The following statement can be attributed to Paul Lekas, Senior Vice President, Software & Information Industry Association (SIIA).

SIIA commends Canada for dropping its Digital Services Tax (DST) and appreciates the Administration’s efforts in convincing Canada to take this step.  The DST could have cost the U.S. economy $2.3 billion and resulted in thousands of workers losing their jobs.

DSTs target the revenues generated by users of search engines, online marketplaces, social media, and other digital platforms, all products and services where American companies lead because they have made substantial investments in innovation and outcompeted their foreign rivals. As a result, these taxes place a disproportionate burden on U.S. businesses, threatening real harm to consumers, innovation, and the American economy.

We hope that other countries follow Canada’s lead and remove their discriminatory taxes.