'Poison pill' overshadows PeopleSoft results:

A good article discussing revenue recognition and GAAP.
Background: Peoplesoft took a "poison pill" in an attempt to prevent an uninvited takeover by Oracle.

The "customer protection programme" clause stated that should PeopleSoft be acquired, and the acquiring company discontinues its products, customers would be awarded compensation of between two and five times the value of the initial contract.

But experts have expressed doubt whether PeopleSoft should be allowed to recognise all of the revenue under US GAAP law, and not take into account the potential liability of the clause. "(PeopleSoft) recognised all the revenue, but it is questionable whether that is correct by US GAAP standards," said Brian Skiba, global analyst with Deutsche Bank Securities.