Hollywood claims victory in box office dispute with China - The Verge
Hollywood studios emerged victorious in a tax dispute with the Chinese government this week, after a lengthy standoff with a state-owned film distribution company. As the Wall Street Journal reports, the Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) and distributor China Film Group reached an agreement Tuesday over a two percent value-added tax that Beijing began levying on all domestic box office receipts last year. American studios had refused to pay the duty on the grounds that it violated existing revenue agreements, and declined to accept any payments from China Film Group. Now, the situation appears to have been resolved in the MPAA's favor, allowing US studios to cash in on the hundreds of millions of dollars in box office sales that had been frozen.
Goodbye Switzerland, Hello Bitcoins - Forbes
Bitcoins are everywhere. Last week, a federal judge in Texas held that the virtual currency qualifies as a form of money and allowed the SEC to charge a promoter of a scheme to invest in bitcoins with violations of the federal securities laws. Earlier this week, the New York Department of Financial Services issued subpoenas to 22 virtual currency companies with an eye to determining whether the industry needs new regulations, and the Senate Homeland Security and Government Affairs Committee asked several federal agencies for information regarding their policies with respect to bitcoins and other virtual currencies. Combined, these actions will undoubtedly fuel calls to regulate the burgeoning virtual currency market, and the IRS will surely be getting in the action soon.
California Schools Reap Dollatrs from Prop 39 - Environmental Leader
Proposition 39 closed a corporate tax loophole and now California schools are gearing up to make energy efficiency improvements with the money allocated from the Proposition.
Charitable Shelter: How CRUTS Cut Capital Gains Tax - Forbes
The higher federal tax rates that kicked in this year have given all these variants of the four-decade-old charitable remainder trust new appeal for upper-income folks.
Study: Half who now buy own health plan to get aid - San Francisco Chronicle