Kenya Plans New Tax, YouTube, Netflix to be Affected

The Information Communication and Technology (ICT) ministry will soon complete a new tax scheme. This  framework will be used to tax foreign online streaming media services such as YouTube and Netflix. The over-the-top services (OTT) will soon be required to declare the incomes they derive from Kenyan consumers. OTT services include all applications that offer voice, video and messaging services over the internet. Communications Authority director-general Francis Wangusi says online content providers exploit the Kenyan industry yet neither the government nor artistes benefit from them. Wangusi says and I quote, “Many countries especially developed ones have policies that guide these services, and that is where we are heading to as a country.” He adds that technologies that will facilitate taxation of OTT services are available.