The Minister of Culture, Rachida Dati, deplored on Saturday “a circumvention of the legislation” by Amazon, when the online commerce giant ships books for free when it should be prohibited from doing so.
The American group must normally charge, since October 2023, a minimum of 3 euros for any book order below 35 euros..
Amazon drops off books at collection points
But in early November, he implemented a solution that, he says, complies with the terms of the law. The law of December 30, 2021 on the book economy authorizes free delivery “if the book is collected from a book retail store”.
Amazon places books at collection points (at reception or in automated lockers), within supermarkets or hypermarkets that sell books.
“I tell you: it’s a circumvention of the legislation”replied Ms. Dati to AFP, interviewed during the Book and Youth Press Fair in Montreuil, near Paris. “We will answer it. (…) I asked for a very clear answer on this.”, she added, to explain that the services of his ministry were working on this subject.
In an article published in Le Monde on November 21, independent booksellers and large cultural stores united to denounce Amazon's “predation strategy”.
The Children's Book and Press Fair is the largest event in France dedicated to children's literature. Its 39th edition in 2023 attracted 193,000 visitors.
“Youth fairs, toddler fairs, are becoming more and more successful”she said, after spending nearly two hours in the aisles chatting with publishers, authors and young readers.
