The French Senate has rejected a proposed law that would have levied a two percent tax on all French-based websites disseminating video content. The amendment, part of a budget bill…

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Vivendi (EPA: VIV) is in talks to acquire the remaining part of French telecom provider Neuf Cegetel it doesn’t own, according to a statement Neuf made to the Paris stock…

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French TV network TF1 will sue YouTube and Dailymotion in the coming weeks for letting pirated copies of its shows be published online, according to French news magazine Le Point.…

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British consumers are getting some of the best deals for broadband, mobile and television services in Europe, thanks to cheap bundled services, according to an exhaustive report from Ofcom, looking…

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France has decided to eschew the DAB+ standard for its digital radio rollout and use the DMB format more commonly associated with mobile TV delivery, despite criticism the move will…

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Europe could follow France in proposing a law that would shut down all internet access for those caught illegally sharing files. We reported last week how French president Nicolas Sarkozy…

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French start-up Goojet has raised 2.3 million euros (£1.65 million) in its first round of funding, led by venture capital firms Partech International, Elaia Partners and IRDI (via blognation). The…

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An interesting original effort from France Telecom: it has launched a new search engine called Le Moteur (The Engine), for French language users. Besides the text results, it also has…

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New TV hardware and software vendor NetGem has snapped up Glowria, the French DVD rental and VOD start-up backed by the French VC’s Crédit Agricole Private Equity et Mousse Partners.…

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French radio station Skyrock is looking to sell off its highly successful online operation, according to French magazine Challenge. The pop music station was founded by Pierre Bellanger and added…

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Vivendi (EPA: VIV) SA and Activision (NSDQ: ATVI) announced plans for a merger valued at $18.9 billion that would bring together Guitar Hero, Spider-Man X-Men, and World of Warcraft, among…

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Newswire Agence France Press (AFP) has bought a minority stake in Scooplive, a French citizen journalism portal that gives contributors commission on contributions sold to news media. The size of…

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France Telecom (NYSE: FTE) chief executive Didier Lombard said he expects Orange to sell nearly 100,000 iPhones by the end of 2007, reports Bloomberg. “The target is a little under…

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French audience survey company Médiamétrie is entering the race to capture data tracking consumers’ complete media usage habits. In early 2008, the company will begin expanding its ratings coverage with…

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Europe’s third-ranked online ad group Hi-Media has finally rubber-stamped its 65.8 million euro acquisition of photo sharing community Fotolog. At a general meeting on Thursday, over 32 percent of Hi-Media’s…

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If US digital liberties campaigners think they’ve got it bad with an RIAA so active in lobbying digital copyright policy, wait until they hear about France’s next move. President Nicolas…

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Vivendi, (EPA: VIV) which announced its strangely-named portal last week, has now announced that Zaoza will launch in January, and the site will be a provider of music, ringtones, games…

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Vivendi (EPA: VIV) will this week test a “content and services platform” website that, whilst secretive, could be a direct-to-consumer online TV outlet. “Zaoza”, “a major project”, will be “a…

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The European Commission is increasing its funding for video-on-demand and digital cinema distribution projects to meet higher-than-expected demand, Variety reports. The commission’s Media programme recently approved 4.9 million euros (£3.4…

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In last decade, ad holding companies touted the idea of “unbundling” their services, allowing clients to pick and choose their creative, media buying and planning, branding and other marketing tools…

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Lycos Europe has sold its eight percent stake in France’s Best Of Media to Alter Finance Capital for 1.7 million euros (£1.2 million). Best Of Media is the publisher behind…

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Germans will get bragging rights to owning the iPhone before UK customers this Friday. The Deutsche Telekom (NYSE: DT) store at Schildergasse in Cologne will open at 12.01am CET (1.01am…

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So the Pearson-LVMH deal has finally happened, after months of back and forth and protests: French luxury goods group LVMH has signed an agreement to buy the French business paper…

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Consumer electronics firm Audiovox is buying French electronics maker Thomson’s non-European audio video business for $19.7 million. The sale includes the once-storied RCA brand, and includes DVD and MP3 players,…

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The delayed announcement of Orange selling the iPhone in France has finally come through—much the same details as in Germany (399 euros (US$565)) and rumors of Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) getting…

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