WebProNews

France Wants To Ban Sites That Promote Anorexia

The French National Assembly has adopted a bill that would make it illegal to promote anorexia through Web sites, magazines and in advertisements."Encouraging young girls to lie to their doctors, advising them on foods that are easier to regurgitate and inciting them to beat themselves up each time they eat is not freedom of expression," Health Minister Roselyne Bachelot said in a speech in parliament.

Europe Votes Against Online Copyright Law

The European Parliament shot down the proposal to ban file sharing by private individuals and dropped the idea to bar copyright abusers from the Internet.In a close vote, 314 Members of the European Parliament voted to reject an amendment that would have protected copyright on the Internet and 297 voted against throwing out the amendment.

EU: Quaero Can Receive $152 Million

Over time, references to Quaero have become less and less frequent; it seemed that the French search project was more likely to fade from existence than challenge Google.  The European Commission has approved $152 million in state aid, however, so Mountain View might not want to forget about it.

Court Orders French Web Site To Stop Rating Teachers

A Web site in France that allowed students to anonymously rate and name their teachers has been ordered by a court to no longer allow the practice.Teachers unions with the backing of the education ministry took the site to court, saying the personal comments were a breach of privacy and an "incitement to public disorder." The site note2be.com was created in January by French entrepreneurs, allowed students to rate and discuss their teacher's abilities.

French President Becomes Online Sensation

French President Nicolas Sarkozy is receiving a lot of attention online for a video in which he tells a bystander to "get lost".Sarkozy was filmed by a journalist from the newspaper Le Parisien while attending an annual farm fair in Paris on Saturday. Sarkozy went to shake a mans hand who in response said," Don't touch me, you are soiling me." Sarkozy replied while still smiling," Get lost, dumb ass."

Amazon Taking On French Law

Online retailer Amazon.com will pay 1,000 euros ($1,500) a day in fines in order to offer free shipping in France while it appeals a December court ruling that made the practice illegal. Jeff Bezos, chief executive officer of Amazon, sent an email to customers of its French Web site stating Amazon will continue to offer free shipping while waiting for the outcome of the appeal.

French President Proposes Tax On Internet

French President Nicholas Sarkozy has proposed banning advertising on public television and recovering some of the lost revenue by taxing the Internet and mobile phones.

French E-Voting Study Reveals Hidden Costs

Electronic voting machines are thought to be a way of saving money, but they often come with a hidden cost, according to a new report from the French Internet Rights Forum.

Amazon.fr's Free Shipping Condemned

Free shipping is so nice - you know what you’re getting into from the start, with no surprises at the final checkout screen.  The French may see some last-minute additions to their book orders, however, as a court has ruled that Amazon.fr must charge for deliveries.

French Google, Yahoo Alike (& Loving Wikipedia)

It is (I think) becoming public knowledge that Google has crushed all of its opponents in France - the company has a search market share of around ninety percent.  A new study is surprising, then, in that it reveals large similarities between the French versions of Google and Yahoo.