Acer’s acquired trademarks drop millions in book value – but does it matter long-term?

Taiwanese personal computer manufacturer Acer stated yesterday that it would book a NT$3.5 billion (US$120.6 million) impairment charge relating to trademark rights, including marks it acquired from its takeovers of Gateway, Packard Bell and E-TEN. The world’s fourth-largest PC vendor has seen a negative impact on its stock price as a result. But from a wider perspective, is it really such a big deal that the book value of the acquired trademark rights has depreciated?