What cannot be touched, such as sound, is classified as intangible.
What cannot or should not be touched is called intangible . This adjective has various uses according to the context.
In its broadest sense, intangible is that which, due to its characteristics, cannot be perceived by touch . Things that are impossible to grasp, hold, or manipulate are thus intangible.
From sounds to feelings
It can be said that sound is intangible. When we hear someone speak to us, we register and process the sound waves they send us, but we cannot “touch” those words.
Emotions and feelings are also intangible. There is no way to feel joy , to mention one case, since it has no material support. Of course, it can be expressed through tangible elements, but joy itself is intangible.
The Intangible Cultural Heritage
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization ( UNESCO ), meanwhile, recognizes and protects Intangible Cultural Heritage . These are immaterial or oral manifestations that have great importance for culture despite being non-tangible.
The tango , the capoeira circle , the Barranquilla carnival , the charrería and the candombe , for example, are considered by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage of the American continent.
Tango is part of the Intangible Cultural Heritage recognized by UNESCO.
The concept in accounting
In the field of accounting , finally, the notion of intangible assets appears. This is the name given to an asset that cannot be physically perceived.
It should be noted that assets are rights and goods that are owned by a natural or legal person and that have monetary value. In the case of intangible assets, the good in question cannot be measured physically, although it can produce economic benefits. Copyrights and trademarks , among many others, are intangible assets.
For companies, intangible assets are among the most important elements, since they affect their development every day both through different processes and in their economic valuation. According to the official definition, prepared by the General Accounting Plan , these are non-monetary assets that cannot be valued economically nor do they have a physical appearance.
Types of intangible assets
It is important to note that there are several types of intangible assets. In the same way, it is possible to classify them taking into account different criteria. According to one of them, we recognize intangible assets that: respond to the definition in an accounting sense; They could become so given their characteristics; They have in common the fundamental features of intangible assets despite not belonging to this group, and they generate a considerable impact on the value of the company.
Another classification recognizes the following cases, according to:
* the possibility that they have their own identity, we can talk about identifiable ones (copyright, trademarks, use licenses, etc.) and non-identifiable ones (organizational expenses, advertising, etc.);
* the way in which they are incorporated, are there those acquired or exchanged with third parties (franchise, concession) and those developed by the entity itself (development expenses);
* the possibility of them being sold separately, where we simply have two groups (those that can be sold separately and those that cannot);
* its legal term of life, which is divided into that limited by contract or law (concessions or patents) and that which is perpetual (renewable trademark);
* the possibility of recognizing them from an accounting point of view, where there are two groups (those that can be recognized and those that cannot).
The benefits that intangible assets can provide to a company are several, but we can highlight the following: they allow the opening of new lines of business to increase sales; reduce production costs; the possibility of assigning the rights to its use, which results in new income.