Commitments and Contingencies	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2013
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies	Commitments and Contingencies In this Note, when we refer to a class action as "putative" it is because a class has been alleged, but not certified in that matter. Until and unless a class has been certified by the court, it has not been established that the named plaintiffs represent the class of plaintiffs they purport to represent. We have established accrued liabilities for the matters described below where losses are deemed probable and reasonably estimable. We are vigorously defending against all of the matters described below. As a matter of course, we are prepared both to litigate the matters to judgment, as well as to evaluate and consider all settlement opportunities. The terms and conditions of applicable bylaws, certificates or articles of incorporation, agreements or applicable law may obligate us to indemnify our former directors, officers or employees with respect to certain of the matters described below, and we have been advancing legal fees and costs to certain former directors, officers or employees in connection with certain matters described below. Litigation Matters Relating to Qwest On July 16, 2013, Comcast MO Group, Inc. ("Comcast") filed a lawsuit in Colorado state court against Qwest Communications International, Inc. ("Qwest"). Comcast alleges Qwest breached the parties' 1998 tax sharing agreement ("TSA") when it refused to partially indemnify Comcast for a tax liability settlement Comcast reached with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in a dispute to which we were not a party. Comcast seeks approximately $80 million in damages, excluding interest. Qwest and Comcast are parties to the TSA in their capacities as successors to the TSA's original parties, U S WEST, Inc., a telecommunications company, and MediaOne Group, Inc., a cable television company, respectively. We have not accrued a liability for this matter because we do not believe that liability is probable. KPNQwest Litigation/Investigation On September 29, 2010, the trustees in the Dutch bankruptcy proceeding for KPNQwest, N.V. (of which we were a major shareholder) filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Haarlem, the Netherlands, alleging tort and mismanagement claims under Dutch law. We and Koninklijke KPN N.V. ("KPN") are defendants in this lawsuit along with a number of former KPNQwest supervisory board members and a former officer of KPNQwest, some of whom were formerly affiliated with us. Plaintiffs allege, among other things, that defendants' actions were a cause of the bankruptcy of KPNQwest, and they seek damages for the bankruptcy deficit of KPNQwest, which is claimed to be approximately €4.2 billion (or approximately $5.7 billion based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013), plus statutory interest. Two lawsuits asserting similar claims were previously filed against Qwest and others in federal courts in New Jersey in 2004 and Colorado in 2009; those courts dismissed the lawsuits without prejudice on the grounds that the claims should not be litigated in the United States. In October 2013 following a confidential mediation, Qwest, KPN, and the trustees reached a tentative oral agreement on the principal financial terms of a potential settlement. The potential settlement terms include Qwest’s payment of €172 million (or approximately $233 million based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013) to the KPNQwest bankruptcy estate pursuant to its indemnification obligations, discussed below. The tentative settlement is subject to several conditions, including the negotiation and execution of a definitive settlement agreement acceptable to the plaintiffs and various other defendants and the approval of the Dutch bankruptcy court. On September 13, 2006, Cargill Financial Markets, Plc and Citibank, N.A. filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, against us, KPN, KPN Telecom B.V., and other former officers, employees or supervisory board members of KPNQwest, some of whom were formerly affiliated with us. The lawsuit alleges that defendants misrepresented KPNQwest's financial and business condition in connection with the origination of a credit facility and wrongfully allowed KPNQwest to borrow funds under that facility. Plaintiffs allege damages of approximately €219 million (or approximately $296 million based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013). The value of this claim will be reduced to the degree plaintiffs receive recovery from the tentative trustee settlement described above. While we expect the plaintiffs would receive proceeds from any such trustee settlement, the amounts of such expected recovery are not yet known. On April 25, 2012, the court issued its judgment denying the claims asserted by Cargill and Citibank in their lawsuit. Cargill and Citibank are appealing that decision. Regarding the 2010 proceeding filed by the trustees, we have accrued a liability in the third quarter of 2013 in the pre-tax amount of €172 millions (or approximately $233 million reflected in other current liabilities in our accompanying consolidated financial statements based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013), which equals Qwest’s proposed contribution under the terms of the tentative settlement. In the event that a settlement is not finalized, we will continue to defend against the matter vigorously. Regarding the 2006 suit brought by Cargill Financial Markets, Plc and Citibank, N.A, we do not believe that liability is probable and will continue to defend against the matter vigorously. Other Matters Several putative class actions relating to the installation of fiber optic cable in certain rights-of-way were filed against Qwest on behalf of landowners on various dates and in courts located in 34 states in which Qwest has such cable (Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.) For the most part, the complaints challenge our right to install our fiber optic cable in railroad rights-of-way. The complaints allege that the railroads own the right-of-way as an easement that did not include the right to permit us to install our cable in the right-of-way without the plaintiffs' consent. Most of the currently pending actions purport to be brought on behalf of state-wide classes in the named plaintiffs' respective states, although one action pending before the Illinois Court of Appeals purports to be brought on behalf of landowners in Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio and Wisconsin. In general, the complaints seek damages on theories of trespass and unjust enrichment, as well as punitive damages. After previous attempts to enter into a single nationwide settlement in a single court proved unsuccessful, the parties proceeded to seek court approval of settlements on a state-by-state basis. To date, the parties have received final approval of such settlements in 29 states (Alabama, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin), have received only preliminary approval of the settlement in one state (Kentucky), and have not yet received either preliminary or final approval in one state where an action is pending (Texas) and three states where actions were at one time, but are not currently, pending (Arizona, Massachusetts and New Mexico). We have accrued an amount that we believe is probable for these matters; however, the amount is not material to our consolidated financial statements. From time to time, we are involved in other proceedings incidental to our business, including patent infringement allegations, administrative hearings of state public utility commissions relating primarily to rate making, actions relating to employee claims, various tax issues, environmental law issues, grievance hearings before labor regulatory agencies and miscellaneous third party tort actions. The outcome of these other proceedings is not predictable. However, based on current circumstances, we do not believe that the ultimate resolution of these other proceedings, after considering available defenses and insurance coverage, will have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows. CenturyLink is involved in several legal proceedings to which we are not a party that, if resolved against CenturyLink, could have a material adverse effect on its business and financial condition. As a wholly owned subsidiary of CenturyLink, our business and financial condition could be similarly affected. You can find descriptions of these legal proceedings in CenturyLink's quarterly and annual reports filed with the SEC. Because we are not a party to any of these matters, we have not accrued any liabilities for these matters.

Commitments and Contingencies

In this Note, when we refer to a class action as "putative" it is because a class has been alleged, but not certified in that matter. Until and unless a class has been certified by the court, it has not been established that the named plaintiffs represent the class of plaintiffs they purport to represent.

We have established accrued liabilities for the matters described below where losses are deemed probable and reasonably estimable.

We are vigorously defending against all of the matters described below. As a matter of course, we are prepared both to litigate the matters to judgment, as well as to evaluate and consider all settlement opportunities.

The terms and conditions of applicable bylaws, certificates or articles of incorporation, agreements or applicable law may obligate us to indemnify our former directors, officers or employees with respect to certain of the matters described below, and we have been advancing legal fees and costs to certain former directors, officers or employees in connection with certain matters described below.

Litigation Matters Relating to Qwest

On July 16, 2013, Comcast MO Group, Inc. ("Comcast") filed a lawsuit in Colorado state court against Qwest Communications International, Inc. ("Qwest"). Comcast alleges Qwest breached the parties' 1998 tax sharing agreement ("TSA") when it refused to partially indemnify Comcast for a tax liability settlement Comcast reached with the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in a dispute to which we were not a party. Comcast seeks approximately $80 million in damages, excluding interest. Qwest and Comcast are parties to the TSA in their capacities as successors to the TSA's original parties, U S WEST, Inc., a telecommunications company, and MediaOne Group, Inc., a cable television company, respectively. We have not accrued a liability for this matter because we do not believe that liability is probable.

KPNQwest Litigation/Investigation

On September 29, 2010, the trustees in the Dutch bankruptcy proceeding for KPNQwest, N.V. (of which we were a major shareholder) filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Haarlem, the Netherlands, alleging tort and mismanagement claims under Dutch law. We and Koninklijke KPN N.V. ("KPN") are defendants in this lawsuit along with a number of former KPNQwest supervisory board members and a former officer of KPNQwest, some of whom were formerly affiliated with us. Plaintiffs allege, among other things, that defendants' actions were a cause of the bankruptcy of KPNQwest, and they seek damages for the bankruptcy deficit of KPNQwest, which is claimed to be approximately €4.2 billion (or approximately $5.7 billion based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013), plus statutory interest. Two lawsuits asserting similar claims were previously filed against Qwest and others in federal courts in New Jersey in 2004 and Colorado in 2009; those courts dismissed the lawsuits without prejudice on the grounds that the claims should not be litigated in the United States.

In October 2013 following a confidential mediation, Qwest, KPN, and the trustees reached a tentative oral agreement on the principal financial terms of a potential settlement. The potential settlement terms include Qwest’s payment of €172 million (or approximately $233 million based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013) to the KPNQwest bankruptcy estate pursuant to its indemnification obligations, discussed below. The tentative settlement is subject to several conditions, including the negotiation and execution of a definitive settlement agreement acceptable to the plaintiffs and various other defendants and the approval of the Dutch bankruptcy court.

On September 13, 2006, Cargill Financial Markets, Plc and Citibank, N.A. filed a lawsuit in the District Court of Amsterdam, the Netherlands, against us, KPN, KPN Telecom B.V., and other former officers, employees or supervisory board members of KPNQwest, some of whom were formerly affiliated with us. The lawsuit alleges that defendants misrepresented KPNQwest's financial and business condition in connection with the origination of a credit facility and wrongfully allowed KPNQwest to borrow funds under that facility. Plaintiffs allege damages of approximately €219 million (or approximately $296 million based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013). The value of this claim will be reduced to the degree plaintiffs receive recovery from the tentative trustee settlement described above. While we expect the plaintiffs would receive proceeds from any such trustee settlement, the amounts of such expected recovery are not yet known. On April 25, 2012, the court issued its judgment denying the claims asserted by Cargill and Citibank in their lawsuit. Cargill and Citibank are appealing that decision.

Regarding the 2010 proceeding filed by the trustees, we have accrued a liability in the third quarter of 2013 in the pre-tax amount of €172 millions (or approximately $233 million reflected in other current liabilities in our accompanying consolidated financial statements based on the exchange rate on September 30, 2013), which equals Qwest’s proposed contribution under the terms of the tentative settlement. In the event that a settlement is not finalized, we will continue to defend against the matter vigorously. Regarding the 2006 suit brought by Cargill Financial Markets, Plc and Citibank, N.A, we do not believe that liability is probable and will continue to defend against the matter vigorously.

Other Matters

Several putative class actions relating to the installation of fiber optic cable in certain rights-of-way were filed against Qwest on behalf of landowners on various dates and in courts located in 34 states in which Qwest has such cable (Alabama, Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin.) For the most part, the complaints challenge our right to install our fiber optic cable in railroad rights-of-way. The complaints allege that the railroads own the right-of-way as an easement that did not include the right to permit us to install our cable in the right-of-way without the plaintiffs' consent. Most of the currently pending actions purport to be brought on behalf of state-wide classes in the named plaintiffs' respective states, although one action pending before the Illinois Court of Appeals purports to be brought on behalf of landowners in Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, Nebraska, Ohio and Wisconsin. In general, the complaints seek damages on theories of trespass and unjust enrichment, as well as punitive damages. After previous attempts to enter into a single nationwide settlement in a single court proved unsuccessful, the parties proceeded to seek court approval of settlements on a state-by-state basis. To date, the parties have received final approval of such settlements in 29 states (Alabama, California, Colorado, Delaware, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Virginia and Wisconsin), have received only preliminary approval of the settlement in one state (Kentucky), and have not yet received either preliminary or final approval in one state where an action is pending (Texas) and three states where actions were at one time, but are not currently, pending (Arizona, Massachusetts and New Mexico). We have accrued an amount that we believe is probable for these matters; however, the amount is not material to our consolidated financial statements.

From time to time, we are involved in other proceedings incidental to our business, including patent infringement allegations, administrative hearings of state public utility commissions relating primarily to rate making, actions relating to employee claims, various tax issues, environmental law issues, grievance hearings before labor regulatory agencies and miscellaneous third party tort actions. The outcome of these other proceedings is not predictable. However, based on current circumstances, we do not believe that the ultimate resolution of these other proceedings, after considering available defenses and insurance coverage, will have a material adverse effect on our financial position, results of operations or cash flows.

CenturyLink is involved in several legal proceedings to which we are not a party that, if resolved against CenturyLink, could have a material adverse effect on its business and financial condition. As a wholly owned subsidiary of CenturyLink, our business and financial condition could be similarly affected. You can find descriptions of these legal proceedings in CenturyLink's quarterly and annual reports filed with the SEC. Because we are not a party to any of these matters, we have not accrued any liabilities for these matters.