German State Minister for Culture and Media Wolfram Weimer plans to introduce a 10% digital tax on the profits of the largest online companies, including Google and Meta.
Weimer noted that the bill is in the preparation stage. “It is not just about Google ads.“ We are talking about platform operators with total revenues in the billions. “We consider the tax rate of 10% to be moderate and legal“, the state minister said in an interview with Stern magazine. He claims that large internet companies are evading taxes.
Weimer believes that Austria, where large online platforms have been obliged to pay 5% of their advertising revenues since 2020, could be an example to follow. Weimer spoke of a “platform solidarity tax“. Such a mechanism could be applied to services that use media content. However, the state minister did not provide details of the plans, such as the amount of potential revenue and how the funds would be used.
Austria's experience, as the state minister noted, shows that such a tax has not led to a significant change in prices for end users. “However, this has led to corporations finally making a small tax contribution to society, thereby reducing their huge margins somewhat. At the same time, it opens up opportunities for competition,“ concluded Weimer.