A content delivery network (CDN) services provider appealed the Department’s assessment of retail sales tax in which the Department determined that the taxpayer’s CDN services were “digital automated services” subject to the retailing B&O tax and retail sales tax. The taxpayer disagreed, noting that its CDN is a “backbone” component of the internet that its
taxability
Out-of-state administrative services sourced to Ohio for Commercial Activity Tax purposes
The Supreme Court of Ohio held that gross receipts from a taxpayer’s services performed out-of-state had situs with Ohio for purposes of the state’s commercial activity tax (CAT) because the benefit of the services was received in Ohio. The taxpayer provided dialysis services to patients in Ohio. To support the dialysis business, the taxpayer and…
New York Tax Appeals Tribunal holds sales of a company’s labor procurement system are taxable as pre-written software
The New York Tax Appeals Tribunal held that a company’s fees related to sales of its labor procurement system were taxable sales of pre-written software.
Taxpayer, Beeline.com Inc., provides services to assist customers in gathering, organizing, managing and assembling their contingent labor force. As part of its service contracts, taxpayer grants its customers license to…
Not so rewarding: Arizona Supreme Court holds rewards program reimbursements are subject to transaction privilege tax
On June 7, 2024, the Arizona Supreme Court held that reimbursements received by a hotel when participating in a hotel rewards program were subject to the Transaction Privilege Tax (TPT). The reimbursements were paid to the taxpayer when it provided a guest with a complementary hotel stay under the program. The rewards program required the…
NY high court to review tax on co.’s ad analysis services
This week, the New York Court of Appeals agreed to hear Dynamic Logic’s appeal regarding the taxability of its services that measure the effectiveness of advertising campaigns. The state Tax Appeals Tribunal previously held that the services were taxable information services in part because of the primary function test.
In this Law360 article, SALT…
Louisiana BTA holds video programming services are not tangible personal property
The Louisiana Board of Tax Appeals granted summary judgment to the taxpayer, holding that its sale of video-on-demand and pay-per-view are not subject to sales tax. A group of local parishes assessed the taxpayer on the theory that video-on-demand and pay-per-view are tangible personal property because the content was “perceptible to the senses,” and the…
New York court holds advertising services are taxable information services
The Appellate Division, Third Department, affirmed the Tax Appeals Tribunal’s decision that a taxpayer was providing taxable information services for sales tax purposes. The taxpayer provided services that measured the effectiveness of its customers’ advertising campaigns. The services included providing a report analyzing surveys of customers/internet users, including a comparison of the client’s campaign results…
Tennessee’s ten cents: Tennessee court holds computer software licenses not subject to business tax
The Tennessee Chancery Court for the Twentieth Judicial District held that software licenses are intangible property and thus the gross receipts from their sale are not subject to tax under Tennessee’s Business Tax Act.
The taxpayer is a software company engaged in the business of selling and licensing software used for various corporate and back…
Alabama Court of Civil Appeals affirms that telecom dealer was not subject to tax on the sales of prepaid wireless-service plans
The Alabama Court of Civil Appeals affirmed the trial court’s decision and held that retroactive application of the 2014 revisions to the “prepaid telephone calling card” provision of the Tax Code were unconstitutional as applied to the taxpayer. Taxpayer, an authorized dealer for Boost Mobile (“Boost”), sold Boost prepaid wireless-service plans to customers, but did…
Illinois DOR issues guidance on taxability of computer software licenses and maintenance agreements
The Illinois Department of Revenue (IDOR) released a general information letter outlining the applicability of Illinois Retailers’ Occupation Tax (ROT) on computer software licenses and maintenance agreements.
The letter states that sales of “canned” computer software are taxable retail sales in Illinois and are considered to be tangible personal property regardless of the form in…