Revenue Recognition

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2023

Revenue Recognition

Revenue Recognition

15.    Revenue Recognition

Contract Balances

Our valuation and qualifying accounts as of December 31, 2023, 2022 and 2021 were as follows:

	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2023		2022		2021
	(In thousands)
Balance at beginning of period	$	44,431	$	38,534	$	72,278
Current period provision for expected credit losses		67,302		79,664		54,083
Write-offs charged against allowance		(57,742)		(73,845)		(87,919)
Acquisitions		—		78		92
Balance at end of period	$	53,991	$	44,431	$	38,534

Contract liabilities arise when we bill our customers and receive consideration in advance of providing the service. Contract liabilities are recognized as revenue when the service has been provided to the customer. Contract liabilities are recorded in “Deferred revenue and other” and “Long-term deferred revenue and other long-term liabilities” on our Consolidated Balance Sheets.

The following table summarizes our contract liability balances:

	As of December 31,
	2023		2022
	(In thousands)
Contract liabilities	$	586,867	$	672,757

Our beginning of period contract liability recorded as customer contract revenue during 2023 was $642 million.

Performance Obligations

Pay-TV and Retail Wireless Segments

We apply a practical expedient and do not disclose the value of the remaining performance obligations for contracts that are less than one year in duration, which represent a substantial majority of our revenue. As such, the amount of revenue related to unsatisfied performance obligations is not necessarily indicative of our future revenue.

Contract Acquisition Costs

The following table presents the activity in our contract acquisition costs, net:

	For the Years Ended December 31,
	2023		2022		2021
	(In thousands)
Balance at beginning of period	$	381,401	$	458,006	$	456,255
Additions		278,077		346,577		393,109
Amortization expense		(372,202)		(423,182)		(391,358)
Balance at end of period	$	287,276	$	381,401	$	458,006