Contract Acquisition Costs, net

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2012

Contract Acquisition Costs, net

NOTE 9 Contract Acquisition Costs, net

Significant components of contract acquisition costs at December 31 are summarized as follows:

(in thousands)	2012		2011
Conversion costs, net	$	85,402		88,765
Payments for processing rights, net		75,865		74,222
Total	$	161,267		162,987

Amortization related to payments for processing rights, which is recorded as a reduction of revenues, was $13.3 million, $15.9 million and $17.7 million for 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

Amortization expense related to conversion costs was $24.1 million, $18.8 million and $17.5 million for 2012, 2011 and 2010, respectively.

During the year ended December 31, 2011, the Company recognized an impairment loss related to payments for processing rights of $750,000 and an impairment loss related to conversion costs of $49,000.

The weighted average useful life for each component of contract acquisition costs, and in total, at December 31, 2012 is as follows:

	Weighted Average Amortization Period (Yrs)
Payments for processing rights		12.6
Conversion costs		9.4
Total		11.0

Estimated future amortization expense on payments for processing rights and conversion costs as of December 31, 2012 for the next five years is:

(in thousands)	Conversion Costs		Payments for Processing Rights
2013	$	17,769		14,622
2014		16,699		13,460
2015		15,715		11,552
2016		13,059		9,181
2017		9,316		7,240