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Re:France Plans 5% Digital Tax as Governments Chase Internet... by sokoloff on Sunday March 03, 2019 @09:12AM (#19294492)
It's not that a simple answer can't be obtained, it's that many different simple answers can be obtained...
Re:France Plans 5% Digital Tax as Governments Chase Internet... by platz on Sunday March 03, 2019 @09:22AM (#19294539)
sure, if you are trying to solve the fully parametric abstract equation over all possible inputs, which is precisely what I was saying to try to avoid.

In absence of a grand unified theory, tackle obvious concrete instances when they crop up.

If the different "simple" answers (which I am not sure exactly what that means) solve the problem, then I really do not care if there is some equivalence principle there; just pick one as long as it produces the concrete outcome that you want.

Re:France Plans 5% Digital Tax as Governments Chase Internet... by sokoloff on Sunday March 03, 2019 @09:43AM (#19294634)
The problem can be roughly stated as: For a company registered in country I, selling product/service in country F, with inputs licensed from and/or created in countries N, U, B, G, A, and C, and costs incurred in a potentially different set of countries, what's the amount of tax due to each country represented in the graph?

There are many simple answers to that question; who gets to decide which simple answer is the one enacted? Countries F, I, and U are likely to disagree on which simple answer is "best", which is why we rely on laws and courts to frame and adjudicate the issue.