§ 27-65-26. Selling, renting or leasing specified digital products

MS Code § 27-65-26 (2019) (N/A)
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(1) Upon every person engaging or continuing within this state in the business of selling, renting or leasing specified digital products, there shall be levied, assessed and shall be collected a tax equal to seven percent (7%) of the gross income of the business. The sale of a digital code that allows the purchaser to obtain a specified digital product shall be taxed in the same manner as the sale of a specified digital product. The tax is imposed when:

(a) The sale is to an end user;

(b) The seller grants the right of permanent or less than permanent use of the products transferred electronically; or

(c) The sale is conditioned or not conditioned upon continued payment.

(2) Charges by one (1) specified digital products provider to another specified digital products provider holding a permit issued under Section 27-65-27 for services that are resold by such other specified digital products provider shall not be subject to the tax levied pursuant to this section.

(3) For purposes of this section:

(a) “Specified digital products” means electronically transferred digital audio-visual works, digital audio works and digital books.

(b) “Digital audio-visual works” means a series of related images which, when shown in succession, impart an impression of motion, together with accompanying sounds, if any.

(c) “Digital audio works” means works that result from the fixation of a series of musical, spoken or other sounds, including ringtones. “Ringtones” means digitized sound files that are downloaded onto a device and that may be used to alert the customer with respect to a communication.

(d) “Digital books” means works that are generally recognized in the ordinary and usual sense as “books.”

(e) “Electronically transferred” means obtained by the purchaser by means other than tangible storage media.

(f) “End user” means any person other than a person who receives by contract a product transferred electronically for further commercial broadcast, rebroadcast, transmission, retransmission, licensing, relicensing, distribution, redistribution or exhibition of the product, in whole or in part, to another person or persons.

(g) “Permanent use” means for purposes of this section for perpetual or for an indefinite or unspecified length of time.

(h) “Digital code” means a code that permits a purchaser to obtain a specified digital product at a later date.