PlayStation Users In Chicago Now Have To Pay An "Amusement Tax"

3.4
In Chicago, PlayStation users now have a nine percent tax to look forward to.

If you're a PlayStation gamer in the Chicago area, your wallet is going to be crying an extra few tears going forward. Why? Well, because of the city's infamous nine percent “Amusement Tax.”

If you're from Chicago, you'll be familiar with the Amusement Tax. But if you're not from the Illinois city, it's basically a tax on Entertainment. So, video games, streaming services, theater performances, etc.

Like other companies, Sony Interactive Entertainment fought and didn't comply with the tax for awhile, but going forward it will be. What this means is that PlayStation owners will be paying an additional nine percent tax on not only games, but PlayStation Plus, Music, Vue, and other Sony services.

According to USGamer, PlayStation users with billing addresses in the city of Chicago are already getting notifications about the Amusement Tax from Sony, which reveal it will be active starting November 14 this year.

As you may know, the tax didn't always apply to services like Playstation, but after an expanded definition and 2015 clarification, it has.

If you're an Xbox or Nintendo gamer in the Chicago area, you will have been paying this tax for awhile, as Sony was the longest to hold out of the hardware manufacturer trio. Other companies, such as Apple, continue to fight the rule, noting that it violates the Internet Tax Freedom Act, which was a 1998 law that prohibited state and local governments from collecting Internet-only taxes or dumping discriminatory taxes on any type of e-commerce.

A nine percent tax will mean that a brand-new AAA game will cost an extra $6-7 a pop, which may seem minimal, but that adds up. And when you consider just how expensive of a hobby gaming already is, it's surely a bummer for Chicago gamers who now have to fork out a little bit more each time they want to enjoy one of their favorite new games. It's especially a hard pill to swallow when you consider some PlayStation games in some states don't have to worry about extra tax cost at all.

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Related Forum: PlayStation Forum

Source: https://comicbook.com/gaming/2018/11/10/playstation-ps4-chicago-amusement-tax/

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"PlayStation Users In Chicago Now Have To Pay An "Amusement Tax"" :: Login/Create an Account :: 12 comments

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Two_FacedPosted:

Hnaknaw
Two_Faced ANY taxation is theft. These are two private parties conducting business. There is absolutely no reason the government should be able to come in and take a precentage of a sale. Chicago has one of the highest crime rates in the US and one of the strictest gun laws. They have their priorities all screwed up. That's being liberal and progressive I guess. Seems like you can just go out of state to buy it I guess, and chase away business at the same time.


Also, taxes are what run countys, cities, states, and the entire county. Want a road to drive your car on? Sweet, taxes pay for that. Want (almost) free public education, great taxes help pay for that too.


Taxes are what currently run those things, but you would be wrong if you assume a society cannot function adequately without taxes.

Our current form of taxation relays on mostly theft and extortion. We live in a sad time where people just accept things as they are with little to no thought about more productive and benificial alternatives.

SturnusPosted:

Two_Faced ANY taxation is theft. These are two private parties conducting business. There is absolutely no reason the government should be able to come in and take a precentage of a sale. Chicago has one of the highest crime rates in the US and one of the strictest gun laws. They have their priorities all screwed up. That's being liberal and progressive I guess. Seems like you can just go out of state to buy it I guess, and chase away business at the same time.


Also, taxes are what run countys, cities, states, and the entire county. Want a road to drive your car on? Sweet, taxes pay for that. Want (almost) free public education, great taxes help pay for that too.

SturnusPosted:

Area52
Hnaknaw Okay, but this story isn't entirely depicting what this situation actually means. Chicago currently has a sales tax rate of 10.25%, this is anything that isn't considered a necessary item (food mostly, other than luxury food[chocolate ect... google can break this down more]). So essentially because they aren't categorizing it under normal taxable goods is actually a better situation for Chicago residence. Sony is actually get away with charging it's users a lot less by being categorized under an amusement tax rather than normal tax.

9% < 10.25%

Article put it in a way that seems like it is way worse that it actually is. Is there not usually a tax on entertainment?


All tech services (playstation, xbox, nintendo) are all required to charge sales tax for digital purchases. So in reality Sony is actually going to be saving customers some money by this specific tax classification. :)

Two_FacedPosted:

ANY taxation is theft. These are two private parties conducting business. There is absolutely no reason the government should be able to come in and take a precentage of a sale. Chicago has one of the highest crime rates in the US and one of the strictest gun laws. They have their priorities all screwed up. That's being liberal and progressive I guess. Seems like you can just go out of state to buy it I guess, and chase away business at the same time.

DecyPosted:

Not sure how exactly it is in the us but this has gotta be one of the dumbest things i have ever saw in my life.... you already pay for the console,memberships,internet, electricity anyway but yet youve gotta pay to use it.... next we will be getting taxed for taking a sh*7

FunkyBuddhaPosted:

Hnaknaw Okay, but this story isn't entirely depicting what this situation actually means. Chicago currently has a sales tax rate of 10.25%, this is anything that isn't considered a necessary item (food mostly, other than luxury food[chocolate ect... google can break this down more]). So essentially because they aren't categorizing it under normal taxable goods is actually a better situation for Chicago residence. Sony is actually get away with charging it's users a lot less by being categorized under an amusement tax rather than normal tax.

9% < 10.25%

Article put it in a way that seems like it is way worse that it actually is. Is there not usually a tax on entertainment?

SturnusPosted:

Okay, but this story isn't entirely depicting what this situation actually means. Chicago currently has a sales tax rate of 10.25%, this is anything that isn't considered a necessary item (food mostly, other than luxury food[chocolate ect... google can break this down more]). So essentially because they aren't categorizing it under normal taxable goods is actually a better situation for Chicago residence. Sony is actually get away with charging it's users a lot less by being categorized under an amusement tax rather than normal tax.

9% < 10.25%

AngelWhatPosted:

WOW this is insane....im from chicago but havent lived there in ages.. i cant believe they would have such a tax like that...kinda messed up if you ask me .... kinda like taxing people to breathe ...... sheesh !

MazePosted:

Can't wait for California to start doing it, they love tax money

LebronIs6Posted:

There's chi town for yeah


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