Income Taxes

Our income tax expense, deferred tax assets and liabilities, and reserves for unrecognized tax benefits reflect management's best assessment of estimated current and future taxes to be paid. We are subject to income taxes in both the United States and numerous foreign jurisdictions. Significant judgments and estimates are required in determining the consolidated income tax expense.

Unrecognized Tax Benefit

As of March 27, 2015, the total amount of gross unrecognized tax benefits was $49.8 million, of which $39.1 million, if recognized, would reduce our effective tax rate. Our net liability for unrecognized tax benefits is classified within other non-current liabilities in our consolidated balance sheets.

Withholding Taxes

We recognize licensing revenue gross of withholding taxes, which our licensees remit directly to their local tax authorities, and for which we receive a partial foreign tax credit in our income tax provision. The foreign current tax includes this withholding tax expense while the appropriate foreign tax credit benefit is included in current federal and foreign taxes. Withholding taxes were as follows (in thousands):



	Fiscal Quarter Ended				Fiscal Year-To-Date Ended
	March 27, 2015		March 28, 2014		March 27, 2015		March 28, 2014
Withholding taxes	$	11,942	$	12,673	$	24,142	$	23,098

Effective Tax Rate

Each period, the combination of multiple different factors can impact our effective tax rate. These factors include both recurring items such as tax rates and the relative amount of income earned in foreign jurisdictions, as well as discrete items that may occur in, but are not necessarily consistent between periods.

Our effective tax rate increased from 26% in the second quarter of fiscal 2014 to 27% in the second quarter of fiscal 2015, which reflects an increase in our estimated fiscal 2015 tax provision due to reduced benefits from U.S. manufacturing tax incentives.

On a year-to-date basis, our effective tax rate decreased from 26% in the fiscal year-to-date period ended March 28, 2014 to 25% in the fiscal year-to-date period ended March 27, 2015, which reflects a discrete benefit from federal R&D tax credits that were retroactively reinstated for the 2014 calendar year only. The overall decrease in the rate was partially offset by the fact that our estimated fiscal 2015 tax provision included reduced benefits from U.S. manufacturing tax incentives.