Basis of Presentation (Policies)

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2021

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Principles of Consolidation

The accounting policies of UScellular conform to accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America (GAAP) as set forth in the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) Accounting Standards Codification (ASC). Unless otherwise specified, references to accounting provisions and GAAP in these notes refer to the requirements of the FASB ASC. The consolidated financial statements include the accounts of UScellular, subsidiaries in which it has a controlling financial interest, general partnerships in which UScellular has a majority partnership interest and certain entities in which UScellular has a variable interest that requires consolidation under GAAP. Intercompany accounts and transactions have been eliminated.

Basis of Accounting

The unaudited consolidated financial statements included herein have been prepared by UScellular pursuant to the rules and regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Certain information and disclosures normally included in annual financial statements prepared in accordance with GAAP have been condensed or omitted pursuant to such rules and regulations. However, UScellular believes that the disclosures included herein are adequate to make the information presented not misleading. Certain numbers included herein are rounded to millions for ease of presentation; however, certain calculated amounts and percentages are determined using the unrounded numbers. These unaudited consolidated financial statements should be read in conjunction with the consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in UScellular’s Annual Report on Form 10-K (Form 10-K) for the year ended December 31, 2020.

The accompanying unaudited consolidated financial statements contain all adjustments (consisting of normal recurring items, unless otherwise disclosed) necessary for the fair statement of UScellular’s financial position as of March 31, 2021 and December 31, 2020 and its results of operations, cash flows and changes in equity for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020. The Consolidated Statement of Comprehensive Income was not included because comprehensive income for the three months ended March 31, 2021 and 2020, equaled net income. These results are not necessarily indicative of the results to be expected for the full year. UScellular has not changed its significant accounting and reporting policies from those disclosed in its Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020.

Revenue from Contract with Customer

As practical expedients, revenue related to contracts of less than one year, generally month-to-month contracts, and contracts with a fixed per-unit price and variable quantity, are excluded from these estimates. UScellular expects that commission fees paid as a result of obtaining contracts are recoverable and therefore UScellular defers and amortizes these costs. As a practical expedient, costs with an amortization period of one year or less are expensed as incurred.Deferred commission fees are amortized based on the timing of transfer of the goods or services to which the assets relate, typically the contract term.

Variable Interest Entities

UScellular consolidates VIEs in which it has a controlling financial interest as defined by GAAP and is therefore deemed the primary beneficiary. UScellular reviews the criteria for a controlling financial interest at the time it enters into agreements and subsequently when events warranting reconsideration occur. These VIEs have risks similar to those described in the “Risk Factors” in this Form 10-Q and UScellular’s Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2020.