"Amazon pays $1,500 in daily fines..."

“Amazon pays $1,500 in daily fines in defiance of French law”

—January 14, 2008⁴¹⁶

The French government is attempting to make Amazon.com’s free shipping illegal. Why would a government intervene in the voluntary trade between two private parties and prevent its citizens from receiving free services from a bookseller that they obviously value? To protect local, independently-owned French booksellers, of course. Had French citizens cared as much about the book sellers as does the government, they would have chosen to purchase from independent stores instead of from Amazon. Who wins? The inefficient booksellers, the government, and those who support the independent stores. Who loses? All other French citizens.