France to impose minimum €3 delivery fee for online orders

The French government has announced plans to impose a minimum €3 (A$4.50) delivery fee for online book orders of less than €35 (A$52), reports Reuters.

The law is designed to help independent bookshops compete against e-commerce giants. A 2014 law already prohibits free deliveries, but Amazon and other online shops such as Fnac have been charging a token one cent per delivery.

In a statement, the culture ministry said the €3 fee, which includes taxes, could not be circumvented through customer loyalty programs or joint purchases of books with other items.

‘This will adapt the book industry to the digital era by restoring an equilibrium between large e-commerce platforms, which offer virtually free delivery for books whatever the order size, and bookstores that cannot match these delivery prices,’ the culture and finance ministries said in a joint statement.

France will notify the European Commission of its plan and the minimum delivery fee will take effect six months after its approval.

Category: International news