Significant Transactions Schedule of Pro Forma Financial Information (Details) (Combined Softbank and Clearwire transactions [Member], SoftBank Merger [Member], USD $) In Millions, except Per Share data, unless otherwise specified	9 Months Ended	21 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2012	Sep. 30, 2013
Combined Softbank and Clearwire transactions [Member] | SoftBank Merger [Member]
Business Acquisition [Line Items]
Net operating revenues	$ 26,749	$ 26,810
Net loss	$ (3,618)	$ (3,188)
Basic loss per common share	$ (0.94)	$ (0.82)