Warnings Sounded: Internet Association Warns of Consequences from German Digital Tax Proposal
Digital tax poses imminent threat to internet businesses, claims industry association
The Association of the Internet Industry (Eco) has issued a warning regarding the potential digital tax in Germany, stating that "even if the digital tax is supposedly only targeting large US platforms, the costs will ultimately end up with German companies and, therefore, consumers," as Chairman Oliver Süme told news agency AFP. This, in turn, could lead to increased prices for consumers, whether it's online shopping or digital subscriptions.
The proposed tax, according to Süme, also poses a risk to strained relations with the US and could trigger new trade conflicts. Emphasizing the need for international solutions for tax fairness, he also points out that the plans could lead to investments being held back, innovations being slowed down, and Germany's economic attractiveness decreasing. "Politics should not keep changing the rules," he continued.
Culture Minister Wolfram Weimer is pushing for a so-called platform tax of ten percent, which would target internet platform operators with billion-dollar revenues, such as Google or Meta. Weimer believes that these large platforms pay minimal taxes due to clever tax avoidance and contribute too little back to society. The Eco association, which represents around 1,000 companies worldwide, including Amazon's cloud division, Google Germany, and Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, might advocate for a balanced approach that supports innovation, competition, and fair taxation, though no specific statement was provided in the sources.
The digital tax is just one piece of a broader global trend to regulate digital platforms. Potential impacts include increased tax revenue for the German government, potential price increases for consumers, and trade tensions, particularly with the US, which has historically opposed such taxes as discriminatory. The tax structure's clarity and potential unintended consequences for both domestic and international businesses are key concerns for organizations such as Eco.
- The employment policy of internet companies in the community might be negatively affected due to the financial burden from the proposed digital tax, potentially leading to job losses or higher employment costs.
- The implementation of the digital tax in business politics could have far-reaching consequences, affecting general-news aspects such as international relations, trade, and economic attractiveness, as well as broader societal implications like innovation and fair taxation.
