Lumen (LUMN) 10-Q31 Oct 232023 Q3 Quarterly reportFinancial data

Company Profile

Cover Page

Cover Page - shares	9 Months Ended
Cover Page - shares	Sep. 30, 2023	Oct. 27, 2023
Document Information [Line Items]
Document Type	10-Q
Document Quarterly Report	true
Document Period End Date	Sep. 30, 2023
Document Transition Report	false
Entity File Number	001-7784
Entity Registrant Name	LUMEN TECHNOLOGIES, INC.
Entity Incorporation, State or Country Code	LA
Entity Tax Identification Number	72-0651161
Entity Address, Address Line One	100 CenturyLink Drive,
Entity Address, City or Town	Monroe,
Entity Address, State or Province	LA
Entity Address, Postal Zip Code	71203
City Area Code	318
Local Phone Number	388-9000
Entity Current Reporting Status	Yes
Entity Interactive Data Current	Yes
Entity Filer Category	Large Accelerated Filer
Entity Small Business	false
Entity Emerging Growth Company	false
Entity Shell Company	false
Entity Common Stock, Shares Outstanding		1,008,898,542
Entity Central Index Key	0000018926
Amendment Flag	false
Current Fiscal Year End Date	--12-31
Document Fiscal Year Focus	2023
Document Fiscal Period Focus	Q3
Common Stock
Document Information [Line Items]
Title of 12(b) Security	Common Stock, par value $1.00 per share
Trading Symbol	LUMN
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Preferred Stock
Document Information [Line Items]
Title of 12(b) Security	Preferred Stock Purchase Rights
Security Exchange Name	NYSE
Preferred Stock - No Trading Symbol	true

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPER

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF OPERATIONS (UNAUDITED) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Income Statement [Abstract]
OPERATING REVENUE	$ 3,641	$ 4,390	$ 11,040	$ 13,678
OPERATING EXPENSES
Cost of services and products (exclusive of depreciation and amortization)	1,850	1,999	5,407	6,042
Selling, general and administrative	791	792	2,302	2,407
Gain on sale of business	0	(593)	0	(593)
Loss on disposal group held for sale	22	0	112	0
Depreciation and amortization	755	808	2,234	2,443
Goodwill impairment	0	0	8,793	0
Total operating expenses	3,418	3,006	18,848	10,299
OPERATING INCOME (LOSS)	223	1,384	(7,808)	3,379
OTHER EXPENSE
Interest expense	(295)	(363)	(868)	(1,052)
Net gain on early retirement of debt (Note 6)	0	9	618	9
Other expense, net	(13)	(93)	(37)	(145)
Total other expense, net	(308)	(447)	(287)	(1,188)
(LOSS) INCOME BEFORE INCOME TAXES	(85)	937	(8,095)	2,191
Income tax (benefit) expense	(7)	359	208	670
NET (LOSS) INCOME	$ (78)	$ 578	$ (8,303)	$ 1,521
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
BASIC (in dollars per share)	$ (0.08)	$ 0.57	$ (8.45)	$ 1.50
DILUTED (in dollars per share)	$ (0.08)	$ 0.57	$ (8.45)	$ 1.50
WEIGHTED-AVERAGE COMMON SHARES OUTSTANDING
BASIC (in shares)	983,550	1,013,124	982,853	1,011,498
DILUTED (in shares)	983,550	1,017,013	982,853	1,016,281

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMP

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE (LOSS) INCOME (UNAUDITED) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
NET (LOSS) INCOME	$ (78)	$ 578	$ (8,303)	$ 1,521
Items related to employee benefit plans:
Change in net actuarial loss, net of $(6), $(8), $(16) and $(25) tax	16	24	47	74
Change in net prior service cost, net of $1, $1, $3 and $1 tax	(3)	(1)	(8)	(2)
Reclassification of realized loss on interest rate swaps to net income, net of $—, $—, $— and $(5) tax	0	0	0	17
Reclassification of realized loss on foreign currency translation to gain on sale of business, net of $—, $ —, $— and $— tax	0	112	0	112
Foreign currency translation adjustment, net of $5, $28, $(3) and $70 tax	(17)	(120)	3	(245)
Other comprehensive (loss) income	(4)	15	42	(44)
COMPREHENSIVE (LOSS) INCOME	$ (82)	$ 593	$ (8,261)	$ 1,477

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CO_2

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF COMPREHENSIVE (LOSS) INCOME (UNAUDITED) (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Statement of Comprehensive Income [Abstract]
Change in net actuarial loss, tax	$ (6)	$ (8)	$ (16)	$ (25)
Change in net prior service cost, tax	1	1	3	1
Reclassification of realized loss on interest rate swaps to net income, tax	0	0	0	(5)
Reclassification of realized loss on foreign currency translation to gain on sale of business, tax	0	0	0	0
Foreign currency translation adjustment and other, tax	$ 5	$ 28	$ (3)	$ 70

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (UN

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (UNAUDITED) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
CURRENT ASSETS
Cash and cash equivalents	$ 311	$ 1,251
Accounts receivable, less allowance of $82 and $85	1,411	1,477
Assets held for sale	1,942	1,889
Other	982	803
Total current assets	4,646	5,420
Property, plant and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation of $20,976 and $19,886	19,606	19,166
GOODWILL AND OTHER ASSETS
Goodwill	3,864	12,657
Other intangible assets, net	5,744	6,166
Other, net	2,061	2,172
Total goodwill and other assets	11,669	20,995
TOTAL ASSETS	35,921	45,581
CURRENT LIABILITIES
Current maturities of long-term debt	155	154
Accounts payable	1,015	950
Accrued expenses and other liabilities
Salaries and benefits	733	692
Income and other taxes	287	1,158
Current operating lease liabilities	296	344
Interest	139	181
Other	174	277
Liabilities held for sale	478	451
Current portion of deferred revenue	643	596
Total current liabilities	3,920	4,803
LONG-TERM DEBT	19,740	20,418
DEFERRED CREDITS AND OTHER LIABILITIES
Deferred income taxes, net	3,192	3,163
Benefit plan obligations, net	2,322	2,391
Deferred revenue	1,902	1,758
Other	2,626	2,611
Total deferred credits and other liabilities	10,042	9,923
COMMITMENTS AND CONTINGENCIES (Note 12)
STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY
Preferred stock—non-redeemable, $25.00 par value, authorized 2,000 and 2,000 shares, issued and outstanding 7 and 7 shares	0	0
Common stock, $1.00 par value, authorized 2,200,000 and 2,200,000 shares, issued and outstanding 1,008,933 and 1,001,688 shares	1,008	1,002
Additional paid-in capital	18,117	18,080
Accumulated other comprehensive loss	(1,057)	(1,099)
Accumulated deficit	(15,849)	(7,546)
Total stockholders' equity	2,219	10,437
TOTAL LIABILITIES AND STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY	$ 35,921	$ 45,581

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (_2

CONSOLIDATED BALANCE SHEETS (UNAUDITED) (Parenthetical) - USD ($) shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Statement of Financial Position [Abstract]
Accounts receivable, allowance	$ 82	$ 85
Accumulated depreciation	$ 20,976	$ 19,886
Preferred stock-non-redeemable, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 25	$ 25
Preferred stock-non-redeemable, shares authorized (in shares)	2,000	2,000
Preferred stock-non-redeemable, shares issued (in shares)	7	7
Preferred stock-non-redeemable, shares outstanding (in shares)	7	7
Common stock, par value (in dollars per share)	$ 1	$ 1
Common stock, shares authorized (in shares)	2,200,000	2,200,000
Common stock, shares issued (in shares)	1,008,933	1,001,688
Common stock, shares outstanding (in shares)	1,008,933	1,001,688

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (UNAUDITED) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022
OPERATING ACTIVITIES
Net (loss) income	$ (78)	$ 578	$ (8,303)	$ 1,521
Adjustments to reconcile net (loss) income to net cash provided by operating activities:
Depreciation and amortization			2,234	2,443
Gain on sale of business	0	(593)	0	(593)
Loss on disposal group held for sale	22	0	112	0
Goodwill impairment			8,793	0
Deferred income taxes			38	618
Provision for uncollectible accounts			77	99
Net gain on early retirement of debt			(618)	(9)
Unrealized loss on investments			96	197
Stock-based compensation			39	71
Changes in current assets and liabilities:
Accounts receivable			3	(27)
Accounts payable			(147)	45
Accrued income and other taxes			(996)	25
Other current assets and liabilities, net			(196)	(323)
Retirement benefits			(9)	(440)
Changes in other noncurrent assets and liabilities, net			194	141
Other, net			59	126
Net cash provided by operating activities			1,376	3,894
INVESTING ACTIVITIES
Capital expenditures			(2,279)	(2,183)
Proceeds from sale of business			3	2,707
Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment, and other assets			35	67
Other, net			9	3
Net cash (used in) provided by investing activities			(2,232)	594
FINANCING ACTIVITIES
Payments of long-term debt			(145)	(3,899)
Net proceeds from revolving line of credit			75	80
Dividends paid			(10)	(780)
Other, net			(21)	(33)
Net cash used in financing activities			(101)	(4,632)
Net decrease in cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash			(957)	(144)
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at beginning of period			1,307	409	$ 409
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash at end of period	350	265	350	265	1,307
Supplemental cash flow information:
Income taxes paid, net			(1,289)	(58)
Interest paid (net of capitalized interest of $75 and $48)			(886)	(1,092)
Supplemental noncash information regarding financing activities:
Cancellation of senior unsecured notes as part of exchange offers (Note 6)			(1,554)	0
Issuance of senior secured notes as part of exchange offers (Note 6)			924	0
Cash, cash equivalents and restricted cash:
Cash and cash equivalents	311	252	311	252	1,251
Cash and cash equivalents and restricted cash included in Assets held for sale	28	0	28	0
Restricted cash included in Other current assets	0	1	0	1
Restricted cash included in Other, net noncurrent assets	11	12	11	12
Total	$ 350	$ 265	$ 350	$ 265	$ 1,307

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CA_2

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF CASH FLOWS (UNAUDITED) (Parenthetical) - USD ($) $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Statement of Cash Flows [Abstract]
Capitalized interest	$ 75	$ 48

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOC

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENTS OF STOCKHOLDERS' EQUITY (UNAUDITED) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Total	COMMON STOCK	ADDITIONAL PAID-IN CAPITAL	ACCUMULATED OTHER COMPREHENSIVE LOSS	ACCUMULATED DEFICIT
Balance at beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2021		$ 1,024	$ 18,972	$ (2,158)	$ (5,998)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Issuance of common stock through incentive and benefit plans		11
Shares withheld to satisfy tax withholdings			(30)
Stock-based compensation			71
Dividends declared			(792)
Other		0	0
Other comprehensive (loss) income	$ (44)			(44)
Net (loss) income	1,521				1,521
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2022	$ 12,577	1,035	18,221	(2,202)	(4,477)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
DIVIDENDS DECLARED PER COMMON SHARE (in dollars per share)	$ 0.75
Balance at beginning of period at Jun. 30, 2022		1,032	18,459	(2,217)	(5,055)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Issuance of common stock through incentive and benefit plans		3
Shares withheld to satisfy tax withholdings			(1)
Stock-based compensation			23
Dividends declared			(260)
Other		0	0
Other comprehensive (loss) income	$ 15			15
Net (loss) income	578				578
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2022	$ 12,577	1,035	18,221	(2,202)	(4,477)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
DIVIDENDS DECLARED PER COMMON SHARE (in dollars per share)	$ 0.25
Balance at beginning of period at Dec. 31, 2022	$ 10,437	1,002	18,080	(1,099)	(7,546)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Issuance of common stock through incentive and benefit plans		7
Shares withheld to satisfy tax withholdings			(5)
Stock-based compensation			39
Dividends declared			0
Other		(1)	3
Other comprehensive (loss) income	42			42
Net (loss) income	(8,303)				(8,303)
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2023	$ 2,219	1,008	18,117	(1,057)	(15,849)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
DIVIDENDS DECLARED PER COMMON SHARE (in dollars per share)	$ 0
Balance at beginning of period at Jun. 30, 2023		1,008	18,100	(1,053)	(15,771)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
Issuance of common stock through incentive and benefit plans		1
Shares withheld to satisfy tax withholdings			(1)
Stock-based compensation			16
Dividends declared			0
Other		(1)	2
Other comprehensive (loss) income	$ (4)			(4)
Net (loss) income	(78)				(78)
Balance at end of period at Sep. 30, 2023	$ 2,219	$ 1,008	$ 18,117	$ (1,057)	$ (15,849)
Increase (Decrease) in Stockholders' Equity
DIVIDENDS DECLARED PER COMMON SHARE (in dollars per share)	$ 0

Background

Background	9 Months Ended
Background	Sep. 30, 2023
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Background	Background General We are an international facilities-based technology and communications company focused on providing our business and mass markets customers with a broad array of integrated products and services necessary to fully participate in our ever-evolving digital world. We operate one of the world’s most interconnected networks. Our platform empowers our customers to swiftly adjust digital programs securely to meet immediate demands, create efficiencies, accelerate market access and reduce costs - allowing customers to rapidly evolve their IT programs to address dynamic changes. Our specific products and services are detailed in Note 4—Revenue Recognition. Basis of Presentation Our consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2022, which was derived from our audited consolidated financial statements, and our unaudited interim consolidated financial statements provided herein have been prepared in accordance with the instructions for Form 10-Q. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") have been condensed or omitted pursuant to rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). However, in our opinion, the disclosures made therein are adequate to make the information presented not misleading. We believe these consolidated financial statements include all normal recurring adjustments necessary to fairly present the results for the interim periods. The consolidated results of operations and cash flows for the first nine months of the year are not necessarily indicative of the consolidated results of operations and cash flows that might be expected for the entire year. These consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. The accompanying consolidated financial statements include our accounts and the accounts of our subsidiaries in which we have a controlling interest. Intercompany amounts and transactions with our consolidated subsidiaries have been eliminated. To simplify the overall presentation of our consolidated financial statements, we report immaterial amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests in certain of our subsidiaries as follows: (i) income attributable to noncontrolling interests in other expense, net, (ii) equity attributable to noncontrolling interests in additional paid-in capital and (iii) cash flows attributable to noncontrolling interests in other, net financing activities. We reclassified certain prior period amounts to conform to the current period presentation, including the recategorization of our Business revenue by product category and sales channel in our segment reporting. See Note 11—Segment Information for additional information. These changes had no impact on total operating revenue, total operating expenses or net (loss) income for any period. Operating lease assets are included in other, net under goodwill and other assets on our consolidated balance sheets. Noncurrent operating lease liabilities are included in other under deferred credits and other liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets. There were no book overdrafts included in accounts payable at September 30, 2023 or December 31, 2022. Summary of Significant Accounting Policies Refer to the significant accounting policies described in Note 1— Background and Summary of Significant Accounting Policies to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements Supplier Finance Programs On January 1, 2023, we adopted Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2022-04, “Liabilities-Supplier Finance Program (Subtopic 405-50): Disclosure of Supplier Finance Program Obligations ” (“ASU 2022-04”). These amendments require that a company that uses a supplier finance program in connection with the purchase of goods or services disclose sufficient information about the program to allow a user of financial statements to understand the program’s nature, program activity during the period, changes from period to period and the potential magnitude of program transactions. The adoption of ASU 2022-04 did not have a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. Credit Losses On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2022-02, “ Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings (“TDR”) and Vintage Disclosures ” (“ASU 2022-02”). The ASU eliminates the TDR recognition and measurement guidance, enhances existing disclosure requirements and introduces new requirements related to certain modifications of receivables made to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty. The adoption of ASU 2022-02 did not have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. Derivatives and Hedging On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2022-01, “ Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Fair Value Hedging-Portfolio Layer Method ” ("ASU 2022-01"). The ASU expands the current single-layer method to allow multiple hedged layers of a single closed portfolio under the method. The adoption of ASU 2022-01 did not have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. Business Combinations On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2021-08, “ Business Combinations (Topic 805): Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities from Contracts with Customers ” (“ASU 2021-08”). This ASU requires entities to apply Topic 606 to recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities in a business combination. The adoption of ASU 2021-08 did not have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. Government Assistance On January 1, 2022, we adopted ASU 2021-10, " Government Assistance (Topic 832): Disclosures by Business Entities about Government Assistance ” (“ASU 2021-10”). This ASU requires business entities to disclose information about certain types of government assistance they receive. The ASU only impacts annual financial statement note disclosures. The adoption of ASU 2021-10 did not have a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. Leases On January 1, 2022, we adopted ASU 2021-05, “ Leases (Topic 842): Lessors—Certain Leases with Variable Lease Payments ” (“ASU 2021-05”). This ASU (i) amends the lease classification requirements for lessors to align them with practice under ASC Topic 840, (ii) provides criteria for lessors to classify and account for a lease with variable lease payments that do not depend on a reference index or a rate as an operating lease; and (iii) provides guidance with respect to net investments by lessors under operating leases and other related topics. The adoption of ASU 2021-05 did not have a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements In October 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU 2023-06, “ Disclosure Improvements: Codification Amendments in Response to the SEC’s Disclosure Update and Simplification Initiative ” (“ASU 2023-06”). This ASU incorporates certain SEC disclosure requirements into the FASB Accounting Standards Codification (“Codification”). The amendments in the ASU are expected to clarify or improve disclosure and presentation requirements of a variety of Codification Topics, allow users to more easily compare entities subject to the SEC’s existing disclosures with those entities that were not previously subject to the requirements, and align the requirements in the Codification with the SEC’s regulations. ASU 2023-06 will become effective for each amendment on the effective date of the SEC's corresponding disclosure rule changes. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-06 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In August 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-05, “ Business Combinations – Joint Venture Formations (Subtopic 805-60): Recognition and initial Measurement ” (“ASU 2023-05”). This ASU applies to the formation of entities that meet the definition of a joint venture (or a corporate joint venture). The amendments in the ASU require that a joint venture apply a new basis of accounting upon formation. ASU 2023-05 will become effective for us in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 and early adoption is permitted. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-05 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In August 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-04, “ Liabilities (Topic 405): Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 121 ” (“ASU 2023-04”). This ASU amends and adds various SEC paragraphs to the FASB Codification to reflect guidance regarding the accounting for obligations to safeguard crypto assets an entity holds for platform users. This ASU does not provide any new guidance. ASU 2023-04 will become effective for us once the addition to the FASB Codification is made available. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-04 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In July 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-03, “ Presentation of Financial Statements (Topic 205), Income Statement—Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220), Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity (Topic 480), Equity (Topic 505), and Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 120, SEC Staff Announcement at the March 24, 2022 EITF Meeting, and Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 6.B, Accounting Series Release 280—General Revision of Regulation S-X: Income or Loss Applicable to Common Stock ” (“ASU 2023-03”). This ASU amends or supersedes various SEC paragraphs within the applicable codification to conform to past SEC staff announcements. This ASU does not provide any new guidance. ASU 2023-03 will become effective for us once the addition to the FASB Codification is made available. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-03 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In March 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-02, “ Investments-Equity method and Joint Ventures (Topic 323): Accounting for Investments in Tax Credit Structures Using the Proportional Amortization Method ” (“ASU 2023-02”). These amendments allow reporting entities to elect to account for qualifying tax equity investments using the proportional amortization method, regardless of the program giving rise to the related income tax credits. ASU 2023-02 will become effective for us in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 and early adoption is permitted. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-02 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In March 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-01, “ Leases (Topic 842): Common Control Arrangements ” (“ASU 2023-01”). These amendments require all entities to amortize leasehold improvements associated with common control leases over the useful life to the common control group. ASU 2023-01 will become effective for us in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 and early adoption is permitted. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-01 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In June 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-03, “ Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to Contractual Sale Restrictions

Planned Divestiture of the EMEA

Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business	9 Months Ended
Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business	Sep. 30, 2023
Discontinued Operations and Disposal Groups [Abstract]
Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business	Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business On November 2, 2022, affiliates of Level 3 Parent, LLC, an indirect wholly-owned subsidiary of Lumen Technologies, Inc., granted an option to Colt Technology Services Group Limited, a portfolio company of Fidelity Investments, to purchase certain of their operations in Europe, the Middle East and Africa (the "EMEA business"), in exchange for $1.8 billion in cash, subject to certain working capital and other purchase price adjustments. Following the completion of a French consultative process, Colt exercised its option and on February 8, 2023, the parties entered into a definitive purchase agreement, which contains various customary covenants for transactions of this type, including various indemnities. Subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, Level 3 Parent LLC expects to close the transaction November 1, 2023, although it can provide no assurances to this effect. The actual amount of our net after-tax proceeds from this divestiture could vary substantially from the amounts we currently estimate, particularly if we experience delays in completing the transaction or if any of our other assumptions prove to be incorrect. We do not believe this divestiture represents a strategic shift for Lumen. Therefore, the planned divestiture of the EMEA business does not meet the criteria to be classified as discontinued operations. As a result, we will continue to report our operating results for the EMEA business (the "disposal group") in our consolidated operating results until the transaction is closed. As of September 30, 2023 in the accompanying consolidated balance sheet, the assets and liabilities of our EMEA business are classified as held for sale and measured at the lower of (i) the carrying value when we classified the disposal group as held for sale and (ii) the fair value of the disposal group as of such date, less costs to sell. Effective with the designation of the disposal group as held for sale on November 2, 2022, we suspended recording depreciation of property, plant and equipment and amortization of finite-lived intangible assets and right-of-use assets while these assets are classified as held for sale. We estimate that we would have recorded an additional $88 million and $232 million of depreciation, intangible amortization, and amortization of right-of-use assets for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, respectively, if the EMEA business did not meet the held for sale criteria. The classification of the EMEA business as held for sale was considered an event or change in circumstance which requires an assessment of the goodwill of the disposal group for impairment each reporting period until disposal. We performed a pre-classification and post-classification goodwill impairment test of the disposal group as described further in Note 3—Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. As a result of our impairment tests, we determined the EMEA business disposal group was impaired, resulting in a non-cash, non-tax-deductible goodwill impairment charge of $43 million in the fourth quarter of 2022. We evaluated the recoverability of the carrying value of the assets and liabilities held for sale relative to the agreed upon sales price, adjusted for costs to sell, and recorded an estimated loss on disposal of $660 million during the year ended December 31, 2022 in the consolidated statement of operations and a valuation allowance included in assets held for sale on the consolidated balance sheet. As a result of our evaluation of the recoverability of the carrying value of the EMEA assets and liabilities held for sale relative to the agreed upon sales price, adjusted for costs to sell, as of September 30, 2023, we recorded a $22 million and $112 million estimated loss on disposal during the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, respectively, and adjusted the valuation allowance by the same amounts. For each reporting period through the closing date, we will conduct similar evaluations and adjust the valuation allowance for the EMEA assets held for sale, as necessary. The principal components of the held for sale assets and liabilities of the EMEA business as of the dates below are as follows: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Assets held for sale Cash and cash equivalents $ 27 43 Accounts receivable, less allowance of $4 and $5 70 76 Other current assets 55 59 Property, plant and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation of $1,020 and $1,033 1,955 1,873 Customer relationships and other intangible assets, net 103 100 Operating lease assets 215 156 Valuation allowance on assets held for sale (1) (772) (660) Deferred tax assets 154 138 Other non-current assets 38 38 Total assets held for sale $ 1,845 1,823 Liabilities held for sale Accounts payable $ 57 78 Salaries and benefits 20 23 Current portion of deferred revenue 28 28 Current operating lease liabilities 41 33 Other current liabilities 34 28 Deferred income taxes 60 38 Asset retirement obligations 31 30 Deferred revenue, non-current 99 85 Operating lease liabilities, non-current 103 103 Total liabilities held for sale $ 473 446 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Includes the impact of $373 million and $365 million as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, primarily related to loss on foreign currency translation, expected to be reclassified out of accumulated other comprehensive loss upon close of the sale.

Goodwill, Customer Relationship

Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets	Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets Goodwill, customer relationships and other intangible assets consisted of the following: September 30, 2023 (1) December 31, 2022 (1) (Dollars in millions) Goodwill (2) $ 3,864 12,657 Indefinite-lived intangible assets $ 9 9 Other intangible assets subject to amortization: Customer relationships, less accumulated amortization of $4,087 and $3,606 4,088 4,574 Capitalized software, less accumulated amortization of $3,961 and $3,895 (3) 1,557 1,482 Trade names, patents and other, less accumulated amortization of $68 and $188 (3) 90 101 Total other intangible assets, net $ 5,744 6,166 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) These values exclude assets classified as held for sale. (2) We recorded a non-cash, non-tax-deductible goodwill impairment charge of $8.8 billion during the second quarter of 2023. (3) Certain capitalized software with a gross carrying value of $183 million and trade names with a gross carrying value of $130 million became fully amortized during 2022 and were retired during the first quarter of 2023. As of September 30, 2023, the gross carrying amount of goodwill, customer relationships, indefinite-lived and other intangible assets was $17.7 billion. Our goodwill was derived from numerous acquisitions where the purchase price exceeded the fair value of the net assets acquired. We report our results within two segments: Business and Mass Markets. See Note 11—Segment Information for more information on these segments. We are required to assess our goodwill and other indefinite-lived intangible assets for impairment annually, or, under certain circumstances, more frequently, such as when events or changes in circumstances indicate there may be impairment. We are required to write down the value of goodwill only when our assessment determines the carrying value of equity of any of our reporting units exceeds its fair value. Our annual impairment assessment date for goodwill is October 31, at which date we assess our reporting units. Our annual impairment assessment date for indefinite-lived intangible assets other than goodwill is December 31. As of September 30, 2023, we have three reporting units for goodwill impairment testing, which are (i) Mass Markets, (ii) North America Business and (iii) Asia Pacific region. Our reporting units are not discrete legal entities with discrete full financial statements. Our assets and liabilities are employed in and relate to the operations of multiple reporting units. For each reporting unit, we compare its estimated fair value of equity to its carrying value of equity that we assign to it. If the estimated fair value of the reporting unit is greater than the carrying value, we conclude that no impairment exists. If the estimated fair value of the reporting unit is less than its carrying value, we record a non-cash impairment charge equal to the excess amount. Depending on the facts and circumstances, we typically estimate the fair value of our reporting units by considering either or both of (i) a discounted cash flow method, which is based on the present value of projected cash flows over a discrete projection period and a terminal value, which is based on the expected normalized cash flows of the reporting units following the discrete projection period, and (ii) a market approach, which includes the use of market multiples of publicly-traded companies whose services and markets are comparable to ours. Second Quarter 2023 Goodwill Impairment Analysis When we performed our October 31, 2022 annual impairment test, we estimated the fair value of our reporting units by considering both a market approach and a discounted cash flow method. The sustained decline in our share price during the second quarter of 2023 was considered a triggering event requiring evaluation of goodwill impairment. Given the continued erosion in our market capitalization, we determined our quantitative impairment analysis would estimate the fair value of our reporting units using only the market approach. Applying this approach, we utilized company comparisons and analyst reports within the telecommunications industry which supported a range of fair values derived from annualized revenue and EBITDA multiples between 1.5x and 4.3x and 4.6x and 10.5x, respectively. The revenue and EBITDA multiples used in the quantitative impairment analysis for each of our reporting units were below these comparable market multiples. The estimated fair values of the reporting units determined in connection with our impairment analysis in the second quarter of 2023 resulted in no control premium, which we determined to be reasonable based on our market capitalization relative to recent transactions. For the three months ended June 30, 2023, based on our assessments performed with respect to the reporting units as described above, we concluded the estimated fair value of certain of our reporting units was less than their carrying value of equity. As a result, we recorded a non-cash, non-tax-deductible goodwill impairment charge of $8.8 billion for the three months ended June 30, 2023. We did not record any impairments to goodwill in the third quarter of 2023. The market approach that we used in the quarter ended June 30, 2023 incorporated estimates and assumptions related to the forecasted results for the remainder of the year, including revenues, expenses, and the achievement of certain strategic initiatives. In developing the market multiples applicable to each reporting unit, we considered observed trends of our industry participants. Our assessment included many factors that required significant judgment. Alternative interpretations of these factors could have resulted in different conclusions regarding the size of our impairments. The following table shows the rollforward of goodwill assigned to our reportable segments from December 31, 2022 through September 30, 2023. Business Mass Markets Total (Dollars in Millions) As of December 31, 2022 (1) $ 7,906 4,751 12,657 Impairment (6,580) (2,213) (8,793) As of September 30, 2023 (1) $ 1,326 2,538 3,864 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Goodwill at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022 is net of accumulated impairment losses of $19.8 billion and $11.0 billion, respectively. Total amortization expense for finite-lived intangible assets for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022 totaled $271 million and $279 million, respectively, and for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022 totaled $794 million and $830 million, respectively. We estimate that amortization expense for finite-lived intangible assets for the years ending December 31, 2023 through 2027 will be as provided in the table below. As a result of classifying our EMEA business as held for sale on our September 30, 2023 consolidated balance sheet, the amounts presented below do not include future amortization expense for intangible assets of the business to be divested. See Note 2—Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business for more information. (Dollars in millions) 2023 (remaining three months) $ 244 2024 925 2025 853 2026 809 2027 730

Revenue Recognition

Revenue Recognition	9 Months Ended
Revenue Recognition	Sep. 30, 2023
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Revenue Recognition	Revenue Recognition Product and Service Categories We categorize our products and services revenue among the following categories for the Business segment: • Grow , which includes products and services that we anticipate will grow, including our dark fiber, Edge Cloud services, IP, managed security, software-defined wide area networks ("SD WAN"), secure access service edge ("SASE"), Unified Communications and Collaboration ("UC&C") and wavelengths services; • Nurture , which includes our more mature offerings, including ethernet and VPN data networks services; • Harvest , which includes our legacy services managed for cash flow, including Time Division Multiplexing ("TDM") voice, private line and other legacy services; and • Other , which includes equipment sales, IT solutions and other services. We categorize our products and services revenue among the following categories for the Mass Markets segment: • Fiber Broadband , under which we provide high speed broadband services to residential and small business customers utilizing our fiber-based network infrastructure; • Other Broadband , under which we provide primarily lower speed broadband services to residential and small business customers utilizing our copper-based network infrastructure; and • Voice and Other, under which we derive revenues from (i) providing local and long-distance voice services, professional services, and other ancillary services, and (ii) federal broadband and state support programs. Reconciliation of Total Revenue to Revenue from Contracts with Customers The following tables provide total revenue by segment, sales channel and product category. They also provide the amount of revenue that is not subject to ASC 606, " Revenue from Contracts with Customers " ("ASC 606"), but is instead governed by other accounting standards. The amounts in the tables below include revenue for the Latin American and ILEC businesses prior to their sales on August 1, 2022 and October 3, 2022, respectively. See Note 2—Divestitures of the Latin American and ILEC Businesses and Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 for additional information on these divestitures. Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Total Revenue Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from Contracts with Customers Total Revenue Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from Contracts with Customers (Dollars in millions) Business Segment by Sales Channel and Product Category Large Enterprise Grow $ 557 (77) 480 571 (79) 492 Nurture 369 — 369 404 — 404 Harvest 186 — 186 245 — 245 Other 70 (3) 67 66 (1) 65 Total Large Enterprise Revenue 1,182 (80) 1,102 1,286 (80) 1,206 Mid-Market Enterprise Grow 201 (6) 195 192 (7) 185 Nurture 195 — 195 226 — 226 Harvest 94 (1) 93 129 (2) 127 Other 8 (1) 7 8 (1) 7 Total Mid-Market Enterprise Revenue 498 (8) 490 555 (10) 545 Public Sector Grow 117 (22) 95 106 (25) 81 Nurture 98 — 98 121 — 121 Harvest 96 — 96 119 (1) 118 Other 133 — 133 111 — 111 Total Public Sector Revenue 444 (22) 422 457 (26) 431 Wholesale Grow 250 (61) 189 247 (67) 180 Nurture 203 (5) 198 255 (6) 249 Harvest 314 (42) 272 404 (56) 348 Other 3 — 3 14 — 14 Total Wholesale Revenue 770 (108) 662 920 (129) 791 Business Segment by Product Category Grow 1,125 (166) 959 1,116 (178) 938 Nurture 865 (5) 860 1,006 (6) 1,000 Harvest 690 (43) 647 897 (59) 838 Other 214 (4) 210 199 (2) 197 Total Business Segment Revenue 2,894 (218) 2,676 3,218 (245) 2,973 Mass Markets Segment by Product Category Fiber Broadband 162 (4) 158 160 (4) 156 Other Broadband 340 (31) 309 580 (55) 525 Voice and Other 245 (9) 236 432 (27) 405 Total Mass Markets Revenue 747 (44) 703 1,172 (86) 1,086 Total Revenue $ 3,641 (262) 3,379 4,390 (331) 4,059 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Total revenue Adjustments for non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from contracts with customers Total revenue Adjustments for non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from contracts with customers (Dollars in millions) Business Segment by Sales Channel and Product Category Large Enterprise Grow $ 1,665 (234) 1,431 1,882 (284) 1,598 Nurture 1,113 — 1,113 1,302 — 1,302 Harvest 590 — 590 793 — 793 Other 187 (5) 182 183 (4) 179 Total Large Enterprise Revenue 3,555 (239) 3,316 4,160 (288) 3,872 Mid-Market Enterprise Grow 599 (21) 578 565 (23) 542 Nurture 608 — 608 698 — 698 Harvest 288 (3) 285 404 (6) 398 Other 25 (4) 21 23 (1) 22 Total Mid-Market Enterprise Revenue 1,520 (28) 1,492 1,690 (30) 1,660 Public Sector Grow 351 (60) 291 337 (79) 258 Nurture 297 — 297 380 — 380 Harvest 290 — 290 367 (3) 364 Other 350 — 350 346 (1) 345 Total Public Sector Revenue 1,288 (60) 1,228 1,430 (83) 1,347 Wholesale Grow 776 (194) 582 720 (202) 518 Nurture 621 (19) 602 780 (20) 760 Harvest 978 (129) 849 1,216 (170) 1,046 Other 9 — 9 40 — 40 Total Wholesale Revenue 2,384 (342) 2,042 2,756 (392) 2,364 Business Segment by Product Category Grow 3,391 (509) 2,882 3,504 (588) 2,916 Nurture 2,639 (19) 2,620 3,160 (20) 3,140 Harvest 2,146 (132) 2,014 2,780 (179) 2,601 Other 571 (9) 562 592 (6) 586 Total Business Segment Revenue 8,747 (669) 8,078 10,036 (793) 9,243 Mass Markets Segment by Product Category Fiber Broadband 471 (12) 459 456 (14) 442 Other Broadband 1,064 (96) 968 1,787 (166) 1,621 Voice and Other 758 (27) 731 1,399 (126) 1,273 Total Mass Markets Revenue 2,293 (135) 2,158 3,642 (306) 3,336 Total Revenue $ 11,040 (804) 10,236 13,678 (1,099) 12,579 _____________________________________________________________________ (1) Includes regulatory revenue and lease revenue not within the scope of ASC 606. Operating Lease Income Lumen Technologies leases various dark fiber, office facilities, colocation facilities, switching facilities, other network sites and service equipment to third parties under operating leases. Lease and sublease income are included in operating revenue in our consolidated statements of operations. For the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, our gross rental income was $254 million and $307 million, respectively, which represented approximately 7% of our operating revenue for both the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. For the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, our gross rental income was $780 million and $978 million, respectively, which represented approximately 7% of our operating revenue for both the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. Customer Receivables and Contract Balances The following table provides balances of customer receivables, contract assets and contract liabilities, net of amounts classified as held for sale, as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Customer receivables (1) $ 1,372 1,424 Contract assets (2) 29 34 Contract liabilities (3) 725 656 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Reflects gross customer receivables of $1.4 billion and $1.5 billion at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, net of allowance for credit losses of $63 million and $73 million, at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. These amounts exclude customer receivables, net, classified as held for sale of $70 million at September 30, 2023 and $76 million at December 31, 2022 related to the EMEA business. (2) These amounts exclude contract assets classified as held for sale of $11 million at September 30, 2023 and $16 million at December 31, 2022 related to the EMEA business. (3) These amounts exclude contract liabilities classified as held for sale of $47 million at September 30, 2023 and $59 million at December 31, 2022 related to the EMEA business. Contract liabilities are consideration we have received from our customers or billed in advance of providing goods or services promised in the future. We defer recognizing this consideration as revenue until we have satisfied the related performance obligation to the customer. Contract liabilities include recurring services billed one month in advance and installation and maintenance charges that are deferred and recognized over the actual or expected contract term, which typically ranges from one Performance Obligations As of September 30, 2023, we expect to recognize approximately $7.2 billion of revenue in the future related to performance obligations associated with existing customer contracts that are partially or wholly unsatisfied. As of September 30, 2023, the transaction price related to unsatisfied performance obligations that are expected to be recognized for the remainder of 2023, 2024 and thereafter was $913 million, $2.4 billion and $3.9 billion, respectively. These amounts exclude (i) the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for contracts for which we recognize revenue at the amount to which we have the right to invoice for services performed (for example, uncommitted usage or non-recurring charges associated with professional or technical services to be completed), (ii) contracts that are classified as leasing arrangements or government assistance that are not subject to ASC 606, and (iii) the value of unsatisfied performance obligations for contracts which relate to our EMEA business classified as held for sale. Contract Costs The following tables provide changes in our contract acquisition costs and fulfillment costs: Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs (Dollars in millions) Beginning of period balance (1)(2) $ 183 186 208 188 Costs incurred 31 41 45 38 Amortization (37) (35) (49) (35) Change in contract costs held for sale — — 3 (2) End of period balance (5)(6) $ 177 192 207 189 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs (Dollars in millions) Beginning of period balance (3)(4) $ 202 192 222 186 Costs incurred 96 120 129 119 Amortization (117) (106) (150) (113) Change in contract costs held for sale (4) (14) 6 (3) End of period balance (5)(6) $ 177 192 207 189 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Beginning of period balance for the three months ended September 30, 2023 excludes $10 million of acquisition costs and $14 million of fulfillment costs classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business. (2) Beginning of period balance for the three months ended September 30, 2022 excludes $31 million of acquisition costs and $33 million of fulfillment costs classified as held for sale (related to both the Latin American business and the ILEC business, sold in the third and fourth quarters of 2022, respectively). (3) Beginning of period balance for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 excludes $6 million of acquisition costs and no fulfillment costs classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business. (4) Beginning of period balance for the nine months ended September 30, 2022 excludes acquisition costs and fulfillment costs classified as held for sale of $34 million and $32 million, respectively (related to both the Latin American business and the ILEC business, sold in the third and fourth quarters of 2022, respectively). (5) End of period balance for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 excludes $10 million of acquisition costs and $14 million of fulfillment costs classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business. (6) End of period balance for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022 excludes acquisition costs and fulfillment costs classified as held for sale of $28 million and $35 million, respectively (related to both the Latin American business and the ILEC business, sold in the third and fourth quarters of 2022, respectively). Acquisition costs include commission fees paid to employees as a result of obtaining contracts. Fulfillment costs include third party and internal costs associated with the provision, installation and activation of services to customers, including labor and materials consumed for these activities.

Credit Losses on Financial Inst

Credit Losses on Financial Instruments	9 Months Ended
Credit Losses on Financial Instruments	Sep. 30, 2023
Credit Loss [Abstract]
Credit Losses on Financial Instruments	Credit Losses on Financial Instruments To assess our expected credit losses on financial instruments, we aggregate financial assets with similar risk characteristics to monitor their credit quality or deterioration over the life of such assets. We periodically monitor certain risk characteristics within our aggregated financial assets and revise their composition accordingly, to the extent internal and external risk factors change. We separately evaluate financial assets that do not share risk characteristics with other financial assets. Our financial assets measured at amortized cost primarily consist of accounts receivable. We use a loss rate method to estimate our allowance for credit losses. Our determination of the current expected credit loss rate begins with our review of historical loss experience as a percentage of accounts receivable. We measure our historical loss period based on the average days to recognize accounts receivable as credit losses. When asset specific characteristics and current conditions change from those in the historical period, due to changes in our credit and collections strategy, certain classes of aged balances, or credit loss and recovery policies, we perform a qualitative and quantitative assessment to adjust our historical loss rate. We use regression analysis to develop an expected loss rate using historical experience and economic data over a forecast period. We measure our forecast period based on the average days to collect payment on billed accounts receivable. To determine our current allowance for credit losses, we combine the historical and expected credit loss rates and apply them to our period end accounts receivable. If there is an unexpected deterioration of a customer's financial condition or an unexpected change in economic conditions, including macroeconomic events, we assess the need to adjust the allowance for credit losses. Any such resulting adjustments would affect earnings in the period that adjustments are made. The assessment of the correlation between historical observed default rates, current conditions and forecasted economic conditions requires judgment. Alternative interpretations of these factors could have resulted in different conclusions regarding our allowance for credit losses. The amount of credit loss is sensitive to changes in circumstances and forecasted economic conditions. Our historical credit loss experience, current conditions and forecast of economic conditions may also not be representative of the customers' actual default experience in the future, and we may use methodologies that differ from those used by other companies. The following table presents the activity of our allowance for credit losses by accounts receivable portfolio for the nine months ended September 30, 2023: Business Mass Markets Total (Dollars in millions) As of December 31, 2022 (1) $ 57 28 85 Provision for expected losses 27 50 77 Write-offs charged against the allowance (37) (51) (88) Recoveries collected 5 2 7 Change in allowance in assets held for sale 1 — 1 Ending balance at September 30, 2023 (1) $ 53 29 82 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, these amounts excluded $4 million and $5 million of allowance for credit losses classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business included in the Business portfolio. See Note 2—Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business.

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facil

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities	9 Months Ended
Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities	Sep. 30, 2023
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities	Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities The following table reflects the consolidated long-term debt of Lumen Technologies, Inc. and its subsidiaries as of the dates indicated below, including unamortized discounts and premiums and unamortized debt issuance costs: Interest Rates (1) Maturities (1) September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Senior Secured Debt: (2) Lumen Technologies, Inc. Revolving Credit Facility (3) SOFR + 2.00% 2025 $ 75 — Term Loan A (4) SOFR + 2.00% 2025 948 991 Term Loan A-1 (4) SOFR + 2.00% 2025 271 283 Term Loan B (5) SOFR + 2.25% 2027 3,903 3,941 Senior notes 4.000% 2027 1,250 1,250 Subsidiaries: Level 3 Financing, Inc. Tranche B 2027 Term Loan (6) SOFR + 1.75% 2027 2,411 2,411 Senior notes 3.400% - 10.500% 2027 - 2030 2,425 1,500 Senior Notes and Other Debt: Lumen Technologies, Inc. Senior notes 4.500% - 7.650% 2025 - 2042 2,143 3,722 Subsidiaries: Level 3 Financing, Inc. Senior notes 3.625% - 4.625% 2027 - 2029 3,940 3,940 Qwest Corporation Senior notes 6.500% - 7.750% 2025 - 2057 1,986 1,986 Term loan (7) SOFR + 2.50% 2027 215 215 Qwest Capital Funding, Inc. Senior notes 6.875% - 7.750% 2028 - 2031 192 192 Finance lease and other obligations (8) Various Various 291 317 Unamortized discounts, net (3) (7) Unamortized debt issuance costs (152) (169) Total long-term debt 19,895 20,572 Less current maturities (155) (154) Long-term debt, excluding current maturities $ 19,740 20,418 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) As of September 30, 2023. (2) See Note 7—Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 for a description of certain parent or subsidiary guarantees and liens securing this debt. (3) Revolving Credit Facility had an interest rate of 7.450% as of September 30, 2023. (4) Term Loans A and A-1 had interest rates of 7.431% and 6.384% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (5) Term Loan B had interest rates of 7.681% and 6.634% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (6) The Level 3 Tranche B 2027 Term Loan had interest rates of 7.181% and 6.134% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (7) The Qwest Corporation Term Loan had interest rates of 7.931% and 6.640% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (8) Excludes finance lease obligations of our EMEA business classified as held for sale. Long-Term Debt Maturities Set forth below is the aggregate principal amount of our long-term debt as of September 30, 2023 (excluding unamortized discounts, net, and unamortized debt issuance costs), maturing during the following years. As a result of classifying our EMEA business as held for sale on our September 30, 2023 consolidated balance sheet, the amounts presented below do not include maturities of the finance lease obligations of that business. See Note 2—Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business. (Dollars in millions) 2023 (remaining three months) $ 40 2024 157 2025 1,739 2026 498 2027 9,386 2028 and thereafter 8,230 Total long-term debt $ 20,050 Exchange Offers and Repurchases Pursuant to exchange offers that commenced on March 16, 2023 (the “Exchange Offers”), on March 31, 2023, Level 3 Financing, Inc. issued $915 million of its 10.500% Senior Secured Notes due 2030 (the “10.500% Notes”) in exchange for $1.535 billion of Lumen’s outstanding senior unsecured notes. On April 17, 2023, in connection with the Exchange Offers, Level 3 Financing, Inc. issued an additional $9 million of its 10.500% Notes in exchange for $19 million of Lumen's outstanding senior unsecured notes. All exchanged notes were concurrently cancelled. These transactions resulted in a $630 million net reduction in the aggregate principal amount of Lumen’s consolidated indebtedness. In addition to the above described exchange offers, we repurchased $24 million aggregate principal amount of Lumen's outstanding senior unsecured notes during the first quarter of 2023. These above-described transactions resulted in an aggregate gain of $618 million during the nine months ended September 30, 2023. The following table sets forth the aggregate principal amount of each series of Lumen’s senior unsecured notes retired during the nine months ended September 30, 2023, in connection with the above-described exchange transactions: Debt Period of Reduction Aggregate principal (amounts in millions) 5.625% Senior Notes, Series X, due 2025 Q1 2023 $ 48 7.200% Senior Notes, Series D, due 2025 Q1 2023 21 5.125% Senior Notes due 2026 Q1 2023 291 6.875% Debentures, Series G, due 2028 Q1 2023 52 5.375% Senior Notes due 2029 Q1 2023 275 4.500% Senior Notes due 2029 Q1 2023 556 7.600% Senior Notes, Series P, due 2039 Q1 2023 161 7.650% Senior Notes, Series U, due 2042 Q1 2023 131 5.625% Senior Notes, Series X, due 2025 Q2 2023 1 4.500% Senior Notes due 2029 Q2 2023 2 7.600% Senior Notes, Series P, due 2039 Q2 2023 3 7.650% Senior Notes, Series U, due 2042 Q2 2023 13 Total $ 1,554 Level 3 Financing, Inc.’s obligations under the 10.500% Notes are guaranteed on a secured basis by its direct parent, Level 3 Parent, LLC, and certain of its material domestic subsidiaries that guarantee the term loan under Level 3 Financing, Inc.’s existing senior secured credit facility and existing senior secured notes (the “Issuer’s Secured Debt”). Such guarantees are secured by liens on substantially the same collateral that is pledged to secure the Issuer’s Secured Debt. Revolving Credit Facility Borrowings and Repayments During the three months ended September 30, 2023 , Lumen borrowed $150 million from, and made repayments of $275 million to, its revolving credit facility, and during the nine months ended September 30, 2023, Lumen borrowed $675 million from, and made repayments of $600 million to, its revolving credit facility. During the third quarter of 2023, we issued approximately $110 million of letters of credit under our revolving credit facility, which reduced our borrowing capacity available thereunder by the same amount. As of September 30, 2023, these issued letters of credit were undrawn. Covenants Certain of our debt instruments contain affirmative and negative covenants. Debt at Lumen Technologies, Inc. and Level 3 Financing, Inc. contains more extensive covenants including, among other things and subject to certain exceptions, restrictions on the ability to declare or pay dividends, repay certain other indebtedness, create liens, incur additional indebtedness, make investments, engage in transactions with affiliates, dispose of assets and merge or consolidate with any other person. Also, Lumen Technologies, Inc. and certain of its affiliates will be required to offer to purchase certain of their respective outstanding debt under defined circumstances in connection with specified "change of control" transactions. Certain of our debt instruments contain cross-payment default or cross-acceleration provisions. Compliance As of September 30, 2023, Lumen Technologies, Inc. believes it and its subsidiaries were in compliance with the provisions and financial covenants in their respective material debt agreements in all material respects.

Severance

Severance	9 Months Ended
Severance	Sep. 30, 2023
Restructuring and Related Activities [Abstract]
Severance	Severance Periodically, we reduce our workforce and accrue liabilities for the related severance costs. These workforce reductions result primarily from: increased competitive pressures, cost reduction initiatives, process improvements through automation and reduced workloads due to reduced demand for certain services. Changes in our accrued liabilities for severance expenses were as follows: Severance (Dollars in millions) Balance at December 31, 2022 $ 11 Accrued to expense 21 Payments, net (19) Balance at September 30, 2023 $ 13 On October 31, 2023, the Company announced a plan to reduce its global workforce by approximately 4% as part of its ongoing efforts to reorganize Lumen for growth by right-sizing its operations to improve its profitability. The workforce reduction is expected to be substantially completed by the end of the fourth quarter of 2023. As a result of this plan, the Company expects to incur severance and related costs in the range of approximately $55 to $65 million. The Company does not expect to incur any material impairment or exit costs related to this plan. The workforce reduction is considered a subsequent event for the purposes of these financial statements, and therefore, no accrual for severance and related costs has been recorded as of September 30, 2023.

Employee Benefits

Employee Benefits	9 Months Ended
Employee Benefits	Sep. 30, 2023
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]
Employee Benefits	Employee Benefits For detailed descriptions of the various defined benefit pension plans (qualified and non-qualified), post-retirement benefits plans and defined contribution plan we sponsor, see Note 11—Employee Benefits to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Net periodic benefit expense (income) for the Lumen Combined Pension Plan (the "Combined Pension Plan" or the "Plan") includes the following components: Combined Pension Plan Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 (1) 2023 2022 (1) (Dollars in millions) Service cost $ 7 11 19 34 Interest cost 67 53 202 155 Expected return on plan assets (72) (100) (215) (302) Recognition of prior service credit (2) (3) (5) (8) Recognition of actuarial loss 27 32 78 99 Net periodic pension expense (income) $ 27 (7) 79 (22) ______________________________________________________________________ (1) These amounts include pension costs related to the Lumen Pension Plan prior to the sale of the ILEC business on October 3, 2022. For additional information on the Lumen Pension Plan, see Note 11—Employee Benefits to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Net periodic benefit expense for our post-retirement benefit plans includes the following components: Post-Retirement Benefit Plans Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 2023 2022 (Dollars in millions) Service cost $ 1 3 4 8 Interest cost 26 15 77 45 Recognition of prior service (credit) cost (2) 1 (6) 5 Recognition of actuarial gain (5) — (15) — Net periodic post-retirement benefit expense $ 20 19 60 58 Service costs for our pension plans and post-retirement benefit plans are included in the cost of services and products and selling, general and administrative line items on our consolidated statements of operations and all other costs listed above are included in other expense, net on our consolidated statements of operations for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022. Our Combined Pension Plan contains provisions that allow us, from time to time, to offer lump sum payment options to certain former employees in settlement of their future retirement benefits. We record an accounting settlement charge, consisting of the recognition of certain deferred costs of the pension plan associated with these lump sum payments only if, in the aggregate, they exceed or are probable to exceed the sum of the annual service and interest costs for the plan’s net periodic pension benefit cost, which represents the settlement accounting threshold. The amount of any future non-cash settlement charges will be dependent on several factors, including the total amount of our future lump sum benefit payments.

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Shar

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share	9 Months Ended
(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share	Sep. 30, 2023
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share	(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share Basic and diluted (loss) earnings per common share for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022 were calculated as follows: Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 2023 2022 (Dollars in millions, except per share amounts, shares in thousands) (Loss) Income (numerator) Net (loss) income $ (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521 Net (loss) income applicable to common stock for computing basic (loss) earnings per common share (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521 Net (loss) income as adjusted for purposes of computing diluted (loss) earnings per common share $ (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521 Shares (denominator): Weighted-average number of shares: Outstanding during period 1,008,523 1,034,786 1,006,140 1,031,687 Non-vested restricted stock (24,973) (21,662) (23,287) (20,189) Weighted average shares outstanding for computing basic (loss) earnings per common share 983,550 1,013,124 982,853 1,011,498 Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive securities: Shares issuable under convertible securities — 10 — 10 Shares issuable under incentive compensation plans — 3,879 — 4,773 Number of shares as adjusted for purposes of computing diluted (loss) earnings per common share 983,550 1,017,013 982,853 1,016,281 Basic (loss) earnings per common share $ (0.08) 0.57 (8.45) 1.50 Diluted (loss) earnings per common share (1) $ (0.08) 0.57 (8.45) 1.50 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, we excluded from the calculation of diluted loss per share, less than 1 million shares, potentially issuable under incentive compensations plans or convertible securities, as their effect, if included, would have been anti-dilutive. Our calculation of diluted (loss) earnings per common share excludes unvested restricted stock awards that are antidilutive as a result of unrecognized compensation cost. Such shares were 24.5 million and 12.9 million for the three months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively, and 22.2 million and 10.4 million for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, respectively.

Fair Value of Financial Instrum

Fair Value of Financial Instruments	9 Months Ended
Fair Value of Financial Instruments	Sep. 30, 2023
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Fair Value of Financial Instruments	Fair Value of Financial Instruments Our financial instruments consist of cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, accounts receivable, accounts payable, long-term debt (excluding finance lease and other obligations), interest rate swap contracts, certain equity investments and certain indemnification obligations. Due primarily to their short-term nature, the carrying amounts of our cash, cash equivalents, restricted cash, accounts receivable and accounts payable approximate their fair values. Fair value is defined as the price that would be received to sell an asset or paid to transfer a liability in an orderly transaction between independent and knowledgeable parties who are willing and able to transact for an asset or liability at the measurement date. We use valuation techniques that maximize the use of observable inputs and minimize the use of unobservable inputs when determining fair value and then we rank the estimated values based on the reliability of the inputs using the below-described fair value hierarchy. We determined the fair values of our long-term debt, including the current portion, based on quoted market prices where available or, if not available, based on inputs other than quoted market prices in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable such as discounted future cash flows using current market interest rates. The three input levels in the hierarchy of fair value measurements are defined by the FASB generally as follows: Input Level Description of Input Level 1 Observable inputs such as quoted market prices in active markets. Level 2 Inputs other than quoted prices in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable. Level 3 Unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists. The following table presents the carrying amounts and estimated fair values of our following financial assets and liabilities as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 Input Carrying Fair Carrying Fair (Dollars in millions) Equity securities (1) 1 $ — — 22 22 Long-term debt, excluding finance lease and other obligations 2 19,604 14,163 20,255 17,309 Indemnifications related to the sale of the Latin American business (2) 3 86 86 86 86 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recognized $22 million of loss on equity securities in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations, with no change in value recognized for the three months ended September 30, 2023. For both the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022 we recognized $83 million of loss on equity securities in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations. (2) Nonrecurring fair value is measured as of August 1, 2022. Investment Held at Net Asset Value We hold an investment in a limited partnership created as a holding company for various investments. The limited partnership has sole discretion as to the amount and timing of distributions of the underlying assets. As of September 30, 2023, the underlying investments held by the limited partnership were traded in active markets and as such, we account for our investment in the limited partnership using net asset value ("NAV"). Subject to restrictions imposed by law and other provisions of the limited partnership agreement, the general partner has the sole discretion as to the amounts and timing of distributions of partnership assets to partners. The following table summarizes the net asset value of our investment in this limited partnership. As of September 30, 2023 As of December 31, 2022 Net Asset Value (Dollars in millions) Investment in limited partnership (1) $ 11 85 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recognized a $15 million and $74 million loss on investment, respectively, reflected in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022, we recognized $43 million and $114 million, respectively, of loss on investment, reflected in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations.

Segment Information

Segment Information	9 Months Ended
Segment Information	Sep. 30, 2023
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Segment Information	Segment Information We report our results within two segments: Business and Mass Markets. Under our Business segment we provide products and services to meet the needs of our enterprise and wholesale customers under four distinct sales channels: Large Enterprise, Mid-Market Enterprise, Public Sector and Wholesale. For Business segment revenue, we report the following product categories: Grow, Nurture, Harvest and Other, in each case through the sales channels outlined above. The Business segment included the results of our Latin American and ILEC businesses prior to their sales on August 1, 2022 and October 3, 2022, respectively. Under our Mass Markets Segment, we provide products and services to residential and small business customers. We report the following product categories: Fiber Broadband, Other Broadband and Voice and Other. The Mass Markets segment included the results of our ILEC business prior to its sale on October 3, 2022. See detailed descriptions of these product and service categories in Note 4—Revenue Recognition. As described in more detail below, our segments are managed based on the direct costs of providing services to their customers and directly associated selling, general and administrative costs (primarily salaries and commissions). Shared costs are managed separately and included in "other unallocated expense" in the table included below under the heading "—Revenue and Expenses". As referenced above, we reclassified certain prior period amounts to conform to the current period presentation. See Note 1— Background for additional detail on these changes. The following tables summarize our segment results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, based on the segment categorization we were operating under at September 30, 2023. Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Business Mass Markets Business Mass Markets (Dollars in millions) Segment revenue $ 2,894 747 8,747 2,293 Segment expenses: Cost of services and products 796 22 2,343 71 Selling, general and administrative 324 356 916 1,010 Total segment expense 1,120 378 3,259 1,081 Total segment adjusted EBITDA $ 1,774 369 5,488 1,212 Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Business Mass Markets Business Mass Markets (Dollars in millions) Segment revenue $ 3,218 1,172 10,036 3,642 Segment expenses: Cost of services and products 792 25 2,449 90 Selling, general and administrative 293 470 928 1,283 Total segment expense 1,085 495 3,377 1,373 Total segment adjusted EBITDA $ 2,133 677 6,659 2,269 Revenue and Expenses Our segment revenue includes all revenue from our two segments as described in more detail above. Our segment revenue is based upon each customer's classification. We report our segment revenue based upon all services provided to that segment's customers. Our segment expenses include specific cost of service expenses incurred as a direct result of providing services and products to segment customers, along with selling, general and administrative expenses that are directly associated with specific segment customers or activities. We have not allocated assets or debt to specific segments. The following items are excluded from our segment results, because they are centrally managed and not monitored by or reported to our chief operating decision maker by segment: • network expenses not incurred as a direct result of providing services and products to segment customers and centrally managed expenses such as Finance, Human Resources, Legal, Marketing, Product Management and IT, all of which are reported as "other unallocated expense" in the table below; • depreciation and amortization expense; • goodwill or other impairments; • stock-based compensation; • interest expense, and • other income and expense items. The following table reconciles total segment adjusted EBITDA to net (loss) income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022: Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 2023 2022 (Dollars in millions) Total segment adjusted EBITDA $ 2,143 2,810 6,700 8,928 Depreciation and amortization (755) (808) (2,234) (2,443) Goodwill impairment — — (8,793) — Other unallocated expense (1,149) (595) (3,442) (3,035) Stock-based compensation (16) (23) (39) (71) Operating income (loss) 223 1,384 (7,808) 3,379 Total other expense, net (308) (447) (287) (1,188) (Loss) income before income taxes (85) 937 (8,095) 2,191 Income tax (benefit) expense (7) 359 208 670 Net (loss) income $ (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521

Commitments, Contingencies and

Commitments, Contingencies and Other Items	9 Months Ended
Commitments, Contingencies and Other Items	Sep. 30, 2023
Commitments and Contingencies Disclosure [Abstract]
Commitments and Contingencies and Other Items	Commitments, Contingencies and Other Items We are subject to various claims, legal proceedings and other contingent liabilities, including the matters described below, which individually or in the aggregate could materially affect our financial condition, future results of operations or cash flows. As a matter of course, we are prepared to both litigate these matters to judgment as needed, as well as to evaluate and consider reasonable settlement opportunities. We review our litigation accrual liabilities on a quarterly basis, but in accordance with applicable accounting guidelines only establish accrual liabilities when losses are deemed probable and reasonably estimable and only revise previously established accrual liabilities when warranted by changes in circumstances, in each case based on then-available information. As such, as of any given date we could have exposure to losses under proceedings as to which no liability has been accrued or as to which the accrued liability is inadequate. Subject to these limitations, at September 30, 2023, we had accrued $85 million in the aggregate for our litigation and non-income tax contingencies, which is included in other current liabilities, other liabilities, or liabilities held for sale on our consolidated balance sheet as of such date. We cannot at this time estimate the reasonably possible loss or range of loss in excess of this $85 million accrual due to the inherent uncertainties and speculative nature of contested proceedings. The establishment of an accrual does not mean that actual funds have been set aside to satisfy a given contingency. Thus, the resolution of a particular contingency for the amount accrued could have no effect on our results of operations but nonetheless could have an adverse effect on our cash flows. In this Note, when we refer to a class action as "putative" it is because a class has been alleged, but not certified, in that matter. Principal Proceedings Shareholder Class Action Suits Lumen and certain Lumen Board of Directors members and officers were named as defendants in a putative shareholder class action lawsuit filed on June 12, 2018 in the Boulder County District Court of the state of Colorado, captioned Houser et al. v. CenturyLink, et al. The complaint asserted claims on behalf of a putative class of former Level 3 shareholders who became CenturyLink, Inc. shareholders as a result of our acquisition of Level 3. It alleged that the proxy statement provided to the Level 3 shareholders failed to disclose various material information of several kinds, including information about strategic revenue, customer loss rates, and customer account issues, among other items. The complaint seeks damages, costs and fees, rescission, rescissory damages, and other equitable relief. In May 2020, the court dismissed the complaint. Plaintiffs appealed that decision, and in March 2022, the appellate court affirmed the district court's order in part and reversed it in part. It then remanded the case to the district court for further proceedings. Plaintiff filed an amended complaint, and we filed a motion to dismiss. The court granted our motion to dismiss and the plaintiffs have appealed that dismissal. On March 3, 2023, a purported shareholder of Lumen filed a putative class action complaint captioned Voigt v. Lumen Technologies, Inc., et al., Case 3:23-cv-00286-TAD-KDM, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. The complaint alleges that Lumen and certain of its current or former officers violated the federal securities laws by omitting or misstating material information related to Lumen’s expansion of its Quantum Fiber business. The complaint seeks money damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, and other relief. On September 15, 2023, a purported shareholder of Lumen filed a putative class action complaint captioned McLemore v. Lumen Technologies, Inc., et al., Case 3:23-cv-01290, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Louisiana. The complaint alleges that Lumen and certain of its current or former officers violated the federal securities laws by omitting or misstating material information related to Lumen’s responsibility for environmental degradation allegedly caused by the lead sheathing of certain telecommunications cables. The complaint seeks money damages, attorneys’ fees and costs, and other relief. State Tax Suits Since 2012, a number of Missouri municipalities have asserted claims in the Circuit Court of St. Louis County, Missouri, alleging that we and several of our subsidiaries have underpaid taxes. These municipalities are seeking, among other things, declaratory relief regarding the application of business license and gross receipts taxes and back taxes from 2007 to the present, plus penalties and interest. In a February 2017 ruling in connection with one of these pending cases, the court entered an order awarding the plaintiffs $4 million and broadening the tax base on a going-forward basis. We appealed that decision to the Missouri Supreme Court. In December 2019, it affirmed the circuit court's order in some respects and reversed it in others, remanding the case to the circuit court for further proceedings. The Missouri Supreme Court's decision reduced our exposure in the case. In a June 2021 ruling in one of the pending cases, another trial court awarded the cities of Columbia and Joplin approximately $55 million, plus statutory interest. On appeal, the Missouri Court of Appeals affirmed in part and reversed in part, vacated the judgment and remanded the case to the trial court with instructions for further proceedings consistent with the Missouri Supreme Court's decision. We continue to vigorously defend against these claims. Billing Practices Suits In June 2017, a former employee filed an employment lawsuit against us claiming that she was wrongfully terminated for alleging that we charged some of our retail customers for products and services they did not authorize. Thereafter, based in part on the allegations made by the former employee, several legal proceedings were filed, including consumer class actions in federal and state courts, a series of securities investor class actions in federal courts and several shareholder derivative actions in federal and Louisiana state courts. The derivative cases were brought on behalf of CenturyLink, Inc. against certain current and former officers and directors of the Company and seek damages for alleged breaches of fiduciary duties. The consumer class actions, the securities investor class actions, and the federal derivative actions were transferred to the U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota for coordinated and consolidated pretrial proceedings as In Re: CenturyLink Sales Practices and Securities Litigation. We have settled the consumer and securities investor class actions. Those settlements are final. The derivative actions remain pending. We have engaged in discussions regarding related claims with a number of state attorneys general, and have entered into agreements settling certain of the consumer practices claims asserted by state attorneys general. While we do not agree with allegations raised in these matters, we have been willing to consider reasonable settlements where appropriate. December 2018 Outage Proceedings We experienced an outage on one of our transport networks that impacted voice, IP, 911, and transport services for some of our customers between the 27th and 29th of December 2018. We believe that the outage was caused by a faulty network management card from a third-party equipment vendor. The FCC and four states (both Washington Utilities and Transportation Commission ("WUTC") and the Washington Attorney General; the Montana Public Service Commission; the Nebraska Public Service Commission; and the Wyoming Public Service Commission) initiated formal investigations. In November 2020, following the FCC's release of a public report on the outage, we negotiated a settlement which was released by the FCC in December 2020. The amount of the settlement was not material to our financial statements. In December 2020, the Staff of the WUTC filed a complaint against us based on the December 2018 outage, seeking penalties of approximately $7 million for alleged violations of Washington regulations and laws. The Washington Attorney General's office sought penalties of $27 million. Following trial before the WUTC, it issued an order in June 2023 penalizing us for approximately $1 million. We and the Washington Attorney General's office have both filed for reconsideration. Those motions are pending. Latin American Tax Litigation and Claims In connection with the 2022 divestiture of our Latin American business, the purchaser assumed responsibility for the Peruvian tax litigation and Brazilian tax claims described in our prior periodic reports filed with the SEC. We agreed to indemnify the purchaser for amounts paid in respect of the Brazilian tax claims. The value of this indemnification is included in the indemnification amount as disclosed in Note 10—Fair Value of Financial Instruments. Other Proceedings, Disputes and Contingencies From time to time, we are involved in other proceedings incidental to our business, including patent infringement allegations, regulatory hearings relating primarily to our rates or services, actions relating to employee claims, various tax issues, environmental law issues, grievance hearings before labor regulatory agencies and miscellaneous third-party tort actions or commercial disputes. We are currently defending several patent infringement lawsuits asserted against us by non-practicing entities, many of which are seeking substantial recoveries. These cases have progressed to various stages and one or more may go to trial within the next twelve months if they are not otherwise resolved. Where applicable, we are seeking full or partial indemnification from our vendors and suppliers. As with all litigation, we are vigorously defending these actions and, as a matter of course, are prepared to litigate these matters to judgment, as well as to evaluate and consider all reasonable settlement opportunities. We are subject to various foreign, federal, state and local environmental protection and health and safety laws. From time to time, we are subject to judicial and administrative proceedings brought by various governmental authorities under these laws. Several such proceedings are currently pending, but none is reasonably expected to exceed $300,000 in fines and penalties. In addition, in the past we acquired companies that had installed lead-sheathed cables several decades earlier, or had operated certain manufacturing companies in the first part of the 1900s. Under applicable environmental laws, we could be named as a potentially responsible party for a share of the remediation of environmental conditions arising from the historical operations of our predecessors. The outcome of these other proceedings described under this heading is not predictable. However, based on current circumstances, we do not believe that the ultimate resolution of these other proceedings, after considering available defenses and any insurance coverage or indemnification rights, will have a material adverse effect on us. The matters listed in this Note do not reflect all of our contingencies. For additional information on our contingencies, see Note 18—Commitments, Contingencies and Other Items to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. The ultimate outcome of the above-described matters may differ materially from the outcomes anticipated, estimated, projected or implied by us in certain of our statements appearing above in this Note, and proceedings currently viewed as immaterial by us may ultimately materially impact us.

Other Financial Information

Other Financial Information	9 Months Ended
Other Financial Information	Sep. 30, 2023
Deferred Costs, Capitalized, Prepaid, and Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Other Financial Information	Other Financial Information Other Current Assets The following table presents details of other current assets reflected on our consolidated balance sheets: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Prepaid expenses $ 392 319 Income tax receivable 122 — Materials, supplies and inventory 227 236 Contract assets 20 20 Contract acquisition costs 107 123 Contract fulfillment costs 99 100 Other 15 5 Total other current assets (1) $ 982 803 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Excludes $55 million and $59 million of other current assets related to the EMEA business that were classified as held for sale as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

Repurchases of Lumen Common Sto

Repurchases of Lumen Common Stock	9 Months Ended
Repurchases of Lumen Common Stock	Sep. 30, 2023
Equity [Abstract]
Repurchases of Lumen Common Stock	Repurchases of Lumen Common Stock During the fourth quarter of 2022, our Board of Directors authorized a two-year program to repurchase up to an aggregate of $1.5 billion of our outstanding common stock. During the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, we did not repurchase any shares of our outstanding common stock under this program. As of September 30, 2023, we are authorized to purchase up to an aggregate of $1.3 billion of our outstanding common stock under this program. Any repurchases made in 2023 or thereafter will be subject to a non-deductible 1% excise tax on the fair market value of the stock under the Inflation Reduction Act of 2022.

Accumulated Other Comprehensive

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	9 Months Ended
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Sep. 30, 2023
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net of Tax [Abstract]
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss	Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss Information Relating to 2023 The table below summarizes changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss recorded on our consolidated balance sheet by component for the nine months ended September 30, 2023: Pension Plans Post-Retirement Benefit Plans Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment and Other Total (Dollars in millions) Balance at December 31, 2022 $ (985) 308 (422) (1,099) Other comprehensive income before reclassifications — — 3 3 Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss 55 (16) — 39 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) 55 (16) 3 42 Balance at September 30, 2023 $ (930) 292 (419) (1,057) The tables below present further information about our reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive loss by component for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023: Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 22 Other expense, net Prior service credit (4) Other expense, net Total before tax 18 Income tax benefit (5) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 13 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 63 Other expense, net Prior service credit (11) Other expense, net Total before tax 52 Income tax benefit (13) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 39 ________________________________________________________________________ (1) See Note 8—Employee Benefits for additional information on our net periodic benefit expense (income) related to our pension and post-retirement plans. Information Relating to 2022 The table below summarizes changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss recorded on our consolidated balance sheets by component for the nine months ended September 30, 2022 : Pension Plans Post-Retirement Benefit Plans Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment and Other Interest Rate Swap Total (Dollars in millions) Balance at December 31, 2021 $ (1,577) (164) (400) (17) (2,158) Other comprehensive loss before reclassifications — — (245) — (245) Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss 68 4 112 17 201 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) 68 4 (133) 17 (44) Balance at September 30, 2022 $ (1,509) (160) (533) — (2,202) The tables below present further information about our reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive loss by component for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022: Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Interest rate swaps $ — Interest expense Income tax benefit — Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ — Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 32 Other expense, net Prior service cost (2) Other expense, net Total before tax 30 Income tax benefit (7) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 23 Reclassification of realized loss on foreign currency translation to gain on sale of business $ 112 Gain on sale of business Income tax benefit — Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 112 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Interest rate swaps $ 22 Interest expense Income tax benefit (5) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 17 Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 99 Other expense, net Prior service cost (3) Other expense, net Total before tax 96 Income tax benefit (24) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 72 Reclassification of realized loss on foreign currency translation to gain on sale of business $ 112 Gain on sale of business Income tax benefit — Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 112 ________________________________________________________________________ (1) See Note 8—Employee Benefits for additional information on our net periodic benefit income related to our pension and post-retirement plans.

Labor Union Contracts

Labor Union Contracts	9 Months Ended
Labor Union Contracts	Sep. 30, 2023
Risks and Uncertainties [Abstract]
Labor Union Contracts	Labor Union ContractsAs of September 30, 2023, approximately 19% of our employees were represented by the Communications Workers of America ("CWA") or the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers ("IBEW"). Approximately 2% of our represented employees are subject to collective bargaining agreements that are scheduled to expire over the 12 month period ending September 30, 2024.

Subsequent Events

Subsequent Events	9 Months Ended
Subsequent Events	Sep. 30, 2023
Subsequent Events [Abstract]
Subsequent Events	Subsequent Events Sale of Select Content Delivery Network ("CDN") Customer Contracts On October 10, 2023, we announced the sale of substantially all of our CDN service contracts. We will provide certain transition services to the purchaser for 90 days, following which we plan to wind down the remaining portion of our remaining CDN contracts in 2024. Debt Transaction Support Agreement On October 31, 2023, Lumen announced that it has entered into a transaction support agreement with a group of creditors representing over $7 billion of the outstanding indebtedness of the Company and its subsidiaries to, among other things, extend maturities of the debt instruments of the Company and Level 3 Financing, Inc. In addition, the creditors have committed to provide $1.2 billion of financing to the Company through new long-term debt. The consummation of the transactions contemplated by the transaction support agreement is subject to the satisfaction of various closing conditions.

Background (Policies)

Background (Policies)	9 Months Ended
Background (Policies)	Sep. 30, 2023
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Basis of Presentation	Basis of Presentation Our consolidated balance sheet as of December 31, 2022, which was derived from our audited consolidated financial statements, and our unaudited interim consolidated financial statements provided herein have been prepared in accordance with the instructions for Form 10-Q. Certain information and note disclosures normally included in financial statements prepared in accordance with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America ("GAAP") have been condensed or omitted pursuant to rules and regulations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC"). However, in our opinion, the disclosures made therein are adequate to make the information presented not misleading. We believe these consolidated financial statements include all normal recurring adjustments necessary to fairly present the results for the interim periods. The consolidated results of operations and cash flows for the first nine months of the year are not necessarily indicative of the consolidated results of operations and cash flows that might be expected for the entire year. These consolidated financial statements and the accompanying notes should be read in conjunction with the audited consolidated financial statements and the notes thereto included in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022.
Consolidation	The accompanying consolidated financial statements include our accounts and the accounts of our subsidiaries in which we have a controlling interest. Intercompany amounts and transactions with our consolidated subsidiaries have been eliminated. To simplify the overall presentation of our consolidated financial statements, we report immaterial amounts attributable to noncontrolling interests in certain of our subsidiaries as follows: (i) income attributable to noncontrolling interests in other expense, net, (ii) equity attributable to noncontrolling interests in additional paid-in capital and (iii) cash flows attributable to noncontrolling interests in other, net financing activities.
Reclassification	We reclassified certain prior period amounts to conform to the current period presentation, including the recategorization of our Business revenue by product category and sales channel in our segment reporting. See Note 11—Segment Information for additional information. These changes had no impact on total operating revenue, total operating expenses or net (loss) income for any period.
Operating Leases	Operating lease assets are included in other, net under goodwill and other assets on our consolidated balance sheets. Noncurrent operating lease liabilities are included in other under deferred credits and other liabilities on our consolidated balance sheets.
Recently Adopted and Issued Accounting Pronouncements	Recently Adopted Accounting Pronouncements Supplier Finance Programs On January 1, 2023, we adopted Accounting Standards Update ("ASU") 2022-04, “Liabilities-Supplier Finance Program (Subtopic 405-50): Disclosure of Supplier Finance Program Obligations ” (“ASU 2022-04”). These amendments require that a company that uses a supplier finance program in connection with the purchase of goods or services disclose sufficient information about the program to allow a user of financial statements to understand the program’s nature, program activity during the period, changes from period to period and the potential magnitude of program transactions. The adoption of ASU 2022-04 did not have a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. Credit Losses On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2022-02, “ Financial Instruments-Credit Losses (Topic 326): Troubled Debt Restructurings (“TDR”) and Vintage Disclosures ” (“ASU 2022-02”). The ASU eliminates the TDR recognition and measurement guidance, enhances existing disclosure requirements and introduces new requirements related to certain modifications of receivables made to borrowers experiencing financial difficulty. The adoption of ASU 2022-02 did not have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. Derivatives and Hedging On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2022-01, “ Derivatives and Hedging (Topic 815): Fair Value Hedging-Portfolio Layer Method ” ("ASU 2022-01"). The ASU expands the current single-layer method to allow multiple hedged layers of a single closed portfolio under the method. The adoption of ASU 2022-01 did not have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. Business Combinations On January 1, 2023, we adopted ASU 2021-08, “ Business Combinations (Topic 805): Accounting for Contract Assets and Contract Liabilities from Contracts with Customers ” (“ASU 2021-08”). This ASU requires entities to apply Topic 606 to recognize and measure contract assets and contract liabilities in a business combination. The adoption of ASU 2021-08 did not have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. Government Assistance On January 1, 2022, we adopted ASU 2021-10, " Government Assistance (Topic 832): Disclosures by Business Entities about Government Assistance ” (“ASU 2021-10”). This ASU requires business entities to disclose information about certain types of government assistance they receive. The ASU only impacts annual financial statement note disclosures. The adoption of ASU 2021-10 did not have a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. Leases On January 1, 2022, we adopted ASU 2021-05, “ Leases (Topic 842): Lessors—Certain Leases with Variable Lease Payments ” (“ASU 2021-05”). This ASU (i) amends the lease classification requirements for lessors to align them with practice under ASC Topic 840, (ii) provides criteria for lessors to classify and account for a lease with variable lease payments that do not depend on a reference index or a rate as an operating lease; and (iii) provides guidance with respect to net investments by lessors under operating leases and other related topics. The adoption of ASU 2021-05 did not have a material impact to our consolidated financial statements. Recently Issued Accounting Pronouncements In October 2023, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (“FASB”) issued ASU 2023-06, “ Disclosure Improvements: Codification Amendments in Response to the SEC’s Disclosure Update and Simplification Initiative ” (“ASU 2023-06”). This ASU incorporates certain SEC disclosure requirements into the FASB Accounting Standards Codification (“Codification”). The amendments in the ASU are expected to clarify or improve disclosure and presentation requirements of a variety of Codification Topics, allow users to more easily compare entities subject to the SEC’s existing disclosures with those entities that were not previously subject to the requirements, and align the requirements in the Codification with the SEC’s regulations. ASU 2023-06 will become effective for each amendment on the effective date of the SEC's corresponding disclosure rule changes. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-06 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In August 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-05, “ Business Combinations – Joint Venture Formations (Subtopic 805-60): Recognition and initial Measurement ” (“ASU 2023-05”). This ASU applies to the formation of entities that meet the definition of a joint venture (or a corporate joint venture). The amendments in the ASU require that a joint venture apply a new basis of accounting upon formation. ASU 2023-05 will become effective for us in the first quarter of fiscal 2025 and early adoption is permitted. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-05 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In August 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-04, “ Liabilities (Topic 405): Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 121 ” (“ASU 2023-04”). This ASU amends and adds various SEC paragraphs to the FASB Codification to reflect guidance regarding the accounting for obligations to safeguard crypto assets an entity holds for platform users. This ASU does not provide any new guidance. ASU 2023-04 will become effective for us once the addition to the FASB Codification is made available. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-04 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In July 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-03, “ Presentation of Financial Statements (Topic 205), Income Statement—Reporting Comprehensive Income (Topic 220), Distinguishing Liabilities from Equity (Topic 480), Equity (Topic 505), and Compensation—Stock Compensation (Topic 718): Amendments to SEC Paragraphs Pursuant to SEC Staff Accounting Bulletin No. 120, SEC Staff Announcement at the March 24, 2022 EITF Meeting, and Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 6.B, Accounting Series Release 280—General Revision of Regulation S-X: Income or Loss Applicable to Common Stock ” (“ASU 2023-03”). This ASU amends or supersedes various SEC paragraphs within the applicable codification to conform to past SEC staff announcements. This ASU does not provide any new guidance. ASU 2023-03 will become effective for us once the addition to the FASB Codification is made available. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-03 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In March 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-02, “ Investments-Equity method and Joint Ventures (Topic 323): Accounting for Investments in Tax Credit Structures Using the Proportional Amortization Method ” (“ASU 2023-02”). These amendments allow reporting entities to elect to account for qualifying tax equity investments using the proportional amortization method, regardless of the program giving rise to the related income tax credits. ASU 2023-02 will become effective for us in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 and early adoption is permitted. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-02 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In March 2023, the FASB issued ASU 2023-01, “ Leases (Topic 842): Common Control Arrangements ” (“ASU 2023-01”). These amendments require all entities to amortize leasehold improvements associated with common control leases over the useful life to the common control group. ASU 2023-01 will become effective for us in the first quarter of fiscal 2024 and early adoption is permitted. As of September 30, 2023, we do not expect ASU 2023-01 will have any impact to our consolidated financial statements. In June 2022, the FASB issued ASU 2022-03, “ Fair Value Measurement (Topic 820): Fair Value Measurement of Equity Securities Subject to Contractual Sale Restrictions

Planned Divestiture of the EM_2

Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Discontinued Operations and Disposal Groups [Abstract]
Schedule of Components of Pre-Tax Income and Assets and Liabilities as of the Disposal Date	The principal components of the held for sale assets and liabilities of the EMEA business as of the dates below are as follows: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Assets held for sale Cash and cash equivalents $ 27 43 Accounts receivable, less allowance of $4 and $5 70 76 Other current assets 55 59 Property, plant and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation of $1,020 and $1,033 1,955 1,873 Customer relationships and other intangible assets, net 103 100 Operating lease assets 215 156 Valuation allowance on assets held for sale (1) (772) (660) Deferred tax assets 154 138 Other non-current assets 38 38 Total assets held for sale $ 1,845 1,823 Liabilities held for sale Accounts payable $ 57 78 Salaries and benefits 20 23 Current portion of deferred revenue 28 28 Current operating lease liabilities 41 33 Other current liabilities 34 28 Deferred income taxes 60 38 Asset retirement obligations 31 30 Deferred revenue, non-current 99 85 Operating lease liabilities, non-current 103 103 Total liabilities held for sale $ 473 446 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Includes the impact of $373 million and $365 million as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, primarily related to loss on foreign currency translation, expected to be reclassified out of accumulated other comprehensive loss upon close of the sale.

Goodwill, Customer Relationsh_2

Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets (Tables)	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Intangible Assets and Goodwill	Goodwill, customer relationships and other intangible assets consisted of the following: September 30, 2023 (1) December 31, 2022 (1) (Dollars in millions) Goodwill (2) $ 3,864 12,657 Indefinite-lived intangible assets $ 9 9 Other intangible assets subject to amortization: Customer relationships, less accumulated amortization of $4,087 and $3,606 4,088 4,574 Capitalized software, less accumulated amortization of $3,961 and $3,895 (3) 1,557 1,482 Trade names, patents and other, less accumulated amortization of $68 and $188 (3) 90 101 Total other intangible assets, net $ 5,744 6,166 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) These values exclude assets classified as held for sale. (2) We recorded a non-cash, non-tax-deductible goodwill impairment charge of $8.8 billion during the second quarter of 2023. (3) Certain capitalized software with a gross carrying value of $183 million and trade names with a gross carrying value of $130 million became fully amortized during 2022 and were retired during the first quarter of 2023.
Schedule of Rollforward Goodwill	The following table shows the rollforward of goodwill assigned to our reportable segments from December 31, 2022 through September 30, 2023. Business Mass Markets Total (Dollars in Millions) As of December 31, 2022 (1) $ 7,906 4,751 12,657 Impairment (6,580) (2,213) (8,793) As of September 30, 2023 (1) $ 1,326 2,538 3,864 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Goodwill at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022 is net of accumulated impairment losses of $19.8 billion and $11.0 billion, respectively.
Schedule of Finite-Lived Intangible Assets, Future Amortization Expense	We estimate that amortization expense for finite-lived intangible assets for the years ending December 31, 2023 through 2027 will be as provided in the table below. As a result of classifying our EMEA business as held for sale on our September 30, 2023 consolidated balance sheet, the amounts presented below do not include future amortization expense for intangible assets of the business to be divested. See Note 2—Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business for more information. (Dollars in millions) 2023 (remaining three months) $ 244 2024 925 2025 853 2026 809 2027 730

Revenue Recognition (Tables)

Revenue Recognition (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Revenue Recognition (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Revenue from Contract with Customer [Abstract]
Schedule of Revenue	The following tables provide total revenue by segment, sales channel and product category. They also provide the amount of revenue that is not subject to ASC 606, " Revenue from Contracts with Customers " ("ASC 606"), but is instead governed by other accounting standards. The amounts in the tables below include revenue for the Latin American and ILEC businesses prior to their sales on August 1, 2022 and October 3, 2022, respectively. See Note 2—Divestitures of the Latin American and ILEC Businesses and Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 for additional information on these divestitures. Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Total Revenue Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from Contracts with Customers Total Revenue Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from Contracts with Customers (Dollars in millions) Business Segment by Sales Channel and Product Category Large Enterprise Grow $ 557 (77) 480 571 (79) 492 Nurture 369 — 369 404 — 404 Harvest 186 — 186 245 — 245 Other 70 (3) 67 66 (1) 65 Total Large Enterprise Revenue 1,182 (80) 1,102 1,286 (80) 1,206 Mid-Market Enterprise Grow 201 (6) 195 192 (7) 185 Nurture 195 — 195 226 — 226 Harvest 94 (1) 93 129 (2) 127 Other 8 (1) 7 8 (1) 7 Total Mid-Market Enterprise Revenue 498 (8) 490 555 (10) 545 Public Sector Grow 117 (22) 95 106 (25) 81 Nurture 98 — 98 121 — 121 Harvest 96 — 96 119 (1) 118 Other 133 — 133 111 — 111 Total Public Sector Revenue 444 (22) 422 457 (26) 431 Wholesale Grow 250 (61) 189 247 (67) 180 Nurture 203 (5) 198 255 (6) 249 Harvest 314 (42) 272 404 (56) 348 Other 3 — 3 14 — 14 Total Wholesale Revenue 770 (108) 662 920 (129) 791 Business Segment by Product Category Grow 1,125 (166) 959 1,116 (178) 938 Nurture 865 (5) 860 1,006 (6) 1,000 Harvest 690 (43) 647 897 (59) 838 Other 214 (4) 210 199 (2) 197 Total Business Segment Revenue 2,894 (218) 2,676 3,218 (245) 2,973 Mass Markets Segment by Product Category Fiber Broadband 162 (4) 158 160 (4) 156 Other Broadband 340 (31) 309 580 (55) 525 Voice and Other 245 (9) 236 432 (27) 405 Total Mass Markets Revenue 747 (44) 703 1,172 (86) 1,086 Total Revenue $ 3,641 (262) 3,379 4,390 (331) 4,059 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Total revenue Adjustments for non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from contracts with customers Total revenue Adjustments for non-ASC 606 revenue (1) Total revenue from contracts with customers (Dollars in millions) Business Segment by Sales Channel and Product Category Large Enterprise Grow $ 1,665 (234) 1,431 1,882 (284) 1,598 Nurture 1,113 — 1,113 1,302 — 1,302 Harvest 590 — 590 793 — 793 Other 187 (5) 182 183 (4) 179 Total Large Enterprise Revenue 3,555 (239) 3,316 4,160 (288) 3,872 Mid-Market Enterprise Grow 599 (21) 578 565 (23) 542 Nurture 608 — 608 698 — 698 Harvest 288 (3) 285 404 (6) 398 Other 25 (4) 21 23 (1) 22 Total Mid-Market Enterprise Revenue 1,520 (28) 1,492 1,690 (30) 1,660 Public Sector Grow 351 (60) 291 337 (79) 258 Nurture 297 — 297 380 — 380 Harvest 290 — 290 367 (3) 364 Other 350 — 350 346 (1) 345 Total Public Sector Revenue 1,288 (60) 1,228 1,430 (83) 1,347 Wholesale Grow 776 (194) 582 720 (202) 518 Nurture 621 (19) 602 780 (20) 760 Harvest 978 (129) 849 1,216 (170) 1,046 Other 9 — 9 40 — 40 Total Wholesale Revenue 2,384 (342) 2,042 2,756 (392) 2,364 Business Segment by Product Category Grow 3,391 (509) 2,882 3,504 (588) 2,916 Nurture 2,639 (19) 2,620 3,160 (20) 3,140 Harvest 2,146 (132) 2,014 2,780 (179) 2,601 Other 571 (9) 562 592 (6) 586 Total Business Segment Revenue 8,747 (669) 8,078 10,036 (793) 9,243 Mass Markets Segment by Product Category Fiber Broadband 471 (12) 459 456 (14) 442 Other Broadband 1,064 (96) 968 1,787 (166) 1,621 Voice and Other 758 (27) 731 1,399 (126) 1,273 Total Mass Markets Revenue 2,293 (135) 2,158 3,642 (306) 3,336 Total Revenue $ 11,040 (804) 10,236 13,678 (1,099) 12,579 _____________________________________________________________________ (1) Includes regulatory revenue and lease revenue not within the scope of ASC 606.
Schedule of Contract with Customer, Asset and Liability	The following table provides balances of customer receivables, contract assets and contract liabilities, net of amounts classified as held for sale, as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Customer receivables (1) $ 1,372 1,424 Contract assets (2) 29 34 Contract liabilities (3) 725 656 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Reflects gross customer receivables of $1.4 billion and $1.5 billion at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively, net of allowance for credit losses of $63 million and $73 million, at September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. These amounts exclude customer receivables, net, classified as held for sale of $70 million at September 30, 2023 and $76 million at December 31, 2022 related to the EMEA business. (2) These amounts exclude contract assets classified as held for sale of $11 million at September 30, 2023 and $16 million at December 31, 2022 related to the EMEA business. (3) These amounts exclude contract liabilities classified as held for sale of $47 million at September 30, 2023 and $59 million at December 31, 2022 related to the EMEA business.
Schedule of Capitalized Contract Cost	The following tables provide changes in our contract acquisition costs and fulfillment costs: Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs (Dollars in millions) Beginning of period balance (1)(2) $ 183 186 208 188 Costs incurred 31 41 45 38 Amortization (37) (35) (49) (35) Change in contract costs held for sale — — 3 (2) End of period balance (5)(6) $ 177 192 207 189 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs Acquisition Costs Fulfillment Costs (Dollars in millions) Beginning of period balance (3)(4) $ 202 192 222 186 Costs incurred 96 120 129 119 Amortization (117) (106) (150) (113) Change in contract costs held for sale (4) (14) 6 (3) End of period balance (5)(6) $ 177 192 207 189 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Beginning of period balance for the three months ended September 30, 2023 excludes $10 million of acquisition costs and $14 million of fulfillment costs classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business. (2) Beginning of period balance for the three months ended September 30, 2022 excludes $31 million of acquisition costs and $33 million of fulfillment costs classified as held for sale (related to both the Latin American business and the ILEC business, sold in the third and fourth quarters of 2022, respectively). (3) Beginning of period balance for the nine months ended September 30, 2023 excludes $6 million of acquisition costs and no fulfillment costs classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business. (4) Beginning of period balance for the nine months ended September 30, 2022 excludes acquisition costs and fulfillment costs classified as held for sale of $34 million and $32 million, respectively (related to both the Latin American business and the ILEC business, sold in the third and fourth quarters of 2022, respectively). (5) End of period balance for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 excludes $10 million of acquisition costs and $14 million of fulfillment costs classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business. (6) End of period balance for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022 excludes acquisition costs and fulfillment costs classified as held for sale of $28 million and $35 million, respectively (related to both the Latin American business and the ILEC business, sold in the third and fourth quarters of 2022, respectively).

Credit Losses on Financial In_2

Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Credit Loss [Abstract]
Schedule of Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss	The following table presents the activity of our allowance for credit losses by accounts receivable portfolio for the nine months ended September 30, 2023: Business Mass Markets Total (Dollars in millions) As of December 31, 2022 (1) $ 57 28 85 Provision for expected losses 27 50 77 Write-offs charged against the allowance (37) (51) (88) Recoveries collected 5 2 7 Change in allowance in assets held for sale 1 — 1 Ending balance at September 30, 2023 (1) $ 53 29 82 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) As of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, these amounts excluded $4 million and $5 million of allowance for credit losses classified as held for sale related to the EMEA business included in the Business portfolio. See Note 2—Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business.

Long-Term Debt and Credit Fac_2

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Long-term Debt Including Unamortized Discounts and Premiums	The following table reflects the consolidated long-term debt of Lumen Technologies, Inc. and its subsidiaries as of the dates indicated below, including unamortized discounts and premiums and unamortized debt issuance costs: Interest Rates (1) Maturities (1) September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Senior Secured Debt: (2) Lumen Technologies, Inc. Revolving Credit Facility (3) SOFR + 2.00% 2025 $ 75 — Term Loan A (4) SOFR + 2.00% 2025 948 991 Term Loan A-1 (4) SOFR + 2.00% 2025 271 283 Term Loan B (5) SOFR + 2.25% 2027 3,903 3,941 Senior notes 4.000% 2027 1,250 1,250 Subsidiaries: Level 3 Financing, Inc. Tranche B 2027 Term Loan (6) SOFR + 1.75% 2027 2,411 2,411 Senior notes 3.400% - 10.500% 2027 - 2030 2,425 1,500 Senior Notes and Other Debt: Lumen Technologies, Inc. Senior notes 4.500% - 7.650% 2025 - 2042 2,143 3,722 Subsidiaries: Level 3 Financing, Inc. Senior notes 3.625% - 4.625% 2027 - 2029 3,940 3,940 Qwest Corporation Senior notes 6.500% - 7.750% 2025 - 2057 1,986 1,986 Term loan (7) SOFR + 2.50% 2027 215 215 Qwest Capital Funding, Inc. Senior notes 6.875% - 7.750% 2028 - 2031 192 192 Finance lease and other obligations (8) Various Various 291 317 Unamortized discounts, net (3) (7) Unamortized debt issuance costs (152) (169) Total long-term debt 19,895 20,572 Less current maturities (155) (154) Long-term debt, excluding current maturities $ 19,740 20,418 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) As of September 30, 2023. (2) See Note 7—Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022 for a description of certain parent or subsidiary guarantees and liens securing this debt. (3) Revolving Credit Facility had an interest rate of 7.450% as of September 30, 2023. (4) Term Loans A and A-1 had interest rates of 7.431% and 6.384% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (5) Term Loan B had interest rates of 7.681% and 6.634% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (6) The Level 3 Tranche B 2027 Term Loan had interest rates of 7.181% and 6.134% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (7) The Qwest Corporation Term Loan had interest rates of 7.931% and 6.640% as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively. (8) Excludes finance lease obligations of our EMEA business classified as held for sale.
Schedule of Maturities of Long-term Debt	Set forth below is the aggregate principal amount of our long-term debt as of September 30, 2023 (excluding unamortized discounts, net, and unamortized debt issuance costs), maturing during the following years. As a result of classifying our EMEA business as held for sale on our September 30, 2023 consolidated balance sheet, the amounts presented below do not include maturities of the finance lease obligations of that business. See Note 2—Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business. (Dollars in millions) 2023 (remaining three months) $ 40 2024 157 2025 1,739 2026 498 2027 9,386 2028 and thereafter 8,230 Total long-term debt $ 20,050
Schedule of Debt Repayments	The following table sets forth the aggregate principal amount of each series of Lumen’s senior unsecured notes retired during the nine months ended September 30, 2023, in connection with the above-described exchange transactions: Debt Period of Reduction Aggregate principal (amounts in millions) 5.625% Senior Notes, Series X, due 2025 Q1 2023 $ 48 7.200% Senior Notes, Series D, due 2025 Q1 2023 21 5.125% Senior Notes due 2026 Q1 2023 291 6.875% Debentures, Series G, due 2028 Q1 2023 52 5.375% Senior Notes due 2029 Q1 2023 275 4.500% Senior Notes due 2029 Q1 2023 556 7.600% Senior Notes, Series P, due 2039 Q1 2023 161 7.650% Senior Notes, Series U, due 2042 Q1 2023 131 5.625% Senior Notes, Series X, due 2025 Q2 2023 1 4.500% Senior Notes due 2029 Q2 2023 2 7.600% Senior Notes, Series P, due 2039 Q2 2023 3 7.650% Senior Notes, Series U, due 2042 Q2 2023 13 Total $ 1,554

Severance (Tables)

Severance (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Severance (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Restructuring and Related Activities [Abstract]
Schedule of Changes in Accrued Liabilities for Severance Expenses	Changes in our accrued liabilities for severance expenses were as follows: Severance (Dollars in millions) Balance at December 31, 2022 $ 11 Accrued to expense 21 Payments, net (19) Balance at September 30, 2023 $ 13

Employee Benefits (Tables)

Employee Benefits (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Employee Benefits (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Retirement Benefits [Abstract]
Schedule of Components of Net Periodic Pension Benefit (Income) Expense and Post-retirement Benefit Expense	Net periodic benefit expense (income) for the Lumen Combined Pension Plan (the "Combined Pension Plan" or the "Plan") includes the following components: Combined Pension Plan Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 (1) 2023 2022 (1) (Dollars in millions) Service cost $ 7 11 19 34 Interest cost 67 53 202 155 Expected return on plan assets (72) (100) (215) (302) Recognition of prior service credit (2) (3) (5) (8) Recognition of actuarial loss 27 32 78 99 Net periodic pension expense (income) $ 27 (7) 79 (22) ______________________________________________________________________ (1) These amounts include pension costs related to the Lumen Pension Plan prior to the sale of the ILEC business on October 3, 2022. For additional information on the Lumen Pension Plan, see Note 11—Employee Benefits to the consolidated financial statements and accompanying notes in Part II, Item 8 of our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. Net periodic benefit expense for our post-retirement benefit plans includes the following components: Post-Retirement Benefit Plans Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 2023 2022 (Dollars in millions) Service cost $ 1 3 4 8 Interest cost 26 15 77 45 Recognition of prior service (credit) cost (2) 1 (6) 5 Recognition of actuarial gain (5) — (15) — Net periodic post-retirement benefit expense $ 20 19 60 58

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Sh_2

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share (Tables)	9 Months Ended
(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Earnings Per Share [Abstract]
Schedule of Basic and Diluted (Loss) Earnings Per Common Share	Basic and diluted (loss) earnings per common share for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022 were calculated as follows: Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 2023 2022 (Dollars in millions, except per share amounts, shares in thousands) (Loss) Income (numerator) Net (loss) income $ (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521 Net (loss) income applicable to common stock for computing basic (loss) earnings per common share (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521 Net (loss) income as adjusted for purposes of computing diluted (loss) earnings per common share $ (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521 Shares (denominator): Weighted-average number of shares: Outstanding during period 1,008,523 1,034,786 1,006,140 1,031,687 Non-vested restricted stock (24,973) (21,662) (23,287) (20,189) Weighted average shares outstanding for computing basic (loss) earnings per common share 983,550 1,013,124 982,853 1,011,498 Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive securities: Shares issuable under convertible securities — 10 — 10 Shares issuable under incentive compensation plans — 3,879 — 4,773 Number of shares as adjusted for purposes of computing diluted (loss) earnings per common share 983,550 1,017,013 982,853 1,016,281 Basic (loss) earnings per common share $ (0.08) 0.57 (8.45) 1.50 Diluted (loss) earnings per common share (1) $ (0.08) 0.57 (8.45) 1.50 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, we excluded from the calculation of diluted loss per share, less than 1 million shares, potentially issuable under incentive compensations plans or convertible securities, as their effect, if included, would have been anti-dilutive.

Fair Value of Financial Instr_2

Fair Value of Financial Instruments (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Fair Value of Financial Instruments (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Fair Value Disclosures [Abstract]
Schedule of the Three Input Levels in the Hierarchy of Fair Value Measurements	The three input levels in the hierarchy of fair value measurements are defined by the FASB generally as follows: Input Level Description of Input Level 1 Observable inputs such as quoted market prices in active markets. Level 2 Inputs other than quoted prices in active markets that are either directly or indirectly observable. Level 3 Unobservable inputs in which little or no market data exists.
Schedule of Carrying Amounts and Estimated Fair Values of Financial Assets and Liabilities	The following table presents the carrying amounts and estimated fair values of our following financial assets and liabilities as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 Input Carrying Fair Carrying Fair (Dollars in millions) Equity securities (1) 1 $ — — 22 22 Long-term debt, excluding finance lease and other obligations 2 19,604 14,163 20,255 17,309 Indemnifications related to the sale of the Latin American business (2) 3 86 86 86 86 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) For the nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recognized $22 million of loss on equity securities in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations, with no change in value recognized for the three months ended September 30, 2023. For both the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022 we recognized $83 million of loss on equity securities in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations. (2) Nonrecurring fair value is measured as of August 1, 2022.
Schedule of Fair Value, Investments, Entities that Calculate Net Asset Value Per Share	As of September 30, 2023 As of December 31, 2022 Net Asset Value (Dollars in millions) Investment in limited partnership (1) $ 11 85 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023, we recognized a $15 million and $74 million loss on investment, respectively, reflected in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations. For the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022, we recognized $43 million and $114 million, respectively, of loss on investment, reflected in other expense, net in our consolidated statements of operations.

Segment Information (Tables)

Segment Information (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Segment Information (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Segment Reporting [Abstract]
Schedule of Segment Results	The following tables summarize our segment results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022, based on the segment categorization we were operating under at September 30, 2023. Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Business Mass Markets Business Mass Markets (Dollars in millions) Segment revenue $ 2,894 747 8,747 2,293 Segment expenses: Cost of services and products 796 22 2,343 71 Selling, general and administrative 324 356 916 1,010 Total segment expense 1,120 378 3,259 1,081 Total segment adjusted EBITDA $ 1,774 369 5,488 1,212 Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Business Mass Markets Business Mass Markets (Dollars in millions) Segment revenue $ 3,218 1,172 10,036 3,642 Segment expenses: Cost of services and products 792 25 2,449 90 Selling, general and administrative 293 470 928 1,283 Total segment expense 1,085 495 3,377 1,373 Total segment adjusted EBITDA $ 2,133 677 6,659 2,269
Schedule of Reconciliation of Operating Profit (Loss) From Segments to Consolidated Net Income	The following table reconciles total segment adjusted EBITDA to net (loss) income for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023 and 2022: Three Months Ended September 30, Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 2022 2023 2022 (Dollars in millions) Total segment adjusted EBITDA $ 2,143 2,810 6,700 8,928 Depreciation and amortization (755) (808) (2,234) (2,443) Goodwill impairment — — (8,793) — Other unallocated expense (1,149) (595) (3,442) (3,035) Stock-based compensation (16) (23) (39) (71) Operating income (loss) 223 1,384 (7,808) 3,379 Total other expense, net (308) (447) (287) (1,188) (Loss) income before income taxes (85) 937 (8,095) 2,191 Income tax (benefit) expense (7) 359 208 670 Net (loss) income $ (78) 578 (8,303) 1,521

Other Financial Information (Ta

Other Financial Information (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Other Financial Information (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Deferred Costs, Capitalized, Prepaid, and Other Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
Schedule of Components of Other Current Assets	The following table presents details of other current assets reflected on our consolidated balance sheets: September 30, 2023 December 31, 2022 (Dollars in millions) Prepaid expenses $ 392 319 Income tax receivable 122 — Materials, supplies and inventory 227 236 Contract assets 20 20 Contract acquisition costs 107 123 Contract fulfillment costs 99 100 Other 15 5 Total other current assets (1) $ 982 803 ______________________________________________________________________ (1) Excludes $55 million and $59 million of other current assets related to the EMEA business that were classified as held for sale as of September 30, 2023 and December 31, 2022, respectively.

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_2

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Tables)	9 Months Ended
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss (Tables)	Sep. 30, 2023
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss), Net of Tax [Abstract]
Schedule of the Entity's Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) by Component	The table below summarizes changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss recorded on our consolidated balance sheet by component for the nine months ended September 30, 2023: Pension Plans Post-Retirement Benefit Plans Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment and Other Total (Dollars in millions) Balance at December 31, 2022 $ (985) 308 (422) (1,099) Other comprehensive income before reclassifications — — 3 3 Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss 55 (16) — 39 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) 55 (16) 3 42 Balance at September 30, 2023 $ (930) 292 (419) (1,057) The table below summarizes changes in accumulated other comprehensive loss recorded on our consolidated balance sheets by component for the nine months ended September 30, 2022 : Pension Plans Post-Retirement Benefit Plans Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment and Other Interest Rate Swap Total (Dollars in millions) Balance at December 31, 2021 $ (1,577) (164) (400) (17) (2,158) Other comprehensive loss before reclassifications — — (245) — (245) Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss 68 4 112 17 201 Net current-period other comprehensive income (loss) 68 4 (133) 17 (44) Balance at September 30, 2022 $ (1,509) (160) (533) — (2,202)
Schedule of Reclassifications Out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) by Component	The tables below present further information about our reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive loss by component for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2023: Three Months Ended September 30, 2023 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 22 Other expense, net Prior service credit (4) Other expense, net Total before tax 18 Income tax benefit (5) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 13 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2023 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 63 Other expense, net Prior service credit (11) Other expense, net Total before tax 52 Income tax benefit (13) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 39 ________________________________________________________________________ (1) See Note 8—Employee Benefits for additional information on our net periodic benefit expense (income) related to our pension and post-retirement plans. The tables below present further information about our reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive loss by component for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2022: Three Months Ended September 30, 2022 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Interest rate swaps $ — Interest expense Income tax benefit — Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ — Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 32 Other expense, net Prior service cost (2) Other expense, net Total before tax 30 Income tax benefit (7) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 23 Reclassification of realized loss on foreign currency translation to gain on sale of business $ 112 Gain on sale of business Income tax benefit — Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 112 Nine Months Ended September 30, 2022 Decrease (Increase) Affected Line Item in Consolidated Statement of Operations (Dollars in millions) Interest rate swaps $ 22 Interest expense Income tax benefit (5) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 17 Amortization of pension & post-retirement plans (1) Net actuarial loss $ 99 Other expense, net Prior service cost (3) Other expense, net Total before tax 96 Income tax benefit (24) Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 72 Reclassification of realized loss on foreign currency translation to gain on sale of business $ 112 Gain on sale of business Income tax benefit — Income tax (benefit) expense Net of tax $ 112 ________________________________________________________________________ (1) See Note 8—Employee Benefits for additional information on our net periodic benefit income related to our pension and post-retirement plans.

Background (Details)

Background (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Organization, Consolidation and Presentation of Financial Statements [Abstract]
Book overdraft balance	$ 0	$ 0

Planned Divestiture of the EM_3

Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business - Additional Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended				9 Months Ended		12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Jun. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022	Nov. 02, 2022
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Depreciation and amortization					$ 2,234	$ 2,443
Goodwill impairment	$ 0	$ 8,800		$ 0	8,793	0
Loss on disposal group held for sale	22			$ 0	112	$ 0
Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Depreciation and amortization	88				232
Loss on disposal group held for sale	$ 22				$ 112
Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment			$ 43
Loss on disposal group held for sale							$ 660
Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business \| Level 3 Parent, LLC
Income Statement, Balance Sheet and Additional Disclosures by Disposal Groups, Including Discontinued Operations [Line Items]
Cash consideration from disposal of business								$ 1,800

Planned Divestiture of the EM_4

Planned Divestiture of the EMEA Business - Schedule of Components of Pre-Tax Income and Assets and Liabilities as of the Disposal Date (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Assets held for sale
Other current assets	$ 55	$ 59
Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business
Assets held for sale
Cash and cash equivalents	27	43
Accounts receivable, less allowance of $4 and $5	70	76
Other current assets	55	59
Property, plant and equipment, net of accumulated depreciation of $1,020 and $1,033	1,955	1,873
Customer relationships and other intangible assets, net	103	100
Operating lease assets	215	156
Valuation allowance on assets held for sale	(772)	(660)
Deferred tax assets	154	138
Other non-current assets	38	38
Total assets held for sale	1,845	1,823
Liabilities held for sale
Accounts payable	57	78
Salaries and benefits	20	23
Current portion of deferred revenue	28	28
Current operating lease liabilities	41	33
Other current liabilities	34	28
Deferred income taxes	60	38
Asset retirement obligations	31	30
Deferred revenue, non-current	99	85
Operating lease liabilities, non-current	103	103
Total liabilities held for sale	473	446
Allowance for credit losses classified as held for sale	4	5
Accumulated depreciation	1,020	1,033
Loss on foreign currency translation	$ 373	$ 365

Goodwill, Customer Relationsh_3

Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets - Schedule of Goodwill, Customer Relationships, and Other Intangible Assets (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended			9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Jun. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022
Goodwill And Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Goodwill	$ 3,864			$ 3,864		$ 12,657
Indefinite-lived intangible assets	9			9		9
Total other intangible assets, net	5,744			5,744		6,166
Goodwill impairment	0	$ 8,800	$ 0	8,793	$ 0
Customer Relationships
Goodwill And Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets subject to amortization	4,088			4,088		4,574
Accumulated amortization	4,087			4,087		3,606
Capitalized Software
Goodwill And Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets subject to amortization	1,557			1,557		1,482
Accumulated amortization	3,961			3,961		3,895
Trade Names, Patents and Other
Goodwill And Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Other intangible assets subject to amortization	90			90		101
Accumulated amortization	$ 68			$ 68		188
Fully Amortized and Retired Capitalized Software
Goodwill And Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Gross carrying value						183
Fully Amortized and Retired Trade Names
Goodwill And Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Gross carrying value						$ 130

Goodwill, Customer Relationsh_4

Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets - Additional Information (Details) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended			9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2023 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2022 USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($) reporting_unit segment	Sep. 30, 2022 USD ($)
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Intangible assets, gross (including goodwill)	$ 17,700			$ 17,700
Number of reportable segments \| segment				2
Number of operating segments \| segment				2
Number of reporting units \| reporting_unit				3
Goodwill impairment	0	$ 8,800	$ 0	$ 8,793	$ 0
Amortization of intangible assets	$ 271		$ 279	$ 794	$ 830
Minimum \| Revenue Multiple
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment, measurement input		1.5
Minimum \| EBITDA Multiple
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment, measurement input		4.6
Maximum \| Revenue Multiple
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment, measurement input		4.3
Maximum \| EBITDA Multiple
Finite-Lived Intangible Assets [Line Items]
Goodwill impairment, measurement input		10.5

Goodwill, Customer Relationsh_5

Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets - Schedule of Rollforward Goodwill (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended				9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Jun. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Goodwill Activity
As of beginning of period					$ 12,657
Impairment	$ 0	$ (8,800)		$ 0	(8,793)	$ 0
As of end of period	3,864		$ 12,657		3,864
Accumulated impairment losses	19,800		11,000		19,800
Business
Goodwill Activity
As of beginning of period					7,906
Impairment					(6,580)
As of end of period	1,326		7,906		1,326
Mass Markets
Goodwill Activity
As of beginning of period					4,751
Impairment					(2,213)
As of end of period	$ 2,538		$ 4,751		$ 2,538

Goodwill, Customer Relationsh_6

Goodwill, Customer Relationships and Other Intangible Assets - Schedule of Amortization Expense (Details) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($)
Goodwill and Intangible Assets Disclosure [Abstract]
2023 (remaining three months)	$ 244
2024	925
2025	853
2026	809
2027	$ 730

Revenue Recognition - Schedule

Revenue Recognition - Schedule of Revenue (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	$ 3,641	$ 4,390	$ 11,040	$ 13,678
Operating Segments
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	3,641	4,390	11,040	13,678
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(262)	(331)	(804)	(1,099)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	3,379	4,059	10,236	12,579
Operating Segments \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	2,894	3,218	8,747	10,036
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(218)	(245)	(669)	(793)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	2,676	2,973	8,078	9,243
Operating Segments \| Mass Markets
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	747	1,172	2,293	3,642
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(44)	(86)	(135)	(306)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	703	1,086	2,158	3,336
Operating Segments \| Large Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	1,182	1,286	3,555	4,160
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(80)	(80)	(239)	(288)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	1,102	1,206	3,316	3,872
Operating Segments \| Mid-Market Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	498	555	1,520	1,690
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(8)	(10)	(28)	(30)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	490	545	1,492	1,660
Operating Segments \| Public Sector \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	444	457	1,288	1,430
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(22)	(26)	(60)	(83)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	422	431	1,228	1,347
Operating Segments \| Wholesale \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	770	920	2,384	2,756
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(108)	(129)	(342)	(392)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	662	791	2,042	2,364
Operating Segments \| Grow \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	1,125	1,116	3,391	3,504
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(166)	(178)	(509)	(588)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	959	938	2,882	2,916
Operating Segments \| Grow \| Large Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	557	571	1,665	1,882
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(77)	(79)	(234)	(284)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	480	492	1,431	1,598
Operating Segments \| Grow \| Mid-Market Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	201	192	599	565
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(6)	(7)	(21)	(23)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	195	185	578	542
Operating Segments \| Grow \| Public Sector \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	117	106	351	337
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(22)	(25)	(60)	(79)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	95	81	291	258
Operating Segments \| Grow \| Wholesale \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	250	247	776	720
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(61)	(67)	(194)	(202)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	189	180	582	518
Operating Segments \| Nurture \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	865	1,006	2,639	3,160
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(5)	(6)	(19)	(20)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	860	1,000	2,620	3,140
Operating Segments \| Nurture \| Large Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	369	404	1,113	1,302
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	0	0	0
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	369	404	1,113	1,302
Operating Segments \| Nurture \| Mid-Market Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	195	226	608	698
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	0	0	0
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	195	226	608	698
Operating Segments \| Nurture \| Public Sector \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	98	121	297	380
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	0	0	0
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	98	121	297	380
Operating Segments \| Nurture \| Wholesale \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	203	255	621	780
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(5)	(6)	(19)	(20)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	198	249	602	760
Operating Segments \| Harvest \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	690	897	2,146	2,780
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(43)	(59)	(132)	(179)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	647	838	2,014	2,601
Operating Segments \| Harvest \| Large Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	186	245	590	793
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	0	0	0
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	186	245	590	793
Operating Segments \| Harvest \| Mid-Market Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	94	129	288	404
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(1)	(2)	(3)	(6)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	93	127	285	398
Operating Segments \| Harvest \| Public Sector \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	96	119	290	367
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	(1)	0	(3)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	96	118	290	364
Operating Segments \| Harvest \| Wholesale \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	314	404	978	1,216
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(42)	(56)	(129)	(170)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	272	348	849	1,046
Operating Segments \| Other \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	214	199	571	592
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(4)	(2)	(9)	(6)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	210	197	562	586
Operating Segments \| Other \| Large Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	70	66	187	183
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(3)	(1)	(5)	(4)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	67	65	182	179
Operating Segments \| Other \| Mid-Market Enterprise \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	8	8	25	23
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(1)	(1)	(4)	(1)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	7	7	21	22
Operating Segments \| Other \| Public Sector \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	133	111	350	346
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	0	0	(1)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	133	111	350	345
Operating Segments \| Other \| Wholesale \| Business
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	3	14	9	40
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	0	0	0	0
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	3	14	9	40
Operating Segments \| Fiber Broadband \| Mass Markets
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	162	160	471	456
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(4)	(4)	(12)	(14)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	158	156	459	442
Operating Segments \| Other Broadband \| Mass Markets
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	340	580	1,064	1,787
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(31)	(55)	(96)	(166)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	309	525	968	1,621
Operating Segments \| Voice and Other \| Mass Markets
Disaggregation of Revenue [Line Items]
Total Revenue	245	432	758	1,399
Adjustments for Non-ASC 606 revenue	(9)	(27)	(27)	(126)
Total revenue from Contracts with Customers	$ 236	$ 405	$ 731	$ 1,273

Revenue Recognition - Additiona

Revenue Recognition - Additional Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022	Dec. 31, 2021
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Lease income	$ 254	$ 307	$ 780	$ 978
Percent of operating revenue (as a percent)	7%	7%	7%	7%
Revenue recognized	$ 44	$ 47	$ 391	$ 494
Contract liabilities					$ 715	$ 841
Remaining performance obligation	7,200		7,200
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2023-10-01
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 913		$ 913
Remaining performance obligation, satisfaction period	3 months		3 months
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2024-01-01
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 2,400		$ 2,400
Remaining performance obligation, satisfaction period	1 year		1 year
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction, Start Date [Axis]: 2025-01-01
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Remaining performance obligation	$ 3,900		$ 3,900
Remaining performance obligation, satisfaction period	3 years		3 years
Minimum
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Contract term (in years)			1 year
Maximum
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Contract term (in years)			5 years
Weighted Average \| Mass Market Customers
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Length of customer life (in months)			36 months
Weighted Average \| Business Customers
Revenue, Remaining Performance Obligation, Expected Timing of Satisfaction [Line Items]
Length of customer life (in months)			33 months

Revenue Recognition - Schedul_2

Revenue Recognition - Schedule of Contract with Customer, Asset and Liability (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022	Dec. 31, 2021
Capitalized Contract Cost [Line Items]
Customer receivables	$ 1,372	$ 1,424
Contract assets	29	34
Contract liabilities	725	656
Accounts receivable, gross	1,400	1,500
Allowance for credit losses	63	73
Contract liabilities		715	$ 841
Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business
Capitalized Contract Cost [Line Items]
Customer receivables	70	76
Contract assets	11	16
Contract liabilities	$ 47	$ 59

Revenue Recognition - Schedul_3

Revenue Recognition - Schedule of Capitalized Contract Costs (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Acquisition Costs
Capitalized Contract Cost [Roll Forward]
Beginning of period balance	$ 183	$ 208	$ 202	$ 222
Costs incurred	31	45	96	129
Amortization	(37)	(49)	(117)	(150)
Change in contract costs held for sale	0	3	(4)	6
End of period balance	177	207	177	207
Acquisition Costs \| Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business
Capitalized Contract Cost [Roll Forward]
Beginning of period balance	10		6
End of period balance	10		10
Acquisition Costs \| Held-for-sale \| Latin American Business and ILEC Business
Capitalized Contract Cost [Roll Forward]
Beginning of period balance		31		32
End of period balance		35		35
Fulfillment Costs
Capitalized Contract Cost [Roll Forward]
Beginning of period balance	186	188	192	186
Costs incurred	41	38	120	119
Amortization	(35)	(35)	(106)	(113)
Change in contract costs held for sale	0	(2)	(14)	(3)
End of period balance	192	189	192	189
Fulfillment Costs \| Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business
Capitalized Contract Cost [Roll Forward]
Beginning of period balance	14		0
End of period balance	$ 14		$ 14
Fulfillment Costs \| Held-for-sale \| Latin American Business and ILEC Business
Capitalized Contract Cost [Roll Forward]
Beginning of period balance		33		34
End of period balance		$ 28		$ 28

Credit Losses on Financial In_3

Credit Losses on Financial Instruments (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance at December 31, 2022	$ 85
Provision for expected losses	77
Write-offs charged against the allowance	(88)
Recoveries collected	7
Change in allowance in assets held for sale	1
Ending balance at September 30, 2023	82
Held-for-sale, Not Discontinued Operations \| EMEA Business
Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss [Roll Forward]
Allowance for credit losses classified as held for sale	4	$ 5
Business
Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance at December 31, 2022	57
Provision for expected losses	27
Write-offs charged against the allowance	(37)
Recoveries collected	5
Change in allowance in assets held for sale	1
Ending balance at September 30, 2023	53
Mass Markets
Financing Receivable, Allowance for Credit Loss [Roll Forward]
Beginning balance at December 31, 2022	28
Provision for expected losses	50
Write-offs charged against the allowance	(51)
Recoveries collected	2
Change in allowance in assets held for sale	0
Ending balance at September 30, 2023	$ 29

Long-Term Debt and Credit Fac_3

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities - Schedule of Long Term Debt (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Finance lease and other obligations	$ 291	$ 317
Unamortized discounts, net	(3)	(7)
Unamortized debt issuance costs	(152)	(169)
Total long-term debt	19,895	20,572
Less current maturities	(155)	(154)
Long-term debt, excluding current maturities	19,740	20,418
Term Loan \| Qwest Corporation
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 215	$ 215
Long-term debt, weighted average interest rate (as a percent)	7.931%	6.64%
Term Loan \| SOFR \| Qwest Corporation
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Basis spread (as a percent)	2.50%
Senior Notes \| Qwest Corporation \| Minimum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	6.50%
Senior Notes \| Qwest Corporation \| Maximum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	7.75%
Senior Notes \| Qwest Capital Funding, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 192	$ 192
Senior Notes \| Qwest Capital Funding, Inc. \| Minimum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	6.875%
Senior Notes \| Qwest Capital Funding, Inc. \| Maximum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	7.75%
Revolving Credit Facility \| Line of Credit
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 75	0
Long-term debt, weighted average interest rate (as a percent)	7.45%
Revolving Credit Facility \| Line of Credit \| SOFR
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Basis spread (as a percent)	2%
Term Loan A \| Term Loan
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 948	$ 991
Long-term debt, weighted average interest rate (as a percent)	7.431%	6.384%
Term Loan A \| Term Loan \| SOFR
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Basis spread (as a percent)	2%
Term Loan A-1 \| Term Loan
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 271	$ 283
Long-term debt, weighted average interest rate (as a percent)	7.431%	6.384%
Term Loan A-1 \| Term Loan \| SOFR
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Basis spread (as a percent)	2%
Term Loan B \| Term Loan
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 3,903	$ 3,941
Long-term debt, weighted average interest rate (as a percent)	7.681%	6.634%
Term Loan B \| Term Loan \| SOFR
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Basis spread (as a percent)	2.25%
4.000% Senior Secured Notes Due 2027 \| Senior Notes
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4%
Long-term debt, gross	$ 1,250	$ 1,250
Tranche B 2027 Term Loan \| Term Loan \| Level 3 Financing, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 2,411	$ 2,411
Long-term debt, weighted average interest rate (as a percent)	7.181%	6.134%
Tranche B 2027 Term Loan \| Term Loan \| SOFR \| Level 3 Financing, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Basis spread (as a percent)	1.75%
Senior Notes, Maturing 2027-2030 \| Senior Notes \| Level 3 Financing, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 2,425	$ 1,500
Senior Notes, Maturing 2027-2030 \| Senior Notes \| Level 3 Financing, Inc. \| Minimum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	3.40%
Senior Notes, Maturing 2027-2030 \| Senior Notes \| Level 3 Financing, Inc. \| Maximum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	10.50%
Senior Notes Maturing 2025-2042 \| Senior Notes
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 2,143	3,722
Senior Notes Maturing 2025-2042 \| Senior Notes \| Minimum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4.50%
Senior Notes Maturing 2025-2042 \| Senior Notes \| Maximum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	7.65%
Senior Notes, Maturing 2027-2029 \| Senior Notes \| Level 3 Financing, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 3,940	3,940
Senior Notes, Maturing 2027-2029 \| Senior Notes \| Level 3 Financing, Inc. \| Minimum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	3.625%
Senior Notes, Maturing 2027-2029 \| Senior Notes \| Level 3 Financing, Inc. \| Maximum
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	4.625%
Senior Notes, Maturing 2025-2057 \| Senior Notes \| Qwest Corporation
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Long-term debt, gross	$ 1,986	$ 1,986

Long-Term Debt and Credit Fac_4

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities - Schedule of Maturities of Long Term Debt (Details) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($)
Debt Disclosure [Abstract]
2023 (remaining three months)	$ 40
2024	157
2025	1,739
2026	498
2027	9,386
2028 and thereafter	8,230
Total long-term debt	$ 20,050

Long-Term Debt and Credit Fac_5

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities - Additional Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions		3 Months Ended	9 Months Ended
	Apr. 17, 2023	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Mar. 31, 2023
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Reduction in aggregate principal amount of debt	$ 630
Net gain on early retirement of debt			$ 618	$ 9
Revolving Credit Facility
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Borrowings from revolving credit facility		$ 150	675
Repayments of revolving credit facility		275	$ 600
Letter of Credit
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Borrowings from revolving credit facility		$ 110
Senior Notes \| Lumen Technologies, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Face amount	19				$ 1,535
Repurchased face amount					24
Senior Notes \| 10.500% Senior Secured Notes due 2030 \| Level 3 Financing, Inc.
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Face amount	$ 9				$ 915
Stated interest rate (as a percent)	10.50%				10.50%

Long-Term Debt and Credit Fac_6

Long-Term Debt and Credit Facilities - Schedule of Debt Repayments (Details) - Senior Notes - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2023	Mar. 31, 2023	Sep. 30, 2023
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Repayments of debt			$ 1,554
5.625% Senior Notes, Series X, due 2025
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			5.625%
Repayments of debt	$ 1	$ 48
7.200% Senior Notes, Series D, due 2025
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			7.20%
Repayments of debt		21
5.125% Senior Notes due 2026
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			5.125%
Repayments of debt		291
6.875% Debentures, Series G, due 2028
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			6.875%
Repayments of debt		52
5.375% Senior Notes due 2029
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			5.375%
Repayments of debt		275
4.500% Senior Notes due 2029
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			4.50%
Repayments of debt	2	556
7.600% Senior Notes, Series P, due 2039
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			7.60%
Repayments of debt	3	161
7.650% Senior Notes, Series U, due 2042
Long-term Debt and Credit Facilities
Stated interest rate (as a percent)			7.65%
Repayments of debt	$ 13	$ 131

Severance - Changes in Liabilit

Severance - Changes in Liabilities (Details) - Severance $ in Millions	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($)
Restructuring reserve
Balance at the beginning of the period	$ 11
Accrued to expense	21
Payments, net	(19)
Balance at the end of the period	$ 13

Severance - Additional Informat

Severance - Additional Information (Details) - Severance - USD ($) $ in Millions	Oct. 31, 2023	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring reserve		$ 13	$ 11
Global Workforce Reduction
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Restructuring reserve		$ 0
Global Workforce Reduction \| Subsequent Event
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Percentage of workforce reduction	4%
Global Workforce Reduction \| Subsequent Event \| Minimum
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Expected cost to be incurred	$ 55
Global Workforce Reduction \| Subsequent Event \| Maximum
Restructuring Cost and Reserve [Line Items]
Expected cost to be incurred	$ 65

Employee Benefits - Schedule of

Employee Benefits - Schedule of Net Periodic Benefit (Income) Expense (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Pension Plans
Components of net periodic (benefit) expense
Service cost	$ 7	$ 11	$ 19	$ 34
Interest cost	67	53	202	155
Expected return on plan assets	(72)	(100)	(215)	(302)
Recognition of prior service cost (credit)	(2)	(3)	(5)	(8)
Recognition of actuarial loss	27	32	78	99
Net periodic expense (income)	27	(7)	79	(22)
Post-Retirement Benefit Plans
Components of net periodic (benefit) expense
Service cost	1	3	4	8
Interest cost	26	15	77	45
Recognition of prior service cost (credit)	(2)	1	(6)	5
Recognition of actuarial loss	(5)	0	(15)	0
Net periodic expense (income)	$ 20	$ 19	$ 60	$ 58

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Sh_3

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share - Schedule of Basic and Diluted (Loss) Earnings Per Common Share (Details) - USD ($) $ / shares in Units, shares in Thousands, $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
(Loss) Income (numerator)
Net (loss) income	$ (78)	$ 578	$ (8,303)	$ 1,521
Net (loss) income applicable to common stock for computing basic (loss) earnings per common share	(78)	578	(8,303)	1,521
Net (loss) income as adjusted for purposes of computing diluted (loss) earnings per common share	$ (78)	$ 578	$ (8,303)	$ 1,521
Weighted-average number of shares:
Outstanding during period (in shares)	1,008,523	1,034,786	1,006,140	1,031,687
Non-vested restricted stock (in shares)	(24,973)	(21,662)	(23,287)	(20,189)
Weighted average shares outstanding for computing basic (loss) earnings per common share (in shares)	983,550	1,013,124	982,853	1,011,498
Incremental common shares attributable to dilutive securities:
Shares issuable under convertible securities (in shares)	0	10	0	10
Shares issuable under incentive compensation plans (in shares)	0	3,879	0	4,773
Number of shares as adjusted for purposes of computing diluted (loss) earnings per common share (in shares)	983,550	1,017,013	982,853	1,016,281
Basic (loss) earnings per common share (in dollars per share)	$ (0.08)	$ 0.57	$ (8.45)	$ 1.50
Diluted (loss) earnings per common share (in dollars per share)	$ (0.08)	$ 0.57	$ (8.45)	$ 1.50

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Sh_4

(Loss) Earnings Per Common Share - Additional Information (Details) - shares shares in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Number of shares of common stock excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share (less than) (in shares)	24.5	12.9	22.2	10.4
Stock Compensation Plan
Antidilutive Securities Excluded from Computation of Earnings Per Share [Line Items]
Number of shares of common stock excluded from the computation of diluted earnings per share (less than) (in shares)	1		1

Fair Value of Financial Instr_3

Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Schedule of Carrying Amounts and Estimated Fair Values of Financial Assets and Liabilities (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022
Fair value disclosure
Loss on equity securities	$ 0	$ 83	$ 22	$ 83
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1 \| Carrying Amount
Fair value disclosure
Equity securities	0		0		$ 22
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 1 \| Fair Value
Fair value disclosure
Equity securities	0		0		22
Fair Value Inputs, Level 2 \| Carrying Amount
Fair value disclosure
Long-term debt, excluding finance lease and other obligations	19,604		19,604		20,255
Fair Value Inputs, Level 2 \| Fair Value
Fair value disclosure
Long-term debt, excluding finance lease and other obligations	14,163		14,163		17,309
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 3 \| Carrying Amount
Fair value disclosure
Indemnifications related to the sale of the Latin American business	86		86		86
Fair Value, Inputs, Level 3 \| Fair Value
Fair value disclosure
Indemnifications related to the sale of the Latin American business	$ 86		$ 86		$ 86

Fair Value of Financial Instr_4

Fair Value of Financial Instruments - Schedule of Fair Value, Investments, Entities that Calculate Net Asset Value Per Share (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Dec. 31, 2022
Fair value disclosure
Gain (loss) on investments	$ (15)	$ (43)	$ (74)	$ (114)
Net Asset Value \| Fair Value
Fair value disclosure
Investment in limited partnership	$ 11		$ 11		$ 85

Segment Information - Additiona

Segment Information - Additional Information (Details)	9 Months Ended
Segment Information - Additional Information (Details)	Sep. 30, 2023 sales_channel segment
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of operating segments	2
Number of reportable segments	2
Business
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Number of sales channels \| sales_channel	4

Segment Information - Schedule

Segment Information - Schedule of Segment Results (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Operating revenues by products and services
Segment revenue	$ 3,641	$ 4,390	$ 11,040	$ 13,678
Cost of services and products	1,850	1,999	5,407	6,042
Selling, general and administrative	791	792	2,302	2,407
Operating Segments
Operating revenues by products and services
Segment revenue	3,641	4,390	11,040	13,678
Total segment adjusted EBITDA	2,143	2,810	6,700	8,928
Operating Segments \| Business
Operating revenues by products and services
Segment revenue	2,894	3,218	8,747	10,036
Cost of services and products	796	792	2,343	2,449
Selling, general and administrative	324	293	916	928
Total segment expense	1,120	1,085	3,259	3,377
Total segment adjusted EBITDA	1,774	2,133	5,488	6,659
Operating Segments \| Mass Markets
Operating revenues by products and services
Segment revenue	747	1,172	2,293	3,642
Cost of services and products	22	25	71	90
Selling, general and administrative	356	470	1,010	1,283
Total segment expense	378	495	1,081	1,373
Total segment adjusted EBITDA	$ 369	$ 677	$ 1,212	$ 2,269

Segment Information - Schedul_2

Segment Information - Schedule of Reconciliation of Segment Adjusted EBITDA to Net (Loss) Income (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended			9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Jun. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Depreciation and amortization	$ (755)		$ (808)	$ (2,234)	$ (2,443)
Goodwill impairment	0	$ (8,800)	0	(8,793)	0
Operating income (loss)	223		1,384	(7,808)	3,379
Total other expense, net	(308)		(447)	(287)	(1,188)
(Loss) income before income taxes	(85)		937	(8,095)	2,191
Income tax (benefit) expense	(7)		359	208	670
Net (loss) income	(78)		578	(8,303)	1,521
Operating Segments
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Total segment adjusted EBITDA	2,143		2,810	6,700	8,928
Segment Reconciling Items
Segment Reporting Information [Line Items]
Depreciation and amortization	(755)		(808)	(2,234)	(2,443)
Goodwill impairment	0		0	(8,793)	0
Other unallocated expense	(1,149)		(595)	(3,442)	(3,035)
Stock-based compensation	(16)		(23)	(39)	(71)
Operating income (loss)	223		1,384	(7,808)	3,379
Total other expense, net	$ (308)		$ (447)	$ (287)	$ (1,188)

Commitments, Contingencies an_2

Commitments, Contingencies and Other Items (Details) $ in Thousands	1 Months Ended			9 Months Ended	12 Months Ended
	Jun. 30, 2023 USD ($)	Jun. 30, 2021 USD ($) lawsuit	Feb. 28, 2017 USD ($) lawsuit	Sep. 30, 2023 USD ($) patent	Dec. 31, 2020 USD ($)
Loss Contingencies
Estimate of possible loss				$ 85,000
Patents allegedly infringed \| patent				1
Unfavorable Regulatory Action
Loss Contingencies
Estimate of possible loss				$ 300
Penalties Sought for Violation of Regulations And Laws of WUTC
Loss Contingencies
Damages awarded	$ 1,000
Penalties for Violation of Washington Regulations and Laws Filed by Staff of WUTC
Loss Contingencies
Damages sought, value					$ 7,000
Penalties Sought by Washington Attorney's General Office
Loss Contingencies
Damages sought, value					$ 27,000
Judicial Ruling \| Missouri Municipalities
Loss Contingencies
Number of pending lawsuits \| lawsuit		1	1
Litigation settlement amount			$ 4,000
Judicial Ruling \| Columbia and Joplin Municipalities
Loss Contingencies
Litigation settlement amount		$ 55,000

Other Financial Information (De

Other Financial Information (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022
Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets [Abstract]
Prepaid expenses	$ 392	$ 319
Income tax receivable	122	0
Materials, supplies and inventory	227	236
Contract assets	20	20
Other	15	5
Total other current assets	982	803
Other current assets, held for sale	55	59
Acquisition Costs
Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets [Abstract]
Contract costs	107	123
Fulfillment Costs
Prepaid Expenses and Other Current Assets [Abstract]
Contract costs	$ 99	$ 100

Repurchases of Lumen Common S_2

Repurchases of Lumen Common Stock (Details) - USD ($)	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
Repurchases of Lumen Common Stock (Details) - USD ($)	Sep. 30, 2023	Dec. 31, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023
Equity [Abstract]
Repurchase program, period (in years)		2 years
Repurchase program, authorized amount	$ 1,300,000,000	$ 1,500,000,000	$ 1,300,000,000
Number of shares repurchased	0		0

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_3

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss - Schedule of the Entity's Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) by Component (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Balance at beginning of period			$ 10,437
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications			3	$ (245)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss			39	201
Other comprehensive (loss) income	$ (4)	$ 15	42	(44)
Balance at end of period	2,219	12,577	2,219	12,577
Foreign Currency Translation Adjustment and Other
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Balance at beginning of period			(422)	(400)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications			3	(245)
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss			0	112
Other comprehensive (loss) income			3	(133)
Balance at end of period	(419)	(533)	(419)	(533)
Interest Rate Swap
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Balance at beginning of period				(17)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications				0
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss				17
Other comprehensive (loss) income				17
Balance at end of period		0		0
Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Balance at beginning of period	(1,053)	(2,217)	(1,099)	(2,158)
Other comprehensive (loss) income	(4)	15	42	(44)
Balance at end of period	(1,057)	(2,202)	(1,057)	(2,202)
Pension Plans \| Defined Benefit Plan
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Balance at beginning of period			(985)	(1,577)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications			0	0
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss			55	68
Other comprehensive (loss) income			55	68
Balance at end of period	(930)	(1,509)	(930)	(1,509)
Post-Retirement Benefit Plans \| Defined Benefit Plan
AOCI Attributable to Parent, Net of Tax [Roll Forward]
Balance at beginning of period			308	(164)
Other comprehensive income (loss) before reclassifications			0	0
Amounts reclassified from accumulated other comprehensive loss			(16)	4
Other comprehensive (loss) income			(16)	4
Balance at end of period	$ 292	$ (160)	$ 292	$ (160)

Accumulated Other Comprehensi_4

Accumulated Other Comprehensive Loss - Schedule of Reclassifications Out of Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income (Loss) by Component (Details) - USD ($) $ in Millions	3 Months Ended		9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022	Sep. 30, 2023	Sep. 30, 2022
Reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income loss by component
Interest expense	$ 295	$ 363	$ 868	$ 1,052
Other expense, net	13	93	37	145
Total before tax	85	(937)	8,095	(2,191)
Income tax (benefit) expense	(7)	359	208	670
Gain on sale of business	22	0	112	0
Net of tax	78	(578)	8,303	(1,521)
Decrease (Increase) in Net Income \| Interest rate swap
Reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income loss by component
Interest expense		0		22
Income tax (benefit) expense		0		(5)
Net of tax		0		17
Decrease (Increase) in Net Income \| Net actuarial loss
Reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income loss by component
Other expense, net	22	32	63	99
Decrease (Increase) in Net Income \| Prior service cost
Reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income loss by component
Other expense, net	(4)	(2)	(11)	(3)
Decrease (Increase) in Net Income \| Defined benefit plan
Reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income loss by component
Total before tax	18	30	52	96
Income tax (benefit) expense	(5)	(7)	(13)	(24)
Net of tax	$ 13	23	$ 39	72
Decrease (Increase) in Net Income \| Foreign currency translation
Reclassifications out of accumulated other comprehensive income loss by component
Income tax (benefit) expense		0		0
Gain on sale of business		112		112
Net of tax		$ 112		$ 112

Labor Union Contracts (Details)

Labor Union Contracts (Details) - Unionized Employees Concentration Risk	9 Months Ended
	Sep. 30, 2023
Total Number of Employees
Concentration risk
Concentration risk, percent (as a percent)	19%
Workforce Subject to Collective Bargaining Arrangements Expiring Within One Year
Concentration risk
Concentration risk, percent (as a percent)	2%

Subsequent Events - Additional

Subsequent Events - Additional Information (Details) - Subsequent Event - Group of Creditors $ in Billions	Oct. 31, 2023 USD ($)
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Outstanding obligations	$ 7
Financing through issuance of new long-term debt
Subsequent Event [Line Items]
Commitment	$ 1.2