Commitments and Contingencies
BNED generally operates our physical bookstores pursuant to multi-year school management contracts under which a school designates us to operate the official school physical bookstore on campus and BNED provides the school with regular payments that represent a percentage of store sales and, in some cases, include a minimum fixed guaranteed payment. BNED accounts for these operating agreements for our physical bookstores under lease accounting. BNED recognizes lease assets and lease liabilities on the Consolidated Balance Sheets for substantially all fixed lease arrangements (excluding variable obligations) with a term greater than twelve months. For additional information on lease expense and minimum fixed lease obligations, excluding variable commissions, see Note 11. Leases.
Purchase obligations, which includes information technology contracts, as of May 2, 2026, are as follows: 
Less Than 1 Year$14,845 
1-3 Years13,244 
3-5 Years1,645 
Total$29,734 
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Historical Timeline

Fiscal YearFiled
2026Jul 9, 2026Showing above
2025Dec 23, 2025
2024Jul 1, 2024
2023Jul 31, 2023
2022Jun 29, 2022
2021Jun 30, 2021
2020Jul 14, 2020
2019Jun 25, 2019
2018Jun 20, 2018
2017Jul 12, 2017

About Commitments Disclosures

Commitments and contingencies disclosures catalog a company's off-balance-sheet obligations and legal exposures — purchase commitments, guarantee arrangements, pending litigation, and regulatory proceedings. These items represent potential future cash outflows that may not appear as liabilities on the balance sheet until they become probable and estimable.

Key signals: litigation reserves and disclosed loss ranges quantify management's estimate of legal exposure, but unquantified "reasonably possible" losses often represent the larger risk. Watch for changes in language around pending cases — shifts from "remote" to "reasonably possible" or increases in estimated loss ranges signal deteriorating outcomes. Unconditional purchase obligations and take-or-pay contracts create fixed cost structures that reduce operational flexibility. Guarantee arrangements for subsidiaries or joint ventures can create cascading obligations. Compare the total commitment schedule against projected free cash flow to assess whether the company can meet its obligations without additional financing.