What few know is one of the biggest factors that influences data center locations for the the Web2.0 companies is their tax bills. Washington Post publishes an AP article about Facebook and the State of Oregon.
After luring Facebook data center, Oregon pokes social media giant with confusion over taxes
SALEM, Ore. — The promise of lucrative tax breaks helped persuade Facebook to build a data center in one of Oregon’s most economically depressed counties. Now, the state and the company are in a dispute over how much Facebook may owe in property taxes, and the social networking giant fears it could be taxed on intangible assets like the value of its powerful brand.
It is interesting how Facebook's industry classification potentially influences its future tax bill.
Oregon lumps Facebook with 75 other corporations classified as cable and Internet companies. Many of them are television and Internet access providers, but the list includes technology companies including Google, Microsoft, Yahoo Inc. and AOL Inc.
State officials say their decision doesn’t change Facebook’s tax bill — about $26,000 this year — and the money still goes to local governments in Crook County. But Facebook is concerned that the state will someday try to tax the company based on the value of its intangible assets, perhaps including computer files, patents, its labor force and goodwill.