PlayStation begins collecting amusement tax from Chicago users

PlayStation users in Chicago Wednesday began paying a 9 percent tax on streaming content as the gaming company starts complying with a city levy.

The Sony-owned company joins other streaming services including Spotify, Netflix and Hulu in complying with the charge, which took effect three years ago. The city’s amusement tax, which used to apply mostly to concert and sports tickets, was extended to include streaming services in 2015. That includes charges paid for playing games, according to the city finance department.

Some tech companies have fought the 9 percent charge. Apple sued the city in August alleging that the tax on its music streaming services was illegal and discriminatory. That lawsuit is pending in Cook County Circuit Court. Meanwhile, Apple is not collecting the tax.

In 2015, a group of Netflix, Amazon Prime, Spotify, XBox Live and Hulu users sued Chicago in Cook County, alleging that the tax violates federal law. The judge ruled in the city’s favor in May, and the streaming service users appealed the decision. The case is pending in state Appellate Court.

Bill McCaffrey, a spokesman for the city’s law department, said in a statement that the city “uniformly enforces the amusement tax.”

“If a business is not collecting the tax where we believe it applies, the city takes the necessary steps and works with the company to ensure compliance with the law,” he said.

A spokeswoman for PlayStation did not respond to a request for comment.