Purchasing WhatsApp Facebook Buys Whatsapp - 275 Words

Purchasing WhatsApp: Facebook Buys Whatsapp (Essay Sample) Content: Facebook Buys WhatsappStudents NameInstitutionIn an act to reign in text messaging on phones and the internet kingdom, Facebook acquired WhatsApp for $19 billion. WhatsApp had maintained its magnitude against messaging giants like Google, Twitter, and Microsofts Skype (Frier, 2014). It has gained over 450 million users and is gaining an additional million users per day. Facebooks CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, indicated on a conference call that no other enterprise in history had achieved the same. Purchasing WhatsApp will only boost Facebooks already robust status in the congested messaging realm. Facebooks standalone messaging app for mobile devices; Messenger, is second only to WhatsApp in its portion of the smartphone market (Frier, 2014).The factors of the external environment that influenced Facebooks choice is getting rid of a significant competitor by bringing it into the enterprise. WhatsApp was doing so well, that Facebook realized that if it was not careful, WhatsA pp would overtake it, or at least be a serious threat in the messaging realm (Frier, 2014). Another factor was the services that WhatsApp was offering. Facebook already possessed a product that enabled chatting (Messenger), when it purchased WhatsApp. Zuckerberg indicated that the objective for Facebooks Messenger was dissimilar from that of WhatsApp. People utilized Messenger to get in touch with their Facebook friends while WhatsApp was more of a text-messaging substitute that individuals may utilize with those who were not their friends on social networks (Frier, 2014).I believe these factors influenced Facebooks action in that Zuckerberg recognized the potential in WhatsApp and decided that he would like to be the one to realize it. It was a brilliant deal, one that offered Facebook a clear shot of turning into the most successful Internet Company in the 21st century (Frier, 2014). Facebook has a strong position in the first world where it ought to compete frequently fiercely with a number of other agile and able Internet enter...

Somebody Loves You Mr. Hatch - Book Review

The Body System The Endocrine System - 1419 Words

The action of typing this assignment involves almost all the body systems: the endocrine system, the cardiovascular system, the nervous system (brain, nerves, and spinal cord), the integumentary system, the respiratory system, lymphatic system, digestive system, urinary system, immune system, and the muscular system. The nervous system and the muscular system work together to perform the action, while all the other systems provide the necessary support such as the energy required, the oxygen required, and the skeletal support required. The nervous system is the master communications and controlling system of the body. It is organized into two main divisions: the Peripheral Nervous System (PNS) and the Central Nervous System (CNS). CNS†¦show more content†¦The sodium-potassium pump plays an important role in depolarization and repolarization of the action potentials of the membrane. When the membrane is at resting potential, the sodium and potassium channels are closed. The stimulus starts the depolarization of the membrane to a threshold, after which sodium channels are opened. A large influx of sodium ions into the cell generates a positive membrane potential and causes rapid depolarization as a result of which an action potential is generated. As the membrane potential reaches +30 V, the sodium channels get inactivated, and the potassium channels are opened. The potassium ions move out of the cells beginning the repolarization of the membrane and restore it to its resting potential (Martini et al. pp. 40 8-409). These action potentials developed by the stimulus are carried by the axons of the sensory neurons to the CNS. The information carried by the action potentials is processed at every relay synapse, and is sent to the multiple nuclei and centers in spinal cord and brain (Martini et al. p. 510). In the brain, the general somatic sensory information is relayed to the Primary Somatosensory Cortex neurons. The Premotor Cortex (Somatic Sensory Association Area) interprets the received sensory information, and the instructions to type are relayed to the Primary Motor Cortex. The Primary

Justin Salisbury Tries a Little Recognition free essay sample

Justin Salisbury Tries a Little Recognition – Case Study 2 If your company and employees do not provide good customer service you are likely to lose existing business and miss out on new possibilities. It doesn’t take much for a customer to decide that you or your company isn’t worth his or her time, effort, or money. Since customer satisfaction is crucial to building a successful, growing business, what can you do to ensure that your company is providing good customer service? A few items to consider when establishing or developing customer service within your organization: Customer Wants and Needs, Service Culture, Trust and Loyalty, and Service Employees. Customer Wants and Needs, everyone makes daily purchasing decisions, therefore, everyone is a customer. Understanding the wants and needs of your customers prepares your customer service representatives with the necessary information to assist in the most effective manner. Service Culture, customer service is an important function of every employee. Every customer service encounter has the potential to gain repeat business or drive it away. Selecting the right people to interact with customers is extremely important. Every organization wants to avoid negative publicity, and in this era of social networking, it only takes a single Tweet or Face book status update to cause sufficient damage to a company’s reputation. Trust and Loyalty, It costs more to acquire a new customer than it does to maintain an existing one. Customers like to feel special and can be quickly lost when they sense that you don’t care about them. One bad experience can cost you that customer for life. In both good times and bad, the lifetime value of a customer is much greater than a series of single transactions from one-time customers. Service Employees, customer-facing employees portray the image of the company in the eyes of the consumer. Not all employees will value the importance of excellent customer service. It is important to evaluate individual behaviors, attitudes, and skills to determine who is most capable of holding a customer-facing position and invest in adequate training. A single customer encounter with an employee can make or break a sale (Shumpert, 2012). Meeting customer expectations might lead to customer satisfaction; however, in today’s competitive market world going above and beyond expectations will assure customer satisfaction. Companies with poor customer service risk losing probable customers, and often lose business rather than retain it. Acknowledging and focusing on Customer Wants and Needs, Service Needs, Trust and Loyalty and Service employees will enable businesses to develop a plan that will allow them to exceed customer expectations. Motivation is the most powerful emotion that employees bring to work. The management role in stimulating motivation through shared vision and communication is the fundamental skill that great managers bring to the workplace. Employees in management roles can learn to inspire motivation (Heathfield, 2013). What can managers do to motivate employees? The reality, when you talk about how to motivate employees, is that employees are motivated. The managers challenge is to figure out how to tap into that motivation to accomplish work goals. Fortunately, the manager controls the key environmental factors necessary to motivate employees. According to Forbes a few tips shared for managers to motivate employees are to Act as a role model and help inspire employees, clearly define the organizations vision, Empower your employees to succeed and Monitor the progress of your employees. Tip #1: Act as a role model and help inspire employees to identify what they are passionate about at work; then provide them with some projects in their area of passion or interest – a happy employee is a motivated employee! Tip #2: Clearly define the organization’s vision, mission and strategy as well as the goals and objectives of each employee (and include your employees in the crafting of these). Make sure everyone on your team understands the key role they play in contributing to the success of the department. Ensure each employee is in alignment toward the overall strategy so your group can work as a team and help each other out. Positive team energy will help motivate everyone. Tip #3: Empower your employees to succeed and delegate challenging and meaningful work – in general, people want to succeed and they want to continue learning and growing, so provide them with opportunities. Tip #4: Work with each employee to create their own personal development plan. Then, provide them with coaching and mentoring and help them increase their skills and their sense of competence and accomplishment. Tip #5: Monitor the progress of your employees towards accomplishing their goals and objectives – then provide rewards to reinforce positive behavior, increase their sense of progress and keep them motivated. This can include recognition in front of peers and other rewards that don’t cost a lot of money but are meaningful to the person. Motivating employees to learn, to grow, to try challenging new assignments, and to work together as a team can be incredibly fulfilling. Seeing the look on someone’s face when they’ve succeeded at something they never thought was possible is a gift itself (Quast, 2012). The advice I would offer to Justin Salisbury would be for him as the owner to engage himself with his employees and not just the managers. It is extremely important that as the leader and owner, you show your employees that your goal and or objectives are extremely important, not just to you but for the overall good of the company, and that together you will succeed. Showing that you are part of the team will push them to work harder and stay motivated. Perhaps a pat on the back, a job well done, will go along way, and make one happy and motivated (especially coming from the owner of the company). Salisbury’s recognition program is great for managers. In my opinion I believe both managers and employees deserve an incentive and or recognition program. Other forms of recognition could be to offer gift cards to: restaurants, spas, amusement parks, TV give a ways, luncheons, movie tickets, Management team outings; these are all great incentives for one to receive. Keep in mind, it isn’t always about what you give them, a Thank you and or Job Well Done card can go a long way! Managers and Employees should be rewarded, because without the employees hard work the manager wouldn’t be successful, and without the managers continued support and motivation the employee couldn’t do it alone. It takes a team to fully succeed with always having one who will lead and or manage.

Space History Essay Research Paper Exploration to free essay sample

Space History Essay, Research Paper Exploration ; to go in a little-known part for find, as defined by Webster. Since the age of the Greeks, Anglo-Saxons have been interested in infinite geographic expedition. From Copernicus to Gaileo to Newton, infinite has been looked upon with adoring eyes. Space has been regarded clip after clip as the concluding frontier. That was until 1957, with the launch of the Sputnik-1, when the Soviet built orbiter became the first semisynthetic orbiter successfully launched out into outer infinite. In 1958, the United States matched the Soviets with their ain orbiter, Explorer III. After that, it became a free-for-all out into the darkest parts of the concluding frontier. The Ascension into infinite for the United States started off with projectiles, orbiters, and investigations so subsequently moved on to birds and larger ballistic capsules. In 1946, the United States started their ascent towards the celestial spheres with the NRL V-2. The projectile gave the first observations of the Su n # 8217 ; s UV spectrum. We will write a custom essay sample on Space History Essay Research Paper Exploration to or any similar topic specifically for you Do Not WasteYour Time HIRE WRITER Only 13.90 / page In 1949, the NRL V-2 gave the first observations of solar X raies. In 1958, the Explorer III became the US # 8217 ; s first orbiter and it besides discovered Earth # 8217 ; s radiation belt. On August 17th, 1958, the US set its sights upon the Moon with the Pioneer 0 but it exploded in its first phases of Ascension. It was followed subsequently in the twelvemonth by Pioneer 1 and Pioneer 3 both lunar satellites, but once more failure because both individually failed to make atmospheric flight speed. The undermentioned old ages Pioneer 4 and 5 were launched as infinite investigations and are soon still in solar orbit. In 1962, the Aerobee Rocket was launched and observed the first x-ray star. In the 1960 # 8217 ; s, NASA began the Ranger infinite investigation plan. They were NASA # 8217 ; s earliest Moon geographic expedition plan investigations. These ballistic capsules were designed to execute a clang set downing upon the Moon # 8217 ; s surface. They were intended to take images and return scientific data up until the impact of the investigation with the lunar surface. On April 23rd, 1962, the Ranger 4 became the first US lunar impact on the Moon # 8217 ; s surfac e. The Soviets had done it foremost with Luna 2 on September 14th, 1959. The Ranger # 8217 ; s provided scientists with more than 17,000 close up images of the lunar surface and specifically the countries of Mare Tranquillitatis and Ocean Procellarum. ( Johnson ) These images gave us more information about the Moon and its surface in merely a few old ages than all the old efforts put together, though Pioneer 3 and 5 missed the Moon and are in solar orbit. The Mariner infinite plan investigations were designed to wing past and/or orbit planets, specifically Mercury, Venus and Mars. On August 27th, 1962, the US achieved the universe # 8217 ; s first successful interplanetary ballistic capsule when the Mariner 2 was launched. It arrived at Venus at a distance of 34,800 kilometres and scanned its surface with infrared and microwave radiometers. It besides captured informations that showed Venus # 8217 ; surface to be about 425 C. ( Hamilton ) On November 28th, 1964 the Mariner 4 was launched. It gave the first glance of Mars at near scope, going within 9,920 kilometres of Mar # 8217 ; s surface. It besides confirmed Mar # 8217 ; s thin ambiance of C dioxide. ( Cook ) On November 3rd, 1973, Mariner 10 was launched. It was the first double planet mission. It recorded Venus # 8217 ; temperature to be -23 C and produced 10,000 images of Mercury covering 57 % of the planet # 8217 ; s surface. It besides recorded the surface temperatures runing from 187 C on the twenty-four hours side and -183 C on the dark side. ( Hamilton ) Furthermore, it was besides the first investigation to utilize one planet # 8217 ; s gravitation to impel itself towards another planet. On April 30th, 1966, the Surveyor 1 achieved the US # 8217 ; s first soft landing on the lunar surface. The Soviets beat the US with the Luna 9 soft set downing on January 31st. The Surveyor series were remote-controlled ballistic capsules designed to set down on the Moon # 8217 ; s surface. Their aim was to supply information about the lunar surface to see if the terrain was safe, in readying for manned landings. Their legs were # 8220 ; instrumented to return informations on the surface hardness of the Moon. # 8221 ; Additionally, # 8220 ; Surveyor dispelled the fright that Apollo ballistic capsule might drop several pess or more into the lunar dust. # 8221 ; ( Johnson ) Between August 10th, 1966 and August 2nd, 1967, the US launched 5 ballistic capsules from the Lunar Orbiter series. The series was designed to revolve the Moon and take images and cod informations of the Moon # 8217 ; s surface in support of the resulting manned Apollo landings. On May 5th, 1961, Alan B. Shepard, Jr. Become the first American in infinite aboard the Freedom 7. In April the Soviets had the first adult male, Yuri A. Gagarin. On June 3rd, 1965 Edward H. White performed the first American # 8217 ; infinite walk # 8217 ; from the GT IV, a examiner of the Gemini ballistic capsule. With Alexei A. Leonov in March, the Soviets had the first # 8217 ; infinite walk # 8217 ; crushing the US. In a big grade, the success of the Apollo landing missions was due to the lessons, information and information collected from all of these missions. The Ranger and Lunar Orbiter series # 8216 ; robot # 8217 ; ballistic capsules provided close-up, map-like images of the lunar surface. The Surveyor determined â€Å"the chemical, mechanical and bearing belongingss of the surface layers† and provided land degree images of the terrain. ( Hamilton ) The Gemini examiner and Gemini flights were used to develop most of the basic operational cognition needed for the manned Apollo flights. On December 21st, 1968, Apollo 8 was launched and became the first ballistic capsule to travel in # 8220 ; circumlunar orbit. # 8221 ; ( Johnson ) Frank Borman, James A. Lovell, Jr. , and William A. Anders, the Astronauts aboard Apollo 8, were the first work forces to see the # 8216 ; Earth whole # 8217 ; . The Apollo series was designed to set down a adult male on the Moon and return him safely place to Earth. It was accomplished on July 20th, 1969, when Apollo 11 landed on Mare Tranquillitatis. Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin were the first work forces to put foremost on the Moon # 8217 ; s surface. The Apollo series ended in December of 1972, and the moorage of an Apollo ballistic capsule with a Soviet Soyuz on July 18th, 1975 which closed out the plan wholly. On December 3rd, 1972, Pioneer 10 passed by Jupiter, giving the first close-up of the great planet. Subsequently in 1986 in became the first semisynthetic object to go forth our solar system. On May 26th, 1973, Skylab SL-2 became the US # 8217 ; s first infinite station. It orbited the Earth at a distance of about 300 stat mis. It was designed and proved that adult male can last in infinite for periods of clip. During 1975, Viking 1 and 2 were launched heading for Mars. They were designed to carry on elaborate scientific research on Mars. Viking 1 landed on Red planets on July 20th, 1976 and Viking 2 landed on September 3rd, 1976. The two Viking trades learned more about Mars in a twosome of months, than all old missions did combined. During the summer of 1977 NASA launched Voyager 1 and Voyager 2 towards Jupiter and the outer parts of the solar system. In 1979 they passed Jupiter and sent back colour Television images of Jupiter and its Moons. Voyager 1 passed Saturn in November of 1980 and Voyager 2 passed Saturn in August of 1981 so passed Uranus in January of 1986. Voyager 2 came onto Neptune in August of 1989 and made the undermentioned finds: it found four rings around it, found six new Moons, a Giant Spot on Neptune itself, and grounds of volcanic type activity on the Moon Triton. They are both now heading for the terminal of the solar system. In April of 1981 the US launched the Space Shuttle Columbia. This was the first ballistic capsule designed specifically for re-use of up to 100 times. During the following 10 old ages, four more infinite birds were built ; Challenger, Discovery, Atlantis, and Endeavour. On January 28th, 1986, the shuttle Challenger exploded 73 seconds after takeoff, killing the 7 individual crew. It was the worst infinite flight catastrophe to day of the month and was viewed by 1000000s of people. The Endeavor missions set a record with three members of the crew staying free of the bird for a sum of 8 hours and 20 proceedingss. The Columbia mission in July of 1994, studied the effects of limited gravitation of orbital flight on stuffs and living things like ; goldfish, killifish, sea urchins, toads, and Nipponese red-bellied triton. ( Johnson ) In the summer of 1996 the mission studied the effects of lightness on people, workss and animate beings. It besides studied the effects of fabrication stuffs in zero gravitation. The Atlantis mission in the summer 1996 marked the hundredth United States human mission into infinite. Dr. Bonnie Dunbar set the US infinite record of 112 yearss in infinite aboard the bird and Russian infinite station Mir. This was subsequently broken by Dr. Shannon W. Lucid. On September 25th, 1992, NASA launched the Mars Observer. It lost communicating one time outside the Earth and is presumed to hold exploded. In December of 1996, the Mars Pathfinder was launched. It landed on the surface of Mars on July 4th, 1997. It contains a radical visible radiation weight automaton adventurer named Sojourner. It weighs 23 lbs and is designed to photo interesting stones, spots of dirt and asses the chemical composing of anything it finds. Scientists believe that they have found grounds that their is or was one time life on Mars. Overall, in my sentiment, infinite geographic expedition has non produced much in utile, mundane information in relation to its enormous budget and measures. It has produced tonss of scientific information, but for all the money being spent on these geographic expeditions, I believe something more utile for all of society should be found or done. Though I do happen it interesting to cognize the temperatures of Venus and Mercury, and that Neptune has more Moons than one time thought, I do non see how it is traveling to assist us here on Earth. The most interesting fact that I found in my research was that toads can throw up, though they seldom do it on Earth. First they throw up the tummy, so it dangles from the its oral cavity. Then it cleans out the tummy with its forearms and eventually sucks it back down. Billions of dollars were spent to larn this, although non straight. But is this type of cognition worth more than seeking to happen a remedy for AIDS here at place?

Fv Project Summary of Fasb and Iasb Essays

Fv Project Summary of Fasb and Iasb Essays Fv Project Summary of Fasb and Iasb Essay Fv Project Summary of Fasb and Iasb Essay Project Summary Background The objective of this project is to provide guidance to entities on how they should measure the fair value of assets and liabilities when required by other Standards. This project will not change when fair value measurement is required by IFRSs. Discussion at the September 2005 IASB Meeting At the September 2005 meeting, the IASB added the Fair Value Measurements topic to its agenda. The aim of the project is to provide guidance to entities on how they should measure the fair value of assets and liabilities when required by other Standards. This project will not change when fair value measurement is required by IFRSs. Discussion at the November 2005 IASB Meeting The staff conducted an education session on the FASBs working draft of a final Statement on Fair Value Measurements. In addition, the staff reviewed the scope of FASBs Fair Value Measurements project as it relates to IFRSs and the issues and questions to be addressed in preparing an IASB Exposure Draft and related Invitation to Comment. No decisions were made. At a previous meeting, the Board decided to issue the FASBs final Statement on Fair Value Measurements as an IASB Exposure Draft with an Invitation to Comment. The appendices in the FASB document dealing with consequential amendments and references to US GAAP pronouncements will be replaced with proposed consequential amendments and references to IFRSs. The Board further decided that there should be limited changes to the FASBs document. Instead, the Invitation to Comment should discuss any areas where the Board disagrees with the FASBs conclusions along with the basis for the disagreement. : The staff expects these areas to be identified during Board deliberations during the December 2005 and January 2006 meetings whilst aiming toward issuance of the IASB Exposure Draft by April 2006. Discussion at the December 2005 IASB Meeting Definition of fair value The staff presented a paper identifying and comparing the differences between the definitions of fair value in the FASBs draft Fair Value Measurements (FVM) standard to the definition in IFRS. This comparison was meant to assist the Board in concluding whether or not to replace the current IFRS definition of fair value with the FVM standard definition. The staffs overall recommendation was to replace the current IFRS definition of fair value with the definition of fair value in the FVM standard. However, the staff made it clear that it was not stating that this definition be applied to all instances where fair value is currently used in IFRS. This scoping issue is the subject for a separate discussion that would span several Board meetings. The Board discussed in detail, the various components of the current and proposed definition of fair value in the context of the staffs analysis. Although the Board was in overall agreement to proceed with the proposed definition in the FVM standard, the following points were noted: Certain Board members wanted to see the various issues discussed pulled together and presented in some logical manner that would clarify how fair value is approached. As noted below, the Board was concerned that the proposed definition would cause confusion where this was not the intention. Some Board members were concerned about changing amount to price as this would change the meaning of fair value. This concern seemed to emanate around the treatment of transaction costs. The explicit discussion of exit values in the draft guidance was seen by some as problematic. Illustrations were provided indicating that at the time of the transaction; the agreed price constitutes both an entry and exit value for t hat specific asset or liability. Others indicated that it was their belief that the current fair value definition already encompasses an exit value notion. Following on from this issue, the notion of marketplace participants is believed by some Board members to be a less superior phrase to the widely accepted knowledgeable, willing parties notion which is more readily understood to apply to a transaction between two parties without the necessity of the existence of a market. The FASBs rationale for introducing the marketplace participants notion as a means of excluding to the greatest extent possible, any entity specific factors when determining fair value, was noted. The Board will be asked to debate the meaning of the reference market notion at subsequent meetings. Scope of the Fair Value Measurements Project The Board considered a paper setting out on a Standard by Standard basis, which individual standards should be scoped in or out of this project. That paper was organised into three sections: Standards that require fair value measurement Standards that require fair value measurement by reference to another standard Standards that do not require fair value measurement Within each of these sections, the staff made various proposals for the Boards consideration. Overall, the staff recommended not modifying as part of this project existing reliability clauses and practicability exceptions. The staff concluded that such modifications could result in significant changes to current practice and that any changes should be considered on a standard-by-standard basis separately from this project. Standards that require fair value measurement The following standards were noted as requiring assets or liabilities to be measured at fair value in certain circumstances: (a) IAS 11 Construction Contracts (b) IAS 16 Property, Plant and Equipment (c) IAS 17 Leases (d) IAS 18 Revenue (e) IAS 19 Employee Benefits (f) IAS 20 Accounting for Government Grants and Disclosure of Government Assistance (g) IAS 26 Accounting and Reporting by Retirement Benefit Plans (h) IAS 33 Earnings per Share (i) IAS 36 Impairment of Assets (j) IAS 38 Intangible Assets (k) IAS 39 Financial Instruments: Recognition and Measurement (l) IAS 40 Investment Propert y (m) IAS 41 Agriculture (n) IFRS 1 First-time Adoption of International Financial Reporting Standards (o) IFRS 2 Share-based Payment (p) IFRS 3 Business Combinations and the June 2005 Exposure Draft (q) IFRS 5 Non-current Assets Held for Sale and Discontinued Operations The Board agreed with the staff recommendations (as set out in the observer notes) for each standard except in the following instances: IAS 18 the staff concluded that in the instances where an entity received services for dissimilar goods or services, the measurement objective is not consistent with the draft FVM standard and therefore IAS 18 should be excluded from the scope. The Board noted this issue but indicated a preference to include IAS 18 within the scope of the FVM Standard as this is a minor part of the fair value requirements in IAS 18. The confusion caused in the market if the Board were to exclude IAS 18 from the project would be undesirable. IFRS 2 due to the grant date model, the Board noted the issue that may arise where an entity measures a share-based payment transaction by reference to the equity instruments granted, not the goods or services received. However, the Board decided to include IFRS 2 within the scope of the FVM Standard on the same basis as for IAS 18. Standards that require fair value measurement by reference to another standard (a) IAS 2 Inventory (b) IAS 21 The Effects of Changes in Foreign Exchange Rates (c) IAS 27 Consolidated and Separate Financial Statements (d) IAS 28 Investment in Associates (e) IAS 31 Interests in Joint Ventures (f) IAS 32 Financial Instruments: Presentation and Disclosure (g) IFRS 4 Insurance Contracts (h) IFRS 7 Financial Instruments The Board agreed with the staff recommendation that discussion of the above is not necessary as these standards do not contain any additional requirements to measure assets or liabilities at fair value. Standards that do not require fair value measurement (a) IAS 1 Presentation of Financial Statements (b) IAS 7 Cash Flow Statements (c) IAS 8 Accounting Policies, Changes in Accounting Estimates and Errors (d) IAS 10 Events After the Balance Sheet Date (e) IAS 12 Income Taxes (f) IAS 14 Segment Reporting (g) IAS 23 Borrowing Costs (h) IAS 24 Related Party Disclosures (i) IAS 29 Financial Reporting in Hyperinflationary Economies (j) IAS 30 Disclosures in the Financial Statements of Banks and Similar Financial Institutions (k) IAS 34 Interim Financial Reporting (l) IAS 37 Provisions, Contingent Liabilities and Contingent Assets (m) IFRS 6 Exploration for and Evaluations of Mineral Reserves With regard to IAS 37, the Board concurred with the staff that the measurement principles therein are consistent with fair value principles in many respects and went further to state that when the amendments to IAS 37 are finalised, it would add explicit reference to fair value to clarify this issue. Discussion at the February 2006 IASB Meeting This was a brief session to inform the Board about recent tentative decisions of the FASB on its fair value measurement standard. No observer notes were provided for this session. The FASB discussed the fair value hierarchy at its last meeting. FASBs exposure draft had proposed a five-level fair value hierarchy. The FASB has come to the conclusion that it is difficult to distinguish levels two to four in the hierarchy. They have therefore reduced the hierarchy to three levels. The FASB has not made other changes to its proposed fair value guidance. The staff said that discussion will continue in March. Discussion at the May 2006 IASB Meeting Principles of the fair value measurement project The following principles were put to the Board as those forming the foundation of the fair value measurement project: The objective of a fair value measurement is to determine the price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability in a transaction between market participants at the measurement date. The definition of fair value and its measurement objective should be consistent for all fair value measurements required by IFRS. A fair value measurement should reflect market views of the attributes of the asset or liability being measured and should not include views of the reporting entity that differ from market expectations. A fair value measurement should consider the utility of the asset or liability being measured. As such, the fair value measurement should consider the location and the condition of the asset or liability at its measurement date. The Board concurred with the staff that the above principles form the foundation of the fair value measurement project. Revised definition of fair value In the staffs view, the FASBs revised definition of fair value is substantively similar to the one tentatively approved by the IASB in December 2005. Based on that, the IASB agreed that the revised definition is consistent with the measurement objective. However, some Board members expressed concern about the change to a price rather than amount. In addition, the revised definition is based on an exit price notion that does not consider prices that exist other than the exit price. As a consequence, other Board members noted that the current definition will require measurement based on a hypothetical market that, for some types of assets and liabilities, cannot be calibrated with reality and in most cases will result in day 1 gains or losses, which constituents are uncomfortable with. Revised fair value hierarchy The draft fair value measurement statement indicates that valuation techniques used to measure fair value shall maximise the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs. The hierarchy prioritises the inputs to valuation techniques used to measure fair value based on their observable or unobservable nature. The revised three-level hierarchy is summarised as follows: Level 1 inputs are observable inputs that reflect quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets the reporting entity has the ability to access at the measurement date. Level 2 inputs are observable inputs other than quoted prices for identical assets or liabilities in active markets at the measurement date. Level 3 inputs are unobservable inputs, for example, inputs derived through extrapolation or interpolation that cannot be corroborated by observable data. However, the fair value measurement objective remains the same. Therefore, unobservable inputs should be adjusted for entity information that is inconsistent with market expectations. Unobservable inputs should also consider the risk premium a market participant (buyer) would demand to assume the inherent uncer tainty in the unobservable input. IFRSs currently does not have a single hierarchy that applies to all fair value measures. Instead individual standards indicate preferences for certain inputs and measures of fair value over others, but this guidance is not consistent among all IFRSs. The Board agreed with the staffs conclusion that the revised hierarchy in the draft fair value measurement statement is consistent with the principles discussed above and that the hierarchy in the draft fair value measurement statement represents an improvement over the disparate and inconsistent guidance currently in IFRSs. Unit of account and fair value measurements The Board agreed that it is not appropriate or practical to provide detailed guidance on the unit of account within the fair value measurement project. Determining the appropriate unit of account is a critical element of accounting and is not always consistent from one asset or liability to another or from one type of transaction to another. Determination of which market The Board agreed with the FASBs conclusion to adopt the principal market view. While this will result in a change from the most advantageous view currently in IFRS, the principal market view more accurately reflects the fair value measurement objective and provides a more representative measure of fair value by giving preference to highly liquid markets over less liquid markets. Transaction price presumption At the December 2005 meeting, the IASB tentatively agreed the fair value measurement objective was an exit price. The December discussion highlighted the conceptual difference between transaction price (what an entity would pay to buy an asset or receive to assume a liability) and an exit price objective (what an entity would receive to sell an asset or pay to transfer a liability). The staff concluded that an entity cannot presume an entry price to be equal to an exit price without considering factors specific to the transaction and the asset or liability. As a consequence, the staff plans to bring a separate discussion of day 1 gains or losses to the Board at a future meeting. The Board shared the concerns of the staff that if a transaction price were presumed to be fair value on initial measurement, entities might not sufficiently consider the differences between an entry transaction price and an exit fair value. As such, IFRSs should require an entity to consider factors specific to the transaction and the asset or liability in assessing if the transaction price represents fair value. Fair value within the bid-ask spread Entities often transact somewhere between the bid and ask pricing points, particularly if the entity is a market maker or an influential investor. However, application of the rule in IAS 39 results in consistency across entities without consideration of entity specific factors that may influence where within the bid-ask spread the entity is likely to transact. Further, the rule creates a bright-line in quoted markets, thus limiting the use of judgement and subjectivity in the fair value measurement. The Board agreed to add a discussion to the invitation to comment that communicates agreement with the principle in the draft fair value measurement statement. The discussion would state that it is not appropriate to use a consistently applied pricing convention as a practical expedient to fair value. This recommendation would result in both a change to existing IFRSs as well as a departure from the FASBs draft fair value measurement statement. Transaction and transportation costs in measuring fair value The definitions of transaction type costs vary in IFRSs, though such costs are consistently excluded from fair value measurements. Currently, IFRSs are not clear (with the exception of IAS 41) whether transportation costs are an attribute of the asset or liability, and as such should be included in the fair value measurement. The draft fair value measurement statement defines transaction costs as the incremental direct costs to transact in the principal or most advantageous market. Incremental direct costs are costs that result directly from, and are essential to, a transaction involving an asset (or liability). Incremental direct costs are costs that would not be incurred by the entity if the decision to sell or dispose of the asset (or transfer the liability) was not made. In the draft fair value measurement statement, the FASB concluded the fair value measurement of the asset or liability shall include only those costs that are an attribute of the asset or liability. The FASB concluded transaction costs are an attribute of the transaction, not an attribute of the asset or liability. Therefore the fair value measurement of the asset or liability shall not include transaction costs. The staff agreed with the conclusions in the draft FVM statement regarding transportation and transaction costs. However, the staff concluded that the discussion of what types of costs are attributes of the asset or liability could be more robust as it is difficult to decipher justification for different treatment of transaction costs and transportation costs in the current discussion in the draft FVM statement. As such, the staff recommended, and the Board agreed that the invitation to comment should include a question on the sufficiency of the discussion of costs that are attributes of an asset or liability, such as transportation costs. Discussion at the June 2006 IASB Meeting The Board continued its discussion of Fair Value Measurements (FVM), and reviewed the current project plan and due process steps. In addition, the Board had a preliminary discussion on accounting for day-one gains. Project Plan and Due Process The Board was briefly updated on the developments from the last FASB meeting at which the Fair Value Measurements project was discussed. The Fair Value Measurement project was added to the IASBs agenda in September 2005. At that time, the Board decided that they would expose the FASBs final FVM standard as an IASB exposure draft, not modifying it other than change US GAAP references to the appropriate IFRS references. Since then, the staff has become aware of concerns raised by IASB constituents. These include: As the FVM project could change how fair value is measured, some think that proceeding directly to an IASB exposure draft based on the final FASB document could potentially short-cut the IASBs due process requirements. As the FASB document applies a different concept of fair value from that of older IFRSs, constituents have problems with the conceptual reasons for changing to an exit price objective of fair value, particularly when an entity have no intention to sell an asset. As fair value is being increasingly used, fundamental questions regarding relevance and reliability need to be debated prior to completion of the project. Due to these concerns, the staff presented the Board with two alternative solutions: The first alternative was a modified plan which still would include issuing the FASB document as an exposure draft, in addition to conducting field visits and round-table discussions to get input from constituents. The second alternative was to issue the FA SB document as a discussion paper, deliberate this, and then issue an exposure draft. This would allow the Board more time and more flexibility to address the concerns raised by constituents and hopefully a better standard, even if this route will be a longer one. The Board expressed sympathy for the concerns raised by the constituents, and the majority of Board members agreed that this would require a shift from the current project plan to alternative two which is to issue the FASB document as a discussion paper. However some Board members thought that the second alternative should be avoided as this would delay the issuing of a final standard too long. Alternative two will result in a final IFRS in late 2008 or early 2009. Some Board members thought that it would be crucial to communicate with constituents that this move away from the current project plan and towards the discussion paper route would take more time, but that it would be done to ensure the interest of constituents. The Board voted in favour of alternative two, resulting in a discussion paper being issued based on the FASB document. The Board noted that a final plan could not be put together before the final FASB document is issued. As long as the FASB have not issued their final document including, e. . their application guidance, the IASB will not have a public document accessible for issuing as the IASBs discussion paper. Day-one Gains and Losses Fair value, as defined in the FASBs document is an exit price. As a result of the Boards tentative approval of the exit price definition of fair value, in circumstances where an asset or a liability is required to be measu red at fair value on initial recognition, a day-one gain or loss may be recorded. The staff believes the existing guidance in IAS 39 is inconsistent with the exit price notion as tentatively approved by the Board, and therefore needs amendment. The Board was asked whether they would consider: To make only consequential amendments to conform IAS 39 with the guidance in the Fair Value Measurement statement and to leave the current guidance on recognition of day-one gains and losses in IAS 39. Making consequential amendments and change the existing guidance in IAS 39. The Board decided that they would not make any amendments right now, but rather put a question in the discussion paper whether this should be dealt with in a separate project or as a part of the Fair Value Measurement project. September 2006: FASB issues fair value measurement standard On 15 September 2006, the US Financial Accounting Standards Board issued Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157 Fair Value Measurements. FAS 157 provides enhanced guidance for using fair value to measure assets and liabilities. It applies whenever other standards require (or permit) assets or liabilities to be measured at fair value. FAS 157 does not expand the use of fair value in any new circumstances. Click for: FASB News Release (PDF 19k) Special issue of the Heads Up Newsletter Summarising FAS 157 (PDF 218k) Some points about FAS 157: Fair value is the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants in the market in which the reporting entity transacts. Fair value should be based on the assumptions market participants would use when pricing the asset or liability. FAS 157 establishes a fair value hierarchy that prioritis es the information used to develop those assumptions. The fair value hierarchy gives the highest priority to quoted prices in active markets and the lowest priority to unobservable data, for example, the reporting entitys own data. Fair value measurements would be separately disclosed by level within the fair value hierarchy. FAS 157 is effective for financial statements issued for fiscal years beginning after 15 November 2007, and interim periods within those fiscal years. Early adoption is permitted. FAS 157 may be downloaded from FASBs Website without charge. The IASB has on its agenda a project on fair value measurement. It is one of the convergence projects with the FASB. This means that the IASB and the FASB plan to have similar, if not identical, definitions and guidance relating to fair value measurements. The IASB plans to issue a discussion paper in the fourth quarter of 2006 that will: indicate the IASBs preliminary views on the provisions of FAS 157; identify differences between FAS 157 and fair value measurement guidance in existing IFRSs; and invite comments on the provisions of FAS 157 and on the IASBs preliminary views about those provisions. Discussion at the September 2006 IASB Meeting The staff noted that FAS 157 Fair Value Measurements was issued on 15 September 2006 (see IAS Plus News Story of 19 September 2006). The IASB staff can now complete the preparation of an IASB Discussion Paper on Fair Value Measurements, which will comprise: FAS 157; excerpts of existing FVM guidance in IFRSs; and an Invitation to Comment that expresses the Boards preliminary views and requests constituent input on certain matters Non-performance risk The Board noted that IFRSs currently do not discuss non-performance risk in relation to the fair value of liabilities. IAS 39 requires the fair value of a financial liability to reflect the credit quality of the instrument. Reflecting credit quality in the fair value measurement of a financial liability effectively causes the fair value measurement to reflect the risk that the obligation will not be fulfilled. FAS 157 extends this principle to the fair value measurement of both financial and non-financial liabilities. It was noted that non-financial liabilities include both credit risk (which related to the financial component) and non-performance risk (which related to the activity). After some discussion, the Board agreed to include a preliminary view in the invitation to comment agreeing with the concept that the fair value of a liability should reflect the non-performance risk relating to that liability (in addition to credit risk). Issues in the Invitation to Comment Entry and exit prices The Board agreed that the Invitation to Comment should discuss the concepts of entry and exit prices without stating a preliminary view. The Discussion Paper will address two views without stating a preference. The discussion note that the notion of a price established between a willing buyer and a willing seller matters only when one is shifting markets. In many IASB standards, fair value is used to mean an exit price; in a few (such as IFRS 3, IAS 39, and IAS 41), the phrase is used to mean an entry price. Board members found using the same phrase to communicate two different measurement objectives confusing. Board members noted that they might need to reassess the measurement objective in IFRS 3, IAS 39, and IAS 41 should they adopt the approach in FAS 157 paragraph 17(d), which allows the use of a price other than the transaction price to represent fair value if the transaction occurred in a market other than the principal or most advantageous market. The staff proposed wording on the fly, which they will bring back to the Board. Principal or most advantageous market IAS 39 requires an entity to use the most advantageous active market in measuring the fair value of a financial asset or liability when multiple markets exist, whereas IAS 41 Agriculture requires an entity to use the most relevant market. By comparison, the FAS 157 requires an entity use the principal market for the asset or liability. In the absence of a principal market for the asset or liability, the entity uses the most advantageous market. The principal market is the market in which the reporting entity would sell the asset or transfer the liability with the greatest volume and level of activity for the asset or liability. The most advantageous market is the market in which the reporting entity would sell the asset or transfer the liability with the price that maximizes the amount that would be received for the asset or minimizes the amount that would be paid to transfer the liability, considering transaction costs in the respective market(s). In either case, the principal (or most advantageous) market (and thus, market participants) should be considered from the perspective of the reporting entity, thereby allowing for differences between and among entities with different activities. The Board reconfirmed their view taken in May 2006, namely: When multiple markets exist for an asset or liability, the fair value measure should be based on the principal market for that asset or liability. If there is no principal market, the most advantageous market should be used. In both instances, the principal or most advantageous market should be determined from the perspective of the reporting entity. A question will be asked on this topic in the Invitation to Comment. Calling level 3 measurements fair value The Board noted that FAS 157 establishes a three level hierarchy for categorising and prioritising inputs for fair value measurements. Level 3 of the hierarchy is unobservable inputs for the asset or liability (that is, they are not observable in a market). Unobservable inputs are used to measure fair value only to the extent that observable inputs are not available. These inputs reflect the reporting entitys own assumptions about the assumptions that market participants would use in pricing the asset or liability (including assumptions about risk). When Level 3 measures are used, FAS 157 prescribes additional disclosures. The Board agreed that the disclosure requirements in FAS 157 highlight sufficiently the nature of the fair value measurement so that users of financial statements can develop a view of the potential uncertainty of that measurement. Therefore, it would not be necessary to include in the Discussion Paper a discussion of whether measurements comprised of significant Level 3 inputs should be labelled something other than fair value. Block premiums and discounts The Board agreed to address the issue of whether block premiums and discounts should be discussed in the Discussion Paper. Such premiums or discounts may arise when a larger-than-normal quantity of an asset or liability is being sold in a market. Board members noted that the requirement to use the Price x Quantity formula is limited to Level 1 measures, and that this opens the treatment of block purchases and sales to abuse, since it could be argued that these should be measured using Level 2 or 3 inputs. Board members also agreed that there is a need to distinguish illiquidity caused by the size of the block from that caused by the thinness of the market. The staff will draft a question on this issue for inclusion in the Invitation to Comment. Day 1 gains and losses The Board noted that an exit price measurement objective could have significant implications on certain fair value measurements in IFRSs, particularly in IAS 39 on initial recognition. They reasoned that it is important to highlight situations where the guidance in FAS 157 differs significantly from current IFRSs. Further, convergence on the day-one gain matter is a high-profile issue to many large financial institutions and is an area where the staff expects many comments. The Invitation to Comment will contain a discussion and question on the transaction price presumption. US GAAP-specific material contained in FAS 157 The Board agreed that, in the interests of timely publication, they would not alter FAS 157 in any way for the purposes of the Discussion Paper and Invitation to Comment, and that it would therefore have US GAAP-specific material. The Invitation to Comment would note that any Exposure Draft would be IFRS-specific. Next steps On a poll, 12 Board members voted to issue the Invitation to Comment and Preliminary Views, and one Board member abstained, pending resolution of the discussion of entry and exit prices. The Discussion Paper is scheduled for publication in late 2006. November 2006: Discussion Paper Issued On 30 November 2006, the IASB published for public comment a Discussion Paper on Fair Value Measurements. The Discussion Paper sets out the IASBs preliminary views on how to measure fair values when fair value measurement is already prescribed under existing IFRSs. It does not propose any extensions of the use of fair values. The DP is built around FASBs recently issued SFAS 157 Fair Value Measurements. SFAS 157 establishes a single definition of fair value together with a framework for measuring fair value for financial reports prepared in accordance with US GAAP. Click for IASB Press Release (PDF 53k). The Discussion Paper will be available without charge on the IASBs website starting 11 December 2006. Comment deadline is 2 April 2007 [extended to] 4 May 2007. The IASB plans to publish an Exposure Draft in 2008. Discussion at the January 2007 IASB Meeting Extension of the comment deadline on the Discussion Paper The staff reported that several constituents had asked the Board to extend the deadline for comments on the Boards Discussion Paper Fair Value Measurements. The constituents highlighted that the comment period coincided with the financial reporting season for those with calendar year ends and asked for more time so that an important and complex document could receive the attention it deserved. The Board agreed unanimously to extend the deadline for comments to Friday 4 May 2007. Discussion at the September 2007 IASB Meeting The staff informed the Board that the FASB had formed a Valuation Resource Group (VRG). The purpose of the VRG is to provide the FASB with input for clarifying the guidance related to the application of the principles in SFAS 157 Fair Value Measurement when fair value is required or permitted under US GAAP. The VRG is drawn from accounting firms, valuation advisers, preparers, users, regulators and standard setters. The first meeting of the VRG is planned for 1 October 2007. Issues raised at that meeting will be brought to the October FASB meeting. The IASB staff noted that any decisions made by the FASB are likely to have implications for valuations performed under IFRSs because constituents may apply the US guidance in the absence of IFRS guidance. The staff will keep the Board informed of the project. No decisions were made. Discussion at the October 2007 IASB Meeting The staff presented their analysis of comments received on the IASBs discussion paper on fair value measurement. The discussion paper was issued as a wrap around of FASB Statement of Financial Accounting Standards No. 157. The complete analysis is available in the Observer Notes section on the IASBs website (Agenda Paper 2C). The staff asked the Board to do the following: consider the main points raised in the comment letters (136 received); affirm the project objectives; and approve the staffs preliminary project plan. The main points raised in the comment letter by constituents included (please refer to Agenda Paper 2C for a detailed analysis): General agreement to that the fair value measurement project is needed; Concerns about how to provide guidance on determining fair value when it is not clear in hich circumstances; The interaction between the fair value measurement project and the conceptual framework project (in particular, phase C which covers measurement); The view that in many situations an entry price notion is superior to an exit price notion; Fair value is more akin to a heading for a family of measurement bases and accordingly terms should be used which are more descriptive (th at is, more clearly articulate what the Boards intended measurement basis in that situation is); and With regard to measuring liabilities at fair value, the respondents raised concerns about the application of a transfer notion instead of a settlement notion and asked for guidance as to the meaning of non-performance risk. Regarding the interaction between this project and the Conceptual Framework project, some Board members noted that the outcome of this project is only one of a number of possible measurement bases that will be in the revised Framework. Consequently, the impact on the Framework project is only minor. The staff confirmed that it consults with staff of the Framework project on a regular basis. Some Board members observed that the notion entry price should be as well defined as exit price. Staff noted that this is part of the proposed project plan. No decisions were made. The Board was also asked to agree on the following project objectives: Development of principles and measurement guidance for an exit price measurement basis; and Completion of a standard-by-standard review of fair value measurements permitted or required in IFRSs to asses whether each standards measurement basis is an exit price. If the Board does not agree, will it agree to decide on a case-by-case basis whether or not to develop measurement guidance for those other measurement bases. The Board agreed to both objectives. On the second bullet point, it was clarified that this analysis will not lead to the development of additional guidance for those measurement bases that will be identified as not fitting in the definition of fair value for the purpose of the fair value measurement project. However, the Board noted that a working definition for fair value must first be agreed on before the analysis can be done. Additional Discussion at the October 2007 IASB Meeting This was an education session and accordingly no decisions were made. The session was led by representatives of the valuation profession to illustrate practical valuation concepts and issues (the complete presentation [Agenda Paper 11A] can be obtained from the Observer Notes section on the IASB Website). The focus was on the valuation methodologies used in the measurement of tangible and intangible non-financial assets. The background of the session was the Discussion Paper on Fair Value Measurements that was issued by the IASB in November 2006. The main topics of the presentation were: Value concepts in IFRSs The purchase price allocation process Overview of valuation methodologies (that is cost approach, market approach, income approach) The presenters main focus was the valuation requirements resulting from a business combination and what are the factors valuation professionals consider in such transactions. Although this was an education session only the Board showed particula r interest in certain topics of the presentation: If and how appraisers exclude entity-specific factors from their valuation models Customer-related intangible assets (separation and assumptions used in valuation) Consideration of tax in the valuation process Separation and valuation of contingent liabilities On the last point, the representatives of the valuation profession admitted that they have difficulties identifying all contingent liabilities and how to value them based on a transfer notion (that is what would an entity have to pay to pass on the risk – in contrast to a settlement notion). Discussion at the November 2007 IASB Meeting The staff began the morning session by informing the Board about the latest developments in relation to the implementation of SFAS 157 Fair Value Measurements which is the basis for the Discussion Paper published by the IASB. The developments included the deferral of the effective date of SFAS 157 for non-recurring measurements (for example in business combinations). It was noted that these developments would have no impact on the IASB project on fair value measurements. The staff presented its preliminary definitions of current exit price and current entry price for assets and liabilities that will be used in the standard-by-standard review. The Board and the staff reiterated that they do not want to change the measurement within the standards. The goal of the analysis carried out by the staff would be to find out which measurement attribute the Board and its predecessor (the IASC) had in mind when using the term fair value. The preliminary working definitions of the staff are as follows: Assets: Current entry price: The price that would be paid to buy an asset in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. o Current exit price: The price that would be received to sell an asset in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. Liabilities: o Current entry price: The price that would be received to incur a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. o Current exit price I (transfer notion): The price that would be paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between market participants at the measurement date. o Current exit price II (settlement notion): The price that would be paid to settle a liability in an orderly transaction at the measurement date. At the request of a Board member staff confirmed that possible components of fair value will be addressed in later stages of the project. The staff also confirmed that it will involve practitioners to gain insight into current valuation practice in the specific circumstances. The Board had a short discussion on certain aspects of fair value measurement and was informed by staff that some of the issues will be discussed at the December Board meeting. The Board agreed on the preliminary definitions of current entry price and current exit price for assets and liabilities and that staff should not consider other measurement bases for the purpose of the standard-by-standard review. Discussion at the December 2007 IASB Meeting The purpose of this session was to continue the deliberations on the issues in the Fair Value Measurements Discussion Paper and to present an analysis of the market participants view under SFAS 157 compared to the knowledgeable, willing parties in an arms length transaction in IFRSs. After staff review of the two approaches, the Board was asked if it agrees with the staff analysis on the market participants view. Some Board members raised concerns about the possible differences of the notion market participants view in comparison to a knowledgeable, willing party. The staff noted that they see no differences in content. One Board member asked why a change in terminology would then be necessary as constituents are familiar with the notion of a knowledgeable, willing party. Other Board members said that the document must make clear that the terms are interchangeable. After this the Board discussed what a market is and whether, for certain transactions, one can assume a market exists if, for example, actually only two parties are acting. As no definition of market was provided, the Board asked the staff to develop an analysis. As all further discussions depend on the outcome of that analysis the Board agreed to postpone discussion of the other items in the agenda paper to a later Board meeting. No further decisions were made. Discussion at the March 2008 IASB Meeting Whether the fair value measurement project should have a working group or other type of specialist advisory group The Board has on its agenda a project on fair value measurement that aims to provide guidance on how to determine fair value if a standard requires or allows fair value measurement. The staff informed the Board that it worked under the assumption that a working group would not be required as there is an overlap with existing working groups that could be involved as required. On further reflection, the staff has concluded that this approach does not work as it proved difficult to involve the other working groups without a clear mandate. The staff also believes that it would not be necessary to set up a formal working group but instead to establish a technical advisory group (TAG) that could work on a informal, as-needed basis. Information exchange could be done in person or via electronic communication. However, the IASB Due Process Handbook requires the Boards consent for not establishing a working group for a major project. One Board member raised the question whether the Valuation Resource Group of the FASB could be involved. The staff answered that this group would interpret and implement SFAS 157, the US standard providing fair value measurement guidance. The Board agreed not to establish a working group, but to form a technical advisory group instead. Discussion at the April 2008 IASB Meeting Representatives of the International Valuation Standards Committee (IVSC) presented an education session to the Board on four valuation issues. No decisions were made at this education session. The four issues presented by the IVSC delegation were: What is the difference between price and value? Is there a valuation difference between an entry and an exit price? Highest and best use What makes the market? What is the difference between price and value? The representatives made clear that in their view price is the amount agreed on in a transaction while value is the outcome of a valuation. In practice, most valuations assume a transaction but, depending on the purpose of the valuation exercise, a value could also be entity-specific. It was made clear that in many cases price and value would result in (nearly) the same number. It was also noted that the IVSC standards use three types of valuation with two of them taking a market view and one of them being an entity-specific approach – which could possibly result in different amounts for the same valuation object. Some Board members were confused by the terminology used by the presenters and it was agreed that this could be the cause for much confusion within the constituency and that any communication by the Board must clearly articulate what they mean. One Board member noted that value must always be accompanied by an adjective as people understand different things in different situations. Other Board members were confused about where the difference in amounts results from. The IVSC representatives explained that there are many reasons (for example, synergies). Is there a valuation difference between an entry and an exit price? The delegation moved then on to the second question. The representatives explained that the profession holds the view that for non-entity-specific values entry and exit price for the same market should be the same. Often a perceived difference results because entry price is determined on a different market than the exist price. The Board had a lengthy discussion on that issue with a view on the guidance in US GAAP. Highest and best use The highest and best use is terminology from the US GAAP standard SFAS 157 Fair Value Measurements that assumes an entity would also use its asset the best way it can. It was highlighted that the SFAS 157 definition is very similar to the IVSC one. It was noted that this is not a different type or basis of value and that it is inherent in any basis that requires the estimate of an open market transaction. Some Board members expressed their doubt that this always could be assumed for liabilities. What makes the market? The representatives explained that there is an opinion that fair values could only be made where active markets exist. They made it clear that in their view this is not the case. The valuation profession assumes as long as there is enough evidence to establish a valuation it is assumed that a market exist even if the degree of reliability is lower than that for a market with frequent transactions. They would not necessarily link value and liquidity. The Board showed interest in the valuation for some of the instruments where markets have contracted recently and had some debate on that point with the representatives. The Chairman closed the session by asking the IVSC representatives if they have experts on valuing liabilities that could participate in the planned IASB technical experts group. The representatives confirmed that such experts would be available to participate in the group. Discussion at the May 2008 IASB Meeting Discussion of the Meeting of the IASB Expert Advisory Panel on Valuing Financial Instruments in Illiquid Markets The issue was added to the agenda with short notice and no observer notes were available. The staff informed the Board that the Financial Stability Forum has established an expert advisory panel to assist the IASB in enhancing its guidance on valuing financial instruments when markets are no longer active. In addition the staff noted the following: The first meeting will take place on 13 June 2008. At the first meeting the panel will decide on the form of guidance issued, e. g. est practice guidance or input for amendment of standards. The duration of the panel is expected to be two or three months. June 2008: IASB Forms an Expert Advisory Panel on Valuing Financial Instruments in Inactive Markets On 5 June 2008, the IASB formed an expe rt advisory panel on valuation of financial instruments in inactive markets, in response to Recommendations made by the Financial Stability Forum (FSF). The new panel will assist the IASB in: reviewing best practices in the area of valuation techniques, and formulating any necessary additional practice guidance on valuation methods for financial instruments and related disclosures when markets are no longer active. Organisations participating in the panel include AIG (American International Group); Basel Committee on Banking Supervision; BNP Paribas; Capital International Research Inc. ; Citigroup; Deloitte; Deutsche Bank; Ernst Young; Financial Stability Forum; Fitch Ratings; Goldman Sachs; HSBC; International Association of Insurance Supervisors; International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO); KPMG; Pioneer Investments; PricewaterhouseCoopers; Swiss Re; and UBS. FASB will have a staff observer. The first meeting of the panel will take place on 13 June 2008 in private session. A summary of the meeting will be presented to the IASB at its June 2008 meeting and will be published on its website. More Information on IASBs website. Related resources are available on our Credit Crunch Page. Discussion at the June 2008 IASB Meeting [pic]Fair Value Measurements – Expert Advisory Panel on Valuing Financial Instruments in Inactive Markets: Meeting update The staff presented a summary of the first meeting held on 13 June 2008 of the Expert Advisory Panel. The staff noted that the purpose of that meeting was to identify the issues arising on valuing financial instruments when markets are no longer active and that possible solutions will be discussed at future meetings. In addition the staff noted the following: No decision was made regarding the form of guidance the panel will provide, e. g. best practice guidance or input for amendment of standards. Subsets of the issues identified will be discussed by a subgroup of panel members at the next meetings in July (measurement issues) and August (disclosure issues). Meeting dates have not yet been confirmed. The meetings will be held in private sessions with public updates being provided at the July and September Board mee tings. The last meeting is expected to be in September 2008. Updates on the activities of the panel are also available on the IASBs website. Discussion of the Fair Value Measurements Project Following the joint IASB-FASB meeting in April 2008 the Board discussed the way forward in this project. At the joint meeting the IASB decided not to re-debate all aspects of the Fair Value Measurement discussion paper (the DP), i. e. ot to fully re-debate FAS 157 Fair Value Measurements on which the DP is based. Instead the Board agreed to redeliberate certain areas of confusion or areas in which FAS 157 had proved difficult to apply. The staff presented an analysis of issues raised in the DP and provided recommendations on whether a particular issue should be redeliberated or not. Technical aspects of fair value measurement were not discussed at this meeting. The Board agreed to discuss further the topics listed below. These topics will be redeliberated mainly because the Board did not expres s a preliminary view in the DP and/or comments received on the DP indicated a need for further discussion: The exit price measurement objective The Board agreed to consider both entry and exit notions of fair value measurement based on the standard-by-standard review currently performed by the staff. The market participant view In general the Board reaffirmed its preliminary view in the DP. However, the staff was asked to improve the wording in order to address concerns raised by constituents. In particular, it should be clarified how to apply the market participant view in cases where no market exists (for example, liabilities that cannot be transferred). Transfer vs. settlement of a liability The Board agreed to a staff analysis that this is an important cross-cutting issue for other Board projects, particularly, amendments to IAS 37. Transaction price and fair value at initial: Day one gains and losses This issue is considered to be interrelated with the entry vs. exit price issue. The principal (or most advantageous) market The Board reaffirmed the preliminary view in principal but noted that questions about the practical application needs to be resolved. Valuation of liabilities: Non-performance risk There seemed to be a broad consensus to reaffirm the preliminary view that non-performance risks needs to be considered when measuring the fair value. However, the majority of Board noted that this is an important cross-cutting and that there are unresolved issues with regard to presentation (of the counter-entry) and disaggregation. Highest and best use The staff intends to address comprehensively all issues relating to different markets. Bid-ask spreads: Applicability of mid-market pricing to all levels of the hierarchy? The staff noted that the Board still needs to reach a preliminary and that the question of which transaction costs are to be included will be addressed in this context. Issues not discussed Disclosures: Redeliberation in light of current market environment Application guidance: Redeliberation in light of current market environment Topics not to be redeliberated The Board decided not to redeliberate the following five topics: 1. Attributes (characteristics) specific to an asset or liability 2. Whether transaction costs are separate from fair value The staff intends to discuss any outstanding issues in connection with bid-ask spreads. (this sentence relates to bullet 2) 3. Three-level fair value hierarchy Accepted as described in the Discussion Paper without any further deliberations 4. The prohibition of blockage factor adjustments at all levels of the hierarchy The Board had a thorough debate on this issue. One Board member emphasised that the majority of constituents disagreed with the preliminary view expressed in the DP. Finally, there seemed to be a consensus not to redeliberate the issue but to deal with the concerns in the feedback statement. The staff was asked to review the comments received to ensure that the Board has not missed anything in reaching the preliminary view. 5. The unit of account for financial assets and liabilities The staff noted that the topics not to be discussed by the Board are broadly consistent with the principles in IFRSs and that they can therefore be addressed in the exposure draft in a way that considers the concerns raised by constituents and is consistent with FAS 157. Discussion at the July 2008 IASB Meeting – Expert Advisory Panel on Valuing Financial Instruments in Inactive Markets: Meeting update The project manager on the fair value measurement project gave an oral update on the activities of the expert advisory panel. The purpose of this panel is to assist the IASB in reviewing best practices in the area of valuation techniques as well as formulating any necessary additional guidance on valuation methods for financial instruments and related disclosures when markets are no longer active. The panel or subgroup met three times. At the kick-off meeting the panel identified specific issues that panel members felt must be addressed (such as forced transactions, the use of pricing services, illiquid markets). It was noted that there seemed to be consistency in applying the fair value measurement requirements in IAS 39 despite the use of different techniques. The staff informed the Board that there will be a draft document to be discussed end of July on those issues, but that it is not clear yet who will publish it. The panel would then turn to appropriate disclosures with the aim to have an exposure draft published in Q4/08. It was noted that there would be ongoing communications with the consolidations project team. Discussion at the July 2008 IASB Meeting At this session the staff asked the Board to decide on a definition of fair value – what is the measurement object for items with a measurement basis currently referred to as fair value? The staff acknowledged that some aspects of fair value have not been discussed yet, but will be brought to the Board at future meetings (for example, principal market and day-one gains/losses). Staffs view, however, is that whether fair value means an entry or exit price can be decided separately. The staff then turned to the standard-by-standard review as requested by the Board. This review had been requested to help the Board to decide whether: To retain the term fair value and define it appropriately, or To replace the term fair value with more specific terms more appropriate in the individual context. It was noted that a consistent definition of fair value might lead to fewer instances where the Board would require or permit its use. It was also highlighted that a precise definition of fair value would help to ensure proper application where it is required or permitted. The Board had a lengthy discussion about whether entry and exit price would be the equal for the same item on the same date in the same market. Also, the Board discussed which market an entity should refer to in measuring fair value and whether an exit price could include exit by consumption of assets. Board members expressed a range of views on these issues. No clear consensuses were reached. Some Board members observed that if the Board cannot clearly define what fair value means, it would be even more difficult for constituents in applying IFRSs. Board members said that some of the issues that are to be brought back for discussion at future meetings must be resolved before the Board can agree on a definition of fair value. The staff also asked the Board to consider whether to keep the term fair value or abandon it. The Board seemed to be split on that issue. The Board discussed whether, in measuring the exit-price fair value of an asset the entity is using, the measurement should take viewpoint of the entity or of an independent market participant. Board members views varied, and no decision was reached. The staff distributed a flow chart which was not part of the observer notes that was intended to facilitate the discussion. The Board decided that, once fair value is precisely defined, each reference to fair value in IFRSs should be assessed in relation to the definition. Where fair value as used in an IFRS is not consistent with the agreed definition, the term should be replaced with a more descriptive term. Discussion at the September 2008 IASB Meeting – Credit Crisis: Proposed amendments to disclosure requirements Please see separate project page on Amendments to IFRS 7 – Credit Crisis Discussion at the September 2008 IASB Meeting – Expert Advisory Panel on Valuing Financial Instruments in Inactive Markets: Update The staff presented the Board with an update on the work of the expert advisory panel formed in response to recommendations from constituents. The panels task is to develop best practice guidance on measurement and disclosures for financial instruments in inactive markets. It was noted that the panel had met six times and will meet again in October. One single document would be published covering both measurement and disclosure. A draft report has just been posted on the IASBs website. The staff informed the Board that although comments would be solicited until 3 October, comment letters would not be published on the IASBs website. Asked by a Board member, the staff confirmed that this non-mandatory guidance would be considered when developing the fair value measurement standard and, hence, might become mandatory in the future. Discussion at the September 2008 IASB Meeting Fair Value Measurements Exposure Draft The staff introduced the session by highlighting the objectives and timeline. The purpose of the session was to seek the Boards decision on: Whether a fair value measurement exposure draft should state that fair value reflects the highest and best use of an asset; and Whether blockage factors should be excluded from fair value measurement. Blockage factors The staff started with the second issue on blockage factors. The staff highlighted that it only sought the Boards input on this type of discount, not on other discounts or premia. The staff defined a blockage discounts as a discount that represents a discount to the quoted price of an instrument (usually equity securities) to reflect the reduction in the price if the entity were to sell a large holding of instruments at once. The Board had a lengthy debate on this. Some Board members were concerned about ignoring blockage factors as they would represent a real economic phenomenon. Others were of an opposite

Psychological Effects of Organ Donation on the Organ Donor Dissertation

Psychological Effects of Organ Donation on the Organ Donor - Dissertation Example The two sources of organ donation are live human donors, mostly close family relatives of the patient in need of the organ, and cadaveric donors. Â  Live donors usually do it for altruistic reasons in the hope of saving the life of a loved one. On the other hand, in the case of cadaveric donation, the issue of consent of the deceased donor comes into question.The two sources of organ donation are live human donors, mostly close family relatives of the patient in need of the organ, and cadaveric donors. Â  Live donors usually do it for altruistic reasons in the hope of saving the life of a loved one. On the other hand, in the case of cadaveric donation, the issue of consent of the deceased donor comes into question.Straus and Corbin (1990) wrote that any phenomenon with limited information can still be better understood by using qualitative research methods. Qualitative methods are useful in unearthing new insights or perspectives on phenomena that are already much studied. It is po ssible to acquire more depth of information than what has surfaced so far, which may otherwise be difficult to explain quantitatively. Â  For this study, the qualitative method will be used, specifically, interviews with organ donors and their family members recruited from an organ donor facility or hospital. Â  At least 8 participants are targeted and their interviews will be guided by the following questions and their insights will be encouraged. Â  Data will be analyzed using thematic analysis which looks for patterns emerging from the data such as predominant thoughts, emotions and opinions commonly shared by the respondents regarding organ transplantation. This study will not claim that the data gathered will be representative of the views of the general population of organ donors and their families, however, it will contribute information to the literature on Health Psychology based on the data gathered