IRS Going After MMOs

[Hobbit]

Seems like the IRS has begun to realize that in-game currency has real world value. The IRS looks like it may soon be going after online assets, taxing gamers on the cash value of their online assets, regardless of whether or not they ever turn them into cash. The IRS is showing its ugly face, once again, as an unregulated, out of control, vicious organization which desires nothing more than to latch its claws onto American citizens. This is yet another in a long list of reasons why the IRS needs to be disbanded in favor of an alternative, such as the FairTax, or even a flat tax.

http://www.gamespot.com/news/6162654.html?tag=lastword;link

 

[Hobbit]

Here's a link to another article on the same thing.

http://taxprof.typepad.com/taxprof_blog/2006/12/taxation_of_vir.html

 

[insein]

I think if filed correctly, this can be combated in the court of law to be unconstitutional. The players have already paid their taxes on the game at the register. This is an unreasonable tax placed on assets that will not become cash for 99.9% of the population who play MMORPGs. This would be like taxing people for owning furniture, appliances, electronics, automobiles, etc in real life. Those items have the potential to generate cash at some point. So taxing them would under this line of thinking be possible. Real Estate is already taxed but virtual real estate is not a tangible item by its name alone. Its virtual. I think if it ever came about it would be one of those middle of the night deals and then it would be viciously fought by an overwhelming crowd of people. So many people play those games. The companies that run them would have a vested interest in combating this legislation as it would ruin alot of their livelihoods.

It will never happen. It wreaks of socialism where all goes to the state for the good of the state because the state says so.