ITV

Tag: Entertainment services

  • Under GST, taxes on cable, DTH & entertainment services to come down

    NEW DELHI: Taxation on entertainment, cable and DTH services shall come down under the Goods and Services Tax regime as the entertainment tax levied by states has been subsumed in the GST, the Indian government said today.

    The Finance Ministry in a statement said services by way of admission to entertainment events or cinematography films in cinema theatres will attract 28 per cent GST with effect from July 1. Currently, states impose entertainment tax of up to 100 per cent in respect of exhibition of cinematography films in theatres/cinema halls.

    The GST Council has finalized 18 per cent tax rate on cable TV and DTH services.
    Currently, these services attract an entertainment tax in states in the range of 10-30 per cent over and above the service tax levy of 15 per cent.

    Under the GST regime, hardware equipment for both radio and television transmission and reception is expected to rise.
    The rates on services by way of admission to entertainment events or cinematography films in cinema theatres is 28 per cent under the GST as compared to some states which have been charging as high as 100 per cent until now.

    Thus, taxes on entertainments and amusements (covered by the erstwhile entry 62 of State List of the Constitution) have been subsumed under GST except to the extent of taxes on entertainments and amusements levied by a panchayat (village administration) or a municipality.

    The rate of GST approved by GST Council on access to circus, theatre, Indian classical dance including folk dance and drama is 18 per cent ad valorem. Further, the GST Council has approved an exemption up to a consideration for admission of Rs 250 per person. These services currently attract entertainment tax levied by the States.

    Thus, entertainment services will be lower under GST. In addition to the benefit of lower headline rates of GST, the service providers shall be eligible for full input tax credits (ITC) of GST paid in respect of inputs and input services. Presently, such service providers are not eligible to avail of input credits in respect of VAT paid on domestically procured capital goods & inputs or of Special Additional Duty (SAD) paid on imported capital goods and inputs. Thus, while GST is a value added tax, entertainment tax, presently levied by the States is like a turnover tax.

    Transmission and reception apparatus for both radio and television have been placed in the top category of 28 per cent of the four slabs of the GST. However, the rates may stabilize as taxes levied by states are subsumed in GST.

    Other items coming under the 28 per cent slab are: single loudspeakers, mounted in their enclosures, Audio-frequency electric amplifiers, Electric sound amplifier sets, Parts; Sound recording or reproducing apparatus; and Video recording or reproducing apparatus, whether or not incorporating a video tuner.

    Transmission equipment for radio or TV broadcasting reception apparatus or sound recording or reproducing apparatus; television cameras, digital cameras and video cameras recorders reception apparatus or sound recording or reproducing apparatus; television cameras, digital cameras and video cameras recorders also come under this slab.

    Monitors and projectors, not incorporating television reception apparatus, reception apparatus for television, whether or not incorporating radio-broadcast receiver or sound or video recording or reproducing apparatus also fall in this category.

    Meanwhile, BMR Advisors have said that the information technology sector needs to brace for increase in rates of tax under GST. However, effective planning of credits including on transition stock may aid the sector in mitigating this impact.

    In information technology, both imported and domestically produced mobile phones come in the 12 per cent slab.

    Shrink wrapped software product (on media) will attract tax rate of 18 per cent, as will Laptops, desktops, peripherals, parts, etc. Monitors and projectors (capable of connecting to ADP) will attract a rate of 28 per cent, while the majority of networking products will attract 18 per cent.

    Temporary transfer or permitting the use or enjoyment of any Intellectual Property will attract a GST of 12 per cent.
    In services, software services, that is development, design, programming, customization, adaptation, upgradation, enhancement, implementation of information technology software will attract 198 PER cent GST while Electronic supply of software will attract a tax of 12 per cent.

  • Mobile sports content & services to reach $3.8bn by 2011

    Mobile sports content & services to reach $3.8bn by 2011

    MUMBAI : Mobile sports information and entertainment services are expected to take an increasing share of the global mobile sports, leisure and information content (infotainment) market over the next five years.

    According to Juniper Research the global market for mobile sports content and services will grow from just over $1 billion in 2006 to $3.8 billion in 2011 at an average annual growth rate of 27 per cent. This is out of a total sports, leisure and information content market worth just under $4.2 billion in 2006 and growing to $9.5 billion in 2011. Over the whole period 2006 to 2011 mobile sport, leisure and information content and services is expected to generate a cumulative revenue stream of over $42 billion. 40 per cent of this is expected to come from the European market, 33 per cent from Asia Pacific and 18 per cent from a rapidly growing North American marke.

    The key market drivers will be:
    *the increasing availability of 3G services and support for high quality video;
    *the globalisation of sport personalities and club support;
    *improved flow of digital sports rights for mobile distribution.

    Bruce Gibson, research director at Juniper Research said, “These drivers apply to many types of leisure and information content, but none more so than sports content. There is a great opportunity for content owners, application service providers and operators to exploit sport content over the mobile channel in innovative ways, now that the technology barriers are diminishing”. However he goes on to issue a warning – “This will only happen if everyone in the value chain pays attention to detail. End user experience in some markets of mobile sports content services built around the 2006 Fifa World Cup, has not been consistently good. Many new users of sports services have been disappointed with the quality of the deliverable and may never buy again. First impressions count for a lot and particularly with time sensitive content like goal alerts and replays, the first experience has to be good to generate repeat business.”

    Sports, leisure and information is a vast area and comprises many different types of content and mobile service, from celebrity wallpapers, mobile comics and video “mobisodes” to financial information services, child tracking and personal navigation services. Those applications and services that will show fastest growth over the next few years will be those that develop the most added value from advanced network technologies and those that can move from “presenting facts” to “providing entertainment”. Community applications with a high amount of graphic user generated content will be particularly successful as they have the added advantage of low cost content acquisition, the report says.

    Mobile TV might not be quite there as yet but now looks poised to take off – after many false starts – in the same way broadband internet was roughly five years ago.