Friday, March 29

Real taxes come to the virtual world of Second Life | Digital Trends Spanish

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As of March 31, 2022, Second Life will collect sales tax from its US users for transactions within the platform. This was announced by Linden Lab, the developer of the game.

“Since Second Life’s inception two decades ago, we have seen many local, state and federal governments impose new ways to collect tax revenue from internet-based businesses,” he explained in a statement. Press release. However, the Supreme Court set a precedent in 2018 with the wayfair case and, while the firm did “everything possible” to exempt its users, “we can no longer absorb” such payments.

As supplemented by the San Francisco-based firm, “for now, we will only charge taxes on recurring billing, such as premium subscriptions and land fees. The amount of tax collected will be clearly communicated on the receipt or invoice.

And while the company will continue to absorb taxes on one-time L$ purchases, first premium subscriptions and name changes, “at some point in the future” it will need to pass the cost on to its users. The amounts will depend on the place of residence. Since there are 13,000 tax jurisdictions in the United States, it is unfeasible to project how much the cost of being in Second Life will increase.

“It is news that we do not like to share, but for the health of the business and of Second Life, we cannot continue to absorb such tax burdens,” added the company created in 1999 by entrepreneur Philip Rosedale.

The decision involves a sad irony: Users will not only have to pay property taxes on their real-world homes, but on virtual ones as well. “The implications for the rest of the metaverses could be huge,” Noor Al-Sibai posed in a column published by futuristic.

“Although Second Life is the first metaverse to introduce taxes to its users, it will almost certainly not be the last,” he warned, citing other digital environments, such as Roblox or Horizon Worlds.

For the editor, the ad represents a “turning point” in the industry. “Now that Pandora’s box has been opened, it is unlikely that the rest of the many other metaverses will also be able to avoid paying taxes to their users,” she pointed out.

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