Accrued Expenses

3 Months Ended

Mar. 31, 2012

Accrued Expenses

10.Accrued Expenses

Accrued expenses consist of (table in thousands):

	March 31,		December 31,
	2012		2011
Salaries and benefits	$	851,581	$	961,587
Product warranties		263,181		254,554
Partner rebates		138,267		167,813
Restructuring, current (See Note 13)		62,896		61,541
Derivatives		40,185		50,963
Other		890,143		858,521
	$	2,246,253	$	2,354,979

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, 2012 and 2011 (table in thousands):

	For the Three Months Ended
	March 31,		March 31,
	2012		2011
Balance, beginning of the period	$	254,554	$	236,131
Provision		48,253		45,825
Amounts charged to the accrual		(39,626)		(38,322)
Balance, end of the period	$	263,181	$	243,634

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.