3 ms·
An interesting idea than cropped up in another thread was taxing IP according to its valuation. If I find a million dollars in gold in my backyard, I'll have to
by rubinelli 15y ago
An interesting idea than cropped up in another thread was taxing IP according to its valuation. If I find a million dollars in gold in my backyard, I'll have to declare it in my tax form, so if I stumble upon and patent an idea that I think is worth a million dollars, isn't it fair that I pay taxes on it? Then later if I sue a company I can't say my idea is actually worth 20 million dollars.
- Cushman 15y agoYour analogy has a flaw: gold is a commodity with a known price. If I discover a rare artifact in my backyard, I can't be taxed on that because no one has any idea what it's worth— arguably it doesn't have worth unless someone pays me for it.
- kragen 15y agoIt looks like, in the US, you actually get taxed on the gold when you sell it, not when you dig it up — http://www.irstaxattorney.com/tax-topics/irs-audit-techniques/Placer%20Mining%20Industry%20-%20Chapter%2013%20-%20Inventories%20and%20Uniform%20Capitalization.asp http://www.irstaxattorney.com/tax-topics/irs-audit-technique... says: "It is not uncommon to examine a return where the taxpayer claims to be in production yet keeps no inventory. Since the gold recovered must eventually be recognized as income, inventories must be maintained." This is precisely equivalent to the situation with patents.