Stung by revenue losses from the closure of movie theaters, concert halls, and stadiums during the Covid-19 pandemic, cities across Illinois are considering ways to capture tax dollars from streaming entertainment. The trend has implications for cash-strapped governments across America.
The city of Evanston recently joined its much larger southern neighbor, Chicago, expanding the reach of its amusement tax ordinance to take advantage of surging consumer demand for movies on Netflix, music on Spotify, and gaming on PlayStation Now.
Other cities could broaden their tax bases to online entertainment in the coming months to replenish coffers strangled by the public ...