Amazon Withdraws from Paris Book Fair, Accused of "Flooding Market with AI-Generated Fake Books"

2026 Paris Book Fair Promotional Poster. Image from the official Paris Book Fair website.

According to reports from The Guardian and other media outlets in the UK, recently, the French Booksellers Association accused Amazon, the online retailer, of attempting to “flood the market with fake AI-generated books.” After the association launched a boycott and sparked ongoing controversy, Amazon announced it would withdraw its sponsorship of the Paris Book Fair.

The Paris Book Fair, known in France as “Paris Livre,” is the largest literary event in France. Last year, the event attracted approximately 114,000 visitors and readers. This year’s Paris Book Fair is scheduled to take place from April 17 to April 19 local time. Following the controversy, the event organizers and Amazon negotiated and decided to end their partnership.

The organizer, Paris Livres Événements (an organization affiliated with the French Publishers Association), stated that the cooperation had been terminated due to “hostility towards Amazon as a sponsor.” The organizers explained that this decision was made to avoid potential “serious disruptions” and to protect the interests of 450 participating organizations and an estimated 120,000 visitors.

The controversy originated from the French Booksellers Association. Representatives from independent bookstores across France had earlier announced a boycott of the event after Amazon declared its participation as a sponsor.

For a long time, the French Booksellers Association has been critical of Amazon, believing that its business model is undermining the stability of the book industry. According to The Bookseller in the UK, the association’s statement accused Amazon of trying to “flood the market with fake AI-generated books, driven by fake reviews and fake readers, and climbing to the top of fake charts.” They argued that, at a time when human authors are striving to protect their works from AI encroachment, such practices are particularly alarming.

In response to these accusations, an Amazon spokesperson stated in a statement that withdrawing sponsorship was a reluctant decision: “We are deeply disappointed by the French Booksellers Association’s clearly biased actions based on unfounded and misleading claims.” Amazon added that to “avoid fueling this absurd controversy,” the company decided to withdraw its sponsorship.

References:

(1) Amazon pulls sponsorship from Paris book festival after booksellers’ association boycott

(2) Thanks to a group of booksellers, Amazon is pulling out of the Paris Book Fair.

Translation by / Li Yongbo