But what makes them suddenly want to absolutely stick their noses into the well-regulated world of books and publishing? Double burst of interventionist fever: on April 12, through the voice of Emmanuel Macron himself, a sudden desire to add a tax on second-hand books: which means that the same object would be taxed twice? And soon, the same thing for cars, children's strollers, tennis rackets?
But also, a week earlier, on April 6, and in a more discreet way: the publication of a decree authorizing book publishers to buy advertising spots for their projects on television channels. Sarkozy dreamed of it, Dati did it.
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Hideous spot
With the idea of satisfying who, exactly? Certainly not the less fortunate publishers, who are already struggling to make ends meet, and see the risk of aggravated unfair competition. But not the strongest houses and the big publishing groups either, who have jointly protested against this idea which they consider idiotic.
But then who: the booksellers? Still lost: these merchants like no other know well that their most loyal buyers/visitors see them as credible advisors and “trusted third parties”, and that the bazooka promotion of the latest fashionable romance “seen in fashion” Télé”, on TF1, M6 or BFMTV, will not bring them any additional regular customers.
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By elimination, and while a first (hideous) spot is running on BFM – the already big seller Bernard Minier will therefore sell a few additional pallets of his weak The erased –, the only beneficiaries of this new authorization, officially tested for 21 months, will be the behemoths of online sales, non-specialized bookstores such as E. Leclerc Cultural Space (which, that said, play a real role in providing access to culture in many peripheral territories), and of course the TV channels and their advertising agencies, for whom a little financial boost, in these very difficult times (sic), is always welcome…
