"As anyone following U.S.-EU trade relations will quickly discover, France and the United States are prone to butting heads. Whether it's because of French ambivalence toward capitalism in general (especially the American variety) or just good old-fashioned economic self-interest, Franco-American disputes are often at the heart of U.S.-EU quarrels. This latest round of talks is no different, with the French consistently threatening to veto any agreement that fails to make an exception for French cultural subsidies, especially in music and film.
French foot-dragging on the subject is part of a government policy called "the cultural exception," which seeks to protect French language, art, and culture from what the country's leaders view as the increasing dominance of American culture and the English language. For their part, the United States fears a "give them an inch, they'll take a mile" scenario in which European countries scramble to protect favored domestic industries, defeating the entire purpose of the talks. Last month, EU ministers struck a deal to exclude France's audiovisual sector from the U.S-EU free trade agreement -- but the threat of a French veto will continue to loom over negotiations.
Where your sympathies lie in this dispute may depend on your film preferences. Which sounds more entertaining: minimalist, black-and-white meditations on adolescence, or exploding CGI robots?"
http://blog.foreignpolicy.com/posts/2013/07/09/biggest_free_trade_disputes_united_states_european_union
I'm one of the dozen or so Americans who hasn't the slightest interest in seeing exploding CGI robots on the big or small screen. Unfortunately, the U.S. may gets it way, with little European solidarity with France on this issue.
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