France Mulls 'Google Tax '

Levy on ad revenue would be used to bolster music, film, media
By Rob Quinn,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 8, 2010 1:24 AM CST
France Mulls 'Google Tax '
Google and other search portals have profited unfairly from illegal file-sharing, according to a French report.   (Getty Images)

France is considering helping out industries hit hard by the digital revolution by slapping a tax on Google and other search portals. The proposal, outlined in a government-commissioned report, calls for a share of ad revenue to be turned over to the music, film, and publishing industries. The tax would end the search firms' "enrichment without end and compensation," notes one of the report's authors.

First lady Carla Bruni has reportedly emphasized how file-sharing hurts artists to her husband, and her producer is among the report's authors, the Telegraph reports. Google is, unsurprisingly, not a fan of the proposal. More tax on Internet advertising "could slow down innovation," explained a company representative, who argued that better business models represent the best future for cultural industries. (More taxation stories.)

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