Basis of Presentation

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2019

Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]

Basis of Presentation

Basis of Presentation

General

Liberty Latin America Ltd. (Liberty Latin America) is a registered company in Bermuda that primarily includes (i) Cable & Wireless Communications Limited (C&W) and its subsidiaries, (ii) VTR Finance B.V. (VTR Finance) and its subsidiaries, which include VTR.com SpA (VTR), (iii) Leo Cable LP (Leo Cable) and its subsidiaries, which includes Liberty Cablevision of Puerto Rico LLC (LCPR), collectively “Liberty Puerto Rico”, and (iv) LBT CT Communications, S.A. (a less than wholly-owned entity) and its subsidiary, Cabletica (as defined in note 4). C&W owns less than 100% of certain of its consolidated subsidiaries, including The Bahamas Telecommunications Company Limited (C&W Bahamas), Cable & Wireless Jamaica Limited (C&W Jamaica), and Cable & Wireless Panama, S.A. (C&W Panama). For information regarding the percentages of certain of our less than wholly-owned consolidated subsidiaries, see Part II, Item 7. Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations - Overview.

The accompanying consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with generally accepted accounting principles in the United States (U.S. GAAP) and include the historical financial information of (i) certain former subsidiaries of Liberty Global plc (Liberty Global) for periods prior to the Split-Off, as defined below, and (ii) Liberty Latin America and its consolidated subsidiaries for the period following the Split-Off. Although Liberty Latin America was previously reported on a combined basis, these financial statements present all prior periods as consolidated. In these notes, the terms “we,” “our,” “our company” and “us” may refer, as the context requires, to Liberty Latin America or collectively to Liberty Latin America and its subsidiaries. Unless otherwise indicated, ownership percentages and convenience translations into United States (U.S.) dollars are calculated as of December 31, 2019.

We are an international provider of fixed, mobile and subsea telecommunications services. We provide residential and business-to-business (B2B) services in (i) over 20 countries, primarily in Latin America and the Caribbean, through C&W, (ii) Chile and Costa Rica, through VTR/Cabletica, and (iii) Puerto Rico, through Liberty Puerto Rico. Through our “Networks & LatAm” business, C&W also provides (i) B2B services in certain other countries in Latin America and the Caribbean and (ii) wholesale communication services over its subsea and terrestrial fiber optic cable networks that connect over 40 markets in that region.

LiLAC Transaction

On July 1, 2015, Liberty Global completed the “LiLAC Transaction,” pursuant to which each holder of Class A, Class B and Class C Liberty Global ordinary shares (Liberty Global Shares) received one share of the corresponding class of its “LiLAC Shares” for each 20 Liberty Global Shares held as of the record date for such distribution. Accordingly, Liberty Global issued 12,625,362 Class A, 523,626 Class B and 30,776,883 Class C LiLAC Shares upon the completion of the LiLAC Transaction. The LiLAC Shares were tracking shares, which were intended to reflect or “track” the economic performance of Liberty Global’s “LiLAC Group” rather than the economic performance of Liberty Global as a whole. The LiLAC Group comprised the same entities as Liberty Latin America at the time of the Split-Off (as defined below). As further described below, in connection with the Split-Off, the LiLAC Shares were effectively replaced by corresponding classes of Liberty Latin America common shares.

Split-Off of Liberty Latin America from Liberty Global

On December 29, 2017 (the Split-Off Distribution Date), Liberty Global completed its previously announced split-off (the Split-Off) of its former wholly-owned subsidiary, Liberty Latin America.The Split-Off was accomplished by (i) the distribution by Liberty Global to holders of its LiLAC Shares of all of the Company’s common shares and (ii) immediately following the distribution, the LiLAC Shares were redesignated as deferred shares (with virtually no economic rights) and those deferred shares were transferred for no consideration to a third-party designee, in each case, in accordance with Liberty Global’s articles of association and applicable law. Pursuant to the Split-Off, Liberty Global distributed to holders of its LiLAC Shares, as a dividend, (i) one Class A common share of the Company for each Class A LiLAC ordinary share, (ii) one Class B common share of the Company for each Class B LiLAC ordinary share and (iii) one Class C common share of the Company for each Class C LiLAC ordinary share, in each case, held by such holder as of the Split-Off Distribution Date. In the Split-Off, 48,428,841 Class A common shares, 1,940,193 Class B common shares and 120,843,539 Class C common shares of Liberty Latin America were issued (collectively, Liberty Latin America Shares). As a result of the Split-Off, Liberty Latin America is an independent, publicly traded company. The Split-Off was accounted for at historical cost due to the pro rata distribution of Liberty Latin America Shares to holders of Liberty Global’s LiLAC Shares.