Strike call at AP France news agency 26/03/2008 00:00

Unions at AP France, the French-language service of the US news agency Associated Press, have called for a 24-hour strike.

   PARIS, March 27, 2008 - Unions at AP France, the French-language
service of the US news agency Associated Press, have called for a 24-hour
strike for Thursday against a takeover plan.
   Protesting staff accuse French industrialist Vincent Bollore and former AFP
chairman Bertrand Eveno, who filed a joint takeover bid for AP France in
December, of planning to create a "low-cost news agency".
   The Bollore group has interests ranging from transport and international
logistics to packaging, energy distribution, ticketing machines, check-in
terminals and the media.
   It owns a private television channel Direct 8, and two free-sheet
newspapers, Direct Matin Plus ans Direct Soir.
   AP management says it decided to part with its French news operation --
which employs 25 full-time journalists and about 60 freelancers -- because of
"chronic losses".

AFP