(edit title) Amazon books eyeing the Swedish competition. Will we see yet another knock on effect? Options

[byke]

Looks like Amazon is eyeing up the Swedish book market.
I wonder if this was to happen, if it could have a knock on effect in regards to retail outlets in Sweden.

http://goodereader.com/blog/rumors/amazon-...ry-into-sweden/

[skogsbo]

It would appear that in the UK, amazon contributed to closing many book stores, whilst paying no tax. There is a longer term price to pay when you buy cheap online.

[byke]

Strange regarding taxes, as Amazon collects Swedish tax when it sells items to Swedish addresses.

However, it does also help question the disparity of commerce in the EU regarding competition and tax percentages. But dont books sold in Sweden have a lower retail tax? 12%?

[Puffin]

The news articles referring to Amazon's tax avoidance are related to them paying little/no Corporation tax - not the VAT sales tax that they collect for the government

EU rules requires internet and other businesses doing a certain level of business with other EU countries to collect the taxes payable in the country of delivery

Depends what sort of books you are talking about in Sweden - educational/text books have VAT of 6% I believe in Sweden

[Bender B Rodriquez]

Depends what sort of books you are talking about in Sweden - educational/text books have VAT of 6% I believe in Sweden

Virtually all printed books, magazines and newspapers have a VAT of 6%. (not only educational ones) However, e-books and audio books have 25% VAT.

As Puffin says, Amazon does pay VAT; it is the corporate taxes they are avoiding.

[byke]

#LuckoftheIrish

[Yorkshireman]

Looks like Amazon is eyeing up the Swedish book market.. I wonder if this was to happen, if it could have a knock on effect in regards to retail outlets in Sweden.

Retail outlets for books in Sweden have been declining for the last few years. Companies like Akademibokhandeln changed their strategy for stores sometime ago because they were losing significant business to Adlibris and Bokus. This will just be the last nail in the coffin for them.

Amazon's other strategy will impact Publishing houses, as they are now trying to convince and sign-up Authors direct to publish via Amazon, so how long can Bonniers and Norstedts survive? As Amazon says, they are not attacking Publishers, they are trying to redfine Publishing!

And with regards not paying taxes, Yes they do!, they follow the EU rules with regards VAT, what many countries are complaining about is Corporate Taxes on profits ... But Amazon have skillfully used the Sales & Tax rules to minimise their liabilities. They do not sell from any country other than Luxembourg, the warehouses in UK and Germany are only distribution centers, no sales are made from there. Those are just a pure cost in those countries, don't generate any profit at all.

[Mo]

Time to chuck Luxembourg out of the EU then (& close the borders)

[byke]

Ireland too ?

[Essingen]

They do not sell from any country other than Luxembourg,

Any reasonable person would think that if I order a book from Amazon.co.uk...then the contract for sale is made either in the UK or in Sweden, not in Luxembourg.

It is amusing watch UK MPs interrogate represenatives from Google, Amazon and Starbucks on how they avoid corporation tax. It may well be good TV but they are interviewing the wrong party. They should have the Inland Revenue in front of them asking how they intend to close the tax loopholes.

[Yorkshireman]

Any reasonable person would think that if I order a book from Amazon.co.uk...then the contract for sale is made either in the UK or in Sweden, not in Luxembourg.

So, if they changed the web URL to end with LU for Luxembourg then You would be comfortable with the sale being from Luxembourg?

The internet is just a means of communication, in the past you might have had to ring them in Luxembourg, sent them a fax, an order via snail-mail. They could also indirectly just use the .com which doesn't imply any country to a customer, it is for your convenience and their internal IT processing that the alternative suffices are used