The appeal at the Conseil d’Etat targets French legislation from December 2021 that forces Amazon to levy the fee for each new book they deliver as part of a government plan to help independent "bricks and mortar” bookshops to compete head-on with the online retailer. Photo: AFP
Amazon.com Inc. has taken its fight over France’s €3 (RM15.40) minimum delivery-fee regime for online books to the nation’s highest administrative court, claiming the curbs aimed at reining in its market power are a violation of European Union rules.
The appeal at the Conseil d’État, announced on Tuesday, targets legislation from December 2021 that forces Amazon to levy the fee for each new book they deliver as part of a government plan to help independent "bricks and mortar” bookshops to compete head-on with the online retailer.
Amazon, which previously charged a fee of one euro cent for its book deliveries, claims the order amounts to a direct attack on the company, constituting an "abuse of power” that could harm consumers.
"This measure will deal a severe blow to French people’s budgets and limit their access to books at a time when purchasing power is one of their main concerns,” Amazon France’s Director General Frédéric Duval said in a statement, drawing on earlier concerns raised by the European Commission, as part of its review of the legislation.
The commission had said prior to Amazon’s challenge that the law could conflict with EU rules for ecommerce platforms.
During the recent Covid-19 lockdowns, France covered shipping costs for independent book stores to help their online sales. Lawmakers had expressed concern that unfair competition from Amazon would cause French retailers to miss out on an expected boom in ecommerce. - Bloomberg
