Now, you have a basic idea about assets. Examples of assets include real estate, car and other vehicles, cash, accounts receivable, jewelry, office equipment, machinery in industry, insurance, trademarks, copyrights, patents, etc. All these are considered as assets. In short, assets owned by a person or firm, are those economic resources that can be converted into cash. As mentioned above, there are two types of assets, called tangible and intangible assets.
While, assets like land, cash, building, equipment, etc., can be seen and are real and actual, there are certain assets, like, copyright, patent, etc., that cannot be seen and measured physically. The first category of assets that are physically seen and perceived are called tangible assets and those belonging to the second category are called intangible assets. Even though, intangible assets are of real value, they cannot be physically touched or measured. Let us take a look at some of the examples of intangible assets.
What are some Examples of Intangible Assets
While, it is easy to record and value tangible assets, it is not that easy, in case of intangible assets. Even though, the latter category of assets can be explained as those resources that cannot be physically felt and measured, it includes lots of things, that may not be normally considered as an asset. Most of these assets cannot be directly converted into cash, but, affects the finances in an indirect way. The concept of intangible assets is very complex. It can be explained with the help of some intangible assets examples.
As mentioned above, a copyright, trademark or a patent may not be considered as an asset, ordinarily. But, think about the brand recognition of a particular company, which is mostly generated by its logo and brand name. Whatever maybe the product, a brand name holds an important role in the income generated by a company. Hence, intellectual property is one of the important examples of intangible assets. The expertise of the employees of a firm, is not a physical item that can be measured. But, it is also a vital intangible asset for the firm. Even the customer database, the relation with the clients, customer satisfaction, reputation of the company, the technology, etc., are also counted as intangible assets.
So, apart from the different types of intellectual property, there are various other things that come under the purview of intangible assets. Intangible assets are divided into legal and competitive types. The legal intangible assets consists of intellectual property that confers some legal rights on the holder. Other intangible assets, like, brand recognition, customer satisfaction, expertise of employees, etc., come under competitive assets.
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