Bruce Ely Quoted in Law360 on States' Taxation of Streaming Services

Bradley attorney Bruce Ely was quoted in Law360 discussing whether states can tax streaming services such as Netflix, even when their tax laws were written long before digital products existed.

Ely said that this case could have major ripple effects nationwide, particularly in states that have not updated their tax laws to clearly address digital services. "Netflix is a case that has national implications because we have this constant debate over what constitutes tangible personal property, because a number of states haven't amended their statutes to include something like digital systems or intangibles of any sorts," he said.

Ely said states could “glom on” to the decision, meaning they may begin taxing streaming services by pointing to this case as legal support, even if their statutes do not explicitly mention digital products.

He added that tax lawyers nationwide are watching the case closely because the definitions used could apply to many other states by analogy, not just Colorado. "We're all watching with bated breath, because even though it's only one state, the definitional aspects are such that could apply to a number of the states by analogy," he added.

The full article, “Top State & Local Tax Cases of 2025,” was published by Law360 on Dec. 19, 2025. (login required)