Consolidated Balance Sheet - USD ($) $ in Millions		Mar. 31, 2021	Dec. 31, 2020
Current assets
Cash and cash equivalents		$ 1,042	$ 1,429
Short-term investments		3	3
Accounts receivable
Customers and agents, less allowances of $60 and $67, respectively		978	1,004
Other, less allowances of $2 and $2, respectively		119	108
Inventory, net		145	154
Prepaid expenses		114	105
Income taxes receivable		188	187
Other current assets		53	36
Total current assets		2,642	3,026
Assets held for sale		1	2
Licenses		3,924	2,638
Goodwill		547	547
Other intangible assets, net of accumulated amortization of $75 and $71, respectively		213	213
Investments in unconsolidated entities		497	477
Property, plant and equipment
In service and under construction		13,742	13,659
Less: Accumulated depreciation and amortization		9,791	9,687
Property, plant and equipment, net		3,951	3,972
Operating lease right-of-use assets		1,005	998
Other assets and deferred charges		627	652
Total assets	[1]	13,407	12,525
Current liabilities
Current portion of long-term debt		6	5
Accounts payable		360	508
Customer deposits and deferred revenues		202	193
Accrued interest		25	16
Accrued taxes		67	69
Accrued compensation		73	132
Short-term operating lease liabilities		134	129
Other current liabilities		96	101
Total current liabilities		963	1,153
Liabilities held for sale		0	1
Deferred liabilities and credits
Deferred income tax liability, net		890	863
Long-term operating lease liabilities		941	940
Other deferred liabilities and credits		558	541
Long-term debt, net		3,991	3,424
Commitments and contingencies
Noncontrolling interests with redemption features		10	10
TDS shareholders’ equity
Series A Common and Common Shares Authorized 290 shares (25 Series A Common and 265 Common Shares) Issued 133 shares (7 Series A Common and 126 Common Shares) Outstanding 114 shares (7 Series A Common and 107 Common Shares) and 115 shares (7 Series A Common and 108 Common Shares), respectively Par Value ($.01 per share)		1	1
Capital in excess of par value		2,488	2,482
Preferred Shares, par value $0.01 per share, $25,000 liquidation preference per share, .017 shares outstanding		408	0
Treasury shares, at cost, 19 Common Shares		(472)	(477)
Accumulated other comprehensive loss		(3)	(4)
Retained earnings		2,830	2,802
Total TDS shareholders' equity		5,252	4,804
Noncontrolling interests		802	789
Total equity		6,054	5,593
Total liabilities and equity	[1]	$ 13,407	$ 12,525

[1] The consolidated total assets as of March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, include assets held by consolidated variable interest entities (VIEs) of $1,244 million and $1,042 million, respectively, which are not available to be used to settle the obligations of TDS. The consolidated total liabilities as of March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020, include certain liabilities of consolidated VIEs of $17 million and $18 million, respectively, for which the creditors of the VIEs have no recourse to the general credit of TDS. See Note 10 — Variable Interest Entities for additional information.