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formerPhillyguy t1_jdf3puv wrote

Reply to comment by [deleted] in Meta slams telco fee proposal, says ISPs should pay their own network costs | Meta: "Our investments in content drive the business model of telecom operators." by chrisdh79

The problem is local governments tax that service but don't have to do anything to receive that revenue. You're asking them to work for their money.

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[deleted] t1_jdf4tx0 wrote

They tax the business end of the service.

The reality is the economic benefit to a local economy of having stable and accessible internet infrastructure is above and beyond what they collect in taxing the service.

If those tax dollars disappeared overnight and internet became a public utility backed by the state, the expansion of that service would create an economic boom which is just as taxable as the service itself.

Think about the tens of thousands of businesses which use this infrastructure and get taxed. That supersedes the taxation of a single company or group of companies providing the service.

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