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Property and Equipment | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2019
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Property and Equipment |
Note 11: Property and Equipment
December 31 (in millions) | Weighted-Average Original Useful Life as of December 31, 2019 |  | 2019 |  |  | 2018 |
Distribution systems | 11 years |  | $ | 40,639 |  |  | $ | 38,380 |
Customer premise equipment | 6 years |  | 26,065 |  |  | 26,208 |
Other equipment | 9 years |  | 13,025 |  |  | 12,437 |
Buildings and leasehold improvements | 30 years |  | 15,104 |  |  | 14,188 |
Construction in process | N/A |  | 5,245 |  |  | 2,991 |
Land | N/A |  | 1,483 |  |  | 1,539 |
Property and equipment, at cost |  |  | 101,561 |  |  | 95,743 |
Less: Accumulated depreciation |  |  | 53,239 |  |  | 51,306 |
Property and equipment, net |  |  | $ | 48,322 |  |  | $ | 44,437 |
Property and equipment are stated at cost. We capitalize improvements that extend asset lives and expense repairs and maintenance costs as incurred. We record depreciation using the straight-line method over the asset’s estimated useful life. For assets that are sold or retired, we remove the applicable cost and accumulated depreciation and, unless the gain or loss on disposition is presented separately, we recognize it as a component of depreciation expense. Capital expenditures for acquisitions and construction of real estate properties and the construction of Universal Beijing Resort are presented separately in our consolidated statement of cash flows. In accordance with the accounting guidance related to cable television companies, Cable Communications capitalizes the costs associated with the construction of and improvements to our cable transmission and distribution facilities, including scalable infrastructure and line extensions; costs associated with acquiring and deploying new customer premise equipment; and costs associated with installation of our services. Costs capitalized include all direct costs for labor and materials, as well as various indirect costs. Costs incurred in connection with subsequent disconnects and reconnects are expensed as they are incurred. We evaluate the recoverability of our property and equipment whenever events or substantive changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. The evaluation is based on the cash flows generated by the underlying asset groups, including estimated future operating results, trends or other determinants of fair value. If the total of the expected future undiscounted cash flows were less than the carrying amount of the asset group, we would recognize an impairment charge to the extent the carrying amount of the asset group exceeded its estimated fair value. Unless presented separately, the impairment charge is included as a component of depreciation expense. Certain of our cable franchise agreements and lease agreements contain provisions requiring us to restore facilities or remove property in the event that the franchise or lease agreement is not renewed. We expect to continually renew our cable franchise agreements and therefore cannot reasonably estimate liabilities associated with such agreements. A remote possibility exists that franchise agreements could be terminated unexpectedly, which could result in us incurring significant expense in complying with restoration or removal provisions. We do not have any material liabilities related to asset retirement obligations recorded in our consolidated financial statements.
NBCUniversal Media LLC [Member] |
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items] |
Property and Equipment |
Note 10: Property and Equipment
December 31 (in millions) | Weighted-Average Original Useful Life as of December 31, 2019 | 2019 |  | 2018 |
Buildings and leasehold improvements | 31 years | $ | 9,438 |  | $ | 8,877 |
Furniture, fixtures and equipment | 12 years | 6,049 |  | 5,501 |
Construction in process | N/A | 4,884 |  | 2,676 |
Land | N/A | 1,179 |  | 1,129 |
Property and equipment, at cost |  | 21,550 |  | 18,183 |
Less: Accumulated depreciation |  | 5,799 |  | 4,994 |
Property and equipment, net |  | $ | 15,751 |  | $ | 13,189 |
Property and equipment are stated at cost. We capitalize improvements that extend asset lives and expense repairs and maintenance costs as incurred. We record depreciation using the straight-line method over the asset’s estimated useful life. For assets that are sold or retired, we remove the applicable cost and accumulated depreciation and, unless the gain or loss on disposition is presented separately, we recognize it as a component of depreciation expense. Capital expenditures for the construction of Universal Beijing Resort are presented separately in our consolidated statement of cash flows. We evaluate the recoverability of our property and equipment whenever events or substantive changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. The evaluation is based on the cash flows generated by the underlying asset groups, including estimated future operating results, trends or other determinants of fair value. If the total of the expected future undiscounted cash flows were less than the carrying amount of the asset group, we would recognize an impairment charge to the extent the carrying amount of the asset group exceeded its estimated fair value. Unless presented separately, the impairment charge is included as a component of depreciation expense.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for long-lived, physical assets used in the normal conduct of business and not intended for resale. Includes, but is not limited to, accounting policies and methodology, roll forwards, depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, including composite depreciation, accumulated depreciation, depletion and amortization expense, useful lives and method used, income statement disclosures, assets held for sale and public utility disclosures. + References Reference 1: http://fasb.org/us-gaap/role/ref/legacyRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 360 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/topic&trid=2155823 + Details
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