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2015 (11) TMI 227 - AT - Service TaxAdvertising Agency service or sponsorship service - Import of service - agreements with various sports bodies located abroad and not having office in India - whether the service received by the appellant under various agreements fell under advertising agency service - Held that:- A perusal of the rights granted to the appellant under the sponsorship agreements reveals that these are agreements for sponsorship of various sports events and not for receiving advertising agency service. - Merely because there is a mention of expression advertising material and the same is defined in the agreement, it cannot be said that GCC has provided advertising agency service to the appellant. The service rendered by sports bodies abroad could possibly be covered under the head of 'Sale of Space or Time for Advertisement and Sponsorship Services', which became taxable with effect from 01.07.2006. However, taxable services in relation to sponsorship services specifically excluded sponsorship of sport events. As such, it is clear that what is being taxed is planning and expertise involved in making, preparing display or exhibiting the advertisement and not simply providing of a place or space to the advertiser. The expression display or exhibit does not mean the physical act of display and exhibit, but relates to the services rendered, as an expert body, to the client, for the purposes of display or exhibit. The same may involve the expertise of the provider of the services to advise the client as to in which manner, the advertisement should be displayed i.e. whether in the newspaper or on TV channel or by way of hoardings or a audio/video advertisement in air or any other medium or at what point of time the same should be exhibited. We find that no such expert services are being provided by the appellant in the present case. They are merely canvassing their clients to make utilize of the space available with them for the purposes of advertisement of their product during the course of matches, which are going to be telecasted and by which they can popularize their products. As such, the activities amount to sale of space and not as regards advertisement. - there was no Advertising Agency Service received by the appellant from abroad except in respect of dealer advertisements - Demand set aside - Decided in favour of assessee.
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