France Unveils Plan to 'Shore Up' Indie Booksellers

French Culture Minister Aurélie Filippetti "has unveiled part of the government's plan to shore up independent booksellers, despite earlier fears that she would be unable to commit any money because of France's huge budget deficit," the Bookseller reported. Filippetti observed that the government wants to ensure France "never suffers the same fate as the United States" with "the collapse of several [bookshop] chains" and the ensuing difficulties for publishers.

Under the program, a fund of €5 million (about US$6.4 million) would be created for loans to booksellers with cash flow problems and the budget of ADELC (Association pour le Développement de la Librairie de Création), would rise from €4 million to €7 million "to help outlets when they change hands," the Bookseller wrote. A general fund for booksellers and other measures "need further reflection," but should be announced by the summer, according to Filippetti.

The plan also calls for the appointment of an independent book industry mediator to settle disputes as an alternative to avoid litigation, and "ministry officials would identify infringements to the 1981 Lang Law on fixed print book prices and the 2011 law that did the same for e-books," the Bookseller noted.