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A comment on Amazon snubs French free delivery ban with one-cent charge.

Re:Amazon snubs French free delivery ban with one-cent charge by mandalar12 on Saturday July 12, 2014 @09:32AM (#8024494)
The article misses the working part of the law. Book prices in France are not a free market since we have a fixed book price law (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fixed_book_price_agreement) meaning that the publisher decides the retail price of the books it publishes. There is an exception authorizing retailers a maximum of 5% discount. In practice all majors players (book store chains, Amazon, supermarkets...) systematically apply the 5% discount.

The new law forbids retailers to apply the discount if the book is delivered but allows them to apply the discount on the delivery fees (which is useless to Amazon who offers the delivery).

The final effect is that books on Amazon are 5% + 1 cent more expensive than in physical stores.

[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Amazon snubs French free delivery ban with one-cent charge by gambiting on Saturday July 12, 2014 @02:44PM (#8025417)
"Free collectible 5 Euro note with this purchase!"
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Re:Amazon snubs French free delivery ban with one-cent charge by ww520 on Saturday July 12, 2014 @01:14PM (#8025108)
Couldn't Amazon provide a frequent use reward card that provides buy 20 with 1 book free to have a similar discount? It has the added benefit of enticing repeated buying.
[ Parent | on HN ]
Re:Amazon snubs French free delivery ban with one-cent charge by moioci on Saturday July 12, 2014 @11:46AM (#8024835)
Would the law permit Amazon to discount the delivery fee more than 100%? ("We'll pay you 5% to allow us to deliver to you.")
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Re:Amazon snubs French free delivery ban with one-cent charge by nolok on Saturday July 12, 2014 @09:51PM (#8026370)
No, in view of the law both (book and delivery) are considered as two different "products" and they are only allowed 5% on the delivery. They can set the delivery price to anything they want, but it was 0 before so it doesn't matter.
[ Parent | on HN ]