Capitalization of Software Development Costs: A Survey of Accounting Practices in the Software Industry

Mulford, Charles W.; Roberts, Jack

Title:

Capitalization of Software Development Costs: A Survey of Accounting Practices in the Software Industry

dc.contributor.author	Mulford, Charles W.
dc.contributor.author	Roberts, Jack
dc.contributor.corporatename	Georgia Institute of Technology. College of Management	en_US
dc.contributor.corporatename	Georgia Institute of Technology. Financial Analysis Lab	en_US
dc.date.accessioned	2007-07-19T18:48:28Z
dc.date.available	2007-07-19T18:48:28Z
dc.date.issued	2006-05
dc.description.abstract	Software companies are required by SFAS No. 86 to capitalize certain development costs of software to be sold, leased or otherwise marketed. Capitalization occurs once technological feasibility has been reached and costs are determined to be recoverable. Capitalization ends and amortization begins when the product is available for general release to customers. These guidelines provide a great deal of flexibility to management in determining "technological feasibility" and amortization parameters. Differences in management philosophy and judgment in dealing with the requirements of SFAS No. 86 can have a significant impact on both earnings and operating cash flow. In this report we examine how these differences impact reported financial performance and hurt comparability across companies in the software industry.	en_US
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/1853/15598
dc.language.iso	en_US	en_US
dc.publisher	Georgia Institute of Technology	en_US
dc.subject	Software development	en_US
dc.subject	Accounting	en_US
dc.title	Capitalization of Software Development Costs: A Survey of Accounting Practices in the Software Industry	en_US
dc.type	Text
dc.type.genre	Technical Report
dspace.entity.type	Publication
local.contributor.corporatename	Scheller College of Business
relation.isOrgUnitOfPublication	a2f83831-ae41-4d65-82ff-c8bf95db4ffb