Acquisitions

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2013

Business Combinations [Abstract]

Acquisitions

4. ACQUISITIONS

During the first quarter of 2013, the Company acquired 41 completed towers and related assets and liabilities. These acquisitions were not significant to the Company and, accordingly, pro forma financial information has not been presented. The Company evaluates all acquisitions after the applicable closing date of each transaction to determine whether any additional adjustments are needed to the allocation of the purchase price paid for the assets acquired and liabilities assumed by major balance sheet caption, as well as the separate recognition of intangible assets from goodwill if certain criteria are met.

The following table summarizes the Company’s acquisition capital expenditures:

	For the three months ended March 31,
	2013		2012
	(in thousands)
Towers and related intangible assets	$	195,753	$	43,715
Ground lease land purchases		13,388		5,671
Earnouts		401		1,762
Total acquisition capital expenditures	$	209,542	$	51,148

Acquisition capital expenditures for the three months ended March 31, 2013 include $175.9 million related to the Brazil acquisition which closed in the fourth quarter of 2012.

The Company paid, as part of the ground lease purchase program, $1.7 million and $1.5 million for ground lease extensions during the three months ended March 31, 2013 and 2012, respectively, which are excluded from the amounts above.

Earnouts

The Company recorded an adjustment of $0.6 million decreasing the estimated contingent consideration fair value during the three months ended March 31, 2013. During the same period of the prior year, the Company recorded an adjustment of $1.4 million decreasing the estimated contingent consideration fair value. As of March 31, 2013 the Company’s estimate of its potential obligation if the performance targets contained in various acquisition agreements were met was $8.9 million which the Company recorded in accrued expenses.