PARIS France’s proposed new tax on smartphones may end up helping the music industry.
On Friday morning, culture minister Aurelie Filippetti discussed the proposed new one percent tax on smartphones, tablets, e-readers and computers and said the money raised could go to embattled music retailers.
“It could lead to a fund that would finance record stores in difficulty, help the music industry or photographers,” she said, adding in two sectors that are not yet covered by France’s vast subsidy systems that prop up film, broadcast television and bookstores.
“This fee will be paid at the time of purchase. It will be painless for the consumer,” she said. “In the end, it would have a very profound impact on the entire cultural sector.” Based on 2012 sales of mobile devices, the tax could bring in more than $105 million (80 million).
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