Of Foti Foteinou
Was it done in Italy, in Greece? The American entertainment giant, Netflix is called to pay 55.8 million euros, following an investigation by the Milan Prosecutor’s Office, according to a recent telegram from Reuters.
Can something similar happen in Greece? Domestic digital content platforms are pushing in this direction, demanding “equal rules”.
The background of the case in Italy
According to a recent Reuters telegram, Netflix has agreed to settle a tax dispute with the Italian authorities.
Milan prosecutors issued a statement claiming that a compromise had been reached with a multinational “video streaming” company for the period 2015-2019 for 55.8 million euros.
According to the telegram, they disclosed the settlement number, without naming the company involved, but sources familiar with the matter confirmed that it was Netflix.
For his part, a Netflix spokesman said the company was able to finalize the matter.
“We have maintained ongoing dialogue and co-operation with the Italian authorities and continue to believe that we have acted in full compliance with Italian and international rules,” the spokesman was quoted as saying by Reuters.
The report notes that prosecutors launched an investigation into possible tax evasion three years ago.
They claimed that Netflix should have paid taxes in Italy, for the digital streaming of content to 2 million users.
In fact, the report emphasizes that “as a backdrop for the payment agreement, Netflix has now opened an office in Italy, setting up a base in Rome and hiring more than 40 employees.”
The investigation, by the Milan prosecutors who claimed that the cables and computer servers used by Netflix were equivalent to a physical presence in Italy, was carried out by the Italian tax police.
European and Greek legislation
In Greece, this issue, according to analysts of the telecommunications market, is considered “of paramount importance”.
This is because Netflix is estimated to have 500,000 subscribers in Greece, when in total COSMOTE TV, NOVA – WIND and VODAFONE are estimated to have about 1.1 million subscribers.
Telecommunications market executives speak of “unfair competition”, arguing that, while Netflix enjoys tax “immunity” (and) in our country, domestic platforms shoulder all the prescribed taxes (subscription tax, corporate tax, VAT, etc. .a.).
At this point, they are bidding on the investments made in Greece in infrastructure and staff, in contrast to the international digital platforms under consideration, except for a few producers (eg the Beckett film).
It is noted that, at EU level, with the revision of Directive 2010/13 / EU on audiovisual media services (Directive 2018/1808), the EU rules on audiovisual media were updated, in order to create a fairer environment.
In the above context, it is particularly important to provide for Directive 2018/1808 regarding the possibility for Member States to impose financial contributions on media service providers, through direct investments or contributions to national funds to support audiovisual production.
Financial contributions can be levied not only on providers established in the competent Member State, but also on those targeting the Member State while based elsewhere, strengthening the support of the domestic audiovisual industry for each Member State.
The above provision of the Directive was incorporated in the Greek legislation with article 17 of Law 4779/2021.
The above article, therefore, provides the opportunity for Greece to impose financial obligations for the promotion of European producers – namely Greek audiovisual producers – and to custom service providers who are not established in the territory, but provide such services targeting the country. .
For the calculation of these obligations, the turnover of the customer service provider in Greece is taken into account.
Finally, it is possible to exempt from the relevant obligation providers to order services with a small market share or low turnover.
Source: Capital
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