measurement period

ASC 720-40 addresses when a producer must recognize a liability and expense for the cost of disposing of "historical waste" electrical and electronic equipment held by private households under EU Directive 2002/96/EC (WEEE). Because the Directive funds historical household waste collectively by producers selling in the market during a country-defined measurement period, the obligating event is participation in that market — so no liability may be recognized before the measurement period begins, regardless of how much qualifying equipment the producer previously sold (720-40-25-1). The liability is accrued over the measurement period based on estimated total program costs and the producer's estimated market share, and is adjusted as actual data arrives (720-40-25-3; 720-40-35-1).

ASC 805-10 is the Overall subtopic of Business Combinations: it sets the scope of the Topic and governs two of the four steps of the acquisition method — identifying the acquirer and determining the acquisition date — plus the definition of a business, the measurement period, and deciding what is (and is not) part of the business combination exchange. Every transaction meeting the definition of a business combination must be accounted for by the acquisition method (805-10-25-1); if the acquired set is not a business, it is an asset acquisition. It also sets the disclosure objectives and requirements enabling users to evaluate the nature and financial effects of a combination.

ASC 805-60 governs how a newly formed joint venture (or corporate joint venture) accounts for its own formation in its separate financial statements. The joint venture must establish a new basis of accounting at the formation date, recognizing and measuring identifiable assets, liabilities, and any noncontrolling interest under Subtopic 805-20, but without identifying an acquirer. Goodwill, if any, is the excess of the formation-date fair value of the joint venture as a whole over the net of the identifiable assets and liabilities recognized; any excess of net assets over that fair value is credited to additional paid-in capital rather than recognized as a bargain purchase gain.