Deloitte Trueblood Case

A Network of Ideas

Spider-Web Corporation (“Spider”) owns and operates various Web sites, including YourSpace, a social networking Web site, and Bling, a Web site search engine. Spider is a nonpublic U.S.-based company with headquarters in Silk Valley, CA, and it earns most of its revenue through advertising. Spider not only manages the advertisement space on its own Web sites, but it also assists other Web site owners with filling their ad space.

To generate revenue, Spider enters into agreements with various third-party advertisers (the “advertisers” or the “customers”) whereby Spider agrees to place advertisers’ ads on Web sites owned by Spider. Spider can also place these ads on Web sites owned by its network partners (the “partners”), for which it has agreements to do so (see discussion below). Spider gives the advertisers a list of Web sites to choose from; the advertisers specify which Web sites are suitable to reach their intended demographic. If the desired advertising space is not available, the advertiser and Spider must agree on an alternative Web site. The advertisers are not made aware of who owns the partner Web sites, and the fees charged to each advertiser are from Spider’s standard list prices, which are specified in the agreement between the advertiser and Spider.

Spider offers the advertisers the option to have their ad displayed on a home page or linked to key search words. The pricing structure differs depending on which type of advertising is selected. For example, Spider will charge a fee each time an ad (also known as an impression) is displayed. Alternatively, if an advertiser selects its ad to be linked to key search words, Spider will charge a fee only when an end user clicks on the linked ad. The advertisers are invoiced the month after their ads are displayed, and payments are submitted directly to Spider.

To offer the advertisers a choice of Web sites on which to display their ads, Spider enters into agreements with the partners that own other Web sites. This expanded offering allows Spider to potentially increase its revenue from the advertisers; however, it comes with a cost to Spider. The partners charge a fee to Spider for use of their Web site ad spaces. The fee structure allows the partners to receive a minimum base fee that is equal to the cost to maintain the ad space (as predetermined on a quarterly basis) and up to 51 percent of the adjusted gross advertising revenue earned monthly. As defined in the agreement, the adjusted gross advertising revenue is equal to the amounts invoiced to the advertiser less chargebacks, credits, bad debt, refunds, and certain out-of-pocket expenses, including agency commissions and fees, sales commissions and fees, and creative services; however, the amount beyond the base fee is paid to the partner only after it is collected by Spider from the advertiser. The advertisers are not a party to any agreement with the partners; advertisers only have an agreement with Spider. Spider is solely responsible for fulfilling its contracts with the advertisers. Therefore, if suitable advertising space is not available on a partner’s Web site or if the partner does not believe the ad is suitable for its Web site, Spider and the advertiser will agree on an alternative Web site.

Spider’s agreement with the partners also specifies the space, size, and location on the partner’s Web site that must be available for ads. During the term of the agreement, the partner is also required to keep Spider’s network footer at the bottom of its home page because Spider is paying for the base fee. Since the advertisers are charged a fee either (1) for each time a user clicks their ad on a partner’s Web site or (2) each time an ad is displayed, the partners are required to install and use the tracking software provided by Spider. This tracking software is given to the partner at no charge, and it gives Spider monthly usage reports; Spider uses these reports to determine the invoice for the customer.

Spider will identify ads or marketing messages from the advertisers, along with its own ads, to be placed on a partner’s Web site. Spider will also pay the partner a nominal fee that is based on the number of times Spider’s ad is displayed on the partner’s Web site. Although Spider tries to identify ads that are best suited for the partner’s Web site, it sometimes selects ads that are not a good fit for the partner’s audience. The terms and conditions of the agreements between Spider and its partners allow the partners to request that Spider remove ads that are not suitable for their Web sites. If this situation occurs, Spider can find an alternative partner Web site to post the advertiser’s ad.

Required:

On the basis of the case facts, should Spider record the revenue it earns from placing ads for various third-party advertisers on Web sites owned by the partners on a gross or net basis? Provide an analysis supporting your conclusion based on US GAAP (Section 606) and IASB IFRS.

Deloitte Trueblood Case

A Network of Ideas

Spider-Web Corporation (“Spider”) owns and operates various Web sites, including YourSpace, a social networking Web site, and Bling, a Web site search engine. Spider is a nonpublic U.S.-based company with headquarters in Silk Valley, CA, and it earns most of its revenue through advertising. Spider not only manages the advertisement space on its own Web sites, but it also assists other Web site owners with filling their ad space.

To generate revenue, Spider enters into agreements with various third-party advertisers (the “advertisers” or the “customers”) whereby Spider agrees to place advertisers’ ads on Web sites owned by Spider. Spider can also place these ads on Web sites owned by its network partners (the “partners”), for which it has agreements to do so (see discussion below). Spider gives the advertisers a list of Web sites to choose from; the advertisers specify which Web sites are suitable to reach their intended demographic. If the desired advertising space is not available, the advertiser and Spider must agree on an alternative Web site. The advertisers are not made aware of who owns the partner Web sites, and the fees charged to each advertiser are from Spider’s standard list prices, which are specified in the agreement between the advertiser and Spider.

Spider offers the advertisers the option to have their ad displayed on a home page or linked to key search words. The pricing structure differs depending on which type of advertising is selected. For example, Spider will charge a fee each time an ad (also known as an impression) is displayed. Alternatively, if an advertiser selects its ad to be linked to key search words, Spider will charge a fee only when an end user clicks on the linked ad. The advertisers are invoiced the month after their ads are displayed, and payments are submitted directly to Spider.

To offer the advertisers a choice of Web sites on which to display their ads, Spider enters into agreements with the partners that own other Web sites. This expanded offering allows Spider to potentially increase its revenue from the advertisers; however, it comes with a cost to Spider. The partners charge a fee to Spider for use of their Web site ad spaces. The fee structure allows the partners to receive a minimum base fee that is equal to the cost to maintain the ad space (as predetermined on a quarterly basis) and up to 51 percent of the adjusted gross advertising revenue earned monthly. As defined in the agreement, the adjusted gross advertising revenue is equal to the amounts invoiced to the advertiser less chargebacks, credits, bad debt, refunds, and certain out-of-pocket expenses, including agency commissions and fees, sales commissions and fees, and creative services; however, the amount beyond the base fee is paid to the partner only after it is collected by Spider from the advertiser. The advertisers are not a party to any agreement with the partners; advertisers only have an agreement with Spider. Spider is solely responsible for fulfilling its contracts with the advertisers. Therefore, if suitable advertising space is not available on a partner’s Web site or if the partner does not believe the ad is suitable for its Web site, Spider and the advertiser will agree on an alternative Web site.

Spider’s agreement with the partners also specifies the space, size, and location on the partner’s Web site that must be available for ads. During the term of the agreement, the partner is also required to keep Spider’s network footer at the bottom of its home page because Spider is paying for the base fee. Since the advertisers are charged a fee either (1) for each time a user clicks their ad on a partner’s Web site or (2) each time an ad is displayed, the partners are required to install and use the tracking software provided by Spider. This tracking software is given to the partner at no charge, and it gives Spider monthly usage reports; Spider uses these reports to determine the invoice for the customer.

Spider will identify ads or marketing messages from the advertisers, along with its own ads, to be placed on a partner’s Web site. Spider will also pay the partner a nominal fee that is based on the number of times Spider’s ad is displayed on the partner’s Web site. Although Spider tries to identify ads that are best suited for the partner’s Web site, it sometimes selects ads that are not a good fit for the partner’s audience. The terms and conditions of the agreements between Spider and its partners allow the partners to request that Spider remove ads that are not suitable for their Web sites. If this situation occurs, Spider can find an alternative partner Web site to post the advertiser’s ad.

Required:

On the basis of the case facts, should Spider record the revenue it earns from placing ads for various third-party advertisers on Web sites owned by the partners on a gross or net basis? Provide an analysis supporting your conclusion based on US GAAP (Section 606) and IASB IFRS.

Use the following information for questions

The Absorption Costing Unit Product Cost is:

Group of answer choices

$100.20

$105.50

$74

$70

The Variable Costing Unit Product Cost is:

Group of answer choices

$70

$74

$105.50

$100.20

If 6,000 units are sold during the period, total period cost under variable costing would be:

Group of answer choices

$188,100

$396,000

$422,400

$420,000

If 6,000 units are sold during the period, total period cost under absorption costing would be:

Group of answer choices

$188,100

$185,700

$234,300

$422,400

If 6,000 units are sold during the period, net income under the absorption costing approach will be:

Group of answer choices

$15,750 lower than net income under the variable costing approach

$15,750 higher than net income under the variable costing approach

$21,300 higher than net income under the variable costing approach

$21,300 lower than net income under the variable costing approach

Does Elevation Affect Temperature Mid-June?
Suppose that you wanted to determine the effect, if any, that elevation has on temperature. The table below lists the elevations (in feet above sea level) of 24 randomly selected cities in the United States and the low temperatures (in degrees Fahrenheit) of these cities on June 15, 2020.

1. If Westerville is 875 feet above sea level, what is Westerville’s estimated low temperature for June 15, 2020?

2. Before performing any regression analyses, what is the benefit of noting that the lowest and highest values amongst the elevation data are −282 feet and 6910 feet, respectively?

3. What proportion of the variation in low temperatures can be explained by the linear relationship with elevation?

Give one example of a lurking variable that may also influence the response variable in this situation

1) Syarikat Sabah prepares lumber for companies who manufacture furniture

(a) The main product is finished lumber with a byproduct of wood shavings. The byproduct is sold to plywood manufacturers. For July, the manufacturing process incurred RM332,000 in total costs. 80,000 board feet of lumber were produced and sold along with 6,800 kg of shavings. The finished lumber sold for RM6.00 per board foot and the shavings sold for RM0.60 a kg. There were no beginning or ending inventories.

Required:

Prepare two statements of financial position as at 31 December 2019 showing the byproduct as a cost reduction during production, and as a revenue item when sold each

(b) Distinguish and briefly discuss the merits [or demerits] between the two principal methods of accounting for byproducts: the production byproduct method and the sale byproduct method.

(c) Identify the revenue or expense amounts necessary to make a sell-or-process-further decision and the reasons behind them

(d) Identify the four methods of allocating joint costs to individual products and the most preferred method among accountants.

An airline regularly running a flight between Chicago and Zurich has 100 business travelers who are willing to pay $1000 for a ticket and 50 tourist travelers who are willing to pay only $500 for a ticket. There is a $20,000 fixed associated with running the flight, which is fixed regardless of the number of passengers on the plane. a.Suppose the airline must set a single ticket price. What is the optimal ticket price? How much revenue does the airline earn and how much profit does it make?b.Now suppose that the airline can price discriminate by charging different prices to business travelers and to tourists. What are the airline’s revenue and profit now?c.The airline attempts to price discriminate in the following way. It initially sets the ticket price at $1000, so that business travelers will buy tickets immediately. A few days before the flight, it lowers the price to $500, hoping that tourists will buy a ticket. What problem would the airline would run into if it applied this strategy repeatedly?

Management discovers that a supervisor at one of their restaurant locations removes excess cash and resets sales totals throughout the day on the point of sale (POS) system. At closing the supervisor deposits cash equal to the recorded sales on the POS system and keeps the rest. The supervisor forwards the close-of-day POS reports from the POS system along with a copy of the bank deposit slip to the company’s revenue accounting department. The revenue accounting department records the sales and the cash for the location in the general ledger and verifies the deposit slip to the bank statement. Any differences between sales and deposits are recorded in an over/short account and, if necessary, followed up with the location supervisor. The customer food order checks are serially numbered, and it is the supervisor’s responsibility to see that they are accounted for at the end of each day. Customer checks and the transaction journal tapes from the POS system are kept by the supervisor for one week at the location and then destroyed.

1. What control procedures in the above case allowed the fraud to occur?

2. What audit procedures would have detected the fraud?

Writing Wellman Company acquired 30% of the outstanding common stock of Grinwold Inc. on January 1, 2022, by paying $1,800,000 for 60,000 shares. Grinwold declared and paid a $0.50 per share cash dividend on June 30 and again on December 31, 2022. Grinwold reported a net income of $800,000 for the year. a. Total dividend revenue for 2022 $60,000 b. Revenue from stock investments $240,000 Instructions a. Prepare the journal entries for Wellman Company for 2022, assuming Wellman cannot exercise significant influence over Grinwold. (Use the cost method.) b. Prepare the journal entries for Wellman Company for 2022, assuming Wellman can exercise significant influence over Grinwold. (Use the equity method.) c. The board of directors of Wellman Company is confused about the differences between the cost and equity methods. Prepare a memorandum for the board that explains each method and shows in tabular form the account balances under each method at December 31, 2022.