Summary of significant accounting policies	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2018
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of significant accounting policies	1. Summary of significant accounting policies (a) Basis of preparation and liquidity The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared for Fluent, Inc. (“Fluent” or the “Company”), formerly known as Cogint, Inc., a Delaware corporation, in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“US GAAP”) and applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) regarding interim financial reporting. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with US GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to those rules and regulations. The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all normal recurring adjustments necessary to present fairly the financial position, results of operations, and cash flows for the interim periods, but are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations to be anticipated for any future interim periods or for the full year ending December 31, 2018. The information included in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 (“2017 Form 10-K”) filed with the SEC on March 14, 2018. The condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2017 included herein was derived from the audited financial statements as of that date included in the 2017 Form 10-K, but does not include all disclosures including notes required by US GAAP. Principles of consolidation The condensed consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries. All significant transactions among the Company and its subsidiaries have been eliminated upon consolidation. Spin-off of red violet On March 26, 2018, Fluent completed the previously announced spin-off (the “Spin-off”) of its risk management business from its digital marketing business by way of a distribution of all the shares of common stock of Fluent’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Red Violet, Inc. (“red violet”), to Fluent’s stockholders of record as of March 19, 2018 (the “Record Date”) and certain warrant holders. The distribution occurred by way of a pro rata stock distribution to such common stock and warrant holders, each of whom received one share of red violet’s common stock for every 7.5 shares of Fluent’s common stock held on the Record Date or to which they were entitled to under their warrant. The Spin-off was governed by a Separation and Distribution Agreement as well as other related agreements between the Company and red violet, each entered into on February 27, 2018 (collectively, the “Spin-off Agreements”). As a result of the Spin-off of red violet, Fluent common stock continues trading on The NASDAQ Stock Market (“NASDAQ”), and red violet is an independent public company on NASDAQ. Upon the Spin-off, red violet owns Fluent subsidiaries which previously operated Fluent’s risk management business (“Red Violet Subsidiaries”), including IDI Holdings, LLC (“IDI Holdings”) and its wholly owned subsidiary, Interactive Data, LLC (“Interactive Data”), as well as Red Violet Technologies, LLC, IDI Verified, LLC, Forewarn, LLC and Red Violet Blockchain and Analytical Solutions, LLC. In accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 205-20, “Discontinued Operations,” the results of red violet, including Red Violet Subsidiaries, are reflected in Fluent’s condensed consolidated financial statements as discontinued operations and, therefore, are presented as assets and liabilities of discontinued operations on the condensed consolidated balance sheet and loss from discontinued operations on the condensed consolidated statements of operations. See Note 3, “Discontinued operations,” for details. Reclassifications Certain amounts in the prior year’s condensed consolidated financial statements and related footnotes thereto have been reclassified to conform with the current year presentation as a result of the Spin-off of red violet. See Note 3, “Discontinued operations,” for the impact. In addition, the Company has reclassified the cost of revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) amounts from the gross profit section to the costs and expenses section of the condensed consolidated statements of operations for each period presented and the gross profit subtotal has been removed. As a result, total costs and expenses have increased by $33,797 to $56,799 for the three months ended March 31, 2017. (b) Recently issued accounting standards In May 2014, Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU No. 2014-09 (“ASU 2014-09”), “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606).” The standard’s core principle is that a company will recognize revenue when it transfers promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. In August 2015, FASB issued ASU No. 2015-14, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606): Deferral of the Effective Date,” which delays the effective date of ASU 2014-09 by one year. FASB also agreed to allow entities to choose to adopt the standard as of the original effective date. In March 2016, FASB issued ASU No. 2016-08, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606): Principal versus Agent Considerations (Reporting Revenue Gross versus Net)” (“ASU 2016-08”), which clarifies the implementation guidance on principal versus agent considerations. The guidance includes indicators to assist an entity in evaluating whether it controls the good or the service before it is transferred to the customer. The new revenue recognition standard is effective for public entities for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods therein. The new standard also permits two methods of adoption: retrospectively to each prior reporting period presented (full retrospective method), or retrospectively with the cumulative effect of initially applying the guidance recognized at the date of initial application (the modified retrospective method). We adopted Topic 606 as of January 1, 2018 using the modified retrospective method, and the adoption did not have any material impact on our consolidated and combined balance sheets, statements of operations, or cash flows. Refer to Note 1(c) below for further details. In February 2016, FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02 (“ASU 2016-02”), “Leases (Topic 842),” which generally requires companies to recognize operating and financing lease liabilities and corresponding right-of-use assets on the balance sheet. This guidance will be effective in the first quarter of 2019 on a modified retrospective basis and early adoption is permitted. We are still evaluating the effect that this guidance will have on our condensed consolidated financial statements and related disclosures. In August 2016, FASB issued ASU No. 2016-15 (“ASU 2016-15”), “Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments,” which provides guidance for certain cash flow issues, including contingent consideration payments made after a business combination and debt prepayment or debt extinguishment costs, etc. The guidance is effective for public entities for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those fiscal years, and early adoption is permitted. We adopted ASU 2016-15 for the first quarter of 2018 and ASU 2016-15 did not have any material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements. In March 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-05 Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118. ASU 2018-05 formally amended ASC Topic 740, Income Taxes (“ASC 740”) for the guidance previously provided by SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (“SAB 118”), which provides guidance for the application of ASC 740 in the reporting period in which the tax reform legislation commonly known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Act”) was signed into law. The Company adopted SAB 118 in the fourth quarter of 2017 and therefore, the Company’s subsequent adoption of ASU 2018-05 in the first quarter of 2018 had no impact on its accounting for income taxes in the first quarter of 2018. Additional information regarding the accounting for income taxes for the Act is contained in Note 7, “Income Taxes.” (c) Revenue recognition On January 1, 2018, we adopted Topic 606 using the modiﬁed retrospective method applied to all contracts that are not completed contracts at the date of initial application. There was no impact on the opening accumulated deﬁcit as of January 1, 2018 due to the adoption of Topic 606. Revenue is recognized when control of goods or services is transferred to our customers, in an amount that reﬂects the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for those goods or services. In other words, our performance obligation is to a) deliver a data record based on a predefined qualifying characteristic specified by the consumer or b) generate conversions based on predefined user actions (for example, a click, a registration, and app install or a coupon print) subject to certain qualifying characteristics specified by the customer. We have applied the portfolio approach practical expedient in accounting for customer revenue as one collective group, rather than individual contracts. Based on our historical knowledge of the contracts contained in this portfolio and the similar nature and characteristics of the customers, we have concluded the financial statement effects are not materially different than if accounting for revenue on a contract by contract basis. Revenue is recognized over a period of time since the performance obligation is delivered in a series. Our customers simultaneously receive and consume the benefits provided by the performance as the Company performs. Furthermore, we have elected the “right to invoice” practical expedient available within ASC 606-10-55-18 as our measure of progress, since we have a right to payment from a customer in an amount that corresponds directly with the value of our performance completed-to-date. The Company's revenue arrangements do not contain significant financing components. If a customer pays consideration before we transfer services to the customer, those amounts are classiﬁed as deferred revenue. As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the balance of deferred revenue was $219 and $265, respectively. The deferred revenue balance as of December 31, 2017 had been recognized into revenue during the three months ended March 31, 2018. If there is a delay between the period in which revenue is recognized and when customer invoices are issued, revenue is recognized and related amounts are recorded in accounts receivable. As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, unbilled revenue included in accounts receivable totaled $18,463 and $16,238, respectively. Sales commissions are recorded at the time revenue is recognized. These costs are recorded in sales and marketing expenses. In addition, we elected the practical expedient not to disclose the value of unsatisﬁed performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and (ii) contracts for which we recognize revenue at the amount to which we have the right to invoice for services performed.

1. Summary of significant accounting policies

(a) Basis of preparation and liquidity

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared for Fluent, Inc. (“Fluent” or the “Company”), formerly known as Cogint, Inc., a Delaware corporation, in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“US GAAP”) and applicable rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) regarding interim financial reporting. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with US GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to those rules and regulations.

The accompanying unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements reflect all normal recurring adjustments necessary to present fairly the financial position, results of operations, and cash flows for the interim periods, but are not necessarily indicative of the results of operations to be anticipated for any future interim periods or for the full year ending December 31, 2018.

The information included in this quarterly report on Form 10-Q should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017 (“2017 Form 10-K”) filed with the SEC on March 14, 2018.

The condensed consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2017 included herein was derived from the audited financial statements as of that date included in the 2017 Form 10-K, but does not include all disclosures including notes required by US GAAP.

Principles of consolidation

The condensed consolidated financial statements include the financial statements of the Company and its subsidiaries. All significant transactions among the Company and its subsidiaries have been eliminated upon consolidation.

Spin-off of red violet

On March 26, 2018, Fluent completed the previously announced spin-off (the “Spin-off”) of its risk management business from its digital marketing business by way of a distribution of all the shares of common stock of Fluent’s wholly-owned subsidiary, Red Violet, Inc. (“red violet”), to Fluent’s stockholders of record as of March 19, 2018 (the “Record Date”) and certain warrant holders. The distribution occurred by way of a pro rata stock distribution to such common stock and warrant holders, each of whom received one share of red violet’s common stock for every 7.5 shares of Fluent’s common stock held on the Record Date or to which they were entitled to under their warrant. The Spin-off was governed by a Separation and Distribution Agreement as well as other related agreements between the Company and red violet, each entered into on February 27, 2018 (collectively, the “Spin-off Agreements”).

As a result of the Spin-off of red violet, Fluent common stock continues trading on The NASDAQ Stock Market (“NASDAQ”), and red violet is an independent public company on NASDAQ. Upon the Spin-off, red violet owns Fluent subsidiaries which previously operated Fluent’s risk management business (“Red Violet Subsidiaries”), including IDI Holdings, LLC (“IDI Holdings”) and its wholly owned subsidiary, Interactive Data, LLC (“Interactive Data”), as well as Red Violet Technologies, LLC, IDI Verified, LLC, Forewarn, LLC and Red Violet Blockchain and Analytical Solutions, LLC.

In accordance with Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”) 205-20, “Discontinued Operations,” the results of red violet, including Red Violet Subsidiaries, are reflected in Fluent’s condensed consolidated financial statements as discontinued operations and, therefore, are presented as assets and liabilities of discontinued operations on the condensed consolidated balance sheet and loss from discontinued operations on the condensed consolidated statements of operations. See Note 3, “Discontinued operations,” for details.

Reclassifications

Certain amounts in the prior year’s condensed consolidated financial statements and related footnotes thereto have been reclassified to conform with the current year presentation as a result of the Spin-off of red violet. See Note 3, “Discontinued operations,” for the impact.

In addition, the Company has reclassified the cost of revenue (exclusive of depreciation and amortization) amounts from the gross profit section to the costs and expenses section of the condensed consolidated statements of operations for each period presented and the gross profit subtotal has been removed. As a result, total costs and expenses have increased by $33,797 to $56,799 for the three months ended March 31, 2017.

(b) Recently issued accounting standards

In May 2014, Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU No. 2014-09 (“ASU 2014-09”), “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606).” The standard’s core principle is that a company will recognize revenue when it transfers promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the company expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. In August 2015, FASB issued ASU No. 2015-14, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606): Deferral of the Effective Date,” which delays the effective date of ASU 2014-09 by one year. FASB also agreed to allow entities to choose to adopt the standard as of the original effective date. In March 2016, FASB issued ASU No. 2016-08, “Revenue from Contracts with Customers (Topic 606): Principal versus Agent Considerations (Reporting Revenue Gross versus Net)” (“ASU 2016-08”), which clarifies the implementation guidance on principal versus agent considerations. The guidance includes indicators to assist an entity in evaluating whether it controls the good or the service before it is transferred to the customer. The new revenue recognition standard is effective for public entities for annual reporting periods beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods therein. The new standard also permits two methods of adoption: retrospectively to each prior reporting period presented (full retrospective method), or retrospectively with the cumulative effect of initially applying the guidance recognized at the date of initial application (the modified retrospective method). We adopted Topic 606 as of January 1, 2018 using the modified retrospective method, and the adoption did not have any material impact on our consolidated and combined balance sheets, statements of operations, or cash flows. Refer to Note 1(c) below for further details.

In February 2016, FASB issued ASU No. 2016-02 (“ASU 2016-02”), “Leases (Topic 842),” which generally requires companies to recognize operating and financing lease liabilities and corresponding right-of-use assets on the balance sheet. This guidance will be effective in the first quarter of 2019 on a modified retrospective basis and early adoption is permitted. We are still evaluating the effect that this guidance will have on our condensed consolidated financial statements and related disclosures.

In August 2016, FASB issued ASU No. 2016-15 (“ASU 2016-15”), “Statement of Cash Flows (Topic 230): Classification of Certain Cash Receipts and Cash Payments,” which provides guidance for certain cash flow issues, including contingent consideration payments made after a business combination and debt prepayment or debt extinguishment costs, etc. The guidance is effective for public entities for fiscal years beginning after December 15, 2017, and interim periods within those fiscal years, and early adoption is permitted. We adopted ASU 2016-15 for the first quarter of 2018 and ASU 2016-15 did not have any material impact on our condensed consolidated financial statements.

In March 2018, the FASB issued ASU 2018-05 Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118. ASU 2018-05 formally amended ASC Topic 740, Income Taxes (“ASC 740”) for the guidance previously provided by SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 118 (“SAB 118”), which provides guidance for the application of ASC 740 in the reporting period in which the tax reform legislation commonly known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 (the “Act”) was signed into law. The Company adopted SAB 118 in the fourth quarter of 2017 and therefore, the Company’s subsequent adoption of ASU 2018-05 in the first quarter of 2018 had no impact on its accounting for income taxes in the first quarter of 2018. Additional information regarding the accounting for income taxes for the Act is contained in Note 7, “Income Taxes.”

On January 1, 2018, we adopted Topic 606 using the modiﬁed retrospective method applied to all contracts that are not completed contracts at the date of initial application. There was no impact on the opening accumulated deﬁcit as of January 1, 2018 due to the adoption of Topic 606.

Revenue is recognized when control of goods or services is transferred to our customers, in an amount that reﬂects the consideration we expect to be entitled to in exchange for those goods or services. In other words, our performance obligation is to a) deliver a data record based on a predefined qualifying characteristic specified by the consumer or b) generate conversions based on predefined user actions (for example, a click, a registration, and app install or a coupon print) subject to certain qualifying characteristics specified by the customer.

We have applied the portfolio approach practical expedient in accounting for customer revenue as one collective group, rather than individual contracts. Based on our historical knowledge of the contracts contained in this portfolio and the similar nature and characteristics of the customers, we have concluded the financial statement effects are not materially different than if accounting for revenue on a contract by contract basis.

Revenue is recognized over a period of time since the performance obligation is delivered in a series. Our customers simultaneously receive and consume the benefits provided by the performance as the Company performs. Furthermore, we have elected the “right to invoice” practical expedient available within ASC 606-10-55-18 as our measure of progress, since we have a right to payment from a customer in an amount that corresponds directly with the value of our performance completed-to-date. The Company's revenue arrangements do not contain significant financing components.

If a customer pays consideration before we transfer services to the customer, those amounts are classiﬁed as deferred revenue. As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, the balance of deferred revenue was $219 and $265, respectively. The deferred revenue balance as of December 31, 2017 had been recognized into revenue during the three months ended March 31, 2018.

If there is a delay between the period in which revenue is recognized and when customer invoices are issued, revenue is recognized and related amounts are recorded in accounts receivable. As of March 31, 2018 and December 31, 2017, unbilled revenue included in accounts receivable totaled $18,463 and $16,238, respectively.

Sales commissions are recorded at the time revenue is recognized. These costs are recorded in sales and marketing expenses.

In addition, we elected the practical expedient not to disclose the value of unsatisﬁed performance obligations for (i) contracts with an original expected length of one year or less and (ii) contracts for which we recognize revenue at the amount to which we have the right to invoice for services performed.