Description of Business and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2016

Accounting Policies [Abstract]

Changes in Allowance for Doubtful Accounts for Trade Accounts Receivable

Changes in the allowance for doubtful accounts for trade accounts receivable for the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014 are summarized below (in thousands):

	2016			2015			2014
Balance at beginning of year	$	418		$	762		$	924
Bad debt expense	2,456			1,640			1,678
Losses charged to allowance	(2,743		)	(2,586		)	(2,218		)
Recoveries added to allowance	628			602			378
Balance at end of year	$	759		$	418		$	762

Changes in Liability for Asset Removal Obligations

Changes in the liability for asset removal obligations for the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014 are summarized below (in thousands):

	2016			2015			2014
Balance at beginning of year	$	7,266		$	6,928		$	6,485
Liabilities acquired in acquisition	14,056			—			—
Additional liabilities accrued	157			490			403
Changes to prior estimates	—			(467		)	—
Payments made	(609		)	(77		)	(334		)
Accretion expense	637			392			374
Balance at end of year	$	21,507		$	7,266		$	6,928

Schedule of Goodwill

Changes in the carrying amount of goodwill during the year ended December 31, 2016 are shown below (in thousands):

Goodwill as of December 31, 2015, Wireline segment	$	10
Goodwill recorded January 2016, Cable segment, Colane acquisition	104
Goodwill recorded May 2016, Wireless segment, nTelos acquisition	145,142
Goodwill as of December 31, 2016	$	145,256

Intangible Assets, Non-amortizing Intangibles

Intangible assets consist of the following at December 31, 2016 and 2015 (in thousands):

	2016							2015
	Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization			Net		Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization			Net
Non-amortizing intangibles:
Cable franchise rights	$	64,334	$	—		$	64,334	$	64,059	$	—		$	64,059
Railroad crossing rights	97		—			97		39		—			39
	64,431		—			64,431		64,098		—			64,098
Finite-lived intangibles:
Affiliate contract expansion	284,102		(14,030		)	270,072		—		—			—
Acquired subscribers – wireless	120,855		(18,738		)	102,117		—		—			—
Favorable leases - wireless	16,950		(1,130		)	15,820		—		—			—
Acquired subscribers – cable	25,265		(24,631		)	634		25,326		(23,805		)	1,521
Other intangibles	2,212		(754		)	1,458		1,938		(564		)	1,374
Total finite-lived intangibles	449,384		(59,283		)	390,101		27,264		(24,369		)	2,895
Total intangible assets	$	513,815	$	(59,283	)	$	454,532	$	91,362	$	(24,369	)	$	66,993

Intangible Assets, Finite-lived Intangibles

Intangible assets consist of the following at December 31, 2016 and 2015 (in thousands):

	2016							2015
	Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization			Net		Gross Carrying Amount		Accumulated Amortization			Net
Non-amortizing intangibles:
Cable franchise rights	$	64,334	$	—		$	64,334	$	64,059	$	—		$	64,059
Railroad crossing rights	97		—			97		39		—			39
	64,431		—			64,431		64,098		—			64,098
Finite-lived intangibles:
Affiliate contract expansion	284,102		(14,030		)	270,072		—		—			—
Acquired subscribers – wireless	120,855		(18,738		)	102,117		—		—			—
Favorable leases - wireless	16,950		(1,130		)	15,820		—		—			—
Acquired subscribers – cable	25,265		(24,631		)	634		25,326		(23,805		)	1,521
Other intangibles	2,212		(754		)	1,458		1,938		(564		)	1,374
Total finite-lived intangibles	449,384		(59,283		)	390,101		27,264		(24,369		)	2,895
Total intangible assets	$	513,815	$	(59,283	)	$	454,532	$	91,362	$	(24,369	)	$	66,993

Intangible assets resulting from the acquisition of nTelos and the Sprint exchange, both described above, are noted below (dollars in thousands):

	Useful Life	Basis
Affiliate contract agreement	14 years	$	284,100
Customer based contract rights	4-10 years	120,855
Favorable lease intangible assets	3-19 years	17,029

Amortization Expense for Intangible Assets

Aggregate amortization expense, including amortization recorded as a contra revenue, for intangible assets for the periods shown is expected to be as follows:

Year Ending December 31,	Total		Amount Reflected as Contra Revenue		Amount Reflected as Rent Expense		Amount Reflected as Amortization Expense
	(in thousands)
2017	$	46,807	$	21,045	$	1,695	$	24,067
2018	40,797		21,044		1,695		18,058
2019	36,561		21,045		1,695		13,821
2020	33,685		21,044		1,695		10,946
2021	30,923		21,045		1,695		8,183
thereafter	201,328		164,849		7,345		29,134
Total	$	390,101	$	270,072	$	15,820	$	104,209

Computation of Basic and Diluted Earnings per Share

The following tables show the computation of basic and diluted earnings per share for the years ended December 31, 2016, 2015 and 2014:

	2016			2015			2014
Basic income (loss) per share	(in thousands, except per share amounts)
Net income (loss)	$	(895	)	$	40,864		$	33,883
Weighted average shares outstanding	48,807			48,388			48,198
Basic income (loss) per share	$	(0.02	)	$	0.84		$	0.70
Effect of stock options outstanding:
Weighted average shares outstanding	48,807			48,388			48,198
Assumed exercise, at the strike price at the beginning of year	—			1,302			1,410
Assumed repurchase of shares under treasury stock method	—			(666		)	(888		)
Diluted weighted average shares	48,807			49,024			48,720
Diluted income (loss) per share	$	(0.02	)	$	0.83		$	0.70