Leaf 10-Q 12 May 14 2014 Q1 Quarterly report Financial data

Document_and_Entity_Informatio

Document and Entity Information	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014	5-May-14
Entity Information [Line Items]	'	'
Entity Registrant Name	'DEMAND MEDIA INC.	'
Entity Central Index Key	'0001365038	'
Current Fiscal Year End Date	'--12-31	'
Entity Filer Category	'Accelerated Filer	'
Document Type	'10-Q	'
Document Period End Date	31-Mar-14	'
Document Fiscal Year Focus	'2014	'
Document Fiscal Period Focus	'Q1	'
Trading Symbol	'DMD	'
Amendment Flag	'false	'
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding	'	91,098,812

Condensed_Consolidated_Balance

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Current assets	'	'
Cash and cash equivalents	$153,963	$153,511
Accounts receivable, net	31,977	33,301
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	8,598	7,826
Deferred registration costs	71,665	66,273
Total current assets	266,203	260,911
Deferred registration costs, less current portion	13,547	12,514
Property and equipment, net	39,490	42,193
Intangible assets, net	83,156	88,766
Goodwill	347,382	347,382
Other assets	22,800	25,322
Total assets	772,578	777,088
Current liabilities	'	'
Accounts payable	12,321	12,814
Accrued expenses and other current liabilities	31,654	34,679
Deferred tax liabilities	22,431	22,415
Current portion of long-term debt	15,000	15,000
Deferred revenue	91,570	84,955
Total current liabilities	172,976	169,863
Deferred revenue, less current portion	18,205	16,929
Other liabilities	14,416	13,041
Long-term debt	77,500	81,250
Commitments and contingencies (Note 8)	'	'
Stockholders’ equity	'	'
Common Stock, $0.0001 par value. Authorized 500,000 shares; 95,063 issued and 91,057 shares outstanding at March 31, 2014 and 94,713 issued and 90,707 shares outstanding at December 31, 2013	11	11
Additional paid-in capital	616,044	611,028
Accumulated other comprehensive income	-82	502
Treasury stock at cost, 4,006 at March 31, 2014 and December 31, 2013, respectively	-30,767	-30,767
Accumulated deficit	-95,725	-84,769
Total stockholders’ equity	489,481	496,005
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$772,578	$777,088

Condensed_Consolidated_Balance1

Condensed Consolidated Balance Sheets (Parenthetical) (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified
Common Stock, Par or Stated Value (USD per share)	$0.00	$0.00
Common Stock, Shares Authorized	500,000	500,000
Common Stock, Shares, Issued	95,063	94,713
Common Stock, Shares, Outstanding	91,057	90,707
Treasury Stock, Shares	4,006	4,006

Condensed_Consolidated_Stateme

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Operations (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Service revenue	$82,960	$100,620
Product revenue	6,792	'
Total revenue	89,752	100,620
Operating expenses:	'	'
Service costs (exclusive of amortization of intangible assets shown separately below)	49,137	48,177
Product costs	4,955	'
Sales and marketing	8,931	14,083
Product development	11,272	11,160
General and administrative	17,715	16,375
Amortization of intangible assets	11,629	9,559
Total operating expenses	103,639	99,354
Income (loss) from operations	-13,887	1,266
Interest income (expense), net	-765	-146
Other income (expense), net	1,304	-78
Gain on other assets, net	4,860	'
Income (loss) before income taxes	-8,488	1,042
Income tax expense	-2,468	-373
Net income (loss)	($10,956)	$669
Net income (loss) per share - basic	($0.12)	$0.01
Net income (loss) per share - diluted	($0.12)	$0.01
Weighted average number of shares - basic	90,854	86,618
Weighted average number of shares - diluted	90,854	87,743

Condensed_Consolidated_Stateme1

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Net income (loss)	($10,956)	$669
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax:	'	'
Foreign currency translation adjustment	-22	-31
Realized gain on marketable securities available-for-sale, net of tax expense of $344	-562	'
Other comprehensive income (loss), net of tax:	-584	-31
Comprehensive income (loss)	($11,540)	$638

Condensed_Consolidated_Stateme2

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Comprehensive Income (Loss) (Parenthetical) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014
Tax expense of realized gain on marketable securities	$344

Condensed_Consolidated_Stateme3

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Stockholders' Equity (USD $)	Total	Common Stock	Additional Paid-In Capital	Treasury Stock	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss)	Accumulated Deficit
In Thousands
Stockholders' equity beginning balance at Dec. 31, 2013	$496,005	$11	$611,028	($30,767)	$502	($84,769)
Common stock shares outstanding, beginning balance at Dec. 31, 2013	90,707	90,707	'	'	'	'
Issuance of stock under employee stock awards and other, net	180	'	180	'	'	'
Issuance of stock under employee stock awards, net, shares	'	350	'	'	'	'
Stock-based compensation expense	4,836	'	4,836	'	'	'
Realized gain on marketable securities	-562	'	'	'	-562	'
Foreign currency translation adjustment	-22	'	'	'	-22	'
Net loss	-10,956	'	'	'	'	-10,956
Stockholders' equity ending balance at Mar. 31, 2014	$489,481	$11	$616,044	($30,767)	($82)	($95,725)
Common stock shares outstanding, ending balance at Mar. 31, 2014	91,057	91,057	'	'	'	'

Condensed_Consolidated_Stateme4

Condensed Consolidated Statements of Cash Flows (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Cash flows from operating activities	'	'
Net income (loss)	($10,956)	$669
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:	'	'
Depreciation and amortization	17,405	14,904
Deferred income taxes	2,376	209
Stock-based compensation	5,267	7,263
Gain on other assets, net	-4,860	'
Other	-1,522	'
Change in operating assets and liabilities, net of effect of acquisition:	'	'
Accounts receivable, net	1,611	4,045
Prepaid expenses and other current assets	-1,372	-501
Deferred registration costs	-6,424	-5,026
Deposits with registries	348	-481
Other long-term assets	167	266
Accounts payable	-732	869
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	-3,510	-1,108
Deferred revenue	7,890	5,706
Net cash provided by operating activities	5,688	26,815
Cash flows from investing activities	'	'
Purchases of property and equipment	-2,790	-5,825
Purchases of intangible assets	-3,264	-3,853
Payments for gTLD applications, net	-400	'
Proceeds from gTLD withdrawals, net	5,099	'
Cash paid for acquisitions, net of cash acquired	'	-6,092
Other	1,171	'
Net cash used in investing activities	-184	-15,770
Cash flows from financing activities	'	'
Long-term debt repayments	-3,750	'
Proceeds from exercises of stock options and contributions to ESPP	180	1,746
Repurchases of common stock	'	-4,835
Net taxes paid on RSUs and options exercised	-847	-1,383
Cash paid for acquisition holdback	-500	'
Other	-117	-92
Net cash used in financing activities	-5,034	-4,564
Effect of foreign currency on cash and cash equivalents	-18	-43
Change in cash and cash equivalents	452	6,438
Cash and cash equivalents, beginning of period	153,511	102,933
Cash and cash equivalents, end of period	$153,963	$109,371

Company_Background_and_Overvie

Company Background and Overview	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Company Background and Overview	'
	1. Company Background and Overview
	Demand Media, Inc. (“Demand Media”), together with its consolidated subsidiaries (the “Company”) is a Delaware corporation headquartered in Santa Monica, California. We are a diversified digital content & media and domain name services company. Our business is focused on an Internet-based model for the professional creation of content, and our business is comprised of two service offerings, Content & Media and Registrar.
	Content & Media
	Our Content & Media service offering includes an online content creation studio with a community of freelance creative professionals, a portfolio of leading owned and operated websites, and a digital artist marketplace and e-commerce platform. Content & Media services are delivered through our Content & Media platform, which includes our content creation studio, social media applications and a system of monetization tools designed to match content with advertisements in a manner that is optimized for revenue yield and end-user experience. We also leverage our content creation studio for third-party brands, publishers and advertisers as part of our content solutions service offering. As a complement to our traditional content offerings, we have recently integrated certain e-commerce and paid content offerings. In June 2013, we acquired Society6, LLC (“Society6”), a digital artist marketplace and e-commerce platform that enables a large community of talented artists to sell their original designs on art prints, phone cases, t-shirts and other products. We have also recently begun to offer certain on-demand services for purchase on an a la carte or subscription basis, such as eHow Now, a platform where customers chat directly with experts to receive advice and guidance.
	Registrar
	Our domain name services include services provided by our wholesale and retail domain name registrars, domain name registry and related services. To date, nearly all of the revenue generated from this service offering has been generated by our Registrar service offering, which provides domain name registration and various related services to customers through our wholly owned subsidiaries, eNom and Name.com, and we refer to this service offering as our Registrar service offering for historical periods. We own and operate the world’s largest wholesale Internet domain name registrar and the world’s second largest registrar overall, based on the number of names under management. We are also positioned to become a leading domain name registry through our participation in a new program (the “New gTLD Program”) designed to expand the total number of domain name suffixes, or gTLDs, approved by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (“ICANN”), a global non-profit corporation that manages the Internet's domain name registration system. Under the New gTLD Program, to date, we have entered into 29 registry operator agreements with ICANN and launched 13 gTLDs into the marketplace. We also began providing registry back-end services to Donuts, a third-party domain name registry, in the fourth quarter of 2013. The combination of our existing registrar business and our new registry business will make us one of the largest providers of end-to-end domain name services in the world.
	Our wholly owned subsidiary, Rightside Group, Ltd. (“Rightside”), filed a Registration Statement on Form 10 with the SEC in January 2014, which Rightside amended in February 2014 and April 2014, in connection with the planned separation of the Company into two independent, publicly traded companies: a pure-play Internet-based content and media company and a pure-play domain name services company (hereinafter referred to as the “Proposed Business Separation”). Upon completion of the Proposed Business Separation, Rightside will operate the domain name services business, while we will continue to own and operate our content and media business. The Proposed Business Separation is being structured as a pro rata distribution of Rightside shares to holders of our common stock (the “Distribution”). We expect that the Proposed Business Separation will be tax-free to us and our stockholders for U.S. federal income tax purposes (except for any cash received in lieu of fractional shares). Consummation of the Proposed Business Separation is subject to final approval by our board of directors which may, in its absolute and sole discretion, decide at any time prior to the Distribution not to proceed with the Proposed Business Separation or to change any of the terms related to the Proposed Business Separation or the Distribution. Consummation of the Proposed Business Separation is also subject to the satisfaction of several conditions, including receipt of a private letter ruling from the Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”), together with an opinion of our tax counsel, substantially to the effect that, among other things, the Proposed Business Separation will qualify as a transaction that is tax-free for U.S. federal income tax purposes under Sections 355 and 368(a)(1)(D) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended (the “Code”); receipt of any necessary waivers under our credit facility; having the Registration Statement on Form 10 declared effective by the SEC; and receipt of listing approval. We received the private letter ruling from the IRS on January 31, 2014. We have not yet finalized all of the details of the Proposed Business Separation.

Basis_of_Presentation_and_Summ

Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	'
	2. Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies
	A summary of the significant accounting policies consistently applied in the preparation of the accompanying condensed consolidated financial statements follows.
	Basis of Presentation
	The accompanying interim condensed consolidated balance sheet as of March 31, 2014, the condensed consolidated statements of operations and condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss) for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013, the condensed consolidated statements of cash flows for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013 and the condensed consolidated statement of stockholders’ equity for the three month period ended March 31, 2014 are unaudited.
	In the opinion of management, the unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the audited consolidated financial statements and include all adjustments, which include only normal recurring adjustments, necessary for the fair statement of our statement of financial position as of March 31, 2014 and our results of operations for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013 and our cash flows for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013. The results for the three month period ended March 31, 2014 are not necessarily indicative of the results expected for the full year. The consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2013 has been derived from our audited financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013.
	The interim unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”), for interim financial information and with the instructions to the SEC Form 10-Q and Article 10 of SEC Regulation S-X. They do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. Therefore, these financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto, included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013 filed with the SEC.
	In 2014, we began separately reporting product sales and cost of products. As a result of the June 2013 Society6 acquisition, these amounts are now more significant to us and, accordingly, are shown as separate captions under revenue and operating expenses, respectively, on the consolidated statement of operations. Amounts in 2013 have been reclassified to conform to the 2014 presentation.
	Principles of Consolidation
	The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Demand Media and its wholly owned subsidiaries. Acquisitions are included in our consolidated financial statements from the date of the acquisition. Our purchase accounting resulted in all assets and liabilities of acquired businesses being recorded at their estimated fair values on the acquisition dates. All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation.
	Use of Estimates
	The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include revenue, allowance for doubtful accounts, investments in equity interests, fair value of issued and acquired stock warrants, the assigned value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities in business combinations, useful lives and impairment of property and equipment, intangible assets, goodwill and other assets, the fair value of equity-based compensation awards, and deferred income tax assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates compared to historical experience and trends, which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of our assets and liabilities.
	Investments in Equity
	Investments in affiliates over which we have the ability to exert significant influence, but do not control and are not the primary beneficiary of, including NameJet, LLC (“NameJet”), are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Investments in affiliates which we have no ability to exert significant influence are accounted for using the cost method of accounting. Our proportional shares of affiliate earnings or losses accounted for under the equity method of accounting, which are not material for all periods presented, are included in other income (expense) in our consolidated statements of operations. Affiliated companies are not material individually or in the aggregate to our financial position, results of operations or cash flows for any period presented.
	We account for investments in companies that we do not control or account for under the equity method either at fair value or under the cost method, as applicable. Investments in equity securities are carried at fair value if the fair value of the security is readily determinable. Equity investments carried at fair value are classified as available-for-sale securities. Realized gains and losses for available-for-sale securities are included in other income (expense), net in our consolidated statements of operations. Unrealized gains and losses, net of taxes, on available-for-sale securities are included in our consolidated financial statements as a component of other comprehensive income and accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (“AOCI”), until realized.
	Investments in equity securities that we do not control or account for under the equity method and do not have readily determinable fair values are accounted for under the cost method. Cost method investments are originally recorded at cost. In determining whether other-than-temporary impairment exists for equity securities, management considers: (1) the length of time and the extent to which the fair value has been less than cost, (2) the financial condition and near-term prospects of the issuer and (3) our intent and ability to retain our investment in the issuer for a period of time sufficient to allow for any anticipated recovery in fair value. We have determined that there has been no impairment of our equity marketable securities to date.
	The cost of marketable securities sold is based upon the specific identification method and any realized gains or losses on the sale of investments are reflected as a component of interest income or expense. For the year ended December 31, 2013, unrealized gain on marketable securities was $0.9 million. During the three months ended March 31, 2014, we sold all of our marketable securities, resulting in a reclassification of $0.9 million of unrealized gain on marketable securities from other accumulated other comprehensive income to other income (expense), net. The sale of our marketable securities resulted in total realized gains of $1.4 million related the sale of our marketable securities, which are included in other income (expense), net.
	In addition, we classify marketable securities as current or non-current based upon whether such assets are reasonably expected to be realized in cash or sold or consumed during the normal operating cycle of the business.
	Revenue Recognition
	We recognize revenue when four basic criteria are met: persuasive evidence of a sales arrangement exists; performance of services has occurred; the sales price is fixed or determinable; and collectability is reasonably assured. We consider persuasive evidence of a sales arrangement to be the receipt of a signed contract. Collectability is assessed based on a number of factors, including transaction history and the credit worthiness of a customer. If it is determined that collection is not reasonably assured, revenue is not recognized until collection becomes reasonably assured, which is generally upon receipt of cash. We record cash received in advance of revenue recognition as deferred revenue.
	For arrangements with multiple deliverables, we allocate revenue to each deliverable if the delivered item(s) has value to the customer on a standalone basis and, if the arrangement includes a general right of return relative to the delivered item, delivery or performance of the undelivered item(s) is considered probable and substantially in our control. The fair value of the selling price for a deliverable is determined using a hierarchy of (1) company-specific objective and reliable evidence, then (2) third-party evidence, then (3) best estimate of selling price. We allocate any arrangement fee to each of the elements based on their relative selling prices.
	Our revenue is principally derived from the following services:
	Service Revenue
	Content & Media
	Advertising Revenue. Advertising revenue is generated by performance-based Internet advertising, such as cost-per-click advertising, in which an advertiser pays only when a user clicks on our advertisement that is displayed on our owned and operated websites and customer websites; fees generated by users viewing third-party website banners and text-link advertisements; fees generated by enabling customer leads or registrations for partners; and fees from referring users to, or from users making purchases on, sponsors’ websites. In determining whether an arrangement exists, we ensure that a binding arrangement is in place, such as a standard insertion order or a fully executed customer-specific agreement. Obligations pursuant to our advertising revenue arrangements typically include a minimum number of impressions or the satisfaction of the other performance criteria. Revenue from performance-based arrangements, including referral revenue, is recognized as the related performance criteria are met. We assess whether performance criteria have been met and whether the fees are fixed or determinable based on a reconciliation of the performance criteria and an analysis of the payment terms associated with the transaction. The reconciliation of the performance criteria generally includes a comparison of third-party performance data to the contractual performance obligation and to internal or customer performance data in circumstances where that data is available.
	Where we enter into revenue-sharing arrangements with our customers, such as those relating to advertising on our customers’ domains, and when we are considered the primary obligor, we report the underlying revenue on a gross basis in our consolidated statements of operations, and record these revenue-sharing payments to our customers as revenue-sharing expenses, which are included in service costs.
	In certain cases, we record revenue based on available and preliminary information from third parties. Amounts collected on the related receivables may vary from reported information based upon third-party refinement of estimated and reported amounts owing that occurs typically within 30 days of the period end. For the three months ended March 31, 2014 and 2013, the difference between the amounts recognized based on preliminary information and cash collected was not material.
	Subscription Services and Social Media Services. Subscription services revenue is generated through the sale of membership fees paid to access content available on certain of our owned and operated websites. The majority of the memberships range from 6 to 12 month terms. Subscription services revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the membership term.
	We configure, host, and maintain our platform social media services under private-labeled versions of software for commercial customers. We earn revenue from our social media services through initial set-up fees, recurring management support fees, overage fees in excess of standard usage terms, and outside consulting fees. Due to the fact that social media services customers have no contractual right to take possession of our private-labeled software, we account for our social media services revenue as service arrangements, whereby social media services revenue is recognized when persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, delivery of the service has occurred and no significant obligations remain, the selling price is fixed or determinable, and collectability is reasonably assured.
	Social media service arrangements may contain multiple deliverables, including, but not limited to, single arrangements containing set-up fees, monthly support fees and overage billings, consulting services and advertising services. To the extent that consulting services have value on a standalone basis, we allocate revenue to each element in the multiple deliverable arrangements based upon their relative fair values. Fair value is determined based upon the best estimate of the selling price. To date, substantially all consulting services entered into concurrently with the original social media service arrangements are not treated as separate deliverables, as such services do not have value to the customer on a standalone basis. In such cases, the arrangement is treated as a single unit of accounting with the arrangement fee recognized over the term of the arrangement on a straight-line basis. Set-up fees are recognized as revenue on a straight-line basis over the greater of the contractual or estimated customer life once monthly recurring services have commenced. We determine the estimated customer life based on analysis of historical attrition rates, average contractual term and renewal expectations. We review the estimated customer life at least quarterly and when events or changes in circumstances occur, such as significant customer attrition relative to expected historical or projected future results. Overage billings are recognized when delivered and at contractual rates in excess of standard usage terms.
	Outside consulting services performed for customers that have value on a stand alone basis are recognized as services are performed.
	Content and Other Revenue. Content and other revenue is generated through the sale or license of media content or undeveloped websites. Revenue from the sale or perpetual license of content and undeveloped websites is recognized when the content and the sale of undeveloped websites have been delivered and the contractual performance obligations have been fulfilled. Revenue from the license of content is recognized over the period of the license as content is delivered or when other related performance criteria are fulfilled.
	Registrar
	Domain Name Registration Service Fees. We recognize revenue from registration fees charged to third parties in connection with new, renewed and transferred domain name registrations on a straight-line basis over the registration term, which ranges from one to ten years. We include payments received in advance of the domain name registration term in deferred revenue in our consolidated balance sheets. The registration term and related revenue recognition commences once we confirm that the requested domain name has been recorded in the appropriate registry under accepted contractual performance standards. We defer the associated direct and incremental costs, which principally consist of registry and ICANN fees, and expense them as service costs on a straight-line basis over the registration term.
	Our businesses including eNom and Name.com, are ICANN accredited registrars. Thus, we are the primary obligor with our reseller and retail registrant customers and are responsible for the fulfillment of our registrar services to those parties. As a result, we report revenue in the amount of the fees we receive directly from our reseller and retail registrant customers. Our reseller customers maintain the primary obligor relationship with their retail customers, establish pricing and retain credit risk to those customers. Accordingly, we do not recognize any revenue related to transactions between our reseller customers and their ultimate retail customers. A portion of our resellers have contracted with us to provide billing and credit card processing services to the resellers’ retail customer base in addition to registration services. Under these circumstances, the cash collected from these resellers’ retail customer base exceeds the fixed amount per transaction that we charge for domain name registration services. Accordingly, these amounts, which are collected for the benefit of the reseller, are not recognized as revenue and are recorded as a liability until remitted to the reseller on a periodic basis. We report revenue from these resellers on a net basis because the reseller determines the price to charge its retail customers and maintains the primary customer relationship.
	Value Added Services. We recognize revenue from online registrar value-added services, which include, but are not limited to, security certificates, domain name identification protection, charges associated with alternative payment methodologies, web hosting services and email services on a straight-line basis over the period in which services are provided. We include payments received in advance of services being provided in deferred revenue.
	Auction Service Revenue. Domain name auction service revenue represents proceeds received from selling domain names from our portfolio, as well as proceeds received from selling domain names that are not renewed by customers of our registrar platform. Domain name sales are primarily conducted through our direct sales efforts as well as through our NameJet joint venture. Domain name sales revenue is recognized when title to the name is transferred to the buyer and the related registration fees are recognized on a straight-line basis over the registration term. If we sell a domain name, any unamortized cost basis is recorded as a service cost. For domain name sales generated through NameJet, we recognize revenue net of auction service fee payments to NameJet.
	Product Revenue
	Content & Media
	We recognize revenue from product sales upon delivery, net of estimated returns based on historical experience. Payments received in advance of delivery are included in deferred revenue in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets. Revenue is recorded at the gross amount due to the following factors: we are the primary obligor in a transaction, we have inventory and credit risk, and we have latitude in establishing prices and selecting suppliers. Product sales and shipping revenue is recognized net of promotional discounts, rebates, and return allowances. We periodically provide incentive offers to customers to encourage purchases. Such offers may include current discount offers, such as percentage discounts off current purchases, free shipping and other similar offers. Sales tax is not included in revenue, as we are a pass-through conduit for collecting and remitting sales taxes.
	Service Costs
	Service costs consist primarily of fees paid to registries and ICANN associated with domain registrations, advertising revenue recognized by us and shared with our customers or partners as a result of our revenue-sharing arrangements, such as traffic acquisition costs, Internet connection and co-location charges and other platform operating expenses associated with our owned and operated and customer websites, including depreciation of the systems and hardware used to build and operate our Content & Media platform and Registrar service offering, personnel costs relating to in-house editorial, customer service, and information technology.
	Registry fee expenses consist of payments to entities accredited by ICANN as the designated registry related to each top level domain (“TLD”). These payments are generally fixed dollar amounts per domain name registration period and are recognized on a straight-line basis over the registration term. The costs of renewal registration fee expenses for owned and operated undeveloped websites are also included in service costs. Amortization of the cost of undeveloped websites and media content owned by us is included in amortization of intangible assets.
	Product Costs
	Product costs consist of outsourced product manufacturing costs; shipping and handling; artist royalties and personnel costs.
	Shipping and Handling
	Shipping and handling charged to customers are recorded in revenue. Associated costs are recorded in product costs.
	Deferred Revenue and Deferred Registration Costs
	Deferred revenue consists primarily of amounts received from customers in advance of our performance for domain name registration services, subscription services for premium media content, social media services and online value-added services. Deferred revenue is recognized as revenue on a systematic basis that is proportionate to the unexpired term of the related domain name registration, media subscription as services are rendered, over customer useful life, or online value-added service period.
	Deferred registration costs represent the incremental direct cost paid in advance to registries, ICANN, and other third parties for domain name registrations and are recorded as a deferred cost on the balance sheets. Deferred registration costs are amortized to expense on a straight-line basis concurrently with the recognition of the related domain name registration revenue and are included in service costs.
	Property and equipment
	Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Computer equipment is amortized over two to five years, software is amortized over two to three years, and furniture and fixtures are amortized over seven to ten years. Leasehold improvements are amortized straight-line over the shorter of the remaining lease term or the estimated useful lives of the improvements ranging from one to ten years. Upon the sale or retirement of property or equipment, the cost and related accumulated depreciation or amortization is removed from our financial statements with the resulting gain or loss reflected in our results of operations. Repairs and maintenance costs are expensed as incurred. In the event that property and equipment is no longer in use, we will record a loss on disposal of the property and equipment, which is computed as difference between the sales price, if any, and the net remaining value (gross amount of property and equipment less accumulated depreciation expense) of the related equipment at the date of disposal.
	Intangible Assets—Undeveloped Websites
	We capitalize costs incurred to acquire and to initially register our owned and operated undeveloped websites (i.e., Uniform Resource Locators). We amortize these costs over the expected useful life of the underlying undeveloped websites on a straight-line basis. The expected useful lives of the website names range from 12 months to 84 months. We determine the appropriate useful life by performing an analysis of expected cash flows based on historical experience with domain names of similar quality and value.
	In order to maintain the rights to each undeveloped website acquired, we pay periodic renewal registration fees, which generally cover a minimum period of 12 months. We record renewal registration fees of website name intangible assets in deferred registration costs and amortize the costs over the renewal registration period, which is included in service costs.
	Intangible Assets—Media Content
	We capitalize the direct costs incurred to acquire our media content that is determined to embody a probable future economic benefit. Costs are recognized as finite-lived intangible assets based on their acquisition cost to us. Direct content costs primarily represent amounts paid to unrelated third parties for completed content units, and to a lesser extent, specifically identifiable internal direct labor costs incurred to enhance the value of specific content units acquired prior to their publication. Internal costs not directly attributable to the enhancement of an individual content unit acquired are expensed as incurred. All costs incurred to deploy and publish content are expensed as incurred, including the costs incurred for the ongoing maintenance of our websites in which our content is published.
	Capitalized media content is amortized on a straight-line basis over its useful life, which is typically five years, representing our estimate of the pattern that the underlying economic benefits are expected to be realized and based on its estimates of the projected cash flows from advertising revenue expected to be generated by the deployment of our content. These estimates are based on our plans and projections, comparison of the economic returns generated by our content with content of comparable quality and an analysis of historical cash flows generated by that content to date. Amortization of media content is included in amortization of intangible assets in the accompanying condensed consolidated statement of operations and the acquisition costs are included in purchases of intangible assets within cash flows from investing activities in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of cash flows.
	Intangible Assets—Acquired in Business Combinations
	We perform valuations of assets acquired and liabilities assumed on each acquisition accounted for as a business combination and allocate the purchase price of each acquired business to our respective net tangible and intangible assets. Acquired intangible assets include: trade names, non-compete agreements, owned website names, customer relationships, technology, media content, and content publisher relationships. We determine the appropriate useful life by performing an analysis of expected cash flows based on historical experience of the acquired businesses. Intangible assets are amortized over their estimated useful lives using the straight-line method which approximates the pattern in which the economic benefits are consumed.
	Long-lived Assets
	We evaluate the recoverability of our long-lived assets with finite useful lives for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset group may not be recoverable. Such trigger events or changes in circumstances may include: a significant decrease in the market price of a long-lived asset, a significant adverse change in the extent or manner in which a long-lived asset is being used, a significant adverse change in legal factors or in the business climate, including those resulting from technology advancements in the industry, the impact of competition or other factors that could affect the value of a long-lived asset, a significant adverse deterioration in the amount of revenue or cash flows we expect to generate from an asset group, an accumulation of costs significantly in excess of the amount originally expected for the acquisition or development of a long-lived asset, current or future operating or cash flow losses that demonstrate continuing losses associated with the use of a long-lived asset, or a current expectation that, more likely than not, a long-lived asset will be sold or otherwise disposed of significantly before the end of its previously estimated useful life. We perform impairment testing at the asset group level that represents the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities. If events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset group may not be recoverable and the expected undiscounted future cash flows attributable to the asset group are less than the carrying amount of the asset group, an impairment loss equal to the excess of the asset’s carrying value over its fair value is recorded. Fair value is determined based upon estimated discounted future cash flows. Through March 31, 2014, we have identified no such impairment loss. Assets to be disposed of would be separately presented on the balance sheets and reported at the lower of their carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell, and would no longer be depreciated or amortized.
	Google, the largest provider of search engine referrals to the majority of our websites, regularly deploys changes to their search engine algorithms, some of which have led us to experience fluctuations in the total number of Google search referrals to our owned and operated and network of customer websites. In 2011 and 2013, the overall impact of these changes on our owned and operated websites was negative primarily due to a decline in traffic to eHow.com, our largest website. Beginning in response to changes in search engine algorithms since 2011, we have performed evaluations of our existing content library to identify potential improvements in our content creation and distribution platform. As a result of these evaluations, we elected to remove certain content assets from service, resulting in $2.4 million, $2.1 million and $5.9 million of related accelerated amortization expense in 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively. Any further discretionary actions may result in additional accelerated amortization in the periods the actions occur.
	Goodwill
Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of an acquired entity over the fair value of the acquired net assets. Goodwill is tested for impairment annually during the fourth quarter of our fiscal year or when events or circumstances change that would indicate that goodwill might be impaired. Events or circumstances that could trigger an impairment review include, but are not limited to, a significant adverse change in legal factors or in the business climate, an adverse action or assessment by a regulator, unanticipated competition, a loss of key personnel, significant changes in the manner of our use of the acquired assets or the strategy for our overall business, significant negative industry or economic trends or significant underperformance relative to expected historical or projected future results of operations.
Goodwill is tested for impairment at the reporting unit level, which is one level below or the same as an operating segment. As of December 31, 2013, we determined that we have three reporting units. We perform an assessment as to whether a reporting unit’s fair value is less than our carrying value of its assets. If the fair value of the reporting unit exceeds the carrying value, goodwill is not considered to be impaired and no additional steps are necessary. If, however, the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, then a second step is performed to determine the amount of the impairment loss. The amount of the impairment loss is the excess of the carrying amount of the goodwill over its implied fair value. The estimate of the fair value of goodwill is primarily based on an estimate of the discounted cash flows expected to result from that reporting unit, but may require valuations of certain internally generated and unrecognized intangible assets such as our software, technology, patents and trademarks.
Our most recent annual impairment analysis was performed in the fourth quarter of the year ended December 31, 2013 and indicated that the fair value of each of our three reporting units exceeded the respective reporting unit’s carrying value at that time. We recently experienced a significant volatility in our stock price, however, and as of March 31, 2014, our market capitalization was less than our book value. Should this condition continue to exist for an extended period of time, we will consider this and other factors, including our anticipated future cash flows, to determine whether goodwill is impaired. If we are required to record a significant impairment charge against certain intangible assets reflected on our balance sheet during the period in which an impairment is determined to exist, we could report a greater loss in one or more future periods. Based on a review of events and changes in circumstances at the reporting unit level through March 31, 2014, we have not identified any indications that the carrying value of our goodwill is impaired. We will continue to perform our annual goodwill impairment test in the fourth quarter of the year ending December 31, 2014, consistent with our existing accounting policy.
Other Long-Term Assets
A framework for the significant expansion of the number of generic Top Level Domains (“gTLDs”) has been approved by ICANN, which began delegating gTLDs in October 2013 (the “New gTLD Program”). We capitalize the costs incurred to pursue the acquisition of gTLD operator rights that are determined to embody a probable economic benefit. Capitalized payments for gTLD applications are included in long-term other assets during the application process. For those gTLDs which have been delegated to us, capitalized payments will be reclassified as finite-lived intangible assets following the delegation of operator rights for each gTLD by ICANN, however, there can be no assurance that we will be awarded all gTLDs for which we have applied. Payments for gTLD applications primarily represent amounts paid directly to ICANN and/or third parties in the pursuit of gTLD operator rights. We may receive partial cash refunds for certain gTLD applications, and to the extent we elect to sell or withdraw our interest in certain gTLD applications throughout the process, we may also incur gains or losses on amounts invested. Gains on our interest in gTLD applications will be recognized when realized, while losses will be recognized when deemed probable. Other costs incurred by us as part of our gTLD initiative not directly attributable to the acquisition of gTLD operator rights are expensed as incurred. Capitalized costs will be amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the gTLD operator rights acquired commencing the date that each asset is available for its intended use.
Stock-Based Compensation
We measure and recognize compensation expense for all stock-based payment awards made to employees, non-employees and directors based on the grant date fair values of the awards. For stock option awards to employees with service and/or performance based vesting conditions the fair value is estimated using the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model. The value of an award that is ultimately expected to vest is recognized as expense over the requisite service periods in our consolidated statements of operations. We elected to treat stock-based payment awards, other than performance awards, with graded vesting schedules and time-based service conditions as a single award and recognize stock-based compensation expense on a straight-line basis (net of estimated forfeitures) over the requisite service period. Stock-based compensation expenses are classified in the consolidated statement of operations based on the department to which the related employee reports. Our stock-based awards are comprised principally of stock options, restricted stock units and restricted stock awards.
We account for stock-based payment awards and stock options issued to non-employees in accordance with the guidance for equity-based payments to non-employees. Stock option awards to non-employees are accounted for at fair value using the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model. We believe that the fair value of stock-based payment awards and stock options is more reliably measured than the fair value of the services received. The fair value of the unvested portion of the options granted to non-employees is re-measured each period. The resulting increase in value, if any, is recognized as expense during the period the related services are rendered.
The Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model requires management to make assumptions and to apply judgment in determining the fair value of our awards. The most significant assumptions and judgments include the expected volatility, expected term of the award and estimated forfeiture rates.
We estimated the expected volatility of our awards from the historical volatility of selected public companies within the Internet and media industry with comparable characteristics to Demand Media, including similarity in size, lines of business, market capitalization, revenue and financial leverage. From our inception through December 31, 2008, the weighted average expected life of options was calculated using the simplified method as prescribed under guidance by the SEC. This decision was based on the lack of relevant historical data due to our limited experience and the lack of an active market for our common stock. Effective January 1, 2009, we calculated the weighted average expected life of our options based upon our historical experience of option exercises combined with estimates of the post-vesting holding period. The-risk free interest rate is based on the implied yield currently available on U.S. Treasury notes with terms approximately equal to the expected life of the option. The expected dividend rate is zero as we currently have no history or expectation of paying cash dividends on our common stock. The forfeiture rate is established based on applicable historical forfeiture patterns adjusted for any expected changes in future periods.
Under the Demand Media Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”), during any offering period, eligible officers and employees can purchase a limited amount of Demand Media’s common stock at a discount to the market price in accordance with the terms of the plan. Demand Media uses the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model to determine the fair value of the ESPP awards granted which is recognized straight-line over the total offering period. The most recent offering period ended in November 2013.
Stock Repurchases
Under our stock repurchase plan, shares repurchased by us are accounted for when the transaction is settled. Repurchased shares held for future issuance are classified as treasury stock. Shares formally or constructively retired are deducted from common stock at par value and from additional paid in capital for the excess over par value. If additional paid in capital has been exhausted, the excess over par value is deducted from retained earnings. Direct costs incurred to acquire the shares are included in the total cost of the repurchased shares.
Income Taxes
Deferred income taxes are recognized for differences between financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities at the enacted statutory tax rates in effect for the years in which the temporary differences are expected to reverse. The effect on deferred taxes of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. We evaluate the realizability of deferred tax assets and recognize a valuation allowance for our deferred tax assets when it is more likely than not that a future benefit on such deferred tax assets will not be realized.
We recognize the tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the position. The tax benefits recognized in the consolidated financial statements from such positions are then measured based on the largest benefit that has a greater than 50% likelihood of being realized upon settlement. We recognize interest and penalties accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits in our income tax (benefit) provision in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations.
Net Income (Loss) Per Share
Basic income (loss) per share is computed by dividing the net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Net loss attributable to common stockholders is increased for cumulative preferred stock dividends earned during the period. Diluted loss per share is computed by dividing the net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average common shares outstanding plus potentially dilutive common shares. We reported a net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2014, and as a result, all potentially dilutive common shares comprising of stock options and restricted stock units (“RSUs”), stock from the ESPP are considered antidilutive for this period.
RSUs and other restricted awards are considered outstanding common shares and included in the computation of basic earnings per share as of the date that all necessary conditions of vesting are satisfied. RSUs are excluded from the dilutive earnings per share calculation when their impact is antidilutive.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments
We chose not to elect the fair value option for our financial assets and liabilities that had not been previously carried at fair value. Therefore, material financial assets and liabilities not carried at fair value, such as trade accounts receivable and payables, are reported at their carrying values.
The carrying amounts of our financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, receivables from domain name registries, registry deposits, restricted cash, accounts payable, accrued liabilities and customer deposits approximate fair value because of their short maturities. For our term loans and revolving loan facility, the carrying amount approximate fair value since they bear interest at variable rates which approximates fair value. Our investments in marketable securities are recorded at fair value. Certain assets, including equity investments, investments held at cost, goodwill and intangible assets are also subject to measurement at fair value on a nonrecurring basis, if they are deemed to be impaired as the result of an impairment review. For the three months ended March 31, 2014 and the year ended December 31, 2013, no impairments were recorded on those assets required to be measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis. (Refer to Note 14 for additional information).

Property_and_Equipment

Property and Equipment	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Property and Equipment	'
	3. Property and Equipment
	Property and equipment consisted of the following (in thousands):
		March 31,			December 31,
		2014			2013
	Computers and other related equipment	$	43,357		$	43,010
	Purchased and internally developed software		66,830			65,632
	Furniture and fixtures		3,909			3,868
	Leasehold improvements		9,118			9,075
			123,214			121,585
	Less accumulated depreciation		(83,724	)		(79,392	)
	Property and equipment, net	$	39,490		$	42,193
	Depreciation and software amortization expense, which includes losses on disposal of property and equipment of approximately $0.9 million and $0.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2014, and 2013, respectively, is shown by classification below (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014			2013
	Service costs	$	3,613		$	3,982
	Sales and marketing		56			107
	Product development		178			236
	General and administrative		1,929			1,020
	Total depreciation	$	5,776		$	5,345

Intangible_Assets

Intangible Assets	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Intangible Assets	'
	4. Intangible Assets
	Intangible assets consisted of the following (in thousands):
		31-Mar-14
		Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization			Net
	Owned website names	$	24,077	$	(14,503	)	$	9,574
	Customer relationships		30,454		(25,663	)		4,791
	Artist relationships		9,867		(2,330	)		7,537
	Media content		145,411		(100,567	)		44,844
	Technology		37,197		(30,779	)		6,418
	Non-compete agreements		1,159		(379	)		780
	Trade names		15,742		(6,855	)		8,887
	Content publisher relationships		2,092		(1,767	)		325
		$	265,999	$	(182,843	)	$	83,156
		31-Dec-13
		Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization			Net
	Owned website names	$	22,370	$	(14,684	)	$	7,686
	Customer relationships		32,462		(26,026	)		6,436
	Artist relationships		9,867		(1,507	)		8,360
	Media content		143,756		(95,687	)		48,069
	Technology		37,832		(30,165	)		7,667
	Non-compete agreements		1,159		(294	)		865
	Trade names		15,742		(6,444	)		9,298
	Content publisher relationships		2,092		(1,707	)		385
		$	265,280	$	(176,514	)	$	88,766
	Service costs included an accelerated amortization charge of $1.5 million and $0.1 million, for the three months ended March 31, 2014 and 2013, respectively, as a result of the removing of certain assets from service.
	Identifiable finite-lived intangible assets are amortized on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives commencing the date that the asset is available for its intended use.
	Amortization expense by classification is shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014		2013
	Service costs	$	7,556	$	7,439
	Sales and marketing		2,430		845
	Product development		1,191		1,071
	General and administrative		452		204
	Total amortization	$	11,629	$	9,559

Other_Assets

Other Assets	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Other Assets	'
	5. Other Assets
	Other long term assets consisted of the following (in thousands):
		March 31,		December 31,
		2014		2013
	gTLD deposits	$	19,141	$	21,252
	Other		3,659		4,070
	Other assets	$	22,800	$	25,322
	For the three month period ended March 31, 2014, the net gain related to the withdrawals of our interest in certain gTLD applications was $4.9 million, recorded in gain on other assets, net on the condensed consolidated statements of operations.
	Other assets at March 31, 2014 and December 31, 2013 include $1.2 million and $0.9 million, respectively, of restricted cash comprising a collateralized letter of credit connected with our applications under the New gTLD Program. The restrictions require the cash to be maintained in a bank account for a minimum of five years from the delegation of the gTLDs.

Other_Balance_Sheets_Items

Other Balance Sheets Items	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Other Balance Sheets Items	'
	6. Other Balance Sheets Items
	Accrued expenses and other liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):
		March 31,		December 31,
		2014		2013
	Accrued payroll and related items	$	6,464	$	9,301
	Domain owners' royalties payable		890		1,193
	Commission payable		2,307		2,808
	Customer deposits		7,651		7,666
	Other		14,342		13,711
	Accrued expenses and other liabilities	$	31,654	$	34,679

Debt_Notes

Debt (Notes)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Debt	'
	7. Debt
	We entered into a credit agreement, dated August 29, 2013, with Silicon Valley Bank, as administrative agent, and the lenders and other agents party thereto (the “Credit Agreement”). The Credit Agreement provides for a $100.0 million senior secured term loan facility (the “Term Loan Facility”) and a $125.0 million senior secured revolving loan facility (the “Revolving Loan Facility”), each maturing on August 29, 2018. The Credit Agreement replaced our pre-existing revolving credit facility that we entered into in August 2011.
	The Term Loan Facility provides for $100.0 million term loan that was fully drawn as of December 31, 2013 (“Term Loans”). The Revolving Loan Facility provides for borrowings up to $125.0 million, with the right (subject to certain conditions and at the discretion of the lenders) to increase the Revolving Loan Facility by up to $25.0 million in the aggregate. The Revolving Loan Facility also includes sublimits of up to (i) $25.0 million to be available for the issuance of letters of credit and (ii) $10.0 million to be available for swingline loans. Term Loans must be repaid in installments of $3.75 million that commenced on December 31, 2013, and continue quarterly thereafter, and repaid Term Loans cannot be re-borrowed. At March 31, 2014, $92.5 million was outstanding under the Term Loan Facility. The weighted average variable interest rate of the Term Loans at March 31, 2014 was 2.29%.
	The Credit Agreement permits the Proposed Business Separation to occur subject to certain conditions, including pro forma compliance with the affirmative and negative covenants, including the financial covenants, set forth in the Credit Agreement, and maintenance of a minimum level of liquidity and a minimum trailing 12 month adjusted earnings before taxes, interest, depreciation and amortization expense (“Adjusted EBITDA”) after giving effect to the Proposed Business Separation.
	Our obligations under the Credit Agreement are guaranteed by our material direct and indirect domestic subsidiaries, subject to certain exceptions. Our obligations under the Credit Agreement and the guarantees are secured by a lien on substantially all of our tangible and intangible property and substantially all of the tangible and intangible property of our domestic subsidiaries that are guarantors, and by a pledge of all of the equity interests of our material direct and indirect domestic subsidiaries and 66% of each class of capital stock of any material first-tier foreign subsidiaries, subject to limited exceptions.
	The Credit Agreement contains customary events of default and affirmative and negative covenants, including certain financial maintenance covenants requiring compliance with a maximum consolidated leverage ratio and a minimum fixed charge coverage ratio, as well as other restrictions typical for a financing of this type that, among other things, restrict our ability to incur additional debt, pay dividends and make distributions, make certain investments and acquisitions, repurchase our capital stock and prepay certain indebtedness, create liens, enter into agreements with affiliates, modify the nature of our business, enter into sale-leaseback transactions, transfer and sell material assets and merge or consolidate. Non-compliance with one or more of the covenants and restrictions could result in the full or partial principal balance outstanding under the Credit Agreement becoming immediately due and payable and termination of the commitments available under the Revolving Loan Facility. As of March 31, 2014, we were in compliance with the covenants under the Credit Agreement.
	Under the Credit Agreement, loans bear interest, at our option, at an annual rate based on LIBOR or a base rate. Loans based on LIBOR bear interest at a rate between LIBOR plus 2.00% and LIBOR plus 3.00%, depending on our consolidated leverage ratio. Loans based on the base rate bear interest at the base rate plus an applicable margin of 1.00% or 2.00%, depending on our consolidated leverage ratio. We are required to pay a commitment fee between 0.20% and 0.40% per annum, depending on our consolidated leverage ratio, on the undrawn portion available under the Revolving Loan Facility and the Term Loan Facility.
	As of March 31, 2014, no principal balance was outstanding and approximately $114.5 million was available for borrowing under the Revolving Loan Facility, after deducting the face amount of outstanding standby letters of credit of approximately $10.5 million, and we were in compliance with all covenants.
	In connection with entering into the Credit Agreement, we incurred debt issuance costs of $1.9 million. Debt issuance costs are capitalized and amortized into interest expense over the term of the underlying debt. During the three months ended March 31, 2014 we amortized $0.1 million of deferred debt issuance costs.

Commitments_and_Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Commitments and Contingencies	'
	8. Commitments and Contingencies
	Leases
	We conduct our operations utilizing leased office facilities in various locations and lease certain equipment under non-cancelable operating and capital leases. Our leases expire between April 2016 and December 2019. During the first quarter of 2014 we amended our lease for the headquarters of our domain name business in Kirkland, Washington which is expanded our leased space from 34,000 square feet to 41,000 square feet, under a lease that expires in April 2019.
	Letters of Credit
	We issue letters of credit under our Revolving Loan Facility, and as of March 31, 2014, the total letters of credit outstanding under this facility was $10.5 million.
	Litigation
	From time to time we are a party to various legal matters incidental to the conduct of our business. Certain of our outstanding legal matters include speculative claims for indeterminate amounts of damages. We record a liability when we believe that it is probable that a loss has been incurred and the amount can be reasonably estimated. Based on our current knowledge, we do not believe that there is a reasonable possibility that the final outcome of the pending or threatened legal proceedings to which we are a party, either individually or in the aggregate, will have a material adverse effect on our future financial results. However, the outcome of such legal matters is subject to significant uncertainties.
	Taxes
	From time to time, various federal, state and other jurisdictional tax authorities undertake review of us and our filings. In evaluating the exposure associated with various tax filing positions, we accrue charges for possible exposures. We believe any adjustments that may ultimately be required as a result of any of these reviews will not be material to our consolidated financial statements.
	Domain Name Agreement
	On April 1, 2011, we entered into an agreement with a customer to provide domain name registration services and manage certain domain names owned and operated by the customer (the "Domain Agreement"). In December 2013, we amended the Domain Agreement (as amended, the "Amended Domain Agreement"). The term of the Amended Domain Agreement expires on December 31, 2014, but will automatically renew for an additional one-year period unless terminated by either party. Pursuant to the Amended Domain Agreement, we are committed to purchase approximately $0.2 million of expired domain names every calendar quarter over the remaining term of the agreement.
	Indemnification
	In the normal course of business, we have provided certain indemnities, commitments and guarantees under which we may be required to make payments in relation to certain transactions. These indemnities include intellectual property indemnities to our customers, indemnities to our directors and officers to the maximum extent permitted under the laws of the State of Delaware and indemnification related to our lease agreements. In addition, our advertiser and distribution partner agreements contain certain indemnification provisions which are generally consistent with those prevalent in our industry. We have not incurred significant obligations under indemnification provisions historically and do not expect to incur significant obligations in the future. Accordingly, we have not recorded any liability for these indemnities, commitments and guarantees in the accompanying balance sheets.

Income_Taxes

Income Taxes	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Income Taxes	'
	9. Income Taxes
	Our effective tax rate differs from the statutory rate primarily as a result of state taxes, foreign taxes, nondeductible stock option expenses and changes in our valuation allowance.
	During the three months ended March 31, 2014, we recorded an income tax expense of $2.5 million compared to an income tax expense of $0.4 million during the same period in 2013, representing an increase of $2.1 million. The increase was primarily due to acquisitions occurring in 2013.
	We reduce our deferred tax assets resulting from future tax benefits by a valuation allowance if, based on the weight of the available evidence it is more likely than not that some portion or all of these deferred taxes will not be realized. The timing of the reversal of deferred tax liabilities associated with tax deductible goodwill is not certain and thus not available to assure the realization of deferred tax assets. Due to the limitation associated with deferred tax liabilities from tax deductible goodwill, we have deferred tax assets in excess of deferred tax liabilities before application of a valuation allowance for the periods presented. As we have insufficient history of generating book income, the ultimate future realization of these excess deferred tax assets is not more likely than not and thus subject to a valuation allowance. Accordingly, we have established a valuation allowance against our deferred tax assets.
	We are subject to the accounting guidance for uncertain income tax positions. We believe that our income tax positions and deductions will be sustained on audit and do not anticipate any adjustments will result in a material adverse effect on our financial condition, results of operations, or cash flow. We acquired a $0.1 million uncertain tax position as a result of a business acquisition during 2011.
	Our policy for recording interest and penalties associated with audits and uncertain tax positions is to record such items as a component of income tax expense, and amounts recognized to date are insignificant. No uncertain income tax positions were recorded during the three months ended March 31, 2014 or 2013 other than the acquired uncertain tax position, and we do not expect our uncertain tax position to change materially during the next 12 months. We file a U.S. federal and many state tax returns as well as tax returns in multiple foreign jurisdictions. All tax years since our incorporation remain subject to examination by the IRS and various state authorities.

Employee_Benefit_Plan

Employee Benefit Plan	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Employee Benefit Plan	'
	10. Employee Benefit Plan
	We have a defined contribution plan under Section 401(k) of the Code (the “401(k) Plan”) covering all full-time employees who meet certain eligibility requirements. Eligible employees may defer up to 90% of their pre-tax eligible compensation, up to the annual maximum allowed by the IRS. Effective January 1, 2013, we began matching a portion of the employee contributions under the 401(k) Plan up to a defined maximum. During the three months ended March 31, 2014, we incurred approximately $0.6 million in employer contributions under the 401(k) Plan, and expect to incur a similar amount for the remainder of the current fiscal year.

StockBased_Compensation_Plans_

Stock-Based Compensation Plans and Awards	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Stock-Based Compensation Plans and Awards	'
	11. Stock-based Compensation Plans and Awards
	Stock-based Compensation Expense
	Stock-based compensation expense related to all employee and non-employee stock-based awards recognized in the condensed consolidated statements of operations was as follows (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014		2013
	Service costs	$	402	$	611
	Sales and marketing		825		1,923
	Product development		959		1,165
	General and administrative		3,081		3,564
	Total stock-based compensation included in net income (loss)	$	5,267	$	7,263
	During the three months ended March 31, 2014, we granted 1.9 million restricted stock units as part of our annual employee compensation process. In addition, 1.2 million options were forfeited as a result of the departure of a Company executive.

Stockholders_Equity

Stockholders' Equity	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Stockholders' Equity	'
	12. Stockholders’ Equity
	Stock Repurchases
	Under our February 8, 2012 stock repurchase plan, as amended, we are authorized to repurchase up to $50.0 million of our common stock from time to time. Since April 2013, we have not repurchased any shares of common stock. Approximately $19.2 million remains available under the repurchase plan at March 31, 2014. The timing and actual number of shares repurchased will depend on various factors including price, corporate and regulatory requirements, debt covenant requirements, alternative investment opportunities and other market conditions.
	Shares repurchased by us are accounted for when the transaction is settled. As of March 31, 2014, there were no unsettled share repurchases. Shares repurchased and retired are deducted from common stock for par value and from additional paid in capital for the excess over par value. Direct costs incurred to acquire the shares are included in the total cost of the shares.
	Other
	Each share of common stock has the right to one vote per share. Each restricted stock purchase right has the right to one vote per share and the right to receive dividends or other distributions paid or made with respect to common shares, subject to restrictions for continued employment service.

Business_Segments

Business Segments	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Business Segments	'
	13. Business Segments
	We operate in one operating segment. Our chief operating decision maker (the “CODM”) manages our operations on a consolidated basis for purposes of evaluating financial performance and allocating resources. The CODM reviews separate revenue information for our Content & Media and Registrar service offerings. All other financial information is reviewed by the CODM on a consolidated basis. All of our principal operations and decision-making functions are located in the United States. Revenue generated outside of the United States is not material for any of the periods presented.
	Revenue derived from our Content & Media and Registrar service offering is as follows (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014		2013
	Content & Media revenue:
	Owned & operated	$	40,752	$	49,703
	Network		9,871		15,588
	Total Content & Media revenue		50,623		65,291
	Registrar revenue		39,129		35,329
	Total revenue	$	89,752	$	100,620

Fair_Value

Fair Value	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Fair Value	'
	14. Fair Value
	Fair value represents the exchange price that would be received for an asset or paid to transfer a liability (an exit price) in the principal or most advantageous market for the asset or liability in an orderly transaction between market participants on the measurement date. We measure our financial assets and liabilities in three levels, based on the markets in which the assets and liabilities are traded and the reliability of the assumptions used to determine fair value.
	—	Level 1—valuations for assets and liabilities traded in active exchange markets, or interest in open-end mutual funds that allow a company to sell its ownership interest back at net asset value on a daily basis. Valuations are obtained from readily available pricing sources for market transactions involving identical assets, liabilities or funds.
	—	Level 2—valuations for assets and liabilities traded in less active dealer, or broker markets, such as quoted prices for similar assets or liabilities or quoted prices in markets that are not active. Level 2 includes U.S. Treasury, U.S. government and agency debt securities, and certain corporate obligations. Valuations are usually obtained from third-party pricing services for identical or comparable assets or liabilities.
	—	Level 3—valuations for assets and liabilities that are derived from other valuation methodologies, such as option pricing models, discounted cash flow models and similar techniques, and not based on market exchange, dealer, or broker traded transactions. Level 3 valuations incorporate certain assumptions and projections in determining the fair value assigned to such assets or liabilities.
	In determining fair value, we utilize valuation techniques that maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs to the extent possible and consider counterparty credit risk in our assessment of fair value.
	We chose not to elect the fair value option for our financial assets and liabilities that had not been previously carried at fair value. Therefore, material financial assets and liabilities not carried at fair value, such as trade accounts receivable and payables, are reported at their carrying values.
	The carrying amounts of our financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, receivables from domain name registries, registry deposits, restricted cash, accounts payable, term loan, revolving credit facility, accrued liabilities and customer deposits approximate fair value because of their short maturities. For the Term Loans and Revolving Loan Facility, the carrying amount approximates fair value since it bears interest at variable rates which approximates fair value. Our investments in marketable securities are recorded at fair value. Certain assets, including equity investments, investments held at cost, goodwill and intangible assets are also subject to measurement at fair value on a nonrecurring basis, if they are deemed to be impaired as the result of an impairment review.
	Financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis were as follows (in thousands):
		Balance at March 31, 2014
		Level 1		Level 2		Total
	Assets:
	Cash equivalents (1)	$	3,034	$	—	$	3,034
		$	3,034	$	—	$	3,034
	Liabilities:
	Debt	$	—	$	92,500	$	92,500
		$	—	$	92,500	$	92,500
	-1	Comprises money market funds which are included in Cash and cash equivalents in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet.
		Balance at December 31, 2013
		Level 1		Level 2		Total
	Assets:
	Cash equivalents (1)	$	4,034	$	—	$	4,034
	Marketable securities		902		—		902
		$	4,936	$	—	$	4,936
	Liabilities:
	Debt	$	—	$	96,250	$	96,250
		$	—	$	96,250	$	96,250
	-1	Comprises money market funds which are included in Cash and cash equivalents in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet.
	For financial assets that utilize Level 1 and Level 2 inputs, we utilize both direct and indirect observable price quotes, including quoted market prices (Level 1 inputs) or inputs that are derived principally from or corroborated by observable market data (Level 2 inputs).

Net_Income_Loss_Per_Share

Net Income (Loss) Per Share	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Net Income (Loss) Per Share	'
	15. Net Income (Loss) Per Share
	The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted net income (loss) per share of common stock (in thousands, except per share data):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014			2013
	Net income (loss)	$	(10,956	)	$	669
	Weighted average common shares outstanding		90,875			86,838
	Weighted average unvested restricted stock awards		(21	)		(220	)
	Weighted average common shares outstanding—basic		90,854			86,618
	Dilutive effect of stock options, warrants and ESPP		—			1,125
	Weighted average common shares outstanding—diluted		90,854			87,743
	Net income (loss) per share—basic	$	(0.12	)	$	0.01
	Net income (loss) per share—diluted	$	(0.12	)	$	0.01
	For the three months ended March 31, 2014 we excluded 0.6 million shares from the calculation of diluted weighted average shares outstanding, as their inclusion would have been antidilutive. There were no antidilutive shares for the other periods presented.

Basis_of_Presentation_and_Summ1

Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Basis of Presentation	'
	Basis of Presentation
	The accompanying interim condensed consolidated balance sheet as of March 31, 2014, the condensed consolidated statements of operations and condensed consolidated statements of comprehensive income (loss) for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013, the condensed consolidated statements of cash flows for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013 and the condensed consolidated statement of stockholders’ equity for the three month period ended March 31, 2014 are unaudited.
	In the opinion of management, the unaudited interim condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the same basis as the audited consolidated financial statements and include all adjustments, which include only normal recurring adjustments, necessary for the fair statement of our statement of financial position as of March 31, 2014 and our results of operations for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013 and our cash flows for the three month periods ended March 31, 2014 and 2013. The results for the three month period ended March 31, 2014 are not necessarily indicative of the results expected for the full year. The consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2013 has been derived from our audited financial statements included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013.
	The interim unaudited condensed consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States (“GAAP”), for interim financial information and with the instructions to the SEC Form 10-Q and Article 10 of SEC Regulation S-X. They do not include all of the information and footnotes required by GAAP for complete financial statements. Therefore, these financial statements should be read in conjunction with our audited consolidated financial statements and notes thereto, included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2013 filed with the SEC.
	In 2014, we began separately reporting product sales and cost of products. As a result of the June 2013 Society6 acquisition, these amounts are now more significant to us and, accordingly, are shown as separate captions under revenue and operating expenses, respectively, on the consolidated statement of operations. Amounts in 2013 have been reclassified to conform to the 2014 presentation.
Principles of Consolidation	'
	Principles of Consolidation
	The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Demand Media and its wholly owned subsidiaries. Acquisitions are included in our consolidated financial statements from the date of the acquisition. Our purchase accounting resulted in all assets and liabilities of acquired businesses being recorded at their estimated fair values on the acquisition dates. All significant intercompany transactions and balances have been eliminated in consolidation.
Use of Estimates	'
	Use of Estimates
	The preparation of the consolidated financial statements in conformity with GAAP requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities, the disclosure of contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements, and the reported amounts of revenue and expenses during the reporting period. Significant items subject to such estimates and assumptions include revenue, allowance for doubtful accounts, investments in equity interests, fair value of issued and acquired stock warrants, the assigned value of acquired assets and assumed liabilities in business combinations, useful lives and impairment of property and equipment, intangible assets, goodwill and other assets, the fair value of equity-based compensation awards, and deferred income tax assets and liabilities. Actual results could differ materially from those estimates. On an ongoing basis, we evaluate our estimates compared to historical experience and trends, which form the basis for making judgments about the carrying value of our assets and liabilities.
Investments in Equity	'
	Investments in Equity
	Investments in affiliates over which we have the ability to exert significant influence, but do not control and are not the primary beneficiary of, including NameJet, LLC (“NameJet”), are accounted for using the equity method of accounting. Investments in affiliates which we have no ability to exert significant influence are accounted for using the cost method of accounting. Our proportional shares of affiliate earnings or losses accounted for under the equity method of accounting, which are not material for all periods presented, are included in other income (expense) in our consolidated statements of operations. Affiliated companies are not material individually or in the aggregate to our financial position, results of operations or cash flows for any period presented.
	We account for investments in companies that we do not control or account for under the equity method either at fair value or under the cost method, as applicable. Investments in equity securities are carried at fair value if the fair value of the security is readily determinable. Equity investments carried at fair value are classified as available-for-sale securities. Realized gains and losses for available-for-sale securities are included in other income (expense), net in our consolidated statements of operations. Unrealized gains and losses, net of taxes, on available-for-sale securities are included in our consolidated financial statements as a component of other comprehensive income and accumulated other comprehensive income (loss) (“AOCI”), until realized.
	Investments in equity securities that we do not control or account for under the equity method and do not have readily determinable fair values are accounted for under the cost method. Cost method investments are originally recorded at cost. In determining whether other-than-temporary impairment exists for equity securities, management considers: (1) the length of time and the extent to which the fair value has been less than cost, (2) the financial condition and near-term prospects of the issuer and (3) our intent and ability to retain our investment in the issuer for a period of time sufficient to allow for any anticipated recovery in fair value. We have determined that there has been no impairment of our equity marketable securities to date.
	The cost of marketable securities sold is based upon the specific identification method and any realized gains or losses on the sale of investments are reflected as a component of interest income or expense. For the year ended December 31, 2013, unrealized gain on marketable securities was $0.9 million. During the three months ended March 31, 2014, we sold all of our marketable securities, resulting in a reclassification of $0.9 million of unrealized gain on marketable securities from other accumulated other comprehensive income to other income (expense), net. The sale of our marketable securities resulted in total realized gains of $1.4 million related the sale of our marketable securities, which are included in other income (expense), net.
	In addition, we classify marketable securities as current or non-current based upon whether such assets are reasonably expected to be realized in cash or sold or consumed during the normal operating cycle of the business.
Revenue Recognition	'
	Revenue Recognition
	We recognize revenue when four basic criteria are met: persuasive evidence of a sales arrangement exists; performance of services has occurred; the sales price is fixed or determinable; and collectability is reasonably assured. We consider persuasive evidence of a sales arrangement to be the receipt of a signed contract. Collectability is assessed based on a number of factors, including transaction history and the credit worthiness of a customer. If it is determined that collection is not reasonably assured, revenue is not recognized until collection becomes reasonably assured, which is generally upon receipt of cash. We record cash received in advance of revenue recognition as deferred revenue.
	For arrangements with multiple deliverables, we allocate revenue to each deliverable if the delivered item(s) has value to the customer on a standalone basis and, if the arrangement includes a general right of return relative to the delivered item, delivery or performance of the undelivered item(s) is considered probable and substantially in our control. The fair value of the selling price for a deliverable is determined using a hierarchy of (1) company-specific objective and reliable evidence, then (2) third-party evidence, then (3) best estimate of selling price. We allocate any arrangement fee to each of the elements based on their relative selling prices.
	Our revenue is principally derived from the following services:
	Service Revenue
	Content & Media
	Advertising Revenue. Advertising revenue is generated by performance-based Internet advertising, such as cost-per-click advertising, in which an advertiser pays only when a user clicks on our advertisement that is displayed on our owned and operated websites and customer websites; fees generated by users viewing third-party website banners and text-link advertisements; fees generated by enabling customer leads or registrations for partners; and fees from referring users to, or from users making purchases on, sponsors’ websites. In determining whether an arrangement exists, we ensure that a binding arrangement is in place, such as a standard insertion order or a fully executed customer-specific agreement. Obligations pursuant to our advertising revenue arrangements typically include a minimum number of impressions or the satisfaction of the other performance criteria. Revenue from performance-based arrangements, including referral revenue, is recognized as the related performance criteria are met. We assess whether performance criteria have been met and whether the fees are fixed or determinable based on a reconciliation of the performance criteria and an analysis of the payment terms associated with the transaction. The reconciliation of the performance criteria generally includes a comparison of third-party performance data to the contractual performance obligation and to internal or customer performance data in circumstances where that data is available.
	Where we enter into revenue-sharing arrangements with our customers, such as those relating to advertising on our customers’ domains, and when we are considered the primary obligor, we report the underlying revenue on a gross basis in our consolidated statements of operations, and record these revenue-sharing payments to our customers as revenue-sharing expenses, which are included in service costs.
	In certain cases, we record revenue based on available and preliminary information from third parties. Amounts collected on the related receivables may vary from reported information based upon third-party refinement of estimated and reported amounts owing that occurs typically within 30 days of the period end. For the three months ended March 31, 2014 and 2013, the difference between the amounts recognized based on preliminary information and cash collected was not material.
	Subscription Services and Social Media Services. Subscription services revenue is generated through the sale of membership fees paid to access content available on certain of our owned and operated websites. The majority of the memberships range from 6 to 12 month terms. Subscription services revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the membership term.
	We configure, host, and maintain our platform social media services under private-labeled versions of software for commercial customers. We earn revenue from our social media services through initial set-up fees, recurring management support fees, overage fees in excess of standard usage terms, and outside consulting fees. Due to the fact that social media services customers have no contractual right to take possession of our private-labeled software, we account for our social media services revenue as service arrangements, whereby social media services revenue is recognized when persuasive evidence of an arrangement exists, delivery of the service has occurred and no significant obligations remain, the selling price is fixed or determinable, and collectability is reasonably assured.
	Social media service arrangements may contain multiple deliverables, including, but not limited to, single arrangements containing set-up fees, monthly support fees and overage billings, consulting services and advertising services. To the extent that consulting services have value on a standalone basis, we allocate revenue to each element in the multiple deliverable arrangements based upon their relative fair values. Fair value is determined based upon the best estimate of the selling price. To date, substantially all consulting services entered into concurrently with the original social media service arrangements are not treated as separate deliverables, as such services do not have value to the customer on a standalone basis. In such cases, the arrangement is treated as a single unit of accounting with the arrangement fee recognized over the term of the arrangement on a straight-line basis. Set-up fees are recognized as revenue on a straight-line basis over the greater of the contractual or estimated customer life once monthly recurring services have commenced. We determine the estimated customer life based on analysis of historical attrition rates, average contractual term and renewal expectations. We review the estimated customer life at least quarterly and when events or changes in circumstances occur, such as significant customer attrition relative to expected historical or projected future results. Overage billings are recognized when delivered and at contractual rates in excess of standard usage terms.
	Outside consulting services performed for customers that have value on a stand alone basis are recognized as services are performed.
	Content and Other Revenue. Content and other revenue is generated through the sale or license of media content or undeveloped websites. Revenue from the sale or perpetual license of content and undeveloped websites is recognized when the content and the sale of undeveloped websites have been delivered and the contractual performance obligations have been fulfilled. Revenue from the license of content is recognized over the period of the license as content is delivered or when other related performance criteria are fulfilled.
	Registrar
	Domain Name Registration Service Fees. We recognize revenue from registration fees charged to third parties in connection with new, renewed and transferred domain name registrations on a straight-line basis over the registration term, which ranges from one to ten years. We include payments received in advance of the domain name registration term in deferred revenue in our consolidated balance sheets. The registration term and related revenue recognition commences once we confirm that the requested domain name has been recorded in the appropriate registry under accepted contractual performance standards. We defer the associated direct and incremental costs, which principally consist of registry and ICANN fees, and expense them as service costs on a straight-line basis over the registration term.
	Our businesses including eNom and Name.com, are ICANN accredited registrars. Thus, we are the primary obligor with our reseller and retail registrant customers and are responsible for the fulfillment of our registrar services to those parties. As a result, we report revenue in the amount of the fees we receive directly from our reseller and retail registrant customers. Our reseller customers maintain the primary obligor relationship with their retail customers, establish pricing and retain credit risk to those customers. Accordingly, we do not recognize any revenue related to transactions between our reseller customers and their ultimate retail customers. A portion of our resellers have contracted with us to provide billing and credit card processing services to the resellers’ retail customer base in addition to registration services. Under these circumstances, the cash collected from these resellers’ retail customer base exceeds the fixed amount per transaction that we charge for domain name registration services. Accordingly, these amounts, which are collected for the benefit of the reseller, are not recognized as revenue and are recorded as a liability until remitted to the reseller on a periodic basis. We report revenue from these resellers on a net basis because the reseller determines the price to charge its retail customers and maintains the primary customer relationship.
	Value Added Services. We recognize revenue from online registrar value-added services, which include, but are not limited to, security certificates, domain name identification protection, charges associated with alternative payment methodologies, web hosting services and email services on a straight-line basis over the period in which services are provided. We include payments received in advance of services being provided in deferred revenue.
	Auction Service Revenue. Domain name auction service revenue represents proceeds received from selling domain names from our portfolio, as well as proceeds received from selling domain names that are not renewed by customers of our registrar platform. Domain name sales are primarily conducted through our direct sales efforts as well as through our NameJet joint venture. Domain name sales revenue is recognized when title to the name is transferred to the buyer and the related registration fees are recognized on a straight-line basis over the registration term. If we sell a domain name, any unamortized cost basis is recorded as a service cost. For domain name sales generated through NameJet, we recognize revenue net of auction service fee payments to NameJet.
	Product Revenue
	Content & Media
	We recognize revenue from product sales upon delivery, net of estimated returns based on historical experience. Payments received in advance of delivery are included in deferred revenue in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheets. Revenue is recorded at the gross amount due to the following factors: we are the primary obligor in a transaction, we have inventory and credit risk, and we have latitude in establishing prices and selecting suppliers. Product sales and shipping revenue is recognized net of promotional discounts, rebates, and return allowances. We periodically provide incentive offers to customers to encourage purchases. Such offers may include current discount offers, such as percentage discounts off current purchases, free shipping and other similar offers. Sales tax is not included in revenue, as we are a pass-through conduit for collecting and remitting sales taxes.
Service Costs	'
	Service Costs
	Service costs consist primarily of fees paid to registries and ICANN associated with domain registrations, advertising revenue recognized by us and shared with our customers or partners as a result of our revenue-sharing arrangements, such as traffic acquisition costs, Internet connection and co-location charges and other platform operating expenses associated with our owned and operated and customer websites, including depreciation of the systems and hardware used to build and operate our Content & Media platform and Registrar service offering, personnel costs relating to in-house editorial, customer service, and information technology.
	Registry fee expenses consist of payments to entities accredited by ICANN as the designated registry related to each top level domain (“TLD”). These payments are generally fixed dollar amounts per domain name registration period and are recognized on a straight-line basis over the registration term. The costs of renewal registration fee expenses for owned and operated undeveloped websites are also included in service costs. Amortization of the cost of undeveloped websites and media content owned by us is included in amortization of intangible assets.
Product Cost	'
	Product Costs
	Product costs consist of outsourced product manufacturing costs; shipping and handling; artist royalties and personnel costs.
Shipping and Handling	'
	Shipping and Handling
	Shipping and handling charged to customers are recorded in revenue. Associated costs are recorded in product costs.
Deferred Revenue and Deferred Registration Costs	'
	Deferred Revenue and Deferred Registration Costs
	Deferred revenue consists primarily of amounts received from customers in advance of our performance for domain name registration services, subscription services for premium media content, social media services and online value-added services. Deferred revenue is recognized as revenue on a systematic basis that is proportionate to the unexpired term of the related domain name registration, media subscription as services are rendered, over customer useful life, or online value-added service period.
	Deferred registration costs represent the incremental direct cost paid in advance to registries, ICANN, and other third parties for domain name registrations and are recorded as a deferred cost on the balance sheets. Deferred registration costs are amortized to expense on a straight-line basis concurrently with the recognition of the related domain name registration revenue and are included in service costs.
Property and equipment	'
	Property and equipment
	Property and equipment are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation. Depreciation is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets. Computer equipment is amortized over two to five years, software is amortized over two to three years, and furniture and fixtures are amortized over seven to ten years. Leasehold improvements are amortized straight-line over the shorter of the remaining lease term or the estimated useful lives of the improvements ranging from one to ten years. Upon the sale or retirement of property or equipment, the cost and related accumulated depreciation or amortization is removed from our financial statements with the resulting gain or loss reflected in our results of operations. Repairs and maintenance costs are expensed as incurred. In the event that property and equipment is no longer in use, we will record a loss on disposal of the property and equipment, which is computed as difference between the sales price, if any, and the net remaining value (gross amount of property and equipment less accumulated depreciation expense) of the related equipment at the date of disposal.
Intangibles	'
	Intangible Assets—Undeveloped Websites
	We capitalize costs incurred to acquire and to initially register our owned and operated undeveloped websites (i.e., Uniform Resource Locators). We amortize these costs over the expected useful life of the underlying undeveloped websites on a straight-line basis. The expected useful lives of the website names range from 12 months to 84 months. We determine the appropriate useful life by performing an analysis of expected cash flows based on historical experience with domain names of similar quality and value.
	In order to maintain the rights to each undeveloped website acquired, we pay periodic renewal registration fees, which generally cover a minimum period of 12 months. We record renewal registration fees of website name intangible assets in deferred registration costs and amortize the costs over the renewal registration period, which is included in service costs.
	Intangible Assets—Media Content
	We capitalize the direct costs incurred to acquire our media content that is determined to embody a probable future economic benefit. Costs are recognized as finite-lived intangible assets based on their acquisition cost to us. Direct content costs primarily represent amounts paid to unrelated third parties for completed content units, and to a lesser extent, specifically identifiable internal direct labor costs incurred to enhance the value of specific content units acquired prior to their publication. Internal costs not directly attributable to the enhancement of an individual content unit acquired are expensed as incurred. All costs incurred to deploy and publish content are expensed as incurred, including the costs incurred for the ongoing maintenance of our websites in which our content is published.
	Capitalized media content is amortized on a straight-line basis over its useful life, which is typically five years, representing our estimate of the pattern that the underlying economic benefits are expected to be realized and based on its estimates of the projected cash flows from advertising revenue expected to be generated by the deployment of our content. These estimates are based on our plans and projections, comparison of the economic returns generated by our content with content of comparable quality and an analysis of historical cash flows generated by that content to date. Amortization of media content is included in amortization of intangible assets in the accompanying condensed consolidated statement of operations and the acquisition costs are included in purchases of intangible assets within cash flows from investing activities in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of cash flows.
	Intangible Assets—Acquired in Business Combinations
	We perform valuations of assets acquired and liabilities assumed on each acquisition accounted for as a business combination and allocate the purchase price of each acquired business to our respective net tangible and intangible assets. Acquired intangible assets include: trade names, non-compete agreements, owned website names, customer relationships, technology, media content, and content publisher relationships. We determine the appropriate useful life by performing an analysis of expected cash flows based on historical experience of the acquired businesses. Intangible assets are amortized over their estimated useful lives using the straight-line method which approximates the pattern in which the economic benefits are consumed.
Long-lived Assets	'
	Long-lived Assets
	We evaluate the recoverability of our long-lived assets with finite useful lives for impairment when events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset group may not be recoverable. Such trigger events or changes in circumstances may include: a significant decrease in the market price of a long-lived asset, a significant adverse change in the extent or manner in which a long-lived asset is being used, a significant adverse change in legal factors or in the business climate, including those resulting from technology advancements in the industry, the impact of competition or other factors that could affect the value of a long-lived asset, a significant adverse deterioration in the amount of revenue or cash flows we expect to generate from an asset group, an accumulation of costs significantly in excess of the amount originally expected for the acquisition or development of a long-lived asset, current or future operating or cash flow losses that demonstrate continuing losses associated with the use of a long-lived asset, or a current expectation that, more likely than not, a long-lived asset will be sold or otherwise disposed of significantly before the end of its previously estimated useful life. We perform impairment testing at the asset group level that represents the lowest level for which identifiable cash flows are largely independent of the cash flows of other assets and liabilities. If events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of an asset group may not be recoverable and the expected undiscounted future cash flows attributable to the asset group are less than the carrying amount of the asset group, an impairment loss equal to the excess of the asset’s carrying value over its fair value is recorded. Fair value is determined based upon estimated discounted future cash flows. Through March 31, 2014, we have identified no such impairment loss. Assets to be disposed of would be separately presented on the balance sheets and reported at the lower of their carrying amount or fair value less costs to sell, and would no longer be depreciated or amortized.
	Google, the largest provider of search engine referrals to the majority of our websites, regularly deploys changes to their search engine algorithms, some of which have led us to experience fluctuations in the total number of Google search referrals to our owned and operated and network of customer websites. In 2011 and 2013, the overall impact of these changes on our owned and operated websites was negative primarily due to a decline in traffic to eHow.com, our largest website. Beginning in response to changes in search engine algorithms since 2011, we have performed evaluations of our existing content library to identify potential improvements in our content creation and distribution platform. As a result of these evaluations, we elected to remove certain content assets from service, resulting in $2.4 million, $2.1 million and $5.9 million of related accelerated amortization expense in 2013, 2012 and 2011, respectively. Any further discretionary actions may result in additional accelerated amortization in the periods the actions occur.
Goodwill	'
	Goodwill
	Goodwill represents the excess of the cost of an acquired entity over the fair value of the acquired net assets. Goodwill is tested for impairment annually during the fourth quarter of our fiscal year or when events or circumstances change that would indicate that goodwill might be impaired. Events or circumstances that could trigger an impairment review include, but are not limited to, a significant adverse change in legal factors or in the business climate, an adverse action or assessment by a regulator, unanticipated competition, a loss of key personnel, significant changes in the manner of our use of the acquired assets or the strategy for our overall business, significant negative industry or economic trends or significant underperformance relative to expected historical or projected future results of operations.
	Goodwill is tested for impairment at the reporting unit level, which is one level below or the same as an operating segment. As of December 31, 2013, we determined that we have three reporting units. We perform an assessment as to whether a reporting unit’s fair value is less than our carrying value of its assets. If the fair value of the reporting unit exceeds the carrying value, goodwill is not considered to be impaired and no additional steps are necessary. If, however, the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying value, then a second step is performed to determine the amount of the impairment loss. The amount of the impairment loss is the excess of the carrying amount of the goodwill over its implied fair value. The estimate of the fair value of goodwill is primarily based on an estimate of the discounted cash flows expected to result from that reporting unit, but may require valuations of certain internally generated and unrecognized intangible assets such as our software, technology, patents and trademarks.
	Our most recent annual impairment analysis was performed in the fourth quarter of the year ended December 31, 2013 and indicated that the fair value of each of our three reporting units exceeded the respective reporting unit’s carrying value at that time. We recently experienced a significant volatility in our stock price, however, and as of March 31, 2014, our market capitalization was less than our book value. Should this condition continue to exist for an extended period of time, we will consider this and other factors, including our anticipated future cash flows, to determine whether goodwill is impaired. If we are required to record a significant impairment charge against certain intangible assets reflected on our balance sheet during the period in which an impairment is determined to exist, we could report a greater loss in one or more future periods. Based on a review of events and changes in circumstances at the reporting unit level through March 31, 2014, we have not identified any indications that the carrying value of our goodwill is impaired. We will continue to perform our annual goodwill impairment test in the fourth quarter of the year ending December 31, 2014, consistent with our existing accounting policy.
Other Long-Term Assets	'
	Other Long-Term Assets
	A framework for the significant expansion of the number of generic Top Level Domains (“gTLDs”) has been approved by ICANN, which began delegating gTLDs in October 2013 (the “New gTLD Program”). We capitalize the costs incurred to pursue the acquisition of gTLD operator rights that are determined to embody a probable economic benefit. Capitalized payments for gTLD applications are included in long-term other assets during the application process. For those gTLDs which have been delegated to us, capitalized payments will be reclassified as finite-lived intangible assets following the delegation of operator rights for each gTLD by ICANN, however, there can be no assurance that we will be awarded all gTLDs for which we have applied. Payments for gTLD applications primarily represent amounts paid directly to ICANN and/or third parties in the pursuit of gTLD operator rights. We may receive partial cash refunds for certain gTLD applications, and to the extent we elect to sell or withdraw our interest in certain gTLD applications throughout the process, we may also incur gains or losses on amounts invested. Gains on our interest in gTLD applications will be recognized when realized, while losses will be recognized when deemed probable. Other costs incurred by us as part of our gTLD initiative not directly attributable to the acquisition of gTLD operator rights are expensed as incurred. Capitalized costs will be amortized on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful life of the gTLD operator rights acquired commencing the date that each asset is available for its intended use.
Stock-Based Compensation	'
	Stock-Based Compensation
	We measure and recognize compensation expense for all stock-based payment awards made to employees, non-employees and directors based on the grant date fair values of the awards. For stock option awards to employees with service and/or performance based vesting conditions the fair value is estimated using the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model. The value of an award that is ultimately expected to vest is recognized as expense over the requisite service periods in our consolidated statements of operations. We elected to treat stock-based payment awards, other than performance awards, with graded vesting schedules and time-based service conditions as a single award and recognize stock-based compensation expense on a straight-line basis (net of estimated forfeitures) over the requisite service period. Stock-based compensation expenses are classified in the consolidated statement of operations based on the department to which the related employee reports. Our stock-based awards are comprised principally of stock options, restricted stock units and restricted stock awards.
	We account for stock-based payment awards and stock options issued to non-employees in accordance with the guidance for equity-based payments to non-employees. Stock option awards to non-employees are accounted for at fair value using the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model. We believe that the fair value of stock-based payment awards and stock options is more reliably measured than the fair value of the services received. The fair value of the unvested portion of the options granted to non-employees is re-measured each period. The resulting increase in value, if any, is recognized as expense during the period the related services are rendered.
	The Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model requires management to make assumptions and to apply judgment in determining the fair value of our awards. The most significant assumptions and judgments include the expected volatility, expected term of the award and estimated forfeiture rates.
	We estimated the expected volatility of our awards from the historical volatility of selected public companies within the Internet and media industry with comparable characteristics to Demand Media, including similarity in size, lines of business, market capitalization, revenue and financial leverage. From our inception through December 31, 2008, the weighted average expected life of options was calculated using the simplified method as prescribed under guidance by the SEC. This decision was based on the lack of relevant historical data due to our limited experience and the lack of an active market for our common stock. Effective January 1, 2009, we calculated the weighted average expected life of our options based upon our historical experience of option exercises combined with estimates of the post-vesting holding period. The-risk free interest rate is based on the implied yield currently available on U.S. Treasury notes with terms approximately equal to the expected life of the option. The expected dividend rate is zero as we currently have no history or expectation of paying cash dividends on our common stock. The forfeiture rate is established based on applicable historical forfeiture patterns adjusted for any expected changes in future periods.
	Under the Demand Media Employee Stock Purchase Plan (“ESPP”), during any offering period, eligible officers and employees can purchase a limited amount of Demand Media’s common stock at a discount to the market price in accordance with the terms of the plan. Demand Media uses the Black-Scholes-Merton option pricing model to determine the fair value of the ESPP awards granted which is recognized straight-line over the total offering period. The most recent offering period ended in November 2013.
Stock Repurchases	'
	Stock Repurchases
	Under our stock repurchase plan, shares repurchased by us are accounted for when the transaction is settled. Repurchased shares held for future issuance are classified as treasury stock. Shares formally or constructively retired are deducted from common stock at par value and from additional paid in capital for the excess over par value. If additional paid in capital has been exhausted, the excess over par value is deducted from retained earnings. Direct costs incurred to acquire the shares are included in the total cost of the repurchased shares.
Income Taxes	'
	Income Taxes
	Deferred income taxes are recognized for differences between financial reporting and tax bases of assets and liabilities at the enacted statutory tax rates in effect for the years in which the temporary differences are expected to reverse. The effect on deferred taxes of a change in tax rates is recognized in income in the period that includes the enactment date. We evaluate the realizability of deferred tax assets and recognize a valuation allowance for our deferred tax assets when it is more likely than not that a future benefit on such deferred tax assets will not be realized.
	We recognize the tax benefit from an uncertain tax position only if it is more likely than not that the tax position will be sustained on examination by the taxing authorities, based on the technical merits of the position. The tax benefits recognized in the consolidated financial statements from such positions are then measured based on the largest benefit that has a greater than 50% likelihood of being realized upon settlement. We recognize interest and penalties accrued related to unrecognized tax benefits in our income tax (benefit) provision in the accompanying condensed consolidated statements of operations.
Net Income (Loss) Per Share	'
	Net Income (Loss) Per Share
	Basic income (loss) per share is computed by dividing the net income (loss) attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average number of common shares outstanding during the period. Net loss attributable to common stockholders is increased for cumulative preferred stock dividends earned during the period. Diluted loss per share is computed by dividing the net loss attributable to common stockholders by the weighted average common shares outstanding plus potentially dilutive common shares. We reported a net loss for the three months ended March 31, 2014, and as a result, all potentially dilutive common shares comprising of stock options and restricted stock units (“RSUs”), stock from the ESPP are considered antidilutive for this period.
	RSUs and other restricted awards are considered outstanding common shares and included in the computation of basic earnings per share as of the date that all necessary conditions of vesting are satisfied. RSUs are excluded from the dilutive earnings per share calculation when their impact is antidilutive.
Fair Value of Financial Instruments	'
	Fair Value of Financial Instruments
	We chose not to elect the fair value option for our financial assets and liabilities that had not been previously carried at fair value. Therefore, material financial assets and liabilities not carried at fair value, such as trade accounts receivable and payables, are reported at their carrying values.
	The carrying amounts of our financial instruments, including cash and cash equivalents, accounts receivable, receivables from domain name registries, registry deposits, restricted cash, accounts payable, accrued liabilities and customer deposits approximate fair value because of their short maturities. For our term loans and revolving loan facility, the carrying amount approximate fair value since they bear interest at variable rates which approximates fair value. Our investments in marketable securities are recorded at fair value. Certain assets, including equity investments, investments held at cost, goodwill and intangible assets are also subject to measurement at fair value on a nonrecurring basis, if they are deemed to be impaired as the result of an impairment review. For the three months ended March 31, 2014 and the year ended December 31, 2013, no impairments were recorded on those assets required to be measured at fair value on a nonrecurring basis. (Refer to Note 14 for additional information).

Property_and_Equipment_Tables

Property and Equipment (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Schedule of Property and Equipment	'
	Property and equipment consisted of the following (in thousands):
		March 31,			December 31,
		2014			2013
	Computers and other related equipment	$	43,357		$	43,010
	Purchased and internally developed software		66,830			65,632
	Furniture and fixtures		3,909			3,868
	Leasehold improvements		9,118			9,075
			123,214			121,585
	Less accumulated depreciation		(83,724	)		(79,392	)
	Property and equipment, net	$	39,490		$	42,193
Schedule of Depreciation and Amortization	'
	Depreciation and software amortization expense, which includes losses on disposal of property and equipment of approximately $0.9 million and $0.5 million for the three months ended March 31, 2014, and 2013, respectively, is shown by classification below (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014			2013
	Service costs	$	3,613		$	3,982
	Sales and marketing		56			107
	Product development		178			236
	General and administrative		1,929			1,020
	Total depreciation	$	5,776		$	5,345

Intangible_Assets_Tables

Intangible Assets (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Schedule of Intangible Assets	'
	Intangible assets consisted of the following (in thousands):
		31-Mar-14
		Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization			Net
	Owned website names	$	24,077	$	(14,503	)	$	9,574
	Customer relationships		30,454		(25,663	)		4,791
	Artist relationships		9,867		(2,330	)		7,537
	Media content		145,411		(100,567	)		44,844
	Technology		37,197		(30,779	)		6,418
	Non-compete agreements		1,159		(379	)		780
	Trade names		15,742		(6,855	)		8,887
	Content publisher relationships		2,092		(1,767	)		325
		$	265,999	$	(182,843	)	$	83,156
		31-Dec-13
		Gross carrying amount		Accumulated amortization			Net
	Owned website names	$	22,370	$	(14,684	)	$	7,686
	Customer relationships		32,462		(26,026	)		6,436
	Artist relationships		9,867		(1,507	)		8,360
	Media content		143,756		(95,687	)		48,069
	Technology		37,832		(30,165	)		7,667
	Non-compete agreements		1,159		(294	)		865
	Trade names		15,742		(6,444	)		9,298
	Content publisher relationships		2,092		(1,707	)		385
		$	265,280	$	(176,514	)	$	88,766
Amortization Expense by Classification	'
	Amortization expense by classification is shown below (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014		2013
	Service costs	$	7,556	$	7,439
	Sales and marketing		2,430		845
	Product development		1,191		1,071
	General and administrative		452		204
	Total amortization	$	11,629	$	9,559

Other_Assets_Tables

Other Assets (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Schedule of Other Long Term Assets	'
	Other long term assets consisted of the following (in thousands):
		March 31,		December 31,
		2014		2013
	gTLD deposits	$	19,141	$	21,252
	Other		3,659		4,070
	Other assets	$	22,800	$	25,322

Other_Balance_Sheets_Items_Tab

Other Balance Sheets Items (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Schedule of Accrued Expenses and Other Liabilities	'
	Accrued expenses and other liabilities consisted of the following (in thousands):
		March 31,		December 31,
		2014		2013
	Accrued payroll and related items	$	6,464	$	9,301
	Domain owners' royalties payable		890		1,193
	Commission payable		2,307		2,808
	Customer deposits		7,651		7,666
	Other		14,342		13,711
	Accrued expenses and other liabilities	$	31,654	$	34,679

StockBased_Compensation_Plans_1

Stock-Based Compensation Plans and Awards (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Stock-Based Compensation Expense	'
	Stock-based compensation expense related to all employee and non-employee stock-based awards recognized in the condensed consolidated statements of operations was as follows (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014		2013
	Service costs	$	402	$	611
	Sales and marketing		825		1,923
	Product development		959		1,165
	General and administrative		3,081		3,564
	Total stock-based compensation included in net income (loss)	$	5,267	$	7,263

Business_Segments_Tables

Business Segments (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Business Segments Summary of Revenue	'
	Revenue derived from our Content & Media and Registrar service offering is as follows (in thousands):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014		2013
	Content & Media revenue:
	Owned & operated	$	40,752	$	49,703
	Network		9,871		15,588
	Total Content & Media revenue		50,623		65,291
	Registrar revenue		39,129		35,329
	Total revenue	$	89,752	$	100,620

Fair_Value_Tables

Fair Value (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Financial Assets and Liabilities Carried at Fair Value on a Recurring Basis	'
	Financial assets and liabilities measured at fair value on a recurring basis were as follows (in thousands):
		Balance at March 31, 2014
		Level 1		Level 2		Total
	Assets:
	Cash equivalents (1)	$	3,034	$	—	$	3,034
		$	3,034	$	—	$	3,034
	Liabilities:
	Debt	$	—	$	92,500	$	92,500
		$	—	$	92,500	$	92,500
	-1	Comprises money market funds which are included in Cash and cash equivalents in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet.
		Balance at December 31, 2013
		Level 1		Level 2		Total
	Assets:
	Cash equivalents (1)	$	4,034	$	—	$	4,034
	Marketable securities		902		—		902
		$	4,936	$	—	$	4,936
	Liabilities:
	Debt	$	—	$	96,250	$	96,250
		$	—	$	96,250	$	96,250
	-1	Comprises money market funds which are included in Cash and cash equivalents in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet.

Net_Income_Loss_Per_Share_Tabl

Net Income (Loss) Per Share (Tables)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Schedule of Calculation of Numerator and Denominator in Earnings per Share	'
	The following table sets forth the computation of basic and diluted net income (loss) per share of common stock (in thousands, except per share data):
		Three months ended March 31,
		2014			2013
	Net income (loss)	$	(10,956	)	$	669
	Weighted average common shares outstanding		90,875			86,838
	Weighted average unvested restricted stock awards		(21	)		(220	)
	Weighted average common shares outstanding—basic		90,854			86,618
	Dilutive effect of stock options, warrants and ESPP		—			1,125
	Weighted average common shares outstanding—diluted		90,854			87,743
	Net income (loss) per share—basic	$	(0.12	)	$	0.01
	Net income (loss) per share—diluted	$	(0.12	)	$	0.01

Company_Background_and_Overvie1

Company Background and Overview - Additional Information (Details)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
	Program
	Agreement
	services
Company Background and Overview [Abstract]	'
Number of service offerings	2
Number of registry operator agreements	29
Number of programs launched into marketplace	13

Basis_of_Presentation_and_Summ2

Basis of Presentation and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies - Additional Information (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Unrealized gain on marketable securities	$0.90	'	$0.90	'	'
Recognized realized gains	1.4	'	'	'	'
Percent likelihood of largest tax benefit being realized upon settlement	50.00%	'	'	'	'
Media content	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Intangibles, useful life	'5 years	'	'	'	'
Write Down	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	$1.50	$0.10	$2.40	$2.10	$5.90
Minimum	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Domain name registration revenue, customary term	'1 year	'	'	'	'
Minimum | Undeveloped Websites	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Intangibles, useful life	'12 months	'	'	'	'
Minimum | Computer Equipment	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'2 years	'	'	'	'
Minimum | Software	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'2 years	'	'	'	'
Minimum | Furniture and Fixtures	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'7 years	'	'	'	'
Minimum | Leasehold Improvements	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'1 year	'	'	'	'
Maximum	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Domain name registration revenue, customary term	'10 years	'	'	'	'
Maximum | Undeveloped Websites	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Intangibles, useful life	'84 months	'	'	'	'
Maximum | Computer Equipment	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'5 years	'	'	'	'
Maximum | Software	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'3 years	'	'	'	'
Maximum | Furniture and Fixtures	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'10 years	'	'	'	'
Maximum | Leasehold Improvements	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Property and equipment, useful life	'10 years	'	'	'	'
Advertising Service Providers	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Accounts receivable, days outstanding	'30 days	'	'	'	'
Social Media Services Customers | Minimum	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Subscription membership term	'6 months	'	'	'	'
Social Media Services Customers | Maximum	'	'	'	'	'
Revenue Recognition [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Subscription membership term	'12 months	'	'	'	'

Property_and_Equipment_Schedul

Property and Equipment - Schedule of Property and Equipment (Details) (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Property Plant And Equipment [Line Items]	'	'
Property and equipment, gross	$123,214	$121,585
Less accumulated depreciation	-83,724	-79,392
Property and equipment, net	39,490	42,193
Computer Equipment	'	'
Property Plant And Equipment [Line Items]	'	'
Property and equipment, gross	43,357	43,010
Purchased and Internally Developed Software	'	'
Property Plant And Equipment [Line Items]	'	'
Property and equipment, gross	66,830	65,632
Furniture and Fixtures	'	'
Property Plant And Equipment [Line Items]	'	'
Property and equipment, gross	3,909	3,868
Leasehold Improvements	'	'
Property Plant And Equipment [Line Items]	'	'
Property and equipment, gross	$9,118	$9,075

Property_and_Equipment_Additio

Property and Equipment - Additional Information (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Property Plant And Equipment [Line Items]	'	'
Loss on disposal of property and equipment included in depreciation and software amortization	$0.90	$0.50

Property_and_Equipment_Depreci

Property and Equipment - Depreciation and Software Amortization Expense (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Depreciation And Amortization Expenses [Line Items]	'	'
Depreciation	$5,776	$5,345
Service Costs	'	'
Depreciation And Amortization Expenses [Line Items]	'	'
Depreciation	3,613	3,982
Sales and Marketing	'	'
Depreciation And Amortization Expenses [Line Items]	'	'
Depreciation	56	107
Product Development	'	'
Depreciation And Amortization Expenses [Line Items]	'	'
Depreciation	178	236
General and Administrative	'	'
Depreciation And Amortization Expenses [Line Items]	'	'
Depreciation	$1,929	$1,020

Intangible_Assets_Components_D

Intangible Assets - Components (Details) (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	$265,999	$265,280
Accumulated amortization	-182,843	-176,514
Net	83,156	88,766
Owned Websites Names	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	24,077	22,370
Accumulated amortization	-14,503	-14,684
Net	9,574	7,686
Customer Relationships	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	30,454	32,462
Accumulated amortization	-25,663	-26,026
Net	4,791	6,436
Artist relationships	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	9,867	9,867
Accumulated amortization	-2,330	-1,507
Net	7,537	8,360
Media content	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	145,411	143,756
Accumulated amortization	-100,567	-95,687
Net	44,844	48,069
Technology	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	37,197	37,832
Accumulated amortization	-30,779	-30,165
Net	6,418	7,667
Non-compete agreements	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	1,159	1,159
Accumulated amortization	-379	-294
Net	780	865
Trade Names	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	15,742	15,742
Accumulated amortization	-6,855	-6,444
Net	8,887	9,298
Content Publisher Relationships	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Gross carrying amount	2,092	2,092
Accumulated amortization	-1,767	-1,707
Net	$325	$385

Intangible_Assets_Additinal_In

Intangible Assets - Additinal Information (Details) (Write Down, USD $)	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012	Dec. 31, 2011
Write Down	'	'	'	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'	'	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	$1.50	$0.10	$2.40	$2.10	$5.90

Intangible_Assets_Amortization

Intangible Assets - Amortization Expense by Classification (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	$11,629	$9,559
Service Costs	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	7,556	7,439
Sales and Marketing	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	2,430	845
Product Development	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	1,191	1,071
General and Administrative	'	'
Finite Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]	'	'
Amortization of intangible assets	$452	$204

Other_Assets_Other_Long_Term_A

Other Assets - Other Long Term Assets (Details) (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Other long term assets	'	'
Other assets	$22,800	$25,322
gTLD deposits	'	'
Other long term assets	'	'
Other assets	19,141	21,252
Other non current assets	'	'
Other long term assets	'	'
Other assets	$3,659	$4,070

Other_Assets_Additional_Inform

Other Assets - Additional Information (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Deferred Costs Capitalized Prepaid And Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]	'	'
Gain on other assets, net	$4,860,000	'
Restricted cash and cash equivalents, noncurrent	$1,200,000	$900,000
Restricted cash, restriction period	'5 years	'

Other_Balance_Sheets_Items_Acc

Other Balance Sheets Items - Accrued Expenses and Other Liabilities (Details) (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Balance Sheet Related Disclosures [Abstract]	'	'
Accrued payroll and related items	$6,464	$9,301
Domain owners' royalties payable	890	1,193
Commission payable	2,307	2,808
Customer deposits	7,651	7,666
Other	14,342	13,711
Accrued expenses and other liabilities	$31,654	$34,679

Debt_Additional_Information_De

Debt - Additional Information (Details) (USD $)

3 Months Ended

3 Months Ended

3 Months Ended

In Millions, unless otherwise specified

Mar. 31, 2014

Aug. 29, 2013

Mar. 31, 2014

Mar. 31, 2014

Mar. 31, 2014

Mar. 31, 2014

Mar. 31, 2014

Mar. 31, 2014

Aug. 29, 2013

Aug. 29, 2013

Dec. 31, 2013

Aug. 29, 2013

Mar. 31, 2014

Aug. 29, 2013

Minimum

Maximum

Loans based on LIBOR

Loans based on LIBOR

Loans based on base rate

Loans based on base rate

Letter of Credit

Swingline Loan

Term Loan Facility

Term Loan Facility

Revolving Loan Facility

Revolving Loan Facility

Minimum

Maximum

Minimum

Maximum

Debt Instrument [Line Items]

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Line of credit facility, maximum borrowing capacity

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

$25

$10

'

$100

'

$125

Line of credit, maturity date

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

29-Aug-18

'

Line of credit, amount outstanding

92.5

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

100

'

'

'

Revolving loan Facility, Increase amount

25

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Repayment of term loan

3.75

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Debt, weighted average interest rate

2.29%

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Credit agreement, marginal interest rate

'

'

'

'

2.00%

3.00%

1.00%

2.00%

'

'

'

'

'

'

Line of credit facility, unused capacity, commitment fee percentage

'

'

0.20%

0.40%

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Line of credit, remaining borrowing capacity

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

114.5

'

Letters of credit outstanding, amount

10.5

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Debt instrument, fee amount

'

1.9

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Amortized deferred debt issuance costs

$0.10

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

'

Commitments_and_Contingencies_

Commitments and Contingencies - Leases (Details)	3 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014
Leases [Abstract]	'
Date of lease expiration beginning period	'2016-04
Date of lease expiration ending period	'2019-12
Before Amendment Agreement	'
Leases [Abstract]	'
Area of leased space	34,000
After Amendment Agreement	'
Leases [Abstract]	'
Area of leased space	41,000
Date of lease expiration	'2019-04

Commitments_and_Contingencies_1

Commitments and Contingencies - Letters of Credit (Details) (USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014
In Millions, unless otherwise specified
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]	'
Letters of credit outstanding, amount	$10.50

Commitments_and_Contingencies_2

Commitments and Contingencies - Domain Name Agreement (Details) (Domain Name Agreement, USD $)	1 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Dec. 31, 2013
Long Term Purchase Commitment [Line Items]	'
Contract termination notice prior to end of annual renewal period	'1 year
Minimum Quarterly Purchase Commitment	'
Long Term Purchase Commitment [Line Items]	'
Long-term purchase commitment, amount	0.2

Income_Taxes_Details

Income Taxes (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2011
Income Tax Disclosure [Abstract]	'	'	'
Income tax expense (benefit)	$2,468,000	$373,000	'
Income tax benefit movement	2,100,000	'	'
Unrecognized tax position as a result of a business acquisition	'	'	$100,000

Employee_Benefit_Plan_Addition

Employee Benefit Plan - Additional Information (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014
Employee Benefit Plan [Abstract]	'
Percent eligible pre-tax compensation that an eligible employee may defer	90.00%
Defined Contribution Plan, Cost Recognized	$0.60

Recovered_Sheet1

Stock-based Compensation Plans and Awards - Stock-based Compensation Expense (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Employee Service Share Based Compensation Allocation Of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]	'	'
Total stock-based compensation included in net loss	$5,267	$7,263
Service Costs	'	'
Employee Service Share Based Compensation Allocation Of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]	'	'
Total stock-based compensation included in net loss	402	611
Sales and Marketing	'	'
Employee Service Share Based Compensation Allocation Of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]	'	'
Total stock-based compensation included in net loss	825	1,923
Product Development	'	'
Employee Service Share Based Compensation Allocation Of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]	'	'
Total stock-based compensation included in net loss	959	1,165
General and Administrative	'	'
Employee Service Share Based Compensation Allocation Of Recognized Period Costs [Line Items]	'	'
Total stock-based compensation included in net loss	$3,081	$3,564

ShareBased_Compensation_Plans_

Share-Based Compensation Plans and Awards - Additional Information (Details)	3 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014
Restricted Stock Units (RSUs)	'
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award [Line Items]	'
Annual employee compensation grant	1.9
Company Executive	'
Share Based Compensation Arrangement By Share Based Payment Award [Line Items]	'
Stock options forfeited	1.2

Stockholders_Equity_Details

Stockholders' Equity (Details) (USD $)	1 Months Ended	3 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Feb. 08, 2012	Mar. 31, 2014
Equity Class Of Treasury Stock [Line Items]	'	'
Authorized amount to repurchase	$50	'
Stock repurchase remaining authorized amount	'	$19.20

Business_Segments_Details

Business Segments (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
	segment
Segment Reporting Revenue Reconciling Item [Line Items]	'	'
Number of operating segment	1	'
Total revenue	$89,752	$100,620
Content & Media	'	'
Segment Reporting Revenue Reconciling Item [Line Items]	'	'
Total revenue	50,623	65,291
Content & Media | Owned and operated	'	'
Segment Reporting Revenue Reconciling Item [Line Items]	'	'
Total revenue	40,752	49,703
Content & Media | Network	'	'
Segment Reporting Revenue Reconciling Item [Line Items]	'	'
Total revenue	9,871	15,588
Registrar Revenue	'	'
Segment Reporting Revenue Reconciling Item [Line Items]	'	'
Total revenue	$39,129	$35,329

Fair_Value_Fair_Value_Financia

Fair Value - Fair Value, Financial Assets, Recurring (Details) (Fair Value, Measurements, Recurring, USD $)	Mar. 31, 2014		Dec. 31, 2013
In Thousands, unless otherwise specified
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring And Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]	'		'
Total assets at fair value	$3,034		$4,936
Debt	92,500		96,250
Liabilities, Fair Value Disclosure	92,500		96,250
Marketable securities	'		902
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1	'		'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring And Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]	'		'
Total assets at fair value	3,034		4,936
Debt	0		'
Liabilities, Fair Value Disclosure	0		'
Marketable securities	'		902
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2	'		'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring And Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]	'		'
Total assets at fair value	0		'
Debt	92,500		96,250
Liabilities, Fair Value Disclosure	92,500		96,250
Money Market Funds	'		'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring And Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]	'		'
Cash equivalents	3,034	[1]	4,034	[1]
Money Market Funds | Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1	'		'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring And Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]	'		'
Cash equivalents	3,034	[1]	4,034	[1]
Money Market Funds | Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2	'		'
Fair Value Assets And Liabilities Measured On Recurring And Nonrecurring Basis [Line Items]	'		'
Cash equivalents	$0	[1]	'
[1]	(1)Comprises money market funds which are included in Cash and cash equivalents in the accompanying condensed consolidated balance sheet.

Net_Income_Loss_Per_Share_Comp

Net Income (Loss) Per Share - Computation Earnings Per Share, Basic and Diluted (Details) (USD $)	3 Months Ended
In Thousands, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014	Mar. 31, 2013
Earnings Per Share Basic [Line Items]	'	'
Net income (loss)	($10,956)	$669
Weighted average common shares outstanding	90,875	86,838
Weighted average unvested restricted stock awards	-21	-220
Weighted average common shares outstanding—basic	90,854	86,618
Dilutive effect of stock options, warrants and ESPP	'	1,125
Weighted average common shares outstanding—diluted	90,854	87,743
Net income (loss) per share - basic	($0.12)	$0.01
Net income (loss) per share - diluted	($0.12)	$0.01

Net_Income_Loss_Per_Share_Anti

Net Income (Loss) Per Share - Antidilutive Shares (Details)	3 Months Ended
In Millions, unless otherwise specified	Mar. 31, 2014
Antidilutive Securities Excluded From Computation Of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]	'
Antidilutive common stock equivalent shares excluded from calculation of diluted net income (loss) per share (in shares)	0.6