Revenue Recognition:
Distribution Solutions
Revenues for our Distribution Solutions segment are recognized when product is delivered and title passes to the customer or when services have been rendered and there are no further obligations to the customer.
Revenues are recorded net of sales returns, allowances, rebates and other incentives. Our sales return policy generally allows customers to return products only if they can be resold for value or returned to suppliers for full credit. Sales returns are accrued based on estimates at the time of sale to the customer. Sales returns from customers were approximately $1.9 billion in 2013, $1.6 billion in 2012 and $1.4 billion in 2011. Taxes collected from customers and remitted to governmental authorities are presented on a net basis; that is, they are excluded from revenues.
The revenues for our Distribution Solutions segment include large volume sales of pharmaceuticals to a limited number of large customers who warehouse their own product. We order bulk product from the manufacturer, receive and process the product through our central distribution facility and deliver the bulk product (generally in the same form as received from the manufacturer) directly to our customers' warehouses. Sales to customers' warehouses amounted to $18.6 billion in 2013, $20.5 billion in 2012, and $18.6 billion in 2011. We also record revenues for direct store deliveries from most of these same customers. Direct store deliveries are shipments from the manufacturer to our customers of a limited category of products that require special handling. We assume the primary liability to the manufacturer for these products.
Revenues are recorded gross when we are the primary party obligated in the transaction, take title to and possession of the inventory, are subject to inventory risk, have latitude in establishing prices, assume the risk of loss for collection from customers as well as delivery or return of the product, are responsible for fulfillment and other customer service requirements, or the transactions have several but not all of these indicators.
Our Distribution Solutions segment also engages in multiple-element arrangements, which may contain a combination of various products and services. For arrangements entered into prior to 2012, revenue from a multiple element arrangement is allocated to the separate elements based on estimates of fair value and recognized in accordance with the revenue recognition criteria applicable to each element. If fair value cannot be established for any undelivered element, all of the arrangement's revenue is deferred until delivery of the last element has occurred and services have been performed or until fair value can objectively be determined for any remaining undelivered elements. Effective April 1, 2011, we adopted amended accounting guidance on a prospective basis for multiple-element arrangements entered into or materially modified on or after April 1, 2011. The amended guidance incorporates the use of a vendor's best estimate of selling price, if neither objective evidence nor third party evidence of selling price exists, to allocate arrangement consideration and eliminates the use of the residual method. Implementation of this new guidance did not have a material impact on reported net revenues as compared to net revenues under previous guidance as the incorporation of the use of a vendor's best estimate of selling price and the elimination of the residual method for the allocation of arrangement consideration did not materially change how we allocate arrangement consideration to our various products and services or the amount and timing of reported revenues.
Technology Solutions
Revenues for our Technology Solutions segment are generated primarily by licensing software and software systems (consisting of software, hardware and maintenance support), and providing claims processing, outsourcing and professional services. Revenue for this segment is recognized as follows:
Software systems are marketed under information systems agreements as well as service agreements. Perpetual software arrangements are recognized at the time of delivery or under the percentage-of-completion method based on the terms and conditions in the contract. Contracts accounted for under the percentage-of-completion method are generally measured based on the ratio of labor hours incurred to date to total estimated labor hours to be incurred. Changes in estimates to complete and revisions in overall profit estimates on these contracts are charged to earnings in the period in which they are determined. We accrue for contract losses if and when the current estimate of total contract costs exceeds total contract revenue.
Hardware revenues are generally recognized upon delivery. Revenue from multi-year software license agreements is recognized ratably over the term of the agreement. Software implementation fees are recognized as the work is performed or under the percentage-of-completion method. Maintenance and support agreements are marketed under annual or multi-year agreements and are recognized ratably over the period covered by the agreements. Subscription, content and transaction processing fees are generally marketed under annual and multi-year agreements and are recognized ratably over the contracted terms beginning on the service start date for fixed fee arrangements and recognized as transactions are performed beginning on the service start date for per-transaction fee arrangements. Remote processing service fees are recognized monthly as the service is performed. Outsourcing service revenues are recognized as the service is performed.
We also offer certain products on an application service provider basis, making our software functionality available on a remote hosting basis from our data centers. The data centers provide system and administrative support, as well as hosting services. Revenue on products sold on an application service provider basis is recognized on a monthly basis over the term of the contract beginning on the service start date of products hosted.
This segment also engages in multiple-element arrangements, which may contain any combination of software, hardware, implementation or consulting services, or maintenance services. For arrangements entered into prior to 2012, when some elements are delivered prior to others in an arrangement and vendor-specific objective evidence of fair value (“VSOE”) exists for the undelivered elements, revenue for the delivered elements is recognized upon delivery of such items. The segment establishes VSOE for hardware and implementation and consulting services based on the price charged when sold separately, and for maintenance services, based on renewal rates offered to customers. Revenue for the software element is recognized under the residual method only when fair value has been established for all of the undelivered elements in an arrangement. If fair value cannot be established for any undelivered element, all of the arrangement's revenue is deferred until the delivery of the last element or until the fair value of the undelivered element is determinable. Effective April 1, 2011, we adopted amended revenue recognition guidance incorporating the use of a vendor's best estimate of selling price, if neither vendor specific objective evidence nor third party evidence of selling price exists, to allocate arrangement consideration and eliminating the use of the residual method for non-software components. Also, effective April 1, 2011, we adopted the revised revenue recognition guidance which removed from the scope of software revenue recognition guidance tangible products containing software components and non-software components that function together to deliver the product's essential functionality. This amended accounting guidance was applied prospectively for all arrangements entered into after April 1, 2011 or materially modified after that date. Implementation of this new guidance did not have a material impact on reported net revenues as compared to net revenues under previous guidance as the incorporation of the use of a vendor's best estimate of selling price and the elimination of the residual method for the allocation of arrangement consideration did not materially change how we allocate arrangement consideration to our various products and services or the amount and timing of reported revenues.
Our Technology Solutions segment also includes revenues from disease management programs provided to various states' Medicaid programs. These service contracts include provisions for achieving certain cost-savings and clinical targets. If the targets are not met for certain of these contracts, a portion, or all, of the revenue must be refunded to the customer. We recognize revenue during the term of the contract by assessing actual performance against contractual targets and then determining the amount the customer would be legally obligated to pay if the contract terminated as of the measurement date. These assessments include estimates of medical claims and other data in accordance with the contract methodology. Because complete data is unavailable until six to nine months after the measurement period, there is generally a significant time delay between recording the accrual and the final settlement of the contract. If data is insufficient to assess performance or we have not met the targets, we defer recognition of the revenue. We generally have been successful in achieving performance targets under these agreements. As of March 31, 2013 and 2012, amounts deferred related to these types of contracts were not material
