French Senate Votes to Reduce VAT on eBooks

theBookseller: "The French Senate has adopted an amendment to the 2011 draft budget to reduce VAT on e-books from 19.6% to the reduced rate of 5.5% that applies to print. ... Dismissing advice from the government that the amendment violated European law, senator Catherine Morin-Desailly said that the lower rate would help develop legal downloads and should be introduced for all cultural products sold online. The Senate had already voted unanimously in favour of the cut rate for e-books when it adopted a bill on prices, she noted. 'We must show coherence,' she said. Budget minister François Baroin was reported to have pleaded for the amendment to be rejected, and to have reiterated that the government is working towards a consensus in the 27-member European Union to reduce VAT on e-books. ..."