9 October 1996
PRESS STATEMENT

Following the news which appeared on the subject of taxes being imposed on computer terminals linked to the Internet and installed in public places, notably cyber-cafés, as part of the tax on amusement games and entertainment, François Fillon, Minister for Postal Services, Telecommunications, intervened to Alain Lamassoure, Minister for the Budget.

It is in fact a case of determining how much computer terminals linked to a network such as the Internet and installed in a public place should or should not be subject to the tax on amusement games and entertainment which is collected for the benefit of local communities, as is done for devices such as table football, pinball machines and video games.

While a complete investigation is under way, Alain Lamassoure and François Fillon decided to request that the relevant departments suspend their activities so as not to subject these devices to the tax on entertainment.

© Secretary of State for industry - France