Brussels, 19/03/2015 (Agence Europe) - On 19 March, the respective French, German, Italian and Polish ministers for culture (Fleur Pellerin), (Monika Grütters), (Dario Franceschini) (Malgorzata Omilanowska) signed a joint declaration calling on the European Commission to put a stop to the discrimination against e-books.
The ministers stated: “Whether it is printed or virtual, it is the content that makes the book and not the way in which the reader has access to it. A book is a book whatever shape it takes”. For this reason, they believe that the same reduced VAT rate should be applied to both e-books and printed books. They explained that “the principle of technological neutrality should be clearly asserted at a European level so that innovation and the development of e-books are not compromised”. They criticised the recent European Court of Justice ruling confirming the unequal treatment that printed and e-books receive (see EUROPE 11268). The ministers said that Europe should use its digital resources to encourage access to knowledge and culture, as well as to promote cultural diversity. They are calling on the Commission to amend European law in order to allow for reduced VAT rates for e-books as part of the Digital Strategy for Europe, which is due to be presented next May (see EUROPE 11268). (Isabelle Lamberty)