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Intangible Assets | 12 Months Ended
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Dec. 31, 2016
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract] |
Intangible Assets | Note 7 Intangible Assets Activity related to TDS’ Licenses, Goodwill and Franchise rights is presented below. See Note 6 — Acquisitions, Divestitures and Exchanges for information regarding transactions which affected these intangible assets during the periods. Prior to 2009, TDS accounted for U.S. Cellular’s share repurchases as step acquisitions, allocating a portion of the share repurchase value to TDS’ Licenses and Goodwill. Consequently, U.S. Cellular’s Licenses and Goodwill on a stand-alone basis do not equal the TDS consolidated Licenses and Goodwill related to U.S. Cellular.
Licenses |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| U.S. Cellular |  | Wireline |  | Cable |  | Total
(Dollars in millions) |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Balance at December 31, 2014 | $ | 1,448 |  | $ | 3 |  | $ | 3 |  | $ | 1,454
| Acquisitions |  | 346 |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | 346
| Exchanges - Licenses received |  | 43 |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | 43
| Other |  | 1 |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | 1
Balance at December 31, 2015 |  | 1,838 |  |  | 3 |  |  | 3 |  |  | 1,844
| Acquisitions |  | 53 |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | 53
| Transferred to Assets held for sale |  | (8) |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | (8)
| Divestitures |  | – |  |  | (1) |  |  | – |  |  | (1)
| Exchanges - Licenses received |  | 25 |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | 25
| Exchanges - Licenses surrendered |  | (18) |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | (18)
Balance at December 31, 2016 | $ | 1,890 |  | $ | 2 |  | $ | 3 |  | $ | 1,895
Goodwill |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
| U.S. Cellular |  | Wireline |  | Cable |  | HMS |  | Total
(Dollars in millions) |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |  |
Balance at December 31, 2014 | $ | 227 |  | $ | 414 |  | $ | 95 |  | $ | 35 |  | $ | 771
| Divestitures |  | – |  |  | (5) |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | (5)
Balance at December 31, 2015 |  | 227 |  |  | 409 |  |  | 95 |  |  | 35 |  |  | 766
| Other |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | – |  |  | –
Balance at December 31, 2016 | $ | 227 |  | $ | 409 |  | $ | 95 |  | $ | 35 |  | $ | 766
Accumulated impairment losses in prior periods were $334 million for U.S. Cellular, $29 million for Wireline, $84 million for HMS, and $4 million for Corporate and Other. Interim Goodwill Impairment Assessment During the third quarter of 2014, due to a decline in projected revenue and earnings of TDS Telecom’s HMS reporting unit compared with previously projected results, TDS determined that an interim impairment test of HMS Goodwill was required. As of August 1, 2014, the carrying value of the HMS reporting unit exceeded its fair value; therefore, a Step 2 Goodwill impairment test was performed. The second step compared the implied fair value of the reporting unit Goodwill to the carrying amount of that Goodwill. To calculate the implied fair value of Goodwill in this second step, TDS allocated the fair value of the reporting unit to all of the assets and liabilities of that reporting unit (including any unrecognized intangible assets) as if the reporting unit had been acquired in a business combination and the fair value was the price paid to acquire the reporting unit. The excess of the fair value of the reporting unit over the amount assigned to the assets and liabilities of the reporting unit was the implied fair value of Goodwill. Since the carrying amount of Goodwill exceeded the implied fair value of Goodwill, an impairment loss was recognized for that difference. As a result of the Step 2 Goodwill impairment test, TDS recognized a loss on impairment of $84 million during the third quarter of 2014. Franchise Rights There were no significant changes to Franchise rights during 2016 or 2015.

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- Definition The entire disclosure for the aggregate amount of goodwill and a description of intangible assets, which may include (a) for amortizable intangible assets (also referred to as finite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, the amount of any significant residual value, and the weighted-average amortization period, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization (also referred to as indefinite-lived intangible assets), the carrying amount, and (c) the amount of research and development assets acquired and written off in the period, including the line item in the income statement in which the amounts written off are aggregated, if not readily apparent from the income statement. Also discloses (a) for amortizable intangibles assets in total and by major class, the gross carrying amount and accumulated amortization, the total amortization expense for the period, and the estimated aggregate amortization expense for each of the five succeeding fiscal years, (b) for intangible assets not subject to amortization the carrying amount in total and by major class, and (c) for goodwill, in total and for each reportable segment, the changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the period (including the aggregate amount of goodwill acquired, the aggregate amount of impairment losses recognized, and the amount of goodwill included in the gain (loss) on disposal of a reporting unit). If any part of goodwill has not been allocated to a reportable segment, discloses the unallocated amount and the reasons for not allocating. For each impairment loss recognized related to an intangible asset (excluding goodwill), discloses: (a) a description of the impaired intangible asset and the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method for determining fair value, (c) the caption in the income statement or the statement of activities in which the impairment loss is aggregated, and (d) the segment in which the impaired intangible asset is reported. For each goodwill impairment loss recognized, discloses: (a) a description of the facts and circumstances leading to the impairment, (b) the amount of the impairment loss and the method of determining the fair value of the associated reporting unit, and (c) if a recognized impairment loss is an estimate not finalized and the reasons why the estimate is not final. May also disclose the nature and amount of any significant adjustments made to a previous estimate of an impairment loss. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 3 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=66006027&loc=d3e16373-109275 Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=66006027&loc=d3e16265-109275 Reference 3: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 30 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=66006027&loc=d3e16323-109275 Reference 4: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 1 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35741047&loc=d3e13816-109267 Reference 5: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name Accounting Standards Codification -Topic 350 -SubTopic 20 -Section 50 -Paragraph 2 -URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=35741047&loc=d3e13854-109267 + Details
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