"Apple (AAPL), Oracle (ORCL), Microsoft (MSFT), and IBM (IBM)" Those companies all sell hardware. Apple can't say 'lets book those Palo Alto store sales in Ber

"Apple (AAPL), Oracle (ORCL), Microsoft (MSFT), and IBM (IBM)" Those companies all sell hardware. Apple can't say 'lets book those Palo Alto store sales in Bermuda'. Ads served are a total volatile good (their value is the time they spend rendered on a screen infront of a user). Google has a huge advantage because of this (and it also makes the ad trade ideal for money laundering). To relate this to startups : If you are a startup and you are accepting foreign money and you are bringing it straight into the US and paying tax on it, then you are doing it wrong. A merchant account in Bermuda is easy to setup and is completely legal. If you are not doing all you can to minimize your tax obligation then you are not doing your job properly.