Comment by brk | Hacker News Reader

Comment by brk | Hacker News Reader

I think local retailers are given "special treatment" in that they don't have to add a shipping cost on top of the item price.

Consumer retail is evolving, as it has been forever, and will continue to do so into the future.

Local retail shops can cater to immediate gratification desires by shoppers. I can't just order up a latte on Amazon and have it NOW. If I need a new HDMI cable to watch a DVD with some friends tonight, then even free overnight shipping won't solve my needs.

But, for many other things... A new pair of shoes, a new coffee pot, a bottle opener, etc., I can wait 2 or 3 or 7 days to get the item. The Internet isn't going away, and even if I had to pay sales tax, I'd probably still continue to buy things on Amazon because it's easier for me than going to a retail store and dealing with potentially limited selection, crowds, etc.

These companies are simply NOT going to beat Amazon into submission. It's far too late for that, and I actively despise any retailers who try to increase my tax burden vs. offering a valuable service to me.

I think local retailers are given "special treatment" in that they don't have to add a shipping cost on top of the item price.

Yeah, those lucky retailers get to blow off the shipping cost just because they aren't shipping anything. But they do have to pay a fee just for the privilege of doing business, and Amazon gets to do business without paying that fee. And now Amazon is using their dusty old brick and mortar stores as a showroom. I can see why the local retailers are feeling jilted.

No, they don't pay a fee.

You pay a fee for making a purchase. Local retailers should be arguing that they don't want to be the tax collectors, so their prices would look lower too.

Either way, you, the buyer, are responsible for paying the sales and use tax, regardless of whether you bought from BestBuy or Amazon.

Again, both BestBuy and Amazon "get to do business without paying that fee", as it's not something either of them pays.

To enjoy the competitive advantage of having a local presence, BestBuy does agree to help your local government collect your taxes (and in fact gets to KEEP a percentage of the taxes they collect!), while Amazon, who is not in your local jurisdiction, relies on you to pay the tax you owe.

So I assume you willfully pay your tax on all online purchases?

My state had line item on the tax form asking for the amount of goods purchased online so then they can tax them.

Always wondered what people put in there and if the state even did anything about it (audited people).

I guess they could ask Amazon for records (threatening a lawsuit) and cross-reference with all the reported taxes based on name and address. If user bought just from Amazon more than what they reported they they have obviously owe some money + fines & late fees.

(But I suppose I am making gross assumptions about the competence and general technical abilities of my state's tax collecting office).

> could ask Amazon for records (threatening a lawsuit)

http://arstechnica.com/tech-policy/news/2010/10/judge-blocks...

Oh wow. I was thinking of a different state, but this is interesting. It already happened and I missed it.

First it was anonymous purchase data. Then NC demanded user names and addresses but Amazon fought on 1st Amendment grounds and seems to have won:

“The First Amendment protects a buyer from having the expressive content of her purchase of books, music, and audiovisual materials disclosed to the government,”

I wonder if this was Zappos for example. What would have been the ruling.

Do you really think that matters? Amazon seems to be doing really well (and retailers not so much) even in countries where all retailers have to collect VAT (like Germany).

Online shopping is just more convenient and gives the buyer much more control and information.

Why wouldn't every penny matter? People are still buying from stores at least some of the time. The greater the price difference, the more business the stores will lose to Amazon, presumably.

My point is that retail won’t be doing that much better if Amazon has to pay VAT. An example for this are countries where Amazon already has to pay VAT and retail isn’t doing that much better.

Yeah, it costs Amazon nothing to run...

Maybe Amazon should be complaining that the retailers don't have to manage huge server farms, or employ hundreds of technical staff, or so on.

They both have costs associated with doing business. Amazon has to pay ongoing infrastructure costs that the retailers don't, they have to take care of sales and other taxes that Amazon might.

> But they do have to pay a fee just for the privilege of doing business, and Amazon gets to do business without paying that fee.

They pay that fee in return for services that they get, services that Amazon doesn't get.

Amazon offers same day shipping in some areas, obviously still not instant gratification but they are getting closer. An awesome company in my opinion.

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