Chicago kicks in ‘cloud tax’ on streaming services like Netflix, Spotify and Xbox Live
What ever happened to Obama’s “net neutrality”? Chicago Netflix customers: Your bill is about to go up 9 percent.
Citizens of Chicago need to prepare themselves for a “cloud tax” that went into effect on July 1. The nine-percent tax to cloud services like Netflix, Spotify and Xbox Live is the result of an “amusement tax” ruling that items “delivered electronically” for entertainment purposes are subject to a tax that has traditionally been levied against the sale of concert tickets, sporting events and the like. The ruling does not affect the sales of movies, songs and games delivered electronically. So purchases from the iTunes store and Steam are not taxed. But, a subscription to Apple Music or Spotify is subject to taxation. If your streaming entertainment service of choice hasn’t already started charging, you may have a few months before your bill goes up. The ruling gives companies until September 1, 2015 to comply.
