.. because they provide internet over fiber optic cables, which work by sending
pulses of light down the cable to push packets ..
http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/10/stories/2006101012450400.htm
So they get slapped with tax + penalties of INR 241.8 million.
"In the process of
data transmission, other than light energy, no other elements are
involved and
the customers are paying for the same. This proves that light energy
constitutes goods, which is liable for levy of tax. Therefore, the State
has
every legal competence and jurisdiction to tax it," the department has
contended.
Sounds reasonable to me. Since the sale of energy is
usually measured in kilowatt-hours, how many kwh of
energy is transmitted across the average optical fibre
before it reaches the powereda mplifier in the destination
switch/router?
I'd like to see some hard numbers on this.
The light shining down optical fibres is laser light.
There exist medical devices which are powered by laser
light shining through the tissues. There are also some
types of satellite devices which can receive power from
ground-based laser beams. The crux of this issue is the
actual measurement of power transmitted which will turn
out to be very small.
--Michael Dillon
Sounds reasonable to me. Since the sale of energy is
> usually measured in kilowatt-hours, how many kwh of
> energy is transmitted across the average optical fibre
> before it reaches the powereda mplifier in the destination
> switch/router?
Also, remember, it's _net_ energy delivered which matters... I'm sure the
customer is delivering light back toward the ISP as well.
-Bill
A Cisco ZX GBIC produces a max of 4.77 dBm (or less than 4mw). 4mw corresponds to 35 watt hours in one year.
However, since the customer must beam back light as part of the exchange then you must track the number of pulses in both directions and determine the difference. Some days the customer gets more energy and some days it doesn't. That should affect the tax.
Reasonable? I think you mean "justifiable".
Notice the date: October 10. That is the Indian equivalent of our April 1.
Joe
tax at 12.5 percent, the ISPs entire service revenue because that
revenue is derived from the delivery of light energy, thus making the
"IP service" actually a "utility product".
It looks like the tax department is arguing that what is currently being
billed/taxed as a service is actually a product and such product should
be subject to VAT.
It would be akin to California adding 7.75% to my ISP bill for sales tax.
Owen
Well there's of course back taxes charged for a period of ~ 3 years or
more, plus interest and late payment penalties on those back taxes
A rather humorous article from a rhetorical perspective.
The reporter emphasizes the innocence of generating light
while ignoring its commercial aspects. Those light pulses
are very valuable to recipients. This tax seems to parallel
the U.S. Federal Excise Tax on photons and electrons
(i.e., telephone service). I don't see anything unusual here
other than a weak argument against taxing authority.
If you want to argue against the concept of taxation, be my
guest. But let's not obfuscate the real issue here. Tax
evasion often results in assessment of hugh penalties. Just
ask Spiro Agnew or Al Capone.
This is news?
matthew black
california state university, long beach
Feh. Any government with real tax mojo will tax both of them on the gross, not the net. This isn't the milquetoast VAT, you know.
A Cisco ZX GBIC produces a max of 4.77 dBm (or less than 4mw). 4mw
corresponds to 35 watt hours in one year.
.035 kwh per year costs 34.5 cents per year using
the average US electricity cost in March 2006 of
9.86 cents/kwh.
Since the energy flow could be bidirectional,
one of the two parties receives a net benefit
of up to 34.5 cents.
If a broadband provider offers customers
a free gift such as a hat, does this make them
into a hat retailer for tax purposes?
--Michael Dillon
Ah. Culture clash. Therefore the story can be relegated to the same
coop as the IP-carrying pigeons.
The sole justification for asking this is to help us all remember this
for any further similar postings that might otherwise cause lengthy and
weighty discussions on something so lightweight.
Why is 10 October their 01 April?
Thanks.
It's 10/10, which if viewed as the binary number 1010 is 10 base 10.
Surely that has to mean something! (Well, I just made it up, but it
sounds goodd....)
--Steven M. Bellovin, http://www.cs.columbia.edu/~smb
...
It's 10/10, which if viewed as the binary number 1010 is 10 base 10.
Surely that has to mean something! (Well, I just made it up, but it
sounds goodd....)
...
Steve, think about it. For all base N, N > 1, 10 base 10 is 10.
10/10 [I did notice that] is also [when distributed] half of 20/20, so
perhaps half-sighted, or half-sensical.
But now we are well and truly OT and may be stoned with virtual rocks.
Notice the date: October 10. That is the Indian equivalent of our April 1.
According to http://www.april-fools.us/history-april-fools.htm, the
Indian equivalent of April fools day is the Huli festival on March 31.
jaap
Looks like you got october-fooled, Mr.Yao 
10 October is just a date like any other .. those of us in India who
want to play tricks on our friends stick to 4/1 like everybody else