We might be in for a sequel to one of the Trump administration’s most unpopular policies: tech tariffs. The president is reportedly eyeing a new round of import taxes on hardware that would include things like gaming consoles. The news comes even as video game makers like Nintendo are being sued over not refunding consumers for the last round of tariffs that were ultimately deemed unconstitutional by the Supreme Court.
“One tariff approach under consideration would dramatically expand the number of tech products subject to the duties, hitting not just chips but potentially many of the goods made with them, such as laptops, gaming consoles or the servers that fill data centers,” reports Politico. The administration is apparently looking at how new tariffs could be used as bargaining leverage for pressuring companies to invest in building chips for data centers in the U.S.
While AI companies panic about the potential for even higher costs, video game makers could potentially get caught in the crossfire. Using an incentive structure akin to a mob-style protection money racket also sounds way dumber than just putting an industrial policy in place that would guarantee the creation of semiconductor factories in the U.S.
A controversial regime of “reciprocal tariffs” was struck down by the Supreme Court earlier this year, with a 6-3 ruling declaring that the president is not authorized to unilaterally impose import taxes on other nations without legislation from Congress. This led to huge refunds for all the companies that had paid the taxes, including console makers like Sony and Nintendo. Those companies raised prices to pass the higher costs on to consumers, some of whom are now suing the companies for a chunk of the refunds.
All of which is to say that the last thing anyone wants is another tariff circus that potentially jacks up prices in the short term before getting thrown out a year down the road. Even without the import taxes, console makers have been jacking up prices due to the ongoing RAM shortage caused by AI companies dumping billions into gobbling up memory for data center chips. Some analysts already expect Nintendo and Sony to potentially have to raise prices again next year. And that was before the threat of new tariffs.
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