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Income Taxes 9 (Details) (USD $) | 12 Months Ended |  |
--- | --- | --- | ---
Dec. 31, 2010 | Dec. 31, 2009 | Dec. 31, 2008
Income Taxes [Abstract] |  |  |
Range of potential change in unrecognized tax benefits due to closure of state income tax audits and expiration of statutes of limitations within the next year | $ 7,000,000 |  |
Accrued interest and penalties related to unrecognized income tax benefits | 3,000,000 | 2,100,000 | 4,400,000
Net accrued interest and penalties, total | $ 19,300,000 | $ 15,700,000 |
Open Tax Years By Major Tax Jurisdiction | after 2007 |  |
IRS deposit | In conjunction with an Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) audit of the TDS consolidated group’s federal income tax returns for the tax years 2002 through 2005, TDS made a $38 million deposit with the IRS in 2009 related to an initial proposed assessment made by the IRS related to a specific tax position. U.S. Cellular then paid TDS a $34 million deposit in 2009, which represented U.S. Cellular’s proportionate share of the TDS deposit. The purpose of the deposit was to eliminate any potential interest expense subsequent to the deposit. The IRS subsequently conceded the specific tax position, and after closure of the IRS audit for the tax years 2002 through 2005, the IRS returned this $38 million deposit to TDS in 2010, and TDS also returned U.S. Cellular’s $34 million deposit in 2010. |  |

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- Definition Identification, by major jurisdiction, of tax years that remain open to examination under enacted tax laws. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name FASB Interpretation (FIN) -Number 48 -Paragraph 21 -Subparagraph e + Details
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- Definition Description of material events or transactions not otherwise specified in the taxonomy pertaining to income taxes that would be relevant to the user of the financial statements. + Details
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- Definition For a tax position taken for which it is reasonably possible that the total amount of unrecognized tax benefit will significantly increase or decrease within twelve months of the balance sheet date, provide an estimate of the range of the reasonably possible change. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name FASB Interpretation (FIN) -Number 48 -Paragraph 21 -Subparagraph d(3) + Details
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- Definition This element represents the total of accruals as of the date of the statement of financial position for interest recognized for an underpayment of income taxes computed by applying the applicable statutory rate of interest to the difference between a tax position recognized for financial reporting purposes and the amount previously taken or expected to be taken in a tax return of the entity and the amount of statutory penalties for a tax position claimed or expected to be claimed by the entity, in its tax return, that does not meet the minimum statutory threshold to avoid payment of penalties. + References Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name FASB Interpretation (FIN) -Number 48 -Paragraph 21 -Subparagraph c Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef -Publisher FASB -Name FASB Interpretation (FIN) -Number 48 -Paragraph 15, 16 + Details
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