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Digest
Talk of the bay
By TIMES WIRES
Published November 11, 2006
Bed tax laws might be victim of cyber bypass Are Travelocity, Expedia and Orbitz ripping off local governments? Cities and counties nationwide are battling the online travel sites in court, arguing they owe millions in hotel occupancy taxes, also known as bed taxes. A local law firm wants to talk Hillsborough County into joining the fight. Online travel sites typically pay bed tax on the wholesale price hotels charge them, not on what they charge customers, says attorney Ronald Bush of Bush Graziano and & Rice. That violates Hillsborough's tax ordinance, said Bush, although he couldn't say how much money the county might be losing. Members of the county's Tourism Development Council weren't wild about the idea this week. But they asked Bush to come back next month with an estimate of just how much money is at stake. Local boat shows coming in waves After a flurry of attention over the Tampa Bay Auto Show, it's now time for boats to move into the recreational limelight. First came the Strictly Sail show at St. Petersburg's Spa Beach. Next up: the 19th annual St. Petersburg Boat Show, which promotes itself as the Gulf Coast's largest boat show. The event runs Thursday through Nov. 19 at the South Yacht Basin, near the Mahaffey Theater. Mariners and wannabes can check out about 600 boats for a fee: admission costs $8 for adults and $6 for kids 6 to 12. No challenge too big for real hacker Judging from a federal lawsuit filed by Jagged Peak Inc., it appears even sophisticated software companies aren't completely safe from hackers' attacks. The Tampa company claims that David H. Connell of Clearwater was able to view trade secrets and confidential client information and alter the company's client database. Jagged thinks the accused is either a competitor or an agent of one. Want to comment? Have something to say about a business story? Send your letter to tampabay.com/letters. Aselection of readers' letters appears in Sunday's Business section.
[Last modified November 11, 2006, 01:08:36]
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