Last but not least: China wants to tax virtual money
The Chinese tax authority seems to be blessed with resourceful tax officials, but not exactly with a great deal of practical experience. It is currently making headlines in China because it wants to tax virtual currency in the future.
The Chinese tax authority is apparently blessed with resourceful tax officials but not much practical experience. It is currently making a name for itself in China because it also wants to tax virtual money in the future. This includes not only platforms such as Second Life, where the Linden dollar can actually be exchanged for hard currency, but also game platforms where sharp swords or accurate bows can be bought with gold pieces in fantasy environments.
The uproar in the Chinese internet community is correspondingly great. On the popular portal Netease alone, over 6000 comments are said to have appeared the day after the news was published. The fact that individuals are to pay while Internet companies remain excluded from the regulation is seen as particularly unfair.
The background to this somewhat unusual action is the fact that the corresponding market in China has grown by 15 to 20 percent annually in recent years, and apparently hundreds of millions of euros have been earned. The only problem is that it is almost impossible to make virtual trading traceable. It is also very difficult to determine the conversion value. However, if you consider the tenacity with which even gigantic problems are solved in China, the first virtual yuan should soon be flowing into the Chinese tax coffers.
The uproar in the Chinese internet community is correspondingly great. On the popular portal Netease alone, over 6000 comments are said to have appeared the day after the news was published. The fact that individuals are to pay while Internet companies remain excluded from the regulation is seen as particularly unfair.
The background to this somewhat unusual action is the fact that the corresponding market in China has grown by 15 to 20 percent annually in recent years, and apparently hundreds of millions of euros have been earned. The only problem is that it is almost impossible to make virtual trading traceable. It is also very difficult to determine the conversion value. However, if you consider the tenacity with which even gigantic problems are solved in China, the first virtual yuan should soon be flowing into the Chinese tax coffers.
