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Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

taxwatchuk.org

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Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#161

Post by hartator »

Fnoord wrote: post #124
FDSGSG wrote: post #6

It's downright ridiculous to complain about companies taking perfectly legal steps to reduce their tax burden. As the oft-quoted US judge Learned Hand said: > Anyone may arrange his affairs so that his taxes shall be as low as possible; he is not bound to choose that pattern which best pays the treasury. There is not even a patriotic duty to increase one's taxes. Over and over again the Courts have said that there is…

> It's downright ridiculous to complain about companies taking perfectly legal steps to reduce their tax burden. How ironic that you had to post (as of now) 24 times in this very thread defending this condescending viewpoint. You're not at all addressing what the article mentions. I'll address what the article mentions. The article (quite clearly, in bold) mentions, at the top: > The company is currently under invest…

Some of us believe digital shouldn’t tax at all. Despite us using electricity. Invalidating all your points.

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#162

Post by CountSessine »

selimthegrim wrote: post #159
leereeves wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where are these places where politicians have neither money nor power?

Theocracies, military dictatorships

Is that a semi-ironic joke? The elite in theocracies have plenty of money.

https://www.atlanticcouncil.org/blogs/iransource/rage-agains...

The big difference is that the elite here invent crazy-useful shit like online-shopping or iPhones or map-reduce. The elite in a theocracy or military dictatorship accomplish and contribute nothing.

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#163

Post by ryandrake »

refurb wrote: post #99
andrewprock wrote: post #48

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Few people do. Most people attempt to fill out their returns in a rather straightforward manner as laid out by the forms. The loopholes are not published in the tax forms.

I don’t think it’s a few. Did you put money in a 401k? Did you buy a house and calculate the tax deduction? Did you hold onto a stock so you’d get the lower long term capital gains rate? Did you contribute to an HSA or FSA? The majority of people make decisions that optimize their tax rate.

Only 30 percent of Americans itemize and less than half even have a 401(k). 46% do not own any stock at all, either directly or indirectly through retirement savings. We are definitely not talking about the majority here.

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#165

Post by chillwaves »

hartator wrote: post #161
Fnoord wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It's downright ridiculous to complain about companies taking perfectly legal steps to reduce their tax burden. How ironic that you had to post (as of now) 24 times in this very thread defending this condescending viewpoint. You're not at all addressing what the article mentions. I'll address what the article mentions. The article (quite clearly, in bold) mentions, at the top: > The company is currently under invest…

Some of us believe digital shouldn’t tax at all. Despite us using electricity. Invalidating all your points.

What is the argument against taxes on digital goods? How does it differ from a broader argument against taxes?

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#166

Post by JudgeWapner »

FDSGSG wrote: post #39
Scoundreller wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> The company is currently under investigation by tax authorities in the UK, Sweden and France over alleged transfer pricing irregularities and is is facing a potential bill of over $1.1bn in back taxes and penalties. > In the United States, Activision Blizzard has recently settled a transfer pricing dispute with tax authorities for $345m. Maybe not so legal?

Hard to say before the courts decide. I've personally been through such disputes with tax authorities and prevailed.

Do you shelter your money into "tax havens" ? If so, why do you cheat the system this way (note: I didn't ask the question "is this legal", so please don't bake that affirmation into your response).

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#167

Post by untog »

hartator wrote: post #161
Fnoord wrote: post #124

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> It's downright ridiculous to complain about companies taking perfectly legal steps to reduce their tax burden. How ironic that you had to post (as of now) 24 times in this very thread defending this condescending viewpoint. You're not at all addressing what the article mentions. I'll address what the article mentions. The article (quite clearly, in bold) mentions, at the top: > The company is currently under invest…

Some of us believe digital shouldn’t tax at all. Despite us using electricity. Invalidating all your points.

Not even slightly. You don't get to "believe" that laws do not apply to you. They still do.

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#168

Post by caconym_ »

ChrisLomont wrote: post #155
caconym_ wrote: post #153

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's downright ridiculous to equate expressions of dissatisfaction with the current state of tax law (allowing wealthy entities to exploit all sorts of loopholes clearly not in the spirit of paying your taxes ) with some straw-man "complaining" about such activity despite the fact that these entities are probably behaving mostly within the bounds of the law "just like everybody else". Guess what: laws change, and som…

The parent didn’t create a straw man; you did. The article is not criticizing the laws. The article is criticizing Activision for following the law, exactly what the parent stated. Maybe you read a different article focused on the law, not a single actor?

I am reading the "Conclusions and recommendations" section and I am not seeing any such criticism of "Activision for following the law". Rather, I am seeing statements like this one:

> The case of Activision Blizzard is just another example demonstrating the need for governments to introduce more effective measures to deal with royalty-based tax avoidance schemes. In the UK this means changing legislation to make sure that royalty payments made to companies in jurisdictions where the UK has a tax treaty are included in the charge to income tax.

That is not a criticism of Activision Blizzard. It is a straightforward statement of the fact that "more effective measures [are needed] to deal with royalty-based tax avoidance schemes". So, I don't really see what you're talking about. Let's try this: do you agree that they are "using offshore tax havens to reduce their tax burden"? If so, would you further agree that this is a "tax avoidance scheme"? Why or why not?

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#169

Post by untog »

TheSpiceIsLife wrote: post #132
slaymaker1907 wrote: post #127

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I think this kind of reasoning needs to be questioned since the mechanisms available to large corporations and the wealthy completely outclass those available to less wealthy citizens and small business. Additionally, despite the delusion that some companies and individuals may have, they damn well do have similar and perhaps greater obligation to work towards the betterment of society. For some reason, we seem to th…

Don't make the mistake of equating paying more tax with the betterment of society. I think it was PJ O'Rourke who said something like giving money and power to politicians is like giving whiskey and car keys to teenage boys.

Oh goodness, well if a pithy quote said it then it must be true.

In retort I'd offer the pithy quote by Churchill that democracy is the worst form of government, except for all the other ones. But as is usually the case I don't think Churchill ever even said it.

Re: Activision Blizzard has moved billions of dollars of profit into tax havens

#170

Post by TheSpiceIsLife »

selimthegrim wrote: post #159
leereeves wrote: post #154

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Where are these places where politicians have neither money nor power?

Theocracies, military dictatorships

It’s possible the causality is backwards here.

Maybe theocracies and military dictatorships are what happens when politicians have all the money and all the power, and thusly become theocracies and military dictatorships.

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