Presented to the Council of Ministers on 10 November 2026, a government bill would require advertisers whose annual advertising budget exceeds one million euros to steer a share of their online spending towards general and political news (IPG) websites, capped at 10%. Championed by Culture Minister Catherine Pégard, it revives in a different form an idea swept away a few days earlier by the rejection of the revenue section of the budget. The text is only at the start of its passage through Parliament, and it is already dividing the industry: that same day, Jean-Luc Chetrit resigned as chairman of the ACPM, the body that certifies media audiences.
What the text would require of advertisers
The report of the Council of Ministers titles the text “strengthening advertising investment in online general and political news services”. It targets the main advertisers, public and private alike, with advertising spending above one million euros a year. The exact rate is not written into the law: a decree will set it, the bill merely laying down a 10% ceiling. Influencia specifies that this would be a decree issued after review by the Conseil d’État. According to CB News, the beneficiaries would be online press services recognised as IPG, that is, outlets covering the news on a permanent and continuous basis. The same outlet says the text must now go through the legislative process, with the executive having set no date for its examination in Parliament or for its entry into force.
The Media Leader provides several further details. The amount could rise gradually, advertisers would have to report on it in their management report, and a breach would expose the company’s executive to a €75,000 fine, with the company’s criminal liability also potentially engaged. The Conseil d’État reportedly issued an opinion without objection on 5 November. The scheme would affect the digital budgets of the roughly 3,000 largest advertisers and could bring in some €150 million for publishers, according to assumptions cited by Le Figaro. The magazine press would be excluded, Philippe Bailly (NPA Conseil) pointed out to Influencia.
Why a bill, one week after the budget
The idea is not new. It was among the proposals of the États généraux de l’information (national consultation on information) launched in October 2023. Above all, it had just been voted in a different form: on 2 November, during the first reading of the 2027 budget, MPs had passed an amendment tabled by the general rapporteur Philippe Juvin and co-signed by Jean-René Cazeneuve, among others. According to CB News, it provided for taxing large advertisers at 0.5% of their turnover, unless they steered up to 15% of their digital investment towards IPG online press.
Two days later, on 4 November, the National Assembly rejected the revenue section of the budget by 458 votes to zero, and the Senate inherited the government’s original version, LCP explains. The amendment disappeared along with it, hence the choice of a dedicated text, Influencia notes. Time is short: the Alliance de la presse d’information générale (APIG) wants the bill adopted before the end of February 2027, ahead of the break in parliamentary work linked to the presidential and legislative elections.
The diagnosis: digital advertising has left the press
The government justifies the measure by the decline in press advertising revenue for more than a decade and by the share of value captured by the big platforms. The figures cited vary from source to source. According to Influencia, the tech giants pocketed around €9.4 billion of the €12.4 billion French online advertising market in 2025, or 76%. The APIG white paper, cited by The Media Leader, puts the figure at 82% of online investment for 2026. The authors of the budget amendment pointed out, according to CB News, that publishers bear nearly 40% of the cost of producing general and political news while capturing less than 10% of advertising revenue.
The steering measure is part of a broader plan presented the same day, detailed by CB News: press subsidies maintained at €177 million in the 2027 budget, an extra €3 million for the Fonds stratégique pour le développement de la presse (strategic fund for press development), and a cut from 66% to 33% in the tax allowance granted to free video-sharing platforms.
A divided advertising industry
On the publishers’ side, the APIG, chaired by Marc Feuillée, supports a text that, in its view, creates no tax and costs the public purse nothing. Jean-Nicolas Baylet is pushing for a high rate: “Below 10%, it would be a shot in the dark,” he said, according to The Media Leader. On the other side, the Union des marques (French advertisers’ association) denounces an “unprecedented and dangerous” tax. The bill also faces hostility from the Le Monde group and the TV channels, and the Alliance de la radio regrets that its medium has been left out, according to The Media Leader.
The resignation of Jean-Luc Chetrit, who is also managing director of the Union des marques, illustrates the rift. In his letter, relayed by CB News, he contrasts the ACPM’s measurement mission with a distribution of budgets imposed by law, summed up in one phrase: “Measure rather than decree”. For advertisers, the main uncertainty remains the actual rate, left to the decree, and the timetable of a text that still has to go before both chambers.
Frequently asked questions
Which companies would be affected by the advertising steering measure?
Those whose annual advertising budget exceeds one million euros, public and private alike, or around 3,000 companies according to The Media Leader. Small advertisers remain outside the scope of the text.
What share of their budget would they have to devote to the press?
A share of their digital advertising purchases, set by decree, which may not exceed 10%. The rate has not been announced and could increase gradually.
When could the measure apply?
No application date has been set. The bill must be debated in Parliament, and publishers want it adopted before the end of February 2027.
Sources
- Compte rendu du Conseil des ministres du 10 novembre 2026 — Élysée (primary source), 2026-11-10
- Publicité : le Gouvernement veut obliger les gros annonceurs à investir dans la presse en ligne — CB News, 2026-11-11
- Le gouvernement veut flécher la pub digitale vers la presse — The Media Leader, 2026-11-12
- Fléchage publicitaire : le gouvernement présente son projet de loi, Jean-Luc Chetrit démissionne de la présidence de l'ACPM — Influencia, 2026-11-10
- PLF 2027 : les députés votent un fléchage des investissements publicitaires vers la presse en ligne — CB News, 2026-11-03
- Budget 2027 : l'Assemblée rejette à l'unanimité la partie recettes du projet de loi de finances — LCP, 2026-11-04
- Le ministère de la Culture dévoile son plan pour rééquilibrer la concurrence entre médias et plateformes — CB News, 2026-11-12
- Jean-Luc Chetrit claque la porte de la présidence de l'ACPM — CB News, 2026-11-11