The Challenges of Accounting Standards in Intellectual Property’s Reporting, an Albanian Approach

Abstract

Intellectual property has become a key factor in measuring the business performance and its market value. Although the valuation and reporting of intellectual property is important for all companies, it is more crucial, especially to the intellectual property high intensively companies. Accounting standards were created keeping in focus the tangible assets, and despite the efforts and changes that are made, still they need revisions to track successfully the intangible assets. The rigid structure of accounting standards does not allow them to be more flexible in tracking and reporting the intangible assets in a new environment where most of businesses have in their financial table’s components of intangible assets like intellectual property. We will briefly discuss some details regarding the treatment that international accounting standards like IAS 38 and FAS 142 reserve to the intangible assets and especially the intellectual property. Aside with our opinion, we will expose some of the well known researches and academics point of view, to suggest a fair disclosure and to give new insights in intellectual property reporting. The purpose of the research is to establish the inadequacy of the accounting standards in intellectual property reporting and to give new insights and advises regarding the discussed topics to overpass these inadequacies. The methodology used in the preparation of this paper will be that of the utilizing the foreign and national literature, and the utilization of the questionnaires and interviews with the certified accountants and the finance departments of selected businesses in Albania.

DOI: 10.5901/jesr.2014.v4n4p442