Amazon France must stop free delivery
In the over protected business environment of France few things surprise me any more, but even so I was shocked and dismayed to hear of the recent court ruling against Amazon France.
Much as in other countries, Amazon France offers free delivery on orders over a certain value. Seems reasonable, I think you will agree. A sensible and completely normal business decision.
But in France discounting the price of a book by more than a few percent is against the law, and the courts have ruled that free delivery is the same as a discount. I’m not quite sure how they reached that conclusion, but reach it they did. So Amazon have been told to stop free deliveries, and will receive a large fine for each day that they continue.
The book industry, not surprisingly, talk of the threat to the local bookshops, the lack of diversity in books that threat will lead to, the long-suffering authors, and so on. Currently books in France are significantly more expensive than in the UK (and, I suspect, other countries) and, quelle surprise, the authors, publishers and bookshops want to protect this over-pricing.
The story doesn’t seem very convincing, since Amazon have a wider range of books than any shop could possibly stock. And I understand that in the UK bookshops are doing better than ever, despite Amazon offering free delivery. Authors still write, and publishers still print.
This unfortunately is the reality that much of France hasn’t yet grasped. Competition between businesses is better for the businesses themselves, and better for the consumer. And the all important ‘pouvoir d’achat’ (purchasing power of the money in your pocket) that so preccupies France would benefit as well.
Just possibly, if that paperback cost 9 euros instead of 15 euros, twice as many people would buy it!
Bookshops in the UK have changed a great deal during the last 20 years and are generally now pleasant, inviting places where you can sit and read a few pages before buying a book. Perhaps get a cup of coffee while you decide.
They exist and compete by providing an added value that an online supplier can’t compete with - the chance to actually see and hold the books available. It is one of the things I really miss about the UK - the chance to spend an hour or two browsing a bookshop, and of course usually buying a book or two at the end.
It is a very sad day for France to take this decison, and I sincerely hope it will be overturned in due course.
End of grumble.
