Avantax (AVTA) 10-K 26 Feb 15 2014 FY Annual report Financial data

Document_and_Entity_Informatio

Document and Entity Information (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Millions, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Feb. 20, 2015	Jun. 30, 2014
Document And Entity Information [Abstract]
Document Type	10-K
Amendment Flag	FALSE
Document Period End Date	31-Dec-14
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2014
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Trading Symbol	BCOR
Entity Registrant Name	BLUCORA, INC.
Entity Central Index Key	1068875
Current Fiscal Year End Date	-19
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		41,044,048
Entity Public Float			$735.30

Consolidated_Balance_Sheets

Consolidated Balance Sheets (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Current assets:
Cash and cash equivalents	$46,444	$130,225
Available-for-sale investments	254,854	203,480
Accounts receivable, net of allowance of $67 and $62	30,988	48,081
Other receivables	3,295	8,292
Inventories	29,246	28,826
Prepaid expenses and other current assets, net	13,477	9,774
Total current assets	378,304	428,678
Property and equipment, net	15,942	16,108
Goodwill, net	304,658	348,957
Other intangible assets, net	168,919	178,064
Other long-term assets	4,891	6,223
Total assets	872,714	978,030
Current liabilities:
Accounts payable	37,755	61,268
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	21,505	31,109
Deferred revenue	7,884	7,510
Short-term portion of long-term debt, net	7,914	7,903
Convertible senior notes, net	0	181,583
Total current liabilities	75,058	289,373
Long-term liabilities:
Long-term debt, net	85,835	113,193
Convertible senior notes, net	185,177	0
Deferred tax liability, net	42,963	56,861
Deferred revenue	1,915	1,814
Other long-term liabilities	2,741	2,719
Total long-term liabilities	318,631	174,587
Total liabilities	393,689	463,960
Commitments and contingencies (Note 8)
Stockholders’ equity:
Common stock, par value $.0001-authorized, 900,000 shares; issued and outstanding, 40,882 and 42,083	4	4
Additional paid-in capital	1,467,658	1,466,043
Accumulated deficit	-987,524	-951,977
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	-1,113	0
Total stockholders’ equity	479,025	514,070
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$872,714	$978,030

Consolidated_Balance_Sheets_Pa

Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parenthetical) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified
Statement of Financial Position [Abstract]
Allowance for accounts receivable	$67	$62
Common stock, par value	$0.00	$0.00
Common stock, shares authorized	900,000,000	900,000,000
Common stock, shares issued	40,882,000	42,083,000
Common stock, shares outstanding	40,882,000	42,083,000

Consolidated_Statements_of_Com

Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenues:
Services revenue	$429,989	$519,677	$406,919
Product revenue, net	150,731	54,303	0
Total revenues	580,720	573,980	406,919
Cost of revenues:
Services cost of revenue	218,153	302,279	265,945
Product cost of revenue	102,344	38,181	0
Total cost of revenues	320,497	340,460	265,945
Engineering and technology	20,670	11,682	9,969
Sales and marketing	118,124	98,682	45,644
General and administrative	39,120	29,847	27,418
Depreciation	4,352	2,739	2,119
Amortization of intangible assets	23,581	16,121	11,619
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets	62,817	0	0
Total operating expenses	589,161	499,531	362,714
Operating income (loss)	-8,441	74,449	44,205
Other loss, net	-14,766	-29,623	-6,677
Income (loss) before income taxes	-23,207	44,826	37,528
Income tax expense	-12,340	-20,427	-15,002
Net income (loss)	-35,547	24,399	22,526
Net income (loss) per share:
Basic, USD per share	($0.86)	$0.59	$0.56
Diluted, USD per share	($0.86)	$0.56	$0.54
Weighted average shares outstanding:
Basic, Shares	41,396	41,201	40,279
Diluted, Shares	41,396	43,480	41,672
Other comprehensive income (loss):
Net income (loss)	-35,547	24,399	22,526
Unrealized gain (loss) on available-for-sale investments, net of tax	-1,119	11	-16
Unrealized gain (loss) on derivative instrument, net of tax	0	266	-266
Reclassification adjustment for realized (gains) losses on available-for-sale investments, net of tax, included in net income	6	-1	-26
Other comprehensive income (loss)	-1,113	276	-308
Comprehensive income (loss)	($36,660)	$24,675	$22,218

Consolidated_Statements_of_Sto

Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity (USD $)	Total	Common stock [Member]	Additional-paid-in capital [Member]	Accumulated deficit [Member]	Accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) [Member]
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Beginning Balance at Dec. 31, 2011	$355,105	$4	$1,353,971	($998,902)	$32
Beginning Balance, Shares at Dec. 31, 2011		39,534
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Common stock issued for stock options and restricted stock units	9,025		9,025
Common stock issued for stock options and restricted stock units, Shares		1,236
Common stock issued for employee stock purchase plan	601		601
Common stock issued for employee stock purchase plan, Shares		62
Other comprehensive income (loss)	-308				-308
Stock-based compensation	13,344		13,344
Tax effect of equity compensation	22,693		22,693
Taxes paid on stock issued for equity awards	-1,318		-1,318
Reclassification of equity award to liability award	-6,218		-6,218
Net income (loss)	22,526			22,526
Ending Balance at Dec. 31, 2012	415,450	4	1,392,098	-976,376	-276
Ending Balance, Shares at Dec. 31, 2012		40,832
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Common stock issued for stock options and restricted stock units	2,841		2,841
Common stock issued for stock options and restricted stock units, Shares		584
Common stock issued for employee stock purchase plan	1,065		1,065
Common stock issued for employee stock purchase plan, Shares		85
Common stock issued upon Warrant exercise	9,620		9,620
Common stock issued upon Warrant exercise, Shares		1,000
Stock repurchases	-10,006		-10,006
Stock repurchases, Shares		-418
Convertible senior notes, net of issuance costs of $714 and tax effect of $7,785	13,842		13,842
Settlement of derivative instrument (Warrant)	20,217		20,217
Other comprehensive income (loss)	276				276
Stock-based compensation	11,642		11,642
Tax effect of equity compensation	27,224		27,224
Taxes paid on stock issued for equity awards	-2,500		-2,500
Net income (loss)	24,399			24,399
Ending Balance at Dec. 31, 2013	514,070	4	1,466,043	-951,977	0
Ending Balance, Shares at Dec. 31, 2013	42,083	42,083
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity [Roll Forward]
Common stock issued for stock options and restricted stock units	6,715		6,715
Common stock issued for stock options and restricted stock units, Shares		1,003
Common stock issued for employee stock purchase plan	1,376		1,376
Common stock issued for employee stock purchase plan, Shares		85
Stock repurchases	-38,650		-38,650
Stock repurchases, Shares		-2,289
Other comprehensive income (loss)	-1,113				-1,113
Stock-based compensation	11,990		11,990
Tax effect of equity compensation	22,962		22,962
Taxes paid on stock issued for equity awards	-2,778		-2,778
Net income (loss)	-35,547
Ending Balance at Dec. 31, 2014	$479,025	$4	$1,467,658	($987,524)	($1,113)
Ending Balance, Shares at Dec. 31, 2014	40,882	40,882

Consolidated_Statements_of_Sto1

Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity (Parenthetical) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2013
Statement of Stockholders' Equity [Abstract]
Convertible senior notes, issuance costs	$714
Tax effect on convertible senior notes	$7,785

Consolidated_Statements_of_Cas

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Operating Activities:
Net income (loss)	($35,547)	$24,399	$22,526
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash from operating activities:
Stock-based compensation	11,884	11,527	8,937
Warrant-related stock-based compensation	0	0	4,286
Depreciation and amortization of intangible assets	36,675	28,265	23,011
Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets	62,817	0	0
Excess tax benefits from stock-based award activity	-23,284	-29,400	-23,041
Deferred income taxes	-13,667	-10,849	-8,738
Amortization of premium (accretion of discount) on investments, net	3,772	3,007	-194
Amortization of debt issuance costs	1,143	1,108	820
Accretion of debt discounts	3,691	2,838	325
Loss on debt extinguishment and modification expense	0	1,593	0
Loss on derivative instrument	0	11,652	2,346
Impairment loss on equity investment in privately-held company	0	3,711	0
Earn-out contingent liability adjustments	-15	-300	0
Other	128	767	31
Cash provided (used) by changes in operating assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable	17,001	-9,911	-597
Other receivables	4,983	1,741	-665
Inventories	-420	-1,349	0
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	-4,125	2,511	-5,862
Other long-term assets	116	256	1,981
Accounts payable	-23,513	12,275	-1,600
Deferred revenue	475	3,527	4,170
Accrued expenses and other current and long-term liabilities	13,620	37,688	21,095
Net cash provided by operating activities	55,734	95,056	48,831
Investing Activities:
Business acquisitions, net of cash acquired	-44,927	-184,982	-279,386
Equity investment in privately-held company	0	-4,000	0
Purchases of property and equipment	-5,213	-4,747	-3,752
Change in restricted cash	0	2,491	252
Proceeds from sales of investments	28,705	25,812	203,493
Proceeds from maturities of investments	255,994	213,616	36,753
Purchases of investments	-336,495	-351,883	-122,433
Net cash used by investing activities	-101,936	-303,693	-165,073
Financing Activities:
Proceeds from issuance of convertible notes, net of debt issuance costs of $6,432	0	194,818	0
Proceeds from credit facilities, net of debt issuance costs and debt discount of $406 and $300 in 2013 and $2,343 and $953 in 2012	36,556	55,294	96,704
Repayment of credit facilities	-64,000	-10,000	-25,504
Debt issuance costs on credit facility	0	-28	0
Stock repurchases	-38,650	-10,006	0
Excess tax benefits from stock-based award activity	23,284	29,400	23,041
Proceeds from stock option exercises	6,730	2,826	9,099
Proceeds from issuance of stock through employee stock purchase plan	1,376	1,065	601
Proceeds from issuance of stock upon warrant exercise	0	9,620	0
Tax payments from shares withheld upon vesting of restricted stock units	-2,875	-2,405	-1,318
Net cash provided (used) by financing activities	-37,579	270,584	102,623
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	-83,781	61,947	-13,619
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period	130,225	68,278	81,897
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period	46,444	130,225	68,278
Supplemental disclosure of non-cash investing and financing activities:
Purchases of property and equipment through leasehold incentives (investing)	120	1,006	841
Contingent earn-out consideration from acquisition (financing)	15	300	0
Cash paid for income taxes	2,729	2,528	3,071
Cash paid for interest	$11,206	$7,138	$3,527

Consolidated_Statements_of_Cas1

Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (Parenthetical) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Debt issuance costs	$714
Debt discount	19,955
Convertible debt [Member]
Debt issuance costs	6,432
Debt [Member]
Debt issuance costs	406	2,343
Debt discount	$300	$953

The_Company_and_Basis_of_Prese

The Company and Basis of Presentation	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
The Company and Basis of Presentation	The Company and Basis of Presentation
	Description of the business: Blucora, Inc. (the “Company” or “Blucora”) operates three primary businesses: an internet Search and Content business, an online Tax Preparation business, and an E-Commerce business. The Search and Content business operates through our InfoSpace LLC subsidiary (“InfoSpace”) and provides search services to users of its owned and operated and distribution partners’ web properties, as well as online content. The Tax Preparation business consists of the operations of TaxACT, Inc. (“TaxACT”) and provides online tax preparation service for individuals, tax preparation software for individuals and professional tax preparers, and ancillary services through its website, www.taxact.com. The E-Commerce business consists of the operations of Monoprice, Inc. (“Monoprice”) and sells self-branded electronics and accessories to both consumers and businesses primarily through its website, www.monoprice.com.
	On May 30, 2014, InfoSpace acquired the assets of HowStuffWorks (“HSW”), which constituted a business, pursuant to the terms of the Asset Purchase Agreement dated April 18, 2014. HSW provides online content through various websites, including www.HowStuffWorks.com. HSW generates revenue primarily through advertisements appearing on its website.
	On August 22, 2013, the Company acquired all of the equity of Monoprice pursuant to the terms of the Stock Purchase Agreement dated as of July 31, 2013.
	On January 31, 2012, the Company acquired all of the equity of TaxACT. Further, on October 4, 2013, TaxACT acquired all of the equity of Balance Financial, Inc. (“Balance Financial”), a provider of web and mobile-based financial management software through its website www.balancefinancial.com.
	Segments: The Company has three reportable segments: Search and Content (formerly known as Search), Tax Preparation, and E-Commerce. The Search and Content segment is the InfoSpace business, which now includes HSW, the Tax Preparation segment is the TaxACT business, and the E-Commerce segment is the Monoprice business. Unless the context indicates otherwise, the Company uses the term “Search and Content” to represent search and content services, the term “Tax Preparation” to represent services and software sold through the TaxACT business, and the term “E-Commerce” to represent products sold through the Monoprice business (see "Note 11: Segment Information").
	Principles of consolidation: The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.
	Reclassification: As a result of the Monoprice acquisition in August 2013, the Company reclassified credit card fees previously reported in "Services cost of revenue" to "Sales and marketing" for the year ended December 31, 2012 to conform with the 2013 presentation. The Company assessed the related materiality of the reclassification and concluded that it was immaterial to any of its previously issued financial statements. The reclassification had no effect on reported revenues, operating income, or cash flows for the periods presented.
	Use of estimates: The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses, and disclosure of contingencies. Estimates include those used for impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets, useful lives of other intangible assets, acquisition accounting, valuation of investments, valuation of the Warrant and interest rate swap derivatives, revenue recognition, the estimated allowance for sales returns and doubtful accounts, the estimated allowance for obsolete, slow moving, and nonsalable inventory, internally developed software, accrued contingencies, stock option valuation, and valuation allowance for deferred tax assets. Actual amounts may differ from estimates.
	Seasonality: Blucora’s Tax Preparation segment is highly seasonal, with the significant majority of its annual revenue earned in the first four months of the Company’s fiscal year. During the third and fourth quarters, the Tax Preparation segment typically reports losses because revenue from the segment is minimal while core operating expenses continue at relatively consistent levels. Revenue from the E-Commerce segment also is seasonal, with revenues historically being the lowest in the second quarter, a period that does not include consumer back-to-school or holiday-related spending.

Summary_of_Significant_Account

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
	Cash equivalents: The Company considers all highly liquid debt instruments with an original maturity of ninety days or less at date of acquisition to be cash equivalents.
	Short-term investments: The Company principally invests its available cash in fixed income debt and marketable equity securities. Fixed income debt securities include investment-grade income securities, AAA-rated money market funds, and insured time deposits with commercial banks. Equity securities include common stock in a publicly-traded company. Such investments are included in "Cash and cash equivalents" and "Available-for-sale investments" on the consolidated balance sheets and reported at fair value with unrealized gains and losses included in "Accumulated other comprehensive loss" on the consolidated balance sheets.
	The Company reviews its available-for-sale investments for impairment and classifies the impairment of any individual available-for-sale investment as either temporary or other-than-temporary. The differentiating factors between temporary and other-than-temporary impairments are primarily the length of the time and the extent to which the fair value has been less than cost, the financial condition and near-term prospects of the issuer, and the intent and ability of the Company to retain its investment in the issuer for a period of time sufficient to allow for any anticipated recovery in fair value. An impairment classified as temporary is recognized in "Accumulated other comprehensive loss" on the consolidated balance sheets. An impairment classified as other-than-temporary is recognized in "Other loss, net" on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income.
	Accounts receivable: Accounts receivable are stated at amounts due from customers net of an allowance for doubtful accounts.
	Inventories: Inventories, consisting of merchandise available for sale in the E-Commerce business, are accounted for using the first-in-first-out (“FIFO”) method of accounting and are valued at the lower of cost or market and include the related inbound shipping and handling costs. Inventory quantities on hand are reviewed regularly, and allowances are maintained for obsolete, slow moving, and nonsalable inventory.
	Property and equipment: Property and equipment are stated at cost. Depreciation is computed under the straight-line method over the following estimated useful lives:
	Computer equipment and software	3 years
	Data center servers	3 years
	Internally-developed software	3 years
	Office equipment	7 years
	Office furniture	7 years
	Heavy equipment	10 years
	Leasehold improvements	Shorter of lease term or economic life
	The Company capitalizes certain internal-use software development costs, consisting primarily of employee salaries and benefits allocated on a project or product basis. The Company capitalized $2.4 million, $1.2 million, and $1.0 million of internal-use software costs in the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively.
	Business combinations and intangible assets including goodwill: The Company accounts for business combinations using the acquisition method, and, accordingly, the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed are recorded at their acquisition date fair values. Goodwill is calculated as the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of net assets, including the amount assigned to identifiable intangible assets, and is assigned to reporting units that are expected to benefit from the synergies of the business combination as of the acquisition date. Reporting units are consistent with reportable segments. Identifiable intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their useful lives on a straight-line basis, except for the installed code base technology which is amortized proportional to expected revenue. Acquisition-related costs, including advisory, legal, accounting, valuation, and other similar costs, are expensed in the periods in which the costs are incurred. The results of operations of acquired businesses are included in the consolidated financial statements from the acquisition date.
	Goodwill and intangible assets impairment: The Company evaluates goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment annually, as of November 30, or more frequently when events or circumstances indicate that impairment may have occurred. As part of the impairment evaluation, the Company may elect to perform an assessment of qualitative factors. If this qualitative assessment indicates that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit (for goodwill) or an indefinite-lived intangible asset is less than its carrying value, or if the Company elects to bypass the qualitative assessment, the Company then would proceed with the quantitative impairment test.
	The goodwill quantitative impairment test is a two-step process that first compares the carrying values of reporting units to their fair values. If the carrying value of a reporting unit exceeds the fair value, a second step is performed to compute the amount of impairment. This second step determines the current fair values of all assets and liabilities of the reporting unit and then compares the implied fair value of the reporting unit's goodwill to the carrying value of that goodwill. If the carrying value of the reporting unit's goodwill exceeds the implied fair value of the goodwill, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to the excess.
	The indefinite-lived intangible asset quantitative impairment test compares the carrying value of the intangible asset to its fair value. If the carrying value of the intangible asset exceeds the fair value, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to the excess.
	Fair value typically is estimated using the present value of future discounted cash flows, an income approach. The significant estimates in the discounted cash flow model include the weighted-average cost of capital, long-term rates of revenue growth and/or profitability of our businesses, and working capital effects. The weighted-average cost of capital considers the relevant risk associated with business-specific characteristics and the uncertainty related to each business's ability to achieve the projected cash flows. To validate the reasonableness of the reporting unit fair values used in the goodwill impairment test, the Company reconciles the aggregate fair values of its reporting units to the aggregate market value of its common stock on the date of valuation, while considering a reasonable acquisition premium. These estimates and the resulting valuations require significant judgment.
	Definite-lived intangible assets are reviewed for impairment when events or circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset or group of assets may not be recoverable. The determination of recoverability is based on an estimate of pre-tax undiscounted future cash flows, using the Company's best estimates of future net sales and operating expenses, expected to result from the use and eventual disposition of the asset or group of assets over the remaining economic life of the primary asset in the asset group. The Company measures the amount of the impairment as the excess of the asset's carrying value over its fair value.
	See "Note 4: Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets" for discussion of impairment of goodwill and intangible assets in the fourth quarter of 2014.
	Equity method investments: The Company currently holds equity securities and warrants to purchase equity securities, for business and strategic purposes, in companies whose securities are not publicly traded. The equity method is used to account for investments in these companies, if the investment provides the Company with the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies of the investees. The Company records its proportionate share of the net earnings or losses of equity method investees and a corresponding increase or decrease to the investment balances. The Company evaluates its equity method investments for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate, in management’s judgment, that the carrying value of such investments may have experienced a decline in value (see "Note 12: Other Loss, Net"). The Company’s equity investments were carried at a fair value of $0 at December 31, 2014 and 2013.
	Debt issuance costs and debt discounts: Debt issuance costs and debt discounts are deferred and amortized as interest expense under the effective interest method over the contractual term of the related debt, adjusted for prepayments in the case of the Company’s credit facilities (see "Note 7: Debt").
	Debt issuance costs related to the Company’s Convertible Senior Notes (the “Notes”) issued in 2013 were allocated to the liability and equity components of the instrument. The debt issuance costs allocated to the liability component are amortized to interest expense through the earlier of the maturity date of the Notes or the date of conversion, if any. The debt issuance costs allocated to the equity component of the Notes were recorded as an offset to "Additional paid-in capital" (See "Note 7: Debt").
	Derivative instruments and hedging: The Company recognized derivative instruments as either assets or liabilities at their fair value. The Company recorded changes in the fair value of the derivative instruments as gains or losses either in "Other loss, net" on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income, for those not designated as a hedging instrument (the Warrant - see "Note 9: Stockholders' Equity"), or in "Accumulated other comprehensive loss" on the consolidated balance sheets, for those used in a hedging relationship (the interest rate swap - see "Note 7: Debt"). The Warrant and interest rate swap were settled in the last half of 2013.
	The change in the fair value of the Warrant resulted in losses of $11.7 million and $2.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.
	The interest rate swap agreement was used for the purpose of minimizing exposure to changes in interest rates and was accounted for as a cash flow hedge. The hedge was perfectly effective through termination, and no ineffectiveness was recorded in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income. The Company had no other swap agreements outstanding at December 31, 2014.
	Fair value of financial instruments: The Company measures its cash equivalents, available-for-sale investments, and derivative instruments at fair value. The Company considers the carrying values of accounts receivable, other receivables, inventories, prepaid expenses, other current assets, accounts payable, accrued expenses, and other current liabilities to approximate fair values primarily due to their short-term natures.
	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 at the measurement date. Marketable equity securities are classified within Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy because the Company values its marketable equity securities using quoted prices in active markets for identical securities. Cash equivalents and debt securities are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy because the Company values its cash equivalents and debt securities utilizing market observable inputs. The Company classified its interest rate swap derivative within Level 2 as the valuation inputs were based on quoted prices and market observable data of similar instruments. As previously discussed, the interest rate swap was terminated in 2013. The Company classified the Warrant derivative within Level 3 because it was valued using the Black-Scholes-Merton valuation model, which has significant unobservable inputs related to historical stock price volatility. This unobservable input reflected the Company’s assumptions, consistent with reasonably available assumptions made by other market participants. This valuation required significant judgment. As previously discussed, the Warrant was settled in 2013.
	Revenue recognition:  The Company recognizes revenue when all four revenue recognition criteria have been met: persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, the Company has delivered the product or performed the service, the fee is fixed or determinable, and collectability is probable. Determining whether and when these criteria have been satisfied involves exercising judgment and using estimates and assumptions that can have an impact on the timing and amount of revenue that the Company recognizes.
	The Company evaluates whether revenue should be presented on a gross basis, which is the amount that a customer pays for the service or product, or on a net basis, which is the customer payment less amounts the Company pays to suppliers. In making that evaluation, the Company primarily considers indicators such as whether the Company is the primary obligor in the arrangement and assumes the risks and rewards as a principal in the customer transaction. The evaluation of these factors, which at times can be contradictory, are subject to significant judgment and subjectivity.
	Search services revenue recognition: The majority of the Company’s revenues are generated from its search services. Search services revenue primarily consists of advertising revenue generated through end-users clicking on paid listings included in the search results display, as well as from advertisements appearing on the Company's HowStuffWorks.com website. The paid listings, as well as algorithmic search results, primarily are supplied by Google and Yahoo!, referred to as "Search Customers." When a user submits a search query through one of the Company's owned and operated or distribution partner sites and clicks on a paid listing displayed in response to the query, the Search Customer bills the advertiser that purchased the paid listing directly and shares a portion of its related paid listing fee with the Company. If the paid listing click occurred on one of its distribution partners' properties, the Company pays a significant share of its revenue to the distribution partner. Revenue is recognized in the period in which such clicks on paid listings occur and is based on the amounts earned by and ultimately remitted to the Company. This revenue is recorded in the Search and Content segment.
	Under the Company’s agreements with its Search Customers and its distribution partners, the Company is the primary obligor (i.e., is responsible to the Search Customers for providing the search services in accordance with the applicable agreements and remediating any service issues) and separately negotiates each revenue or unit pricing contract independent of any revenue sharing arrangements. For search services, the Company determines the paid search results, content, and information directed to its owned and operated websites and its distribution partners’ web properties. Consequently, the Company records search services revenue on a gross basis.
	Tax preparation revenue recognition: The Company derives service revenue from the sale of tax preparation online services, ancillary service offerings, packaged tax preparation software, and multiple element arrangements that may include a combination of these items. Ancillary service offerings include tax preparation support services, data archive services, bank or reloadable pre-paid debit card services, e-filing services, and other value-added services. This revenue is recorded in the Tax Preparation segment.
	The Company’s Tax Preparation segment revenue consists primarily of hosted tax preparation online services, tax preparation support services, data archive services, and e-filing services. The Company recognizes revenue from these services as the services are performed and the four revenue recognition criteria described above are met.
	The Company recognizes revenue from the sale of its packaged software when legal title transfers. This is generally when its customers download the software from the Internet or when the software ships.
	The bank or reloadable prepaid debit card services are offered to taxpayers as an option to receive their tax refunds in the form of a prepaid bank card or to have the fees for the software and/or services purchased by the customers deducted from their refunds. Other value-added service revenue consists of revenue from revenue sharing and royalty arrangements with third party partners. Revenue for these transactions is recognized when the four revenue recognition criteria described above are met; for some arrangements that is upon filing and for other arrangements that is upon the Company’s determination of when collectability is probable.
	For software and/or services that consist of multiple elements, the Company must: (1) determine whether and when each element has been delivered; (2) determine the fair value of each element using the selling price hierarchy of vendor-specific objective evidence (“VSOE”) of fair value if available, third-party evidence (“TPE”) of fair value if VSOE is not available, and estimated selling price (“ESP”) if neither VSOE nor TPE is available; and (3) allocate the total price among the various elements based on the relative selling price method. Once the Company has allocated the total price among the various elements, it recognizes revenue when the revenue recognition criteria described above are met for each element.
	VSOE generally exists when the Company sells the deliverable separately. When VSOE cannot be established, the Company attempts to establish a selling price for each element based on TPE. TPE is determined based on competitor prices for similar deliverables when sold separately. When the Company is unable to establish selling price using VSOE or TPE, it uses ESP in its allocation of arrangement consideration. ESP is the estimated price at which the Company would sell the software or service if it were sold on a stand-alone basis. The Company determines ESP for the software or service by considering multiple factors including, but not limited to, historical stand-alone sales, pricing practices, market conditions, competitive landscape, internal costs, and gross margin objectives.
	In some situations, the Company receives advance payments from its customers. The Company defers revenue associated with these advance payments and recognizes the consideration for each element when the Company ships the software or performs the services, as appropriate. Advance payments related to data archive services are deferred and recognized over the related contractual term.
	E-Commerce revenue recognition: The Company derives product revenue from online sales of self-branded electronics and accessories to both consumers and businesses. The Company recognizes product revenue from product sales when all four revenue recognition criteria, as outlined above, have been met. Because the Company either (i) has a general practice of refunding customer losses for products damaged while in-transit despite selling terms indicating title transfers at the point of shipment or (ii) has FOB-destination shipping terms specifically set out in certain arrangements, delivery is deemed to occur at the point in time when the product is received by the customer. All amounts billed to a customer in a sale transaction related to shipping and handling, if any, represent revenues earned for the goods provided, and these amounts have been classified as "Product revenue." Costs related to such shipping and handling billings are classified as "Product cost of revenue."
	The Company provides its customers with a thirty-day right of return. Return allowances, which reduce revenue, are estimated using historical experience.
	Cost of revenues: The Company records the cost of revenues for sales of products and services when the related revenue is recognized. "Services cost of revenue" consists of costs related to the Search and Content and Tax Preparation businesses, which include revenue sharing arrangements with our distribution partners, usage-based content fees, royalties, bank product services fees, and amortization of intangible assets. It also consists of costs associated with the operation of the data centers that serve the Company’s Search and Content and Tax Preparation businesses, which include personnel expenses (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs), depreciation, and bandwidth costs. "Product cost of revenue" consists of costs related to the E-Commerce business, which include product costs, inbound and outbound shipping and handling costs, packaging supplies, and provisions for inventory obsolescence. Shipping charges to receive products from the Company’s suppliers are included in inventory and recognized as product cost of revenue upon sale of products to customers.
	Engineering and technology expenses:  Engineering and technology expenses are associated with the research, development, support, and ongoing enhancements of the Company’s offerings, including personnel expenses (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs), the cost of temporary help and contractors to augment staffing, software support and maintenance, bandwidth and hosting, and professional services fees. Research and development expenses were $8.9 million, $7.3 million, and $6.1 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively.
	Sales and marketing expenses:  Sales and marketing expenses consist principally of marketing expenses associated with the Company’s TaxACT and Monoprice websites (which include television, radio, online, text, and email channels), the Company’s owned and operated web search properties (which consist of traffic acquisition, including the Company’s online marketing fees paid to search engines to drive traffic to an owned and operated website, agency fees, brand promotion expense, and market research expense), personnel costs (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs) for personnel engaged in marketing and selling activities, and fulfillment expenses primarily associated with the Company’s E-Commerce business. Fulfillment expenses include direct operating expenses (including personnel costs) related to the Company’s purchasing, customer and technical support, receiving, inspection and warehouse functions, the cost of temporary help and contractors to augment staffing, and credit card processing fees.
	Costs for advertising are recorded as expense when the advertisement appears or electronic impressions are recorded. Advertising expense totaled $81.8 million, $75.9 million, and $31.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively. Prepaid advertising costs were $3.6 million and $0.8 million at December 31, 2014 and 2013, respectively.
	General and administrative expenses:  General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel expenses (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs), the cost of temporary help and contractors to augment staffing, professional services fees (which include legal, audit, and tax fees), general business development and management expenses, occupancy and general office expenses, business taxes, and insurance expenses.
	Stock-based compensation:  The Company measures stock-based compensation at the grant date based on the fair value of the award and recognizes it as expense, net of estimated forfeitures, over the vesting or service period, as applicable, of the stock award using the straight-line method. The Company recognizes stock-based compensation over the vesting period for each separately vesting portion of a share-based award as if they were individual share-based awards. The Company estimates forfeitures at the time of grant and revises those estimates, if necessary, in subsequent periods if actual forfeitures differ from those estimates.
	Employee benefit plan:  The Company has a 401(k) savings plan covering its employees. Eligible employees may contribute through payroll deductions. The Company may match the employees’ 401(k) contributions at the discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors. Pursuant to a continuing resolution, the Company has matched a portion of the 401(k) contributions made by its employees. The amount contributed by the Company is equal to a maximum of 50% of employee contributions up to a maximum of 3% of an employee’s salary. For the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, the Company contributed $0.9 million, $0.6 million, and $0.4 million, respectively, for employees. The amount contributed has been increasing with higher headcount mainly from acquired businesses.
	Leases:  The Company leases office space, and these leases are classified as operating leases.
	Income taxes:  The Company accounts for income taxes under the asset and liability method, under which deferred tax assets, including net operating loss carryforwards, and liabilities are determined based on temporary differences between the book and tax bases of assets and liabilities. The Company periodically evaluates the likelihood of the realization of deferred tax assets and reduces the carrying amount of the deferred tax assets by a valuation allowance to the extent the Company believes a portion will not be realized. The Company considers many factors when assessing the likelihood of future realization of the deferred tax assets, including expectations of future taxable income, recent cumulative earnings experience by taxing jurisdiction, and other relevant factors. There is a wide range of possible judgments relating to the valuation of the Company's deferred tax assets.
	Other comprehensive income:  Comprehensive income includes net income plus items that are recorded directly to stockholders’ equity, including the net change in unrealized gains and losses on cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments and certain derivative instruments. Included in the net change in unrealized gains and losses are realized gains or losses included in the determination of net income in the period realized. Amounts reclassified out of other comprehensive income into net income were determined on the basis of specific identification.
	Concentration of credit risk:  Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash equivalents, short-term investments, and trade receivables. These instruments are generally unsecured and uninsured. The Company places a significant amount of its cash equivalents and investments with major financial institutions. Accounts receivable are typically unsecured and are derived from revenues earned from customers primarily located in the United States operating in a variety of industries and geographic areas. The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers and maintains allowances for potential credit losses.
	The Company attempts to manage exposure to counterparty credit risk by only entering into agreements with major financial institutions which are expected to be able to fully perform under the terms of the agreement.
	Supplier concentration risk:  A material part of Monoprice’s business is dependent on two vendors. These unrelated vendors accounted for 17% of Monoprice's inventory purchases during the year ended December 31, 2014 and 19% of Monoprice’s inventory purchases during the period from August 22, 2013 (the date which Monoprice was acquired) to December 31, 2013. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, these unrelated vendors accounted for 21% and 20% of Monoprice’s related accounts payable, respectively.
	Revenue concentration:  The Company derives a significant portion of its revenues from two Search Customers. Revenues from the top two Search Customers represented 55%, 74%, and 84% of revenues in the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively, and each of those two Search Customers represented at least 10% of 2014 revenues. At December 31, 2014 and 2013, two Search Customers accounted for more than 80% of the Company’s accounts receivable balance.
	Geographic revenue information, as determined by the location of the customer, is presented below (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014		2013		2012
	United States	$	556,466	$	558,601	$	402,656
	International	24,254		15,379		4,263
	Total	$	580,720	$	573,980	$	406,919
	Recent accounting pronouncements:  Changes to GAAP are established by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) in the form of accounting standards updates (“ASUs”) to the FASB’s Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”). The Company considers the applicability and impact of all recent ASUs. ASUs not listed below were assessed and determined to be either not applicable or are expected to have minimal impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position and results of operations.
In May 2014, the FASB issued guidance codified in ASC 606, "Revenue from Contracts with Customers," which amends the guidance in former ASC 605 "Revenue Recognition." The core principle of the guidance is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. This will be achieved in a five-step process. Enhanced disclosures also will be required. This guidance is effective on a retrospective basis--either to each reporting period presented or with the cumulative effect of initially applying this guidance recognized at the date of initial application--for annual reporting periods, including interim reporting periods within those annual reporting periods, beginning after December 15, 2016. Earlier adoption is not permitted. The Company currently is evaluating the impact of this guidance on its consolidated financial statements.
In July 2013, the FASB issued guidance on the presentation of unrecognized tax benefits when a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward exists at the reporting date. The Company adopted this guidance in the first quarter of 2014, and the adoption did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Business_Combinations

Business Combinations	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Business Combinations [Abstract]
Business Combinations	Business Combinations
	HSW: On May 30, 2014, InfoSpace acquired HSW, a provider of online content (see "Note 1: The Company and Basis of Presentation"), for $44.9 million in cash, which was funded from available cash. The acquisition of HSW is strategic to InfoSpace and intended to expand its operations. HSW is included in the Search and Content segment. The identifiable net assets acquired amounted to approximately $4.5 million, consisting primarily of marketable equity securities, and intangible assets acquired amounted to approximately $25.4 million, consisting of $18.2 million in content, $1.3 million in proprietary technology, and $5.9 million in trade names. The Company estimates the economic lives of the content and proprietary technology to be 10 years and 4 years, respectively, and the trade names are estimated to have indefinite lives. Goodwill amounted to $15.1 million and is expected to be deductible for income tax purposes. Goodwill consists largely of the ability to attract new customers through utilization of current content and to develop new content post-acquisition, neither of which qualify for separate recognition. Pro forma results of operations have not been presented because the effects of this acquisition were not material to the Company’s consolidated results of operations.
	Balance Financial:  On October 4, 2013, TaxACT acquired all of the equity of Balance Financial, a provider of web and mobile-based financial management software, for $4.9 million in cash which includes a $0.7 million escrow amount recorded in "Accrued expenses and other current liabilities" for indemnifications related to general representations and warranties. The escrow period expires on April 4, 2015, at which time the amount, net of any indemnifiable losses, will be released. The acquisition of the Balance Financial business is strategic to TaxACT and was funded from the revolving credit loan under the TaxACT 2013 credit facility (see "Note 7: Debt"). Balance Financial is included in the Tax Preparation segment. The identifiable net assets acquired amounted to $1.0 million, consisting primarily of deferred tax assets, and intangible assets acquired amounted to $0.8 million, consisting primarily of internally-developed software and customer relationships both of which have finite lives. Goodwill amounted to $3.1 million. Pro forma results of operations have not been presented because the effects of this acquisition were not material to the Company’s consolidated results of operations.
	Monoprice:  On August 22, 2013, the Company acquired all of the outstanding stock of Monoprice, an online retailer of self-branded electronics and accessories for both consumers and businesses (see "Note 1: The Company and Basis of Presentation"). The Company paid $182.9 million, which was funded from available cash, after a $0.4 million working capital adjustment in the fourth quarter of 2013. The acquisition is intended to diversify the Company’s business model and expand its operations.
	Valuations were as follows (in thousands):
		Fair Value
	Tangible assets acquired	$	49,714
	Liabilities assumed	(23,623		)
	Identifiable net assets acquired	$	26,091
	Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
	Customer relationships	$	30,900
	Trade name	38,000
	Fair value of intangible assets acquired	$	68,900
	Purchase price:
	Cash paid	$	182,909
	Less identifiable net assets acquired	(26,091		)
	Plus deferred tax liability related to intangible assets	27,683
	Less fair value of intangible assets acquired	(68,900		)
	Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill	$	115,601
	The Company incurred acquisition costs of $0.7 million in 2013, which were recognized in "General and administrative expense." The Company did not assume any equity awards or plans from Monoprice. Following the completion of the acquisition, the Company issued 27,152 options and 126,259 restricted stock units (“RSUs”), which are at levels consistent with other awards to Blucora subsidiary employees, and 243,750 performance-based RSUs to Monoprice’s employees (see "Note 10: Stock-Based Compensation"). In addition, the sellers of Monoprice are entitled to federal and state tax refunds related to pre-acquisition tax periods pursuant to the purchase agreement (see "Note 6: Balance Sheet Components"). During the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company adjusted the refunds due to the sellers after finalizing Monoprice's 2013 federal and state tax returns. As a result, the Company recorded a $0.7 million gain within "Other loss, net" (see "Note 12: Other Loss, Net").
	The Company’s estimates of the economic lives of the acquired assets are 2 years for the business-to-consumer customer relationships, 7 years for the business-to-business customer relationships, approximately 6 years for the personal property assets, and the trade name is estimated to have an indefinite life. Goodwill consists largely of the ability to attract new customers and develop new technologies post-acquisition, which do not qualify for separate recognition. The Company does not expect that any of this goodwill will be deductible for income tax purposes. The Company recorded impairments on Monoprice goodwill and intangible assets in 2014. See "Note 4: Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets" for details.
	The gross contractual amount of trade accounts receivable acquired was $3.2 million, all of which the Company has collected. The Company recorded deferred revenue at a fair value of $1.3 million as of the acquisition date. Prior to the acquisition, Monoprice had recorded deferred revenue at $2.0 million.
	For the period from the acquisition date to December 31, 2013, the Company’s total revenues included $54.3 million in revenue and a $5.0 million operating income contribution from the Monoprice business.
	Pro Forma Financial Information of Monoprice Acquisition (unaudited)
	The financial information in the table below summarizes the combined results of operations of Blucora and Monoprice on a pro forma basis, for the period in which the acquisition occurred and the prior reporting period (when applicable) as though the companies had been combined as of the beginning of each period presented. This pro forma financial information is presented for informational purposes only and is not necessarily indicative of the results of operations that would have been achieved had the acquisition occurred at the beginning of each period presented. The pro forma condensed combined statement of operations for the year ended December 31, 2013 combines the historical results of operations of the Company and Monoprice for the year ended December 31, 2013 with the results of Monoprice for the period from January 1, 2013 to the acquisition date. The following amounts are in thousands:
		Years ended December 31,
		2013			2012
	Revenues	$	663,900		$	525,027
	Net income	$	25,637		$	22,874
	TaxACT:  On January 31, 2012, the Company acquired all of the outstanding stock of TaxACT, which operates the TaxACT tax preparation online service and software business (see "Note 1: The Company and Basis of Presentation"). The Company paid $287.5 million in cash, less certain transaction expenses. The TaxACT acquisition was funded from the Company's cash reserves and from the TaxACT 2012 credit facility, of which $100.0 million was drawn at the transaction's close (see "Note 7: Debt"). The acquisition is intended to diversify the Company's business model and expand its operations.
	Valuations were as follows (in thousands):
		Fair Value
	Tangible assets acquired	$	22,465
	Liabilities assumed	(17,759		)
	Identifiable net assets acquired	$	4,706
	Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
	Customer relationships	$	101,400
	Proprietary technology	29,800
	Trade name	19,499
	Fair value of intangible assets acquired	$	150,699
	Purchase price:
	Cash paid	$	287,500
	Less identifiable net assets acquired	(4,706		)
	Plus deferred tax liability related to intangible assets	53,380
	Less fair value of intangible assets acquired	(150,699		)
	Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill	$	185,475
	The Company recorded acquisition costs of $1.1 million in 2012, which were recognized in "General and administrative expense." The Company incurred $2.3 million of debt origination costs related to the credit facility used to fund the acquisition, a portion of which was recorded as loss on debt extinguishment and modification expense in "Other loss, net" and the remainder of which is being amortized to interest expense over the term of the credit facility. The Company did not assume any equity awards or plans from TaxACT. Following the completion of the acquisition, the Company issued 380,000 options and 167,000 RSUs to TaxACT’s employees as an incentive for future services and at levels consistent with other employee awards (see "Note 10: Stock-Based Compensation"). In addition, the sellers of TaxACT are entitled to certain federal tax refunds related to pre-acquisition tax periods pursuant to the purchase agreement (see "Note 6: Balance Sheet Components").
	The Company’s estimates of the economic lives of the acquired assets are 8 years for the customer relationships, 4 years for the proprietary technology, approximately 3 years for the personal property assets, and the trade name is estimated to have an indefinite life. Goodwill consists largely of the ability to attract new customers and develop new technologies post acquisition, which do not qualify for separate recognition. The Company determined that no portion of the goodwill arising from the TaxACT acquisition will be deductible for income tax purposes.
	The gross contractual amount of trade accounts receivable acquired was $9.4 million, all of which has been collected. The Company recorded deferred revenue associated with the TaxACT business’s data storage and retrieval service at a fair value of $0.3 million as of the acquisition date. Prior to the acquisition, TaxACT had recorded deferred revenue at $5.1 million.
	For the period from the acquisition date to December 31, 2012, the Company’s total revenues included $62.1 million in revenue and a $30.1 million operating income contribution from the TaxACT business.
	Pro Forma Financial Information of TaxACT Acquisition (unaudited)
	The financial information in the table below summarizes the combined results of operations of Blucora and TaxACT on a pro forma basis, for the period in which the acquisition occurred and the prior reporting period (when applicable) as though the companies had been combined as of the beginning of the period presented. This pro forma financial information is presented for informational purposes only and is not necessarily indicative of the results of operations that would have been achieved had the acquisition occurred at the beginning of each period presented. The pro forma condensed combined statement of operations for the year ended December 31, 2012 combines the historical results of the Company for the year ended December 31, 2012 with the results of TaxACT for the month ended January 31, 2012. The following amounts are in thousands:
		Year ended December 31, 2012
	Revenues	$	427,809
	Net income	$	26,819

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets	Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets
	The following table presents goodwill by reportable segment (in thousands):
		Search and Content		Tax Preparation			E-Commerce			Total
	Goodwill, gross:
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	$	44,815	$	185,475		$	—		$	230,290
	Additions	—		3,066			115,601			118,667
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	44,815		188,541			115,601			348,957
	Additions	15,097		—			—			15,097
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	59,912	$	188,541		$	115,601		$	364,054
	Accumulated impairment:
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	$	—	$	—		$	—		$	—
	Impairments	—		—			—			—
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	—		—			—			—
	Impairments	—		—			(59,396		)	(59,396		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	—	$	—		$	(59,396	)	$	(59,396	)
	Goodwill, net:
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	$	44,815	$	188,541		$	115,601		$	348,957
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	59,912	$	188,541		$	56,205		$	304,658
	The goodwill addition in 2014 related to the acquisition of HSW and the additions in 2013 related to the acquisitions of Monoprice (E-Commerce segment) and Balance Financial (Tax Preparation segment), all as described in "Note 3: Business Combinations." The goodwill impairment in 2014 related to Monoprice and was recorded in "Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets" on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income in the fourth quarter and is discussed further below.
	Intangible assets other than goodwill consisted of the following (in thousands):
		31-Dec-14								31-Dec-13
		Gross		Accumulated			Net			Gross			Accumulated			Net
		carrying		amortization						carrying			amortization
		amount								amount
	Definite-lived intangible assets:
	Customer relationships	$	132,500	$	(50,075	)	$	82,425		$	132,500		$	(27,740	)	$	104,760
	Technology	44,805		(35,649		)	9,156			43,535			(27,951		)	15,584
	Content	18,200		(1,061		)	17,139			—			—			—
	Other	6,667		(6,667		)	—			6,705			(6,667		)	38
	Total definite-lived intangible assets	202,172		(93,452		)	108,720			182,740			(62,358		)	120,382
	Indefinite-lived intangible assets:
	Trade names	60,199		—			60,199			57,499			—			57,499
	Other	—		—			—			183			—			183
	Total indefinite-lived intangible assets	60,199		—			60,199			57,682			—			57,682
	Total	$	262,371	$	(93,452	)	$	168,919		$	240,422		$	(62,358	)	$	178,064
	There were technology, content, and trade name additions in 2014 related to the acquisition of HSW (Search and Content segment) as described in "Note 3: Business Combinations." In addition, the Company recorded an impairment of $3.2 million on trade names in the fourth quarter of 2014 related to Monoprice (E-Commerce segment), which adjusted the carrying value of the Monoprice trade name to $34.8 million. The impairment amount was recorded in "Impairment of goodwill and intangible assets" on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income and is discussed further below.
	During the annual goodwill impairment evaluation, the Company performed the first step of the goodwill quantitative impairment test in which it determined that the carrying value of the E-Commerce reporting unit exceeded its fair value, primarily due to operating results, projected revenue growth rates, and projected profitability below management's initial expectations. As a result, the Company then performed the second step of the impairment test for the E-Commerce reporting unit, which resulted in an impairment equal to the excess of the goodwill's carrying value over its implied fair value as disclosed in the first table above. Refer to "Note 2: Summary of Significant Accounting Policies" for a description of the Company's reporting units and the method used to determine the fair values of those reporting units and the amount of goodwill impairment. In addition, the Company reviewed its trade names during the annual impairment evaluation and determined that the Monoprice trade name's carrying value exceeded its fair value, which resulted in an impairment equal to that excess as disclosed in the second table above. The Company classified the fair value of its reporting units, goodwill, and trade names within Level 3 because they were valued using discounted cash flows, which have significant unobservable inputs related to the weighted-average cost of capital and forecasts of future cash flows. The Company also determined that the adverse changes and impairments related to the E-Commerce reporting unit were indicators requiring the review of E-Commerce long-lived assets for recoverability. The results of this review indicated that the carrying values of the E-Commerce long-lived assets were recoverable.
	Amortization expense was as follows (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31.
		2014		2013			2012
	Statement of comprehensive income line item:
	Services cost of revenue	$	7,513	$	7,668		$	7,580
	Amortization of intangible assets	23,581		16,121			11,619
	Total	$	31,094	$	23,789		$	19,199
	Expected amortization of definite-lived intangible assets held as of December 31, 2014 is as follows (in thousands):
		2015		2016			2017			2018			2019			Thereafter		Total
	Statement of comprehensive income line item:
	Services cost of revenues	$	7,450	$	621		$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—	$	8,071
	Amortization of intangible assets	21,880		17,206			17,155			16,970			16,838			10,600		100,649
	Total	$	29,330	$	17,827		$	17,155		$	16,970		$	16,838		$	10,600	$	108,720
	The weighted average amortization periods for definite-lived intangible assets are as follows: 59 months for customer relationships, 16 months for technology, 113 months for content, and 64 months for total definite-lived intangible assets.

Fair_Value_Measurements

Fair Value Measurements	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Fair Value Measurements	Fair Value Measurements
	The fair value hierarchy of the Company's financial assets carried at fair value and measured on a recurring basis was as follows (in thousands):
		31-Dec-14		Fair value measurements at the reporting date using
				Quoted prices in		Significant other			Significant
				active markets		observable			unobservable
				using identical assets		inputs			inputs
				(Level 1)		(Level 2)			(Level 3)
	Cash equivalents:
	Money market and other funds	$	8,490	$	—	$	8,490		$	—
	Time deposits	1,242		—		1,242			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	4,754		—		4,754			—
	Total cash equivalents	14,486		—		14,486			—
	Available-for-sale investments:
	Debt securities:
	U.S. government securities	100,818		—		100,818			—
	International government securities	6,560		—		6,560			—
	Commercial paper	24,589		—		24,589			—
	Time deposits	30,759		—		30,759			—
	Corporate bonds	1,528		—		1,528			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	87,366		—		87,366			—
	Total debt securities	251,620		—		251,620			—
	Equity securities	3,234		3,234		—			—
	Total available-for-sale investments	254,854		3,234		251,620			—
	Total assets at fair value	$	269,340	$	3,234	$	266,106		$	—
		December 31, 2013		Fair value measurements at the reporting date using
				Quoted prices in		Significant other			Significant
				active markets		observable			unobservable
				using identical assets		inputs			inputs
				(Level 1)		(Level 2)			(Level 3)
	Cash equivalents:
	U.S. government securities	$	6,400	$	—	$	6,400		$	—
	Money market and other funds	9,391		—		9,391			—
	Commercial paper	17,999		—		17,999			—
	Time deposits	499		—		499			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	21,215		—		21,215			—
	Total cash equivalents	55,504		—		55,504			—
	Available-for-sale investments:
	U.S. government securities	58,114		—		58,114			—
	Commercial paper	14,496		—		14,496			—
	Time deposits	9,880		—		9,880			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	120,990		—		120,990			—
	Total available-for-sale investments	203,480		—		203,480			—
	Total assets at fair value	$	258,984	$	—	$	258,984		$	—
	The Company also had financial instruments that were not measured at fair value. See "Note 7: Debt" for details.
	The Company had non-recurring Level 3 fair value measurements in 2014 related to its reporting units and various intangible assets as part of goodwill and intangible asset impairment reviews. See "Note 4: Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets" for details.
	The contractual maturities of the debt securities classified as available-for-sale at December 31, 2014 and 2013 were less than one year. Available-for-sale investments as of December 31, 2013 included only debt securities.
	The cost and fair value of available-for-sale investments were as follows (in thousands):
		Amortized		Gross unrealized		Gross unrealized			Fair
		cost		gains		losses			value
	Balance as of December 31, 2014
	Debt securities	$	251,673	$	16	$	(69	)	$	251,620
	Equity securities	4,312		—		(1,078		)	3,234
	Total	$	255,985	$	16	$	(1,147	)	$	254,854
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	$	203,479	$	24	$	(23	)	$	203,480
	As of December 31, 2014, the Company's equity securities, which consist of a single holding in a publicly-traded company, were in an unrealized loss position for less than 12 months. The Company has determined that such position is temporary.

Balance_Sheet_Components

Balance Sheet Components	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Balance Sheet Related Disclosures [Abstract]
Balance Sheet Components	Balance Sheet Components
	Prepaid expenses and other current assets, net consisted of the following (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Prepaid expenses	$	8,676		$	4,370
	Other current assets, net	4,801			5,404
	Total prepaid expenses and other current assets, net	$	13,477		$	9,774
	Property and equipment, net consisted of the following (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Computer equipment and data center	$	10,392		$	10,792
	Purchased software	6,721			6,153
	Internally-developed software	9,045			7,166
	Office equipment	488			421
	Office furniture	2,467			2,061
	Heavy equipment	3,084			2,944
	Leasehold improvements and other	4,122			3,553
		36,319			33,090
	Accumulated depreciation	(21,279		)	(17,985		)
		15,040			15,105
	Capital projects in progress	902			1,003
	Total property and equipment, net	$	15,942		$	16,108
	Total depreciation expense was $5.6 million, $4.5 million, and $3.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively.
	Unamortized internally-developed software was $4.1 million and $3.2 million at December 31, 2014 and 2013, respectively. The Company recorded depreciation expense for internally-developed software of $1.6 million for the year ended December 31, 2014 and $0.9 million for each of the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012.
	Accrued expenses and other current liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Salaries and related expenses	$	5,463		$	7,708
	Accrued content costs	4,077			4,132
	Accrued advertising	3,292			6,155
	Accrued interest on Notes (see Note 7)	2,138			2,138
	Tax refunds payable to sellers (see Note 3)	792			6,814
	Other	5,743			4,162
	Total accrued expenses and other current liabilities	$	21,505		$	31,109

Debt

Debt	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Debt	Debt
	The Company’s debt consisted of the following (in thousands):
		31-Dec-14								31-Dec-13
		Principal			Unamortized			Net		Principal		Unamortized			Net
		amount			discount			carrying		amount		discount			carrying
								value							value
	Monoprice 2013 credit facility	$	42,000		$	(191	)	$	41,809	$	50,000	$	(288	)	$	49,712
	TaxACT 2013 credit facility	51,940			—			51,940		71,384		—			71,384
	Convertible Senior Notes	201,250			(16,073		)	185,177		201,250		(19,667		)	181,583
	Total debt	$	295,190		$	(16,264	)	$	278,926	$	322,634	$	(19,955	)	$	302,679
	Monoprice 2013 credit facility:  On November 22, 2013, Monoprice entered into an agreement with a syndicate of lenders for the purposes of post-transaction financing of the Monoprice acquisition and providing future working capital flexibility for Monoprice. The Monoprice credit facility consists of a $30.0 million revolving credit loan—which includes up to $5.0 million under a letter of credit and up to $5.0 million in swingline loans—and a $40.0 million term loan for an aggregate $70.0 million credit facility. The final maturity date of the credit facility is November 22, 2018. Monoprice’s obligations under the credit facility are guaranteed by Monoprice Holdings, Inc. and are secured by the assets of the Monoprice business.
	Monoprice borrowed $50.0 million under the credit facility, which was used to pay a dividend to Blucora and to pay certain expenses and fees related to the credit facility. Monoprice repaid $8.0 million on the credit facility in 2014. Monoprice has the right to permanently reduce, without premium or penalty, the entire credit facility at any time or portions of the credit facility in an aggregate principal amount not less than $1.0 million or any whole multiple of $1.0 million in excess thereof (for swingline loans, the aggregate principal amount is not less than $0.1 million and any whole multiple of $0.1 million in excess thereof). The interest rate on amounts borrowed under the credit facility is variable, based upon, at the election of Monoprice, either LIBOR plus a margin of between 2.75% and 3.25%, payable as of the end of each interest period, or a variable rate plus a margin of between 1.75% and 2.25%, payable quarterly in arrears. In each case, the applicable margin within the range depends upon Monoprice’s ratio of leverage to EBITDA over the previous four quarters. The credit facility includes financial and operating covenants with respect to certain ratios, including leverage ratio and fixed charge coverage ratio, which are defined further in the agreement. As of December 31, 2014, Monoprice was in compliance with all of the financial and operating covenants. As of December 31, 2014, the credit facility’s principal amount approximated its fair value as it is a variable rate instrument and the current applicable margin approximates current market conditions.
	TaxACT 2013 credit facility:  On August 30, 2013, TaxACT entered into an agreement with a syndicate of lenders to refinance a 2012 credit facility on more favorable terms. Under that 2012 credit facility, TaxACT borrowed $100.0 million, of which $25.5 million was repaid in 2012, $10.0 million in April 2013, and the remaining $64.5 million in August 2013, the latter amount in connection with the refinancing of this credit agreement. The interest rate on amounts borrowed under the 2012 credit facility was variable. The Company hedged a portion of the interest rate risk through an interest rate swap, which was terminated at break-even on September 10, 2013.
	The 2013 credit facility consists of revolving credit loans, up to $10.0 million in swingline loans, and up to $5.0 million under a letter of credit, which in the aggregate represented a $100.0 million revolving credit commitment that reduced to $90.0 million on August 30, 2014 and will reduce to $80.0 million on August 30, 2015 and $70.0 million on August 30, 2016. The final maturity date of the credit facility is August 30, 2018. TaxACT’s obligations under the credit facility are guaranteed by TaxACT Holdings, Inc. and are secured by the assets of the TaxACT business.
	TaxACT borrowed approximately $71.4 million under the 2013 credit facility, of which $65.4 million was used to pay off the 2012 credit facility, accrued interest, and certain expenses and fees related to the refinancing and an additional $6.0 million was borrowed in October 2013. TaxACT had net repayment activity of $19.4 million in 2014. TaxACT has the right to permanently reduce, without premium or penalty, the entire credit facility at any time or portions of the credit facility in an aggregate principal amount not less than $3.0 million or any whole multiple of $1.0 million in excess thereof. The interest rate on amounts borrowed under the credit facility is variable, based upon, at the election of TaxACT, either LIBOR plus a margin of between 1.75% and 2.5%, or a Base Rate plus a margin of between 0.75% and 1.5%, and payable as of the end of each interest period. In each case, the applicable margin within the range depends upon TaxACT’s ratio of leverage to EBITDA over the previous four quarters. The credit facility includes financial and operating covenants with respect to certain ratios, including leverage ratio and fixed charge coverage ratio, which are defined further in the agreement. As of December 31, 2014, the Company was in compliance with all of the financial and operating covenants. As of December 31, 2014, the credit facility’s principal amount approximated its fair value as it is a variable rate instrument and the current applicable margin approximates current market conditions.
	On August 30, 2013, the Company performed an analysis by creditor to determine whether the refinancing would be recorded as an extinguishment or a modification of debt and, as a result of this analysis, recognized a loss on partial extinguishment of debt comprised of the following (in thousands):
	Refinancing fees paid to creditors, including arrangement fee, classified as extinguishment	$	567
	Deferred financing costs on extinguished debt	726
	Debt discount on extinguished debt	300
	Total	$	1,593
	In connection with amounts classified as an extinguishment, the Company recorded deferred debt issuance costs, which are being amortized as an adjustment to interest expense over the term of the new credit facility using the effective interest method. The remaining portion of the refinancing was a modification, and the Company determined a new effective interest rate based on the carrying amount of the original debt and the revised cash flows. Deferred financing costs and unamortized debt discount related to the prior credit agreement are being amortized as an adjustment to interest expense over the term of the new credit facility using the effective interest method. Similarly, additional creditor-related fees related to the modification are being amortized over the term of the new credit facility using the effective interest method. In total, approximately $0.7 million is being amortized over the term of the new credit facility using the effective interest method.
	Convertible Senior Notes:  On March 15, 2013, the Company issued $201.25 million aggregate principal amount of its Convertible Senior Notes (the “Notes”), inclusive of the underwriters’ exercise in full of their over-allotment option of $26.25 million. The Notes mature on April 1, 2019, unless earlier purchased, redeemed, or converted in accordance with the terms, and bear interest at a rate of 4.25% per year, payable semi-annually in arrears beginning on October 1, 2013. The Company received net proceeds from the offering of approximately $194.8 million after adjusting for debt issuance costs, including the underwriting discount.
	The Notes were issued under an indenture dated March 15, 2013 (the “Indenture”) by and between the Company and The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as Trustee. There are no financial or operating covenants relating to the Notes.
	Beginning July 1, 2013 and prior to the close of business on September 28, 2018, holders may convert all or a portion of the Notes at their option, in multiples of $1,000 principal amount, under the following circumstances:
	•	During any fiscal quarter commencing July 1, 2013, if the last reported sale price of the Company’s common stock for at least 20 trading days during a period of 30 consecutive trading days ending on the last trading day of the immediately preceding calendar quarter is greater than or equal to 130% of the conversion price on each applicable trading day. As of December 31, 2014, the Notes were not convertible. As of December 31, 2013, the Notes were convertible.
	•	During the five business day period after any five consecutive trading day period (the “measurement period”) in which the trading price per $1,000 principal amount of the Notes for each trading day of the measurement period was less than 98% of the product of the last reported sales price of the Company’s common stock and the conversion rate on each trading day.
	•	If the Company calls any or all of the Notes for redemption.
	•	Upon the occurrence of specified corporate events, including a merger or a sale of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets.
	The convertibility of the Notes is determined at the end of each reporting period. If the Notes are determined to be convertible, they remain convertible until the end of the subsequent quarter and are classified in "Current liabilities" on the balance sheet; otherwise, they are classified in "Long-term liabilities." Depending upon the price of the Company’s common stock or the trading price of the Notes within the reporting period, pursuant to the first two criteria listed above, the Notes could be convertible during one reporting period but not convertible during a comparable reporting period.
	On or after October 1, 2018 and until the close of business on March 28, 2019, holders may convert their Notes, in multiples of $1,000 principal amount, at the option of the holder.
	The conversion ratio for the Notes is initially 0.0461723, equivalent to an initial conversion price of approximately $21.66 per share of the Company’s common stock. The conversion ratio is subject to customary adjustment for certain events as described in the Indenture.
	At the time the Company issued the Notes, the Company was only permitted to settle conversions with shares of its common stock. The Company received shareholder approval at its annual meeting in May 2013 to allow for “flexible settlement,” which provided the Company with the option to settle conversions in cash, shares of common stock, or any combination thereof. The Company’s intention is to satisfy conversion of the Notes with cash for the principal amount of the debt and shares of common stock for any related conversion premium.
	Beginning April 6, 2016, the Company may, at its option, redeem for cash all or part of the Notes plus accrued and unpaid interest. If the Company undergoes a fundamental change (as described in the Indenture), holders may require the Company to repurchase for cash all or part of their Notes in principal amounts of $1,000 or an integral multiple thereof. The fundamental change repurchase price will be equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Notes to be repurchased, plus accrued and unpaid interest. However, if a fundamental change occurs and a holder elects to convert the Notes, the Company will, under certain circumstances, increase the applicable conversion rate for the Notes surrendered for conversion by a number of additional shares of common stock based on the date on which the fundamental change occurs or becomes effective and the price paid per share of the Company’s common stock in the fundamental change as specified in the Indenture.
	The Notes are unsecured and unsubordinated obligations of the Company and rank senior in right of payment to any of the Company’s indebtedness that is expressly subordinated in right of payment to the Notes, and equal in right of payment to any of the Company’s existing and future unsecured indebtedness that is not subordinated. The Notes are effectively junior in right of payment to any of the Company’s secured indebtedness (to the extent of the value of assets securing such indebtedness) and structurally junior to all existing and future indebtedness and other liabilities, including trade payables, of the Company’s subsidiaries. The Indenture does not limit the amount of debt that the Company or its subsidiaries may incur.
	The Notes may be settled in combination of cash or shares of common stock given the flexible settlement option. As a result, the Notes contain liability and equity components, which were bifurcated and accounted for separately. The liability component of the Notes, as of the issuance date, was calculated by estimating the fair value of a similar liability issued at a 6.5% effective interest rate, which was determined by considering the rate of return investors would require in the Company’s debt structure. The amount of the equity component was calculated by deducting the fair value of the liability component from the principal amount of the Notes, resulting in the initial recognition of $22.3 million as the debt discount recorded in additional paid-in capital for the Notes. The carrying amount of the Notes is being accreted to the principal amount over the remaining term to maturity, and the Company is recording corresponding interest expense. The Company incurred debt issuance costs of $6.4 million related to the Notes and allocated $5.7 million to the liability component of the Notes. These costs are being amortized to interest expense over the six-year term of the Notes or the date of conversion, if any.
	The following table sets forth total interest expense for the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 related to the Notes (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013
	Contractual interest expense (Cash)	$	8,553		$	6,795
	Amortization of debt issuance costs (Non-cash)	920			684
	Accretion of debt discount (Non-cash)	3,594			2,674
	Total interest expense	$	13,067		$	10,153
	Effective interest rate of the liability component	7.32		%	7.32		%
	The fair value of the principal amount of the Notes as of December 31, 2014 was $190.6 million, based on the last quoted active trading price, a Level 1 fair value measurement, as of that date.

Commitments_and_Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies	Commitments and Contingencies
	The Company's contractual commitments are as follows for years ending December 31 (in thousands):
		2015		2016		2017		2018		2019		Thereafter		Total
	Operating lease commitments	$	3,154	$	3,213	$	2,916	$	2,455	$	2,502	$	3,105	$	17,345
	Purchase commitments	437		92		62		—		—		—		591
	Debt commitments	8,000		8,000		8,000		69,940		201,250		—		295,190
	Interest on Notes	8,553		8,553		8,553		8,553		4,277		—		38,489
	Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications	735		—		—		—		—		—		735
	Total	$	20,879	$	19,858	$	19,531	$	80,948	$	208,029	$	3,105	$	352,350
	Operating lease commitments:  The Company has non-cancelable operating leases for its facilities. The leases run through 2022. Rent expense under operating leases totaled $3.0 million, $2.0 million, and $1.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively.
	Purchase commitments:  The Company's purchase commitments consist primarily of non-cancelable service agreements for its data centers.
	Debt commitments and interest on Notes:  The Company’s debt commitments are based upon contractual payment terms and consist of the outstanding principal related to the Monoprice credit facility, the TaxACT credit facility, and the Notes. The Company may repay the amounts outstanding under the Monoprice and TaxACT credit facilities before their terms are complete, depending upon the cash generated by the respective businesses, and under the Notes based upon holders exercising their conversion option. For further detail regarding the credit facilities and the Notes, see "Note 7: Debt."
	Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications:  The Company holds escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications around general representations and warranties in connection with the Balance Financial acquisition. See "Note 3: Business Combinations" for further discussion of the escrow.
	Collateral pledged:  The Company has pledged a portion of its cash as collateral for certain of its property lease-related banking arrangements. At December 31, 2014, the total amount of collateral pledged under these standby letters of credit was $0.9 million.
	Off-balance sheet arrangements:  The Company has no off-balance sheet arrangements other than operating leases.
	Litigation:  From time to time, the Company is subject to various legal proceedings or claims that arise in the ordinary course of business. Following is a brief description of the more significant legal proceedings. The Company accrues a liability when management believes that it is both probable that a liability has been incurred and the amount of loss can be reasonably estimated. Although the Company believes that resolving claims against it, individually or in aggregate, will not have a material adverse impact on its financial statements, these matters are subject to inherent uncertainties.
	On May 12, 2014, a putative class action complaint was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington against the Company and certain of its officers.  The complaint asserted claims under Sections 10(b) and 20(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, and Rule 10b-5 promulgated thereunder, and purported to be brought on behalf of a class of persons who purchased the Company’s common stock during the period between November 5, 2013 and February 20, 2014.  Prior to filing the amended consolidated complaint, the plaintiff agreed to voluntarily dismiss this case without prejudice, and the Court granted the order dismissing the case on November 4, 2014.

Stockholders_Equity

Stockholders' Equity	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Equity [Abstract]
Stockholders' Equity	Stockholders’ Equity
	Stock incentive plan:  The Company may grant non-qualified stock options, stock, RSUs, and stock appreciation rights to employees, non-employee directors, and consultants.
	The Company granted options and RSUs during 2014, 2013, and 2012 under the Company’s Restated 1996 Flexible Stock Incentive Plan. Options and RSUs generally vest over a period of three years, with one-third vesting one year from the date of grant and the remainder vesting ratably thereafter on a semi-annual basis, and expire seven years from the date of grant. There are a few exceptions to this vesting schedule, which provide for vesting at different rates or based on achievement of performance or market targets.
	The Company issues new shares upon the exercise of options and upon the vesting of RSUs. If an option or RSU is surrendered or otherwise unused, the related shares will continue to be available.
	Warrant:  On August 23, 2011, the Company issued a warrant to purchase 1.0 million shares of Blucora common stock, exercisable at a price of $9.62 per share (the “Warrant”). The Warrant originally was considered stock-based compensation and was scheduled to expire on August 23, 2014, but the completion of the TaxACT acquisition on January 31, 2012 was an event under the Warrant’s terms that extended the expiration date to the earlier of August 23, 2017 or the effective date of a change of control of Blucora. Subsequent to the extension, the Company treated the award as a derivative instrument (see "Note 2: Summary of Significant Accounting Policies"). The modification date fair value previously recognized in "Additional paid-in capital" of $6.2 million was classified as a current liability, and the Warrant’s fair value was determined each reporting period with gains or losses related to the change in fair value recorded in "Other loss, net" in the amounts of $11.7 million and $2.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively. The Company recorded $6.6 million in total expense relating to the modification and subsequent change in fair value for the Warrant for the year ended December 31, 2012. On November 21, 2013, the Warrant was exercised and 1.0 million shares of Blucora common stock were purchased for an aggregate exercise price of $9.6 million. The related derivative instrument liability balance of $20.2 million was settled through "Additional paid-in capital."
	1998 Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”):  The ESPP permits eligible employees to contribute up to 15% of their base earnings toward the twice-yearly purchase of Company common stock, subject to an annual maximum dollar amount. The purchase price is the lesser of 85% of the fair market value of common stock on the first day or on the last day of an offering period. An aggregate of 1.4 million shares of common stock are authorized for issuance under the ESPP. Of this amount, 0.3 million shares were available for issuance. The Company issues new shares upon purchase through the ESPP.
	Stock repurchase program:  In February 2013, the Company’s Board of Directors approved a stock repurchase program whereby the Company may purchase its common stock in open-market transactions. In May 2014, the Board of Directors increased the repurchase authorization, such that the Company may repurchase up to $85.0 million of its common stock, and extended the repurchase period through May 2016. Repurchased shares will be retired and resume the status of authorized but unissued shares of common stock. During the year ended December 31, 2014, the Company purchased 2.3 million shares in open-market transactions at a total cost of approximately $38.6 million and an average price of $16.85 per share, exclusive of purchase and administrative costs. During the year ended December 31, 2013, the Company purchased 0.4 million shares in open-market transactions at a total cost of approximately $10.0 million and an average price of $23.95 per share, exclusive of purchase and administrative costs. As of December 31, 2014, the Company may repurchase up to an additional $36.5 million of its common stock under the repurchase program.
	Other comprehensive income:  The following table provides information about activity in other comprehensive income (in thousands):
		Unrealized gain (loss)			Unrealized gain (loss)			Total
		on investments			on derivative
					instrument
	Balance as of December 31, 2011	$	32		$	—		$	32
	Other comprehensive loss	(42		)	(266		)	(308		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	(10		)	(266		)	(276		)
	Other comprehensive income	10			266			276
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	—			—			—
	Other comprehensive loss	(1,113		)	—			(1,113		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	(1,113	)	$	—		$	(1,113	)

StockBased_Compensation

Stock-Based Compensation	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]
Stock-Based Compensation	Stock-Based Compensation
	A summary of the general terms of stock options and RSUs at December 31, 2014 was as follows:
	Number of shares authorized for awards	7,671,479
	Options and RSUs outstanding	5,097,247
	Options and RSUs expected to vest	4,701,050
	Options and RSUs available for grant	2,574,232
	The following activity occurred under the Company’s stock incentive plans:
		Options		Weighted average				Intrinsic value			Weighted average
				exercise price				(in thousands)			remaining
											contractual term
											(in years)
	Stock options:
	Outstanding December 31, 2013	3,786,561		$	11.57
	Granted	1,483,486		$	19.95
	Forfeited	(179,678	)	$	19.87
	Expired	(72,592	)	$	19.15
	Exercised	(673,952	)	$	9.96
	Outstanding December 31, 2014	4,343,825		$	14.21			$	9,131		4.6
	Exercisable December 31, 2014	2,529,778		$	10.85			$	8,985		3.6
	Expected to vest after December 31, 2014	4,062,243		$	13.93			$	9,115		4.5
		Stock units		Weighted average				Intrinsic value			Weighted average
				grant date				(in thousands)			remaining
				fair value							contractual term
											(in years)
	RSUs:
	Outstanding December 31, 2013	1,078,481		$	17.07
	Granted	536,964		$	18.44
	Forfeited	(430,782	)	$	19.23
	Vested	(431,241	)	$	15.21
	Outstanding December 31, 2014	753,422		$	17.88			$	10,435		1.1
	Expected to vest after December 31, 2014	638,807		$	17.88			$	8,847		1
	Supplemental information is presented below:
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013				2012
	Stock options:
	Weighted average grant date fair value per share granted	$	5.67		$	5.05			$	3.84
	Total intrinsic value of options exercised (in thousands)	$	3,600		$	2,626			$	3,886
	Total fair value of options vested (in thousands)	$	4,000		$	2,410			$	2,288
	RSUs:
	Weighted average grant date fair value per unit granted	$	18.44		$	18.86			$	13.19
	Total intrinsic value of units vested (in thousands)	$	8,315		$	7,986			$	4,663
	Total fair value of units vested (in thousands)	$	6,560		$	5,163			$	3,049
	The Company included the following amounts for stock-based compensation expense, which related to stock options, RSUs, and the ESPP, in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013				2012
	Cost of revenues	$	477		$	662			$	558
	Engineering and technology	1,569			1,351				1,180
	Sales and marketing	2,047			2,335				1,909
	General and administrative	7,791			7,179				9,576
	Total	$	11,884		$	11,527			$	13,223
	Excluded and capitalized as part of internal-use software	$	106		$	115			$	121
	In May 2012, the Company granted 190,000 stock options to certain employees who perform acquisition-related activities. The awards' vestings were predicated on completing “qualified acquisitions” under the terms of the awards. The completions of the HSW acquisition on May 30, 2014 and the Monoprice acquisition on August 22, 2013 constituted qualified acquisitions under the terms of the awards. The vestings of the awards resulted in charges of $0.3 million and $0.5 million to stock-based compensation expense in 2014 and 2013, respectively, both of which were classified in "General and administrative expense." No expense was recognized in 2012, as a qualified acquisition did not occur.
	In October 2011, the Company granted 200,000 stock options to a non-employee consultant who performed acquisition-related activities. The award’s vesting was predicated on completing a “qualified acquisition” under the terms of the award. The completion of the TaxACT acquisition on January 31, 2012 constituted a qualified acquisition under the terms of the award. The vesting of the award resulted in a charge of $0.9 million to stock-based compensation expense in 2012, which was classified in "General and administrative expense."
	As discussed in "Note 9: Stockholders’ Equity," the acquisition of the TaxACT business on January 31, 2012 fulfilled the Warrant agreement's remaining performance condition and extended the Warrant’s expiration date. The extension of the Warrant’s term was a modification that resulted in a $4.3 million charge to stock-based compensation expense, equal to the increase in the Warrant’s fair value, and was recognized in "General and administrative expense" in the first quarter of 2012. Subsequent to the modification, the Company treated the Warrant as a derivative instrument.
	To estimate stock-based compensation expense, the Company used the Black-Scholes-Merton valuation method with the following assumptions for equity awards granted:
		Years ended December 31,
		2014		2013			2012
	Stock option grants:
	Risk-free interest rate	0.11% - 1.31%		0.25% - 1.06%			0.26% - 1.57%
	Expected dividend yield	0	%	0	%		0	%
	Expected volatility	35% - 43%		40% - 46%			40% - 48%
	Expected life	3.0 years		3.2 years			3.3 years
	Non-employee stock option grant:
	Risk-free interest rate	—		—			0.26	%
Expected dividend yield	—		—			0	%
Expected volatility	—		—			38% - 41%
Expected life	—		—			1.6 - 2.2 years
Warrant grant:
Risk-free interest rate	—		—			0.95	%
Expected dividend yield	—		—			0	%
Expected volatility	—		—			46	%
Expected life	—		—			5.6 years
The risk-free interest rate was based on the implied yield available on U.S. Treasury issues with an equivalent remaining term. The Company last paid a dividend in 2008 but does not expect to pay recurring dividends. The expected volatility was based on historical volatility of the Company’s stock for the related expected life of the award. The expected life of the award was based on historical experience, including historical post-vesting termination behavior.
As of December 31, 2014, total unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to unvested stock awards is as follows:
	Expense			Weighted average period over which to be recognized
	(in thousands)			(in years)
Stock options	$	4,058		1.5
RSUs	5,297			1.3
Total	$	9,355		1.4

Segment_Information

Segment Information	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Segment Information	Segment Information
	The Company changed its segment reporting structure as a result of the TaxACT acquisition on January 31, 2012 and again as a result of the Monoprice acquisition on August 22, 2013. The Search and Content segment (formerly known as the Search segment) is the InfoSpace business, which now includes HSW, the Tax Preparation segment is the TaxACT business, and the E-Commerce segment is the Monoprice business. The Company’s chief executive officer is its chief operating decision maker and reviews financial information presented on a disaggregated basis. This information is used for purposes of allocating resources and evaluating financial performance.
	The Company does not allocate certain general and administrative costs (including personnel and overhead costs), stock-based compensation, depreciation, amortization of intangible assets, and impairment of goodwill and intangible assets to the reportable segments. Such amounts are reflected in the table under the heading "Corporate-level activity." In addition, the Company does not allocate other loss, net and income taxes to the reportable segments. The Company does not account for, and does not report to management, its assets or capital expenditures by segment other than goodwill and intangible assets used for impairment analysis purposes.
	Information on reportable segments currently presented to the Company’s chief operating decision maker and a reconciliation to consolidated net income are presented below (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Revenues:
	Search and Content	$	326,270		$	428,464		$	344,814
	Tax Preparation	103,719			91,213			62,105
	E-Commerce	150,731			54,303			—
	Total revenues	580,720			573,980			406,919
	Operating income (loss):
	Search and Content	55,812			82,504			62,185
	Tax Preparation	49,696			40,599			30,052
	E-Commerce	12,043			4,967			—
	Corporate-level activity	(125,992		)	(53,621		)	(48,032		)
	Total operating income (loss)	(8,441		)	74,449			44,205
	Other loss, net	(14,766		)	(29,623		)	(6,677		)
	Income tax expense	(12,340		)	(20,427		)	(15,002		)
	Net income (loss)	$	(35,547	)	$	24,399		$	22,526
	"Corporate-level activity" in 2014 included impairment of goodwill and intangible assets, as discussed further in "Note 4: Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets."

Other_Loss_Net

Other Loss, Net	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Other Income and Expenses [Abstract]
Other Loss, Net	Other Loss, Net
	"Other loss, net" consisted of the following (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Interest income	$	(352	)	$	(300	)	$	(131	)
	Interest expense (see Note 7)	11,202			9,463			3,522
	Amortization of debt issuance costs (see Note 7)	1,143			1,108			820
	Accretion of debt discounts (see Note 7)	3,691			2,838			325
	Loss on debt extinguishment and modification expense (see Note 7)	—			1,593			—
	Loss on derivative instrument (see Notes 2 and 9)	—			11,652			2,346
	Impairment of equity investment in privately-held company	—			3,711			—
	Decrease in pre-acquisition liability (see Note 3)	(665		)	—			—
	Decrease in fair value of earn-out contingent liability	(15		)	(300		)	—
	Other	(238		)	(142		)	(205		)
	Other loss, net	$	14,766		$	29,623		$	6,677
	In 2013, in connection with the Company’s review of its equity method investments for other-than-temporary impairment, the Company determined that its equity investment in a privately-held company had experienced an other-than-temporary decline in value, due to recurring losses from operations, significant personnel reductions, and a change in the underlying business model. Accordingly, the Company wrote down the $3.7 million carrying value of the investment to zero, resulting in a loss.

Income_Taxes

Income Taxes	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income Taxes
	Income tax expense consisted of the following (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Current:
	U.S. federal	$	23,921		$	30,452		$	23,303
	State	2,086			642			437
	Total current expense	26,007			31,094			23,740
	Deferred:
	U.S. federal	(12,621		)	(10,430		)	(8,234		)
	State	(1,046		)	(237		)	(504		)
	Total deferred benefit	(13,667		)	(10,667		)	(8,738		)
	Income tax expense, net	$	12,340		$	20,427		$	15,002
	Income tax expense (benefit) differed from the amount computed by applying the statutory federal income tax rate as follows (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Income tax expense (benefit) at federal statutory rate of 35%	$	(8,122	)	$	15,689		$	13,135
	State income taxes, net of federal benefit	657			320			(89		)
	Non-deductible compensation	569			221			1,621
	Deductible domestic manufacturing costs	(1,080		)	(949		)	(804		)
	Non-deductible impairment of goodwill (see Note 4)	20,789			—			—
	Non-deductible loss on derivative instrument (the Warrant, see Note 9)	—			4,078			821
	Change in liabilities for uncertain tax positions	(72		)	(201		)	(75		)
	Change in valuation allowance on unrealized capital losses	(117		)	1,108			—
	Other	(284		)	161			393
	Income tax expense, net	$	12,340		$	20,427		$	15,002
	As discussed further in "Note 4: Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets," the Company recorded an impairment of goodwill in 2014.
	The tax effect of temporary differences and net operating loss carryforwards that gave rise to the Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities were as follows (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Deferred tax assets:
	Current:
	Net operating loss carryforwards	$	19,964		$	34,167
	Accrued compensation	1,318			1,605
	Deferred revenue	2,594			2,385
	Inventory	1,462			800
	Other, net	2,149			1,903
	Total current deferred tax assets	27,487			40,860
	Non-current:
	Net operating loss carryforwards	179,671			190,974
	Tax credit carryforwards	10,370			9,259
	Depreciation and amortization	6,388			7,696
	Stock-based compensation	5,941			5,318
	Other, net	4,977			4,204
	Total non-current deferred tax assets	207,347			217,451
	Total gross deferred tax assets	234,834			258,311
	Valuation allowance	(211,865		)	(235,730		)
	Deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance	22,969			22,581
	Deferred tax liabilities:
	Current:
	Other, net	(133		)	(253		)
	Total current deferred tax liabilities	(133		)	(253		)
	Non-current:
	Depreciation and amortization	(57,158		)	(68,888		)
	Discount on Notes	(5,816		)	(6,977		)
	Other, net	—			(5		)
	Total non-current deferred tax liabilities	(62,974		)	(75,870		)
	Total gross deferred tax liabilities	(63,107		)	(76,123		)
	Net deferred tax liabilities	$	(40,138	)	$	(53,542	)
	At December 31, 2014, the Company evaluated the need for a valuation allowance for certain deferred tax assets based upon its assessment of whether it is more likely than not that the Company will generate sufficient future taxable income necessary to realize the deferred tax benefits. The Company does not forecast capital gains and, therefore, maintains a valuation allowance against its capital loss deferred tax assets. The Company has deferred tax assets related to net operating losses that arose from excess tax benefits for stock-based compensation and minimum tax credits that arose from the corresponding alternative minimum tax paid for those excess tax benefits. The Company must apply a valuation allowance against these equity-based deferred tax assets until the Company utilizes the deferred tax assets to reduce taxes payable. Accordingly, the Company does not consider these deferred tax assets when evaluating changes in the valuation allowance.
	The changes in the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets are shown below (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013
	Balance at beginning of year	$	235,730		$	262,353
Net changes to deferred tax assets, subject to a valuation allowance	(23,865		)	(26,623		)
Balance at end of year	$	211,865		$	235,730
For the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, the valuation allowance increased approximately $0.3 million and $1.1 million, respectively, for changes in unrealized capital loss deferred tax assets. For the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013, the remaining decrease in the valuation allowance pertained to utilization of equity-based deferred tax assets used to reduce taxes payable in the amounts of $24.1 million and $27.7 million, respectively.  As of December 31, 2014, $209.0 million of the valuation allowance pertained to equity-based deferred tax assets. The consolidated balance sheets reflect an increase in equity upon the release of this valuation allowance.  Accordingly, income tax expense does not reflect a benefit for the release of the valuation allowance.
As of December 31, 2014, the Company’s U.S. federal and state net operating loss carryforwards for income tax purposes were $570.4 million and $24.5 million, respectively, which primarily related to excess tax benefits for stock-based compensation. When the net operating loss carryforwards related to stock-based compensation are recognized, the income tax benefit of those losses is accounted for as a credit to stockholders’ equity on the consolidated balance sheets rather than on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income. If not utilized, the Company’s federal net operating loss carryforwards will expire between 2020 and 2031, with the majority of them expiring between 2020 and 2024. Additionally, changes in ownership, as defined by Section 382 of the Internal Revenue Code, may limit the amount of net operating loss carryforwards used in any one year.
A reconciliation of the unrecognized tax benefit balances is as follows (in thousands):
Balance as of December 31, 2011	$	18,267
Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	1,208
Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	(216		)
Lapse of statute of limitations	(171		)
Balance as of December 31, 2012	19,088
Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	219
Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	(101		)
Settlements	(562		)
Lapse of statute of limitations	(107		)
Balance as of December 31, 2013	18,537
Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	126
Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	(199		)
Settlements	(61		)
Lapse of statute of limitations	—
Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	18,403
The total amount of unrecognized tax benefits that would affect the Company’s effective tax rate if recognized was $0.5 million and $0.6 million as of December 31, 2014 and 2013, respectively. The remaining $17.9 million as of December 31, 2014 and 2013, if recognized, would create a deferred tax asset subject to a valuation allowance. The Company and certain of its subsidiaries file income tax returns in the U.S. federal jurisdiction and various state jurisdictions. In previous years, the Company also filed in various foreign jurisdictions. With few exceptions, the Company is no longer subject to U.S. federal, state and local, or non-U.S. income tax examinations by tax authorities for years before 2011, although net operating loss carryforwards and tax credit carryforwards from any year are subject to examination and adjustment for at least three years following the year in which they are fully utilized. As of December 31, 2014, no significant adjustments have been proposed relative to the Company’s tax positions.
The Company recognizes interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions in interest expense and general and administrative expenses, respectively. During the years ended December 31, 2014, 2013, and 2012, the Company recognized less than $0.1 million of interest and penalties related to uncertain tax positions upon expiration of the statute of limitations on assessments. The Company had approximately $0.3 million accrued for the payment of interest and penalties as of December 31, 2014 and 2013.

Net_Income_Loss_Per_Share

Net Income (Loss) Per Share	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Net Income (Loss) Per Share	Net Income (Loss) Per Share
	"Basic net income (loss) per share" is computed using the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. "Diluted net income (loss) per share" is computed using the weighted average number of common shares outstanding plus the number of dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period. Dilutive potential common shares consist of the incremental common shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding stock options, vesting of unvested RSUs, exercise of the Warrant (for 2013 and 2012), and conversion or maturity of the Notes. Dilutive potential common shares are excluded from the computation of earnings per share if their effect is antidilutive.
	Weighted average shares were as follows (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014	2013	2012
	Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic	41,396	41,201	40,279
	Dilutive potential common shares	—	2,279	1,393
	Weighted average common shares outstanding, diluted	41,396	43,480	41,672
	Shares excluded	5,468	381	1,172
	Shares excluded primarily related to shares excluded due to the antidilutive effect of a net loss (in 2014), stock options with an exercise price greater than the average price during the applicable periods, and awards with performance conditions not completed during the applicable periods.
	As more fully discussed in "Note 9: Stockholders’ Equity," on November 21, 2013, the Warrant was exercised and 1.0 million shares of the Company’s common stock were issued accordingly. The weighted average of these shares was included in "Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic" starting in November 2013. Prior to that, the weighted average of the incremental common shares issuable upon the exercise of the Warrant were included in the dilutive potential common shares.
	As more fully discussed in "Note 7: Debt," in March 2013, the Company issued the Notes, which are convertible and mature in April 2019. In May 2013, the Company received shareholder approval for “flexible settlement,” which provided the Company with the option to settle conversions in cash, shares of common stock, or any combination thereof. The Company intends, upon conversion or maturity of the Notes, to settle the principal in cash and satisfy any conversion premium by issuing shares of its common stock. As a result, the Company only includes the impact of the premium feature in its dilutive potential common shares when the average stock price for the reporting period exceeds the conversion price of the Notes, which occurred only in the fourth quarter of 2013.

The_Company_and_Basis_of_Prese1

The Company and Basis of Presentation (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Segments	Segments: The Company has three reportable segments: Search and Content (formerly known as Search), Tax Preparation, and E-Commerce. The Search and Content segment is the InfoSpace business, which now includes HSW, the Tax Preparation segment is the TaxACT business, and the E-Commerce segment is the Monoprice business. Unless the context indicates otherwise, the Company uses the term “Search and Content” to represent search and content services, the term “Tax Preparation” to represent services and software sold through the TaxACT business, and the term “E-Commerce” to represent products sold through the Monoprice business
Principles of consolidation	Principles of consolidation: The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of the Company and its subsidiaries. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.
Reclassifications	Reclassification: As a result of the Monoprice acquisition in August 2013, the Company reclassified credit card fees previously reported in "Services cost of revenue" to "Sales and marketing" for the year ended December 31, 2012 to conform with the 2013 presentation. The Company assessed the related materiality of the reclassification and concluded that it was immaterial to any of its previously issued financial statements. The reclassification had no effect on reported revenues, operating income, or cash flows for the periods presented.
Use of estimates	Use of estimates: The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (“GAAP”) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets, liabilities, revenues, and expenses, and disclosure of contingencies. Estimates include those used for impairment of goodwill and other intangible assets, useful lives of other intangible assets, acquisition accounting, valuation of investments, valuation of the Warrant and interest rate swap derivatives, revenue recognition, the estimated allowance for sales returns and doubtful accounts, the estimated allowance for obsolete, slow moving, and nonsalable inventory, internally developed software, accrued contingencies, stock option valuation, and valuation allowance for deferred tax assets. Actual amounts may differ from estimates.
Seasonality	Seasonality: Blucora’s Tax Preparation segment is highly seasonal, with the significant majority of its annual revenue earned in the first four months of the Company’s fiscal year. During the third and fourth quarters, the Tax Preparation segment typically reports losses because revenue from the segment is minimal while core operating expenses continue at relatively consistent levels. Revenue from the E-Commerce segment also is seasonal, with revenues historically being the lowest in the second quarter, a period that does not include consumer back-to-school or holiday-related spending.

Summary_of_Significant_Account1

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Cash equivalents	Cash equivalents: The Company considers all highly liquid debt instruments with an original maturity of ninety days or less at date of acquisition to be cash equivalents.
Short-term investments	Short-term investments: The Company principally invests its available cash in fixed income debt and marketable equity securities. Fixed income debt securities include investment-grade income securities, AAA-rated money market funds, and insured time deposits with commercial banks. Equity securities include common stock in a publicly-traded company. Such investments are included in "Cash and cash equivalents" and "Available-for-sale investments" on the consolidated balance sheets and reported at fair value with unrealized gains and losses included in "Accumulated other comprehensive loss" on the consolidated balance sheets.
	The Company reviews its available-for-sale investments for impairment and classifies the impairment of any individual available-for-sale investment as either temporary or other-than-temporary. The differentiating factors between temporary and other-than-temporary impairments are primarily the length of the time and the extent to which the fair value has been less than cost, the financial condition and near-term prospects of the issuer, and the intent and ability of the Company to retain its investment in the issuer for a period of time sufficient to allow for any anticipated recovery in fair value. An impairment classified as temporary is recognized in "Accumulated other comprehensive loss" on the consolidated balance sheets. An impairment classified as other-than-temporary is recognized in "Other loss, net" on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income.
Accounts receivable	Accounts receivable: Accounts receivable are stated at amounts due from customers net of an allowance for doubtful accounts.
Inventories	Inventories: Inventories, consisting of merchandise available for sale in the E-Commerce business, are accounted for using the first-in-first-out (“FIFO”) method of accounting and are valued at the lower of cost or market and include the related inbound shipping and handling costs. Inventory quantities on hand are reviewed regularly, and allowances are maintained for obsolete, slow moving, and nonsalable inventory.
Property and equipment	Property and equipment: Property and equipment are stated at cost. Depreciation is computed under the straight-line method over the following estimated useful lives:
	Computer equipment and software	3 years
	Data center servers	3 years
	Internally-developed software	3 years
	Office equipment	7 years
	Office furniture	7 years
	Heavy equipment	10 years
	Leasehold improvements	Shorter of lease term or economic life
	The Company capitalizes certain internal-use software development costs, consisting primarily of employee salaries and benefits allocated on a project or product basis.
Business combinations and intangible assets including goodwill	Business combinations and intangible assets including goodwill: The Company accounts for business combinations using the acquisition method, and, accordingly, the identifiable assets acquired and liabilities assumed are recorded at their acquisition date fair values. Goodwill is calculated as the excess of the purchase price over the fair value of net assets, including the amount assigned to identifiable intangible assets, and is assigned to reporting units that are expected to benefit from the synergies of the business combination as of the acquisition date. Reporting units are consistent with reportable segments. Identifiable intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their useful lives on a straight-line basis, except for the installed code base technology which is amortized proportional to expected revenue. Acquisition-related costs, including advisory, legal, accounting, valuation, and other similar costs, are expensed in the periods in which the costs are incurred. The results of operations of acquired businesses are included in the consolidated financial statements from the acquisition date.
Goodwill and intangible assets impairment	Goodwill and intangible assets impairment: The Company evaluates goodwill and indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment annually, as of November 30, or more frequently when events or circumstances indicate that impairment may have occurred. As part of the impairment evaluation, the Company may elect to perform an assessment of qualitative factors. If this qualitative assessment indicates that it is more likely than not that the fair value of a reporting unit (for goodwill) or an indefinite-lived intangible asset is less than its carrying value, or if the Company elects to bypass the qualitative assessment, the Company then would proceed with the quantitative impairment test.
	The goodwill quantitative impairment test is a two-step process that first compares the carrying values of reporting units to their fair values. If the carrying value of a reporting unit exceeds the fair value, a second step is performed to compute the amount of impairment. This second step determines the current fair values of all assets and liabilities of the reporting unit and then compares the implied fair value of the reporting unit's goodwill to the carrying value of that goodwill. If the carrying value of the reporting unit's goodwill exceeds the implied fair value of the goodwill, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to the excess.
	The indefinite-lived intangible asset quantitative impairment test compares the carrying value of the intangible asset to its fair value. If the carrying value of the intangible asset exceeds the fair value, an impairment loss is recognized in an amount equal to the excess.
	Fair value typically is estimated using the present value of future discounted cash flows, an income approach. The significant estimates in the discounted cash flow model include the weighted-average cost of capital, long-term rates of revenue growth and/or profitability of our businesses, and working capital effects. The weighted-average cost of capital considers the relevant risk associated with business-specific characteristics and the uncertainty related to each business's ability to achieve the projected cash flows. To validate the reasonableness of the reporting unit fair values used in the goodwill impairment test, the Company reconciles the aggregate fair values of its reporting units to the aggregate market value of its common stock on the date of valuation, while considering a reasonable acquisition premium. These estimates and the resulting valuations require significant judgment.
	Definite-lived intangible assets are reviewed for impairment when events or circumstances indicate that the carrying value of an asset or group of assets may not be recoverable. The determination of recoverability is based on an estimate of pre-tax undiscounted future cash flows, using the Company's best estimates of future net sales and operating expenses, expected to result from the use and eventual disposition of the asset or group of assets over the remaining economic life of the primary asset in the asset group. The Company measures the amount of the impairment as the excess of the asset's carrying value over its fair value.
Equity method investments	Equity method investments: The Company currently holds equity securities and warrants to purchase equity securities, for business and strategic purposes, in companies whose securities are not publicly traded. The equity method is used to account for investments in these companies, if the investment provides the Company with the ability to exercise significant influence over operating and financial policies of the investees. The Company records its proportionate share of the net earnings or losses of equity method investees and a corresponding increase or decrease to the investment balances. The Company evaluates its equity method investments for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate, in management’s judgment, that the carrying value of such investments may have experienced a decline in value
Debt issuance costs and debt discounts	Debt issuance costs and debt discounts: Debt issuance costs and debt discounts are deferred and amortized as interest expense under the effective interest method over the contractual term of the related debt, adjusted for prepayments in the case of the Company’s credit facilities (see "Note 7: Debt").
	Debt issuance costs related to the Company’s Convertible Senior Notes (the “Notes”) issued in 2013 were allocated to the liability and equity components of the instrument. The debt issuance costs allocated to the liability component are amortized to interest expense through the earlier of the maturity date of the Notes or the date of conversion, if any. The debt issuance costs allocated to the equity component of the Notes were recorded as an offset to "Additional paid-in capital"
Derivative instruments and hedging	Derivative instruments and hedging: The Company recognized derivative instruments as either assets or liabilities at their fair value. The Company recorded changes in the fair value of the derivative instruments as gains or losses either in "Other loss, net" on the consolidated statements of comprehensive income, for those not designated as a hedging instrument (the Warrant - see "Note 9: Stockholders' Equity"), or in "Accumulated other comprehensive loss" on the consolidated balance sheets, for those used in a hedging relationship (the interest rate swap - see "Note 7: Debt"). The Warrant and interest rate swap were settled in the last half of 2013.
	The change in the fair value of the Warrant resulted in losses of $11.7 million and $2.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively.
	The interest rate swap agreement was used for the purpose of minimizing exposure to changes in interest rates and was accounted for as a cash flow hedge. The hedge was perfectly effective through termination, and no ineffectiveness was recorded in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income.
Fair value of financial instruments	Fair value of financial instruments: The Company measures its cash equivalents, available-for-sale investments, and derivative instruments at fair value. The Company considers the carrying values of accounts receivable, other receivables, inventories, prepaid expenses, other current assets, accounts payable, accrued expenses, and other current liabilities to approximate fair values primarily due to their short-term natures.
	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 at the measurement date. Marketable equity securities are classified within Level 1 of the fair value hierarchy because the Company values its marketable equity securities using quoted prices in active markets for identical securities. Cash equivalents and debt securities are classified within Level 2 of the fair value hierarchy because the Company values its cash equivalents and debt securities utilizing market observable inputs. The Company classified its interest rate swap derivative within Level 2 as the valuation inputs were based on quoted prices and market observable data of similar instruments. As previously discussed, the interest rate swap was terminated in 2013. The Company classified the Warrant derivative within Level 3 because it was valued using the Black-Scholes-Merton valuation model, which has significant unobservable inputs related to historical stock price volatility. This unobservable input reflected the Company’s assumptions, consistent with reasonably available assumptions made by other market participants. This valuation required significant judgment. As previously discussed, the Warrant was settled in 2013.
Revenue recognition	Revenue recognition:  The Company recognizes revenue when all four revenue recognition criteria have been met: persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, the Company has delivered the product or performed the service, the fee is fixed or determinable, and collectability is probable. Determining whether and when these criteria have been satisfied involves exercising judgment and using estimates and assumptions that can have an impact on the timing and amount of revenue that the Company recognizes.
	The Company evaluates whether revenue should be presented on a gross basis, which is the amount that a customer pays for the service or product, or on a net basis, which is the customer payment less amounts the Company pays to suppliers. In making that evaluation, the Company primarily considers indicators such as whether the Company is the primary obligor in the arrangement and assumes the risks and rewards as a principal in the customer transaction. The evaluation of these factors, which at times can be contradictory, are subject to significant judgment and subjectivity.
Search services revenue recognition	Search services revenue recognition: The majority of the Company’s revenues are generated from its search services. Search services revenue primarily consists of advertising revenue generated through end-users clicking on paid listings included in the search results display, as well as from advertisements appearing on the Company's HowStuffWorks.com website. The paid listings, as well as algorithmic search results, primarily are supplied by Google and Yahoo!, referred to as "Search Customers." When a user submits a search query through one of the Company's owned and operated or distribution partner sites and clicks on a paid listing displayed in response to the query, the Search Customer bills the advertiser that purchased the paid listing directly and shares a portion of its related paid listing fee with the Company. If the paid listing click occurred on one of its distribution partners' properties, the Company pays a significant share of its revenue to the distribution partner. Revenue is recognized in the period in which such clicks on paid listings occur and is based on the amounts earned by and ultimately remitted to the Company. This revenue is recorded in the Search and Content segment.
	Under the Company’s agreements with its Search Customers and its distribution partners, the Company is the primary obligor (i.e., is responsible to the Search Customers for providing the search services in accordance with the applicable agreements and remediating any service issues) and separately negotiates each revenue or unit pricing contract independent of any revenue sharing arrangements. For search services, the Company determines the paid search results, content, and information directed to its owned and operated websites and its distribution partners’ web properties. Consequently, the Company records search services revenue on a gross basis.
Tax preparation revenue recognition	Tax preparation revenue recognition: The Company derives service revenue from the sale of tax preparation online services, ancillary service offerings, packaged tax preparation software, and multiple element arrangements that may include a combination of these items. Ancillary service offerings include tax preparation support services, data archive services, bank or reloadable pre-paid debit card services, e-filing services, and other value-added services. This revenue is recorded in the Tax Preparation segment.
	The Company’s Tax Preparation segment revenue consists primarily of hosted tax preparation online services, tax preparation support services, data archive services, and e-filing services. The Company recognizes revenue from these services as the services are performed and the four revenue recognition criteria described above are met.
	The Company recognizes revenue from the sale of its packaged software when legal title transfers. This is generally when its customers download the software from the Internet or when the software ships.
	The bank or reloadable prepaid debit card services are offered to taxpayers as an option to receive their tax refunds in the form of a prepaid bank card or to have the fees for the software and/or services purchased by the customers deducted from their refunds. Other value-added service revenue consists of revenue from revenue sharing and royalty arrangements with third party partners. Revenue for these transactions is recognized when the four revenue recognition criteria described above are met; for some arrangements that is upon filing and for other arrangements that is upon the Company’s determination of when collectability is probable.
	For software and/or services that consist of multiple elements, the Company must: (1) determine whether and when each element has been delivered; (2) determine the fair value of each element using the selling price hierarchy of vendor-specific objective evidence (“VSOE”) of fair value if available, third-party evidence (“TPE”) of fair value if VSOE is not available, and estimated selling price (“ESP”) if neither VSOE nor TPE is available; and (3) allocate the total price among the various elements based on the relative selling price method. Once the Company has allocated the total price among the various elements, it recognizes revenue when the revenue recognition criteria described above are met for each element.
	VSOE generally exists when the Company sells the deliverable separately. When VSOE cannot be established, the Company attempts to establish a selling price for each element based on TPE. TPE is determined based on competitor prices for similar deliverables when sold separately. When the Company is unable to establish selling price using VSOE or TPE, it uses ESP in its allocation of arrangement consideration. ESP is the estimated price at which the Company would sell the software or service if it were sold on a stand-alone basis. The Company determines ESP for the software or service by considering multiple factors including, but not limited to, historical stand-alone sales, pricing practices, market conditions, competitive landscape, internal costs, and gross margin objectives.
	In some situations, the Company receives advance payments from its customers. The Company defers revenue associated with these advance payments and recognizes the consideration for each element when the Company ships the software or performs the services, as appropriate. Advance payments related to data archive services are deferred and recognized over the related contractual term.
E-Commerce revenue recognition	E-Commerce revenue recognition: The Company derives product revenue from online sales of self-branded electronics and accessories to both consumers and businesses. The Company recognizes product revenue from product sales when all four revenue recognition criteria, as outlined above, have been met. Because the Company either (i) has a general practice of refunding customer losses for products damaged while in-transit despite selling terms indicating title transfers at the point of shipment or (ii) has FOB-destination shipping terms specifically set out in certain arrangements, delivery is deemed to occur at the point in time when the product is received by the customer. All amounts billed to a customer in a sale transaction related to shipping and handling, if any, represent revenues earned for the goods provided, and these amounts have been classified as "Product revenue." Costs related to such shipping and handling billings are classified as "Product cost of revenue."
	The Company provides its customers with a thirty-day right of return. Return allowances, which reduce revenue, are estimated using historical experience.
Cost of revenues	Cost of revenues: The Company records the cost of revenues for sales of products and services when the related revenue is recognized. "Services cost of revenue" consists of costs related to the Search and Content and Tax Preparation businesses, which include revenue sharing arrangements with our distribution partners, usage-based content fees, royalties, bank product services fees, and amortization of intangible assets. It also consists of costs associated with the operation of the data centers that serve the Company’s Search and Content and Tax Preparation businesses, which include personnel expenses (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs), depreciation, and bandwidth costs. "Product cost of revenue" consists of costs related to the E-Commerce business, which include product costs, inbound and outbound shipping and handling costs, packaging supplies, and provisions for inventory obsolescence. Shipping charges to receive products from the Company’s suppliers are included in inventory and recognized as product cost of revenue upon sale of products to customers.
Engineering and technology expenses	Engineering and technology expenses:  Engineering and technology expenses are associated with the research, development, support, and ongoing enhancements of the Company’s offerings, including personnel expenses (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs), the cost of temporary help and contractors to augment staffing, software support and maintenance, bandwidth and hosting, and professional services fees.
Sales and marketing expenses	Sales and marketing expenses:  Sales and marketing expenses consist principally of marketing expenses associated with the Company’s TaxACT and Monoprice websites (which include television, radio, online, text, and email channels), the Company’s owned and operated web search properties (which consist of traffic acquisition, including the Company’s online marketing fees paid to search engines to drive traffic to an owned and operated website, agency fees, brand promotion expense, and market research expense), personnel costs (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs) for personnel engaged in marketing and selling activities, and fulfillment expenses primarily associated with the Company’s E-Commerce business. Fulfillment expenses include direct operating expenses (including personnel costs) related to the Company’s purchasing, customer and technical support, receiving, inspection and warehouse functions, the cost of temporary help and contractors to augment staffing, and credit card processing fees.
General and administrative expenses	General and administrative expenses:  General and administrative expenses consist primarily of personnel expenses (salaries, stock-based compensation, benefits, and other employee-related costs), the cost of temporary help and contractors to augment staffing, professional services fees (which include legal, audit, and tax fees), general business development and management expenses, occupancy and general office expenses, business taxes, and insurance expenses.
Stock-based compensation	Stock-based compensation:  The Company measures stock-based compensation at the grant date based on the fair value of the award and recognizes it as expense, net of estimated forfeitures, over the vesting or service period, as applicable, of the stock award using the straight-line method. The Company recognizes stock-based compensation over the vesting period for each separately vesting portion of a share-based award as if they were individual share-based awards. The Company estimates forfeitures at the time of grant and revises those estimates, if necessary, in subsequent periods if actual forfeitures differ from those estimates.
Employee benefit plan	Employee benefit plan:  The Company has a 401(k) savings plan covering its employees. Eligible employees may contribute through payroll deductions. The Company may match the employees’ 401(k) contributions at the discretion of the Company’s Board of Directors. Pursuant to a continuing resolution, the Company has matched a portion of the 401(k) contributions made by its employees. The amount contributed by the Company is equal to a maximum of 50% of employee contributions up to a maximum of 3% of an employee’s salary.
Leases	Leases:  The Company leases office space, and these leases are classified as operating leases.
Income taxes	Income taxes:  The Company accounts for income taxes under the asset and liability method, under which deferred tax assets, including net operating loss carryforwards, and liabilities are determined based on temporary differences between the book and tax bases of assets and liabilities. The Company periodically evaluates the likelihood of the realization of deferred tax assets and reduces the carrying amount of the deferred tax assets by a valuation allowance to the extent the Company believes a portion will not be realized. The Company considers many factors when assessing the likelihood of future realization of the deferred tax assets, including expectations of future taxable income, recent cumulative earnings experience by taxing jurisdiction, and other relevant factors. There is a wide range of possible judgments relating to the valuation of the Company's deferred tax assets.
Other comprehensive income	Other comprehensive income:  Comprehensive income includes net income plus items that are recorded directly to stockholders’ equity, including the net change in unrealized gains and losses on cash equivalents and available-for-sale investments and certain derivative instruments. Included in the net change in unrealized gains and losses are realized gains or losses included in the determination of net income in the period realized. Amounts reclassified out of other comprehensive income into net income were determined on the basis of specific identification.
Concentration of credit risk	Concentration of credit risk:  Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk consist primarily of cash equivalents, short-term investments, and trade receivables. These instruments are generally unsecured and uninsured. The Company places a significant amount of its cash equivalents and investments with major financial institutions. Accounts receivable are typically unsecured and are derived from revenues earned from customers primarily located in the United States operating in a variety of industries and geographic areas. The Company performs ongoing credit evaluations of its customers and maintains allowances for potential credit losses.
	The Company attempts to manage exposure to counterparty credit risk by only entering into agreements with major financial institutions which are expected to be able to fully perform under the terms of the agreement.
Supplier concentration risk	Supplier concentration risk:  A material part of Monoprice’s business is dependent on two vendors. These unrelated vendors accounted for 17% of Monoprice's inventory purchases during the year ended December 31, 2014 and 19% of Monoprice’s inventory purchases during the period from August 22, 2013 (the date which Monoprice was acquired) to December 31, 2013. As of December 31, 2014 and 2013, these unrelated vendors accounted for 21% and 20% of Monoprice’s related accounts payable, respectively.
Revenue concentration	Revenue concentration:  The Company derives a significant portion of its revenues from two Search Customers.
Recent accounting pronouncements	Recent accounting pronouncements:  Changes to GAAP are established by the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) in the form of accounting standards updates (“ASUs”) to the FASB’s Accounting Standards Codification (“ASC”). The Company considers the applicability and impact of all recent ASUs. ASUs not listed below were assessed and determined to be either not applicable or are expected to have minimal impact on the Company’s consolidated financial position and results of operations.
	In May 2014, the FASB issued guidance codified in ASC 606, "Revenue from Contracts with Customers," which amends the guidance in former ASC 605 "Revenue Recognition." The core principle of the guidance is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. This will be achieved in a five-step process. Enhanced disclosures also will be required. This guidance is effective on a retrospective basis--either to each reporting period presented or with the cumulative effect of initially applying this guidance recognized at the date of initial application--for annual reporting periods, including interim reporting periods within those annual reporting periods, beginning after December 15, 2016. Earlier adoption is not permitted. The Company currently is evaluating the impact of this guidance on its consolidated financial statements.
	In July 2013, the FASB issued guidance on the presentation of unrecognized tax benefits when a net operating loss carryforward, a similar tax loss, or a tax credit carryforward exists at the reporting date. The Company adopted this guidance in the first quarter of 2014, and the adoption did not have a material impact on the Company’s consolidated financial statements.

Net_Income_Loss_Per_Share_Net_

Net Income (Loss) Per Share Net Income Per Share (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Earnings Per Share, Policy	Net Income (Loss) Per Share
	"Basic net income (loss) per share" is computed using the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. "Diluted net income (loss) per share" is computed using the weighted average number of common shares outstanding plus the number of dilutive potential common shares outstanding during the period. Dilutive potential common shares consist of the incremental common shares issuable upon the exercise of outstanding stock options, vesting of unvested RSUs, exercise of the Warrant (for 2013 and 2012), and conversion or maturity of the Notes. Dilutive potential common shares are excluded from the computation of earnings per share if their effect is antidilutive.

Summary_of_Significant_Account2

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Estimated Useful Life of Property and Equipment	Depreciation is computed under the straight-line method over the following estimated useful lives:
	Computer equipment and software	3 years
	Data center servers	3 years
	Internally-developed software	3 years
	Office equipment	7 years
	Office furniture	7 years
	Heavy equipment	10 years
	Leasehold improvements	Shorter of lease term or economic life
Summary of Revenue Concentration	Geographic revenue information, as determined by the location of the customer, is presented below (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014		2013		2012
	United States	$	556,466	$	558,601	$	402,656
	International	24,254		15,379		4,263
	Total	$	580,720	$	573,980	$	406,919

Business_Combinations_Tables

Business Combinations (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Monoprice, Inc. [Member]
Summary of Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed are Recorded at Their Fair Values as of Acquisition Date	Valuations were as follows (in thousands):
		Fair Value
	Tangible assets acquired	$	49,714
	Liabilities assumed	(23,623		)
	Identifiable net assets acquired	$	26,091
	Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
	Customer relationships	$	30,900
	Trade name	38,000
	Fair value of intangible assets acquired	$	68,900
	Purchase price:
	Cash paid	$	182,909
	Less identifiable net assets acquired	(26,091		)
	Plus deferred tax liability related to intangible assets	27,683
	Less fair value of intangible assets acquired	(68,900		)
	Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill	$	115,601
Pro Forma Financial Information of Acquisitions	The following amounts are in thousands:
		Years ended December 31,
		2013			2012
	Revenues	$	663,900		$	525,027
	Net income	$	25,637		$	22,874
TaxACT [Member]
Summary of Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed are Recorded at Their Fair Values as of Acquisition Date	Valuations were as follows (in thousands):
		Fair Value
	Tangible assets acquired	$	22,465
	Liabilities assumed	(17,759		)
	Identifiable net assets acquired	$	4,706
	Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
	Customer relationships	$	101,400
	Proprietary technology	29,800
	Trade name	19,499
	Fair value of intangible assets acquired	$	150,699
	Purchase price:
	Cash paid	$	287,500
	Less identifiable net assets acquired	(4,706		)
	Plus deferred tax liability related to intangible assets	53,380
	Less fair value of intangible assets acquired	(150,699		)
	Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill	$	185,475
Pro Forma Financial Information of Acquisitions	The following amounts are in thousands:
		Year ended December 31, 2012
	Revenues	$	427,809
	Net income	$	26,819

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_1

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Summary of Goodwill Activity	The following table presents goodwill by reportable segment (in thousands):
		Search and Content		Tax Preparation			E-Commerce			Total
	Goodwill, gross:
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	$	44,815	$	185,475		$	—		$	230,290
	Additions	—		3,066			115,601			118,667
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	44,815		188,541			115,601			348,957
	Additions	15,097		—			—			15,097
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	59,912	$	188,541		$	115,601		$	364,054
	Accumulated impairment:
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	$	—	$	—		$	—		$	—
	Impairments	—		—			—			—
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	—		—			—			—
	Impairments	—		—			(59,396		)	(59,396		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	—	$	—		$	(59,396	)	$	(59,396	)
	Goodwill, net:
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	$	44,815	$	188,541		$	115,601		$	348,957
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	59,912	$	188,541		$	56,205		$	304,658
Intangible Assets Other than Goodwill	Intangible assets other than goodwill consisted of the following (in thousands):
		31-Dec-14								31-Dec-13
		Gross		Accumulated			Net			Gross			Accumulated			Net
		carrying		amortization						carrying			amortization
		amount								amount
	Definite-lived intangible assets:
	Customer relationships	$	132,500	$	(50,075	)	$	82,425		$	132,500		$	(27,740	)	$	104,760
	Technology	44,805		(35,649		)	9,156			43,535			(27,951		)	15,584
	Content	18,200		(1,061		)	17,139			—			—			—
	Other	6,667		(6,667		)	—			6,705			(6,667		)	38
	Total definite-lived intangible assets	202,172		(93,452		)	108,720			182,740			(62,358		)	120,382
	Indefinite-lived intangible assets:
	Trade names	60,199		—			60,199			57,499			—			57,499
	Other	—		—			—			183			—			183
	Total indefinite-lived intangible assets	60,199		—			60,199			57,682			—			57,682
	Total	$	262,371	$	(93,452	)	$	168,919		$	240,422		$	(62,358	)	$	178,064
Summary of Amortization Expense	Amortization expense was as follows (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31.
		2014		2013			2012
	Statement of comprehensive income line item:
	Services cost of revenue	$	7,513	$	7,668		$	7,580
	Amortization of intangible assets	23,581		16,121			11,619
	Total	$	31,094	$	23,789		$	19,199
Information About Expected Amortization of Definite-Lived Intangible Assets	Expected amortization of definite-lived intangible assets held as of December 31, 2014 is as follows (in thousands):
		2015		2016			2017			2018			2019			Thereafter		Total
	Statement of comprehensive income line item:
	Services cost of revenues	$	7,450	$	621		$	—		$	—		$	—		$	—	$	8,071
	Amortization of intangible assets	21,880		17,206			17,155			16,970			16,838			10,600		100,649
	Total	$	29,330	$	17,827		$	17,155		$	16,970		$	16,838		$	10,600	$	108,720

Fair_Value_Measurements_Tables

Fair Value Measurements (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Schedule of Fair Value Hierarchy of Financial Assets and Liabilities Carried at Fair Value and Measured on Recurring Basis	The fair value hierarchy of the Company's financial assets carried at fair value and measured on a recurring basis was as follows (in thousands):
		31-Dec-14		Fair value measurements at the reporting date using
				Quoted prices in		Significant other			Significant
				active markets		observable			unobservable
				using identical assets		inputs			inputs
				(Level 1)		(Level 2)			(Level 3)
	Cash equivalents:
	Money market and other funds	$	8,490	$	—	$	8,490		$	—
	Time deposits	1,242		—		1,242			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	4,754		—		4,754			—
	Total cash equivalents	14,486		—		14,486			—
	Available-for-sale investments:
	Debt securities:
	U.S. government securities	100,818		—		100,818			—
	International government securities	6,560		—		6,560			—
	Commercial paper	24,589		—		24,589			—
	Time deposits	30,759		—		30,759			—
	Corporate bonds	1,528		—		1,528			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	87,366		—		87,366			—
	Total debt securities	251,620		—		251,620			—
	Equity securities	3,234		3,234		—			—
	Total available-for-sale investments	254,854		3,234		251,620			—
	Total assets at fair value	$	269,340	$	3,234	$	266,106		$	—
		December 31, 2013		Fair value measurements at the reporting date using
				Quoted prices in		Significant other			Significant
				active markets		observable			unobservable
				using identical assets		inputs			inputs
				(Level 1)		(Level 2)			(Level 3)
	Cash equivalents:
	U.S. government securities	$	6,400	$	—	$	6,400		$	—
	Money market and other funds	9,391		—		9,391			—
	Commercial paper	17,999		—		17,999			—
	Time deposits	499		—		499			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	21,215		—		21,215			—
	Total cash equivalents	55,504		—		55,504			—
	Available-for-sale investments:
	U.S. government securities	58,114		—		58,114			—
	Commercial paper	14,496		—		14,496			—
	Time deposits	9,880		—		9,880			—
	Taxable municipal bonds	120,990		—		120,990			—
	Total available-for-sale investments	203,480		—		203,480			—
	Total assets at fair value	$	258,984	$	—	$	258,984		$	—
Investments Classified as Available-for-Sale	The cost and fair value of available-for-sale investments were as follows (in thousands):
		Amortized		Gross unrealized		Gross unrealized			Fair
		cost		gains		losses			value
	Balance as of December 31, 2014
	Debt securities	$	251,673	$	16	$	(69	)	$	251,620
	Equity securities	4,312		—		(1,078		)	3,234
	Total	$	255,985	$	16	$	(1,147	)	$	254,854
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	$	203,479	$	24	$	(23	)	$	203,480

Balance_Sheet_Components_Table

Balance Sheet Components (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Balance Sheet Related Disclosures [Abstract]
Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets	Prepaid expenses and other current assets, net consisted of the following (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Prepaid expenses	$	8,676		$	4,370
	Other current assets, net	4,801			5,404
	Total prepaid expenses and other current assets, net	$	13,477		$	9,774
Property and Equipment	Property and equipment, net consisted of the following (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Computer equipment and data center	$	10,392		$	10,792
	Purchased software	6,721			6,153
	Internally-developed software	9,045			7,166
	Office equipment	488			421
	Office furniture	2,467			2,061
	Heavy equipment	3,084			2,944
	Leasehold improvements and other	4,122			3,553
		36,319			33,090
	Accumulated depreciation	(21,279		)	(17,985		)
		15,040			15,105
	Capital projects in progress	902			1,003
	Total property and equipment, net	$	15,942		$	16,108
Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities	Accrued expenses and other current liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Salaries and related expenses	$	5,463		$	7,708
	Accrued content costs	4,077			4,132
	Accrued advertising	3,292			6,155
	Accrued interest on Notes (see Note 7)	2,138			2,138
	Tax refunds payable to sellers (see Note 3)	792			6,814
	Other	5,743			4,162
	Total accrued expenses and other current liabilities	$	21,505		$	31,109

Debt_Tables

Debt (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Company's Debt	The Company’s debt consisted of the following (in thousands):
		31-Dec-14								31-Dec-13
		Principal			Unamortized			Net		Principal		Unamortized			Net
		amount			discount			carrying		amount		discount			carrying
								value							value
	Monoprice 2013 credit facility	$	42,000		$	(191	)	$	41,809	$	50,000	$	(288	)	$	49,712
	TaxACT 2013 credit facility	51,940			—			51,940		71,384		—			71,384
	Convertible Senior Notes	201,250			(16,073		)	185,177		201,250		(19,667		)	181,583
	Total debt	$	295,190		$	(16,264	)	$	278,926	$	322,634	$	(19,955	)	$	302,679
Analysis of Extinguishment or Modification of Debt	On August 30, 2013, the Company performed an analysis by creditor to determine whether the refinancing would be recorded as an extinguishment or a modification of debt and, as a result of this analysis, recognized a loss on partial extinguishment of debt comprised of the following (in thousands):
	Refinancing fees paid to creditors, including arrangement fee, classified as extinguishment	$	567
	Deferred financing costs on extinguished debt	726
	Debt discount on extinguished debt	300
	Total	$	1,593
Schedule of Total Interest Expense on Convertible Senior Notes	The following table sets forth total interest expense for the years ended December 31, 2014 and 2013 related to the Notes (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013
	Contractual interest expense (Cash)	$	8,553		$	6,795
	Amortization of debt issuance costs (Non-cash)	920			684
	Accretion of debt discount (Non-cash)	3,594			2,674
	Total interest expense	$	13,067		$	10,153
	Effective interest rate of the liability component	7.32		%	7.32		%

Commitments_and_Contingencies_

Commitments and Contingencies (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Summary of Contractual Commitments	The Company's contractual commitments are as follows for years ending December 31 (in thousands):
		2015		2016		2017		2018		2019		Thereafter		Total
	Operating lease commitments	$	3,154	$	3,213	$	2,916	$	2,455	$	2,502	$	3,105	$	17,345
	Purchase commitments	437		92		62		—		—		—		591
	Debt commitments	8,000		8,000		8,000		69,940		201,250		—		295,190
	Interest on Notes	8,553		8,553		8,553		8,553		4,277		—		38,489
	Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications	735		—		—		—		—		—		735
	Total	$	20,879	$	19,858	$	19,531	$	80,948	$	208,029	$	3,105	$	352,350

Stockholders_Equity_Tables

Stockholders' Equity (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Equity [Abstract]
Summary of Components of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income	The following table provides information about activity in other comprehensive income (in thousands):
		Unrealized gain (loss)			Unrealized gain (loss)			Total
		on investments			on derivative
					instrument
	Balance as of December 31, 2011	$	32		$	—		$	32
	Other comprehensive loss	(42		)	(266		)	(308		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	(10		)	(266		)	(276		)
	Other comprehensive income	10			266			276
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	—			—			—
	Other comprehensive loss	(1,113		)	—			(1,113		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	(1,113	)	$	—		$	(1,113	)

StockBased_Compensation_Tables

Stock-Based Compensation (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]
Summary of Stock Options, RSUs and MSUs	A summary of the general terms of stock options and RSUs at December 31, 2014 was as follows:
	Number of shares authorized for awards	7,671,479
	Options and RSUs outstanding	5,097,247
	Options and RSUs expected to vest	4,701,050
	Options and RSUs available for grant	2,574,232
Stock Incentive Plans Activity	The following activity occurred under the Company’s stock incentive plans:
		Options		Weighted average				Intrinsic value			Weighted average
				exercise price				(in thousands)			remaining
											contractual term
											(in years)
	Stock options:
	Outstanding December 31, 2013	3,786,561		$	11.57
	Granted	1,483,486		$	19.95
	Forfeited	(179,678	)	$	19.87
	Expired	(72,592	)	$	19.15
	Exercised	(673,952	)	$	9.96
	Outstanding December 31, 2014	4,343,825		$	14.21			$	9,131		4.6
	Exercisable December 31, 2014	2,529,778		$	10.85			$	8,985		3.6
	Expected to vest after December 31, 2014	4,062,243		$	13.93			$	9,115		4.5
		Stock units		Weighted average				Intrinsic value			Weighted average
				grant date				(in thousands)			remaining
				fair value							contractual term
											(in years)
	RSUs:
	Outstanding December 31, 2013	1,078,481		$	17.07
	Granted	536,964		$	18.44
	Forfeited	(430,782	)	$	19.23
	Vested	(431,241	)	$	15.21
	Outstanding December 31, 2014	753,422		$	17.88			$	10,435		1.1
	Expected to vest after December 31, 2014	638,807		$	17.88			$	8,847		1
Schedule of Supplemental Information	Supplemental information is presented below:
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013				2012
	Stock options:
	Weighted average grant date fair value per share granted	$	5.67		$	5.05			$	3.84
	Total intrinsic value of options exercised (in thousands)	$	3,600		$	2,626			$	3,886
	Total fair value of options vested (in thousands)	$	4,000		$	2,410			$	2,288
	RSUs:
	Weighted average grant date fair value per unit granted	$	18.44		$	18.86			$	13.19
	Total intrinsic value of units vested (in thousands)	$	8,315		$	7,986			$	4,663
	Total fair value of units vested (in thousands)	$	6,560		$	5,163			$	3,049
Stock-Based Compensation Expense	The Company included the following amounts for stock-based compensation expense, which related to stock options, RSUs, and the ESPP, in the consolidated statements of comprehensive income (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013				2012
	Cost of revenues	$	477		$	662			$	558
	Engineering and technology	1,569			1,351				1,180
	Sales and marketing	2,047			2,335				1,909
	General and administrative	7,791			7,179				9,576
	Total	$	11,884		$	11,527			$	13,223
	Excluded and capitalized as part of internal-use software	$	106		$	115			$	121
Stock Option Grants and Warrant	To estimate stock-based compensation expense, the Company used the Black-Scholes-Merton valuation method with the following assumptions for equity awards granted:
		Years ended December 31,
		2014		2013			2012
	Stock option grants:
	Risk-free interest rate	0.11% - 1.31%		0.25% - 1.06%			0.26% - 1.57%
	Expected dividend yield	0	%	0	%		0	%
	Expected volatility	35% - 43%		40% - 46%			40% - 48%
	Expected life	3.0 years		3.2 years			3.3 years
	Non-employee stock option grant:
	Risk-free interest rate	—		—			0.26	%
	Expected dividend yield	—		—			0	%
	Expected volatility	—		—			38% - 41%
	Expected life	—		—			1.6 - 2.2 years
	Warrant grant:
	Risk-free interest rate	—		—			0.95	%
	Expected dividend yield	—		—			0	%
	Expected volatility	—		—			46	%
	Expected life	—		—			5.6 years
Unrecognized Stock-Based Compensation Expense	As of December 31, 2014, total unrecognized stock-based compensation expense related to unvested stock awards is as follows:
		Expense			Weighted average period over which to be recognized
		(in thousands)			(in years)
	Stock options	$	4,058		1.5
	RSUs	5,297			1.3
	Total	$	9,355		1.4

Segment_Information_Tables

Segment Information (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Information on Reportable Segments for Reconciliation to Consolidated Net Income	Information on reportable segments currently presented to the Company’s chief operating decision maker and a reconciliation to consolidated net income are presented below (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Revenues:
	Search and Content	$	326,270		$	428,464		$	344,814
	Tax Preparation	103,719			91,213			62,105
	E-Commerce	150,731			54,303			—
	Total revenues	580,720			573,980			406,919
	Operating income (loss):
	Search and Content	55,812			82,504			62,185
	Tax Preparation	49,696			40,599			30,052
	E-Commerce	12,043			4,967			—
	Corporate-level activity	(125,992		)	(53,621		)	(48,032		)
	Total operating income (loss)	(8,441		)	74,449			44,205
	Other loss, net	(14,766		)	(29,623		)	(6,677		)
	Income tax expense	(12,340		)	(20,427		)	(15,002		)
	Net income (loss)	$	(35,547	)	$	24,399		$	22,526

Other_Loss_Net_Tables

Other Loss, Net (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Other Income and Expenses [Abstract]
Schedule of Other Loss Net	"Other loss, net" consisted of the following (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Interest income	$	(352	)	$	(300	)	$	(131	)
	Interest expense (see Note 7)	11,202			9,463			3,522
	Amortization of debt issuance costs (see Note 7)	1,143			1,108			820
	Accretion of debt discounts (see Note 7)	3,691			2,838			325
	Loss on debt extinguishment and modification expense (see Note 7)	—			1,593			—
	Loss on derivative instrument (see Notes 2 and 9)	—			11,652			2,346
	Impairment of equity investment in privately-held company	—			3,711			—
	Decrease in pre-acquisition liability (see Note 3)	(665		)	—			—
	Decrease in fair value of earn-out contingent liability	(15		)	(300		)	—
	Other	(238		)	(142		)	(205		)
	Other loss, net	$	14,766		$	29,623		$	6,677

Income_Taxes_Tables

Income Taxes (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]
Income Tax Expense (Benefit) from Continuing Operations	Income tax expense consisted of the following (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Current:
	U.S. federal	$	23,921		$	30,452		$	23,303
	State	2,086			642			437
	Total current expense	26,007			31,094			23,740
	Deferred:
	U.S. federal	(12,621		)	(10,430		)	(8,234		)
	State	(1,046		)	(237		)	(504		)
	Total deferred benefit	(13,667		)	(10,667		)	(8,738		)
	Income tax expense, net	$	12,340		$	20,427		$	15,002
Income Tax Expense (Benefit) from Continuing Operations Differed from Amount Computed by Applying Statutory Federal Income Tax Rate	Income tax expense (benefit) differed from the amount computed by applying the statutory federal income tax rate as follows (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013			2012
	Income tax expense (benefit) at federal statutory rate of 35%	$	(8,122	)	$	15,689		$	13,135
	State income taxes, net of federal benefit	657			320			(89		)
	Non-deductible compensation	569			221			1,621
	Deductible domestic manufacturing costs	(1,080		)	(949		)	(804		)
	Non-deductible impairment of goodwill (see Note 4)	20,789			—			—
	Non-deductible loss on derivative instrument (the Warrant, see Note 9)	—			4,078			821
	Change in liabilities for uncertain tax positions	(72		)	(201		)	(75		)
	Change in valuation allowance on unrealized capital losses	(117		)	1,108			—
	Other	(284		)	161			393
	Income tax expense, net	$	12,340		$	20,427		$	15,002
Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities	The tax effect of temporary differences and net operating loss carryforwards that gave rise to the Company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities were as follows (in thousands):
		December 31,
		2014			2013
	Deferred tax assets:
	Current:
	Net operating loss carryforwards	$	19,964		$	34,167
	Accrued compensation	1,318			1,605
	Deferred revenue	2,594			2,385
	Inventory	1,462			800
	Other, net	2,149			1,903
	Total current deferred tax assets	27,487			40,860
	Non-current:
	Net operating loss carryforwards	179,671			190,974
	Tax credit carryforwards	10,370			9,259
	Depreciation and amortization	6,388			7,696
	Stock-based compensation	5,941			5,318
	Other, net	4,977			4,204
	Total non-current deferred tax assets	207,347			217,451
	Total gross deferred tax assets	234,834			258,311
	Valuation allowance	(211,865		)	(235,730		)
	Deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance	22,969			22,581
	Deferred tax liabilities:
	Current:
	Other, net	(133		)	(253		)
	Total current deferred tax liabilities	(133		)	(253		)
	Non-current:
	Depreciation and amortization	(57,158		)	(68,888		)
	Discount on Notes	(5,816		)	(6,977		)
	Other, net	—			(5		)
	Total non-current deferred tax liabilities	(62,974		)	(75,870		)
	Total gross deferred tax liabilities	(63,107		)	(76,123		)
	Net deferred tax liabilities	$	(40,138	)	$	(53,542	)
Changes in Valuation Allowance for Deferred Tax Assets	The changes in the valuation allowance for deferred tax assets are shown below (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014			2013
	Balance at beginning of year	$	235,730		$	262,353
	Net changes to deferred tax assets, subject to a valuation allowance	(23,865		)	(26,623		)
	Balance at end of year	$	211,865		$	235,730
Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefit Balances	A reconciliation of the unrecognized tax benefit balances is as follows (in thousands):
	Balance as of December 31, 2011	$	18,267
	Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	1,208
	Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	(216		)
	Lapse of statute of limitations	(171		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2012	19,088
	Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	219
	Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	(101		)
	Settlements	(562		)
	Lapse of statute of limitations	(107		)
	Balance as of December 31, 2013	18,537
	Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	126
	Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	(199		)
	Settlements	(61		)
	Lapse of statute of limitations	—
	Balance as of December 31, 2014	$	18,403

Net_Income_Per_Share_Tables

Net Income Per Share (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Summary of Dilutive Effect for Awards with Exercise Price Less Than Average Stock Price	Weighted average shares were as follows (in thousands):
		Years ended December 31,
		2014	2013	2012
	Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic	41,396	41,201	40,279
	Dilutive potential common shares	—	2,279	1,393
	Weighted average common shares outstanding, diluted	41,396	43,480	41,672
	Shares excluded	5,468	381	1,172

The_Company_and_Basis_of_Prese2

The Company and Basis of Presentation - Additional Information (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
	Segment
Number of segments	3
Monoprice, Inc. [Member]
Date of acquisition	22-Aug-13
TaxACT [Member]
Date of acquisition	31-Jan-12
Balance Financial [Member]
Date of acquisition	4-Oct-13

Summary_of_Significant_Account3

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Summary of Estimated Useful Life of Property and Equipment (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014
Computer equipment and software [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Data center servers [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Internally developed software [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	3 years
Office equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	7 years
Office furniture [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	7 years
Heavy equipment [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Useful Life	10 years
Leasehold improvements and other [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Estimated Useful Lives	Shorter of lease term or economic life

Summary_of_Significant_Account4

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended			4 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2013
	Vendor	Customer
	Customer
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Software development costs	$2,400,000	$1,200,000	$1,000,000
Equity investments	0	0		0
Loss on derivative instrument	0	11,652,000	2,346,000
Research and development expenses	8,900,000	7,300,000	6,100,000
Advertising expense	81,800,000	75,900,000	31,800,000
Prepaid advertising costs	3,600,000	800,000		800,000
Amount contributed to employee benefit plan, maximum percentage	50.00%
Amount contributed to employee benefit plan, maximum percentage of an employees salary	3.00%
Company contribution for employees	900,000	600,000	400,000
Number of vendors	2
Number of search customers	2	2
Interest rate contract (interest rate swap) [Member]
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Swap agreements outstanding	$0
Revenue [Member]
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Concentration risk percentages	55.00%	74.00%	84.00%
Accounts Receivable [Member]
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Concentration risk percentages	80.00%	80.00%
Supplier concentration risk [Member] | Inventory [Member]
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Concentration risk percentages	17.00%			19.00%
Supplier concentration risk [Member] | Accounts payable [Member]
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Concentration risk percentages	21.00%	20.00%
Minimum [Member] | Revenue [Member]
Summary Of Significant Accounting Policy [Line Items]
Concentration risk percentages	10.00%

Summary_of_Significant_Account5

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Summary of Revenue Concentration (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenues from External Customers and Long-Lived Assets [Line Items]
Revenues	$580,720	$573,980	$406,919
Operating Segments [Member] | United States [Member]
Revenues from External Customers and Long-Lived Assets [Line Items]
Revenues	556,466	558,601	402,656
Operating Segments [Member] | International [Member]
Revenues from External Customers and Long-Lived Assets [Line Items]
Revenues	$24,254	$15,379	$4,263

Business_Combinations_Addition

Business Combinations - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)

1 Months Ended

12 Months Ended

1 Months Ended

0 Months Ended

3 Months Ended

4 Months Ended

0 Months Ended

11 Months Ended

Oct. 31, 2011

Dec. 31, 2014

Dec. 31, 2013

Dec. 31, 2012

31-May-12

30-May-14

Oct. 04, 2013

Aug. 22, 2013

Dec. 31, 2013

Dec. 31, 2013

Jan. 31, 2012

Dec. 31, 2012

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Goodwill, net

$304,658,000

$348,957,000

$348,957,000

$348,957,000

Debt issuance costs

714,000

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

200,000

Gain due to adjustment of tax refund

-665,000

Revenue

580,720,000

573,980,000

406,919,000

Operating income contribution

-8,441,000

74,449,000

44,205,000

Stock Option [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

190,000

Shares purchased pursuant to ESPP [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

1,483,486

HSW [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Date of acquisition

30-May-14

Cash paid for acquisition

44,900,000

Business acquisition identifiable net assets acquired

4,500,000

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

25,400,000

Goodwill, net

15,100,000

HSW [Member] | Trade name [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

5,900,000

HSW [Member] | Content [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

18,200,000

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

10 years

HSW [Member] | Proprietary technology [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

1,300,000

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

4 years

Balance Financial [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Date of acquisition

4-Oct-13

Cash paid for acquisition

4,900,000

Business acquisition identifiable net assets acquired

1,000,000

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

800,000

Goodwill, net

3,100,000

Indemnifications related to general representations and warranties

700,000

Escrow period expire date

4-Apr-15

Monoprice, Inc. [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Date of acquisition

22-Aug-13

Cash paid for acquisition

182,909,000

Business acquisition identifiable net assets acquired

26,091,000

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

68,900,000

Goodwill, net

115,601,000

Working capital adjustment

400,000

Acquisition cost

700,000

Gain due to adjustment of tax refund

700,000

Gross contractual amount of trade accounts receivable acquired

3,200,000

Fair value of deferred revenue acquired

1,300,000

Book value of deferred revenue prior to acquisition

2,000,000

Revenue

54,300,000

Operating income contribution

5,000,000

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Business-to-consumer customer relationships [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

2 years

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Business-to-business customer relationships [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

7 years

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Personal property assets [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

6 years

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Customer relationships [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

30,900,000

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Stock Option [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

27,152

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Restricted stock units (RSUs) [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

126,259

Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Performance-based restricted stock units (PSUs) [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

243,750

TaxACT [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Date of acquisition

31-Jan-12

Cash paid for acquisition

287,500,000

Business acquisition identifiable net assets acquired

4,706,000

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

150,699,000

Goodwill, net

185,475,000

Acquisition cost

1,100,000

Debt issuance costs

2,300,000

Gross contractual amount of trade accounts receivable acquired

9,400,000

Fair value of deferred revenue acquired

300,000

Book value of deferred revenue prior to acquisition

5,100,000

Revenue

62,100,000

Operating income contribution

30,100,000

Credit facility drawn

100,000,000

TaxACT [Member] | Proprietary technology [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

29,800,000

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

4 years

TaxACT [Member] | Personal property assets [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

3 years

TaxACT [Member] | Customer relationships [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Business acquisition Identifiable net asset acquired consisting intangible assets and deferred tax

$101,400,000

Estimates lives of acquired intangible assets

8 years

TaxACT [Member] | Restricted stock units (RSUs) [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

167,000

TaxACT [Member] | Shares purchased pursuant to ESPP [Member]

Business Acquisition [Line Items]

Options, restricted stock units and performance stock units granted during the period to Monoprice employees

380,000

Business_Combinations_Summary_

Business Combinations - Summary of Assets Acquired and Liabilities Assumed are Recorded at Their Fair Values as of Acquisition Date (Detail) (USD $)	0 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Aug. 22, 2013	Jan. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill			$304,658	$348,957
Monoprice, Inc. [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Tangible assets acquired	49,714
Liabilities assumed	-23,623
Identifiable net assets acquired	26,091
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Cash paid	182,909
Less identifiable net assets acquired	-26,091
Plus deferred tax liability related to intangible assets	27,683
Fair value of intangible assets acquired	-68,900
Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill	115,601
Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Customer relationships [Member]
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Fair value of intangible assets acquired	-30,900
Monoprice, Inc. [Member] | Trade name [Member]
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Fair value of intangible assets acquired	-38,000
TaxACT [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Tangible assets acquired		22,465
Liabilities assumed		-17,759
Identifiable net assets acquired		4,706
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Cash paid		287,500
Less identifiable net assets acquired		-4,706
Plus deferred tax liability related to intangible assets		53,380
Fair value of intangible assets acquired		-150,699
Excess of purchase price over net assets acquired, allocated to goodwill		185,475
TaxACT [Member] | Customer relationships [Member]
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Fair value of intangible assets acquired		-101,400
TaxACT [Member] | Proprietary technology [Member]
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Fair value of intangible assets acquired		-29,800
TaxACT [Member] | Trade name [Member]
Fair value adjustments to intangible assets:
Fair value of intangible assets acquired		($19,499)

Business_Combinations_Pro_Form

Business Combinations - Pro Forma Financial Information of Acquisitions (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Monoprice, Inc. [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Revenues	$663,900	$525,027
Net income	25,637	22,874
TaxACT [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Revenues		427,809
Net income		$26,819

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_2

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Summary of Goodwill Activity (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, gross, beginning balance	$348,957	$230,290
Additions	15,097	118,667
Goodwill, gross, ending balance	364,054	348,957
Accumulated impairment, beginning balance	0	0
Impairments	-59,396	0
Accumulated impairment, ending balance	-59,396	0
Goodwill, net	304,658	348,957
Search and Content [Member]
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, gross, beginning balance	44,815	44,815
Additions	15,097	0
Goodwill, gross, ending balance	59,912	44,815
Accumulated impairment, beginning balance	0	0
Impairments	0	0
Accumulated impairment, ending balance	0	0
Goodwill, net	59,912	44,815
Tax Preparation [Member]
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, gross, beginning balance	188,541	185,475
Additions	0	3,066
Goodwill, gross, ending balance	188,541	188,541
Accumulated impairment, beginning balance	0	0
Impairments	0	0
Accumulated impairment, ending balance	0	0
Goodwill, net	188,541	188,541
E-Commerce [Member]
Goodwill [Roll Forward]
Goodwill, gross, beginning balance	115,601	0
Additions	0	115,601
Goodwill, gross, ending balance	115,601	115,601
Accumulated impairment, beginning balance	0	0
Impairments	-59,396	0
Accumulated impairment, ending balance	-59,396	0
Goodwill, net	$56,205	$115,601

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_3

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Intangible Assets Other Than Goodwill (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	$202,172	$182,740
Definite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	-93,452	-62,358
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	108,720	120,382
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	60,199	57,682
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	0	0
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, net	60,199	57,682
Intangible assets, Gross carrying amount, Total	262,371	240,422
Accumulated amortization, Total	-93,452	-62,358
Intangible assets, net, Total	168,919	178,064
Trade names [Member]
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	60,199	57,499
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	0	0
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, net	60,199	57,499
Other [Member]
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	0	183
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	0	0
Indefinite-lived intangible assets, net	0	183
Customer relationships [Member]
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	132,500	132,500
Definite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	-50,075	-27,740
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	82,425	104,760
Technology [Member]
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	44,805	43,535
Definite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	-35,649	-27,951
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	9,156	15,584
Content [Member]
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	18,200	0
Definite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	-1,061	0
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	17,139	0
Other [Member]
Schedule Of Finite And Indefinite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets, Gross carrying amount	6,667	6,705
Definite-lived intangible assets, Accumulated amortization	-6,667	-6,667
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	$0	$38

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_4

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Summary of Amortized Expense (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Amortization expense	$31,094	$23,789	$19,199
Services cost of revenue [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Amortization expense	7,513	7,668	7,580
Amortization of intangible assets [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Amortization expense	$23,581	$16,121	$11,619

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_5

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Information About Expected Amortization of Definite-Lived Intangible Assets (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
2015	$29,330
2016	17,827
2017	17,155
2018	16,970
2019	16,838
Thereafter	10,600
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	108,720	120,382
Services cost of revenue [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
2015	7,450
2016	621
2017	0
2018	0
2019	0
Thereafter	0
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	8,071
Amortization of intangible assets [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
2015	21,880
2016	17,206
2017	17,155
2018	16,970
2019	16,838
Thereafter	10,600
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	$100,649

Goodwill_and_Other_Intangible_6

Goodwill and Other Intangible Assets - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Weighted average amortization period for definite-lived intangible assets	64 months
Customer relationships [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Weighted average amortization period for definite-lived intangible assets	59 months
Technology [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Weighted average amortization period for definite-lived intangible assets	16 months
Content [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Weighted average amortization period for definite-lived intangible assets	113 months
Monoprice, Inc. [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Carrying value of trade name	34.8
Trade name [Member] | Monoprice, Inc. [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Impairment charge	3.2

Fair_Value_Measurements_Schedu

Fair Value Measurements - Schedule of Fair Value Hierarchy of Financial Assets and Liabilities Carried at Fair Value and Measured on Recurring Basis (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	$251,620
Available-for-sale equity securities	3,234
Available-for-sale Investments	254,854	203,480
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	14,486	55,504
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	251,620	203,480
Available-for-sale equity securities	3,234
Available-for-sale Investments	254,854
Total assets	269,340	258,984
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | U.S. government securities [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents		6,400
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	100,818	58,114
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Money market and other funds [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	8,490	9,391
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | International government securities [Member]
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	6,560
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Commercial paper [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents		17,999
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	24,589	14,496
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Time deposits [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	1,242	499
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	30,759	9,880
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Corporate bonds [Member]
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	1,528
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Taxable municipal bonds [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	4,754	21,215
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	87,366	120,990
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Quoted prices in active markets using identical assets (Level 1) [Member]
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale equity securities	3,234
Available-for-sale Investments	3,234
Total assets	3,234
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	14,486	55,504
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	251,620	203,480
Available-for-sale equity securities	0
Available-for-sale Investments	251,620
Total assets	266,106	258,984
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | U.S. government securities [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents		6,400
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	100,818	58,114
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | Money market and other funds [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	8,490	9,391
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | International government securities [Member]
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	6,560
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | Commercial paper [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents		17,999
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	24,589	14,496
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | Time deposits [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	1,242	499
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	30,759	9,880
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | Corporate bonds [Member]
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	1,528
Fair value measurements, Recurring [Member] | Significant other observable inputs (Level 2) [Member] | Taxable municipal bonds [Member]
Cash equivalents:
Total cash equivalents	4,754	21,215
Debt securities:
Available-for-sale debt securities	$87,366	$120,990

Fair_Value_Measurements_Invest

Fair Value Measurements - Investments Classified as Available-for-Sale (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Available-for-sale Debt Securities, Amortized cost	$251,673
Available-for-sale Debt Securities, Gross unrealized gains	16
Available-for-sale Debt Securities, Gross unrealized losses	-69
Available-for-sale debt securities	251,620
Available-for-sale Equity Securities, Amortized cost	4,312
Available-for-sale Equity Securities, Gross unrealized gains	0
Available-for-sale Equity Securities, Gross unrealized losses	-1,078
Available-for-sale equity securities	3,234
Available-for-sale Investments, Amortized cost	255,985	203,479
Available-for-sale Investments, Gross unrealized gains	16	24
Available-for-sale Investments, Gross unrealized losses	-1,147	-23
Available-for-sale Investments	$254,854	$203,480

Balance_Sheet_Components_Prepa

Balance Sheet Components - Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Prepaid expenses and other current assets, net
Prepaid expenses	$8,676	$4,370
Other current assets, net	4,801	5,404
Total prepaid expenses and other current assets, net	$13,477	$9,774

Balance_Sheet_Components_Prope

Balance Sheet Components - Property and Equipment (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	$36,319	$33,090
Accumulated depreciation	-21,279	-17,985
Property and equipment	15,040	15,105
Capital projects in progress	902	1,003
Total property and equipment, net	15,942	16,108
Computer equipment and data center [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	10,392	10,792
Purchased software [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	6,721	6,153
Internally-developed software [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	9,045	7,166
Office equipment [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	488	421
Office furniture [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	2,467	2,061
Heavy equipment [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	3,084	2,944
Leasehold improvements and other [Member]
Property and equipment
Property and equipment, Gross	$4,122	$3,553

Balance_Sheet_Components_Addit

Balance Sheet Components - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Total depreciation expense	$5,600,000	$4,500,000	$3,800,000
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	15,942,000	16,108,000
Depreciation	4,352,000	2,739,000	2,119,000
Internally developed software [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Definite-lived intangible assets, net	4,100,000	3,200,000
Depreciation	$1,600,000	$900,000	$900,000

Balance_Sheet_Components_Accru

Balance Sheet Components - Accrued Expenses and Other Current Liabilities (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Balance Sheet Related Disclosures [Abstract]
Salaries and related expenses	$5,463	$7,708
Accrued content costs	4,077	4,132
Accrued advertising	3,292	6,155
Accrued interest on Notes (see Note 7)	2,138	2,138
Tax refunds payable to sellers (see Note 3)	792	6,814
Other	5,743	4,162
Total accrued expenses and other current liabilities	$21,505	$31,109

Debt_Schedule_of_Companys_Debt

Debt - Schedule of Company's Debt (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Nov. 22, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount	$295,190	$322,634
Unamortized discount	-16,264	-19,955
Net carrying value	278,926	302,679
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount	42,000	50,000	50,000
Unamortized discount	-191	-288
Net carrying value	41,809	49,712
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount	51,940	71,384
Unamortized discount	0	0
Net carrying value	51,940	71,384
Convertible senior notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount	201,250	201,250
Unamortized discount	-16,073	-19,667
Net carrying value	$185,177	$181,583

Debt_Monoprice_2013_Credit_Fac

Debt - Monoprice 2013 Credit Facility - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Nov. 22, 2013
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility initially borrowed	$295,190,000	$322,634,000
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Agreement date	22-Nov-13
Credit facility			70,000,000
Final maturity date of credit facility	22-Nov-18
Credit facility initially borrowed	42,000,000	50,000,000	50,000,000
Principal repayments	8,000,000
Periodic payment, principal	1,000,000
Periodic payment, principle multiple	1,000,000
Credit facility payment terms	Monoprice has the right to permanently reduce, without premium or penalty, the entire credit facility at any time or portions of the credit facility in an aggregate principal amount not less than $1.0 million or any whole multiple of $1.0 million in excess thereof (for swingline loans, the aggregate principal amount is not less than $0.1 million and any whole multiple of $0.1 million in excess thereof).
Credit facility, interest rate description	The interest rate on amounts borrowed under the credit facility is variable, based upon, at the election of Monoprice, either LIBOR plus a margin of between 2.75% and 3.25%, payable as of the end of each interest period, or a variable rate plus a margin of between 1.75% and 2.25%, payable quarterly in arrears. In each case, the applicable margin within the range depends upon Monoprice’s ratio of leverage to EBITDA over the previous four quarters.
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Minimum [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate	1.75%
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Minimum [Member] | LIBOR Rate [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate	2.75%
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Maximum [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate	2.25%
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Maximum [Member] | LIBOR Rate [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate	3.25%
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Revolving credit [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility			30,000,000
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Letter of credit [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility			5,000,000
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Swingline loans [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility			5,000,000
Periodic payment, principal	100,000
Monoprice 2013 credit facility [Member] | Term loan [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility			$40,000,000

Debt_TaxAct_2013_Credit_Facili

Debt - TaxAct 2013 Credit Facility - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	1 Months Ended		12 Months Ended		1 Months Ended
	Aug. 31, 2013	Apr. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2012	Oct. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013	Aug. 30, 2013	Aug. 30, 2014
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility borrowed			295,190,000			$322,634,000
TaxACT 2012 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility borrowed				100,000,000
Principal repayments	64,500,000	10,000,000		25,500,000
Derivative maturity date			10-Sep-13
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Agreement date			30-Aug-13
Credit facility borrowed			51,940,000			71,384,000
Principal repayments			19,400,000
Final maturity date of credit facility			30-Aug-18
Increase in amount borrowed					6,000,000
Periodic payment, principal			3,000,000
Periodic payment, principle multiple			1,000,000
Credit facility payment terms			In each case, the applicable margin within the range depends upon TaxACT’s ratio of leverage to EBITDA over the previous four quarters. The credit facility includes financial and operating covenants with respect to certain ratios, including leverage ratio and fixed charge coverage ratio, which are defined further in the agreement. TaxACT has the right to permanently reduce, without premium or penalty, the entire credit facility at any time or portions of the credit facility in an aggregate principal amount not less than $3.0 million or any whole multiple of $1.0 million in excess thereof.
Credit facility, interest rate description			The interest rate on amounts borrowed under the credit facility is variable, based upon, at the election of TaxACT, either LIBOR plus a margin of between 1.75% and 2.5%, or a Base Rate plus a margin of between 0.75% and 1.5%, and payable as of the end of each interest period.
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | Revolving Debt [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility							100,000,000
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | Revolving Debt [Member] | August 30, 2014 [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility								90,000,000
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | Revolving Debt [Member] | August 30, 2015 [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility			80,000,000
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | Revolving Debt [Member] | August 30, 2016 [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility			70,000,000
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | Swingline loans [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility							10,000,000
TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | Letter of credit [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility							5,000,000
TaxACT 2013 credit facility- Portion used to pay off 2012 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility borrowed							$65,400,000
Minimum [Member] | TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate			0.75%
Minimum [Member] | TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | LIBOR Rate [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate			1.75%
Maximum [Member] | TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate			1.50%
Maximum [Member] | TaxACT 2013 credit facility [Member] | LIBOR Rate [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Credit facility, variable interest rate			2.50%

Debt_Analysis_of_Extinguishmen

Debt - Analysis of Extinguishment or Modification of Debt (Detail) (USD $)	0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Aug. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Aug. 30, 2013
Extinguishment of Debt Disclosures [Abstract]
Refinancing fees paid to creditors, including arrangement fee, classified as extinguishment					$567,000
Deferred financing costs on extinguished debt	726,000
Debt discount on extinguished debt					300,000
Loss on debt extinguishment and modification expense	1,593,000	0	1,593,000	0
Amount to be amortized over the term of the new credit facility					$700,000

Debt_Convertible_Senior_Notes_

Debt - Convertible Senior Notes - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended			0 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Mar. 15, 2013
				covenant
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount	$295,190,000	$322,634,000
Convertible senior notes, proceeds from issuance, amount	0	194,818,000	0
Debt issuance costs		714,000
Debt instrument, earliest date of conversion	31-Jul-13
Debt instrument, terms of redemption	Beginning April 6, 2016, the Company may, at its option, redeem for cash all or part of the Notes plus accrued and unpaid interest. If the Company undergoes a fundamental change (as described in the Indenture), holders may require the Company to repurchase for cash all or part of their Notes in principal amounts of $1,000 or an integral multiple thereof. The fundamental change repurchase price will be equal to 100% of the principal amount of the Notes to be repurchased, plus accrued and unpaid interest.
Debt instrument, conversion terms	Beginning July 1, 2013 and prior to the close of business on September 28, 2018, holders may convert all or a portion of the Notes at their option, in multiples of $1,000 principal amount, under the following circumstances: During any fiscal quarter commencing July 1, 2013, if the last reported sale price of the Company’s common stock for at least 20 trading days during a period of 30 consecutive trading days ending on the last trading day of the immediately preceding calendar quarter is greater than or equal to 130% of the conversion price on each applicable trading day. As of December 31, 2014, the Notes were not convertible. As of December 31, 2013, the Notes were convertible. During the five business day period after any five consecutive trading day period (the “measurement period”) in which the trading price per $1,000 principal amount of the Notes for each trading day of the measurement period was less than 98% of the product of the last reported sales price of the Company’s common stock and the conversion rate on each trading day. If the Company calls any or all of the Notes for redemption. Upon the occurrence of specified corporate events, including a merger or a sale of all or substantially all of the Company’s assets.
Scenario 1 [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Company's common stock for at least trading days	20
Consecutive trading days	30 days
Scenario 1 [Member] | Minimum [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Conversion price on each applicable trading day	130.00%
Scenario 2 [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Consecutive trading days	5 days
Conversion price on each applicable trading day	98.00%
Debt instrument convertible business days	5 days
2019 Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount				201,250,000
Convertible senior notes, additional issued against over-allotment, principal amount				26,250,000
Convertible senior notes, maturity date	1-Apr-19
Convertible senior notes, stated interest rate	4.25%
Convertible senior notes, date of first required payment	1-Oct-13
Convertible senior notes, proceeds from issuance, amount				194,800,000
Number of operating covenants				0
Convertible notes, amount, in multiples, that may be converted	1,000
Debt instrument, latest date of conversion	28-Mar-19
Convertible senior notes, conversion ratio	0.0461723
Convertible senior notes, conversion rate	$21.66
Debt instrument, start date of redemption period	6-Apr-16
Convertible senior notes, repurchase price due to fundamental change as percentage of principal amount	100.00%
Convertible senior notes, adjustments to additional paid in capital, debt discount	6.50%
Debt discount recorded in additional paid in capital				22,300,000
Debt issuance costs				6,400,000
Debt issuance cost incurred				5,700,000
2019 Notes [Member] | Quoted prices in active markets using identical assets (Level 1) [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Fair value of debt instrument	$190,600,000

Debt_Schedule_of_Total_Interes

Debt - Schedule of Total Interest Expense on Convertible Senior Notes (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Amortization of debt issuance costs (Non-cash)	$1,143	$1,108	$820
Accretion of debt discount (Non-cash)	3,691	2,838	325
2019 Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Contractual interest expense (Cash)	8,553	6,795
Amortization of debt issuance costs (Non-cash)	920	684
Accretion of debt discount (Non-cash)	3,594	2,674
Total interest expense	$13,067	$10,153
Effective interest rate of the liability component	7.32%	7.32%

Commitments_and_Contingencies_1

Commitments and Contingencies - Summary of Contractual Commitments (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Operating lease commitments, 2015	$3,154
Operating lease commitments, 2016	3,213
Operating lease commitments, 2017	2,916
Operating lease commitments, 2018	2,455
Operating lease commitments, 2019	2,502
Operating lease commitments, Thereafter	3,105
Operating lease commitments, Total	17,345
Purchase commitments, 2015	437
Purchase commitments, 2016	92
Purchase commitments, 2017	62
Purchase commitments, 2018	0
Purchase commitments, 2019	0
Purchase commitments, Thereafter	0
Purchase commitments, Total	591
Debt commitments, 2015	8,000
Debt commitments, 2016	8,000
Debt commitments, 2017	8,000
Debt commitments, 2018	69,940
Debt commitments, 2019	201,250
Debt commitments, Thereafter	0
Debt commitments, Total	295,190
Interest on Notes, 2015	8,553
Interest on Notes, 2016	8,553
Interest on Notes, 2017	8,553
Interest on Notes, 2018	8,553
Interest on Notes, 2019	4,277
Interest on Notes, Thereafter	0
Interest on Notes, Total	38,489
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, 2015	735
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, 2016	0
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, 2017	0
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, 2018	0
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, 2019	0
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, Thereafter	0
Escrow for acquisition-related indemnifications, Total	735
Total contractual commitments, 2015	20,879
Total contractual commitments, 2016	19,858
Total contractual commitments, 2017	19,531
Total contractual commitments, 2018	80,948
Total contractual commitments, 2019	208,029
Total contractual commitments, Thereafter	3,105
Total contractual commitments	$352,350

Commitments_and_Contingencies_2

Commitments and Contingencies - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Rent expenses under operating leases	$3	$2	$1.80
Cash as collateral for property lease-related banking arrangements under standby letter of credit	$0.90

Stockholders_Equity_Additional

Stockholders' Equity - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Nov. 21, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	31-May-14	Aug. 23, 2011
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Class of Warrant or Right, Number of Securities Called by Warrants or Rights	1,000,000					1,000,000
Warrant exercise price						$9.62
Warrant expiry date		23-Aug-14
Warrant extended expiry period		August 23, 2017
Reclassification of equity award to liability award				$6,218,000
Loss on derivative instrument		0	11,652,000	2,346,000
Total expense of fair value for the warrant				6,600,000
Warrant exercise price	9,600,000		9,620,000
Common stock authorized for issuance under the ESPP		7,671,479
Common stock available for issuance for issuance under the ESPP		2,574,232
Repurchase of available common stock, authorized amount					85,000,000
Shares repurchased under stock repurchase program		2,300,000	400,000
Stock repurchased value exclusive of purchase and administrative costs		38,600,000	10,000,000
Stock repurchase, average price per share		$16.85	$23.95
Stock repurchase program remaining authorized repurchase amount		36,452,000
1996 Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Awards vesting rights under 1996 Plan		The Company granted options and RSUs during 2014, 2013, and 2012 under the Company’s Restated 1996 Flexible Stock Incentive Plan. Options and RSUs generally vest over a period of three years, with one-third vesting one year from the date of grant and the remainder vesting ratably thereafter on a semi-annual basis, and expire seven years from the date of grant. There are a few exceptions to this vesting schedule, which provide for vesting at different rates or based on achievement of performance or market targets.
Percentage of awards vested within one year from grant date		33.30%
1998 [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Employees contribution percentage		15.00%
Upper limit of common stock purchase under the ESPP		85.00%
Common stock authorized for issuance under the ESPP		1,360,000
Common stock available for issuance for issuance under the ESPP		300,000
Description of common stock purchase price under ESPP		The purchase price is the lesser of 85% of the fair market value of common stock on the first day or on the last day of an offering period.
Additional-paid-in capital [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Reclassification of equity award to liability award				6,218,000
Warrant exercise price			9,620,000
Derivative instrument of liability balance	$20,200,000
Options and restricted stock units specified years [Member] | 1996 Plan [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Typically scheduled vesting period of 1996 Plan		3 years
Vesting period of award from grant date		1 year
Options and RSUs remainder vesting ratably thereafter description		semi-annual basis
Vesting rights expire year from the date of grant under 1996 Plan		7 years

Stockholders_Equity_Summary_of

Stockholders' Equity - Summary of Components of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Unrealized gain (loss) on investments, Beginning balance	$0	($10)	$32
Unrealized gain (loss) on investments, Other comprehensive income (loss)	-1,113	10	-42
Unrealized gain (loss) on investments, Ending balance	-1,113	0	-10
Unrealized gain (loss) on derivative instrument, Beginning balance	0	-266	0
Unrealized gain (loss) on derivative instrument, Other comprehensive income (loss)	0	266	-266
Unrealized gain (loss) on derivative instrument, Ending balance	0	0	-266
Accumulated other comprehensive income	-1,113	0	-276	32
Other comprehensive income (loss)	-1,113	276	-308
Accumulated other comprehensive income [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Other comprehensive income (loss)	($1,113)	$276	($308)

StockBased_Compensation_Summar

Stock-Based Compensation - Summary of Stock Options, RSUs and MSUs (Detail)	Dec. 31, 2014
Disclosure of Compensation Related Costs, Share-based Payments [Abstract]
Number of shares authorized for awards	7,671,479
Options, RSUs, and MSUs outstanding	5,097,247
Options, RSUs, and MSUs expected to vest	4,701,050
Options, RSUs, and MSUs available for grant	2,574,232

StockBased_Compensation_Stock_

Stock-Based Compensation - Stock Incentive Plans Activity (Detail) (USD $)	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Share data, unless otherwise specified	Oct. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2014
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding [Roll Forward]
Options, Granted	200,000
Shares purchased pursuant to ESPP [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding [Roll Forward]
Options, Outstanding, Beginning balance		3,786,561
Options, Granted		1,483,486
Options, Forfeited		179,678
Options, Expired		-72,592
Options, Exercised		-673,952
Options, Outstanding, Ending balance		4,343,825
Options, Exercisable, December 31, 2014		2,529,778
Options, Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		4,062,243
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Outstanding, Weighted Average Exercise Price [Abstract]
Weighted average exercise price, Beginning balance		$11.57
Weighted average exercise price, Granted		$19.95
Weighted average exercise price, Forfeited		$19.87
Weighted average exercise price, Expired		$19.15
Weighted average exercise price, Exercised		$9.96
Weighted average exercise price, Ending balance		$14.21
Weighted average exercise price, Exercisable, December 31, 2014		$10.85
Weighted average exercise price, Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		$13.93
Intrinsic value, Outstanding		$9,131
Intrinsic value, Exercisable, December 31, 2014		8,985
Intrinsic value, Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		9,115
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years), Outstanding		4 years 7 months 6 days
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years), Exercisable, December 31, 2014		3 years 7 months 6 days
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years), Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		4 years 6 months
Restricted stock units (RSUs) [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Non-Option Equity Instruments, Outstanding [Roll Forward]
Stock units, Outstanding, Beginning balance		1,078,481
Stock units, Granted		536,964
Stock units, Forfeited		-430,782
Stock units, Vested		-431,241
Stock units, Outstanding, Ending balance		753,422
Stock units, Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		638,807
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Options, Nonvested, Weighted Average Grant Date Fair Value [Abstract]
Weighted average grant date fair value, Outstanding, Beginning balance		$17.07
Weighted average grant date fair value, Granted		$18.44
Weighted average grant date fair value, Forfeited		$19.23
Weighted average grant date fair value, Vested		$15.21
Weighted average grant date fair value, Outstanding, Ending balance		$17.88
Weighted average grant date fair value, Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		$17.88
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award, Equity Instruments Other than Options, Aggregate Intrinsic Value [Abstract]
Intrinsic value, Outstanding		10,435
Intrinsic value, Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		$8,847
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years), Outstanding		1 year 1 month 6 days
Weighted average remaining contractual term (in years), Expected to vest after December 31, 2014		1 year

StockBased_Compensation_Schedu

Stock-Based Compensation - Schedule of Supplemental Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Stock Option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Weighted average grant date fair value per share or unit granted	$5.67	$5.05	$3.84
Total intrinsic value of options exercised or units vested	$3,600	$2,626	$3,886
Total fair value of options or units vested	4,000	2,410	2,288
Restricted stock units (RSUs) [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Weighted average grant date fair value per share or unit granted	$18.44	$18.86	$13.19
Total intrinsic value of options exercised or units vested	8,315	7,986	4,663
Total fair value of options or units vested	$6,560	$5,163	$3,049

StockBased_Compensation_StockB

Stock-Based Compensation - Stock-Based Compensation Expense (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	$11,884	$11,527	$13,223
Excluded and capitalized as part of internal-use software	106	115	121
Cost of revenues [Member]
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	477	662	558
Engineering and technology [Member]
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	1,569	1,351	1,180
Sales and marketing [Member]
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	2,047	2,335	1,909
General and administrative [Member]
Employee Service Share-based Compensation, Allocation of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]
Share-based compensation expense	$7,791	$7,179	$9,576

StockBased_Compensation_Additi

Stock-Based Compensation - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	1 Months Ended	12 Months Ended			1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended
	Oct. 31, 2011	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	31-May-12	Mar. 31, 2012
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Options, Granted	200,000
Performance base stock option, compensation expense recognized		$11,884,000	$11,527,000	$13,223,000
Stock-based compensation expense				900,000
Stock Option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Options, Granted					190,000
Warrant [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense						4,300,000
Awards vested [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Stock-based compensation expense		$300,000	$500,000

StockBased_Compensation_Stock_1

Stock-Based Compensation - Stock Option Grants and Warrant (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Stock Option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expected dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Expected life	3 years 0 months 0 days	3 years 2 months 12 days	3 years 3 months 18 days
Non-employee stock option grant [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate	0.00%	0.00%	0.26%
Expected dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Warrant [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate	0.00%	0.00%	0.95%
Expected dividend yield	0.00%	0.00%	0.00%
Expected volatility	0.00%	0.00%	46.00%
Expected life			5 years 7 months 6 days
Minimum [Member] | Stock Option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate	0.11%	0.25%	0.26%
Expected volatility	35.00%	40.00%	40.00%
Minimum [Member] | Non-employee stock option grant [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expected volatility		0.00%	38.00%
Expected life			1 year 7 months 6 days
Maximum [Member] | Stock Option [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Risk-free interest rate	1.31%	1.06%	1.57%
Expected volatility	43.00%	46.00%	48.00%
Maximum [Member] | Non-employee stock option grant [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Expected volatility		0.00%	41.00%
Expected life			2 years 2 months 12 days

StockBased_Compensation_Unreco

Stock-Based Compensation - Unrecognized Stock-Based Compensation Expense (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Total unrecognized stock-based compensation expense	$9,355
Weighted average period to unrecognized stock based compensation expense	1 year 4 months 24 days
Shares purchased pursuant to ESPP [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Total unrecognized stock-based compensation expense	4,058
Weighted average period to unrecognized stock based compensation expense	1 year 6 months
Restricted stock units (RSUs) [Member]
Share-based Compensation Arrangement by Share-based Payment Award [Line Items]
Total unrecognized stock-based compensation expense	$5,297
Weighted average period to unrecognized stock based compensation expense	1 year 3 months 18 days

Segment_Information_Informatio

Segment Information - Information on Reportable Segments for Reconciliation to Consolidated Net Income (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Revenues
Total revenues	$580,720	$573,980	$406,919
Operating income (loss):
Total operating income	-8,441	74,449	44,205
Other loss, net	-14,766	-29,623	-6,677
Income tax expense	-12,340	-20,427	-15,002
Net income (loss)	-35,547	24,399	22,526
Operating Segments [Member] | Search and Content [Member]
Revenues
Total revenues	326,270	428,464	344,814
Operating income (loss):
Total operating income	55,812	82,504	62,185
Operating Segments [Member] | Tax Preparation [Member]
Revenues
Total revenues	103,719	91,213	62,105
Operating income (loss):
Total operating income	49,696	40,599	30,052
Operating Segments [Member] | E-Commerce [Member]
Revenues
Total revenues	150,731	54,303	0
Operating income (loss):
Total operating income	12,043	4,967	0
Operating Segments [Member] | Corporate-level activity [Member]
Operating income (loss):
Total operating income	($125,992)	($53,621)	($48,032)

Other_Loss_Net_Schedule_of_Oth

Other Loss, Net - Schedule of Other Loss Net (Detail) (USD $)	0 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Aug. 30, 2013	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Other Income and Expenses [Abstract]
Interest income		($352)	($300)	($131)
Interest expense (see Note 7)		11,202	9,463	3,522
Amortization of debt issuance costs (see Note 7)		1,143	1,108	820
Accretion of debt discounts (see Note 7)		3,691	2,838	325
Loss on debt extinguishment and modification expense	1,593	0	1,593	0
Loss on derivative instrument (see Notes 2 and 9)		0	11,652	2,346
Impairment of equity investment in privately-held company		0	3,711	0
Decrease in pre-acquisition liability (see Note 3)		-665
Decrease in fair value of earn-out contingent liability		-15	-300	0
Other		-238	-142	-205
Other loss, net		$14,766	$29,623	$6,677

Other_Loss_Net_Additional_Info

Other Loss, Net - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Other Income and Expenses [Abstract]
Written down value of carrying value of investment	$0	$3,711,000	$0
Carrying value	$0

Income_Taxes_Income_Tax_Expens

Income Taxes - Income Tax Expense (Benefit) from Continuing Operations (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Current:
U.S. federal	$23,921	$30,452	$23,303
State	2,086	642	437
Total current expense	26,007	31,094	23,740
Deferred:
U.S. federal	-12,621	-10,430	-8,234
State	-1,046	-237	-504
Total deferred benefit	-13,667	-10,667	-8,738
Income tax expense, net	$12,340	$20,427	$15,002

Income_Taxes_Income_Tax_Expens1

Income Taxes - Income Tax Expense (Benefit) from Continuing Operations Differed from Amount Computed by Applying Statutory Federal Income Tax Rate (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, Amount [Abstract]
Income tax expense (benefit) at federal statutory rate of 35%	($8,122)	$15,689	$13,135
State income taxes, net of federal benefit	657	320	-89
Non-deductible compensation	569	221	1,621
Deductible domestic production costs	-1,080	-949	-804
Non-deductible impairment of goodwill (see Note 4)	20,789	0	0
Non-deductible loss on derivative instrument (the Warrant, see Note 9)	0	4,078	821
Change in liabilities for uncertain tax positions	-72	-201	-75
Change in valuation allowance on unrealized capital losses	-117	1,108	0
Other	-284	161	393
Income tax expense, net	$12,340	$20,427	$15,002

Income_Taxes_Income_Tax_Expens2

Income Taxes - Income Tax Expense (Benefit) from Continuing Operations Differed from Amount Computed by Applying Statutory Federal Income Tax Rate (Additional Information) (Detail)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Effective Income Tax Rate Reconciliation, Amount [Abstract]
US Federal Statutory Tax Rate	35.00%	35.00%	35.00%

Income_Taxes_Deferred_Tax_Asse

Income Taxes - Deferred Tax Assets and Liabilities (Detail) (USD $)	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Current:
Net operating loss carryforwards	$19,964	$34,167
Accrued compensation	1,318	1,605
Deferred revenue	2,594	2,385
Inventory	1,462	800
Other, net	2,149	1,903
Total current deferred tax assets	27,487	40,860
Non-current:
Net operating loss carryforwards	179,671	190,974
Tax credit carryforwards	10,370	9,259
Depreciation and amortization	6,388	7,696
Stock-based compensation	5,941	5,318
Other, net	4,977	4,204
Total non-current deferred tax assets	207,347	217,451
Total gross deferred tax assets	234,834	258,311
Valuation allowance	-211,865	-235,730	-262,353
Deferred tax assets, net of valuation allowance	22,969	22,581
Current:
Other, net	-133	-253
Total current deferred tax liabilities	-133	-253
Non-current:
Depreciation and amortization	-57,158	-68,888
Discount on Notes	-5,816	-6,977
Other, net	0	-5
Total non-current deferred tax liabilities	-62,974	-75,870
Total gross deferred tax liabilities	-63,107	-76,123
Net deferred tax liabilities	($40,138)	($53,542)

Income_Taxes_Changes_in_Valuat

Income Taxes - Changes in Valuation Allowance for Deferred Tax Assets (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Deferred Tax Assets, Net of Valuation Allowance, Classification [Abstract]
Balance at beginning of year	$235,730	$262,353
Net changes to deferred tax assets, subject to a valuation allowance	-23,865	-26,623
Balance at end of year	$211,865	$235,730

Income_Taxes_Additional_Inform

Income Taxes - Additional Information (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Valuation Allowance [Line Items]
Deferred tax assets, valuation allowance, increase	$300,000	$1,100,000
Deferred tax assets, valuation allowance, decrease	-24,100,000	-27,700,000
Federal net operating loss carryforwards for income tax purposes	570,400,000
State net operating loss carryforwards for income tax purposes	24,500,000
Unrecognized tax benefits impacting effective tax rate	500,000	600,000
Deferred tax asset subject to valuation allowance	17,900,000
Significant adjustments	0
Interest and penalties accrued	300,000	300,000
Equity-based deferred tax assets [Member]
Valuation Allowance [Line Items]
Deferred tax assets, valuation allowance	209,000,000
Minimum [Member]
Valuation Allowance [Line Items]
Federal net operating loss carryforward expiration period	2020
Maximum [Member]
Valuation Allowance [Line Items]
Federal net operating loss carryforward expiration period	2031
Reversal of uncertain tax position	$100,000	$100,000	$100,000

Income_Taxes_Reconciliation_of

Income Taxes - Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefit Balances (Detail) (USD $)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Reconciliation of Unrecognized Tax Benefits, Excluding Amounts Pertaining to Examined Tax Returns [Roll Forward]
Unrecognized tax benefits, Beginning Balance	$18,537	$19,088	$18,267
Gross increases for tax positions of prior years	126	219	1,208
Gross decreases for tax positions of prior years	-199	-101	-216
Settlements	-61	-562
Lapse of statute of limitations	0	-107	-171
Unrecognized tax benefits, Ending Balance	$18,403	$18,537	$19,088

Net_Income_Per_Share_Summary_o

Net Income Per Share - Summary of Dilutive Effect for Awards with Exercise Price Less Than Average Stock Price (Detail)	12 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Weighted average common shares outstanding, basic	41,396	41,201	40,279
Dilutive potential common shares	0	2,279	1,393
Weighted average common shares outstanding, diluted	41,396	43,480	41,672
Shares excluded	5,468	381	1,172

Net_Income_Per_Share_Additiona

Net Income Per Share - Additional Information (Detail)	1 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Nov. 21, 2013
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Amount of share issued due to exercising warrant	1