| Summary of Significant Accounting Policies | Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Nature of Operations— Meredith Corporation (Meredith or the Company) is a diversified media company. The Company has two reporting segments: local media and national media. The Company's local media segment includes 17 television stations and related digital and mobile media operations. The national media segment includes print magazines, digital and mobile media, brand licensing activities, database-related activities, business-to-business marketing products and services, and other related operations. Meredith's operations are primarily diversified geographically within the United States (U.S.) and the Company has a broad customer base. Principles of Consolidation— The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of Meredith Corporation and its wholly owned subsidiaries. Significant intercompany balances and transactions are eliminated. Meredith does not have any off-balance sheet financing activities. The Company's use of special-purpose entities is limited to Meredith Funding Corporation, whose activities are fully consolidated in Meredith's consolidated financial statements (See Note 6). Use of Estimates— The preparation of financial statements in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP) requires management to make estimates and assumptions that affect the amounts reported in the consolidated financial statements. The Company bases its estimates on historical experience, management expectations for future performance, and other assumptions as appropriate. Key areas affected by estimates include the assessment of the recoverability of long-lived assets, including goodwill and other intangible assets, which is based on such factors as estimated future cash flows; the determination of the net realizable value of broadcast rights, which is based on estimated future revenues; provisions for returns of magazines sold, which are based on historical experience and current marketplace conditions; pension and postretirement benefit expenses, which are actuarially determined and include assumptions regarding discount rates, expected returns on plan assets, and rates of increase in compensation and healthcare costs; and share-based compensation expense, which is based on numerous assumptions including future stock price volatility and employees' expected exercise and post-vesting employment termination behavior. While the Company re-evaluates its estimates on an ongoing basis, actual results may vary from those estimates. Reclassifications —Certain prior years' amounts have been reclassified to conform to fiscal 2017 presentation. Cash and Cash Equivalents —Cash and short-term investments with original maturities of three months or less are considered to be cash and cash equivalents. Cash and cash equivalents are stated at cost, which approximates fair value. Accounts Receivable —The Company's accounts receivable are primarily due from advertisers. Credit is extended to clients based on an evaluation of each client's creditworthiness and financial condition; collateral is not required. The Company maintains allowances for uncollectible accounts, rebates, rate adjustments, returns, and discounts. The allowance for uncollectible accounts is based on the aging of such receivables and any known specific collectability exposures. Accounts are written off when deemed uncollectible. Allowances for rebates, rate adjustments, returns, and discounts are generally based on historical experience and current market conditions. Concentration of credit risk with respect to accounts receivable is generally limited due to the large number of geographically diverse clients and individually small balances. Inventories —Inventories are stated at the lower of cost or market. Cost is determined on the last-in first-out (LIFO) basis for paper and on the first-in first-out or average basis for all other inventories. Subscription Acquisition Costs —Subscription acquisition costs primarily represent magazine agency commissions. These costs are deferred and amortized over the related subscription term, typically one to two years . In addition, direct-response advertising costs that are intended to solicit subscriptions and are expected to result in probable future benefits are capitalized. These costs are amortized over the period during which future benefits are expected to be received. The asset balance of the capitalized direct-response advertising costs is reviewed quarterly to ensure the amount is realizable. Any write-downs resulting from this review are expensed as subscription acquisition advertising costs in the current period. Capitalized direct-response advertising costs were $6.0 million at June 30, 2017 and $5.5 million at June 30, 2016 . There were no material write-downs of capitalized direct-response advertising costs in any of the fiscal years in the three-year period ended June 30, 2017 . Property, Plant, and Equipment —Property, plant, and equipment are stated at cost. Costs of replacements and major improvements are capitalized, and maintenance and repairs are charged to operations as incurred. Depreciation expense is provided primarily by the straight-line method over the estimated useful lives of the assets: 5 - 45 years for buildings and improvements and 3 - 20 years for machinery and equipment. The costs of leasehold improvements are amortized over the lesser of the useful lives or the terms of the respective leases. Depreciation and amortization of property, plant, and equipment was $34.8 million in fiscal 2017 , $39.4 million in fiscal 2016 , and $38.9 million in fiscal 2015 . In fiscal 2016, management committed to a plan to sell the Company's two corporate airplanes and classified them as held for sale at June 30, 2017 and 2016. The estimated fair value of these airplanes of $1.9 million and $2.8 million is included in the machinery and equipment line in the Consolidated Balance Sheets at June 30, 2017 and 2016, respectively. A loss of $5.7 million was recorded in the impairment of goodwill and other long-lived assets line in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings in fiscal 2016. Based on sales agreements, an additional loss of $0.9 million was recorded in fiscal 2017 to value the planes at fair market value less costs to sell in the Consolidated Balance Sheets. Broadcast Rights —Broadcast rights consist principally of rights to broadcast syndicated programs, sports, and feature films. The total cost of these rights is recorded as an asset and as a liability when programs become available for broadcast. The current portion of broadcast rights represents those rights available for broadcast that are expected to be amortized in the succeeding year. These rights are valued at the lower of unamortized cost or estimated net realizable value, and are generally charged to operations on an accelerated basis over the contract period. Impairments of unamortized costs to net realizable value are included in production, distribution, and editorial expenses in the accompanying Consolidated Statements of Earnings. There were no material impairments of unamortized costs in fiscals 2017 , 2016 , or 2015 . Future write-offs can vary based on changes in consumer viewing trends and the availability and costs of other programming. Intangible Assets and Goodwill —Amortizable intangible assets consist primarily of network affiliation agreements, retransmission agreements, and advertiser relationships. Intangible assets with finite lives are amortized over their estimated useful lives. The useful life of an intangible asset is the period over which the asset is expected to contribute directly or indirectly to future cash flows. Network affiliation agreements are amortized over the period of time the agreements are expected to remain in place, assuming renewals without material modifications to the original terms and conditions (generally 25 to 40 years from the original acquisition date). Other intangible assets are amortized over their estimated useful lives, ranging from 1 to 10 years . Intangible assets with indefinite lives include Federal Communications Commission (FCC) broadcast licenses. These licenses are granted for a term of up to eight years , but are renewable if the Company provides at least an average level of service to its customers and complies with the applicable FCC rules and policies and the Communications Act of 1934. The Company has been successful in every one of its past license renewal requests and has incurred only minimal costs in the process. The Company expects the television broadcasting business to continue indefinitely; therefore, the cash flows from the broadcast licenses are also expected to continue indefinitely. Goodwill and certain other intangible assets (FCC broadcast licenses and trademarks), which have indefinite lives, are not amortized but tested for impairment annually or when events occur or circumstances change that would indicate the carrying value exceeds the fair value. The review of goodwill is performed at the reporting unit level. The Company has three reporting units - local media, magazine brands, and Meredith Xcelerated Marketing (MXM). We also assess, at least annually, whether assets classified as indefinite-lived intangible assets continue to have indefinite lives. At May 31, 2017, the date the Company last performed its annual evaluation of impairment of goodwill, management elected to perform the quantitative goodwill impairment test for the magazine brands and MXM reporting units, and a qualitative assessment for the local media reporting unit. The first step of the quantitative test is to compare the fair value of a reporting unit to its carrying value. In reviewing other indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment, the Company compares the fair value of the asset to the asset’s carrying value. In the qualitative assessment, we evaluate the reporting unit to determine if there are cost, legal and regulatory, market or industry, or other macroeconomic factors that would lead us to believe that the carrying value of the reporting unit is more likely than not greater than its fair value. Fair value is determined using a discounted cash flow model, which requires us to estimate the future cash flows expected to be generated by the reporting unit or to result from the use of the asset. These estimates include assumptions about future revenues (including projections of overall market growth and our share of market), estimated costs, and appropriate discount rates where applicable. Our assumptions are based on historical data, various internal estimates, and a variety of external sources and are consistent with the assumptions used in both our short-term financial forecasts and long-term strategic plans. Depending on the assumptions and estimates used, future cash flow projections can vary within a range of outcomes. Changes in key assumptions about the magazine brands and MXM and their prospects or changes in market conditions could result in an impairment charge. Additional information regarding intangible assets and goodwill including a discussion of the impairment charges taken in fiscal 2017 and fiscal 2016 on goodwill and other long-lived intangible assets is provided in Note 4. Impairment of Long-lived Assets —Long-lived assets (primarily property, plant, and equipment and amortizable intangible assets) are reviewed for impairment whenever events and circumstances indicate the carrying value of an asset may not be recoverable. Recoverability is measured by comparison of the forecasted undiscounted cash flows of the operation to which the assets relate to the carrying amount of the assets. Tests for impairment or recoverability require significant management judgment, and future events affecting cash flows and market conditions could result in impairment losses. Derivative Financial Instruments —Meredith does not engage in derivative or hedging activities, except to hedge interest rate risk on debt as described in Note 6. Fundamental to our approach to risk management is the desire to minimize exposure to volatility in interest costs of variable-rate debt, which can impact our earnings and cash flows. We have entered into interest rate swap agreements with counterparties that are major financial institutions. These agreements effectively fix the variable-rate cash flow on $300.0 million of a combination of our variable-rate private placement senior notes and bank term loan. We designated and accounted for the interest rate swaps as cash flow hedges in accordance with Accounting Standards Codification 815, Derivatives and Hedging. The effective portion of the change in the fair value of interest rate swaps is reported in other comprehensive income (loss). The gain or loss included in other comprehensive income (loss) is subsequently reclassified into net earnings on the same line in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings as the hedged item in the same period that the hedge transaction affects net earnings. The ineffective portion of a change in fair value of the interest rate swaps would be reported in interest expense. During fiscal 2017 and 2016, the interest rate swap agreements were considered effective hedges and there were no material gains or losses recognized in earnings for hedge ineffectiveness. Revenue Recognition —The Company's primary source of revenue is advertising. Other sources include circulation and other revenues. Advertising revenues— Advertising revenues are recognized when advertisements are published (defined as an issue's on-sale date) or aired by the broadcasting station, net of provisions for estimated rebates, rate adjustments, and discounts. Barter revenues are included in advertising revenue and are also recognized when the advertisements are published or the commercials are broadcast. Barter advertising revenues and the offsetting expense are recognized at the fair value of the advertising surrendered, as determined by similar cash transactions. Barter advertising revenues were not material in any period. Digital advertising revenues are recognized ratably over the contract period or as services are delivered. Circulation revenues— Circulation revenues include magazine single copy and subscription revenue. Single copy revenue is recognized upon publication, net of provisions for estimated returns. The Company bases its estimates for returns on historical experience and current marketplace conditions. Revenues from magazine subscriptions are deferred and recognized proportionately as products are distributed to subscribers. Other revenues— Revenues from customer relationship marketing and other custom programs are recognized when the products or services are delivered. In addition, the Company participates in certain arrangements containing multiple deliverables. The guidance for accounting for multiple-deliverable arrangements requires that overall arrangement consideration be allocated to each deliverable (unit of accounting) in the revenue arrangement based on the relative selling price as determined by vendor specific objective evidence, third-party evidence, or estimated selling price. The related revenue is recognized when each specific deliverable of the arrangement is delivered. Brand licensing-based revenues are accrued generally monthly or quarterly based on the specific mechanisms of each contract. Payments are generally made by the Company's partners on a quarterly basis. Generally, revenues are accrued based on estimated sales and adjusted as actual sales are reported by partners. These adjustments are typically recorded within three months of the initial estimates and have not been material. Any minimum guarantees are typically earned evenly over the fiscal year. Retransmission consent revenues are recognized over the contract period based on the negotiated fee. In certain instances, revenues are recorded gross in accordance with GAAP although the Company receives cash for a lesser amount due to the netting of certain expenses. Amounts received from customers in advance of revenue recognition are deferred as liabilities and recognized as revenue in the period earned. Contingent Consideration —The Company estimates and records the acquisition date estimated fair value of contingent consideration as part of purchase price consideration for acquisitions. Additionally, each reporting period, the Company estimates changes in the fair value of contingent consideration, and any change in fair value is recognized in the Consolidated Statement of Earnings. An increase in the earn-out expected to be paid will result in a charge to operations in the quarter that the anticipated fair value of contingent consideration increases, while a decrease in the earn-out expected to be paid will result in a credit to operations in the quarter that the anticipated fair value of contingent consideration decreases. The estimate of the fair value of contingent consideration requires subjective assumptions to be made of future operating results, discount rates, and probabilities assigned to various potential operating result scenarios. Future revisions to these assumptions could materially change the estimate of the fair value of contingent consideration and, therefore, materially affect the Company’s future financial results. Additional information regarding contingent consideration is provided in Note 2. Advertising Expenses —The majority of the Company's advertising expenses relate to direct-mail costs for magazine subscription acquisition efforts. Advertising costs that are not capitalized are expensed the first time the advertising takes place. Total advertising expenses included in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings were $63.9 million in fiscal 2017 , $72.6 million in fiscal 2016 , and $75.8 million in fiscal 2015 . Share-based Compensation —The Company establishes fair value for its equity awards to determine their cost and recognizes the related expense over the appropriate vesting period. The Company recognizes expense for stock options, restricted stock, restricted stock units, and shares issued under the Company's employee stock purchase plan. See Note 11 for additional information related to share-based compensation expense. Income Taxes —The income tax provision is calculated under the liability method. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are recognized for the future tax consequences attributable to differences between the financial statement carrying amounts of existing assets and liabilities and their respective tax bases and tax credit carryforwards. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are measured using enacted tax rates expected to apply to taxable income in the years in which those temporary differences are expected to be recovered or settled. The effect on deferred tax assets and liabilities of a change in tax rates is recognized in earnings in the period when such a change is enacted. The Company recognizes the effect of income tax positions only if those positions are more likely than not of being sustained. Recognized income tax positions are measured at the largest amount that is greater than 50 percent likely of being realized. Changes in recognition or measurement are reflected in the period in which the change in judgment occurs. Self-Insurance —The Company self-insures for certain medical claims, and its responsibility generally is capped through the use of a stop loss contract with an insurance company at a certain dollar level (usually $350 thousand ). A third-party administrator is used to process claims. The Company uses actual claims data and estimates of incurred-but-not-reported claims to calculate estimated liabilities for unsettled claims on an undiscounted basis. Although management re-evaluates the assumptions and reviews the claims experience on an ongoing basis, actual claims paid could vary significantly from estimated claims. Pensions and Postretirement Benefits Other Than Pensions —Retirement benefits are provided to employees through pension plans sponsored by the Company. Pension benefits generally are based on the Company's contributions and interest credits allocated to participants' accounts based on years of benefit service and annual pensionable earnings. It is the Company's policy to fund the qualified pension plans to at least the extent required to maintain their fully funded status. In addition, the Company provides health care and life insurance benefits for certain retired employees, the expected costs of which are accrued over the years that the employees render services. It is the Company's policy to fund postretirement benefits as claims are paid. Additional information is provided in Note 8. Comprehensive Income —Comprehensive income consists of net earnings and other gains and losses affecting shareholders' equity that, under GAAP, are excluded from net earnings. Other comprehensive income (loss) includes changes in prior service costs and net actuarial losses from pension and postretirement benefit plans, net of taxes, and changes in the fair value of interest rate swap agreements, net of taxes, to the extent that they are effective. Earnings Per Share —Basic earnings per share is calculated by dividing net earnings by the weighted average common and Class B shares outstanding. Diluted earnings per share is calculated similarly but includes the dilutive effect, if any, of the assumed exercise of securities, including the effect of shares issuable under the Company's share-based incentive plans. Merger Termination —In January 2016, the Company and Media General, Inc. (Media General) terminated their merger agreement under which the companies would have combined to form Meredith Media General. In exchange for terminating the merger agreement, the Company received $60.0 million in cash and an opportunity to negotiate for the purchase of certain broadcast and digital assets owned by Media General. The $60.0 million has been included as a credit in the merger termination fee net of merger-related costs line in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings. The Company incurred $16.5 million of investment banking, legal, accounting, and other professional fees and expenses in fiscal 2016 related to the terminated merger. These costs are also included in the merger termination fee net of merger-related costs line in the Consolidated Statements of Earnings. Adopted Accounting Pronouncements — ASU 2015-03—In April 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) issued an Accounting Standards Update (ASU) on the presentation of debt issuance costs. The new standard requires that debt issuance costs be recorded as a reduction from the face amount of the related debt rather than recorded as a deferred asset, with amortization recorded as interest expense. The Company adopted this guidance in the first quarter of fiscal 2017, and it was retrospectively applied to the prior period, as required. Adoption changed the classification of debt issuance costs from other assets to current portion of long-term debt or long-term debt based on the classification of the related debt instrument. As a result, other assets and long-term debt each decreased by $1.5 million as of June 30, 2016, compared to amounts previously reported. Additionally, the format of the long-term debt disclosure was updated to include debt issuance costs separately. The adoption did not have an impact on our results of operations or cash flows. ASU 2015-05—In April 2015, the FASB issued guidance on the presentation of cloud computing arrangements that include a software license. The new guidance requires capitalization of the software license fee as internal-use software if certain criteria are met, otherwise the costs are expensed as incurred. The standard was prospectively adopted by the Company in the first quarter of fiscal 2017. The adoption of the standard had no impact to the Company's consolidated financial statements. ASU 2015-10—In June 2015, the FASB issued an accounting standards update that included technical corrections to the FASB Accounting Standards Codification. These technical corrections are divided into four categories: amendments related to differences between original guidance and the codification, guidance clarification and reference corrections, minor structural changes to simplify the codification, and minor improvements that are not expected to have a significant impact on current accounting practice. The amendments were effective for the Company in the first quarter of fiscal 2017. The adoption of the amendments had no impact to the Company's consolidated financial statements. Pending Accounting Pronouncements — ASU 2014-09—In May 2014, the FASB issued an accounting standards update that replaces existing revenue recognition guidance. The new guidance requires a company to recognize revenue for the transfer of promised goods or services equal to the amount it expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. The guidance includes a five-step framework to determine the timing and amount of revenue to recognize related to contracts with customers. Additionally, the guidance requires new and significantly enhanced disclosures about the nature, amount, timing, and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows from customer contracts as well as judgments made by a company when following the framework. The FASB continues to issue amendments to further clarify provisions of this guidance. These amendments will be effective upon adoption of the standard. The Company will adopt the standard beginning July 1, 2018 (fiscal 2019). The two permitted transition methods are the full retrospective method, in which case the standard would be applied to each prior reporting period presented and the cumulative effect of applying the standard would be recognized in the earliest period shown; and the modified retrospective method, in which case the cumulative effect of applying the standard would be recognized at the date of initial application. While a final decision has not been made, we currently anticipate adopting the standard using the modified retrospective method. We are in the process of documenting the impact of the guidance on our current accounting policies and practices to identify material differences, if any, that would result from applying the new requirements to our revenue contracts. We continue to make progress on our revenue recognition review and are also in the process of evaluating the impact, if any, on changes to our business processes, systems, and controls to support recognition and disclosure requirements under the new guidance. As these reviews are completed, the Company will be better able to quantify the anticipated impact, if any, to our consolidated financial statements. ASU 2016-01—In January 2016, the FASB issued guidance to improve and simplify accounting for financial instruments. The updated guidance includes several provisions that are not applicable to the Company's consolidated financial statements, with the exception of changes to fair value disclosure. Under the new guidance, public entities are no longer required to disclose the methods and significant assumptions used to estimate fair value of financial instruments measured at amortized cost on the consolidated balance sheets. It also requires public entities to use the exit price when measuring the fair value of financial instruments for disclosure purposes. The guidance is effective for the Company in the first quarter of fiscal 2019. The adoption of this guidance requires a change in our disclosures only and it is not expected to have an impact on our results of operations or cash flows. ASU 2016-02—In February 2016, the FASB issued an accounting standards update that replaces existing lease accounting standards. The new standard requires lessees to recognize on the balance sheet a right-of use asset, representing its right to use the underlying asset for the lease term, and a lease liability for all leases with terms greater than 12 months. The guidance also requires qualitative and quantitative disclosures designed to assess the amount, timing, and uncertainty of cash flows arising from leases. Treatment of lease payments in the statement of earnings and statement of cash flows is relatively unchanged from previous guidance. The new standard is required to be applied with a modified retrospective approach to each prior reporting period presented with various optional practical expedients. The standard is effective for the Company beginning July 1, 2019, with early adoption permitted. We are currently in the process of evaluating our existing lease portfolios, including accumulating all of the necessary information required to properly account for the leases under the new standard. As such, the Company is currently evaluating the effect the guidance will have on our consolidated financial statements. ASU 2016-07—In March 2016, the FASB issued guidance simplifying the transition to the equity method of accounting. The new guidance eliminates the requirement to apply the equity method of accounting retrospectively when a reporting entity obtains significant influence over a previously held investment. The new guidance is effective for the Company during the first quarter of fiscal 2018. The adoption of this guidance is currently not expected to have a material effect on the Company’s consolidated financial statements. ASU 2016-09—In March 2016, as a part of its simplification initiative, the FASB issued guidance on the accounting for employee share-based payments. The new guidance is intended to simplify several aspects of the accounting for share-based payment transactions, including the income tax treatment, classification of awards as either equity or liabilities, and classification on the statement of cash flows. The guidance is effective in the Company's first quarter of fiscal 2018. The Company is currently evaluating the impact the guidance will have on our consolidated financial statements. ASU 2016-13—In June 2016, the FASB issued a standard that replaces the current incurred loss methodology for recognizing credit losses with a current expected credit loss methodology. Under this standard, the establishment of an allowance for credit losses reflects all relevant information about past events, current conditions, and reasonable supportable forecasts rather than delaying the recognition of the full amount of a credit loss until the the loss is probable of occurring. The new standard changes the impairment model for most financial assets and certain other instruments, including trade receivables. A modified retrospective implementation of this standard is effective in the Company's first quarter of fiscal 2021, with early adoption permitted in the first quarter of fiscal 2020. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this guidance will have on our consolidated financial statements. ASU 2016-15—In August 2016, the FASB issued an accounting standards update clarifying the classification of certain cash receipts and payments in the statement of cash flows. The update is intended to reduce the diversity in practice around how certain transactions are classified within the statement of cash flows. Retrospective adoption is required in our first quarter of fiscal 2019 with early adoption permitted, including adoption in an interim period. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this update will have on its consolidated financial statements. ASU 2017-01—In January 2017, the FASB issued an accounting standards update that clarifies the definition of a business and adds guidance to assist entities in the determination of whether an acquisition (or disposal) represents assets or a business. The update provides a test to determine whether or not an acquisition is a business. If substantially all of the fair value of the assets acquired is concentrated in a single asset or a group of similar identifiable assets, the acquired assets do not represent a business. If this test is not met, the update provides further guidance to evaluate if the acquisition represents a business. Prospective adoption is required in the first quarter of fiscal 2019. Early adoption is permitted if certain transaction criteria are met. The Company is currently evaluating the impact this update will have on its consolidated financial statements. ASU 2017-04—In January 2017, the FASB issued an accounting standards update that simplifies the subsequent measurement of goodwill by eliminating Step 2 of the goodwill impairment test . The Step 2 test requires an entity to c |
