Spain drops tax on CDs to 4 %

Due to Internet Piracy - EU complains

[Sanenet]

As from today, all CDs in Spain will have tax (IVA - VAT) slashed to 4% (from 16%). This is due, in part, to "alliviate the effect of Internet piracy".

Books will have tax slashed from 4% to 1%, and works of art from 16% to 4%.

This move has been critised by Brussels as being "a move against European parity. Music studios should rely upon greater police cooperation, and technical measures to stem Internet piracy, not government subsidarys".

[google.es...]

[Miraracar]

Lowering the price on a music cd from 20 euros to 18 euros won't do anything when it should only cost 12 euros in the first place. Why are cd's so expensive in spain anyway? Are they that expensive in the rest of Europe?

Not to mention the BS, get the government richer, tax on blank cd's. Talk about a subsidarys. Does any of that money ever get to the artists? Why do we have to pay a tax agaist piracy to make a copy of our files for personal or business when the Spanish Police can't stop the people selling music and dvd copies on the street?
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The EU should complain.

[edited by: Sanenet at 4:17 pm (utc) on April 30, 2004]

[Sanenet]

I know that there are a LOT of people selling bootleg copies in the street - I can be offered bootleg CD & DVD copies 6 or 7 time A NIGHT from guys who go round, quite openly, with bag fulls of the stuff.

I don't think prices in Spain are that much higher than the rest of Europe though. Mind you, it's an election pledge, anything to get the voters in ;)

Still, as far as blank copies go, I can buy 100 CDs for €7.5 in the local shops...