natgillin/translations-raw huggingface dataset:
I den pågældende periode udførte LuxOpCo aktivt de førnævnte funktioner, både generelt og hvad angår hver af de tre komponenter af de immaterielle aktiver: Teknologi, kundeoplysninger og varemærker som forklaret nærmere i betragtning 452-472.
Instead, it is LuxOpCo that performs unique and valuable functions in relation to the Intangibles, that uses all assets associated with those functions, and that assumes substantially all the risks associated therewith.
The IP Steering Committee (IP-styringsgruppe)
In addition, it is LuxOpCo, supported by the EU Local Affiliates, that performs unique and valuable functions in the operation of Amazon's European online retail and service business which are of strategic and vital importance to the generation of profits from that business, that uses all assets associated with those functions, and that assumes substantially all risks associated therewith.
I referater af LuxOpCos ledelsesmøder registreres generelt aktiviteter, som direkte vedrører udviklingen, vedligeholdelsen og forvaltningen af de immaterielle aktiver, navnlig oprettelsen af en »EU IP Steering Committee«, hvis rolle var »at yde teknisk og forretningsmæssig vejledning og assistance ved strategisk beslutningstagning med hensyn til udviklingen af intellektuel ejendom af enhver art og beskrivelse, som moderselskabet Amazon Europe Holding Technologies SCS besidder«, eller indgåelsen af flere licensaftaler med tredjeparter.
Functional analysis of LuxSCS
IP Steering Committee mødtes mindst én gang om året for at udveksle og drøfte synspunkter og træffe beslutninger om administration og beskyttelse af IP i Europa.
Amazon claims that ‘LuxSCS had the authority to take decisions and participate in the CSA, was endowed with own financial means and was capable of bearing its risks. By holding the Intangibles and funding their development (or, sometimes, their acquisition), LuxSCS had an essential role in controlling the development, the maintenance and the protection of the Intangibles […]’.
Den traf ingen beslutninger vedrørende udviklingen eller forbedringen af de immaterielle aktiver«, og at gruppens betydning derfor ikke skulle overvurderes. Det forhold, at gruppen var et rådgivende organ, betyder imidlertid ikke, at dens anbefalinger ikke havde indvirkning på udviklingen, vedligeholdelsen og forvaltningen af de immaterielle aktiver.
The Commission does not dispute that LuxSCS, as a party to the Buy-In Agreement and the CSA, is the legal owner of the rights to exploit, further develop and enhance the Intangibles for the purposes of Amazon's European retail and service business.
Efter Amazons eget udsagn bestod IP Steering Committees aktiviteter af: »i) at komme med anbefalinger til ansøgninger om beskyttelse af de immaterielle aktiver (og dermed LuxOpCos eksklusive rettigheder i henhold til licensaftalen mellem LuxSCS og LuxOpCo), ii) at gennemgå status for retssager i Europa vedrørende de immaterielle aktiver og iii) at uddanne ansatte i Europa i brugen af teknologien og andre immaterielle aktiver«.
Nor does it dispute that, LuxSCS was contractually tasked by A9 and ATI under the CSA with several functions and assigned several risks in relation to the Intangibles.
IP Steering Committee var således et forum, hvor ledere ansat hos LuxOpCo og ASE med ansvar for handel og teknologi mødtes for at drøfte og anbefale foranstaltninger vedrørende de immaterielle aktiver i Europa, som blev præsenteret for dem af Amazons IP-advokater.
However, as a result of the License Agreement, those functions and risks were exclusively and irrevocably licensed to and effectively performed and assumed by LuxOpCo for the entire lifetime of the Intangibles.
De egentlige beslutninger vedrørende udvikling, forbedring, forvaltning og udnyttelse af de immaterielle aktiver blev taget af LuxOpCos og ASE's medlemmer af gruppen i deres egenskab af beslutningstagende ledere med ansvar for Amazons europæiske detail- og servicevirksomhed.
None of the information provided to the Commission demonstrates that LuxSCS performed, or had the capacity to perform any active and critical functions in relation to the development, enhancement, management, and exploitation of the Intangibles which would justify attributing to it almost all of the profit generated by LuxOpCo in the operation of Amazon's European retail and service business (Recitals 419 to 429).
Teknologien, som er givet i licens til LuxOpCo af LuxSCS i henhold til licensaftalen, er Amazon USA's eksisterende teknologi, som opdateres regelmæssigt.
Nor could LuxSCS have been considered to have outsourced those functions to another party and it did not have the capacity to control or supervise the execution of thereof (Recitals 427 to 428).
Den blotte tilstedeværelse af en teknologisk ramme, der fungerer i USA, betyder imidlertid ikke, at den også ville fungere problemfrit i Europa.
LuxSCS also did not use any valuable assets in relation to that business, but merely held the Intangibles in a passive manner as the legal owner thereof (Recitals 431 to 435).
Eftersom produktkategorier i USA og Europa er forskellige, kunne flere af funktionerne i Amazons amerikanske software, som er givet i licens til LuxSCS i henhold til CSA-aftalen og givet i underlicens til LuxOpCo i henhold til licensaftalen, ikke tages direkte i anvendelse i Europa.
Finally, LuxSCS did not assume, nor did it have the capacity to assume and control, the associated risks in this regard (Recitals 436 to 445).
Der var behov for en anden type software til driften af webstederne i EU, og fordi der var forskel på Amazons websteder, var det nødvendigt at udvikle software efter geografien.
Functions performed by LuxSCS
Hvis Amazons europæiske forretningsaktiviteter skulle lykkes, krævede det yderligere udvikling, forbedring og forvaltning af teknologien, hvilket alt sammen blev udført af LuxOpCo med støtte fra dets datterselskaber i den pågældende periode.
LuxSCS is the legal owner and contractual licensor of the Intangibles.
Ved etableringen fik LuxOpCo teknologiske ressourcer til at udføre FoU, navnlig med henblik på at understøtte websteder i EU.
However, under the License Agreement, LuxSCS granted LuxOpCo an exclusive and irrevocable license to the economic exploitation of the Intangibles in Europe and a right to further develop, enhance and manage the Intangibles for their entire lifetime, without any reservation of LuxSCS managing or supervising LuxOpCo's activities in that respect.
Dette omfattede katalogudvikling, oversættelsesteknologi og lokal tilpasning.
Under that agreement, LuxOpCo was also granted the responsibility for concluding and managing sublicenses with associated group companies and granted all rights to prevent IP infringements of the Intangibles.
Disse ressourcer kom fra teams af udviklere, som tidligere havde været placeret i lokale filialer i EU såvel som nyansat personale.
Finally, LuxOpCo was responsible for ensuring compliance with all applicable laws, rules and regulations, including export and privacy laws and regulations that may apply to its use of the Intangibles.
I undersøgelsesperioden havde over [60-70] mennesker i Luxembourg, hovedsageligt ansatte hos LuxOpCo, teknologirelaterede job.
Consequently, as a result of that exclusive license, LuxSCS was no longer entitled to economically exploit the Intangibles in Amazon's European operations and therefore could not perform any active and critical functions in relation to their development, enhancement, management or exploitation in that respect.
De havde stillingsbetegnelser som f.eks. softwareudviklingsingeniør, systemingeniør, IT-supportingeniør, løsningsarkitekt, teknisk programforvalter og teknisk kundeansvarlig.
Thus, while the legal ownership of the Intangibles and any derivative works thereof stayed with LuxSCS during the relevant period, the aforementioned active and critical functions in relation to the Intangibles were performed by LuxOpCo.
Disse medarbejdere havde den fornødne kapacitet til at sikre lokal tilpasning af Amazons teknologiske platforme og den programudvikling, der ville være til gavn for webstederne i EU.
Even if LuxSCS had been entitled to perform such functions, it did not have the capacity to carry out, manage or control them during the relevant period.
Et dedikeret team — lokaliserings- og oversættelsesteamet — udførte nøglefunktioner i forbindelse med teknologi, som f.eks. brugertilpasning af EU-websteder, tilpasning af disse til lokale præferencer (heraf betegnelsen »lokalisering og oversættelse«) eller tilbagemelding vedrørende webstedernes funktion med henblik på videreudvikling og forbedring af Amazons platform.
It had no employees, as confirmed by the contested tax ruling, which endorsed the conclusion in Amazon's letter of 31 October 2003 that LuxSCS' very limited activities do not lead to it carrying out a ‘commercial activity’ or having a taxable presence in Luxembourg.
I slutningen af 2013 bestod dette team af [60-70] medarbejdere.
In fact, as confirmed by the TP Report and Amazon's letter of 20 April 2006 to the Luxembourg tax administration, LuxSCS was not supposed to perform any other activity during the relevant period beyond the ‘mere holding’ of the Intangibles and the shares in its subsidiaries and receiving passive income in the form of royalties and interests from those subsidiaries.
Teamet blev efterfølgende forflyttet til [et andet Amazon-selskab] og ændrede betegnelse til »softwareudviklings- og oversættelsesteam«, hvilket antyder, at teamet beskæftigede sig med softwareudvikling.
In the absence of employees, the only means by which such functions could have been performed by LuxSCS itself would have been through its sole manager or through its general meetings.
Yderligere [10-20] personer var ansat som »Technical Program Manager« ([0-10] hos LuxOpCo og [0-10] hos ASE), hvis opgaver var at oversætte funktionsspecifikationer, dvs. at forvandle beskrivelsen af et værktøj, som et lokalt detailvirksomhedsteam ønsker at tilføje til sit websted, til en teknisk beskrivelse af den software, som en softwareudvikler skal udvikle.
However, the resolutions of the sole manager and the minutes of its general meetings, summarised in Table 14, do not demonstrate that any active or critical decision-making was performed by LuxSCS with regard to the aforementioned functions in relation to the Intangibles, nor that an effective control or supervision of such functions was carried out during the relevant period.
Ved levering af resultatet hjælper de tekniske programudviklere med implementeringen af værktøjet i samarbejde med driftsteamet hos LuxOpCo og de lokale filialer i EU.
Rather, the resolutions and decisions taken consisted mainly of administrative and shareholder tasks, i.e. approving accounts, receiving dividend payments, approving capital increases and the financing of subsidiaries and, in a few instances, approving the appointment of managers of LuxOpCo and other subsidiaries of LuxSCS.
Under denne proces udvikles den teknologi, som anvendes af LuxOpCo, løbende og tilpasses det lokale marked .
In addition, the complete absence of representatives of LuxSCS in the IP Steering Committee, which is the main forum of discussion for the management of the Intangibles in Europe, confirms that LuxSCS played no active role as regards the aforementioned functions and the associated risks during the relevant period.
Ifølge Amazon har hovedparten af deres globale teknologimedarbejdere (ca. [60-65] %) base i USA og resten i internationale udviklingscentre.
Even the decisions to enter into the Buy-In Agreement and the CSA do not appear to have been taken by LuxSCS, but constitute no more than a simple ratification by the sole manager of a decision taken by Amazon group companies in the US.
Sammenlignet med de pågældende aktiviteter er de tekniske ressourcer med base hos LuxOpCo temmelig begrænsede.
The same can be said for the decision to enter into the License Agreement with LuxOpCo, as it is reflected in the resolution that the decision of the sole manager to approve and execute this agreement on behalf of LuxSCS was taken in the context of the 2006 restructuring of Amazon's European operations, which had already been decided by the Amazon group.
Kommissionen anfægter ikke, at teknologien udvikles løbende i USA eller af Amazons internationale udviklingscentre, men minder om, at udviklingscentrene modtager betaling på et omkostningsgrundlag på + [0-10] % for at gennemføre RoU-projekter, som de kontraktligt har fået til opgave af ATI.
In any event, such decisions are not active decisions related to the development, enhancement, management, and exploitation of the Intangibles, but are decisions implementing the ‘limited number of legal agreements necessary for the Luxembourg structure to operate’.
Denne omkostningsbetaling på + [0-10] % er et tegn på, at Amazon ikke tillægger kodningsprocessen stor værdi.
The fact that LuxSCS was not legally entitled to perform such functions by virtue of the License Agreement and the fact that it lacked the capacity to do so, also means that it did not actually perform any of the functions assigned to it under the CSA during the relevant period.
Den nye teknologis unikke værdi ville derfor snarere synes at være et resultat af lokal knowhow, identificering af nye forretningsmæssige behov og deres forvandling til softwareprojekter og ikke af selve kodningen.
In other words, LuxSCS was not involved in the development of the Intangibles, nor in budgeting and planning activities related thereto (functions 1 and 4 listed in Table 13, reproducing the functions listed in Exhibit B to the CSA).
Desuden har LuxOpCo og dets lokale filialer i EU specifikt udviklet vigtig teknologi til anvendelse i den europæiske detail- og servicevirksomhed.
LuxSCS also played no active role in the management of strategic acquisitions of technologies (function 5 listed in Table 13), notwithstanding the fact that a number of those acquisitions were executed on the basis of the CSA.
Et eksempel på denne teknologi er EFN.
In fact, according to the information provided by Amazon on decisions taken by LuxSCS in relation to other buy-in transactions entered into since 2005, its sole manager merely accepted the contribution of the technologies acquired in exchange for a buy-in payment.
Alle europæiske distributionscentre blev lagt sammen via EFN, og der blev oprettet et netværk.
Those decisions constituted no more than a mere administrative reorganisation of activities, not an active, value-adding management of the acquired technology.
EFN sætter kunder fra alle EU-lande i stand til at købe varer fra Amazons websteder i et hvilket som helst land i Europa.
Finally, although Exhibit B to the CSA lists as a final function the ability to ‘select, hire and supervise employees, contractors and sub-contractors to perform any of the above activities’ (function 7 listed in Table 13), there are no indications that LuxSCS should be considered to have effectively outsourced any of the functions assigned to it under the CSA to another party acting under the instruction and control (i.e. a subcontractor) of LuxSCS.
Ved at oprette et fælles lager for alle geografiske områder i Europa, hvor Amazon er aktiv, øges udvalget.
Neither the resolutions of the sole manager nor the minutes of the general management meetings demonstrate that any active decisions were taken in that respect.
Desuden kunne Amazon reducere risikoen for, at nogle af lagerbeholdningerne var udtømte, og på den måde tilbyde hurtigere leveringstider.
Moreover, the CSA Annual Summary reports record no expenses incurred directly by LuxSCS in the development of the Intangibles that would be capable of entering into the cost sharing pool, for instance fees paid for the provision of outsourced activities.
Denne nedsatte leveringstid for kunderne reducerede logistikomkostningerne og omkostninger i forbindelse med anskaffelse af varer fra leverandørerne, priserne faldt, og udvalget blev større.
Only the entities A9, ATI, and the contract development centres managed by ATI and A9 reported Development Costs.
Ingen af Amazons konkurrenter i Europa havde en løsning, der lignede EFN.
Those Development Costs reflect functions performed by or on behalf of those companies, (and risks assumed by those companies) during the relevant period.
I 2014 foregik [5-10] % af alt salget i Frankrig og mere end [15-20] % af alt salget i Italien og Spanien gennem EFN.
Those functions therefore cannot be considered as performed by LuxSCS.
Endelig spillede de lokale EU-filialer også en rolle i udviklingen af ny teknologi.
Consequently, none of the development functions or other functions related to the Intangibles as carried out by A9, ATI and their Subcontractors with reference to the Buy-In Agreement and the CSA (or the risks related to these functions) can be taken into account as a contribution of LuxSCS to the License Agreement between LuxSCS and LuxOpCo.
Eksempelvis udviklede den tyske filial lavprisgarantien, Packstation, og en planlægningskalender for at lette distributionen af store forbrugsvarer såsom vaskemaskiner .
Rather, those functions should be accounted for as contributions of A9 and ATI under the Buy-In Agreement and the CSA.
Før Amazon Prime gik online, søgte Prime-teamet med base i USA desuden input fra lokale kategori-teams, som f.eks. lokale distributionscentre og transport-teams i Det Forenede Kongerige, fordi lokale teams kendte kompleksiteterne ved at implementere Prime i Det Forenede Kongerige versus USA, Tyskland eller andre steder.
Those agreements, which according to the US Tax Court were remunerated at arm's length by way of the Buy-In Payments and the CSA Payments, are not the subject-matter of this Decision, since they are not covered by the contested tax ruling.
Alt i alt påtog LuxOpCo sig i den pågældende periode betydelige opgaver i forbindelse med udvikling og forbedring af teknologien, som det også forvaltede og kontrollerede.
The functions performed by A9, ATI and their subcontractors are therefore irrelevant when assessing the remuneration to be paid by LuxOpCo to LuxSCS under the License Agreement, which is the subject-matter of the contested tax ruling.
Det udnyttede ikke blot teknologien til driften af webstederne i EU, men bidrog aktivt til udviklingen, forbedringen og forvaltningen heraf i den pågældende periode.
In any event, even if LuxSCS could be considered to have outsourced its development functions and risks under the CSA to a Subcontractor within a meaning of that agreement, which it cannot, it would not have had the capacity to supervise the execution of those functions, let alone control the performance of those functions and the risks associated with them in the absence of employees.
Kundeoplysninger
In a typical arm's length transaction between independent parties, a licensor that outsources certain IP-related functions would be expected to safeguard the execution of the license agreement through close supervision .
Selskab X identificerede også kundeoplysninger som en vigtig værdiskaber for onlinedetailhandlere.
During the relevant period, the only functions that could actually have been said to have been performed by LuxSCS were functions related to the maintenance of its legal ownership of the Intangibles, although even those were carried out under LuxOpCo's control.
Som det fremgår af tabel 19, steg antallet af Amazons kunder i de tre EU-domæner fra 17 millioner i 2005 til [70-80] millioner i 2014.
According to the detailed break-down of LuxSCS's other operating charges as set out in Table 10, LuxSCS incurred certain external expenses related to domain, accounting and legal fees – general corporate.
Tabel 19
Amazon explained that those fees related to: (i) the share of the Luxembourg costs allocated to LuxSCS; (ii) disbursements in relation to the legal protection of the Intangibles owned by LuxSCS, such as patent application fees and related disbursements, trademark application fees and related disbursements, trademark application fees and related disbursements; and (iii) fees and disbursements in relation to domain names and IP searches.
Optælling er af unikke kunder pr. henvisningssted og pr. år
It is only those costs that could be considered as relevant for the remuneration of LuxSCS under the License Agreement since those costs appear to reflect functions that might have actually been carried out by LuxSCS during the relevant period.
(i millioner)
Assets used by LuxSCS
Før omstruktureringen i 2006 blev kundeoplysninger indhentet af AIS og AIM.
For transfer pricing purposes, a party to an intra-group transaction can only be attributed a return on an asset to the extent that it exercises control over its use and the risk(s) associated with that use.
Ved omstruktureringen opnåede LuxSCS ret til at indhente oplysninger gennem EU-webstederne.
Thus, the owner of an asset needs to effectively use the asset in question.
Da det imidlertid er LuxSCS, der har den juridiske ejendomsret til kundeoplysninger for EU-webstederne, indhentede LuxOpCo aktivt de pågældende oplysninger til LuxSCS som en tjeneste .
The determinative factor in every functional analysis is therefore not the assets passively owned by any of the parties to the intra-group transaction under analysis, but the assets actually used.
LuxOpCo havde udelukkende ansvaret for at indhente kundeoplysninger i Europa og ansvar for vedligeholdelse og kontrol med overholdelse af gældende databeskyttelseslovgivning. .
The mere legal ownership of an asset, without using it to undertake any functions or incur any risks, does not give rise to any remuneration beyond the value of the asset itself .
Derudover anvendte LuxOpCo kundeoplysningerne i udførelsen af Amazons europæiske aktiviteter.
Nor does the mere legal ownership of or license to an asset in itself mean that the owner in fact develops, enhances, manages, or exploits that asset.
Det er således LuxOpCo, der udførte aktive og afgørende funktioner i forbindelse med udviklingen, forbedringen og forvaltningen af kundeoplysningerne i den pågældende periode.
As regards the Intangibles, Amazon argues that LuxSCS ‘uses’ those assets by licensing them to LuxOpCo.
Varemærke
However, pursuant to the License Agreement, LuxSCS granted LuxOpCo an exclusive and irrevocable license to the economic exploitation of the Intangibles in Europe and a right to further develop, manage and exploit the Intangibles for their entire lifetime for the purposes of operating Amazon's European retail and service business, without any reservation for LuxSCS to be eligible to still use the Intangibles or to manage and control their use.
Hvad angår varemærket, anføres det i TP-rapporten, at Amazons brand er anerkendt, og at global genkendelse af et brand er et stort aktiv, når der skal tiltrækkes kunder, men Amazons ansatte bekræftede, at varemærket ikke er kernen i Amazons forretningsmodel.
In any event, since LuxSCS did not in fact use, nor did it have the capacity to use, the Intangibles, as explained in Recitals 421 to 427, the Intangibles cannot be said to have been used by LuxSCS in the execution of the License Agreement for transfer pricing purposes.
Ifølge Amazons oplysninger er værdien af Amazons varemærke af underordnet betydning for de tre vigtigste drivkræfter i forbindelse med gennemførelsen af aktiviteterne i dets europæiske detailvirksomhed: sortiment, pris og brugervenlighed.
Nor can LuxSCS be said to have incurred any costs in relation to the development, enhancement, management and exploitation of the Intangibles.
Det betyder, at varemærket kun er værdifuldt, hvis det forbindes med et godt sortiment, fordelagtige priser og brugervenlighed , eftersom kunderne kun vil være tilbøjelige til at foretage indkøb på Amazons websted, hvis de finder, at servicen er pålidelig og lever op til deres forventninger i denne henseende .
As set out in Table 10, LuxSCS did not incur any costs during the relevant period – besides the external fees and disbursements identified in Recital 429 which appear to relate to the maintenance of its legal ownership to the Intangibles, and some one-off costs related to intercompany sale of inventory in relation to the 2006 restructuring – other than the Buy-In and CSA Costs.