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Notes Receivable and Other Non-current Assets
12 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2012
Notes Receivable And Other Long Term Assets [Abstract]  
Notes Receivable and Other Non-Current Assets

5. NOTES RECEIVABLE AND OTHER NON-CURRENT ASSETS

 

Notes receivable and other non-current assets consist of the following as of December 31, (in thousands):

 

         
    2012 2011(1)
         
Notes receivable $ 114,256 $ 118,892
Long-term prepaid assets   176,094   167,975
Other miscellaneous assets   162,438   208,748
         
Balance as of December 31,  $ 452,788 $ 495,615
         
         
(1)December 31, 2011 balances have been revised to reflect purchase accounting measurement period adjustments.
         

TV Azteca Note ReceivableIn 2000, the Company loaned TV Azteca, S.A. de C.V. (“TV Azteca”), the owner of a major national television network in Mexico, $119.8 million. The loan has an interest rate of 13.11%, payable quarterly which at the time of issuance was determined to be below market and therefore a corresponding discount was recorded. As of December 31, 2012 and 2011, approximately $119.8 million undiscounted (approximately $108.2 million discounted) under the loan was outstanding and included in notes receivable and other non-current assets in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets. The term of the loan is seventy years; however, the loan may be prepaid by TV Azteca without penalty during the last fifty years of the agreement. The discount on the loan is being amortized to interest income, TV Azteca, net of interest expense, using the effective interest method over the seventy-year term of the loan.

 

Simultaneous with the signing of the loan agreement, the Company also entered into a seventy year Economic Rights Agreement with TV Azteca regarding space not used by TV Azteca on approximately 190 of its broadcast towers. In exchange for the issuance of the below market interest rate loan and the annual payment of $1.5 million to TV Azteca (under the Economic Rights Agreement), the Company has the right to market and lease the unused tower space on the broadcast towers (the “Economic Rights”). TV Azteca retains title to these towers and is responsible for their operation and maintenance. The Company is entitled to 100% of the revenues generated from leases with tenants on the unused space and is responsible for any incremental operating expenses associated with those tenants.

 

The term of the Economic Rights Agreement is seventy years; however, TV Azteca has the right to purchase, at fair market value, the Economic Rights from the Company at any time during the last fifty years of the agreement. Should TV Azteca elect to purchase the Economic Rights (in whole or in part), it would also be obligated to repay a proportional amount of the loan discussed above at the time of such election. The Company's obligation to pay TV Azteca $1.5 million annually would also be reduced proportionally.

 

The Company has accounted for the annual payment of $1.5 million as a capital lease (initially recording an asset and a corresponding liability of approximately $18.6 million). The capital lease asset and the original discount on the note, which aggregated approximately $30.2 million, represent the cost to acquire the Economic Rights, which is recorded as an intangible asset and is being amortized over the seventy-year life of the Economic Rights agreement.

 

Iusacell Note ReceivableEffective April 1, 2010, the Company renegotiated its agreement with Iusacell. The renegotiated agreement includes, among other changes, the conversion of its accounts receivable, net, outstanding at that time, to a long-term note receivable to be repaid over five years. In December 2011, the Company and Iusacell agreed to amend the repayment terms such that all amounts outstanding will be repaid by April 2014. The loan has an interest rate of 12.0%, but may be reduced, subject to certain capitalization and repayment conditions. As of December 31, 2012, approximately $3.1 million, net, under the loan was outstanding and included in notes receivable and other non-current assets and $12.5 million was outstanding and included in prepaid and other current assets in the accompanying consolidated balance sheets.

 

Long-Term Prepaid AssetsLong-term prepaid assets consist primarily of long-term prepaid ground rent.