In an unusual show of unity today, the upper house of France's parliament unanimously approved a bill that would amend a 33 year-old law regulating prices in the book market and help struggling independent book sellers, which have faced tough competition from cost-cutting online vendors in the digital age.
The bill would allow online vendors like US-based Amazon to cut the regular delivery price by up to 5 percent, but not provide free delivery. It differs slightly from a bill passed in parliament's lower house in October, which said nothing about barring free delivery.