[2004]DLCA6599 • February 16, 2004 • Court of Appeal
THE COMMISSIONER INTERNAL REVENUE SERVICE vs. MULTI CHOICE GH. LTD.
MultiChoice Ghana Ltd., a television company, operated a pay-TV business from 1994 to 1999, during which it incurred losses. Concurrently, the company earned interest income from funds held in a bank account. MultiChoice sought to offset losses from its television business against the interest income earned. The Commissioner of Internal Revenue Service disallowed this, treating the two as separate sources of income subject to separate taxation.
read moreOSEI, JA. The undisputed facts of this appeal are that: MULTICHOICE GHANA LIMITED [Plaintiff/Respondent hereinafter referred to simply as Plaintiff] is a Television Company operating in Ghana. It serves its customers in return for their subscriptions which subscriptions the Company saves in a banking account and, as expected earns interest income thereon. From the year 1994 to 1999, the company, without dispute, incurred losses from its Television business as such but made substantial gains from its Banking Account by way of interest. The plaintiff company [Multichoice Ghana Ltd.] then sought to set off its losses incurred from its Television business as such against the interest income earned from the Banking Account. The [Defendant/Appellant] the [Commissioner] [hereinafter referred to simply as Defendant] disallowed that move as illegal and insisted that the income derived from the television business, and the interest accruing to the Bank Account should be taxed separately as bei...