Laetitia Vitaud
“Digital Sovereignty” can’t be about an OS “made in France”
The phrase “digital sovereignty” has been all the rage in France since Skyrock CEO Pierre Bellanger first introduced it in 2011: “digital sovereignty is the mastery of our present and our fate as expressed in the use of tech and computer networks”. “No national sovereignty is possible without digital sovereignty. The Internet is a global network entirely […]
Does cheaper labor translate to a better startup ecosystem?
The bulk of President Hollande’s economic policy, which was named the “responsibility pact”, consists in helping to lower French labor costs by cutting employers’ contributions to the French Social Security scheme. Lower labor costs are supposed to make the French manufacturing industry (and thus the French economy!) more competitive, and therefore help to curb unemployment and make everything better. […]
Why France is losing the fight for the future of the Energy Sector
France’s neo-colbertist tradition and the government’s hands-on approach to economic subjects have long favoured powerful national corporate champions. And Economics Minister Arnaud Montebourg’s decisions and policies have really fit that tradition. The French just seem more eager than other European countries, for example, to prevent their corporate champions from being taken over by foreign firms. France […]