Free shipping is a significant price reduction on books and a violation of laws…

I kid you not…

Amazon.com may not offer free delivery on books in France, the high court in Versailles has ruled.

The action, brought in January 2004 by the French Booksellers’ Union (Syndicat de la librairie française), accused Amazon of offering illegal discounts on books and even of selling some books below cost.

The court gave Amazon 10 days to start charging for the delivery of books, which should at least allow the company to maintain the offer through the end-of-year gift-giving season. After that, it must pay a fine of 1,000 Euro (US$1,470) per day that it continues to offer free delivery. It must also pay 100,000 Euro in compensation to the booksellers’ union.

Retail prices, particularly of books, are tightly regulated in France.

We keep hearing how enlightened Europe is, and yet we’re consistently shown this kind of stupidity. Amazon should just do what I would do. Pull out of France and tell them to shove their over-governing nanny bullshit where the sun doesn’t shine. France has every right to impose stupid laws, but Amazon has no obligation to do business there.

Shame they don’t have the stomach for it.

via Techdirt