Summary of Accounting Policies	6 Months Ended
Jun. 30, 2011
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Text Block]	SUMMARY OF ACCOUNTING POLICIES New Accounting Pronouncements In September 2009, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) ratified the final consensus reached by the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) that revised the authoritative guidance for revenue arrangements with multiple deliverables. The guidance addresses how to determine whether an arrangement involving multiple deliverables contains more than one unit of accounting and how the arrangement consideration should be allocated among the separate units of accounting. NCR adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2011 and is applying it prospectively for new or materially modified arrangements. Under the consensus adopted by the EITF, use of the residual method, which the Company previously applied to many of its customer arrangements, is no longer permitted. The new guidance requires the Company to use its best estimate of a deliverable's selling price whenever it lacks objective evidence. The result of this change is that any discount in a customer arrangement which previously was allocated to delivered items is instead now allocated on a relative fair value basis among all the deliverables. There were no significant changes to the Company's units of accounting within its multiple-element arrangements or in the pattern or timing of revenue recognition for the six months ended June 30, 2011 as a result of the adoption of this update. In September 2009, the FASB also ratified the final consensus reached by the EITF that modifies the scope of the software revenue recognition guidance to exclude (a) non-software components of tangible products and (b) software components of tangible products that are sold, licensed or leased with tangible products when the software components and non-software components of the tangible product function together to deliver the tangible product's essential functionality. NCR adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2011 and is applying it prospectively for new or materially modified arrangements. There were no significant changes to the pattern or timing of revenue recognition for the six months ended June 30, 2011 as a result of the adoption of this update. In May 2011, the FASB issued updated guidance related to fair value measurements and disclosures, including (a) the application of the highest and best use valuation premise concepts, (b) measuring the fair value of an instrument classified in a reporting entity's stockholders' equity, and (c) quantitative information required for fair value measurements categorized within Level 3. Additionally, disclosure requirements have been expanded to include additional disclosure for Level 3 measurements regarding the sensitivity of fair value to changes in unobservable inputs and any interrelationships between those inputs. The guidance applies prospectively, and is effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2012. The Company is in the process of evaluating the effects, if any, the adoption of this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements. In June 2011, the FASB issued updated guidance related to the presentation of other comprehensive income, offering two alternatives for presentation, including (a) a single continuous statement of comprehensive income or (b) two separate but consecutive statements. In the two-statement approach, the first statement should present total net income and its components followed consecutively by a second statement that should present total other comprehensive income, the components of other comprehensive income, and the total of comprehensive income. The guidance applies retrospectively, and is effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2012. The Company is in the process of evaluating the effects, if any, the adoption of this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements. Revenue Recognition The Company's significant accounting policies as reported in NCR's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 were amended in the first quarter of 2011 upon the adoption of the new revenue recognition accounting pronouncements discussed above. While the adoption of the new accounting pronouncements had no material impact on the Company's Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for the six months ended June 30, 2011, the Company's previously disclosed revenue recognition policy related to multiple-element arrangements and software was updated, and is presented below as revised. NCR frequently enters into multiple-element arrangements with its customers including hardware, software, professional consulting services and maintenance support services. For arrangements involving multiple deliverables, when deliverables include software and non-software products and services, NCR evaluates and separates each deliverable to determine whether it represents a separate unit of accounting based on the following criteria: (a) the delivered item has value to the customer on a stand-alone basis; and (b) if the contract includes a general right of return relative to the delivered item, delivery or performance of the undelivered items is considered probable and substantially in the control of NCR. For arrangements entered into or materially modified after January 1, 2011, consideration is allocated to each unit of accounting based on the unit's relative selling prices. In such circumstances, the Company uses a hierarchy to determine the selling price to be used for allocating revenue to each deliverable: (i) vendor-specific objective evidence of selling price (VSOE), (ii) third-party evidence of selling price (TPE), and (iii) best estimate of selling price (BESP). VSOE generally exists only when the Company sells the deliverable separately and is the price actually charged by the Company for that deliverable. VSOE is established for our software maintenance services and we use TPE to establish selling prices for our non-software related services, which include hardware maintenance, non-software related professional services, and transaction services. The Company uses BESP to allocate revenue when we are unable to establish VSOE or TPE of selling price. BESP is primarily used for elements such as hardware and software that are not consistently priced within a narrow range. The Company determines BESP for a deliverable by considering multiple factors including product class, geography, average discount, and management's historical pricing practices. Amounts allocated to the delivered hardware and software elements are recognized at the time of sale provided the other conditions for revenue recognition have been met. Amounts allocated to the undelivered maintenance and other services elements are recognized as the services are provided or on a straight-line basis over the service period. In certain instances, customer acceptance is required prior to the passage of title and risk of loss of the delivered products. In such cases, revenue is not recognized until the customer acceptance is obtained. Delivery and acceptance generally occur in the same reporting period. For arrangements entered into prior to January 1, 2011, the Company has not applied BESP. In such arrangements, if the Company has the requisite evidence of selling price for the undelivered elements but not for the delivered elements, the Company applies the residual method to allocate arrangement consideration. In situations where NCR's solutions contain software that is more than incidental, revenue related to the software and software-related elements is recognized in accordance with authoritative guidance on software revenue recognition. For the software and software-related elements of such transactions, revenue is allocated based on the relative fair value of each element, and fair value is determined by VSOE. If the Company cannot objectively determine the fair value of any undelivered element included in such multiple-element arrangements, the Company defers revenue until all elements are delivered and services have been performed, or until fair value can objectively be determined for any remaining undelivered elements. When the fair value of a delivered element has not been established, but fair value exists for the undelivered elements, the Company uses the residual method to recognize revenue. Under the residual method, the fair value of the undelivered elements is deferred and the remaining portion of the arrangement fee is allocated to the delivered elements and is recognized as revenue.

SUMMARY OF ACCOUNTING POLICIES

New Accounting Pronouncements In September 2009, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) ratified the final consensus reached by the Emerging Issues Task Force (EITF) that revised the authoritative guidance for revenue arrangements with multiple deliverables. The guidance addresses how to determine whether an arrangement involving multiple deliverables contains more than one unit of accounting and how the arrangement consideration should be allocated among the separate units of accounting. NCR adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2011 and is applying it prospectively for new or materially modified arrangements. Under the consensus adopted by the EITF, use of the residual method, which the Company previously applied to many of its customer arrangements, is no longer permitted. The new guidance requires the Company to use its best estimate of a deliverable's selling price whenever it lacks objective evidence. The result of this change is that any discount in a customer arrangement which previously was allocated to delivered items is instead now allocated on a relative fair value basis among all the deliverables. There were no significant changes to the Company's units of accounting within its multiple-element arrangements or in the pattern or timing of revenue recognition for the six months ended June 30, 2011 as a result of the adoption of this update.

In September 2009, the FASB also ratified the final consensus reached by the EITF that modifies the scope of the software revenue recognition guidance to exclude (a) non-software components of tangible products and (b) software components of tangible products that are sold, licensed or leased with tangible products when the software components and non-software components of the tangible product function together to deliver the tangible product's essential functionality. NCR adopted this guidance effective January 1, 2011 and is applying it prospectively for new or materially modified arrangements. There were no significant changes to the pattern or timing of revenue recognition for the six months ended June 30, 2011 as a result of the adoption of this update.

In May 2011, the FASB issued updated guidance related to fair value measurements and disclosures, including (a) the application of the highest and best use valuation premise concepts, (b) measuring the fair value of an instrument classified in a reporting entity's stockholders' equity, and (c) quantitative information required for fair value measurements categorized within Level 3. Additionally, disclosure requirements have been expanded to include additional disclosure for Level 3 measurements regarding the sensitivity of fair value to changes in unobservable inputs and any interrelationships between those inputs. The guidance applies prospectively, and is effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2012. The Company is in the process of evaluating the effects, if any, the adoption of this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.

In June 2011, the FASB issued updated guidance related to the presentation of other comprehensive income, offering two alternatives for presentation, including (a) a single continuous statement of comprehensive income or (b) two separate but consecutive statements. In the two-statement approach, the first statement should present total net income and its components followed consecutively by a second statement that should present total other comprehensive income, the components of other comprehensive income, and the total of comprehensive income. The guidance applies retrospectively, and is effective for the Company beginning January 1, 2012. The Company is in the process of evaluating the effects, if any, the adoption of this guidance will have on its consolidated financial statements.

Revenue Recognition The Company's significant accounting policies as reported in NCR's Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2010 were amended in the first quarter of 2011 upon the adoption of the new revenue recognition accounting pronouncements discussed above. While the adoption of the new accounting pronouncements had no material impact on the Company's Condensed Consolidated Financial Statements for the six months ended June 30, 2011, the Company's previously disclosed revenue recognition policy related to multiple-element arrangements and software was updated, and is presented below as revised.

NCR frequently enters into multiple-element arrangements with its customers including hardware, software, professional consulting services and maintenance support services. For arrangements involving multiple deliverables, when deliverables include software and non-software products and services, NCR evaluates and separates each deliverable to determine whether it represents a separate unit of accounting based on the following criteria: (a) the delivered item has value to the customer on a stand-alone basis; and (b) if the contract includes a general right of return relative to the delivered item, delivery or performance of the undelivered items is considered probable and substantially in the control of NCR.

For arrangements entered into or materially modified after January 1, 2011, consideration is allocated to each unit of accounting based on the unit's relative selling prices. In such circumstances, the Company uses a hierarchy to determine the selling price to be used for allocating revenue to each deliverable: (i) vendor-specific objective evidence of selling price (VSOE), (ii) third-party evidence of selling price (TPE), and (iii) best estimate of selling price (BESP). VSOE generally exists only when the Company sells the deliverable separately and is the price actually charged by the Company for that deliverable. VSOE is established for our software maintenance services and we use TPE to establish selling prices for our non-software related services, which include hardware maintenance, non-software related professional services, and transaction services. The Company uses BESP to allocate revenue when we are unable to establish VSOE or TPE of selling price. BESP is primarily used for elements such as hardware and software that are not consistently priced within a narrow range. The Company determines BESP for a deliverable by considering multiple factors including product class, geography, average discount, and management's historical pricing practices. Amounts allocated to the delivered hardware and software elements are recognized at the time of sale provided the other conditions for revenue recognition have been met. Amounts allocated to the undelivered maintenance and other services elements are recognized as the services are provided or on a straight-line basis over the service period. In certain instances, customer acceptance is required prior to the passage of title and risk of loss of the delivered products. In such cases, revenue is not recognized until the customer acceptance is obtained. Delivery and acceptance generally occur in the same reporting period.

For arrangements entered into prior to January 1, 2011, the Company has not applied BESP. In such arrangements, if the Company has the requisite evidence of selling price for the undelivered elements but not for the delivered elements, the Company applies the residual method to allocate arrangement consideration.

In situations where NCR's solutions contain software that is more than incidental, revenue related to the software and software-related elements is recognized in accordance with authoritative guidance on software revenue recognition. For the software and software-related elements of such transactions, revenue is allocated based on the relative fair value of each element, and fair value is determined by VSOE. If the Company cannot objectively determine the fair value of any undelivered element included in such multiple-element arrangements, the Company defers revenue until all elements are delivered and services have been performed, or until fair value can objectively be determined for any remaining undelivered elements. When the fair value of a delivered element has not been established, but fair value exists for the undelivered elements, the Company uses the residual method to recognize revenue. Under the residual method, the fair value of the undelivered elements is deferred and the remaining portion of the arrangement fee is allocated to the delivered elements and is recognized as revenue.