California Cities Mull Tax on Streaming Content Services

About 40 municipalities in the state of California are considering imposing a tax on internet-based content services such as Netflix, Hulu, Amazon Video and HBO, according to news reports. In doing so, they would be following the lead of the city of Pasadena, which has already announced that effective 1 January 2017 there will be a 9.4 percent tax on each of these services. The stated purpose of the tax is to replace revenue lost to “cord cutting.” Currently cable TV services are taxed on the municipal level in California, whereas internet video content streaming is not, so when people terminate their cable subscriptions in favor of OTT providers, the given city loses a tax stream. The so-called “Netflix tax” is provoking opposition from at least one industry group, the Internet Association, whose spokesman, Noah Theran, said, “Websites and apps are not utilities and it defies logic to tax them like electricity, water or gas.”   We agree with Mr. Theran that streaming content services are not utilities. In fact, it has been precisely the fear of being demoted to utility status that has been motivating mobile operators to partner with streaming content services and even to create their own. While the Pasadena tax initiative appears to target only broadband access to these services, it could conceivably open the door to taxation of mobile streaming, as well. Such taxes, by increasing the total cost of services, could end up driving away some subscribers and therefore are a potential threat not only to the entertainment content providers but also to MNOs. And if MNOs (or, for that matter, fixed line operators) were to mount a legal challenge against a “Netflix tax,” we believe it would not be difficult to argue that such a tax, by discriminating with regard to certain kinds internet traffic, violates U.S. federal net neutrality rules.

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Verizon Plans to Launch OTT Streaming Video Service by 2015

Speaking at Goldman Sachs’ Communacopia Conference, Lowell McAdam, CEO of U.S. mobile and fixed operator Verizon, stated that the company plans to introduce an OTT digital video service by mid-2015. The service will directly compete with the likes of Netflix, Hulu and Amazon’s Prime in the U. S.’ crowded streaming video field. Besides the impending entry of Verizon, this market is expected to become even more competitive in coming years, with both Sony and satellite provider DISH Network planning their own services.

The new entrants in the digital content sector are largely drawn by a desire to capture the business of cord-cutting millennial consumers, who have tended to rely on streaming options rather than purchasing cable service, as past generations had. As these younger consumers begin to make up an increasing proportion of heads of households, designing packages that meet their expectations will become more crucial. A major, and possibly imminent, effect of this shift in the industry will be the likely decline in “all-included” cable television packages. Currently in the U.S., most fixed line providers offer a bundle that includes broadband internet, land-line service and a TV package that can include upwards of 300 channels. The inflexibility of this arrangement has long drawn criticism from consumers, who often only watch a small percentage of the channels to which they are subscribed. While these complaints have long been lodged against cable operators to no avail, operators are now scrambling to react because consumers have found another avenue for instant video content—the internet. Of this changeover, McAdam said, “No one wants to have 300 channels on your wireless device. I think everyone understands that it will go à la carte. The question is what this transition will look like.”

Despite the many competitors it will face, Verizon has several built-in advantages that could lead to success in this emerging field. First, the company already provides internet, TV and/or land-line service to 70 million US households. As such, it has the billing, customer service and marketing infrastructure in place to successfully roll out a new service on a broad scale. Second, and more important, Verizon can likely secure the digital distribution rights to some of the most valuable properties that have thus far eluded the likes of Netflix—live content, particularly sports. Even Netflix’s most recent deal with Fox (one of the major U.S. networks), has a one-year delay before the network’s content is available for streaming, with the service acting as an alternative to or an augmentation of the traditional syndication structure. Through its current cable television offerings, Verizon has in place the relationships with networks and the resources to expand distribution to its new OTT service. The greatest challenge to the operator in this field may be adapting culturally to the expectation of rapid change; companies like Netflix are constantly adjusting their offerings based on customer data. If Verizon is able to clear this hurdle, it will be well positioned to thrive on the frontier of content distribution.

The above item appeared in a recent issue of The Tarifica Alert, a weekly resource that analyzes noteworthy developments in the telecoms industry from around the world. To access all of the latest articles and issues:  http://www.tarifica.com/TarificaAlert.aspx