tao Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 The Ugandan government has implemented a law forcing mobile users to pay taxes to use mobile money and social media apps like Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, WhatsApp, and Skype. As of July 1, people in Uganda have to pay 200 Ugandan shillings (about 5 cents in USD) a day if they want to use social media or pay using mobile money. “When I woke up, I was surprised that I had not received any messages on my Whatsapp or messenger. I could not login to my Twitter account either,” one Uganda resident posted on Facebook, according to Ugandan news outlet the Daily Monitor. “This was strange given the fact that I had just bought 10 GB of data two days ago. I was about to call my telecom service provider then I remembered it is July 1, 2018, the day when government said it would implement social media tax on orders of our President.” According to the Daily Monitor, people across the country took to social media to share their frustration, and explain how to get around using the tax (for now) by using VPN. The idea was first floated in March, when President Yoweri Museveni reportedly wrote a letter complaining to the finance minster about online gossip and suggesting a tax be introduced to “cope with consequences.” In May, parliament passed legislation introducing the tax on “Over The Top” social media that provided messaging services. And now, it’s finally been implemented. Users can pay the tax using mobile money. Ugandan telecom providers sent out a statement instructing users how to pay with mobile money using their services—because of course, it’s not easy to pay for something using a payment service that you have to pay a tax on in order to use. < Here > Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEngEE Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 And now watch as VPNs, encrypted proxies and the like get a massive increase in userbase and rub their hands. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Archanus Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 33 minutes ago, BEngEE said: And now watch as VPNs, encrypted proxies and the like get a massive increase in userbase and rub their hands. Aha! it's time to use VPN software Do you recommend me Hotspot Shield?? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dufus Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 follow money same over world https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lobbying Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 They should pass that law everywhere so people will think before they use Facebook 5 cents a day is still cheaper than a good vpn. They tax everything else why not social media .. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BEngEE Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 1 minute ago, steven36 said: They should pass that law everywhere so people will think before they use Facebook 5 cents a day is still cheaper than a good vpn. They tax everything else why not social media .. No! It starts with social media, and then it goes to something else and then something else, before you know it, all your fave pron and warez sites will be taxed. Stop this taxing now Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven36 Posted July 2, 2018 Share Posted July 2, 2018 43 minutes ago, BEngEE said: No! It starts with social media, and then it goes to something else and then something else, before you know it, all your fave pron and warez sites will be taxed. Stop this taxing now You are most likely right but it already anything we buy they add a state tax to it say if i buy a cup of coffee they charge me more than 5 cents in taxes . Then we have a sin tax for cigarettes and liquor also some places have a sin tax on fast food even , I would consider gossip just another sin tax is all. Netherlands already had an explicit piracy tax also Poland did too . Not sure how it is now. The U.S. federal, state and local governments lose a minimum of $422 million in tax revenues annually due to piracy. If they want charge me a tax and make it legal i'm all for it https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sin_tax https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Private_copying_levy Quote Luxembourg is the only EU member state on the continent without a private copying levy So the whole EU but one place charges a piracy tax Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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