Dropped EU tariffs could mean cheaper tech

Fancy a big screen for 14 per cent less?

The European Union has decided to drop import tariffs on a clutch of tech gear from Taiwan, Japan and the USA.

The additional taxes on large LCD monitors, set-top boxes and multi-function printers have been in place since 2008 and account for between 6 and 14 per cent of the price we pay in the shops.

Taiwanese news outlet the Taipei Times is reporting that the change of heart follows a ruling by the World Trade Organisation which, together with the three countries involved, had filed a suit against the EU insisting that some tech products should be re-classified.

The EU insisted that monitors bigger than 19 inches with DVI or HDMI connections were in fact televisions, that printers with scanning or faxing functions were actually copiers and that any set-top box with built-in memory was a multimedia player.

The WTO disagreed and, as a result, all of these categories will become exempt from the added duty by June 30th this year.

Whether importers and retailers will pass the reduced cost onto paying punters remains to be seen.