Netflix subscribers in Florida may soon notice changes to their monthly streaming bill.
The Sunshine State’s new Communication Service Tax, which includes video and music streaming services, will add a 5.07% tax to resident subscribers’ Netflix bills.
“We’ve notified our members in Florida that they will start to see state services tax applied to their monthly bill beginning February 15,” a Netflix spokesperson confirmed to Cord Cutters News. “Netflix subscriptions in Florida are subject to both local and state tax as part of the Florida Communications Services Tax.”
Florida is one of several states trying to get streaming services taxed like cable TV companies. The proposals aim to help offset the financial losses of cable providers amid the rise of cord cutting.
Those efforts across the country have been met with resistance. For example, last week Missouri’s House of Representatives introduced a bill that would prevent local governments from taxing video streamers. In a separate instance in October, a U.S. judge said streamers don’t maintain a physical presence in cities like cable TV providers who run cable, so they shouldn’t be taxed.
Most of the initiatives have been stopped, but some states, like Florida, have enacted state streamer taxes. In Illinois, Chicago began taxing streaming services in 2015. The “Amusement Tax” added a 9% fee to streaming services, and the city reportedly collected more than $30 million from streaming subscribers in 2021.
The tax comes after Netflix teased yet another price increase in its fourth-quarter letter to shareholders after raising the cost of its premium plan last fall. The climbing charges may lead some customers to reevaluate their subscriptions.
The news was reported earlier by Fox 35 Orlando.
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