Commitments and Contingencies (Details 2) (USD $) In Millions, unless otherwise specified	12 Months Ended	1 Months Ended
Dec. 31, 2009 Recovery claim, subsidiaries of Sprint Nextel lawsuit	Mar. 31, 2011 Recovery claim, subsidiaries of Sprint Nextel, filed on behalf of legacy Embarq operating entities item
Pending recovery claims
Number of claims	2
Amount of recovery claim	$ 34
Number of claims with favorable ruling		1

The amount or range of possible amounts of gain that could be realized upon the resolution of a contingency.

Reference 1: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef

-Publisher FASB

-Name Statement of Financial Accounting Standard (FAS)

-Number 5

-Paragraph 17

-LegacyDoc This reference is SUPERSEDED by the Accounting Standards Codification effective for interim and annual periods ending after September 15, 2009. This reference is included to help users transition from the previous accounting hierarchy and will be removed from future versions of this taxonomy.

Reference 2: http://www.xbrl.org/2003/role/presentationRef

-Publisher FASB

-Name Accounting Standards Codification

-Topic 450

-SubTopic 30

-Section 50

-Paragraph 1

-URI http://asc.fasb.org/extlink&oid=6397426&loc=d3e17499-108355

Name:	us-gaap_GainContingencyUnrecordedAmount
Namespace Prefix:	us-gaap_
Data Type:	xbrli:monetaryItemType
Balance Type:	credit
Period Type:	instant