What’s up with Hulu?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Uncategorized.

According to the New York Times, Hulu is approaching investment banks to underwrite an IPO this fall valuing the company at $2 billion. What is Hulu? Hulu is an online video service that offers a selection of hit shows, clips, movies, and more at Hulu.com and numerous destination sites online and across four screens —… Read more »

Saving Money through Social Media

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, All Articles, Auditing, Cost Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Fraud Accounting, IFRS, Intermediate Accounting, International Accounting, Managerial Accounting, Video Updates.

The recession has bred a new type of coupon: the group coupon. In recent months, several Web sites have launched nationwide giving customers discounts on restaurant meals, sporting events, spa treatments, golf outings — pretty much any expenditure that many people give up during economic downturns. The catch is that the coupon only applies if… Read more »

New Revenue Recognition Standards on the Way for Contractors

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Contractors should be educating themselves on the impact of the new proposed revenue recognition standards and the recently published (June 24, 2010) exposure draft pertaining to revenue from contracts with customers. Public comments are due October 22, 2010, and it is expected the standards will be finalized in 2011. Questions: 1. What are some of… Read more »

Small Discrepancies Grow Into a Giant Fraud

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Satyam Computer Services, a leading Indian outsourcing company that served more than a third of the Fortune 500 companies, was at the heart of a huge 2009 fraud perpetrated through the significant inflation of earnings and falsification of accounts and assets for a number of years.  Chairman, Ramalinga Raju, resigned  in January 2009 after revealing that… Read more »

Madoff: Freedom in Prison?

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In an extended expose, the New York Magazine reported that Bernard Madoff described his scheme as a real nightmare to him, as if he were the real victim, and complained about little old ladies bugging him for money. The article goes on to describe his celebrity in prison among the other inmates and his “freedom”… Read more »

Financial Instrument Accounting

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, Advanced Accounting, Financial Accounting, Financial Reporting and Analysis, Financial Statement Analysis, Intermediate Accounting.

On Wednesday, May 26, 2010, the FASB released an exposure draft for the purposes of improving accounting for financial instruments. The new rules, projected to take effect in 2013, incorporate both amortized cost and fair value information about financial instruments held for collection or payment of cash flows. Questions: 1. According to the article, how… Read more »

A New Twist for Job Seekers

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Unemployed Individuals can increase their attractiveness to prospective employers by knowing about  certain tax breaks that employers can secure by hiring them. One group , National Tax Credit Group, LLC, is promoting this advantage by creating a “Tax Credit Card” which they issue to prospective employees after screening them for hiring credit eligibility. This article… Read more »

What If You Can’t Pay Payroll Taxes?

Posted by & filed under Accounting Principles, All Articles, Financial Accounting, Intermediate Accounting, Video Updates.

In this video, Darrin T. Mish, tax attorney discusses some of the questions businesses ask about non-payment of payroll taxes.  His advice is to “get current” as soon as possible, even though the IRS may not catch the lapse for up to four years and because IRS payroll tax problems can quickly escalate, once identified…. Read more »

Fighting Back Against Payday Lenders

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Wisconsin lawmakers agreed on Thursday, April 22, 2010, to regulate payday lenders. Wisconsin had been the only state not to regulate this industry, which consumer advocates said allowed its rapid growth and trapped too many borrowers who take out short-term loans with high interest rates in a cycle of debt. Questions: 1. What were some… Read more »

Late Payments Matter

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Late Payments Matter According to new research, approximately 4,000 small and medium sized firms in the U.K. collapsed in 2008 due to late payments by customers. This amounted to approximately 62 billion pounds that were more than 30 days late and of this 15.5 billion that were more than 120 days overdue. For more than… Read more »