Accrued Expenses

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2013

Accrued expenses consist of (table in thousands):



	March 31, 2013		December 31, 2012
Salaries and benefits	$	876,798	$	1,018,289
Product warranties	282,573		277,862
Partner rebates	156,707		187,413
Restructuring, current (See Note 13)	130,281		75,567
Derivatives	41,812		40,279
Other	909,654		922,649
	$	2,397,825	$	2,522,059

Product Warranties

Systems sales include a standard product warranty. At the time of the sale, we accrue for systems’ warranty costs. The initial systems’ warranty accrual is based upon our historical experience, expected future costs and specific identification of systems’ requirements. Upon sale or expiration of the initial warranty, we may sell additional maintenance contracts to our customers. Revenue from these additional maintenance contracts is included in deferred revenue and recognized ratably over the service period. The following represents the activity in our warranty accrual for the three months ended March 31, 2013 and 2012 (table in thousands):



	For the Three Months Ended
	March 31, 2013			March 31, 2012
Balance, beginning of the period	$	277,862		$	254,554
Provision	44,628			48,253
Amounts charged to the accrual	(39,917		)	(39,626		)
Balance, end of the period	$	282,573		$	263,181

The provision includes amounts accrued for systems at the time of shipment, adjustments for changes in estimated costs for warranties on systems shipped in the period and changes in estimated costs for warranties on systems shipped in prior periods. It is not practicable to determine the amounts applicable to each of the components.