You know, it almost sounds like the judge is saying "They shall come, all, for violence. Their faces shall sup as the east wind, and gather in the captivity of the sands."
The last page of the article is really the crux of the matter for me. In any persistent world based game I've played, my understanding is I don't own my character. I don't own his assorted Gold Coins, Magic Potions, Greater Stave of Seraph Eradication, or novelty holiday items. I'm renting that avatar and the time I spend in the game world from the company. Indeed, trying to sell those things could easily result in account termination. This may not be universal, but it is closer to the norm than something like Second Life. Especially with the games outside Asia, which tend to follow the subscription model.
So in short, I can never licitly realize the value I'm being taxed on, because it would violate my contract with the parent company.
Its vaguely like being taxed on the blue book price of a rental car. Hey, you just have to commit grand theft auto and sell the car to someone else. Thats an asset.
The whole thing is such an illogical conundrum from my perspective. Yet, it seems to keep coming up. If only I could have any confidence that someone in congress would realize it, before they tried to turn it into revenue.
Of course, this may have one advantage. Maybe if my virtual goodies are wealth, I should be able to pay my taxes with them too.
Xpheyel wishes to trade with you:
270 Gold Coins
4 Silver Pieces
87 Copper Pieces
50x [Blackened Basilisk Bladder]
1x [1040 E-Z (Virtual) (Completed)]
Slashdot Mirror
You know, it almost sounds like the judge is saying "They shall come, all, for violence. Their faces shall sup as the east wind, and gather in the captivity of the sands."
The last page of the article is really the crux of the matter for me. In any persistent world based game I've played, my understanding is I don't own my character. I don't own his assorted Gold Coins, Magic Potions, Greater Stave of Seraph Eradication, or novelty holiday items. I'm renting that avatar and the time I spend in the game world from the company. Indeed, trying to sell those things could easily result in account termination. This may not be universal, but it is closer to the norm than something like Second Life. Especially with the games outside Asia, which tend to follow the subscription model. So in short, I can never licitly realize the value I'm being taxed on, because it would violate my contract with the parent company. Its vaguely like being taxed on the blue book price of a rental car. Hey, you just have to commit grand theft auto and sell the car to someone else. Thats an asset. The whole thing is such an illogical conundrum from my perspective. Yet, it seems to keep coming up. If only I could have any confidence that someone in congress would realize it, before they tried to turn it into revenue. Of course, this may have one advantage. Maybe if my virtual goodies are wealth, I should be able to pay my taxes with them too. Xpheyel wishes to trade with you: 270 Gold Coins 4 Silver Pieces 87 Copper Pieces 50x [Blackened Basilisk Bladder] 1x [1040 E-Z (Virtual) (Completed)]