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Variable Interest Entities (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2015

The following table presents the classification of the consolidated VIEs’ assets and liabilities in U.S. Cellular’s Consolidated Balance Sheet.

December 31,		2015		2014
(Dollars in thousands)
Assets
	Cash and cash equivalents	$	1,435	$	2,588
	Other current assets		265		278
	Licenses1		648,661		312,977
	Property, plant and equipment, net		7,722		10,671
	Other assets and deferred charges		147		60,059
	Total assets	$	658,230	$	386,573

Liabilities
	Current liabilities	$	143	$	110
	Deferred liabilities and credits		489		622
	Total liabilities	$	632	$	732

1	At December 31, 2015, includes purchases totaling $338.3 million made by Advantage Spectrum from the FCC as described below.

- Definition

Tabular disclosure of the significant judgments and assumptions made in determining whether a variable interest (as defined) held by the entity requires the variable interest entity (VIE) (as defined) to be consolidated and (or) disclose information about its involvement with the VIE, individually or in aggregate (as applicable); the nature of restrictions, if any, on the consolidated VIE's assets and on the settlement of its liabilities reported by an entity in its statement of financial position, including the carrying amounts of such assets and liabilities; the nature of, and changes in, the risks associated with involvement in the VIE; how involvement with the VIE affects the entity's financial position, financial performance, and cash flows; the lack of recourse if creditors (or beneficial interest holders) of the consolidated VIE have no recourse to the general credit of the primary beneficiary (if applicable); the terms of arrangements, giving consideration to both explicit arrangements and implicit variable interests, if any, that could require the entity to provide financial support to the VIE, including events or circumstances that could expose the entity to a loss; the methodology used by the entity for determining whether or not it is the primary beneficiary of the variable interest entity; the significant factors considered and judgments made in determining that the power to direct the activities of a VIE that most significantly impact the VIE's economic performance are shared (as defined); the carrying amounts and classification of assets and liabilities of the VIE included in the statement of financial position; the entity's maximum exposure to loss, if any, as a result of its involvement with the VIE, including how the maximum exposure is determined and significant sources of the entity's exposure to the VIE; a comparison of the carrying amounts of the assets and liabilities and the entity's maximum exposure to loss; information about any liquidity arrangements, guarantees, and (or) other commitments by third parties that may affect the fair value or risk of the entity's variable interest in the VIE; whether or not the entity has provided financial support or other support (explicitly or implicitly) to the VIE that it was not previously contractually required to provide or whether the entity intends to provide that support, including the type and amount of the support and the primary reasons for providing the support; and supplemental information the entity determines necessary to provide.

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