Consolidated Statements of Income - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended
Mar. 31, 2017	Mar. 31, 2016
Income Statement [Abstract]
Revenue	$ 2,048	$ 2,051
Costs and Expenses:
Network access costs	691	694
Network related expenses	336	338
Depreciation and amortization	320	301
Selling, general and administrative Expenses	364	356
Total Costs and Expenses	1,711	1,689
Operating Income	337	362
Other Income (Expense):
Interest income	2	1
Interest expense	(134)	(135)
Loss on modification and extinguishment of Debt	(44)	0
Other, net	4	(10)
Total Other Expense	(172)	(144)
Income Before Income Taxes	165	218
Income Tax Expense	(70)	(90)
Net Income	$ 95	$ 128
Basic Earnings per Common Share
Net Income Per Share	$ 0.26	$ 0.36
Weighted-Average Shares Outstanding (in thousands)	361,461	356,785
Diluted Earnings per Common Share
Net Income Per Share	$ 0.26	$ 0.36
Weighted-Average Shares Outstanding (in thousands)	364,121	360,745

Cost of Revenue and Operating Expenses [Abstract]

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- Definition

Network Access Costs for the communications business includes leased capacity, right-of-way costs, access charges, satellite transponder lease costs and other third party costs directly attributable to providing access to customer locations from the Level 3 network, but excludes Network Related Expenses, employee expenses, depreciation and amortization and related impairment expenses.

+ References

No definition available.