include tangible products containing software essential to the tangible product’s functionality and undelivered software elements relating to the tangible product’s essential software, the Company allocates revenue to all deliverables based on their relative selling prices. In such circumstances, the Company uses a hierarchy to determine the selling price to be used for allocating revenue to deliverables: (i) vendor-specific objective evidence of fair value (“VSOE”), (ii) third-party evidence of selling price (“TPE”) and (iii) best estimate of the selling price (“ESP”). VSOE generally exists only when the Company sells the deliverable separately and is the price actually charged by the Company for that deliverable. ESPs reflect the Company’s best estimates of what the selling prices of elements would be if they were sold regularly on a stand-alone basis. 

For all past and current sales of iPhone, iPad, Apple TV and for sales of iPod touch beginning in June 2010, the Company indicated it might from time-to-time provide future unspecified software upgrades and features free of charge to customers. The Company has identified two deliverables in arrangements involving the sale of these devices. The first deliverable is the hardware and software essential to the functionality of the hardware device delivered at the time of sale. The second deliverable is the embedded right included with the purchase of iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Apple TV to receive on a when-and-if-available basis, future unspecified software upgrades and features relating to the product’s essential software. The Company has allocated revenue between these two deliverables using the relative selling price method. Because the Company has neither VSOE nor TPE for the two deliverables, the allocation of revenue has been based on the Company’s ESPs. Amounts allocated to the delivered hardware and the related essential software are recognized at the time of sale provided the other conditions for revenue recognition have been met. Amounts allocated to the embedded unspecified software upgrade right are deferred and recognized on a straight-line basis over the 24-month estimated life of each of these devices. All product cost of sales, including estimated warranty costs, are recognized at the time of sale. Costs for engineering and sales and marketing are expensed as incurred. If the estimated life of the hardware product should change, the future rate of amortization of the revenue allocated to the software upgrade right will also change. 

The Company’s process for determining its ESP for deliverables without VSOE or TPE involves management’s judgment. The Company’s process considers multiple factors that may vary depending upon the unique facts and circumstances related to each deliverable. The Company believes its customers, particularly consumers, would be reluctant to buy unspecified software upgrade rights related to iPhone, iPad, iPod touch and Apple TV. This view is primarily based on the fact that unspecified upgrade rights do not obligate the Company to provide upgrades at a particular time or at all, and do not specify to customers which upgrades or features will be