Netflix, Hulu Tax Obligation Questioned by Tennessee High Court

The Tennessee Supreme Court pressed both sides at oral argument Tuesday in Knoxville’s case arguing Netflix Inc. and Hulu LLC are subject to the same local franchise fees paid by cable television and internet service companies.

Knoxville seeks to represent a class of Tennessee municipalities that argue streaming services should pay them a portion of their subscription revenue because they are “video service providers” under the Tennessee Competitive Cable and Video Services Act.

Similar arguments are playing out in cases across the country. The attorneys arguing before the Tennessee court argued a near-identical case recently in Ohio, where the justices ...