Amazon steps back from Paris Book Fair amid booksellers’ boycott

Amazon has withdrawn its sponsorship of the Paris Book Fair after the French booksellers’ association Syndicat de la Librairie Française (SLF) announced a boycott of the event.

The Paris Book Fair, scheduled to take place from April 17 to 19, 2026 will be held without the support of the American online retailer. The decision to terminate the partnership was made jointly by the event organizers and Amazon.

The conflict began after the SLF objected to the fair organizers’ partnership with Amazon. The group then said it would refuse to take part in the fair organized by Paris Livres Événements, a subsidiary of the French publishers’ association.

The SLF has been sharply critical of Amazon, arguing that it destabilises the book trade. In a statement reported by the Bookseller, it accused the company of seeking “to flood the market with fake AI-generated books, [which are] promoted by fake reviews, written by fake readers [and rise] to the top of fake rankings.”

The SLF also stated that Amazon poses ‘a serious threat to authors, publishers, and booksellers.’ 

“Amazon is not a friend of books. Its market power and aggressive expansion are seen as a major threat to authors, publishers and booksellers. The development of reading and book culture only suffers from Amazon’s expanding influence,” representatives of the association emphasized.

As a result, the Syndicat de la Librairie Française announced that it would not participate in the 2026 Paris Book Fair and called on booksellers, book industry professionals, and readers to join the boycott.

“We are deeply disappointed by this partisan manoeuvre by the SLF,” an Amazon spokesperson said in a statement. “Building on ungrounded and misleading claims, [it] hijacks the event for its own benefit and diverts it from its legitimate ambition – namely the celebration of reading, readers and authors.”

The organizers of the salon explained that they had terminated their cooperation with Amazon because of “hostility towards the company’s presence as a sponsor.”

The Salon du Livre in Paris is France’s largest book fair, traditionally held at the huge Porte de Versailles exhibition center and attracting over 150,000 visitors from around the world. In 2026, about 450 exhibitors are expected to participate in the Paris Book Fair, and the number of visitors, according to the organizers’ estimates, could reach 120,000.

In 2022, Ukraine participated in the Paris Book Fair with a national stand under the slogan “Ukraine: The beating heart of Europe.” 

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Source: The Guardian

Main image: Pierre Albouy/Palexpo

Copy editing: Ben Angel