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Apple to bring 600 jobs to poverty-stricken Naples

The Local Italy
The Local Italy - [email protected]
Apple to bring 600 jobs to poverty-stricken Naples
Apple employees walk towards the Apple headquarters in Cupertino, California

Just weeks after the US tech giant said it would pay Italy millions of euros owed in tax, Apple is opening a product development facility in Naples, the company said on Thursday.

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In a move that premier Matteo Renzi said "will bring about 600 jobs" to the Campania city, which is blighted by high rates of crime and poverty, the iOS App Development Center will be the company's first in Europe for app development.

Renzi said the company’s CEO, Tim Cook, will be in Rome on Friday to present the plans.

“It’s an important experiment,” Renzi was quoted by La Repubblica as saying during a press conference.

“It will help the next generation of Italian entrepreneurs acquire the competencies needed for success.”

The centre will offer training for those interested in becoming developers for Apple's mobile app ecosystem.

Cook said in a statement: “Europe is home to some of the most creative developers in the world and we’re thrilled to be helping the next generation of entrepreneurs in Italy get the skills they need for success.”

Some 75,000 jobs in Italy are attributable to the App Store, while the developer community is vibrant, the company said in the statement.

The announcement comes after the iPhone maker agreed to pay €318 million in tax owed to Italy’s inland revenue.

The payment followed months of negotiations and corresponded to the full amount demanded by the Italian authorities in relation to the 2008-13 tax years.

The company’s Italian subsidiary was accused of transferring profits made in Italy during that period to a subsidiary based in the Irish city of Cork, in order to benefit from Ireland’s lower corporate tax rate.

Having the profits booked through the Irish unit enabled the company to reduce its taxable income.
 

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