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$10,000 iTunes Gift Card???
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ort888
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:43 PM
 
Apple - iTunes - 10 Billion App Countdown

The grand prize for downloading the 10 billionth app is a $10,000 iTunes Gift Card.

Seriously? Who would want something like that? How many people could actually make use of something like that?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't you have to pay Uncle Sam something like $3,000 for winning such a prize? That's the real kick in the nuts. Makes it more of a penalty than a prize.

Why couldn't they make it a $10,000 apple card, you know, something useful.

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andi*pandi
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:45 PM
 
It would take me awhile to use that up, but I wouldn't pass it up. If I use it on apps, I could buy lots of useful things, and if it doesn't expire, I could upgrade Angry Birds til 2043.

(but apple card would be better, yes.)
     
Laminar
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:46 PM
 
Lots and lots of iTunes rentals.
     
The Final Dakar
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:46 PM
 
Yeah, I'd be pissed if the taxes were ridiculous.
     
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:48 PM
 
Edit: stupid post.

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The Final Dakar
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:49 PM
 
Originally Posted by SpaceMonkey View Post
Edit: stupid post.
You should put that in your sig.

LOL!
     
Laminar
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:50 PM
 
     
SpaceMonkey
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:52 PM
 
Oh, the burnination.

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The Final Dakar
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Jan 14, 2011, 03:53 PM
 
The unfortunate side effect of working in the meme generator is I'll be thinking like a 14 year old for a for a couple hours afterward.
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Spheric Harlot
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Jan 14, 2011, 04:30 PM
 
Good point about the Mac App Store. That, and iTunes rentals, would make it a lot easier.
     
olePigeon
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Jan 14, 2011, 05:10 PM
 
Sell it on eBay for $8,000.
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MacinTommy
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Jan 14, 2011, 07:19 PM
 
Originally Posted by olePigeon View Post
Sell it on eBay for $8,000.
winnar
     
MacinTommy
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Jan 14, 2011, 07:26 PM
 
Double
     
Andy8
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Jan 15, 2011, 02:04 AM
 
Originally Posted by ort888 View Post
Correct me if I'm wrong, but wouldn't you have to pay Uncle Sam something like $3,000 for winning such a prize? That's the real kick in the nuts. Makes it more of a penalty than a prize.
That is assuming it is won by someone living in the US.
     
wdvivil
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Jan 15, 2011, 11:21 PM
 
Yeah thats right in other countries you dont have to pay anything if you win something in a lottery such as this . They should change that because one third is way to much. I think it only makes a little sense to see it as income if you win on a regular basis such as in poker or other gaming where it depends on your skill.
Also I dont think a gift card counts since youre limited in your choice of what to buy
( Last edited by P; Jan 16, 2011 at 10:14 AM. )
     
Phileas
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Jan 15, 2011, 11:44 PM
 
The US taxes lottery wins? Really?
     
Laminar
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Jan 16, 2011, 02:00 AM
 
Originally Posted by Phileas View Post
The US taxes lottery wins? Really?
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SpaceMonkey
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Jan 16, 2011, 03:07 AM
 
Lotteries in the U.S. are operated by states. There are, in fact, a handful of states that do not tax lottery winnings. Of course, you would still owe federal taxes.

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Salty
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Jan 16, 2011, 04:04 AM
 
I know in Canada gift cards aren't considered income. That's why when most companies wanna do big cash giveaways to employees they're often doing prepaid credit cards now.
     
Spheric Harlot
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Jan 16, 2011, 05:40 AM
 
Originally Posted by Phileas View Post
The US taxes lottery wins? Really?
Germany does, too - at least, cash prizes. IIRC, you have a certain timeframe within which you can invest the money before it becomes taxable.
     
turtle777
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Jan 16, 2011, 11:37 AM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
Germany does, too - at least, cash prizes. IIRC, you have a certain timeframe within which you can invest the money before it becomes taxable.
Does buying movies and apps count as an "investment"

-t
     
Wiskedjak
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Jan 16, 2011, 12:10 PM
 
Originally Posted by ort888 View Post
Seriously? Who would want something like that? How many people could actually make use of something like that?
I suspect that is the intent. On paper, it looks like a huge prize, but they may be banking on the odds that the winner wouldn't be able to come close to actually using it all up.
     
Cold Warrior
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Jan 16, 2011, 12:17 PM
 
Apple doesn't care if they use it all. 10k to them is a pico second of revenue.
     
Spheric Harlot
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Jan 16, 2011, 02:51 PM
 
Originally Posted by turtle777 View Post
Does buying movies and apps count as an "investment"
Better question: Does a gift card count as a cash prize?

I think not.
     
OisĂ­n
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Jan 17, 2011, 02:12 PM
 
Originally Posted by Spheric Harlot View Post
Germany does, too - at least, cash prizes. IIRC, you have a certain timeframe within which you can invest the money before it becomes taxable.
Yup, cash prizes (and gift cards count as cash prizes here) are taxed as regular B income, which means you pay your 41 per cent off whatever exceeds 5,000 DKK. So a $10,000 gift card won here would mean you’d have to pay about $3,600 back in taxes.

This is why quiz shows here rarely give cash prizes; they tend to go for material prizes, which are tax free.
     
turtle777
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Jan 17, 2011, 02:15 PM
 
Apple should just give the winner 500 licenses of iPhoto 9.

-t
     
Eug
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Jan 17, 2011, 07:44 PM
 
Somebody gave me a $100 card and I couldn't use it for apps, so Apple gave me a $100 refund instead.

Too bad that wouldn't work any longer, since the gift cards are now good for apps.
     
ebuddy
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Jan 17, 2011, 08:08 PM
 
Originally Posted by andi*pandi View Post
I could upgrade Angry Birds til 2043.
FOR REALS!!! That friggin' game...
ebuddy
     
Athens
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Jan 17, 2011, 10:34 PM
 
And what was it that Apple makes on purchases again, 33% on music or something like that. $10 000 price is only costing Apple a about a 3rd as some of it comes back to Apple in the purchases.
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Jan 17, 2011, 11:53 PM
 
In the States, ANY prize of value may be taxable. People who win cars and boats on game shows either pay out their proverbial wazoos, or insist the producers provide a statement of how much THEY paid for the prizes. Often most of the value of the prizes is absorbed by the provider ("a fee was paid and promotional consideration provided by Acme Autos"), so the real value of the prize (what the producers paid for it) is often quite small.

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brassplayersrock²
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Jan 22, 2011, 06:32 AM
 
It just reached 10 billion
     
turtle777
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Jan 22, 2011, 11:39 AM
 
It wasn't me.

-t
     
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Jan 22, 2011, 05:46 PM
 
Great.. the biggest french newspaper in Canada just published a poorly-written article about how Apple rejects people from Québec from this, making it look like it's a deliberate act. Truth is, 99% of the time, Quebec's residents are excluded from this type of raffle because of our complicated law. Except nobody never talks about it, but now it will make Apple look bad. A few friends already started circulating this "news" on Facebook..

Les Québécois exclus d'un concours d'Apple | Marie-Eve Morasse | Internet
     
turtle777
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Jan 22, 2011, 07:50 PM
 
That's what you get for your greedy politicians.

Apple would have to pay $50 (0.5% of the price) to the RACJ (RĂ©gie des alcools, des courses et des jeux) in order to be able to include Quebec.

Imagine every state and province would have that stipulation, suddenly 32% would have to go to the states. Those greedy politicians really need to f*ck off.

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Jan 23, 2011, 10:51 PM
 
     
Eriamjh
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Jan 24, 2011, 01:15 PM
 
This hanging up news, while humorous, is irrelevant. Apple would have still mailed her the award even if they never got in touch with her. They have all her account info in the system. Unless there is some crazy requirement that you must accept the prize over the phone, she legitimately won. Apple contacts her, not the other way around.

Didn't the same thing happen on one of the other big milestone giveaways?

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imitchellg5
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Jan 24, 2011, 01:40 PM
 
Yes, it happened at an iTunes Store milestone too I think.

Honestly though, I probably would have had the same reaction with so many "FREE I-TUNES CARD!!!!111!" scams out there.
     
subego
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Jan 24, 2011, 04:57 PM
 
Originally Posted by Eriamjh View Post
This hanging up news, while humorous, is irrelevant.
I would say the humor is precisely what gives it relevance.
     
AustinAW
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Jan 25, 2011, 01:48 AM
 
i could use it, that's 10k songs, i would love that, the only reason i have only 3k songs on my ipod now is because i cant afford to spend a lot of money on music, i don't like to download music for free
     
Salty
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Jan 25, 2011, 10:53 PM
 
I've got about 6 500+ songs on my iPhone, I'd say 90% was probably paid for. I only ever pirate stuff by artists who are seriously big, (and even then I still buy everything Switchfoot does) and from bands who have already spit up. (Btw I'm Canadian so it's all legal up here.)

I'd say about 30% of it was from CDs I bought when I was a kid, and the rest has mostly been bought on iTunes.
     
Laminar
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Jan 25, 2011, 11:34 PM
 
Switchfoot is "seriously big?" And it's always funny to read rationalizations.
     
   
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