Commitments and Contingencies	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2023
Commitments and Contingencies
Commitments and Contingencies	Note 13. Commitments and Contingencies On March 7, 2018, Sprint Communications Company LP (“Sprint”) filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware alleging that the Company infringed a set of patents directed to the provision of Voice over Internet Protocol services. This lawsuit was part of a larger, decade long patent enforcement campaign by Sprint aimed at numerous service providers in the broadband and telecommunications industry. In April 2023, prior to the commencement of the Company’s jury trial on April 24, 2023, the Company and Sprint entered into settlement discussions and also conducted a formal mediation. Those discussions culminated in a negotiated resolution of the pending litigation, for which the parties executed a binding term sheet on April 19, 2023, and a Confidential Settlement and License Agreement on April 28, 2023. The terms of the settlement are confidential, but the agreement does obligate the Company to make payments to Sprint over the course of three years in exchange for a full release of all liability. The Company intends to pursue funding contributions for that settlement from third parties implicated by Sprint’s claims and the Company’s defense, including indemnification claims against the Company’s various affected equipment providers. As a result of the settlement, the Company accrued $46.8 million as of March 31, 2023, and the associated expense is included in selling, general and administrative expenses. The Company does not believe that the settlement will have a material impact on the Company’s capital expenditures. The Company is also party to various legal proceedings (including individual, class and putative class actions) arising in the normal course of its business covering a wide range of matters and types of claims including, but not limited to, general contracts, billing disputes, rights of access, programming, taxes, fees and surcharges, consumer protection, trademark and patent infringement, employment, regulatory, tort, claims of competitors and disputes with other carriers. In accordance with GAAP, the Company accrues an expense for pending litigation when it determines that an unfavorable outcome is probable and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Legal defense costs are expensed as incurred. None of the Company’s existing accruals for pending matters are material. The Company consistently monitors its pending litigation for the purpose of adjusting its accruals and revising its disclosures accordingly, in accordance with GAAP, when required. However, litigation is subject to uncertainty, and the outcome of any particular matter is not predictable. The Company will vigorously defend its interests in pending litigation, and the Company believes that the ultimate resolution of all such matters, after considering insurance coverage or other indemnities to which it is entitled, will not have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.

Commitments and Contingencies

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2023

Note 13. Commitments and Contingencies

On March 7, 2018, Sprint Communications Company LP (“Sprint”) filed a complaint in the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware alleging that the Company infringed a set of patents directed to the provision of Voice over Internet Protocol services. This lawsuit was part of a larger, decade long patent enforcement campaign by Sprint aimed at numerous service providers in the broadband and telecommunications industry. In April 2023, prior to the commencement of the Company’s jury trial on April 24, 2023, the Company and Sprint entered into settlement discussions and also conducted a formal mediation. Those discussions culminated in a negotiated resolution of the pending litigation, for which the parties executed a binding term sheet on April 19, 2023, and a Confidential Settlement and License Agreement on April 28, 2023. The terms of the settlement are confidential, but the agreement does obligate the Company to make payments to Sprint over the course of three years in exchange for a full release of all liability.

The Company intends to pursue funding contributions for that settlement from third parties implicated by Sprint’s claims and the Company’s defense, including indemnification claims against the Company’s various affected equipment providers. As a result of the settlement, the Company accrued $46.8 million as of March 31, 2023, and the associated expense is included in selling, general and administrative expenses. The Company does not believe that the settlement will have a material impact on the Company’s capital expenditures.

The Company is also party to various legal proceedings (including individual, class and putative class actions) arising in the normal course of its business covering a wide range of matters and types of claims including, but not limited to, general contracts, billing disputes, rights of access, programming, taxes, fees and surcharges, consumer protection, trademark and patent infringement, employment, regulatory, tort, claims of competitors and disputes with other carriers.

In accordance with GAAP, the Company accrues an expense for pending litigation when it determines that an unfavorable outcome is probable and the amount of the loss can be reasonably estimated. Legal defense costs are expensed as incurred. None of the Company’s existing accruals for pending matters are material. The Company consistently monitors its pending litigation for the purpose of adjusting its accruals and revising its disclosures accordingly, in accordance with GAAP, when required. However, litigation is subject to uncertainty, and the outcome of any particular matter is not predictable. The Company will vigorously defend its interests in pending litigation, and the Company believes that the ultimate resolution of all such matters, after considering insurance coverage or other indemnities to which it is entitled, will not have a material adverse effect on its consolidated financial position, results of operations, or cash flows.