The Grasset affair has reached Parliament. On Wednesday, June 10, the upper house examined a cross-party bill on relations between authors and publishers—a text sponsored by Senators Laure Darcos (Horizons) and Sylvie Robert (Socialist Party). At the heart of the debates: the demand, widespread in the publishing world since the controversial dismissal of Olivier Nora as head of Grasset, for a "conscience clause" allowing authors to terminate their contracts under certain circumstances, modeled on the one afforded to journalists. Nora's dismissal is attributed to Vincent Bolloré, the main shareholder of Hachette, Grasset's parent company and the industry leader. While the bill was adopted in its broad outlines, this key amendment was rejected.
A "trust clause" supported by the minister, rejected by the right-wing senators
The amendment tabled by Senator Sylvie Robert stipulated that an author could terminate their contract in the event of a change in editorial policy or the arrival of a new majority shareholder, provided that these developments "harm their moral interests" or "seriously jeopardize their financial interests." "The legislature has a duty to act to protect authors in extreme cases, without destabilizing the economics of the publishing contract," the senator argued, according to Le Monde. Minister of Culture Catherine Pégard, while calling for "great caution, without giving in to the impatience of current events," nevertheless gave a favorable opinion on the amendment, appreciating its "strictly controlled" wording and reiterating that termination would remain subject "to the discretion of a judge." However, the right and centrist parties rejected the proposal. “This amendment alters the essential balance of the publishing contract,” worried Max Brisson (LR), denouncing, according to Le Monde, a “media response.” Several senators nevertheless indicated that the measure could be reintroduced during the examination of the text in the National Assembly.
Guaranteed minimum rights, more frequent surrenders: measures adopted without resistance
On the other hand, the bill was adopted without difficulty. Among the concrete advances: the establishment of a guaranteed minimum legal royalty payment, which the publisher must pay no later than the submission of the final manuscript—to "put an end to situations where the author had to wait for the first sales to receive their initial royalties," the text specifies. The frequency of "remittances"—the sales report that triggers royalty payments—will also be increased, and the payment period once this report is submitted will be reduced from six to three months. Finally, the author's remuneration will now be systematically calculated based on the retail price, eliminating alternative calculation methods deemed "more opaque" by the Senate.
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