The French government will delay the potential introduction of a tax on new smartphones and connected devices until 2015, reports Le Monde.

Aurélie Filippetti, minister of culture and communications, is quoted as saying the measure is a “very good idea” but is unlikely to be included in a finance bill due to be debated in October. She expressed hopes that it would be implemented in 2015.

In May, a report by a government panel – formed to determine how France should adapt to continue its commitment to French-language culture in the digital era – recommended the introduction of the charge.

The money generated by the levy would be used to fund French cultural activities – such as art, film, music and literature – which are being threatened by the proliferation of online digital content.

Filipetti has previously stressed that the levy is a “contribution” which consumers only pay once, rather than a tax. The charge would be added to the cost of smartphones, computers, connected TVs, game consoles and eBook readers.

The levy would initially be 1 per cent of the device price, which would raise around €86 million per year. It could potentially be raised to 4 per cent of sale price.

The report said it is legitimate for the government to intervene to “correct excessive imbalances” in the digital economy and “to make actors that don’t directly exploit content, but which profit from its circulation, contribute to its creation”.

There has also been a proposal to tax suppliers of online video, such as Google’s YouTube.

The proposal is consistent with France’s ‘exception culturelle’ in which culture is treated differently to commercial products. The country funds film-making through taxation of TV companies and other distributors, while French music broadcasting is subject to quotas.

DigitalEurope, a lobbying group for smartphone makers in Brussels, has said the tax was “a move in the wrong direction”.