France's National Assembly approved a proposal to charge companies a gigabyte tax for every gigabyte of data delivered to local internet users, according to The Next Web. Passed on Friday by a slim margin of 11 votes to 10 with 14 abstentions, the measure functions as an amendment to the 2027 budget and aims to collect billions annually.
Key takeaways
- The French National Assembly voted 11 to 10 to approve a gigabyte tax amendment for the 2027 budget.
- The fee would charge content providers €0.055 for every gigabyte sent to French users.
- Socialist authors estimate the plan would bring in €10bn every year.
- Public accounts minister David Amiel and the finance committee opposed the measure.
How does the gigabyte tax work?
Internet service providers would track data volumes flowing to consumers and identify the sending company under the drafted text. Telecoms regulator Arcep would supervise quarterly reports sent to tax authorities, though the rules strictly prohibit recording the actual content or destination of the traffic. Content delivery networks would count data as it exits their local storage servers.
The amendment limits the maximum charge to 15% of a company's French revenue or 2% of its worldwide revenue. Arcep data cited in the explanatory notes indicates that 200bn gigabytes reach French subscribers annually, with major tech firms accounting for roughly half that volume. Laurent Lhardit defended the platform impact by stating, according to The Next Web, “I fail to see how a tax can be passed on to users of Facebook, Instagram or TikTok, since these services are free.”
Who else faces digital services tax burdens?
Critics point out that smaller players would not escape the financial hit. David Amiel warned lawmakers that half of the total collected amount would fall on smaller content providers, many of which operate out of France. Philippe Juvin cautioned that major tech platforms might push the added expenses onto advertisers.
Nonprofit groups also raised alarms about the impact on open-source projects. VideoLAN, the French organization behind VLC media player which has recorded 6 billion downloads, stated on X that the measure would cost the nonprofit more than €1m annually. VideoLAN criticized lawmakers by writing, according to The Next Web, “So, the French socialists, and Parliament members just voted a tax, that they don’t understand, which would cost VideoLAN more than 1 million euro per year.”
What happens next?
The amendment must still clear several hurdles before becoming law, as it faces skepticism in the Senate where conservative Les Républicains hold a majority. The government could also bypass a final vote by forcing the budget through, leaving the amendment out entirely. Meanwhile, international trade pressures loom large over digital services taxes, with President Trump having threatened 100% tariffs earlier in June.
Frequently asked questions
The gigabyte tax is an amendment to the 2027 French budget that would charge content providers €0.055 for every gigabyte of data they send to internet users in France.
The Socialist authors of the amendment estimate that the gigabyte tax would raise €10bn a year for the country.
Internet providers would measure the data and report totals quarterly to tax authorities under the supervision of the French telecoms regulator Arcep.
VideoLAN, the French nonprofit behind the VLC media player, stated that the new tax would cost the organization more than €1m a year.
The measure must survive the rest of the budget process, though it faces an uphill battle in the Senate where conservatives hold a majority, and the government could also force the budget through without it.
Based on reporting by The Next Web. Read the original article
