CC Holdings GS V 10-K 22 Feb 16 2015 FY Annual report Financial data

Document and Entity Information

Document and Entity Information - USD ($) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Feb. 15, 2016	Jun. 30, 2015
Entity Information [Line Items]
Entity Registrant Name	CC Holdings GS V LLC
Entity Central Index Key	1,574,291
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Entity Filer Category	Non-accelerated Filer
Document Type	10-K
Document Period End Date	Dec. 31, 2015
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2,015
Document Fiscal Period Focus	FY
Amendment Flag	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		0
Entity Well-known Seasoned Issuer	No
Entity Voluntary Filers	No
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Public Float			$ 0

Consolidated Balance Sheet

Consolidated Balance Sheet - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 20,401	$ 26,231
Receivables, net of allowance of $882 and $1,099, respectively	3,987	5,037
Prepaid expenses	24,318	22,737
Deferred site rental receivables, current	10,165	7,519
Other current assets	1,171	1,697
Total current assets	60,042	63,221
Deferred site rental receivables	350,407	328,635
Property and equipment, net	1,135,704	1,147,889
Goodwill	1,338,730	1,338,730
Site rental contracts and customer relationships, net	1,128,422	1,241,889
Other intangible assets, net	23,932	26,721
Long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs, and other assets, net	45,780	48,978
Total Assets	4,083,017	4,196,063
LIABILITIES AND EQUITY
Accounts payable	2,691	2,598
Accrued income taxes	2,359	3,498
Accrued interest	8,655	8,655
Deferred revenues	12,165	15,574
Other accrued liabilities	7,775	6,747
Total current liabilities	33,645	37,072
Debt	1,500,000	1,500,000
Deferred ground lease payable	95,837	88,463
Above-market leases and other liabilities	49,187	49,483
Total liabilities	$ 1,678,669	$ 1,675,018
Commitments and contingencies (note 9)
Member's equity:
Member's equity	$ 2,327,938	$ 2,327,938
Accumulated earnings (deficit)	76,410	193,107
Total member's equity	2,404,348	2,521,045
Total liabilities and equity	$ 4,083,017	$ 4,196,063

Consolidated Balance Sheet (Par

Consolidated Balance Sheet (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Allowance for doubtful accounts receivable, current	$ 882	$ 1,099

Consolidated Statement of Opera

Consolidated Statement of Operations and Comprehensive Income (Loss) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Net revenues:
Site rental revenues		$ 607,276	$ 614,085	$ 604,097
Operating expenses:
Site rental cost of operations—third parties(a)	[1]	150,225	150,407	150,301
Site rental cost of operations—related parties(a)	[1]	31,859	30,248	28,377
Site rental cost of operations—total(a)	[1]	182,084	180,655	178,678
Management fee		43,709	42,686	40,561
Asset write-down charges		6,021	3,598	5,729
Depreciation, amortization, and accretion		207,825	201,726	197,325
Total operating expenses		439,639	428,665	422,293
Operating income (loss)		167,637	185,420	181,804
Interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs		(53,223)	(53,223)	(58,375)
Gains (losses) on retirement of long-term obligations		0	0	(18,103)
Other income (expense)		(244)	208	50
Income (loss) before income taxes		114,170	132,405	105,376
Benefit (provision) for income taxes		733	(402)	348,443
Net income (loss)		114,903	132,003	453,819
Net income (loss)		$ 114,903	$ 132,003	$ 453,819
[1]	Exclusive of depreciation, amortization and accretion shown separately and certain indirect costs included in the management fee.

Consolidated Statement of Cash

Consolidated Statement of Cash Flows - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Cash flows from operating activities:
Net income (loss)	$ 114,903	$ 132,003	$ 453,819
Adjustments to reconcile net income (loss) to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation, amortization and accretion	207,825	201,726	197,325
Amortization of deferred financing costs and other non-cash interest on long-term debt	2,828	2,828	7,551
Asset write-down charges	6,021	3,598	5,729
Gains (losses) on retirement of long-term obligations	0	0	18,103
Deferred income tax benefit (provision)	0	0	(355,184)
Changes in assets and liabilities:
Increase (decrease) in accrued interest	0	0	3,733
Increase (decrease) in accounts payable	113	147	1,052
Increase (decrease) in deferred revenues, deferred ground lease payable, and other liabilities	1,734	(3,336)	17,770
Decrease (increase) in receivables	1,050	(1,973)	(474)
Decrease (increase) in other current assets, deferred site rental receivable, long-term prepaid rent, restricted cash, and other assets	(23,488)	(45,876)	(53,065)
Net cash provided by (used for) operating activities	310,986	289,117	296,359
Cash flows from investing activities:
Capital expenditures	(85,216)	(89,598)	(86,785)
Other investing activities	0	0	239
Net cash provided by (used for) investing activities	(85,216)	(89,598)	(86,546)
Cash flows from financing activities:
Purchases and redemptions of long-term debt	0	0	(312,465)
Payments for financing costs	0	0	(3,690)
Distributions to member	(231,600)	(204,324)	(251,013)
Net (increase) decrease in restricted cash	0	0	388,391
Net cash provided by (used for) financing activities	(231,600)	(204,324)	(178,777)
Net increase (decrease) in cash and cash equivalents	(5,830)	(4,805)	31,036
Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year	26,231	31,036	0
Cash and cash equivalents at end of year	$ 20,401	$ 26,231	$ 31,036

Consolidated Statement of Chang

Consolidated Statement of Changes in Member's Equity - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Total	Members' Capital [Member]	Accumulated Earnings (Deficit) [Member]
Balance, beginning at Dec. 31, 2012	$ 2,363,565	$ 2,495,641	$ (132,076)
Equity [Roll Forward]
Equity contribution - income taxes	26,995	26,995
Equity distribution	(251,013)	(194,698)	(56,315)
Net income (loss)	453,819		453,819
Balance, ending at Dec. 31, 2013	2,593,366	2,327,938	265,428
Equity [Roll Forward]
Equity distribution	(204,324)	0	(204,324)
Net income (loss)	132,003		132,003
Balance, ending at Dec. 31, 2014	2,521,045	2,327,938	193,107
Equity [Roll Forward]
Equity distribution	(231,600)	0	(231,600)
Net income (loss)	114,903		114,903
Balance, ending at Dec. 31, 2015	$ 2,404,348	$ 2,327,938	$ 76,410

Basis of Presentation

Basis of Presentation	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Basis of Presentation [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation The accompanying consolidated financial statements reflect the consolidated financial position, results of operations, and cash flows of CC Holdings GS V LLC ("CCL") and its consolidated wholly-owned subsidiaries (collectively, the "Company"). The Company is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Global Signal Operating Partnership, L.P. ("GSOP"), which is an indirect subsidiary of Crown Castle International Corp., a Delaware corporation ("CCIC" or "Crown Castle"). CCL is a Delaware limited liability company ("LLC") that is a holding company and an issuer of the Company's debt. All significant inter-company accounts, transactions, and profits have been eliminated. As used herein, the term "including," and any variation thereof means "including without limitations." The use of the word "or" herein is not exclusive. The Company is organized specifically to own, lease, and manage approximately 7,700 communications towers and other structures (collectively, "towers"), and to a lesser extent, interests in land under third party and related party towers in various forms, ("land interests") (collectively, "wireless infrastructure" or "sites"). The Company's core business is providing access, including space or capacity, to its sites via long-term contracts in various forms, including licenses, subleases, and lease agreements (collectively, "leases"). The Company's sites are geographically dispersed across the United States ("U.S"). Approximately 68% of the Company's sites are leased or subleased or operated and managed for an initial period of 32 years (through May 2037) under master lease or other agreements with Sprint ("Sprint Sites"). CCIC, through its subsidiaries (including the Company), has the option to purchase in 2037 all (but not less than all) of the Sprint Sites from Sprint for approximately $2.3 billion . CCIC has no obligation to exercise the purchase option. Management services related to the Company's sites are performed by Crown Castle USA Inc. ("CCUSA"), an affiliate of the Company, under the Management Agreement (as defined below), as the Company has no employees. Effective January 1, 2014, CCIC commenced operating as a real estate investment trust ("REIT") for U.S. federal income tax purposes. For U.S. federal income tax purposes, the Company's assets and operations are part of the CCIC REIT. See notes 2 and 8 . The preparation of financial statements in conformity with U.S. generally accepted accounting principles requires management to make estimates and use assumptions that affect the reported amounts of assets and liabilities and the disclosure for contingent assets and liabilities at the date of the financial statements as well as the reported amounts of revenues and expenses during the reporting period. Actual results could differ from these estimates.

Summary of Significant Accounti

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies	Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Restricted Cash As of December 31, 2012, restricted cash represented the cash held in reserve by the indenture trustee or otherwise restricted pursuant to the indenture governing the previously outstanding 7.75% Secured Notes (as defined in note 5). The Company classified the increases and decreases in restricted cash as (1) cash provided by financing activities for cash held by the indenture trustee based on consideration of the terms of the 7.75% Secured Notes, which was a critical feature of the 7.75% Secured Notes based on the indenture trustee's ability to utilize the restricted cash for payment of various expenses including debt service, although the cash flows have aspects of both financing activities and operating activities, or (2) cash provided by operating activities for the other remaining restricted cash. Restricted cash increased cash flow from operating activities by $12.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2013. As of December 31, 2013 , restricted cash included $316.6 million comprised of the cash held by the trustee to redeem all of the then outstanding 7.75% Secured Notes as discussed in note 5 . Following the redemption of the 7.75% Secured Notes in January 2013, all of the remaining restricted cash was released to the Company. Receivables Allowance An allowance for doubtful accounts is recorded as an offset to accounts receivable. The Company uses judgment in estimating this allowance and considers historical collections, current credit status, or contractual provisions. Additions to the allowance for doubtful accounts are charged to “site rental cost of operations,” and deductions from the allowance are recorded when specific accounts receivable are written off as uncollectible. Lease Accounting General. The Company classifies its leases at inception as either operating leases or capital leases. A lease is classified as a capital lease if at least one of the following criteria are met, subject to certain exceptions noted below: (1) the lease transfers ownership of the leased assets to the lessee, (2) there is a bargain purchase option, (3) the lease term is equal to 75% or more of the economic life of the leased assets or (4) the present value of the minimum lease payments equals or exceeds 90% of the fair value of the leased assets. Lessee. Leases for land are evaluated for capital lease treatment if at least one of the first two criteria mentioned in the immediately preceding paragraph is present relating to the leased assets. When the Company, as lessee, classifies a lease as a capital lease, it records an asset in an amount equal to the present value of the minimum lease payments under the lease at the beginning of the lease term. Applicable operating leases are recognized on a straight-line basis as discussed under " Costs of Operations " below. Lessor. If the Company is the lessor of leased property that is part of a larger whole (including a portion of space on a tower) and for which fair value is not objectively determinable, then such lease is accounted for as an operating lease. As applicable, operating leases are recognized on a straight-line basis as discussed under " Revenue Recognition ." Property and Equipment Property and equipment is stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation. Property and equipment includes land owned in fee and perpetual easements for land which have no definite life. When the Company purchases fee ownership or perpetual easements for the land previously subject to ground lease, the Company reduces the value recorded as land by the amount of any associated deferred ground lease payable or unamortized above-market leases. Depreciation is computed utilizing the straight-line method at rates based upon the estimated useful lives of the various classes of assets. Depreciation of wireless infrastructure is generally computed with a useful life equal to the shorter of 20 years or the term of the underlying ground lease (including optional renewal periods). Additions, renewals, or improvements are capitalized, while maintenance and repairs are expensed. The carrying value of property and equipment will be reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be recoverable. Abandonments and write-offs of property and equipment are recorded to "asset write-down charges" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and were $5.4 million , $2.9 million , and $3.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively. Asset Retirement Obligations Pursuant to its ground lease and easement agreements, the Company records obligations to perform asset retirement activities, including requirements to remove wireless infrastructure or remediate the land upon which the Company's wireless infrastructure resides. With respect to the Sprint Sites, the Company does not have retirement obligations to the extent such retirement would occur beyond the period for which it has a lease term. Asset retirement obligations are included in "above-market leases and other liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The liability accretes as a result of the passage of time and the related accretion expense is included in "depreciation, amortization, and accretion" expense on the Company's consolidated statement of operations. The associated asset retirement costs are capitalized as an additional carrying amount of the related long-lived asset and depreciated over the useful life of such asset. Goodwill Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price for an acquired business over the allocated value of the related net assets. The Company tests goodwill for impairment on an annual basis, regardless of whether adverse events or changes in circumstances have occurred. The annual test begins with goodwill and all intangible assets being allocated to applicable reporting units. The Company then performs a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is "more likely than not" that the fair value of the reporting units is less than its carrying amount. If it is concluded that it is "more likely than not" that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, it is necessary to perform the two-step goodwill impairment test. The two-step goodwill impairment test begins with a comparison of the estimated fair value of the reporting unit and the carrying value of the reporting unit. The first step, commonly referred to as a “step-one impairment test,” is a screen for potential impairment while the second step measures the amount of any impairment if there is an indication from the first step that one exists. The Company's measurement of the fair value for goodwill is based on an estimate of discounted expected future cash flows of the reporting unit. The Company performed its most recent annual goodwill impairment test as of October 1, 2015, which resulted in no impairments. Other Intangible Assets Intangible assets are included in "site rental contracts and customer relationship, net" and "other intangible assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and predominately consist of the estimated fair value of the following items recorded in conjunction with acquisitions: (1) site rental contracts and customer relationships or (2) below-market leases for land interests under the acquired towers classified as "other intangible assets, net." The site rental contracts and customer relationships intangible assets are comprised of (1) the current term of the existing leases, (2) the expected exercise of the renewal provisions contained within the existing leases, which automatically occur under contractual provisions, or (3) any associated relationships that are expected to generate value following the expiration of all renewal periods under existing leases. The useful lives of intangible assets are estimated based on the period over which the intangible asset is expected to benefit the Company, which is calculated on an individual tenant basis, considering, among other things, the contractual provisions with the tenant and gives consideration to the expected useful life of other assets to which the useful life may relate. Amortization expense for intangible assets is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of each of the intangible assets. The useful life of the site rental contracts and customer relationships intangible asset is limited by the maximum depreciable life of the tower ( 20 years ), as a result of the interdependency of the tower and site rental contracts and customer relationships. In contrast, the site rental contracts and customer relationships are estimated to provide economic benefits for several decades because of the low rate of tenant cancellations and high rate of renewals experienced to date. Thus, while site rental contracts and customer relationships are valued based upon the fair value, which includes assumptions regarding both (1) tenants' exercise of optional renewals contained in the acquired leases and (2) renewals of the acquired leases past the contractual term including exercisable options, the site rental contracts and customer relationships are amortized over a period not to exceed 20 years as a result of the useful life being limited by the depreciable life of the sites. The carrying value of other intangible assets with finite useful lives will be reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be recoverable. The Company has a dual grouping policy for purposes of determining the unit of account for testing impairment of the site rental contracts and customer relationships intangible assets. First, the Company pools the site rental contracts and customer relationships with the related tower assets into portfolio groups for purposes of determining the unit of account for impairment testing. Second and separately, the Company evaluates the site rental contracts and customer relationships by significant tenant or by tenant grouping for individually insignificant tenants, as appropriate. If the sum of the estimated future cash flows (undiscounted) expected to result from the use or eventual disposition of an asset is less than the carrying amount of the asset, an impairment loss is recognized. Measurement of an impairment loss is based on the fair value of the asset. Above-market Leases Above-market leases consist of the estimated fair value of above-market leases for land interests under the Company's towers. Above-market leases for land interests are amortized to costs of operations over their respective estimated remaining lease term at the acquisition date. Deferred Financing Costs Third-party costs incurred to obtain financing are deferred and are included in "long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs and other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. Revenue Recognition Site rental revenues are recognized on a monthly basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the relevant lease (generally ranging from five to 15 years), regardless of whether the payments from the tenant are received in equal monthly amounts. The Company's contracts contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the consumer price index ("CPI")). If the payment terms call for fixed escalations, up-front payments, or rent free periods, the revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the agreement. When calculating straight-line rental revenues, the Company considers all fixed elements of tenant contractual escalation provisions, even if such escalation provisions contain a variable element in addition to a minimum. The Company's assets related to straight-line site rental revenues are included in "deferred site rental receivables." Amounts billed or received prior to being earned are deferred and reflected in "deferred revenues" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. Costs of Operations In excess of three-fourths of the Company's site rental cost of operations consists of ground lease expenses, and the remainder includes repairs and maintenance expenses, utilities, property taxes, or insurance. Generally, the ground lease agreements are specific to each site and are for an initial term of five years and are renewable for pre-determined periods. The Company also enters into term easements and ground leases in which it prepays the entire term in advance. Ground lease expense is recognized on a monthly basis, regardless of whether the lease agreement payment terms require the Company to make payments annually, quarterly, monthly, or for the entire term in advance. The Company's ground leases contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the CPI). If the payment terms include fixed escalation provisions, the effect of such increases is recognized on a straight-line basis. The Company calculates the straight-line ground lease expense using a time period that equals or exceeds the remaining depreciable life of the wireless infrastructure asset. Further, when a tenant has exercisable renewal options that would compel the Company to exercise existing ground lease renewal options, the Company has straight-lined the ground lease expense over a sufficient portion of such ground lease renewals to coincide with the final termination of the tenant's renewal options. The Company's policy is to record ground lease agreements with affiliates under the same or similar economic terms as the lease agreement for the land that existed prior to the purchase of such land by the affiliate. The Company's non-current liability related to straight-line ground lease expense is included in "deferred ground lease payable" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The Company's assets related to prepaid ground leases is included in "prepaid expenses" and "long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs and other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The Company's current liability related to accrued property taxes is included in "other accrued liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and was $5.6 million and $4.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively. Management Fee The Company is charged a management fee by CCUSA, a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of CCIC, relating to management services which include those functions reasonably necessary to maintain, market, operate, manage, and administer the sites. The management fee is equal to 7.5% of the Company's revenues, excluding the revenues related to the accounting for leases with fixed escalators as required by the applicable accounting standards. See note 6 . Income Taxes Effective January 1, 2014, CCIC commenced operating as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Company is an indirect subsidiary of CCIC and for U.S. federal income taxes purposes the Company's assets and operations are part of the CCIC REIT. As a REIT, CCIC is generally entitled to a deduction for dividends that it pays and therefore is not subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax on its taxable income that is currently distributed to its stockholders. CCIC also may be subject to certain federal, state, local, and foreign taxes on its income and assets, including (1) alternative minimum taxes, (2) taxes on any undistributed income, (3) taxes related to the CCIC's taxable REIT subsidiaries, (4) certain state, local, or foreign income taxes, (5) franchise taxes, (6) property taxes, and (7) transfer taxes. In addition, CCIC could in certain circumstances be required to pay an excise or penalty tax, which could be significant in amount, in order to utilize one or more relief provisions under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended ("Code") to maintain qualification for taxation as a REIT. Fair Values The Company's assets and liabilities recorded at fair value are categorized based upon a fair value hierarchy that ranks the quality and reliability of the information used to determine fair value. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are (1) Level 1 - quoted prices (unadjusted) in active and accessible markets, (2) Level 2 - observable prices that are based on inputs not quoted in active markets but corroborated by market data, and (3) Level 3 - unobservable inputs and are not corroborated by market data. The Company evaluates fair value hierarchy level classifications quarterly, and transfers between levels are effective at the end of the quarterly period. The fair value of cash equivalents and restricted cash approximates the carrying value. The Company determines fair value of its debt securities based on indicative quotes (that is non-binding quotes) from brokers that require judgment to interpret market information including implied credit spreads for similar borrowings on recent trades or bid/ask prices or quotes from active markets if applicable. There were no changes since December 31, 2014 in the Company's valuation techniques used to measure fair values. See note 7. Reporting Segments The Company's operations consist of one operating segment. Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements No accounting pronouncements adopted during the year ended December 31, 2015 had a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In April 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued new guidance on the presentation of debt issuance costs. The guidance requires debt issuance costs be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the related debt liability, consistent with debt discounts and premiums. The update requires retrospective application and the guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2016. The Company will adopt the guidance on January 1, 2016. As of December 31, 2015 , net deferred financing costs were $12.9 million and were recorded as a component of "long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs and other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. In May 2014, the FASB released updated guidance regarding the recognition of revenue from contracts with customers, exclusive of those contracts within lease accounting. The core principle of the guidance is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. To achieve that core principle, an entity should apply the following steps: (1) identify the contracts with the customer; (2) identify the performance obligations in the contract; (3) determine the contract price; (4) allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; and (5) recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation. This guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2018, following the FASB's July 2015 decision to defer the effective date of the standard by one year. This guidance is required to be applied, at the Company's election, either (1) retrospectively to each prior reporting period presented, or (2) with the cumulative effect being recognized at the date of initial application. The Company's site rental revenues are within the scope of lease accounting and will not be impacted by this guidance.

Property and Equipment

Property and Equipment	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Property and Equipment	Property and Equipment The major classes of property and equipment are as follows: Estimated Useful Lives December 31, 2015 2014 Land (a) — $ 74,496 $ 74,523 Towers 1-20 years 1,748,339 1,647,496 Construction in progress — 53,105 78,817 Total gross property and equipment 1,875,940 1,800,836 Less accumulated depreciation (740,236 ) (652,947 ) Total property and equipment, net $ 1,135,704 $ 1,147,889 (a) Includes land owned in fee and perpetual easements. Depreciation expense for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 was $92.2 million , $86.2 million , and $82.2 million , respectively. As discussed in notes 1 and 2 , the Company has certain prepaid capital leases and associated leasehold improvements with Sprint, which have related gross property and equipment and accumulated depreciation of $1.0 billion and $465.3 million , respectively, as of December 31, 2015 .

Intangible Assets and Above-mar

Intangible Assets and Above-market Leases	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Goodwill and Intangible Assets
Intangible Assets and Above-market Leases	Intangible Assets and Above-market Leases The following is a summary of the Company's intangible assets. As of December 31, 2015 As of December 31, 2014 Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Site rental contracts and customer relationships $ 2,100,708 $ (972,286 ) $ 1,128,422 $ 2,100,707 $ (858,818 ) $ 1,241,889 Other intangible assets 52,312 (28,380 ) 23,932 53,879 (27,158 ) 26,721 Total $ 2,153,020 $ (1,000,666 ) $ 1,152,354 $ 2,154,586 $ (885,976 ) $ 1,268,610 Amortization expense related to intangible assets is classified as follows on the Company's consolidated statement of operations: For Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Depreciation, amortization and accretion $ 113,570 $ 113,570 $ 113,247 Site rental costs of operations 1,788 1,896 2,035 Total amortization expense $ 115,358 $ 115,466 $ 115,282 The estimated annual amortization expense related to intangible assets (inclusive of those recorded as an increase to "site rental costs of operations") for the years ended December 31, 2016 to 2020 is as follows: Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Estimated annual amortization $ 111,877 $ 111,858 $ 111,836 $ 111,808 $ 111,769 See note 2 for a further discussion of above-market leases for land interests under the Company's towers recorded in connection with acquisitions. For the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 and 2013 , the Company recorded $1.9 million , $2.0 million and $2.0 million , respectively, as a decrease to "site rental cost of operations." The following is a summary of the Company's above-market leases. As of December 31, 2015 As of December 31, 2014 Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Above-market leases $ 42,743 $ (20,536 ) $ 22,207 $ 43,516 $ (18,929 ) $ 24,587 The estimated annual amortization expense related to above-market leases for land interests under the Company's towers for the years ended December 31, 2016 to 2020 is as follows: Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Estimated annual amortization $ 1,816 $ 1,801 $ 1,797 $ 1,773 $ 1,743

Debt and Other Obligations

Debt and Other Obligations	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Debt and Other Obligations [Abstract]
Debt and Other Obligations	Debt 2012 Secured Notes On December 24, 2012, CCL and Crown Castle GS III Corp. ("Co-Issuer" and, together with CCL, "Issuers") issued (1) $500.0 million aggregate principal amount of 2.381% senior secured notes due December 2017 ("2.381% Secured Notes") and (2) $1.0 billion aggregate principal amount of 3.849% senior secured notes due April 2023 ("3.849% Secured Notes" and together with the 2.381% Secured Notes, the "2012 Secured Notes"). The 2012 Secured Notes were issued pursuant to an indenture dated as of December 24, 2012 ("Indenture"), by and among the Issuers, the Guarantors (as defined below) and The Bank of New York Mellon Trust Company, N.A., as trustee ("Trustee"). The Issuers and the Guarantors are indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries of CCIC. The Company used the net proceeds from the issuance of the 2012 Secured Notes to (1) repurchase and redeem a portion of the previously outstanding 7.75% senior secured notes due 2017 ("7.75% Secured Notes") and (2) distribute cash to CCIC to fund the repurchase and redemption of a portion of CCIC's senior notes. The weighted-average stated interest rate of the 2012 Secured Notes as of December 31, 2015 was 3.36% per annum. The outstanding balance of the 2012 Secured Notes as of December 31, 2015 was $1.5 billion The 2.381% Secured Notes are payable semi-annually in cash in arrears on June 15 and December 15 of each year, beginning on June 15, 2013. The 3.849% Secured Notes are payable semi-annually in cash in arrears on April 15 and October 15 of each year, beginning on April 15, 2013. CCL, at its option, may redeem the 2012 Secured Notes of either series in whole or in part at any time by paying 100% of the principal amount of such series of 2012 Secured Notes, together with accrued and unpaid interest, if any, plus a "make-whole" premium (as defined in the Indenture). The 2012 Secured Notes are guaranteed by the direct and indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries of CCL, other than the Co-Issuer (collectively, "Guarantors"). The 2012 Secured Notes will be paid solely from the cash flows generated from operation of the towers held directly or indirectly by CCL and the Guarantors. Concurrently with the issuance of the 2012 Secured Notes, CCL and certain of its subsidiaries entered into a pledge and security agreement with the Trustee. Pursuant to the terms of such pledge and security agreement, the 2012 Secured Notes are secured on a first-priority basis by a pledge of the equity interests of the Guarantors. The Indenture limits, among other things, the ability of CCL and its subsidiaries to incur indebtedness, incur liens, enter into certain mergers or certain change of control transactions and enter into related party transactions, in each case subject to a number of exceptions and qualifications set forth in the Indenture. Management Agreement. On December 24, 2012, CCL and the Guarantors entered into a management agreement ("Management Agreement") with CCUSA, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of CCIC ("Manager"). The Management Agreement replaced the previous management agreement that existed among the parties. Pursuant to the Management Agreement, the Manager will continue to perform, on behalf of CCL and the Guarantors, those functions reasonably necessary to maintain, market, operate, manage, and administer their respective sites. The Management Agreement requires that the Company maintain cash sufficient to operate the business, including sufficient cash to pay expenses for the following month (including any interest payment due during the next month pursuant to the Indenture.) Debt Restrictions. The 2012 Secured Notes do not contain financial maintenance covenants but they do contain restrictive negative covenants, subject to certain exceptions, related to the Company's ability to incur indebtedness, incur liens, enter into certain mergers or change of control transactions, sell or issue equity interests and enter into related party transactions. With respect to the restriction regarding the issuance of debt, the Company may not issue debt other than (1) certain permitted refinancings of the 2012 Secured Notes, (2) unsecured trade payables in the ordinary course of business and financing of equipment, land or other property up to an aggregate of $100.0 million , or (3) unsecured debt or additional notes under the Indenture provided that the Debt to Adjusted Consolidated Cash Flow Ratio (as defined in the Indenture) at the time of incurrence, and after giving effect to such incurrence, would have been no greater than 3.5 to 1. As of December 31, 2015 , the Company's Debt to Adjusted Consolidated Cash Flow Ratio is 3.9 to 1, which the Company expects would currently restrict the Company's ability to incur unsecured debt or additional notes. The Company is not restricted in its ability to distribute cash to affiliates or issue dividends to its parent. Contractual Maturities The following are the scheduled contractual maturities of total debt outstanding at December 31, 2015 . Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Thereafter Total Cash Obligations Total Debt Outstanding Scheduled contractual maturities $ — $ 500,000 $ — $ — $ — $ 1,000,000 $ 1,500,000 1,500,000 Previously Outstanding Debt On April 30, 2009, CCL and Crown Castle GS III Corp. issued $1.2 billion aggregate principal amount of 7.75% Secured Notes. The 7.75% Secured Notes were guaranteed by the direct and indirect wholly-owned subsidiaries of CCL, other than the Crown Castle GS III Corp. The 7.75% Secured Notes were secured on a first priority basis by a pledge of the equity interests of the guarantors and by certain other assets of the guarantors. Purchases and Redemptions of Long Term Debt On December 11, 2012, the Company commenced a cash tender offer for any and all of the Company's then outstanding 7.75% Secured Notes. In accordance with the terms of the tender offer, the total consideration for each $1,000 principal amount of notes validly tendered on or prior to the expiration date was $1,063.45 (plus accrued and unpaid interest up to, but not including, the settlement date). On December 26, 2012, the Company accepted for purchase approximately $670.6 million aggregate principal amount of the 7.75% Secured Notes validly tendered on or prior to the expiration date. All of the remaining then outstanding 7.75% Secured Notes (approximately $294.4 million aggregate principal amount) were redeemed on January 10, 2013. The repurchase and redemption of the 7.75% Secured Notes was funded by the issuance of the 2012 Secured Notes. The following is a summary of the purchases and redemptions of debt during the year ended December 31, 2013. Year Ending December 31, 2013 Principal Amount Cash Paid (a) Gains (losses) (c) 7.75% Secured Notes (b) $ 294,362 $ 312,465 $ (18,103 ) (a) Exclusive of accrued interest. (b) The redemption of the 7.75% Secured Notes was funded by the restricted cash released upon refinancing. (c) The losses relate to cash losses, including with respect to make whole payments. Interest Expense and Amortization of Deferred Financing Costs The components of "interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs" are as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Interest expense on debt obligations $ 50,395 $ 50,395 $ 50,824 Amortization of deferred financing costs 2,828 2,828 4,583 Amortization of adjustments on long-term debt — — 2,968 Total $ 53,223 $ 53,223 $ 58,375

Related Party Transactions

Related Party Transactions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Related Party Transactions [Abstract]
Related Party Transactions Disclosure	Related Party Transactions As discussed in note 5 , the Company and other subsidiaries of CCL entered into a Management Agreement with CCUSA, which replaced a previous management agreement among the same parties. Pursuant to this Management Agreement, CCUSA has agreed to employ, supervise, and pay at all times a sufficient number of capable employees as may be necessary to perform services in accordance with the operation standards defined in the Management Agreement. CCUSA currently acts as the Manager of the majority of the sites held by subsidiaries of CCIC. The management fee is equal to 7.5% of the Company's "Operating Revenues," as defined in the Management Agreement, which is based on the Company’s reported revenues adjusted to exclude certain items including revenues related to the accounting for leases with fixed escalators. The fee is compensation for those functions reasonably necessary to maintain, market, operate, manage, and administer the sites, other than the operating expenses, which includes but is not limited to real estate and personal property taxes, ground lease and easement payments, and insurance premiums. In addition, in connection with its role as Manager, CCUSA may make certain modifications to the Company's sites. The management fee charged by CCUSA for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 totaled $43.7 million , $42.7 million , and $40.6 million , respectively. See note 5 . In addition, CCUSA may perform installation services on the Company's towers for which the Company is not a party to any agreement and for which no operating results are reflected herein. As part of the CCIC strategy to obtain long-term control of the land under its towers, affiliates of the Company have acquired rights to land interests under the Company's towers. These affiliates then lease the land to the Company. Under such circumstances, the Company's obligation typically continues with the same or similar economic terms as the lease agreement for the land that existed prior to the purchase of such land by the affiliate. As of December 31, 2015 , there are approximately 25% of the Company's sites where the land under the tower is owned by an affiliate. Rent expense to affiliates totaled $31.9 million , $30.2 million , and $28.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively. Also, the Company receives rent revenue from affiliates for land owned by the Company that affiliates have towers on and pays ground rent expense to affiliates for land owned by affiliates that the Company has towers on. For the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , rent revenue from affiliates totaled $0.9 million , $0.6 million , and $0.6 million , respectively. The Company recorded net equity distributions of $231.6 million , $204.3 million , and $224.0 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively, reflecting net distributions to its member and ultimately other subsidiaries of CCIC. Cash on-hand above the amount that is required by the Management Agreement has and is expected to continue to be distributed to the Company's parent company. See note 8 for a discussion of the equity contribution related to income taxes.

Fair Value Disclosures

Fair Value Disclosures	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Fair Value Disclosures
Fair Value Disclosures	Fair Values The following table shows the estimated fair values of the Company's financial instruments, along with the carrying amounts of the related assets and liabilities. See also note 2 . Level in Fair Value Hierarchy December 31, 2015 December 31, 2014 Carrying Amount Fair Value Carrying Amount Fair Value Assets: Cash and cash equivalents 1 $ 20,401 $ 20,401 $ 26,231 $ 26,231 Liabilities: Debt 2 1,500,000 1,486,600 1,500,000 1,497,750

Income Taxes

Income Taxes	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Income Taxes	Income Taxes For the year ended December 31, 2015, the benefit for income taxes of $0.7 million consisted of the reduction of unrecognized tax benefits as a result of the lapse of the statute of limitations partially offset by state taxes. For the year ended December 31, 2014, the provision for income taxes of $0.4 million consisted of state taxes. The Company's effective tax rate for 2015 and 2014 differed from the federal statutory rate predominately due to CCIC's REIT status, including the dividends paid deduction (see notes 1 and 2) . For the year ended December 31, 2013, the benefit (provision) for income taxes consisted of the following: Year Ended December 31, 2013 Current: Federal $ — State (6,741 ) Deferred: Federal 361,082 State (5,898 ) Total tax benefit (provision) $ 348,443 For the year ended December 31, 2013, a reconciliation between the benefit (provision) for income taxes and the amount computed by applying the federal statutory income tax rate to the loss before income taxes is as follows: Year Ended December 31, 2013 Benefit (provision) for income taxes at statutory rate $ (36,881 ) Nondeductible expenses and other (6 ) State tax benefit (provision), net of federal (6,140 ) Tax adjustment related to REIT conversion 391,688 Other (218 ) $ 348,443 During 2013 , the Company recorded a non-cash equity contribution from CCIC of $27.0 million , primarily related to the use by the Company of net operating losses from other members of CCIC's federal consolidated group. As of December 31, 2015 , the total amount of unrecognized tax benefits that would impact the effective tax rate, if recognized, was $2.0 million . From time to time, the Company is subject to examinations by various tax authorities in jurisdictions in which the Company has business operations. The Company regularly assesses the likelihood of additional assessments in each of the tax jurisdictions resulting from these examinations. At this time, CCIC is not subject to an Internal Revenue Service examination.

Commitments and Contingencies

Commitments and Contingencies	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Commitments and Contingencies [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies	Commitments and Contingencies The Company is involved in various claims, lawsuits, or proceedings arising in the ordinary course of business. While there are uncertainties inherent in the ultimate outcome of such matters, and it is impossible to presently determine the ultimate costs or losses that may be incurred, if any, management believes the resolution of such uncertainties and the incurrence of such costs should not have a material adverse effect on the Company's consolidated financial position or results of operations. See note 10 for a discussion of the operating lease commitments. In addition, see note 1 for a discussion of the Company's option to purchase approximately 68% of the Company's towers at the end of their respective lease terms. CCIC has no obligation to exercise the purchase option. Asset Retirement Obligations Pursuant to its ground lease and easement agreements, the Company has the obligation to perform certain asset retirement activities, including requirements upon lease or easement termination to remove wireless infrastructure or remediate the land upon which its wireless infrastructure resides. Accretion expense related to liabilities for retirement obligations amounted to $2.1 million , $2.0 million , and $1.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively. As of December 31, 2015 and 2014 , liabilities for retirement obligations amounted to $26.8 million and $24.7 million , respectively, representing the net present value of the estimated expected future cash outlay. As of December 31, 2015 , the estimated undiscounted future cash outlay for asset retirement obligations was approximately $128 million . See note 2 .

Leases

Leases	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Leases [Abstract]
Leases	Leases Tenant Leases The following table is a summary of the rental cash payments owed to the Company, as a lessor, by tenants pursuant to contractual agreements in effect as of December 31, 2015 . Generally, the Company's leases with its tenants provide for (1) annual escalations, (2) multiple renewal periods at the tenant's option, and (3) only limited termination rights at the applicable tenant's option through the current term. As of December 31, 2015 , the weighted-average remaining term (calculated by weighting the remaining term for each lease by the related site rental revenue) of tenant leases is approximately six years , exclusive of renewals at the tenant's option. The tenants' rental payments included in the table below are through the current terms with a maximum current term of 20 years and do not assume exercise of tenant renewal options. Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Thereafter Total Tenant leases $ 579,959 $ 566,949 $ 557,290 $ 542,617 $ 537,352 $ 1,421,431 $ 4,205,598 Operating Leases The following table is a summary of rental cash payments owed by the Company, as lessee, to landlords pursuant to contractual agreements in effect as of December 31, 2015 . The Company is obligated under non-cancelable operating leases for land interests under approximately 90% of its sites. The majority of these lease agreements have (1) certain termination rights that provide for cancellation after a notice period, (2) multiple renewal options at the Company's option, and (3) annual escalations. Lease agreements may also contain provisions for a contingent payment based on revenues or the gross margin derived from the tower located on the leased land interest. Approximately 90% and approximately 50% of the Company's site rental gross margins for the year ended December 31, 2015 are derived from towers where the land interest under the tower is owned or leased with final expiration dates of greater than ten and 20 years , respectively, including renewals at the Company's option. The operating lease payments included in the table below include payments for certain renewal periods at the Company's option up to the estimated tower useful life of 20 years and an estimate of contingent payments based on revenues and gross margins derived from existing tenant leases. See also note 6 . Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Thereafter Total Operating leases $ 132,772 $ 134,848 $ 136,256 $ 137,598 $ 137,910 $ 1,720,616 $ 2,400,000 Rental expense from operating leases was $142.9 million , $141.6 million , and $140.3 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively. The rental expense was inclusive of contingent payments based on revenues or gross margin derived from the tower located on the leased land of $28.0 million , $28.7 million , and $28.8 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively.

Concentration of Credit Risk

Concentration of Credit Risk	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Risks and Uncertainties [Abstract]
Concentration of Credit Risk	Concentration of Credit Risk Financial instruments that potentially subject the Company to concentrations of credit risk are primarily cash and cash equivalents and trade receivables. The Company mitigates its risk with respect to cash and cash equivalents by maintaining such deposits at high credit quality financial institutions and monitoring the credit ratings of those institutions. See note 2 . The Company derives the largest portion of its revenues from customers in the wireless industry. The Company also has a concentration in its volume of business with Sprint, AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon Wireless that accounts for a significant portion of the Company's revenues, receivables, and deferred site rental receivables. The Company mitigates its concentrations of credit risk with respect to trade receivables by actively monitoring the creditworthiness of its tenants, the use of tenant leases with contractually determinable payment terms and proactive management of past due balances. Major Customers The following table summarizes the percentage of the Company's revenues for those tenants accounting for more than 10% of the Company's revenues. Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Sprint (a) 38 % 41 % 42 % AT&T (a) 21 % 20 % 20 % T-Mobile (a) 18 % 17 % 17 % Verizon Wireless 12 % 10 % 10 % Total 89 % 88 % 89 % (a) All periods presented are after giving effect to recent consolidation activity, including T-Mobile's acquisition of MetroPCS (completed in April 2013), Sprint's acquisition of Clearwire (completed in July 2013), and AT&T's acquisition of Leap Wireless (completed in March 2014).

Supplemental Cash Flow Informat

Supplemental Cash Flow Information	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]
Supplemental Cash Flow Information	Supplemental Cash Flow Information The following table is a summary of the supplemental cash flow information during the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 . For Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information: Interest paid $ 50,395 $ 50,395 $ 47,091

Guarantor Subsidiaries (Notes)

Guarantor Subsidiaries (Notes)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Guarantees [Abstract]
Guarantor Subsidiaries	Guarantor Subsidiaries CCL has no independent assets or operations. The 2012 Secured Notes are guaranteed by all subsidiaries of CCL, each of which is a 100% wholly-owned subsidiary of CCL, other than Crown Castle GS III Corp., which is a co-issuer of the 2012 Secured Notes and a 100% wholly-owned finance subsidiary. Such guarantees are full and unconditional and joint and several. Subject to the provisions of the Indenture, a guarantor may be released and relieved of its obligations under its guarantee under certain circumstances including: (1) in the event of any sale or other disposition of all or substantially all of the assets of any guarantor, by way of merger, consolidation or otherwise to a person that is not (either before or after giving effect to such transaction) CCL or a subsidiary of CCL, (2) in the event of any sale or other disposition of all of the capital stock of any guarantor, to a person that is not (either before or after giving effect to such transaction) CCL or a subsidiary of CCL, (3) upon CCL's exercise of legal defeasance in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Indenture, or (4) upon the discharge of the Indenture in accordance with its terms.

Schedule III - Real Estate and

Schedule III - Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation (Notes)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation [Line Items]
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation Disclosure [Text Block]	Description Encumbrances Initial cost to company Cost capitalized subsequent to acquisition Gross amount carried at close of current period Accumulated depreciation at close of current period Date of construction Date acquired Life on which depreciation in latest income statement is computed 7,695 sites (1) $ 1,500,000 (2) (3) (3) $ 1,875,940 (4) $ (740,236 ) Various Various Up to 20 years (1) No single site exceeds 5% of the aggregate gross amounts at which the assets were carried at the close of the period set forth in the table above. (2) As of December 31, 2015 , all of the Company's debt is secured by a pledge of the equity interests in each applicable Guarantor. (3) The Company has omitted this information, as it would be impracticable to compile such information on a site-by-site basis. (4) Does not include those sites under construction. 2015 Gross amount at beginning $ 1,800,836 Additions during period: Acquisitions through foreclosure — Other acquisitions — Wireless infrastructure construction and improvements 76,064 Purchase of land interests — Sustaining capital expenditures 9,152 Other — Total additions 85,216 Deductions during period: Cost of real estate sold or disposed (10,112 ) Other — Total deductions: (10,112 ) Balance at end $ 1,875,940 2015 Gross amount of accumulated depreciation at beginning $ (652,947 ) Additions during period: Depreciation (92,165 ) Total additions (92,165 ) Deductions during period: Amount for assets sold or disposed 4,876 Other — Total deductions 4,876 Balance at end $ (740,236 )

Schedule II - Valuation and Qua

Schedule II - Valuation and Qualifying Accounts (Notes)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Valuation and Qualifying Accounts Disclosure [Line Items]
Schedule of Valuation and Qualifying Accounts Disclosure [Text Block]	CC HOLDINGS GS V LLC SCHEDULE II — VALUATION AND QUALIFYING ACCOUNTS YEARS ENDED DECEMBER 31, 2015 , 2014 AND 2013 (In thousands of dollars) Additions Deletions Balance at Beginning of Year Charged to Operations Credited to Operations Written Off Balance at End of Year Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Receivable: 2015 $ 1,099 $ 284 $ — $ (501 ) $ 882 2014 $ 1,376 $ 295 $ — $ (572 ) $ 1,099 2013 $ 1,507 $ 268 $ — $ (399 ) $ 1,376

Summary of Significant Accoun22

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Policies)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Summary of Significant Accounting Policies [Abstract]
Restricted Cash	Restricted Cash As of December 31, 2012, restricted cash represented the cash held in reserve by the indenture trustee or otherwise restricted pursuant to the indenture governing the previously outstanding 7.75% Secured Notes (as defined in note 5). The Company classified the increases and decreases in restricted cash as (1) cash provided by financing activities for cash held by the indenture trustee based on consideration of the terms of the 7.75% Secured Notes, which was a critical feature of the 7.75% Secured Notes based on the indenture trustee's ability to utilize the restricted cash for payment of various expenses including debt service, although the cash flows have aspects of both financing activities and operating activities, or (2) cash provided by operating activities for the other remaining restricted cash. Restricted cash increased cash flow from operating activities by $12.1 million for the year ended December 31, 2013. As of December 31, 2013 , restricted cash included $316.6 million comprised of the cash held by the trustee to redeem all of the then outstanding 7.75% Secured Notes as discussed in note 5 . Following the redemption of the 7.75% Secured Notes in January 2013, all of the remaining restricted cash was released to the Company.
Receivables Allowance	Receivables Allowance An allowance for doubtful accounts is recorded as an offset to accounts receivable. The Company uses judgment in estimating this allowance and considers historical collections, current credit status, or contractual provisions. Additions to the allowance for doubtful accounts are charged to “site rental cost of operations,” and deductions from the allowance are recorded when specific accounts receivable are written off as uncollectible.
Lease, Policy	Lease Accounting General. The Company classifies its leases at inception as either operating leases or capital leases. A lease is classified as a capital lease if at least one of the following criteria are met, subject to certain exceptions noted below: (1) the lease transfers ownership of the leased assets to the lessee, (2) there is a bargain purchase option, (3) the lease term is equal to 75% or more of the economic life of the leased assets or (4) the present value of the minimum lease payments equals or exceeds 90% of the fair value of the leased assets. Lessee. Leases for land are evaluated for capital lease treatment if at least one of the first two criteria mentioned in the immediately preceding paragraph is present relating to the leased assets. When the Company, as lessee, classifies a lease as a capital lease, it records an asset in an amount equal to the present value of the minimum lease payments under the lease at the beginning of the lease term. Applicable operating leases are recognized on a straight-line basis as discussed under " Costs of Operations " below. Lessor. If the Company is the lessor of leased property that is part of a larger whole (including a portion of space on a tower) and for which fair value is not objectively determinable, then such lease is accounted for as an operating lease. As applicable, operating leases are recognized on a straight-line basis as discussed under " Revenue Recognition ."
Property and Equipment	Property and Equipment Property and equipment is stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation. Property and equipment includes land owned in fee and perpetual easements for land which have no definite life. When the Company purchases fee ownership or perpetual easements for the land previously subject to ground lease, the Company reduces the value recorded as land by the amount of any associated deferred ground lease payable or unamortized above-market leases. Depreciation is computed utilizing the straight-line method at rates based upon the estimated useful lives of the various classes of assets. Depreciation of wireless infrastructure is generally computed with a useful life equal to the shorter of 20 years or the term of the underlying ground lease (including optional renewal periods). Additions, renewals, or improvements are capitalized, while maintenance and repairs are expensed. The carrying value of property and equipment will be reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be recoverable. Abandonments and write-offs of property and equipment are recorded to "asset write-down charges" on the Company's consolidated statement of operations and were $5.4 million , $2.9 million , and $3.4 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 , respectively.
Asset Retirement Obligations	Asset Retirement Obligations Pursuant to its ground lease and easement agreements, the Company records obligations to perform asset retirement activities, including requirements to remove wireless infrastructure or remediate the land upon which the Company's wireless infrastructure resides. With respect to the Sprint Sites, the Company does not have retirement obligations to the extent such retirement would occur beyond the period for which it has a lease term. Asset retirement obligations are included in "above-market leases and other liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The liability accretes as a result of the passage of time and the related accretion expense is included in "depreciation, amortization, and accretion" expense on the Company's consolidated statement of operations. The associated asset retirement costs are capitalized as an additional carrying amount of the related long-lived asset and depreciated over the useful life of such asset.
Goodwill	Goodwill Goodwill represents the excess of the purchase price for an acquired business over the allocated value of the related net assets. The Company tests goodwill for impairment on an annual basis, regardless of whether adverse events or changes in circumstances have occurred. The annual test begins with goodwill and all intangible assets being allocated to applicable reporting units. The Company then performs a qualitative assessment to determine whether it is "more likely than not" that the fair value of the reporting units is less than its carrying amount. If it is concluded that it is "more likely than not" that the fair value of a reporting unit is less than its carrying amount, it is necessary to perform the two-step goodwill impairment test. The two-step goodwill impairment test begins with a comparison of the estimated fair value of the reporting unit and the carrying value of the reporting unit. The first step, commonly referred to as a “step-one impairment test,” is a screen for potential impairment while the second step measures the amount of any impairment if there is an indication from the first step that one exists. The Company's measurement of the fair value for goodwill is based on an estimate of discounted expected future cash flows of the reporting unit. The Company performed its most recent annual goodwill impairment test as of October 1, 2015, which resulted in no impairments.
Other Intangible Assets	Other Intangible Assets Intangible assets are included in "site rental contracts and customer relationship, net" and "other intangible assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and predominately consist of the estimated fair value of the following items recorded in conjunction with acquisitions: (1) site rental contracts and customer relationships or (2) below-market leases for land interests under the acquired towers classified as "other intangible assets, net." The site rental contracts and customer relationships intangible assets are comprised of (1) the current term of the existing leases, (2) the expected exercise of the renewal provisions contained within the existing leases, which automatically occur under contractual provisions, or (3) any associated relationships that are expected to generate value following the expiration of all renewal periods under existing leases. The useful lives of intangible assets are estimated based on the period over which the intangible asset is expected to benefit the Company, which is calculated on an individual tenant basis, considering, among other things, the contractual provisions with the tenant and gives consideration to the expected useful life of other assets to which the useful life may relate. Amortization expense for intangible assets is computed using the straight-line method over the estimated useful life of each of the intangible assets. The useful life of the site rental contracts and customer relationships intangible asset is limited by the maximum depreciable life of the tower ( 20 years ), as a result of the interdependency of the tower and site rental contracts and customer relationships. In contrast, the site rental contracts and customer relationships are estimated to provide economic benefits for several decades because of the low rate of tenant cancellations and high rate of renewals experienced to date. Thus, while site rental contracts and customer relationships are valued based upon the fair value, which includes assumptions regarding both (1) tenants' exercise of optional renewals contained in the acquired leases and (2) renewals of the acquired leases past the contractual term including exercisable options, the site rental contracts and customer relationships are amortized over a period not to exceed 20 years as a result of the useful life being limited by the depreciable life of the sites. The carrying value of other intangible assets with finite useful lives will be reviewed for impairment whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount of the assets may not be recoverable. The Company has a dual grouping policy for purposes of determining the unit of account for testing impairment of the site rental contracts and customer relationships intangible assets. First, the Company pools the site rental contracts and customer relationships with the related tower assets into portfolio groups for purposes of determining the unit of account for impairment testing. Second and separately, the Company evaluates the site rental contracts and customer relationships by significant tenant or by tenant grouping for individually insignificant tenants, as appropriate. If the sum of the estimated future cash flows (undiscounted) expected to result from the use or eventual disposition of an asset is less than the carrying amount of the asset, an impairment loss is recognized. Measurement of an impairment loss is based on the fair value of the asset.
Deferred Credits	Above-market Leases Above-market leases consist of the estimated fair value of above-market leases for land interests under the Company's towers. Above-market leases for land interests are amortized to costs of operations over their respective estimated remaining lease term at the acquisition date.
Deferred Financing Costs	Deferred Financing Costs Third-party costs incurred to obtain financing are deferred and are included in "long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs and other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet.
Revenue Recognition	Revenue Recognition Site rental revenues are recognized on a monthly basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the relevant lease (generally ranging from five to 15 years), regardless of whether the payments from the tenant are received in equal monthly amounts. The Company's contracts contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the consumer price index ("CPI")). If the payment terms call for fixed escalations, up-front payments, or rent free periods, the revenue is recognized on a straight-line basis over the fixed, non-cancelable term of the agreement. When calculating straight-line rental revenues, the Company considers all fixed elements of tenant contractual escalation provisions, even if such escalation provisions contain a variable element in addition to a minimum. The Company's assets related to straight-line site rental revenues are included in "deferred site rental receivables." Amounts billed or received prior to being earned are deferred and reflected in "deferred revenues" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet.
Cost of Operations	Costs of Operations In excess of three-fourths of the Company's site rental cost of operations consists of ground lease expenses, and the remainder includes repairs and maintenance expenses, utilities, property taxes, or insurance. Generally, the ground lease agreements are specific to each site and are for an initial term of five years and are renewable for pre-determined periods. The Company also enters into term easements and ground leases in which it prepays the entire term in advance. Ground lease expense is recognized on a monthly basis, regardless of whether the lease agreement payment terms require the Company to make payments annually, quarterly, monthly, or for the entire term in advance. The Company's ground leases contain fixed escalation clauses (such as fixed dollar or fixed percentage increases) or inflation-based escalation clauses (such as those tied to the CPI). If the payment terms include fixed escalation provisions, the effect of such increases is recognized on a straight-line basis. The Company calculates the straight-line ground lease expense using a time period that equals or exceeds the remaining depreciable life of the wireless infrastructure asset. Further, when a tenant has exercisable renewal options that would compel the Company to exercise existing ground lease renewal options, the Company has straight-lined the ground lease expense over a sufficient portion of such ground lease renewals to coincide with the final termination of the tenant's renewal options. The Company's policy is to record ground lease agreements with affiliates under the same or similar economic terms as the lease agreement for the land that existed prior to the purchase of such land by the affiliate. The Company's non-current liability related to straight-line ground lease expense is included in "deferred ground lease payable" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The Company's assets related to prepaid ground leases is included in "prepaid expenses" and "long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs and other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. The Company's current liability related to accrued property taxes is included in "other accrued liabilities" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet and was $5.6 million and $4.9 million for the years ended December 31, 2015 and 2014, respectively.
Management Fee	Management Fee The Company is charged a management fee by CCUSA, a wholly-owned indirect subsidiary of CCIC, relating to management services which include those functions reasonably necessary to maintain, market, operate, manage, and administer the sites. The management fee is equal to 7.5% of the Company's revenues, excluding the revenues related to the accounting for leases with fixed escalators as required by the applicable accounting standards. See note 6 .
Income Taxes	Income Taxes Effective January 1, 2014, CCIC commenced operating as a REIT for U.S. federal income tax purposes. The Company is an indirect subsidiary of CCIC and for U.S. federal income taxes purposes the Company's assets and operations are part of the CCIC REIT. As a REIT, CCIC is generally entitled to a deduction for dividends that it pays and therefore is not subject to U.S. federal corporate income tax on its taxable income that is currently distributed to its stockholders. CCIC also may be subject to certain federal, state, local, and foreign taxes on its income and assets, including (1) alternative minimum taxes, (2) taxes on any undistributed income, (3) taxes related to the CCIC's taxable REIT subsidiaries, (4) certain state, local, or foreign income taxes, (5) franchise taxes, (6) property taxes, and (7) transfer taxes. In addition, CCIC could in certain circumstances be required to pay an excise or penalty tax, which could be significant in amount, in order to utilize one or more relief provisions under the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended ("Code") to maintain qualification for taxation as a REIT.
Fair Values	Fair Values The Company's assets and liabilities recorded at fair value are categorized based upon a fair value hierarchy that ranks the quality and reliability of the information used to determine fair value. The three levels of the fair value hierarchy are (1) Level 1 - quoted prices (unadjusted) in active and accessible markets, (2) Level 2 - observable prices that are based on inputs not quoted in active markets but corroborated by market data, and (3) Level 3 - unobservable inputs and are not corroborated by market data. The Company evaluates fair value hierarchy level classifications quarterly, and transfers between levels are effective at the end of the quarterly period. The fair value of cash equivalents and restricted cash approximates the carrying value. The Company determines fair value of its debt securities based on indicative quotes (that is non-binding quotes) from brokers that require judgment to interpret market information including implied credit spreads for similar borrowings on recent trades or bid/ask prices or quotes from active markets if applicable. There were no changes since December 31, 2014 in the Company's valuation techniques used to measure fair values. See note 7.
Reporting Segments	Reporting Segments The Company's operations consist of one operating segment.
Recent Accounting Pronouncements	Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements No accounting pronouncements adopted during the year ended December 31, 2015 had a material impact on the Company's consolidated financial statements. Recent Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In April 2015, the Financial Accounting Standards Board ("FASB") issued new guidance on the presentation of debt issuance costs. The guidance requires debt issuance costs be presented in the balance sheet as a direct deduction from the carrying amount of the related debt liability, consistent with debt discounts and premiums. The update requires retrospective application and the guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2016. The Company will adopt the guidance on January 1, 2016. As of December 31, 2015 , net deferred financing costs were $12.9 million and were recorded as a component of "long-term prepaid rent, deferred financing costs and other assets, net" on the Company's consolidated balance sheet. In May 2014, the FASB released updated guidance regarding the recognition of revenue from contracts with customers, exclusive of those contracts within lease accounting. The core principle of the guidance is that an entity should recognize revenue to depict the transfer of promised goods or services to customers in an amount that reflects the consideration to which the entity expects to be entitled in exchange for those goods or services. To achieve that core principle, an entity should apply the following steps: (1) identify the contracts with the customer; (2) identify the performance obligations in the contract; (3) determine the contract price; (4) allocate the transaction price to the performance obligations in the contract; and (5) recognize revenue when (or as) the entity satisfies a performance obligation. This guidance is effective for the Company on January 1, 2018, following the FASB's July 2015 decision to defer the effective date of the standard by one year. This guidance is required to be applied, at the Company's election, either (1) retrospectively to each prior reporting period presented, or (2) with the cumulative effect being recognized at the date of initial application. The Company's site rental revenues are within the scope of lease accounting and will not be impacted by this guidance.

Property and Equipment (Tables)

Property and Equipment (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Property, Plant and Equipment [Abstract]
Major Classes of Property and Equipment	The major classes of property and equipment are as follows: Estimated Useful Lives December 31, 2015 2014 Land (a) — $ 74,496 $ 74,523 Towers 1-20 years 1,748,339 1,647,496 Construction in progress — 53,105 78,817 Total gross property and equipment 1,875,940 1,800,836 Less accumulated depreciation (740,236 ) (652,947 ) Total property and equipment, net $ 1,135,704 $ 1,147,889 (a) Includes land owned in fee and perpetual easements.

Intangible Assets and Above-m24

Intangible Assets and Above-market Leases (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Intangible Assets	The following is a summary of the Company's intangible assets. As of December 31, 2015 As of December 31, 2014 Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Site rental contracts and customer relationships $ 2,100,708 $ (972,286 ) $ 1,128,422 $ 2,100,707 $ (858,818 ) $ 1,241,889 Other intangible assets 52,312 (28,380 ) 23,932 53,879 (27,158 ) 26,721 Total $ 2,153,020 $ (1,000,666 ) $ 1,152,354 $ 2,154,586 $ (885,976 ) $ 1,268,610
Schedule of Estimated Annual Amortization Expense	Amortization expense related to intangible assets is classified as follows on the Company's consolidated statement of operations: For Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Depreciation, amortization and accretion $ 113,570 $ 113,570 $ 113,247 Site rental costs of operations 1,788 1,896 2,035 Total amortization expense $ 115,358 $ 115,466 $ 115,282
Site Rental Contracts and Customer Relationships [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Schedule of Estimated Annual Amortization Expense	The estimated annual amortization expense related to intangible assets (inclusive of those recorded as an increase to "site rental costs of operations") for the years ended December 31, 2016 to 2020 is as follows: Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Estimated annual amortization $ 111,877 $ 111,858 $ 111,836 $ 111,808 $ 111,769
Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Intangible Assets	The following is a summary of the Company's above-market leases. As of December 31, 2015 As of December 31, 2014 Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Gross Carrying Value Accumulated Amortization Net Book Value Above-market leases $ 42,743 $ (20,536 ) $ 22,207 $ 43,516 $ (18,929 ) $ 24,587
Schedule of Estimated Annual Amortization Expense	The estimated annual amortization expense related to above-market leases for land interests under the Company's towers for the years ended December 31, 2016 to 2020 is as follows: Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Estimated annual amortization $ 1,816 $ 1,801 $ 1,797 $ 1,773 $ 1,743

Debt and Other Obligations (Tab

Debt and Other Obligations (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Debt and Other Obligations [Abstract]
Schedule of Maturities of Long-term Debt	Contractual Maturities The following are the scheduled contractual maturities of total debt outstanding at December 31, 2015 . Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Thereafter Total Cash Obligations Total Debt Outstanding Scheduled contractual maturities $ — $ 500,000 $ — $ — $ — $ 1,000,000 $ 1,500,000 1,500,000
Schedule of Extinguishment of Debt	The following is a summary of the purchases and redemptions of debt during the year ended December 31, 2013. Year Ending December 31, 2013 Principal Amount Cash Paid (a) Gains (losses) (c) 7.75% Secured Notes (b) $ 294,362 $ 312,465 $ (18,103 ) (a) Exclusive of accrued interest. (b) The redemption of the 7.75% Secured Notes was funded by the restricted cash released upon refinancing. (c) The losses relate to cash losses, including with respect to make whole payments.
Schedule Of Interest Expense And Amortization Of Deferred Financing Costs [Text Block]	The components of "interest expense and amortization of deferred financing costs" are as follows: Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Interest expense on debt obligations $ 50,395 $ 50,395 $ 50,824 Amortization of deferred financing costs 2,828 2,828 4,583 Amortization of adjustments on long-term debt — — 2,968 Total $ 53,223 $ 53,223 $ 58,375

Fair Value Disclosures (Tables)

Fair Value Disclosures (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Fair Value Disclosures
Estimated Fair Values and Carrying Amounts of Assets and Liabilities	The following table shows the estimated fair values of the Company's financial instruments, along with the carrying amounts of the related assets and liabilities. See also note 2 . Level in Fair Value Hierarchy December 31, 2015 December 31, 2014 Carrying Amount Fair Value Carrying Amount Fair Value Assets: Cash and cash equivalents 1 $ 20,401 $ 20,401 $ 26,231 $ 26,231 Liabilities: Debt 2 1,500,000 1,486,600 1,500,000 1,497,750

Income Taxes (Tables)

Income Taxes (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Benefit (Provision) for Income Taxes	For the year ended December 31, 2015, the benefit for income taxes of $0.7 million consisted of the reduction of unrecognized tax benefits as a result of the lapse of the statute of limitations partially offset by state taxes. For the year ended December 31, 2014, the provision for income taxes of $0.4 million consisted of state taxes. The Company's effective tax rate for 2015 and 2014 differed from the federal statutory rate predominately due to CCIC's REIT status, including the dividends paid deduction (see notes 1 and 2) . For the year ended December 31, 2013, the benefit (provision) for income taxes consisted of the following: Year Ended December 31, 2013 Current: Federal $ — State (6,741 ) Deferred: Federal 361,082 State (5,898 ) Total tax benefit (provision) $ 348,443
Effective Tax Rate	For the year ended December 31, 2013, a reconciliation between the benefit (provision) for income taxes and the amount computed by applying the federal statutory income tax rate to the loss before income taxes is as follows: Year Ended December 31, 2013 Benefit (provision) for income taxes at statutory rate $ (36,881 ) Nondeductible expenses and other (6 ) State tax benefit (provision), net of federal (6,140 ) Tax adjustment related to REIT conversion 391,688 Other (218 ) $ 348,443

Leases (Tables)

Leases (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Leases [Abstract]
Tenant Leases	The following table is a summary of the rental cash payments owed to the Company, as a lessor, by tenants pursuant to contractual agreements in effect as of December 31, 2015 . Generally, the Company's leases with its tenants provide for (1) annual escalations, (2) multiple renewal periods at the tenant's option, and (3) only limited termination rights at the applicable tenant's option through the current term. As of December 31, 2015 , the weighted-average remaining term (calculated by weighting the remaining term for each lease by the related site rental revenue) of tenant leases is approximately six years , exclusive of renewals at the tenant's option. The tenants' rental payments included in the table below are through the current terms with a maximum current term of 20 years and do not assume exercise of tenant renewal options. Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Thereafter Total Tenant leases $ 579,959 $ 566,949 $ 557,290 $ 542,617 $ 537,352 $ 1,421,431 $ 4,205,598
Operating Leases	The following table is a summary of rental cash payments owed by the Company, as lessee, to landlords pursuant to contractual agreements in effect as of December 31, 2015 . The Company is obligated under non-cancelable operating leases for land interests under approximately 90% of its sites. The majority of these lease agreements have (1) certain termination rights that provide for cancellation after a notice period, (2) multiple renewal options at the Company's option, and (3) annual escalations. Lease agreements may also contain provisions for a contingent payment based on revenues or the gross margin derived from the tower located on the leased land interest. Approximately 90% and approximately 50% of the Company's site rental gross margins for the year ended December 31, 2015 are derived from towers where the land interest under the tower is owned or leased with final expiration dates of greater than ten and 20 years , respectively, including renewals at the Company's option. The operating lease payments included in the table below include payments for certain renewal periods at the Company's option up to the estimated tower useful life of 20 years and an estimate of contingent payments based on revenues and gross margins derived from existing tenant leases. See also note 6 . Years Ending December 31, 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 Thereafter Total Operating leases $ 132,772 $ 134,848 $ 136,256 $ 137,598 $ 137,910 $ 1,720,616 $ 2,400,000

Concentration of Credit Risk (T

Concentration of Credit Risk (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Risks and Uncertainties [Abstract]
A Summary of the Percentage of the Consolidated Revenues for Those Customers Accounting for More than 10% of the Consolidated Revenues	The following table summarizes the percentage of the Company's revenues for those tenants accounting for more than 10% of the Company's revenues. Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Sprint (a) 38 % 41 % 42 % AT&T (a) 21 % 20 % 20 % T-Mobile (a) 18 % 17 % 17 % Verizon Wireless 12 % 10 % 10 % Total 89 % 88 % 89 % (a) All periods presented are after giving effect to recent consolidation activity, including T-Mobile's acquisition of MetroPCS (completed in April 2013), Sprint's acquisition of Clearwire (completed in July 2013), and AT&T's acquisition of Leap Wireless (completed in March 2014).

Supplemental Cash Flow Inform30

Supplemental Cash Flow Information (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Supplemental Cash Flow Elements [Abstract]
Supplemental Disclosure of Cash Flow Information and Non-cash Investing and Financing Activities	The following table is a summary of the supplemental cash flow information during the years ended December 31, 2015 , 2014 , and 2013 . For Years Ended December 31, 2015 2014 2013 Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information: Interest paid $ 50,395 $ 50,395 $ 47,091

Schedule III - Real Estate an31

Schedule III - Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation [Line Items]
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation Disclosure [Text Block]	Description Encumbrances Initial cost to company Cost capitalized subsequent to acquisition Gross amount carried at close of current period Accumulated depreciation at close of current period Date of construction Date acquired Life on which depreciation in latest income statement is computed 7,695 sites (1) $ 1,500,000 (2) (3) (3) $ 1,875,940 (4) $ (740,236 ) Various Various Up to 20 years (1) No single site exceeds 5% of the aggregate gross amounts at which the assets were carried at the close of the period set forth in the table above. (2) As of December 31, 2015 , all of the Company's debt is secured by a pledge of the equity interests in each applicable Guarantor. (3) The Company has omitted this information, as it would be impracticable to compile such information on a site-by-site basis. (4) Does not include those sites under construction. 2015 Gross amount at beginning $ 1,800,836 Additions during period: Acquisitions through foreclosure — Other acquisitions — Wireless infrastructure construction and improvements 76,064 Purchase of land interests — Sustaining capital expenditures 9,152 Other — Total additions 85,216 Deductions during period: Cost of real estate sold or disposed (10,112 ) Other — Total deductions: (10,112 ) Balance at end $ 1,875,940 2015 Gross amount of accumulated depreciation at beginning $ (652,947 ) Additions during period: Depreciation (92,165 ) Total additions (92,165 ) Deductions during period: Amount for assets sold or disposed 4,876 Other — Total deductions 4,876 Balance at end $ (740,236 )

Schedule II - Valuation and Q32

Schedule II - Valuation and Qualifying Accounts (Tables)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015
Valuation and Qualifying Accounts [Abstract]
Movement in Valuation Allowances and Reserves	Additions Deletions Balance at Beginning of Year Charged to Operations Credited to Operations Written Off Balance at End of Year Allowance for Doubtful Accounts Receivable: 2015 $ 1,099 $ 284 $ — $ (501 ) $ 882 2014 $ 1,376 $ 295 $ — $ (572 ) $ 1,099 2013 $ 1,507 $ 268 $ — $ (399 ) $ 1,376

Basis of Presentation (Details)

Basis of Presentation (Details) $ in Billions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015USD ($)
Tower Count	7,700
Leased or Operated Under Master Lease Agreements [Member]
Tower count as a percentage of total towers	68.00%
Ground Lease Agreement Initial Term	32 years
Purchase Option Price	$ 2.3

Summary of Significant Accoun34

Summary of Significant Accounting Policies (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Current Liability for Accrued Property Taxes	$ 5,600	$ 4,900
Deferred Finance Costs, Net	12,900
Increase (decrease) in restricted cash for operating activities			$ 12,100
Restricted cash, held by trustee to redeem outstanding notes payable			316,600
Asset write-down charges	$ 6,021	3,598	5,729
Property management fee, percent fee	7.50%
Site Rental Contracts and Customer Relationships [Member]
Property, plant and equipment estimated useful life, maximum (years)	20 years
Minimum [Member]
Revenue Recognition Non-cancelable Lease Term Range, Minimum	5 years
Maximum [Member]
Revenue Recognition Non-cancelable Lease Term Range, Minimum	15 years
Tower Write-Down Charges [Member]
Asset write-down charges	$ 5,400	$ 2,900	$ 3,400
Secured Debt [Member]
Stated interest rate	7.75%

Property and Equipment (Details

Property and Equipment (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Total gross property and equipment		$ 1,875,940	$ 1,800,836
Less accumulated depreciation		(740,236)	(652,947)
Total property and equipment, net		1,135,704	1,147,889
Depreciation expense		92,200	86,200	$ 82,200
Capital Leased Assets, Gross			1,000,000
Accumulated Depreciation on Capital Lease Assets		(465,300)
Land [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Total gross property and equipment	[1]	74,496	74,523
Wireless Infrastructure [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Total gross property and equipment		$ 1,748,339	1,647,496
Wireless Infrastructure [Member] | Minimum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, useful life		1 year
Wireless Infrastructure [Member] | Maximum [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Property, plant and equipment, useful life		20 years
Construction in Process [Member]
Property, Plant and Equipment [Line Items]
Total gross property and equipment		$ 53,105	$ 78,817
[1]	Includes land owned in fee and perpetual easements.

Intangible Assets and Above-m36

Intangible Assets and Above-market Leases (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross	$ 2,153,020	$ 2,154,586
Amortization of Intangible Assets	115,358	115,466	$ 115,282
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Accumulated Amortization	1,000,666	885,976
Other Intangible Assets, net	23,932	26,721
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Net	1,152,354	1,268,610
Depreciation, Amortization and Accretion [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Amortization of Intangible Assets	113,570	113,570	113,247
Site Rental Costs of Operations [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Amortization Expense, Next Twelve Months	111,877
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Amortization Expense, Year Two	111,858
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Amortization Expense, Year Three	111,836
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Amortization Expense, Year Four	111,808
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Amortization Expense, Year Five	111,769
Amortization of Intangible Assets	1,788	1,896	2,035
Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross	42,743	43,516
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Accumulated Amortization	20,536	18,929
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Net	22,207	24,587
Above Market Leases [Member] | Site Rental Costs of Operations [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Amortization of Above Market Leases	1,900	2,000	$ 2,000
Site Rental Contracts and Customer Relationships [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross	2,100,708	2,100,707
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Accumulated Amortization	972,286	858,818
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Net	1,128,422	1,241,889
Other Intangible Assets [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Gross	52,312	53,879
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Accumulated Amortization	28,380	27,158
Other Intangible Assets, net	23,932	$ 26,721
Amortization expense, 2016 [Member] | Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Expected Above-Market Lease Amortization Expense	1,816
Amortization expense, 2017 [Member] | Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Expected Above-Market Lease Amortization Expense	1,801
Amortization expense, 2018 [Member] | Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Expected Above-Market Lease Amortization Expense	1,797
Amortization expense, 2019 [Member] [Domain] | Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Expected Above-Market Lease Amortization Expense	1,773
Amortization expense, 2020 [Member] | Above Market Leases [Member]
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Expected Above-Market Lease Amortization Expense	$ 1,743

Debt and Other Obligations (Ind

Debt and Other Obligations (Indebtedness) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and other obligations	$ 1,500,000	$ 1,500,000
Non-current portion of long-term debt and other long-term obligations	$ 1,500,000	$ 1,500,000

Debt and Other Obligations (Tex

Debt and Other Obligations (Textuals) (Details)	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2014USD ($)	Dec. 31, 2013USD ($)	Apr. 30, 2009USD ($)
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and other obligations	$ 1,500,000,000	$ 1,500,000,000
Fixed Rate - High Yield Bonds, 7.75% Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Stated interest rate				7.75%
Face amount of debt instrument				$ 1,200,000,000
High Yield Bonds [Member] | 2012 Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and other obligations	$ 1,500,000,000
Stated interest rate	3.36%
Debt covenant, trade payable restriction of equipment, land or other property, amount	$ 100,000,000
Debt covenant, debt to adjusted consolidated cash flow	3.5
Debt to adjusted cash flow ratio	3.9
2012 secured notes tranche A [Member] | 2012 Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and other obligations			$ 500,000,000
Stated interest rate			2.381%
2012 secured notes tranche B [Member] | 2012 Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Total debt and other obligations		$ 1,000,000,000
Stated interest rate			3.849%

Debt and Other Obligations (Sch

Debt and Other Obligations (Scheduled Contractual Maturities) (Details) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2015USD ($)
Debt and Other Obligations [Abstract]
2,016	$ 0
2,017	500,000
2,018	0
2,019	0
2,020	0
Thereafter	1,000,000
Total Cash Obligations	$ 1,500,000

Debt and Other Obligations (Deb

Debt and Other Obligations (Debt Purchases and Repayments) (Details) - USD ($)		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Gains (losses) on retirement of long-term obligations		$ 0	$ 0	$ 18,103,000
Fixed Rate - High Yield Bonds, 7.75% Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Cash Paid	[1],[2]			312,465,000
Gains (losses) on retirement of long-term obligations	[2],[3]			(18,103,000)
Principal [Member] | Fixed Rate - High Yield Bonds, 7.75% Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Tender Offer Amount				1,000
Amount offered prior to settlement date [Member] | Fixed Rate - High Yield Bonds, 7.75% Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Tender Offer Amount				1,063.45
Amount validly tendered [Member] | Fixed Rate - High Yield Bonds, 7.75% Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount				670,557,000
Amount redeemed after tender [Member] | Fixed Rate - High Yield Bonds, 7.75% Secured Notes [Member]
Debt Instrument [Line Items]
Principal amount	[2]			$ 294,362,000
[1]	Exclusive of accrued interest.
[2]	The redemption of the 7.75% Secured Notes was funded by the restricted cash released upon refinancing.
[3]	The losses relate to cash losses, including with respect to make whole payments.

Debt and Other Obligations Debt

Debt and Other Obligations Debt and Other Obligations (Interest Expense and Amortization of Deferred Financing Costs) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Debt and Other Obligations [Abstract]
Interest expense on debt obligations	$ 50,395	$ 50,395	$ 50,824
Amortization of deferred financing costs	2,828	2,828	4,583
Amortization of adjustments on long-term debt	0	0	2,968
Total	$ 53,223	$ 53,223	$ 58,375

Related Party Transactions (Det

Related Party Transactions (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Property management fee, percent fee		7.50%
Management Fee		$ 43,709	$ 42,686	$ 40,561
Direct Costs of Leased and Rented Property or Equipment, Related Party	[1]	31,859	30,248	28,377
Rent Revenue of Leased and Rented Property or Equipment, Related Party		900	600	600
Distribution Made to Limited Liability Company (LLC) Member, Cash Distributions Paid		$ (231,600)	$ (204,300)	$ (224,000)
Affiliated Entity [Member]
Related Party Transaction [Line Items]
Related Party Transaction, Percentage of Towers Where Land is Owned by Related Party		25.00%
[1]	Exclusive of depreciation, amortization and accretion shown separately and certain indirect costs included in the management fee.

Fair Value Disclosures (Estimat

Fair Value Disclosures (Estimated Fair Values and Carrying Amounts of Assets and Liabilities) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents, carrying value	$ 20,401	$ 26,231	$ 31,036	$ 0
Long-term debt and other obligations, carrying amount	1,500,000	1,500,000
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1 [Member]
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Cash and cash equivalents, carrying value	1
Cash and cash equivalents, fair value	20,401	26,231
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 2 [Member]
Fair Value, Balance Sheet Grouping, Financial Statement Captions [Line Items]
Long-term debt and other obligations, carrying amount	2
Long-term debt and other obligations, fair value	$ 1,486,600	$ 1,497,750

Income Taxes (Narrative) (Detai

Income Taxes (Narrative) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2015
Equity contribution - income taxes	$ 26,995
Unrecognized tax benefits that would impact effective tax rate		$ 2,000

Income Taxes (Benefit (Provisio

Income Taxes (Benefit (Provision) for Income Taxes) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Current Federal			$ 0
Current State			(6,741)
Deferred Federal			361,082
Deferred State			(5,898)
Total benefit (provision) for income taxes	$ 733	$ (402)	$ 348,443

Income Taxes (Effective Tax Rat

Income Taxes (Effective Tax Rate) (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Income Taxes [Abstract]
Benefit (provision) for income taxes at statutory rate			$ (36,881)
Nondeductible expenses and other			(6)
State tax benefit (provision), net of federal			(6,140)
Tax adjustment related to REIT conversion			391,688
Other			(218)
Total benefit (provision) for income taxes	$ (733)	$ 402	$ (348,443)

Commitments and Contingencies (

Commitments and Contingencies (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Accretion expense related to liabilities for contingent retirement obligations	$ 2.1	$ 2	$ 1.8
Asset retirement obligation	26.8	$ 24.7
Asset retirement obligation future outlay	$ 128
Leased or Operated Under Master Lease Agreements [Member]
Tower count as a percentage of total towers	68.00%

Leases (Details)

Leases (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Property Subject to or Available for Operating Lease [Line Items]
Weighted average remaining term of tenant leases	6 years
Maximum Current Term	20 years
Tenant Leases 2016	$ 579,959
Tenant Leases 2017	566,949
Tenant Leases 2018	557,290
Tenant Leases 2019	542,617
Tenant Leases 2020	537,352
Tenant Leases thereafter	1,421,431
Total tenant leases	$ 4,205,598
Percentage of wireless infrastructure, office space and equipment that is on land that has non-cancelable operating leases	90.00%
Operating leases, owned land under tower, expiration term	10 years
Operating leases, leased land under tower, expiration term	20 years
Operating leases 2016	$ 132,772
Operating leases 2017	134,848
Operating leases 2018	136,256
Operating leases 2019	137,598
Operating leases 2020	137,910
Operating leases thereafter	1,720,616
Total operating leases	2,400,000
Rental expense from operating leases	142,900	$ 141,600	$ 140,300
Contingent rental payments	$ 28,000	$ 28,700	$ 28,800
Greater than 10 Years, Inclusive of Renewals at the Company's Option [Member]
Property Subject to or Available for Operating Lease [Line Items]
Percentage of site rental gross margin that is derived from wireless infrastructure where the lease for the land has a final expiration date	90.00%
Greater than 20 Years, Inclusive of Renewals at the Company's Option [Member]
Property Subject to or Available for Operating Lease [Line Items]
Percentage of site rental gross margin that is derived from wireless infrastructure where the lease for the land has a final expiration date	50.00%
Wireless Infrastructure [Member]
Property Subject to or Available for Operating Lease [Line Items]
Estimated useful life, maximum, in years	20 years

Concentration of Credit Risk (M

Concentration of Credit Risk (Major Customers) (Details)		12 Months Ended
		Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Percentage of the consolidated revenues		89.00%	88.00%	89.00%
Sprint [Member]
Percentage of the consolidated revenues	[1]	38.00%	41.00%	42.00%
AT&T [Member]
Percentage of the consolidated revenues	[1]	21.00%	20.00%	20.00%
T-Mobile [Member]
Percentage of the consolidated revenues	[1]	18.00%	17.00%	17.00%
Verizon Wireless [Member]
Percentage of the consolidated revenues		12.00%	10.00%	10.00%
[1]	All periods presented are after giving effect to recent consolidation activity, including T-Mobile's acquisition of MetroPCS (completed in April 2013), Sprint's acquisition of Clearwire (completed in July 2013), and AT&T's acquisition of Leap Wireless (completed in March 2014).

Supplemental Cash Flow Inform50

Supplemental Cash Flow Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013
Supplemental disclosure of cash flow information:
Interest paid	$ 50,395	$ 50,395	$ 47,091

Schedule III - Real Estate an51

Schedule III - Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation (Details) - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation [Line Items]
Property, Plant and Equipment, Gross	$ 1,875,940	$ 1,800,836
Accumulated Depreciation, Depletion and Amortization, Property, Plant, and Equipment	740,236	$ 652,947
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate and Accumulated Depreciation, Amount of Encumbrances	1,500,000
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate Accumulated Depreciation	(740,236)
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate, Gross	1,875,940
Wireless Infrastructure Construction	76,064
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate, Improvements	9,152
Real Estate Period Additions to Cost	85,216
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate, Cost of Real Estate Sold	(10,112)
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate Accumulated Depreciation, Depreciation Expense	(92,165)
SEC Schedule III, Real Estate Accumulated Depreciation, Real Estate Sold	4,876
Real Estate Period Deductions to Accumulated Depreciation	$ 4,876

Schedule II - Valuation and Q52

Schedule II - Valuation and Qualifying Accounts (Details) - Allowance for Doubtful Accounts [Member] - USD ($) $ in Thousands	12 Months Ended
	Dec. 31, 2015	Dec. 31, 2014	Dec. 31, 2013	Dec. 31, 2012
Valuation and Qualifying Accounts Disclosure [Line Items]
Valuation Allowances and Reserves, Balance	$ 882	$ 1,099	$ 1,376	$ 1,507
Valuation Allowances and Reserves, Charged to Cost and Expense	284	295	268
Valuation Allowances and Reserves, Deductions	0	0	0
Valuation Allowances and Reserves, Recoveries	$ 501	$ 572	$ 399