When Apple asks to buy your farm, there's your chance to apply the "big corporation tax." The Fulbright family asked for $1.7m when Apple fancied their acre of land adjacent to their iTunes data center in North Carolina.

34 years ago, that one acre cost the Fulbrights $6,000, which they built their family home on. When Apple came knocking, they resisted their advances—until Apple gave them a blank cheque and said to name their price. Now, I'm no expert on property, but I'm sure one acre of land (43,560 square feet, or 4,046 square meters) wouldn't even go for a tenth of that price normally—in North Carolina, anyway.


After selling to Apple, they now own 49-acres and live a life of luxury. Oh, to have the unknown foresight the Fulbrights had back then, eh?

A video from earlier this year shows their data center from the sky, which spans 500,000 square feet, and will be completely built by the end of the year. I shouldn't have to spell out what this data center is going to be used for, but if your mind is suddenly envisioning fluffy white clouds then you're on the right path. Hello, North Carolina iTunes-streaming center!


If Apple's keen to open a data center in Australia, I can definitely put them in touch with my parents. I'm sure Dad wouldn't mind selling our farm for a few hundred mill and a couple of iTunes gift vouchers. [Bloomberg via 9to5Mac]