31,308		$	32,440
Write-offs associated with sale of restaurants		(378	)		(982	)
Reclassification to assets held for sale, net		(166	)		(150	)
Balance, end of year	$	30,764		$	31,308

Goodwill and intangible assets were comprised of the following:

	December 28, 2011				December 29, 2010
	Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization		Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization
	(In thousands)
Goodwill	$	30,764	$	-	$	31,308	$	-

Intangible assets with indefinite lives:
Trade names	$	44,046	$	-	$	42,493	$	-
Liquor licenses		164		-		164		-
Intangible assets with definite lives:
Franchise and license agreements		42,778		36,132		46,088		36,769
Foreign license agreements		241		176		241		163
Intangible assets	$	87,229	$	36,308	$	88,986	$	36,932

Other assets with definite lives:
Software development costs	$	33,937	$	31,973	$	33,673	$	30,426

The $1.6 million increase in trade names resulted from securing ownership of the registered rights in the Denny's name and logo in China. The $3.3 million decrease in franchise agreements primarily resulted from the removal of fully amortized agreements. The amortization expense for definite-lived intangibles and other assets for 2011, 2010 and 2009 was $4.2 million, $5.1 million and $5.4 million, respectively.

Estimated amortization expense for intangible assets with definite lives in the next five years is as follows:

	(In thousands)
2012	$	2,239
2013		1,940
2014		1,385
2015		821
2016		258

We performed an annual impairment test as of December 28, 2011 and determined that none of the recorded goodwill or other intangible assets with indefinite lives were impaired.

- 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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